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In today’s highly distracted and tumultuous era of digital marketing, particularly in SEO, experimentation and adaptation are happening at an unprecedented pace. Despite the rapid evolution, it remains imperative to maintain a well-documented, actionable, and accountable digital marketing strategy.
Corey Morris, in his latest publication, outlines a comprehensive five-step START Planning method aimed at guiding brands towards crafting effective digital marketing success plans. This approach ensures that return on investment (ROI) and business objectives remain central to every initiative, while also allowing flexibility to navigate the swift changes inherent in digital and search marketing.
Search Engine Journal features an exclusive look into the initial phase of Morris’s START Planning process: “S for Strategy”. This pivotal phase breaks down into four essential steps, forming the foundation for achieving digital marketing excellence.
The Strategy Phase stands as the cornerstone of the START planning process, encompassing the most extensive components. Subsequent phases hinge entirely on the groundwork laid out and defined during this critical phase.
Strategy involves meticulous profiling, auditing, thorough research, and goal establishment. Understanding the historical context of past marketing efforts, current standings, and most importantly, defining future aspirations, is paramount at this stage and fundamental to any successful digital marketing plan.
Within the strategy phase, there are four distinct steps, with the initial step focusing on profiling. This step involves gathering essential information and establishing clear definitions, setting a foundational stage for the subsequent phases.
However, it can also be prone to misinterpretation and presents challenges, requiring expertise in asking the right questions. This encompasses detailing the team involved in the initiative and defining the products or services we need to sell, establishing our brand identity, and pinpointing our target audiences.
In essence, we’re laying out specific details about our identity, resources, and capabilities. This involves identifying what we offer, its value proposition, our delivery methods, and our pricing structure. Equally crucial is defining our brand in terms of its positioning, differentiation, and overall equity.
Just as vital is understanding our target audience personas, their behaviors as customers, and the pathways or journeys they undertake during the purchasing process.
It’s easy to list demographics or target groups superficially. However, as companies expand, achieving a shared understanding of what the business offers, who its customers are, and the associated costs is incredibly challenging.
I share all of this with the hope that you won’t get bogged down by the intricate details. However, I also acknowledge that if things seem straightforward, it might be worthwhile to challenge assumptions and delve deeper to ensure genuine consensus and alignment.
Moving to the second step in the strategy phase, which is audit. It’s crucial to review our past and current actions comprehensively to gain insights into what has been effective, what hasn’t, and why. Audits play a pivotal role here and can be one of the most time-intensive aspects of developing a digital marketing success plan.
As you gather or generate documentation of past activities, it’s essential to have access to all historical and current networks and platforms. This allows for thorough audits, encompassing technical aspects of paid search, SEO, content strategy, web systems, email marketing systems, and more, based on past actions and current available resources.
Moving forward to the third step in the strategy phase, which is research. Up to this point, the focus has been on defining our identity and reviewing our journey to date. This phase involves gaining external perspectives beyond our internal data and understanding.
Here, we gather internal insights from marketing, sales, operations, product, and other relevant teams and stakeholders, as well as from our customers or clients. Concurrently, we conduct external research to uncover new insights or validate our assumptions regarding competitors, target audiences, and future opportunities.
The final step in the strategy phase is establishing goals. Armed with a comprehensive understanding of our identity, current position, and potential opportunities, we collaborate to define a practical set of objectives. These goals may evolve from existing ones or be developed anew at this stage.
Regardless, this step is pivotal in shaping the entire process and creating a plan that drives success. It’s where we align business objectives with the impact of marketing efforts, ensuring we establish clear expectations before translating our strategy into actionable initiatives.
A high-end roofing manufacturing company approached us with a unique challenge. Marcy, their experienced marketing manager, had previously achieved significant success with SEO, their website, and email marketing. She had executed extensive campaigns that effectively drove traffic to their websites, supporting their sales operations for homeowners and contractors alike.
Over the past few years, Marcy had worked with several different agencies. While she had initially positive experiences, there were also instances where agencies did not prioritize or possess adequate knowledge of SEO. Initially, SEO seemed to be just another line item for some agencies, with tasks completed and rankings maintained adequately without any glaring issues.
Recently, Marcy noticed a concerning trend in Google Analytics: a decline in overall traffic. She immediately delved into the reports and channels she was familiar with and quickly identified an SEO issue. Despite assurances from the agency that everything appeared normal on their end and no site errors could be found, Marcy observed a significant drop in their Google rankings. Subsequent declines in traffic, conversions, and form submissions further validated her concerns.
She recalled our previous collaboration from a few years back when we worked together at a different agency, and she reached out to me for help. Her trust in my ability to resolve any SEO issue was a compliment I valued greatly. At the time, I was preparing to speak about SEO troubleshooting at a conference in Silicon Valley.
The irony struck me: right after delivering my speech, I had an extensive conversation with Marcy over the phone. I could immediately identify the same issues she had noticed, realizing we needed to conduct a thorough audit promptly to understand the situation.
I rallied my team back home to tackle the challenge. Within just two days, we pinpointed two critical but hidden issues that might have gone unnoticed by most. It was through our meticulous analysis and auditing process that we were able to uncover these issues.
We presented our findings to Marcy and her CEO, both of whom understood the significant negative impact these issues could have on their business if left unresolved.
We presented three options. The first was to address the technical issues within their current site, but with a forward-thinking and ROI-driven approach, we aimed beyond short-term fixes. Therefore, we proposed two additional plans: a midrange plan and a long-range plan to develop a new website. These plans not only addressed the existing issues but also strategically enhanced other aspects.
They chose to invest in the new website, leading to an ongoing partnership where we continued to enhance and amplify their SEO efforts, surpassing their previous achievements and setting new milestones. I’m thrilled that we successfully executed this strategy, achieving the growth we had anticipated, which was recognized with industry awards when the company eventually sold for a record amount.
The lesson here is to not settle for the status quo. It underscores the importance of recognizing varying levels of expertise among professionals with “SEO” in their title. Conducting thorough audits is crucial not only for resolving immediate issues but also for ensuring sustained success over the long term.
Jamaal discovered us through Google. He served as the director of admissions and marketing at a prestigious retirement facility that offers a full spectrum of care services. This community featured independent living, gourmet dining, diverse activities, a pub, and comprehensive care options from assisted living to skilled nursing.
The facility enjoyed a strong reputation within its city but sought assistance in reaching their specific audience: potential residents and the adult children who influence their decisions. These individuals often find themselves unprepared when it becomes necessary to consider such living arrangements, needing guidance for critical conversations with their loved ones.
Despite being a high-end, nonprofit organization dedicated to benevolence and community service, financial margins were tight, and resources for marketing were limited. Recognizing the need for action, they were determined to make impactful changes.
When Jamaal approached us, he expressed his challenge: “I know you have extensive capabilities. I understand I likely need a comprehensive digital marketing strategy, including a new website, but our budget is limited.”
We assured him, “That’s not an issue. We often begin with incremental steps with our clients, identifying areas where we can achieve the highest return on investment and make the most significant impact. From there, we develop tailored strategies and allocate budgets, freeing up funds for other opportunities.”
Upon entering the situation, we conducted a thorough analysis of their audience. They possessed a wealth of data and deep knowledge of their business, which impressed us. However, they required assistance in navigating digital marketing and connecting the dots effectively.
They had consulted with three or four other providers who proposed expensive products or services without collaborating to find the optimal solution or maximize their investment.
When we advised them, we suggested starting with SEO.
Jamaal found it amusing because it was the opposite recommendation from several other agencies. They had insisted, “No, you should begin with $100,000 per month in Google Ads.”
I countered, “Starting with SEO at a fraction of that budget would be more prudent,” despite knowing the challenges involved in not being able to overhaul their outdated website. We would need to work within the constraints of their current site and optimize it effectively.
We understood that crafting the narrative, refining the content, and even improving a subpar website could significantly advance our long-term goal of attracting new leads. We were confident that even with a small number of visitors, if we could convey their message effectively and capture their interest at the right moment, it would lead them through their doors to experience this exceptional place firsthand.
As we gained momentum, acquiring leads one by one, we began discussing a new website, expanding into additional marketing channels, and integrating elements of our long-term digital marketing strategy for sustained success.
Over time, their business and marketing investments grew in tandem. Eventually, they were acquired by a large hospital system, enabling everyone involved to thrive and spread their mission.
The lesson here is that taking action, even if it’s incremental, is always preferable to doing nothing.
When working with limited resources, it’s crucial to recognize that the most obvious or expensive solutions may not be the most effective. Instead, delve into the data, put in the effort, and uncover opportunities to create new pathways for investment.
By achieving small victories step by step, you pave the way for larger achievements in the future.
Original news from SearchEngineJournal
