We were proud to sponsor Global Dating Insights’ second annual conference in Amsterdam last week. Attended by CEOs and business leaders from all over Europe, the fantastic one day event was held at the Rode Hode in the heart of the Dutch capital.
Full of insightful talks, the impressive speaker line up consisted of dating experts including Kelly Steckelberg, CEO at Zoosk, David Vermeulen, CEO at The Inner Circle and our very own Ross Williams.
Here are some of the key lessons we learnt throughout the day…
Coordinate your marketing and PR strategy
Successful PR can be effective in driving registrations, however, on its own it’s not enough to drive large volumes of high converting traffic. That being said, co-ordinating PR stories with digital marketing campaigns can be effective in attracting a large of volume of high converting traffic.
By coordinating both strategies and having them work together, you can increase brand recognition through PR and drive traffic and conversions through strategically placed ad campaigns. Whereas PR can drive traffic, there’s no guarantee that this traffic will convert as it could be low quality. Digital marketing campaigns tend to drive higher quality traffic as they have greater targeting options; couple this with PR to drive brand recognition and you have the best chance of success.
Measure everything you can
Tracking and measuring the success of your marketing campaigns is crucial to learn what works best. Ensure that you have appropriate tracking in place for your marketing, PPC, SEO and social media campaigns so that you can analyse the effectiveness of each campaign.
You can also track your traffic sources to work out your traffic split, which will help you cater your offering to your audience better. Your Partner Manager can help you pull a number of reports that will help you understand where your traffic is coming from.
Consider your female users
Men and women have very different expectations when it comes to online dating and it’s important to be aware of these. Sites that cater differently to the needs and wants of male and female users are performing well across the industry.
First off, it’s important to invest in attracting women. This could be achieved by creating female focused marketing campaigns. The imagery you use in marketing material is important and will have an effect on the success of your campaign. For example, using images of happy couples tends to appeal to females whereas images of good looking females on their own appeals to men.
By demonstrating that your site caters to the needs of female users (which not every dating product does), you are more likely to attract high quality female users who have a higher propensity to convert.
Consider these points and build them into your marketing strategy. If you have any questions or would like to discuss them further, get in touch with your Partner Manager.