Are You Doing What Every Successful Digital Marketer Does First?

02 Mar 2021

Want to know the one thing that every successful digital marketer does first to ensure they get the biggest return on their marketing budget?

It’s simple: goal-setting. This is an absolutely essential practice for any digital marketer who knows how to execute their campaigns in a productive, cost-effective way. With a few simple tips, you can be doing the same in no time!

In this blog, we’ll walk you through the first steps every savvy digital marketer takes to ensure that they’re on target to hit all their marketing objectives. Get ready for revenue!

Step #1: Know your digital goals

The first step is clearly identifying which goals you want to achieve. Get specific. Do you want to increase brand awareness? Are you all about locking in leads? Do you want to establish a strong network of influencers that can help you be discovered? How about pushing engagement on social media?

Make a list of all the targets you want to hit for the budget period you’re planning for. Be realistic in the goals you set for your business, but don’t set the bar too low. Know that if you invest cleverly and put work into the right avenues, you’ll see results.

Step #2: Get specific

A useful tool for narrowing down your goals to ensure they’re viable is the SMART mnemonic. It’s important to get specific to understand exactly what you’re working towards, and help you break down the process of hitting your targets. This is exactly what this mnemonic helps you to achieve.

As an example, a SMART objective can be to increase the average order value of online sales to $80 per customer over a 6-month period. Frame your own goals around this tool and you’ll find that the budget planning process will get a whole lot easier!

Step #3: Do your research

Next, research the channels and customer touchpoints you can use to reach your goals. This is an extremely important part of any digital marketing budget. Understanding your target market, how they communicate and which channels appeal to them is the key to success.

You should ask yourself a series of questions to determine which channels are most relevant to your brand. These include:

• Does the channel reach my intended audience?
• Is the channel sustainable and affordable within my company’s marketing budget?
• Will I be able to measure the success of the channel?
• Does the channel allow me to express my brand’s intended message?
• Do the channels I’m considering work together to convey my message?

Remember: even if the channel you’re considering is all the rage right now, it might not fit your brand. Always make informed decisions that directly relate to your company. Otherwise, your message won’t be delivered to its intended audience and you’ll have wasted time, effort and money.

Step #4: Always remember your goals!

Establishing a solid vision for your business is the first step to planning your digital marketing budget. Always keep your final goals in sight when organizing anything for your company.

When deciding which steps to take next in your business, ask yourself how they will help you achieve the goals you outlined in Step #1. This will ensure that you stay on track and prevent you from spending your budget on anything that won’t help you achieve.

As your budget progresses and evolves, continue referring to your SMART objectives. Stay focused and remember your goals – they will always inform what your next step will be!