5 Digital Marketing Strategies You Need in 2022 with Wild Life Distillery

Wondering how to launch a powerful digital marketing strategy in 2022? You’ve come to the right place.

It’s important to be thoughtful about your investment. Rather than trying a smattering of digital marketing tools and seeing what sticks, you need to approach it with a plan. This will ensure you get the most value out of your budget, while also swaying consumers who love what you’re offering.

This was our exact approach with Wild Life Distillery. Hailing from Canmore, Alberta, their locally crafted spirits are inspired by the Rocky Mountain lifestyle. Wild Life Distillery had already created a widely admired brand, but they needed a digital marketing plan to take their online traffic and sales to the next level.

Keep a Pulse on Your Competitors

Understanding your industry is the first step in building a strong digital marketing strategy. In Wild Life Distillery’s case, we delved into their top five competitors in the Alberta distillery sector.

Evaluate your competitors’ websites. Use a tool like SEMrush or Ahrefs to discover where they’re getting their organic traffic and which the keywords they’re ranking for.
Gain an understanding of how they position their brand. Do their visuals rely on a more modern aesthetic, or do they exude a classic vibe? Is their messaging cheeky and fun, or is it more sophisticated and elevated?
Perform a gap analysis. Knowing your competitors’ ranked keywords and backlinks, you can identify where you need to improve your performance. Focus on your strengths, rather than trying to make up for what you lack.

Know Your Target Audience’s Pain Points

In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, we found that Wild Life Distillery’s audience was seeking connection on social media and shopping online more than ever. Their digital marketing strategy needed to address how to build relationships with their users and make the e-commerce experience as seamless as possible.

Demographics are only the beginning. Factors like age, gender, and location start to paint the picture of who your digital marketing should target. But, your audience analysis should go deeper.
What’s preventing users from buying your product? How can your digital marketing remove those barriers? For example, are they interested in shopping online, but have never tried your product? You may want to create opportunities for them to sample and shop your brand in person.
Figure out what keeps your audience up at night. Are they looking for human connection on social, like Wild Life Distillery’s audience? Are they anxious about shopping in person and need e-commerce options? Harness those insights to develop your digital marketing plan.

Define Your Differentiators

Now that you know your industry and audience inside and out, it’s time to determine how you’ll stand out from your competitors and win customers over. For Wild Life Distillery, we identified that their deep connection to the Rocky Mountains differentiates them from the dozens of other distilleries in Alberta.

Differentiate with your “why”. There’s no one else in the world like you. Did you get into your industry to disrupt the status quo, or is there a passion for lifestyle that runs through your blood? Tell that story with your website experience and digital marketing campaigns.
Focus on your approach. Wild Life Distillery brings unmatched craftsmanship to every detail of their process. They work closely with local farmers and suppliers to source the best grains and ingredients. This serves as another compelling competitive advantage to sway buyers.

Create a Seamless Website Experience

In only a few seconds, your website needs to tell your users who you are, what you’re offering, and what’s in it for them. Then, it needs to make it as simple and fast as possible to buy your products. In Wild Life Distillery’s case, we made a variety of incremental improvements to enhance their user experience, rather than opting for a full website redesign.

Streamline the user journey. If your audience has to click through dozens of pages, or even flip from Squarespace to Shopify to buy your products, you’re not doing them any favours. Structure your sitemap and e-commerce platform to remove as many barriers as possible.
Show your brand story, rather than only telling. Of course, it’s important to share who you are, your passions, and your unique process. But, your website should also walk the talk about your brand. In Wild Life Distillery’s case, we worked with them to add delicious cocktail recipes and tasting notes to their product pages. This level of storytelling allows users to experience their spirits on a whole new level.
Spruce up your website’s search engine optimization. Many sites suffer from easily fixable SEO errors. To start, focus on small wins like redirecting broken pages, adding title tags and meta descriptions, and optimizing your load speed. SEO is a long-term game, but small and consistent improvements can make big gains over time.

Get Smart About Your PPC Ads

When crafting your paid advertising strategy, you need to set out your digital marketing goals, targeting, channels, and messaging. This is where your insights and analysis become crucial. For Wild Life Distillery, we strategized three campaign concepts to address their objectives: encourage tasting room visits, boost liquor store sales, and increase online purchases.

Choose your digital channels wisely. Platforms like Google and Facebook are key for almost any online advertising campaign. But, if you’re marketing a travel experience, you may want to expand your mix with ads on TripAdvisor. Selling a lifestyle product targeted at Millennials and Gen Z? Consider paid promotions on a social media platform like Pinterest or TikTok.
Craft your messaging around your differentiators. Leveraging Wild Life Distillery’s beautiful nature photography, our creative highlighted their Rocky Mountain story and distilling process. This was combined with strong calls-to-action tied to their digital marketing objectives.
Track and adjust your approach. An online advertising strategy is only as successful as what you measure. Based on your goals, define key metrics like website traffic, click-through rate, and conversions. Monitor your progress and refine your targeting as the months progress.

Build Your Targeted Digital Marketing Strategy

Our team is excited to boost Wild Life Distillery’s online marketing presence. Our strategic approach was rooted in data and analysis, allowing us to guide their growth with measurable results. If you’re looking to shape a strong digital marketing strategy for 2022, let’s book your free consultation today.