Digital marketing is experiencing rapid growth, with an expected annual growth rate of 9% from 2020 to 2026. Companies want to capture a larger share of the market, and 63% are increasing their digital marketing budgets.
Here’s why more businesses are investing in digital marketing today:
Email marketing returns $36 to $40 for every $1 spent. (Omnisend)
49% of companies say organic search brings the best return on investment (ROI). (Localiq)
Pay-per-click (PPC) offers a 200% return on investment (ROI), yielding $2 for every $1 invested. (Google)
Reports indicate that search engine optimization (SEO) and content marketing yield the highest return on investment (ROI). (Databox)
Facebook and Google Ads have the top ROI rates among paid ad channels. (HubSpot)
Small businesses claim email marketing is their most profitable channel. (HubSpot)
Digital marketing provides numerous opportunities to connect with your target audience. However, with so many options, it can be challenging to determine which strategies are effective.
The key is to find what works for your customers and delivers real results.
Not every digital marketing channel will work for your business. These tips will help you discover what works best for your audience:
The first step in any marketing campaign is to set clear priorities. You need specific goals to guide your focus and help you choose the most effective channels for achieving results. Marketers who set clear goals are more than 300% more likely to succeed. (CoSchedule)
Using SMART goals—specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and time-bound—ensures that your objectives are not just vague tasks but clear targets you can work towards.
Instead of setting a broad goal like “increasing social media engagement,” set a specific goal you can track, such as measuring clicks, likes, or new followers.
Here are some goals to consider:
Increase website traffic by 20% in the next three months by developing a focused blog content strategy.
Publish five guest articles on well-respected industry websites in the next six months to show your expertise.
Grow your social media following by 1,000 new followers on all platforms in the next eight weeks.
Increase email sign-ups by 10% this quarter. This can be achieved by improving landing pages and promoting them through social media.
Knowing your target audience is crucial to building strong relationships and effective communication. When you understand who you want to reach, you can create content that meets their needs and aligns with your brand's goals.
After you set your goals, determine who your ideal audience is. Ask yourself:
Who are they? (age, gender, interests)
Where do they live? (location)
What do they do? (occupation, hobbies)
When are they online? (peak times)
What challenges do they face? (pain points)
Understand your audience using demographic data, social listening, and customer feedback. The better you know them, the more effective your content and campaigns will be.
Google Analytics is a useful free tool. To see how users find your site, go to the Acquisition tab and check the Channels report under All Traffic.
Once you have defined your goals and audience, the next step is to set your marketing budget. A clear budget shows how much you can spend on each channel, tool, or tactic. This way, you won’t overspend or spread your resources too thin.
Questions to ask when setting your budget:
Total Budget: How much can you realistically spend on marketing?
Channel Allocation: How will you split your budget across channels (social media, paid ads, content marketing, etc.)?
Marketing Tools and Software: What tools do you need (analytics, scheduling software, etc.)?
Content Production: What are the costs for creating videos, graphics, or blog posts?
Paid Advertising: How much will you invest in paid ads to boost reach and engagement?
It’s also important to note that marketing channels come with different price points and timeframes for results:
PPC, social media, and video ads cost more but deliver quick, measurable results.
Organic SEO, content marketing, and email marketing are more cost-effective but take longer to show results and are harder to track.
Using a mix of organic and paid strategies helps you get noticed quickly and supports steady growth.
Competitive analysis means looking at your brand and comparing it to your competitors. This helps you see what they do well and find chances to improve your business. It can show you which channels your competitors use effectively to reach the same audience as you.
This insight helps you focus on platforms with the most potential for engagement and growth in your market.
Tools such as Semrush, Sprout Social, Ahrefs, Buzzsumo, and MozBar can be used for competitive analysis.
Once you know your goals, audience, and competitors, start planning how to use each channel.
Decide if you will manage everything yourself or hire a digital marketing agency. Managing everything in-house can save money but may require more time and resources. Hiring an agency might be more expensive upfront, but they have specialized skills and proven strategies to help you reach your goals faster.
You can also consult a digital marketing expert for insights while staying involved.
Marketing is constantly changing. The best digital marketing plans improve through continuous testing and feedback.
Once you start your plan, track its performance. This is the time for trial and error. You can use tools like Google Analytics to see how each channel performs.
GA4 allows you to track metrics such as:
User Acquisition
Engagement rate
Conversion rate
Bounce rate
Average session duration
Customer lifetime value (CLV)
Revenue per user
Make it a habit to review your strategy at least every three months, when each campaign ends, or whenever you make significant changes. Regular reviews help you adjust and improve based on the latest data and insights.
Many digital marketing channels are available, but we have picked 10 of the most effective ones to help you connect with your audience.
Let’s look at each channel and how it can benefit your business.
A website that ranks first in search results is ten times more likely to get a click than one that ranks tenth. In 2023, the top spot in your niche has a click-through rate (CTR) of 39.8%.
Search engine optimization (SEO) helps your website rank higher for relevant keywords. You can improve your SEO through keyword research, building links, and optimizing your website’s content.
SEO benefits include:
Improved traffic and visibility
Stronger brand authority
Higher potential for lead generation and conversions
There are also subsets of SEO, such as:
Local SEO, which focuses on location-related keywords to capture nearby searchers.
Enterprise SEO involves strategies tailored to the needs of large websites.
Franchise SEO, which helps businesses with multiple locations rank on SERPs.
Technical SEO optimizes website infrastructure to improve crawlability, indexing, and user experience.
SEO is effective, but it usually takes at least six months to see results. Pay-per-click (PPC) advertising costs more than SEO because you pay for each click, but it can deliver results more quickly.
You can use online advertising platforms like Google Ads, Microsoft Advertising, and Amazon Ads to bid on keywords. Ads appear at the top of search results to grab the attention of potential customers.
PPC ads are also available on social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.
Benefits of using online advertising platforms and social media for PPC include:
Immediate visibility on search engines
Precise targeting options
Control over ad budget and spend
Measurable ROI and analytics
3. Search Engine Marketing (SEM)
SEO and SEM are distinct, so it's crucial to understand the difference. SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, aims to build organic traffic. It improves your site’s ranking naturally over time by optimizing keywords, optimizing your site's speed, and creating valuable content.
SEM, or Search Engine Marketing, involves paid advertising. You pay to appear at the top of search results. Unlike PPC, which focuses only on paid ads, SEM combines paid and organic strategies to increase visibility.
SEM provides quicker visibility, while SEO is a long-term strategy for attracting steady traffic without incurring per-click costs.
SEM benefits include:
Immediate visibility in search results
Control over budget and ad targeting
Quick, measurable results
Ability to target competitive keywords effectively
SEO and SEM are distinct, so it's crucial to understand the difference. SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, aims to build organic traffic. It improves your site’s ranking naturally over time by optimizing keywords, optimizing your site's speed, and creating valuable content.
SEM, or Search Engine Marketing, involves paid advertising. You pay to appear at the top of search results. Unlike PPC, which focuses only on paid ads, SEM combines paid and organic strategies to increase visibility.
This means that SEM provides quicker visibility, while SEO is a long-term plan for attracting steady traffic without incurring per-click costs.
Social media for small businesses and enterprises is best for:
Building brand awareness and credibility
Engaging directly with customers and prospects
Reaching targeted audiences with precise ads
Sharing content that could potentially go viral
Gathering real-time feedback and customer insight
If you need help choosing the best social media platforms for your business, you can always seek advice from an expert.
For 74% of companies, content marketing is a key driver of lead generation. (Forbes)
Content marketing involves creating and sharing valuable content to attract, engage, and retain your target audience. While many businesses use blogs, you can also connect with your audience through other formats, such as videos, podcasts, infographics, and interactive tools.
Content marketing is best for:
Building brand trust and authority
Engaging and educating customers
Improving SEO and organic reach
Generating leads and nurturing relationships
Email marketing enables businesses to reach their target audience effectively. For every dollar spent, companies typically earn between $36 and $40 back (Omnisend). It lets brands connect directly with subscribers through personalized messages, helpful content, and promotions.
Email platforms provide tools to segment your audience, automate campaigns, and track data. This makes it an excellent choice for reaching out to customers who have shown interest.
Email marketing benefits include:
Direct communication with your audience
High return on investment
Effective for retargeting and building customer relationships
Simple tracking and optimization with built-in tools
Email marketing has some downsides. Emails can get marked as spam or go unopened, and users may unsubscribe if they receive too many messages. You can avoid these issues by monitoring your analytics and keeping a quality subscriber list.
Bounce rates jump by 123% for every 10 seconds a website takes to load (Google). Good web design and development ensure that your website loads quickly and provides an enjoyable experience, which encourages visitors to come back.
Key aspects include optimizing page speed, designing user experiences (UX), integrating e-commerce functionality, maintaining the website, ensuring responsiveness, and optimizing for search engine optimization (SEO).
Web design and development is best for:
Improving user engagement and retention
Creating a seamless, mobile-friendly experience
Boosting website speed and performance
Supporting eCommerce and online sales
Enhancing SEO for better search engine rankings
Keeping your website up-to-date and functional
About 69% of consumers trust influencers' recommendations when looking for new products or services (MarketingDive).
Influencer marketing uses the popularity and trust of well-known figures, like fitness experts, beauty bloggers, or tech reviewers, to promote your brand.
Influencer marketing strategies offer:
Increased brand awareness and visibility
Authentic engagement with your target audience
Trust and credibility from the influencer’s endorsement
Boosted conversions and sales
Access to a highly targeted and engaged community
More than half of all website traffic comes from mobile phones (Statista). Additionally, 61% of consumers are more likely to buy from websites that are easy to use on mobile devices (WebFX).
Mobile marketing enables you to connect with your audience through their mobile devices. This includes using mobile-friendly websites, sending SMS campaigns, and promoting through apps.
Since many people shop and browse on their phones, having a mobile-friendly presence is essential for engaging customers and increasing sales.
Benefits of mobile marketing strategies include:
Increased engagement with mobile-friendly experiences
Higher conversion rates from optimized websites
Direct communication via SMS and app notifications
Expanded reach to mobile users
Better customer loyalty with personalized offers
About 30% of internet users aged 16-64 worldwide use voice assistants each week (DataReportal). If you aren’t already doing so, now is a great time to optimize for voice search.
Voice search marketing involves optimizing your content to be more easily found using natural language and conversational phrases. This helps voice assistants like Siri, Alexa, and Google Assistant share your content with users.
Benefits of voice search marketing include:
Better visibility in voice search results
Improved user experience with natural language
Increased local search presence
More opportunities to capture voice-driven traffic
Brand X is a new home goods store that opened its first branch. After launching its website, it wanted to connect with potential customers, so it used email marketing.
Email marketing is an effective way to foster loyalty and boost sales. It’s personal, direct, and effective for maintaining contact with customers.
But does only using email marketing ensure success? The answer is: NO.
Not all customers interact with brands the same way. Some prefer email, while others like using social media or search engines.
Additionally, shoppers are at various stages in their purchasing journey. Customer A may be seeking information, while Customer B could be ready to make a purchase.
It’s helpful to use a mix of channels to reach customers at every stage of the customer journey.
This is where omnichannel marketing comes in.
An omnichannel marketing strategy utilizes multiple channels to deliver a consistent customer experience across all touchpoints.
By doing so, an omnichannel marketing strategy allows you to:
Connect with more customers on their preferred channels.
Build stronger relationships by meeting customers where they are.
Deliver a unified experience across all channels.
Guide customers smoothly from interest to purchase.
Gather data from multiple channels to understand customer behaviors and preferences.
Keep customers engaged and coming back.
The big question is: How can brands with tight budgets maximize their resources?
“The first step for brands on a tight budget is to focus on effective, low-cost channels,” Web Sales Engineer at Dimaus Internet Marketing Agency.
Here’s how a strategy might look:
Start with low-cost platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.
These channels help you reach a broad audience without incurring significant expenses. They are great for building a loyal following through organic content and targeted ads.
A blog with good SEO is essential for attracting organic traffic. “Create valuable, shareable content that builds trust and credibility with your audience.”
Email marketing is one of the most cost-effective ways to reach people, even with limited resources. Dimaus advises building and growing your email list by sending personalized messages that encourage people to take action.
Dimaus believes that investing in SEO is worthwhile, even though it takes time to see results.
He said that optimizing your website with keywords, meta tags, and good content can help potential customers find you and improve your website's ranking on search engines.
Google Ads can effectively reach customers who are searching for a brand's products or services, allowing the brand to accelerate its strategy with a focused approach.
However, he warned that tracking ad spending is essential to avoid overspending.
By focusing on these channels, a brand can maximize a limited budget while building a strong online presence.
Different businesses have different needs, but Dimaus pointed out that some channels are essential and cannot be changed.
Website: A well-optimized website is essential for building trust and increasing sales.“The center of your entire digital operation,” supporting all other efforts.
Social Media: Dimaus says businesses need to be on at least one social media platform, as people spend a significant amount of time there. This provides businesses with an opportunity to connect with their audience and establish trust.
Email Marketing: “Even with limited budgets, this remains an effective way to build relationships with leads and customers over time,
SEO: SEO is essential for long-term growth. It helps increase visibility on search engines, which Dimaus pointed out is very important for attracting organic traffic.
Therefore, these core channels form a stable base and should receive greater priority in any strategy.
Selecting the right digital marketing channels starts with understanding your audience and business objectives. Test a few channels that align with your goals, then track your results to determine which ones work best.
Focus on the channels that generate the most engagement, and adjust your strategy to achieve long-term success. If you need help, consider partnering with a reliable digital marketing agency.
Dimaus Internet Marketing Agency can help you create a custom strategy that aligns with your goals, fills gaps, and enhances your online presence through the most effective channels. We use an omnichannel marketing strategy to ensure your brand reaches customers on their preferred channels.
Here’s how Dimaus sets your business up for success, according to Dimaus:
Discovery and Market Research: We learn about your business goals, challenges, and audience. We also conduct thorough research on your industry and competitors.
Custom Deliverables: We create websites and content calendars that are optimized for search engines, as well as social media campaigns. We customize our services to fit your specific needs.
Data-Driven KPIs: We use clear performance measures, such as lead generation and website traffic, to track your progress and ensure your strategy works.
Ongoing Optimization: We use real-time data and analytics to improve your strategy. This helps increase your return on investment (ROI) and keeps your brand competitive.
Transparent Communication: Regular updates and teamwork keep you informed and on track.
Let us help you succeed with a digital marketing plan made just for you, as we have done for many clients.
Speak with our digital marketing team today to get started.