Marketing used to be a feared word by businesses around the world, simply because of the expenses it carried. In the past, the world of business heavily relied on traditional marketing, which carried a heavy price tag.
Tv ads, Radio Ads, Billboards Ads, or Print ads, these came at a heavy price, then came digital marketing, a more viable, accessible, and cheaper method with astounding results. But what is this digital marketing and why is it so impactful?
What is digital marketing?
Digital marketing, also called online marketing, is the promotion of businesses and brands to connect with potential customers using the internet and other forms of digital communication. This can be in a form of email campaigns, social media, and web-based advertising, text, and multimedia messages are also considered as a form of digital marketing channel.
The goal of digital marketing is simple — grow your business through online marketing and advertising strategies. These strategies revolve around digital technologies, from search engine optimization to social media marketing and more. The costs and budget are goal-dependent and entirely relate to the business size, the costs that you can expect locally and around the globe are mentioned in this blog.
Why digital marketing is important
Digital marketing can bring a lot of opportunities and growth to businesses and brands. It can lead to exposure and more sales. After all, your goal as a business owner is to increase your profit, so to improve your profits, you have to improve your brand awareness and capitalize on it.
If you want to see improvements in your business or increase your sales, you have to get your hands on digital marketing. Digital marketing is a valuable asset to your business’s growth and helps you establish an authoritative online presence.
Research has proved that 89 percent of marketers say methods, like search engine optimization (SEO), are successful. Additionally, methods like pay-per-click (PPC) advertising increase brand awareness by as much as 80 percent.
By investing in digital marketing, you will help your business grow while being profitable in the process.
How does digital marketing impact the consumer?
Due to the impact of digital marketing on consumer behavior, customers are more demanding of online stores and digital purchases, the need for a strong e-Commerce presence, with smooth and secure payment methods, fast delivery, and clear return policy that secures consumers’ rights is essential for businesses to survive.
In recent years, more brands and businesses shifted their focus into digital marketing, In 2021, traditional businesses realized that incorporating Digital is no longer optional, almost all marketing channels became Digital during the lock-down, and the Impact of digital marketing on consumer behavior is shaping the industry by forcing businesses to adapt their digital marketing approach and strategy.
The most direct way digital marketing affects consumer behavior is through the frequency and volume of online ads. Consumers who regularly encounter ads for a product or service will likely develop a positive opinion of that brand, and they will be more likely to buy from that brand in the future. This is known as the “reciprocity effect”. The more often consumers see ads for a particular brand, the more they are inclined to trust that brand and feel positive about it.
Digital marketing in relation to your business or brand.
The positives of digital marketing far outweigh any negatives that exist. We will compare the two types of marketing later on, there have been now more than ever far more affordable methods of reaching a wider audience. Advertising online is less expensive than print advertising, and more people see it. It’s that simple. Hundreds, or even thousands, of people, can be reached via sponsored posts on various social media sites for a few hundreds of rands or even less than a hundred rand per post on social media.
It can take several hundreds to thousands of rands to run a single print ad in a newspaper, and then consideration must be given to whether or not the target demographic is even seeing the ad. Traditional Media like Radio or Print Ads does not have precise methods to filter down prospects.
Everyone is online, so more people are seeing your ads. Again, it’s that simple. These days, people get everything from their news, their weather, the gossip on celebrities’ latest affairs, and even their groceries, all with a few clicks of a mouse or swipes of a finger. The opportunities have never been greater for business.
Digital marketing for small businesses, brands, and large businesses is beneficial as it promises a higher conversion rate without employing large amounts of money.
Techniques like search engine optimization, social media advertising, content marketing help in reaching the full potential of the business and convert potential leads into paying customers.
Small businesses should make efforts to come up with new and innovative marketing strategies to increase conversion and maximize profits.
Finding digital marketing success for your brand.
The reason businesses with good digital marketing understanding succeed is simply because digital marketing connects a business with its customers when they are online & is effective in all industries.
It connects businesses with ideal customers when they are on Google through SEO & PPC, on social media with social media marketing, & through email with email marketing.
The key to successful digital marketing is not only ensuring your business is effectively marketed to the 3 billion users on the Internet, but also simultaneously promoting the brand through combining various forms of digital media.
When is digital marketing used?
Digital marketing can be used for advertising special deals, highlighting content, or promoting an event.
It offers opportunities to reach users who may not be on many of the more popular platforms, like social media. That is why it is important to spread your digital strategy across various platforms.
There are many ways to market your business online, which is why many companies outsource their online marketing efforts or pay for an in-house team and automation software to cover their marketing needs. This is one area where spending a little money can improve your return on investment (ROI).
Digital marketing vs Traditional marketing.
With the rise of digital marketing, traditional marketing is often undervalued by marketers. However, traditional marketing still very much has a place in a consumer’s day-to-day life.
If you have the budget to share your campaigns in magazines and prime time TV, your money could be well spent. And with that said, traditional marketing is not out phased it is still very much alive but it is expensive and inaccessible for most businesses and small businesses with small budgets. Enter Digital marketing, which can laser target your exact client from a group with precision, something that traditional marketing lacks.
You can target specific prospects in a selected platform at a fraction of the budget. This topic of Digital Marketing vs Traditional marketing deserves its own blog, if you would like to see it, please let us know in the comment section and we will get down to it.
Digital Marketing costs and fees.
The average person spends more than 6 hours a day on the internet, and this is going to increase year after year.
The internet is an extraordinary platform to spread information. Today, it overshadows any other media and we’re expecting its reach to keep on growing exponentially.
As discussed, traditional marketing hopes to generate reach and visibility, but the internet does it better. It’s more persuasive and much more effective. It gives the client total control over their experience.
With the continued growth of digital marketing and its success, it’s no surprise that more businesses want to partner with trusted digital agencies, like Comfort Digital PTY (Ltd). The question is, how much should you spend on digital marketing?
That answer depends on different factors, namely your marketing budget and goals.
This is what you can expect to pay for Digital Marketing Services.
As you’re reading, keep in mind that every digital marketing price list is different, depending on the agency. Most Digital Agencies do not list their prices in their websites, so it may also be a challenge for you to find them, but we made it easy for you. The digital marketing costs that we outline are based on a combination of our general research.
Our pricing is available below and comprehensively throughout our website.
| Services | Average Costs (Local) | Average Costs (Global) | Our Services |
|---|---|---|---|
Social Media Management (Entry) |
R3 500 p.m |
R13 000 p.m | |
Social Media Management (Standard) |
R6 500 p.m |
R24 000 p.m | |
Search Engine Optimization (Entry) |
R5000 p.m |
R7 000 p.m | |
Search Engine Optimization (Standard) |
R10 999 p.m |
R12 000 p.m | |
Web Design & Dev. (Entry) |
R4 000 |
R4 500 | |
Web Design & Dev. (Standard) |
R9 500 |
R13 500 |
*Most Agencies have Entry + Standard and Premium packages, all would differ in features, ENTRY would have the least Features basically your starter, while STANDARD would have what could be taken as a basic package for a product to operate and of course your PREMIUM package would pack features with all the standard packages plus more.
It has to be said that not all Agencies would have the three categories, some would have more some would have less. They could also be named differently but they would follow the same principles.
Lead generation, Google Ad Campaign and P.C.P would really depend on the team, the agency requiring the services and the end goal, it is practically impossible to therefore have an industry standard, the cost however would be split into paying the team and paying for the actual access (Google AdSense or Meta Ads for example)
Conclusion
Whether your business operates offline or online, it is existing in a competitive market. That is why digital marketing is critical to companies today. If you want to reach your target audience, increase your revenue, and boost your brand awareness, then you need to invest in digital marketing, it is for your business good, in the short and long term.
Digital marketing can affect consumer behavior in many ways. It can inform, persuade, or even entertain consumers. It enables brands to put their best foot forward by highlighting certain aspects of their product or service while downplaying others. All of this occurs in an environment where consumers can freely pursue information that is relevant to their needs and interests, like you are actually doing right now.
Comfort Digital PTY (Ltd), a South African Leading Digital Agency has helped a lot of businesses increase their profits, solidify their position in the market place and remain afloat throughout all seasons of the year.
We have various services including paid and free consultations to give access and assist all business sizes in their digital journey, talk to us today. Book a no-obligation free digital marketing consultation below.
Any comments? we would appreciate your feedback and your thoughts, Comfort Digital PTY (Ltd) is a Digital agency based in South Africa, Pretoria.
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