Digital marketing is an essential tool for small businesses looking to build brand awareness, find new customers, and build a loyal following. However, the idea of ​​mastering social media, online video, email, and other platforms can be intimidating for small business owners who are also trying to run their company.

This time the CO– is from Start of the US Chamber of Commerce. Run. growing up. In the series, a successful business leader explained how a small business can reach customers with the right digital his marketing strategy.

Grow your audience by partnering with influencers

Influencer marketing is a great way to expose your brand to their audience while partnering with popular internet personalities on social media. Influencers have niche and loyal followers ranging from thousands to millions who trust them and their endorsements. Many small businesses may think that working with influencers is out of reach as they can be celebrities with endless followers. to work with influencers.

“You don’t have to be famous to be an influencer, and you don’t have to work with someone who has 100,000 followers and get very tangible results from that partnership,” said a travel influencer. said Gabby Beckford, founder of Packs Light.

Beckford said when she first started with thousands of followers, she developed a close relationship with many of her followers and was able to successfully make personal endorsements for brand partnerships. .

“You first need to understand the KPIs you are trying to achieve from your partnership and decide what works best for you, but don’t leave out the little ones. They have a lot of value too,” Beckford adds. I was.

Use both organic and paid social media posts

There are many different ways of thinking about using social media to market your business. Some entrepreneurs believe they get the best results through organic social media posts, while others find that buying paid ads on platforms is the route to exposure. Evan Horowitz, co-founder and CEO of Movers+Shakers, said posting strategies are more nuanced and entrepreneurs should use both to grow their audience.

“Organic has always been a hoot, paid ad submissions are going well, and there is ongoing paid support behind it,” said Horowitz. “I don’t think of it as an ‘either or’. [situation] — probably both.

When companies run organic social media campaigns, they don’t have to post all the time, which can backfire in the end, Horowitz said.

“Three times a week is the goal for most platforms,” he explains.

Don’t be afraid to pivot your digital marketing strategy

When Griffin Thall, CEO and co-founder of Pura Vida Bracelets, started his business in 2010, the digital marketing landscape was different. As a direct-to-consumer (DTC) brand, his business relied heavily on his Facebook and later his Instagram ads for marketing efforts. When asked what small businesses can do to succeed in his digital marketing space, Toll reflected on his own experience of having too many eggs in one basket.

“Now we’re trying to learn other channels, understand podcasts and TikTok, and dig deeper into email and SMS,” says Thall.

Investing in multiple spaces allows small businesses to pivot when their digital marketing strategy is no longer delivering the desired results.

“Having one acquisition channel is the biggest benefit,” says Thall. “It’s easy when it’s easy, but when it gets harder, there really isn’t a solution to the same strategy. [Our] Strategies have changed over the last decade, but we have always been able to pivot successfully. ”