Digital Marketing 101 for Entrepreneurs A powerful brand image can prove to be a powerful weapon to utilize in the battle of Digital Disruption

In today's times, Digital Marketing tools like Google Analytics enable us to trace the rate of conversion on each page of the website. There are also platforms like Google AdWords and Facebook Ads enable us to bid for the sales and leads. Hence, many a time, the importance and value of branding are overlooked or forgotten by marketers.

A powerful brand image can prove to be a powerful weapon to utilize in the battle of Digital Disruption. No number of persuasive ads or promotions can take the place of the effect that a well-established brand image has on the audience. It is the often-ignored side of digital marketing despite being a strategy which produces the actual results over the duration of months, years and decades. It forms the entire identity of any business. It's a time-taking, traditional and long-term process which makes it a digital outlier.

Branding may not produce the instantaneous results of a PPC campaign but, it is one of the most valuable assets of marketing. A trusted and established brand attracts new consumers in large numbers which can propel the business to the top of the industry.

In a technology-driven era, each passing day the number of consumers that are getting on the internet, for various reasons, is rapidly increasing. In such a scenario, leveraging the strategies and services of digital marketing becomes almost mandatory in order to reach the modern audience in the right way.

In the Indian context, there has been a huge shift in the world of advertising and marketing. In the past decade, it has transitioned from analogue to digital. Around 34 per cent of India's population uses the internet, according to the statistics presented by the World Bank.

An ICUBE 2018 report suggests that the amount of Indian internet users is expected to reach around 627 Million in 2019. It projects a double-digit growth from the earlier estimation of 566 million of December 2018.

With such staggering numbers of Internet users growing across the country, any brand can strike gold with the right digital marketing.

Why Digital Marketing?

• It is More Cost-effective Than Traditional Marketing

Most small businesses struggle with capitalisation and resources. Hence, Digital Marketing proves to be a better and more cost-effective channel of marketing that ensures delivery of results. According to a Digital Marketing Spend Report, up to about 40% of the respondents claimed to have saved considerably in marketing due to the utilisation of digital marketing methods for promoting their products and services.

• It Caters to the Mobile Consumer

Without a doubt, the newest trend of communication and information dissemination is the mobile internet. This wave has been brought about by the quick proliferation of tablets, smartphones and many other devices that run the internet.

Therefore, this is the best time to run digital marketing campaigns that are directed towards the consumers on mobile. It paves the path for them towards the achievement of quick and better growth along with rapid expansion. A report by eMarketer states that mobile phones have evolved from being alternative gadgets for personal computers and laptops. They have transformed into influencers of purchasing decisions.

• It Builds Brand Reputation

Attracting targeted traffic is the forte of Digital Marketing. There are different types of audience that are ready to know more about the brand, products and/or services. They may also be interested to purchase the offering. Once the consumers are delivered what they were promised, a better relationship will develop with the targeted audience. It enables them to transition into paying customers who will interact with the site on a regular basis.

This proves to be beneficial for the brand's reputation because happy customers are likely to share their experience (of the brand, service or product) with other people. Hence, as expected, the brand's stature goes viral which further opens doors of opportunity to reach larger markets and grow the business.

How Digital Marketing Boosts your Brand?

• Go Viral!

The concept of going viral has been ingrained in the world of the Internet. It has grown too large to describe in a single phrase.

There's so much content on the internet today- memes, trending posts, buzz, hashtags, click-baits and more.

The major goal is to spread out content rapidly right through the Internet world by making it shareable. The concept is the key that represents the brand online.

In the world of the Internet, a large number of consumers will come in contact with the brand through its most shared and popular content. It makes digital marketing the ground zero to seek new leads and attract them to the business.

• Profile Power

This may come as a surprise to some but, another key aspect of digital marketing is the business profile.

It is integral to the brand because while making purchase decisions it is the content that is judged by the consumers. This especially holds true in current times, when Google is delivering the local business profile at the top of its SERPs.

Furthermore, all the information related to the profiles, straight from Google to Facebook, are being tapped in to impact the SEO and page rankings.

Based on the brand profile, customers make quick decisions. They judge based on the information and connected reviews and will see the profile more often based on what they search.

• Content Spread Out

Many time marketers think that their brand identity is the total content that has been produced and published. But, it is important to understand that the marketers are actually the only one seeing all the content.

Consumers come across the available content only in bits and pieces on their preferred channels and base their brand decisions on them. For the brand, this means that a multi-channel content approach along with consistency is important.

It is essential for all the content on all the platform to have the same brand message, tones, fonts, colors, professionalism etc. This makes it easier for the consumer to identify the brand and gives the same idea about the company.

In conclusion, it's easy to understand the importance of digital marketing for any brand in today's day and age. With the help of a digital marketing expert, any business, can reach the right audience. The size of the company does not matter. Whether it's a start-up or a multinational company, whether a budding entrepreneur or an experienced businessman, digital marketing can boost your brand and bring in more business.