Digital Marketing Transformation Guide - Top 12 Strategies

Before delving into the relatively new topic of Digital Marketing Transformation, please consider its predecessor, Digital Transformation, a trend that has, and is taking corporate America by storm! Digital Transformation is often referred to as the use or adoption of technology, software and systems to improve processes. Benefits or Digital Transformation are productivity, cost savings, disruption, speed, and of course, improved business or financial results. Digital Transformation may require new skills, different talent, and organizational change.

So how does marketing fit into Digital Transformation? Or is Digital Marketing Transformation its own shiny, new buzzword that can have its own acronym, DMT?

Please allow the gurus at Modern Marketing Partners to provide insights and tips for implementing Digital Marketing Transformation (DMT for brevity) including a Digital Marketing Transformation definition, perspectives about the new Digital Marketing Mix, along with a list of the Top 12 Digital Marketing Transformation Strategies. We share some details on the increasing role of marketing technology or MarTech. And for those that seek additional information, several Digital Marketing Transformation Resources are provided.

Digital Marketing Transformation – Defined

Experts agree that we are in the midst of a marketing revolution, with rapid change, evolving from traditional marketing to digital. To be sure, many traditional marketing strategies are either obsolete, or certainly less emphasized by brands of all types. In fact, for many brand scenarios (business and consumer), traditional marketing tactics are fast becoming obsolete, or secondary at most. Direct mail and print advertising are examples of traditional marketing tactics in decline.

Importantly, new digital marketing tactics can be measured with analytics, tested, and reported to management. It is now possible to identify sales conversions, and to calculate return on marketing investment (or ROMI). Whereas traditional marketing often could not measure results, or report sales conversions.

A definition of Digital Marketing Transformation is the transition and evolution from a traditional marketing mix, to primarily digital marketing, including the use of a digital marketing mix (next subject) and new marketing technologies to plan, implement, test, measure, optimize and report results on marketing initiatives, campaigns and programs.

Depending on brand scenario (e.g. B2B vs. B2C), traditional marketing strategies will be required, but tightly integrated with digital marketing. For example, traditional events will be promoted via all types digital marketing including social media.

Digital Marketing Mix

So what is this new Digital Marketing Mix? First, you must know that the term marketing mix was coined by marketing professor Neil Borden in 1953, and later expanded by another marketing professor, E. Jerome McCarthy with the infamous 4 P’s of Marketing (in 1960). The Marketing Mix references the types and combinations of marketing (strategies and tactics) used by brands.

Of course, the Digital Marketing Mix emphasizes digital vs. traditional marketing strategies and tactics. As mentioned Digital Marketing utilizes technology including multiple types of software (See MarTech below). And Digital Marketing uses Analytics and other tools to measure and report on multi-channel initiatives. With Analytics, digital marketers can now test, refine, measure and optimize campaigns. Using MarTech, marketers can plan, coordinate, automate, measure and report on campaigns and programs. Market research, market segmentation, identifying buyer personas, and related activities are still part of marketing planning that determine the Digital Marketing Mix, along with the specific strategies and tactics used. On this latter topic, following are the Top 12 Digital Marketing Transformation Strategies and Tactics.

Top 12 Digital Marketing Transformation Strategies

Website Optimization (Incl. Mobile, SSL/HTTPS, Trust, User Experience (UX)
Search Engine Optimization (SEO incl. visual, mobile, voice search; meta code, link-building, Local Citations)
Content Marketing (Incl. blogs, resources, case studies, registration pages, calls-to-action (CTAs), curation, syndication)
Paid Search (Incl. pay-per-click/PPC, Remarketing, Display, Programmatic Advertising)
Email Marketing (Incl. lists, campaigns, personalization, lead nurturing, trigger emails, optimization of subject lines, Click-Thrus)
Social Media (incl. Social Advertising)
Video (a form of content, but important enough to be Top 12)
Marketing Automation (software, tools and techniques, data)
Analytics (Incl. Google Analytics and Marketing Dashboards)
Marketing Diagnostics
Influencer Marketing
Artificial Intelligence (AI, Incl. Live Chat or ChatBots)

Marketing Technology is Now MarTech

No question, Digital Marketing Transformation requires Marketing Technology, often referred to as MarTech. Think of MarTech as the merging of marketing and technology. MarTech is typically software, but might also be applications or apps, diagnostic tools, or AI tools including Live Chat or ChatBots. Examples of marketing software include Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software, Collaboration or Project Management Software, and Digital Asset Management (DAM) software. Hootsuite is a great example of a tool used for social media post scheduling, coupled with social media placement monitoring and reporting.

Ready for another buzz word? The “MarTech Stack” is the group of tools and technologies used by marketing. In fact, the annual MARTECH Conference gets much buzz about its Marketing Technology Landscape Supergraphic that counts 7,040 MarTech solutions in 2019 (up from about 5,000 in 2017). See the “Supergraphic” below, and please click image to enlarge, or link to original image below.

https://cdn.chiefmartec.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/marketing-technology-landscape-2019-slide.jpg

Digital Marketing Transformation is More than a Buzzword

Like its predecessor Digital Transformation, Digital Marketing Transformation (DMT) is the shiny, new buzzword in marketing. Experts agree that we are in the midst of a marketing revolution, with rapid change, evolving from traditional marketing to a new digital marketing mix. DMT uses Marketing Technology or MarTech to plan, manage, test, optimize, implement, measure and report on marketing campaigns and programs.

Per the above referenced Marketing Technology Landscape Supergraphic, MarTech and Digital Marketing Transformation will continue to grow exponentially, requiring new technologies, tools, and marketing skills.

As Digital Transformation promises change and competitive advantage, Digital Marketing Transformation promises a new age of both marketing efficiency and effectiveness. Those who embrace DMT should have a distinct advantage over competitors that do not. It may truly be the most exciting time in history to be a part of this marketing revolution.