Week 11

Week 11 · Introduction to Marketing

Welcome to Week 11

Digital and Social Media Marketing

Davood Wadi, PhD

On the left a megaphone above a row of five people, one-way arrows pointing down at them. An arrow leads right to an ecosystem: five people with phones, each joined to the others and to a brand seal in the middle.TRADITIONAL STRATEGIESDIGITAL ECOSYSTEMS

Exploring the transition from traditional strategies to digital ecosystems

The Evolution: Traditional to Digital

Marketing has shifted from static, one-way communication to interactive dialogues

A time line running left to right. Print, radio and television each sit above it with a single arrow pointing down at a crowd of three people. At the far end a phone sits above it, and between the phone and one person, speech bubbles go both ways.PRINTRADIOTELEVISIONSTATIC, ONE-WAY COMMUNICATIONINTERACTIVE DIALOGUES

Traditional channels relied on mass broadcast models like print, radio, and television

Digital platforms enable precision targeting and measurable engagement

A grid of eighteen people. A crosshair sits on exactly one of them. Below, a meter with tick marks records that person's response.PRECISION TARGETINGMEASURABLE ENGAGEMENT

The modern marketer must blend traditional principles with digital agility

Two lines enter from the left: a straight, steady ink line labelled traditional principles and a quick zigzag line labelled digital agility. They merge into one line that runs to a person, the modern marketer.TRADITIONAL PRINCIPLESDIGITAL AGILITYTHE MODERNMARKETER

The Problem: Adapting to Digital Channels

Companies often struggle to transition legacy operations into the digital space

Two cliffs with a gap between them. On the left cliff a heavy filing cabinet and stacked papers, legacy operations. On the right cliff a browser window and a phone, the digital space. A dashed arrow from the cabinet arcs toward the right cliff but falls into the gap.LEGACY OPERATIONSTHE DIGITAL SPACESTRUGGLE

Maintaining brand consistency across multiple fast-paced platforms is challenging

Five phone screens in a row, each with speed lines behind it. The first shows the brand seal. On each next screen the seal drifts: tilted, then squashed, then a different shape altogether.MULTIPLE FAST-PACED PLATFORMSBRAND CONSISTENCY

The sheer volume of digital tools can overwhelm organizations without a clear strategy

A small person stands under a towering pile of some thirty digital tool icons: browser windows, search bars, envelopes, charts, phones, ads, speech bubbles and hearts. There is no map or plan in the person's hands.ADADADADNO CLEAR STRATEGY

Customers now expect immediate, personalized responses from brands

A chat thread. A customer on the left sends a question bubble. A stopwatch in the middle has barely moved. The brand seal on the right replies at once, and its reply bubble carries a small portrait of that same customer: personalized.?IMMEDIATEPERSONALIZED

Core Concept: What is Digital Marketing?

Digital marketing encompasses all marketing efforts that use an electronic device or the internet

A large rounded boundary labelled digital marketing holds a phone, a laptop, a browser window and a globe for the internet. Outside the boundary, left in grey, sit a printed flyer and a roadside billboard.DIGITAL MARKETINGAN ELECTRONIC DEVICETHE INTERNET

Businesses leverage digital channels such as search engines, social media, email, and other websites to connect with current and prospective customers

The brand seal on the left. Lines run from it to four channels in a column: a search bar, a speech bubble, an envelope and a browser window. From the channels, lines run on to two groups of people on the right: solid current customers above, dashed prospective customers below.SEARCH ENGINESSOCIAL MEDIAEMAILOTHER WEBSITESCURRENTPROSPECTIVE

It allows for real-time tracking, immediate feedback, and rapid campaign adjustment

A chart with a campaign line tracked over time. It dips; at the low point a feedback bubble appears right away; a turning arrow marks the adjustment, and the line climbs again. A dashed line shows where the unchanged campaign would have gone.REAL-TIME TRACKINGIMMEDIATE FEEDBACKRAPID CAMPAIGN ADJUSTMENT
Knowledge Check

A Montréal bakery sends a newsletter by email, posts on social media and buys a search ad. The next morning it sees which posts got responses and moves its budget. Which features of digital marketing does this show?

The Paradigm Shift: Interactive vs. Broadcast Marketing

Traditional broadcast marketing delivers a uniform message to a broad audience

A broadcast tower at the top sends rings outward. Below, a grid of eighteen people each receives the same brand seal, identical for all.UNIFORM MESSAGE · BROAD AUDIENCE

Interactive digital marketing invites consumers to participate in a two-way conversation

The brand seal at the top. Below, three people. Between the brand and each person a two-way arrow, and each person has a speech bubble of their own.TWO-WAY CONVERSATION

Campaigns are now designed to be shared, commented on, and personalized

A campaign post in the middle. On the left, a thread of comment bubbles hangs from it. On the right, share arrows carry it to three people, and each person's copy carries their own colour and initial.COMMENTED ONABCSHAREDPERSONALIZED
A large brand seal cut into four slices like a pie. One slice, drawn in the brand colour, comes from the brand; the other three are each pushed in by a consumer standing around it.CO-CREATORS OF BRAND VALUE

This shift empowers consumers, making them co-creators of brand value

Knowledge Check

A sneaker brand asks fans to design a colourway online, vote on each other's entries and share their favourites. The winning design goes on sale. What does this campaign illustrate?

The Digital Marketing Ecosystem

A hub and seven spokes. At the hub a circle holding a small bar chart, labelled data analytics. Spokes run out to seven channels around it: websites, search, ads, email, reviews, shares and social media. Each channel is also joined to its neighbours, so the ring forms a network.DATAANALYTICSWEBSITESSEARCHADSEMAILREVIEWSSHARESSOCIAL MEDIA

The digital ecosystem is a complex network of interconnected channels and platforms

It includes owned media (websites), paid media (ads), and earned media (shares and reviews)

Three overlapping circles. Owned media holds a browser window, paid media an ad, earned media a share arrow and a review star. Where all three overlap, in the middle, the brand seal: the strategy that integrates them.ADOWNED MEDIAWEBSITESPAID MEDIAADSEARNED MEDIASHARES AND REVIEWS

A successful digital strategy seamlessly integrates these different elements

Data analytics forms the foundation, guiding decisions across the entire ecosystem

A small building. A roof spans three pillars labelled owned, paid and earned. The pillars stand on a wide slab marked with a bar chart and labelled data analytics; arrows rise from the slab up through each pillar.DECISIONSOWNEDPAIDEARNEDDATA ANALYTICSTHE FOUNDATION

Strategy: Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

SEO is the practice of optimizing web content to rank higher in organic search engine results

A search results page. The two ad slots at the top are greyed out. Below them, four organic results; one page climbs from the bottom of the list to the top of the organic results.ADAD1234ORGANIC SEARCH ENGINE RESULTS

It involves technical website adjustments, keyword research, and high-quality content creation

Three panels. First, a browser window with a wrench on it: technical website adjustments. Second, a magnifier over a row of word tags, one of them picked out: keyword research. Third, a page of writing with a star on it: high-quality content creation.TECHNICAL WEBSITEADJUSTMENTSKEYWORDRESEARCHHIGH-QUALITYCONTENT CREATION

A strong SEO foundation builds long-term, sustainable traffic without direct advertising costs

One chart over time. A teal area rises slowly, climbs, and then holds high to the end, labelled long-term, sustainable traffic. Along its bottom edge a persimmon line lies flat on zero from start to finish, labelled direct advertising costs. A single time axis runs just below.LONG-TERM,SUSTAINABLE TRAFFIC$0DIRECT ADVERTISINGCOSTSTIME

The algorithm prioritizes user intent, relevance, and website authority

Three inputs on the left feed a box labelled the algorithm: a person with a question bubble for user intent, a query matching a page for relevance, and a page with many links pointing to it for website authority. Out of the box comes a ranked list with that page at number one.?USER INTENTRELEVANCEWEBSITE AUTHORITYTHEALGORITHM1234

Strategy: Search Engine Marketing (SEM)

SEM focuses on gaining visibility through paid search advertising

A search results page. Under the search bar, the two top slots are ads, marked AD and drawn in the paid colour. The organic results below them are greyed out.ADAD1234PAID SEARCH ADVERTISING

Advertisers bid on keywords to appear at the top of search engine results pages

Three advertisers stand behind coin stacks of different heights, their bids on one keyword. Arrows carry each bid to a results page on the right: the tallest stack takes the top slot, the next takes the second, the shortest the third.KEYWORDADVERTISERS BIDAD1AD2AD3THE TOP OF THE RESULTS PAGE

It provides immediate visibility and precise targeting based on user search queries

A person types a query into a search bar. Instantly, a lightning stroke later, an ad appears directly beneath it whose headline matches the query word for word.winter tires montrealIMMEDIATE VISIBILITYADWinter tires in MontréalBASED ON USER SEARCH QUERIES

Campaigns require constant monitoring and budget optimization to maximize return on ad spend

A monitor showing two lines over time, ad spend and return. An eye watches it. Beside it a budget dial with a hand turning the needle: constant monitoring and budget optimization, aimed at return on ad spend.RETURN ON AD SPENDBUDGETCONSTANT MONITORING

Strategy: Content Marketing

Content marketing is a strategic approach focused on creating and distributing valuable, relevant, and consistent content

A calendar strip of seven weeks. Each week, at the same beat, the brand publishes one piece of content, all the same size and style, each with a star for value and a target ring for relevance, and each is carried out to a small group of people.CONSISTENTVALUABLE, RELEVANTCREATING AND DISTRIBUTING

The goal is to attract and retain a clearly defined audience and ultimately drive profitable customer action

Three stages left to right. First, a magnet made of a content page pulls a scattered crowd toward it: attract. Second, the same people inside a ring that holds them: retain, a clearly defined audience. Third, one of them steps out with a filled shopping bag and a coin: profitable customer action.ATTRACTRETAINA CLEARLY DEFINED AUDIENCEPROFITABLECUSTOMER ACTION
Three cards. The first shows a lightbulb: educates. The second shows a laughing face: entertains. Both are lit. The third, set lower and greyed out, is a price tag shouting buy now: directly selling a product.EDUCATESENTERTAINS$BUY NOWDIRECTLY SELLINGEFFECTIVE CONTENT

Effective content educates or entertains rather than directly selling a product

Formats include blog posts, videos, infographics, and podcasts

Strategy: Email Marketing Campaigns

Email marketing remains one of the most effective direct channels for customer retention

Six existing customers inside a ring around the brand seal. An envelope goes out from the seal to each of them, and all six stay inside the ring: customer retention.CUSTOMER RETENTION

It allows for highly personalized and segmented communication based on user behavior

A mixed crowd of people on the left is sorted by their behaviour into three rows: those who browsed, those who bought and those who went quiet. Each row receives a differently coloured envelope carrying its own message.USER BEHAVIORBROWSEDBOUGHTzWENT QUIETSEGMENTED

Automation tools can trigger specific messages during critical points in the customer journey

A customer journey drawn as a line with five stops: joining, browsing, filling a cart, buying, and time passing afterward. At three of the stops, joining, the cart and the purchase, an automation gear fires a specific email down to the customer.THE CUSTOMER JOURNEYAUTOMATION TOOLSCRITICAL POINTS

Success relies on delivering value rather than overwhelming subscribers with promotional material

Two inboxes side by side. On the left, a single envelope with a star and a subscriber beside it: delivering value. On the right, fourteen envelopes stamped with percent signs fill the inbox and two spill over its edge: overwhelming subscribers with promotional material.DELIVERING VALUE%%%%%%%%%%%%%%OVERWHELMING SUBSCRIBERS

Discussion: SEO vs. SEM Investment

A small coin stack labelled limited funds sits at a fork. The upper road, in the paid colour, is short and steep and ends at a shopping bag: immediate SEM campaigns for quick sales. The lower road, in teal, is long and climbs slowly toward a growing plant: long-term SEO for sustainable growth.LIMITED FUNDSIMMEDIATE SEM · QUICK SALESLONG-TERM SEO · SUSTAINABLE GROWTH

Discussion: A startup has limited funds and must decide whether to invest entirely in immediate SEM campaigns for quick sales or long-term SEO strategy for sustainable growth. Which path creates a more resilient digital presence?

The Power of Social Media Marketing

Social media platforms have transformed how brands build relationships with consumers

Two scenes. On the left, the brand seal sits high on a pedestal and people stand in a row below it, far away. On the right, the brand seal stands at the centre of a ring of people, each joined to it and to their neighbours by two-way links.BEFOREBUILD RELATIONSHIPS

They provide unique opportunities for storytelling and community building

Three tall phone-story frames in a row, each with a segmented progress bar across the top. In the first a seed, in the second a sprout, in the third a plant in flower: one story told in frames.STORYTELLING
Eight people in a ring with the brand seal in the middle. Lines join the people to one another across the ring, not only to the brand: a community.COMMUNITY BUILDING

Brands can humanize their image by interacting directly with users

On the left the brand seal alone. An arrow leads to a person wearing the same seal, who faces a user; the two exchange speech bubbles.INTERACTING DIRECTLY WITH USERS

Social platforms serve as crucial touchpoints for customer service and support

A social post thread. A customer's comment carries an exclamation mark, a problem. Below it the brand replies, and a check mark closes the thread: customer service and support.!CUSTOMER SERVICE AND SUPPORT

Social Media Platforms and Demographics

Different platforms attract distinct user demographics and require tailored content strategies

Three platform screens side by side: a photo grid, a professional profile, and a vertical short video. Under each stands its own distinct crowd, drawn in its own colour. Above each screen sits a differently shaped piece of content, tailored to that platform: a square photo, a document, a vertical clip.DISTINCT USER DEMOGRAPHICS · TAILORED CONTENT STRATEGIES

Visual platforms excel in lifestyle and product showcasing

A photo grid of six tiles, each showing a product: a mug beside a plant, a sneaker, a backpack on a hill in the sun, a jacket, a wristwatch and a shelf of goods. Two tiles carry a heart.LIFESTYLE AND PRODUCT SHOWCASING

Professional networks are essential for B2B marketing and corporate branding

Two office buildings, one on each side. Between them a professional profile card with a briefcase, and a two-way link that runs from one building through the profile to the other: B2B marketing and corporate branding.BUSINESSBUSINESSB2B MARKETING · CORPORATE BRANDING

Short-form video platforms dominate younger demographics and trend creation

A vertical short-video phone on the left. To its right, a crowd of smaller, younger figures, and above them a trend line that shoots upward: younger demographics and trend creation.TRENDYOUNGER DEMOGRAPHICS
Knowledge Check

An accounting-software company wants to reach finance managers at mid-sized firms and build its corporate reputation. Which kind of platform suits this goal best?

Strategy: Building Customer Engagement

Engagement goes beyond likes and follows to foster genuine brand advocacy

A staircase of four steps rising left to right. The first step holds a heart, likes. The second holds a plus-person, follows. The third, a person sharing. On the top step, lit, a person with a megaphone speaks up for the brand seal: genuine brand advocacy.LIKESFOLLOWSGENUINE BRAND ADVOCACYBEYOND LIKES AND FOLLOWS

Brands must create interactive content that encourages user participation and sharing

A post holding a poll with two options and their result bars. Cursors from several users tap the options, and a share arrow carries the poll on to more people.PARTICIPATION AND SHARING

Prompt and authentic responses to comments and messages build trust

A user's comment bubble, then straight beneath it the brand's reply, joined by a short line: prompt. Beside them a vertical gauge labelled trust fills up in the brand colour.PROMPT AND AUTHENTICTRUST

User-generated content can be leveraged to amplify reach and credibility

A user holds up their own photo of the product. The brand reshares it, and the post, now stamped with a check for credibility, sends out widening rings that reach three growing rows of people: amplified reach.USER-GENERATED CONTENTCREDIBILITYAMPLIFY REACH

The Concept: Social Listening

Social listening involves monitoring digital conversations to understand what customers are saying about a brand or industry

A person wearing headphones on the left listens across a wide field of fifteen conversation bubbles. Three bubbles contain the brand seal and are lit; two contain a small shop, the industry; the rest are plain chatter. Dashed listening lines run to the lit ones.MONITORINGDIGITAL CONVERSATIONS ABOUT A BRAND OR INDUSTRY

It provides unfiltered insights into customer sentiment, pain points, and emerging trends

Three panels. Customer sentiment: a row of faces, most smiling, some flat, a few frowning. Pain points: a bubble with a jagged lightning mark. Emerging trends: a small line that runs flat and then shoots up at the end.CUSTOMER SENTIMENTPAIN POINTSEMERGING TRENDS

Brands can proactively address issues before they escalate into crises

A chart of negative mentions over time. A dashed curve rises steeply into a shaded zone at the top labelled crisis. The solid line follows it only at the start: at an early point marked with the brand seal, the brand addresses the issue and the line flattens out well below the crisis zone.CRISESPROACTIVELY ADDRESS ISSUESTIME
Three conversation bubbles on the left funnel into a lightbulb, the insight. From the bulb two arrows go on: one to a new product box, one to a strategy sheet.PRODUCT DEVELOPMENTMARKETING STRATEGIES

These insights can directly inform product development and marketing strategies

Strategy: Influencer Marketing

Influencer marketing partners with individuals who have a dedicated social following and are viewed as experts within their niche

An influencer in a graduation cap, an expert, stands in the middle of a small circle, the niche. Ten followers stand in a ring around the circle, each facing inward. On the left the brand seal reaches out to the influencer with a handshake line: a partnership.NICHEDEDICATED SOCIALFOLLOWINGPARTNERSVIEWED AS EXPERTS

It relies on the trust that influencers have built with their audience

The brand seal at the top left, an influencer at the top right, and a small audience below. The direct line from the brand to the audience is thin and dashed. The line from the influencer to the audience is thick and solid, labelled trust.TRUSTTHEIR AUDIENCE

Micro-influencers often yield higher engagement rates than high-profile celebrities

Two audiences drawn as dots. Left, a high-profile celebrity above a big field of sixty dots, only a handful lit as engaged. Right, a micro-influencer above a small field of twelve dots, more than half of them lit. The right field is small but its share of engaged dots is far higher.HIGH-PROFILE CELEBRITIESMICRO-INFLUENCERSENGAGEDHIGHER ENGAGEMENT RATES
Two overlapping circles: the brand on the left, the influencer on the right. In the overlap sit a leaf and a mountain, values both of them share. Each circle also holds one thing of its own.THE BRANDTHE INFLUENCERAUTHENTIC ALIGNMENT

Successful partnerships require authentic alignment between the brand and the influencer

The Challenge: Measuring ROI

Measuring the exact return on investment for digital and social campaigns remains complex

On the left, a stack of coins: the investment. A line leaves it and knots itself into a tangle through a phone, an envelope and a heart. It comes out on the right at a coin stack with a question mark over it: the exact return.INVESTMENT?THE EXACT RETURN

Marketers must navigate a multitude of metrics, from click-through rates to conversion attribution models

A span arrow runs from click-through rates on the left to conversion attribution models on the right, with a jumble of other metric chips along the way. On the left, ten ad views of which two became clicks. On the right, a customer's path touches an ad, an email, a social post and a search before a purchase, and a bar below splits the credit for that sale among the four touchpoints.CLICK-THROUGH RATESCONVERSION ATTRIBUTION MODELS2 / 10AD

Tying social engagement directly to revenue requires sophisticated analytics tracking

Hearts and comment bubbles on the left, a stack of coins on the right. Between them a box with a chart, analytics tracking, threads a line that ties the one to the other.SOCIAL ENGAGEMENTANALYTICS TRACKINGREVENUE

The focus must remain on metrics that align with overarching business objectives rather than vanity numbers

Top: a big, bold heart count in a balloon floating free on a string, attached to nothing: vanity numbers. Bottom: a small metric gauge with an arrow running straight into the centre of a target labelled business objectives.♥♥♥VANITY NUMBERSBUSINESS OBJECTIVES
Knowledge Check

A café chain's post gets 40,000 likes, but its manager asks how many new loyalty-card sign-ups came from it. Why is the manager's question the better one?

Ethics and Privacy in Digital Marketing

Digital marketing strategies must navigate complex ethical boundaries regarding consumer data

A winding road runs from left to right. On both sides of it stand fences, and behind each fence sit consumer data files. The road stays between the fences the whole way: ethical boundaries around consumer data.ETHICAL BOUNDARIES · CONSUMER DATA

Increasing regulations require transparent data collection and usage practices

Left: four stacks of rule documents, each taller than the last, increasing regulations. Right: a clear glass jar with the data dots plainly visible inside, and an eye looking in: transparent data collection and usage.INCREASING REGULATIONSTRANSPARENT

Consumers are becoming more protective of their personal information

A person holds their own data file close. In front of them stands a large shield, and a grabbing arrow from the right stops against it.PERSONAL INFORMATION

Building trust requires prioritizing user privacy over aggressive data harvesting

A balance scale. The left pan holds a padlock, user privacy, and sits low: it outweighs the right pan, which holds a scoop hauling up data files, aggressive data harvesting. Beneath the low side, the brand and a person joined by a two-way link: building trust.USER PRIVACYAGGRESSIVE DATA HARVESTINGBUILDING TRUST

Discussion: Navigating Data Privacy

Two options side by side. Left, third-party data: an ad conversion bar twice as tall, with an eye watching over the customers beneath it, surveillance. Right, first-party data: a conversion bar half that height, and the brand and a customer exchanging data face to face.×2THIRD-PARTY DATAAD CONVERSION RATEFIRST-PARTY DATA

Discussion: A marketing team realizes that using third-party data will double their ad conversion rate but risks alienating customers concerned about surveillance. Should they prioritize the campaign's success or strictly adhere to first-party data?

Conclusion: Digital and Social Media Marketing

  1. Digital channels have fundamentally transformed the marketing landscape

  2. A comprehensive strategy must integrate SEO, SEM, content, and email marketing

  3. Social media offers unparalleled opportunities for community building and engagement

  4. Ethical data practices and continuous adaptation are crucial for long-term digital success