Twelve Mistakes in Marketing

Recently I spoke at an insurance conference about success in social media marketing, and shortly after finishing my speech, a young insurance professional came to me and asked if I could take a few minutes to explain to her what I thought were twelve mistakes in marketing that agencies should avoid in the new year.

Honestly, I had to sit down and think about this for a moment. We spent about an hour talking to one another, and by the end of our conversation I could have written down fifty mistakes that I person- ally made in the past that everyone should avoid! But out of those fifty or so, here are the top twelve that I think should be avoided in 2015:

1) Not having a Marketing Plan. Many agencies do not. This is a major mistake that I would first and foremost correct. Let’s take a quick moment and talk about creating a marketing strategy and what it should include. First, you must have a distinct and measurable goal, and without this you will not be able to have a clear social media policy. You must think about your agency’s brand and voice with- in that strategy. When it comes to implementation, you should create a content calendar with 10 goals in mind because without those goals, you will have nothing to measure. Don’t make the mistake of having and creating great content but not allowing the rest of the Internet world to see it or know that it’s even out there.

2) Not Using Visual Images in Your Content. Images play a huge role in allowing your content to be seen by people, so lacking visuals is a HUGE mistake. Here’s a quick example: tweets take up the most space on your newsfeed and an image helps drive engagement about 200% more than one without. That is a staggering number and we must not ignore the role visual content plays in your marketing strategy.

3) Not taking advantage of hashtags. Hashtags are a no-brainer. They are the easiest and simplest way for your business to insert itself into trending topics and conversations. Hashtags must play a role in your strategy – #usehashtags.

4) Not using a constant voice. Your agency must find a voice within your social media marketing strategy. Without the right strategy and plan, you will never be able to have that constant voice. Your agency must be consistent in your online marketing manner — this includes the types of business you’re attempting to write. In 2015, key components to your agency’s voice must be its brand, consistency, and being human. With these attributes, you will have a constant voice that will help bring you and your agency an ROI.

5) Not utilizing Google+. WOW this could be catastrophic to your marketing strategy. In today’s social media, statistics show that Google+ is the most underutilized social platform. Let’s always remember that Google+ is directly integrated with Google search results, making profiles an integral part of any marketing/digital or search engine optimization strategy. This is really simple! You and your agency must have a Google+ profile and you must be active within it!

6) Not utilizing the communities in the circles within Google+. Your agency can absolutely get a positive ROI with the use of these communities because there is no better way to target market a group then through the use of Google+. These communities are an advantage to you and your agency — do not ignore them.

7) Not using a social platform called Pinterest. Pinning images to a board on Pinterest is simple enough if businesses want to use social media sites to drive traffic and increase their sales within their agency. This social platform is GREAT for branding your agency as well. There is power within Pinterest—trust me!

8) Not having an Instagram account.

This social platform is growing by leaps and bounds every single day. With Instagram, it is all about hashtags. The more hashtags, the better. This is one of the fastest growing social platforms out there. Furthermore, this site is owned by Facebook, so that alone makes it a powerful social media arena in which every agency should be playing.

9) Not being creative. Your brand and your agency must get creative because the social world is a place where everyone wants to be SEEN! Creativeness is a key component not only to your Internet marketing success, but also to your traditional marketing strategy success. An important quote that I share and discuss with my marketing teams on a weekly basis is this, “The world has enough copycats. You were born original so remain original! There is no more room to be a copycat!”

10) Not hiring a social media engineer. With all the social avenues today, it would be impossible for you, as an agency owner, to be able to push out new content and create great visual content in all these different social arenas without having a social media team.

11) Not hiring a graphic designer. I have made this mistake before, and I can tell you that since I changed my thought process about a year ago, I have seen the huge returns that came from hiring and/or outsourcing the right graphic designer. She has made an enormous difference in our marketing – not only in the Internet world but also with our traditional marketing techniques. Hiring the right graphic designer is well worth the money you spend and they alone will help you bring a positive ROI.

12) Not using photos of your staff on your agency’s website and or within its visual content marketing strategy. Stock photos do not work. Let me repeat that – stock photos do not work!

Avoiding these 12 mistakes will help your agency prosper in 2015. Though there are many more that can be avoided, these 12 are key to your agency’s success. Please avoid making them and I wish you and your agency all the best with your marketing efforts this year.