Do I Need A Digital Marketing Specialist?
Gone are the days of relying on a physical address and word of mouth alone to bring in new customers. Consumers want to be able to find information about a product or service quickly, easily, and most importantly, online. A major challenge that small to medium-sized businesses face is growth. These companies often rely on a band of “regulars” but struggle to branch out and constantly attract new customers. To stand out in a competitive market, your solutions have to match consumer behaviour if you want to increase conversions and drive website traffic. In this blog, you'll learn everything you need to know about a digital marketing specialist including the benefit to your company as well as tips for choosing the best specialist.
What is a digital marketing specialist?
To understand what a digital marketing specialist is, first you'll need to understand the basis of digital marketing. Digital marketing is a term used to encompass all forms of online advertising. This includes social media, email, search engine result pages (SERP), and paid advertising. This advertising is delivered through digital technology including phones, tablets, and computers. A digital marketing specialist, therefore, is an individual who is highly skilled with creating, executing, and tracking digital marketing strategies and campaigns. By identifying a company's target audience, brand image, and goals, digital marketing specialists can design personalized strategies to improve a company's online presence, leading to more customers and more sales.
What does a digital marketing specialist do?
A digital marketing specialists' overall goals will be aligned with your company goals. Whether you want to improve brand awareness, gain more followers, increase organic traffic, or launch a new product, your digital marketing specialist will work with you, creating strategies to ensure your company reaches new heights. The skillset of a digital marketing specialist varies greatly between specialists. Some specialists have expertise in one or two areas of digital marketing, such as pay per click (PPC) ads and search engine optimization (SEO). Other specialists have a more broad area of expertise which may include search engine marketing (SEM), SEO, content marketing, and even photo and video marketing. While both types of specialists are valuable, many clients prefer to work with companies that have a more broad range of services as it allows them to address a variety of areas that may be limiting their company growth. Some of the most common services a digital marketing specialist can provide include:
Content Marketing
Content marketing involves creating content, also called copy, for use in blogs, newsletters, emails, ads, and social media accounts. Content has many purposes and can encourage visitors to engage (by liking, subscribing, or sharing), purchase a product or service, and can also increase brand awareness. Guest blogging is particularly helpful for growing your company’s visibility. One of the most integral uses of content creation is for a business blog. Blogs are used to increase a company's online presence, establish them as an authority in their niche area, and most importantly, drive organic website traffic. This type of marketing has an excellent return on investment (ROI) as properly created blogs provide continuous traffic for years to come.
Search Engine Marketing (SEM)
SEM is a type of internet-based marketing that improves a website's visibility and performance in search engine result pages (SERP). SEM includes both paid and unpaid methods of advertising and can therefore be broken down into SEO and Paid Search.
SEO is a way to increase website visitors by focussing on improving specific page rankings in search engine results. This can include optimizing specific parameters such as meta titles, meta descriptions, and headings, as well as text in blog posts, website pages, and URLs.
Paid Search
Paid search is advertising within the sponsored area of a search engine result or partner page. You'll pay when viewers click on your add (PPC) or when your ad is displayed. The later is known as cost per thousand or cost per mile (CPM) advertising but is less common than PPC advertising.
Social Media Marketing
Social media marketing is a form of marketing achieved through social media accounts such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Digital marketing specialists can determine which platforms are best suited for your business and target audience and can set up social media campaigns with goals aligned with your company goals. Social media marketing can also incorporate PPC advertising on social platforms. Essentially, a digital marketing specialist can help you create a social media strategy and put it into action.
Photography & Videography
Photography and videography are not always used by digital marketing specialists as it's an additional skill set that many do not possess. However, both are essential in an online world where consumers rely on online presence to legitimize a company. Photos and videos increase brand awareness, increase engagement, and represent your company as established and professional – not to mention the excellent ROI it provides.
Who can benefit from a digital marketing specialist?
The short answer; everyone. With that said, most business owners are absolutely swamped with work and they find it overwhelming to even think about digital marketing. Whether you've never thought about digital marketing, or have thought about it but haven't had the time to get it started, there is no time like the present. If you've ever gone on a trip, you've likely spent countless hours online trying to plan each trip decision. From the rental company you'll use, to the hotel you'll stay at, to the excursions you'll book, you'll view tons of companies before you eventually settle on your picks. In doing so, you'll likely review company websites, reviews, photos, videos and you may have even read blogs to find out the best hikes in the area or the best hotel to stay in. The point is, when deciding which products or services to purchase, you rely on a company's online presence. So do your potential customers. Digital marketing is a way to get you front and center where your customers can find you. If you can't be found online, you're likely missing a huge client base that can take your company to the next level. An excellent digital marketing specialist has the skills, tools, and experience necessary to grow your company.
Is a digital marketing specialist right for me?
By understanding who a digital marketing specialist isn't for, you can easily determine if they are a good fit for you. Simply put, if you're not willing to spend the time or money required to work with a digital marketing specialist, then using one is not right for you. Sometimes business owners are just looking for a few quick tricks and tips and overnight results, but the truth is, digital marketing takes time, and a lot more effort than say, posting once a week on a social media account. Once a digital marketing specialist has understood your brand, audience, and goals, they'll be taking the reins and you can mostly sit back and watch the results roll in. If, however, you're the type of person that feels like you already know everything and that your company has perfected all the aspects of digital marketing, then a digital marketing specialist is also not suited for you. Similarly, if you're the type of business owner that is bored and has endless time on their hands, perhaps you could learn the basics, but you'd still be missing the years of experience that a good digital marketing specialist possesses. On the other hand, if you believe that you can always learn something, and would like to improve your sales, a digital marketing specialist is essential. The good news is that your specialist will be taking a massive weight off of your shoulders. A professional digital marketing specialist will have a large skillset so all of your marketing needs can be met in one place.
5 Qualities to look for in a digital marketing specialist
Technical expertise.
First and foremost, you want to ensure the digital marketing specialist you choose is experienced with the technical tools necessary to research, execute, and analyze campaigns. Here are some tools every digital marketer should be using:
Keyword research tools
Examples: Ahrefs, Google Keyword Planner, Moz Keyword Explorer, and SEMrush.
Analytics Tools.
Examples: Google Analytics, Google Search Console, Hootsuite Analytics, Facebook Analytics, YouTube Analytics.
Social Media Tools.
Examples: Hootsuite, Sprout Social, Sendible.
Advertising tools.
Examples: Google Ads, Facebook Ads, Instagram Ads, YouTube Ads.
2. Solid knowledge base.
An excellent digital marketing specialist will understand a wide variety of terms relevant to the digital marketing world. There is a totally different language when it comes to digital marketing, from A/B testing to KPIs to PPC to USPs – whoever you choose should be able to talk the talk as much as they can walk the walk.
3. Experience.
It's great to understand marketing tools and be able to differentiate between marketing terms, but without experience creating videos, writing blogs, and running campaigns, there is no way of knowing if your marketer can actually provide you with the results they promise. For this reason, it's important to ensure your specialist is experienced in each and every service they are offering. Don't hesitate to ask how long they have been in the business for and what results they have achieved to help you make your decision.
4. Free consultation.
You wouldn't purchase a car without test driving it, so don't sign up for digital marketing services without talking with the company you're interested in hiring. Having a conversation with a specialist will enable you to discuss your expectations and company goals to see if the services the specialist can provide will take your company where you want it to go. Most importantly, this initial discussion shouldn't cost you anything, so look for companies that are willing to chat with you without charging you right off the bat.
5. Transparent pricing.
Once you've had an initial chat with a digital marketing specialist, make sure they provide you with an accurate quote for their services. If they are not willing to provide you with a quote beyond “$500+”, look elsewhere. A reputable company will be able to craft an individualized quote or send you their package prices after learning what services you'd like. If a company is unwilling to provide you with an estimated cost, they may be hiding additional costs or fees associated with their services. If that's the case, what else are they not being honest about? You want to work with a company that is upfront about the costs associated with their services.
Would you like us to help you grow your company?
Click here to schedule your free 20-minute consultation.