Well, dear reader – we did it. 2020 has come to end. Traditionally, the end of the year is, of course, synonymous with R&R: ice cold beer, Aussie beaches, Christmas ham, etc etc…and this year, our R&R is even more well-deserved.

These latter months are also one of the best times to get your ‘ducks in a row’ in a marketing capacity – especially in the digital sphere. If you felt too rushed to really put your mind to marketing in 2020, we’ve got five quick ways you can prepare for better marketing in the new year below! By spending a bit of time to review your year, review the state of marketing and review your goals, you’ll be setting yourself up for a stellar go-to-market plan in 2021.

1. Check back on what resonated with your audience

The end of the year is an excellent time to really go over your engagement analytics on social media. In your analytics tab, you’ll get a comprehensive summary of what worked and what didn’t in your year of content, whether it’s Facebook, Instagram, YouTube or LinkedIn. From analytics, you can easily see what message and mode of content most appealed to your audience. From short videos to product posts – the more engagement, the more you can be sure you got your message across. By noting and continuing to bring that kind of value to your audience in 2021, you’ll build a following that appreciates your brand even when they’re not actively converting.

2. Plan some easy content themes

It’s also wise to plan some content before the new year – particularly if you find yourself too busy to even think about Facebook posts, thought leadership articles and newsletters during the year! December is often a winding-down time for small and medium businesses, so spend an hour or two drawing up a list of content topic ideas. Once you’ve got your list, you can spread them evenly across 2021. Come January, the hardest part of content marketing will already be done – no more thinking up what to write about!

3. Clean up your digital space

Deep-cleaning your house is for spring, but cleaning your web presence is for December downtime. Now is the time to check, clean, deactivate and organise to keep your business professional and easily locatable online. You should pay attention to:

Your outdated or disused webpages
Outdated copy on your website
Old photos or contact details on your Google My Business Page
Empty social media accounts (R.I.P to the many never-used business Twitter accounts)
Toxic backlinks on your website (this one’s a bit tricky, so we can do it for you!)

4. Check the tech

Voice search, ad blockers, chatbots, Google Lens, online booking systems – there’s a veritable feast of marketing technology for business owners to catch up on moving into 2021! Every year, the face of digital marketing changes. While some tech moves into ‘must-have’ territory, others fall by the wayside. The end of the year is a great time to do some research on that and keep your business up-to-date. Whether you need a website facelift or a full-scale automation campaign, Roobix can help – in fact, we’re the mar-tech experts!

5. Scope the competitors

The end of a calendar year is also a solid opportunity to spend some time checking out your competitors in the digital space. Write out a list of competitors and head to their websites – but don’t forget to check out their social media pages as well. Take note of their online presence. Is their website outdated? How well-spoken are they? Are they posting on Facebook every day? Are they easy to reach? Is there a personality behind their brand? Checking out the competition is a brilliant way to get a quick read on what you need to do in 2021.

If you think you might be lagging – call Roobix! Our celebrated Managed Marketing Service (MMS) is designed to give you access to a full team of marketing specialists for the cost of one in-house resource. We offer everything from SEO and web builds to graphic design and events management – all in a neat, scalable package.

Call Roobix on 13 30 40 to have a chat about your 2021 marketing plans – we’re always happy to hear from you!