Co-founder, Social Frontier
Brand experience is conceptualized as sensations, feelings, cognition, and behavioural responses evoked by brand-related stimuli that are part of a brand’s design and identity, packaging, communications, and environments.
~ Josko Brakus
Advertising is fundamentally about creating and spreading awareness of the promises of a brand to the masses. This continuous process later manifests into the ‘brand experience’ of an organization. A strong marketing strategy, involving suitable advertising and critical market research ultimately creates a link between consumers and products or services. While positive experiences can catapult a brand to greater heights, any anomalies can push it to the back end. With social media reigning high and increasing access to brands, exemplary marketing or rather digital marketing assumes a large role.
Digital marketing is akin to a workhorse in terms of being integral to the growth and credibility of a business. A recent report indicates that the Indian digital advertising industry will grow at a CAGR of 32% to reach INR 18,986 crore by 2020. Apart from this, digital media expenditure will contribute to about 24% of the entire advertising pie by 2020, up from the current 15%. Businesses that are up in their digital marketing game can benefit in more ways than one.
Profitable For All Kinds Of Businesses
Digital marketing allows for selection of a strategy depending upon the budget, and is, therefore, viable for small businesses too. It enables reaching out to a wider audience at lesser costs. On the other hand, the customizable nature of digital marketing allows those foraying into an already established to make their presence felt as well.
Helps Achieve Higher Conversion Rates
Online marketing methods can help a brand get better conversion rates in real time by identifying what percentage of viewers get converted into leads and subsequently subscribers and customers. This is done with the help of digital marketing metrics and trackers like metrics on the return on investment (ROI), increment sales, returning visitors, web traffic sources first-time visitors, and many more to analyse the brand strategy of a company. This method allows companies to observe where they are going wrong and strengthen where they’ve been right as numbers never lie.
Better Customer Support
There are two factors that drive customers to a brand: reputation and support. Customers want to be associated with brands that have an impeccable name in the market and those that treat them as King. Marketing inclusive of social media helps businesses in providing solutions to customer issues and building a rapport. From asking queries and taking feedback to carry forward the association with customers, digital marketing encompasses all. Positive reviews and ratings will bring in new customers and build a strong brand image.
Better ROI
Marketing is more progressive today and there are packages with differential prices from which brands can pick the one that suits them best. However, even a small investment in digital marketing strategies can deliver the desired result and give a better return on investment (ROI). Not just this, by being a relatively cost-effective source of marketing, digital media can help increase revenues. As per a study, compared to traditional methods, digital marketing has been found to generate 2.8 times more revenue.
In Conclusion
Digital marketing is in truth the present and the future of any strong brand building exercise.
The efficacy for which conclusively depends on two primary factors. Firstly, the marketing strategy must be suitable and relevant to the goals of a brand to cater to the right target audiences. Secondly, credible tools must be used to accurately track performance on a regular basis which would thereon make the planning process much more efficient in comparison to other traditional methods of marketing.