Businesses in Australia are benefitting from the increasing trend of using digital media in advertising to generate organic traffic. Marketers are taking advantage of the expanding digital landscape and the opportunities it presents. This is seen in the rise of SEO and other digital marketing strategies in the country recently and into the foreseeable future. Here we look at some of these essential strategies.
The Value Of SEO
SEO (search engine optimisation) is the number one marketing strategy being used in Australia and elsewhere in 2022. Most companies make it central to their digital marketing campaigns.
The majority of companies are partnering with experts to ensure the maximum utilisation of this tool. Carter Douglas, a Brisbane-based SEO expert at Marketing One says that SEO is about creating consistent business for a company rather than simply gunning for sales. Additionally, he states that clients are entitled to see how their hard-earned money is being spent and the return on their marketing investment.
The value of SEO can be seen in the latest statistics. 93% of potential customers who become buyers started with an online search. The lion’s share (94.5%) uses the Google search engine. Three-quarters of users will stop their search on the first page of results. A third will end their search with the first item. A post containing a video boosts organic traffic by 157%. Search parameters consist of four or more words in half of the searches, making it essential to use the right keywords.
This is where an SEO company can get results with their SEO-specific expertise and 42% of businesses are making use of their skills and knowledge to improve their websites. This generates three times as many leads compared to paid search advertising.
Leveraging Social Media
More than half of Australian companies found social media to be an effective channel for content marketing and specific marketing objectives. A full 90% of Australian businesses leverage social media to increase their reach.
The most popular social media platforms used by marketers are Facebook with 93%, 87% on LinkedIn, Twitter accounting for 74%, and 64% utilising YouTube. Facebook in Australia has 15 million users that are active monthly. 50% of the Australian population uses Facebook daily.
The least used platforms in Australia are Reddit, Pinterest, and Flickr.
Marketers are advised to do research on the social media platforms preferred by their target demographic and to make the most of advertising on these sites.
Content Marketing
Content marketing aims to reach customers through its content. Rather than having a sales-focused approach, it wants to connect with consumers and engage them by providing them with useful information. Some of the forms it takes are infographics, blogs, videos, and podcasts.
As an example, a company that produces DIY equipment will post articles or videos on how to complete home improvement projects.
These content offerings will make use of specific keywords to direct online users to their posts. Good content will be shared across social networks. With a link to the business website, traffic can be increased.
The content created in this manner must be original, relevant, of high quality, and useful to readers. All this helps to generate more shares and exposure for the company.
Content marketing goes hand-in-hand with SEO.
Pay-per-click (PPC) Advertising
As a form of paid advertising, PPC is very cost-effective. Its goal is to connect with transactional searchers to answer their queries.
Whenever an online user clicks on a PPC advertisement, they are redirected to the company’s landing page, which provides them with a call to action. This will engender a sense of urgency to take action, such as buying a product, to achieve conversions. It could encourage users to sign up for a newsletter delivered weekly by email, so increasing opportunities for later conversions.
Half of the online searches that lead to clicking on an ad translate to purchases.
PPC is also useful for moving a website’s search ranking up. Two trillion searches go through the Google platform annually, making PPC a worthwhile marketing investment. The ROI from Google Ads is remarkable.
Email Marketing
Email marketing is not so much about instant purchases as ensuring that a brand is uppermost in a potential buyer’s mind when they do decide to acquire a product or service. Great for retention and gaining new customers, it increases brand awareness.
It is still popular with businesses as it has an average return on investment of 4400%.
Digital marketing, such as SEO, has become vital to any Australian business. Are you utilising it yet?