So, the New Year is right around the corner and you’re wondering how you’re going to get your business growing and thriving and growing even more. Don’t worry, we’re all in your same boat.

It seems that marketing is one of the specialties that people either get, or don’t get. Some people are good, others aren’t as much. However, there are some key things that people ask us and we’re going to tell you just how to do them. The top frequently asked questions to marketers, from HubSpot.com are as follows. So sit back and take your brain for a spin. 

1. How often should I blog?

Blogging should be done as much as possible. Blogging is an extension of your brand and it also helps others know how to do things and how to do them the right way. This is marketing’s 3 most frequently asked question number one because a lot of people are jumping onto the blogging circuit, and with great cause.

Take this blog for example from one of my favorite marketing experts, www.PegFitzpatrick.com. She blogs at least 3-4 times per month, which is approximately once per week. Her articles are also what people WANT to read. This is a huge factor in blogging. Business owners need to take themselves out of the picture and they need to focus on what the customer is asking. Customers (most of the time) don’t know the specifics of your trade, so teach them! When the customers understand you, they start to trust you and they start to understand more about your brand and how YOU can help THEM. Ta-daaaa. This is a huge factor to blogging. Huge factor #2: It helps with SEO. Having original content tailored to a main idea (meaning: if you’re talking about marketing FAQ’s, don’t go on a tangent about some other subject) this will increase Google’s view of you because of two things. #1 Your content is being updated and is fresh. This is important because Google only wants to show relevant content to those searching for your content. If it’s old and outdated, Google doesn’t want to show it. #2 You’re ranking for other keywords than what’s on your site. Think of it this way… you only have a certain amount of pages on your website, but other people are typing in different questions that what you’re focusing on… Hello Blog. Blogging allows you to rank for other somethings “not-so-popular” keywords, but keywords that are still very important.

2. How much of my own content should I put out there v. others content?

For the second question of marketing’s 3 most frequently asked questions, this rule of thumb is 80% others content 20% yours. Now, let’s dive right into this answer.

Why should you promote others content, they’re not helping you at all, right? Wrong. You need to look at the bigger picture here. If you tweet/ post/ share their content they’ll recognize you as a supporter of them. Therefore, once you’ve done it consistently, they’ll *hopefully* tweet/ share/ give a shout-out to you, thus returning the favor.

It’s also useful to share great content from others, not only for support but for your knowledge as well. Supporting others is also an opportunity for you to learn from their expertise. Let’s face it, even though you think you know everything, you don’t. Others have different perspectives on issues and topics and may look at things differently… Hello, learning!

3. Why do I need a website?

This may seem simple, however, we’ve come across a lot of small business that don’t understand or think they need a website. Some of these businesses are stuck in the era of the phone book and we’ve even been asked if they need to name their business starting with an ‘A’ to stand out. Unfortunately, this era is done and over with and we’ve moved on to the digital era. Here’s why you need a website, consider these statistics:

There are 1.2 TRILLION searches per day on Google

Google handles 78% of the search market

Convinced? If your business wants to be a part of the 1.2 trillion searches, you need to be a part of the online marketplace. By having your website, it’s an online store showcasing your past projects, pricing, services and so on. It’s the present day phonebook with many, many more options.

These questions are just a snapshot into what you can be doing for your business and what other like-minded business professionals are asking and thinking. If you put these thoughts into your back pocket, your 2016 marketing plan will be rocking and rolling and, more importantly, thriving!

If you or someone you know needs help with their marketing or someone who wants answers to more marketing frequently asked questions, contact us here. Otherwise, follow us on Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, Google+ and Instagram for more tips and tricks of the marketing trade!