The Covid-19 pandemic didn’t just affect the world economies, it also affected the digital world. In the last quarter of 2020 alone, the share of digital marketing in total marketing expenditure increased by almost 50%. Additionally, marketing managers expect that budget allocations for digital marketing will rise by 23% in 2021.
With the return of a more digital-friendly economy, brands must now reevaluate the way they engage with consumers. More importantly, given the risks associated with Covid-19, marketers must be agile and innovative in terms of their marketing strategies.
Key Takeaways
This pandemic undoubtedly changed the way we will see digital marketing in the future. Here are some of the key takeaways from the past few months.
- The growth of digital marketing is due to the fact that individuals and businesses are now locked away from one another, leading to a more digital-friendly environment.
- The shift to digital marketing is also attributed to the fact that older individuals are now more digitally active than before, especially regarding their social media use.
- However, given the risks associated with Covid-19, marketers must now be more selective with regards to which channels they use.
- The most effective form of marketing during this time is digital share marketing. This strategy involves gaining the trust of consumers through valuable content and encouraging them to share that content with others.
- This mode of marketing is highly targeted, as you’re concentrating on a specific group of individuals who are more inclined to trust you and your content
Why Online Share Marketing?
Thanks to social media platforms like Facebook, people are now more likely to discover content that is valuable to them. Essentially, marketers can use this discovery process to their advantage, as individuals are now more exposed to their brand than ever before.
This is where online share marketing steps in. By creating content that is valuable and interesting to your target audience, you can encourage them to spread the word about your brand. Additionally, as individuals are now working from home, they have more time to spend online engaging with content.
This is why online share marketing is such a powerful tool. Not only does it allow you to engage with your target audience, it also allows you to track the effect your content has on brand awareness and sales. Essentially, with every piece of content you create, you’re either boosting or hurting your brand’s image among consumers. If your brand’s image drops, then it could indicate that your marketing efforts aren’t resonating with your target audience.
Best Practices
Now, with the advantages of online share marketing coming back into play, brands must start to adopt best practices. This entails creating content that is both interesting and informative to your target audience without any spelling errors or grammatical mistakes. Essentially, you want to establish yourself as an expert in your field while also showing your human side.
Additionally, given that this is a time of self-reflection and the desire to make changes, brands should also be considering a content audit. Why? Well, content audits help you identify any areas of weakness in your content and provide you with ideas on how to improve. Additionally, during times like these, brands can use content audits to establish themselves as thought leaders in their industry.
Another pillar of best practices is consistency. Since this is a time of self-reflection and change, brands must be mindful of how they communicate with their customers on a regular basis. This involves creating content that is both interesting and informative, as well as ensuring that all of your marketing materials reflect the same style and tone. Essentially, you want to establish yourself as a thought leader while also appealing to your target audience on a more personal level.
And last but not least, content creation and distribution should be a team effort. Since this is a collaborative world, the idea is to incorporate the efforts of as many people as possible. Additionally, having different viewpoints and experiences can lead to new insights and ideas. This is why having a multi-disciplinary team working on content is the best strategy.
Above all, given our current circumstances, it is safe to assume that digital marketing will continue to be effective and vital to a brand’s success. In fact, it’s the perfect time to be exploring and implementing online marketing strategies.