Introduction

The digital space has had a hostile takeover of our lives right from its inception. The endless web of possibilities (Pun intended) that it has opened up in our world cannot be understated. It has affected every facet of our lives and dictates how we interact with the world around us.

Naturally, it has affected the world of marketing as well. The digital space opened up new radical avenues for marketing. The last two decades have marked a clear shift in the marketing sphere from traditional modes to digital marketing.

Digital marketing is the use of the digital space to achieve marketing goals. The digital space is a lot more versatile than traditional spaces for marketing and offers the chance to specifically target advertisements and receive immediate metrics for its measurement.

With the help of digital marketing, it is possible to identify specific demographics for a product and target them. This makes the whole process of marketing more efficient by pumping maximum marketing efforts towards the target audience for a market.

Digital marketing also makes it possible to immediately measure the outcome of any marketing efforts. Real-time metrics are available which makes it possible to recalibrate the marketing efforts towards more efficiency.

You can learn more about the basics of digital marketing in our article on Fundamentals Of Digital Marketing 2022.

This shift towards digital marketing has been further accelerated by the pandemic and the subsequent lockdowns. This phase has seen many traditional agencies focus higher funds and resources on digital marketing than traditional marketing.

This trend is here to stay and the future of digital marketing looks promising. The advent of faster internet in the forms of 4G and 5G and with higher access to the internet among people suggests that the future of digital marketing promises exponential growth.

Digital marketing vs traditional marketing

Traditional marketing refers to marketing practices and spaces that existed before the digital space. This includes print media and television. Traditional marketing employs the use of magazines, newspapers, flyers, sports, etc. to place advertisements.

Digital marketing, on the other hand, uses digital spaces like social media, blogs, online games, etc. to place marketing material.

Traditional marketing has common targeting whereas digital marketing provides the opportunity to specifically target demographics based on the product.

Digital marketing also offers the chance to actively engage with clients as opposed to traditional marketing which struggles to keep the interaction constant.

Digital marketing also helps in directly tracking the results with the use of metrics as opposed to traditional marketing whose results take a while to materialize.

Traditional marketing is expensive due to the limited availability of desirable spaces for marketing. This makes it less accessible for smaller businesses. Digital marketing can be done at a much smaller scale and is hence more accessible. It is cost-effective and is pursued by the smallest of businesses.

Forms of Digital Marketing

Social media marketing: Social media is a space used by everyone today. It is especially popular among the youth. Sponsored content is placed on social media to further marketing. Some of the popular platforms are Instagram, Reddit, Quora, etc.

Email marketing: This is highly specific targeting where businesses reach out to potential clients by sending communications through email.

Content marketing: This form of marketing uses storytelling as a tool to help get the marketing communication across.

PPC - Pay-per-Click: These are paid advertisements that contain CTCs (Call to Action) that prompt clients to convert to the product.

Mobile marketing: This targets mobile phone and laptop users through apps, websites, and online media.

SEO: This is a practice used by all businesses. It is a continuous process where the business aims to place on the first page of search engines. This is done by targeting keywords that are relevant to the product.

Affiliate marketing: The digital space is filled with influencers who have their niches. This form of marketing works by finding the right influencer for the product and using them to reach the audience they possess within the niche.

Future of Digital Marketing

The future of digital marketing is already upon us. The level of internet access and the speed at which it is available in the present world has already made digital marketing the foremost form of marketing.

This level of access or dependence was not foreseen even a decade ago. This indicates that the future of digital marketing is already upon us.

From being a fad, the internet has become a basic necessity for many. This has only been further boosted by the pandemic era. People went from using one GB of data per month to two GB per day in about half a decade.

This has opened up avenues for marketing that were never fathomed before. Traditionally marketing spaces were limited and common for all.

For example, a single prominent long wall in a neighborhood that all brands had to compete for. This exclusivity drives up costs. Furthermore, this wall would now target the entire neighborhood even though the product or service is aimed at only 20% of the neighborhood.

In the digital space, on the other hand, there are numerous spaces, and marketing can be done towards specific demographics. This is set to expand with the creation of virtual systems like the Metaverse.

This offers access to the smallest of retailers to compete. This makes marketing way more affordable and accessible to small businesses.

With further progress in technology and the accessibility of the internet, the future of digital marketing looks even brighter than the present.

A career in digital marketing

The digital marketing scope is something that has been exponentially growing ever since the internet became available to the masses. It is estimated that more than twenty percent of the population spends almost their entire day online. This has led rise to an increase in the digital presence of brands to stay relevant and competitive.

Furthermore, digital marketing can be a very specific and topical kind of marketing strategy with the use of data and analytics to target very specific demographics with varied strategies. This has led to very specific job requirements and roles arising within the sphere of digital marketing.

According to analytics from 2019, more than 190 billion was being spent on mobile ads alone. This increased to exponentially higher levels with the onset of the pandemic. This is a clear indicator that digital marketing is here to stay and is going to be the number one mode of marketing in the future. This acts as a guarantee to the digital marketing scope.

Various digital marketing roles, as mentioned above, are being invested in by companies that have realized the power of the digital space.

This means there will be a higher digital marketing scope in the future. Furthermore, the potential for digital marketing career growth is very high as there is an increasing demand for experienced quality professionals in this arena.

A career in digital marketing looks like a smart choice for anyone interested in working in any of its many facets and for anyone possessing the relevant skills to have a successful career in digital marketing.

You can read our article titled Career In Digital Marketing - A Complete Guide to get a better understanding of the career prospects that it offers.

Benefits of Digital Marketing for Retail Brands

The future of digital marketing looks bright, especially because of the various benefits it offers to both marketers and users.

A well-planned digital marketing strategy can go a long way in ensuring that the product or service is successful. Having a good digital marketing plan can be the decisive factor behind the success of a business.

You can learn how to make a digital marketing plan from our article on Digital marketing plans.

Some of the many benefits of Digital Marketing are –

(i) Improves user experience - Helps keep the users engaged. Addresses user values.

(ii) Creates new marketing opportunities  - Helps smallers businesses engage in marketing.

(iii) Helps establish brand metrics - Helps distinguish brand from other similar brands.

(iv) Improves conversion and retention - Helps understand users to improve conversions and retentions.

Conclusion –

It is undeniable that the future of digital marketing is bright. The future of digital marketing is helped by the constant growth of the digital space coupled with the development of technology.

This future of digital marketing provides space for all, consumers and retailers. The career prospects are also bright in the future of digital marketing. This makes it an ideal field to step into.

Doing a digital marketing course, like Sprintzeal’s Digital Marketing Masters Program Certification Training can help you on this path.

Doing a digital marketing course from a reputed and recognized authorized training partner, like Sprintzeal, can go a long way in helping you catch the train to the future of digital marketing.