How to Effectively Use YouTube for Business Marketing

Many businesses have created channels on YouTube as a way on how to use the platform for their marketing campaigns effectively. YouTube is a leader of video sharing platforms (website) and the 2^nd used search engine in the world. 

With YouTube, it high time you jumped onto the social network and find out exactly how to use it (YouTube) to effectively market your business in some desired ways explained in this post;

1)     Create a YouTube Channel

This is the first step that will pave a way for YouTube presence. YouTube channel creation involves not just signing up but a few significant aspects like

a)     Customize your YouTube channel according to your brand’s appearance. Define the YouTube themes and colors you want your YouTube channel to use.

b)     Define how channel aspects like comments, subscribers will appear and which video you want to appear in the featured place. You can also set auto plays when a visitor comes to your channel.

c)      Add a description to your YouTube channel. It is a must for an effective YouTube marketing strategy to provide detail description for your YouTube channel and its content.

2)    Create your Company/ Business Videos

This is how you can start your YouTube journey by taking up videos that are compelling in the eyes of the target audience. Companies can create such videos;

a)     How to videos; videos that help a visitor on how to use a product or service

b)     Answering/ Problem solving videos; videos that answer questions, solve problems

c)      Product launch videos; videos announcing a release of a certain product and product reviews

d)     Running a contest and promotion video is how you can market your business by giving out offers to channel visitors for their unique and desired actions.

e)     Videos that provide tips, tricks about a service

f)       Videos on what is happening on ground in the company

3)    Optimize your Videos

YouTube optimization is how you can use YouTube to get traffic for your videos you have created by making your business videos visible in YouTube. T his involves some bit of work that needs to be done effectively like SEO as explained;

a)     Conduct a keyword research analysis: As I told you that is like search engine optimization. For you to market your products through YouTube, you must carry out a keyword/phrase research exercise. Do not conduct it for yourself but the audience that is about to use the YouTube search engine.

b)     Effectively place the keywords/phrases in the videos. Put the keyword/ phrases in the following spots;

i)                   Title: It reminds me of the web pages, articles and posts where the publisher knows the title must be keyword rich hence the same principle applies to your videos.

ii)                Description: These are the details of the video, so the details must be keyword rich in order to meet that business marketing strategy you have for YouTube.

iii)              Video Tags: It is important that the YouTube videos you have created to have keywords rich tags so that they are automatically caught up in search when the audience looks ups for them. These keywords must relate with your business else marketing your business on YouTube will never tally hence loss of traffic.

iv)               Narration: The algorithm of YouTube uses what you say and how you say it. So include keywords and phrases in what you say in your videos.

4)    Organize with Playlists

This is one effective way on how you can organize and arrange a collection of your videos. Creation of playlists helps in the following ways;

a)     Individual playlists per product /service helps in an organized inventory and arrangement of videos.

b)     It makes it easy for the audience to select all you in terms of videos with the help of a single click.

c)      Helps in choosing which favorite lists should be displayed.

5)    Provide Call to Actions

Call to actions is the thing you want the audience to do as the video ends, starts or surprisingly even in middle. Call to actions embrace marketing your business on YouTube hence driving traffic to company’s website. Some of them include;

a)     Telling visitors to visit your website to visit your website at end of the video

b)     Tell them to rate your video after watching it

c)      Tell them to comment on the video

d)     Tell them to subscribe to your business YouTube channel

e)     Tell them to follow up your business on other social networks like Twitter, Google +, Facebook

6)    Integrate with Social media, Blogs and Websites.

Link your YouTube channel to other social media networks like Facebook, Twitter, so that when you post a video, it automatically posted the other side hence effectively boosting traffic and business marketing. You can also put YouTube icons on blog or website pointing back to your channel. You can also include you’re your YouTube channel link on other company social network profiles.

7)    Monitor, Analyze and Evaluate

Use Googleanalytics to see how the audience is associating with your business channel. Google analytics effectively tracks and measure traffic to your channels in the following ways;

a)     Repeated Audience visits and loyal subscribers

b)     Finding and searching your YouTube channel by the audience

c)      Location of your audience

d)     Time people spend on your channel

Another tool is YouTubeinsights that you can use in marketing your business on YouTube effectively. It provides statistical details about your audience. These statistical data types include;

1. Views and popularity
2. Discovery, finding and search
3. Demographics (audience, age bracket and sex)
4. Audience attention
5. Community engagement- view, comment rates and number of video favorites (likes)

YouTube can be effectively used on how to go about your marketing plans for your business in those ways above. Just follow what is in the post and practice it as required and wait to see how your traffic flow, business soars, and markets open.
That’s it for now, feel free to Add-on, comment and criticize where possible. Thank You.

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6 Reasons why Niche Marketing is Important

Has one ever wondered why it is important to market specific products to a certain niche rather than the entire mass market to everyone. If you do not know where to start from with niche marketing check out my post on Niche Marketing Theory   Niche marketing has proven to be an important and determinant factor for people business’ success in the 6 fully described reasons;

1)    Easier to Locate a Target Audience

With niche marketing, you are able to develop products and services for a certain group. Once you discover a niche, one knows where exactly to market and to whom you are going to sell the product. Like a bed manufacturer when he decides to make infants’ beds in shapes of cars, trucks, tractors. The bed manufacturer will know his target audiences which are infants not adults.

2)   Cost Effectiveness and Cheaper

Niche marketing reduces the burden and cost of marketing to everyone since the entire is carried out to a certain group of people. A new niche market may have a smaller volume of monthly searches for secondary long tailored keywords. These keywords prove to be cheaper in terms of running PPC ad campaigns and will appeal to almost every consumer in that niche hence high conversion rate.

3)   Concentration and Focus on the Niche Market and Audience

From the definition of Niche Market, we see that there is focus on a certain product aimed to satisfy a group of people. Niche markets help you to focus on a certain group of people given their problem than everyone. This helps in developing more meaningful products and product features for consumers like you are targeting. Like the bed manufacturer for toddlers in different shapes.

4)   Solves the Problem by Providing the Answer, Defines the Need and Supplies the Demand

Niche marketer will have to discover the need or want of certain consumer group and provides the answers in form of products and services. Like a photographer who takes snaps and wants to share them instantly on social media rather than putting them on a computer then upload them on the internet. Here a camera manufacturer like Samsung has developed a smart camera where photos are taken and shared on the go on social media and other web platforms.

5)   Feasible Marketing Plans and Budgets

With this type of marketing, the marketing plan drawn becomes workable since the campaigns in terms of ads and Pay Per Click is cheaper due to lower audience. Once you decide to run a marketing campaign for a certain niche, it will be feasible since the target consumer group is small and all in that group may turn to be receptive to one’s product or service.

6)   Becoming an Expert hence Expertise

Niche marketing can help you become a guru in a certain niche since people will run to you for answers, solutions in various aspects. When you discover a niche you will find more sub niches hence increase in expertise of a certain niche.

Niche Marketing has proved its importance by the way it concentrates in a narrower consumer group for profit maximization and niche exploitation. That’s it for now, feel free to Add-on, comment and criticize where possible. Thank You.

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Niche Marketing Theory

The success of people’s businesses depend on a lot of factors like niche marketing and the theory that surrounding it. Companies and individuals have discovered niches by cutting down the whole market to create niche products and services addressing niche’s problem or need.

In order to be profitable, one must follow the concepts and the theory that identifies, defines niches and creates niche markets as put in detail below;

i)                 Niche

This a group of people that share the same interest in something for example soccer fans   but this example can be carved out to create more meaningful sub niches like Swansea Football Club fans.

ii)              Niche Market

It is a small targetable segment of the market on which a particular product is focused to meet needs and wants of a specific group of consumers. Specific groups can be characterized by demographics, seasonal activity, ethnicity, weather, age, passion etc. Niche markets have never existed by default but are always created to meet needs and problems of a particular niche. Here is an example to fully explain what I mean

A jersey manufacturer for Swansea football club decides to make trendy tops for female youth fans than the usual player jersey. Here the manufacturer has discovered that female youths aged 16-35 years like wearing fitting tops that bring out body curves… Lol so the company will narrow down to the trendy jersey tops from the usual jersey.

iii)           Niche Marketing

This is the type of marketing where by marketing efforts and campaigns focus on a small defined, specific portion of the market rather than the entire market. It involves cutting down the whole market into segments and also creating products and services that satisfy a particular group.

iv)             Niche Products

These are smaller classes of a product that are meant for a specific group of consumers. Like the earlier example of fitting jersey tops that are part of the major product called jerseys are meant for female youth aged 16-35 years.

v)                Niche Audience

These are smaller defined groups of consumers that a particular niche product and market tend to serve or target. Using the same example the niche audience the jersey manufacturer is targeting are the female youth aged 16-35 years then the niche market is jersey tops.

In order to be safe and successful with the niche market you have found, you must consider the following concepts and principles;

Principles of Niche Marketing

1)    Identify and Define the Niche Market

This is one of the first that you have to adhere to. Remember niche markets have never existed by default but found and created to meet special needs of a specific group of consumers.

2)   Discover the Problem, Challenge or Need of a Particular Niche

It’s one’s responsibility as a niche marketer to brainstorm, think harder and discover the problem, challenge or want of a targeted niche like in the above example where a jersey manufacturer needs to know what is a trendy wear for female youth fans for Swansea Football Club and that is Female Jersey tops.

3)   Carry Out Market Research

Once you have discovered the niche and created its products or service. Don’t just enter the market automatically because you may get embarrassed. Do some research or how consumers behave to different markets, products, and demand and supply changes according to a specific niche. Carry out a competitive analysis to measure your competitors’ strength and weakness given in a niche Market, competitors marketing campaigns and efforts. Use a keyword research tool that will help you discover hidden though profitable niches with the best targeted keywords to use. These keywords can be secondary keyword phrases that are of lower cost when it comes to pay per click campaigns yet they have a high conversion rate because they cater for a certain group.

4)   Know the Niche language and Information

For you to be successful in the niche you have found, you must know the language used in a given niche. You the niche marketer must be ready to communicate in a way that is understandable and appeals to niche members. Furthermore niche marketers should convince consumers of a certain niche why should opt for newly branded niche products and services by providing information, backups, product walk through. This should be created in such a way that it is compelling, causes receptiveness and calls for action.

5)   Target the Right People with the Right and Appropriate Product

When you create a niche product, make sure that is fit for the targeted niche members in terms of answering and solving their problems, addressing their needs and wants. It is so embarrassing to take your time on development and marketing efforts on niche products for wrong consumers. Therefore discover the niche’s needs and problems and go ahead to develop what is really fit for them. Don’t just guess…

Niche Marketing today is not just trendy but one way to carve out the market to find hidden, invisible though cost effective and profitable niche markets. So get on board today to discover the niche market and more within that (sub niche markets) and exploit or maximize it for profit. That’s it for now, feel free to Add-on, comment and criticize where possible. Thank You.

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8 Killer Email Marketing Tips

Emails to business prospects are sent using various email marketing software  considering the right email marketing tips, following the right rules and procedures. Email marketing is a form of commercial communication with business prospects by use of email. Email Marketing Campaigns will be effective if such tips below are followed and considered when sending out emails to your subscribers.

1)    Test the Email Subject Line

When crafting the subject line, try to create as many subject lines as possible and test them with some subscribers on your list. Analyze, monitor and evaluate to pick out the most promising subject line according to most responses and reactions.

2)   Personalize the Subject Line of the Email

For emails you are about to send, it’s a good email marketing tip to personalize the subject line by including the recipient ’s name or even his or her  location in it. (Subject line) This portrays a feeling that you are talking to that one person at that time.

3)   Always Say the Truth and Deliver

Always say the truth and it shall set you free. Always deliver according to what is in your subject line and email body content. If it is a link to a post or product or site, let it be portrayed in the subject line and email body.

4)   Avoid Use of Spammy Words and Phrases.

Use of spammy words in the subject line can be of harm to your email marketing campaign. It is because mail servers and clients scan subject lines and email content to detect spam. I am tipping you off with words such as free, win, money, etc that may halt your email marketing process. So it should be avoided. More about spamming in email marketing read the CAN SPAM ACT OF 2003.

5)   Build a Relationship with your Email List

When I talk of Killer tips unearthed for email marketing, I mean; creating a connection with your email list through conversations, strategies, tips, offer and freebies. Try as much as you can to communicate with recipient to know their behavior and history that will help you send out that targeted campaign to them.

6)   Indicate Sender’s Name and Location

The CAN-SPAM ACTOF 2003 indicates that the email marketer must provide full details of his or her name, company name, telephone, postal and physical address. In case of anything, the recipient will have to refer to any of the email marketer’s contact information. It is good email marketing practice to indicate your details because it creates trust and credibility for the sender.

7)   Keep the Subject Line of the Emails Short

This is a tip in everything that we publish, submit or send via the web and so it applies to email marketing. Craft the subject line in a way that your message you are airing out is in the first 50 characters or else it will be cut off and loss of meaning. Remember also to keep the subject line clear, brief, precise and articulate.

8)   Keep Track of your Email Results 

For any campaign or survey or exercise that is carried out, monitoring its progress and outcomes becomes part and parcel of it. Tracking your email results is a necessary tip that will open successful email marketing by monitoring, analyzing, evaluating delivery rates, click through rates, open rates and conversion rates. This also helps the email marketer to plan effectively.

Email marketing will bear fruit if that commercial communication to business prospects is respected with such Killer tips. Not even a huge email list will do well for you if the concept in the tips above is not adhered to for a successful email marketing campaign. That’s it for now, feel free to Add-on, comment and criticize where possible. Thank You.

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How to Carry Out an Effective Email Marketing Campaign

Email marketing is one effective step on how a company can carry out its several marketing campaigns and efforts. Email Email Marketing involves a company directly sending a commercial message to a group of prospects with the help of an email. An email marketing campaign when carried out effectively can get you benefits varying from relationship building to sending out a specific news letter for a certain email list segment.

Email marketing campaigns can only yield good results if carried out effectively using the following steps;

1)      Identify and Review Email Marketing Software

Look out for several email marketing softwares. Not all of these softwares are equal on how they deliver and contribute to an effective email marketing campaign.  So it is your duty to carry out a review exercise to see which one fits your campaign’s plans and efforts. Some email marketing management softwares include; Mail Chimp, iContact, Constant Contact, Aweber among others.

2)      Choose the Right Email Marketing Software

After carrying out the email marketing software review exercise, the next step is to choose the best software with the appropriate capabilities to run your campaign effectively. Most reviews I have read consider Aweber to be the best and mostly used but remember it depends on how your promotion is going to be carried out.

3)      Add an Easy Email Contact Capture Forms

From the right email marketing software you have signed up for, you will be provided with capture forms that you will strategically place on your website or blog. These help blog or website visitors to submit in their contact information such as email and first name etc. Such information helps in email list building. Remember to make those capture forms convenient so that it is easy for one to subscribe.

4)      Build an Email List

An email list is a group of subscribers that opted for your products and services via email. According to Matt Bacak…. If you want your email marketing to be effective, you must carry out some sort of email list building activities that will kindly force interested future prospects to step towards opting in on your website, blog, sales page or squeeze page. Remember the bigger email list, the greater and effective the marketing campaign. Simon Grabowski of Get Response provides 64 Email List Building Ideas on how to build your list. I hope they will act as a significant step towards your email list building effort and the email marketing campaign at large.

5)      Ensure Safety for Personal Information

You must put emphasis on privacy in the first place because people who utilize the web don’t want their personal information to end up in hands of third parties. This must be mentioned and clearly highlighted when prospects opt-in for your newsletter, product or service. Some one’s privacy must be respected.

6)      Test Email and Content Offers

Carry out a testing exercise of emails and their subject lines to a few subscribers on your list and then try to analyze their response in terms of open, read, delivery link click rates. This will help you on how to make significant changes and decisions before any final conclusions that the email marketing campaign is good to go. You can also send tests to your different email accounts like gmail, yahoomail, hotmail, to see how the emails will appear.

7)      Segment your Email List

For any email marketing campaign, you are working on; its better and advisable to segment your list. If you are creating a commercial message, it is wise for you to know how the subscriber history and behavior with the company or email newsletters. It helps to know who have been in touch with you, buys from you and opens every email sent or even a group of subscribers interested in a certain product or service. Specific list segments help you on how to plan specific commercial messages for a certain group of subscribers on your email list.

8)      Update your Email List

It is wise for one to carry out an updating email list process for an effective email marketing campaign since email marketing management programs charge according to the number of email addresses. Remove inactive subscribers, those you have lost communication with. Keep your email list fresh and fine.

9)      Track the Emails sent

This is one of the most significant step towards doing an effective email marketing campaign. It’s your responsibility to track opened emails (open rate), link clicks (click through rate), websites re-directions and also number of email delivered (delivery rate). This helps in how you are going to evaluate your campaign results hence utilizing those results to develop an effective email marketing plan.

10)  Measure, Analyze and Evaluate

From the results, you have got from your email tracking exercise; use them to improve your email marketing strategy. This helps to eliminate what is not fit for your campaign, leaving or including what makes your email marketing campaign successful and effective.

Email marketing is that one significant exercise and a step towards passing on a commercial message to a list of prospects. It also generates the relationship between business and client and traffic too when the campaign is effectively carried out. That’s it for now, feel free to Add-on, comment and criticize where possible. Thank You.

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