"Say Whaaatt?"

That’s right—the Yellow Pages—get over it!

Well, some businesses already have; but fascinatingly enough, for many others, the mindset around their local online listings has not changed since the days of the Yellow Pages.

Many of us have been there

Social media has so many options; it’s like standing at an elaborate restaurant buffet, asking, “Where to start?”

1. Slowly with an appetizer?
2. Dig into the side dishes?
3. Or go hog-wild and dive straight for the Buffalo wings, pizza, and desserts?

So let’s clarify

In order to narrow down your starting point and develop an effective social media marketing strategy, you have to understand what your choices are, what each offers, and how to leverage them.

Having this solid understanding is essential because social media marketing is as varied as it is indispensable. For many businesses, it's no longer an option, and it’s incredibly lucrative when done correctly.

In part 1 of this post, Effective Marketing Using Social Media, we got a good overview of the top four choices people have to augment their marketing strategies with social media: LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. 

We likened it to a buffet table packed with choices, but unlike a buffet, social media is no longer optional; it is essential that businesses actively use and engage in social media.

But just using social media isn’t enough! To be successful, you need to know about effective marketing strategies: which ones work best for you, and how to leverage those approaches to your advantage. 

“Oh lord—we’ve lost a lot of money!” This is an exclamation you might hear in the lobby of a casino, but sadly, it’s something we hear when people have not set up their Google Ads Campaign correctly.

It’s because some people don’t approach Google Ads with a professional attitude; instead, they seem to trust “Lady Luck”.

If you think about it, there’s a key difference between a professional and the average person who enters into a situation where sums of money can be made or lost quickly. 

That key difference is that the professional never sets foot into a money-related situation without having a well thought out STRATEGY!

Strategy = Winning

Therefore, even if you’re a beginner, you should always have some kind of strategy in place when working with Google Ads, because then you’ll spend your money wisely and WIN EVERY time.

When we talk about Google Analytics, most people have one of three reactions, which one are you?

1. You have heard about Google Analytics but are not really sure what it can do for you.
2. You know about Google Analytics. You have even logged into the dashboard only to be overwhelmed by the overkill of data provided and are stymied what to do with it or where to begin.
3. You get excited about the possibilities when you think of this powerful tool, with all the incredible insights it can give you into how your website is performing and how visitors behave on your site.

If you answered 1 or 2—don’t freak out because many of the people we start helping have not been clearly shown, or explained to, why this is one tool you never—EVER—want to ignore. If you are looking for a more in-depth technical training check out our Google Analytics training & courses.