We recently polled our team about common problem areas they notice when auditing client accounts, and they had some ~ strong ~ opinions about different ways to optimize for a better user experience. A minor tweak on the client side often makes a huge difference in how a user perceives and interacts with your company. In this blog, we’ll explore twelve easy marketing hacks to boost your brand and effortlessly enhance your overall marketing strategy.
Social Media Marketing
Utilize links in your bio on Instagram
The number one thing we notice when diving into a social media audit is URLs in Instagram captions. For whatever reason, URLs aren’t clickable links in this platform (even though Meta owns both Facebook and Instagram), and users cannot easily copy/paste within the app. To get your links seen (and clicked!) on Instagram, update your bio! The platform now allows multiple links to be added directly (up to five), or companies can use a linking service such as LinkTree to house and manage outbound links.
Avoid too much promotion
That seems like an oxymoron, right? Can there be too much promotion? The answer is yes! If you constantly bombard your audience with deals, “buy now” or “shop now,” they will likely experience brand fatigue and be turned off from interacting with your company. In today’s digital world, customers want to find answers to their questions, solutions to their pain points, and authenticity. Curating a mix of content that brings value and educates your audience will help position your brand as a thought leader and will, over time, increase engagement and conversions.
Don’t overuse memes
Just don’t unless you want to invest time into developing an actual strategy for their use! Memes are fun occasionally, but constantly promoting memes without a clear idea of what’s trending or, more importantly, what your target audience is likely to relate to is a recipe for a social flop.
Graphic Design
Don’t use www. when referencing a website in designs
It’s 2024, and the internet has been around for decades at this point. For most users, “www.” is implied, and many websites have already been built to automatically redirect users to www. and non-www. versions. For clean and professional marketing materials, leave the www. off.
Use a brand style guide when developing all marketing material
Brand inconsistency is a common error we see when working with small businesses! Keeping consistent colors, fonts, and design elements gives your brand a professional and polished look (no DIY vibes). It also is vital to developing a memorable brand. Inconsistent messaging and unpredictable brand experiences (even something as minor as an off-brand flyer) will confuse your target audience. The only way for your audience to understand (and remember!) your story is through clearly identifiable logos, designs, and messaging.
Make sure your graphics are properly sized
Again, this tiny tweak helps your brand look professional and ensures that users can view all relevant information. Proper sizing and the use of high-res images will also help prevent pixelation. Below is a quick list of common social media graphic sizes to get started!
- Facebook or Instagram Story Graphic: 1080×1920
- Instagram Avatar: 110×110 pixels
- Facebook Avatar: 320×320 pixels
- LinkedIn Avatar: 400×400 pixels
- YouTube Shorts: 1080×1920 pixels
- Instagram Reels: 1080×1920 pixels
- LinkedIn Cover Image: 1128×191 pixels
- Social Media Square Graphic: 1080×1080 pixels
- Facebook Event Cover Image: 1920×1005 pixels
Copywriting
Use Grammarly to check your work
Nothing is worse than getting a printed rack card back and noticing a typo. It is the stuff of marketer’s nightmares! A quick and easy way to help safeguard against future mistakes is to proofread each piece and run your content through Grammarly. Even the free version helps catch common grammatical mistakes and spelling errors. This will save you time and give your brand a professional, leadership-forward voice.
Make AI work for you
Don’t be hesitant to try AI out for yourself! Services like ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini AI are powerful marketing tools that can help jumpstart brainstorming sessions, develop idea lists, rewrite captions, and analyze business trends. That being said, AI does not replace the human brain and general common sense. Use AI tools to simplify mundane tasks, but always make sure to review and edit feedback.
Use a single space after periods
Sorry, double spacers, this punctuation practice is old school! As of 2019, all major style guides, including APA and MLA, now recommend using a single space between sentences. It’s a super easy fix to help make your marketing pieces look up-to-date.
Administrative & Web
Know your passwords
As marketing becomes increasingly digitized, it is essential to know your passwords and keep them all in a safe place. For example, your website or social media logins unlock key business assets and should be regarded as essential business assets, too. Similarly, knowing who owns your company’s digital assets is critical. Do you own your website? How about your social media content, ad account, or business manager? We’ve worked with many clients whose Meta Business Manager is owned by a former employee and not properly transferred before departure. You do not want to be online with Meta Support pulling together legal ownership documents for hours on end. We repeat: You. Do. Not. Save your passwords using a service like LastPass and ensure the company owns each digital asset.
Update the copyright year in the footer of your website
This should be an annual January task! It’s a quick fix that alerts users they are viewing an up-to-date site.
Update your site’s favicon to match your logo and branding
All website builders (think WordPress or Squarespace) default to their own favicon. Updating this to your own logo will present your website as professional rather than DIY.
Looking for more marketing tips and tricks? Check out our Resources Page. We offer free Restaurant Marketing, Festival Planning, and Brand Development guides there. Please also consider setting up a complimentary discovery call with our team if you need extra assistance! We look forward to meeting you, diving into your brand, and working together on future goals. Cheers to achieving marketing greatness!
