Diving into Digital Marketing

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You've been tasked to manage all the digital marketing - where do you begin? (here) And do you have to spend money? (NO)

While it might seem like an impossible task (digital marketing covers all things digital after all), taking a systematic approach at least makes it seem less daunting.

All the glory and attention in digital marketing is put on SEM/PPC/Display ads, and for good reason - they're relatively cheap, scalable and measurable. However, it's important to not fall into the trap of thinking that paid digital marketing is all there is to do, there are many FREE (or earned) things to get started on first.

Beyond the basics (understanding the audience, finding your USP and being present on the right channels), creating your own content is where you should be spending the bulk of your time. Creating your own content for social media (or your website) doesn't have to be difficult or expensive (but it usually does take time). However, it's key to think about the type of content and the quality of the story - you need to make sure that it caters to the exact audience you're looking to attract, because if they don't care, what was the point? This is the mistake most marketers make with content - they believe that if they build it, people will come. They couldn't be further from the truth.

Apart from content, you should also consider PR - it still works! Understanding that journalists and bloggers are starving for good content as well, and working with them to craft interesting storylines can go a long way. You might not have a strong audience/community, but they certainly do.

Finally, look towards your 1,000 true fans for help. They are going to guide you towards where you need to be more present and how best to expand your inner circle of fans. This could be community events you should be present in, ideas on cross-collaborations with other brands or branded opportunities you didn't know otherwise existed. It's better to ask and find out than wonder what could have been.

Getting serious about Digital Marketing

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Digital is a very strange place — for many people anything that’s essentially non-traditional (think TV ads, print ads, billboards, etc) or done on a device is digital. While sort of true, digital marketing is a huge space and can be broken down into so much more.

Understanding what you’re really looking for in the digital space and hiring specifically for that will put you way ahead of your competition.

The 3 Basic Tiers of Digital Marketing (Channel Expertise)

Forced to break down 3 distinct groups separated by channel, we would have the following (there’s more but we won’t include it for now — this is more to break down the bigger picture). These are individual groups broken down by relation, but each item itself is it’s own field:

1 — SEO, Content Marketing and Social Media

2 — CRM, Paid Ads (display + PPC)

3 — PR, Community, Events

Within each group is a huge speciality in itself (the same way you would consider ATL advertising from BTL advertising). While most marketers will have a good general understanding of each of these areas, it’s very unlikely that marketers are expert in more than 3 distinct areas (for example — social media, paid ads and content marketing).

The trickiest part is that from a non-marketer’s perspective, they all just blend together and are treated as the same thing. Nothing could be further from the truth.

While it’s understandable that small companies won’t be able to hire more than one person to handle marketing (let alone just digital marketing), it’s complete madness to assume that the one person is going to be able to handle it all (like assuming HR and sales is handled by one person and expecting that person to be a superstar in both). But that happens all the time, where companies tell their marketing staff to handle their social media, CRM, content, SEO and all their events as well (and add more things when the need arises).

Depending on what your company does and why it’s investing in marketing, it’s important to have the right people in place to maximise the effectiveness (essentially the return on investment). For example, if you sell a product that relies heavily on word of mouth and the target audience is young adults, you would definitely want someone that is an expert in social media and building communities. A particularly talented individual might have skills in paid ads and CRM as well, but if you’re serious about marketing you should hire another person for those roles.

Imagine the difference between going to a restaurant and going to a buffet — vastly different experiences and expectations given the value you’re getting, but depending on what you’re looking for, could be ideal. It’s the same situation here.

Most typically you’ll find individuals who are channel experts and able to excel in their particular field. But there’s a lot more — largely because digital marketing is still relatively new and constantly evolving (think social media which didn’t really exist 10 years ago).

But wait, there’s more to Digital Marketing! (Marketing Add-On Skills)

Within the tiers/channels mentioned above there are ADDITIONAL skills that are required to truly excel at digital marketing. These skills are essential to fully maximise results, but usually aren’t a given when hiring talent (because let’s be honest, something needs to be used to separate the average from the good or the great). These skills include:

  • Strategy & Planning
  • Data & Analytics
  • Funnel Marketing
  • Research
  • Design & UX
  • A/B Testing
  • Storytelling
  • Partnerships
  • Branding/Positioning

Again while it’s possible for marketers to have a general understanding for each of the above skills, it’s unlikely that any one person is an expert in any more than 3 (and even then it’s a stretch). The more skills you have, the more you’re able to add value to the work that you’re doing. And yes, these are all considered just digital marketing skills.

The biggest issue companies have with marketing is expecting too much from an individual (or a small team). If management is under the impression that everything falls under digital marketing and that it’s just one thing (and that is quite often the case), the person in charge is almost always set up to fail.

Companies need to realise that there are many individual factors/assets that make digital marketing work effectively. Yes, it’s possible for people to acquire skills over time, but it’s unrealistic to assume that everything that fits under the digital marketing umbrella falls onto one person.

But all is not lost.

When companies finally realise the issue (and they will), they will start assigning tasks to relevant people (rather than everything to one) and hopefully even bring on more resources. Whether it’s more headcount or bringing on a few different agencies, it’s possible to slowly expand and make an impact in the desired space.

If companies are serious about making a dent in the digital world, they need the right structure and systems in place. For some companies this means hiring 4–5 people just to fill out the digital marketing team.

Further notes on Digital Marketing success (how to select the right people or agencies).

When it comes to getting something out of your marketing (because isn’t that the goal?), it’s important to understand what you’re trying to achieve. Without first doing this, you’re otherwise going to be wasting your time (and the reason many people ultimately think that digital marketing doesn’t work).

With a strategy in place, you can go on and select people that are capable of helping you reach your goal. In general, you want experts in a maximum of 2 or 3 things and have them work on these ONLY. Sure, you can get a generalist, but you’re only going to be able to scratch the surface of success. Better to get someone that can knock the project out of the park.

One of the issues that people face is that they don’t know what questions to ask a potential candidate. This is understandable when you realise that most people/companies group digital marketing as one thing, but it becomes a disaster when it comes to getting the right people to fill the right role.

If you know what role you’re trying to fill, you can start asking the right questions (and very channel specific questions). You want the candidate to be able to share experience that fit, and their ideas of how to make the specific area work for your company. Bonus points if they’re able to demonstrate a strong understanding/utilisation of the additional skills (listed above) that can bring their work to another level.

It’s the same when working with agencies. However, you have to realise that agencies are typically in it for the money — they’re going to say that they can do everything under the sun (they’ll figure out how to solve the problem once you sign the quotation). In most cases, it’s best to ask questions that you believe are outside of their capabilities and see how they answer them — if they’re honest, you’re more likely to have an agency that are truly experts in the one field you truly need them for.

Be aware of what you’re trying to achieve and hire accordingly. There are many talented people out there, but you need to take the time and effort to make sure the right people are doing the right things. Digital marketing gets a bad rap, and it’s often because people don’t know what’s realistic. But if you’re able to fully understand what’s happening and work with the issues, you’re going to easily come out on top.