With the world continuously revolving on the axis of technological advancement man has got many things to add to his comfort list. With the rising interest in the internet and its beneficial usage the man has evolved many options to make his life simpler. Now, rather than going to your local shop for groceries you opt for going online and buying all your errands with a few simple clicks. You name it and the World Wide Web has it to deliver.
M Tanveer Nandla is a serial web entrepreneur, IT Professional and SEO Expert. He is currently training youth in Punjab Information Technology Board initiative eRozgaar and providing SEO Consultancy to some top websites.
Dayspring got his view point on various aspects of digital marketing
Can you tell us what is digital marketing and how it is different from traditional marketing?
In simple words, using electronic gadgets and internet in spreading words about your product or services is called digital marketing. We can use different channels such as social media, mobile apps, search engines and emails to reach out to the maximum people who may be interested in our products or services.
Digital marketing is different and I would say way better than traditional marketing for various reasons that includes targeting specific people only. Unlike traditional marketing, we can target those people who can highly interested in our products or services. For example, in traditional marketing, its not easy to target only pregnant women living in a specific city but digital marketing gives us all this possibility through different mediums and surprisingly these mediums or cheaper than traditional marketing.
The other main benefit of digital marketing is, you can interact with your potential customer directly, say, through messenger, email or whatsapp. Feedback is easy and A/B testing has also opened the whole new era of marketing. So, long story short, digital marketing is the future and Pakistan is slower than others in adapting this change. A Massive awareness campaigns need to be launched to get people aware of it.
Can you share us types/channels of Digital Marketing and which one do you think is better?
Well, I would categorize into main categories and subcategories to make your readers better understand but before that the main thing before selecting any channel is to select primary goals for your digital marketing campaign. If you want to sell your product to females visiting near your store, Facebook ads and Google Adwords would be best select for you. So, there are tons of digital marketing channels including Search Engine Optimization and Search Engine Marketing, PPC (Pay Per Click), Social Media Marketing, Affiliate Marketing, content marketing and so on.
Now as far as your question ‘which one is better’ is concerned; my personal favorites are PPC and Search Engine Optimization since SEO is almost free so RoI is maximum as compared to other channels.
Do you think Digital Marketing is more effective than traditional marketing? How?
As I earlier explained that digital marketing is way better than traditional marketing for various valid reasons. Digital marketing is pinpoint, it’s cheaper, its more effective, its more interactive, statistical analysis is easy, higher customer engagement and list goes on. On the other side, traditional marketing has become past now with increasing number of people using digital mediums including internet and gadgets.
Do you think Digital Marketing is an important element nowadays for the growth of any company?
Certainly yes, with growth of internet users, cheaper smartphones and fast speed internet, no any big company would survive by using traditional marketing only. Digital marketing has become an essential part of any company marketing budget and strategy. For the matter of fact, news agencies are becoming smart by switching to social media and websites so anything you’re spending on lets say print ads will eventually go to digital marketing, epapers are the best example.
Whats your suggestion for fresh graduates if they are interested to come in Digital Marketing field?
During graduation, digital marketing must be taught as a subject by practical and professional instructors who know what exactly going on in the market and what challenges fresh graduation going to deal with after graduation. Fresh graduates need to analyze the market very closely and the most important of all, increase their level of knowledge about digital marketing by spending more hours searching Google and watching youtube about what digital marketing tool and channel is going to dominate in the future and how one can prepare himself for the future.
Build a network with professional and market-people and keep updated about latest happenings in digital marketing world. Facebook has made all this easy since groups can be joined and successful digital marketers can be followed to know what they think about latest stuff in the market. Linkedin is also a best platform for professional networking as LinkedIn groups are also packed up with professionals.
Prepare yourself as a brand. The sooner you know your worth, the better it will be for your future. Dont sell yourself cheap. Personal branding is essential in today’s world. Check what you’re doing all the day long on internet, what impact you have on the society, start thinking big and most important, never quit. Stay updated with the latest technical stuff and keep sharing your own thoughts about any development on social media, this will increase your trustworthiness and branding. Be an influencer and thats only possible if you start giving value to yourself and start achieving something. This world only value those who have done something for themselves and for the world.
Get certified. Though its not really necessary but it adds value to your personal branding and growth.
Where do you see the potential of Digital Marketing in the next 5 years?
I can see a massive boom in digital marketing in the next couple of years. SEO will be not like the way we do at the moment. Search Engines evolving rapidly over time and trying to get smarter and smarter. Video content will be the future since a book can be kept and recorded in few minutes of video so it saves time, with increasing competition between Google and Facebook, I can see video content flourishing in the future. AI (Artificial Intelligence) is being enhanced at rapid speed and in few years, it will be all around us deciding what’s best for human and this will also impact digital marketing since it will be easier for machines to learn pattern and psychic of human