Creating a digital marketing strategy is generally seen as a file that prepared numerically in the perspective of number of followers on social media, number of rating and interaction, and superiority to other competitors. Along with this numerical, basic and strategic logic; some works come to the front which are actually far away from the identity of the brand in social media. However digital marketing strategy means integrating of the brand’s current identity to a digital identity and providing the transformation instead of having different strategies for online or offline digital marketing strategy. In other words, this strategy involves digital transformation of the brand thanks to the investing in concepts that human, progress and technology.

Recent researches show that big business’ continue digital communications but lots of them haven’t got any strategy.

 

In the situation of not having brand strategy in digital, it is possible facing with various problems;

Creating sustained communication in digital: In the situation of not having any strategic goal it is difficult to creat a source to communication, evaluate the communication or find answers to “what will you do tomorrow / a week / a month later”.

Getting know the online audience: Dynamics in digital, user profiles and attitudes are different from the traditional channels. The digital is viewed as a “channel which is a best measure for the customer profile”. This not only allows to measure with tools such as Google Analytics, social media statistics, but also allows you to see your weak points and led you make proper decisions.

Getting know competitors and boutique competitors in market share: If you do not allocate sufficient and correct resources for digital communication, your competitors can take these outputs from your market share.

Presenting valuable things or your divergence to your customers: Your clear values ​​enable your customers to communicate with you in the first place and after that they become your loyal customers.

Organizing cost optimization correctly: If you don’t have a strategy in the digital world, even if you provide enough resources, your money may be wasted. If you have a high cost and if the target is incorrect, you have just spent money.

Getting adapted to the dynamics of the digital: Adapting to the dynamics of the digital is very different from communicating in the social media. In order to integrate the appropriate tools into your mark while following technology, you need to be located in a dynamic structure and strategy.

Measuring and evaluating: Companies with a website should have measurement tools like Analytics. However, brands are dropping behind in examining these statistics, foresighting and acting according to that sight. The digital communication strategy (after you understand the basic information) enables you to improve your topics such as site experience, social media communication and brand perception.

After you understand the necessity of a digital marketing strategy, you need to have tricks on how you may create it.

1.Define Your Structure to Manage the Digital Strategy

It is the hardest thing to know where to start in the digital strategy creation and implementation process. In this process SOSTAC planning will be very useful.

*SOSTAC is a planning process for the creation and implementation of plans. It consists of Situation, Objectives, Strategy, Tactics, Action and Control. Dave Chaffey and Paul Smith adapted it to the digital marketing.

Situation Analysis: It means “where are we right now?”. This includes the preparation of a specific SWOT analysis for digital channels including online retail customers, competitors and intermediaries.

Objectives: It gives an answer for “where do we want to be?”. For digital channels, sales volume may include numerical data such as cost savings.

Strategy: It gives an answer for “how to get there”. It summarizes how to reach the targets.

Tactics: It describes the use of digital communication tools. Digital communication, choice of social media platforms, use of web sites, e-crm is under this article.

Actions: It represents digital conversion management and project management skills. Your strategy and tactics are related to your application rate.

Control: It evaluates if strategic and tactical targets are achieved or not. It provides development and improvement recommendations using the data.

 

2.Define your vision, goals and KPIs

While developing your vision for the future and your goal in the field of digital marketing, setting clear goals will be useful to use different levels of measurement tools to gauge performance. There are different tools for many goals like social media targets, website targets and sales targets.

Setting different goals for different people in your unit is also important. For example, managers don’t care about all the data such as page bounce rates or wait times, they just look at commercial results. However, measuring the effectiveness of the “AdWords” campaign for an advertising account depends on the landing page experience.

You can take the following criteria into account while setting your goals;

Sales targets: If you have an online store, you can set a target for sales on this channel or you can set location based targets for your offline stores.

Customer relationship goals: Digital channels are not just sales channels. The communication with the channel is highlighted by the channel. For this reason, you should set targets also for your interaction with the mass.

Online customer service goals: Company website and social media accounts are places where customers prefer to ask questions or complain about something. For this reason, you need customer satisfaction goals to show how well you are in customer care.

Cost-saving goals: Lowering digital costs will help you reach more people with your budget. For this reason, cost-saving goals are important.

Goals which add value to your brand: Your goal integrates your brand into the online world. Think of things that provide a positive online brand experience for you.

 

3.Set Up Your Targeting Strategy

The digital world offers a great opportunity for you to target your customers closer. While setting your digital marketing strategy, it’s important that you should define your targeting criteria correctly.

The target cannot be “everyone”, you need to create focus groups to provide a targeted focus.

User behaviors change in the platform. Different ad groups like Google Adwords, Adsense, Facebook, Instagram have different target groups. Firstly, you can identify your basic pattern and then you can break it down into features such as demography, behavior, interests and location.

 

 

4.Specify Points Differentiating You

In addition to topics such as targeting and planning, what helps companies achieve online success is the value they put on their brands and customers. As digital channels are still quite new and lots of consumers are still using them, there are two important issues when developing and explaining your proposal.

Firstly; the important thing is how you transfer the basic attributes of your mark to your customer and especially what you identify as different things. This is where you position your brand, your products and services relative to your opponents.

Second, you should be sure that you are parsing your value based on the channel. You should offer your customers by evaluating special offers on the platform. By doing this you can ensure that you continue to use your website, social networking accounts, e-mail communications, mobile site or application.

 

5.Make A New Customer Acquisition Plan

Digital provides you access to new and potential customers apart from people who already know your brand. In your communications strategy, you need to include this issue and create your plan to expand your market volume.

It should be your priority to tell your brand, your products and your distinction to your new customers. If the person who doesn’t know your trademark feels the aim of direct sale, it is probable that you will get a negative result in perception and sales.

You can create consciousness, knowledge, appreciation, preference, opinion and action steps in the people you reach via digital communication.

 

6.Keep Your Customers Interactively and Stable

Tactics such as AdWords, SEO, social media and landing page are used to increase new customers in digital marketing. However, it is important not to ignore the importance of maintaining communication and service for existing customers without neglecting them.

To get this part of your digital marketing, you need a strong brand positioning. That’s why you need to know which aspects of your brand promote loyalty and advocacy in your mass. A strong online brand will offer:

Quality experience: Easy usage and enjoyable interaction with quality product or service.

Interesting communication: Interesting, effective communication will be shared and already shared.

A private community: A reason presented to customers to be a part of a community.

Effective links: Links to the brand’s offline experience.

Great value: Value for money with special deals, quality products and content.

 

It is possible to provide your digital conversion of your brand by aligning your digital marketing strategy with your brand strategy. In the case where digital marketing is not looked at in the conversion logic and is only present digitally, your brand is divided into separate parts rather than a whole. In the situation that the world is changed; the future of the companies that do not fit that market doesn’t give hope.