What is Digital Marketing and when was it formed? 

It is an important factor of marketing. It helps in promoting a certain business, product, place etc to people like you and me with the help of mobiles, laptops, desktops etc. Digital marketing also extends itself to non-internet supportive platforms which provide digital media such as T.V, mobile phones (sms/mms), callback, and on-hold mobile ringtones. This extension to non-internet platforms differs from digital marketing and online advertising. In the year 1971 the first step in the development of the internet as we know today happened. Ray Tomlinson sent the first email and the journey of the internet began. But the introduction of Digital marketing happened in the year 1990 when the Archie search engine was created as an index for FTP files. Around the 1980s storage amounts on computers were vast so it was easy to save large files that consisted of customer information hence enabling the service provider information about the customer more easily, this was initially called database marketing. In the 1990s the term Digital Marketing was coined. As the amount of personal computers owned increased so did the focus on Customer Relationship Marketing transforming it into an important factor of marketing tactics. 

Development of Digital Marketing. 

In the 2000s after the birth of the Iphone and further development of the internet people became compelled to use it before buying a product, going out to eat at a new place, going to a tourist spot. The only drawback was that not a lot of people knew about the wonders of the internet. Many people had not registered their business domain because they didn’t know what it was. The moment people got their hands on phones and how to use it to their benefit, digital marketing bloomed. 

Trends in Digital Marketing. 

There are many trends that are involved when it comes to promoting a brand through digital marketing. But there are some important ones which are responsible for creating more traffic. Some of these trends are mentioned below. 

Influencer Marketing

Influencers are people who are actors or actresses working either in the film industry or tv industry or in some cases both. We see what they do on social media platforms, on tv commercials. With the help of such influencers businesses/brands promote their products. Our young generation has a tendency of imitating them. These influencer promotions are very attractive and affordable at times which attracts customers increasing the sales amount profiting the businesses/ brands. 

Omni-Channels

These are the channels through which promotions of the products offered by brands and businesses are brought to the public on various social media platforms. Social media platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, Twitter have ads which consist of a picture of the product and a small description. It also has a link which takes you directly to the product page where you can place your order. This trend is new. It helps in attracting new customers, this method is the most effective way to attract an audience. All of us use one or another form of social media platform which is why with the help of this trend a large amount of audience can be reached from different communities. 

Artificial Intelligence

The textbook definition of AI in simplified terms is the simulation of human intelligence processes by machines, especially computer systems. With the help of AI it’s getting easier for brands and businesses to get the attention of consumers by showing them ads on their devices whenever they access a website or social media pages by showing them exciting offers which are irresistible. Sometimes you open a random website and close it but after a few days you see pop-ups of that website appearing everywhere, this is how AI in digital marketing works. 

Video Marketing

Video marketing is a new method with the help of which brands are creating content rich short form videos that they are being published on social media platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, Twitter etc. Videos that are interesting and relatable to attract the targeted audience’s attention. These types of video can be found in the form of ads in the middle of reels or stories on Instagram, small ads before the beginning of a Youtube video some of which are skippable, those that aren’t are a tactic implied to force you to watch the whole ad. These videos are an important factor, which is helping brands and small scale businesses to promote their products and gain a lot of attention and improve sales traffic. 

Long Form Content

Content marketing is a very popular trend that is being used in digital marketing. It is the method in which blogs or articles are written which consists of information of the product in 3000 words or more. It is very detailed and is written in a manner that is bound to attract the attention of the audience. Sometimes these blogs and articles have a hyperlink attached to a specific anchor word which guides you to another article or blog providing more information. Such types of blogs are very efficient in saving your time. 

Social media shopping

After reading the name of the trend it clearly tells us what actually is the zest of it. Sometimes when we are scrolling on instagram we come across a post that might be from popular brands such as Nykaa, Myntra etc telling you about the recent offers that they are offering, there is also a small tab present which says “shop now” after clicking on it will take you directly to the product or the offer the brand is offering. This is a fantastic method to gain your attention without wasting your time, it shows you the exact products that you want to see, this happens with a little help from AI. 

Progressive Web Pages

It is a website that acts similar to an app that you can use to place an order. The only difference is that you don’t have to download an app whatsoever. You can very easily place your order by simply signing up and have your order delivered to your home. This is a very new trend and it is bound to progress over time which means in the near future we might never have to download an app ever. 

 

All of these trends and the ones that will come up in the future are only going to make our shopping experience or any experience that has any relation remotely to the usage of the internet is going to make it smoother for us. All we have to do is wait and when they are here embrace them and have fun!