Digital Marketing Has Revolutionized How Businesses Reach Customers

Marketing has always offered a challenging, fast-paced career that is both highly competitive and rewarding. The emergence of digital marketing has made the field even more exciting.

Those who decide to earn an MBA with a concentration in digital marketing can find themselves in the most exciting position of all: a leadership role in developing and executing digital marketing campaigns.

It’s exactly where you want to be in marketing as we enter the third decade of the century.

5 Digital Marketing Trends

Some of the trends that are driving performance in marketing have been around for some time but are starting to break out in terms of use by organizations. Each can provide a valuable tool for the digital marketer.

1. Video.

Video consumption online continues to increase. Organizations are putting more resources and money into getting their content into video. Video with content that either teaches or entertains can garner a large audience. Consequently, this increases the SEO of a site. In turn, you can further increase your brand’s reach.

2. Artificial Intelligence.

Customers increasingly want a personalized experience online. AI provides value by analyzing customer online behavior and search patterns; then, quickly linking customers to relevant advertising and marketing messages. This can, therefore, make the online consumer experience feel intuitive and customized.

3. Chatbots.

This is another area where AI provides value. AI-driven chatbots can interact with website visitors or consumers online, anytime, day or night. Most noteworthy, Juniper Research expects chatbots to save businesses around the world $8 billion every year by 2022.

4. Influencers.

Some companies now turn to leaders in a niche market to promote their products and services to their many followers. Who wouldn’t want a Kardashian to Tweet about their product? Yet, don’t discount the small influencers! They can also reach your audience just as effectively as someone with a bigger name.

5. Voice.

Some estimate that half of all searches will be done by voice in 2020, especially for mobile users.

Those are just five of the many current trends in digital marketing. Hence, at a more fundamental level, digital has revolutionized the way marketers approach their job.

Digital Marketing Changes Business

Digital marketing has changed how marketers approach their work in many ways. Consider some of these issues.

Level Playing Field

Digital marketing rewards focused effort. Marketing success can happen no matter the size of the marketing budget. Even in a global marketplace, small and medium size businesses can establish a consumer base. For MBA grads, this means more job opportunities. Many digital agencies likewise cater to the small and medium-sized business market.

Data-Driven Decisions

There’s no getting around it: data is central to digital marketing. It informs every decision a marketer makes. This is an extremely good thing. Data takes the guesswork out of marketing. As a result it also offers more chances for success.

How so? Here are just two ways.

Focused campaigns. Data allows marketers to segment customers, creating personalized content that makes for better targeted campaigns. For example, rather than an online retailer  sending general emails to everyone, they can instead create content that targets office workers, suburban parents, young professionals, etc.

Website analytics. This is the core of all marketing for online business. Analytics offer a wealth of information, including the popularity of each page, which pages convert traffic to sales, where people enter and exit a site, and; of course, the success of landing pages.

Social Media

This is how digital marketers reach customers where they live online. Done correctly, social media campaigns are complex. But, all involve a willingness to engage with customers in ongoing conversations about products, services and issues around your area of business. It’s the best way in the modern world to directly reach potential customers, as well as maintain current ones.

Reputation Management

Online reputation management is of primary importance. It can involve creating content to push down negative links in search engine results, responding to negative online reviews, or dealing with negative feedback via social media channels. The internet is one giant marketplace. Consequently, policing your reputation online is key to success.

Digital marketing is a smart choice for MBA students who want to work in an exciting, competitive area of business. With customers increasingly moving online, digital marketers will certainly continue to play a key role for the organizations that need to reach them.

Are you interested in changing the trajectory of your marketing career? Explore our MBA in Digital Marketing.