Many experts believe that the days of traditional marketing are long gone. The ever-expanding digital terrain is at the core of this assumption. However, this blanket assumption is far from accurate. In fact, for some businesses, traditional marketing is even more relevant than digital marketing. However, if one goes by the general trend, it is true that digital marketing practices have overtaken traditional marketing practices.
Traditional Marketing vs Digital Marketing
Truth be told, digital marketing practices have their foundation in traditional marketing. After all, it’s all about reaching as many potential customers as possible and convincing them to go for your product or service. With digital marketing, only the medium and tools have changed. The core philosophy of marketing remains the same.
Key Differences
The primary difference between traditional marketing and digital marketing is the medium. Digital marketing uses the internet to reach an audience. On the other hand, traditional marketing involves methods that predate the web. These include Billboards, Pamphlets, Television Commercials, etc. However, at times, the line between digital marketing and traditional marketing can get blurred. For instance, an individual may post a photo of a billboard, and it can go viral. Thus, it will gain traction on the web, even though the people in that billboard’s locale might not be impacted by it that much. Moreover, the content that is used on the billboard can easily be used in the digital medium as well. It is known as recycling and remarketing content. It’s a smart and cost-efficient marketing strategy that is sustainable in the long term. Another difference between traditional marketing and digital marketing is that the former is costlier than the latter. However, that depends entirely upon the size of a business and its marketing approach. Of course, anyone can get started with digital marketing. However, there are still some invisible costs associated with it (hiring digital marketers, systems, subscriptions to publishing tools, etc.). On the other hand, if one is simply giving out pamphlets to target a particular locality, which is a classic traditional marketing strategy, the cost wouldn’t amount to much. That’s why most restaurants prefer traditional marketing whenever a new branch is opened. After all, the people in the restaurant’s immediate area have the potential to become its regular customers. Although, franchises prefer digital marketing, as they have an already-established brand and wish to reach a global market. In the end, whether a traditional marketing strategy is cost-effective or not depends entirely upon the size of the business as well as the context of its operations.
Traditional Marketing Practices
Traditional marketing practices are often about targeting a particular locality. This type of targeted marketing is also possible in the digital domain with…