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Essay / The Impact of Digital and Traditional Media on Consumer Decision-Making Barely ten years ago, the majority of advertisers viewed the Internet as uncharted territory - a gold mine of unimaginable potential just waiting to be mobilized and deployed. This influx of awareness has caused a major stir in the marketing world, as today the Internet is seen not simply as an advertising vehicle for generating rapid responses, but rather as a powerful platform that allows specialists of marketing to build brands, refine their value propositions and engage. consumers. This development presents opportunities for a well-integrated resource allocation process – something that will also significantly inform the attitudes and trends of marketers in the future. What we can hope to gain at the end of this article is a better understanding of the factors that influence a marketer's decision when allocating communications budgets between traditional and digital media. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essayCommunication Objectives and GoalsPerhaps the most critical decision facing many marketers is how much to spend on promotional efforts. Given the size of the organization, the communications budget can vary between a thousand dollars and a billion. This dichotomy is evident in companies like Ford and Procter and Gamble that spend over a billion dollars a year on product promotion, while local companies have budgets in the millions. The solution here is to first determine whether the organization is seeking to achieve its communications goals in the short or long term. These two approaches often work in tandem because, without an effective short-term strategy, the company may not be able to see its long-term goals come to fruition. Conversely, placing too much emphasis on short-term goals does not bode well for the company's future growth. The benefits of traditional media shine through dramatically when it comes to goals that require a long gestation period and reap incremental results. When it comes to newspapers, radio, magazines and direct mail, the interaction between consumers and the media used is often limited, as these exist to disseminate information to the public, rather than allow for comments or a commitment. and direct responses are made possible, effectively addressing short-term goals, such as selling a certain number of units over a few months. This is ideal for targeting consumers who intend to purchase but have not yet pulled the trigger. However, they have a short window to convert. The marketer is able to see the results in real time and position the brand exactly how they want, because marketing is done through the digital assets of the company itself rather than those owned by a third party ( as shown in traditional advertising). All of these variables play a key role in determining exactly how the communications budget can be profitably allocated. Market Segments – Demographic, Geographic and Behavioral Patterns At the head of any good marketing strategy is a resounding mantra: know your audience.It's no surprise that consumers, especially millennials, are moving away from traditional media and embracing their digital counterparts. This evolution has forced marketers to adapt to the times and re-evaluate their core marketing tactics. Buyer psychology is the heart and soul of a good marketing campaign, namely what is the exact process by which consumers make decisions and what influences those decisions. Additionally, where the core demographic resides and how behavioral and income variables affect their ability to interact with the company's products is something marketers need to decipher. The resulting insights will go a long way in determining exactly how marketers can communicate with their audiences in the digital age. Of course, this is in no way to suggest that traditional media offers no value. Although the use of the latter is declining, it is not obsolete. A good marketing campaign exploits the strengths of a single medium, a good campaign creates synergy between traditional and online media by optimally exploiting the value offered by each. These considerations give marketers enough information to decide on the communications budget. Product Life Cycles One of the primary tasks of a marketer is to determine how the product life cycle shapes its marketing. Tracking this information helps understand its projected performance and profit margins. This is why the life cycle is an important ingredient in marketing strategy because it helps refine marketing tactics accordingly at each of the four stages: introduction, growth, maturity and decline. Marketing strategies can be created to target any point in the sales funnel, whether the product is early stage or mature. This is what provides immense flexibility and allows the marketer to set up campaigns that truly resonate and engage. This is where it is equally important for the marketing manager to decide whether the communications budget has been allocated optimally or whether it needs fine-tuning. Traditional media is generally best optimized during the maturity phase, when sales increase slightly or completely stabilize. While during the growth phase with digital media, products can be judiciously differentiated from the competition while the marketer is able to keep a close eye on performance indicators and make changes quickly and timely if necessary. Price points – Luxury products versus secular products. Pricing a product is tricky territory to navigate because a number of different factors need to be considered. Here the marketer looks at the value proposition of the product, i.e. what are the problems faced by a potential buyer and how can the product solve these problems? Understanding this information will help the marketer develop a pricing strategy that is competitive and consistent with the value proposition. Assessing buyer personas and psychologies to better understand how much potential consumers are willing to pay for the product is also paramount in the equation. Once a concrete pricing strategy is in place, an appropriate marketing channel must be employed. Trends suggest that digital media is surpassing traditional media in terms of overall media spending. However, television in particular continues to be one of the most popular advertising gateways and still accounts for a share.
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