What is slightly different today than, say, 15 years ago, they also understand digital marketing will be crucial for finding and retaining customers. They know how vital messaging, platforms and metrics are to their success online. Still, what I have seen repeatedly, a digital strategy is consistently missing from their business vision.

As you may know, digital marketing uses search, social and email marketing to promote a brand and connect with new customers. It's such a great promotional tool and so easy to use that those entrepreneurs forget it has many moving parts. To be successful, you need integrated tactics that work towards your business objectives.

And anyone that has been posting content for a while will know that digital marketing isn't only about being visible. It's about results. And how entrepreneurs expect to achieve their objectives without a digital strategy driving their digital marketing beats the heck out of me.

So let's have a look at five reasons a digital strategy is essential to your success online.

Purpose

In your digital strategy, you will develop objectives and goals that will deliver the results you need for your business. They, in turn, will drive what direction you take with your digital marketing. For instance, you could have several objectives like winning new customers, building deeper relationships with existing customers or anything in between. Those objectives will determine what goals you will need to roll out to be successful. 

Direction

Once you have established your objectives, you will see if your tactics are getting you those results. That's right; you now have some specific metrics to measure that will determine if they are successful. For instance, if your objective is to find and win new clients, a digital strategy would determine exactly how many and by when. If you aren't hitting those numbers in that time, then it's time to go back and review where you are failing.

Clarity

A crucial part of a digital strategy is research. It's the same principle as any marketing. You need to know your market and your customers if you plan on succeeding. The clearer you are about how you fit into your market and who your customers are, the more accurate your digital marketing will be and the more successful.

Engagement

Nothing is as compelling as posting content that speaks directly to your customers wants and needs. If you do, your content will be more engaging and effective. That makes getting to know your customers crucial to developing your messaging. Once you have tested your message and nailed it, you will achieve your goals so much faster.

Results

As I mentioned, your digital strategy will define your market, clients, objectives and messaging, which all add up to knowing which metrics you need to measure. We're not talking Likes here; we are talking about the kinds of engagement that takes more effort. For instance, signing up for your blog, making a purchase, or booking a call with you. All the touch points that show you are achieving your objectives.

If you don't know which metrics to measure, you won't know how to tweak your digital marketing efforts to make them more effective.

Those are some pretty powerful reasons you need a digital strategy, but these five reasons are just the tip of the iceberg. A digital strategy is a powerful tool that will boost your digital marketing success and get you to your goals faster.

So why don't more people develop a digital strategy?

It isn't rocket science but does seem to receive less attention than digital marketing. And you know what, after developing your first digital strategy, you will quickly understand how ineffective your marketing efforts have been without one. You will also be able to pivot your business faster to market changes and stay ahead of your competitors. I would even go so far as to say; you won't start another venture without one.