What Is The Difference Between Digital And Online Marketing | What's the Difference Between Digital and Online Marketing?

The buzzwords “digital marketing” and “online marketing” may be used interchangeably, but they’re not the same thing.

If you’re looking to grow your business using digital marketing, you’ll need to know the difference between the two. What’s the difference between marketing via social media and search engines, for example? What are the key differences between paid and organic ads?

Let’s dive in and explore the differences between digital and online marketing.

Key Differences

First things first, let’s establish some key differences between digital and online marketing.

One of the most important differences is that digital marketing is a more forward-thinking approach. Back in the day, people used print media to reach potential customers, and that was it. For the most part, businesses were reliant on paid ads and limited to one or two forms of marketing, be it SEO or social media.

Today, thanks to digital marketing, business can be more accessible to consumers. Thanks to the internet, marketing has shifted to a digital platform. Organic searches, social media, and email marketing have taken precedence over radio ads and billboards.

Another important difference between the two is that digital marketing is all about metrics. You’ll learn a lot about digital marketing and how to effectively use various platforms (i.e., blogs, social media, etc.) by taking a quantifiable approach to your marketing efforts.

The last, but not least, difference between digital and online marketing is the approach. While digital marketing takes a more strategic viewpoint, online marketing is a lot more organic. When marketing via the internet, you’ll have an abundance of choices regarding the platforms you can use to reach your audience. You can use social media to connect with existing customers, launch a blog to attract new audiences, or even re-purpose an existing website to work for your marketing purposes.

Pricing Structures

Another major difference between digital and online marketing is the pricing structures.

Paid ads on social media may seem like an effective way to draw in potential customers, but the price tag can add up quickly. If you’re looking for an economical alternative, you may want to consider using PPC (Pay-per-click), which stands for “pay per click”. With PPC ads, you only pay when someone clicks on your ad. This may be expensive initially, but it can help you avoid costly advertising mistakes. Some PPC platforms even allow you to set a budget and create ad campaigns based on those budgets. This can help you stay within your financial means and ensure that your ads are reaching the right audience.

Organic search marketing, which is essentially free, helps businesses gain a better understanding of what their customers are looking for. Because there’s no upfront cost to gain marketing traction with organic search, this approach is typically more affordable. However, you must be prepared to put in the work necessary to gain customers who are interested in your product or service.

Types Of Marketing

Now that we have a clear picture of the differences between digital and online marketing, let’s explore the various types of marketing that fall under this umbrella.

There’s no single definition of digital marketing, but generally speaking, it falls under the following categories.

In addition to the above, you may also want to consider using a lead generation tool, like HubSpot, to capture email addresses and gain a better understanding of your target audience. This platform can help you convert website traffic into leads and take the pain out of constant cold-email marketing.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO): Improving your site’s content and design to make it more relevant and useful to specific keywords and phrases. SEO is used to draw interested consumers to your site via organically generated search engine traffic.
Reputation Management (RMP): Responding to negative comments and addressing the issues that arise from them. Managing your company’s online reputation is more important than ever, as people judge you and your business solely based on the information they find online. Managing your online reputation means taking the time to monitor and respond to all mentions of your company on social media networks and other content-sharing platforms.
Content Marketing(CMI): Creating and distributing valuable, relevant content that will interest and motivate your target audience. The key to effective content marketing is to follow-up with relevant, original content that will spark an interest in your audience. By constantly creating valuable content, you’ll establish yourself as an authoritative voice on your industry’s topics.
Email Marketing(EML): Delivering a consistent stream of valuable and relevant content to your audience via email marketing.
Social Media Marketing(SMM): Using various social media platforms to engage with and communicate with your audience. Your social media strategy should include the following:

Content (e.g., blogs, photos, videos, etc.): Valuable and relevant content that will keep your audience coming back for more.
Engagement (e.g., likes, shares, and comments): A way of getting your audience to engage with your content. You can also use social media to find and connect with potential customers.
Community (e.g., forums, groups, and chats): A space for your audience to engage with each other.
Measurement (e.g., analytics, feedback, and conversions): How you’re measuring the success of your social media marketing efforts.

Which One Should You Choose?