Digital Marketing Solutions: Why You Need an MVP

For those who are familiar with the term "Lean Startup", this post will make a lot of sense to you. For those who are not that familiar with this term, this post will still provide you with enough value to understand how to become more successful with these digital marketing solutions. 

MVP Defined

In product development, the minimum viable product (MVP) is the product with the highest return on investment versus risk. The term was coined and defined by Frank Robinson, and popularized by Steve Blank and Eric Ries.

• To enter the loop [as pictured above] you have to first identify a problem and then build the most simple solution you can think of. This is your “Minimum Viable Product” or MVP.
• Once you have built your MVP, you begin to implement it. Now, you startmeasuring reactions and generating data and insight. There is a lot of methodologies you can use, tools you can apply, etc., to gather market reactions and any success. 
• Once you have your data, it is time to learn: What needs to be improved, does the product really solve the problem, why do customers not convert, Your learning is the basis for the next step.
• You begin evolving and adapting your MVP. In other words, you start at the “Build” phase of the loop again. And from there you constantly improve your MVP.

"Never stop testing, and your advertising will never stop improving." - David Ogilvy

How to Apply the MVP Principle to Marketing

Often, the first reaction to, "Let's get some marketing going!" is, "We don't have that in the budget." While I know that this is a death rattle for any brand, it is unfortunately an all-too-common knee-jerk reaction to a necessary business process which ensures growth.

Your digital marketing solutions are not an expense, but a vitally necessary process for any business to increase growth and thus succeed. I don't care what any Ivy League CPA tells you, marketing is not a mere "expense." Well-marketed products and services eventually result in more manufacturing and consumption of the product or service. Hence, marketing actually fits into the "cycle of production."

One can build a simple marketing program and the launch it, fitting within this MVP concept. Wanting to build the "perfect" brand and marketing program has impeded too many business from engaging their audiences and growing. 

Affordable Opportunities Open The Door

Today's marketing world is vastly different with many affordable digital marketing solutions. Advertising can be started on practically any budget with effective platforms such as blogging, social media, email marketing, partner marketing, comprehensive SEO, YouTube marketing, retargeting, Google Adwords, Facebook Ads and other numerous players within the Pay-Per-Click ecosystem.

Advertising results can be examined on a hourly and daily basis with advanced analytics. Brand recognition itself can be examined and measured (for instance via examining Facebook fanpages and engagement).

Examples of Marketing MVPs

Video traffic will be 80 percent of all consumer Internet traffic in 2019, up from 64 percent in 2014, according to Cisco. This represents a significant branding and marketing opportunity.

By creating Google Hangouts On Air, which then convert into YouTube videos, any brand can leverage video marketing for almost no cost. These videos can be transcribed and repurposed into extensive blog posts. Both the video and blog post can be optimized for organic search (SEO), as well as shared through email and social media. Additionally, traffic can be driven to these content properties through paid ads on Google, Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube. 

Develop Marketing Partnerships

Developing strategic partnerships is another key marketing tactic that is highly effective and which can be executed for very little cost. I was able to convince several of my friends, each who possessed significant sized email lists, to endorsemy branding book to their subscribers. As a result, I was able to reach bestseller status as my book reached 500,000 marketing and business enthusiasts with no cost to me. 

The reality is that if you look around you and take a deeper look at your favorite brands and what they are up to, you will see that for many of them, partnership marketing is at the core of their strategy.

I love helping brands develop cost-effective digital marketing solutions.