In the not-so-distant past, many companies approached marketing with the sole objective of selling their products. They did their best to prove they were the best in their industry, offering bigger and better things than their competitors. For a while, it worked well enough. Consumers actively compared companies and chose the one that provided better value. But the effectiveness of the strategy eventually wore off.

Now, businesses must diversify and create an emotional connection with their audience. Companies explain their origins, personalize experiences, and put the emphasis on being human rather than a money-grabbing corporation concerned only with profit. Better yet, startups can get in on the action, and it’s all thanks to digital marketing.

Although it’s near-revolutionary in terms of increasing return on investment and revenue, digital marketing is very common today and therefore quite competitive. It’s constantly buzzing with activity, and sometimes that steady hum in the background can drown out the sound of businesses who haven’t yet made it big. If you feel like your company has tried every digital marketing strategy in the book and you’re still struggling to keep your head above water, here are a few solid tips for success.

First and foremost, don’t give up before you’ve made any progress. If you set the bar too high for yourself, you may never get to where you want to be. Be realistic about your expectations by outlining and measuring your key performance indicators and realizing that it could take as little as three months or as long as a year to get tangible results. Putting effort into your digital marketing scheme on a consistent basis will pay off in time. Use data to track your progress - it’ll make the process much easier.

On the other hand, sometimes giving up on a marketing strategy you’ve become attached to is the best solution. That doesn’t mean surrendering altogether; it simply means finding a new strategy that saves you time, money, or both and still produces results. The hardest part of this tactic is knowing when to use it. A good rule of thumb is to switch it up if you’ve seen next to no progress after a six-month period. Again, use your data to evaluate the ways in which your strategy was working and the ways in which it was failing.

The last scenario is one in which some elements of your strategy are working almost perfectly, while others are lagging behind. Many companies experience this at some point in their lifespans, even well-established ones. Increase the amount of time you put into the elements that are working and make adjustments to the ones that aren’t. If you have to do a little experimentation, go ahead. Running a series of tests will help you in the long run. Keep what works and get rid of what doesn’t.

Whatever your digital marketing situation is, don’t rush progress. Marketing success takes time. Monitor your efforts through the data you collect and make changes whenever necessary for digital marketing success.