Gone are the days of large and impersonal billboards, or direct mail advertisements aimed at an audience of thousands. We’ve put together 5 ways to personalize your content marketing on a budget. Additionally, paired with the marketing efforts of today which are channeled into dynamic emails, personal videos, and social media interactions. Although this new world appears strange and even daunting to small businesses, implementing personalized marketing communications is now easier than ever before.
There are five primary categories of personalizing your content marketing, each of which can be done on a budget of zero dollars. Such as social media, customized videos, self-reported analytics, dynamic content, and automated systems.
1. Social Media
It’s no secret that social media is the biggest free marketing tool on the internet today. With potential Facebook audiences measuring in the billions, the social frontier is only just being explored by small business content marketers.
Here are some ways to personalize your content while using social media, all entirely for free!
• Have users submit pictures, videos, or segments of their own content to be featured in a Facebook post. Not only will they love seeing their work on the ‘big screen,’ but they will share it with all of their friends, too!
• Polls are excellent methods of gathering audience data. Undoubtedly, listen to what your consumers are saying, then compose a poll that allows them to interact with subjects they care about.
• If possible, avoid using robots to respond to messages. Accordingly, get engaged with your customer’s comments, texts, and feedback by using their first names whenever possible. Prove to your consumers that you care, and they will spread the word.
With social platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat to choose from, businesses can enjoy personalized content marketing while on strict budgets. Looking for help with social media posts?
2. Customized Video
Whether or not your organization relies on thank you notes or donor info to succeed, personalized videos make up an enormous part of personalized content marketing efforts. Communicating directly to your prospects makes them feel valued, and is a great way to connect with leads all over the globe at a very low cost.
Below are some methods of creating engaging personal videos that reach out to prospects exactly how (and where) you need them to.
• Create personalized videos that thank individual persons on social media, email, or through a special URL. Ensure that the pronunciation of the prospect’s name is accurate in order to solidify trust and affiliation.
• Use members of your team to create one-to-one videos, which act as a two-sided conversation using only one person. Look for ways to automate the process and reduce some of your overhead tasks, while simultaneously adding in conversational tones wherever possible.
• Holiday season? Create personalized videos wishing your prospects a Happy Holidays, a fun summer, or just a merry weekend. Look for ways to engage with consumer feedback to optimize the process.
Videography doesn’t need to be difficult, and in today’s world of digital inference, personalized videos can be created using only a well-lit room and a smartphone. Worried you don’t have enough time to do it all? As a result, freelance websites such as Upwork, Fiverr, and WriterAccess have excellent resources. Accordingly these websites help to manage your personalization efforts while on a budget.
3. Engaging Analytics
Understanding the right way to engage with your prospects can be confusing. Engaging with prospects without using analytics will be even more confusing.
Alternatively, you can personalize your content marketing on a budget using analytics in the following ways:
• Measure the impact of your campaigns both with and without personalized touches. Did one do better than another? Why?
• Integrate AI technology with your app (if you have one). This will allow you to track the habits of your consumers, and make better-personalized offers along the way.
• Let significant analytics trigger personalized content for your consumers. The customer at their data cap for the third time? Send an email that targets this. Has a hot lead visited the same page on your website several times? Reach out to them and provide additional info about your services.
Remember, content may be king, but analytics will always be queen! Build-in some room for data, and it will surely thank you in the years to come. What’s more, many analytic platforms are entirely free! Does your marketing team have visual analytics to translate your quarterly spending?
4. Dynamic Content
Dynamic content is a term that refers to movement, interaction, or change on a static page. Therefore, any content that is altered to fit the end consumer may fall under this category. Examples of this include clickable ads, localized weather reports, and on-site banner advertisements.
While not all dynamic content is cheap, it can be personalized with a dramatic effect for website visitors, newsletter subscribers, and prospects who just happen to be stopping by. Here are some effective methods of dynamic content optimization for businesses on a budget:
• Embed a weather map or temperature gauge that connects to the prospect’s location.
• Add a first name, pronouns, or other important personal details to email content. This engages the reader and can be done through most major email platforms.
• Try to get the attention of first-time visitors with stylish and attractive personalized content. Thus, display relevant info such as item suggestions, previously viewed products, and more.
Nonetheless, lots of ideas for dynamic content templates are available online and can be made for free using applications such as Canva. Dynamic content offers an excellent opportunity for more established small businesses looking to ramp up their marketing efforts. Don’t have time to write niche content for your business? We can do that for you!!
5. Automated Personalization
Not all organizations have the time or manpower to effectively personalize content. Also, popup and dynamic ads, customized emails, and even unique behavioral targeting can all be managed at the touch of a button using one of the many online tools available today. Some of the best free tools currently include:
- Personalize
- Google Optimize
- For budgets with a little more wiggle room, the following paid platforms are available: Hyperise and segment
At the end of the day, the ways your company chooses to implement content personalization should be a reflection on your values, beliefs, and motivations. Overall, look deeply into your current marketing channels, and decide what your goals are in pursuing customization in the first place. Are you looking to boost engagement? Awareness? What about affiliation? Keep in mind that a good game plan is always the starting point of a successful marketing campaign.
Ready to get out there and personalize some content? Happy optimization!
