Print was king in the early days of marketing, as seen in the popular Mad Men series. Alas, things have changed drastically since those cigar-scented think tanks on Madison Avenue. In the Digital Age, modern marketers are relying on revolutionary methods of getting the message across at breakneck speed with unprecedented scalability, convenience, and globalized outreach.
And more often than not, marketers are implementing various tools on multi-platforms in appeasing digital natives who are constantly cycling through various digital platforms. Businesses are more likely to attract the attention of their target audience by familiarizing themselves with a large arsenal of digital marketing tools at their disposal.
Email marketing is a tool of choice for many small businesses. If you follow best practices, it can be very effective. Consumers prefer to be contacted via email because there isn't a sense of intrusion. Also, they usually opt-in for a campaign so they know exactly what to expect. Comparatively, social media campaigns may seem spammy - since they're constantly occupying space on the feeds.
The biggest problem with email marketing is its low click-through-rates (CTR), essentially its most crucial metric. CTR assesses the percentage of recipients who follow through on a call-to-action. For example, if you've blasted 100 emails and only 40 leads clicked on a link to your website, that translates to a 40% CTR. Don't confuse CTR with open-rates - a high open-rate doesn't signify the success of a campaign. What you want is for your audience to open the email, view it and check out what you're offering.
Your email subject line goes a long way, affecting overall CTR scores and even conversion rates. Keep those subject lines concise, engaging and actionable (contain a hook) to avoid recipients discounting your emails as spam.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) has remained a trending term in marketing over recent years. According to statistics, search engines account for over 93% of site traffic. Google alone processes a staggering trillion searches per year. This is a substantial source of opportunities for businesses. SEO is all about creating maximum website visibility with the best descriptions through consulting key trends and metrics (via programs such as Google analytics).
SEO is a competitive digital marketing technique with trends that change every day. Brands should constantly keep a lookout for creative ways to top their search results. Michigan Technological University suggested constant content updates on the website to maintain relevance and adding effective metadata that summarizes the contents of your page for improved user experience.
Perhaps one of the most effective marketing methods. SMM makes use of major social media sites such as Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and Twitter to promote a brand, receive feedback and increase site traffic. SMM is known for its deeply personalized approach that utilizes machine learning and A.I. technologies in seeking customized content for each customer.
Search engine marketing (SEM) functions similarly to SEO, by optimizing the visibility of websites. However, in SEM, this is achieved by optimizing online. SEM involves a paid element such as the placement pay-per-click (PPC) ads, which are conveniently integrated to search engines such as Bing ads or Google ads. The more times an ad is clicked, the higher the search result!
A performance-based marketing tool that works through successful brands and personalities. Passive income guru, Patt Flynn sums up the process on his website, "Affiliate marketing is the process of earning a commission by promoting other people’s (or company’s) products. You find a product you like, promote it to others and earn a piece of the profit for each sale that you make."
A variety of social media marketing that promotes brands and products through user accounts with high levels of traction and followings and connections. These accounts may belong to an online personality, thought-leading company or any other entity with a strong online presence. Influencer marketing functions similarly to the traditional style of celebrity-endorsed advertising, however, the process occurs entirely in the blogosphere or social media channels,
Influencer marketing is popular since it often features everyday heroes who have succeeded according to their own merit. Celebrities, on the other hand, may seem less popular due to their larger-than-life status and disconnection from the real world. As such, influencer marketing is often used in selling everyday products, ideas, and concepts that make them more accessible.
One of the oldest and most effective forms of digital marketing. Content marketing involves the creation, publication, and distribution of attractive site content that draws targeted audiences to a product, service or cause.
Traditionally created in written content through blogs and online articles, content marketing has seen a transformation through other mediums such as video marketing, which has been largely successful. Think about it, most social media platforms make use of video - from ephemeral content via Instagram Stories and Snapchat, to Facebook Videos. Customers are more likely to be receptive to marketing mediums that resonate with their leisure web surfing habits. In this case, we're seeing a rise in video-centric content.
As the term might suggest, viral marketing refers to a marketing strategy that spreads like wildfire. To succeed in this, businesses must understand the needs of their target demography before shaping up an approach. It is one of the most cost-effective modes of digital marketing since there isn't a need to purchase a media space or ads.
Viral marketing is achieved by making use of existing social media accounts to spread the word on a product or service, which results in a chain reaction that circulates around the world wide web, thereby generating public interests and lead conversions.
Eniture Technology specializes in helping e-Commerce merchants grow by providing useful information, digital marketing services, off-the-shelf apps that solve common problems, and custom programming services. Please contact us if you need help growing your online business or implementing the concepts presented in this blog post.
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