Which is the best way of digital marketing?

venkatesh A
Nov 2 · 4 min read

Let’s list the different ways you can use the digital medium to popularize and drive conversions for your startup or business.

1. Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

In layman’s terms, Search Engine Optimization or SEO is basically alteration your website so that it comes up naturally for search results in Google, Yahoo Bing or any other search engine.

Google updates its algorithms frequently so that only the relevant results come up. From that perspective, many experts say that SEO is dead and the effort is futile. However, the truth is that Google tries to prevent algorithm manipulation and filters sites that don’t deserve to be on the top of SERPs.

So there is no doubt you should invest in SEO work. Your website should address the technicalities related to content and query matching, spidering, indexing, and interpreting non-text conte

2. Search Engine Marketing (SEM)

Search Engine Marketing or SEM is the comprehensive strategy to drive traffic to your business, primarily through paid efforts. Hence it is also called Paid Search Marketing.

The universe of SEM is diverse and complicated.Based on your business structure, you may choose PPC (pay-per-click) or CPC (cost-per-click) model, or CPM (cost-per-thousand impressions) model.

There are different platforms for SEM. By far, Google AdWords (on Google Network) and Bing Ads (on Yahoo Bing Network) are the most popular.

SEM also includes Display Advertising, Search Retargeting & Site Remarketing, Mobile Marketing and Paid Social Advertising.

3. Content Creation

Research shows that content creation is a definitive method of marketing. All recent changes to Google’s algorithm — be it Panda, Penguin or Hummingbird — point to the fact that content is the most important metric while filtering search results

. Content can be presented in different formats, including blogs, white papers, e-books, case studies, how-to guides, question and answer articles, forums, news and updates, images, banners, infographics, podcasts, webinars, videos, or content for microblogging and social media sites.

4. Social Media Marketing (SMM)

Social Media Marketing or SMM is an offshoot of your SEM efforts. It involves driving traffic to your sites or business through social sites like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, Google+, Linkedin, etc.

As we mentioned above, good content is shared and liked.So create and customize content for different social media platforms. Remember to be prolific and original; you need to engage with users on a daily basis, at least four to five times a day. Your SMM efforts can be especially helpful for branding and driving sales.

5. Digital Display Advertising

This again is a subset of your SEM efforts. You may use a variety of display advertising formats to target potential audience — be it text, image, banner, rich-media, interactive or video ads.

You can customise your message based on interests, content topics, or the position of the customer in the buying cycle.

However, note that Digital Display Advertising is relatively costly. You need experts to drive good ROI for your business.

6. Retargeting and Remarketing

Essentially, Retargeting or Remarketing is a strategy to target customers who have already visited your website. It is based on cookie technology.

Retargeting has emerged as a preferred strategy as you target customers who have already shown interest in your business; and hence the conversion rate is high.

You may engage in Retargeting on your site, or on social network or on the mobile. Visualise your strategies based on the customers’ buying cycle.

7. Mobile Marketing

We strongly recommend you try out Mobile Marketing. Remember, the website, apps and content should be customized for mobile devices.

By 2019, mobile devices are expected to reach 3.6 billion units worldwide. So as more people use smartphones, tablets and other mobile devices, the potential of mobile market continues to grow.

8. Interactive Marketing

Make sure your advertising strategy engages the potential customer in a conversation. According to a survey by ExpoTV.com, 55 percent respondents preferred to have ongoing communications with the companies they buy from; and 89 percent felt more loyal to the companies if they were invited to provide feedback.

Use tools like widgets and opt-in features to make your website interactive, solicit feedback and track user behaviour.

Engage with the customers actively and customize offers based on their preferences and browsing activities.

9. Viral Marketing

Viral Marketing is a strategy where a unique content spreads exponentially online, because the content is appreciated, shared and liked immensely.

This is a great way to brand and drive traffic to your website. The content can take any format; all you need is to be creative.

10. Email Marketing

When you send a commercial message through email to a list of potential customers, the strategy is called Email Marketing.

With an effective email marketing software, you can maintain email lists that are segregated based on several factors, including customers’ likes and dislikes, and spending habits. Remember to send personalized emails; this helps to develop trust.

However, note that Email Marketing may also be considered as spamming and there are laws against it in some countries.

Conclusion

It is important that you use different marketing strategies for your business and then find out which work best. In most cases, it is the combination of many strategies that will serve your objectives.

Digital Marketing is a dynamic medium and you should always be adapting to the changes.Use a Web Analytics tool to track performance and plan your next move.

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