Digital marketing: An overview

At the most basic level, digital marketing is simple. It starts off with a basic premise: The internet has changed the way people buy. When customers are thinking about making a purchase, whatever it is, they start by gathering information. They do this with a computer and a search engine or an AI-powered chatbot. Or, they m𓄧ay pose a question to social media or YouTube.

Studies show that roughly . 

Customers begin by typing in questions and looking for answers. They keep reading and they keep learning, all as they get closer🧸 and closer to making a purchase.

If they read a few articles or watch a few videos from the same source, that source becomes an information source they 168极速赛车平台:recognize and trust. 

Right now, your potential customers are sitting down to ask a question:

• How do I finance a home improvement loan? 
• What are the benefits of burying service wires?
• Should I use fiber cement shingles for my exterior?
• How much does a radon safety system cost to install?

Answering questions like these is the first step to 168极速赛车平台:establishing trust wiဣthin your marketplace.

Now, if you're using traditional marketing tactics like a radio spot or a ma🅷iler, you're blasting out your message to everyone — most of whom are not interested.

But with digital marketing, it's a different story. The people typing in questions related to your industry are way more qualifiedꦬ for your services than the general p𒅌opulation.

Think about it: If you’re an HVAC company, wouldn’t you rather send your🅘 offer to someone who just Googled “How much does a furnace cost?” than to every single person in your town?

So, how do you know what your potential cus🤡tomers are going to search for? Start by thinking like your buyer.

Thinking like a homeowner

When homeowners are looking to make repairs or upgrades to their property — or looking to build 🌱a new home altogether, what’s their emotional state? They may be excited about a new project — or concer🧜ned about a nagging issue.

However they’re feeling, you can be sure of one thing: They are very wary of being ripped off. 

Because homeowners have no real experience with how much a new furnace should cost, or what goes into the building of a retainꦆing wall, they are at an information disadvantage, and they ൩are wary of being taken advantage of.

Therefore, if you work in the home improvement industry, you are already fighting an uphill battle to win the trust 🦄and business of your potential customers. 

And if you’re spend🦂ing money on traditional advertising like mailers and radio, you might not be helping. According to Inc., at all.

But there's a better way. When a homeowner is looking into a particular home service — whether that’s b꧒uilding a patio, putting on a new roof, or finishing their basement — where do they turn? They start out on search engines looking for answers. They want to get the lay of the land so they can be a more ꦛinformed buyer. 

We believe that if your customer is asking a question, 168极速赛车平台:you should answer it, even if it forces you t⛎o talk about something uncomfortable like price or product shortcoming💃s.

Here’s why: If a customer’s search leads them to your website, and they find your content to be helpful and honest, then they’re willing to trust your business. Suddenly, you're not just another home builder trying to get their money. You're the home builder that answered their ques🥃tion💯s. 

The 5 topics your buyers are asking about

Buyers 𓆉everywhere are asking the same quesꦚtions. Whether they’re buying a wedding cake, a trumpet, or a kitchen renovation. 

At IMPACT, we sort these questions into 168极速赛车平台:topics we call The Big 5, and we believe they are universal.

So, what do your buyers want to know?

1. Cost: First on everyone’s mind, of course, is cost. We are all skeptical when a website won’t tell us how much a product or service costs. Does “Call for price!” actually work? I doubt it. 
   Sure, it’s hard to say exactly how much something might cost — especially something with as many variables as a construction project — but customers want to have some idea. Addressing cost openly and explaining what factors make that number go up and down will give customers what they’re looking for.
2. Problems: When we make a purchase, we want to know what might go wrong. This is why we’re so drawn to one-star reviews. Feeling informed about worst-case scenarios helps us feel prepared for whatever could be thrown our way.
3. Reviews: Connected to problems are reviews. This could be reviews of products or reviews of entire companies. As a home services business, you know how important reviews are. 
   According to Inc., as much as they trust a review from a friend. 
4. “Best of” lists: Customers frequently Google questions that help them find the best solutions. 
   According to HubSpot, have grown exponentially. Thus, you can imagine searches like “best roofer near me” and “best floor refinishers near me” being very popular. 
5. Comparisons: Paint or stain? Gas or electric? Whirlpool or GE? Consumers want to put things side by side to know how they stack up. Covering these head-to-heads can help demonstrate your expertise and make your potential customers feel informed to make the best choice possible.

If you're not sure what content your buyers are looking for, start with The Big 5. ༺;

Building a digital marketing content strategy

So, there you have it. The Big 5 is not rocket science, but it's effe𒆙ctive and universal. You can use these topics to form the basis of your entire marketing strategy. You can address them in writing, on TikTok, on a podcಞast, in a YouTube video, or in any other medium your audience uses to gather information.

But you can't just do so willy-nilly. You'll need a plan, and you'll (probably) need someo𒊎ne to help you.

What is a content strategy?

A 168极速赛车平台:digital marketing strategy keeps you on track and focuse🌞d on what brings customers to your sales team.

A good strategy includes both written ♔and video content — and make🌄s good use of social media platforms. (We’ve found that video builds trust even faster than writing, but text can offer more depth and specificity.)

Therefore, cons🔯ider covering each of the topics in your strategy with several types of content. And, make your content easy to find, search, and consume. 

Having the right team

If you’re serious about digital marketing, we recommend diverting money you’ve been spending on traditional outbound marketing and 168极速赛车平台:hiring internal team members — a conte🥂nt writer and a videographer —𒁃 to support your efforts. 

Then,꧙ when these new folks are on board, you can begin to address these key topics with conten𝓰t that customers will find, value, and share.

If you’re not in a place to hire, that’s okay. You can do 𝓰a lot of this on your own, but it w🐷ill take time and energy to do it well.

For a real-world example, consider California-based , which had bounced around between a few different agencies. They spent a ton of money on new websites and social media ads, but once they focused on creating helpful content,♓ their business really took off. 

Real-world examples of a marketing strategy in action

At IMPACT, we’ve worked with dozens of home improvement companies that focus on building, roofing, plumbing, 🅷foundation repair, insulation, remodeling services, and more.

Below, we’ll offer examples from bu♕sinesses (some clients of ours, some not) that are building trust 🔯and driving sales with inbound marketing that addresses the core questions their ideal customers are asking. 

1. Talking about cost

Our first example is from West Roofing Systems, an installer ꦍwith locations in Ohio, Florida, and Georgia. Here, Greg Palya's run-down of cost is straightforward and unbiased. 

Everyone knows that the easiest answer to give to "how much will it cost?" is it depends. But that's not helpful to the customer looking for a price range. So, this article breaks do🦄wn the costs and considerations a potential customer ne🎃eds to know. 

Then, to give a sense of their materi🀅als and process, West Roofing lets you watch a p🉐roject get done start to finish. 

Immediately, it feels clear that the W♊est Roofing team knows their customers. Right out of the gatꦬe they've addressed the biggest question of them all.

2. Being honest about problems

Cons🔜truction projects come with a raft of p𓄧roblems, and businesses should be upfront with their clients about what may lie ahead. 

In this article, Custom Built Design and Remodeling covers eight common problem𓂃s with basement finishing.

Notice how the author is specific about problems, adding both solutions and alternatives to make 𓆉customers feel fully informed. 

3. Reviews that are unbiased and helpful

Buyers trust online reviews almost as much as they trust word of mouth. This is why buyers go to Yelp, Ang♉i, and other sites that host user reviews. 

As 𒁃experts in your field, your insight matters. In the article b🔜elow, Florida-based RoofCrafters provides details on two common shingle choices.

4. ‘Best of’ lists that present numerous options

Feature above, D♏alinhaus Construction knows its marketplace well. So well, in fact, that it lists the best competitors in its marketplace.

The thinking here is this: every customer has options — and not every bu♐siness is 💝a great fit for every customer. By compiling a list of other great businesses in their market, Dalinghaus positions itself as a trustworthy brand with nothing to hide. 

 

5. Real comparisons that help buyers feel informed 

Installing a pool is a huge and expensive undertaking that is likely a purchase a customer will make o🌸nly once in their life. So, how do they know they’re getting it right?

🅘A fundamental question about your pool is the construction material. Should you go with concrete or fiberglass? Rather than just proclaiming that fiberglass pools are superior, read 🎃how River Pools in Virginia compares concrete and fiberglass, covering pros and cons of each one in this article:

I also love how author Holly Jender addresses cost (again, it’s at the top of everyone’s mind) by breaking down ꧒10-year ownership expenses in a handy diagram.

Now, see the same content covered in video. Again, we see high production values and a quick, entertaining format. As viewers, we know we can g💧o to the article for moꦐre information, but the video promises an overview in two minutes — something explained at the onset. 

Thinking beyond The Big 5

While The Big 5 are a wise place to start, the home improvement industry comes with its own unique questions that buyers everywhere want toඣ know. These include a million “What is…” "How to..." and “Do I…” type questions. 

As y🍎ou plan your marketing strategy, pull some team members together and brainstorm some questions your buyers might type intꦑo search engines, such as:

• What type of foundation do I need for my addition?
• What is the best time of year to replace a roof?
• How do I keep my countertop looking new?
• Do I need a general contractor to handle my renovation?
• What is an epoxy liner for plumbing repair?
• Should I upgrade to geothermal heating?
• How do I fix my gutters?
• Do I need battery backup for my solar panels?

You get the idea. 

Bundled content

Once you’ve bui🅰lt up a library of valuable content, you can focus on creating high-value "bundles" that can help bring in more leads. 

It could be a guidebook to everything you need to know about metal roofs or a checklist for getting your window repla📖cement project started. Site visitors could give you their contact information to download this kind of information in a free ebook. This way, you grow your audience and your mailing list. 

Even better, this ty𝓡pe of content gives your leads an easier conversion point. If they're not ready to schedule a sales call, they may feel comfortable downloading a free guide to kitchen remodeling. 

'But do I need a new website?'

Often, businesses hoping to get started with digital marketing are wary that they♏’ll need a new website. In almost all cases, this is not true. You do not need a new website — you don’t even n༺eed a great website.

Unfortunately, there are many agencies out there that will gladly take your money and sell you ღa full site redesign that you don’t really need, telling you that it’s critical to yo🌱ur digital𝓀 marketing ambitions. 

Not so.

Even if your current website is a bit out๊dated, it probably has all the necessary functionality for success:

1. Can you publish a blog? 
2. Can you interlink between blog articles or use a tag system to organize content?
3. Can you use CTAs and a landing page to capture leads?

If your website can do these꧟ three things, you’re probably good to get started. 

Just remember, your website is for your customer❀s, not for you. Focus on their problems and challenges. Speak their langua🥂ge. 

Potential 🐓customers will be wary of a sleek website if it doesn't provide value and build trust.

ဣSure, you may want a website upgrade down the line, but that shouldn't prevent you from producing helpful content today.

Getting started with your DIY marketing strategy

A marketing strategy is a detailed, evolving resource that will look different for each company. But you can get sta♏rted with the basics provided above. If you’re ever unsure about what to cover, sꦐtart with The Big 5. You know your customers are thinking about and Googling questions related to these topics right now.

Then, as a secondary source, go to your sales team. We recommend recurring meetings every two weeks between marketing and sales to find out what questions your s🅰ales reps are hearing from buyers. If certain questions keep coming up, make sure you address them tho🏅roughly in your content. 

Lastly, use resources available online to generate topic ideas as well. , and are all great resources to help you dive into what🍬 users ꦛare looking for. 

Remember, if your customers are asking a question, 168极速赛车平台:you should be willing to answer it — and to do so openly on your website. This sor🍎t of transparency is key💮 for developing trust and winning customers.

If you’r🃏e serious about using content mark🙈eting to grow your business, use the examples above for inspiration, and talk to us if you'd like to learn about how our trainers and coaches can help you take ownership of your digital sales and marketing to achieve your business goals. 

Not ready to talk? . Every episode w♛🎃ill give you real-world insights and tips for building trust and growing your business in the age of AI.