The 7 - Types of Online Digital Marketing
The digital marketing is classified into Online and Offline platforms. While, offline marketing involves platforms like radio, television and phone advertising, online marketing has following 7 platforms:
- Search engine optimization (SEO)
- Search engine marketing (SEM)
- Pay-per-click advertising (PPC)
- Content marketing
- Social Media Marketing (SMM)
- Affiliate marketing
- Email marketing
SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION
You open your browser and search for your company name or school name or just your name. What you get on first few top links may or may not be what you are looking for. It’s here where SEO comes into picture.
The acronym SEO stands for “Search Engine Optimization”. It is the “process of getting traffic from the free, organic, editorial or natural search results on search engines.” Or in other words, to bring your webpage or other content material like images or videos to the top most page for more visibility and access.
This can be achieved by understanding how the biggie search engines like Google, Yahoo or Bing rank the websites. Its good idea to outsource your SEO task with experts who keep updated with latest ranking patterns and write algorithms to increase your website ranking.
SEARCH ENGINE MARKETING (SEM) & PAY-PER-CLICK ADVERTISING (PPC)
You would’ve certainly encountered several ads while playing a game or shopping online. You might click the ad that interests you while skip rest. Next time, you’re more or less displayed similar ads.
This is SEM or Search Engine Marketing. It is a process of gaining website traffic by purchasing ads on search engines. It also lets you focus on customers you target by posting ads on webpages you expect them to be browsing.
This is a paid process as cash flow is involved. Search engine owners like Google Adwords or Bing Ads charge the client based on PPC(Pay-per-click), while the client gets its targeted customer with marginal investment option.
CONTENT MARKETING
Hoardings. Brochures. Websites. Blogs. Content platforms.
Content marketing is the most promising one as it has always shown positive results. It is future of the digital marketing. It is a strategic marketing approach focused on creating and distributing valuable, relevant, and consistent content to attract and retain a clearly-defined audience — and, ultimately, to drive profitable customer action.
The main reason why content marketing works well is because it caters its reach to all the other types of online digital marketing, that is, SEO, PR, PPC, inbound marketing. Here’s how its related.
Social media marketing: Content marketing strategy comes before your social media strategy.
SEO: Search engines reward businesses that publish quality, consistent content. As an add on points for ranking.
PR: Successful PR strategies address issues readers care about, not their business.
PPC: For PPC to work, you need great content behind it. Whether you have an in-house Google Ads and Adwords expert, a PPC consultant can always help you accelerate growth with results-oriented digital marketing campaigns.
Inbound marketing: Content is key to driving inbound traffic and leads.
The approach in content marketing is not to just sell but communicate. MOreover, to educate consumers and buyers with sound information, which in turn builds trust based stronger bonds bringing more business and customer loyalty.
SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING (SMM)
Facebook. Instagram. Twitter….and the list goes on. You would’ve seen your next street local bakery creating hype on media by updating posts in different forms over different platforms. Yes this is Social Media Marketing (SMM).
Social media marketing is a great way for businesses to fulfill their objectives in terms of building brand equity, improving customer service, reaching new customers and collecting customer feedback. If companies can create social media content that provides value to others, they can connect with customers in a profitable way.
AFFILIATE MARKETING
Any exhibition you go around has got huge hoardings, standees. You might’ve also encountered bill boards on cycles or trucks. This is affiliate marketing.
Affiliate marketing is the process of promoting somebody’s product or company. The person whose product or company is marketed pays for coming in notice. Thus, opening little earning opportunity for people taking the initiative to market others.
EMAIL MARKETING
You are always notified via emails for shopping deals from your favorite e-shopping platforms. Also you get emails from various investment plans based on your profession or assets. This is Email Marketing.
Email marketing is one of the oldest methods for one-to-one customer dealing approach. You know your loyal customers and you drive them to your website.
With tools like SendinBlue, you can provide updates, exciting news, reminders, etc. to your customers in a matter of minutes. At the same time, you can use mails to circulate printable newsletters, direct mail pieces or even flyers. You can customize as per your professional needs to represent your business.
To conclude, people want brands they can trust, companies that know them, communications that are personalized and relevant, and offers tailored to their needs and preferences. Digital marketing is the method in which you can provide it.
