by Unibit Solutions | Mar 23, 2020 | Digital Marketing |
The digital marketing industry is a niche sector. That is why your digital marketing franchise needs to stand out from that of your competitor pool. The evolution of technology prompts entrepreneurs to leave their comfort zones in an expedition for unique digital marketing strategy ideas to continue to capture audiences. Below, we’ve listed five essential skills required from a digital marketing franchise to survive in today’s ‘Wild West’ of online marketing. 1. Excellent Writing and Editing Skills Content marketing is at the heart of all digital marketing strategies. Your content needs to attract and connect with your target audiences by convincing them to do what you’ve set out for them to do. High-quality content is the foundation for all online marketing and a must for every digital marketing franchise. It’s extremely important for your SEO optimisation and keyword strategy for content ranking. 2. Knowledge of SEO and SEM There’s no point in having beautifully written content if it’s not working towards your SEO optimisation. A deeper understanding of SEO and SEM (Search Engine Marketing) for different platforms will help you to translate better content for your digital marketing strategy. With Google’s algorithm permanently changing and upgrading, it’s vital that you stay afloat and in the know of the different factors which influence search rankings. 3. Social Media Savvy Social media can be used to your benefit. As social media evolves, it has become a forum for conversations and ideas. Social media platforms have evolved to accommodate businesses and their digital marketing needs by use of advertising, business pages and groups, boosted posts and hashtags. Find your target audience and...
by Unibit Solutions | Mar 16, 2020 | Digital Marketing |
In a world where technology runs every aspect of our daily lives, businesses have become more reliant on digital marketing strategies. Today, everything moves much faster and continues to evolve and we, therefore, no longer have the luxury of depending on only one strategic technique. Agile Digital Marketing is one way to look at it. Simply put, it’s a process of managing your social media marketing, content marketing and your digital marketing strategy by addressing your shifting priorities. An agile marketing plan takes the opportunity to listen, to respond and to efficiently adapt to the demands of both customers and the industry. A digital marketing agency of any size can use this methodology. You don’t require a large marketing team if you are a small business owner. All you will need to apply is an ‘out of the box’ approach coupled with unwavering dedication. We’ve listed two ways for you to implement an agile digital market strategy in your business. Be Aware of Your Surroundings An agile strategy requires permanent attention, which means you need to be aware of your surroundings. So, set a system up to ‘listen’. You need to know what is going on as well as what is changing around you so that you don’t miss out on great opportunities. When something happens, you need to respond to it immediately. The quicker the response, the better. Social Media is one of the avenues to achieve this. The likes of Twitter and Facebook are great ways to stay on top of everything. Google Alerts is another option. You can do this by creating Google Alerts using the...
by Unibit Solutions | Mar 9, 2020 | Digital Marketing |
You’ve decided to resign from your digital marketing job and to venture into a new exciting chapter in your life – owning your own digital marketing company. So, how should you go about it? Do you work effortlessly to build your very own empire from the ground up? Or, do you investigate buying a digital marketing franchise that, obviously, should have all the fundamentals and building blocks already in place? The advantage of investing in a franchise business is that it normally comes with a developed business plan, ongoing guidance and systems to assist you in doing business efficiently. We’ve listed a few other advantages and disadvantages for you to consider before signing on the dotted line. Advantages The advantages of investing in a digital marketing franchise include the following: As a franchisee, you are offered the independence of being a small business owner with the support and benefits within a bigger business network. Business experience is not always necessary to buy a franchise. The franchisor normally offers training and guidance for you to operate alongside the franchise’s guidelines and business model. Finance for a franchise may be easier to obtain than a business loan. It may also cost less to invest in a franchise opportunity than to start your own business from scratch. When opting into a franchise, you form part of an already established brand and reputation. Disadvantages Amongst the disadvantages of investing in a digital marketing franchise are the following: When purchasing a franchise, you enter into a formal agreement with the franchisor. This agreement normally dictates how you need to run the business, and it...
by Unibit Solutions | Mar 2, 2020 | Digital Marketing |
In today’s economic climate, small businesses not only need to be agile and innovative, but they also need to be willing to adapt when it comes to marketing strategies. Long gone are the days of using one marketing technique to drive sales or brand awareness. In order to master this art for your digital marketing agency, we’ve listed five great tips to get you started. 1. Connect With Local Businesses On a local level, networking with businesses in your community is vital. You can build strong, organic relationships and identify business opportunities simply by keeping your ear to the ground and keeping in touch with like-minded individuals through B2B marketing. 2. Improve Your Local SEO Local SEO is vital to smaller businesses. It prioritises its appearance in Search Engine Results Pages in specific locations, allowing you to market your brand within your required catchment area. Three additional steps you can take to optimise your local SEO include the following: Optimise your ‘Google My Business’, Focus on local keywords, and Stay on top of your regular reviews from your clients. 3. Target Paid Local Results Paid adverts via Google’s AdWords allows you to hone in on your specific target market with laser precision. By choosing specific keywords that will trigger your listing, you’ll need to bid and satisfy AdWords quality score metric for your advert to become visible. This type of online market campaign gives you the most control. 4. Google Local If you haven’t heard of Google Local, then you need to jump on this bandwagon – pronto. Underestimated, Google Local is an online listing specifically targeted at local...
by Unibit Solutions | Feb 24, 2020 | Digital Marketing |
Aside from the industry specifics, buying a digital marketing franchise also comes with a lot of the same possibilities and risks that you will find in any other franchise opportunity. Any time you look into buying a franchise, you need to fully aware of the potential risks, look before you leap and ensure that you are making the right decision. There are unscrupulous people out there promising prospective buyers the world, however, they are only looking to make money off innocent investors. Avoid falling victim to these “scams” by considering the following questions. Can You Get Direct, Honest Information From the Franchisor? A good franchisor is not trying to trick you. Of course, they want you to buy their franchise, but they have no need to lie to you to get you to do so. You should be able to speak directly to a representative of the franchisor, someone who can honestly answer all your questions about not only the company’s growth, but also about any of the (inevitable) failures and difficulties that were overcome on the way to its success. If they dodge any of your questions, that is a red flag. Are They Using Any Hard Sell Tactics? A good franchisor will not need to use sales gimmicks, pressure or any other ‘used car lot’ tactics in order to get you to buy. They will know that the franchise’s achievements and all the available information will speak for themselves. If the potential franchisor is putting any pressure on you, offering anything that seems too good to be true, or leading with any attention-grabbing gimmick, you should take...
by Unibit Solutions | Feb 17, 2020 | Digital Marketing |
Are you thinking seriously about buying a digital marketing franchise? We can vouch for the fact that it’s a worthwhile investment. Having said that, you should do your homework before you take the plunge. As with any business investment, there are a number of things you need to research. Start by looking into the following four aspects: Brand Recognition Do some deep research on the brand you’re planning to buy into. How well known is it? How much market share does it have? Look around at the range of clients that use their services. Make sure you’re selecting a reputable brand with a strong history and client base. The point of buying a franchise, rather than starting something from the bottom, is that you get to leverage an established brand and all the benefits that come with it. Once you pick up a good brand, half your work is done. The Market – Local and Global What do you know about the market for digital marketing services? Are you sure it’s a market you can get into and bring something to? Are you sure you can make it lucrative? Examine both the global market and your specific local market. In fact, the latter is possibly the most important. You are taking global services to a specific, local market. Make sure that the market is there and has sufficient opportunities to keep you in business. Franchisee Support Call up some franchisees if you can and ask them about their experience of dealing with the franchisor. Is there a lot of support and training? Are there well-thought-out, successful and easy-to-follow guidelines...
by Unibit Solutions | Feb 10, 2020 | Digital Marketing |
Looking for some inspiration and some fresh ideas for your digital marketing agency? Sometimes, all it takes to inject some revitalising energy into a creative agency is to listen to some new perspectives from fellow industry professionals. A good podcast should do the trick. Why not recommend the following four podcasts to your staff when they’re short of ideas? 1. Duct Tape Marketing Podcast Hosted by author and marketing consultant John Jantsch, Duct Tape Marketing is aimed at junior to mid-level marketers. It is one of the most popular marketing podcasts out there. Jantsch collects some great marketing tips from industry leaders. So, your less experienced staff members are sure to pick up a couple of great ideas they haven’t heard before. 2. The Sophisticated Marketer’s Podcast Every two weeks, LinkedIn Marketing Solutions’ Jason Miller hosts a series of guests for the discussion of the latest trends and topics at the forefront of digital marketing. Some of the key focus areas are social engagement, storytelling and marketing funnels. 3. Search Engine Nerds SEO is probably the biggest topic in the digital marketing world, so it’s no real surprise that there is a podcast dedicated entirely to it. The experts at the Search Engine Journal talk about the latest SEO, social media, paid search and content marketing practices. Having any doubts about SEO? Be sure to give this a listen. 4. Online marketing made Easy Marketing expert Amy Porterfield addresses business owners in this podcast, teaching the profit-expanding power of online marketing. Expert interviews and intimate, behind-the-scenes secrets enable entrepreneurs with real, result-driven strategies. Looking to outsource some or all...
by Unibit Solutions | Feb 3, 2020 | Social Media |
The month of love is here, bringing with it great opportunities for brand engagement. How can you make use of the Valentine’s Day spirit to get the public engaged with the brands your digital marketing franchise is promoting? Here are four tips to get your campaign going. 1. Start by Getting Your Pages All Loved Up Get your social media pages into the spirit by adding some well-designed Valentine’s Day themed elements. Use clever design and try to be different. People may just overlook the usual hearts and arrows, so throw in new design elements that offer something fresh. Get creative and incorporate your brand identity into the decorations. 2. Get Personal Social media offers you the opportunity to engage directly and personally with users. You can encourage people to use your platform to post pictures or messages in line with the holiday. You can link to a Valentine’s Day quiz, along with the posting of, discussion and engagement around the results. Generate hashtags and get people writing, ‘selfying’ and posting. 3. Use as Many Platforms as You Can – and Partner With Other Brands As always, spread your campaign across as many appropriate, available platforms as possible. Look further than the usual platforms like Facebook and Twitter. For example, why not try to see how you could work with a dating website. Also, think about how you can bring other brands into partnership with you for a win-win promotional effort. Consider Starbucks’ partnership with Match.com as an example, where the coffee giant enabled couples meeting on the app to plan their first coffee together. 4. Be Irreverent We...
by Unibit Solutions | Jan 27, 2020 | Digital Marketing |
“International experience, especially in other developing countries, shows us that economic growth is sustained through small businesses. Many, if not most, small and medium businesses already make use of technology products in their businesses, and actually making tech their businesses,” stated President Cyril Ramaphosa in his 7 November 2019 speech during the SMME Programme of the Second South Africa Investment Conference. We are encouraged by the South African Government’s commitment to supporting small businesses in the following ways: Simplifying the tax regime for Small, Medium and Micro-Enterprises (SMME’s) by requiring annual rather than bi-annual tax returns, making grants received by SMME’s tax-exempt and enhancing the venture capital company tax regime to encourage investment in small businesses and junior mining companies. Improving the legal and regulatory environment to ensure access to markets, finance, skills training, and quality infrastructure. Compliance with the 30-day payment period by Government. Roll-out of small business incubation centres to provide youth-driven start-ups with financial and technical advice. Establishment of a Township Entrepreneurship Fund, finalised by the Minister of Small Business Development, aiming to stimulate the township economy and create dynamic markets in high opportunity sectors. We can empower your small business with a digital marketing strategy that includes social media marketing, content marketing and search engine optimisation (SEO). SEO helps you optimise your website through keyword search, keyword placement and making sure you have high quality, engaging content on your website. Contact us today to see how we can help or if you are interested in buying a digital marketing...
by Unibit Solutions | Jan 13, 2020 | Digital Marketing |
The year 2020 offers a fresh decade for growth opportunities within the franchise industry. Some franchise categories such as food and anything related to children will always be in demand. The continued sharing of cat pictures, where to buy a favourite pair of sunglasses or the best place for a holiday makes franchises offering digital marketing services a big trend in 2020 once again. Here are some exciting franchise trends that will set the scene in 2020. Franchises are following their customers Many franchise brands are following their customers beyond the mall or shopping centre to sports, cultural or social events. They are even co-locating with major fuel retailers to reach their customers outside standard shopping hours. Most everyone today uses the internet to find products and services, so franchisees are also following their customers onto mobile and other digital platforms. More franchises understand the value of social media Whether a franchise decides to reach customers via storytelling, creation of a persona or personalisation through shoppable posts, social media marketing continues to be the best way to reach customers. Franchises are beginning to understand the importance of a digital marketing strategy that includes content marketing and search engine optimisation (SEO). Franchises are focusing on customer experience (CX) Customers are at the centre of every business and how they feel about a brand or service is easily shared on social media platforms. A positive customer experience, whether through quality service or a good product, can build brand loyalty. Franchises look towards enhancing their customer’s experience by understanding their needs and managing their expectations. Wondering how a digital marketing franchise can...
