A good chunk of customers wait to shop until after the holiday rush is over.

Statistics show:

• 92% of those within the U.S. shop online post-holidays.
• 31% say they shop online within a few days of a holiday.
• 34% say they shop online during the month of January. 

Did You Know?

• People are much more likely to buy after receiving an email or a text message from a brand than seeing them through social media.
• Social media is most valuable when combined with other marketing efforts.

A recent report from Constant Contact (a leader in automated email marketing) focuses on helping small businesses understand how their customers are changing and how businesses should adjust to meet those expectations.

The data, and trends show a huge gap between what small businesses think their customers want, and what consumers are actually looking for.

Let's look at a few areas where this disconnect is most apparent - with ways small businesses can alter their marketing strategies to start driving better results. 

In the past, the Instagram Story link feature was only accessible for use by verified accounts or those with 10,000+  followers.

Instagram recently announced that now all users now have access to its Link Sticker feature in Instagram Stories.

Why is This Exciting?

The Link Sticker has long been a high-performing link for directing people from an Instagram Story to a website, and can be attributed to driving conversions and sales. Now it’s available to everyone on a global basis – no matter how many followers they have.

• How often do you check your Google Analytics data?
• Were you going to set up this free tool, but never got around to it?
• Do you use Google Analytics reports to tweak your marketing strategy?

Did You Know?

Google Analytics, serves up comprehensive insight reports so business website owners can make strategic decisions based on accurate and real-time data.

Order Google Analytics Installation. 

Did You Know?

• TikTok is the 7^th most used social network.
  
  
• As of January, 2021, TikTok had over 689 million global active viewers.

• TikTok boasts over 100 million monthly active USA viewers, with the majority being 18 to 29, and apx 20 percent in the 30-49 age group.

TikTok has become increasing popular with businesses wanting to expand exposure and increase engagement to a new audience base.

TikTok has a reputation of just being about challenges-gone-wrong, and non-stop-dancing. They’ve grown beyond those nuances into a successful platform for both business and personal brands.

TikTok is way more forgiving than other social media platforms, as their audience is looking for quirky videos and entertaining connections.

There’s always revisions and enhancements to social media apps, but this month has been particularly busy in the world of Instagram.

Check out a few of the changes you may or may not have already seen on Instagram.

Every business receives negative online reviews at some point.

• Negative reviews give business owners insight into issues they may not have been aware of.
• Negative reviews give you the opportunity to improve your business.
• One unresolved negative review can put a big dent in an online business’s reputation.

Let’s look at five tips for turning those negative reviews into a positive situation for all.

• Does the thought of running Facebook and Instagram ads intimidate you?

• Does the process seem way too complicated?

• Are you unsure of how to start?

People use a variety of platforms to prepare, create and publish their Facebook and Instagram ads - some offer ease-of-use, while others make the process cumbersome and time consuming.

• Is this your first holiday season marketing your products and/or services online?

• Are you a non-profit wanting to stand-out and bring in more donations?

• Did you experience less than stellar sales/donations last holiday season?

Here are a few social media marketing tips you might want to include in your holiday social media marketing strategy this year.

If you were asked ...

What’s your online business marketing strategy, and is it effective?

What would your answer be?

If you're having trouble articulating what your specific online marketing strategy is - then we have a few tips for you.

Think About This 

Business owners sometimes don't realize it, but your marketing strategy is the game plan for your sales approach.

Your game plan needs to frequently be reviewed, re-evaluated, and altered to mesh with consumer and market trends, buyer expectations, and company goals.