Quick marketing tips for time strapped SMEs

Ever set a repeating event in Outlook or Google Calendar? That’s one easy way to save time and make sure you get to the same meeting or do the same task every week. By automating repetitive or routine tasks, you can save time and dramatically improve the effectiveness of your digital marketing.

You don’t need to learn to code or pay for expensive software as many tools already have automatic options built in. Here are a few of our tips on how to automate everything in your online marketing suite, leaving you time to focus on the big issues: what your next campaign will look like and who said what on Twitter. Below are our quick marketing tips for time strapped SMEs:

Set automatic calendar reminders

Every market has predictable major events, whether that’s an industry conference or a public holiday. Set reminders in advance to trigger you to set up a seasonal promotion, apply for a stand or whatever action you need to do to make the most of an opportunity. As an example, a digital marketing manager for an online toy shop might start brainstorming Christmas promotions in July, with the intention of setting the first ones live in September (as the Back To School ones end, naturally) and getting in well ahead of the crowd.

Update multiple channels with one click

Cross-platform social media tools like Hootsuite let you upload the same post to more than one social network. It’s an easy way of spreading the news about a new product, special offer or other deal. Do remember to throw in some genuine interactions with your followers on each service though – no one wants to feel like they’re following a robot.

Link your store or blog to social media

Most content management systems have digital marketing plug-ins that will let you publicize your new content on social network sites. Every time you upload a new product, news story or blog post, these tools can publish it on your company Facebook page, send a Tweet or whatever you’ve decided is appropriate.

Batch load messages in advance

Want a sale to go live at midnight, or a Tweet to go out before you get to work? Digital marketing applications and content management systems both have tools that let you schedule content ahead of time. This is a great way to create economies of scale as you can get in the zone and write a whole bundle of posts in one go. Schedule them to go out at appropriate intervals – perhaps a new blog post every Monday or two Tweets a day – and you’re done.

Get the experts in

For some jobs, it’s worth hiring a professional. If your online marketing efforts are taking time away from your core business, give us a call. We’ll create a strategy that suits your needs and budget. Our digital marketing team have years of experience, so they can quickly create effective campaigns for you.

If you are based in Portsmouth, Hampshire or surrounding areas and would like to discuss how to manage digital marketing for your small-to-medium business, view our portfolio or make contact with our web design and digital marketing team. We really like to talk.

Danielle, Project Manager – boxChilli Digital Marketing

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