Businesses must learn to personalize their digital assets in order to stay competitive. They must figure out how to use digital means to form connections that matter.
socialmediat oday.com http://socialmediatoday.com/chris-horton/981061/3-simple-ways-connect-your-target-audience? utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Social+Media+Today+(all+posts) 3 Simple Ways to Connect with Your Target Audience Given all of the tools at our disposal, I’m continually surprised by the lack of personal touch in most B2B and even B2C Internet marketing initiatives. Just because online marketing is a digital medium does not mean it has to be cold and impersonal; rather, as marketing continues its rapid shift online, businesses must learn to personalize their digital assets in order to stay competitive. They must figure out how to use digital means to form connections that matter. To riff on a popular aphorism, to ignore (your audience) is human, to connect (with them) is divine. Adding a personal feel to your digital assets does not have to be a long, drawn out process. In fact, you can begin to do so today. Here are three tips to get you started. Shoot an Introductory Video This does not have t o be an expensive promotional video. The goal is to introduce yourself and/or your t eam to online prospects and cust omers. This is a great chance to show that your business goals and values align with the wants and needs of your target audience. Don’t worry about equipment-you can film this video with a portable recorder or even a smartphone. It doesn’t have to be high quality, but it does have to be authentic. You should embed such a video on the Home Page or About Us section of your website, as well as on appropriat e social media channels like Facebook, Pinterest, and YouTube. Writ e a Values St at ement Take a moment to put fingers to keyboard and tell your online audience a bit about yourself. Mission statements are great and all, but you might do bet ter with a brief summary of who you are and why you are doing what you do. Presuming your company’s products/services align with its business goals, this summary will provide your audience a glimpse of what you as a business value the most . When writing such a “values” statement, make sure to be honest (in fact, you might learn a lot about yourself/ your business during the exercise). Try to write to your ideal prospect. If you had just a few minutes (or in this case, a few paragraphs) with such a person, what would you want them to understand about your brand? You can post t his statement in the About Us section of your website, in a blog post, and/or throughout your social media channels. Design a Photo Collage Remember making collages in kindergarten? Well, they also happen to be a great way show your target audience t he personal side of your brand. Given the success of Pinterest, it is clear that many people connect with visual media. Why not take this concept a step further and post a photo collage on your website? Again, don’t agonize over process; to quote an immortal marketing mantra,“just do it.” Designing a photo collage of your brand doesn’t necessitate the services of a professional photographer; in fact, I would argue t he opposit e. Instead, walk around your office for a week wit h camera in hand and take candid shots of you and your team in action. Then get the whole group together and pick out your favorite ones. Try to select photos that best tell your brand story- shots that your audience can look at and say, “I get who they are and what t hey do.” If nothing else, you’ll have created a nice memory book for your company. I should point out that all three of these ideas are forms of online content marketing. Hopefully you can use on or all of them to form deeper connections with your target audience. Connect: Authored by: Chris Horton Chris Horton is a contributor for Minneapolis Internet Marketing Company SyneCore Technologies. He is an informative resource for those involved in online marketing, earned media, app development, digital signage, software development, and various digital marketing t echnologies. See complete profile Would you like to contribute to this site? Get started » . oday.com http:/ /socialmediatoday. com/chris-horton/981061/3 -simple- ways- connect- your- target- audience? utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Social+Media+Today+(all+posts) 3 Simple Ways to Connect with Your Target Audience Given all of the tools at our disposal, I’m continually surprised. socialmediat oday.com http:/ /socialmediatoday. com/chris-horton/981061/3 -simple- ways- connect- your- target- audience? utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Social+Media+Today+(all+posts) 3