...about digital marketing is wrong.I know, it's a big statement, but it's true. And I'm joining three leaders in the field -- Jim Sterne, Jim Novo, and our host, web marketing speaker Jeff Molander -- to explore what the right approach might be.
You're invited to attend the free webinar this Wednesday, April 15, from 9-10 am PDT. Click here to register. Here's a glimpse of what we're going to cover:The fundamental problem is that digital marketing is typically wasteful, rarely measured in any meaningful way, and too often purposeless (i.e. it's not connected to the business outcomes that it should deliver, like sales, leads, more loyal customers, etc.).
Yet it's perceived by most to be very effective and efficient. Humm. There are any number of good reasons to use digital marketing to increase conversion, increase orders using email, manage affiliate programs, conduct search marketing, and hope to turn browsing shoppers into into buyers. Often held up as vital strategies, these are tactics that, if seen in a vacuum, can deliver numbers that attest to their efficacy
But consumers don't live in a vacuum, and disparate tactics are about as efficient as doing the same thing the same way, over and over again, and each time doing it from scratch. Those financial ROI numbers each tactical digital effort produces? They're disconnected and, ultimately, only brief tidbits about what's going on in the marketplace.
Our webinar is all about what we could be doing instead.We're convinced that no company can afford to outsource digital marketing anymore; it's not good enough to throw money at affiliate program experts, search engine gurus, or even donate it at the High Church of the Internet (a.k.a. Google paid search ads). We've got to become efficient and systematic. This isn't just us talking, but rather every CEO in the country (according to most research).
If digital marketing practitioners want to keep their jobs moving forward, they need to become truly indispensable -- not be "the email guy" or "affiliate marketing gal" -- and, to do so, that means getting more strategic...being more accountable, and reorganizing around customers to drive continuous behavior. Full accountability for plugging into metrics outside of marketing.Think beyond monetary transactions, and consider how non-monetary transactions fit into the chronology. The Internet has brought fourth a more interactive, customer-controlled platform, and interactive marketing has clear advantages over mass communication practices.
But this reality, and the ROI numbers it could deliver, remains largely untapped by most successful digital marketers. In our webinar this coming Wednesday, we'll explore why. This is an important topic for me because my book, Branding Only Works on Cattle, posits the strategic branding framework for this new approach to marketing (including digital). Interactive is highly scientific, highly analytic and direct-response oriented. It's not what people learn in marketing courses, for the most part.
It's what's being pioneered by the likes of Zappos, eBay, wacky companies like Classmates.com (United Online), and lesser-known businesses, like Batteries4Less.com and BocaJava.com. It's all about organizing around how people use the Web -- how they actually behave. Companies are pioneering a model that elevates digital marketing from comfortable tactics to meaningful strategy. Understanding this shift will help you become a part of it...play a role in developing tomorrow's true innovations by stopping being data reporters, and starting to act like business advisors.
We need to break outdated, ineffective habits, including the way we measure our work.Our webinar will tell you how. I can pretty much guarantee that you'll get an amazingly smart, engaging, and fun conversation. We look forward to seeing you on Wedneday.
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