Together, We’re Better: The Importance of a Unified Marketing Strategy
Coke vs. Pepsi.
Marvel Comics vs. DC Comics.
West River vs. East River (for us South Dakotans, this is a heated argument).
The world is full of rivalries. The biggest rivalry in the marketing world? Digital vs. traditional marketing (also referred to as inbound vs. outbound marketing).
But what if we stopped arguing about Facebook ads vs. television commercials or email marketing vs. direct mailers — and instead made both traditional and digital marketing efforts work together?
It’s called a unified marketing strategy, and it works. Read on to learn why.
Wait . . . Doesn’t 9 Clouds Do Only Digital Marketing?
Does it seem a bit odd that a digital marketing agency like 9 Clouds would encourage the use of traditional marketing tactics?
While it’s true that inbound marketing is in our DNA, we understand that a greater impact occurs when auto dealers and other businesses pair their digital marketing efforts with traditional outbound methods. The effect is to create a cohesive marketing message across all platforms.
Diversifying your marketing strategies is a lot like diversifying your stock portfolio. Investing in both traditional and digital marketing will allow you to maximize gains and minimize losses while also helping you send the right message to the right audience.
We’re not the only ones advocating for a unified marketing strategy. Nationally, some markets are now devoting 54% of their marketing budget to digital activities, leaving 46% for traditional forms of advertising.
Why Traditional Marketing Alone Doesn’t Work
If you’re still allocating a majority of your marketing budget toward traditional efforts, you may want to reconsider.
In addition to being considerably more expensive than most digital methods, traditional marketing alone just doesn’t work anymore. You could spend all the money in the world on TV, radio, and direct mail, but without a digital marketing strategy to support it, you won’t get the results you need to turn leads into sales.
Traditional outbound marketing interrupts, while inbound marketing attracts. Not everyone who hears your radio ad or receives your direct mailer will be a qualified lead. In fact, a majority won’t actually be interested in purchasing from you — and that’s okay!
So how are you going to get the right message in front of the right audience? That’s where inbound marketing efforts can help!
Instead of interrupting people who have no business shopping at your dealership, inbound marketing helps inform current and potential customers with digital marketing methods such as Facebook ads, Google Ads, email marketing, and search engine optimization (SEO).
Why Traditional Marketing and Digital Marketing Need to Work Together
Perhaps your business already utilizes both traditional and digital marketing strategies, but are they actually working together? That’s the magic question.
If your TV and radio ads focus on promoting used trucks, but your Facebook ads focus on promoting new cars, that’s a definite messaging disconnect — and a missed opportunity to give the right leads the right message.
At 9 Clouds, we always ask our clients about the campaigns they are running on traditional marketing platforms to see how we can complement them.
What does this unified marketing strategy look like? 9 Clouds recently helped a pair of Midwest auto dealerships achieve a consistent marketing message across both traditional and digital channels.
These North Dakota dealers sent personalized trade-in vouchers via direct mailers to past purchasers. The 9 Clouds team then sent each customer on the list an email that matched the physical mail they had received a few days prior. Customers who clicked a vehicle link in the email were qualified to be shown a dynamic retargeting ad on Facebook.
By working together, the direct mail provider and 9 Clouds were able to send the same message with cohesive design across both digital and traditional channels. The results were impressive.
It just goes to show you that traditional and digital marketing can achieve more by collaborating together than by working apart.
Unite Your Traditional and Digital Marketing with 9 Clouds
Achieving unity between your traditional and digital marketing takes good communication and good planning.
Need help getting started? We have many free resources available right here on our website including eBooks, webinars, videos, and many more!
And when the time is right, set up your digital marketing assessment with 9 Clouds to learn how our team can help you create a unified marketing strategy.
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