One of the biggest challenges facing businesses today is to understand the digital universe.
Since the end of the 1990s, when the great expansion of Internet access began, new and infinite possibilities have opened up, as we have seen.
Access routes that were previously impossible, very expensive or time-consuming have been opened to everyone.
I remember that in 1999 a client asked me to send a print file, large for the time, about 25 MB, from the city of Tijuana, where we were located, to Ciudad Juarez, where the printing company, which was his supplier, was located.
If we had to send it without the facility of the Internet, it would have been necessary to burn a Zip Disk and send it by mail or parcel post, which would take several days.
But it wasn’t like that, we opened some Hotmail accounts, contacted the company in Ciudad Juarez, and in a matter of hours we sent them the file via FTP (File Transfer Protocol).
This is just an example.
With the Internet, communications were opened, at first, through computers with a modem, where it was possible to access the network and explore information with the help of search engines such as Altavista, Yahoo! or Lycos.
Y es cierto, también con el que se convirtió en un gigante: Google.
The first brave people began to inhabit the network, to be present, to explain who they were and what they had to offer.
And others, who were looking for information, were able to find them and assess if it was what they were looking for, and make contact.
The network matured, expanding exponentially.
Eventually, the network could no longer only be accessed via computers, but also via tablets and smartphones.
In Mexico, for example, there are more smartphones than people. According to Hootsuite and WeAreSocial, in their study “DIGITAL 2022: GLOBAL OVERVIEW REPORT”, penetration in 2022 will exceed 95%.
And this growth in possibilities is due to a surprising technological expansion.
But are companies taking advantage of this opportunity?
Yes, many and more and more. Its managers have opened up to the possibility and have built a team to support them in their digital expansion.
And there we have, for example: Jeff Bezos, from Amazon, who in 1994 started operations of his online bookstore. He saw the opportunity, acted, matured along with the technology and expanded.
But it must be said, a large majority did not act, or acted poorly.
They were not open to the idea, nor to the possibilities….
The world as a whole will become increasingly dependent on the Internet and its insurmountable advantages.
So what is the first step?
See possibilities. Visualize that this complex digital world offers multiple avenues of expansion for the institution.
Integrate a team to carry out the plan, execution and follow-up.
Now, paradoxically, the process of developing and executing a digital marketing plan should not start directly by posting on Internet platforms, such as Facebook or Instagram, but rather by first conceptualizing the ideas you want to communicate and making a plan.
First. The strategy, define what conceptual space you want to have in the market, in people’s minds and hearts (Example: Coca Cola has a traditional personality and Pepsi Cola is youthful and challenging).
Second. Based on the above, develop the brand’s personality, tone of voice and graphic style (UPS is a secure, efficient courier service and FedEx is 24-hour delivery).
Third. Decide how to have a presence, traditional and digital (Starbucks has never used advertising).
Traditional marketing:
- Press
- Radio
- TV
- Billboards
- Brochures
- Promotional items (pens, key rings, unipecos, etc.)
- Stands
- Signage
- and others.
Digital marketing
- Website and SEO (Search Engine Optimization)
- Offsite SEO
- Blog
- Email marketing
- MSG
- Vlog
- Social Media
- etc.
Fourth. Manage and analytically evaluate the tools and channels used, and modify or adjust the strategy depending on the results obtained.
Being constant and disciplined.
This article only briefly touches on points that, in the author’s opinion, are basic, but it must be taken into account that the continuous development of technology is constantly opening up new opportunities and new techniques to learn.
What you should not do is to do nothing. Enter the digital universe and at least take a few steps, because if you don’t, you will be left behind in this evolution that enables great advances for businesses and organizations.
