Social Media Vs Website for digital marketing?
Part Two: Getting your website to do the work for you

In our last post, Part One: Social Media, Context Matters, I spoke a little to the power of social media as being dependent on context. For small businesses, in particular, some industries suit social media marketing more than others, depending on the nature of the business itself. Some (but not many) small businesses or sole traders may find social media is all they need. For most Australian businesses operating today, a high-quality, high-performing website is an essential part of digital marketing and often the business model as a whole. 

When we require a service, or an answer or are just browsing our options, we put our trust in Google. And when someone needs a problem solved, you want to be up the top of that page, ready to solve it. SEO or Search Engine Optimization is a strategy to bump your business to the top of Google for particular keywords. Investing in an SEO campaign will drive higher rates of traffic to your website. Generally, this traffic will be more likely to translate into quality leads for your business, as people are searching for a specific solution, not scrolling through no man's land. Search Engine Marketing (SEM) is another fruitful tactic for driving leads to your website, usually Google Ads is the main method. Google Ads also generate data surrounding specific keywords, trends and user behaviour. It goes without saying, but data is key for a successful marketing strategy. 

Another important consideration is what happens when people land on your website. Traffic is the first piece, conversions complete the puzzle. It doesn’t take much to get someone to walk into Coles, but what makes them put the Kit Kat into their basket? At a base level, good design and copywriting are essential for making a connection and actually speaking to your customer. Trust is built through clear communication and messaging. It’s impossible to project your business as being modern and approachable if the photos on your site were taken in 2002 and the copy is written in comic sans. People won’t book in if they can’t find the booking button. Creating a positive, easy experience for a user on your website tells them working with you is positive and easy. 

For an extra boost, lead-gen forms, surveys and other tools can drive conversions. Not only as a data collection tool for you, but by offering something useful and personalised to the human on your website. By asking them questions, you acknowledge their pain points and tell them something about themself or what they need that they may not know yet. Socials require a large input of time and energy as posting has to be created and posted daily, whereas a well thought out lead gen tool will work for you in your sleep. 

So how do you work out which is worth focusing resources on? I believe the power of intuition should never be underestimated. You know your customers, you work with them every day. What do you think connects you to them? The reason we as a business choose not to dip our toes too much into socials, is because the trends and methods are constantly changing. We know and have seen the value that a good website and website strategy can bring to a business and its customers firsthand. A great social media campaign can bring a lot of awareness and authority to a brand. For small business, a strong SEO and SEM strategy only amplifies this.