The Biggest Digital Marketing Mistakes Small Businesses Make (And How to Avoid Them)

Digital marketing offers businesses incredible opportunities, but it can also feel like a minefield. When you're trying to manage everything yourself, it's easy to fall into habits that quietly hold your marketing back.

The good news? Once you spot these common mistakes, they’re surprisingly simple to fix and small changes can make a big difference over time.

Here are some of the biggest digital marketing mistakes I see businesses make and how you can avoid them.

1. Trying to Be Everywhere at Once

It’s tempting to believe that you need to be active on every social media platform to reach more people. In reality, trying to spread yourself across Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, X (and more) often leads to rushed, inconsistent content..... and burnout.

How to avoid it:
Don't spread yourself too thinly. Focus on one or two platforms where your ideal customers are most active. Show up consistently with quality content, and you’ll have a far bigger impact.

Then you will have more time to:

• Keep your profile bios and branding up to date
• Make time to analyse which content types perform best and do more of this.
• Repurpose content across different channels efficiently
• Make sure your posts are still aligned with audience interests and goals
   

2. Neglecting Your Email List

Social media is brilliant for visibility, but it’s important to remember you don’t own your followers. Algorithms change, accounts get hacked, platforms come and go.

An email list is an asset you control. It gives you a direct, reliable way to stay in touch with your audience.

How to avoid it:

• Start building your list now, even if it’s small. Offer something useful like tips, discounts or updates and send regular emails to stay top of mind.
• Clean your list at least once a year and make sure it is free of inactive subscribers
• Make time to focus on automated email flows like a welcome sequence when someone subscribes.

Other things to check include checking subject lines and call to actions (CTA)s are engaging. Are your open rates and click-through rates where they should be? Open rates should be at least 30%. 

3. Not Having a Clear Strategy

Without a clear plan, it’s easy to fall into the habit of posting for the sake of it. You might be busy creating content, but without a strategy, it’s hard to know if it’s really helping you grow your business.

How to avoid it:
Set simple, achievable goals. Who are you trying to reach? What action do you want them to take? Focus your content on these objectives, and track your progress over time.

This is something I help you do in my Content Catalyst Workshop. Check it out on the training section on my website👇

4. Inconsistent Posting

We’ve all been there: a flurry of posts during a busy week, followed by silence when things get hectic. Unfortunately, inconsistency can confuse your audience and make it harder to build trust.

How to avoid it:

• Plan ahead with a simple content calendar. Even one or two good posts a week can make a huge difference if you’re consistent.
• Post consistently and engage with your followers. Once a week, every week is better than not at all.

Download my Ultimate Content Calendar to keep you on track 👇

5. Not Knowing Your Audience Well Enough

Guesswork rarely leads to great marketing results. If you’re trying to appeal to everyone, your message can end up feeling vague and disconnected.

How to avoid it:

• Take time to understand your ideal customers. What are their challenges? What motivates them? What kind of language do they respond to?
• Talk to your customers, ask for feedback, look at your reviews and testimonials, see what people are commenting about on competitors' social media posts

When you know who you're speaking to, it’s much easier to create content that truly resonates.

6. Forgetting About Mobile Users

Most people will experience your website, emails or social media on their phone. If your content isn’t easy to read, navigate, or interact with on a mobile device, you risk losing potential customers in seconds.

How to avoid it:

• Always preview your content on a mobile (as well as desktop) before you publish. Check that your text is easy to read, buttons are clickable and pages load quickly.
• Make sure your website is mobile-friendly and fast. Check your website speed on Page Speed Insights. This will tell you how quickly your site loads (target under 3 seconds) and what’s slowing it down e.g., large images, unused code.

Use Mobile-Responsive Design

• Your website should automatically adjust to different screen sizes — phones, tablets, laptops.
• Make sure fonts, buttons, images, and forms all resize correctly without users needing to zoom or scroll sideways.

Quick tip:
If you’re using WordPress, most modern themes (like Astra, Divi, or Elementor) are already mobile responsive. Just make sure you preview your pages on mobile view before publishing.

Optimise Your Images

• Large, uncompressed images are one of the biggest causes of slow websites.
• Use free tools like TinyPNG to compress images before uploading.
• Aim for each image to be under 200KB where possible.

Pro tip:
Use next-gen formats like WebP if your website builder supports them (they load much faster than JPGs or PNGs). 

7. Only Focusing on Sales Messages

It’s tempting to constantly promote your products or services but if every post is a sales pitch, your audience can quickly switch off. People follow brands online to be informed, entertained or inspired, not just sold to.

How to avoid it:

• Mix up your content and add a variety of formats: single images, carousel posts, stories, long and short form video.
• Share useful tips, behind-the-scenes insights, customer stories and occasional offers. Think about what your audience would genuinely enjoy seeing, not just what you want to sell or see.

8. Expecting Organic Reach to Do All the Heavy Lifting

Once upon a time, organic social media reach was enough. These days, digital marketing is increasingly pay-to-play. Even a small ad budget can dramatically increase your visibility and reach the right people faster.

How to avoid it:

• Set aside a small monthly budget for paid ads — whether it’s Google Ads, Meta Ads (Facebook and Instagram), or LinkedIn Ads. A little really can go a long way when it’s targeted properly.

Bonus tip:
If you have good website traffic, consider running Google Display Ads on your own website to create an extra revenue stream. It won’t make you rich overnight, but it can bring in a useful bit of passive income over time.

9. Trying to Do It All Yourself

Running a business is hard enough without trying to become a digital marketing expert as well. Trying to handle everything yourself can lead to stress, missed opportunities, and ultimately, burnout.

How to avoid it:

• Recognise when it’s time to get help. Whether you outsource specific tasks, bring in short-term project support or invest in training, working with a digital marketing professional can free up your time and deliver much better results.

If you’re feeling overwhelmed, don’t struggle on alone. I’m always happy to offer a fresh perspective and practical support 👇

10. Forgetting About Your Website

In the rush to post on social media or run ads, it’s easy to overlook your website, one of the most important parts of your digital presence. If your website is outdated, slow, full of broken links or missing clear calls to action, you could be losing potential customers without even realising it.

How to avoid it:
Audit your website regularly. Check that:

• All links are working (no pesky 404 errors)
• Content is up to date, relevant, and easy to understand
• Clear calls-to-action (CTAs) are guiding visitors towards the next step
• Meta titles and descriptions are still optimised for SEO
• You’re monitoring your search engine rankings and making tweaks when needed

Your website doesn’t have to be huge or fancy, but it does need to work smoothly, load quickly and make it easy for people to take action.

Small Changes, Big Difference

Every business is work in progress and the same goes for your marketing.

If you recognise a few of these mistakes, don’t worry. Even small tweaks to your strategy can add up to much stronger results over time.

If you’d like a fresh pair of eyes on your digital marketing, whether it’s for a bit of advice, a short-term project or longer-term support, I’d love to help👇