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How To Incorporate Core Values Into Your Marketing Strategy

We will continue to see a shift in how businesses utilize their core values as a way to drive their digital marketing strategy. Here’s how.

Caitlin McDonald | Source: © Woodbox Studios
Caitlin McDonald | Source: © Woodbox Studios

If you’re still trying to figure out the best digital marketing strategy for your business, stop throwing ideas against the wall to see what sticks. Consumers today are savvy, impatient and in desperate need of a genuine connection.

Digital marketing is often seen as a disjointed, separate platform to attract prospects and communicate with clients. In my experience working with small and medium-size businesses, many of their digital marketing strategies don’t always reflect the brand’s core values. Instead it should be viewed as a critical way to showcase them.

 

What are your brand’s core values?

Far too frequently, your company’s core values are overlooked. Business owners, managers and marketing directors alike don’t always recognize the importance of core values as the building blocks for your operation. But that’s where they’d be wrong.

Core values should drive every aspect of your business. They are the behaviors that hold everyone accountable. They create clarity around the purpose of your efforts and they define what a prospect should experience, feel and expect when they engage with your brand.

We will continue to see a shift in how businesses utilize their values as a way to drive their digital marketing strategy. Here’s how.

 

Create consistency

Consistency helps your prospects and clients know what to expect when they work with you. When brand marketing is consistent, prospects can better understand who you are as a company.

Many new marketers think consistency equals frequency, when they should view consistency in terms of how various arms of marketing and branding flow together and provoke the same feelings across various mediums.

 

Photo: Adam Jang, Unsplash
Photo: Adam Jang, YFS Magazine

Think about the look and emotive qualities of the images you use in your marketing. Whenever a prospect encounters your brand, you want them to recognize you instantly, even if your logo isn’t present.

 

Discuss your values and mission

If your core values drive your actions, take time to explain them to your team and your community. We work with people we know, like and trust. And we often know, like and trust companies that share our values. Bring these values to the forefront of your marketing and take the time to explain them.

Incorporate this in your content marketing on a monthly or quarterly basis. Explore one or all of your core values, their meaning and how you apply them to your business.

 

Align your tone of voice with your values

In terms of consistency, make sure you utilize a consistent tone, look and feel in your marketing. “A tone of voice both embodies and expresses the brand’s personality and set of values. It’s about the people that make up the brand – the things that drive them, their loves and hates, and what they want to share with the world.”

Your tone of voice is heard clearly from your company website and blog to email marketing, online videos and social media content. It even includes your office culture and how your employees talk about your company.

 

Photo: Tanialee Gonzalez, Unsplash
Photo: Tanialee Gonzalez, YFS Magazine

Make sure your tone reflects your values and speaks to your ideal customers. Take a moment and brainstorm a few key phrases you can use to help tie your marketing efforts together.

 

Rethink how you respond

Though it may seem small, this is one of my favorite ways to incorporate your core values into your digital marketing strategy. Rather than being reactive to online reviews make this year the year of proactivity. Create a plan for how you reply to both positive and negative online reviews.

Let’s say your cores values include community and passion. What’s your policy when it comes to responding to social media comments? How do you convey that building a community of people who engage with your business online is a priority?

If you receive a negative online review, take a moment to think about the language of your response. Do you come across as combative or are you opening doors for further conversation to rectify issues offline? Depending on your values, you may find one type of response reflects your business better than another.

 

Showcase real people living your values

What better way to showcase your core values than to highlight your team living them? Online video is currently one of the highest drivers of digital marketing engagement. Use this format to create content designed to showcase the personalities of the folks who embody your brand values.

 

Photo: Brooke Cagle, Unsplash
Photo: Brooke Cagle, YFS Magazine

Is there someone on your team who was born to be in front of the camera? See if they’re interested in leading Facebook Live discussions, product demos and explainer tutorials.

 

Caitlin McDonald helps freelancers, business consultants, and solopreneurs find simple solutions to complex problems. As co-founder of the Social Speak Network, she provides freelancers and business consultants real advice to live the life they’ve always dreamed of. Visit SocialSpeakNetwork.com to learn how to most effectively running your business online. Connect with @socialspeak on Twitter.

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