Before you spend another dime on digital marketing, read this

I have spent years helping small and enterprise businesses improve their marketing. What I learned, I will share for free, because I do not want you to fail where I did.

First, stop spending. If you are doing what most companies do, you are only benefiting the channels by dumping money into them. Paid search and sponsored ads are not long-term investments and can only go so far to sustain a business. You should not be renting the land you build your house on. Google, Facebook, Bing and the rest all want your ad budget, and most businesses are set up to fail with those tools before they realize their potential online.

You need to evolve from a transactional model to a relationship between your story and your customer. It is easier than you think. Three steps.

1. Examine your website

Is it simple to use? Mobile responsive? Does it look good and load quickly? Can users find what they want? Does everything work? All of this shapes the user experience. If users do not like what your site offers, or can find a better experience elsewhere, why would you pay to invite more people into a bad experience? Would you eat at a restaurant that does not clean its floors? Your first job is to get the site ready for more traffic and make the experience exceptional. Site structure goes hand in hand with experience; if you have duplicate content or deeper page issues, that is the time to bring in help.

2. Tell stories

Simple to say, hard to do. What does your business do best? Why are you in business? What are your goals? Who is your perfect customer? Those answers are the building blocks of the content on your site. Make sure the site supports a blog and use it, a lot. Connect that fresh, original, relevant content to everything you do online: email, social, the customer journey, even the ads. If you are not connecting the work, you are missing the biggest win. Connect carefully: syndicate properly, keep links and redirects clean, and avoid black-hat tactics. Once you are publishing great content, find the influencers in your vertical to carry it further. Be the wiki on your business.

3. Lower the cost of acquisition

Instead of pouring time and money into ad buys, invest in less expensive channels with better return. Do not run PPC unless it is meeting your goals. Put an email system in place that nurtures prospects and keeps your brand top of mind.

Content marketing comes first. None of this happens overnight, but the content you build today will serve you well into the future and free you from buying each new customer.

The purpose of social media is not to send a message to someone, but through someone into their network.

Originally published on LinkedIn on January 17, 2018. Read the original and the comments.