(Expansion) – We all agree that we live in a digital age, where a device such as a cell phone or computer gives us the opportunity to connect to the network and take quick actions from anywhere and at any time.
For brands, this digital scenario has led them to focus their marketing strategies on media where current and potential customers spend most of their time, that is, on digital channels. And it is that visits to relevant press media, in its digital version, grew 46% in Latin America during 2020, according to an analysis by the consulting firm Teads.
With data like this, it seems that digital media is the best choice to promote brands; So many marketers wonder if they should leave traditional media out of their strategies.
From my point of view, traditional media are still of great value for brands to communicate with target audiences and achieve two-way communication. Here’s why.
In my career as a marketing professional, I have seen the evolution of traditional media such as television, radio, newspapers, magazines and billboards; and the emergence of digital channels such as blogs, live internet television, social networks, podcasts, social ads, and online advertising.
Those early media, which I call “old school”, have learned to adapt to the changing environment of communication, technology and content consumption habits. They did not stay in the past, and although some still exist in their original channels, they have also extended their reach through digital channels, so that today we can see media companies focused on comprehensive content strategies that encompass online and offline media.
Currently, almost every newspaper or print magazine has an online version, shares content on social networks, and even has spaces on television, either in traditional or online, not to mention podcast episodes. So we can say that the “old school” media is now the “new school”, fully transformed by digitization.
From a marketing perspective, these traditional media, closely linked to digital, play a prominent role in helping us create greater opportunities for brand visibility and discovery, through SEO-optimized content marketing strategies, focused on improving the brand positioning in organic search results.
Multimedia content expands scope and discovery
While it is important to focus our marketing strategies on maximizing exposure through channels such as social media or ads, marketers should not ignore the value of traditional media and the role they play in modern journalism.
Let us remember that the coverage of the brand in the relevant and reputable media generates credibility and trust, making the target audience trust the brand and consider it credible. It is as if the media acts as a third party endorsement for what that brand offers.
Well, these possibilities are maximized by considering both traditional and digital media in our marketing strategy, allowing us to create multimedia content marketing strategies (for traditional and digital channels, and various content formats), which expand the opportunities to achieve coverage. for the brand and have a greater reach of the messages.
If we look at it objectively, all good modern marketing strategies should strive to maintain a balance between digital and traditional media. By doing this, they ensure greater coverage for the brand and greater awareness, visibility and discovery as different target audiences access different types of media, depending on their preference. For example, an older audience may be used to watching the 9pm news, while a younger audience will turn to online channels to find the latest news.
This era of digital marketing does not have to make us choose between traditional or digital media, as the integration of both is still fundamental and important for brand awareness. As media strategists, our role is to develop the best strategy for the brand and, for this, it is necessary to understand the role that traditional and digital tactics play in achieving a successful campaign.
Editor’s note: Héctor Meza Curiel is General Director of InfoSol. Follow him on. The opinions published in this column belong exclusively to the author.
