Digital Marketing has become a way of life for marketers as well as viewers. Couple of years back, there were only few who knew about the power of Digital Marketing, but today it has become a ubiquitous phenomenon. Companies are increasing their Digital Marketing budgets and lot of students are opting for Digital Marketing as a career option.
As a medium of marketing, Digital Marketing has evolved a lot over time. Even the experts cannot claim to know it all when it comes to the nuances of this stream. There are various myths that surround digital marketing. To experience more magic of Digital Marketing, it is necessary to demystify certain aspects.
Here is an attempt to break certain myths that have become ingrained in the psyche of Digital Marketers:
Myth 1: Digital marketing is only for the youth
Not true. There is a common misconception that only the youth i.e. the age group between 18-24, spends time on social media and the electronic gadgets. However, the elderly population in India is very social media savvy and has become obsessed with the gadgets more than the youth. As per the annual report of Help Age India, 90% of the ageing internet consumers use social media platforms. Hence, more benefit can be reaped if the Digital Marketers also target the senior citizens as active consumers.
Myth 2: Only certain industries can benefit for Digital Marketing
Most people think that Digital Marketing is only for FMCG products or fashion& lifestyle brands, but that’s not true. Digital Marketing is for every industry, just that the marketers should know how to design a campaign to target the right people and deliver the right message. Today even capital goods, pharmaceuticals, IT as well as other B2B companies can benefit from Digital Marketing strategies. Content-rich blogs, V logs, dedicated pages and interactive webinars can do wonders to expand the business for B2B companies.
Myth 3: SEO isn’t relevant anymore
SEO is the lifeblood of Digital Marketing and it is here to stay. SEO is the main force that attracts organic traffic to a website. As long as there are search engines, Digital Marketing campaigns will be designed to cater to it. Search engines change its SEO algorithms at regular intervals and hence setting SEO is a constant task of digital marketers. It is not a one-time activity.
Myth 4: Social Media trolling should be ignored and deleted
Trolling on social media is a new phenomenon and no one can escape it. Viewers and consumers openly post negative comments if they do not like an advertising campaign or are unhappy with the product/ services. Many people think that deleting those comments or ignoring them can do some damage control. However, this is not true. Social media users are constantly watching how you respond to the criticism. If the owners of the brand, take things in stride and respond positively while accepting the mistakes, it only helps in good image building of the brand. Ignoring or deleting those comments only shows indifference and can be detrimental to a brand’s image.
Myth 5: Blogs only play a supporting role in Digital Marketing strategies
Straightforward marketing campaigns and advertorials can become mundane and miss the mark. It may fail to captivate the audience. However, the content-rich approach can do wonders. Everyone has certain queries and concerns in their mind and would like to read a piece of content that they can relate to. Blogs play this role. They attract and captivate the audience with curetted content. The motive of blogs is to enrich and entertain. They are not a sidekick or mere formality in the Digital Marketing strategy. Blogs have the capacity to engage the audience and hold their attention for long. The blog is a dynamic element and is a marketing tool through which the audience keeps coming back to the website for more. This ensures strong brand loyalty.
Myth 6: Stuffing keywords is the best way to generate traffic
There cannot be a bigger crime than stuffing keywords meaninglessly and wasting the time of readers. Keywords can be used to highlight certain themes and enable better searchability. However, if you simply overload the content with keywords and aren’t able to convey any meaning, the task ends up being a wasteful one. The keyword is definitely important but it should be used more strategically.
Myth 7: Paid campaigns are the best way to generate traffic
Not always. Paid campaigns can boost certain brands but what works is the content. Good SEO and Social Media Optimization strategies will go a long way in determining whether the campaign will hit the bull’s eye or not. These are the most organic ways of generating leads. Paid campaigns can also generate wrong leads at times which can be a waste of time and money for the advertisement campaign.
