Learning Objectives

By the end of this chapter, you will be able to:

  • Identify the major digital marketing strategies.
  • Differentiate between SEO and SEM.
  • Describe the purpose of display advertising and email marketing.

Digital Marketing Strategies

Digital marketing encompasses a wide range of strategies and channels used to reach customers online.

  • Search Engine Marketing (SEM): The practice of marketing a business using paid advertisements that appear on search engine results pages (or SERPs).
    • Search Engine Optimization (SEO): A subset of SEM, SEO is the process of optimizing your website to get organic, or unpaid, traffic from the search engine results page.

  • Display Advertising: The use of banner ads, images, and videos to advertise on websites and apps.

  • Email Marketing: Sending commercial messages, typically to a group of people, using email. It is used to build loyalty, trust, or brand awareness.

  • Social Media Marketing: Using social media platforms to connect with your audience to build your brand, increase sales, and drive website traffic.

  • Content Marketing: Creating and sharing valuable online content (such as blogs, videos, and infographics) to attract and retain an audience.

Summary

Digital marketing provides a diverse toolkit for e-commerce businesses to attract and retain customers. Search Engine Marketing, which includes both paid ads (SEM) and organic optimization (SEO), is used to capture customer intent. Display, email, social media, and content marketing are used to build brand awareness and engage with customers across the web.

Key Takeaways

  • SEM uses paid ads on search engines; SEO focuses on organic (unpaid) traffic.
  • Display advertising uses banner ads and videos on websites.
  • Email marketing is a powerful tool for building customer loyalty.

Discussion Questions

  1. What are the advantages of SEO over paid SEM?
  2. What are the advantages of paid SEM over SEO?
  3. Think of a brand that does email marketing well. What makes their emails effective?

1. Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

SEO is the process of improving the ranking of a website in search engine results pages (SERPs). The higher a website ranks in the SERPs, the more likely it is to be seen by potential customers.

2. Search Engine Marketing (SEM)

SEM is a form of Internet marketing that involves the promotion of websites by increasing their visibility in search engine results pages (SERPs) primarily through paid advertising.

3. Social Media Marketing

Social media marketing is the use of social media platforms to connect with your audience to build your brand, increase sales, and drive website traffic. This involves publishing great content on your social media profiles, listening to and engaging your followers, analyzing your results, and running social media advertisements.

4. Email Marketing

Digital Marketing Strategies in Nepal

Digital marketing is a rapidly growing field in Nepal. Businesses of all sizes are using digital marketing to reach their target audience and to achieve their business goals. Some of the most popular digital marketing strategies and tools in Nepal include:

  • Social Media Marketing: Social media is the most popular digital marketing channel in Nepal. Businesses are using social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok to connect with their customers, to build their brand, and to drive sales.
  • Search Engine Optimization (SEO): SEO is becoming increasingly important for businesses in Nepal. As more and more people use search engines to find information about products and services, it is essential for businesses to have a strong presence in the search engine results pages (SERPs).
  • Influencer Marketing: Influencer marketing is a popular marketing strategy in Nepal. Businesses are partnering with social media influencers to promote their products and services to a wider audience.
  • Video Marketing: Video marketing is a growing trend in Nepal. Businesses are using video platforms like YouTube and TikTok to create and share engaging videos with their customers.
  • Email Marketing: While not as popular as social media marketing, email marketing is still a valuable tool for businesses in Nepal. It can be used to build relationships with customers, to promote products and services, and to drive traffic to a website.