Digital Marketing Myths and Facts in 2019

As an industry, digital marketing has always been plagued by rumours and myths about what works and what doesn’t. With a wide array of approaches and strategies available to implement  (and each of them with their own diehard advocates), it’s not surprising that there’s confusion about what businesses need to do in order to achieve success with digital marketing.

2019 is no different than any other year in that there are plenty of digital marketing myths making the rounds. Below we’re debunking some of the most common myths about digital marketing that we hear again and again.

Content marketing is the only thing you need to worry about

Content marketing is a basis of any digital marketing strategy, but its importance has taken on a mythical quality in the past few years. Our understanding of what content marketing is and how it can operate within a strategy is often grossly over-simplified, reduced to the basic recommendation: “Just write more content!”

A better way to think about content marketing is through the metaphor of a wheel, where content is the hub and the digital marketing techniques that support and amplify the content are the spokes. Every effective strategy relies on having quality content at its core, but it needs support from other marketing channels to achieve its purpose.

Facebook is dead

No one can deny that it’s been a rough few years for Facebook. The tech giant has been plagued by bad press, leaks of embarrassing information, and privacy scandals. This, in addition to competition from younger social media platforms, has led to a lot of bold statements that Facebook is dead or, at the very least, dying.

The truth for many businesses is that Facebook still generates the most solid returns of all the social networks on which they maintain an active presence. Facebook remains the largest social network, and while it’s important to be aware of changing market forces and not invest all your resources in a single channel, we’re certainly not ready to declare it obsolete yet.

More content is always better

Another myth that springs from content marketing’s meteoric rise as digital marketing darling of the moment. Because we tend to hear about the importance of content marketing over and over again, we are sometimes led to believe that we have to generate heaps of content at any cost. With new channels for content cropping up all the time (live streaming, social media stories, and more), it’s all too easy to stretch yourself too thin trying to be present everywhere all the time.

The truth is that very few businesses have the resources to create such a tremendous volume of content while simultaneously maintaining a high level of quality. It’s usually a far better strategy to focus on creating quality content for a select number of channels, rather than spray more low-quality content across the web just to say your brand is everywhere.

Digital marketing can’t generate quick, near-term results

A lot of digital marketing tactics (content marketing, organic social media marketing) take time to generate results. These tactics do not deliver overnight results because the benefits tend to accumulate the longer you invest in them. This has created a myth that digital marketing is not capable of generating results in the near-term.

In fact, there are many tactics at your disposal that can generate traffic and awareness very quickly. Paid channels are particularly useful for this purpose. Paid ads in search and social, influencer marketing, and even email marketing can very quickly deliver impressions, traffic, and conversions. It’s still important to optimize these channels, however, as you will make campaigns more efficient with time.

All You Need Is Digital Marketing

Digital marketing is highly important to a brand; however, it should be viewed as one part of the overall marketing plan. It’s important to mix some traditional, event and digital marketing together as you build your marketing plan, all are important. Many consumers are going online for information, reviews and purchases.

Traditional marketing has taken a back seat to digital marketing, however, there is still a large audience reading magazines, buying the newspaper and seeing your billboard. Refer Media #2

Content Marketing Isn’t That Important

Many businesses believe that once their website is up and running, the work is finished. In order to make the most of your digital marketing campaign, your website must have relevant updated content that engages your target audience. Having consistent content not only helps you rank higher on search engines, but it sends a positive message to your target audience. Your customers will notice if your last blog post was a year ago this gives your audience the feeling you aren’t interested in their loyalty.

Content marketing builds trust with consumers. People read, share, and engage more with content that is shared through friends and others that they trust.

Digital Marketing Can’t Track To Storefront Sales

A while ago this myth may have been slightly true, but with the new software and techniques, this is wrong. As the advertising world changes so do the techniques and software, marketing professionals use to track sales. Any business can combine online and offline marketing transactions to get a real figure that shows the overall effect and impact of their digital marketing campaign.

One Social Media Profile Is Enough

There are many popular social media platforms available and numerous ways to connect with current and potential customers. Whether it is Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat or Instagram, each outlet gives you access to a wider audience and the ability to target your ideal customer. If a consumer can’t find you on a social network, then you are missing out. If you are not engaging with your customers; your customer experience will suffer and your brand will be seriously hurt if not die as a result.

There’s No Personalization In Your Messages

Today more than ever, companies can create personalize their content in ways never thought possible. Digital marketing ads can be created to attract a very specific consumer. With the correct tools and software, ads can be changed so that it appears relevant to the person who receives it.

Storytelling is alive and well. Every brand has a story, its your responsibility to convey this by telling your story. contentmarketing and storytelling lead to branding, coupled with digitalmarketing leads to revenue.

SEO Is Dead

SEO or Search engine optimization is far from dead and is now more important than ever.

With over 1 billion websites and billion of pieces content that exist, it’s critical to have a good SEO campaign in place.

SEO allows you to attract people halfway across the world as well as locals with the right strategy. There are consistently new robot capabilities picking apart content and ranking it by relevance for searchers. Combining SEO with digital marketing and exceptional content will drive more organic search results.

My Competition Isn’t Online, So I Don’t Need To Be

It’s important to stay ahead of the curve when it comes to all marketing be it traditional or digital. If your competition isn’t online this simply means you are one step ahead of them. Just because your competitors aren’t taking the necessary steps to remain relevant doesn’t mean you should allow your business to make the same mistake. Not being online means missing out on a whole world of new customers you can potentially reach and leaving revenue on the table. There are no excuses.

Negative Reviews Online Are Bad For Business

Any customer concerns on your product or service should definitely be addressed and considered opportunities to improve and educate the consumer and the consumer experience with your products. There is a process for handling negative reviews online. and it is something that can’t be ignored. Sticking your head in the sand and hoping a negative review goes away is a fools mistake.

88% of consumers consider product quality as the most important reason for being loyal to a brand, followed by customer service at 72%.

Taking the time to respond to the customer and assuring you care about their loyalty can make a huge difference in the company reputation. Ignore it and word of mouth marketing will be adverse to both your company and your products.

Consumers On Mobile Do Not Convert

A customer may be less likely to go through a lengthy checkout process while on their mobile phone. It’s important to have a mobile-friendly version of your shopping cart and any forms you are asking a consumer to fill out; otherwise, you will not have successful conversions. Also, it’s important to have a short form on a mobile device along with a responsive website. All things in your control.

Remarketing Is Creepy

Retargeting can be creepy if you ignore the best practices. However, if it is done right, it leads to great success. It helps re-engage consumers and keep your brand on the top of their mind.

There are plenty of digital marketing myths out there, and there will be more added to the list over time. Online marketing can be scary to a brand. However, with the right strategy, it is sure to help your business and company grow in ways you never expected.

Wrap-up

An abundance of myths about what works and where you should invest your resources will always be a fact of life when it comes to digital marketing. Grand predictions about the future are common in this industry. If you don’t want to be led down the garden path, focus on what you know works for your business and make marketing decisions based on available evidence