In 2020 and beyond, the importance of digital marketing for all kinds of business, big or small, can not be debated. The day of sidestepping digital marketing in an overall marketing strategy are gone.
Although the word digital marketing was first used in the 1990s, when the digital era started, you can still come across many decent sized businesses that are not really getting the most out of various digital marketing channels.
Focusing on just about every channel out there isn't really going to help you much. On the other hand, focusing on the right channel that's suitable for you can completely transform your business. It is no secret that marketers aim to get the highest ROI from their marketing spend. So which channels you should pay attention to?
In this post, you'll discover where to channel your effort and attention to make the most difference.
What’s a digital marketing channel?
Digital marketing includes all marketing activities that rely on the internet or any other electronic media. Businesses harness digital platforms to communicate with existing and potential clients using what we refer to as digital marketing channels. And these Digital marketing channels put your products and service in front of your target online audience.
Examples of digital marketing channels:
- Webinar events.
- SMS marketing.
- Social networks.
- Email marketing.
- Blogs.
- Websites.
- Social media ads.
- QR codes.
- RFID tags.
- Press releases.
- Near-Field Communications (NFC).
- In-store signage.
- PPC.
- SEO.
- Mobile ads.
- Online video.
- Apps.
- Microsites.
- TV Commercials.
- Point of sale displays.
- Radio ads.
- Affiliate marketing.
- Amazon storefront.
- Direct sales.
- Contests.
- Mobile advertising.
- Chatbots.
Why is it crucial to test new marketing channels?
The days of trusting your instincts and kicking off marketing campaigns are gone. For effective marketing, marketers should always evaluate, analyze, and adopt various digital marketing channels to achieve optimal sales.
Over time, ROI declines on well-worn networks as consumers become used to advertising and learn to ignore them conveniently. So marketers should turn to platforms where consumer lifetime value is at least three times the acquisition cost.
Based on forward-looking data and trends, brands and advertisers should explore new or specific platforms.
If you rely too heavily on one channel, you risk losing traffic in any unfortunate event. What do you do if you rely solely on SEO, and Google changes its algorithm or Facebook deleting an account which happened to be your primary source of traffic and sales.
Finding out product and channel fit is a question of balancing your marketing resources and consumer preferences. While deciding which new channels to choose, always adopt a ‘customer backward’ approach, which means selecting a platform based on where their preferences take them. Also, check before leaning in and keeping an eye on your measurements and testing.
With that being said, let us find out which digital marketing channels are known to give the max bang for your bucks.
What digital marketing channels you must focus on?
We suggest just three channels that we think give the best return on your marketing spends. Let us see what those three channels are.
Content Marketing
Consider content marketing like a 401 plan. It's one of the safest bets, yet continues to give excellent results to marketers. You get compounded interest as time goes by in the form of more traffic and conversions, making this even more indispensable. Your evergreen posts will offer SEO advantages for a very long time to come. People keep checking them out, and all of your content will also have invaluable relationship-building potential.
Users are just going to Google anyway. Your audience will always lookup on Google for more information they are interested in, so why not position yourself as the expert in that field? And if you think SEO is slow and you want quicker results, you can always advertise your products or services where you know people want them through search marketing.
Don't get us wrong. We are not saying you should spend all your time and efforts on SEO alone. It is not always the most significant channel, but it is one that you need to analyze.
What you should be initially looking at here is just some basic work on keywords. If you discover good quality keywords with high intent relevant for your business with a decent search volume, you should then go ahead and do some more comprehensive keyword analysis.
But what type of content should you create?
We suggest long-form blog posts.
People are fond of posting long-form social media posts. Doing so will lead to more visitors to your website. Plus, you get the obvious benefits of indirect SEO juice from social.
When you want to use the long-form content, you need to research thoroughly and create in-depth content.
For instance, some people write "complete guides" kind of long-form content. It usually has multiple sections with its own unique URL, which easy discovery and indexation by search engines.
Put your industry experience to use to create in-depth, well-researched, long-form content. Go through the content already available and try to come up with something even better with more data and information, and visuals and ultimately more valuable.
Social Media Marketing
Social media is another dynamic and ever-evolving common platform. What makes it one of our top digital channels is that it combines with marketing channels like email and SEO and helps companies create and grow a large following so that they will eventually become loyal customers.
Social networking, as famous brands have shown us, is an outstanding medium whose strength is regular interaction with customers. Using platforms like Facebook, Instagram or social media family's newest boy, Tik Tok(though it is getting a lot of heat from US & India lately) is the perfect way to advertise products, develop your brand identity and generate the most cost-effective "buzz" for your business.
Additionally, as a marketing tool, social media can give you exposure to a vast number of influencers and followers. Taking advantage of every opportunity that social media has to offer, you will create relationships with your fans, engage them more intimately, and provide superior customer support, and consequently give outstanding customer experience.
We suggest Quora.
Initially, we had gone with TikTok, but considering a slew of bans from major markets like India and the USA considering a ban, it no longer appears that effective. So, our pick is going to be Quora.
Quora is a Q&A forum where people ask and answer each other's questions. And it's a perfect place to drive traffic once you've learned to do it right. You'll share your knowledge with those who need it, adding related backlinks to your answers. If you are inclined towards running paid campaigns on Quora, you should definitely check it out. You can target specific questions, and the CPCs and CPMs are one of the lowest amongst all major ad networks like Google ads and FB ads.
Email Marketing
Email marketing remains one of the most respected networks with an impressive ROI. Email marketing is the only channel you own 100%. Social networking platforms or search engines can change their algorithm or terms of use any day, affecting your marketing results dramatically.
Email is ubiquitous for most, and at least once a day, a significant number of people still check their emails. When you precisely segment customers, predictive optimization could produce excellent sales performance. The consumer needs to feel like you're talking to them directly, and when they feel the connection, they'll pursue your offer and make the purchasing decision. However, following trends in copywriting and email strategy is crucial.
All you have to do is give them remarkable content that either inspires them to click on your CTAs and turn them into loyal promoters of your company.
As per one of the studies done by DMA, email ROI this year jumped from around $40 to $55. For every dollar spent in email marketing is getting you $55 back, and that's huge! Email is one of those tactics that every marketer should never afford to ignore.
