Section 5.04 Digital Marketing Mix

Module 5

Section 5.04

Digital Marketing Mix is unique to Online Marketing – Melvin Mayard

What is Digital Marketing Mix?

Digital marketing mix (DMM) refers to advertising through digital channels such as social media, search engines, email, websites and mobile apps. Using these online media channels, DMM is the method by which companies endorse goods, products, services, and brands.

Today, consumers heavily rely on digital devices to research products and services using search engines such as ‘Google’, ‘Bing’, ‘Yahoo’ and others. It is reported that almost 50% of consumers start their inquiries on search engines.

In order to achieve the true potential of the Digital marketing mix, marketers have to discover strategies that make an impact through engagement with their potential consumers. By engaging with the customers in a digital landscape, you build brand awareness and place your business at the forefront when the customer is ready to buy.

In the world of Internet Customer Service, it’s important to remember your competitor is only one mouse click away – Doug Warner

Digital Mix

The Digital Marketing Mix is essentially the same as the marketing mix, simply the adaptation of price, place product, promotion, and any number of P’s to the digital context. Of course, one could also include physical evidence, people and process when marketing planning for an online service, use any of the P’s to work your organisational strategy.

The concept of the three I’s, created by Melvin Mayard in 2019 is,

• Identity – by the product, price, place and promotion

Most people in the developed world want to associate with a brand image. This identifies their shopping behaviour and influences current trends.

Products with a clear identity are attached to the power of price. It can then be allocated a specific place for the buyer.

Depending on the product, promotion is not always needed, such as Ferrari, Tiffany & Co. and Louise Vuitton. There are a few retailers who never has sales. Louise Vuitton does not even have an outlet store. If you find marked-down Louis Vuitton, Tifanny & Co. and Ferrari merchandise online, chances are someone is selling a used item, or it’s fake. There are other retailers solemnly put sales on;

Apple
Chanel
Hermes
Lush

• Invest – Value of the organisation and its brand.

People would invest in a business because of its brand image and robust performance. The more appealing an organisation is perceived by its brand image, the more it attracts investors for long-term gain.

• Income – customer relations.

Indirect investments are the direct purchase of products and services. Online image and P.R is a big part of the brand image to attract new investors and maintain the existing customers.

Every buy is an investment fund for the organisation in a different direction. The business is able to reinvent part of its income into its expansion strategy.

Digital Mix

SM is now an old phenomenon, still seen as new by those reluctant to work online. Digital marketing is about serving an existing loyal customer base and attaining a new captive audience.

The three I’s are specific to creating a brand identity to capitalise on, investment opportunities and maintaining a solid long-term generated income. This power can be realised online.

Without a strong brand image, the product falls into the common market shares and the low-growth world of income (study the DMM Matrix). Business managers forever claim to perform their best when they genuinely are at the mercy of the competitors’ strengths and weakness on the high street.

Previously, businesses could easily penetrate the market with a low-cost product, thus creating a low brand and loyalty base. In time, aim to move into the medium-brand market whilst still working to establish the brand positioning. Established brands with a life of five-plus decades can easily separate themselves as high-value brands for having withstood the test of time. History proved one would acquire one of those three boxes, but the fourth quadrant of high loyalty, profit and market shares over a short time was almost impossible to relate to until now.

High

Low

Then came the technology and DMM with the 3 I’s, making it possible to achieve the impossible with IPO, ICO (Crypto) and Digital viral phenomena. This is what the current generation all wants, to have all the success now. It may well be possible if one plays their cards right with a well-planned and executed brand Identity, seeking the investment for profitable returns and start generating immediate cashflow income. Only DMM with the three I’s can offer the impossible; quick loyalty and high market shares in the shortest time possible.

DMM cannot guarantee the time in this quadrant, it is an uncertain time in a volatile and untested market. The organisation must prepare for what will evolve next as to its brand and investment positioning in its marketplace. It will have to shift to one of the three positions as the after-effect, shown in the chart with three arrows from the DMM quadrant. Businesses would need to apply the necessary strategy to take their desired market position comfortably. Otherwise, one would be at the mercy of the market and competitors’ reaction.

DMM Leadership

This is where authentic leadership shine with concrete decisions to plan the future of the organisation at the respectively earned position. The strength of the brand identity coiled with authentic leadership to take a market position could be demonstrated.

Left to chance, after the DMM period, the business would naturally acquire a market positioning depending on all planned and unplanned but well-managed activities. Authentic leadership would predict and clearly state what steps are to be taken to ensure the after-effect market position.

Digital Marketing Mix POSITIONING

HIGH

DMM

loyalty

profit

TIME

Poor leadership would seek to hide any plan and decision with the hope of taking credit for any good outcome should the business naturally takes the position between medium or high-value brands. Failure to produce the DMM after-effect plan is poor leadership based on a lack of decisions as well as resources.

Summary

Digital Marketing Mix is unique to online Marketing.
Learn the 3 I’s, Identity, Invest & Income, this is crucial for online DMM strategy.
Only DMM can achieve the impossible of quick loyalty and high market shares in the shortest time possible.
DMM is short-term.
DMM requires leadership decisions to plan the after-effect as much as possible to achieve the desired market position on purpose.

5.04 The Digital Marketing Lifestyle

5.04 SocialMediaMarketingPrinciples