Digital marketing used to be a thing of luxury but now it’s a complete necessity in order for brands to stand out. There are some myths surrounding digital marketing that could be holding back most entrepreneurs from maximizing output and engagement online.
Some of the myths were once true but need to be revisited once again and some were just not true, to begin with. Here are a few:
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Myth #1: “My business must be on every social platform”
Social media has become a very important tool for many businesses but that doesn’t mean you should be on every platform.
For instance companies with technical service, the offering would succeed best on LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, and Facebook rather than Pinterest and Instagram while fashion-related businesses would do well on Instagram and Pinterest.
Myth #2: ”It’s all about followers”
There are a lot of goals and metrics that you can establish when creating your digital strategy like page views, followers, likes, comments. They are great but such can be misleading.
Myth #3: “It’s all about tech”
Do not make a mistake of thinking traditional marketing is now a thing of a past. Yes, technology is key in digital marketing but it will be wise to merge it with your existing traditional marketing practices like TV and radio commercials, newspapers, networking, etc. into one so that you have a lasting impact and become more apparent.
The Internet is unpredictable and with the influx of many updates per second, minutes or hour, you are better off maintaining a balance between the old marketing approach and digital marketing.
Myth #4: (One Of Our Favorites): SEO Is Dead
The SEO of 2020? Sure, that’s dead. Tons of black-hat and gray-hat techniques have gone to seed.
SEO as a discipline looks a lot different and varied today than it did back then; it’s much more interdisciplinary, and mere keyword optimization and proper site architecture won’t get you as far as it used to.
But it’s also grown to incorporate hugely important initiatives like UX, conversion rate optimization and CTR optimization.
Myth #5: “My Competitors are not into Digital Marketing, so Why Should I?”
This is the kind of business owner who believes in not taking action until their competitors show signs that they do. Many are also complacent, believing that their current customer roster will continue to patronize their businesses through traditional means and channels.
A business owner with this kind of mindset will definitely be left out in the playing field by competitors who have launched extensive Digital Marketing campaigns. They’ll surely miss out on a large number of potential customers who have already taken on the digital and online route for finding products and services.
Myth #6: “Why blog when I have a social media?”
You probably should be writing content because chances are your target audience may be searching for it online when they are looking for tips, how-to guides, product recommendations, etc. The importance of having a blog cannot be understated as when on social media, you are on someone else’s turf and on their terms.
With a blog, you’re on your territory and you make the rules. You can write as much as you want about anything. People come to check you out and here is where you build your position as an expert.
Myth #7 (Bonus Myth): SEM Is Not Good For Branding
It’s true that a channel based on intent is not the right choice to acquire new customers; if they haven’t heard of you, they won’t search for you.
That said, bidding on competitor terms is absolutely fair game, and there are ways to make big non-brand head terms more affordable than you think. (We’ll get to that in a second.)
Beyond all that, SEM is critical in preserving brand reputation; you can reinforce brand messaging and keep your competitors at bay by dominating the SERPs for your brand terms, for instance
