Only 58% of marketers feel that they are often successful in achieving their marketing goals. That means that close to half of marketers put in all that effort into digital marketing only to achieve subpar results they’re unhappy with.
Even though digital marketing spending is expected to reach almost $400 billion in 2021, a lot of that money is wasted because companies still don’t know how to run effective campaigns and cater to the needs of their audience.
The trends in digital marketing are continually evolving, but there are some common issues businesses face that are especially relevant in 2021 and beyond.
With that in mind, let’s look at some of the most common and devastating digital marketing mistakes you should avoid in 2021.
Not Understanding Your Audience
Audience research is a key pillar of any successful marketing campaign. Many companies assume that they have a solid vision of who they’re trying to reach, but in reality, they are usually relying on assumptions and skewed data, which results in an underwhelming performance of campaigns.
For instance, many businesses fear missing out on more sales by targeting an audience that’s too narrow. Because of that, they end up broadening their reach, making their campaigns more generic, and trying to appeal to everyone.
Unfortunately, instead of increasing sales, that usually makes the company irrelevant to everyone. People looking for solutions don’t want a cookie-cutter product but are looking for something that feels like it was designed just for them.
Another common issue is not gathering enough data about your ideal customers. Grabbing and maintaining attention online is now more difficult than ever, so the only way to cut through all that noise is to know your buyers on a deeper level and tapping into their biggest fears and desires.
And that’s where certain tools can be helpful.
By using a business intelligence tool like ZoomInfo or some of the more prominent ZoomInfo alternatives, you can not only find more qualified leads but also understand how to best approach them.
These types of tools allow you to gain more control over how you reach out to prospects, giving you all the information you need to create relevant messaging and boost your sales as a result.
Relying Too Much on Paid Ads
Paid ads are easy to get excited about. If used correctly, they can send a flood of new customers to your site in a few hours, generating a ton of new sales and allowing you to scale your campaigns with a push of a button.
Unfortunately, even though that’s exactly how many novice business owners envision paid ads, the reality is usually much more complicated.
For one thing, paid advertising on platforms such as Google or Facebook is becoming more saturated, with thousands of companies competing for the attention of the same audiences.
Naturally, competition tends to raise prices and tighten margins, so only the very best can usually run sustainable and profitable campaigns that generate good results.
Now, that’s not to say that you should forego paid ads altogether. They still have a place in almost any digital marketing strategy and can help maintain a stable flow of customers, especially if you have a backend marketing strategy in place.
But instead of just running endless paid campaigns on social media, you should try to build an organic presence as well. Although there’s talk about organic reach diminishing, it’s still a viable strategy that can help you build a loyal following in a much more affordable way.
And the best news is, today’s tools enable you to have a strong social media presence without having to spend hours per day managing your accounts.
With the help of social media management software, you can schedule instagram posts, capture conversations, track your followers, and generate insightful reports, which will provide you all the tools necessary to build a sustainable and effective social media strategy.
As your following starts to grow, you won’t have to rely as much on paid ads to spread your message on social media and can begin focusing on content to generate more leads through the free network of followers that you have created.
Not Having a Backend Strategy
Acquiring new customers can cost as much as seven times more than selling to existing ones. But unfortunately, many companies don’t have a viable strategy for engaging their customers past the initial sale.
And that means that the entire business is dependent on continually generating new leads every single month. Any disruption to that process can significantly impact the revenue, which is not a position you want to find yourself in.
To avoid it, having a way to sell more products to people who have already purchased from you should be at the top of your list of priorities.
For starters, you should map out an entire funnel for your audience, not just until the initial sale but until at least the second and third potential purchases they could make.
That will require you to look at your audience and your selection of products and think about how one item might complement the other. Ideally, your products would help overcome various challenges in people’s lives, and the next product that you offer would be the natural progression they would be ready to take.
Another crucial part of the backend of the funnel is, having a way to communicate with your audience.
If you could get your first-time buyers to become subscribers to your mailing list, you could offer value and build excitement towards other products in your selection.
You could also announce new launches and new offers, generating a boost of sales whenever you need one and ensuring that your best customers are aware of what you have to offer.
Forgetting About UX and Social Proof
When putting together a marketing strategy, it’s easy to focus on the promotion channels or messaging. And that can result in other vital parts being overlooked.
For instance, even if you attract the right audience and have a relevant message, it might all be for nothing if your website isn’t fast, convenient to use, and readable on a mobile device.
With people becoming more aware of the risks associated with online shopping, sending the right message with your design elements and website UX has become more critical than ever before. And that extends beyond the things we discussed above.
You also need to have a strong and authentic brand presence that instills confidence and builds a stronger connection with your audience.
It’s essential to figure out how you can use social proof and the experiences of your previous customers to further alleviate any worries and give people the confidence they need to buy from you.
Finally, if you want to boost your digital marketing campaigns’ effectiveness, try to make your brand more known in your industry. You could do that using multiple methods, but posting relevant and authority-building content is probably the most reliable way of getting people to know and trust your brand.
Final Words
Digital marketing can be incredibly powerful, but you still need to understand how to execute it correctly if you want your business to generate sales on the web.
The mistakes outlined above are some of the more common issues businesses face, so if you can address them, you will be on the right track and will have a much higher likelihood of success.