Digital Marketing is the Future of Brand Recognition
Did you know, colour has the power to improve brand recognition by up to 80 percent.
According to Forbes, cultivating a brand image is comparatively simpler. Constant use of one colour palette on your brand logo, products, digital content, and promotional material can drive brand recognition up by as much as 80 percent.
Brand recognition is the extent to which a consumer is able to correctly identify a particular product or service just by the product or services logo, packaging, tagline or marketing campaigns. For this to happen, the company must repeatedly expose customers to the visual or auditory content experience consistently. This concept is developed on the basis of frequency, audience reach, and consistency. An ad that can make a long-lasting impression on customers subconscious related to a brand can be done by developing a campaign around a concept or a character. Lets consider the Dunkin Donuts example, if you give a close consideration to their logo, you can observe that the letters are in pink and orange colour, so whenever u see the ad campaign or logo, before even making out the words, you can automatically recognize it as Dunkin Donuts. Thats the level of influential power brand recognition has on customer minds.
You might ask - Whats the difference between brand recognition and brand awareness? Are they both same?
Brand recognition is all about identifying your brand products or services through their logo and any other visual or audio representation. Whereas, Brand awareness marketing is a concept that goes a step further to the point where the public can recall information, emotions and general impressions related to your brand. It’s the level of consumer consciousness of a certain company, by pin-pointing what makes your company different, and using those differences to show the inherent value of your company. Implementation of strategies that further increase brand awareness, can drive consumers’ decisions when differentiating between competing companies, and encourages repeat purchase, increase in market share, and lastly rise in incremental sales. In short, recognition focuses on highlighting the unique aspects of the brand in terms of voice, image, and strategy, awareness focuses on the heart and soul of your company. Both of them come together in convincing your customers in choosing you over anyone else. As we can clearly see that both these concepts go hand-in-hand, so lets concentrate on how you can achieve them both with the help of digital marketing.
Digital marketing is a technology that enables people in maintaining rich connections with large number of people. marketing is an integrated process that businesses use in value creation for the customers and build solid customer relationships in return for a reciprocation of value from their customers. The internet plays an essential role within this process, thats where the concept of digital marketing arises. Therefore, it is defined as The process where the businesses and potential customers use the internet for value creation and products, as well as interchange them. So, in simple terms it can be described as a sub-process of marketing. You might have heard many terms like online marketing, internet marketing and e-marketing. All these terms are just synonyms for Digital marketing. . Digital marketing involves important elements such as content marketing, search engine optimization (SEO), search engine marketing (SEM), e-commerce, campaign marketing, social media marketing, pay-per click advertising, email marketing, mobile marketing, affiliate marketing etc.
Digital technologies had revolutionized the way marketing is being done. Any type of information around the globe, can be accessed through distinctive mediums available online with just a click on compact devices like mobile phones, tablets. We belonged to a generation where ads or information has been broadcasted on selected mediums like television, billboards, radio or newspaper, with communication being only one-sided. There was no possible way to receive instant feedback on what each customer of yours feel about your brand or the marketing approach. All these gaps were resolved through integration of digital strategies into marketing. These days, the count of people glued to their mobile devices when stuck in a traffic is higher, than the ones looking at the advertising on billboards. The share of people spending time on electronic devices is showing a steady rise each day. In this stream of career, while you implement strategies you can predict the result in reaching certain groups of target audience, but you can never define the exact result in financial terms. You can never really tell how many of these people will approach your company, turn into potential customers and generate sales. New and budding entrepreneurs are putting their focus more on digital marketing in order to boost up their productivity. Therefore, this career path is both challenging and interesting at the same time.
When it comes to customers, majority of them are conducting online research before purchasing. There is availability for many digital marketing tools that can help in better positioning of your website, products and services. In total, there are three categories you should be aware of:
Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Search Engine Marketing (SEM)
Social Media Marketing (SMM)
The goal of SEO is to get search engine users to the website through organic search results, whereas, SEM includes SEO and paid search, where the paid ads can be seen on the top of Google search results. Lastly, SMM includes paid Twitter, Facebook and Instagram ads in combination with non-paid social media marketing efforts. All these three abbreviations are commonly used when discussing digital marketing. Successful website engagement can be achieved through this combination of these three marketing channels.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Did you know, around 93 percent of all online experiences begin with a search engine 88 percent of population who search will only review the first 3-5 listings displayed on the search engine result page.
Yes, thats absolutely true. Google, alone processes over 3.5 billion searches per day. Its considered to be the go-to search engine for global users for most of the search queries. SEO as a digital marketing channel, plays major role in generating organic and non-paid user traffic for a brand online. To be on constant radar, when customer searches for some product/service that your brand offers then you need to make sure that, your brand shows up on the top-result of users search engine result page (USERP). This can be achieved by putting right content incorporated with most searched keywords in either your companys website, blogs or other social media platforms. These keywords will be identified by the search algorithms, if they are found to be similar and puts your brands website or social media platforms on the first page whenever someone searches for your product/service or something similar to it.
Unlike other channel strategies, this one stands out to be long-term and reliable. Though it is observed to be time consuming, it really pays off, with web marketing specialists ensuring that there are high chances of getting brand name to the top of the list, ahead of your competition. SEO keywords can achieve brand awareness by specifically targeting people looking for what you do. Once you have managed to reach on Page 1 of google search, then it is easier to stay there. SEO uses various methods, such as link building, content marketing, social marketing, etc. to help your business in getting better positioning online.
Social SEO
Social networks have a search engine component as one of their specialities of the internal system. Users utilize social media networks for various purposes, such as - for research of products or services they are interested in, surveying information on certain brands, etc. To drive high organic search results, your business can create social profiles and make regular postings with high-quality content & visuals that allows you to interact with your potential customers. If managed regularly and properly, there are high chances for your businesses social media pages listed among the top result in the search listings.
Content marketing
A strategic marketing approach focused on creating, distributing and publishing relevant and valuable content to attract and retain online target audience. Content is considered to be the backbone for online marketing of the brand. It is said to answer your audience’s queries, build consumer trust and generate new leads. In today’s age, users expect consistent and high-quality content from their favoured brands, as it creates a sense of reliability for the user in the process of building connection with the brand. It is considered both essential online marketing channel on its own, and one that supports many other online digital marketing channels present for a brand.
Non-intrusive marketing, where you interact with your potential customers in a conversational manner, instead of pitching a product or service, you provide them with the information they need. In return you gain the appreciation and credibility as a thought-leader. It has the power to blend the concepts of social media with more traditional digital marketing mediums like online publications, blogs, etc. in order to encourage engagement with both potential and existing customers. In short, the larger the footprint you create online, the higher the search engines will rank your website on organic search results.
Directory SEO
Online directories play a key vital role in the SEO ranking system, Search engines like Bing, Google are referred as modern phonebook, but only on a much larger scale. The volume of information available in these directories can h substantial power to drive organic traffic. Most importantly, by having your business listed in these directories can all link back to your website. Backlinks are also known as inbound or incoming links, that can redirect you from one website to a page on another website. Major search engines consider backlinks votes for a specific page. The pages with higher number of backlinks have the highest organic search engine ranking, making it easy for your customers in finding your business.
Search Engine Marketing (SEM)
Paid user traffic from search engines like Google AdWords, Bing etc. In here, the business purchases an advertising space to make their ad appear on user?s search engine web results page. It is a form of internet marketing that includes promotion of websites by increasing their visibility in search engine results page primarily through paid advertising. SEM is said to be SEO?s paid sibling. Both of these, digital marketing channels are focused on gaining visibility in the search engine, whereas SEO is more inclined towards generating organic results, and SEM is more focused on showing up in paid results. Many of you while searching on Google might have seen this feature of top resulted search queries with a small box ‘'Ad’ placed next to them or in the right hand column of the result page. Well thats what is said to be PPC advertising and it dominates organic search results, requiring the users to scroll all the way down to see the organic results.
In this marketing technique, we will be placing relevant keyword text, graphic or video ads on their favourite websites, while the users are browsing online. Your ads will only be presented to your best prospects and customers, the target demographics to whom the ad will be visible can be selected, and the ads are most likely to be displayed only during the times when your target audience are most likely to be looking online.
Pay-per-click ads
The main goal of this model is to drive traffic to websites, in which the advertiser is paid by the publisher when the ad is clicked. It is mostly associated with the first tier search engines. In SEO, the traffic generated is organic, whereas in here we rather attempt to buy visits to the website or any other online platforms of the brand. PPC tends to earn brand awareness a lot faster compared SEO. Brands always have a choice of being listed in the top page of Google results from the first day of marketing by running ads. Also, these PPC campaigns will enable power to the advertiser in specifically showing the ads to selected target audience based on certain elements, such as consumer behaviour, demographics and geography.
Video marketing
The process of using videos in promoting and marketing your products or service, to increase customer engagement on your digital and social networks, educate your consumers, and reach your target audience with a new medium. It’s said to be one of the fastest growing digital marketing tools, as people do not have much time to read. They would rather prefer to get information in a short entertaining and informative video than a long paragraph. Videos have been very effective in influencing prospects in making the final purchase.
Retargeting
This method of remarketing is a form of online advertising that helps your business in keeping your brand in front of bounced traffic after they leave your website. Most of the websites, only 2 percent of web traffic converts on their first visit. Retargeting will help in staying top of mind and compel users in coming back and reconsider the purchase decision. Pay-Per-Click is one of the ways in focusing on your potential prospects through remarketing.
Social Media Marketing (SMM)
Method of using social media networks and websites in promoting a product or service. In the recent years, this method has shown a popular demand for both practitioners and researchers. The aim is to produce content that users will share within their social networks and help the company in increase their brand exposure and broaden their customer reach. According to Pew research reports, around 67 percent of internet users are now using social networking sites to drive traffic for the business. The average daily time spent by users on social media sites is estimated to be around 142 minutes per day. It has become a huge part in majority of people’s lives around the world.
Blogs and Content marketing
High-quality content with relevant keywords on blogs, website and social media platform of the brand can help in generating SEO organic traffic. Content presented can be either, descriptive, narrative or conversational. It all depends on the brand, and how they want to engage with their customers. Updating the content constantly based on external trends in the market can help in increase brand engagement and keeps your companys website fresh, to which Google algorithm tends to respond positively. It gives other websites a reason to link with you, which is the essential ranking factor for search engines.
You might ask, why blogs and content are important to digital marketing
Here’s why - Search engines rewards businesses that publish consistent and quality content, and content tends to drive inbound traffic that redirects users directly to your website when they have viewed your content.
You can reach and influence your consumers through blogging, where you answer most searched online queries, or queries that are specifically asked regarding your brand product/service. It gives a chance for the company, to reach their prospects with useful content that can play a role in purchase decision of the customer. You can consider it as a first touch point, for brand awareness and work on building trust for the customers, because this process unconsciously makes customers think of your brand when they are about to make a purchase decision later.
LinkedIn is a great source, in reaching to the B2B audience through digital marketing techniques. You can build a professional business network and connect with businesses professionals of similar industry. This platform allows users to write, edit, and share articles on LinkedIn. All the members of this social network can have access to the tool. One of the effective social methods in spreading your brands name across the web. If your published posts get enough visibility and attention from the members then it could be seen on the LinkedIn home stream for many users. Having posts attached to your LinkedIn account can actually help in establishing brand recognition. Make sure to promote and share the posts, after publishing, as much as possible around your network to speed up the process.
Social media marketing
Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, YouTube, etc. are channels that are used and found to be extremely effective in social media marketing. Through these two-way online communication platforms, customers are able to approach the organizations, and have the freedom to speak out their opinions freely, regarding the companys products or services. All these positive/negative reviews provided by the customers can actually help the brands in offering a better re-structured product/service, that caters to the needs of the consumers.
If you have just entered the social media platforms to increase your brand awareness through digital marketing channels then your content might only be viewed by users who follow your handles. To gain more visibility and followers, you can use the help of bloggers and influencers who provide information similar to your brand products/service, to promote your product/service on their social media handles to generate new leads for your business and increase brand awareness in untapped markets. By building tie-up with other similar brands, bloggers and influencers there are high chancers in gaining new follower base, which is considered to be crucial for building brand awareness.
Throughout the article we have covered the concepts of brand recognition, branding through digital marketing, and most effective digital strategies to increase brand awareness. We can positively say that, digital marketing will remain as the most powerful tool for brand recognition in the future. As the dynamics of digital marketing keep changing every day, its is important as a digital marketer to be alert, smart, agile and adapt to latest changes. SEO, SEM, and SMM are the effective core components of digital marketing, that are a sure shot way in getting your brand recognised by the target audience.