Small business owners and entrepreneurs have a lot to juggle – now add multiple marketing channels on top of that, How is it even possible!? Managing multiple marketing channels for your business can tip you into overwhelm.
Business owners often wear many hats, doing bookkeeping, communicating with clients, hiring and training, meeting clients… the list goes on. Adding time for marketing can feel next to impossible when you have so much to do, and it often can be neglected.
Maximizing multichannel marketing results with limited time is possible! Let’s explore how.
The Challenge of Multiple Marketing Channels for Small Businesses
The most common challenge faced by busy entrepreneurs is the lack of time. We would love to dedicate hours per day to marketing our businesses across every platform imaginable, but day to day business tasks often keep us from doing that. In addition to lack of time, new platforms pop up all the time, overwhelming small business owners who can’t keep up. Being on all platforms can be expensive and time consuming.
Its important to approach marketing channels with a plan, and that plan starts with identifying the best platforms for your niche. Don’t waste your time on all platforms, pick the ones where your target audience spends their time.
Time Management Tips for Multiple Digital Marketing Channels
Regardless of the marketing channel that you use, you can apply these time management tips to save your time and energy:
- Dedicate short, focused time on each platform daily.
- Use AI tools like ChatGPT for research and content ideas.
- Train a Virtual Assistant (VA) to handle repetitive tasks.
Effective Marketing Strategies for Each Platform
Strategies for each marketing channel can vary, so let’s dive into a marketing plan for some of the popular channels.
Do what resonates with you. If, like me, you are not creative at all, maybe Instagram isn’t the place for you to succeed. I prefer SEO, so this is what I choose to focus on, even if competitors are very active on social media.
Search Engine Optimization
- Conduct keyword research to optimize content.
- Regularly update and optimize existing content.
- Monitor analytics to track performance and adjust strategies.
Google Ads
- Identify high-intent keywords for ad campaigns.
- Create targeted ads and monitor their performance.
- Adjust bids and budgets based on results.
- Create and post pins consistently.
- Focus on aesthetic appeal and niche-specific content.
- Monitor and analyze which pins perform well and replicate their style.
X/Twitter
- Post helpful tips and engaging questions.
- Interact with larger accounts to increase visibility.
- Maintain a consistent posting and engagement schedule.
- Post niche-related content that resonates with your audience.
- Engage with larger accounts and foster discussions on your posts.
- Create and manage community groups to build engagement.
Are you completely new to a channel that might be best for your business? Fake it till you make it. Start simple, and work your way up to more complex content. There’s nothing wrong with simple content!
Tools to Simplify Multi-Channel Management for Small Businesses and Startups
You don’t need to do it alone. Use tools that are made to help with social media marketing, content marketing, search engine marketing, and Google Ads.
- Social scheduling tools: Buffer, SocialPilot, HootSuite, Loomly
- SEO tools: Google Analytics, Ahrefs, SEMrush
Google Ads tools: Google Ads Editor, Keyword Planner
- Google Business Profile tools: Buffer, SocialPilot, Hootsuite, Loomly
Measuring Marketing Campaign Success and Adjusting Strategies
Once you have a good plan and rhythm in place for the channels that you’re focusing on, it’s time to measure the success of each channel and adjust strategies.
Before you even start on a platform, identify what a key metric for success is. Clicks? Shares? Follows? Whatever it is, make sure that you are set up to track it. Review its performance regularly and start making necessary adjustments. You’ll find that you’ll be continually making changes to your channel strategies – that is normal! It’s important to keep learning and adapting as you go along.
Being a Busy Entrepreneur with a Great Marketing Channel Strategy
As entrepreneurs and business owners, a structured approach is crucial to make the most of your multi-channel marketing. Pick the channels that are most relevant to you, implement effective strategies and tools, and be prepared to make adjustments as you go.
If you can only take away a couple points from this post, we would emphasize:
- Using analytics on each platform to understand which is best for your business.
- Outsource repetitive tasks if you have the budget.
- Do one platform really well instead of multiple platforms poorly.
Start implementing these strategies today to manage your marketing channels more efficiently and achieve your marketing goals!
- About the Author
- Latest Posts
Darlene is a search marketer, analyst, speaker, trainer, and owner of DriveTraffic Digital Marketing. She has been working in the digital marketing industry since the mid 90s and has narrowed her specialty to SEO, Google Ads and Google Analytics. She is especially interested in Google’s new Search Generative Experience and how businesses will need to adapt to remain visible. Want to see how DriveTraffic can help? Let’s chat!