Everyone starts somewhere when it comes to marketing. It doesn’t matter if you’re planning to start a new career path or kickstart marketing for your own startup, you need to know the basics. Learning how to utilize tools and techniques will come in handy, but before you get into all of that, it’s best to understand a few general concepts in marketing that will help you in the long run. Here is everything you need to know about digital marketing when you’re just starting out.
More Than What Meets the Eye
Marketing may be one word, but it isn’t one concept. It encompasses several elements that all are crucial standing alone yet must tie together harmoniously for effective marketing. You may not become an avid professional in more than one segment of marketing, but having knowledge of everything it entails is necessary. Search engine optimization, content marketing, social media marketing, influencer marketing, branding, paid to advertise, and so on. All of them require a special set of skills, yet together they make up indispensable aspects of your marketing strategy. Be prepared to do a deep dive into all of these subfields to have an accurate overall picture of the business’ marketing.
Spread Your Wings
Besides components of digital marketing, there are also outlets of marketing. These are the channels that you market with the use of the above-mentioned components. With marketing, you can’t really have too much of it or too many channels, within rationality of course. Do you need a social media to account on every single platform that exists? No. Do you need an online presence on at least three of them? Yes. Cold calling, placing radio and TV ads are also channels for marketing. While some may argue whether or not they qualify as digital marketing but rather traditional marketing or even advertising, the outcome remains the same. If you assess that exposure from a certain platform will be beneficial to you without breaking the bank, then give it a try. At the very least, you’ll identify what outlets are performing the best for your target audience and optimize accordingly. In the beginning, it’s all about trial and experimenting with both long-term and short-term marketing strategies. This will help you immensely if you plan on providing marketing services at your next job and for marketing your personal business alike.
Go Big or Go Home (Sometimes)
Marketing isn’t always affordable, especially if you want to stand out. Investing significant resources for marketing is ideal if you want noticeable results. But what if you’re just starting
out? In the beginning, obviously, do whatever you can with your available budget and resources. There are free tools and affordable methods out there that save hundreds of dollars. It isn’t worth going bankrupt over a pricey marketing campaign. However, if you want to go above and beyond, understand that it’s going to require significant investment in tools and manpower. And no one can give you a guarantee that it’ll pay off! This is why it’s best to test the ground with budget-friendly marketing at first before you understand what aspects of your marketing strategy require respective increases in resources.
Have Quality to Back it Up
You may have heard about the age-old concept that a good marketer can sell a toothpick and make it sound like a new car. This is true, certainly, but there is a catch. This type of thinking and strategy only goes so far. If your marketing is blown like a balloon but it easily pops from one small thing, then your sales will crash as soon as they began to fly. The internet is full of opportunities for people to leave their honest feedback for products and services alike. If your marketing strategy relies on all talk and no show, then you’ll risk plummeting sales and high churn rates once it becomes evident. That being said, don’t over-market or idealize yourself through your marketing. Keep it between the boundaries of realism and authenticity, and your clients will thank you for it.
