Getting Your Business Ready for the New Year
As you take a look back at the past year and work on your upcoming budget, projects, and must-dos for the next year, it can be a great time to look at new strategies and ideas for improving your businesses’ online presence and overall customer base.
We’d like to share some of our best tips for digital marketing that could give you a fresh start in 2020.
create a content calendar
Our top tip and the first step for any client we begin work with is to have a content calendar. This is not only great for scheduling and planning out social media posts for each month and posting time-relevant content, but it’s also fantastic for keeping an eye on the big picture!
We typically build out our calendars one to two months in advance (ex: filling out December’s calendar in November or October and so on). This allows us to prepare content ahead of time, get new video or photos should we need it for the month ahead, and begin scheduling content.
A content calendar also helps remove some of the pressure you may feel to post daily. If you plan out the content one month in advance and begin scheduling it to post a couple of weeks ahead, you don’t have to worry about constantly being on your phone or posting at the exact right time every day.
When you look back at your year’s content calendar and posts, you can also find out what content performed best and the formats that you should repeat the next year.
To get you started, download Hive’s free 2020 Content Calendar with this year’s national and “social media” holidays filled in by the Hive team!
budget in social media management and content creation
In addition to creating a content calendar, be sure to make room in your yearly or quarterly budget for social media marketing and management. We know getting into social media can seem overwhelming but it’s one of the best decisions you can make for your business, especially if you are a B2C brand or company. Potential customers often look for new places to shop or eat at through Instagram by searching locations, hashtags, and tagged photos.
If you want to make a great first impression and attract new clients or customers, social media can make a huge difference. Each platform requires a slightly different strategy but overall you can post similar content across the board if that simplifies your strategy. We recommend keeping an eye on insights and analytics so you can see how your audience differs on each platform and adjust your content accordingly.
branch into video marketing
Video marketing is a fast-growing field. Whether you’re featuring small clips on your website or posting long-form video on YouTube, it can be a great way to showcase products, employees, or fun projects. Video doesn’t have to be an expensive project, you can choose to film videos on your iPhone or hire someone else to film for you. If you choose to branch into video content, the most important thing is to be sure you’re marketing it well and using it to your full advantage.
refresh your website
If you want your business to make a fresh and exciting impression in the new year, you can start with a website refresh! If your website is more than three years old, or you’ve simply never created one, a new modern look online for your business can help attract clients and customers. Websites can help you display your products (or sell them via an online shop), showcase fun videos and photos of your business or employees, and give your customers an insight on your business philosophies and know-how.
If you’re in the healthcare, finance, or marketing industry, a website can help showcase your expertise and be a great place to post blogs about interesting topics. If you’re in a consumer product industry, you can use your new website to sell products, answer customer questions, or discuss product features. If you’re in the hospitality or tourism industry and run a winery, wedding venue, or hotel, you can showcase your beautiful property, allow customers to book rooms, and even post video tours or behind-the-scenes looks at events.
getting started…
We know this can all seem overwhelming, especially if you are a new or small business. Luckily, we can help! We can re-do your website, help you edit or market your video content, create and schedule social media posts, and help you come up with your yearly content calendar and social media strategy. Contact us today and start the new year with your business on the right foot!
