A Guide to Digital Marketing
With the world on the internet, it is no surprise that digital marketing has eclipsed traditional marketing in recent years – with the pandemic supercharging the transition. This emphasis on online marketing shows no signs of abating: a January 2022 survey of marketing leaders at UK businesses found that digital marketing spending was expected to increase by as much as 28% in the next 12 months as compared to the year before. Digital marketing now accounts for 72% of marketing budgets in the UK.
Digital marketing refers to all marketing activity that takes place online – from blog posts and videos to email campaigns and SEO – while traditional marketing covers all offline activities such as print advertisements, tv and radio ads, billboards and direct mail.
During the third quarter of 2021, internet users in the UK spent an average of 372 minutes per day (6.2 hours) accessing the internet via any device, with 108 of those minutes on social media, giving digital marketing the distinct advantage of meeting people where they are.
Digital marketing offers several other benefits over traditional marketing. It is versatile – providing instant communications and real time results, while allowing video, banners, and text in many sizes. When employed effectively, it can be cost efficient by allowing the marketer to target their audience, control costs, measure results and optimise performance throughout the duration of a campaign.
This is not to say that traditional marketing does not still have its place, because it does. Offline marketing still can be effective, cutting through the constant barrage of online advertising. Together online and offline marketing, with a robust marketing plan and healthy budget, can make a powerful statement. However, digital marketing is now the standard and will continue to be in our digital era.
Digital marketing demands not only creative input, but technical know-how, as there are many software programs and platforms to choose from and master – whether it is Sprout Social or Hubspot for social media management; Shopify or Square for your ecommerce site; or Google display ad requirements; Facebook, TikTok, or LinkedIn for social media outreach; or Google Analytics for data crunching.
Digital Marketing is continually evolving, with every update to a social platform bringing a new learning curve. To remain competitive, digital marketers have to stay abreast of the changes and understand the software and rules of engagement. Fortunately, there is plenty of free help online, including this website. Like every multi-level task, it is best to take it one step at a time.
Digital Marketing Channels
Every digital marketing plan should consider these seven main types of digital marketing – or ‘channels’ as they are often called. Not every digital marketing strategy will include them all, but every digital marketer should be familiar with each.
Search Engine Optimisation (SEO). SEO is arguably the most important aspect of digital marketing to master. It helps to determine how your page will rank in search engines results pages (SERPs), which in turn impacts how many people will organically find your website. When was the last time you went past the first two pages of a search to find what you are looking for – or even the first page? With the deliberate use of an SEO strategy including targeted content and link building, SEO can push your website higher in the rankings for the keywords that are important to your customers and business.
Content Marketing. Content marketing is information that markets your business in written, audible or visual form, which covers a lot of communications from blog posts, articles and white papers to case studies, podcasts and videos. According to HubSpot, content marketing is 13x more likely to generate a positive ROI than other marketing tactics, so learning how to do it effectively by keeping keywords and your audience as your north star is important. Content marketing is the foundation of a solid SEO plan.
Pay-Per-Click (PPC). PPC is a model of internet advertising in which businesses pay a fee each time one of their ads is clicked. It is a way of buying visits to your site rather than earning those visits organically.
Search engine advertising is one of the most popular forms of PPC and, not surprisingly, Google Ads is the most popular PPC advertising system in the world. Google Ads operates on a pay-per-click model in which users bid on keywords and pay for each click on their ads. The more popular the term, the more expensive it is.
It is also possible to employ PPC on social media sites such as Facebook, LinkedIn and TikTok.
Social Media Marketing (SMM). Social media marketing is the process of creating content for social media platforms to promote your business’ products or services, engage with customers, build community with your target audience, and drive traffic to your business. Social media strategies differ based on which social networks your audience interacts with, as each site has a different audience and tone. For instance, B2Bs most often use LinkedIn and Twitter to connect with their target audience, while B2Cs engage more on Facebook, Instagram or TikTok.
To learn more about social media marketing, this blog post Social Media Marketing: The Ultimate Guide, by Hubspot is a good starting point. It also offers a free content template (although you will have to register first).
Email Marketing. Email marketing is a type of direct marketing that uses personalised emails to communicate with current and potential customers on your email list to inform them about new products, discounts, and services. It also can be used as a softer sell to educate your audience on the value of your brand and keep them engaged between purchases.
Email marketing is one of the most straightforward and effective means to connect to your customer. Across all industries, the average email open rate is estimated to be 30.35%, the click-through rate 1.11% and the bounce rate 9.96% (Constant Contact). Email newsletters are the most used form of content marketing by B2B marketers (81%); 64% of small businesses use email marketing to reach customers.
Here are two videos that can help you begin an email strategy: The first, ‘How to Master Email Marketing‘ by Hubspot breaks email marketing down into three digestible steps. The second is a 2-hour course, entitled ‘Email Marketing Tutorial for Beginners‘ by SimpliLearn that offers a more comprehensive dive into the subject.
Affiliate Marketing. Affiliate marketing is an advertising model used by companies that contract a third-party to generate traffic or leads to the company’s products or services. In most cases, the affiliate – most often an influencer – will earn a commission from the clicks or sales they generate from their promotions. Working with influencers can help build brand awareness, create more authentic ad content, and generate high-quality leads, clicks or sales. If you avoid the Ronaldos and Kardashians, affiliate marketing can be a low-cost and effective way of advertising products.
However, an effective affiliate marketing program requires some forethought. The terms and conditions should be clearly spelled out, especially if the contract pays for traffic rather than sales, and companies should carefully vet potential partners for any reputational risk.
Get started
Digital Marketing is a necessary business investment in today’s digital world. There are people online right now who would like to know about your business. To begin, you don’t have to be an expert and you don’t have to spend a lot of money to generate interest in your website and business, but you will have to learn the basics and create a considered strategy to be competitive. You have all the tools you need to get started on your computer and software has become more user friendly. Fortunately, there is a wealth of free advice and resources online to help you.