DBC Digital | Plumb Marketing Services
  • Expertise
    • Digital Marketing
    • Video Marketing
    • Website Design
    • Creative Studio
    • Print and Mailing Services
      • Marketing Express Program
  • Work
  • About
  • Blog
  • Contact
    • Free Consultation
    • Refund and Delivery Policies
    • Terms of Service
  • Upload Your Files
DBC Digital | Plumb Marketing Services
  • Expertise
    • Digital Marketing
    • Video Marketing
    • Website Design
    • Creative Studio
    • Print and Mailing Services
      • Marketing Express Program
  • Work
  • About
  • Blog
  • Contact
    • Free Consultation
    • Refund and Delivery Policies
    • Terms of Service
  • Upload Your Files

Archive for INTERNET MARKETING – Page 11

Posted by DBC Digital on
 February 16, 2012

5 Strategic Goals That Will Drive Your Content Marketing Success

It’s true—content is king, but…

While it’s true that quality, compelling content attracts visitors, builds authority and converts leads into sales like nothing else, there’s a deep, dark secret about web content that only smart and savvy Denver-area marketers know…

Content without a strategy is useless.

If you don’t have a plan for your content, it can’t help you achieve your goals and objectives.  On the other hand, if you build your copy around a content marketing strategy, it can make things happen in a big way.

 

Here are 5 essential goals that drive content marketing success:

 

1.  Establish trust and authority with your audience.

This is listed number one for a reason.  Without trust, potential buyers will walk away from you—and fast.  So, your content must be transparent and problem-solving.  It must put their needs first.  It must prove that you have real answers to their questions.

 

Today’s savvy consumers demand respect.  Content that drifts into self-serving “I am great, buy my stuff” type of content will not work with them—e-v-e-r.

 

2. Address their pain points

Let’s face it—for the most part, what motivates people to act is their problem, the issue that needs to be resolved.  A contractor looking for a more efficient way to communicate with employees in the field wants to know how your products will make that happen.  A parent concerned about the security of her family needs to know how you will make her feel safe.

 

Listen to what your audience is saying.  Ask questions and invite feedback.  Only when your content marketing plan addresses the right pain points will it be able to convert leads into sales.

 

3. Break down barriers

With every solution comes a possible reason why it won’t work, and most likely, your buyers have already thought of it.  When someone is looking to make a purchase, part of the process involves exploring potential problems.  These obstacles could prevent people from completing a transaction.

 

When planning your content marketing strategy, think as your readers do.  Keep in mind all possible objections to the purchase and address them in your content.  Will a high initial cost cause hesitation?  Show them how they can save money in the long run.  Does your product seem difficult to use?  Include a demo video to show how easy it is to use.  Minimize concerns by including examples of how others have found success with you.

 

4. Point out benefits

Pain and obstacles are negative points that need to be addressed.  But, don’t forget to illustrate the benefits of your offerings.  This is a good place to use the “show, don’t tell” approach.  It’s easy to wax poetic about how great you are, but this isn’t what people are looking for.  They want hard proof.

 

Rather than describe the product, describe the user experience.  Rather than talk about the service, talk about what the user will ultimately get out of it.

 

Use white papers, articles, videos and eBooks to illustrate problems and how you can solve them.  Without mentioning your company or services, you can let them know get it.  You are the source for what they need.

 

5. Optimize for search engines

This is listed last for a reason.  SEO is an important aspect of your content marketing strategy and should not be neglected.  But, always remember when creating content that search engines will only notice you if people do first.  People will only notice you (and share you with others) if your content is written for them.

 

So, resist the urge to put SEO first in your list of content goals.  If people find value in your content, the search engines will soon follow.

 

Categories : INTERNET MARKETING, STRATEGY
Posted by DBC Digital on
 January 23, 2012

7 Guaranteed Ways to Improve Your landing Page Success

 7 Guaranteed Ways to Improve Your landing Page Success

guaranteed_seal

When it comes to your landing pages, success is measured by conversion rates.  These pages are designed to get people to act; therefore, it’s critical that they be optimized for action.

Here are 7 essential ways to make your landing pages work harder for you.  Professional landing page design for your Denver business is the first step.  How do you get the best results?  Be sure to pay attention to these fundamentals:

1. Define the purpose of each page

When designing your pages, you need to define the conversion activity you want for each page.  Do you want the visitor to subscribe to a newsletter?  Download an ebook?  Fill out a form?  All elements on the page—including creative, content and formatting—should be designed to drive this specific action and nothing else.

2. Keep it focused

Keeping your pages focused will help your visitors stay focused, as well.  Remember, you want to prevent wandering away from the purpose.  So, eliminate unnecessary elements such as ads and navigation bars.  Unless something on the page is necessary or helpful to the conversion process, get rid of it!

 

3. Match headlines and creative elements

Your visitors are arriving at your landing pages through some kind of ad or call to action.  Here’s a tip: match the headline and/or verbiage from your ad to the headline on your landing page.  This tells visitors that they are at the right place, and lets them know what you want them to do.

 

4. Stay “above the fold”

In web design, the important stuff goes above the fold—that is, the space you can see without scrolling.  When visitors have to scroll down to see the offer, conversion rates tend to slip.  Why?  Scrolling, much like confusing navigation or too many clicks and links, requires an extra action that people just don’t want to take.

And, anything below the fold runs the risk of being missed by viewers.  So make sure to place your important elements above the fold.  Better yet, consider editing your content to fit on one page.

 

5. Fix your forms

Making your forms user-friendly encourages people to fill them out.  Auto-populate fields wherever you can.  Remove unnecessary fields.  Don’t ask for too much information.  Shorten forms and make navigation simple.

 

6. Lead the eye

Your landing page design should lead the eye inevitably to the conversion exit.  This can be done in many ways.  Careful placement of content, use of white space, a compelling image and color choices will accomplish the goal of directing people to the desired action.

Be careful, though, that your design elements don’t distract the eye.  Important content and other design elements should be a focal point placed close to the middle like a visual funnel.  And, a great image is great, but make sure it’s not so great that it makes people forget why they are there!

 

7. Never stop testing

To be truly optimized, your landing page design must be constantly monitored for effectiveness.  Could it be better?  Simple A/B testing allows you to test different elements of your page against each other to see which performs better.  Use it to optimize each landing page until you get the conversion rate you’re looking for.

You can also create a checklist and test your pages with small user groups.  Are your pages focused?  Is the message consistent with the ads?  Have all distractions been removed?

To get you the conversion rates you want, your Denver business needs landing page design that is optimized, focused and consistently analyzed for effectiveness.   Keep these tips in mind and your landing pages will deliver results.

 

 

Categories : INTERNET MARKETING, WEBSITE DEVELOPMENT
Posted by DBC Digital on
 January 19, 2012

5 Powerful Ways To Develop Blogging Ideas

Most of our Denver-area clients may already know that blogging is a smart inbound (internet)marketing tool.  It adds fresh content to your site and SEO power to your web pages.  It draws viewers like a magnet.  Of course, if you’ve been blogging for a while, you also know that coming up with new ideas for topics can become a chore.

The bad news—if you don’t post fresh, creative content every few days, your traffic will take a nosedive.  The good news—there are many powerful ways to get inspiration for your blog content.  Here are just a few:

1.  Set up Google Alerts

Save time and energy by setting up alerts for topics of interest to your blog.  Google Alerts are email notifications that bring current news right to you, so that you can get new ideas quickly and easily.  Monitor topics and subtopics relevant to your industry and discover new sources of content without having to spend hours scanning the Web.

2.  Subscribe to other blogs

Find out which blogs are authorities in your niche and subscribe to them via RSS feed.  This is another great way to find out what others are saying about the topics that matter to you.  This not only short-cuts your search for new blog content, it also ensures that you’re staying on the cutting edge of your field.

3.  Engage with bloggers

Blogging is all about engagement, right?  Engaging with other bloggers boosts your own blog’s visibility and helps establish your credibility with others in your niche.  It’s also a rich source of ideas for content.  Use others’ blogs as a jumping-off point for your posts.  Rather than just comment and post a link to your site, add to the conversation.  You might be surprised by how much useful information (and inspiration) you’ll get from fellow bloggers.

4.  Set up an editorial calendar

Staying organized can help you squeeze more content from your topics, so consider setting up an editorial calendar.  An editorial calendar gives your blogging efforts structure, and keeps you from having to scramble for material at the last minute.  Make a list of your topics, then your subtopics.  Use the above ideas to add new subtopics daily or weekly.  Plan out and schedule your blog topics at least a week in advance, and you’ll never lack for fresh content.

5.  Ask for help

Does your business participate in social media marketing?  If so, you have a vast human resource at your fingertips.  Get blogging inspiration from your followers, friends and groups.  Solicit stories, post questions and encourage people to share their thoughts.  Some of the best blogs posts ever written were spawned from personal experiences, from controversy, and from the perspective that only conversation can generate.

Blogging ideas are everywhere—you just need to know where to look!  Don’t let writer’s block stop you from creating the next great blog post.  Try these ideas and before you know it, your blogs will be the “go-to” authority, the resource and the place bloggers come to when they need a little inspiration!

 

 

Categories : BLOGGING, INTERNET MARKETING, SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING, STRATEGY
Posted by DBC Digital on
 January 13, 2012

Website Design – Six Smart Ways to Improve Your Website Design

Your website is your online storefront, the place where deals get done and customer relationships are nurtured.  So, the importance of having a good site can’t be overstated.  At best, poor website design limits your potential; at worst, it actually drives away the very people you need and want the most—your potential buyers.

Is it time for a website upgrade?  If you’re a Denver-area business looking to improve your website success, consider these smart ways to attract traffic and make your site the place to be:

1.  Check browser compatibility
Yes, this is a technical aspect of good website design, but it needs to be addressed by you or your development team.  Plain and simple, if your site does not work with all browsers and operating systems, you’re losing business.

2.  Keep navigation simple and intuitive
We’ve all experienced them—the sites that are hard to use, with links that lead to nowhere and icons that don’t reveal their secrets until you’re hovering over them.  With the possible exception of useless content, nothing drives visitors away faster.  Trust us—you don’t want Mystery Meat Navigation on your site.  So, keep it simple and user-friendly.

3.  Include clear Calls to Action
Does your site lead visitors into the sales funnel?  No?  Well, one reason may be the lack of clear calls to action.  Any business owner in the Denver area looking for a website upgrade should take a look at their landing pages, and how well they get visitors to take the desired action.

What do you want people to do?  Action words such as download, buy, click and compare, in addition to consistent messaging and concise copy on these pages will deliver more click-throughs and conversions.

4.  Add valuable, updated content
Fresh content brings your visitors back for more.  It also scores big with search engines.  Update your site constantly and you’ll see better results with both.  A great way to do this is to add a company blog and/or article section that covers topics of interest in your industry, and post to these pages regularly.  Useful, optimized content converts your site into an authority, and a resource for information-seekers.

5.  Cross-promote
Website success doesn’t happen on its own.  Even a great site needs to be marketed, so it’s important to get the word out.  If you aren’t engaged in social media marketing, consider getting started.  Post blogs on other sites that link to your website.  Comment on others’ blogs.  Include links to your site on all of your marketing materials and communications.  Send out monthly newsletters to visitors who opt-in.

Overwhelmed?  If you need help with your website upgrade, consider hiring an experienced Denver-area website design and development company to handle the details.

6.  Rinse and repeat.
It’s a fact—the web is constantly changing, and so are the technologies that drive it.  You need to make sure that your site is keeping up with the times.  So, count on a web redesign about every 2 years or so.  A fresh, updated site not only attracts visitors, it also tells them that you’re on top of the game.  In other words, when your site looks good, you look good.

Website success is no accident—it takes careful planning and design and a willingness to constantly monitor results.  Your website upgrade doesn’t have to be painful or confusing, but it does need to get done.  So, if you’re a Denver-area site owner looking for better results, take a close and critical look at your site and fix the issues.  It’s one of the most effective ways to increase leads and sales, and make your business the place consumers want to be!

 

sherwood sig v5

 

 

 

greg_sherwood_photo_feb_2012_v8Greg Sherwood is CEO of DBC Digital, a marketing agency based in Denver, Colorado.  With over 30 years of marketing experience with traditional and inbound (internet) marketing, Greg helps mid-sized businesses get a better return on their marketing dollars.  

You can reach Greg at (303) 357-5757 or at dbc@dbcdigital.com

 

Categories : BRANDING, INTERNET MARKETING, PRINTING SERVICES, WEBSITE DEVELOPMENT
Posted by DBC Digital on
 November 30, 2011

Nine Questions That Will Help you Identify Your Perfect Client

Identifying Your Best Clients

One of the secrets to ensuring your success in inbound marketing and social media is to identify the “personas” that represent your “perfect” clients.  In other words, what are the characteristics of the client that will make you the most money and make you happiest?

You can have more than one perfect client persona, but generally you will not have more than four.

Defining your customer is as important to Colorado-based companies as defining your products or naming your business.

 

Nine Questions That Will Help You Identify Your Perfect Client

Answer the questions below as honestly as you can. Be careful not to project your expectations or hopes on to the answers. Be candid with yourself.  There is an old saying that goes: “If you think everyone is your client, then really, no one is.”  Be strict with yourself in this regard.  This will help you determine who your perfect, solid customer really is.

Hint: If you are not sure how to answer some of the questions, take a look at your customer list from the previous year and see who were your most profitable clients and then look for any common traits among them.

 

 

 

Here are the nine questions:

  • Is my ideal prospect a male or female?
  • Is this person a decision-maker or a support person?
  • What is the income-level of this person?
  • What is the level of education they typically have?
  • How does this person use the product or service I supply?
  • Can this person afford my product or service?
  • Does this person use my product or service themselves, or do they more often give it as a gift?
  • Where does this person look for support or validation that my product will work for them?  Friends, social media, website reviews, etc.

Once you have this written out, you will have a good picture of what to include on your website, ads, blogs and newsletters.

 

Now, Keep Your Answers In Mind

Each time you have an opportunity to create content for your site, or to communicate with your prospects, keep these “personas” in mind.  It will help bring clarity to your priorities and help make it easier to focus on the clients that will make you money and help you grow your business.

What are your thoughts?  Leave us your comments below, and we’ll write a follow-up post with  your input.

 

 

 

 

Questions or comments?  Give us a call at (303) 357-5757 or email us at dbc@dbcdigital.com

Categories : INTERNET MARKETING
« Previous Page
Next Page »

DBC Digital | Plumb Marketing Services
Copyright © 2025 All Rights Reserved

Privacy Policy

2899 S Santa Fe Drive, Unit 2
Englewood, CO 80110

(303) 357-5757

orders@plumbmarketing.com