Digital marketing

Introduction to Digital Marketing

Today’s time of Internet has opened the gateway of tremendous digital marketing opportunities for businesses. By
utilizing different channels of digital marketing, businesses cannot just share their product and services online;
additionally they can gain clients for their business, entice them and can convert them to boost their ROI. The
speed and straightforwardness with which the digital media transmits data and support a business is astonishing.
The world is super-connected nowadays and all things considered, marketing and advertising are no more the
same as they once were. This is particularly valid because of the ascent of online networking, which has changed
how organizations speak with potential and existing customers.

Definition
Digital marketing is marketing that makes use of electronic devices (computers) such as personal
computers, Smartphone’s, cell phones, tablets and game consoles to engage with stakeholders. Digital
marketing applies technologies or platforms such as websites, e-mail, apps (classic and mobile) and
social networks. Digital marketing’s development since the 1990s and 2000s has changed the way
brands and businesses use technology for marketing. As digital platforms are increasingly incorporated
into marketing plans and everyday life, and as people use digital devices instead of visiting physical
shops, digital marketing campaigns are becoming more prevalent and efficient.

Digital Marketing can be understood as a well-targeted, conversion-oriented, quantifiable, and

interactive marketing of products or services by utilizing digital innovation to achieve the customers, and
transform them into clients in a sustainable fashion. Digital marketing methods such as search engine
optimization (SEO), search engine marketing (SEM), content marketing, influencer marketing, content
automation, campaign marketing, data-driven marketing, e-commerce marketing, social media
marketing, social media optimization, e-mail direct marketing, display advertising, e–books, and optical
disks and games are becoming more common in our advancing technology. In fact, digital marketing
now extends to non-Internet channels that provide digital media, such as mobile phones (SMS and
MMS), callback, and on-hold mobile ring tones. In essence, this extension to non-Internet channels helps
to differentiate digital marketing from online marketing, another catch-all term for the marketing
methods mentioned above, which strictly occur online.

The whole concept and functionalities of Digital Marketing are more competent, effective, result-
oriented and measurable, which make it very different from traditional marketing.The traditional way of
marketing lets businesses market their products or administrations on print media, radio and TV
commercials, bill boards, business cards, and in numerous other comparable ways where Internet or
web-based social networking sites were not utilized for promoting.

However, traditional promoting approaches had constrained client reachability and extent of driving
clients’ purchasing conduct. In addition, traditional marketing methods were not quantifiable too.
Difference b/w Traditional Marketing & Digital Marketing:

Traditional Marketing
1. Communication is unidirectional in traditional marketing, which means, an organization
communicates about its services with its audiences.
2. Medium of communication in traditional marketing is generally phone calls, emails, and letters.
3. Campaign in Traditional marketing takes more time as designing, preparing, and launching are
involved.
4. It is best for reaching local audience.
5. It is almost impossible to measure the effectiveness of a traditional marketing campaign.

Digital Marketing
1. Communication is bidirectional in Digital Marketing as businesses can communicate with
customers and customers can ask queries or make suggestions to businesses as well.
2. Medium of communication is more powerful and involves social media websites, chats, apps
and Email.
3. Digital marketing campaigns can be developed quite rapidly and with digital tools, channelizing
Digital Marketing campaigns is easier.
4. It is very effective for reaching global audiences.
5. Digital Marketing lets you measure the effectiveness of a digital marketing campaign through

analytics.

Origination
The term 'digital marketing' was first used in the 1990s. In the 2000s and the 2010s, digital
marketing became more sophisticated as an effective way to create a relationship with the
consumer that has depth and relevance. In 2012 and 2013 statistics showed digital marketing
remained a growing field. Digital Marketing is often referred to as 'online marketing' or 'internet
marketing'. The term 'Digital Marketing' has grown in popularity over time, particularly in certain
countries. In the USA 'online marketing' is still prevalent but in the UK, 'Digital Marketing' has

become the most common term.

Evolution
The term Digital Marketing was first used in the 1990s. The digital age took off with the coming of the
internet and the development of the Web 1.0 platform. The Web 1.0 platform allowed users to find the
information they wanted but did not allow them to share this information over the web. Up until then,
marketers worldwide were still unsure of the digital platform. They were not sure if their strategies
would work since the internet had not yet seen widespread deployment. In 1993, the first clickable
banner went live, after which HotWired purchased a few banner ads for their advertising. This marked
the beginning of the transition to the digital era of marketing. Because of this gradual shift, the year
1994 saw new technologies enter the digital marketplace. The very same year, Yahoo was launched.

Also known as "Jerry's Guide to the World Wide Web" after its founder Jerry Yang, Yahoo received close
to 1 million hits within the first year. This prompted wholesale changes in the digital marketing space,
with companies optimizing their websites to pull in higher search engine rankings. 1996 saw the launch
of a couple of more search engines and tools like HotBot, LookSmart, and Alexa.

1998 saw the birth of Google. Microsoft launched the MSN search engine and Yahoo brought to the
market Yahoo web search. Two years later, the internet bubble burst and all the smaller search engines
were either left behind or wiped out leaving more space for the giants in the business. The digital
marketing world saw its first steep surge in 2006 when search engine traffic was reported to have grown
to about 6.4 billion in a single month. Not one to get left behind, Microsoft put MSN on the backburner
and launched Live Search to compete with Google and Yahoo.

Then came Web 2.0, where people became more active participants rather than remain passive users.
Web 2.0 allowed users to interact with other users and businesses. Labels like ‘super information
highway’ began to be applied to the internet. As a result, information flow volumes –including channels
utilized by digital marketers- increased manifold, and by 2004, internet advertising and marketing in the
US alone brought in around $2.9 billion.

Soon, social networking sites began to emerge. MySpace was the first social networking site to arrive,
soon followed by Facebook. Many companies realized all these fresh new sites that were popping up
were beginning to open new doors of opportunities to market their products and brands. It opened fresh
avenues for business and signaled the beginning of a new chapter to business. With new resources, they
needed new approaches to promote their brands & capitalize on the social networking platform.

The cookie was another important milestone in the digital marketing industry. Advertisers had begun to
look for other ways to capitalize on the fledgling technology. One such technique was to track common
browsing habits and usage patterns of frequent users of the internet so as to tailor promotions and
marketing collateral to their tastes. The first cookie was designed to record user-habits. The use of the
cookie has changed over the years, and cookies today are coded to offer marketers a variety of ways to
collect literal user data.

Products marketed digitally are now available to customers at all times. Statistics collected by the
Marketing tech blog for 2014 show that posting on social media is the top online activity in the US. The
average American spends 37 minutes a day on social media. 99% of digital marketers use Facebook to
market, 97% use Twitter, 69% use Pinterest and 59% use Instagram. 70% of B2C marketers have acquired
customers through Facebook. 67% of Twitter users are far more likely to buy from brands that they
follow on Twitter. 83.8% of luxury brands have a presence on Pinterest. The top three social networking
sites used by marketers are LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook.In 2015 Spanchat launches ‘Dicover’
features. The rise of predictive analytics, wearable tech, and Content marketing : facebook launches ‘
Instant Articles’.

The digital market is in a constant state of flux. A Digital Marketing professional must find ways to keep
up with this change. They need to be able to keep an eye out for emerging trends and the development
of newer and smarter Search Engine Algorithms. After all, nobody can afford to get left behind in this
race.

Digital Marketing - The Next Wave of the Marketing

With social media platforms like Facebook holding well over 1.6 billion users world-wide (and counting),
these digital platforms have become the new marketplace. In order to properly promote business brands
and products or services, an online company needs to employ the services of a specialist known as a
digital marketer. Up until a few years ago, digital marketing was not mainstream. In fact, making money
online was all but a myth. That has all changed. Today, if your brand is not online, you are virtually
invisible. With social media platforms like Facebook holding well over 1.6 billion users world-wide (and
counting), these digital platforms have become the new marketplace. In order to properly promote
business brands and products or services, an online company needs to employ the services of a specialist
known as a digital marketer. Today, almost every major corporation and small business needs these
services hence the rise in demand for qualified people who can promote brand digital marketing. If a
person is looking to launch a lucrative career in digital marketing there are certain aspects that he/she
should consider. For starters, digital marketing in itself has a wide variety of disciplines. These include:

1. Email marketing
2. Copywriting
3. SEO
4. Content marketing
5. Digital advertising
6. Design
7. Mobile advertising and so on.

As much as it is a brilliant idea to specialize in one area, it is often best to have a working knowledge
or grasp of all these disciplines as a budding digital marketer. The advantages are numerous, the
least of which is the attractive payment packages for professional digital marketers. This is the wave
of the future.

The Digital Marketing Landscape

The Digital Marketing Landscape Ecosystem is a valuable tool to help us to consider the entire realm
of digital marketing and prioritize where to spend your resources.

Digital strategy ecosystem:

There are 8 sections in the Digital Marketing Landscape to consider as a part of digital strategy. While
the tools like AR/VR and AI aren’t listed separately, they are typically incorporated into other tools.

Even in 2019 and 2020, with the buzz around innovative new technologies, executing the tried and
true marketing tools with excellence is the foundation of your success.

START WITH STRATEGY

At the core is your Digital Strategy – what exactly are you trying to achieve? Determine this FIRST. Be
sure to clearly link your goal, strategy, objective and tactic.

REMEMBER: CONTENT, DATA & ANALYTICS

The key to a successful integration is incorporating content, data and analytics into every aspect of
your execution and strategy. Be sure that you are incorporating GREAT content that stands out. Make
sure that you take the time to use data and analyze it to improve your marketing over time.

HOW DOES EACH CHANNEL FIT IN 2019 AND 2020?

Social Media Marketing:

Social media isn’t going anywhere. Facebook is HUGE, Instagram is growing bigger and LinkedIn is a
powerhouse. Sites like Pinterest and Twitter can also drive ROI. Social Media is definitely a paid
media channel, but engaging with organic conversations, customer service, research and activating
fans are all still relevant business objectives for social channels.

Digital Ads:

More money is now going towards digital advertising vs. traditional, and you can easily use digital
ads for any add objective. There are now a few platforms that have mass reach: Search ads, Display
Ads, Social Ads and Video Ads. Consider how each of these may fit into your strategy and master one
first before trying to do more. AI is making digital ads even smarter, so be sure to use automation
and pixels to get results.

SEO (Search Engine Optimization):

SEO continues to be a powerful source of hot leads and ready-to-buy customers. As voice search and
mobile take more share earning a top 3 position will be even more important.

Websites:

Every business has a website, but the name of the game for sites that work now are mobile and F-A-
S-T. Think about clear, clean and simple designs that load quickly.

Conversation Marketing:

While word-of-mouth is a top way that businesses grow, it is usually ignored in marketing. Consider
how to drive social media WOM. Also look at the rise of Influencer marketing as a way to break-
through the noise.

Email Marketing:

Email is still a powerful tool that converts. While social media and messaging are growing, email isn’t
going anywhere. Continue to incorporate it into your funnel and marketing strategy.

CRM:

Data is the name of the game, and a CRM helps you learn more about your customers. While some
privacy laws are making CRM usage more challenging (and using CRM data elsewhere) it is important
to continue to learn about your customers and capture information.

Mobile:

In 2019 and 2020 mobile is becoming about messenger and chatbots. Obviously all of your
marketing (email, website, social, ads) must be optimized to work for mobile.
Types of digital marketing

Two different forms of digital marketing exist:

Pull digital marketing:

1. In pull digital marketing, the consumer actively seeks the marketing content, often via web
searches or opening an email, text message or web feed.

2. Websites, blogs and streaming media (audio and video) are examples of pull digital marketing.

3. In each of these, users have to navigate to the website to view the content.

4. Only current web browser technology is required to maintain static content.

5. In 2003,it was found that consumers prefer special sales and new product information, whereas
"interesting" content was not useful .

Push digital marketing:

1. In push digital marketing the marketer sends a message without the recipient actively seeking
the content, such as display advertising on websites and news blogs.
2. Email, text messaging and web feeds can also be classed as push digital marketing when the
recipient has not actively sought the marketing message.

Multi-Channel Communications:

Push and pull message technologies can be used in conjunction. For example, an email campaign can
include a banner ad or link to a content download.

Why Digital Marketing Is Important?

1. Digital media is so pervasive that consumers have access to information any time and any place
they want it. Gone are the days when the messages people got about your products or services
came from you and consisted of only what you wanted them to know.

2. Digital media is an ever-growing source of entertainment, news, shopping and social interaction,
and consumers are now exposed not just to what your company says about your brand, but
what the media, friends, relatives, peers, etc., are saying as well. And they are more likely to
believe them than you.

3. People want brands they can trust, companies that know them, communications that are
personalized and relevant, and offers tailored to their needs and preferences.

Who are digital consumers?

People who use technology to buy and sell products and services are known as digital consumers. They
are the same people who walk into our business, order on a telephone, or request for a discount. These
are normal people like us. For instance, an internet user who is reading the article page through the
internet now is a digital consumer for that page.

In digital marketing, it is important to pay attention to rapidly evolving communication channels. The
consumer behavior is changing because of the enabling nature of digital technology and an easy access
to information.

Establishing assumptions about people is not an ideal approach when it comes to digital consumers. The
ideal approach to understand the buying behavior of the digital prospects is to conduct a thorough
research. Marketers have already done extensive research on understanding the behavioral traits of
digital consumers. Following are some of the insights that epitomize the subject:

1. Digital-savvy consumers are well informed: the internet has been around for quite a time and
people now have learned how to fully utilize its power. As people become more aware of the
modern communication technology, they use it more efficiently. This means marketers have to
give their best in order to win well-informed prospects.
2. They want relevant and quick information: excessive information and a variety of options have
made people accustomed to getting the right and hazard-free solutions within seconds. For
example, if your website is not responsive or slow, the visitors are likely to bounce back and
move on to the next option. It is the instant gratification that makes a visitor love your site. So,
while you build a website for your business, make sure that it provides engaging material and
highly relevant information.
3. They share a lot: online consumers have unlimited opportunities and platforms where they can
talk about their experiences, share valuable information, ask for recommendations, provide
reviews, and leave comments. In other words, user-generated content plays a crucial role in
your online success and promotion.
4. Influencers can bridge the gap: Opinion leaders or influencers warrant a special mention when
it comes to understanding digital consumers in particular and digital marketing in general. They
use the power of internet to promote the products and services that they admire. They have
already established their authority in the hearts of digital consumers. This is the reason why
influencers are important people for online marketers. People pay attention to what they say or
write.

Digital Customer Community

Digital Customer Communities are Web-based gathering places for customers, experts, partners and
others to discuss problems, post reviews, brainstorm new product ideas, and engage with one another
about a company's products, services and brand. Digital customer communities have gathered steam in
recent years, largely because of social media technologies, mobile devices and the Web. These
technologies have facilitated communication, making interaction with companies faster and more
possible on the go.
The age of the customer has also been an important factor in fueling customer communities, who have
gained power in the dynamic with sellers. Consumers now have greater impact in their buying
negotiations in terms of price and other deals.

The age of the customer has also prompted a democratization of how information is distributed online.
Instead of just a few expert sources providing information, such as consumer reports, customer
communities are now trusted sources. By some estimates, more than 70% of buyers engage in online
research before buying a product. Customer communities are yet another outgrowth of the customer
voice becoming paramount.

Customers have turned to Digital communities because they offer more real-time means to engage with
a company, as opposed to more traditional communication channels such as the phone or email.
Customers in some cases also prefer the anonymity of these digital communities, where they can gripe
about poor customer service without having their opinions attached to their customer information. At
the same time, companies are working at breakneck speed to try to integrate the customer information
that resides in these online forums with other data in the back office, including ERP and CRM and
financial applications. Digital customer communities have also enabled companies to get a sense of
sentiment analysis without conducting focus groups or survey, which can be poor representative
samples, time-consuming and costly.

Customer communities have provided a low-cost alternative to using contact centers for certain kinds of
customer support interactions. These communities have enabled customers to address low-level service
issues on their own, through what is known as customer self-service or by engaging with peers and
experts.

Some communities also exploit their experts to enable knowledge sharing, brainstorming and
crowdsourcing. Industries like chemical engineering and healthcare that require technical expertise are
using these communities to create authority among their organizations by assembling experts to answer
questions and interact but also to enable customers and other nonexperts to generate solutions to
problems.

Product development teams have also been able to incorporate feedback about product flaws or
possible product innovations. As customers become more informed about products, companies have an
opportunity to integrate their suggestions about features, pricing and more into their development
cycles.

As customer communities permeate the four walls of a business, they have forced companies to
incorporate the voice of customers into their operations and strategies. In turn, this collaborative model
has led to new ways of doing business as well, in the form of the collaborative economy, or the sharing
economy. Ridesharing services like Uber exemplify this trend, using the Web, the cloud, mobile devices
and a contract model of doing business.
While proponents of collaborative economies cite the openness and flexibility of collaborative
economies for companies and workers -- enabling companies to tap global talent at a moment's notice --
detractors also note that the collaborative economy often benefits companies but turns workers into
low-wage earning freelancers without healthcare and other full-time benefits.

Types of Online Communities and the Top Benefits of Each

There are four different types of Digital communities:

1. Social communities include public social networks like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Brands use social communities mostly for marketing purposes, broadcasting information, building brand
awareness and reaching greater audiences for campaigns and messaging. Social communities are useful
for tracking what your competitors are up to and identifying broad consumer trends. Ninety-three
percent of large companies use Facebook, according to a 2015 Social Media Examiner report.

2. Support communities enable members to offer product tips to other customers, helping
companies reduce customer support costs. Compared to social communities, this category provides a
more structured way of gathering innovative ideas because support communities allow brands to track
product- and service-related conversations. According to a 2015 Forrester Research report, 81 percent
of companies have a support community of some kind.

3. Advocate communities allow brands to mobilize their most passionate, loyal customers.
Also known as advocate marketing software, this community type often rewards members for writing a
testimonial, posting about the company on social media and doing other similar activities. According to
Laura Ramos, principal analyst at Forrester Research, branded customer communities of this type can
help boost positive word of mouth.

4. Insight communities are made up of carefully selected groups of customers who maintain a
long-term relationship with brands. These communities allow companies to gather continuous, high-
quality feedback from engaged stakeholders like customers, partners or employees. Already a
mainstream market research tool, this category is quickly finding its way in marketing, customer
experience and innovation.

Digital marketing has transformed the marketing game and touched new heights, so much so that the
ones who were not anywhere close to these fields now want to use this to promote their brand. With
the shift of marketing techniques from traditional to digital, the process of consumer decision making
has also changed beyond recognition. As per reports, as of October 2019, almost 4.48 billion people
were active internet users, encompassing 58 per cent of the global population. Digitization and access
to the internet has created a new growth story for businesses and consumers alike. Nowadays, to make
a purchase, consumers quickly turn to the internet to research and make their decision a couple of
hours, or perhaps even minutes. Consumer behaviour is much more streamlined today and the business
model is also briefer compared to the earlier ones.
Impact of digital marketing on consumer behavior
Here are some insights to help you understand the impact of digital marketing on consumer behavior:

1. Consumers have become researchers: With easy access to the internet, consumers today are
much more enlightened and empowered. They are flooded with digital content each day. With
almost every brand marketing their products on the digital platforms today, it’s more than
convenient for consumers to research & compare online. Their purchase decision is highly
influenced by the interactions they have with the brand and other influencers online.
2. Digital word of mouth is trusted the most: Earlier, word of mouth used to be the most trusted
form of recommendation that consumers believed. In today’s digital age, word of mouth is done
in terms of customer reviews, influencer recommendations, ratings, testimonials, etc. Maximum
consumers make sure to look at what the current brand users have to say about the
product/service before making their purchase decision.
3. Consumers are not afraid to experiment: Consumers in the earlier days were very sceptical to
change brands that they have been using all along. However, things have changed with time.
The mindset of consumers has evolved massively today. They have become more welcoming
towards products and brands that offer better features than before. All this was only possible
through digital marketing that has made it easier for these new brands to reach out to the
customers.
4. Consumers frequently switch brands: Brand loyalty used to be a huge thing in the past. Very
rare is when you’d see consumers switch brands. However today, consumers are quick to switch
brands provided the new one is offering better features. With a heap load of options available in
the market, consumer loyalty is difficult and switching is easy.
5. Consumers now have a lower tolerance level: Lastly, consumers today are not okay to settle or
compromise in any manner. They expect an immediate response to their queries and grievances
if any. They openly share their thoughts and views on the digital platforms which can make or
break a brand’s image in seconds. Generally, consumers tend to easily believe negative
news/reviews and only a few actually share positive reviews. Also, a lot of competitors misuse
this by posting negative reviews on brand pages through fake accounts. This can be managed
with a strong Online Reputation Management (ORM) Strategy, where interactions with the
consumers can potentially convert their negative image to the positive. Consumer behavior in
today’s digital age keeps changing and expanding every now and then. Being in sync with
consumer’s preferences and the current trends is the only way that can help brands stay in the
game.

Gen Y and Customer Expectation

Born between 1980 and 2000, Generation Y (also known as millennials) are unified by one thing -
technology. Their lives have been shaped by technology and they are generally connected 24/7. To
connect with them companies have to be more progressive in their approach and gain a deeper
understanding into how they tick.

Some companies have struggled to connect with Gen-Yers because traditional methods of advertising
prove ineffective and they are difficult to influence. The same companies have also swallowed the myth
they are not brand loyal which is untrue. To recognize the buying power of digitally-enabled Generation
Y, their mindset and expectations, you have to understand more about this tech-savvy sector that is
forcing retailers to think on their feet when it comes to products, messaging and customer service.

Deloitte has referred to Generation Y as the “catalysts of change”, and there is little doubt they are
making their presence felt. Millennials want to innovate and improve society, but at the same time they
have enormous buying power.

“In addition to the growing inter-family wealth transfer, their cumulative earnings are projected to
increase by 85% within the next 10 years, surpassing those of their Baby Boomer parents by as much as
$500 billion. This segment is expected to have a higher disposable income than their
predecessors,” Deloitte explained in a report. It cited Gen-Yers as “independently dependent, practically
motivated, tech savvy, socially minded financial freshmen”.

Snapshot of a Gen-Yer:Gen-Yers are unique from other generations in their buying experience. They
hate being actively sold things, they carry out research online, are more likely to buy from a friend’s
referral than an advert and look to blogs for advice. They are quick to praise or criticize products on
social media. They like doing business with ethical, environmental companies and expect exceptional
service, including alerts to what they might like such as on Amazon.com.

This is an impatient, instant gratification generation. According to recent PwC research if they want
something fast they are happy to pay for expedient delivery. They also look for activity in purchases.

How do Gen-Yers go about making purchases?

Gen-Yers have grown up using the Internet for everything from shopping and social networking to
entertainment, chat and news - and spend a considerable amount of time online.

When it comes to shopping Gen-Yers prefer to shop online, but aren’t adverse to visiting bricks and
mortar stores. But, they demand a seamless experience. In a recent research, Accenture found that 68%
of Gen-Yers expect a multichannel experience. This means transitioning effortlessly from smartphone to
personal computer to physical store to find the best products and services.

Price comparison
Generation Y-ers are adept at using price comparison sites to get the best deals. Businesses can’t rest on
their laurels if they want to retain their custom. Businesses always need to think one step ahead to
satisfy their needs e.g. giving them VIP access to a new ‘must have’ product.

Blogs: first stop for purchasing tips

Elite Daily and Millenial Branding, the voices of Generation Y research, highlighted in a recent survey
that unlike previous generations, Gen-Yers rank blogs – 33% - as their top media source for purchases.
Fewer than 3% rank traditional media sources as influencing purchases and only 1% said a compelling
advertisement would make them trust a brand more.

Gen-Yers (58%) expect brands to publish content online before they make a purchase and rank
authenticity (43%) as more important than the content itself (32%). Millennials don’t trust traditional
media and advertising and look for opinions from their friends (37%), parents (36%) and online experts
(17%) before making a purchase.

“If you want to connect with millennials, then you’re going to have to rethink the way you advertise and
market your product to them. Instead of traditional advertising, which they ignore, brands have to
publish authentic content as a way of building trust and loyalty with this extremely important and
influential demographic,” explained Dan Schawbel, founder of Millennial Branding.

Power of the mobile

The smartphone is Gen-Yers window to the world. They have “higher expectations than prior
generations, value transparency, favor convenience over price and shop via their mobile more than any
other group - brands have to worker harder to attract and keep them,” explained Allison Stone, senior
associate, retail and consumer at PwC.

PcW found that a third of Gen-Yers expect to use their smartphones as their main purchasing tool in the
future. Currently 40% make online purchases monthly and close to 30% weekly. An astonishing 80% of
Gen-Yers use their smartphone in store to access digital coupons, check prices, product reviews and pay
for purchases against 55% of over 35s.

Power of the brand

Gen-Yers have forced retailers to reevaluate how they communicate with them through digital channels
such as Facebook. They have shown they need to be made to feel part of a trend, a digital community
their friends belong to. Yet, surprisingly, they are more committed to brands than older shoppers.

Gen-Yers have “raised the bar for brands, but they are also more willing to pay a premium for perceived
value. Brands have to work harder to attract and retain them, but those companies that make the effort
will ultimately reap the rewards,” concluded Stone

Gen Y have high expectations: because in the world they grew up in, technology has always delivered
more for less, often free, and you can have access anytime, anywhere.

They expect to be able to socially interact all day, even at work. They are used to having their say, "like
right now", and having someone listen.

So how do we serve these customers when many of the people managing or running contact center
operations are not Millennials?
 1. Customize and personalize: Millennials do their research, seeking out information relevant to
them. They consider it both easy and sensible so we need to make it easy to find.
2. Be accessible and fast: Millennials live their lives online in a 24/7 world and expect companies to
do the same. Closed at night and on weekends won't cut it anymore.
3. Make it shareable: Millennials share what they like. They live through social media.
4. Extend the experience: Millennials have fewer dollars to spend than previous generations so
they negotiate everything. They are more apt to pay a little at a time so you need to offer
incentives to keep them coming back. Their starting point for price is free. They will pay for
service, but you have to earn it.
5. Make it visual: They've watched YouTube turn ordinary people into stars so often it's now
expected. You need to use video to make the connection between the Millennial consumer and
your brand or product.

Looking inward, Gen Y scares their Boomer and Gen X managers because they interact and work so
differently. But they are a powerful force if you embrace them.

Netizens: The term derived from the combination of the words "Internet" and "citizen." The term
netizen is used to describe people who use the Internet to participate in or contribute to an Internet
group or society. The word may also be used to describe an individual who spends a lot of time on the
net.

A netizen is a citizen of the Internet who is actively involved in online communities and engaged in
improving and preserving the potential of the Internet as a force for good in society at large. A netizen,
short for “citizen of the Internet”, is an active member of the Internet community. But just spending a
lot of time on Facebook and Twitter won’t make you a netizen. To become a netizen you must be
actively involved in efforts to keep the Internet open, neutral, and free from speech censorship.
However, the term is also sometimes used to refer to anyone actively involved online in any type of
political reform. For example, the Black Live Matter movement has spread largely through the use of
hashtags on social media. Someone actively involved in spreading a political movement like Black Lives
Matter online may also be referred to as a netizen. While in this case the term may be applied to
someone who isn’t involved in maintaining online freedom, it is applied more broadly to someone taking
advantage of the availability of freedom and reach online.

Netizens are citizens who use the Internet to participate in political society (for example, exchanging
views, providing information, and voting). The term could also describe an Internet user who is trying to
contribute to the Internet’s use and growth. The Internet is a powerful communications medium which
offers possibilities for social change. It also has its own culture and its own special issues, including who
can access it. Netizens therefore have a responsibility to ensure that it is used constructively. At the
same time it must encourage free speech and open access. Netizens can use the Internet to offer and
receive opinions; provide information, thereby making the Internet an intellectual and a social resource.
A netizen can be any user of the forums of the Internet. The word ‘Netizen’ was coined by Michael
Hauben.
Netizens use the networks from homes, offices, schools, colleges etc. Netizens facilitate the Internet’s
use and growth. Netizens are literally citizens of the internet which is basically a tool for communication.
The web gives people the freedom to create web sites where they can express themselves to millions of
perfect strangers.

A netizen uses the Internet to communicate but he also goes beyond mere communication. He becomes
involved and actively contributes to Internet discussions and causes which further his own area of
interest. Even old people have joined the league of netizens to keep in touch with their grandchildren, to
bank, invest, search for networking opportunities, research alternative therapies, etc.

China has the largest number of netizens in the world and even celebrates Netizens Day which falls on
September 14, the day the first email message was sent from China in 1987. In India there are more
than 50 million netizens. Around 35 million access the net at least once in a month. Indian netizens are
the world’s third biggest online shoppers, says a study.

Open access is a concept championed by netizens that encourage the release of academic research
under licensing that makes it free to read online, and sometimes even free to reuse. Open access
proponents hold that by making academic research freely accessible, social inequality barriers that
prevent access to research are reduced or removed. Research authors also argue that by making their
research open access the potential impact of their work is increased since the work has the potential to
reach a much wider audience.

Net neutrality is the idea that Internet service providers (ISPs) and governmental organizations should
treat all web traffic that same way. If net neutrality is not maintained, large companies and other
entities with deep pockets will be able to negotiate bandwidth allowances with ISPs effectively sidelining
competing services and viewpoints that don’t have the same financial backing. Net neutrality is
championed by netizens as a key component necessary to ensure that the Internet remains a fertile
realm for controversial ideas and new ventures that entrenched powerful interests may wish to
suppress.

Free speech advocates consider the Internet to be a realm where political dissent and all other types of
protected speech should be allowed and encouraged. Social media in particular has been used
extensively to fuel and direct political activism and reforms around the globe. Netizens value the power
of the web as a potentially transformative medium through which ideas can spread, and support the
protection of free speech online.

The Netizen Prize has been awarded annually since 2010 by Reporters without Borders to a netizen who
has made a notable contribution to the defense of online freedom. Iranian women’s rights activists,
Tunisian political bloggers, Syrian citizen journalists, a Vietnamese blogger, and a Saudi Arabian blogger
have all been receipts of the award. However, the term is also sometimes used to refer to anyone
actively involved online in any type of political reform. For example, the Black Live Matter movement
has spread largely through the use of hashtags on social media. Someone actively involved in spreading
a political movement like Black Lives Matter online may also be referred to as a netizen. While in this
case the term may be applied to someone who isn’t involved in maintaining online freedom, it is applied
more broadly to someone taking advantage of the availability of freedom and reach online.

Challenges Facing Digital Marketers:

1. Proliferation of digital channels: Consumers use multiple digital channels and a variety of
devices that use different protocols, specifications and interfaces – and they interact with those
devices in different ways and for different purposes.
2. Intensifying competition: Digital channels are relatively cheap, compared with traditional
media, making them within reach of practically every business of every size. As a result, it’s
becoming a lot harder to capture consumers’ attention.
3. Exploding data volumes: Consumers leave behind a huge trail of data in digital channels. It’s
extremely difficult to get a handle on all that data, as well as find the right data within exploding
data volumes that can help you make the right decision.

Three Keys to Digital Marketing Success:

1. Manage complex customer relationships across a variety of channels – both digital and
traditional.
2. Respond to and initiate dynamic customer interactions.
3. Extract value from big data to make better decisions faster.

In simplistic terms, digital marketing is the promotion of products or brands via one or more forms of
electronic media. Digital marketing differs from traditional marketing in that it involves the use of
channels and methods that enable an organization to analyze marketing campaigns and understand
what is working and what isn’t – typically in real time.

Digital marketers monitor things like what is being viewed, how often and for how long, sales
conversions, what content works and doesn’t work, etc. While the Internet is, perhaps, the channel
most closely associated with digital marketing, others include wireless text messaging, mobile instant
messaging, mobile apps, podcasts, electronic billboards, digital television and radio channels, etc.