Make the switch to digital media

Dec. 2, 2019

This paid piece is sponsored by Click Rain.

If you’re frustrated with the results of your traditional marketing, maybe it’s time to mix digital media into your 2020 strategy. Traditional tactics such as print, broadcast, direct mail, phone or outdoor media may not be as effective as they once were. So whether you’re chasing the latest online trends or just want measurable results to report to management, making the switch to digital is as easy as ever.

Try the latest trends

AT&T helped blaze the trail when it placed the internet’s first banner ad in October 1994. The ad drew worldwide attention and the clicks of millions. Since then, digital media has continued to evolve to keep pace with the innovative changes within the internet.

Instead of shouting a one-way message to the entire world and hoping it sticks, today’s digital media allows you to communicate directly with your intended audience. Precisely target your ads using demographics such as age, gender and location, or narrow your focus based on interests or lifestyle. This granularity makes advertising beneficial for both the marketer as well as your audience since they only see ads relevant to them.

Because you can reach a specific audience, consider personalizing your marketing message. Have you ever seen your name in the subject line of an email or viewed a social ad that deeply resonated with you? Personalization is a powerful tactic and, when executed correctly, can lead to great results.

Today’s version of a billboard is known as programmatic display advertising. Unlike traditional billboard ads, which are geographically static, programmatic ads bring your marketing directly to your audience, no matter where they are in the world. And instead of spending thousands to be on the cover of a conference brochure, consider geofencing the location of an event and serve mobile ads to its attendees, usually at a much lower cost as well.

Maximize your audience

Measuring the audience of traditional media efforts is hard to do without asking your customers to give up their personal information. However, your audience’s online behaviors and activities are relatively easy to measure. Now more than ever, marketers can obtain a very accurate picture of not only whom they are reaching but how well they are impacting revenue. And making the most of your audience and potential customers is what it’s all about.

Lookalike Audience targeting is a valuable feature currently provided by Facebook and other social and banner ad networks. By uploading a list of your current customers, the platform automatically will match them with a similar audience. It’s algorithms like this one that make digital advertising so effective.

Have you ever browsed an online store for a specific product and then seen digital ads elsewhere for the same product? These are called retargeting ads, a tactic that directly advertises  a specific product or service to an audience once they’ve expressed interest. It’s a great way to stay top-of-mind with potential customers, reminding them to come back and complete their purchase or inquiry.

Track your results

If you’ve ever sent out a traditional mailer, you know it’s a guessing game when it comes to knowing who took the time to look at it or take action. That all changes with digital because nearly every action can be tracked and analyzed.

Leveraging historical data is always a good place to start. This allows you to make marketing decisions based on what has been successful in the past. Find out exactly how many people viewed your ad by tracking its impressions. Learn how many times a potential customer viewed your ad by measuring its frequency. Finally, by measuring engagement, track exactly who liked, clicked, shared or commented on your ad. These are valuable metrics that can help drive your marketing and sales efforts now and into the future.

Once your audience sees your ad, you can track their actions. Did they go to your website to make a purchase? Did they sign up for your newsletter? By tracking goal completions, you can directly tie marketing spend to revenue sources and calculate the return on investment metric that your leadership values. Tracking makes it easy to see exactly where your marketing budget is going, and if it’s being used effectively.

How do you switch from traditional to digital media?

Start with a carefully crafted and well-executed website. Your digital media will be much more effective if it’s driving traffic to a site that is easy to use and contains relevant information.

Once your website is in place, try several different types of digital media and determine which resonates best with your audience. Do they engage with social ads, programmatic display, paid search or Connected TV? Or do promoted blog posts, digital radio or emails perform best? Your audience has gone digital. It’s time to meet them where they are and craft a tailored media plan that fits their needs best.

Don’t know where to start? Learn how Click Rain leverages marketing technology to help businesses grow.

 

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Make the switch to digital media

Your audience has gone digital. It’s time to meet them where they are. Here’s how to get started.

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