A digital outreach strategy is a useful tool that can help you build your brand. It has to be designed in a way that will make it easier for you to reach out to bloggers, influencers, individuals, and other businesses, and to build lasting relationships with them.
Outreach marketing helps you connect with people who love your brand, and will be more than happy to recommend it to others, which ultimately leads to more customer engagement and more sales.
But the internet is a busy place, and most of us receive dozens, perhaps even hundreds of emails each day. If you want to cut through the noise and get noticed by the right people, at the right moment, you need to have a clear plan of action for your digital outreach strategy.
These seven tips will help you plan or improve your digital outreach strategy:
1. Find the right digital contacts
If you are just starting out, you probably don’t have a legion of fans who would be excited to tell their friends and family about your product or service. And even if you already have a lot of fans, reaching out to bloggers and influencers to ask them if they would like to learn more about your brand can help you get more exposure.
But before you send out emails, do your research. Look for bloggers and influencers who could be interested in what you have to offer. Learn more about them, and about their own brand and voice.
Finally, look at the size of their audience, and ask yourself how a relationship with them could benefit both your brand and theirs.
2. Learn how to write catchy email subject lines
Learning how to write a catchy subject line can improve your digital outreach strategy. Bloggers and influencers who only have small audiences probably don’t receive many emails each day, and might be happy to click on yours even if the subject line is not that great.
But to maximize your chances of getting noticed by the people you write to, learn how to write catchy email subject lines that will make people curious.
Personalize your subject line. Mention a special offer or discount, or include a teaser that promises an interesting story. Add a statistic, or any piece of information that will make the recipient want to learn more.
3. Personalize all the emails you send
Automation can save you a lot of time, but sending the exact same email to 20 influencers is not a good idea. Take some time to personalize each email you send: use the name of the recipient, share information or ask questions that are relevant to them, and compliment them on their latest blog post or video.
Show them that you are interested in what they do, and in building a relationship with them. Instead of simply asking them to review your latest product or to share a link to your website, make it clear that a collaboration would be valuable to both of you.
4. Add a call to action to all your digital messages
When you reach out to someone, don’t forget to include a call to action, or CTA, to your email.
A CTA can be a few words, or a full sentence that clearly explains what you want the recipient of the email to do. If you want them to read an article on your blog, your CTA should link to this article.
If you expect the recipient to visit your social media page or to request a free sample, your CTA should be a link or a button that will make it easy for them to complete this action.
5. Make the most of your social media accounts
Your social media accounts can be an important part of your digital outreach strategy. Be consistent in the way you publish your social media posts, and be sure to interact with your followers by answering their questions and addressing their concerns.
Instead of constantly promoting your brand, be sure to also create and share content that can be useful or meaningful to your audience.
6. Stay in touch with your biggest fans
Your biggest fans are happy customers or influencers who love what you do so much that they talk about your brand even if you don’t ask them to.
Be sure you thank and reward these people for their enthusiasm and loyalty. Send them special updates, gifts and offers so you can stay in touch with them and make them feel valued.
7. Don’t hesitate to think outside the box
Finally, keep in mind that your digital outreach strategy doesn’t necessarily need to follow fixed rules. Find things that work well for your brand and your audience, and don’t be afraid to get creative.
You can even bring parts of your outreach strategy to the non-digital world, by sending free products or handwritten thank you notes to your contacts.
Above all, keep track of everything you do, so you can know which ones of your actions bring meaningful results, and which ones should be abandoned or improved.
