You’ve probably heard the Benjamin Franklin quote “If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail.” Having a plan is essential for success. A digital marketing strategy is a plan that outlines how you will achieve certain business goals through digital marketing. Thus, it’s an essential if your business uses digital marketing. According to Smart Insights’s Digital Marketing Research Report, 50% of businesses don’t have a digital marketing strategy, so you can easily gain an edge by creating one.
What is Digital Marketing?
Let’s first define what digital marketing is before we dive deeper into what a strategy for it is. Digital marketing is promotion of a product, service, or brand through electronic media. Whether you promote through one form of electronic media or multiple types, digital marketing is a necessity in the modern world. The first medium you probably thought of is the Internet, but digital marketing also includes television, radio, text messaging, mobile apps, and electronic billboards.
For All Types of Businesses
Some B2B business owners think that only B2C companies need a digital marketing strategy but that’s not true. A digital marketing strategy works for all types of businesses, both B2C and B2B. No matter how boring you think your niche is to the majority, you can find something about its benefits that excite people.
For example, selling oil isn’t the most exciting business. It doesn’t compare to the next hit movie. What you can do, however, is focus on the fun things people can do with the oil (power automobiles that allow people to get to movies). Sitting down to write your strategy will help you uncover interesting angles to take in your marketing.
Nurtures Every Part of the Conversion Funnel
You’re probably neglecting an important stage of your conversion funnel if you don’t have a strategy. When you write a digital marketing strategy, you consciously and intentionally think about every important aspect of your plan. You’re not solely looking to increase leads but retain customers too. Therefore, you need to plan sufficient content for each stage of the funnel.
Spreads Brand Awareness
A strategy helps create awareness for your brand, something more difficult to achieve as a B2B brand because your target audience is busy and doesn’t often discuss business purchases in the way an average consumer talks about her new Nikes. Another obstacle with spreading awareness as a B2B company is each customer has a buying center or employees you must get through first. If you focus all your marketing and energy on the top dog, then you’ll have a harder time reaching him. You need to connect with the team members who influence the purchase decisions he makes.
To help create awareness for your B2B brand, you should use all forms of media – earned, paid, and owned– rather than just one type. Your social media accounts are an owned type of media that allows you to connect with team members who influence the buyer’s decision. If they like what your brand represents as evidenced on social media, they will be more likely to bring you up to the boss.
Conclusion
A digital marketing strategy is the plan you create with the purpose of using certain electronic media to achieve business goals. It’s important for B2B companies because they need to have a solid plan in place for getting past another company’s buying center. If you’re crossed off the list at the buying center, the ultimate decision maker isn’t able to consider your brand. Having a solid marketing strategy also helps you nurture every part of your conversion funnel and spread brand awareness. You’ll have more confidence, waste less time, and save money by crafting a digital marketing strategy.
Have we answered your question on what is a digital marketing strategy? Contact us for more information and to get started on creating a powerful strategy for your company.
