There are approximately 3 billion people connected to the internet as I am writing this blog post (check out how many are connected right now here). All these people form the online world (a beautiful place, full of cat videos and DIY tips), by either communicating to relatives via email, having a Facebook account where they share funny videos or by doing online shopping. This is why nowadays more companies are investing in digital marketing.
It is therefore very important to have a strategy (or a plan of action) that will make you stand out and make sure that the message you are trying to deliver reaches your audience.
There are different reasons as to why you should have a strategy. Perhaps you wish to rebrand your organisation, advertise a new product, or find new ways to reach your audience online.
Five steps to implement a successful strategy
1 – Determine what your goal is. It may seem like something you don’t need to do – but do not underestimate the importance of this very first step. You want to make sure that your team is all in agreement and have the same objectives. You cannot possibly move forward if there are internal conflicts or misunderstandings. This could include something as simple as choosing how to advertise a product, to the complex decision of rebranding the whole company.
2 – Once you have agreed on what your aim is, the next step is to brainstorm. You must decide what needs to be done to go ahead with your plan in order to succeed. Brainstorming is very important, and it requires a good amount of time. To come up with great and creative ideas you need to get out of your comfort zone. Our advice is: stay away from your desk. Change the boardroom into a games room, go to the beach and take with you note pads and colorful pens, or simply go for a walk and get inspired by your surroundings. We tend to lose our creativity when we are sitting in front of a monitor, so get up and open up your mind.
3 – Choose a deadline. If we had all the time in the world, we wouldn’t get anything done. Pick a date, mark it on your calendar in BIG BOLD TEXT, put reminders on your phones and have sticky notes spread around the office with the date written on it. It’s essential to have a deadline, it allows you to manage your time and have a target to reach. Make sure that everyone is aware of the important date, and if needs be send some kind and funny reminders to your team – just in case all those colorful sticky notes aren’t enough.
4 – Once you and your team have an idea and have picked a deadline, you have to decide on how you are going to go about it. For example, you wish to organise a competition for your target audience so as to promote your product: how do you intend on doing it? Will you be using social media or will you organize an event?
5 – Who? It is now time to delegate the work. This will require time and discussion; you want to make sure that your team feels comfortable enough to run the task, they have clearly understood what they have to do and have enough time to get everything done in the most efficient way possible.
Ready, steady, go! Now that you have a strategy in mind, it is time to put it into action and show everyone what you are capable of doing.
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