How Traditional Marketing And Digital Marketing Are Different

When it comes to marketing, there are two vastly different ways of advertising: traditional marketing and digital marketing. Traditional marketing includes things like TV commercials, radio ads, billboards and print advertisements. Digital marketing, on the other hand, encompasses activities like social media, search engine optimisation (SEO), pay-per-click (PPC) advertising, email newsletter blasts and many other forms of internet-based advertising.

What are the benefits of traditional marketing

There are several benefits of traditional marketing, one of them being the ability to connect with your local audience, the ways they do this are through magazine ads, local radio, or direct mail, this results in a more organic feel in your traditional marketing rather than a corporate feel. Another benefit of traditional marketing is that promotional materials are sustainable, this is because traditional methods of marketing tend to leave a longer impression with your audience rather than posts on your social media, so you tend to get more from the same magazine ad, business cards or brochures meaning you don’t need to make new material as often to promote your company. You can also have a credibility established with your audience because printed material is often viewed as more trustworthy. Why? Because if they can afford to traditionally market then the company must be growing, successful and stable. You will also reach a more diverse audience which will help your business potential grow if you are a smaller business which could make traditional marketing a better option for attracting potential customers.

What are the benefits of digital marketing over traditional marketing?

There are several benefits of digital marketing over traditional marketing. First, digital marketing can be more affordable than traditional marketing, because there is no strict budget for a digital marketing campaign. On top of that paper and printing costs are relatively high, plus the fact that you would also need to spend money on distribution as well for traditional marketing. Second, digital marketing is more effective than traditional marketing in terms of reach. Traditional marketing is usually restricted to a local or regional audience, plus with digital campaigns you can tailor those campaigns to reach several different regions. Thirdly, digital marketing is more effective than traditional marketing for generating leads because there is more digital interaction between potential customers and brands through social media, emails or messages. Also, there is a sense of customer loyalty because you can reach out to a wide audience and provide consistent regular content, keeping your brand fresh in people’s memories. On top of this you can have 2-way communication with customers online which means you are able to listen to what customers have to say about your brand.

What are some examples of traditional marketing tactics that still work today?

An example of a traditional marketing tactic that still works to this day is direct mail marketing, this is still an effective marketing tactic because direct mail marketing scores on creativity, personalising and targeting a particular audience, all of this means it will have a greater power to influence the readers. However, this isn’t the only effective traditional marketing tactic that works to this day as print based advertising still works today as they are effective at generating leads and driving traffic to the website.

What are some examples of digital marketing tactics?

There are quite a few examples of digital marketing tactics, here are just a few. One example is social media marketing. Social media marketing is effective at hyper-targeting customers, this is based on exact demographics which means you can show ads to the right individuals. Another example is search engine optimisation (SEO). SEO is effective because not only will it bring an increased traffic to your website, but it is also cost effective and helps raises your brand awareness as well because, if you are ranking higher on search engines then more people will recognise your name.

How much does traditional marketing cost compared to digital marketing

With digital marketing booming and the lower cost of running a digital marketing campaign is traditional marketing still valid. The main forms of traditional marketing have become very expensive to advertise on. For example, a budget for a TV commercial these days can be compared to the price of shooting a Hollywood movie. On top of this you would also need to consider the cost of transmission which is usually high, and it can get even higher, especially around Christmas or a sporting event that attract large audiences like the World Cup or the European Cup. For magazines and other print media, they are slowly becoming less common and moving online instead. So, for companies in the print marketing business, they will need to sell their advertising spaces at a higher price and if they are a well-known and long running print marketing company, then that will have an even higher price for the advertising space.

Conclusion

Traditional marketing overall is a more expensive approach than digital marketing strategy. Digital advertising can be done on the internet, which is less costly and accessible to many people. Traditional advertising has a higher cost because it often includes things like TV commercials, print media, direct mail, telemarketing and many other strategies that are seen by fewer people in comparison with what they would see online. Traditional advertising reaches a limited audience and is ineffective in monitoring where leads and sales come from, while digital advertising has the potential to reach a much larger audience and can provide very targeted groups with specific monitoring of where new sales and business comes from.

So, when considering a new marketing campaign, think about what approach is going to be best for your business.

If you enjoyed this article, then be sure to read another one of our articles about digital marketing vs digital branding.