Digital marketing expert Elizabeth Malone-Johnstone tells James Mulhall about her new start-up
ONE good thing to come out of the economic downturn is reinvention.
In order to survive, every industry had to re-evaluate its very foundations and take on new approaches. One such industry is marketing.
When Elizabeth Malone-Johnstone arrived in London, the recession was in full swing. Luckily, she had a creative advertising qualification under her belt, so she soon managed to crack into the industry. Now, she is the proud founder of digital marketing start-up, Digitise This.
“I started out working for a publishing company, managing their website,” she said. “At the time, digital was still seen as an add-on to traditional marketing, which frustrated me.”
Her passion for digital marketing was evident from the get go and before digital marketing became the phenomenon it is today, Elizabeth saw its importance and began to think outside the box.
Self-employment was always on the back of her mind and it was a notion she could not shake.
To some, this may seem like a daunting challenge but it is because of Elizabeth’s childhood that she knew it was something she could do.
“I was always interested in branching out on my own,” said the Limerick native. “I had grown up seeing my parents working, my dad has been self-employed for as long as I remember and now they run their own business.”
Born in Limerick city, Elizabeth spent her formative years in London before returning to Ireland on the birth of her youngest sister. The family went back to Limerick, where Elizabeth was schooled.
Since finishing secondary school, she has been in Britain; to university in Glasgow and Falmouth, before eventually settling in London.
Her parents’ work ethic rubbed off on her, as she threw herself into the marketing industry in London, focusing primarily on all things digital.
Finding her niche came quickly for Elizabeth and after a varied career in digital marketing, she took a leap of faith and went out on her own in August of last year.
“It’s been about six months, so it’s early days,” she said. “It will take a few years to take off but it’s going well. I’d like to take on my first employee in the next two years, someone who is passionate about digital marketing.”
An innovative start-up from an ambitious Irishwoman, Digitise This specialises in small and medium businesses, catering to their digital marketing needs.
For more information, follow Digitise This on Twitter @DigitiseThisUK, check out digitisethis.com or phone Elizabeth on 020 3582 5714 .
Elizabeth’s top five tips
1 Headless chickens don’t do well on social media. It’s better to have a great presence on one or two social media channels than a mediocre presence on every platform. Focus on one or two social media channels at first and do them well.
2 It’s important to set goals and measure results. That way you can see when things improve and spend less time (and money) on what isn’t working. And remember to keep it consistent! Make sure your logo, imagery and messaging reflects your brand on every platform.
3 Set up a blog and get writing! Websites that are frequently updated with good content get a lot more relevant traffic than those that don’t. Include engaging images, graphics and videos on your blog or website. Content that includes engaging images and videos get more engagement and shares on social media.
4 Install Google Analytics tracking on your website. The tool gives valuable information including how many people visited your website, where they came from and what actions they took. And it’s completely free!
5 Make sure your website looks and works well on all types of devices. Otherwise you could be turning away customers who visit your website on a mobile phone. Every visitor to your website represents an opportunity. Make it easy for them to sign up to an email newsletter or connect with you on social media.
See More: Digital Marketing, Digitise This, Start-ups
