“There’s a problem with the word ‘social’. Social is not just Twitter, FB, etc. Social is a language.” – Andrew Grill
Having a marketing budget is important for any business, but it’s equally important to spend it in the right direction and make the most of it. How do you know ‘where to spend it’ when it comes to digital marketing vs traditional marketing?
Let’s say you are the marketing manager of Cadbury. You have been allocated 25 lakhs a year for advertising, where and how would you have spent and allotted the money between traditional and digital marketing? (Let us know in the comments section below)
Setting a marketing budget is one part, but making sure you get a good return on your investment is also necessary. Thus, it makes sense to focus only on those marketing channels and methods that are more likely to give you the best bang for your buck.
Digital marketing is gradually making headway. We see that in USA Digital marketing is moderately increasing and traditional marketing is declining over the period of time. The most important reason why digital marketing is taking up the traditional marketing channels is because the internet has enabled businesses to interact with targeted audiences in real time.
What is Digital Marketing?
Digital marketing is the use of the ‘internet’ to reach potential customers. Digital marketing includes search result ads, email ads, and promoted tweets – anything that incorporates marketing with customer feedback or a two-way interaction between the company and customer.
One company, which hit the nail is ‘Airbnb'.
Airbnb is a marketplace to list, find, and book unique accommodations around the world for short-term. It depends on two components: hosts and travellers.
The aim of the marketing strategy adopted is to reach and encourage maximum people around the world to become hosts and/or travellers.
Let’s have a look at Airbnb’s phenomenal growth using digital marketing and innovation strategy:
1. Google Display Network Partnership: Airbnb decided to make their offers visually appealing to attract more customers. They collaborated with Google and invested in Google Search. This helped Airbnb increase their listings from less than 10,000 to 80,000. They executed banner ad campaign which featured images of real apartments and rooms and also helped them gain international audience that would have been difficult otherwise.
2. Social media marketing: On Facebook, it has almost 16 million likes on its page. Its marketing team regularly posts photos and videos of their unique listings, which attract travelers to visit these exotic locations. On Instagram, guests can share their experiences with ‘#airbnb’ and even book a rental place directly from the feed. Its YouTube channel has videos that show parts of the cities that are not usually covered by tourists. Airbnb promotes living like a local by promoting ‘Don’t go there. Live there’. Airbnb uses Twitter to promote its blog posts and extraordinary listings. Their hashtag #belonganywhere is quite popular.
3. Blog: blog.airbnb.com is an information repository for travellers. The Local Lens section is dedicated to individual narratives just like the Stories section on their website. There are posts about cities and their unique cultures, must-visits and must-dos in each.
4. Content Management: Airbnb neighbourhoods are the local city guides that provide detailed information to travellers. These guides provide information like where locals eat, shop and party besides the usual details on major attractions and sights. This has helped increase user engagement. ‘Stories’ is a microsite with video profiles of hosts and travellers and their stories, as to why they rent out their place and the motivation of travellers to leave their homes and travel the world with Airbnb.
5. Email Marketing: Email marketing plays a key role at Airbnb. Their focus is on retention and helping their users have meaningful experiences using Airbnb. Email is the channel that helps them facilitate the conversation between the hosts and the guests who would like to travel.
Thus, we see that digital marketing is an ever-changing landscape. In 2009, Airbnb almost went bust. They began improving the image quality of their listings and these ‘digital campaigns’ came to their rescue. Airbnb found several ways to not only survive but also grow exponentially.
They adopted a digital marketing strategy well in time and executed it properly. Business innovation and technology contribute to the brand’s colossal success. Social Media Marketing has helped Airbnb get large media coverage, has increased their following, and has helped them communicate their brand message clearly. Digital storytelling strategies have increased.
Airbnb’s outreach has kindled excitement in people to travel like a local.
Thus, businesses in the modern economy need digital marketing to compete. Digital marketing gives a higher rate of return as compared to traditional marketing.
However, while brands were earlier competing with each other’s marketing strategy, now the focus has shifted to a fight against the entire internet. This is the time when brands will have to use different modes and ways to actually delve and make an impact on the customers.
Surviving in such cut-throat competition is only possible if you can devise and implement a marketing strategy that portrays your uniqueness and gives the customers a reason to opt for you.
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