Digital? Traditional? It’s All Media.

As a media buyer, I have been bothered for quite some time by the fact that the industry seems to separate digital marketing and traditional marketing.

I am not sure why we insist on this compartmentalization. After all, when was the last time a media plan didn’t include some digital elements? Digital marketing is simply a tactic that allows us to analyze data at a granular level. And media geeks like me think that’s cool.

The intrigue of digital marketing is largely data driven. Proven mass marketing tactics, like broadcast and print, get the advantage of loose ROI requirements, while digital marketing is held to a different standard. Our clients expect that our goal for digital marketing is not just to assess ROI, but to improve ROI with each and every campaign. It’s a tall order that needs sufficient time, talent and strategy backing those plans.

Digital Drops Reach by 50%

In reality, tactics like print and broadcast are likely to hold their place in ag marketing plans, because in ag, they still provide reach that digital tactics simply cannot surpass.

Reach is essential when establishing awareness. But we all know awareness is hard to measure, so we turn to tactics that can provide data. The inability to provide measurable results does not diminish the impact of print and broadcast. It’s just not measurable, so it’s considered “safe” to invest marketing dollars in places with a measurable return. An added bonus for digital is the ability to buy a more specific audience, thus lowering the waste factor.

If you spend five minutes with me talking about media strategy, you will know that I am all about measurable return. If you spend 15 minutes with me, I will likely ask you questions about marketing objectives and penciling out the user’s path to conversion. But I will always, always remind you to make sure that time-tested tactics like print and broadcast are still part of your paid media strategy.