Austin, TX – ADLG Marketing’s new client, One Shot Distillery & Brewery, is a veteran-owned distillery and brewery based in Dripping Springs, TX. The company has been in business since March 9, 2020 and is proud to partner with the digital marketing agency to boost sales and leads. “ADLG Marketing has dug deep into our mission, culture and values to help develop a branding strategy on target with our vision.” said Phil Waldron, owner of One Shot Distillery & Brewery.

In a statement announcing the new partnership, the agency’s founder Adrian De La Garza said, “ADLG Marketing is happy to welcome One Shot Distillery & Brewery as a new client. One Shot is committed to making top-quality liquors and craft beers using Texas Agricultural ingredients while supporting Veterans and First Responders. One Shot has tapped ADLG Marketing to help support the growth of the One Shot brand both off-premise and on-premise.“

The new business and marketing partnership with One Shot Distillery & Brewery will allow the digital marketing agency to further prove itself and its commitment to delivering results. “We’re honored to have the opportunity to be working with One Shot Distillery & Brewery, I couldn’t be more excited for what we’ll be able to accomplish for this brand through our marketing and advertising efforts,” added De La Garza.

Established in 2018, ADLG Marketing has been able to deliver consistently reliable results to clients in such a short time. The agency has worked with several clients and brands, including small businesses, startups, and nonprofits. The marketing agency, in the short time since its establishment, has scaled its services to offer a comprehensive array of digital marketing solutions such as brand development, focused on telling brand stories the way they ought to be while resonating with their target audience. The team at the agency also offers copywriting services aimed at leveraging the power of premium copy to drive lead generation, sales, and increased revenue.

ADLG Marketing also offers content marketing solutions, digital marketing services and consultations, Fractional CMO, graphic design, market research, and market automation solutions. Clients can also rely on the agency for their outdoor advertising needs, online reputation management, print and collateral services, and more. ADLG Marketing’s marketing solutions cover both online and offline bases. The agency is proud to explore new grounds and deliver results as it partners with One Shot Distillery & Brewery.

Get in touch with the digital marketing agency via its website or via phone at (512) 761-6824. For more information, email the digital marketing agency at hello@adlgmarketing.com.

The post Small Business Marketing Agency ADLG Marketing Announces Marketing Partnership With One Shot Distillery & Brewery appeared first on ADLG Marketing.

Every day, a staggering 2.75 million blog posts are published on WordPress alone. Yet, WordPress-powered blogs account for only 27% of posts on the web. Going by these statistics, the total number of blogs published per day could be well over 10 million.

These numbers are nothing short of incredible and show just how in-demand information is in the current environment. Internet users are constantly searching for how-to’s, product reviews, and expert advice. There are absolutely no limits to what you can talk about on the internet. Chances are, there’s an eager audience awaiting your expert thoughts.

But, it’s kind of tough to stand out in such an environment. You cannot achieve a Return on Investment on your blog if it doesn’t get read. And unfortunately, the majority of users don’t get past the first page of search results. How well search engines rank your website and blog posts could make or break your business.

So, how do you stand out? You’ve probably heard of Search Engine Optimization (SEO). SEO isn’t just a buzzword – it’s the key to increasing your site’s visibility and landing on the first page of Google.

How Does SEO Work?

Search engine optimization is the process of increasing the quality and quantity of your website traffic through organic search results. The keyword here is quality. You can attract countless visitors to your site, but your business won’t improve much if they’re not the right audience. Instead, you want site visitors who are genuinely interested in what you have to offer.

Search engines use bots to crawl pages on the web looking for keywords. These bots move from site to site collecting information and indexing them. Next, Google or Bing algorithms analyze the indexed information to rank web pages for a given search query.

These search engine algorithms are designed with the user in mind. Optimizing your site and content, as well as the mobile-friendliness and crawlability of your site, can help your pages rank higher. All these factors make SEO a fundamental part of digital marketing.

Why is SEO Important for Marketing?

Search Engine Optimization can have a material impact on your bottom line. And it’s one of the few digital marketing strategies that may become more effective over time. Here are some of the reasons you should invest in search engine optimization.

1. SEO Leads to a Better User Experience and Higher Conversion Rates

Every business should seek to optimize its website and make it more user-friendly. For the most part, this includes providing your audience with a great interface, relevant information, and related photos or videos. However, making your website easy to navigate is only one piece of the puzzle.

SEO-optimized websites load faster and are easier to read and navigate, which attracts more visitors. High-quality SEO incorporates a positive user experience. Remember, the goal of search engines is to provide users with the information they need in as few clicks as possible. Google search algorithms have been designed to differentiate favorable from unfavorable user experiences.

Ensuring optimal user experience is just as crucial as content curation. Also, you want to entice your visitors to stay on your website as long as possible. The more people visit and stay on your website, the more likely they are to become loyal customers and subscribers.

2. Organic Search Leads to Quality Traffic

Search engines are the primary source of traffic for most brands. Higher ranking equals greater visibility which means more business for your company. Organic search results are also a critical component of the buyer funnel. Consumers look for information online and research products and services before buying. High-quality SEO can lead more of these potential buyers to your website through organic traffic.

The great thing about SEO is that it’s an inbound marketing strategy. Meaning your target audience is actively seeking a product or service you offer versus a traditional advertising channels where you are actively trying to find someone who may be interested. Inbound strategies make it easy for your audience to find you when they need to. Such strategies center on the consumer and are the most effective source of leads among Business to Customer (B2C) and Business to Business (B2B) organizations.

3. SEO is Relatively Cheap

You don’t need to pay for ads in SEO. Yes, you’ll have to invest in the infrastructure required to optimize your website, research your audience and what they search for, and develop quality content worthy of being ranked for, but you don’t have to pay for rankings.

Search engine rankings are based entirely on what the algorithm determines to be the most informative and relevant results for a given search query. You can continue attracting traffic months or years after you publish.

4. SEO Builds Trust and Credibility

SEO can increase brand awareness and make your brand stronger. When people search for content or products and find your business at the top of the search results, they automatically believe you’re the best. You become an authority figure in your niche.

High-quality SEO and great informative content can build customer loyalty and increase your brand’s credibility. Building trust and credibility take time. You need to create helpful quality content and maintain the frequency. And then your business becomes the go-to source of information in your niche.

5. Local SEO Helps You Build a Community

Focusing your SEO on local markets makes your brand more visible to local consumers. A broad SEO approach could open you up to dead-end visits, especially if you run a small business. The chances of an overseas site visitor becoming a paying customer are slim.

Local optimization focuses on curating your content to specific towns, cities, or regions so that the people who need you can find you quickly and easily. Local SEO encourages local users to visit a nearby physical store or obtain services from a local provider.

Also, you have to consider that customers are becoming more conscious and seeing more value in supporting their local economies. By targeting local consumers, you get to attract a more local clientele that’s willing to buy your products and services, and it’s a great way to build supportive working relationships with your audience.

6. SEO is a Long-Term Marketing Strategy

The impact of high-quality SEO can last several years. Of course, the market evolves with time, but you’ll find that getting displaced from the top is not easy. Making it to the top spot takes time. In fact, even the most expertly optimized websites take years to garner the number 1 spot, but it’s worth it.

The more you invest in high-quality SEO, the better your brand’s chances of making it to the top. You’ll need to make adaptations to keep up with trends. After all, Google and other search engines are constantly changing the way they work. However, with a few tweaks to your website, you can reap the benefits of your SEO strategy for years.

7. SEO is Quantifiable

While there’s no easy or direct way to determine your SEO return on investment, you can measure its impact with proper tracking and analytics. Understanding the effectiveness of your SEO strategy will help you determine which factors affect growth and performance.

Also, it’s a great way to compare yourself with other brands in your niche. You can determine how well you rank against competitors and evolve your strategy to perform better.

SEO Takes You Ahead of the Competition

From building brand recognition to increasing equity, the opportunities you can gain from effective SEO marketing are limitless. SEO is a new-age marketing technique that’s crucial to surviving in the digital world.

Implementing great quality search engine optimization can help you stand out from the competition, especially considering how much information there is in the world. Investing in SEO drives the long-term success of your brand.

Don’t Wait to Take the Steps to Improve Your SEO

As we mentioned above, Search Engine Optimization is a long-term strategy, which does take time to execute in a manner that will drive organic traffic and provide results. If you’re interested in learning more about how SEO can help improve your business results, feel free to contact ADLG Marketing. We’ll be happy to walk through the strategies we use to help drive more organic traffic to your business.

The post 7 Reasons Why Search Engine Optimization is Still Important appeared first on ADLG Marketing.

At some point in your business’ operations, you may be considering bringing on a CMO (Chief Marketing Officer) to help shape and drive your marketing efforts. A CMO’s expertise, experience, and accountability can complement a business’ marketing strategy, and can significantly improve your ability to scale by driving awareness, trial, and adaptation of your product or service while also establishing brand loyalty.

However, a CMO can be a costly investment in your business. According to a recent study by Glassdoor, the average base pay for a CMS in the U.S. is over $170,000 a year and can run well over $300,000 annually.  

So what happens when you’re ready for a CMO’s strategy and expertise, but not quite ready to invest hundreds of thousands of dollars in salary and benefits? This is where a fractional CMO can be of service.

A fractional CMO is a professional who serves in the same capacity as a CMO but not on a full-time basis.

You can hire a fractional CMO on a part-time or contractual basis and they will execute the same roles that a full-time CMO performs. You won’t have to spend as much money as you would pay if you were to hire a full-time CMO. You can hire a fractional CMO for about $150 to $250 hourly and set specific terms and goals which would be their focus. It means your business could be saving a considerable chunk of money you could otherwise be spending on paying your full-time CMO.

Hiring a fractional CMO would benefit your business a great deal. If you still don’t believe that hiring a fractional CMO would be better than hiring a full-time CMO, then you don’t understand why your business would need a CMO in the first place. Below are ample reasons why your business needs a fractional CMO.

If Your Business Is Facing Budgetary Constraints

Small businesses and startups alike operate with small budgets, unlike their bigger counterparts and multinationals. It means financial uncertainty and tight budgets are parts of small and medium-sized enterprises. The reality is particularly true for startups in any industry. The most prudent alternative for such businesses is to tighten their budgets to help them make more money as they focus on their revenue growth. The move helps them curb spending, ultimately tightening their financial belt.

But when it gets to marketing, a business shouldn’t invest less, particularly when it needs to make more sales. Thus, you won’t acquire more clients if you are investing little in your marketing efforts. It would be best if you spent more on marketing your business to achieve your business goals.

A fractional CMO can help your business accomplish its marketing goals when running the company on a tight budget. A fractional CMO is the best marketing professional to hire when your business is facing financial uncertainty. You won’t need to have a long-term commitment with your CMO. Since hiring a CMO is cheaper than hiring a full-time CMO, you won’t have to stretch your marketing budget.

The objective for hiring a fractional CMO shouldn’t be spending less. Instead, it should be a move to help you spend more efficiently on all parts of your business. A fractional CMO will help you create an effective marketing plan that will help save on the money you would be spending marketing your business.

You need to conduct good marketing to successfully create leads and acquire new customers, even during tight financial moments. Having a fractional CMO is the ultimate way to achieve that.

If You Want To Stretch Your Limited Marketing Resources

Notwithstanding your healthy budget, every business has a certain amount of resources to dedicate to its marketing efforts. It would help if you were making your marketing decisions based on your budget. Your budget should finance your marketing efforts while also financing other aspects of the business.

Hiring a full-time CMO would ultimately dent your marketing resources. It would mean spending more of your help with little returns. But a fractional CMO won’t spend much of your marketing resources. The resources you would spend paying a full-time CMO should be used in improving other areas of your business. Therefore, hiring a fractional CMO would make your marketing strategy more efficient and robust even though you have limited marketing resources at your disposal.

Best of all, you will save tons of money to invest in other essential marketing initiatives. These initiatives have a direct positive impact on your marketing strategy. For instance, you can save the money you would spend paying a full-time CMO to optimize your business’ site.

If You Want More Financial and Organizational Flexibility

Running a startup or a small business requires a lot of agility. You have to change or flex your business plan to enable you to overcome unforeseen challenges and shifting plans. It would be unsustainable to put your business in substantial yearly spending by committing yourself to pay a considerable salary to a full-time CMO.

Hiring a CMO allows you to save on your resources when you need such infinite resources most. A fractional CMO who is on-demand will help you in executing, planning, and marketing initiatives. Your business won’t have to spend more if you harmonize your marketing initiatives by hiring a fractional CMO. It would help if you gave them a few hours to accomplish the same marketing tasks that a full-time CMO will achieve. That means your business will benefit from better financial and organizational flexibility.

When You Need to Improve Your Overall Marketing Strategy

The reasons for hiring a fractional manager instead of a full-time manager shouldn’t all boil down to money. Hiring a fractional manager will have a strategic benefit for your business. Marketing initiatives usually don’t have a cohesive plan, especially for startups and growing companies.

The scenario is inevitable when many perform the same marketing tasks.

It would help if you had a professional who will commit themselves to improve your overall marketing strategy. It doesn’t matter whether the professional is employed on a part-time or full-time basis, as long as the professional has a great skill set and focus.

This is where a fractional CMO plays a role in improving your overall marketing strategy. They will act in the total capacity of a full-time CMO. They will be instrumental in creating a budget, creating a plan, and managing your marketing strategy. Their marketing efforts will have a significant reward on your marketing efforts.

A fractional CMO would be an excellent fit for any small business owner who has never hired a full-time CMO before. The fractional CMO’s marketing efforts will genuinely benefit your business. Your staff will deliver excellent results while utilizing the most appropriate marketing efforts for your business.

A fractional CMO will work dedicatedly to improve your marketing strategy since they will have hope that you will hire them as a full-time CMO in the future. They will motivate your entire marketing team to work towards realizing your business goals.

It doesn’t matter how many hours they will work in a day. But their performance will be worth the effort. If you think that marketing should be done appropriately irrespective of the resources at your disposal, hiring a fractional CMO is ultimately the perfect option.

Bottom Line

A fractional CMO can do a lot for your business, if your business is growing. Whether you can afford to hire a full-time CMO or not, there are lots of reasons why you should consider hiring a fractional CMO. Hire a fractional CMO today, and you won’t regret the long-term benefits of hiring such a professional to run your marketing efforts.

Can Your Business Benefit from a Fractional CMO?

If your business feels they can benefit from a Fractional CMO structure, contact ADLG Marketing. With our Fractional CMO program, we can help build and execute a marketing strategy at any point in your business, from marketing assessments to growth strategies.

The post Why Would Your Business Want a Fractional CMO? appeared first on ADLG Marketing.

With an increasing number of companies investing in internet marketing strategies, many wonder if online advertising for small businesses is a sustainable practice. Some upcoming business people still consider online marketing as a preserve of established firms, mostly because of misinformation. Others are still stuck to word-of-mouth advertising and are reluctant to adopt new methods.

The truth is you cannot rely on a single channel to generate new leads for your business. If so, your business is likely to experience a downturn should that available channel fail. When you have multiple lead generation channels, you are on the safe side even if one or two fail.

Why You Should Choose Online Advertising for Your Small Business

Online advertising is gaining ground across all societies. This follows an exponential increase in the internet and smart devices usage. Here are the reasons for choosing online advertising for your business:

1. Changing Consumer Behavior

There is a steady change in consumer behavior. Most of them rely on the internet to stay abreast of current affairs. For that reason, you can virtually take your small business to them through online advertising.

2. Reaches Out to a Large Audience

You can easily reach out to a huge audience online and sell your products or services. This is only applicable where online advertising is effective. In your case, you can use this form of advertising to build your brand and expand it to a large market.

3. Highly Convenient

Online business has become a household name thanks to its convenience. At a click of a button, consumers can order what they want in the comfort of their homes. Therefore, you can advertise your small business online to help consumers gain access to what you are selling.

4. It is Affordable

Most small business owners agree that traditional advertising forms such as radio and television are way beyond their means. They are expensive and unnecessary to a business whose returns are minimal. But online advertising is a complete opposite of that. It is affordable and trackable. All you need is a reliable internet, a smart device, and the right audience, and everything else will fall in place for you.

5. Your Potential Competitors are Online

You need competitors to make your small business successful. Since most of them are online, they will challenge you into learning new online business tricks. Their web presence will expose you to relevant content that will take your small business to the next level.

Best Online Advertising Platforms for Small Business

The right advertising platform mostly depends on your target audience’s nature and the types of products and services you sell. Most digital platforms support online ads. That said, if you are having trouble identifying the best channel for your needs, here are some options you can consider.

1.    Facebook Ads

Facebook is, by far, the most popular social media platform. Over two billion people log into the website monthly.

Although it is primarily used to connect with friends and family, many people use Facebook to interact with their favorite brands. However, it is challenging to get organic traffic from the site due to continually changing algorithms. Paying for Facebook ads is a proven way of getting your adverts in front of your target audience.

Facebook has several paid ad formats. Promoted posts look like regular posts from your Facebook page and mostly appear on users’ news feeds. Display ads, on the other hand, can appear on photos, slideshows, and videos. Research is currently undergoing for the introduction of search ads.

The best thing about Facebook marketing is that it supports market segmentation and targeting. While this requires few technical skills, it saves you money by ensuring your ads reach people interested in your offerings.

2.    Google Ads

Since Google is the most popular search engine, Google Ads is the most used pay-per-click advertising platform. In PPC marketing, you pay a small fee every time a person clicks on your ad listing.

The first step to succeeding in Google Ads is by bidding on high-intent keywords. These are phrases that you show a person has an intention to buy something. For instance, if you sell houses, you will get more value from people searching for phrases like ‘homes for sale in New Mexico’ than broad and generic terms like ‘vacation rentals.’ Use keyword research tools to find such high-intent words.

Secondly, you should invest in targeting to make your online advertising campaigns cost-effective. For example, you can design your strategy such that your ads appear to people who meet specific criteria, such as the youth or women with an average income. You can also restrict your ads such that they occur during your business operating hours.

Lastly, always work on improving your Quality Score. This is a grade ranging between one and ten that evaluates your ads’ relevance to the intended audience. A higher quality score means that your ads are relevant, and Google will charge you less for PPC while increasing your ad ranking.

3.    Instagram Ads

Instagram averages 500 million visitors daily, making it one of the most popular social media channels. Although this is incomparable Facebook’s massive user base, most of the people on this platform are either generation Z or millennial.

Most of the content on Instagram is in either pictorial or video formats. If your product’s ideal presentation method is in this style, it can be a perfect platform for interacting with your audience. Even better, you can add your business information to each post such that prospective buyers can find you easily.

On the downside, you need to download the mobile app to enjoy the platform’s full features. In comparison, this is convenient when on the go, it is unfavorable to prefer managing their activities in a desktop environment.

4.    Google Display Ads

Google Display Ads differs from Google Ads in that it uses visuals instead of text. Moreover, Display Ads are not visible in search – they show up on various websites across the internet. These ads appear as banners or small boxes that promote several products and services on websites. They are often related to the content you are reading or items you are shopping for online.

Those who argue against Display Ads claim that your intended audience might not see your listing at the right time. This is because instead of shopping, people who see the ads might be reading news or watching videos. However, this exposure is useful in increasing brand awareness. Most marketers agree that a customer has to be familiar with a business before buying from it.

5.    Twitter Ads

Twitter Ads can introduce your business to a vast audience that you might have otherwise failed to reach. Some of the types of Twitter Ads include Promoted Tweets, which differ from regular tweets because they can reach people who are not following you. Others include Promoted Trends, which show specific trending topics on the user’s feed, and Promoted Accounts that advertise your account to people who are likely to show interest in your products and services.

The best way to make your Twitter Ads campaign successful is by avoiding controversial topics. It would be best if you also had a reputation management team to solve issues before they get out of hand.

6.    LinkedIn Ads

With more than 500 million professionals on LinkedIn, you have a chance to market your small business to different professionals worldwide. This platform provides a great place to showcase your services to potential clients.

It allows you to advertise your services through Sponsored Content, Sponsored InMail, Text Ads, Dynamic Ads, and Programmatic Display Ads. All these features help you reach the most relevant professionals, mix and match some advertising features and personalize advertising tactics or content to your LinkedIn inbox.

Final Words

For the best results, you need to use a combination of platforms for online advertisements. Experiment with multiple channels to see the ones that meet your needs. Invest in targeting so that your ads reach people who are likely to buy from you. More importantly, analyze the results from each audience segment.

When you know how much traffic you are getting from each channel, you will make adjustments to make the most of each platform. By improving your strategy, you also reduce advertising costs and maximize your profits.

If you find the above overwhelming, hire an expert to do it on your behalf. It may cost you, but the rewards will be worthwhile.

Get Help Managing Your Small Business Advertising with ADLG Marketing

To get more information on Marketing Services we offer, or to get help with building your business’s marketing strategy, schedule a call with ADLG Marketing. With 20 years of marketing and advertising experience, ADLG Marketing is an Austin, Texas-based digital marketing agency positioned to help small businesses, startups, and non-profits across the country succeed with their marketing efforts.

The post How Effective is Online Advertising for Small Businesses? appeared first on ADLG Marketing.

Social proof is critical if you are looking to present your brand or business as a trustworthy venture. Top companies across the globe know the importance of leveraging on the approval and acceptance from others for their success. Capitalizing on social proof as part of your online marketing is especially relevant and essential in today’s world of ultra-connected digital technology.

Most people research services and products on their smartphones before making an order or purchase. They are essentially searching for testimonials, recommendations and the confidence linked to social proof and validation. Below, we’ll answer the question of what is social proof and give you tips for the best practices.

What Is Social Proof?

A simple definition of social proof is evidence that someone has bought and found great value in your product or services. There is a high probability that people will buy a product that other consumers are already buying. Hence, social proof may help boost conversions as it shows potential clients that a specific service or product is valuable and popular.

In online marketing, social proof is represented in various forms, including product reviews and customer testimonials to endorsements from experts and certification by authoritative figures among others. The key with all these different strategies is conveying value and building trust with your audience to boost your conversion rate.

Effects of Social Proof on Marketing

From the definition of what is social proof explained above, you can quickly see how social validation can be especially beneficial for your online marketing. Social proof adds immense value to your online reputation and helps to foster credibility and trust. The result is more ready clients with lower barriers to making conversions and sales.

Here are some key statistics that show the importance of social proof in marketing:

• Over 70% of consumers look at product reviews before placing an order
• Nearly 90% of online shoppers trust the various types of social proof just the same as they value personal recommendations from their friends and family
• Most Americans value product and service endorsements provided by family, colleagues and friends
• Social proof through influencer social media marketing is regarded as one of the effective and fast-growing customer acquisition channels

Social Proof Types

To better understand what is social proof, let us consider some examples of the main types:

1. Expert Approval

Social proof helps to showcase authority. Hence, when an expert in your industry or an influencer uses your product, it signifies approval by an authority. For example, buyers may find testimonials on your website written by a renowned expert to be much more convincing as compared to hundreds of reviews written by average consumers.

Expert approval could take various forms, including them posting your products on social media, blogging or being photographed or quoted as product users. Besides, prominently displaying logos of your big brand clients can demonstrate authority and social proof. If most of the best companies in the world are utilizing a specific service, then it’s only logical that it is a valuable one.

2. Endorsement From a Celebrity

Getting an endorsement from a celebrity can help to skyrocket your brand awareness as most celebrities have a massive following on social media. The goal here is to leverage the popularity of celebrities to promote your products. This kind of social media marketing is even more meaningful when you get a free or unpaid endorsement.

Nevertheless, opting for an official, paid partnership with a celebrity is still a valid way of getting social proof. You can choose the kind of celebrity you want endorsing your brand and either pay them to showcase your products or send them free samples in the hope that they like it and post about it. Once you get the endorsement, post it in all your business profiles and let everyone know that even celebrities use and enjoy your products or services.

3. User Testimonials

Case studies are the perfect example of social proof as businesses showcase how their products have helped their customers. All types of user testimonials should show that customers were confident and experienced value from your product offerings. It includes product review on your website or third-party review sites or a comprehensive case study.

The positive feedback of your users helps in conveying trust and building your online reputation. Trust is highly critical in customer conversions online. Showing your potential clients that your business has a long list of happy customers by using user reviews and testimonials helps to foster the credibility that they are dealing with a trustworthy and legitimate company.

4. Business Credentials

In the same way, user testimonials show the effectiveness of a service or product; business credentials also have the same favorable outcome. Businesses can prominently showcase various credentials like its number of clients and some of its certifications and awards. You can also show what other well-known brands are your customers.

5. Media Coverage

If the local or national press in your area has published positive news about your company, that media coverage can help boost your brand awareness. You can link to that news and share it across your social media pages as proof of your value in providing the best products.

6. Shares on Social Media

Social media marketing has proven to be invaluable, especially for getting targeted traffic and significantly increasing conversions. Hence, you should leverage your social media content on the leading social networks to market your offerings. As users share your content and interact with your business, it can help to validate others who may want to buy your products.

7. Bandwagon Effect

The bandwagon effect appeals to the sense of wanting to avoid missing out and joining others in doing a certain kind of action. Thus, when many people are buying or using a product, other people want to join and copy them.

You can employ this kind of social proof by showing that numerous people are already using your product or support your business. Statements like, “over 50,000 copies sold” or “over one million satisfied clients,” can display social proof. Also, showing the number of followers you have on social media demonstrates social proof.

Summary of Best Practices for Social Proof Marketing

• Use a combination of all the various social proof types in your online marketing to attract user attention
• People will recall and value high-profile brands and client logos as compared to low-profile businesses
• Detailed user testimonials with accompanying photos perform better at creating recall than other basic testimonials with little information and no photos
• Social proof works best with pictures as compared to using numbers and logos
• Highlight reviews from authoritative figures in your industry as they are a massive selling tool
• High profile company logos are great to have on your website since they offer high recall
• Positive social proof has better results than cost savings
• Customers connect deeply with genuine stories
• Influencers and other authority figures enhance the success of your social proof efforts

Key talking point

You should now understand what is social proof and how it affects your online marketing strategy. It shows you are a trustworthy business and that customers should feel confident about dealing with your brand. If you are looking to enhance your marketing strategy, then you should add some social proof.

Trust in ADLG Marketing to Build Trust in Your Business

ADLG Marketing is a marketing agency based in Austin, TX focused on providing large marketing agency services for small to medium-sized businesses, startups, and nonprofits. With 20+ years of marketing experience, our goal is to make sure we “Make Marketing Work” by understanding your business objectives, crafting a unique strategy suited for your business goals, and executed with spot-on creative and attention to detail in an effort to maximize results.

If you’re in need of shaking up your marketing plan to help improve your business, please feel free to schedule a free consultation call with us to discuss your needs further.

The post What is Social Proof and How Does It Affect My Marketing? appeared first on ADLG Marketing.

While not everyone keeps up with the latest social media trends, there’s no denying that TikTok has been on everyone’s lips, including the US President. For many, TikTok is a social platform for Gen Z and various Millenials to share fun and creative videos. But guess what, TikTok has much more to offer, especially for businesses looking to up their marketing game.

So What Exactly Is TikTok?

TikTok is a social media application that lets its users share short-form clips. These videos can range anywhere from five seconds to a minute. Typically, the app’s users (TikTokkers) create and upload videos of them participating in popular trends. Some of these videos include dance trends, recreating popular memes, or reacting to cringe videos.

TikTok’s Growth so Far

In case you were wondering why there’s so much excitement surrounding TikTok in the business world, here are a few reasons why:

• According to Statista, TikTok, as of February this year, attained a sum lifetime user spending of $300 million on Google Play as well as App Store.

• The app exceeded 2 billion worldwide downloads and had approximately 700 million live users as of July 2020. This figure is a twelvefold increase in the total monthly active users(MAUs) since January 2018.
• TikTok recently launched the “TikTok for Business” platform that lets businesses seamlessly purchase and creates ads.

The Low-down on TikTok for Business

Launched in June 2020, this platform aims to offer brands digital marketing solutions. TikTok for Business aligns with TikTok’s theme of creativity while providing design tools to propel brand awareness. For instance, brands can utilize the “TopView” format, which allows ads to pop up immediately when a user opens TikTok.

You could also call this platform a hub. Reason being that TikTok for Business plans to launch an e-learning center—a one-stop-source for marketing tips, tutorials, and case studies.

Besides this learning center, TikTok announced new advancements to the platform. The first one being the Branded Scan. This product allows TikTokkers to experience an augmented reality(AR) effect. The other development was the TikTok Creator Marketplace. This platform connects TikTok creators from all over. It lets businesses reach out to creators to discuss possible synergies.

How to Tell Whether Your Business Can Benefit From Using TikTok

We currently live in a digital era, and businesses can’t afford to ignore the significance of having a social media presence. This statement is especially true for small and mid-size organizations struggling with brand awareness and increasing revenues. TikTok is right for you as a business if:

• You’re targeting a younger audience, typically between 16 and 30. For instance, if you live in the US, you should know that 32.5% of MAUs are teens, while those aged between 20 and 29 account for 29.5%.
• You can pull off marketing your products and services in a short video
• You’re open to trying new digital marketing strategies
• You are willing to keep up with the platform’s trends

In case you have doubts about this marketing trend, here are two brands that have jumped on the TikTok bandwagon and managed to pull it off.

Chipotle

Chipotle, a popular fast food restaurant in the US, created the #LidFlipChallenge. The aim was to encourage online orders via their website and mobile app among the younger audience. As one of their social marketing strategy, influencer marketing has proven to be useful. Just a month after this TikTok challenge, their video had received over 200 million views. Also, this marketing campaign significantly increased their sales and online orders among Gen Z consumers.

Fenty Beauty

Fenty Beauty is a cosmetics line by Rihanna, an entrepreneur, and a well-known singer. In March of this year, Rihanna revealed Fenty Beauty’s TikTok house for content creators to reside while marketing the cosmetic products. This tactic resonated with Gen Z users and has since increased the brand’s consumer base.

Reasons Why Businesses Should Integrate TikTok in Their Social Marketing Strategy

• It’s an excellent guerrilla marketing strategy. The younger generation today has a different view of marketing. Most of them dislike ‘explicit marketing’ with 46% between the ages of 15 and 25 using ad-blockers.
• TikTok is the perfect application for user-generated content. The young generation admires authenticity above anything else and is quick to point out gimmicks. Other platforms have, in the past, received criticisms over influencer fraud.
• Unlike other social media platforms, TikTok uses AI to predict a user’s preference. The AI algorithm is different from the recommendation system used by YouTube. As a result, any business can go viral regardless of the number of followers and views.
• Due to its relatively novel nature, the app is not yet overly saturated by marketing companies. This less competitive market creates an excellent opportunity for small businesses to thrive in ad campaigns.
• TikTok allows businesses to market themselves without having to deplete their resources.

How to Prepare for Your First TikTok Marketing Campaign

Before you create an ad for your firm, you must fill out and submit an online form. A TikTok ad representative will contact you once you qualify for an advertising profile. To finish setting up your advertising account, you will need to:

• Set clear campaign objectives
• Choose your optimization goal(clicks or conversions)
• Determine your daily budget
• Choose when to run ads
• Decide whether to run your ads on all TikTok platforms

How to Market Your Business on TikTok

Even though creating content on TikTok is a straightforward process, businesses need to know how to churn out strategic content.

1. TikTok videos of your team

If you examine various TikTok videos that go viral, you’ll notice a number of them being group content. It’d, therefore, be a good idea to get your team together to brainstorm group activities to include in your video.

As a rule of thumb, your videos should be authentic, light-hearted, relatable, and yet creative. Going viral is the hard bit. However, the more videos you put out increases your chances of interactions.

2. User-generated content (UGC)

No social media strategy is complete if it fails to incorporate user-generated content. UGC involves TikTok videos by unpaid users in support of a company’s products or services. The authenticity of UGC is perhaps what makes this a successful marketing tactic.

What’s more, everyone wins. By promoting the brand, the TikTok user will likely receive paid partnerships as well as PR products. At the same time, the particular Business generates new customers and increases their revenues.

3. Advertisements

As a business owner, you can utilize TikTok for Business to advertise using:

• TopView, which lets your ad appear as the first item when users open their apps.
• Infeed clips that appear while user-generated content is running.
• Brand Takeovers, which lets businesses take over TikTok for a day to market their brands using various tools and effects.
• Hashtag Challenge, which lets businesses increase engagement using a crafted hashtag.
• Branded effects that let TikTokkers virtually test out products using a 2D and 3D lens

4. Influencer marketing

Your Business may choose to partner with a content creator that identifies with your brand and has an engaged following. It would be best if you also looked at influencers who have partnered with an almost identical brand to yours.

There’s no denying that social media marketing is dynamic, meaning businesses must keep up with the latest social media trends. Today, TikTok is not only ideal for entertainment but is also proving to be a useful marketing tool. This app has uniquely tapped into a global audience while offering businesses a chance to create brand awareness. Besides that, it’s new developments are a sign of its interest in supporting small and mid-size companies.

The post Why Your Business Should Consider Marketing on TikTok appeared first on ADLG Marketing.

Marketing has always been an essential ingredient for the success of any organization, both big and small. It’s no secret that the COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted livelihoods. As a result, consumers have shifted their spending habits and are more skeptical. These changes have prompted companies to reevaluate their marketing strategies from messaging to distribution channels to fit the new normal. Read on to see how you should shift your marketing during a pandemic.

Rethink your Social Media Marketing Strategy

Social distancing and self-isolation have led to a shift in buyer behavior, which has caused some businesses to flourish while others are struggling. For instance, online retailers that sell groceries have seen an increase in customers. Here’s how you can adjust your social media marketing strategy to support your customers.

• Improve your brand’s listening tools. Now is the ideal time to fine-tune your messaging and show your audience that you care and resonate with their current challenges through listening and monitoring services. This will not only help you in retaining existing customers but also even in getting new ones.
• Incorporate relevant social media platforms. Your company is probably scaling down their offline marketing campaigns. Currently, platforms such as Instagram and TikTok have seen a surge in users. That being said, now is the best time to determine which platforms create more awareness about your brand.
• Be empathetic. Your company may have taken in significant losses and have therefore increased their marketing tactics to boost sales. This is understandable. However, companies should incorporate the human element by adopting socially responsible marketing. For instance, through its “Assurance program” Ad, Hyundai offered to cover half a year’s worth of payments to those who bought or leased a Hyundai before April and then lost their jobs.

Identify COVID-19 Content Marketing Opportunities

According to Sanders, Merkle’s SEO manager, there has been an increase in search trends for online video platforms such as Zoom and Google Hangouts. This should not come as a surprise—most people are working from home, and a considerable number of schools are offering online classes.

This is perhaps the best time to expand your services and products to fit the current emotions and trends. It’s vital to note that such a move may not provide your standard return on investments (ROI). To start with, you could implement software that improves work efficiency.

Communicate All Marketing Changes

Effective communication is vital for maintaining any relationship. This statement applies to businesses and their customers as well. Advertisers should be proactive in updating their customers either by email or their websites. For instance, if your company has postponed an event, it would be best to consider offering refunds.

This move will help to provide some relief to any of your customers who are experiencing hardships. According to Google, businesses should update their working hours as well as the description appearing in the “Google My Business” section.

Coronavirus has affected businesses worldwide. As a company, adjusting your marketing strategies is key to helping you adapt during a pandemic as well as post-COVID. In every plan of action, ensure you put out messages of hope to help your customers get through these unprecedented times.

Get Help Managing Your Business’ Marketing Efforts with ADLG Marketing

To get more information on Marketing Services we offer, or to get help with building your business’s marketing strategy, schedule a call with ADLG Marketing. With 20 years of marketing and advertising experience, ADLG Marketing is an Austin, Texas-based digital marketing agency positioned to help startups, small businesses, and non-profits across the country succeed with their marketing efforts. And we’d be happy to help you shift your marketing during a pandemic in order to maintain your business.

The post How Should Your Marketing Shift During a Pandemic? appeared first on ADLG Marketing.

Copywriting is an essential part of any marketing strategy, whether you’re an already established business trying to maintain industry authority or a small business that’s just getting off the ground and building an online presence. Content is meant to inform as well as convert, and here are five ways in which your small business can use creative and consistent copywriting in order to thrive.   

Tell a Story

If you’re a small business without an established online presence, you’ll need to create awareness in order to let the world in on who you are and what you do. This is where storytelling comes in. A good brand story adds a human element to your business and invokes a sense of authority and trust. It’s important to know who your audience is and use that to establish your brand voice and tone in order to connect with your customers. The best way to start is by telling your brand story through your website, as that is the main place people will go seeking information about your small business. This can also be done through social media but growing your social media presence is a more gradual process. One thing to keep in mind is that not everyone will be your ideal customer, so it’s important to look at what buyer persona(s) you want to target in order to successfully capture their attention. Authenticity is key here! When you’re able to speak authentically to your audience using copywriting, it shows. Sometimes it’s necessary to experiment with tone in order to figure out what works best with your audience. To better understand who you want to reach, you’ll need to learn more about them and their habits, and soon you’ll be able to speak to them in such a way that they will soon become your brand advocates.

Establish Authority

When you’ve crafted your story, you’ll want to begin putting out blogs and other forms of copy that can help establish your authority as a small business owner. This can take time and it will evolve as you put your business out there and write on industry-related topics that will inform and captivate your audience. Remember, sharing is caring when it comes to informative content. Sharing your blog posts via Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and any other platforms you choose will keep your business fresh in the minds of your audience and maintain their attention on a consistent basis. This is also where white papers come in handy. Creating a white paper on an important industry topic helps you to establish authority, helps to maintain your voice and helps to add value when you stay informed of what’s trending within your industry.

Engage and Delight

Copywriting is a surefire way to engage your audience and keep their attention on what your brand is doing. Simply putting out content isn’t going to grow your following but engaging with your audience will. When you post a piece of content, you’ll want to create a call-to-action. This can be done by asking your audience a question at the end of a blog or social media post, or even through an online ad or banner that promotes a special offering from your small business. Engagement is especially important to pay attention to when it comes to your social media. You will likely get questions and comments about your products and services from your followers, which should elicit a response from you.  

It’s especially important to respond to questions and comments in a timely fashion (ideally within 24 hours or less, if possible), which will help maintain your brand voice, build trust, and show your audience that your business is run by real people and not robots. Engagement can also lead to opportunities for brand loyalty and help with reputation management.  

SEO is the Way to Go

One thing that is especially important in copywriting for your website and within your blog posts is writing for increased visibility on search engines. This is done through SEO-focused content. Your goal as a small business owner is for your customers to be able to find you and connect with you, and the higher your search rankings in Google and in other search engines, the more eyes you’ll have on your website. SEO writing includes using specific keyword phrases, common search terms, and things like meta descriptions and tags within your blog posts and website copy to increase your site ranking organically, and not through paid searches. Writing for SEO is a consistent way to increase your reach over time and eventually help you earn new business by being more search-friendly.

Consistency is Key

Now that you have an idea of how to build out content geared towards your audience and gain their trust, it’s important to keep the momentum going through posting consistent content. It may take some testing and experimentation to find out what works well (and not so well) with timing new content on a regular basis. You don’t want to produce great content only to disappear for several days or weeks, as this may confuse your audience and make your brand seem utterly forgettable. This is where a monthly content calendar comes in handy. By planning what subjects you’d like to promote, you’ll feel more prepared and this will prevent your copywriter from having to produce content on the fly. This can be stressful and lead to dull or unimaginative posts. Taking this into consideration, there should be some wiggle room for posting about emerging news or trends that can’t always be planned.

Get Help Managing Your Small Business Marketing Efforts with ADLG Marketing

To get more information on Marketing Services we offer, or to get help with building your business’s marketing strategy, schedule a call with ADLG Marketing. With 20 years of marketing and advertising experience, ADLG Marketing is an Austin, Texas-based digital marketing agency positioned to help small businesses, startups, and non-profits across the country succeed with their marketing efforts.

The post Five Ways to Engage: Copywriting for Your Small Business appeared first on ADLG Marketing.

Gone are the days when marketing a small business means placing a few classified ads in newspapers and erecting a billboard. Today’s customers have so many options to choose from. What is even more interesting is that they share their experiences with different companies. In short, getting the attention of customers is more complicated than ever before. Plus, there are many marketing channels, such as social media networks, inbound marketing, search engine optimization, among many others. For this reason, many small businesses may find it difficult to design and execute a robust marketing strategy. If that sounds like you, we understand the frustration.

Thankfully, you don’t have to be a marketing guru to get your business out there. Working with a small business marketing agency will simplify things for you, allowing you to focus on other critical areas, such as product development, implementing your business strategy, or even managing talent. In this piece, we will look at how to choose a digital marketing agency for your small business.

1. Understand Your Brand and Your Needs

Before anything else, know your brand and what you want. Oftentimes, agencies will ask you several questions about your brand and your audience. You also need to have an idea about your marketing needs and strategy. Does your strategy focus more on SEO, content creation, or social media marketing? Whatever it may be, get your team together and draw up a list. The list might include any of these activities:

• Search engine marketing
• Content marketing
• Social media marketing
• Email marketing
• Search engine optimization
• Inbound marketing
• Marketing automation
• Analytics

When you are through with the above, start your search for the right digital marketing agency. You can dig up a list of potential agencies from directories like Clutch.co, search online, or even ask for referrals.

2. How Is Their Track Record

No matter the size of a potential marketing agency or how popular it is, it should demonstrate evidence of success; otherwise, it is not worth your business. After all, there are so many top marketing agencies vying for a chance to show you their success.

The easiest way to get a feeling of what they offer, look at how they market themselves. For instance, if an agency doesn’t get targeted traffic or rank highly for any organic search term, it is most likely it wouldn’t do much to improve your SEO rankings. If your target is to get social traffic, then you need an agency that has implemented successful social media campaigns. Also check other critical aspects, such as their style and tone of their marketing.

On top of this, it is important to engage an agency with the right expertise. Sure, it is tempting to engage junior professionals, who are often inexpensive and more willing to implement your instructions, but an agency with experts and experienced professionals will more likely deliver the results.

3. Evaluate Their Prices

There is a reason why shirts at Calvin Klein cost $100 while those at Ross cost only a tenth of that amount. Likewise, you will find marketing agencies that will charge varying prices based on what they offer. In other words, you will get what you pay for. If an agency is offering you a rate that is too low, it is most likely that it is because it sucks. On the other hand, some agencies will charge you excessively high amounts. Sadly, many of these agencies can’t match what they charge with what they really offer. What you should do is test their motivation.

Besides this, you should know how much you want to spend to implement your marketing strategy. Well established, full-service marketing agencies usually have experts that will get you results quickly, but here is the catch. If you are planning to partner with top marketing agencies, expect to pay top dollar because they can justify their worth.

With that said, you can get equally good results with small agencies. If you have a moderate budget, you will probably want to work with a reliable small marketing agency, which can concentrate on strategic and targeted marketing campaigns.

4. Are You Compatible?

Price and track records alone are not enough to make you sign up for an agency. You should also explore a potential agency’s strategic approach. Do you understand their philosophy and strategy? If so, is it something you are comfortable with? To sort this out, you also need to understand the background and mission of your potential agency. After that, access to see if they have enough experience to meet your KPIs.

Besides accessing their philosophies, it is also critical to partner with someone that you can easily bond. Watch to see if there is chemistry between your team and the agency team. In most cases, teams supportive of each other deliver better results. You may also want to work with an agency that can adapt quickly. If something doesn’t work, your agency should be able to make changes in real-time.

Compatability may also be related to proximity. Are you comfortable with having remote conversations through email and conference calls, or do you feel that you need a marketing agency close by so you can conduct in-person meetings to better communicate your business’ vision and goals?

5. Does the Agency Listen and Understand You?

Above anything else, your marketing agency should be your brand ambassador. If an agency is not willing to understand you, then it is not a good fit. So, gauge if a potential agency has your best interests at heart. Does the agency understand your targets and is willing to meet them? At the end of the day, you are hiring a digital marketing agency to add value to your business.

Final Thoughts

Finding the right digital marketing agency for your small business can be a lengthy process, but that doesn’t mean that you should settle for less. Remember that having a sound marketing strategy is key to your business success. But that’s not all. It should also be executed most efficiently. Small business marketing is not a joke. So, you have to take your time to identify a partner with the right qualifications, agreeable philosophies, compatible, and who can deliver results within your budget. If, at any point, you feel an agency falls short of your expectations, don’t be afraid to walk away.

Get Help Managing Your Small Business Marketing Efforts with ADLG Marketing

To get more information on Marketing Services we offer, or to get help with building your business’s marketing strategy, schedule a call with ADLG Marketing. With 20 years of marketing and advertising experience, ADLG Marketing is an Austin, Texas-based digital marketing agency positioned to help small businesses, startups, and non-profits across the country succeed with their marketing efforts.

The post How to Find the Right Digital Marketing Agency for Your Small Business appeared first on ADLG Marketing.

Facebook Ads vs Google Ads, which is right for your business? Both are great options for your business. But it depends on how each one of these works for you. Let’s find out more about these two digital platforms so you may know which one to choose for your business.

Facebook Vs. Google

A number of businesses are turning to either Facebook Ads or Google Ads to increase their visibility, improve sales and leads, and reach out to new audiences (new customers). These businesses adopt different strategies that seem to align well with a social media network like Facebook or a Search Engine Network like Google to achieve their goals. 

Differences between Facebook Ads and Google Ads

You must understand the difference between Facebook and Google Ads platforms before you make a sound decision on what will work best for your business. 

Facebook Ads

Facebook Ads is referred to as “paid social” because it entails advertising through social networks. Facebook boasts of the largest number of monthly-active-users (MAUs) compared to other social networks. This makes it a highly sought-after and lucrative platform for your digital advertising needs. As a social network, Facebook helps users to access businesses on its platform based on what they are interested in.

Google Ads

Google Ads is the leading PPC advertising platform globally in terms of coverage and popularity. As a widely used platform, Google Ads is now associated with what is commonly referred to as “Paid Search”. In most cases, paid-search targets certain keywords as well as the use of text-based ads. Every time users click on Ads, there’s a certain percentage of the amount of money the advertisers are charged, hence the term, “pay-per-click” advertising (PPC advertising).

Google Ads enables you to reach out to new customers or audience while Facebook directs new customers to you. This is the prime difference between Facebook and Google Ads.

Advantages of Google Ads

Google Provides You with a Large Audience

Google receives more than 3 billion search queries daily. This can help you access a large number of users who’re actively searching for goods or services. This explains why Google Ads is increasingly becoming popular as well as a widely used pay-per-click platform worldwide.

Google Offers a Level Playing Field

It doesn’t matter how much money you spend on adverts when using Google as your digital marketing platform. What matters is the relevance of your ad to the users and nothing else. In this case, Google Ads rewards quality and relevance more than all other factors combined. 

Google Gives a Wide Range of Ads Formats

Even though PPC ads remain text-based, you can take advantage of several features that Google provides you to make your adverts more enticing and compelling to your target audience. These features include site links, Ad extensions, and social proofing among others. 

Advantages of Facebook Ads

Facebook Provides you with Unparalleled Audience Granularity

Just like Google AdWords, Facebook Ads brings a vast global audience at the touch of a button. This social platform has more than 1.5 billion MAUs, thus giving it an enormity of its target audience.

Facebook Is An Inherently Digital Visual Platform

One thing that gives Facebook Ads an edge over the text-based PPC counterparts is its powerful visual effect on the audience. Most Ads on this platform blend seamlessly with images, videos or other visual content to enable you to leverage strong persuasive qualities.

Facebook Ads Brings you an Incredible ROI

If you are experimenting with Facebook Ads, you should be impressed mainly by its targeting options and tools for creating engaging ads. This digital marketing platform comes with a potential ROI (Return On Investment) to cater for your limited ad budget.

Final Verdict

Both Facebook and Google Ads are the two most powerful advertising platforms that you can rely on. During your evaluation of each platform, it’s wise to dwell on complementary rather than an adversarial point of view. With this in mind, you should choose the platform that suits your needs in the best way possible. 

Get Help Managing Your Digital Advertising with ADLG Marketing

To get more information on Search or Social Media Marketing, or to get help with building your business’s marketing strategy, schedule a call with ADLG Marketing. With 20 years of marketing and advertising experience, ADLG Marketing is an Austin, Texas-based digital marketing agency positioned to help small businesses, startups, and non-profits across the country succeed with their marketing efforts.

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