Marketing is a must for any business. But if every business is trying to bring in new customers, what can your business do to stand out? How can you create efficiencies that make your marketing more effective? The answer: leverage multiple marketing channels.
It turns out that the traditional view of marketing—focusing on a single channel—is no longer enough. This narrow view of marketing automatically limits your exposure to potential customers, leaving untapped audiences and channels just beyond your reach.
It also means that you miss out on synergies created by intermingling multiple marketing channels. These synergies level the playing field for small businesses to compete for customers on the same scale as bigger businesses. In fact, “40% of small businesses realize significant cost savings simply by utilizing digital marketing tactics for promotion.”
This article will outline the importance and impact of leveraging multiple marketing channels. More specifically, it will detail how you can integrate owned, earned, and paid marketing channels to create a more balanced and effective strategy.
- The Chore of Choosing the Right Marketing Channels
- Understanding Marketing Channels
- Paid Channels
- Earned Channels
- Owned Channels
- The Unique Impact on the Consumer’s Path to Purchase
- Awareness Stage
- Consideration Stage
- Decision Stage
- Creating a Cohesive Marketing Strategy
The Chore of Choosing the Right Marketing Channels
With so many modern marketing channels to choose from, it can be overwhelming to pick the right ones for your business. On top of that, how do you pick the right channels that will synergize with each other?
While every channel has its strengths and limitations, integrating the right channels into a single strategy can help you fill the gaps left by some channels, while amplifying the strengths of others. The right mix of marketing channels can also help you maximize the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of your strategy.
It’s true that you can spend an entire career researching and trying out different marketing channels, but implementing a simple mix of owned, earned, and paid marketing can help you reach potential customers at every stage of their individual buying journeys.
Understanding Marketing Channels
Consider the following mix of paid, earned, and owned marketing channels for your business, as well as the benefits and challenges of each channel.
Paid Channels
As its name suggests, paid channels allow your business to pay to promote your inventory and offerings directly to your audience. Examples of paid channels include pay-per-click ads, display ads, and paid social media ads.
Paid ads reach potential customers immediately, allowing for quick lead generation and ultra-targeted audience reach. On the downside, paid channels are dependent on your willingness to invest in your marketing. You also run the risk of ad fatigue if consumers keep seeing the same messages over and over again.
Earned Channels
Earned channels refer to your business’ ability to “earn” positive publicity without actually paying for it. Examples of earned channels include social media mentions, press coverage, and customer reviews.
Earned channels are inherently trustworthy, as they are organically generated by members of your audience of trusted media. They’re also incredibly cost-effective, especially user referrals and personal recommendations. In fact, 93% of consumers say online reviews impact their purchase decisions.
On the other hand, earned channels come with a certain amount of unpredictability and can take considerable effort to procure positive customer reviews and press mentions. You’ll have to work to earn these marketing efforts if you want them to be effective.
Owned Channels
Owned marketing channels are those channels that you own and can use at will to promote your brand. These channels include your website, blog, and your email marketing efforts to bring in more buyers.
While owned marketing channels are self-sustaining and can bring long-term benefits, simply by virtue of owning them, it can be challenging and time-consuming to create consistent high-quality, targeted content.
The Unique Impact on the Consumer’s Path to Purchase
While every marketing channel has its pros and cons, each plays a pivotal role at different stages of the consumer path to purchase, and some work better when aligned and leveraged together. Consider the following stages of the shopping journey and how you can leverage a mix of marketing channels to reach your audience at every stage.
Awareness Stage
During the initial phase of the customer journey, when you’re trying to generate awareness of your offerings, paid media can quickly boost visibility while earned media can build brand awareness with shoppers who are on channels they already trust.
- Paid Media
- Search Engine Marketing (SEM) can quickly build online visibility in search results for shoppers actively looking for inventory.
- Dynamic Video Ads on YouTube reach shoppers who prefer to consume video content and have visited your website before or exhibited compatible browsing activities.
- Social Media Ads are a great way to get in front of potential leads on Facebook and Instagram.
- Earned Media
- Customer Referrals can help you get your message and brand in front of your customers’ social groups.
- Industry Publications can give you access to audience bases from other, similar brands.
Consideration Stage
As your potential customers actively research different offerings, paid media can help you retarget leads, bringing them back to your website. Earned media can influence preferences through trusted endorsements and owned media can keep your brand top of mind and share valuable, relevant content that nurtures leads toward a purchase.
- Paid Media
- Remarketing Ads make shoppers consider your brand again and return to your website for another look.
- Earned Media
- Earned Mentions from other brands and from customers can build credibility with new audiences, fast-tracking their opinion of your brand and making them more likely to consider your inventory for purchase.
- Customer Recommendations and word-of-mouth marketing are trusted by as much as 88% of consumers globally.
- Owned Media
- Websites should offer all the information shoppers need to narrow down their purchase options and understand what is required to do business with you.
- Email Marketing keeps your brand in your shoppers’ inboxes, where you can influence their decision-making and nudge them toward a purchase.
Decision Stage
As shoppers progress toward a purchase decision, owned media can help you nurture leads with detailed information.
- Owned Media
- Dealer Blogs that provide articles with educational and insightful information can help customers make informed decisions.
- Website and Email Marketing can help answer shoppers’ biggest questions about making a purchase and give them all the tools they need to buy the right unit.
Creating a Cohesive Marketing Strategy
Marketing is a must for your business. And when integrated and executed strategically, the right mix of marketing channels can help your dealership deliver a coordinated marketing plan that speaks to individuals at every stage of the shopping journey.
By diversifying your marketing strategy, you avoid the risk of leaving certain audience segments unexplored. And, you give your dealership room to evaluate and reevaluate your mix of marketing channels to maximize your marketing reach.
To learn more about how you can be where your customers shop and deliver the right messages to each member of your audience, check out our Integrated Marketing Guide.