A historical gem in the small North Carolina community, Jameson General Store. Owner Jim Jameson had been a part of the family tradition for more than a century. The Great Depression was one of the difficult times the organisation has experienced. However, the success of the business had been maintained by their arduous effort and devoted customers.
Customers stayed loyal even after a nearby town opened a Walmart Marketplace store. Jim didn’t think it was a good idea to use social media and online advertising. He thought that these things were only a fad. However, as a result of Jameson General Store’s constrained product selection, their customers eventually began to purchase online.
In actuality, online retailers gained the majority of the business that Jameson Store lost to neighborhood rivals. Jim was adamant about restraining his want to conduct online shopping. However, Jim had to consider his existing marketing strategy given the shifting market conditions in the country after observing his own 10-year-old grandson purchase a hard-to-find item in the region online at a high price.
Customers can easily acquire a range of goods online today. Brick and mortar businesses are struggling to survive in the face of the intense internet competition in this situation. The following conclusions were drawn from a 2017 poll by Square and Mercury Analytics that included 1,164 U.S. business owners:
96% of Americans who have access to the internet have done so
Americans prefer to purchase online 51% of the time.
In comparison to in-store shopping, 56% of Gen Xers and 67% of Millennials prefer to shop online.
Each week, Millennials and Gen Xers spend six hours more than their more senior peers buying online (four hours).
.Seniors have shopped on markets (51%), large retailer websites (66%), independent
,boutiques (30%), web stores (44%), and marketplaces (51%).
.Marketing experts are aware of the value of the internet and how to use it to their advantage. .90% of marketers use social media for their company, according to Socialmedia.com. Unfortunately, a lot of small businesses are unaware of this. In the hope that this “internet phenomenon” would go away, many businesses had chosen to stick their heads in the sand.
In spite of the fact that e-Commerce is expanding by more than 23% annually, a study by Square and Mercury Analytics found that 46% of American small companies lack a website. This article focuses on the use of digital marketing by small firms to increase their chances of success and expand their market potential.
Each and every serious small business should use digital marketing as a tool. E-commerce marketing, online marketing, and internet marketing are just a few of the many names for digital marketing. “The marketing of products or services utilising digital channels to reach consumers” is the definition of digital marketing. The main goal is to encourage brand usage of the internet.
Digital marketing includes outlets that do not use the internet and goes beyond internet marketing. Websites, social networking platforms, email marketing, search engine optimization (SEO), blogging, podcasts, and online advertising are just a few examples of digital marketing channels. Businesses should understand their clients and their fundamental competencies in addition to technical gimmicks. Digital marketing isn’t a magic solution. A tool for the astute company professional is digital marketing.
Internet Marketing: A Practical Guide by Catherine Juan, Donnie Greiling, and Catherine Buerkle Start to Finish makes the case that thorough planning is necessary for efficient digital marketing. “Tying marketing and SEO together is the key to generating significant momentum out of your online marketing effort,” they continue.combined sales statistics and stats. Keep track of your actions, their effects, and the sales that occur. The following five digital marketing trends are ones that small firms should consider strategically in light of the landscape of technology and internet innovation:
• Artificial intelligence Some people create complex end-of-the-world scenarios in which machines rule the globe. However, marketing is embracing artificial intelligence (AI) as a way of life. “The theory and development of computer systems able to accomplish activities that ordinarily require human intelligence” is how artificial intelligence (AI) is defined. The public is becoming more aware of AI thanks to voice activation devices like Amazon’s Echo. By 2020, 85% of consumer purchases will be made without a human being being involved.
• Internet browsing – With access to the internet, consumers are more informed than ever. In actuality, 81% of consumers do online research prior to making significant purchases. Therefore, learning about search engine optimization and how to use it to position your company at the top of searches is a crucial step.
• Mobile Communications – The vast majority of Americans are accustomed to receiving rapid gratification and having quick access to technology. By 2018, e-commerce on mobile and tablets will total $293 billion. Tablets and smartphones are a component of this innovation wave. By 2019, 72% of digital advertising in the US will be spent on mobile devices. Marketers are aware that mobile marketing has great potential as a tool for business.
• Social Media – Sites like Facebook that facilitate social interaction among users of social media. LinkedIn advertisements have helped 65% of business-to-business enterprises bring in new clients. Marketers are aware of this benefit.
• Web Material – Customers will be drawn to well-written content. Customers are actually more inclined to make a purchase from sellers who have high-quality, pertinent videos and photographs on their websites. Worldwide, 52% of marketing experts select video as the content format with the highest return on investment.
Small firms must use digital marketing in order to survive the demands of the competitive industry. Some small firms might be wary about trying new things.
due to their lack of online knowledge and faith in digital marketing. The authors of Marketing Management, Philip Kotler and Kevin Keller, state that “Top organisations are at ease using technology to better how they conduct business with their business-to-business customers.”
This article showed how small firms in the modern world can use digital marketing to increase their market potential. Gaining this knowledge should assist business owners in helping them stop hiding their heads in the sand. The internet is a permanent fixture. Ask God to grant you hearing this message.
Marketing Arcc 
Thank you for sharing this!
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