The Digital Pyramid: Building a Digital Program
Building a strategy that works in the long term and maximizes your investment in paid tools is not that different from building a house or other structure.
You need a solid foundation to build on, and you need to address those foundational elements before adding on.
The Elements
The digital pyramid is made up of five building blocks:
- Website
- CRM
- SEO
- Email and Social Media Marketing
- Paid Digital Ads
Some of the items listed in the pyramid can be worked on concurrently, but should not be launched out of order.
You wouldn’t build the walls of your house before the foundation is poured, and you shouldn’t launch digital ads without a well-built website.
The Website
Your website serves as your storefront. This is where you’ll make your first impression.
It’s important to make it user-friendly and visually appealing. A well-designed website can help build trust with potential customers and encourage them to take action.
The purpose of all marketing tactics (paid and organic) is to drive potential clients to your website. So, it’s essential that it works as you intend and serves users well.
CRM
CRM = Customer Relationship Management software.
CRM provides a central hub that allows you to keep track of individual user’s position in the user journey and send out automatic communications based on where they’re at. By understanding your customers’ needs and preferences, you can tailor your marketing efforts to better meet their needs and keep them engaged for the longterm.
Want to connect your marketing efforts directly to your sales? Knowing each effort’s ROI helps you make smarter investment choices in marketing tactics. A robust CRM that integrates into your sales tools (POS, payment processor, etc.) is a MUST for knowing this magic number.
SEO
SEO = search engine optimization.
SEO helps your website rank higher in search engine results, increasing your visibility and driving more traffic to your website.
Don’t sleep on SEO. Updating your website and adding content with SEO in mind at the start will help you capture as much of that FREE website traffic as you can.
Email and Social Media
A good CRM allows you to target your content to the most appropriate audience(s) in order to engage with customers (both current and future) regularly to keep them engaged with your brand and maintain your position as an authority in your industry.
Email marketing allows you to communicate with your customers directly and promote your products or services. By sending targeted and personalized emails, you can increase engagement and drive sales.
Platforms like Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, X, and LinkedIn allow businesses to connect with their audience and promote their products or services. By creating engaging content and interacting with your followers, you can build brand awareness and loyalty.
Why do we keep these building blocks near the top of the pyramid? A couple reasons:
- You need a website to direct users to from your emails or social posts.
- You need your CRM set up and working well to utilize automated drip campaigns
Digital Ads
Digital ads can help you reach a wider audience and drive more traffic to your website and generate more sales or leads or whatever you ultimately want for all of this effort to be successful.
However, advertising is expensive. Few business can afford to throw money away; this is why you need a detailed strategy, which includes the user experience and making a good first impression.
And that starts with your website.