Does your organisation have the digital skills to engage online?

Take our short survey to give us your opinion.

Here at Seren Global Media, we are conducting a very short online survey to see whether organisations are equipped to implement their own digital marketing strategy and keep pace with the changing way people are discovering products and services online, across Wales. This has been commissioned by Swansea University as part of PEDALS - Programme for Elevating Digital and Language Skills, funded by Research Wales Innovation Fund, Welsh Government.

The information for the survey can be given completely anonymously, and it will be collated to see if the need exists to provide future training opportunities to up-skill Welsh organisations in digital marketing. Click here to take the two-minute survey.

Why digital marketing?

Digital marketing has become increasingly important as a way of connecting organisations to their customers, clients and/or service users. It encompasses communications with an organisation’s chosen audience through its website, email database and social media channels.

Compared to traditional forms of marketing it is a very affordable way of advertising an organisation’s offering – and allows organisations to engage with clients, wherever they may be, thanks to the proliferation of smartphone technology.

Though it was already a fast-growing area before, the Covid-19 pandemic has seen an acceleration in the shift of many consumers to online portals for shopping and other services. For many businesses, this has meant setting up e-commerce portals, and for others it has simply meant increasing the frequency and quality of communications online.

For all organisations, however, whether big or small, some form of digital marketing is now an essential part of their overall marketing strategy – or at least it should be, if they wish to not fall behind their competitors in the marketplace. A study published recently by Statista Research Department, shows that the UK has the most advanced e-commerce market in Europe. In 2022, there are nearly 60 million e-commerce users, leaving a minority of the population as non-digital consumers. This means that e-commerce has undeniably become the norm for consumers across the UK.

Other studies have shown that around 80 percent of people use Google search, brand websites and customer reviews for research before engaging with an organisation. In addition, around 40 percent of people use social media and blogs to discover new products, services and brands.

All these digital marketing tactics can be implemented together to help an organisation communicate with the consumers who might be looking for products or services just like the ones you are offering. By not engaging in a digital marketing strategy, your organisation could be missing out on the opportunity to reach all these people.

Cost

Digital marketing is still considerably cheaper than most other forms of marketing. Prices do vary, depending on what you do, where you do it, who you do it with, as well as how many people you want to engage with. However, it is generally far less costly than traditional advertising, e.g., print or billboard advertising.

More options

You have increased options with digital marketing – which might feel daunting to the uninitiated (or even the initiated) – but it does mean you’ve got lots of options to get your message across to the people you’re trying to reach.

It’s trackable

With great analytics on most digital platforms, it also means you can track engagement and focus on what works best for your organisation.

Targeted

Many forms of digital marketing will allow you to target the specific kind of individuals who may already be interested in your product or service. You can choose geographic locations, interests and other factors, which means you only spend time and money on communicating with an audience you know are potential customers.

Brand building

With so many options and channels available, it’s easy to make potential consumers aware of your brand. By engaging regularly, you can build a great brand reputation and ongoing relationship with your customers or clients.

It’s interactive – in real time

Digital marketing – particularly on social media – allows you to communicate directly with your audience. Customers can reply, message, comment or review with immediate effect. You can then respond directly to them, which shows that you care about what they think and feel about your organisation. This can develop into a long-term, trusted relationship with your brand. It means your customers feel respected and part of a wider community.

This kind of feedback can also be invaluable for tweaking your products, services and strategy – it’s free market research and should be treated as such whether the comments are good or bad. However, it’s a good idea to formulate a plan to deal with the not-so-good comments and don’t get into public arguments on social media!

Digital marketing also means you can catch people when they are most likely to engage with your organisation – at any time of day – on the smartphone most consumers will have about their person at all times.