Weighing Traditional Marketing vs Digital Marketing
Not all types of marketing are the same. In this post, we’re weighing traditional marketing against digital marketing.
The traditional marketing vs digital marketing debate never ends.
Many marketers choose the camp in which they have the most experience and skill. Business leaders often lean toward the kind of marketing they’re most comfortable with. Sales teams want something that will make finding leads easier and converting them into paying customers.
Who’s right? And how do you crack the code for lead generation?
The Truth About Traditional Marketing Vs. Digital Marketing Lead Generation
No one is right. Every business needs a marketing strategy that incorporates both traditional and digital tactics.
In this article, we explore the traditional vs. digital marketing debate by examining critical aspects of marketing. We highlight the benefits and drawbacks of each kind of marketing in terms of cost, measurement, and more.
What Is Traditional Marketing?
Traditional marketing doesn’t directly rely on a computer to send, receive, or share content.
Examples: flyers, TV and radio ads, magazine and newspaper ads, billboards, samples, custom posters, trade show booths, swag, storefront signs, jingles, and brochures.
What Is Digital Marketing?
Digital marketing includes websites, social media posts, blogs, Google AdWords, email, texts, mobile apps, and more.
Aspects of Marketing
Cost
With traditional marketing, the cost is easy to see, and it’s usually significant. Invoices from the print shop, promo item company, or publisher clarify the dollars.
Digital marketing has no hard costs, so it must be less expensive. Generally speaking, yes. But don’t forget that there are hosting and other digital service fees. It would be best to have ongoing technical security and performance support.
ROI Measurement
ROI (return on investment) might be more important than the initial cost of a marketing tactic.
Measuring ROI in traditional marketing requires significant effort and the passage of time. You need to wait to know if a newspaper ad, billboard, or T-shirt boosts sales (online or in-store). There’s no direct link between a marketing tactic and a person’s buying ability. So, it can be a while before a person buys your product. If you want to know what prompted the purchase, ask them. That sale can be connected to the marketing tactic if they mention the ad, billboard, or T-shirt.
With digital marketing, ROI can be seen within minutes or hours. Plus, the customer doesn’t need to answer surveys. With tools like Google Analytics, you can see a customer’s digital path from marketing to online sales.
Ability to Make Adjustments
Traditional marketing is unforgiven. If a magazine ad garners negative public opinion, you can’t make it disappear. If you change the products or pricing in a brochure, you must reprint and redistribute.
You can tweak digital marketing in minutes, often in real-time. You can make product and pricing changes on a website at any time. You can pull an ill-advised Facebook ad minutes after deciding to take it down.
Longevity
The flip side of being able to make quick changes is longevity. If a person with a branded T-shirt always wears it, your company can get months or years of promotion. A promotional email is gone the minute the user deletes it. And that can be seconds after receiving it.
Sensory Versatility
An aspect of the traditional marketing vs digital marketing debate with a clear winner is sensory versatility.
Digital marketing can only use sight and sound to connect with customers, while traditional marketing can reach people through all five senses. If you sell food, allowing people to taste your product boosts sales. Letting people touch and try on items leads to higher sales if you sell clothing. If you sell perfume, allowing people to smell it will help them put money on the table.
Of course, many traditional marketing tactics have the same problem. You can’t touch, smell, or taste the pizza advertised on TV. Traditional and digital marketers do wonders to simulate the pizza experience using only sights and sounds. Still, they generally don’t close a sale as quickly as the aroma of hot pizza and a sample slice.
Reaching The Right Audience
Traditional marketing relies on best guesses. You research your customers’ locations to determine the best area for a billboard, but after that, you have no idea who is looking at the billboard.
Digital marketing makes identifying and targeting the right customers for your products or services accessible. Data allows you to segment your audience. For example, you can identify people who are interested in cars online. Sending emails only to those people to promote your car products increases the lead-to-conversion ratio.
Personalization
Personalizing digital marketing is easy. Adding a person’s name and referencing their past purchases is simple programming. Websites “remember” what people search for and can offer them special deals that their friends don’t see.
Traditional marketing can be personalized too. When talking with a potential customer at a trade show or sample giveaway booth, you can discuss shared interests or say you like their shoes. In-person personalization can be pretty effective because it’s spontaneous and fluid.
Discoverability
Discoverability—a potential customer’s ability to find your business—is another aspect of the traditional marketing vs. digital marketing debate with a clear winner. In this case, it’s digital marketing.
When someone wants to find a plumber, a new pair of shoes, a remedy for itchy skin, or how to make cheesecake, they turn to the internet. SEO and other digital marketing tools help put a business’ website at the top of the search results.
Traditional marketing relies on people remembering an ad, brochure, or T-shirt. They then have to connect the message to their current needs.
In Summary
Don’t spend energy on the traditional marketing vs digital marketing debate. Instead, focus on the aspects of marketing. Create a marketing strategy that builds on your company’s successes. Add the best traditional and digital marketing tactics to close the gaps.
That will give you a marketing strategy that uses both traditional and digital tactics. A blended approach can help you achieve your desired sales, revenue, and profit results.
What’s the mix in your marketing strategy? Talk to us.
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