To succeed, businesses must find effective ways to spread the word about their products
and services and that’s never been more challenging than today. Consumers face more choices from
more providers, all clamoring for their attention. Deploying compelling content on digital marketing
platforms is one way to stand out from the crowd.
Another reason digital marketing is so important to businesses is simply this: it’s where your ideal
customer is hanging out. According to the research experts at Statista, as of 2023, there are 5.19
billion internet users and 4.88 social media users worldwide. On average, internet users spend six
hours and 40 minutes online every day.
This enormous, highly engaged online audience presents tremendous opportunities for businesses that
want to gain visibility for their goods and services. Digital marketing offers near-endless
opportunities for connecting with potential customers and is a vital component of nearly every
business’s marketing mix.
Creating a solid digital marketing strategy for your business begins with a better understanding of the types of digital marketing methods that yield the best returns. Below, we introduce you to six types of digital marketing: social media marketing, search engine marketing (SEO), pay-per-click (PPC) advertising, email marketing, mobile marketing and content marketing.
Social Media Marketing
Social media marketing is one of the most popular
forms of digital marketing. In the United States alone, over 308 million people access a social
network at least once per month. People of all ages use social media for entertainment, interacting
with others, gaining information about specific interests and shopping.
For businesses hoping to gain visibility and sales, social media statistics reveal that
incorporating social media into your marketing mix can be a sound strategy. Social media is the
go-to source for brand information for 78% of internet users. Nearly half of U.S. consumers report
they’ve made a purchase through social media.
Top social platforms include YouTube, Facebook, TikTok, Instagram, WhatsApp, Pinterest, LinkedIn,
Snapchat and X (formerly Twitter). New platforms, such as BeReal and Poparazzi, are entering the
market regularly.
The social landscape is ever-evolving. For example, Twitter, now X, was once a top platform, but the
social channel now appears to be struggling. Twitter has lost approximately 32 million users since
Elon Musk purchased the platform in 2022. TikTok didn’t even come on the international scene until
2017, but now has more than 1.7 billion monthly active users. Digital marketers need to remain
attentive to social media channel changes.
SEO
Search engine optimization (SEO) is a vital digital marketing strategy for businesses
that benefit from driving traffic to their websites. SEO is the process of optimizing your website
so search engines, such as Google rank your website high on search engine results pages (SERPs).
SEO is all about driving organic traffic to your site. Unlike paid advertising, with SEO, visitors
who find your site come from unpaid searches. Approximately 8.5 billion searches are done on Google
daily, which presents a lot of opportunities for businesses that want to promote their product and
services. Ranking high on Google is key to driving more traffic to your website.
In a survey conducted by Search Engine Journal, 49% of respondents reported that SEO delivers the
highest return on investment (ROI) of any digital marketing channel. You can get started with SEO on
your own for free by learning more about Google Ranking Factors or with the help of top SEO tools
and software. You can also work with an SEO service or agency to create an SEO plan and manage your
SEO for you.
PPC Advertising
PPC advertising is precisely what the name implies: you pay a fee every time someone
clicks on your digital ads. The amount you’ll pay is determined by the platform you’re advertising
on, the potential traffic for your promoted post and the number of competitors willing to pay for
similar ads.
Google Ads is the largest PPC platform in the world. Many businesses who engage in SEO marketing
also engage in PPC advertising on Google. Paid ads on Google appear above organic search results and
that positioning advantage can drive even more traffic to your website.
Google Ads is not your only avenue for PPC advertising. You can also purchase PPC ads via the
Microsoft Search Network on Bing and partner sites as well as on top social channels, including
YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, LinkedIn, Amazon and TikTok.
Email Marketing
Email marketing is another top digital marketing strategy you’ll likely want to add to
your marketing mix. According to Statista, businesses earn an average of at least $32 for every
dollar spent on email marketing. For some sectors, such as retail, e-commerce and consumer goods,
that number is $45.
To be effective at email marketing, you must develop a strategy for collecting email addresses from
clients and prospects. Many businesses collect emails with every customer encounter, sometimes
offering a special incentive for joining an email list. Your business website is also a terrific
place to offer incentives to visitors so you can grow your email database.
Growing and nurturing your email list is vital to successful email marketing. You also must respect
the communication preferences of your list and only send relevant information that your base wants
to receive. Also, failing to manage the legal aspects of email marketing, including staying
compliant with CAN/SPAM Act mandates, is paramount for email marketing success.
Rather than managing business email manually, most marketers acquire email marketing software. The
best email marketing software makes it effortless to keep your email database updated, handling new
subscribers and unsubscribes for you.
Your email software should also make it easy to segment your email database based on customer
interests, create attractive email designs, manage email scheduling and measure email metrics,
including open rates, click-through rates (CTR), conversion rates and bounce rates.
Mobile Marketing
There are more than 310 million smartphone users in the U.S. alone, so it should be no
surprise that mobile marketing has become a popular digital marketing strategy for businesses.
Mobile marketing typically is conducted via text, also called short message service (SMS). Text open
rates are estimated to be as high as 98%, which is one reason mobile marketing can be so effective.
While text messaging is the most common way to market via mobile devices, notifications from mobile
apps and social channels can also be received on smartphones. The business applications for mobile
marketing are expanding every day.
Content Marketing
Every form of digital marketing relies on compelling content to attract interest and
engage prospects and customers. Content marketing is the term used to describe the different types
of content you can develop to deploy in your digital marketing campaigns.
Content marketing can take many forms, including blogs, infographics, whitepapers, ebooks, videos,
podcasts, quizzes, slide decks and webinars. Unlike advertising, content marketing is not blatantly
promotional but instead employs more subtle tactics to inform, educate or influence a desired target
market.
You can use content marketing to establish authority on particular subjects or create buzz for your
brand. One of the key advantages of content marketing is that you can do it on virtually any budget.
A do-it-yourself (DIY) approach to content marketing will cost you mere pennies or, if your budget
allows, you can work with copywriters, videographers, designers and other content development
experts to create content for your business.
Trade shows
Trade shows are event types that cover an industry or theme
rather than a single company.
They can be small or huge and have a few guests or hundreds of thousands. They will feature
exhibitions, displays, showcases, speakers and perhaps entertainment.
Trade shows will also be held in convention centres or conference halls. They don’t work quite so
well virtually.
Seminars
The planning and execution of seminars is a lot like the
conference. Only this time, it’s
more about learning, training and imparting information. They can have high attendance but are often
broken up into smaller groups for more effective training.
There can be a mixture of smaller groups for sessions and then everyone meeting up to socialise,
network and share ideas.
Seminars can be held anywhere depending on the size and scope. You would ideally need somewhere with
smaller areas or rooms for learning and larger spaces for socialising.
Company party
Company parties are one of the most diverse event types
you’ll work with. They can be small scale dinners all the way up to hiring an entire nightclub for a
corporate client.
Event planning might include an entire theme with performers, talent management and transport or
securing a restaurant and catering for an evening. There are also a range of unique, purpose-built
venues around the country that specialise in this type of event.
Exhibitions
Exhibitions are a common type of event you’ll likely work
with. Whether it’s an industry exhibition, art, sculpture, national exhibition or something else,
they are a unique event with unique challenges.
Venues can include galleries, shopping centres, conference centres, train stations, bus shelters and
schools. The spaces we use for exhibitions are as varied as the type!
Choosing our digital marketing service means accessing expertise, saving time and costs, and achieving measurable results. We stay updated with the latest trends to ensure adaptability and success for your online presence.