n the past, online marketing was optional for small and local businesses. In today’s digitized era, companies cannot even imagine driving sales without operating online.

So, how can digital marketing help you grow your business?

Your Competitors are Already Online

Perform a simple Google search, and you will see that most of your competitors are already online. They are running paid ads, building relationships with customers on social networks, and publishing engaging content.

Therefore, by neglecting the importance of online marketing, you are going to fall behind your competition. 

Keep in mind that your customers use search engines when making purchases. They choose highly transparent brands with a solid online presence. When they google your business and fail to find it online, they will give up and go to your competitors.

Establishing Stronger Relationships with Customers

Digital marketing channels are far more than promoting your business. They help you build stronger relationships with your customers and establish a growing online community.

One such example is social networks. You can use these channels to publish engaging stories, share live videos, and post informative content. Most importantly, you can communicate with customers in real-time. 

For instance, social media monitoring tools let you listen to your customers. They track your brand and product mentions, allowing you to stay on top of relevant conversations. By answering customers’ questions in real-time, you will gain their trust and inspire them to purchase from you.

You can also use social networks to inspire social proof. For instance, you could host a photo contest to encourage user-generated content. These initiatives delight your existing customers and build trust with prospects.

Measuring Digital Marketing Results

When investing in digital marketing campaigns, you want to know whether they are working. Fortunately, digital marketing is easily measurable. Whether you focus on SEO, PPC, or social media marketing, there is a tool that can track your results.

All you have to do is setting achievable and time-bound marketing goals. Based on them, you will determine your key performance indicators and pick the right metrics to track. Avoid vanity metrics and choose ones that show the performance of your marketing campaigns. For example, many brands measure vanity metrics, such as social likes or website traffic, which often say nothing about user engagement or conversions.

Digital marketing analytics tools even let you monitor the effectiveness of your traditional marketing campaigns. For example, you can use QR codes on your Siteline billboards, direct mail, and print brand promotion materials. When customers scan the code, they land on your website homepage, product pages, specific landing pages, email newsletter signup forms, or social networks. By using your web analytics tools, you will easily measure how much traffic your QR codes generate.

With digital marketing analytics tools, you will understand the strengths and weaknesses of your marketing strategy and address them on the run.

Personalizing User Experiences

Today’s customers expect brands to provide relevant and personalized user experiences. That is where digital marketing can help.

For starters, digital marketing allows you to track customer behaviors at every touchpoint. For example, website analytics tools tell you everything about your visitors. You can learn more about their behaviors, previous purchases, product views, etc. By collecting this data, you can deliver personalized customer experiences across their buying journeys.

Based on customer data and feedback, you can also segment your email newsletter lists. The goal is to break the list down based on various data, such as customer age, gender, location, content preferences, etc. That is how you will send more personalized content to your leads.

Another example of personalization is VR technologies. Many brands now create VR platforms or apps to enhance customer journeys. For example, fashion and beauty companies let customers upload their photos and try on products from the comfort of their homes. 

Targeting the Right Customers

To increase your marketing ROI and maximize sales, you need to put your brand in front of the right audience. With digital marketing, you can market directly to the people who have shown an interest in your company. It helps you focus your marketing efforts on qualifies leads and convert them faster.

You can target your audiences in multiple ways. 

One of them is PPC ads are another effective customer targeting opportunity. Both search ads and social media ads offer customer targeting features, such as customer location, age, gender, income, product views, etc. When setting these parameters, you choose who sees your ads. For you, that is the opportunity to drive relevant clicks and boost your ROI.  

Over to You

In today’s hyperconnected era, customers expect brands to provide seamless shopping experiences at every touchpoint. They want you to deliver personalized customer service and deliver value to them. That is where digital marketing steps in, and those are just some of its benefits.

Eve Anderson is a marketing specialist turned blogger. Interested in sports and exciting travel destinations. Love to share content that can inform people.