Today’s world of business is extremely competitive. The Internet has made this a truly global marketplace and you as a business manager or owner have to not only respond to changing face of the marketplace, but also act proactively to set your business apart. With the new and constantly changing technologies available to companies today, many marketing directors are wondering who wins this battle: traditional marketing vs. online marketing.
The track record of traditional marketing is proven with well-established precedent and countless examples of success and efficiency. Online marketing is still a new and somewhat murky field. There are a lot of new challenges associated with traditional marketing and online marketing. Which one is right for you and your business? It depends on who you are trying to reach and to what extent you are willing to embrace the new technology that seems to be ever changing.
In the battle between traditional marketing and online marketing you do not necessarily have to firmly implant yourself in one camp or the other. The best marketing strategy is going to be a balanced effort that takes advantage of all available media and technology. Now, often you get to a certain point where you have to let some marketing strategies fall by the wayside. For example, it would be foolish to use a marketing campaign centred on outdated technologies such audio cassettes. You need to be current with the technologies you are using.
One important thing in marketing transcends the specifics of traditional marketing and online marketing, in deciding what to do. Indeed, one of the most important things you can do is to constantly be ‘adapting to market demands’ and even try to anticipate those demands. If you can do that with your marketing, whether it is online or offline, you stand more chance of success. Part of adapting to market demands is to not let your marketing strategies go on for too long and to ensure that you make any necessary changes to those strategies as your market evolves. Even when you develop very successful campaigns or strategies, if you let them go on for too long it can undermine the goodwill gained from your brand. People typically respond to fresh, new ideas.
As you decide between traditional marketing and online marketing for your own business you have to keep in mind that the world is moving to increased dependence on the internet and mobile access to it. In this world of Blackberrys and iPhones, you can put yourself right into people’s pockets at all times with a successful online marketing campaign. That is an advantage over traditional marketing and media advertising.
In summary online marketing and the technology ‘plugins’ it uses mean that it has a comparative advantage over traditional offline marketing, especially when market demand and customer preferences are changing so quickly. However, traditional marketing is not an alternative but can live in harmony with online marketing. It can still be used effectively to create sales from the masses of individuals who either do not do business on the Internet or just do not like it.