As opposed to speaking to the many, try to focus and identify how you speak to the individual.
George Arabian is the CEO at NVISION, an award-winning hybrid digital marketing agency combining execution with strategy to provide a full-spectrum service. NVISION’s expertise extends across a widespread medium of technologies.
Arabian has facilitated the execution of hundreds of websites and has been a pivotal factor in the revitalization of many businesses. He has also been recognized as Entrepreneur of the Year under 40.
In this episode of Velocitize Talks, Arabian shares his thoughts on how to marry good visual design and user experience principles with marketing and digital personas.
Digital Personas: Know Your Customers (3:02)
One of the most instrumental things is identifying consumer centralization and contextuality.
Creating buyer personas to help understand your customers is an impactful way for a company to build successful digital marketing strategies. Arabian stresses the importance of knowing where they are in the buying cycle and what specifically they’re looking for. Additionally, identifying the geographic location and environment helps determine how a campaign is delivered to that particular audience.
This detailed strategy pays off. Data has shown that the use of digital personas increases email open rate by two to five times and increases email CTR by 14%. In fact, a successful persona can increase website traffic by up to 210% and boost organic traffic by 55%.
WordPress and the Developer (4:00)
One of the most beautiful aspects of WordPress is its agility.
WordPress is the world’s most popular CMS, used by 35% of websites worldwide. The WordPress platform is popular among content creators and developers alike; it’s incredibly intuitive, flexible, and easily updated. “There are so many developers out there that are contributing to not only bettering the core, but the extensions and plug-ins that are available to us,” Arabian says. “It allows us to do such incredible things without having to always go back to the drawing board and developing things from the ground up.”
The WordPress Developers Club was established as a place where peers come together to collaborate and share ideas on how to innovate, learn and grow. It’s this spirit of community that continues to support and improve WordPress.
Measuring CAC vs. LTV (4:46)
Why I say CAC overrides LTV slightly is because LTV has a lot of factors out of your control.
According to Arabian, the most important analytic a business should track is customer activation cost (CAC), even more so than the lifetime value (LTV) of a customer. He attributes this to the unpredictability of LTV, like personnel services and the supply chain, for example. CAC is easier to identify because it is a financial number based on spend and acquisition.
Companies need to look at the ratio of LTV to CAC to provide a measure of health of the business. Most experts pin that ratio to 3:1; LTV of a customer is about three times what is spent to convert that customer. “If this ratio is out of whack, it indicates that I’m paying more to acquire customers than they’re worth,” Arabian says. This ratio is also a crucial part of what venture capitalists look at in potential investment opportunities.
The Heart of Marketing (8:01)
One of the most important things I think of as human beings is aligning with other human beings that share those same values.
The pandemic upended the digital marketing landscape, making it much more competitive. This meant that brands had to reach their customers in new ways among a swell of information. Building brand loyalty was paramount for survival. Customers sought out brands they connected with, respected, and admired. In fact, 79% of customers prefer socially purpose-driven brands and prioritize purchasing products from such companies.
“When you put yourself out there to support a cause or when you put yourself out there to say this is what I believe in, you start to attract like individuals,” says Arabian. Authentic communication is key. Creating digital marketing campaigns based on why a company does the work they do and the impact they want to make is the best way to authentically communicate purpose. And purpose is at the heart of marketing.
Listen to This (10:16)
The relaxed nature of their conversation and the things they talk about are incredible. It’s so engaging you just want more of that truth and honesty.
Arabian recommends the podcast Renegades: Born in the USA featuring open and in-depth conversations between Barack Obama and Bruce Springsteen. The former president and the musician talk about their lives, music and beliefs and their love of country while diving into their pasts.
For more information on NVISION, check out their website and follow them on LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter at @nvision. To stay up to date with Arabian, follow him on Twitter or LinkedIn.