Digital Marketing Mistakes to Avoid for Small Businesses

Legend has it that every time a new company creates a personal Facebook profile page instead of a business one, a baby capybara faints – no dead animals here, sorry. It’s safe to say that all of us got a Facebook notification stating that “Restaurant X wants to be your friend”. Besides being strange and cringe, it’s a basic mistake that lots of small businesses make, even today.

With the current digital marketing trends, it’s a huge risk trying to dissociate a new small business from a basic digital strategy that will, at the very least try to find an audience and bring it to the company real estate, brick-and-mortar, online, or even both. Relying on open doors, organic traffic and a few Facebook “friends” will give competition a gigantic head start.

Below, some common digital marketing mistakes that businesses make:

Not having a corporate website: Come on! It’s 2024. Even your kid’s teacher has a personal website where she showcases the best volcanos from Science Fair. So, why can’t your grocery shop have a digital place where you can showcase products (even sell them, go figure) communicate with customers and let people know you exist.
Having a poor website design: This is the obvious one after realizing that a website is mandatory. A poorly designed website can lead to a high bounce rate (people that open your homepage and say, “Oh no, my eyes!” and close the browser window immediately) and lost customers. To avoid this mistake, make sure that the website is visually appealing, easy to navigate, and mobile-friendly. Also, try to find someone that understands your needs and has the technical knowledge to build a solid online presence. It can be a simple, one page showcase, but it needs to be well made.
Ignoring mobile users: Who’s still browsing the web using a computer outside of working hours? With the massive use of mobile devices, businesses that don’t optimize their online presence for mobile users, risk losing potential customers.
Offering poor quality products: To be honest, this should be the first one, but it was the fourth idea that came to my mind. You can have the brightest website, unlimited marketing budget and a team of Cornell graduates bringing customers to your “door”. If the product is not good, there will be no repetitive purchase. Retention is king and you’ll figure that out in no time.
Lacking realistic digital marketing goals and goal tracking: Without setting realistic goals, businesses can’t measure the success of their campaigns. Unrealistic goals can be discouraging and set businesses up for failure. To avoid this mistake, businesses should set SMART goals (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Time-sensitive) and track their progress throughout the campaign.
Targeting the wrong audience: Targeting too broad of an audience can lead to wasted resources and poor conversion rates. To avoid this mistake, businesses should define their target audience and tailor their campaigns to that audience. Segmentation tools are evolving as we speak, and targeting can be refined to an incredible point.
Not using keyword research: Assuming that you are using Google Search campaigns and interested that your website shows up when people sue Google – you should – keyword research is essential for SEO and content marketing. Businesses that don’t conduct thorough keyword research risk missing out on potential traffic and sales.
Having subpar customer service: Poor customer service can lead to negative reviews and a damaged reputation. To avoid this mistake, businesses should prioritize customer service and ensure that their customers are satisfied.
Forgetting about social media: Social media is a powerful tool for digital marketing. Focus on the ones that your target audience spends more time. There’s no point on having accounts on 12 social media platforms with zero content. Post few, but consistently. For every 10 posts, use 8 to inform, educate and share; and 2 to sell. Push and then pull. Easy to memorize.
Not offering discounts and promotions: Offering discounts and promotions can be an effective way to attract new customers and retain existing ones. There are many tools that you can use on your website that automate retention strategies with follow-up promotions. Works like a charm. If your business is not online, give away personalized freebies to returning customers. Always favour freebies on top of discounts. Free stuff is perceived as a complementary offer; a discount may be perceived as the real price of the product you are promoting.

There’s no one rule fits all in this game, and no matter the industry the competition will always be fierce. However, if you make sure that the above topics are covered, at least you are starting the race ahead of 80% of your competitors, and that will give your company a good head start. Just keep the engine well-oiled up and address all requests. Grow your audience first, give them good products and a 5-star service and then, only then you can ask for something in return. You’ll be fine, champ.