How Traditional and Digital Marketing Work Together to Power Your Business Goals

Traditional marketing has drastically changed through the evolution of the digital age, and the societal integration of social media. The past 15 years of revolutionary change has caused confusion, doubt, and misunderstanding. Leaving many marketers in the lurch as they attempt to navigate in an ever-changing advertising landscape.

As a result, some are ditching traditional methods completely in hopes of online techniques bringing them holy grail-like ROIs they once experienced. According to Above the Fold’s Traditional Media Strategist Charlie DeNatale, “Traditional media is not broken. What needs to be fixed is the mindset change of what traditional media’s role use to be and what its role is today.”

While digital media strategy is highly important and necessary for producing results and to compete, using a combination of traditional and digital marketing techniques is proving to be the most effective method to elevating success.

The combination of traditional and digital is a one two punch for driving awareness and sales. When combined, they compensate for each other’s weaknesses and so the benefits of both plans are gained as they work in synchronicity.

How to Marry Traditional and Digital Marketing

1. Multiple Channel Approach

By taking advantage of a wider range of traditional and digital techniques, you’re putting your company’s message in front of a diversified audience. For example, a placement during on a cable network like the Hallmark Channel will most likely reach an older audience, while a placement during a teen drama on Hulu will hit a chord with a younger audience.

Depending on the target, some media outlets and types are more successful than others, especially when you consider that a younger audience is more digitally savvy than say their parents’ generation. Using both methods allows your company to reach the full spectrum of potential customers.

One brand that seamlessly integrates both a traditional and digital strategy is fast food chain, Wendy’s. Through their social channels they’ve built a rabid following, eager to consume and interact with the brand through their regular roasting of competing brands and Twitter followers. Their savage tweets have brought a whole new generation of Wendy’s fans and patrons into the fold. They also regularly utilize traditional channels like TV commercials, print, and billboards to attract new and old customers to their restaurants.

2. Segment Campaigns by Active & Passive

Figure out first what your company’s objectives are with your campaign. Is it brand awareness? Driving sales to a new product offering? Introducing your brand to a new generation?

Then you can segment your campaign strategy based upon the activity of the consumer. Traditional marketing is considered to be passive, while digital marketing involves targeting a specific audience, making it active.

While they may be segmented by audience or purpose, they can still maintain a common thread to boost the success of the campaign’s overall goals.

One common thread could be a hashtag. Ask your social followers to take a picture with your product and use the hashtag to be featured or win a contest. Place this same hashtag in our traditional media placements to spread it far and wide, giving it visibility beyond the digital sphere.

3. Get Personal

The amazing result of digital marketing is how its given brands and small businesses the ability to connect with consumers at a deeper personal level. Gone are the days where a customer has to go through the customer service department to get a question answered or a problem resolved. All they have to do is leave an Instagram comment or Tweet at the business and typically within no time they’re getting a direct reply from the company; building trust and affinity.

With social media’s personal touch it’s now more important than ever to have a strategic approach when considering traditional media. Not just what you buy, but how you buy it, how it supports a digital campaign and the influence it has on SEO, PPC, website traffic, and sales.

A great example of a company using traditional and digital to get more personal with their consumers is online fashion retailer, Asos. They release a regular Asos Magazine that features not only their latest fashions and product offerings, but articles related to pop culture, rising stars and musical acts, and other millennial targeted pieces.

Every item featured in the magazine can then be found on a dedicated page titled, “Shop the Asos Magazine.” This gives the reader the chance to emulate their favorite starlet or take the look from the page, and wear it in real life.

It’s a strategy that’s working. Especially when coupled with their hashtag #asseenonme, which encourages their followers to use the hashtag with their Asos look for a chance to be featured on their 6.7M follower Instagram account.

How good is the hashtag working? To the sound of 676,609 photos and counting. Getting personal is the key to building a cult following, or at the very least an audience that’s dedicated to your brand.

In the End, Take a Holistic Approach

Shrewdly evaluate your current traditional and digital efforts with a holistic approach. Understand the “Balance” of your budget allocation between traditional and digital.  Use the techniques together to create a cohesive marketing strategy that drives tangible results for your business. If you’re not using both than your business may not be attracting all of your potential customers.

Above the Fold can help you apply these techniques and develop a strategic traditional and digital marketing plan. Contact us today at 760.613.1212 to learn more!