“Information at the click of a button”

The sentence has resonated over time to define what the internet offers best. As with everything else, the internet has found a new purpose in our lives beyond being just a glorified encyclopedia. While offering endless entertainment – enough to keep the average Indian spending 4.5 hours on it everyday, the internet offers something that even pacifies our Id. First conceptualised by Freud, Id is the impulsive portion of our unconscious. It operates on the pleasure principle of instant gratification. An innate need that internet today satisfies.

The internet today is a huge portal that lets you shop, read, sell, market and invest instantly. Planning a vacation? Waiting on a travel agent’s quote is passe. Instead, instant vacation planning is becoming the norm. In a world that craves instant gratification and action, being recognisable online is pivotal to any business – online or offline.

In short, if it isn’t on the digital map, it doesn’t really exist. Going digital is more than a norm, it is a requirement to thrive in this digital age. A Forbes research claims, “82% of customers research online before making any offline purchases.”

Would your potential customers have found you in this scenario? At the same time, it is essential to understand digital marketing for your business. Here’s why you need to endorse in digital marketing now:

1. Informed Decisions

Digital marketing involves identifying platforms you can leverage to bring exposure to your business or product. With a good mix of organic & paid marketing and great content, you start capturing leads across different platforms – from social media to blogs. When analysed – data from different platforms give you essential insights while helping you answer questions like – where do your potential customers find you?
Which digital platform aligns with your organic strategy?

Aside from making the return on investment more measurable, this also helps your business take smarter and more impactful decisions.

2. Better Leads

With more control over the type of audience exposed to your business, you increase the chances of finding customers that are genuinely interested in what you offer. This not only means better quality of leads, but a higher conversion rate too!

3. Business Growth

A recent study revealed that aligning your marketing and sales can lead to annual growth of upto 20%. Insights from digital platforms can help you create a roadmap to success by using data in the strategies. Aligning your marketing and sales initiatives is a sure shot to unprecedented success.

IBM, the American IT Corp realised the advantage of social media early on. Starting in 2012, it invested in a content marketing strategy across Twitter and LinkedIn. This was, in part, attributed to the annual 4x growth IBM witnessed over the next three years.

4. Meaningful Relationships

While offering visibility for your business, digital marketing also gives you a platform to connect with your customers. This is an opportunity to not only win over potential customers, but building a better understanding of their needs. And when your business solves for needs that have largely remained unanswered, you lay a foundation for your relationship with customers.

For instance, Airbnb’s success can be attributed to the fact that it fills the chasm created by hotels by providing a personal experience to travellers worldwide. By using the phrase ‘Belong Anywhere’, Airbnb asserted the feeling of staying at a home rather than a property.

The beauty of digital marketing doesn’t stop there – there are several platforms to explore to give your business its much-needed boost. Here are some broad areas to begin:

• Search Engine Optimization
• Social Media Marketing
• Email Marketing
• Affiliate Marketing
• Native Advertising

And depending on the industry focus of your business, the significance of each will vary. Get clarity on what digital marketing strategy will work for you. Talk to the experts.