Will we see a digital marketing backlash? Woman using tablet with computers in background

Will we see a digital marketing backlash?

Remember when digital marketing was the future? Marketers scrambled to persuade their organizations to put more money into digital and less into print. Everything was moving online. We created digital campaigns with online ads, emails, and social media posts.

And then the pandemic made digital marketing almost our only option.

It worked, at first. But after more than a year of working from home and having no other option, our buyers grew weary. Weary of being online all the time – with literally no breaks. The last thing they wanted to do was read another email or click on another ad.

To be clear, I won’t say digital marketing doesn’t work. Given that our digital world is here to stay, I don’t expect a digital marketing backlash.

Know Your Audience

I do believe marketers need to know our audiences and their needs. Our buyers are stretched for time, and they’re tired. They’re working more hours and finding less joy online, making it harder for marketers to cut through the clutter and get their attention.

So, what should marketers do?

Here are 3 tips for marketing in a mostly digital world:

  1. Tell buyers what’s in it for them
  2. Personalize your digital marketing
  3. Use other marketing channels.

Tell buyers what’s in it for them

One of my favorite phrases is “features tell, but benefits sell.” We’re often so caught up with what we do and what our company does, that we forget to start with why people should buy from us.

Marketing content that speaks to buyers’ wants and needs by telling them what’s in it for them often performs better than content that moves straight into product features.

How do you ensure your content marketing is focused on what’s in it for buyers? Make and use a Message Map for each solution or service your organization sells.

Personalize your digital marketing

Personalized marketing isn’t new. But in a world where buyers are weary from seeing 6,000 to 10,000 digital ads per day, plus hundreds of emails, how do we cut through the clutter so they pay attention to our content?

One of the best ways to personalize content for buyers is to listen to their questions. Capturing customer questions enables you to develop marketing content that speaks directly to their needs, making them more likely to open and click on your content.

Here’s a blog that offers ways to capture customer questions.

When creating content that your buyers want, also avoid sending content they don’t want, such as ads for certain holidays or items they may be allergic to. Give buyers a chance to opt-out of what they don’t want.

Use other marketing channels

One way to cut through the clutter and get buyer attention is to use other marketing channels. What are your buyers’ media consumption habits? Where do they live? People still drive past billboards, take walks around their neighborhoods, and open their snail mail.

Three-dimensional mailers can be a good way to get buyer attention, as can holding fun virtual events such as cooking classes, where buyers can interact with one another.

Digital marketing - Smiling black man opening a package.
Sending marketing packages gives buyers a break from digital marketing.

Using other marketing channels gives buyers a break from reading all their content online.

In a mostly digital world, digital marketing is harder than ever. Telling buyers what’s in it for them, personalizing content, and using a variety of marketing channels can help cut through the clutter.

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