My 2023 Marketing Strategy

I’ve seen a lot of content (and been sent content) from “educators” saying you shouldn’t worry about having a website. I’ve seen posts saying, “Social media is the new Google. Instagram is the new website.” This is false.

I’m pulling back the curtain on my marketing strategy and what I’m focusing on in 2023.

The new year is a great time to take inventory of what you want to achieve in the next 12 months. I have a quiz you can take to understand what stage you are in and what next steps you should take to hit the next level. Head over to the quiz to take it now.

My Marketing Strategy for 2023

The new year is a great time to take inventory of what you want to achieve in the next 12 months. I have a quiz you can take to understand what stage you are in and what next steps you should take to hit the next level.

Marketing Strategy for 2023

I had big goals in 2022 that didn’t pan out. This was the first year in 5 years of business I didn’t increase my revenue. Thankfully it stayed consistent. But as I reflect (and with the helpful insight of our CFO), it was a year of growth that hasn’t been reflected financially.

• Finally have a strong CLD Team that I can count on
• I took a 3-week long vacation with minimal working
• Started traveling to speak at conferences
• Helped my husband get his business off the ground (March 2022)

I realized that while I had many great goals last year. I didn’t have a solid marketing plan to help me achieve those goals, and studies have shown that marketing teams that document their strategy are over 300% more likely to succeed than those that do not. So this year, I am prioritizing deliberately setting goals with a plan of action.

Without further ado, here is an overview of my marketing strategy for 2023.

SEO in the form of blog posts

I have always advocated for SEO. It’s baked into our process for our Signature Experience clients. The fact is that almost 70% of online experiences begin with a search engine; SEO is the most important tool you have in nurturing your online presence and driving those searches toward your site. But as with your own business, it can be put on the back burner while you care for others, meaning we only blogged TWICE in all of 2022.

This year I want to focus on working smarter, not harder, so for each podcast episode, there is a cohesive blog post supercharged to rank for researched keywords.

SEO isn’t sexy. It’s also not something you can expect overnight results from. However, when you hit a jackpot and a blog post ranks on the first page for multiple keywords, it can drive a lot of traffic to your website so that you can get in front of new audience members.

Video content

I have a love-hate relationship with video content. While I love to consume it, I hate creating it because it just takes so much time & energy. And let’s face it – video content is unforgiving. But this year, I am recommitting to video content.

I was going back and forth between weekly Youtube Episodes and starting this podcast. And while I chose to pursue the podcast, I still want to make short-form videos a priority. I also want to use my YouTube channel, but currently can’t commit to both a podcast and YouTube.

YouTube is a powerful tool to utilize. I have videos I recorded years ago that are still gaining traction and introducing new people to my brand.

Overall, you’ll see a theme in my marketing plan of putting my effort into strategies that will yield long-term results.

Growing my email list

This brings me to my next marketing strategy of growing my email list. This was a priority last year when we started running social media ads, but I didn’t put effort into it that I should have. Over the year, I added roughly ~500 people to my email list, which is good. But this year, I want to double my email list from 2,100 to 4,500.

Landing in someone’s email inbox is so intimate. Unlike social media, where the person is on the platform to be entertained, and you’re competing for their attention amongst competitors, email is personal.

This year we did two affiliate launches. Our marketing team created social media posts and emails to push the launches. And you know where 99% of all of our sales came from? Email.

I hear pushback from wedding pros saying, “Why should I start an email list if I only plan to work with my clients once?”

The main reason is to stay top of mind. Referrals are a large part of wedding pros’ businesses, and if you can pop into former client inboxes with educational content, then you’ll stay top of mind for more referrals.

For example, let’s say you’re a wedding planner and you have 30 past brides on an email list, then you can share recipes, decorating inspiration since they may have recently moved, or tips from your last vacation spot.

Not all emails have to be sales-based. In fact, most of our weekly emails aren’t. It’s a way to foster a relationship and share interesting things your subscribers may like.

Intentional Launching

I spent a lot of time in Q4 last year learning about launches and studying other entrepreneurs I looked up to while they launched something. Instead of taking things at the last minute, this year, I want to have an intentional launch schedule. We started with this podcast. Hopefully, you saw the intentionality of it being launched. I started with teasers in November and December then we sent out emails and graphics for our educators’ friends to share and spread the word.

It’s not every day you start a podcast, so I wanted to make a spectacle of it. Then in the coming weeks, we are starting a promotional series for a new challenge I’m hosting to help identify your ideal client and market to them.

My first intentional launch of the year will open the doors to our Signature Experience with a special bundle offer that will only be available while the cart is “open.”

Sometimes we see how certain things are done in our industry, and we don’t want to disturb the status quo. We accept things are how they are done. Like launches only being reserved for courses, coaches, or a new website. But I want to disrupt the industry and try new things. I want to have fun launching and making money.

Speaking opportunities

1. Having a high-ticket offer, I know that I can best communicate the value of our service if I get in front of my audience in person. I spoke at two different events last year in Orlando and Los Angeles. They filled my cup. Interacting with my audience in person is not the same as online. You can grow a deeper relationship faster, and that’s not lost on me. This year I have a goal of speaking at four industry events.
   
   The relationships I form at these events are valuable to the future growth of my business.
   

There is an overarching theme of my marketing plan to put my effort into strategies that will yield long-term results. You need to analyze what will work best for you. The most things to consider are:

• What do you realistically have time for
• What do you enjoy doing
• Who is your target audience is

If you don’t know who your target audience is, then you’re going to love the challenge we have cooking for you! To get a sneak peek, go to www.carrylovedesigns.com/client

The best marketing strategy is the one you will stick to. I’m hoping you see big success with your Marketing strategy in 2023!