Top tips for spring cleaning your communications
Spring has sprung and I’ve got a little extra bounce in my step! I’ve spent the last two weekends tidying up in the garden, clearing space for new shoots to grow. We’ve already got beautiful displays of daffodils, red tulips (from Amsterdam!) and purple muscari (see above) on show, with lots more colour to look forward to throughout the coming seasons. Although my hamstrings aren’t thanking me for it, the seedlings will because they need spring sunshine to thrive and reach their full potential. If I didn’t clear away last year’s growth, the shoots would find it hard to establish and get themselves noticed.
The same can be said for your marketing communications.
A couple of times a year, it’s good practice to review the marketing messages you have out there; do a spot of spring cleaning! Just like the garden, if you clear away the dead wood your business will grow and thrive.
Here are a few channels to start with and what to look out for…
Website
Remove any old or expired content from your website. Look for articles that are out of date such as closed competitions and promotions for expired events. Have you shared advice in your blog that’s no longer relevant e.g. relating to a government policy that doesn’t exist anymore? Removing out of date content will improve the user experience and make it easier for customers to search for and find relevant information.
Whilst you’re there, look at the images on your site. Are there any pictures of former employees that need removing? Could your photography do with a refresh?
Email footer
Do a quick check to ensure all your contact details are correct and that any links are working. Are any images used compatible with all email software? Send some test emails to check. Your email is often your first point of contact with a new client so it’s essential to make a good first impression.
Social media
There’s no need to delete expired content from social media, but do check that all your social media profiles use the same branding and messaging. Users expect a similar experience across all your channels so focus on consistency. Let the reader know they’re in the right place to interact with you. If you want to refresh your banner image to reflect the change of season, do it across all your social media profiles.
Take a few minutes to review your personal profile and check your recent experience and achievements are up to date. If you have a company page, does it reflect your current offering and mirror the messaging on your website and other social media profiles?
Newsletter
With the start of the new tax and accounting year, springtime is an ideal opportunity to refresh your newsletter design and content. Review and analyse the last six months of newsletter stats. Look at which stories people are engaging with. Decide what’s working well and invest your time and energy into doing more of the same.
Inbox
I find this is the ideal task for a Friday afternoon. When you don’t really want to start anything new, but you want to finish the week on a high. Be ruthless - delete anything you really don’t need and create folders for those you do need to keep. Use coloured flags to mark messages that require a response. If you want to go one step further, create rules for emails such as newsletters so they bypass your inbox, land directly in a folder to read at a later date and don’t distract you from more important messages. Organising your inbox will not only make your customer communications more efficient, but give you a terrific feel-good feeling ready for the weekend, and for me, another stint in the garden!