Admit it, how often do you go past the first or second page of a Google search? If the answer is hardly ever, it’s because of digital marketing. Digital marketers are really good at getting their stuff to show up on the first page of what you find. And guess what? There’s more to it than that. Digital marketing includes lots of different things, like content marketing and search engine optimization (SEO).

Curious to know more about digital marketing and why it matters? Well, keep on reading.

What Is Digital Marketing?

Digital marketing involves using digital tools or platforms to sell or promote a product or service. Content marketing, email marketing, pay-per-click (PPC) advertising, and SEO are all part of digital marketing. In simpler terms, if you ever feel encouraged to buy something while you’re online, that’s the magic of digital marketing.

Why Is Digital Marketing Important?

Digital marketing helps brands connect with the people they want to reach and promote what they’re selling. Just like traditional marketing, the aim is to get the word out about a product or service. However, digital marketing lets brands focus on a more specific or particular group of people. When you connect with customers online, it helps you build a bigger group of people who believe in and trust your brand. This is especially handy for small businesses, as they can use digital marketing strategies without needing a big marketing team or outside agency.

How Do Businesses Use Digital Marketing?

Let’s explore how businesses use digital marketing through the example of Ryan, a made-up guy who works at a paper company. Ryan has a side hustle he wants to start a small business and has created an app called “Woof!” It lets people or companies send the same message through different ways like text, email, and Facebook.

Since Ryan doesn’t have a big budget for marketing, he needs to use systems that reach a lot of people without spending too much. His focus is on making people aware of his app. Creating valuable content, like blogs and guides, is a key part of getting his business out there. Even though he doesn’t have a marketing team, he can make digital marketing strategy and use social media through agencies or freelancers who know this stuff. He might also handle social media marketing on his own.

As his business grows, Ryan could hire a digital marketing company to handle everything. But for now, he’s learning how to be a digital marketing manager through free online classes.

Here are the ways Ryan can market his app:

  1. Content Marketing: Ryan can write stuff like blogs and guides about his app. He might even start a YouTube channel to show how the app works. This helps people understand why his app is cool.
  2. Search Engine Optimization (SEO): Ryan’s created a bunch of content, but it’s like it’s lost in the huge online world. He figures out what words his customers use when looking for apps like his and uses those words to make his website show up more in online searches.
  3. Email Marketing: Ryan makes a list of people who might want to buy his app. He sends them emails with info and cool stuff about his app.
  4. Advertisements: Ryan has been using his content to get customers, but now he wants to try advertising. He pays to put ads on websites or social media to get more people to visit his website.
  5. Social Media Marketing: Ryan knows his customers like Instagram, so he makes a business profile there. He talks about his app without being too “sales-y” to connect better with his audience.
  6. Influencer Marketing: Ryan has friends like Kelly, Pam, and Andy who are influencers. Pam, for example, helps people with communication tools. She tells her followers about Ryan’s app, and they buy it using a special code. Pam gets a commission for bringing in customers.

Importance of Digital Marketing

Digital marketing is powerful because it helps a business reach a lot of people who might be interested in what they’re offering. Let’s think about it this way: if you put an ad in a local newspaper, only the newspaper subscribers will see it. Plus, you have to pay for each day the ad is in there. But if you post something on social media, it can be seen by anyone on the platform, and you don’t have to pay for each day it’s up on your profile.

Now, let’s look at our made-up friend, Ryan, to see why digital marketing is so important:

  1. Digitalization (Users/Customers Are Online): With digital marketing, Ryan can reach customers no matter where they are. He doesn’t need their phone numbers or addresses right away. All he has to do is be where his customers are online, like on social media or search engines.
  2. Targeted Audience Reach: Digital marketing helps Ryan focus on people who are likely to buy his communication tools – his ideal customers. By posting good stuff and checking who visits his website or likes his posts, he learns about his audience. Does he need to show his ads to older folks who like using phones for communication only? Nope. So, he doesn’t include them in his marketing plan.
  3. Quick Tracking, Monitoring, and Optimizing (Performance of Campaigns, etc.): Ryan can use digital tools to keep an eye on how well his marketing is doing. He can see the results in real-time and make changes to his plans as needed. He can also measure how much he gains from each marketing effort. This isn’t possible with ads in a newspaper – if he puts an ad there for a month, he won’t know how it affects his sales.
  4. Enables Brands To Provide a Better Interactive Experience via Digital Marketing Channels: Digital marketing lets Ryan connect with his customers in different ways. For example, he can do a live stream on his business’ Instagram page, talking to his customers about his product and vision. These digital experiences are cool ways to advertise and connect with the audience.

Cost-Effective Over Outbound Marketing Methods


Many old-school ways of advertising, like making random phone calls or using big billboard ads, can’t be easily tracked, and they often cost more than newer digital methods. For instance, doing content marketing on the internet costs way less, about 62% less than the old-fashioned methods. Think about it: calling people all the time for sales requires having someone do it constantly. And with big ads on billboards or in pamphlets, you can’t know how many people actually see them and decide to buy the product. That’s why Ryan, in our story, uses digital marketing tools—they’re more cost-effective.

Dynamic Adaptability (Easier To Change the Strategy): Ryan can change his plans right away based on how well his campaigns are doing. If using Instagram isn’t getting him customers, he can switch to something else that works better. He’s making the most out of his money because digital marketing lets him be flexible.

Customer Engagement and Retention: Ryan knows that making things personal is important for keeping customers interested. He regularly shares online stuff with them and lets them connect with the brand on social media. He even sends out a daily email with news. Keeping the brand in their minds helps keep them coming back.

Remarkable ROI (Return on Investment): Different parts of digital marketing give different levels of return on investment. If you do it right, you can get really good results.

When you think about these numbers along with how flexible and long-lasting digital marketing is, you can see how much it can change a business.

Stay Competitive: Big companies have a ton of money for marketing every day, but that doesn’t mean regular folks like Ryan can’t compete. By using his marketing money smartly—like having strong SEO strategies, keeping up with social media, and having good content—Ryan can get noticed by Google and grow his audience. It’s not about having the biggest budget; it’s about having good stuff that people want to see.