Digital marketing can seem broad or even overwhelming. Especially for those who have spent years getting most of their business from relationships and aren’t great with a computer. This can raise a lot of questions but don’t worry someone from the marine service industry reached out to us asking the questions that you probably are looking for answers for.
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Hey, Savages! I’m in the Marine service industry and I see that you guys have tons of experience with marketing in this field. We have been in business for 60 years and most of our business today comes from the relationships that we have formed over the years. We want to expand so we decided that it was time to get into the digital marketing game. We aren’t the most tech-savvy guys so we have a few questions about how this all works.
Here they go:
- What exactly is Digital marketing and what would it do for me? 2. I hear about all the different aspects of marketing, social media posting, SEO, Ads, etc. But what works for my industry? Or is it best to use everything? Is there anything that I could do in-house? 3. What is the timeline for getting where I need to get? @ Hey! First off we are happy that you reached out to us for information regarding Digital Marketing. We will be elated to answer your questions to help you along your marketing journey.
What exactly is Digital marketing and what would it do for me?
To define what digital marketing is let’s simply take the word “Digital” out of the phrase.
According to Wikipedia, Marketing is defined as the business process of creating relationships and satisfying customers. Digital marketing is just that but it’s done online.@ There are different aspects of marketing. These aspects include:
- Social Media Marketing– marketing through social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc.
- Search Engine Optimization (SEO)– the act of increasing the quality of a website so that it’s more visible to users on search engines.
- Paid Digital Marketing– any form of advertising that is paid. Paid ads can be done on Google and most social media platforms.
- Content Marketing– the creation and distribution of content that is valuable to potential customers and will increase traffic to a website.
All of these different aspects perform different functions but they all have one common goal in mind. That is to increase the attention and profitability of your business.
The things that Digital Marketing can do is truly amazing. Marketing can:
- Grow your Market Reach
- Increase your market share
- Build strong relationships
- Analyze data
- Increase the attention that your business is getting – Increase your profits
You want to spend money on marketing but you only want to spend money on what works for your industry and is going to get you paid right? It also brings us to the question, what should you do yourself and what should you leave to the experts?
We have detailed the different aspects of marketing and listed their functions, we are going to discuss which strategies you should be using in your industry.
So we understand that you are in the Marine service industry and we have worked with plenty of players in your market. Most of their business also came from the relationships that they formed.
It\\’s great to use every aspect of marketing but there a few that you should be using. I’m going to list each marketing strategy and rank them from 1-5. 1 is what you won’t necessarily need to do and 5 being what is necessary for your industry.
I’m not saying that you shouldn’t use the low ranking strategies but maybe instead of paying a marketing agency to do it maybe you should do it yourself or have someone in-house to handle it.
Social Media Marketing
Rate: 2
We agree that a social media presence is necessary. But is it necessary for a marketing agency to handle your social media posting? Social Media is all about being in the now. Someone in-house could handle this since they are in the office and can catch content that is happening at the moment. A marketing agency should handle your paid ads because they are more technical and what brings in the dough for.
Think about this as well do most of your leads come from social media? In our experience, most of the leads in your industry come from the search engine organically or through paid ads.
Don’t get me wrong social media is extremely valuable in any business but the bottom line is you want to be where most of your leads come from.
Paid Advertising
Rate:5
Google Ads@ Paid Ads have proven to be the most effective marketing strategy for the marine service industry. Think about it, if someone is looking to get their boat repaired or ac serviced, they want to get it done immediately.
Where do people go to solve their problems? Google! They are going to search “Marine ac repair near me” and you want your business to be the first one they see in their results.
The idea is to bid on keywords that users are searching to seek help for their problems that your business solves. The key is to be very strategic because other companies are bidding in the space. This is the quickest way to see results from digital marketing but it requires money. The budget that you need varies from industry to industry.
Paid Ads on Social Media
Paid Ads on social media are also extremely valuable. These Ads work to grab the attention of potential customers on the social media platforms that they use the most. We have found that videos increase awareness when videos are used in Paid Social Media Ads, especially through our funnel strategies.
Rate: 4.5
If you don’t have a website we recommend one. A website is a must in today’s world. Even just having a website isn’t enough, you need traffic flowing to your website. Optimizing your website does just that. Most of your leads come from the search engine so you want to be the first one that your prospective customers see. This is needed in the marine industry and a marketing agency should be handing this or working with your marketing director.
Content Marketing
Rate: 4
Content Marketing goes hand and hand with Search Engine Optimization. Your website needs fuel and you must feed it content to keep it in good standing. Content makes your website more appealing to the search engine. Not only does it make your website more appealing, but it adds value for customers looking for more information before making a big financial investment.
Content includes: – Blogs – Videos – Podcasts – E-books – Case Studies – Articles – Newsletters – Testimonials A marketing agency should handle your content simply because it goes hand and hand with search engine optimization. It can also be very technical and we specialize in creating content that’s healthy for your website.
Timeline Certain aspects of marketing
take time such as SEO which can take 6-12 months. If you are looking for faster results, paid ads are your best bet because if someone interacts with a paid ad they are more likely to convert.
Conclusion
I hope that we answered your questions effectively and have helped you on your journey to more success in the field of Digital Marketing. If you have any questions feel free to hit us via email at [email protected] or call us at(954) 633-2963.
