Be at the top of your game with acquisition levers

Acquisition levers are the different channels, online and offline, that enable the company to improve its visibility to a qualified audience with the aim of acquiring new customers.

Once the business opportunities and targets have been identified, the company then determines which acquisition channels are the most relevant for generating leads that it can then convert into customers.

There are 4 main acquisition networks that are essential to generate qualified traffic to your site:

• Search engine optimization or natural referencing (SEO)
• Search engine advertising or paid search (SEA)
• Social media optimisation
• Emailling and retargeting

1. Search engine optimization (SEO)

What is SEO?

For beginners, you might be wondering what SEO is. SEO stands for “Search Engine Optimization“. It refers to a whole technical arsenal as well as the skills used to optimize the positioning of a website in the search engine results.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) to increase your audience!

Through SEO, the website becomes more relevant and popular. This is in line with the requirements of the search engines, in this case, Google, which positions your website among the best results. Note that whatever the purpose of a website, it will be useless without a good SEO. Quality traffic on your website is essential to increase your reputation. This step is therefore mandatory for the first steps of a website, but also afterward!

Who is SEO for?

Natural referencing is for everyone (small and medium-sized companies, large companies, individuals, entrepreneurs, etc.). Whatever the size of your company, there is absolutely no point in trying to grow your business via a website without worrying about its SEO. Natural referencing gives life to your website.

The benefits of good SEO

The multiple advantages of natural referencing may surprise many people. First of all, with a single query from the Internet user, your website can appear several times in the search results. This allows you to develop your reputation. Unlike paid search, natural search saves you money. You avoid paying for advertising campaigns because your site is already naturally optimized. But above all, natural referencing remains in time, unlike paid referencing. Which, once you stop paying, does not allow you to appear at the top of the list in Google searches.

With natural referencing, anyone can be at the top of the search results. It is only your pen that will make the difference. You will benefit from direct benefits to your business such as increased visibility and improved revenue. Which are only the result of highly qualified traffic.

Despite the obvious advantages of SEO, it is clear that it is still very little used. We explain why in this article.

How SEO works with the Google algorithm?

Google scans the content of your site using several algorithms such as Google Panda, Google Phantom, Google Penguin, in order to optimize your position in the various search engines. They are constantly updated by Google and require a good quality from the indexed sites. It is therefore essential for an SEO writer to be aware of the impact of these different algorithms on their content. So to convince Google that your website outranks another in terms of relevance, you must

• Produce original content of impeccable quality using well-targeted keywords relating to the term being developed, avoiding unnecessary filler of course.
• Optimised HTML code and semantics will have a great influence on the SEO potential of websites.
• Insert internal links as well as external links (backlinks) in an optimised way on websites related to the theme of your own site (all this following rules and an optimal organisation in time).

SEO significantly improves your results on the internet. However, you should always remember that you need to maintain your reputation. And not forget that you are not the only one on the market. It is therefore essential to constantly produce quality content that meets the requirements of Google’s algorithms. While regularly optimizing your net linking.

2. Second acquisition levers : Search engine advertising (SEA)

What is SEA?

Often contrasted with natural referencing, paid referencing refers to the practice of paying a search engine to optimize its position in the list of results. We often hear about sponsored links, sponsored results, keyword purchases, Adwords links. But they all mean the same thing. I.e. the purchase of advertisements that are displayed in the results pages indexed in the search engine. Or on the websites of the advertising platform’s partner network.

How does SEA work?

The most popular way of buying sponsored links is the Google Adwords program. This is Google’s advertising network. By joining this program, your ad will appear on the first pages of Google. But this will depend on the amount you invest for each click on the keyword you want to position yourself on. A simple example: if you want to appear on the keyword “get rich”. And are ready to invest 60 cents per click, you will find yourself behind all those who have invested more than you on this keyword. It’s exactly like an auction: only the one who invests the most will have the absolute privilege. However, there is of course a ceiling of 40 euros per click that must not be exceeded.

In addition, Google uses an evaluation grid that gives a grade to the quality of each sponsored content for a specific keyword. By scoring higher on this evaluation, you will pay less money to be positioned. Running a paid search campaign requires knowledge of how the platform works. By carrying out an accurate analysis, you will have to determine which sponsored links are the most interesting and develop a suitable strategy.

The advantages of SEA

Paid search is the most effective form of advertising on the market, far ahead of magazines, radio, etc. It is considered an alternative to natural search, especially for large companies, because it can be very expensive and allows for immediate results, unlike natural SEO.

Paid search, therefore, saves you time. And what makes it unique is the possibility to pay only when a user clicks on an ad. You pay for guaranteed traffic! Moreover, by opting for this strategy, your ad is displayed only to the targeted public. So it is the ideal channel to get the maximum number of visits.

But the main advantage lies in the fact that you have the opportunity to quickly develop your notoriety by being first on the first page of results. When your keyword is entered by the Internet user.

Other indicators also help you such as the monthly follow-up of the number of people who clicked on your ad as well as the actions that were taken. In addition, Google Adwords allows you to control your budget by setting a limit yourself.

As you can see, you don’t need any specific technical knowledge because Google does most of the work. Nevertheless, before you start SEA, you should analyze your competition. As well as your resources and your needs in order to define a winning strategy.

3. Social media optimisation

What is social media optimization (SMO)?

SMO is an effective practice that allows you to take advantage of your influence on networks (Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Youtube, etc…). In order to make it an effective weapon to acquire a new targeted audience and optimize your natural referencing. SMO is the latest addition to the range after SEO, SEM, SEA. It’s the latest addition to this already crowded list and represents a whole new approach to marketing: viral marketing. People are spending more and more time on social networks. That’s why it’s an ideal way to attract a growing audience to your website.

How does SMO work?

SMO involves finding out what content performs well for your company on social platforms and repeating that success. Easier said than done. To do this, you’ll figure out what content your audience is looking for. See where you fit in the social media sphere, and finally, execute (and then reassess) your strategy. You may recognize that it’s a similar process to optimizing for search engines (SEO). The big similarity? The goal of get your content in front of more people.

What are the main actions of an SMO strategy?

Social networks are also present in search engine results. Creating accounts in the name of your company will increase its visibility. But also your e-reputation among prospects or customers looking to find you. You can also link your accounts to your website address. Beyond these simple actions, others should be planned for the long term. Generally, as part of a digital communication strategy, and are centered around three interconnected ideas:

• Content. The regular distribution of relevant content (articles, visuals, etc.), generally from the entity’s website, is at the heart of the use of social networks in an SMO strategy. It will be the main source of “backlinks” (links pointing to your site), which are important indicators for search engines
• Backlinks. These are external links pointing to a web page. Search engines take them into account according to the reputation of the site on which they are posted (known, malicious). On social networks, their use is quite relevant. Especially since your followers can easily share these links and make you gain in virality.
• Key words. As with any SEO strategy, the use of keywords on social networks allows you to enhance your content and increase its visibility. They are defined as part of a more global web communication strategy and are reflected in SMO.

4. Last acquisition levers : Emailling and retargeting

What is emailling?

We receive enough advertising emails that we don’t need to define what email marketing is. This method allows you to reach your target directly in their mailbox (for example newsletters). It is, therefore, an effective tool for increasing your audience and therefore your sales.

But this channel is still essential to reach genuine targets. Coupled with a content marketing strategy and retargeting, it can be a powerful acquisition lever that should not be neglected!

What is retargeting?

Retargeting is an online marketing technique that allows you to target visitors to a website or web page. Who have already shown interest in a brand, product, or service. With a display advertising campaign.

What is the purpose of retargeting?

Retargeting has the advantage of addressing prospects who have already shown an interest in your brand.

Retargeting can have several objectives:

• To increase your brand awareness
• Nurture and qualify your prospects. Retarget people who have consumed your content by offering them new resources to increase their interest in your product or service.
• Convert a potentially qualified visitor
• Reduce cart abandonment
• Encourage re-purchase

Of course, apart from retargeting, it is important to look at targeting. Two articles can help you to better understand what targeting is. Targeting : errors and limits and Effective marketing for each target group.

Need to establish an optimal acquisition strategy?

Let’s have a coffee and discuss your business. Powerlab guides you in developing your acquisition channels and optimize you acquisition levers! Don’t be shy, contact us!