You have your business, you have your sales team, you have your marketing department. When you started your company, you made sure to have all your ducks in a row. And we get it: there are a lot of ducks to get in a row. In fact, new ducks keep popping up.
We have another one for you to prioritize. We know, we know: what is it this time? More strategy to adopt? Another array of business products to attend to?
Eh. Yes and no. This one is all about marketing channels. So think more along the lines of a marketing strategy inside your marketing plan; a structured approach. Think more along the lines of advertising products, not general business ones.
And believe us when we say that this one is going to be fun.
Why Are Marketing Channels So Important in Marketing?
Yes, seriously: fun. But above all else, marketing channels are crucial to sustain your business. In simpler terms, your business needs them to survive and thrive.
Why? It comes down to far more than one reason by itself. There are countless reasons why marketing channels matter so much. So let’s go over a few of them.
In general, you need your products to reach your target market. But your target market is a group of specific people with specific needs. So when marketing products, you need to get to them using the right channels. That is, the ones they are already on. The ones they prefer to hang out around already.
Then, you have a better chance of boosting your profits and driving revenue. Also, if you choose the right ones then you just may level up your early engagement.
But let’s get a bit more specific. First, you can save time and money. You get to cut the cost and time that you otherwise would spend on distribution channels out of the equation.
Second, you get to target more customers with a higher success rate. They stumble upon your materials marketing efforts somewhere that they already want to be. This means less frustration on their end when you cold call or cold email them when they least want it.
Last but not least, you get to explore the specialization that comes with each of the marketing channels. Each one that we go over below specializes in a very specific area. So you get a more effective result with all your marketing efforts. From material marketing to advertising materials to content marketing, each one’s effectiveness boosts tenfold.
Internet Marketing
Let’s start with the most pertinent of the marketing channels. At least, it is the most pertinent for today’s audiences. We’re talking about the power of Internet marketing, in a day and age where people spend a huge amount of time online.
So fire up your computer and get to work. These Internet marketing channels are prime real estate for 2021, and they’re built to last too.
Podcast Marketing
It’s safe to say that we all love our podcasts. It’s a comforting way to pass the time on long road trips or during those more grueling office hours.
55 percent of people in the U.S. 12 years old and over? They listen to podcasts. That’s more than half of that section of the population. And you most likely are not selling to children under 12 years old. They don’t really have jobs to buy your products or services.
Using podcasts as brand material for marketing is a way to make your relationships with your customers more intimate, too.
Email Marketing
This one has been around for a bit, but it’s still good as new. It is yet another way to personalize the customer experience.
You can send emails for a product launch with promotional material or send out a regular newsletter with important industry news. Your VIP customers can get insider deals and information or send targeted advertisements to them whenever you need to.
Social Media Marketing
As far as social media marketing goes, you take email marketing and enhance it. But again, this is all depending on your target audience.
Here, you have a lot to choose from. There is Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. You also have Pinterest, Snapchat and LinkedIn. Social media is always on the rise and changes constantly. So analyze your market and see what platform they spend the most of their time on.
Also make sure your social media marketing content has the right tone, voice and length. You have to consider when to post and how much effort you can afford to put into engagement there.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Marketing
Search engine optimization (SEO) is inarguably among the most effective marketing channels. This fact is regardless of what you sell and who your consumers are. But the approach you take with it is where you have to stand out.
Keywords, hyperlinks and everything in between play a part in SEO. This is why you often need an SEO and PPC specialist to take over the reins. But you have options.
Influencer Marketing
You see influencers everywhere. And you can work with one so that people start associating them with your brand and what you have to offer.
It is when you partner up your brand with a relevant influencer to promote your content and brand as a whole.
Not to mention that a lot of consumers trust and rely on the word of an influencer. So you can boost your audience’s trust of your brand when you take advantage of influencer marketing. And at the end of the day, trust is invaluable when you want to sell.
Video Marketing
The vast majority of consumers prefer to learn from a visual medium. They retain information better when they do so. And the same goes for video marketing.
You can get your voice across very well (and in way less time) when your marketing team produces video content.
Not only is it interactive, it is also one of the best ways to use humor in a campaign. Often, your followers will confuse an attempt at humor with something else entirely. The joke does not always land. If appropriate for your brand, consider a witty snippet or funny video here.
Online Advertising
Online advertising may seem like a broad set of marketing channels to you. But this is somewhere you can expand depending on how you want to use creative expression in your marketing efforts.
Picking the right online advertising marketing channel means people will share your content. Then, you can generate leads that come to you and make sales that will keep on coming.
Mobile Marketing
Digital marketing, like we talked about above, overlaps a lot with mobile marketing. The difference is that digital marketing is more all-encompassing. Mobile marketing is when you engage in marketing tactics for your business that is compatible with mobile devices.
Your promotional material and campaigns should work for smartphones, tablets and any other type of smaller device.
SMS Marketing
Short message service (SMS) marketing is when you send a promotional text message to your customers. The message should contain any necessary marketing information to them.
This may include a sale you are having at your brick-and-mortar store or an update to your customer loyalty program. Whatever your SMS marketing may be about, make it relevant and keep it compelling.
Social Media
Social media in the scope of mobile marketing is different from social media in the scope of more general digital marketing.
Customers can view your mobile marketing efforts right from their phones, whenever and wherever they want.
71 percent of users interact with social media on their mobile devices. And like we keep saying, you want to interact with your customer base where they already want to be. This marketing channel is the perfect way to do that.
Location-Based Marketing (GPS)
This one is something you have seen before. Think of Google. Not hard to do since they are the leading search engine, we know. But now, think of that time when you wanted to grab some late-night grub. Or that time when you were on summer vacation and needed to find a grocery store for some last-minute snacks.
You went to Google and typed in “restaurants open near me” or “groceries near me.” What popped up? Exactly what you were looking for.
Thus, the power of location-based marketing. You can send advertisements to people’s phones if they are close enough to your business’s physical location. This is popular with larger franchises in particular.
Proximity Marketing
Proximity marketing is similar to GPS marketing. With these marketing channels, you can take the same approach as you would to location-based marketing.
But proximity marketing is a crowd favorite among smaller, local businesses. Consider this approach if you own a business around a popular tourist destination.
In-App Marketing
Did you know that of those who use a mobile device, they spend 82 percent of their time on apps?
Show up for those people. Make that bulk of their time valuable and you will receive value from them in return. You can include ads within social media platforms for those users.
Mobile Game Marketing
Mobile games are fun. They can occupy your time while you wait to catch a flight or sit in a waiting room. And wow, there are a lot of waiting rooms to sit in.
But we do not always want to pay for the ad-free versions. Often, users find helpful information or other apps they want to download while they are playing a game.
Think about marketing there. Insert ads or popups for your brand in these games and see how effective it is with your own two eyes.
Other Forms of Marketing Still Effective Today
We understand that sometimes, digital marketing channels do not work for your business. Maybe your audience is from a different generation that prefers promotional material they can get their hands on.
You still have some forms of marketing to pick from if that is the case for your business. Below you will find four of the more traditional marketing channels that can work wonders for your company.
Radio Advertising
Believe it or not, the radio still exists. And a lot of people prefer it to use their bluetooth to hook up their phone to their car’s stereo. Many rely on it for traffic and weather reports.
It is an inexpensive way to market to your audience. You can advertise on the radio to promote your business, its products or its services.
TV Advertising
TV advertising is a bit more expensive than advertising on the radio. But the investment is worth it for a lot of businesspeople.
Linchpin cites Cengage Learning, saying that TV advertising accounts for 40 cents on the dollar that business professionals use for advertising.
If you have the budget for it, you can aim for a national audience with your TV ads. But local networks still hold a decent amount of power over the average consumer.
Word-of-Mouth Marketing (WOMM)
Word-of-mouth marketing (WOMM) has stuck around for a while. And it is here to stay. Naturally, consumers don’t trust everything that comes from a business’s mouth. In their eyes, a lot of businesses are out for money and nothing else.
But when you pick WOMM as a marketing channel, you can reel them in for little to no money on your end. And if you earn the initial trust, that will build trust between the two of you in the future.
Offline Advertising
The previous three marketing channels comprise offline advertising. This is when you use more traditional materials to promote your brand. Anything offline counts here.
These are some other examples to explore:
- Pamphlets, brochures or flyers
- Business cards
- Print books
- Coupons
- In-person events
- Press releases
- And more
Conclusion
You want to get in touch with your audience. You have to so that you can see the business you worked so hard to build thrive. And if you get in touch with us, we can get you to where you need to be as a company.
At Business Marketing Engine, we are a full-service marketing agency that is driven with heart, fueled by relationships. Each one of our qualified team members works tirelessly to bring you the success you deserve. But even though you deserve that success, sometimes you need a little push to get there.
Whether that push is for copywriting services, social media management or general marketing help, we have your back.
Head to our blog and podcast for more pro tips on how to shine in your industry. And for real-life business growth, click here to contact your marketing experts at Business Marketing Engine today.