Digital marketing can be described as a body that carries a variety of marketing tactics and technologies used to reach consumers online. As an online marketing strategy, digital marketing allows firms and organizations to establish an online identity and connect with their customers/ audience far and wide without physically meeting them.
Digital marketing generally has four (4) broad types, which are:
- Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
- Pay-Per-Click (PPC)
- Social Media Marketing (SMM)
- E-mail Marketing
Subtypes of Digital Marketing
- Content Marketing
- Affiliate Marketing
- Mobile Marketing
Digital Marketing is a new world development that borrows from traditional marketing. In a nutshell, digital marketing is mostly like conventional marketing only; it is done entirely on the internet, and it is more convenient for both the marketer and the consumers. There is also an absence of immediate feedback in most cases, and unlike traditional marketing, digital marketing uses tools like Google Analytics to track progress.
Branches of Digital Marketing
Search Engine Optimization – S.E.O.
Search engine optimization, or S.E.O, is the most popular and most technical branch of Digital Marketing. S.E.O, in simple terms, can be referred to as all the efforts made towards improving the appearance of web pages on the google search engine.
SEO ranges from creating websites to helping them rank higher organically on google to maintaining and even auditing and optimizing them. SEO has several tools that make optimizations easy and doable. An SEO specialist earns an estimated 70,058 USD on Salary.com(link to Salary.com).
Types of S.E.O
ON-Page S.E.O.
OFF-Page S.E.O.
Technical S.E.O.
Pay-Per-Click – P.P.C.
Pay-Per-Click is another type of Digital Marking that deals exclusively with internet ads. It is centered around google ads that are not paid for until a consumer clicks on them and goes to the ads’ website hence the name “PAY PER CLICK”. The ads are strategically placed on platforms where they can easily reach the right audience.
These are some of the terms associated with pay-per-click;
C.P.C. ( Cost Per Click)
C.P.M. (Cost Per Mille)
C.P.C: Cost Per Click is the payment made by the web owner. The cost depends on the competition or ranking of the space you intend to place your ad. In the U.S.A., the price ranges from 00.03-50 USD per click.
C.P.M.: Cost Per Mille. Mille is the Latin word for thousand; this means cost per thousand impressions. It is a collective payment method where the ad’s creator makes a cost biding that will be taken after a certain number of visitors click on the page. So instead of paying every time the ad gets a click, you pay every time the ad gets 100 clicks, for instance.
The creator of the pay-per-click campaign can choose whether the ad or promotion will be shown to users worldwide or only within a specific geographic area. P.P.C. segmentation can also be based on a particular category of people, and even based on mobile devices used in browsing.
Social Media Marketing – S.M.M.
SMM refers to all coordinated efforts a business makes on social. Coordination and consistency are essential in social media management because social media managers must approach the process strategically. Several tools are available to help with automation and scheduling.
However, using these tools as guidelines is advisable. A social media marketer should avoid dumping content on users as users quickly know if there isn’t a natural person handling the post. A social media analyst with a Bachelor’s degree can earn up to 68,230 USD, according to salary.com.
Content Marketing
Content marketing is generally about building a sustainable, trusting relationship with an audience, potentially leading to sales over time. It employs an information-sharing and storytelling approach to increase brand awareness that appeals to the audience and makes them take specific actions. These actions as requesting more information, signing up for an email list, etc., towards becoming a customer or making a purchase over time.
Content in content marketing could mean blog posts, resources like white papers and e-books, digital videos, podcasts, etc. When creating content for content marketing, it is worth knowing that the content should be geared toward helping your audience or solving a problem rather than just trying to sell to them.
Email Marketing
Despite the advent of social media, email marketing is still one of the most effective marketing techniques. Email marketing is close to content marketing as most email campaigns are proffered solutions to problems or insights on how the sender company can help solve an already identified problem.
An email marketing campaign should not only be compelling but should also understand optimal audience outreach. According to the American Marketing Association, email marketing campaign writers are skilled at analyzing customer interactions and data and making strategic decisions based on that data. In addition, email marketing is made easier with several tools.
A great email campaign should have the following qualities;
- It should create a Sense of Urgency. The campaign should explicitly communicate that the receiver has a limited time to take action or make a decision while clearly stating your desired action.
- Personalize Your Email by referring to them by their first names and using personal pronouns like You, Your, etc.
- Your email should contain a link to sites where actions can be taken.
Mobile Marketing
This type of digital marketing is focused on reaching your target audience on their mobile phones or tablet. With the use of text messages, social media, websites, emails, and mobile applications. In addition, mobile marketers can channel-specific content to different geographic locations posted at specific times.
Affiliate Marketing
Affiliate marketing is a type that bridges the gap between an organization and its audience. This is done through the use of the ever-growing popularity of industry experts and social media influencers.
A company hires an affiliate marketer to find consumers that are interested in the company’s products. The affiliate marketer tells the consumer all about the product, the benefits of having the product, and the consequences of not using the product. On most occasions, the affiliate marketer shows the results of other people who have partaken in the product.
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