The year 2020 has been one of uncertainty for all companies. No one was prepared for the worldwide economic shut down that was going to hinder the progress of so many businesses.
As COVID-19 continues to threaten the financial stability of organizations, the only thing left to do is ensure that you are properly prepared if your country goes into lockdown again.
One of the consequences of the virus was that businesses were forced to operate online. A lot of companies either went out of business because they didn’t have a digital presence, or they did not have the capital to sustain progressive marketing in this arena.
Therefore, to ensure the same mistakes are not made in 2021, it is essential that businesses have a clear understanding of the most effective digital marketing strategies to follow in 2021. Additionally, it is important to mention that most of these strategies are not new, but an improvement of what’s already available.
User Experience (UX)
The user experience is probably the most important aspect of a digital marketing strategy because if potential customers don’t get what they need from you, they will immediately move onto the next website.
When it comes to search engine optimization (SEO) the user experience is becoming an essential element when it comes to getting ranked on search engines.
According to Google’s major update on May 2020,the Internet giant will takes into deeper consideration ‘UX signals’ when ranking websites. The good news is that companies can now take advantage of website traffic software that companies can use to monitor the user experience.
Content Marketing
Now that millions of companies are scrambling to dominate their industries online, content marketing has never been so important. Understanding the needs of your target audience has always been a critical element of marketing, but now that competition is getting fiercer, in 2021, it is going to be even more important.
Instead of churning out content in hopes that it will convert visitors into buyers, invest in some market research and find out exactly what your target audience is looking for. In this way, you can almost guarantee that the people who come across your content will become loyal customers.
Video Marketing
A strong digital marketing strategy will definitely give you a major competitive advantage in 2021. Research suggests that 92% of marketers state that video is essential, this is a 78% increase since 2015, which highlights how important video marketing is.
The main reasons why it is so highly regarded is that it provides a high Return On Investment. In other words, consumers are more likely to buy your products when they see a video. Furthermore, it has been estimated that in 2021, the average person will spend approximately one hundred minutes per day watching online videos.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Search Engine Optimization involves gaining as many visitors to your website as possible by ensuring that it appears at the top of search engine results.
SEO targets unpaid traffic through the use of specific keywords added to your website and content. When your website and content contains the right keywords, Google is more likely to show your website to users when they enter keywords as a part of their search criteria.
One of the most effective marketing tools is Google. Think about this for a minute, when you want to buy a product and you are not sure what website to check, the first thing you do is run a Google search and then click on one of the top three options. In some cases, you might scroll down further, but it is rare that you will go onto the next page.
Studies confirm this; according to Forbes93 percent of online experiences start with a search engine such as Google, Bing or Yahoo. As you are probably aware, Google is the most popular search engine, and it dominates over 70 percent of the search engine market.
Every month, month, over one billion people use Google. Out of those one million users, only 25 percent of them go to the second page, this indicates that 75 percent of users only click through the results on the first page.
The bottom line is that if you want to succeed in your industry, you need to get onto the first page of Google search results, and search engine optimization is one of the best ways to do this. But the reality is that Google is constantly changing their algorithms, and so you will need an expert to assist you in the process.
Semantic Search
A semantic search looks at several so that a search engine can provide the user with the most accurate result. These variables include.
- Words and their relationship.
- The context of the query.
- Intent of the searcher.
Additionally, search engines will also take into consideration the searchers intent by evaluating factors such as.
- Spelling variations.
- Global search history.
- User location.
- User search history.
For example, if you have just made 25 searches for Labrador dogs and then you do a search for Mac Computers. Google will make the assumption that what you are really interested in is Labrador dogs. So why this important to digital marketing?
Because semantic search has an affect on SEO? If your content is not clear and concise and does not answer the question at the start of an article, you will lose that potential customer. In other words, it’s Googles way of weeding out the garbage. The bottom line is create engaging and relevant content and you will be just fine.
Final Thoughts
If you are new to digital marketing, all this might be a bit confusing. In this article, you have read about the top five digital marketing strategies that your business should follow in 2021, this is not a mandate to follow all of them.
We would advise that you spend some time experimenting because you might find that video marketing is more effective than content marketing or vice versa. Either way, do not neglect to nail down your digital marketing strategy, or one thing is for sure, you will get left behind in 2021.
