Digital marketing is more than just vibes!

The fast-paced world of social media has changed the face of marketing and advertising. From ads to pop-ups, digital marketing is everywhere. It has become a very powerful way in which businesses better understand their consumers.  But what more is there to digital marketing?

The answer to the question above is a resounding yes. Technically, digital marketing is advertising done through digital channels like websites, search engines, social media and mobile apps. This is a method through which organizations are able to endorse products and brands. However, it is more than just about posting high quality pictures and having trending hashtags. It is more than just about ensuring that the products and services are seen and spoken about.

Digital marketing is about building communities. For example, there are hiking trips that are organized online all the time. The people who decide to sign up for these trips become a community that transcends the digital environment. In that way, more and more people will know about the trips and potentially participate in the future. This is how digital marketing build communities and relationships within those communities. In a way, digital marketing helps to encourage human relations, something that technology seems to threaten.

Digital marketing is also about storytelling. This is evident in how most advertisements use vernacular languages. In the South African context, some of the advertisements go as far as using slang. The message being communicated is likely to stick in the minds of consumers. People want to be seen and to feel that they are heard. Therefore the use of languages that they are familiar with is likely to get the message across and relay the story as it is.

Beyond being a perfect channel for business and market growth, digital marketing has become a fast growing industry on its own. This means that there are so many avenues that have been explored. Even better, there is new ground that is waiting to be broken. You might wonder why. It is simple. It is because it is, pretty much like humankind, consistently evolving. Therefore whatever worked in digital marketing five years ago might not even work now. Either way, there are always new tricks and techniques of getting things done.

It is important to understand the evolution of technology and media. Not because we are gossipmongers but because it has inevitably become a part of our lived realities, whether we like it or not. Understanding digital marketing does not necessarily mean you need to know the technical terms. It can go as deep as we want it to. The point is to understand how it affects us and how we can, potentially, capitalize on it and elevate ourselves.  It would not matter where we are in the world, digital marketing speaks to us on different scales and that is perfectly fine. Afterall, it is mankind that created it so there is no way it could be just vibes!