Are you wondering which is the best medium for your marketing purposes? Are you confused as to which you should choose from traditional and digital marketing? You’re at the right place. We will give you a complete breakdown of both these types of marketing and tell you how you can use this info to choose the medium that best suits your business.
What is Traditional Marketing?
Traditional marketing is the process by which businesses promote their products or services through traditional channels or media. Traditional channels include television, radio, and print media(newspapers, magazines, etc). Note that this kind of marketing is an offline method.
There are five main types of traditional marketing;
- Direct Mail Marketing
- Print Media Marketing
- Broadcast Marketing
- Outdoor Marketing
- Direct Selling
Let’s look at each of these, one by one.
- Direct Mail Marketing
As the name suggests, this kind of marketing is done by mailing the customer brochures, flyers, postcards, catalogs, or other printed material that promote your product or service. Think of it as being similar to email marketing, the main difference being that it takes place offline.
- Print Media Marketing
This kind of traditional marketing takes place through print media like newspapers, magazines, and other publications. Print media advertising is still used widely because it commands a significant amount of credibility. Another advantage is the greater attention spans that print media readers have when compared to their digital media counterparts.
- Broadcast Marketing
Broadcast marketing refers to the advertising that takes place through television and radio. We’ve all seen these ads, haven’t we? These ads are not specifically targeted at a small section of people, instead, the focus is on accommodating the needs of the masses so that a larger section of people are attracted.
- Outdoor Marketing
What would we be doing when we’re not on our phones or at home? We would be outside. Quite a bit of our time is daily spent in transit. There may be ads that you see every day during your daily transit to school or work. The billboards, the buses, trains, bus shelters, even buildings have ads that are visually appealing and eye-catching. These are what contribute to outdoor marketing.
- Direct Selling
This is the only type of traditional marketing where there is a person-to-person interaction between the customer and the representative of the company. Cold-calling, event marketing, networking, referrals, and one-to-one meetings are examples of direct selling.
What is Digital Marketing?
Digital marketing is the process by which businesses promote their products or services through the Internet. There are many types of digital marketing;
- Content Marketing
- Social Media Marketing (SMM)
- Email Marketing
- Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)
- Pay-per-click (PPC)
- Affiliate Marketing
Now you know what traditional marketing and digital marketing are, and what the different types of digital and traditional marketing are. Which do you think is the most effective? Confused? Well, the answer is that each medium has its advantages and disadvantages. A good marketing strategy makes use of both traditional and digital marketing to give the best result. So how can you get the formula right? Let’s take a look.
Let’s start with the basic question:
What is the Difference between Traditional and Digital Marketing?
The answer is quite simple. The medium is the basic difference. Traditional marketing makes use of traditional media like print media or television or radio. Digital marketing, on the other hand, makes use of the online platform. This basic difference leads to many other differences like the difference in reach, cost, the possibility of customization, etc.
Now, the next question is which one to choose?
- Target Audience
Traditional marketing is often welcomed by older customers. On the other hand, digital marketing brings your product in front of most age groups. If your target audience belongs to the older category make sure you focus on traditional marketing more than digital marketing. This does not mean that you have to avoid digital marketing. Use both types in a way that suits your business.
- Longevity
Another advantage that traditional marketing offers is longevity for your ads. Ads that are launched on the online platform go out of trend more easily and the competition is fierce. Thus, digital marketing needs you to quickly adapt and change to compete with other brands. Traditional marketing on the other hand is not as changeable.
- Cost
There is a reason most small businesses prefer digital marketing. It is cost-effective when compared to traditional marketing, which is expensive.
- Engagement
Digital marketing strategies allow you to interact with your customers. But traditional marketing is one-way communication. Use a mixture of both types so that you can engage with your customers.
- Targeting
Digital marketing provides you with the opportunity to target specific audiences whereas traditional marketing does not have this advantage.
- Reach
Traditional marketing has a reach that cannot be beaten by digital marketing. This might sound contradicting but let me explain. The digital world has leveled out the playing field allowing even small businesses to engage with and sell to customers. However, this also means that the competition is high and the possibility of getting lost among the many voices is high.
This means that your digital marketing strategy cannot have the same reach as a billboard that millions pass by or a television ad that people are forced to watch.
- Analytics
Digital marketing gives us a chance to measure the success of each campaign. The data we obtain can help in devising a better campaign next time. Traditional marketing does not provide us with this feature and the impact of a marketing campaign is not precisely measurable.
Conclusion
Now that you know the advantages and disadvantages of traditional and digital marketing, make sure you use them well. Formulate your marketing strategy with these points in mind for better results. A mixture of both types of marketing can give you the result you desire and generate more sales. Also, make sure that your marketing strategy is formulated with your budget in mind.