Unit 24 Digital Marketing Assignment

Introduction

The main goal of the marketing activities is to reach the customers at those moments that have maximum influence on their decisions. In this regards there are several differences between traditional marketing and digital marketing. The main aim of the following unit 37 Digital marketing assignment is to find out the way in which marketers can make use of technologies and tools of digital marketing so as achieve their goals. The four points that would come up in the following discussion are the points of difference between traditional and digital marketing, customer touch points used in digital arena, the role played by data in digital marketing and the way in which face of CRM has changed over times. The essay will make use of example from several companies in order to elucidate the matters.

Body

The difference between digital and traditional marketing

Discussion

There are lots of companies which are making amazing use of digital marketing channels in order to reap heavy rewards. One such company is Airbnb. Airbnb was launched at a time when the founders could not afford their rent. However, now the site has 60 million users, over 2 million listing and has been valued at $25 billion in 2016. The marketing strategy of Airbnb tries to get both hosts and travelers to use their platform. The digital marketing strategy of the company relies on user generated video and images that are posted on twitter, Facebook and Instagram (Siu, 2016). The Instagram campaign of the company tries to match compelling images of different  travel tourism  locations with humor so that it acts like more than a service. The digital marketing campaign tries to promote the company as a travel forum and far greater than just being a service.  

Evaluation

There are lots of differences between traditional marketing on one hand and digital marketing on the other. Some of these differences are listed below

Thus, as evidenced from the above discussion digital marketing or online marketing which makes use of social media along with website content as marketing channels is far more effective as compared to traditional marketing. Besides it is nowadays required that even those companies which do not sell on the online market place, should have an online presence. Besides that it is possible through the use of digital marketing to reach a great population, at a short time and with fewer budgets.

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Customer touch points in the digital arena, including the role of web design, website management and usability

Discussion

In order to understand the way in which touch points are effectively used by the company to create a customer experience that is unparalleled and to realize the ultimate aim of increasing the number of purchases, one important example is that of AO.com.

Web design, website management and usability: Delivery is one of the key concerns of customers while they purchase online. Keeping this fact in mind, AO.com displays the proposition of free delivery prominently and effectively to the customers. The company also offers the customers an ability to customize delivery time but these services come at a premium. The about us page explains the company’s proposition and commitment towards customer experience. Also the social channels are smartly integrated with the about us page (Charlton, 2014). The auto complete is used for aiding the search process of the customers such that chances of customers having a zero search result page is reduced. The search box is also used for merchandising and providing a little help to the customers with spelling. The search results are displayed in a way so as to match the query of the customers (Charlton, 2014).  Additionally there are number of filters provided based on every available feature which the customers can use to further narrow down their results.

Evaluation

The companies have long been found to put a great deal of emphasis on the touch points or the many critical moments where in the customers and company interact with each other on the way of purchasing a product and in post purchase stages (Rawson, Duncan and Jones, 2013). However, although it is necessary to increase satisfaction at these stages, but narrowly focusing on maximizing the satisfaction of customers at those moments might lead to the creation of a distorted picture. Narrow focus on interaction at the touch points might create a false impression of customers being happy while they are not (Rawson, Duncan and Jones, 2013). The narrow focus might lead to diversion of attention from bigger and more important picture of end to end journey of the customer. The companies which are thus able to manage the entire experience well are able to reap tremendous benefits in terms of higher employee satisfaction, increase in revenue, reduction in churn etc. Such companies also discover ways that can be used to more effectively collaborate across different functions and levels. This process leads to the delivery of gains across the company. It is required for the companies to be able manage the cumulative experiences that occur across multiple touch points and multiple channels over a period of time. However, in order to address the issue the companies should not remove touch points as these are invaluable sources of insight in a  digital creation world  that is changing fast. Instead it is required that the customer journeys should be incorporated in the company models.

The role of data in digital

• Discussion: If the companies are able to understand the marketing channels that are effective, then it can result in huge cost savings but also serves as a major competitive advantage for the company. As companies embrace data driven approach to marketing, many predictions that were previously made might be challenged. At other times the data can be used to prove long held beliefs about the effectiveness of marketing channels that could never be proved. After using data driven analytics the company is in essence making marketing decisions that are based on facts rather than being based on blind faith alone. Since the numbers are used to support marketing decisions they cannot be reasonably challenged.
• Evaluation: Tons of data has been brought in by the onslaught of digital age. This huge amount of data can be leveraged by the company so as to make better strategic  decision making  through insights that are far more accurate. Thanks to this better clarity about the needs and wants of the customers, the customers can be served contents that are far more useful through ads. Rather than using the old form of mass advertising, the companies are integrating insights from a large number of sources so that the digital marketing campaign can be improved. For instance Burberry makes use of clientelling to RFID tags on clothes for gathering lot of data about customers so as to deliver that perfect experience which customers want (Davis, 2014).

The changing face of CRM

• Discussion; The face of  customer relationship  management has changed with the advent of digital marketing channels. As compared to the olden days, the companies now can make use of number of different channels in order to communicate with the customers and the customers too want fast response.
• Evaluation: One company which has seen a phenomenal rise due to its efficient use of CRM is slack. The company had 15000 users at the time of launch in 2014. In less than a year the company had 500,000 years and now the count is 3,000,000. Amongst 3,000,000 about 1 million accounts are paid accounts (Siu, 2016). The secret behind the phenomenal rise is that the company delivers a customer experience that is of high-quality. The company is found to respond to about 8000 help-desk tickets and tweets up to 10,000 in a month. Thus in the coming days the companies need to manage the customers more effectively in order to improve their position and relevance.

Conclusion

Thus as seen from the above discussion, digital marketing has been successful in changing the way companies market their products and interact with the customers. As compared to traditional marketing the digital marketing is a cost effective alternative that helps the companies to reach a large customer base. With an increase in digital devices, the customers interact with companies through a number of touch points on different devices and the companies are required to provide a unique but integrated experience across all of them. In case of digital marketing data plays a major role and the face of customer relationship management has changed.

References

Charlton, G., 2014. 13 ecommerce best practice lessons from AO.com. [Online]. Available at < https://econsultancy.com/blog/64902-13-ecommerce-best-practice-lessons-from-ao-com > [accessed 1^st November 2016].
Davis, B., 2014. 18 companies with brilliant digital strategies. [Online]. Available at < https://econsultancy.com/blog/65620-18-companies-with-brilliant-digital-strategies/ > [accessed 1^st November 2016].
Rawson, A., Duncan, E. and Jones, C., 2013. The truth about customer experience. Harvard Business Review, 91(9), pp.90-98.
Siu, E., 2016. 10 companies with the best digital marketing campaigns. [Online]. Available at < https://www.singlegrain.com/digital-marketing-2/10-companies-doing-online-marketing-right/ > [accessed 1^st November 2016].
Tiago, M.T.P.M.B. and Veríssimo, J.M.C., 2014. Digital marketing and social media: Why bother?. Business Horizons, 57(6), pp.703-708.