What Is Digital Marketing, And How Does It Differ From Traditional Marketing Methods?
The big difference between traditional and digital marketing is how a brand or business delivers its message. While both of these marketing techniques are effective, digital marketing is now the go-to approach for most brands and businesses.
Digital Marketing
Digital marketing uses channels such as social media and websites for marketing communication. Here are some types of digital marketing:
· Affiliate Marketing
· Pay-per-Click (PPC)
· Content Marketing
· Email Marketing
· Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)
· Influencer Marketing
· Marketing Analytics
· Social Media Marketing
· Mobile Marketing
· Video Marketing
Traditional Marketing
Traditional marketing doesn’t mean it’s an old-fashioned marketing technique. It still plays an active role in launching a brand in local and global markets. Traditional marketing involves mediums like newspapers, magazines, billboards, etc.
Here are some examples of traditional marketing channels:
· Broadcasting (Radio, TV, etc.)
· Direct Mail (catalogues, etc.)
· Outdoor (Posters, Billboards, etc.)
· Print (newspapers, magazines, etc.)
· Telemarketing (text message, phone)
· Window signs and display
Digital Marketing Vs. Traditional Marketing
So, what are the advantages of using digital marketing? Well, traditional marketing reaches a wide audience. However, digital marketing is more targeted and therefore affordable. Statistics estimate that there are more than five billion internet users worldwide – that’s a lot of potential people you can target for online marketing.
You can also track data with digital marketing which is difficult to do with traditional marketing methods. With digital marketing, you can track things like website traffic, conversion rates, and ROI. This data helps you to see what’s working and what’s not, so you can make necessary changes to your digital marketing strategy.
However, changing digital marketing trends and new technologies can cause marketing techniques to change frequently. So, marketers must stay up to date with the most recent tactics. With such a large variety of ways to reach such a broad audience, businesses need to consider their budget and specific target audience when choosing which digital marketing channel to use.
Traditional Marketing vs Digital Marketing
Traditional marketing techniques connect businesses with their more local audiences. Newspapers, local TV commercials, and billboards are some of the most critical conventional marketing strategies to engage with the local community.
One benefit of using traditional marketing is that it builds credibility. Customers are more likely to trust a brand when they see something tangible rather than just an online advertisement that anyone can post.
But like digital marketing, conventional marketing has its drawbacks. For example, businesses would have to pay every time they carried out traditional marketing campaigns through a booklet, flier, TV ad, or newspaper. And the cost of this (labour, material, distribution etc.), can be quite high.
The general public, especially the younger generation, is losing interest in traditional media as they pay little attention to newspaper ads or billboards compared to the older generation. Some argue that traditional advertising is slowly dying because consumers now want to see a brand online before purchasing its products.
Digital Marketing In 2022 And Beyond
The Covid-19 pandemic was the turning point for digital marketing as all businesses, both physical and online, relied on it heavily to sell their products/services. When physical businesses were forced to shut down temporarily, the pressure to go digital/online was bigger than ever. And the pressure has not stopped since then.
Digital marketing will continue to grow in popularity and importance in the coming years as more businesses move online and as consumers increasingly use the internet to research products and services. Marketers now have a bigger chance than ever before to connect with their target customers through these digital channels.
So, can digital marketing replace traditional marketing? Whilst traditional marketing strategies are still important, businesses should to start investing more in digital marketing if they want to stay ahead of the competition as new technologies develop. We recommend new businesses start digital thanks to its low-cost barrier to entry and how easy it is to get started.
Digital marketing is here to stay and will only become more important in the years to come, so make sure you are ahead of the curve in your marketing efforts!
