You can develop excellent products or services, but if you don’t know how to let customers know about them, they’re of no use. This is where marketing comes into the picture, which involves several processes such as conducting research, promoting, and selling. It helps businesses attract new customers and retain the existing ones by persuading them into purchasing the products. With the right type of marketing, businesses can acquire a loyal customer base. In the process, they satisfy the customer’s wants and needs, along with generating more profits. Once again, the purpose of marketing is to attract customers to brands through messages that convince them into purchasing. Now, let’s explore the different types of marketing.
1. Traditional marketing
Traditional marketing was the talk of the town before the rise of the internet. But with the explosion of Internet popularity, digital marketing took over the traditional one, which we will discuss next. In the digital era, traditional marketing is not as effective as other types, yet it still has its perks. It uses marketing channels such as prints, broadcasts, or telemarketing to boost the brand image. What distinguishes traditional marketing from other types is its ability to reach a larger audience and connect with them on a personal level.
2. Digital marketing
Digital marketing is also known as internet or online marketing. For example, the marketing campaign that you see on your device is digital marketing. Through social media posts and ads, the brand is promoted. It helps businesses to connect with potential customers using the internet. The best part about digital marketing is that it allows brands to target specific audiences. In this way, they can send personalized marketing messages to the selected audience who are more likely to make a purchase.
3. Social media marketing
In this type of marketing, social platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram are used to reach prospects and customers. The brands publish content on their social media profiles that attract audiences. They interact with their followers to understand their needs and provide excellent services. Here, the social media analytics tools are used to understand brands’ performance. It includes analyzing the brand’s reach, engagement, and sales on social media.
4. Outbound marketing
In outbound marketing, irrespective of the audience’s interest, the products or services are marketed to them. It targets larger audiences, expecting at least some of them to convert. The proactive approach is used to draw the attention of the audience. Therefore, it is an effective type of marketing to reach out to audiences who haven’t heard about the brand before. Unfortunately, it has a generalized approach that may not be relevant to all the members of the audience. This makes it less appealing to them, and, as mentioned, lowers the conversion rate.
5. Inbound marketing
Inbound marketing is about piquing the interest of potential customers. It is an indirect form of marketing, where the customers are persuaded into buying by increasing their engagement with the brand. It is one of the most effective types of marketing where there is more ROI (return on investment). In this marketing type, the brands post blogs, videos, and other content explaining why their products or services are best and suitable for customers’ needs. This allows them to stand out from their competitors and acquire more customers.
6. Search engine marketing
Using this type of marketing, brands increase their visibility on search engine result pages. People spend most of their time online when searching for products or services. And what’s the better way than using SEM (Search Engine Marketing) to acquire new customers through search queries. It is one of the quickest ways to drive traffic to websites, as visitors are more likely to make a purchase. Since it reaches the customer at the right time, SEM is considered to be an effective marketing type.
7. Influencer marketing
Influencer marketing is a trending topic in the marketing domain. It is the collaboration between influencers and various brands. The influencers have an impact on the purchasing decisions of their audience based on their relationship with them or their positions. For this reason, brands reach out to them to promote their products or services, eventually generating more sales. It is an effective way of improving brand recognition.
8. Email marketing
Email may be one of the primitive marketing tools but remains at the core of marketing. It has the largest user base compared to most of the marketing channels. This makes it a favorable option to send promotional messages to potential and existing customers. Brands offer the option to their visitors to subscribe for email marketing. This way, when they run promotional offers, they send emails to the subscribers sharing the details with them.
9. Video marketing
Video marketing represents video recordings integrated into the marketing campaigns to increase the customer’s engagement. They are, unsurprisingly, engaging and promoting the brands, creating awareness about their products or services and, usually, limited-time offers. This type of marketing allows customers to relate to the brands on a more personal note. That’s because, with the popularity of streaming, consumers are more accustomed and attracted to video content.
10. Affiliate marketing
Affiliate marketers are people or companies who promote the products or services of a brand. But when customers make a purchase, marketers earn commissions i.e., a flat fee or a percentage of the sale. It’s a win-win situation for everyone. Brands don’t have to actively participate in advertising, since affiliate marketers take care of that. Marketers can adjust advertising so it fits the targeted audience’s needs and wants, and customers get what they are looking for.
Conclusion
In this analysis, we covered some types of marketing but there are others: personalized advertising, acquisition, voice marketing, word of mouth, campus, event marketing, etc. But regardless of the kind, marketing works to promote and sell products or services. It is an essential part of any business and is present from the very beginning. That’s because it helps businesses understand customers’ requirements and preferences and stay in the market.