Traditional Marketing Is Dead

The 2012 prediction was about buyers taking control of research through search, reviews, peers and digital content. The linked Harvard Business Review article provides the larger argument that prompted Mark's response.

Bill Lee of Harvard Business Review posted an article recently that speaks to what is happening in marketing. The world has gone digital. Traditional marketing and traditional branding has been replaced with online marketing, digital branding with website logos, building optimized web pages and marketing websites online with Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and Pay Per Click (PPC) advertising.

Will traditional advertising ever be back to the power player it once was? We're not sure... but what we know for now is that Google is seeming to reign as king in the world of website marketing. If you aren't marketing your website with SEO or PPC you are probably behind.

The article that started my response

Bill Lee's August 9, 2012 Harvard Business Review article, “Marketing Is Dead,” argued that buyers were increasingly researching products through the internet, word of mouth, reviews and their peers instead of relying on a company's controlled marketing sequence. It recommended restoring community-oriented marketing and giving satisfied customers something worth talking about.

What I asked businesses to do in 2012

So take this article for what it is and think about how your traditional marketing efforts should change... Or if you have already changed your marketing tactics, congratulate yourself.

Marketing in the digital age is different, can seem scary, but with a little bit of the right help your business will be successful for a fraction of the cost of the past. Branding a company and marketing a company with traditional media always had a fixed cost, and it was high. The light at the end of the tunnel is that online or digital marketing using social media and SEO could be free if you do the work yourself, or you can pick your budget if you choose to do something like AdWords (PPC).

So don't be afraid. Do a little research, contact an online marketing professional and get a little advice.

And as usual from the Free SEO Tools Blog... Happy Marketing!