The document outlines essential strategies for effective online marketing, emphasizing the necessity of crafting a compelling message that resonates with consumers and includes a clear call-to-action. It discusses the importance of landing pages for lead generation and provides essential elements and tips for creating effective marketing content. Additionally, it highlights the significance of testing and optimizing marketing efforts across various platforms.

1. Entrepreneurs and Their Communities
Crafting the Message:
Effective Online Marketing
Glenn Muske – NDSU
Connie Hancock - UNL Extension
Co-Sponsored by
RRDC
REGIONAL RURAL
DEVELOPMENT CENTERS

2. Housekeeping Details
• If you haven’t already done so, enter
your name/email address into the chat
box
• Session will be recorded
• Feel free to type questions/comments at
any time

3. The Starting Point
“Build it and they will come”
doesn’t work

4. Examine Your Behavior
• What was the last marketing message you saw
or heard?
• Did you respond?
• Why did you respond?
• In what media type did you find the message?

5. Your Marketing Message Must Meet 3
Requirements
1. It gets seen in the jungle
– 5000/day or 200 per hour
• http://bit.ly/1jqhCBb
2. Message must resonate with the consumer
3. There is a call-to-action

6. Crafting the Message
• Who is the audience
• What do they need? What is their
headache/problem?
• How can you help? It’s not what’s in it for me
but what’s in it for them. Think benefits
• How do you differ from the competition
• Build trust – testimonials, examples, past
results,

7. Some Basics
• Marketing is:
– Everything you do
– Traditional and online
– Internal and external
– Done by everyone – you, your employees, your
customers and your ex-customers
– Activities pre, during, and post – SERVICE!

8. Some Basics: Part 2
• Marketing can:
– Sell
– Create awareness
– Build a brand/identity/trust/relationships
– Communicate value/benefits of product/service
– Establish yourself in the marketplace
– Make connections
– Identify who the customer is, what they want and
what price they will pay;

9. Some Basics: Part 3
• Marketing occurs:
– Everywhere and anywhere
– Among people
– And today, a great deal happens online.

10. Why Online Marketing?
• It’s where people are
• It influences purchasing behavior
– Forrester Research – Buyer today is often 2/3 to
90% of the way through the decision making
process before they ever interact with a person
– Got there by gathering information online

11. Your Online Marketing Effort

12. Online Marketing Keys
• Content is king
• Distribution is queen
• And action trumps them all.
– Action rarely happens if the consumer:
• Doesn’t know where to go (landing pages)
• Isn’t asked to do anything (Call-to-action)

13. The Marketing Process
Evaluation
and Start
Over
Marketing
Goals
Call to
Action
Message
Landing
Page
Remember there is nothing
that can’t be made better.

15. Landing Page defined
• “…a web page that allows you to capture a
visitor’s information through a lead-capture
form.”
Hubspot

16. Why landing pages are important
•
•
•
•
•
Generate New Leads
Give premium content a home
Collect demographic information
Understand who is engaged
Can be used in multi-channel campaigns
http://blog.katapult.co.uk/inbound/inbound-marketing-101-landing-pages-explained/

17. Good Landing Page Experience
– Provides relevant, useful, and original content
– Promotes transparency and fostering
trustworthiness
– Explains your products or services
– Makes it easy for customers to navigate your site
(including on mobile sites)
https://support.google.com/adwords/answer/2404197?hl=en

18. Elements of a Landing Page
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
C = Clear Call to Action
O = Offer
N = Narrow Focus
V = VIA: Very Important Attributes
E = Effective Headline
R = Resolution – Savvy Layout
T = Tidy Visuals
S = Social Proof
http://blog.kissmetrics.com/c-o-n-v-e-r-t-s/

20. Write content for the purpose of
educating and informing
• Offer smaller, bite-sized pieces of your content that can easily
digest and easily share
• Not entirely unique, but taken from longer pieces that people
can opt in or decide to read at their leisure
• These can be data points, memorable phrases or action items
and will fit nicely for Facebook or Twitter posts
http://searchenginewatch.com/article/2320358/5-Ways-to-Have-Killer-Content-in-2014

21. Perfect Landing Page
• Heading –
– What they are about to get and why it is
important
•
•
•
•
Bullets
Testimonials
Call to Action
Place for customer to fill in contact
information
– Less fields to fill in – the better

22. Improving Your CTA
• What do you want customers to do
• Create the Hook
– What’s in it for me?
• Give your customers a reason to act
– Provide the sense of urgency
• Optimize CTA
• Consistent presentation
• Test and Measure
http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/how-to-improve-your-social-media-calls-toaction/

23. Optimizing Call To Action
•
•
•
•
Consistent presentation
Qualify your offer – 100 left
Size matters BIG time
Placement is key – ”Don’t make me think”
– 3 to 5 seconds
• Brightly Colored
• Whitespace wonders
• It’s not what you say – it’s how you say it!
http://www.instapage.com/2013/02/20/5-call-to-action-tips/#more-5422

24. How to get started
• Offer something for free
– If value is there – the customer will take action
Call to Actions
Download
Buy
Find
Get
Order
Purchase
Review
Shop

25. • https://squareup.com/

28. Test – Test - Test
• Test different online pages
• Test how people respond
• Test Social Media
– Email marketing
– Tweet
– Facebook page
– Blog
• Test Traditional marketing

29. • Content is what people want.
• Content is what people share.
• Content is what makes buying decisions
happen.
http://www.copyblogger.com/2014rainmaker/?utm_source=feedblitz&utm_medium=FeedBlitzEmail&utm_content=779131
&utm_campaign=0

30. Additional resources
• http://huskerpreneur.wordpress.com/resourc
es/workshop-materials/landing-pages/
•
•
•
•
•
•
http://www.copyblogger.com/2014rainmaker/?utm_source=feedblitz&utm_medium=FeedBlitzEmail&utm_content=7
79131&utm_campaign=0
http://www.instapage.com/2013/02/20/5-call-to-action-tips/#more-5422
http://searchenginewatch.com/article/2320358/5-Ways-to-Have-Killer-Content-in2014
http://blog.kissmetrics.com/c-o-n-v-e-r-t-s/
https://support.google.com/adwords/answer/2404197?hl=en
http://blog.katapult.co.uk/inbound/inbound-marketing-101-landing-pagesexplained/

31. eTailing – Taking Charge of Your Online
Presence
http://go.unl.edu/etailing

32. Online Curriculums
• Direct Marketing of
Specialty Food
• Marketing
Agritourism Online
http://go.unl.edu/direc http://go.unl.edu/agrit
tmarketingfood
ourism

33. Follow us on
Blog - http://entrepreneursandtheircommunities.wordpress.com/
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/eXtensionentrepreneurs
Twitter - http://www.twitter.com/extbizteam

34. Thank You!
Mark your calendars
2nd Thursday, 2:00pm ET; 1:00pm CT; 12 pm MT; 11:00 am PT
http://connect.extension.iastate.edu/etc-cop
– February 13 –Blogging for Food – Jennifer
Lewis – The Soup to Nuts Resource for Artisan
Food Entrepreneurs
– March 13 – Incorporating Video into the
Marketing Strategy – Jeremy Doan, Rolling
Plains Adventures