Online marketing is almost a necessity nowadays. What is it and what are its benefits? Which types of online marketing exist and how can you get started with digital marketing in your business? 

 

What is online marketing 

Online marketing (or also digital or internet marketing) is a set of methods that aim to promote sales via the internet. It includes paid advertising on the internet, website optimisation, social media communication and many other activities.  

  

Objectives of online marketing 

The goal of digital marketing should always be based on the company’s business strategy and its individual objectives. However, it is almost always the case that online marketing seeks to drive sales. The objectives of online marketing most often include: 

  

• brand awareness (branding) 
• building relationships with customers 
• increasing sales 

  

Some goals can be met immediately, others are more of a long run. It all depends on the brand, the target group and the form of online marketing chosen. 

  

Types of online marketing 

There are countless online marketing tools, they build on each other and, in most cases, intertwine. Therefore, it is not easy to categorize them. The main division of online marketing is inbound and outbound marketing. 

  

• Outbound marketing consists of reaching customers directly, for example through newsletters. 
• Inbound marketing is a collection of methods that lead to customers finding you on their own – for example, through blog articles and SEO. 

  

1. PPC

PPC or pay per click ads are one of the building blocks of online marketing. They are divided into search and content ads. You only pay for an ad when someone clicks on it – hence the name pay per click or cost per click. 

  

• Search network ads are those that appear in the search results when users search for a particular word or phrase. You can target them very effectively with customers who are interested in your product and are searching for information about it themselves. 
• Content network ads are banner ads that typically combine text and graphics. You can target them based on remarketing, for example. 

 

If you decide to do PPC, you should be proficient in copywriting, creating graphics and keyword analysis. Based on these three activities, you will create a compelling ad containing relevant keywords. You then set it up and target it in the appropriate tools (Google AdWords). 

  

2. SEO

SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is a set of online marketing methods that improve a website’s position in search results. This includes several activities such as: 

  

• keyword analysis and their use in web text 
• filling in meta tags 
• linkbuilding (systematically building a network of backlinks) 

  

Search engine algorithms, and therefore the parameters by which they decide which site to place in which position, are constantly changing. Flexibility is therefore key in SEO. If you want to succeed in it, you should follow new trends and continuously adapt.  

If you decide to do SEO, you should start with keyword analysis. This will help you find out what people are searching for and incorporate those words into the text on your website and into meta tags that, although customers don’t see them, search engines pay attention to. After that, you’ll be linkbuilding (communicating with other sites and negotiating terms for getting links), editing source code and writing blog articles. 

 

3. Social media marketing

If your main goal is to connect with customers, social networks offer a great opportunity. You can showcase products on them, interact with fans or perhaps have them vote on which of your services is the best. 

The secret to success on social media is the art of engaging. To make sure your posts don’t get lost among the hundreds of others – made by brands and ordinary users alike – you need to be imaginative and post content that interests and adds value to your fans. 

If you decide to do social media marketing, you should be able to write an engaging post and create graphics for it. Social media management includes responding to messages and other communications with customers through the networks. 

  

4. E-mailing 

Email marketing is a form of inbound marketing that involves reaching out to customers via email. There are several types of emails you can send: 

  

• transactional emails 

• promotional emails 
• newsletters 
• special offers 

 

The most common form of e-mailing is newsletters. E-mail marketing specialist Lenka explains, “Thanks to the newsletter, which is the main tool of e-mail marketing, we can transmit useful information or promote our brand and products. We reach exactly the people we want to reach.” 

If you decide to do emailing, again, you won’t miss out on copywriting. But in addition to that, you’ll also be working with emailing tools (Mailchimp), creating templates in them, managing audiences, storing personal data and running tests to see which content or send time your customers respond best to. 

  

5. Web marketing 

Website design and optimization can be considered a separate category of online marketing. This should be done in accordance with the rules for UX and UI design. This is because a better user experience leads to more sales. 

If you decide to do web marketing, you can’t do without knowledge of UX and UI. You will also need knowledge of source code and graphics. 

  

6. Other types of online marketing 

Some marketers consider content marketing – for example, a company blog – as a separate type of online marketing. Affiliate marketing (working with partners and ambassadors) or PR (working with the media) can also be considered a separate type of digital marketing. 

   

Advantages of online marketing 

One of the biggest advantages is the relatively low costs. In fact, some online marketing activities are completely free and only require your time – for example, writing a blog or posting on social media.  

The ease of evaluating results is also a huge plus. Online tools tell you exactly how many people clicked on your ad, how much time readers spent reading your articles, or how many people opened your newsletter. 

Compared to traditional marketing on TV or billboards, for example, online marketing also has several times more effective targeting methods. Whereas with TV or billboards you can’t choose exactly who sees your ad, online you can target by age, interests or family status, for example. 

 

How to do digital marketing step by step 

First, you should analyse where you stand. Do market research, web analysis or whatever else you need to define your current situation as accurately as possible. Determine your target audience and calculate your lifetime customer value. This will help you determine how much money you can spend on acquisition.  

Based on your goals, financial resources, and the data found in your analysis, evaluate which type of online marketing is best for you. It will probably be a combination of several of these. 

Then find an online marketing specialist to help you. After all, internet marketing is a complex discipline that requires expertise and experience. You can go alone, but you probably won’t get the same results. 

  

3 reasons to let online marketing to myTimi 

You can leave online marketing to us. Why is it worth it for you? 

  

1. Our team consists of specialists in different areas of business under one roof. We therefore approach marketing, which is closely linked to sales, customer service and other activities. 

1. You only pay for the actual time we spend on your tasks. Thanks to regular reports, you know exactly how much and what you’re paying, and you won’t pay a penny extra. 

1. We are fair. If you are not satisfied with our services, you don’t pay at all. 

  

See what we can help you with in online marketing.