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Rebranding is nothing new to the business world. Dunkin’ Donuts dropped the Donuts for a shorter name, LEGO expanded their demographic to all ages – but what about the tech giant, Facebook? On October 28th, CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced the social media company would change their name and logo to Meta.

As one of the largest social networking companies globally, Facebook practically invented social media as we know it today. With over 2.89 billion monthly users, Facebook is a cultural staple used for entertainment, networking, and business.

The rebrand will mark a new chapter for Facebook while also leaving behind the many controversies associated with Facebook.

What Is A Metaverse?

This new name comes from the idea of a metaverse, a completely virtual world where users can connect.

Although we do not have a real metaverse yet, virtual reality experiences are becoming increasingly popular as forms of entertainment. However, Silicon Valley leaders like Zuckerberg see a realistic metaverse in our future.

The metaverse is a concept often used in futuristic media like Black Mirror, where users can transport themselves to virtual reality but still have the same physical autonomy.

This theoretical concept will take years before a public release. However, Zuckerberg believes this rebranding will set the company on the right path.

Controversy Stays In The Past

The rebrand comes at a convenient time after the many legal struggles Facebook has battled through the past few years.

From privacy leaks to misinformation, the Facebook team has become accustomed to legal battles. Many users found an issue with the social media platform during the 2016 election, accusing the company of spreading false information in favor of Donald Trump.

While many of these lawsuits are still ongoing, Facebook has a massive influence over billions of people, placing these issues on a global scale.

The U.S. government has also filed an antitrust lawsuit against the company for monopolizing the social media industry by acquiring smaller companies like Instagram and WhatsApp.

In recent years and even recent months, Facebook has become synonymous with scandal and mistrust. However, the networking platform still holds billions of active users.

Now with a rebrand, Zuckerberg hopes to continue the company’s technological growth while removing the negative connotations associated with the brand.

Are You Looking To Rebrand Your Business?

Rebrands can help your business move forward through the times, staying up to date on trends and cultural shifts. Facebook’s name change

Rebranding can be made simple with the help of Elevare. Our expert team can adapt your brand to a new, better identity that can increase engagement and profits.

Schedule your free consultation today!

The online shopping industry, eCommerce, has become wildly oversaturated. With so many competitors, how can your business stand out from the crowd? This ultimate marketing guide will break down the best marketing tactics for eCommerce businesses to grow.

The Rise of eCommerce

According to recent research, global eCommerce sales jumped to $26.7 trillion in 2020 alone. This huge spike in sales is in part fueled by COVID-19, as is continued to rise. With extraordinary amounts of demand for online shopping services, there has never been a better time to be in this industry.

However, as more businesses clamor to set up their online presence, it’s more important than ever to ensure your business stands out from the rest.

Ultimate Guide To Marketing For eCommerce Businesses

We’ve put together the highlights for bolstering your eCommerce marketing efforts. Take a look below.

Make Shopping Easy for the User

Appealing to your customer should be your number one priority. Your customer should not have to seek you out; your brand should come to them. 

Have you ever been on a faulty website? One that won’t load isn’t easy to access, and frustrating to find what you want? You probably clicked off within seconds. 

This is the response you want to avoid at all costs when designing your website. Every aspect should be crafted to fit your customers’ needs.

Here’s a quick checklist to ensure your site has a great user experience:

• Does your website load quickly?
• Is your website responsive (i.e., for mobile shopping)?
• Is your website scannable and easy to ready?
• Do your products have descriptions?
• Do you have a reviews/testimonial section on your site?
• Is it easy to navigate throughout the website?
• Is it simple and clear to checkout?

If you need some website design tips for eCommerce sites, check out this blog. It’s packed full of details on crafting a high-quality site that converts.

One easy way to simplify the online shopping experience is through chatbots. These tiny buttons in the corner of your website allow users to type in a message and ask a question. The chatbot can quickly answer the question and lead the user to the right page with countless programmed responses. 

Chatbots gave users the ability to ask questions in an instance where one might simply click off. Your team can also get creative in the visual design of your chatbot, creating a cute and likable bot that fits within your brand identity. 

How Are You Advertising?

When starting an online business, the most critical step is getting the word out there about what you sell. At the start, no one knows about you. You will have to come to them, first. 

So, do you have a marketing plan put together? Luckily, there are many ways you can advertise your brand. 

Here are a few of our top choices for marketing eCommerce shops:

• Build an email list. This will come in handy for advertising new products later on.
• Leverage social media. If you have a limited budget, you can simply post to your channels. Or, if you have some money to spend, you can run some ads.
• Optimize your website for SEO. Do you have a blog? This can be a great way to boost traffic to your site organically.
• Run some Google Ads. If you are not getting the traffic you desire, you might consider this option.
• Partner with complementary brands within your niche. Collaborations are a great way to be mutually beneficial and bring in new customers.
• Consider influencer marketing. Influencer marketing is one of the latest ways to get in front of more eyes. But, it can be pricey.

The Rise of Influencer Marketing

Because of how wildly popular influencer marketing has become, we thought it best to dedicate more detail on this marketing tactic. Did you know that 49 percent of consumers depend on influencer recommendations? 

Gone are the days of billboards and Superbowl commercials. Now, the most valuable piece of marketing could be influencer endorsement. 

Bang Energy is one of the most popular examples of how influencer marketing can push your eCommerce business to social media stardom. This energy drink company has been on the market since 2012 but saw a sharp rise in sales as TikTok came out. 

In one of their most recent influencer campaigns, Bang partnered up with some of the most popular social media stars that have a younger male demographic. 

With less than 200 posts, the campaign garnered a combined 58 million views, leading to 7 million dollars in sales. This business model has allowed Bang to skyrocket in sales and connect with their target demographic through this customer’s favorite influencers.  If you’ve got the budget, think about how you can invest in influencers to expand your online presence.

Utilize Online Marketplaces

How many marketplaces are your products on? 

One of the struggles many eCommerce business owners face is exposure. For brick and mortar stores, many customers will unknowingly find themselves at the store based on location. 

However, virtually stumbling upon a business is much more complex with so many competitors. 

Amazon, eBay, and Etsy are eCommerce businesses’ best friends, allowing small brands to sell their products on the most popular online marketplaces. 

The pandemic shot Amazon sales through the roof, and the company will continue to rise even post-pandemic. With over 2.5 million sellers, Amazon allows businesses to utilize their countless customers for a mutual benefit. 

If you are nervous about being lost in the pages of Amazon products, invest in Amazon ads to push your product to the top of every consumer’s search page. You can also organically raise your ranking through reviews which have become a fundamental way for customers to choose their products. 

Marketing Automation

How can you ensure a connection with your customers after they have left your site? 

Email marketing and SMS notifications allow businesses to remind customers of the brand’s relevance with the opportunity for special discounts and deals. 

Automation can take place in two ways: single-channel or multi-channel automation. 

Single-channel automation sends an automated message through one single form of communication, like an email.

Multi-channel automation sends a message through multiple communication channels, such as sending an automated email and text message simultaneously. 

However, do not prioritize quantity over quality. Sending too much junk mail will result in an overall frustration on the consumer side, leading them to unsubscribe from all communication channels. 

Offer value in your automated messages, no matter which channel they go through. Inform your customers about special deals, upcoming sales, and even wish them a happy birthday. 

Want To Elevate Your eCommerce Marketing?

Marketing can be frustrating for many eCommerce businesses trying to get off the ground. Ultimately, we hope this guide alleviated some of your frustration.

With Elevare, we make marketing easy for our clients. With over a decade of experience, our team can assist you in optimizing your website and social media presence to increase sales. 

Don’t wait for your customers to come to you. 

Schedule your free consultation today!

On Thursday, June 17th around  8:31 p.m. ET, a mysterious email was sent from the streaming company, HBO Max, to their subscriber’s inboxes. The email was titled “Integration Test Email #1,” and only contained a single line of text that read, “This template is used by integration tests only,” with no attachments included.

Was it a phishing scam?

Well, as it turns out, no.

Although it looked like an email scam, in reality, it was a regular test email that many companies would normally keep private. Somehow the email had been sent out by accident.

According to HBO, it was the intern’s fault. They released a tweet explaining the mishap.

We mistakenly sent out an empty test email to a portion of our HBO Max mailing list this evening. We apologize for the inconvenience, and as the jokes pile in, yes, it was the intern. No, really. And we’re helping them through it. ❤️

— HBOMaxHelp (@HBOMaxHelp) June 18, 2021

While this could have been a career-ending mistake, HBO Max and the Twitter community took it lightly. Some joked it was all an elaborate marketing scheme.

“Tonight watch “Integration Test Email #1 on HBO MAX!!” commented a user.

“I hope everyone watches my new show called Integration Test Email #1 coming to HBO Max soon! We’re trying something new with the marketing…” said comedian Cristela Alonzo.

I hope everyone watches my new show called Integration Test Email #1 coming to HBO Max soon! We’re trying something new with the marketing….

— Cristela Alonzo (@cristela9) June 18, 2021

Others joked this was a new marketing technique that was sure to distress other major streaming companies.

Netflix, Amazon, Hulu, Disney+, Peacock, Paramount+ all having the same hastily called all-hands meeting right now WHAT IS OUR “INTEGRATION TEST EMAIL?”

— Mike Royce (@MikeRoyce) June 18, 2021

But for others, this mistake struck a deep chord. Only a few days after the initial accidental email blast, Twitter has exploded with “Dear Intern” responses, full of support, encouragement and the sharing of personal workplace mistakes.

One woman tweeted her mix up, “Dear Intern, I was using my desktop calendar to make a monthly note of when I started my menstrual period, but after several months I realized I was making that note on a calendar I shared with all of my colleagues company wide. I was 37 years old.” This tweet has already gathered 88.2k likes and over 3k retweets.

Another user responded, “Dear intern, I once globally took down Spotify. It almost happened twice. My team was awesome about it and I’m still here. You managed to find something broken in the way integration tests are done. It’s a good thing and will help improve things. Good luck <3.”

Monica Lewinsky, the former White House intern under President Bill Clinton, even offered the HBO intern advice, tweeting, “It gets better.”

dear intern:

it gets better.

♥️

ps. don’t wear a beret for awhile, k?

— Monica Lewinsky (she/her) (@MonicaLewinsky) June 18, 2021

Turns out this mistake was a good intermission from the daily barrage of marketing messages we all receive.

Understanding we are all human and we make mistakes from time to time has, if even only for a Twitter minute, brought the internet closer together.

The reason why nonprofits need marketing is simple. At the end of the day, nonprofits are a business and for a business to have success, they need to know how to effectively market and sell their cause.

Many nonprofits are doing great work. They are working hard for causes that need help, they are saving lives, reuniting families, and getting resources to those who need them most. However, while your nonprofit may have the best intentions, if no one sees your organization, you won’t be able to help anyone.

Why Do Nonprofits Need Marketing?

You could be killing the nonprofit game, but not be able to bring in the donations you need to keep going.

Don’t make the mistake of either ignoring marketing efforts altogether (by believing if your cause is good enough and the donors will come) or throwing a half-hazard marketing strategy together and hoping for the best.

Both of these approaches will likely not yield the results you want, or at least not in the timeframe you’d prefer!

Nonprofits Need A Marketing Plan

Marketing for nonprofits can often get lost in the shuffle. But, nonprofits need to understand they are there to serve customers, just like a for-profit business. These “customers” simply go by different names – donors, sponsors, and volunteers.

These customers need motivation to “buy” what you’re selling.

Volunteers assist with running operations. Donors and sponsors work to bring in revenue. Operations and revenue keep an organization up and running. It is not very different from a business!

As such, for any business to succeed they have to have a plan!

If you don’t have a high quality marketing plan, you are setting yourself up for failure. Too many nonprofits are just “winging it” with their marketing efforts. They pass off running their social media accounts to an unpaid intern or a volunteer who’s overworked and gets to it when they can. This often leads to a very disorganized and inconsistent execution.

While you may not need to hire a professional social media marketer or content marketer, you do need a marketing plan.

Creating a cohesive digital media marketing strategy could help launch your nonprofit to the next level and put you in front of new potential donors! Start by determining your ideal customers, and how you are going to reach them. Take the time to write out a marketing roadmap that everyone on your team can follow. This will help keep all your communication clear, focused, cohesive and efficient!

Communication Is The Key

As a nonprofit, communicating the importance of your cause is imperative for your longevity. Nonprofit organizations must be intentional about their interactions and constantly communicating with donors and their communities is imperative!

If you aren’t paying attention to your communication efforts, messaging can fall through the cracks. You must be intentional about what you say, as you are continually selling, selling a cause.

For many nonprofits, donors and volunteers are deeply involved emotionally. They deeply care about the cause. It is important to respect this and ensure you develop the right wording and content for your social channels and communication services.

Especially if donors are giving large sums of money, they expect to see the nitty-gritty of where their money is going. Small details can cause a donor not to withdraw. Selling the need for support for real-world problems takes a certain skill and carefully crafted messaging.

When armed with a comprehensive marketing plan, volunteers, members, sponsors, and donors can feel safe knowing exactly what is happening within the organization. They are more likely to give and invest more of their time into your cause. You can counter failing donating and low rates of volunteers by simply making your mission known and compelling.

Increasing Brand Awareness Equals More Donations

Why do companies run the same ads over and over again – why do you see the same shampoo ad on your Instagram or Facebook feed every day? Well, this method works for selling a product.

Similar to just about any product, the more exposure to a product there is, the more likely the customer will buy it.

The same psychology can be applied to the nonprofit sector. Once you have determined your target audience, developed your unique value proposition, and curated a comprehensive marketing campaign, it’s time to get more eyes on your cause!

Even with limited budgets, nonprofits can score with a highly specific and targeted online marketing campaign!

Luckily, you can run marketing campaigns through Google Ads or Facebook Ads for only a few bucks. This could be a strategy you may want to consider.

The Power of Marketing

Nonprofit marketing is critical for survival. While tactics may vary between a for-profit business and a non-profit, the principles remain the same.

Nonprofit organizations have customers just like any other business. To bring in new customers, your organization needs to develop a marketing strategy that is geared towards your specific audience. Then, push out that campaign!

If you don’t know where to start – don’t worry! That’s where we can help. We’ve worked with numerous nonprofits and understand what it takes to help organizations like yours succeed. We can help you determine and implement a digital marketing strategy and social media strategy!

Contact us today for your estimate!

Backlinking drives organic traffic, builds your online presence and leads to success. But, if you are new to digital marketing, you may be wondering why it is so important.

You did some keyword research. You determined your topic. Then, you wrote a post full of quality content. But wait – your digital strategy should not stop there!

You may be missing out on a vital part of your SEO strategy – backlinks. This could be costing you valuable business!

Your SEO strategy may need an upgrade and backlinks could be the missing key.

In this post, we’ll explain the importance of backlinking and how it works. We will also explain how you can use it to drive more sales for your business, both online and offline.

What Are Backlinks In SEO?

In short, backlinks connect one website to another. To use backlinks, marketers or writers will create content that contains both internal and external links. Some of these links will connect to other pages on their own website. Other links will connect to outside websites. Oftentimes these backlinks are citing information or referencing more resources.

Search engines such as Google view backlinks as “votes” for a specific page. Basically, the more votes for a page equal a higher ranking. 

Why Are Backlinks Important In SEO?

There are many ranking factors Google uses to rank sites, including the use of anchor text, a title tag, and meta tags. However, Google has confirmed that backlinking is one of the three most important parts of the way they determine website ranking!

Google pushes high-ranking sites to the top of the search results. The higher your site ranks, the more people will see your site first when searching relevant keywords! 

Now that you understand the importance of backlinks for your website’s ranking, you may feel ready to jump in and start utilizing them in your SEO strategy.

But, you should not backlink to just any site!

What Kinds Of Backlinks Are Considered Valuable? 

It’s not the number of links, but the quality of links that help to determine your site’s ranking.

When citing a paper for a college course, do you cite a Harvard Research study or a random person’s blog? Most would choose Harvard. That is the difference between high and low-quality backlinks. Google evaluates the quality of who you are linking to and who is linking to you. 

This all feeds into Google’s process for determining how valuable your site is. Higher quality backlinks result in better domain authority.

One high-quality backlink can be more powerful than 100 low-quality backlinks! 

The better the backlinks, the more valuable Google will deem your site. The higher the domain authority, the higher Google will rank your site. The more valuable your site is, the more traffic your site will see. 

High-quality backlinks help prove your credibility to Google. In turn, Google pushes your site in front of more eyes. 

Backlinks Play A Big Role In Driving Traffic

Building backlinks as part of your SEO strategy is critical for your success. It plays a huge role in driving traffic to your site.

Unless you buy your ranking (as notified by “Ad” in front of the title), you have a lower chance of showing up on the first page of the search results. If you are backlinking effectively, you could rank on the first page! This can exponentially increase your exposure if utilized correctly.

Backlinks Help You Build Your Brand And Reputation 

Improving your SEO strategy by including backlinks can help you reach your target audience more efficiently.

The more people that see your site, the more credible your page will be. This leads to increased brand awareness and helps build your reputation.

As your brand becomes more recognizable, other sites and businesses will start linking to your pages. In turn, their backlinking will boost your domain authority!

Backlinks Are Critical For Success

Your link-building strategy is important for SEO. If you have great content, optimizing your SEO strategy will help lead your business to success. 

But, optimizing your SEO should be only one part of your digital marketing strategy.

Are you checking all your boxes with your digital media marketing plan? Are you using social media, traditional marketing tactics, and building a subscriber list?

There are many additional marketing channels you could be utilizing – such as email marketing. Email marketing can be highly effective at driving traffic in tandem with your SEO efforts!

Not sure if you are using the right marketing strategy and digital channels for your business? Check out our free Ultimate Marketing Cheat Sheet to see if you’re checking all your marketing boxes!

Need Help With Your Digital Marketing Strategy?

If you’re not sure where to start, there’s plenty of free (and paid-for) tools you can utilize – sites such as SEMRush, Moz, and Ahrefs offer a variety of free tools you can try out.

However, these tools can be confusing for a new digital marketer, and you do not want to waste your valuable time. If you decide to pay for some of their services, they can get expensive fast.

We realized this was an issue for a lot of businesses starting their journey into online marketing. They wanted to optimize their SEO strategy without breaking the bank.

Let an expert guide you in this process. We can help you reach your digital marketing goals in a timely manner. We even offer a free consultation to see if we are the right fit for you!

Contact us today!

From flag-themed Fourth of July graphics to Christmas giveaways, brands have always clung to holiday marketing campaigns. Throughout the past year, we’ve seen social justice movements like Black Lives Matter become hot topics in America, with unsupportive companies being pushed out by cancel culture.

To show support for marginalized communities, companies have utilized themed occasions to spread awareness and support on social platforms. As June is Pride Month, many brands are launching campaigns that celebrate pride. Although the LGBTQ community has been loud and proud for decades, gay marriage was legalized in the United States only six years ago.

While the LGBT community still faces mistreatment, even hate crimes and homophobia from some, LGBT Pride Month is a time to celebrate open sexualities and promote equality. From Tiffany & Co. to Nike, many of the world’s biggest brands are pulling out all the stops, developing marketing strategies to create positive and powerful Pride campaigns.

Be Genuine

In this day and age, most brands, tiptoe around controversy to avoid public disapproval. They want their product or service to keep everyone (not just their target audience) happy. However, this has allowed many companies to cling to popular causes.

For example, Pride campaigns are all over social media in 2021, but was your brand actively supporting social justice causes two, four, or 10 years ago?

Audiences value genuine marketing, which is why many brands back up their campaigns with past work and an emotional appeal.

The Rainbow Oreo

Back in 2012, cookie company Oreo released their first Pride campaign, a rainbow-themed cookie showing outward support for the legalization of gay marriage. Although the social media posts garnered both love and hate, the brand did not stop there.

Oreo’s most recent campaign shared a collaboration between Oreo and PFLAG National, a nonprofit organization. The two brands created the Proud Parent campaign, which included a two-minute-long commercial that details the complicated relationship between a father and his lesbian daughter. Although the daughter longs for connection, the father finally comes around and outwardly shows his support for her sexuality by painting his fence rainbow.

Through this commercial and other resources, Oreo and PFLAG hope to inspire acceptance and support for the LGBTQ community. This is a prime successful marketing campaign example.

What makes this marketing campaign stand out from others? Consistency.

Oreo supported LGBTQ rights before Pride was accepted in mainstream media and did not let initial backlash stop them from continuing to support gay pride. With a long history of advocacy, consumers can trust Oreo is not campaigning for views and followers — but instead acting for social change. Their consistency has helped increase their brand awareness.

If your brand plans to implement a social justice marketing campaign, ask yourself, how can I use this opportunity to emphasize our values?

Identify The Problems, Find The Solutions

Marketing campaigns aren’t all about aesthetics and public appeal. When supporting social justice movements, you must understand the issues at hand. Marginalized groups are fighting for equality — a goal that requires a little more than an Instagram rainbow GIF.

Mercedes-Benz Canada wanted to bring awareness to the culturally accepted mistreatment and bullying young LGBTQ+ people face, inspiring victims to accept their unique identities as beautiful. The car company released a five-minute video titled “Painted with Love”, in which members of the LGBTQ community discuss past experiences of homophobia with artist Thomarya “Tee” Fergus.

After hearing about their trials and tribulations, Fergus creates a colorful mural to represent the beauty in self-acceptance.

Many campaigns are perceived as shallow, prioritizing aesthetics and convenient self-promotion. However, Mercedes-Benz used its platform to genuinely spread awareness of mistreatment. By giving LGBTQ voices a platform to share their experiences, Mercedes-Benz is directly addressing a major deficit in traditional media.

Addressing social justice issues must be done carefully and respectfully, especially concerning marketing campaigns. By listening to marginalized groups and their issues, your team can find ways to assist movements in furthering their cause.

Missing The Mark

While many brands utilized their public platforms to effectively spread support for the LGBTQ+ community, others fell short.

Many have criticized overdone Pride-themed products. Countless brands slap a rainbow on a T-shirt and call it a day.

Apparel brand Tipsy Elves is one of the many companies to face negative comments after releasing its Pride collection. Many dubbed the shirt designs as cringey, derogatory, and disingenuous.

Some of the apparel taglines include “Too gay to function”, “So Homo”, and “Kiss me, Bro”.

A member of the LGBTQ+ community even took these pieces to TikTok, where he shared his least favorite shirts in disgust.

While this might be a dramatic example of failed Pride campaigns, it illustrates the oversaturation industry of themed products.

Whether it’s Christmas, Black Lives Matter, or Pride Month, themed marketing campaigns should have more depth. They require much more than slapping a rainbow on a t-shirt.

When designing your campaign, ensure your team includes members of the target audience. If not, seek advice and guidance from potential consumers using your professional network or social media engagement tools.

A Marketer’s Guide To A Successful Pride Campaign

At Elevare, our team of experts can assist your brand. We’ll help you create a solid campaign plan and streamline your marketing efforts for any major holiday. With over a decade of experience in the industry, we’ve mastered the ins and outs of social media marketing. We also have experience with SEO and branding. We can give you marketing tips that will help your business grow.

Looking to correlate promotion with Pride Month? June has just begun – schedule your free consultation with our team today.

The power of quality content shouldn’t be understated! High-quality, engaging content can impact your business in many ways! If your content is not up to par with the industry standards, this could be costing your business valuable conversions. 

The digital media industry is evolving at an unprecedented pace. Even seasoned marketers can feel overwhelmed by all the new marketing tools, advice, and tactics that are being produced daily. Businesses around the world use content marketing as a core part of their digital marketing strategies. Yet, managing a business while running marketing campaigns can be a handful.

Here at Elevare, we specialize in content marketing strategy, social media marketing, web design and so much more. Our marketing team can help you reach your business goals, and develop your content marketing efforts, whatever they may be.

We understand there are hundreds of tools and thousands of “marketing experts” out there. There is a lot of conflicting advice on which marketing tools to utilize and who to listen to. But, we believe that for many the answer is simple: start by creating great content for your website. 

What is content marketing?

Yes, you can pay for ads, but why not utilize what you can for free? Research shows high-quality content marketing produces up to 3X more leads per dollar spent, and costs 62 percent less than traditional marketing tactics! Even further, 61 percent of U.S. online customers purchase after reading a recommendation from a blog. 

These statistics alone should be convincing! If you haven’t started a blog for your business, you should consider it. 

Focusing on content marketing can be powerful for driving traffic to your business and converting.

Content marketing is different from traditional marketing and includes a variety of things such as blogs, articles, e-books, entertainment, videos, and webinars. However, all of this content answers specific questions people have and provides them with a unique solution. 

Quality content builds trust, loyalty and drives profits

Starting a blog for your site is a great way to become a credible resource within your industry on topics that are important to your potential customers. This can drive more traffic your way.

If you are producing credible content, your business is more likely to be discovered by the right audience. After the right audience is attracted, it is easier to build trust and loyalty. This, in turn, helps form strong customer relationships. In the end, long term profits are grown from loyal, long-term customers!

You may now be convinced you should start producing content for your business. So, you quickly write up a few articles and they go live.

But wait! Unfortunately, creating content for the sake of having something on your website isn’t good enough. To be successful with your content marketing endeavors, you need to curate quality content. 

How to create high-quality content

How do you define quality content? Well, it’s content that engages, persuades the reader, is educational and not too sales-y.

Still not sure what to write?

Here are some tips about what quality content should include.

Target your specific audience

Before you start writing content, make sure you’ve done your research on who you are writing for. Analyze the right market. Target your product or service and frame your content accordingly. Make sure you are focusing on the unique thing you offer compared to others.

If you are not sure how to find your target audience, read here! We have offered some helpful tips for targeting. Marketing to a specific demographic will yield a much higher ROI and more successful results.

Don’t waste your energy writing content that won’t appeal to your target audience!

Be very concise

Good content is clear, concise, entertaining, and engaging! Focus on your core message and get to the point! If your content is too wordy and does not immediately describe the message or desired action, you may be wasting your time. Your reader will quickly lose interest. Strive to be upfront and direct.

Be engaging

This is extremely important. The amount of content on the internet is endless, and most of it isn’t well done. Make your content stand out from the crowd by being highly engaging for your audience! Don’t blend in. Your business is unique. Write content that provides a solution only you can offer.

Be relevant

Have you ever googled a question, clicked on a site, and was misled? Halfway through the article, you realize the content was just clickbait? Make sure your content isn’t misleading but extremely informative and relevant! High-quality content isn’t just for clicks.

You should want to offer something valuable and applicable for the searcher. Create relevant content, not click-bait.

Utilize the right platforms

Let’s say you have curated a fantastic blog post and you promote it via Instagram. But, you get very little engagement. What did you do wrong? Even if your copy is a 10 out of 10, if you share to the wrong platforms, you could be wasting your time.

Your target audience may not be on those social media platforms! After you’ve written your content, make sure you identify channels that apply to your target audience. What works on one social platform may not work for another. Be aware that you often will have to tailor your content and messaging specifically per the platform used. 

If you are incorporating all of the above points into your content creation, you should be well on your way to producing high quality content.

The power of quality content

Whether you are a new business owner trying to develop your content strategy or a marketer looking to build on your existing skills, don’t stress! We are here to help guide you in curating the best content for your audience and goals.

If you are reading this article, you are probably looking for answers and ways to improve your marketing strategies. Creating quality content doesn’t have to be hard.

Here at Elevare, we understand the power of quality content. We specialize in content marketing, social media marketing, web design and so much more. Let us help you improve your content marketing tactics and develop your content calendar.

We have created a free resource to help you evaluate your marketing strategies. Download our free Ultimate Guide to Marketing Cheat Sheet today and kickstart your goals!

With so many brands vying for consumer’s attention, it’s hard to stand out. However, instead of competing with other businesses, learn from them. Your marketing research should include a variety of online marketing and traditional marketing strategies. Taking tactics from those who have done it successfully can help improve your strategy and improve business. We’ve put together 4 marketing campaigns your team can learn from!

Learn From These Campaigns

The pandemic has been tough on countless industries, but travel has faced the hardest blow. Flight restrictions have forced families away from each other for the holidays as quarantine became mandatory around the globe. Although vaccine distribution is moving along, the travel industry has been restricted for the past year and a half.

Although travel is necessary for many people, the industry is in jeopardy of becoming less popular. COVID-19 has caused many travel related businesses to struggle.

How Can Travel Stay Desirable In An Unfortunate Time?

Travel website Expedia has used marketing to garner attention, specifically in the Let’s Take a Trip digital media campaign. Directed by Victor Haegelin, the stop-motion video follows a couple recreating travel experiences from home. From a road trip to room service, the couple uses household items to simulate the adventures so many families are missing due to COVID-19.

Although it may be a long way away, Expedia hopes to remind customers not to forget about the beauty of travel. The tagline reads “Imagine the places we’ll go. Together.” This is an attempt to inspire the excitement of future travel plans utilizing their digital channels.

The cute, thirty-second commercial may not seem like much, but the campaign teaches a powerful message in staying relevant. While other travel company competitors will hold advertising until restrictions are fully lifted, Expedia wants to ensure it is the go-to company when travel returns.

Socially Conscious Promotions

The past few years have been filled with social justice causes, protests, and political attacks. Although there are so many amazing causes to support, it seems like every day a new issue arises.

How can brands stay unique while also genuinely supporting social justice movements?

Take a page out of Gillette’s book. The shaving brand is known for its longtime slogan “The Best A Man Can Get” which specifically targets middle-aged men. When the #MeToo movement took Hollywood by storm and held men accountable for inappropriate actions, Gillette decided to stand against previously accepted harassment.

With over 36 million views, the “We Believe: The Best A Man Can Be” campaign addressed toxic masculinity, bullying, and sexual assault. The short film depicts multiple different scenes of toxic masculinity as men of all ages physically fight, bully each other, and openly degrade women.

After acknowledging common, dismissive phrases like “boys will be boys”, each storyline is then set on the right track by men brave enough to stand against societal norms.

Brands have fallen into the trap of using social media as a quick and simple way to address social justice movements and avoid cancel culture. However, Gillette uses its resources to create a powerful, serious film on the toxicity of traditional masculinity.

Although companies can not create genuine, long-form content for every cause, dedicating time to movements that hold personal value can increase trust from consumers. Instead of posting a short Instagram story agreeing with the majority, Gillette’s team illustrated an issue important to them.

However, the advertisement did not come without backlash, as critics claimed the commercial was depicting the bare minimum while also labeling all men as sexist.

Although you can not please everyone, some advertisers argue that even bad press is good press – and you can’t argue with 36 million views.

Know Your Audience Even Better Than Your Best Friend

When CVS saw beauty product sales decline in the late 2010s, the pharmacy/retail store did not just increase advertising across the board — they sought out to identify the key issues.

The brand found many female customers were frustrated by the unrealistic beauty standards created by visual marketing. Thus, the Beauty Marks marketing plan was born.

Around 72% of advertisements are digitally retouched, many including the physical alteration of female models. The majority of digital advertisements are altered for aesthetics. This can create an unrealistic comparison between a Photoshopped model and a regular young girl.

To stop this toxic cycle of comparison, CVS has created a digital watermark to indicate whether an image has been edited in post-production. The campaign’s home page reads “We will not digitally alter or change a person’s shape, size, proportion, skin or eye color or enhance or alter lines, wrinkles or other individual characteristics.”

According to prweek.com, 80% of customers reported having a newfound positive impression of CVS Beauty after viewing the campaign materials.

Consumers prefer genuine ads over perfected aesthetics any day. By promoting natural beauty, CVS Beauty has become a fan-favorite among consumers with similar values.

Industry Competition – Friends Not Enemies

Every brand has a target audience. For Red Bull, it’s adrenaline junkies who like energy drinks. For GoPro, it’s adrenaline junkies who like to film what happens after they have energy drinks.

In 2016, the two brands teamed up to establish a global partnership, capitalizing on the compatibility of each product. Red Bull has gained respect as a lifestyle brand, sponsoring the best athletes around the globe. However, for all the crazy Red Bull stunts, who’s recording?

In a blog posted by GoPro, the team wrote “GoPro will become Red Bull’s exclusive provider of point-of-view imaging technology for capturing immersive footage of Red Bull’s media productions and events.”

From 2016 on, most televised action sports had both the Red Bull and GoPro logo plastered all over them. This emphasized the brand’s monopoly on extreme sports and stunts. No matter what industry, companies can take notes when analyzing this partnership.

Look at your target audience. Who are they? What else do they like? What common interests do they share?

Instead of competing against similar businesses, collaborate with them. Utilize each others’ strengths to create an even more powerful, better brand.

Create Your Own Campaign

Consider these 4 marketing campaigns – your team can learn from them. Want to have a successful digital marketing campaign like these famous campaigns? At Elevare, we have over a decade of experience helping brands expand their clientele and increase profits.

Through website design, SEO optimization, and social media marketing, we will bring your business to the next level. We will help you market your product or service. Develop a successful marketing strategy utilizing any relevant marketing channels you may need.

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