This week I was asked to give a talk on digital marketing to a group of entrepreneurial young women in east London. All are participants on the Ladies Who L-Earn project started by social entrepreneur Asma Shah.

Doing the prep for the talk had me thinking about digital marketing and the different avenues and forms it takes. With so many channels to choose from, and some more obvious than others, sometimes we can get stuck in one way of doing things, so I thought I would make this week's blog post into a Digital Marketing Refresher.  

What is Digital Marketing?

Firstly let's define what we're taking about. Digital Marketing is probably best defined by looking at what it is not i.e. radio, television and all types of print. Essentially digital marketing revolves around delivery via the internet whether that's on a PC, a mobile phone or a tablet such as the iPad.

Why use Digital Marketing?

Digital marketing, like traditional marketing, must be tied to a business objective. This is an important point to remind ourselves of now and again. There's no point in writing a blog or maintaining a Facebook Page if it does not fulfil a business objective.

The main aim of digital marketing is to drive people to your website where you have your products and/or services clearly outlined and where there are clear calls to action.

What are the Digital Marketing Channels?

Here is a quick refresher of the major digital marketing channels that are accessible to small businesses:

Website

A website is essential to provide a 'base' to drive potential leads and customers to. Gone are the days of paying thousands of pounds to a web developer when you can get a WordPress website up and running in less than an hour. (If you need a website, do sign up for my free WordPress eCourse).

Blog

A blog can be a great way of demonstrating your expertise in a particular area and increasing your profile on the social web. WordPress can function as a blog as well as a 'static' website or microblogging services such as Posterous (like this blog) or Tumblr can be used to host an external blog. Or do like design and simplicity consultants minimoko and integrate your Posterous blog into your website.

Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)

SEO is the process we use to appear as high as possible in search engine rankings (generally Google) by organic or natural search (as opposed to paid search - see Advertising below). Your WordPress site can be configured with plugins such as All in One SEO Pack that does the hard work for you or premium themes such as DIYThemes' Thesis come already optimised for SEO out of the box.

For advice on SEO and how to improve your rankings, have a read of this blog post on 9 SEO Insights.

Email Marketing

A sometimes overlooked medium in this world of social media, email marketing can be your strongest marketing channel if used correctly. They say 'the fortune's in the list' and I agree that a well cultivated and engaged email list are far more likely to buy from you than your social media followers.

With so many free (and paid) options for email marketing software, I don't think there's any excuse for sending email blasts through your Gmail or Outlook contacts. Using an email marketing platform will ensure you keep on the right side of data protection (with many having double opt-in and easy unsubscribe) as well as having a ability to embed a sign up form on your website and send great looking emails.

My top three recommendations are Mailchimp, Madmimi or Aweber.

Social Networks

Social networks can be a great way of getting your marketing message out there but have to be used in subtle way. Think of social media like a cocktail party, no-one wants to speak to the bore in the corner who only talks about himself!

The holy trinity of Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn have been joined by new kid on the block, Google+. My recommendation to clients is to pick one or two to focus on and do them well rather than trying to be everywhere at once.

And don't forget the power of social sharing. People are more likely to sign up for something or buy if their friends have recommended it, so do make sure your content is easily sharable via social media buttons etc.

Video

Video is an underutilised channel by many small businesses. With YouTube being owned by Google, a keyword optimised video can be a great way of getting to the top of the search results. Video is also a good way of connecting with your audience as they get to see (or hear) the person behind the brand.

Recording video can be as simple as using the inbuilt camera on your laptop or investing £100 in a mini HD recorder such as the Kodak Zi8 or The Flip. Editing can be done for free using Windows Movie Maker or iMovie or, for a more professional finish, use Camtasia. Host and share your videos on sites such as YouTube or Vimeo for free.

Podcasts

Another underutilised area is podcasts. I follow several (all US based) podcast shows on small and online businesses and think it's a really effective marketing channel as the listener can subscribe to the content and it builds trust with the podcast host.

Recording podcasts on Audacity or GarageBand for the Mac is easy and free. Submit your podcasts to the iTunes store and you have yourself a show!

Advertising

The early days of online business were all about advertising especially using banner ads and Pay Per Click through Google Adwords. I think they have been slightly taken over by social sharing (see above).

However, a well targeted Adwords or even LinkedIn or Facebook Ads campaign can be a good way of driving targeted traffic to an event or promotion. Just don't let a campaign run for ever without measuring and tweaking the outcomes. Set yourself a budget and give it a trial. 

Affiliates/Partners/Joint Ventures

Affiliate marketing is well known as a business model for internet business - it works by recommending a product or service in exchange for a percentage of the cost. If you are running an event via Eventbrite, you can set up partners with a referral link who can then promote your event for you. Using the web and the power of your networks can be an inexpensive way of widening your marketing reach.

Mobile/Location-Based

With many of us carrying around a GPS enabled mini-computer in our pocket everyday (it's your mobile), mobile marketing and especially location-based marketing is on the rise. This can be as simple as SMS (text messaging) or using location-based services such as FourSquare or Facebook Places to connect with potential customers.

There are other ways of using mobiles and tablets to connect especially with Apps, however without being a developer, I think much of this is out of reach to small businesses.

What does your digital marketing mix look like at the moment? Are you missing any potential opportunities? What are you currently doing that is not delivering any value?

Do let me know in the comments below.