Digital marketing has become an essential part of any organization’s marketing campaign, whether it is for big companies or startups. It has become a primary choice for businesses that are only starting from the ground as it can be effective, cost-efficient, and wide-reaching when implemented properly.
This practice can also help businesses gain more customers and improve sales. According to an article by Alina Sorescu and Martin Schreirer (2017) in the Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, “Innovations in the marketing function can increase customers acquisition, facilitate product choice and usage, and increase retention.”
Given the advantages offered by digital marketing for businesses, individuals considering to start a business may consider this practice. This article tackles the ten most effective digital marketing strategies that startups can benefit from.
1. Social Media Marketing
A survey by Brooke Auxier and Monica Anderson (2021) revealed that a large percentage of all the adult participants have used social media platforms with YouTube (81%) and Facebook (69%) in the lead followed by Instagram (40%) and Pinterest (31%).
This sample shows that a huge portion of adult consumers use social media, which makes it a prime avenue for marketing. These platforms provide real-time and speedy engagements between consumers and brands, which can make the conversion cycle go much faster.
2. Viral Marketing
Viral marketing is another great option for startups. With the overwhelming number of people on social media, creating the right content and targeting the right audience can make it go viral. Any online content that suddenly explodes locally and internationally with thousands of likes, views, and shares.
This can increase a startup’s brand exposure and name retention, making consumers more familiar with the brand.
3. Pay-Per-Click Marketing
Organic results are always more preferable, but the truth is that this can be difficult to achieve from scratch. Pay-Per-Click (PPC) is a method that utilizes search engine advertising to gain visitors to a business’ website. This provides a way to jumpstart a business’ marketing campaign to gain traction and eventually get organic results.
4. Search Engine Optimization
Achieving organic results requires using search engine optimization (SEO). This technique is used by successful e-commerce websites and is defined as the “search engine optimization of keywords through organic positioning as a result of the adaptation of the content and technical configuration of e-commerce according to the criteria of search engine indexing“ (Casado & Erdmann, 2021, p. 4).
SEO helps entrepreneurs get more visits not by paying for search engine ads but by improving their search result rankings and visibility.
5. Affiliate Marketing
One important aspect of search engine optimization is affiliate marketing. To get a higher ranking, websites need to increase their domain authority, which is measured by the popularity of the site and its pages, as well as the quality of referrals from trusted websites. Entrepreneurs who want to increase their ranking can get in touch with webmasters of such sites to include backlinks to the business’ website.
6. Content Marketing
Many of the aforementioned strategies, specifically SEO, social media, and affiliate marketing, require the use of content to increase their effectiveness and efficiency. Content marketing is the use of useful and valuable content to attract visitors. In essence, content marketing supports other techniques.
7. Email Marketing
Email remains to be a great platform for many people, especially those who require a more formal avenue of communication. This is why many people still use email. This is also the reason why email marketing continues to be effective in getting visits and engagements.
8. Retargeting Campaigns
Website visits are not guaranteed to be converted into leads and then into sales. Many visitors tend to leave within seconds if the page fails to capture their attention. This can be a lost opportunity or a new one with the help of retargeting campaigns.
This campaign works to show advertisements related to the startup’s website when the user visits another platform that shows ads. When clicked, these ads will redirect the user to the startup’s website.
9. Influencer Marketing
Influencer marketing is the practice of partnering up with micro- and macro-influencers to promote the brand. Social media influencers are now considered minor celebrities, making them effective endorsers for brands. These influencers tend to have massive amounts of following and engagements, thus increasing the startup’s brand exposure.
10. Referral Marketing
When brands partner with influencers, the main motivation for them is sponsorship, including fees and freebies. To incentivize their followers to try out a startup’s products, many businesses offer codes and vouchers that offer discounts, freebies, and free shipping. This is how referral marketing works and it can tap into the consumerist mindset of many users.
Final Thoughts
Digital marketing opens up a lot of avenues for startups to gain new prospective customers and potentially increase their revenues. These strategies can help in improving a startup’s digital marketing campaigns, boosting its chances of growth and success.
References:
- Anderson, M. & Auxier, B. (2021). Social media use in 2021. Retrieved from https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2021/04/07/social-media-use-in-2021
- Casado, J.M.P. & Erdmann, A. (2017). E-commerce customer attraction: Digital marketing techniques, evolution and dynamics across firms. Journal of Promotion Management, 27(11), 1-19. https://doi.org/10.1080/10496491.2021.1880521
- Scheirer, M. & Sorescu, A. (2021). Innovation in the digital economy: A broader view of its scope, antecedents, and consequences. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 49, 627-631. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-021-00793-z
