4 Old Marketing Habits That You Need to Replace

SEO and internet marketing are constantly changing. That means if you use old-school marketing tactics, you’re likely a few steps behind your competitor. Check out some old habits that no longer work. We’ll then give you ways to update your marketing arsenal to achieve the best results possible.

Using Purchased Email Lists

Purchased lists used to be the hottest trend in email marketing. Marketers bought lists and then sent email blasts out to the subscribers. They didn’t need huge response rates to turn a profit. As long as they received a few customers out of the deal, they were happy.

Now, advanced spam filters and software detect these types of email blasts and shut them down. You’ll spend the money, but you won’t get the results needed to make it worth your while.

Instead, focus your efforts on Prospects that have shown an interest in your website and make sure your emails have value. That will prevent your emails from going into spam filters.

Creating Super Short Content

In the old days, marketers believed that quantity was more important than quality. Therefore, they created super short blog posts, ranked each post for specific keywords, and watched the traffic fly to their websites.

That doesn’t work anymore. Today, if a blog post isn’t at least 300 words, it isn’t going to help your SEO efforts. A thousand words is the new “normal”. In addition to making your posts longer, deliver more quality content if you want to enjoy SEO benefits. Search engines will recognize when you put only a little effort into your content, and will penalize you for it.

Using Generic Content

Marketing used to be very generic. Marketers looked at the big picture when creating websites and content, while ignoring the needs of individual customers. That is no longer an effective strategy.

Now, customers expect a personalized experience that can only be delivered through marketing automation. This process allows marketers to collect relevant data and then provide content based on that data. This helps boost the success of marketers’ campaigns, especially for those who want to reach millennials. Because millennials are savvy when it comes to recognizing advertising, they are much more responsive when marketers speak directly to them.

Relying on Exact Match Keywords

Exact match keywords used to be the holy grail of marketing. They were the ticket to gaining a lot more customers. Although they made content look awkward, that was the price paid for traffic.

Currently, search engines want you to write for people. This means that you need to switch out frustrating exact match keywords in content for long tail keywords that sound natural. This will generate higher quality traffic while at the same time, visitors to your website will appreciate reading well-written content.

By swapping out old habits for new, you are ready to improve your marketing strategy. Keep these tips in mind so you can blow away the competition. Learn more best practices for marketing and sales by visiting our Resource Library.