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Victor Montalvo

Digital Marketing VS Traditional Marketing: Which is Better?

Updated: Jul 28, 2022


Digital Marketing VS Traditional Marketing: Which is Better?

Between traditional marketing and new digital strategies, there are many ways for businesses to capture the attention of their audiences. But which strategy is best? Businesses must decide for themselves. In this article, we will cover the following topics that will give you a clear understanding of digital marketing vs traditional. Topics include: 1) What is traditional marketing?

2) What is digital marketing?

3) Pros and cons of traditional marketing

4) Pros and cons of digital marketing


What is Traditional Marketing?

Traditional marketing methods have been around for decades and are typically used less often now. However, they’re not without their strengths. Common traditional market methods include:

  • Directly mailed postcards, coupons, and informational packets

  • Television or radio commercials

  • Newspaper or magazine ads

  • Billboards and fliers

  • Telephone calls and text notifications

We see and hear many of these ads every day. It can be difficult not to notice them as you're driving through town, or even looking out your office window at billboards on the side of highways while going about business during a commute - they've become part of what we call "everyday life."


What is Digital Marketing?

Digital marketing strategies are constantly evolving to keep up with the latest trends and technology. Newer ones that have been gaining traction in recent years include those which involve using internet or smartphone-based digital tools, such as email campaigns for example. Common digital marketing methods include:

  • Website content

  • Email campaigns

  • Content marketing

  • Social media posts

  • Clickable ads

  • Affiliate marketing

  • Search engine optimization (SEO)

The strategy of marketing online and through social media is popular today because there are so many active internet users, 4.54 billion in total according to a study! 3.8 billion of those people use social networks like Facebook or Twitter for communication purposes on their mobile devices each day which makes this platform perfect for advertisements.


Pros and Cons of Traditional Marketing

In the world of digital marketing, there is a lot to think about when deciding on which method will work best for your business. Traditional methods can be an effective and easy way to get started in this space, but they may not always fit every company or person out there so here's what you should know before going down that road:

Pros

  • The average person over 50 spends almost twice as much time reading the newspaper and watching TV than a 21–34-year-old. This is due in part because they have more disposable income, but also because these older demographics are craving information that will help them stay up with world affairs or catch some interesting sportscast.

  • Local businesses should compete for attention through billboards, flyers and events rather than digital space against larger companies. A small business would be better off with this type of marketing strategy.

  • TV or radio commercials will play multiple times and remind the audience of your business, whereas digital marketing items may be skipped through or blocked (e.g., clicking “I don’t want to see this” on social media ads).

Cons

  • Sending postcards to your local area is a great way of gathering contact information, but it can be expensive and there’s no guarantee that the person will even open them.

  • The old school ways of marketing can take up to a month and you will never know if someone read your newspaper ad unless they follow-up. Even then, without conducting surveys or interviews with potential customers in person; it is difficult for marketers to get accurate feedback about their campaign efficacy.

Pros and Cons of Digital Marketing

With digital marketing, you are always one step ahead of your competition. Whether it is new technology or a trending social media trend that will be huge in 3-6 months from now, there's nothing stopping you Digital strategies include some areas where they excel while others don't so let’s learn about the pros and cons of digital marketing before diving right into them though shall we?

Pros

  • Data is a powerful tool for marketers, and you have the opportunity to engage with your audience in ways that can't be done any other way. You might think there's no such thing as too much data when it comes down how many channels we're on but what about quality over quantity? Data allows us insight into who our customers are by tracking clicks from sites they visit, or emails opened at certain times of day--allowing marketers like yourself more opportunities than ever before.

  • Digital marketing strategies are a much cheaper option. Sending out an email campaign can save you money compared to printing individual postcards and paying the postage on each one, which often runs up quite high in comparison.

  • Digital marketing is a great way of reaching more people across the world. It also has an increased scope because it can be used on any device from your phone, laptop or even TV.

Cons

  • Some people have ad blockers so they’ll never see pop-ups or banner ads. Other times, the user can pay for premium services like Spotify and Hulu which remove these pesky advertisements from their screens when watching videos on Twitch.

  • Digital marketing tactics need to be constantly reevaluated and adjusted for effectiveness. It's important, however, that we have a strong foundation in the basics- which will provide consistency throughout all aspects of our strategy through each new development or shift within this ever-changing industry.

Which One is Better?

So, which strategy wins when comparing traditional marketing vs. digital marketing?

The short answer: it depends.


The long answer: Digital marketing is the best option for most people looking to reach their audience. If you want a low-cost way of reaching an extensive group of potential customers, then digital advertising works well! It also allows companies like yours valuable information about who exactly visited or interacted with your product/service which will allow them to produce even more effective campaigns in future rounds. However, this is not always the case. To advertise in today's digital age is not enough. We need to use traditional marketing methods as well if we want our message heard by audiences that are more likely or prefer a hands-on approach rather than one who will rely solely on an email inbox full of spam every day.


These days, people have become accustomed to hearing from companies through social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter - but this does not mean they're going straight for what you post! In fact, it’s been proven time again how powerful these old school techniques really can be because studies show there has never been such success seen among marketers using television commercials alone versus those trying other strategies first. When it comes to marketing, there are many different strategies that you can use. However, one thing is true for every type of campaign: understanding your audience and what they want will help guide the decisions about which strategy works best with them.


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