Marketing a logistics and transportation company is certainly no small feat. But with so much noise online about what it takes to do digital marketing right, it can be hard to distinguish between myth and reality while gearing up for a campaign.
Fortunately, the team at Autumn Consulting has you covered.
This guide explains everything you need to know about the seven biggest myths in Google search marketing. First, we outline each of the myths as discussed on a recent webinar with Hubtek and special guest Nathan Misirian. Then, we take a deeper dive into the truth so you can be prepared for the future of your digital marketing presence.
Looking to learn more about digital marketing for your logistics and transportation company? We list several additional learning opportunities at the bottom of the guide.
Now, let’s take a look at the seven biggest myths of digital marketing for logistics and transportation companies.
Discerning Fact From Fiction While Marketing Your Logistics And Transportation Company
Digital marketing has become a battleground for logistics and transportation companies, especially as customer expectations continue to rise. That means it’s imperative to follow best practices from the beginning — and take care to avoid any pitfalls caused by half-truths or outdated wisdom.
Let’s start with one of the most common myths in the digital marketing environment:
Myth 1: “Digital Marketing Is Only For Larger Businesses”
Digital marketing is a scalable and cost-effective tool available to businesses of virtually any size. By developing a strategic campaign and outlining goals with objectives, logistics companies can convert any budget into a flywheel of leads and prospects.
“One of the beautiful things about digital marketing is its cost-effectiveness compared to spend,” says Andrew Gulovson, Chief Marketing Officer at Hubtek. “Starting anywhere, be it social media or email lists, can help you develop a web presence while sticking to the right price range for your organization.”
Myth 2: “Digital Marketing Is Part-Time Work”
Marketing is a full-time job with many requirements and expectations. It is also not a one-man role; many people in your organization need to chip in for optimal results.
“One of the things I often see in the logistics space is that the owner or founder is the face of their marketing,” says Nathan Misirian, founder of Autumn Consulting. “But as companies grow and businesses gets more busy, company owners run out of bandwidth to support the digital marketing process. Time does add up when you care about quality and consistency, and turning to the experts can be paramount.”
Myth 3: “Digital Marketing Means Social Media Only”
Social media is just a component of the digital marketing space — not the only objective for growing your brand.
That said, social media with the right objectives is just as important as developing a strategy. You must find a place to incorporate socials into your marketing schema without allowing it to overtake your objectives.
“For example, TikTok may not be best for logistics customers, but it may be a good fit for logistics employee culture,” Nathan says. “You must know your target and know what you’re trying to accomplish.”
Myth 4: “The Key To Digital Marketing Is Doing, Not Planning”
While an important aspect of digital marketing, planning — not doing — is key to successful strategy. You must be able to identify what processes are and are not successful for your business, hopefully before starting an expensive campaign that could waste precious resources.
This is where testing comes into play.
“A/B testing and trying out different ideas can help you collect leads, influence buyers, and lead customers down the right path to making a decision with you,” Andrew says. “It’s worth the extra time and attention practically every time.”
Myth 5: “Digital Marketing Results Cannot Be Tracked”
Digital marketing is one of the easiest types of marketing to track as a logistics and transportation company. Thanks to powerful BI platforms like Google Analytics, you can access hundreds of measurements and detailed charts that are available right at your fingertips
That said, there are many conflicting opinions on what should or should not be tracked in the digital marketing world. You must set your metrics according to your goals and itertize upon your findings.
Myth 6: “Digital Marketing Is Constantly Changing”
While digital marketing is certainly a dynamic and fast-growing topic, the tried-and-true best practices always remain the same. Marrying valuable content to SEO keyphrases allows you to create a user-friendly site that customers can easily find online.
Keep in mind you must be able to pivot when necessary to remain afloat in a vibrant industry. If you don’t know where you’re going, any train will take you — and action often brings clarity in conjunction with good metrics.
Myth 7: “Content Marketing Is Blogging”
Content marketing is far broader than just blogging alone. Emails, webinars, white papers, and reports are just a few of the common ways you can create performant content.
“Content marketing is the force of value behind your prospects, leads, and suspects,” says Andrew Gulovson. “Think testimonials, infographics, and other items that help you stand out in the marketplace.”
Nathan Misirian echoes these sentiments, pointing back to changing times.
“The truth is that content marketing is far more than just blogging,” he says. “It’s not just relegated to updates and press releases; and things have changed so much over time.”
Grow Your Logistics And Transportation Company With Airtight Digital Marketing
It can be difficult to tell the difference between fact and fiction in marketing, especially as a growing logistics business with less experience in the industry. However, armed with updated information and clear guidance from seasoned professionals, you can make informed decisions about your strategy going forward.
If you’re interested in learning more about digital marketing for your logistics and transportation, Hubtek’s talent, technology, and training firm can help you succeed. Partner Nathan Mirisian has created multiple levels of digital marketing training so you can take deeper dives into this lesson through the ProfitQuest platform.
Feel free to sign up for any of his available classes on ProfitQuest today. Since you can access all training videos in the same convenient platform, you can pause, take notes, and reflect on each recording to make sure you understand your goals moving forward. You’re also welcome to email the experts at Autumn Consulting, wow@autumnconsult.com, with any questions you may have.
