Traditional media vs Digital media: What’s the difference? 

The rules may be shifting in the world of media marketing, but there are some things that are still staying the same. Before online advertising allocated their marketing budgets there was and continues to be Traditional media which is primarily advertising.  It is consisted of print ads – newspapers, magazines, billboards, TV and radio to increase brand awareness and attract new customers.  Many businesses continue today to rely on traditional media for their marketing and advertising campaigns, which can be very effective, if their target consumers regularly engage with these forms of media.

January 1, 1983 is considered the official birthday of the Internet.  Online marketing has shown it is here to stay.

Digital media is a tool used to create awareness and develop attitudes about your brand.  It is considered online advertising and does not promote purchase.  Digital media includes any online platform; such as email, social media, websites and video streaming. Advertising through digital media, also known as new media, can be an attractive option for companies with smaller advertising budgets because these strategies tend to be more cost-effective. With the use of advanced data analytics, digital media allows companies to target specific consumer demographics. Here are a few digital medias:

Email marketing is a choice method of marketing.  Businesses can send their messaging directly to a potential customer’s inbox. Due to the increased use of smartphones, many people now check their email multiple times a day.

Websites allows companies to show their content to consumers and has the potential to reach a wider audience through search engine optimization, functions, (SEO). SEO helps companies improve their website rankings and strategies to lead to more views and clicks on a company’s website, which generate leads and grow revenue.

Social media continues to increase significantly making it an effective way to implement marketing techniques.  Companies are taking part in direct conversations with their followers via this platform.

Video streaming ads help companies tell stories to their audiences, capturing images that allows selling products by showing audiences why they should purchase their products. Unlike TV advertising, digital video ads give companies the option to target their videos to specific demographics rather than a broad audience.  Businesses that choose to run TV commercials, can put their videos online as well to allow for the greatest possible outreach.

Traditional media versus digital media:  What’s the difference?

Traditional and digital media have many differences, both can be beneficial for companies to use for advertising to reach their target audiences. Many people choose to use various types of media throughout their day, which makes it important for companies to diversify its methods of advertising. By spreading marketing dollars over various media, this can benefit organizations by expanding their target audience.

While digital advertising is growing at a substantial rate, traditional media still can reach a larger audience at once. These traditional outlets often have credibility within a community, which can be beneficial for some businesses.

What are the Pros and Cons of Traditional versus Digital media?

Bottom Line

These pros and cons of digital media marketing show the importance of being online, as well as the importance of having clear, precise message to your audience.

Digital media marketing is a must for every business. If you need customers, you need online marketing. One of the key benefits is that it provides a cost-effective way to reach a huge audience while targeting a specific group within that audience reach and accuracy. It also allows you to personalize the delivery channel and message to communicate more quickly and effectively with your customers for short- and long-term relationship building.

Contact Marketing Matters Services if you have not participated in a digital media marketing campaign in the past, these key pros, and cons of digital media versus traditional media marketing should be considered before initiating a campaign. We would love to hear some of your thoughts about this important subject.  “When Marketing Matters, we don’t use business cards we use Technology!”.

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