Has anyone ever told you that traditional marketing is dead? Digital strategies, social media campaigns, and content authority — these are the standards by which marketers are now judged, right? Everything else can be disposed of.
However, this just is not true. While the approach we take may need to be updated, traditional marketing approaches are still very much effective.
You see, marketing is about more than just using the right buzzwords to impress fellow professionals, or utilizing whichever methods happen to be du jour at any given time.
It is about developing an integrated approach, using the ideal combination of tools to achieve what you need, and delivering a truly amazing experience to your customers.
When the focus is correctly on customer experience, we match the right content, to the right person, at the right time, on all the channels they use.
So, how do we go about accomplishing this?
Traditional Hand in Digital Glove
To begin with, we need to think differently about digital and traditional marketing methods.
Rather than thinking about how to replace our traditional channels, we should be considering how digital elements can enhance the efficacy of these channels.
We can see evidence of this combined approach all around us. Social media information on magazine and billboard ads is a prime example, as is the delivery of more traditional content marketing via information gained from CTAs.
When we witness this integration, we begin to understand that the two forms of marketing are not so different after all.
An Array of Tools at Your Disposal
In fact, it is better to step away from the idea of a schism in marketing all together.
Instead of looking to pick holes, and looking to pit old world ideas against New Age techniques, we simply need to analyze the access points our customers are using to connect with what we offer, and what they want us to deliver to them.
In the book The Principles of Marketing, authors Phillip T. Kotler and Gary Armstrong define the five tenets of marketing as follows;
- Direct marketing
- Advertising
- Personal selling
- Sales promotion
- Publicity
Whichever marketing method you are using, the mechanics of what you are doing will boil down to one of these five areas.
For example, perhaps you are holding a sponsored launch event to generate publicity via traditional channels, and in the weeks leading up to the event you distribute an exclusive e-information pack to subscribers.
This is an example of combining the traditional with the digital to achieve the same ends.
Alternatively, you may decide to use the customer information you have acquired via social media channels and CTAs to hone your direct marketing strategies, deploying consumer knowledge in an effort to boost the effectiveness of your endeavors.
Improved Experience for All Concerned
Your marketing strategies should be approached with an end in mind: What are you trying to achieve, and what is the best way to achieve this?
Do not feel under pressure to rely wholeheartedly on digital channels; instead, approach the situation with a clear head and select the ideal tool for the job at hand.
In doing so, you will be greatly enhancing the experience that your customer has when interacting with your business.
Customers respond well to organizations that understand them, work to nurture them and deliver them offers, content and news pertaining to what they need.
Deploy a double-pronged attack, melding traditional and digital together, to take your customer relationships to the next level.
This post originally appeared on THINK Marketing.
