Fasturtle has had a great start to 2012. This year one of our resolutions is to not only assist you in growing your business online but also to help you understand how the services we provide work and why they are so important. Subscribe to our blog for a wide range of digital marketing topics from the importance of keywords in search engine optimization to why your business should be on Facebook.

In the meantime, check out some of these forms of digital marketing to help your business have a successful 2012! Notice there are 12? Pick one a month and knock it out of the part in 2012!

Here are 12 tactics for improving your small business digital marketing efforts in 2012.

1. Written Content: Google rewards good writers.

The web pages ranking at the top of Google have one thing in common: they all feature well written content. Yes, optimization is important, but not so important that you forget about spelling, grammar, and good sentence construction. Most visitors will hit the back button when they encounter poorly written text. When creating or updating content contact a professional writer, or at least make sure it is reviewed multiple times before going online.

2. Business Blogging: Start with relevant, aspire to be remarkable.

A business blog is a valuable in getting your marketing message out to your customers and is one of the most cost-effective methods of marketing that there is, reaching both customers and search engines at the same time. A good business blog will reinforce and enhance your company’s brand.

3. Mobile Website: Your customers are mobile, are you?

The increase in web enabled mobile phones over the past few years has increased the demand for mobile websites as well. Approximately 40% of adults use the internet, email or instant messaging on a mobile phone daily. Creating a mobile website that is simple to navigate than the full content version ensures customers can access your products and services quickly and easily on the go.

4. Search Engine Optimization: What are you ranking for?

You know SEO is important but you can’t just pick your keywords and scatter them around your site. To make SEO work for you, you need to be active in developing keywords that will drive targeted traffic to your website and generate leads. SEO must me regularly managed maintain its effectiveness.

5. Social Media: Gathering friends and followers.

The rise in social media has become a great way to bring attention to your business.

By building your network to include clients, potential clients, vendors, and partners you can share your business with a diverse audience instantly, and regularly. However it is important to maintain brand consistency, create relevant posts, and avoid oversaturation with too many messages, to maintain appeal with your audience.

6. Email Marketing: No, this doesn’t make you a spammer.

The trick to effective email marketing is content! When developing an email newsletter the most important part is to provide interesting and useful content for your readers. Start out with a catchy title to get their attention and then offer news, tips, and valuable information. Also, don’t send out so many emails that you are just cluttering up inboxes, moderation is key in email marketing.

7. Website Refresher: Avoiding site stagnation.
When was the last time there was a significant change made to your website? Can’t remember? Then it may be time for a website redesign. Even a simple update to your pictures or colors can make an old website fresh again. Encourage customers to visit your site more than once by keeping your site appealing, attractive, and up to date.

8. Web Video: Bringing content to life.

Utilizing video is a great way to interact with your customers and provide them with information outside of traditional written content. A web video shows your product or service in action. Short 2 minute videos allow potential customers to see how they would interact with the product or service and visualize themselves doing so. A visual representation can do wonders in turning a potential customer into a purchaser.

9. Call to Action: Nudge your users in the right direction.

A call to action is a request for the user to do something. It might be to click on a link, fill out a form, join a newsletter, or add a product to the shopping basket. The point of the call-to-action is to help your potential customers navigate your site successfully and to bring them closer to a touch point with your company. A site’s call to action should appear on every page, avoid coming across as pushy but don’t miss an opportunity to connect with a visitor.

10. E Commerce: Power and Profitability.

Online shoppers in the US spent $177 billion dollars in 2010. The e-commerce world has accelerated dramatically over the past decade turning traditional methods of shopping upside down. If your products are not available online you are not only preventing your customers from having access to your products 24 hours a day but limiting your global reach. The boundaries between brick and mortar stores and e-commerce will continue to fade as more businesses make their products available online.

11. Managing an Online Reputation: Your customers are talking, the whole world is listening.

One of the most common fears of small business owners when it comes to developing an online presence is encountering a bad review or rating by a customer. The internet can be a double edged sword, as many opportunities as it presents to build a brand reputation, it can also be harmful and destructive to the brand you have so carefully cultivated. You must tune in to the online conversation and actively engage in it. While not each good review requires a response, the bad reviews demand special attention and should be addressed with the goal of winning back the customer.

12. Customer Service and Support: Nobody likes to feel alone.

A user’s online experience with your company doesn’t stop at the edges of the monitor. Your customer service department can have a huge impact on your company’s online presence. From return policies to offering multiple ways to contact a service representative proving quality customer service can make or break the experience for many customers. To achieve long term business success, quality customer service and the user’s needs must always be in the foreground of your business strategy.

It is no longer enough to just have a website and let customers come to you. Your business must be active in the process of extending its reach.. Developing a complete online presence can be an incredibly powerful marketing tool, but it must be taken seriously and managed correctly. A complete web strategy includes many ‘moving pieces’, whether you are running a shoe store or a doctor’s office one message is the same, provide an outstanding user experience across the web.