Did you know anything about digital marketing?
That may seem like a silly question but it’s not and here’s the reason why. The internet is extremely accessible and it has become very easy to get whatever your heart desires with a few clicks.
As a matter of fact, research done by the Pew research center shows that 28% of American adults are almost constantly online!
The internet is part of the very fabric of our society now and though it’s common knowledge to most, the way we shop and buy things has changed drastically over the years. Meaning that marketing offline is not as effective as it used to be.
Most marketers would say good marketing is all about connection and uniting with your customers at the right place and time (they’d be right).
However, in order for that to happen today, it means meeting them where they spend most of there time which is now the internet.
Marketing has changed, the digital marketing era is upon us. And it’s time you understand what digital marketing is, why it’s important, and it’s benefits.
So roll up your sleeves, and put on your thinking cap because we’re about to start.
What is Digital Marketing?
Digital marketing is comprised of all marketing efforts the require the use of a phone, tablet, laptop or computer. How is this done? Well if a business uses digital marketing to promote there product and services they are most often using these common digital avenues:
- Search engines
- Social media
- Other websites to connect with potential customers (YouTube for example)
- And more
Traditional marketing in magazines and billboards can still be done, however, it is almost necessary to have some kind of digital marketing strategy if you want to conduct business today. Portside Marketing is a trusted agency that’s been creating digital marketing plans for years.
Even if your business does not have a website, having some kind of online presence is extremely important now.
This leads us to the next question.
Why Is Digital Marketing Important?
It may seem silly to think that having a website or a digital marketing strategy is necessary to have a successful business, but studies show that adults with a mobile internet connection are definitely going online regularly about 92%.
Digital marketing and the content created is so important and common that most consumers expect and rely on that content to actually do research on your brand! That means that if you don’t use digital marketing or have any kind of online presence a consumer will not trust you. They will actually feel uncomfortable using your services.
To put it politely, in order to have any sort of competitive edge it’s extremely necessary to intertwine your business model with a digital marketing strategy no matter how small.
The best part about this is, the flexibility available in how you can market to your customers online. There are so many strategies and paths you can take which can really benefit your brand.
The Benefits of Digital Marketing (with examples)
When you begin a digital marketing campaign you begin to take advantage of several digital maneuvers. This helps you get noticed by your current customers and target audience.
This allows them to begin to share your content, give reviews about your services, and spread all of the best parts of your business, customer service and more.
When customers begin to talk about your brand and leave reviews this starts the wonderful journey of creating social proof about your business. This increases your reputation with your customers and also with google. And once your reputation with google is certified they began to send you new visitors to your website like clockwork. For free!
What’s a digital marketer do?
A digital marketer will use free and paid digital channels to drive your business’s brand awareness, sales, other important company factors. The digital marketer focuses on specific key performance indicators for your company and then measures the performance over each marketing strategy used.
The Digital Marketing umbrella (examples)
When you begin your digital marketing campaign there are several ways you can choose to promote your services.
Some ideas are:
- Digital Advertising
- Email Marketing
- Online Brochures
- Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
- Content Marketing
- Social Media Marketing
- PPC (Pay Per Click)
- Affiliate Marketing
- Online PR
- Inbound Marketing
As we mentioned above these are just subsections of the larger umbrella that is digital marketing and can be used as a single strategy or combined to make your strategy completely unique to your business.
Content marketers can create a series of blog posts that drive traffic to your site, based on a new digital product your brand created. Email marketing can be used for a specific target audience on your email list that will be personalized to them. Those are just a few examples.
With search engine optimization, your website uses keywords that tell Google your content is for a specific type of inquiry a user is performing. This then puts your specific service, website or blog on a search engine results page for the user to see.
Where should you begin?
I know, a whole new world of possibilities has been opened up for you. And with that opportunity can also come a feeling of overwhelm. Because you may not know where to begin. That is normal, and the best way to address this to do some more research.
Try and ask yourself what your business goals are and what digital marketing strategy you can use to maximize your reputation, growth and customer retention.
Wrapping up
Digital marketing has forever changed the business world. Businesses can no longer just depend on traditional ways to generate leads and new customers. The statistics clearly show more and more people are using the internet to shop, to surf the web and to review products and companies to gain confidence in the brand.
The time to act is now. If you fail to pay attention to the shift in the business paradigm you may be left behind.
A great digital marketing agency will have a clear marketing campaign that will guide you from step 1 through every step thereafter until you have reached your goals and also guides you if those goals need to be adjusted. Portside Marketing has 35 years of experience and understands brand development.