By Mark H. Cohen President Colloquy Digital, LLC
A 5 Step Digital Marketing Self-Audit.
Going digital means different things to different people. Regardless of a company’s size and breadth of resources, many companies are not as digitally savvy as they should – or could be. As an essential partner of CPGs and retailers, the private label industry is no different. Your digital capability and presence are table stakes and can be a differentiator as you compete for business. It can and should also be a primary means to create and maintain a healthy pipeline of prospects.
The question of “how digital are you” frames audits I’ve conducted for years and helps companies assess their digital capabilities. In the version below, I chose five of the most critical areas of digital marketing you can use to evaluate your capabilities.
- WEBSITE
A website is one of the most visible representations of your brand, a “public face,” and a direct prospecting means.
A. How clear is your brand story and differentiation?
B. How easy is it for prospects to find the information THEY need to determine if they want to do business with your firm?
C. When a prospect comes to your site, is it well equipped with a means to submit contact information you can follow up on? This is not simply contact us form but lead-generating content such as blogs, whitepapers, etc.
- SOCIAL MEDIA
Your social media presence is a visible representation of your brand and a means to establish deeper relationships with prospects and customers.
A. Your brand story and differentiation are not as static as your website on social media. So the question here is, how often are you supporting your story and differentiation with engaging content?
B. One of the most important yet least understood aspects of social networking is the level of engagement of your customers and prospects. Check your stats – how many views, likes, shares, and comments do you receive?
C. If you’re like me, you follow numerous people and companies on social networks. So do your prospects and customers. The question here is, are you posting often enough to be noticed in their feeds?
Email is a somewhat misunderstood and misused medium. Firstly, let’s debunk the notion that email is dead. According to marketing automation platform/CRM HubSpot, email generates $42 for every $1 spent.
A. When you get a lead, what do you do with it?
B. Do you have one or more automated email campaigns that keep you in front of and connected to prospects until close?
C. Do you have an opted-in list or lists? D. Do you have an email cross-selling program?
- CRM
A CRM (Customer Relationship Management) system is as critical as a website. It helps you keep track and organize prospects, customers, conversations, and sales pipeline, and when connected to a marketing automation platform, enables you to send and track automated emails.
A. Do you have a CRM?
B. A marketing automation platform?
C. Are you using them efficiently and effectively to generate and track leads and sales?
- ANALYTICS
Last and certainly not least is your ability to track which digital channel leads are coming from and the effectiveness of each channel at generating sales. You can also track how each well each channel is “working.”
A. Are you set up for campaign and channel tracking?
B. How effective are those tools supporting and enabling your marketing and sales efforts?
Once you’ve considered your answers, you can now assess where you stand relative to “how digital are you?.” Indeed, there are more questions; however, what you can do from here with your staff or external resources is to determine where the gaps are and prioritize and budget for initiatives to improve your capabilities.
I hope you found this helpful, and I am at your service if you have additional questions or needs. Connect with me on LinkedIn – www.linkedin.com/in/markhcohen or email me at [email protected].
