Updated: Dec 20, 2019
2019 marks a major milestone in the marketing world.
Digital advertising spending is projected to surpass traditional marketing spending this year, according to eMarketer. The market research company predicts companies will spend $130 billion on digital ads in 2019, almost $20 billion more than traditional ads. This marks a turning point in both history and ad spending as we know it – and that’s major.
As digital rises, traditional channels – including directories, newspapers, magazines, radio, and even television – are slowly but surely declining. Today’s average consumer is online more than ever before, and companies are shifting their focus to digital because of this change in consumer habits.
What are the main benefits of digital marketing?
In addition to being where consumers are, the digital world also offers a lot of other benefits. As a business owner you have to make informed and educated decisions about where you spend your money…and right now the best bang for your buck is definitely digital. Here’s 4 big reasons why:
1. Digital is cost effective.
There’s no denying it: we live in a digital world. The beauty of this new age of marketing for business owners is you have the ability to reach a huge audience for a fraction of the cost. Just because you don’t have a big budget doesn’t mean you can’t advertise successfully. Really though. Compared to traditional marketing, digital marketing is *significantly* less expensive (if you don’t believe us, ask someone who’s ever ran a print ad how much it costs).
If you’re planning an event and looking to spend your marketing dollars wisely (which, duh), here are the top 5 places to get you started.
2. Screen time is at all-time high
Consumers are online more than ever before. And since digital is where the people are it is also where they are reading advertising messages. The average consumer clocks in 5+ hours of screen time a day, and this isn’t just a millennial thing. A recent study by Provision Living studied millennial and baby boomers and discovered both generations average within this range, with a bulk of that smartphone screen time is spent on social media.
3. Engagement rates are increasing
Word of mouth is super powerful, and in these modern times that word of mouth starts online. If people are talking about your business, you’re doing it right, and engagements such as likes, comments, and shares can make all the difference. As you create content, always keep your audience in mind. And if you’re creating ads, make them less salesy and more organic – thus shareable.
Check out our articles, Stop Talking About Your Business & Start Getting Other People To Do It For You and 4 Ways to Get Better at Talking to Your Target Audience for more engagement tips!
Social media platforms value engagement, and this engagement is one of the top metrics for success in 2019. Here’s a few more trends you should pay attention to this year.
4. Digital is trackable
Back when traditional advertising was the only option, it could be hard to determine the ROI of your hard-earned dollars. Not anymore! With digital, you can easily track and analyze the results of your campaigns on every single platform – web ads, email, social media. Take digital ads for example, where you can see the exact number of times people are exposed to and click on your ads. Or social media, where you can see engagement rates and conversion rates in real time. These results can help you you to immediately adjust your advertising efforts to maximize your return on investment. And everyone loves a high ROI, right?
PS: Google Analytics is an amazing free tool and everyone with a website should absolutely be using it – here’s the 5 biggest reasons why your business should too.
How to start using digital to your advantage
As more companies shift their focus to digital, strategy becomes more and more important. Simply having a digital presence isn’t enough anymore – you need to be strategic, and you need to do your research. Trust us, it pays off.
Start with your target audience. Defining and understanding your target audience is so important. Simply put you need to know who you’re talking to before you can reach them. Read more on that here.
From there you can target your audience digitally via social media, email marketing, and online ads. Next, take the time to identify publications the publications that your audience trusts. Take Step Out Buffalo for example. On average, our website gets 800,000+ pageviews and 200,000+ unique visitors every month, and that audience is comprised of people who love to eat, drink, shop, and attend events in WNY. Additionally, the majority of our audience consists of females between the ages of 25-44, so having a younger, “friend”-like tone resonates and fosters the specific brand-consumer relationship that this segment responds well to. TL;DR our marketing and advertising methods zero in on our key demographics, and it works.
The takeaway
Digital marketing rules in 2019 and it’s only going to grow from here. Nothing else really compares, and the benefits speak for themselves. Digital is relevant, cost-effective, trackable, and trending. Whether its web-based, email-based, social media-based, or another new avenue that’s bound to pop up, make sure to take the time to strategize your business’ best interest. The beauty of digital if that there is measurable data to help you make decisions, and once you research your industry or conduct a few trial-and-error testing you may find one platform gives you a much larger ROI than another.
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Want to know more about promoting your business on StepOutBuffalo.com? Contact us!
At Step Out Buffalo, we help businesses promote themselves and their events on our website, email, and social media channels. Our team is comprised of experts who know exactly how to make your business or event stand out, and we’ll put you in all the right places so you get noticed by all the right people. Hit us up if you’d like to learn more about our business and/or events-based promotions – there’s a reason 94% of our readers go places they’ve seen on StepOutBuffalo.com
