Scarier Scenario: Seeing A Gang Of Bison Coming Your Way Or Committing Your Small Business To Digital Marketing?

Type Aplomb into Google, hit enter, and the resultant answer box defines it as self-confidence, or assurance, especially in a demanding situation.

Let’s begin by agreeing that digital marketing is a demanding situation.

You should close out this page if you disagree.

And don’t come back until you’re ready to take this seriously.

A Demanding Situation Before The COVID-19 Pandemic

No human being could predict the arrival of the Coronavirus.

I know what you’re thinking, [in the best Fran Drescher voice you ever heard]
but what about the NYSE (New York Stock Exchange) CEO and his wife, the esteemed Senator from Georgia? [end Fran Drescher voice]

And my reply is that thanks to their collective wealth and power, they’ve transcended humanity. So of course they saw it coming and sold some stock. Because money (and power).

For we mere mortals, the scarier public interaction feels, the more we seek human interaction online, as Brian Fung, of CNN Business, explained:

The United States’ internet and wireless networks are coming under immense pressure to deliver reliable connectivity as schools and businesses confronting the novel coronavirus have shifted their day-to-day operations out of the workplace and into homes, according to industry analysts and government officials.

By Brian Fung, CNN Business

Conceding your need for digital marketing commitment, what’s your best starting point?

Your best starting point is to start. Establish your business online with it’s own address. Start making media to attract and keep the attention of your ideal customer.

Digital marketing, just like traditional marketing, requires a reason in the customer’s mind to visit your business.

A sign painted on the side of a building may have helped accomplish that task for our great-grandparents. Digitally speaking, the sooner your business accepts it’s need to serve as its own media company, the better the long-term prospects of the business.

But most importantly, greet everyone that visits your business online and begin building a reputation for connecting people with that which they seek.

I’m using this post to document my simple starting point.

The marketing strategy for which, is customer intimacy.

Customer intimacy…means segmenting and targeting markets precisely and then tailoring offerings to match exactly the demands of those niches.

by Michael Treacy and Fred Wiersema Harvard Business Review – Jan-Feb 1993 Issue

So the plan is to get the new website active and staffed asap.

The website includes a foundational system already in place to learn about visitors and then tailor future offers to match what each person wants, how they want it, et al.

Phase 1: Build Your Business Office Online

Retail For My Example = $164.99 Out-Of-Pocket + Your Time

My Example Business Office Online

Domain Name [$14.90/yr]

In brick-and-mortar business, a mailing address is a must, in order for people to find and frequent the business.

In “tech-talk” this address is referred to as the domain name, and it consists of your choice of text + your choice of TLD (top-level-domain).

For a bit of context, my business domain name is jasonhobbsllc.com. That’s where I can always be reached, because it’s solely owned and controlled by my business. Additionally, my business rents a YouTube Channel, a Facebook Page, a Twitter Account, etc.

I’ve managed my domain names since December 1, 2011 with https://IWantMyName.com. My digital marketing lab is located in caddy-corner to the high school in Fitzgerald, GA, while IWantMyName is based out of New Zealand, which made me feel much cooler back in 2011.

G Suite – Business Productivity Tools [$6.00/mo/user]

Purchasing the domain name first lets you then set up GSuite for your business ($6/mo/user account).

Your business will want to use email addresses with its domain name. And that’s where G Suite comes in.

G Suite is a suite of cloud computing, productivity and collaboration tools, which was developed by Google Cloud and first launched back on August 28, 2006 as Google Apps for Your Domain. G Suite enables my business email address – [email protected] -along with Google Docs, Google Sheets, et al.

Kinsta.com Website Hosting [$30.00/mo]

When folks type your chosen domain name into a browser, they’re expecting your business website to load quickly and securely. And most importantly, they’re expecting your website to help them.

I’ve trusted Kinsta.com’s Managed WordPress hosting since May 21, 2019 to take care of the technical stuff, so I can focus on helping visitors.

Kinsta’s system for updating websites, aka a website staging setup and management solution, improves the experience for the website owner so that I refuse to mention the two in the same sentence.

Kinsta made the process so simple that I no longer tempt fate by updating LIVE websites (FYI: The LIVE website is exclusively the version of your business website that your customers use their web browser to open).

Website Design – [$134.99 1x payment]

After November 13, 2012, when I built a website, it used the Genesis Framework.

I’ve long loved Brian Gardner’s design sense. The way his designs fabulously feature the content with top-notch typography and generous white-space.

I’m using Brian’s first theme for public sale at Minimologie.com: Lookbook Pro to focus my website on the media/content I produce.

For each new website, I match the website strategy and the client with the right Genesis Child Theme. Retail for the combination of the Genesis Theme Framework (1x payment – $59.99) and the Lookbook Pro Genesis Child Theme (1x payment – $75.00 each) comes to an investment of less than $135.00.

I also recommend joining Brian’s email list at Minimologie to get a feel for what it means to be an individual business owner serving as their own media company.

Phase 2 – Build Digital Connections With Visitors

Starts at $39.98/mo Out-Of-Pocket + Your Time

My Example Customer Intimacy System

RightMessageApp [$29.00/mo+]

ConvertKit Email [I’m Starting With The Free Plan]

Live Chat Monday – Friday 9:00AM – 5:00PM ET

May of 2019 I renewed my Drift Startup Plan for $588.00.

So I’m still using my Startup Plan but the Free version of Drift live chat is all you need to start.

I’m focusing on the live chat, creating digital media, and then distributing digital media for my business.