The two goals every company has are increase sales and reduce costs. Increasing sales depends on a consistent flow of people interested in your product or service. In the past the sales funnel was fairly straightforward – get qualified leads, and convert them to customers.
The Internet changed that. Now the public has access to a wealth of data about products and companies and they can easily find reviews from other like-minded folk who have already used your product and experienced your service. In fact, 70% of the buyer’s journey is complete before a buyer even reaches out to sales (SiriusDecisions.) So the funnel now looks more like this:
The best way to keep those first three layers of the funnel full is Digital PR:
Brand awareness
- Monitoring online conversations and content to gauge brand awareness
- Filling in the gaps with relevant content
- Developing a brand story
- Creating a good company newsroom – with lots of content for the media and the public
- Media coverage
- Online visibility so that people looking for solutions find your website, blog and other content (SEO)
- Blog posts
- Webinars
- Whitepapers
- Social media – thoughtful content that elicits a response
Brand Affinity
- Data mining/analysis of content and conversations for sentiment, gaps, education needs, questions and intent statements
- Analytics to see what content works and where to invest your resources
- Monitor competitors’ content and comments about the competitors
- Create content to fill these needs – answer questions, engage on social media
- Develop “How-to” content
- Publish thought leadership content
- Engage with relevant industry influencers
- Be where your audience is, be responsive and be consistent
These are all PR activities. This is where 70% of the buyer’s journey is taking place. Keep your funnel topped up with a well-planned Digital PR strategy.
If you need help with your Digital PR strategy give us a call today. 626 793 4911
