BUS502 Study Guide

Unit 5: Marketing Communications

5a. Describe eight types of digital marketing strategies

  • What is digital marketing?
  • How can digital marketing be used in a brand marketing plan?
  • What are some examples of digital marketing strategies?

Digital marketing is used to connect with consumers to promote and market the brand, products, or services. Examples of digital marketing might include email, website marketing, content marketing, targeted ads on social media, video creation, search engine optimization (SEO), mobile device marketing, or a text message offering a sales discount when the loyal consumer is in the area.

By managing and targeting consumers in a way that may prove to be interactive, marketing may be used in a way that does not feel like a sales pitch. For example, if a consumer searches for carpet cleaning on their mobile device in the morning and then logs in to Facebook later in the day, they may find carpet cleaning ads (with a discount) on their page. If they are still looking for carpet cleaning, they may find this information useful and click on the ad. This type of interaction is beneficial for the consumer and the business.

To review, see Digital Marketing.

 

5b. Identify six metrics for measuring the success of digital marketing strategies

  • Why is it important to build a content marketing strategy?
  • Should all brand or product marketing be digital? Why or why not?
  • How do you know if digital marketing is successful?

Digital marketing is important to consider as part of your brand or product marketing plan. As mentioned in the previous section, there are numerous types of digital marketing. It is important to manage the various types of digital marketing and to measure how successful (or unsuccessful) they are.

Successful digital marketing considerations include:

  • Pick content assets.
    • Will you use only one or three social media websites? Will you have a website? Will you write a blog?
  • Choose your content planning software.
  • Choose the social media platforms you will use.
    • Do not use them all, but focus on those that are best for your brand.
  • Create an avatar that demonstrates your brand and use it on all sites.
  • Interact with consumers on these platforms.
  • Measure results by using Google Analytics or another type of measurement.
    • Eliminate those sites that are not as popular then focus on the ones that your consumers use.
  • Create a website blog and add long content regularly (minimum of 2,000 words).
  • Use hub and spoke marketing (for example, keep all content in the hub and create links back to the original content or another social media site).
  • Keep all content organized and relevant.

To review, see Content Marketing and Email Marketing.

 

5c. Relate cultural and legal factors to developing digital marketing strategies

  • Why is it important to consider cultural factors in digital marketing?
  • Why do you need to consider legal factors when developing digital marketing?
  • What considerations are needed to create cultural content for digital marketing?

There are numerous reasons to consider cultural factors in digital marketing; you may need to use marketing across various cultures or even globally. Cultural factors might include beliefs, values, language, or traditions. It is important to consider digital marketing content that will be appropriate for all the cultures you want to target.

Another consideration is legal factors that might be included in digital marketing. Legal factors might include health and safety issues, consumer rights, appropriate product labeling, and advertising standards. Ensuring digital advertising complies with all legal factors is important so laws are not broken, and the reputation of the brand is not damaged.

To review, see Cultural and Legal Matters.

 

5d. Justify why a company should use social media to connect with customers and potential customers

  • Why is it important to use social media to connect with customers?
  • How can social media marketing connect with potential customers?
  • What type of interaction do customers want on social media?

Social media are interactive applications that allow people and organizations to share information and collaborate. This is a great way to connect with customers and potential customers. Using the same social media sites that your customers use is a great way to answer product questions, promote the brand, show videos that demonstrate the products of the brand, or conduct consumer contests. Companies that have brand Facebook pages are now commonplace.

Over the last decade, it has become imperative to use social media platforms to connect with consumers. It is important that a brand does not try to be on all social media platforms but that the social media sites are carefully chosen. The social media sites that brand-specific consumers use the most are the best sites for a brand to use.

To review, see Social Media.

 

5e. Compare six major social media platforms and their attributes for marketing purposes

  • What is an example of how a social media platform might be matched with a specific brand?
  • Why is it important for a brand to appear on social media?
  • What are the different types of social media platforms?

Businesses today must engage with their customers on social media. The main social media platforms that businesses might participate in include Facebook, LinkedIn, TikTok, Instagram, Pinterest, Snapchat, Twitter (X), YouTube, and WhatsApp.

It is important to match the brand with the social media platform. For example, if a company is looking for employees, they may post job openings on LinkedIn, and they would most likely not post the job on Snapchat. A clothing designer might post their clothing line on Pinterest. A company that produces movie shorts might use YouTube as their platform to show and market their products. By reviewing the specific social media platform with the brand or type of business to be conducted, marketing can be more product and brand-specific.

To review, see Social Media.

 

5f. Examine content marketing options through text, visuals, and consumer interactions

  • Why is it important to focus brand marketing on text and visuals?
  • How can consumer interaction affect brand marketing?
  • How can content marketing connect with consumers?

Content marketing is used to appeal to, retain, and create loyal brand consumers, and it may include videos, podcasts, social media, or research. Content marketing should be specific to the brand, which will help to create consumer engagement and interaction. Once created, this type of marketing may also be displayed on social media platforms to better align the brand.

By creating visually appealing content marketing, a brand can better engage with customers and potential customers and create higher brand loyalty. This type of marketing can also build brand awareness and reputation. This is useful when it comes to promoting products or the brand itself.

To review, see Content Marketing and Email Marketing.

 

5g. Assess the use of email marketing in building relationships with customers and potential customers

  • What is an example of how email marketing might be used?
  • How can email marketing be used to build customer relationships?
  • Why might a company focus more on email marketing than social media?

The use of email marketing has been around for a few decades. Consumers may like a product or brand and want to keep in touch, and email is a great way to inform customers about sales or promotions. Once the visual content for email is created, it may also be used on social media. Email marketing can also utilize short video content as well.

Like social media, email is another way to interact with customers and potential customers. Email can be scheduled to be sent once a month or only during certain promotional phases. Some customers may only check email, and not social media platforms, so including some type of email marketing in the marketing plans is a good idea.

To review, see Content Marketing and Email Marketing.

 

Unit 5 Vocabulary

This vocabulary list includes terms you will need to know to successfully complete the final exam.

  • content marketing
  • cultural factors
  • digital marketing
  • email marketing
  • legal factors
  • social media
  • social media platforms