What is Online Marketing? Types of Online Marketing
In the time of the strong boom of the Internet today, besides the traditional forms of Marketing, the structure of Online Marketing is also gradually developing and taking the throne in the Marketing industry. The Internet has been directly affecting people’s shopping behavior. Therefore, businesses must quickly apply online marketing to their marketing process. So what is Online Marketing? And which form of Online Marketing is the most effective today? Let’s go with CleverAds to find out.
1. What is Online Marketing?
Online marketing, or with some more precise terms, “Online Marketing/Internet Marketing,” is taking advantage of internet-based social networking channels to spread messages about brands, products, and services to potential customers.
The goal of this marketing process is to reach potential customers through the channels they regularly spend time: reading, searching, shopping, and socializing online.
To better understand, let’s look at Burger King’s Whopper Sacrifice advertising campaign in 2019.
At this time, people were starting to get acquainted with Facebook, and Burger King was extremely reckless when creating a shock wave of communication on this social network.
They set the challenge for their customers: “Delete ten friends, and you will get a free burger.” And, of course, with this “extravagant” friendship challenge, Burger King was asked by Facebook to remove the application because they did not want anyone to have to delete their friends on this social networking platform.
As a result, this trend quickly took place but was also quickly restrained. However, we must admit that Burger King knows how to increase brand recognition value skillfully.
2. Pros and Cons of Online Marketing
2.1 Advantages of Online Marketing:
2.1.1 Reaching a significant number of target customers:
According to statistics, 54% of the world’s population has access to the Internet, and it is expected that this number will continue to increase in the future.
The Internet’s attractiveness is reflected since as long as there is a network connection signal, it can reach millions of people simultaneously without being limited in terms of time or geography.
Thus, just sitting in one place, the ad can still reach everyone in all different countries. And, of course, then the only thing they need to do is click and place an order.
2.1.2 Save time and costs:
Usually, advertisements in print magazines and television are required to prepare carefully before publication. Because after the finished product has been released, even a tiny error cannot be corrected and can only be canceled. This shows that this is a highly time-consuming process and quite expensive.
Meanwhile, online marketing has broad reach, automation, and flexible time arrangement, mainly without requiring too much cost.
Moreover, if the business has social network accounts and professional websites, the interaction rate of products/services of the company is also spread vigorously to many customers. Thus, during the production of advertising, costs can be significantly reduced.
All the steps to perfect an online advertising product are much more straightforward than traditional advertising.
All steps are carried out quickly and conveniently via the internet platform. In addition, some features, such as automatic reply, also help improve the operational efficiency of the business.
2.1.3 Operating 24/7:
Thanks to Marketing Online, customers can access products anytime, anywhere, and order and pay online in a single note.
Online chat support tools do not depend on time or geographical location, so in any case, customers will always receive an immediate response.
Besides, the feature of scheduling an appointment to post articles on social networks also greatly supports marketing activities that take place continuously. At the same time, the website always contains available information and articles, so customers can easily access and search whenever they need. In short, increasing uptime is also increasing revenue and increasing profits.
2.2 Disadvantages of Online Marketing:
2.2.1 Depends on technology:
When there is a technical problem with a broken web server, unstable network, or poor connection speed, customers cannot access the site or wait for maintenance for a long time. This situation makes customers feel uncomfortable and also reduces their interest in buying.
In some cases, because ad calibration and device performance are different, sometimes ads are distorted, misinterpreted, etc., affecting ad performance.
2.2.2 Security and privacy:
The truth is that customer data can be easily stolen if it is not well secured.
The company will rely on stolen information to link and steal bank accounts or steal information to sell to rival companies.
3. The superiority of Marketing Online compared to Traditional Marketing:
In contrast to Online Marketing, which can integrate advanced technology to reach potential customers worldwide, traditional marketing activities are pretty expensive and time-consuming, and the results are similar. The effect is insignificant.
| Aspects | Online Marketing | Traditional Marketing |
| Channels | Internet platform and digital devices | Familiar with mass media |
| Speed | Fast, Instant, 24/7 | Takes much time, office hours |
| Scale | Unlimited, worldwide (Internet required) | Restricted to a specific geographical area |
| Cost |
Low cost or free; Rarely arise |
High cost; Or arise during editing process |
| Audience | Accurately targeted to target specific audience groups | Not defined specific audience |
| Measurement | Use accurate performance measurement tools and transparent data statistics. | It cannot measure accurately, only approximately |
| Feedback | Get immediate feedback from customers | Difficult and time-consuming to collect feedback. |
| Store information | Automatically store, ensure safety | Challenging to keep and easy to lose information |
4. Current forms of Online Marketing:
4.1 Content Marketing:
Content marketing is one of the most effective ways to generate new leads online. This marketing process involves creating infographics, blog posts, ebooks, tutorials, and original content. Marketers can also use visual content like photos and videos to give people insight into their business.
Content marketing positions a company as an authority in a specific field. People are generally more likely to want to learn about a product after reading helpful content you already have.
Instead of using your company’s content as a pitch, please find a way to engage your readers, help them learn more about your business, and provide valuable information.
Then, reporters, bloggers, and industry influencers can be reached to see if they share content about the company on their websites.
The more links a business earns from other reputable sites, the stronger the site will become, eventually ranking higher in search engine results.
For example:
Amazon, the ever-evolving technology and e-commerce Goliath, recently added a service. You can now provide your local Amazon driver with a digital key to your garage door, so your packages can be safely stowed away.
At first, this campaign was opposed quite violently because no one allowed strangers into their homes. However, Amazon has been studying consumer behavior and psychology for decades. As a result, they created a compelling video marketing campaign with subtle aspects of psychology.
This is an excellent example of content marketing because it acknowledges the customer’s pain points and offers an alternative story. Amazon is hard to beat in the content marketing department.
4.2 Social Media Marketing
Social Media Marketing uses all social media platforms to create customer connections. This is to build a brand, increasing traffic to the business’s website and thereby increasing sales and profits.
The social media marketing process includes activities such as creating content, interacting with customers, running ads, etc. Currently, Social Media Marketing has organic (free) and paid:
4.2.1 Organic social media refers to free content (posts, photos, videos, memes, Stories, etc.) shared on their feeds.
For example:
This hairstylist keeps his clients inspired and informed with a steady stream of portfolio photos while providing potential clients insight into his aesthetic and reminding current customers how much they need him.
4.2.2 Paid social media is another word for advertising. That’s when brands pay for Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, and more. To share their content with specific new target audiences likely to be interested, either through “promoting” their organic content or designing unique advertisements
For example:
Sponsored Content posts are one of the most common types of ads on LinkedIn. Since they’re usually organic posts that someone decides to boost, they merge into your feed, so you often don’t even realize you see an ad.
This case study video by Saas’ customer service company Zendesk is being advertised to reach potential customers who still need to follow them on LinkedIn. It’s the same kind of content it usually shares on LinkedIn.
4.3 Search Engine Optimization
Search engine optimization is the science of improving a website to increase its visibility when people search for a product or service. The more likely a website appears on search engines, the more likely that brand will attract a business—search Engine Optimization.
Here are some basic SEO techniques for you to try:
On-page SEO: refers to any optimization you control and include on your website. With on-page optimization, you aim to make your website more useful and valuable to users to improve your ranking or visibility in Google search results, Bing, and other search engines.
Off-page SEO: (also known as “off-site SEO”) refers to actions taken outside of your website to impact your rankings in search engine results pages (SERPs). Along with on-page SEO, these include some of the essential elements of SEO that help a website rank.
4.4 Affiliate Marketing
Affiliate marketing is a process by which a publisher earns a commission by promoting a product or service made by another retailer or advertiser. Affiliate partners are rewarded with payment for providing a specific result to a retailer or advertiser.
For example:
Skillshare offers online courses on various topics, including photography, visual arts, and business management. Skillshare’s affiliate program has become famous because many social media personalities use it to promote brands on their channels.
4.5 Email Marketing
Email marketing is a direct marketing channel that allows businesses to share new products, sales, and updates with customers in their contact lists.
Its high ROI makes it vital to the overall strategy of most businesses. In the long run, a well-designed email marketing strategy drives sales and helps build a community around your brand.
For example:
During critical times like Black Friday, Joie may send customers multiple promotional emails in the same 24-hour period. But during slower periods in the marketing calendar, there can be a few weeks between your promotional campaigns.
4.6 Paid Advertising
Paid advertising is any advertising you pay for versus owned or earned advertising.
With paid advertising, marketers pay the owners of the ad space in exchange for ad impressions on the desired placements of online platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, etc.
The price paid for ad space is usually settled through a bidding process between marketers and ad space owners. Several categories include pay-per-click (PPC), pay-per-impression (PPI), and display advertising.
For example: Shopify’s Facebook Ad Campaign
Shopify’s Facebook ads are a prime example of delivering tremendous value.
This will inspire you to create an online ad that helps you get leads and sales and ensures that it ultimately helps people.
Looking at Shopify ads, this is the first question you will see: “What kind of person do you say you are to the world?”
5. Conclusion:
In the context of 4.0, businesses must visualize the overall picture of Marketing Online and simultaneously understand the impact value of Online Marketing forms on customers.
CleverAds Blog hopes that you will understand and apply all the knowledge in the above article to the current business situation of your business.
CleverAds, an agency under Clever Group with nearly 15 years of experience, is always an ideal destination for businesses to send their products, services, and brand image to spread awareness.
