The world has completely changed as we knew it. Today, communication transcends geographical boundaries – and with ease. Dropping your NRI friend a text is as straightforward as meeting a friend who lives two blocks away. This sans-trouble inter-connectivity has opened the gates for an entirely different approach to marketing.
Organizations far and wide are realizing the various importance of marketing over the digital channels as compared to the conventional techniques of marketing. If you, too, have realized that you indeed need to let go of traditional ways and jump the ship of Digital Marketing, let’s tell you that there are various online courses and digital marketing certifications. These courses will not only arm you with the required knowledge to stand out from your competitors but also increase your credibility manifolds.
Another reason for the sudden surge of marketers opting for digital modes of marketing is the fact Big Data has helped them collect a LOT of information on their customers and competitors alike. As Sherlock Holmes puts it, “First comes data, then theories.”. Today, organizations have more data than they can handle – which is both a boon and a bane. However, regarding marketing, it’s more boon than a bane, as marketing follows a simple rule – the more, the merrier.
Organizations that can build upon this data by efficiently theorizing are the ones who are the torch-bearers of marketing for this generation. There’s an extremely thin line between a digital marketing plan and a successful digital marketing strategy, and we’re sure you want to be on that side of the line. For that and more, let’s look at five steps you can take to make sure you’re on the other side:
1. Realize your USP and pitch that
The first step towards making sure you stand out is realizing what you’re selling and how’s that going to help the people you’re targeting? Form a strategy around your USP and make that count by spreading it far and wide.
While strategizing, you should make utterly sure of pitching not only the product but also the uniqueness of it. Why should your prospects care?
One of the best ways of doing this is by focusing precisely on what your customers need, and then making them realize that your product will indeed fill that gap in their lives (no pun intended). Focus on the pain points of your prospects and strategize a campaign to tackle precisely those points.
There are numerous digital marketing channels like content marketing, SEO, social media marketing, and many others. Using either of these, you can quickly spread the word about your product and your organization. Keeping track of this will help you make sure that the word is heard!
2. Consistency is the key
Consistency is something that’s often overlooked, but utterly crucial for any company to make their campaigns count. By consistency we don’t mean just the color scheme and fonts in all of your marketing collaterals — that is by far the most important — but also things like the tonality of your content, consistency in your designs regarding images/vectors used, and other things of this nature.
The moment you think about Facebook, you’re reminded of their brand color – it just flashes in front of your eyes, almost impulsively. (The color is #3B5998, just by the way). Why is that so? Because Facebook has consistently branded and rebranded using the same color – across everything you see.
Consistency can help your customers connect better with your company. The digital marketing channels are built to make your voice heard by your customers as well as competitors. You just need to make sure that the voice is consistent. Otherwise, in today’s world, it’s easy to dismiss a campaign as a mere scam.
3. Use Data to shape your decisions
While dealing with data, you need to put on the Holmes cap and grab a pipe while you’re at it. Connect the dots of your data and see where the path leads you. More often than not, just by connecting these dots you’ll get more profound insights into your customers and competitors.
These insights will eventually help you strategize better marketing campaigns and deliver more accurate results. Did you know that nearly 40% of the average company’s marketing budget is wasted? This can be attributed mainly to the fact that marketers don’t know how to communicate with their data, which leads to a significant lack of analytics while strategizing a marketing plan.
Thoroughly analyzing the campaign data you collect will help you learn:
- Areas of success and failure of your current marketing approach
- Reactions of customers towards your products and your brand
- Activities of competitors
- The pain points of your customers as well as prospects
- How to personalize user experience
There are various automated reporting platforms that help you track your marketing activities in a much more sophisticated manner.
4. Be proactive on social media
While it’s important to be active in print, television, radio, and other platforms while marketing yourself, it’s also imperative to connect with your customers through social media. With the influx of internet-connected-devices, social media is completely taking over the marketing world.
Social media provides a clear channel for you to communicate with your customers and prospects. Being proactive on social media is sure to fetch you more reach and garner more engagement. Take the example of Wendy’s – the famous burger joint gained 300,000+ followers just by roasting their customers. Now, we don’t suggest you go all guns blazing at your customers – understand your need and speak in a voice that suits your customers.
Digital marketing is the way forward, and following these four steps will ensure that your path is paved well.