As we come to the end of the year, many of our clients will be reviewing where to place their marketing spend for 2020. In this blog, our Luxury PR Team take a look at a few of the options out there and the pro’s & cons of each.
Website Content
Having a luxury PR team that is able to deliver slick, well-written content on your website can serve two purposes, especially for E-commerce businesses:
a). To engage with the visitor and encourage them to hang out a little longer and explore the site (and shop) further.
b). To want to return to the website to read more about the brand/browse your products.
Pro’s: Content can be crafted to ‘sell your brand and products’ without being too ‘in your face’ and also written with SEO in mind to help organic searches.
Con’s: If poorly done, it won’t help your SEO efforts, can turn off the reader and reflect badly on your business. Poorly constructed website content can also have a negative impact on your website’s online ranking.
Influencer Marketing
Influencer marketing probably already forms part of your marketing plans now and in the future. Aligning your business with influencers who fit well with your brand and resonate with your core audience can be a successful mix.
Pro’s: Working with Influencers can be the icing on the cake when it comes to your marketing plans. A successful collaboration can give your brand an authentic voice that stands out from traditional advertising funnels.
Con’s: If not managed correctly, you’re likely to end up with not much for your buck, a massive fine from the ASA for not following strict guidelines and rules and risk damaging your brand’s reputation by association.
Social Media Marketing Team
Appointing a professional Social Media Marketing Team not only frees you up to concentrate on those areas of the business which need your focus and attention but ensures you have a professional, consistent tone of voice and feel across all your social channels.
Pro’s: You won’t know what to do with all that ‘extra’ time off at the weekends and evenings. Engaging with your followers, responding to comments and messages, monitoring best times to post and forgetting to post ahead of critical events will all be a thing of the past.
Con’s: It comes at a cost, but what is your time worth? The criteria for choosing someone to manage your social media channels should also never include ‘She’s always on Snapchat and Insta and loves social media, so will be perfect’. #bigmistake. Putting your social channels in the hands of anyone is a significant risk to your reputation, so choose wisely.
Traditional Print Media Advertising
Traditional print advertising is always a recommendation to our clients. Time and time again, independent surveys tell us that consumers trust print, further emphasised by the considerable level of ‘fake news’ seen on social platforms and websites.
Pro’s: It’s essential to think of your social channels as being rented property. You don’t own the property, so should any of them wish to reclaim the property or up your rent, they can and will. Print advertising, when booked strategically as one part of your Marketing Budget, does hold weight and authority.
Con’s: Throwing your cash here, there and anywhere will not yield any benefits. Spending wisely and tactfully is at the heart of our client marketing plans and successful formula.
Facebook Advertising
Most of the time, when you log onto Facebook, you are bound to have seen numerous prompts to ‘advertise to XXX amount of people for £XX’. Facebook advertising can be a highly effective way to reach your target audience.
Pro’s: Facebook is no longer a ‘free to play’ platform, thanks to its changing algorithms which have gradually squeezed the life out of your business page’s organic reach. Crafting effective campaigns doesn’t have to be hugely expensive and offer easy to review ROI.
Con’s: Crafting the perfect audience selection and ad creative doesn’t often happen the first time, and it’s about fine-tuning your campaigns and monitoring. Throwing money at Facebook advertising without going into fine detail and not regularly reviewing will result in losing revenue, not making it. Our luxury PR team are experienced professionals who can help guide and manage your spend.
Instagram Advertising
As the platform continues to grow in popularity with both consumers and businesses, so has the commercial element of the channel changed. With Instagram’s shoppable tags continuing to prove popular, E-commerce is evolving to keep pace.
Pro’s: Instagram advertising is easy to do and can be very effective. The ability to advertise in Stories can be an effective way of reaching the consumer with precise audience targeting.
Con’s: As with any avenue for advertising spend. You need to ensure that your target customer is active on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/mirrormepr/ before ploughing money into the channel. Consistency in the tone of voice and brand image is crucial and needs to be in harmony with its entirety.
Video Content Creation
Video is still King in terms of content. Topical, humorous, informative content is a great way to get the conversation started and product place your products in an engaging format that consumers will love.
Pro’s: Well-thought content can inject new life into your social channels and engage with your customer beyond a static post. We’ve seen huge success with the video content we create with and for our clients. It doesn’t have to cost a considerable amount if you have great ideas.
Con’s: Depending on where you want to place your video content will determine both the style, quality and execution. Badly edited video content promoting your products and business on your website will turn the consumer off. Off the wall, real-life video content is more forgivable on social media, but remember to keep the essence of your brand throughout your video content. Being able to bring a product to life in a short, concise promo that consumers will love is an art, and not everyone is good at it.
Appointing A PR Agency
There is a reason why brands and businesses continue to choose to work with Luxury PR team. A decent PR team is worth their weight in gold. Public Relations does work; otherwise, the job title and professional would no longer exist!
“It’s not a vanity add-on to your business, it’s a necessity and investment in your brand’s future success.”
Pro’s: You instantly get a team of experienced marketers added to your existing team. You’ll be able to call upon them for their expert advice and knowledge and tap into other client opportunities offered to their agency that you wouldn’t necessarily be party to otherwise.
Con’s: Our services embrace all of the above. Some of our client packages already include these aspects, offering our clients a consistent and organised approach across all their marketing needs. Not all agencies work like this so costs can mount up over time. While we choose to be members of two official PR bodies and our MD, of Accredited PR Professional Status, Public Relations is not regulated here in the UK. Anyone can set up a PR agency and take charge of your business and reputation.
