Part of the excitement, and the headache, of digital marketing how quickly everything changes. Just when I think I’ve figured out a perfect marketing technique, it seems to become outdated or everyone is doing it, and it loses its effectiveness.

If you’re a small business owner, you’re lucky if you can keep up on sales and production, much less worry about the newest trends in digital marketing. Here are a few ways to remain relevant, even as the industry is changing.

This is something I’ve talked about before. Several times, actually. But this is because its very important. And while it might seem like common sense, too many businesses are trying to reach anyone and everyone. 

For businesses with limited budget and time to dedicate to marketing, it is best to create an audience persona. Who is your best customer? Take note of age, gender, location, or other pertinent factors. For B2B businesses, note industry, business size, location, etc. Once you have a very detailed idea of what your most loyal customers look like, tailor your marketing to that persona. Stick with what works to maximize time and resources.

Often called the customer journey, it is important to know where most of your customers are coming from, and what is convincing them to make a purchase. The more data you can collect on referring sites or businesses, website navigation, email or social media advertising, and other touch-points along the way, the better you can tailor your message and train your sales team. 

This could also help in identifying roadblocks to purchases, such as slow website loading time, broken links, poorly represented products, ineffective sales pitch, or even pricing issues.

There is no one size fits all in digital marketing. But once you understand your audience and the customer journey, it will be easier to identify the best locations to focus your time. 

Do you have a high success rate with your mailing list? Perhaps you are targeting young adults that use Instagram frequently. Is there a social site specifically for your industry, such as Goodreads for book authors? 

Narrow down your top marketing channels that you can realistically be active on. You don’t want to put all your eggs in one basket, but you also don’t want to be stretched too thin. Choose the right channels, or the right combination of channels (such as display ads with a follow up email campaign), to maximize your marketing budget with the best results.

You don’t need to be a digital marketing guru to stay relevant. Just know your audience, how they’re making a purchase, and choose the best marketing channels accordingly. Trends might change year-to-year, but making a personal connection with your audience will always be the key to making a sale.