Editor’s Note : Lydia Neo is the co-founder and Director (Business Development) of Helios Media Design Pte Ltd, a leading Singapore based design solutions firm, with a special focus of combining creative thinking, with your business objectives.
Smart marketers understand that traditional marketing is becoming less and less effective by the minute, and that there has to be a better way.
Instead of relying on advertising and old-school marketing channels that are “one-dimensional”, the modern day savvy marketers have started to explore new marketing techniques to capture their audiences’ attention and understand their though process, much thanks to the advent of social media and content sharing.
The decline to old marketing methods is a response to a recent and fundamental shift in consumer behavior. People are now more in control of the information they receive and how they receive it, and in the case of old marketing, the company is in control.
So what is difference and how does New Marketing work?
“Old Marketing” is any marketing that pushes products or services on customers:
- Communication is one-way
- Customers are sought out via TV, Print, Radio, Banner advertising and cold calls
- Marketer provides little to no added value
- Marketer rarely seeks to educate or entertain
VS
“New Marketing” is any marketing tactic that relies on earning people’s interest instead of buying it:
- Communication is interactive and two-way
- Customers come to you via search engines, referrals or social media (content marketing)
- Marketer provide value
- Marketer seeks to educate and/or entertain
The Hard Facts
- Due to intrusive or irrelevant advertising on websites, 84% of 24-35 year olds have since left or un-favourite the sites
- 86% of peoples skip TV ads
- 44% of direct mail (including emailers) is never opened or read
- 91% or email users have since unsubscribed from a company email that they previously opted into
The most effective New Marketing strategy usually involves the marketer earning the customers’ trust via:
- Content Marketing such as Infographics, Blogs/Vlogs, E-books and Podcasts
- Social Media participation at the right timing, engaging in relevant topics among a targeted community
When your content is shared and spread through social media channels such as Twitter and Facebook, the reach of the content can grow virally, thus increasing the visibility of your brand and profile.
As your content is being picked up and syndicated from site to site, the multitude of links increases the traffic leading to your home or blog page where your content originates, which improves its SEO (Search Engine Optimization).
Besides the improved SEO, your content serves as a way to promote you and/or your brand as a though-leader in the relevant industry which contributes to the generation of referrals, sales and leads.
One of the reasons many companies have adopted New Marketing strategies is because of the ROI (Return On Investment).
- New marketing cost 62% less per lead than traditional marketing
- Customer acquisition through Facebook and Company blogs ranges between 42% – 57% as opposed to Trade shows and Direct Mail ranging between 19% – 33%
- SEO, Blog content generation and Social media participation usually takes place organically, which cost next to nothing
- Pay-per-clicks, Trade shows, Advertising spaces, Direct mailers and Telemarketers all cost more to operate
In conclusion, the days of annoying customers with advertising and marketing tactics that they no longer care for are fast fading. Enter New Marketing which focus on added value, earning customer loyalty and their love for your brand!
