Traditional VS Social Marketing
Is there really a difference between traditional marketing and social marketing? Well, my answer to that question is a resounding yes! Depending on the type of audience that you are looking to reach as well as the number of people overall that you would like to be able to convey your message to, there is a huge difference between the two different types of marketing.
I’m definite that there are many more differences out there but here, we are going to focus on what I feel are the top 9 differences between traditional marketing and social marketing.
o Personal interaction versus mass media broadcasts.
In the traditional venue, the world was aware via television commercials, billboards and the radio. In the social arena the primary method of marketing is electronically through either a blog, email or the numerous social media sites available today. This creates a more personal interaction between customer and company instead of simply having the consumer look at advertisements.
o Improved response time in social marketing.
In traditional marketing since there is no real interaction between the customer and company, there is usually a serious lag in responses to inquiries due to the need to go through several parties before gaining access to answers. In social marketing, the response time tends to be very rapid and in some cases instant, especially if the company uses auto-responders to answer customer queries and enquires.
o Increased relationship possibilities.
By using social marketing, the door is open for all types of interaction between many different participants on a number of different levels. Individuals can easily call each other and link up personally or simply keep in constant contact through social media avenues like twitter and facebook. In traditional marketing it is usually a one-way street of the distributor accessing the customer and pushing a product in a “here it is, now buy it” kind of scenario.
oContent availability.
With the increase availability of knowledge and resources in the information age, consumers are more likely to know quite a bit about a product. They can easily access information about anything through the internet and it is extremely simple to obtain any answers that they are looking for. In traditional marketing, the information that was available was generally those provided by the distributor of the company and might commonly be fabricated to present a pleasant story.
oCloseness to an authority.
If you are looking to market something in the social venue, you are likely to have immediate detractors as well as a large amount of resources you can look for to immediately get information about the specific item. Therefore, before you make a certain decision, you are given the ability to investigate and do some due diligence through authorities (like review sites or forums or individuals with authority in the industry). In the traditional marketing style, there was usually no one else a person could contact with regards to a specific product.
oCheaper is better.
In the marketing world, it is much less expensive to use social marketing as there are countless resources to tap into on internet. Numerous different avenues can be used to advertise, communicate, educate and generally reach people. In traditional marketing, you are forced to pay for every minute of every type of media that you use for example newspapers advertisements, magazines and flyers etc.
oSo many more outlets in social marketing.
Directly related to the point above, as opposed to relying on newspapers, television and radio, you are able to use blogs, social networking sites, ezines, banners, search engines and even simply create your own website to use as a method of promotion.
oA more level playing field.
In the world of social marketing any size company can compete for clients and reach as many potential clients as any large company could. There are generally no restrictions and it is just a matter of reaching out and using the available resources on the web as opposed to using the traditional periodicals and mass media.
oThe ability to change easily.
By using social marketing it is as easy as typing something on your keyboard to change your message or to provide new and improved information in regards to your product. In many cases at again little to no cost. This is not so easy with television and radio commercials.
I hope that the above 9 differences have given you some insight with regards to Traditional Marketing as compared to new age Social Marketing. As should be evident by now, marketing through online avenues provide a whole range of advantages that were nonexistent in traditional marketing. The only question now is learning how to go about using these avenues well.
To read more about Social Marketing and how to use some of the avenues listed about, visit my blog at the link below.
