In all honesty, no industry per se has experienced the kind of disruption and revolution that we have seen in technology and marketing. In the past decade, internet marketing has revolutionized how businesses have developed and implemented their market strategy.
Back in the day, everything happened via billboards, radio, print, television, and direct mail, but today the emphasis is more considerable and is more focused on reaching the customers via the digital world.
It is precise because online is where consumers spend most of their time and shop for things. In the United States of America, there were 209.6 million online shoppers in 2016. According to stats, this number will possibly reach 230.5 million by 2021.
Consequently, the US will become one of the greatest markets for online consumers in the world. Now, coming to the central question – how has the internet marketing or digital market changed the business industry? Read below to find out.
#1. Instant Communication
Today, communicating and getting to know your potential customers is simpler than spinning a roulette wheel. The roulette wheel depicts the company’s internet marketing message that will spin and bounce ad the wheel rotates before it finally lands on a space, here customers.
Social media is that wheel, and it enables the companies to communicate with people in a public venue, thereby offering a channel to promote products, transparent messages, and services.
However, there is an added player to this game, and businesses must figure out how they jump on the proverbial boat before leaving the harbor. Following a survey by The Economist, one-fourth of all the downloaded applications are abandoned following a single use with solely instant messaging bucking the trend.
‘It would not be wrong to say that private chat groups and one-on-one messaging are fire today,’ comments Jessica, an online chemistry tutor. Facebook messenger has 900 million global users, and studies suggest that today teenagers spend more time on messaging applications than the actual social networking channels. For tapping into this burgeoning market, savvy companies are employing newer methods to market to and connect with potential clients via these kinds of applications.
#2. Rise of Telecommuting
‘Even in the pre-pandemic era, but mostly after, a lot of businesses gave their employees an option to work from home. For this, they utilized the company’s equipment. All of this was made possible, owing to the advent of the internet and the internet marketing,’ comments Moira, an associate with ThanksForTheHelp.
This process put forth by Moira is known as telecommuting that enables businesses to lower their overhead cost by requiring less office space and using fewer utilities for their routine operation.
#3. Reputation Management
It goes without saying that the digital world can cut both ways. Though there is unlimited potential for businesses to get free word of mouth advertising online, a single disparaging review on Google, Yelp, or any other review website can hamper a business’s reputation. Smart digital marketers are aware of the right way to market the situation. Answering the customers’ complaints, questions, and queries and acknowledging their feedback (both positive and negative) is pivotal to sound online reputation management,’ comments Stacey, a TopAssignmentExperts representative.
#4. Demands Transparency
In today’s internet-driven world, customers wish to know about the companies that they associate with. So, for businesses to establish brand loyalty, it is crucial to be transparent and put forth their brand personality online. More so, a lot of what businesses do online should demonstrate their company’s ethics. It is majorly relevant when it comes to food-related products as the customers wish to know what is in the things that they put in their mouth.
In a study conducted by Label Insight, it was found that only twelve percent of the consumers trust the companies when it comes to packaging and seek additional information on the internet or elsewhere. On the other hand, about sixty-seven percent of people believe it is for the brand to offer them this information.
For businesses that are transparent and communicate freely with their customers, the resultant reward is loyalty. It implies that ninety-four percent of consumers decide on sticking with a company that offers transparency, and seventy-three percent agree to pay more for a product that offers this level of transparency. The consumers’ desire for absolute transparency in food packaging extends to several business aspects, too, right from where and how it treats its employees to what it gives back to the communities and society. Digital leaders understand this and ensure that the customers are very well-informed about vital information, be it good, bad, or even ugly.
#5. Marketing to a Wider Area
With the popularity of digital or internet marketing, it is more or less mandatory for a business to stay abreast of the customers’ needs. Today, the competition is not localized, and businesses face competition at a global level. Hence, it is quintessential for businesses to know what the customers want and then strategically decide the right way to deliver it. Feedback forms, surveys, website comments, and questionnaires can help understand the customer’s needs.
So, these are the five key ways in which internet marketing has revolutionized the business industry.
