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In the labyrinth of social media marketing providers, it can be hard to separate a worthwhile opportunity from a waste of money.
And it’s a dilemma that is made increasingly difficult by the rapid pace at which the world of technology is changing.
“Five years ago, digital marketing was a lot easier,” recalled Sagar Sethi, chief executive of the Melbourne-based digital marketing company Xugar.
“But times have changed.
“Not only is the market more fragmented, the cost of reaching consumers through online sites has increased as well.”
Today, many businesses engage in what Sethi calls “digital spray and pray”, putting advertisements across a range of online platforms and then crossing their fingers that leads will start pouring in.
Unsurprisingly, a haphazard approach such as this yields results that are unreliable at best. However, Sethi was keen to stress that this does not mean that digital marketing in itself is a waste of time.
“Analytics are now very sophisticated and require a high degree of skill to navigate. If managed well, they can identify with precision how and when to reach consumers and inform decision-making,” the CEO said.
In particular, he stated that one of the benefits of online analytics is that they grant businesses immediate access to data on audience engagement.
“For example, on Facebook, this information is immediately available in the Ads Manager platform so that you can instantly view the performance of an ad and analyse the return on ad spend, cost per lead and much more,” said Sethi.
“This is a game changer because you can see which ads are performing well and make decisions quickly whether or not you want to cut a campaign out.”
In addition to analytics, Sethi noted that social media marketing offers businesses the chance to “hyper-target ideal clients based on demographics” such as age, gender, interests and purchasing habits.
However, he warned strongly that it is crucial to employ genuine experts who can provide hard proof of their results and who have an “intimate knowledge” of online marketing.
If not, Sethi warned that digital marketing is just “money down the drain”.
The CEO is not the only expert who has recognised the benefits of informed, well-thought-out online marketing technologies. Earlier this year, Melbourne media agency Assembled Media took steps towards “taking the guesswork” out of online marketing with the help of artificial intelligence (AI).
And Buxton Real Estate even employed a dedicated “tech expert” to power the brand to new heights, while independent agency Jurds Real Estate uses AI marketing to target an elite niche of Hunter Valley buyers.
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