The BEST way to market your online sporting business (Literally!) -

A friend contacted me the other day and requested some advice on how he can promote he’s new online sports store! I thought I would share the advice I gave him here, so anyone else thinking about doing the same thing can get some more information!

(DeviantArt, 2018)

For anyone starting a new business, sporting or not, engaging consumers and creating a strong content strategy is vital! You want to ensure you are sharing relevant, quality and compelling information (Chaffey, 2016)

A content strategy is defined as “The management of text, rich media, audio and video content aimed at engaging customers and prospects to meet business goals published through print and digital media including web and mobile platforms” (Chaffey et al, 2016). The information you are putting out there will set the path for your future business success.

Pulizzi and Barrett (2010) in Chaffey (2016) have suggested a ‘content marketing roadmap’ known by the BEST acronym. BEST is a set of 4 principles that form an easy guide to content creating.

BEST stands for:

BEHAVIOURAL -Does everything you communicate with customers have a purpose? It’s important to have a goal or purpose behind every post to your consumers. Even if it is as simple as ‘to reach more consumers’ or ‘generate 10 extra site visits for the day’. As a brand owner, you want them to interact with your brand rather than overlook it on their social platforms.

ESSENTIAL - It is essential to deliver as much information as possible that your future prospects will need, in order to be successful Deliver information that your best predictions need if they are to succeed at work or in life.

STRATEGIC –Before you even start creating a ‘content road map’, it is important to create an overall business strategy that your content is aiming to achieve! There’s no point in planning, if you don’t know what you’re working towards, right?! By setting strategic objectives, you can plan your social media content around achieving these goals!

TARGETED –It’s vital to remain consistent and targeted in the content you share. Consumers want to see relevant information and depending on the social media you choose, you must edit your posts depending on the platform. For example, as a sporting store, you wouldn’t go selling or promoting work boots!

References –

Chaffey, D. and Ellis-Chadwick, F. (2016). Digital marketing. 6th ed. Harlow (GB): Pearson.

DeviantArt. (2018) icons: Shopping Cart. [online] Available at: https://www.deviantart.com/benrulz/art/icons-Shopping-Cart-101976308 [Accessed 21 Sep. 2018].