Do you feel like marketing is a mystical creature that some people have seen, but every time you try to find it, it doesn’t show up for you?

Many small business owners feel this way because no matter how hard they try, or how much money they spend, marketing doesn’t work for them.

Unfortunately, this is compounded by the availability of not-so-good marketing advice, especially when you’re a newbie or not familiar with how SEO works.

 

Digital Marketing Basics to Know

There are basics of digital marketing you’ll want to understand before you jump into planning your marketing for the year. First, you’ll want to list your digital marketing assets, such as your website, blog, email list, and social media platforms. Next, you’ll want to create a digital marketing planner to map out what you will do for the month and year. Then you need to create content pillars or themes you’re going to talk about for the month ahead.

 

Avoid the Marketing Pitfalls

Especially if you’re new to entrepreneurship or digital marketing, you’ll want to avoid marketing pitfalls to skip wasting time and effort on marketing tactics that won’t work. Here are the five biggest marketing mistakes you’ll want to avoid in 2023.

 

Marketing Pitfall #1: Forgetting Set Goals for Your Business

You’ll want to establish a goal first before you start marketing. Depending on your niche and lane, your goal could be client or product oriented. You may also have a sales goal. Whatever your profession, think of a relatively easy goal to achieve and write it down. Make sure your goal has a due date. If your goal is big, break your bigger goal down into micro-goals, so you have smaller checkpoints along the way to see if you’re on track to reaching your goal. If you’re not, you can scale back or decide to take a different marketing route to achieve your goal.

 

Marketing Pitfall #2: Marketing without a Plan

Many people will randomly post on Instagram, create a blog, or send out email marketing without any type of plan. Without a plan, you’re basically throwing mud against a wall, hoping it will stick. You want to create a plan with a theme for your monthly marketing, even if it’s simple. Make all your digital marketing content around that theme so you can track your data and see what’s working.

 

Marketing Pitfall #3: Assuming the Needs of Your Ideal Client or Customer

You may assume you know what your customer wants, but is it true? The only way to find out for sure is to create a survey asking your potential clients and leads what their biggest pain points are for them in their business. Then you can formulate a plan to help solve what they need.

 

Marketing Pitfall #4: Using Social Media to Sell

While social media platforms are a great way to showcase your products, your team, you, and your company culture, you’ll rarely sell your products on social media unless you’re specifically running an ad. Instead, use social media to familiarize your clients with your products, how they can solve their pain points, and show your brand personality so they make an emotional connection to you and your business.

 

Marketing Pitfall #5: Failing to Use Email Marketing

Email marketing, although it’s been around for a long time, is still the best way to market to your fans and leads. While email marketing is very popular, it’s also one of the few ways you can get your client’s undivided attention. First, showcase your products or services, educate your avatar, and include a freebie to download to show your appreciation. Then, make sure you choose a platform, such as Convertkit, to upload your clients’ emails and start sending them emails regularly.

 

When planning your marketing, and you want to be successful, make sure to avoid these marketing pitfalls. Then, think through your marketing for 2023 and devise a plan that makes your marketing a big success!