Organizations today must be more imaginative about strategies for engaging their audiences. Long gone are the days when a press release or a print advertisement alone would get results. New digital tools abound, but it’s easy to get lost in the buzzwords. We speak to one of our partner firms to make sense of a shifting landscape.
All the world seems to be rushing into digital, but without a coherent strategy it’s easy to spend a lot and get very little in return. Corporations, professional firms and non-profit organizations can all benefit from adding digital tools to their marketing mix. And for organizations that have rarely used a sustained marketing program of any kind digital is a great entry point, enabling them to reach their targets at an affordable cost.
We recently caught up with Anthony LoFrisco of AdEdge Marketing, a firm that specializes in digital marketing, to learn more about how to spend wisely and produce results. We recently partnered with AdEdge on a client assignment and were impressed by the knowledge and professionalism of Anthony and his team.
Anthony, why should people consider digital marketing?
Not to get too philosophical, but if your marketing message falls in the wilderness, does it make a sound? With ever increasing forms of communication and media, it’s important to consider not just what you say but where you say it. If one of your goals is connecting with new people to build your business, you need to speak to them where they are spending most of their time, and that’s online.
What’s the best way to reach people online?
Banner advertising is very effective as a way to build brand awareness and generate sales, even for hard-to-market products and services.
Really, banner ads? Don’t people hate them?
Most people remember them from the early days of the Internet as big, imposing ads that filled up the screen. It’s become much more sophisticated. Banner ads can be targeted by subject matter, just like conventional magazine ads, but that’s where the similarity ends and the fun begins. Banners can be targeted to specific locations or demographic characteristics, and their performance can be analyzed immediately, right down to the individual click. Clients see what’s working and what’s not and can make adjustments in their campaign.
Are digital campaigns expensive or hard to set up?
Compared to traditional advertising vehicles, digital is very inexpensive on a per-impression basis. It really starts with a conversation about what the client wants to achieve. That’s always been true in marketing. What’s different today is that because digital is so precise it drives clients to articulate very specific goals. We work with clients every step of the way.
Digital ads seem right for consumer marketing but do they make sense for B2B companies?
It makes great sense for them. Quite a few of our clients are in real estate, education services, finance and professional services. Many of them use digital to generate traffic to their website, to build a lead-generation system or stimulate interest in a piece of original content. The results are often quite dramatic. We are seeing a lot of growth in the B2B segment.
What else do you see clients doing in digital?
If a business or organization is simply not showing up when prospective clients search for that service, then paid search and search-optimization (SEO) are great techniques. Paid search ads are the three-line ads you see at the top and along the right side of your screen (including mobile phones) when you search for something in Google. SEO or Search Engine Optimization is the so-called “organic” or “natural” listings that come up when you are searched. While clicks to these listings are free, getting your website up there isn’t easy, but there are ways to improve your ranking.
That sounds very interesting, Anthony. Where can people reach you to learn more?
AdEdge has been providing internet marketing strategy and campaign management for more than eight years, which makes us one of the most experienced agencies around. We’re located in Westport, Connecticut, and work with clients across the region. Feel free to contact anthony@adedgemarketing.com or 203-682-4585 for a chat.
Thanks, Anthony.