Many small business owners that I work with ask me about Big Data. They hear this buzzword throughout the industry and how many different business verticals are making huge profit gains by analyzing Big Data.

So what is Big Data?
R Stokes defines big data as follows:‘Big data’ is the term used to describe truly massive data sets – the ones that are so big and unwieldy that they require specialized software and massive computers

So how can a small business use it?
You already have lots of data you just don't know it yet!   If you are using Google Analytics, then you have information about visitors to your website.  If you have a Facebook page, then you can use their tools to see where your followers live, what their ages are, their gender, if they have children, and more!   You can use online tools such as SurveyMonkey to conduct client surveys, and us their feedback to improve your business offering.

So no that I have data what can I learn from it?
First, is your website data.  If you sell online, properly interpreting your Google Analytics account can be the difference between a 5% growth trajectory and a 500% growth trajectory.  The learning process can be a large task, and will take some time, but once you understand it, you can unlock a world of valuable knowledge.

For example:
Which of your customers buying?
Where did they come from?
How many times did they visit your site before buying?
How much did they spend?

The answers to these types of questions can help to determine which of your marketing is being effective by translating into real world sales, and which of your marketing spend is wasted.  The data can also tell you if you should bring in more products to an existing product line, focus on a different area, or stay the course.

But what if my business does not sell online?  Can website analytics still help me?
The simple answer is, absolutely!
You can see what topics your visitors are being drawn to on your website.  What information they deem to be valuable, sharable, and reference-able,  If a customer returns to a piece of content, say a how to guide about gardening then you know that they have an interest in that category.   You can use this knowledge to target an ad to this person about a gardening product that they can come to your store to purchase.   

How can my Facebook Fans/Followers help me?
Knowing who follows you on Facebook organically can let you know what customers are naturally drawn to your brand.  These are the people that you want to find more of, in order to drive more sales.   Uses the Audience Insights you can see this information, and when you are running your next Facebook Ad campaign you can target to people who have similar interests to your existing followers.  This will lead to a lower cost of acquisition, and a higher conversion rate.

Another great tool that Facebook offers is called lookalike audiences. 
Facebook defines it as follows:  Lookalike Audiences are a way to reach new people who are likely to be interested in your business because they're similar to customers you care about.

There are many free, and easy to use tools at your disposal that will completely revolutionize the way your business operates, the products/services that they offer, and the profit that you can make.

Contact me today if you want to learn more about how we want work together to harness the power of Big Data for your small business!

Facebook Help Center. (n.d.). Retrieved March 10, 2016, from https://www.facebook.com/business/help/164749007013531

Stokes, R. (2013). EMarketing: The essential guide to marketing in a digital world (5th ed.). Cape Town: Quirk eMarketing.

 As I work with small business owners who are trying to grow their businesses, they always ask why they need to invest in Search Engine Optimization (SEO).  Through this blog article I will unpack some of the key concepts surrounding SEO, and why it is so valuable to every small business.

Perhaps you are "old school" and never felt that a website was a key to your success as a small business owner.  But then someone, maybe a customer, maybe your kids convinced you to get a website, and it didn't seem to have made much of a difference to your overall business.  

When I hear this from a client, I say to them, what are you doing to get people from the street into your door?  Having a website is a great first step, and I always compare it to having a storefront on the busiest highway in the world.  

A location with a lot of potential traffic is great, but unless people get into your virtual storefront then you will never convert that potential into sales!   This is where SEO comes in.  SEO is what takes that traffic in front of your store, and guides them inside where you can talk to them and start building a relationship.

What is SEO?
Moz.com defines SEO as a marketing discipline focused on growing visibility in organic (non-paid) search engine results. SEO encompasses both the technical and creative elements required to improve rankings, drive traffic, and increase awareness in search engines.  

How can good SEO effect my business?
Say you are the owner of ABC Construction,  a very reputable business that has lots of happy customers who regularly refer their friends and families use your services.  So they hop on the nearest computer, or search on their cell phone and search for ABC Construction.  But unfortunately because your page is not optimized, they find BCD Construction instead, and hire them for their construction needs.   These are YOUR customers that you earned by delivering good service, but you missed out because they could not find you.

So what can I do to improve my search ranking?
Search engines have one simple goal in mind.  They want to provide searchers with the most relevant results to their search query.  So if you want to rank well, you need to make sure that your site is full of relevant and useful content to the searcher.   There are many different things that can be done to optimize your website for search engines.   

• Optimize for keyword terms and phrases
• Produce well written content
• Earn Links from other reputable sites
• Optimize for your local area
• Ensure your site is readable on all devices

How else can I use the popularity of Search Engines for my Business?
You can also leverage Search Advertising.  Search advertising, also called pay-per-click (PPC) advertising, is a way to advertise your business or product directly on search engine results pages, where the advertiser pays only for each click on their advert.  

 I will continue the ABC Construction analogy to help explain how a PPC campaign works.  When a user searches for construction services in your area, the top spots are auctioned off, and you can bid on the top spot as an advertiser to put your message right in front of them.   As with any auction, the more competition you have for that search term, the more you would pay.  

Now, there is also one more wrinkle to the auction.  The more relevant your webpage is to the search terms or phrase, the cheaper it will cost you to acquire that searcher.  A best practice is to include the search terms in the ad copy, as this will let the searcher know that you have what they are looking for, and that you can deliver value to them.  In this way, the same strategies that help with SEO, will also reduce your cost in Search Engine Marketing.

I'm not going to lie, and say that good SEO is easy, or that creating a PPC campaign will guarantee sales, but when you invest in these strategies, I have seen first hand how lucrative the returns can be.

If you are looking to increase your search ranking, lower your SEM costs  and gain more customers then contact us today for a FREE consultation!

Sources:
Fishkin, R. (2015, December 18). What is Search Engine Optimization (SEO)? Retrieved February 19, 2016, from https://moz.com/beginners-guide-to-seo

Stokes, R. (2013). EMarketing: The essential guide to marketing in a digital world (5th ed.). Cape Town: Quirk eMarketing.

Hello and thank you for reading our first Blog Post.  This blog is dedicated to digital marketing and related topics.  Since digital marketing can cover a wide range of platforms, strategies and techniques this blog will be diverse in nature.

Why do you need to know about Digital Marketing?  A strong digital marketing strategy for your business can lead to increased brand awareness, website traffic, higher conversion rates, and increased sales.

To get things started, I will introduce some of the different concepts related to digital marketing in order provide some context for future blog articles.

Digital Marketing: This is a broad term that covers marketing via websites, mobile, television, social media and more.

SEM - Search Engine Marketing: This can include Pay Per Click advertising such as Google Adwords, Keyword Research, and organic SEO.

SEO - Search Engine Optimization: A technique of optimizing a website for maximum exposure and traffic from a search engine.  This can include adding keywords, meta tags, relevant content and utilizing appropriate images.

Website Analytics: The collection, measurement, analysis and reporting of website traffic data for purposes of understanding and optimizing future website development.

Social Media: An online platform where users can share content (images, videos and text) as well as see content posted by other users.  Interaction between users drives engagement on the platform, and increases frequency of visits.

Future topics covered in this blog include search engine strategy, search engine optimization, search engine marketing, website analytics and metrics.  So check back often to learn more about these topics, and how you can use digital marketing to grow your business!