Theoretically speaking, you can learn about SEO and how to use Google Analytics on your own by means of trial and error or put a strain on your budget by investing in Facebook advertising campaigns. Some of these actions will surely be successful but perhaps not to the extent that you expected.
It is worth, of course, knowing the basics but in areas in which you care about results, it is always better to rely on professionals. You do not have to employ anyone immediately on a permanent basis to help you develop social media profiles or create an attractive newsletter.
For activities related to your online presence, make use of freelance services. You can find freelancers by posting a job offer in the Marketing section of the Useme Marketplace, specifically under freelance digital marketing jobs.
Why hiring a freelancer?
Owners of startups and CEOs of large companies often fear that freelancers, being outsiders, will not dedicate themselves to a job as much as full-time employees and that contacting them will be more difficult. It does not have to be true. Of course, a lot depends on how you will arrange your cooperation, but references and good reputation are as important for the freelancer as the quality of a job that he/she does. Freelancers are also a great way to optimize company costs as you pay them only for the work done.
The best advantage of cooperating with a freelancer is a high level of professionalism. Freelancers normally specialize in a specific type of tasks so they are better prepared to perform them than full-time employees responsible for a wide range of duties. Please note that while cooperating with a freelancer you can check the progress of a task on a regular basis. If for some reason cooperation is not going well, the freelancer is not bound to you by an annual agreement.
In which areas can cooperation with a freelancer bring you the most benefits?
1. Website facelift
Giving a facelift only to your business address and the website is not sufficient. A website that loads slowly looks as if from the previous era or is hardly intuitive is the best tool to put off customers.
A freelance web developer will advise you what changes to make in order to achieve a higher ROI. Giving your website a minor facelift is sometimes sufficient enough for it to become faster, better visible in search results and user-friendly.
2. Refining UX of the mobile version of the site
Perhaps you remember a revolution Google brought about in 2015 by dropping search rankings of the websites that did not have responsive versions. These are not all of the changes: According to the latest principles, Google will index your site above all on the basis of its mobile version.
This trend shows how important traffic from sites that users visit on their tablets and smartphones is becoming. That is not everything. According to Google research, visitors to your website expect it to load within 2 seconds. If they have to wait for 10 seconds, every fourth of them will abandon it.
Instead of seeking for solutions concerning UX by means of trial and error, commission a professional to make changes in this field. Experienced UX/UI and web designers possess extensive knowledge of users’ online behaviour and expectations. The changes are sometimes minor, such as separating two buttons so that clicking does not activate both of them, but another time a completely new project has to be created.
Irrespective of the amount of changes that are needed, refining UX of the mobile version of the site is an investment that will pay off in the future.
3. Persona
You must realize how important online presence in the social media and maintaining the engagement of recipients are. Everything counts: a newsletter, a video and a direct contact. But do you really achieve the full potential of your actions?
To answer this question, you must know who your customers are, why they need you, what they are looking for on your website and why they want to receive messages from you.
The ignorance of your customers and the lack of persona are quite common among owners of startups and companies. In the world of digital marketing, where a lot of senders compete for a recipient’s attention, a message tailored to the recipient’s needs is invaluable.
A copywriter experienced in marketing can help you create your customer’s persona or check whether it has not changed during the company’s operation. Moreover, due to the ability to create content tailored to the model recipient’s interests, needs and preference, the copywriter will smoothly associate his/her expectations with the tone of your brand. And the result? Engaging content addressed to the suitable group and new customers that receive your message.
4. Content marketing and the social media presence
Is your content flawless? Now it is the right moment to share it with the world, especially if you care about reaching a specific group of recipients. Traditional advertising does not inspire confidence anymore and this particularly concerns representatives of the millennial generation. Then how to effectively seek for new customers?
Not only younger generations enjoy receiving messages from their favourite brands. The trick is to get through to them and it is the social media that may become your catapult to it.
In order to make good use of the social media potential, you need to know the specifics of each of them, be familiar with tools that promote posts, tailor content to recipients’ needs and… be consistent in your actions. You do not know how to assess the usefulness of individual websites or which ones to focus on? Invite a freelancer specialized in social media marketing and content management to cooperate.
This professional knows what to publish and how to do it in order to arouse the recipients’ interest. Thereby the freelancer increases also your brand recognition and that is what you really care about.
In which areas can cooperation with the freelancer bring benefits to your company?
Online marketing is a specific area which has its own rules. Even if you keep up with theoretical knowledge, it is worth commissioning a professional to take practical action. You do not need to worry about the costs: hiring a freelancer instead of a full-time employee is cheaper and more efficient. Many freelancers can issue an invoice for you either independently or via websites that help account for work, such as useme.com.
