Tip #2: If not SEO, invest your marketing dollars in this...
SEO isn't "dead." You just can't be over reliant on search traffic.
More and more people are searching on Google. But 59% of searches end without a click. Google is sending fewer referrals, but the overall amount of traffic is stable β due to the sheer volume of searches.
So where else should you make your marketing investments? Here are three ideas:
Invest in YouTube: Of the Google searches that end with a click, almost 30% go to a Google-owned property. Like YouTube. Consider if a video strategy aligns with your business goals, then invest accordingly.
Invest in discovery on other platforms: Treat a popular online marketplace and as your top-of-funnel channel. For ecommerce, this might be Amazon or Etsy. For writers, this might be Substack or Beehiiv. For service providers, this might be Udemy or Maven.
Invest in a social media-first strategy: It's not a new playbook, but it's one that still works. Build a following on a social media platform by publishing content with standalone value, or zero-click content. As you gain traction, nudge people toward your offering.
It's more important than ever to do your marketing where your audience already is.
Tip #3: Find "competitors" in LinkedIn, and do audience research.
In B2B? Check this out: LinkedIn has a tab in the "Analytics" section of your company page called "Competitors." When you open it, they'll suggest other LinkedIn pages that have significant audience overlap with your brand. The data there isn't great, but taking those suggested competitors and using their websites in SparkToro searches can be a goldmine!
We found several sites we'd never have otherwise thought to analyze (because they're not direct competitors, just sites that overlap with our audience). Take a look:
π Hone your storytelling chops
Let's transform your marketing strategy with the power of storytelling. Our friend Jay Acunzo joins us at our next SparkToro Office Hours to share his proven frameworks for effective storytelling and explain what makes stories truly successful, all tailored specifically for the B2B landscape. Register so you can join live + receive the recording.
(2) Speaking of blocking crawlers, search engines, and AI scrapers, looks like Cloudflare's getting in on the action. (FWIW, we at SparkToro wouldn't recommend this for most businesses; you probably want your content crawled by AIs, especially the ones that are, or might get, popular.)
(3) Threads passed 175 million monthly active users (MAUs) in June. It's on track to surpass Twitter in MAUs in 2-3 years at the current growth rate.
π―ββοΈ 3 Social Media Posts
From Twitter/X and Threads.
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