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Go Digital, Get Social To Fill Your Marketing Funnel

November 23, 2009
It's no secret that the recession is forcing marketers and business owners to test less expensive ways to raise visibility and generate sales than more traditional methods such as advertising, and digital and social marketing tops the list. But here's the thing - these new tools are proving to be more than just affordable, they're also effective.

Go Where The Buyers Are
Consider where consumer's spend their time. Leading Forrester Research anlayst Josh Bernoff, in an article for Marketing News, writes that according to Forrester consumers spend 35% of their media time on the Internet but marketers spend just 12% of their total budget there.

Don't Replace, Amplify
I've long said that social media alone cannot save your brand, but if you're doing smart marketing, social media and digital campaigns can amplify them - extending their reach and driving your return on marketing investment (ROMI) skyward.

Fill The Funnel
In the same Marketing News article, Bernhoff references one of my favorite analogies - the marketing funnel: At the top you need unqualified leads, and at the bottom you need customer evangelists.

Driving traffic to the top requires smart branding, and digital programs including banner ads, blogs and paid search are workhorses in that regard. At the other end, your digital efforts might include email marketing or online forums to help customers become brand ambassadors.

But what happens in the middle, during the consideration and preference stages of the buying cycle? In his book Groundswell, Bernoff underscores the importance of social or word of mouth marketing to move prospects forward.

My Expert Business Source blog partner Suze Bragg just wrote about this in her post about Peer to Peer Advertising. Smart business owners need to consider their online ratings, reviews and positive references. Who's talk about your brand? Who's talking about you?

Take Away
In 2010 as you plan your marketing budget, consider how you can amplify your traditional marketing efforts with social and digital tools to get more bang for each buck.

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Photo Source: Formz
Josh Bernoff writes for Marketing News Magazine

Posted by Sima Dahl on November 23, 2009 | Comments (0)