Businesses rely on marketing and advertising methods to reach potential customers and convert them. One of the most important decisions you will make in this process is to decide between traditional media and new media as your choice of platform. Indeed, the methods and platforms used for marketing have evolved through the years. Your decision on which platform to use could spell the difference between reaching your goals and not.
Traditional Media vs New Media
When developing a marketing campaign, businesses and marketers often ask this question: traditional or digital? It’s a legitimate question to ask because your ability to reach your target market will depend heavily on the platform you use and the associated techniques.
The marketing landscape has vastly evolved from a decade ago. In the early to the late 1990s, traditional media was the obvious choice for many businesses. The most common examples of traditional media are TV commercials, print ads (newspapers and magazines), radio advertising, direct mail ads, billboards, etc. These platforms serve as a way for businesses to broadcast a message to their target audience.
Before the advent of digital platforms , these methods allowed companies to reach their potential clients and generate sales and proved to be effective in helping companies generate a profit. But as time went on, the needs and expectations of the consumers changed and it demanded that the marketing approaches companies use must evolve, too. This resulted in the gradual decline of traditional marketing methods.
New media, on the other hand, are those types of marketing techniques that are done online or using the internet. Some examples of new media include social media , email marketing, pay-per-click advertising, and content marketing. These marketing methods have been adapted to suit unique needs and consumer behaviours. Since more people are spending time on the internet, they have also grown in popularity as they are the best way to reach potential consumers.
Why New Media is Impactful Nowadays?
ew media has been around since as early as the onset of the Internet. However, it wasn't until recently that they exploded in popularity because the reliance on the Internet and social media has also grown over time.
Traditional methods of marketing like TV and print ads remain prevalent today. But the number of companies that invest in them have dropped because people are now spending less time reading actual newspapers or magazines and more on their smartphones or computers to check the news, socialize with their friends or family members on Facebook or Instagram, or search for information using Google and other websites.
New media, or digital media, is, therefore, the best way to market for one simple reason: your target audience is online! Whether you are running a business and want to use social media to promote your products/services, or you are a media outlet, you can leverage the power of the Internet to expand your reach.
The rise of e-commerce is also another proof that more people are spending time in the digital world. E-commerce businesses such as Amazon and Shopify enable people to buy products from the comfort of their homes using the Internet. If you tie that into the global trend of more people spending time in the digital space, you have an unlimited potential for growth if you use this platform wisely – and effectively.
The beauty of using online digital platforms for marketing is that digital consumers span all ages. It’s not just the Millennials and the Gen-Z that are using the internet; even those who are older are frequently using social media and shopping online.
Pros and Cons of Traditional Media and New Media
To help you identify which of the two types of marketing approaches are most effective for your business, it’s important to break down the pros and cons of each.
Pros & Cons of Traditional Media
Pros
• Broad Targeting
• Immediate delivery of the message
• High local coverage
• High impact (especially for TV ads)
• Long life span
• High prestige (depending on the media)
Cons
• High initial cost
• Potential for channel switching among the audience
• No shelf life (for certain types of media)
• High advertising clutter
• Lack of audience targeting
• Lack of control over ad placement
Pros & Cons of New Media
Pros
• Highly targeted approach
• Low cost (compared to traditional media platforms)
• Flexible ad spending opportunities
• Access to user-generated content (specifically for social media)
• Easy performance tracking and insights in real-time
• Access to customer support
• Cross-promotion to other social media or platforms
• Ability to reach a global market
Cons
• Requires creativity
• Not suitable for all types of businesses
• High level of competition
• Reliant on technology
• Time-consuming
How to Seamlessly Transit to Digital aka New Media
Is it time to stop using traditional media for your business promotion? Not necessarily. Just because online marketing methods and platforms are on the rise, it does not mean there is no value left in the traditional media.
You must begin by assessing your company's needs and target audience. What is your goal? And which type of media would be most effective in achieving that goal?
Every business is unique and so are your target consumers. Make sure you create personas for your target audience so you can predict their behaviour and know what type of media they use. This is critical information that will help develop an efficient marketing plan and enable you to transition to digital media seamlessly.
With that said, it’s clear why new media is on the rise: it is impactful and the most efficient way to do business marketing. The best tip to get you started is to find the right digital platforms to focus on. For example, you can target Facebook ads if your target consumers spend most of their time on this social media.
Take time to analyze the business tools and features available on Facebook to find and target your potential customers. You can use A/B testing to see what types of ads bring the results. Whether you are using Facebook or Instagram (or any other social media platform), always focus on measurable results using analytics to compare and reach ROI targets.
Always be on the lookout to discover different digital marketing platforms available for promoting your company. Staying nimble is a good characteristic to possess if you want to succeed in your transition to modern digital marketing methods. As mentioned above, each digital platform has its unique sets of features and benefits. Your ability to fully utilize them will help achieve your desired result. It also requires consistent evaluation of current results to adapt to changes that will impact future results.
If you are not well-versed in using new media for marketing, you can always hire an expert or an agency. You can leverage their expertise in various new media marketing techniques such as SEO, SEM, and Google Ads to meet your ROI targets. They can also help with various marketing techniques such as content marketing and social media marketing. They can help you create multimedia tools to influence your target audience and convert them.
How Does Agile Working Benefit This Transition?
As you make your transition to the new media, agile working proves effective in aiding you in that transition. Flexible office spaces give your business a favourable advantage in your effort to capitalize on new media marketing, especially if you are a startup or in the process of scaling your business.
Flexible offices with agile working solutions adapt to your business needs (not vice versa). No matter how big or small your team is, this solution can give you access to collaboration tools and reliable infrastructure without the cost of the initial setup involved when building your own office space. It is also the best solution if you have a hybrid team. Agile working is the way to go as you transition to a new media approach for marketing your business to boost efficiency and productivity.