Back to Basics

So let’s start with the basics.  ‘Digital Marketing’ is a phrase that has been thrown around relentlessly over the last few years – and if you are anything like me (i.e. a digital ‘idiot’) then you will often find yourself in a position where you THOUGHT you had just got the gist of it…only to be told something completely different. 

My first stop on this journey of exploration was (obviously) Wikipedia. 

‘Digital marketing is marketing that makes use of electronic devices such as computers, tablets, smartphones, cellphones, digital billboards, and game consoles to engage with consumers and other business partners. Internet Marketing is a major component of digital marketing.’

After much discussion in the Digital Marketing Show office (and if anyone knows – THEY should know) we decided to scrap this.  Whilst this representation of Digital Marketing is true to a certain extent, it is not the whole story.  The emphasis of this definition is on the devices on which the content is accessed, while it really should be focusing on the various channels through which digital marketing engages with consumers and business partners. 

And no, I don’t mean Channel 4, the Channel Tunnel or just ‘Chanel’ misspelt (these are the ones that sprang to my mind!) I mean these:

- Search Marketing

- Affiliate Marketing

- Social Media Marketing

- Display Advertising

- Email Marketing

Now, some of you might recognise these phrases merely as a daily source of discomfort.  Yes, these are the words muttered by your boss on a regular basis, triggering an instantaneous fake smile and a profuse nod before running off to ask your BFF (Google). 

Well, I will outline the meaning of all of these in the coming weeks (with a little help from our Digital Marketing Show speaker friends!).  No more will your boss think of you as a bizarre mishmash of the Cheshire Cat and the Churchill Nodding Dog. 

Stick with me, and I promise you digital supremacy (T&C’s apply).