High Impact Digital Growth Tactics for 2021

What are your digital marketing plans for 2021? Chances are, you're well into the process of exploring (and applying) relevant growth tactics that will answer market demands and put you ahead of your competitors. 

Still, it’s always a good idea to broaden your horizons. After all, surveys suggest that as many as 74% of businesses expect to increase their digital marketing budgets in 2021. So if the competition to win over consumers is expected to intensify, it is only logical that you will have to up your game. Fortunately, there are excellent ways to do just that.

The following are the top high-impact digital growth tactics you should consider implementing in 2021.

Virtual Events

The Covid-19 pandemic has forced the world into (what seem to be) neverending lockdowns. And with strict measures in place, businesses have had to find alternative ways of keeping in touch with their clients.

One of the most popular answers to the changing situation was to move events online. Online happenings such as the SBC Digital Summit, the NYCB Digital Season, and the Apple October Keynote showed just much promise virtual communication held - and smaller brands followed.

The reasons behind this are simple:

• For one, organizing an event online (while technically challenging) comes with much lower costs than doing so in person.
• Secondly, relying on virtual communication broadens target audiences, allowing people from anywhere in the world to join in on the action.
• And, finally, investing in virtual events doesn't just offer high monetary returns. It also allows businesses to create highly engaging assets that can be reused and repurposed in many different ways, extending their life span to several months or even years.

All things considered, it's safe to say that virtual events will remain relevant throughout 2021. So, whether you're looking to organize a free or paid webinar, schedule live video premieres, or challenge your customers to participate in a nine-week program like Transparent Labs did, go ahead and do it - you're likely to see some impressive results.

image source: transparentlabs.com

Social Commerce

You might already know that the global population's screen time soared in 2020. In fact, it is estimated that the average person doubled their content consumption, with a strong preference towards social media and streaming platforms.

But what does this have to do with your digital growth tactics for 2021? Well, the data should help you recognize just how important it is for your brand to be where your potential clients are. Traditionally, brands have treated social media as a discovery tool. But, in 2021, it should be considered much more than that. 

With social commerce features available on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest, brands can now make buying even more convenient by allowing followers to purchase straight from their favorite app. Not only is social commerce intuitive. More importantly, it eliminates additional steps that could result in potential clients changing their minds.

For a great example of how it's done, check out the Organic Basics post shown below. The brand announced a giveaway while allowing followers to purchase the featured products straight from the Instagram app.

image source: instagram.com

Focus on High-Return Platforms

One of the easiest digital marketing traps to fall into is to think that you have to do everything to succeed. Sure, having a strong online presence is crucial for the success of your brand. However, doing too much is quite unlikely to boost returns while carving away at your budget.

For this reason, it's a great idea to do a social media audit in 2021 and decide what profiles will be worth pursuing. For example, TikTok may have more than 689 million users as of January 2021. But is it worth investing in if you're targeting people over the age of 30?

So, instead of spreading yourself too thin, why not choose 2 to 4 distribution platforms that you'll place your focus on? Research social media demographics. Invest in content marketing and SEO to boost organic traffic to your website. And do as much as you can to build customer loyalty. This way, you'll have a well-targeted audience and will know that hours of work and hundreds of dollars won't be going to waste due to irrelevant strategies.

Get Personal

Following previous years' trends, personalization is going to remain relevant in 2021. However, don't let yourself underestimate the power of a highly individualized shopping experience. 

Yes, you want to add product recommendations to your ecommerce store that take browsing history into consideration. But, you should take that idea and apply it to the rest of your digital marketing channels.

By using cookies and website pixels (paying attention to relevant data protection laws, of course), you can efficiently distribute content, ads, or even run special offers for people who have interacted with your website.

Try to Win Google Featured Snippets

It should come without surprise that a prime spot on SERPs offers a host of benefits for your brand. And, naturally, being featured by Google itself means getting a load of free traffic and a chance to boost your brand's authority.

But how exactly can you win the featured snippet section?

Well, it will all start with some in-depth keyword research. By focusing on long-tail search queries (five words or more), you'll have a higher chance of winning the featured snippet section in your industry. Moreover, aim to answer questions, as these have a higher likelihood of appearing at the top of Google's SERPs.

Then, you'll need to structure your blog content in a way that lends itself to the snippet section. Keep your text paragraphs brief, use headings, lists, and tables. Also, try to update your content regularly and list a recent date like you can see in this best bed in a box post from Eachnight.

image source: eachnight.com

It's also not a bad idea to create a how-to or resources section on your website, as instructional texts will be more likely to land you a top spot on Google. Of course, that doesn't mean ignoring content formats like video and visuals. These are only more likely to get you to the SERP position you're after.

Harness the Power of UGC

User-generated content has been at the forefront of many a brand's digital marketing strategies. And with good reason: not only is it a great way to display social proof, but perhaps even more importantly, this type of post allows almost any brand to become relatable (think of Pampers' video campaigns).

The great thing about UGC is that it's relatively easy to collect and offers a wide range of uses once you have it in your hands. For great examples of brands using UGC, take a look at these two brands:

Pantone bases its entire Instagram grid on UGC, reposting the images and videos it's tagged in or that use the popular #pantone hashtag.

image source: instagram.com

ShowMojo, on the other hand, chooses to reach out to existing customers and asks them to film short videos of themselves talking about the benefits they've gained through using the brand's product.

image source: webmojo.com

Both strategies are extremely simple. But the thing is, they work. Seeing how consumers are only more likely to base their purchasing decisions on brand authority, UGC may become an irreplaceable marketing tactic for your business's future.

Build a Community

Now, there's no denying that "content is king." It drives discovery, trust, authority, and conversions. However, it doesn't always do the small things that go into the success of a brand.

In 2021, after more than a year of worldwide isolation, consumers crave connection. And the thing is, brands can provide that connection (along with a few other perks) by working to build customer communities.

For example, you can implement social listening and join in on the conversations related to your industry or products. Or, you can do what Aura does and start your own community on Facebook, using it as a platform to share tips, tricks, and customer success stories. 

image source: goaura.com

Whatever you go with, know that building meaningful, long-lasting relationships with your customers is only bound to benefit your brand. If nothing else, it will give you a creative new way of sourcing UGC.

Don't Forget About the Basics

And here's the last piece of advice: remember that new does not necessarily mean better. Sure, you can decorate your marketing strategy with bells and whistles. But if the basics aren't there, you won't be getting the results you're after.

For this reason, it's important that you cover your bases. This includes:

• being consistent with your branding and posting schedules
• providing an exceptional shopping experience
• updating your website and social media channels regularly 
• continuing to invest in tactics that have proven to work in the past

Yes, people will be excited about shiny new things like VT and chatbots. But they'll also appreciate getting that valuable email in their inbox once a week.

Conclusion

There you have it, the best digital growth tactics that will drive success in 2021. As you can see, they're anything but complicated. However, their impact is high, all the while keeping you well within budget.

Are you already implementing some of these strategies? If yes, which did you find the most effective in driving your business forward? Let us know in the comments!