While it may all sound the same in essence, there many different types of marketing that marketers should be aware of. Of course, each type offers its own list of pros and cons. The only struggle here is learning how to adopt a holistic approach and for that, marketing professionals, entrepreneurs, and business owners will need to study each type more carefully.
Table of Contents
What is Marketing?
Business owners launch new ventures every day. They probably put in several hours perfecting the right prototype models for their products before it reaches the market. You could possibly be one of those people. But what’s going to happen if nobody knows that you’ve created the next best thing? All of your efforts will go in vain. That’s exactly what marketing it for.
In essence, marketing is the process of getting the word out about your brand. While this may seem like a fairly straightforward process, it requires hours of planning and research. For instance, marketers start off by identifying customer needs and then look for ways to market their products and services in the best possible manner. This also includes developing an excellent promotional strategy to bring products and services in front of consumers.
Different Types of Marketing
As the world is evolving, marketers can now use a large number of platforms to communicate or distribute their ideas. This detailed guide will walk you through the many different types of marketing.
1. Affiliate Marketing
It’s true. The internet has introduced a number of avenues to help companies get the word out about their brand but the problem is cutting through all that noise. Users are bombarded with a large number of advertisements practically everywhere they go, even when on cyber-ground. This can cause your message to get distorted along the way. Fortunately, affiliate marketing gives companies a better chance to get noticed by entering into partnerships.
In affiliate marketing, companies pay trusted sources to market their products and services in return for a fee which is set based on performance. This makes affiliate marketing a more affordable option compared to other conventional options.
Amazon.com is perhaps the most successful example of affiliate marketing. Its successful campaign became a model for other companies to follow. With some effort, you too can become a part of Amazon’s affiliate program to generate revenue.
2. Affinity Marketing
Also referred to as partnership marketing, affinity marketing revolves around creating mutually beneficial strategic partnerships between two businesses. This allows both companies the opportunity to link their brands in a mutually beneficial relationship, creating a win-win situation for both partners.
For instance, Chase Bank entered into a partnership with Amazon.com to boost its customer base, after all, Amazon is world’s largest online retailer. By combining their efforts together, both companies were able to offer a greater number of incentives to their customers, whilst increasing brand awareness.
3. Alliance Marketing
Similar to affinity marketing, alliance marketing also involves the collaboration of two different brands. The only difference is that alliance marketing is based on a much deeper collaboration. Alliance marketing causes companies to come together and pool in their resources to sell a particular product or service. These resources could be anything from knowledge to brand recognition or infrastructure.
One important factor to keep in mind is that alliance marketing is most beneficial when it takes place between two non-competitive businesses (can you imagine Coca-Cola and Pepsi collaborating?!).
Starbucks and Barnes & Nobles have formed perhaps one of the best alliance marketing campaigns to retain customers. After all, coffee and a good book go hand and hand now, don’t they?
By opening up Barnes & Noble Café has managed to survive while other book chains have been unable to keep up the digital revolution, being forced to shut down. Thanks to Alliance marketing, Barnes & Nobles is doing an excellent job in keeping itself relevant in a world filled with iPads and Kindles.
4. Ambush Marketing
Going down memory lane, the 2014 Oscars had many highlights. Ellen DeGeneres, the famous “Oscar selfie”, the pizza delivery guy – now let’s stop right there. When Ellen DeGeneres ordered a few pies to entertain celebrity guests at the Oscars, she probably had no idea that those pizza boxes would be imprinted with huge Coca-Cola logos on the sides when in fact, Pepsi was the official soda beverage sponsor of the event. And it didn’t end there. Pictures of those pizza boxes were retweeted thousands of times, getting tons of publicity for the brand. And that’s exactly what ambush marketing is all about: stealing somebody else’s thunder.
In simpler terms, ambush marketing is a relatively newly popular technique that promotes a brand using covert ways. Unlike other forms of marketing, ambush marketing tends to be unexpected and unpredictable. So instead of using conventional ways to get attention, ambush marketing uses a number of creative tactics to attract crowds.
This marketing technique is especially beneficial for smaller businesses that may not have the budget to sponsor large corporate or sporting events.
5. Analytical Marketing
Today, companies have realized the importance of keeping track of customer preferences online. This involves continuously collecting data on their check-ins, retweets and likes on social networking platforms. You can do this too by using a plethora of tools to keep an eye on consumers and how often they visit your company website.
Analytical marketing works best if you offer newsletters, email lists or customer loyalty programs. This will give you the chance to gather information about their consumers and generate an extensive online database. This information can, in turn, be used to devise organized lists and devise effective campaigns to cater to the needs of customers.
Among the many different types of marketing, this type of marketing works best if your customers are tech-savvy and are willing to answer relevant information to help you improve your services.
6. Brand Marketing
Now here’s the thing: a company’s brand extends far beyond its marketing capabilities. In fact, it deals with something much more meaningful – it represents the company’s market identity, who they are, what their mission is and other important aspects.
Most businesses already understand the importance of working on brand positioning. You see, it’s not always about highlighting your company’s USPs, you also need to focus on building company perception. This is because focusing on company values is integral for gaining customer loyalty and boosting engagement.
Let’s have a look at Coca-Cola’s Open Happiness slogan, doesn’t it radiate positivity and exude a joyful image? Ideally, that’s what brand marketing is supposed to help you achieve.
7. B2B Marketing
Business-to-business marketing is among the most popular marketing types found today. It occurs when one company markets their products and services to another company. For instance, businesses that make surgical instruments are likely to market their products to doctors and surgeons. In essence, B2B marketing more or less revolves around the same principles as consumer marketing though it is executed in a different, perhaps more sophisticated way (because you’re targeting companies as opposed to consumers.)
For optimal results, B2B marketing starts off by trying to build meaningful relationships to guarantee long-term consumers. This could range from small family-owned businesses or huge corporations.
B2B marketing is typically employed by businesses that offer products that don’t provide much practical use to regular consumers. This includes companies that sell steel or other raw materials such as rubber. Instead, these products are purchased by other businesses.
8. B2C Marketing
Business to consumer marketing involves practices and tactics required to sell or promote products to, you guessed it – consumers. Unlike B2B marketing, B2C focuses on invoking an emotional response from potential consumers instead of simply highlight USPs and demonstrating value.
It’s important to note here that consumers often purchase items as a result of impulse buying. Because of this, consumers take relatively less time to make a purchase as opposed to businesses or big corporations. Additionally, consumers expect to gain some kind of benefit from the said product, this is why regular customers don’t weigh the financial risks of making a purchase as heavily as businesses do.
Marketers realize that the secret to success here is to devise a campaign that’ll cater to consumer mindset. B2C marketing often involves offering discount offers or is initiated via direct advertising or other storefront methods. Because of this B2C marketers try their best to convert curious shoppers into buyers as effectively as possible.
For instance, Frito Lay channeled its creativity by investing in a number of creative contests. For instance, their annual “Do Us A Flavor” contest has been quite a hit among consumers as it helped cultivate healthy relationships between Lays and its consumers. Similarly, the company also initiated a potato chip contest that required consumers to submit new flavor ideas. This showed how Lays trusted its consumers enough to give importance to their suggestions.
9. B2P Marketing
9. B2P MarketingBusiness to people marketing is a relatively new concept that involves understanding your audience and then modifying your strategy to suit that particular audience. It’s worth noting that not all target audiences are the same, this is why companies need to frequently come up with ways to reinvent their marketing strategies.
This type of marketing focuses on targeting unique individuals that are often neglected in the market segmentation in a B2C campaign. Companies that use a B2P marketing approach view their consumers as individual people with different tastes, expectations, and desires.
10. Buzz Marketing
Ever called up a friend to tell them about a new restaurant opening in town? If your answer’s yes then you’ve probably contributed to buzz marketing. Unlike conventional forms of marketing, buzz marketing aims to create a hype by inducing drama and excitement. This also generates anticipation about a product.
This kind of marketing is incredibly effective in spreading the word about a new service or product. The advertisements surrounding the Super Bowl is a perfect example of buzz marketing. Needless to say, the frenzy created because of the event gets everybody talking. For extra measure, the advertisements are designed to make customers think about the companies behind the commercials.
11.Call Centre Marketing
Ever received a peculiar call from a guy trying to sell you stuff over the phone? Well, that’s what call centre marketing is all about. This type of marketing occurs when a business employs a specialist company to cold call potential consumers.
Experienced marketers take out the time to come up with ways to retain customer relationships or create new ones. It’s important to note here that call centre marketing provides companies an edge, putting their brand right in front of customers. And since not many people are skilled in the art of cold-calling, it’s always a good idea to approach call centres for optimal results.
12. Cause Marketing
Consumers are likely to see your brand in a positive light if it’s attached to a charitable cause or organization. Well, that’s what cause marketing is all about. Needless to say, this kind of marketing only works if the cause it something your business and customers actually care about.
Why must businesses invest their time in spreading awareness? The answer is pretty simple: large corporations have the resources and knowledge to make a difference and highlight the works of nonprofit organizations. What’s great is that you’ll be getting the best of both worlds as this will also help promote your company’s products and services, making it one of the most effective of different types of marketing.
Some mutual benefits of cause marketing include creating deep, meaningful connections with the public whilst communication important social values that may, in turn, lead to greater profit. For instance, the Soar With Reading campaign was initiated by JetBlue and FirstBook.
13.Celebrity Marketing
Celebrities have always worked as excellent salespersons. Admired by many and known by all, celebrities offer a familiar face to the brand, making it easier for companies to create brand associations. That’s why you’re bound to find your favorite actor endorsing a perfume or a bottle of coke – they instantly boost credibility.
As the name indicates, this kind of marketing involves featuring a famous person such as a politician, athlete, musician or perhaps even a cartoon character. The effectiveness of the campaign does not necessarily depend on how famous the person is as long as they’re familiar to the target audience. For instance, the population at large may not be aware of a renowned skateboarder but young men who consume energy drinks are likely to be raving fans!
This type of marketing works great for all mediums including film, radio, and television and so on. As a marketer, your job is to appropriately choose the right product for the right marketing tactics, whilst keeping your target audience in mind.
14. Community Marketing
Did you know that Starbucks has over 37 million likes on its Facebook page? Now, that’s a lot of people! So much so that it has created a community on its own. That’s what community marketing is all about, it involves forming a brand presence around a community of existing customers.
As mentioned above, this type of marketing typically works best for online platforms like Facebook pages, Twitter accounts, and online message boards. These miniature cyber communities give brands the opportunity to connect with their customers and develop more meaningful relationships whilst improving customer service.
Community marketing helps build on the existing relationship that the brand has with its customers. It’s worth noting that acquiring new customers is much more expensive than figuring out ways to retain new ones.
These communities thrive in a number of configurations ranging from tightly-knit circles to incredibly large movements that ought to be considered as independent entities altogether. These platforms make it easier for consumers and brands to exchange and share invaluable information and guidelines with each other. The secret here is to stay informed and look for ways to earn the respect and admiration of your followers as that’s the only way you’ll be able to win them over.
15.Content Marketing
Today, content marketing is one of the most popular and effective ways to distribute content with an aim to drive positive action. This typically incorporates a long-term strategy to deliver value-added information instead of selling something to the audience first. Why is this important? Well for starters, it enhances brand perception and cultivates a nourishing relationship between consumers and businesses that’ll increase the chances of conversion in the future.
Unlike other forms of marketing, content marketing uses a soft-sell approach. In fact, consumers will hardly be able to tell that it’s marketing at all. By publishing quality and useful content, companies basically adopt a give-and-receive approach in hopes of retaining and attracting new customers to their businesses.
Content marketing campaigns typically involve generating newsletters to inform consumers about industry trends and new products or setting up a social media account or blog to post relevant yet insightful content.
Some other examples of content marketing include publishing eBooks, sending out email newsletters, posting articles on social media or setting up webinars for prospective customers.
16.Contextual Marketing
Contextual marketing is by far one of the most effective ways to grab your customer’s attention. This type of marketing presents targeted ads to users based on their recent browsing history. Sounds effective, doesn’t it? Well, it is. This kind of marketing is the future as marketers and businesses are already aware of what websites you’re visiting and most importantly, what you’re looking for.
It aims to offer services and products that people are already interested in, this is bound to be more effective than cold-calling random numbers. As technology is making advancements, brands are looking for ways to embed cameras in well-populated billboard locations. These cameras will use high-tech software to recognize what its viewers are looking for and then present targeted ads for optimal efficiency.
17. Conversion Marketing
Prospect consumers go through a whole process where they eventually convert into buyers so it ought to make sense that conversion marketing is all about helping prospects move down this path. This type of marketing comes in handy when you feel like your virtual sales floor is crammed with window shopper but no serious buyers. Unfortunately, in this case, chances are that while your website is SEO optimized, your business is lacking somewhere in the conversion department.
Conversion marketing aims to convert as many viewers or potential customers as possible by using specialized tactics. For online marketing, each visitor is already a high-value prospect because they have stumbled upon your website via search engines and are interested in what you’re selling.
For instance, if a customer is about to leave your website and abandon their shopping cart, they may suddenly be presented with a special discount offer or awarded extra points to access free shipping. These are all marketing tactics to encourage consumers to make a decision.
18.Corporate Marketing
Corporate is all about propagating brand perception to the audience. This requires a little bit more effort as it’ll require high-level interpretation especially in terms of how you plan on marketing a specific product or service. It’s also one of the most effective forms of marketing as consumers become easily influenced by every jingle, logo or practically any kind of image that they come across.
The corporate marketing department of any company aims to manage outward appearances such as advertising implementation to mission statements.
For instance, Apple has consistently coming up with marketing campaigns that positioned the brand as futuristic and intuitive. This corporate image has allowed the brand to stand tall for so many years to come.
19.Cross-Media Marketing
Ever notice how when a new movie is about to come out, you’ll see promotions for it everywhere you go? This could be in the form of TV commercials, inside magazines or perhaps you’ll even find a bunch of restaurants offering a special deal for the movie. Cross-media marketing involves getting the word out about your product or service using a wide number of mediums. The results are fairly straightforward: the greater number of outlets, the greater number of people will see your products.
Because we live in the digital age, marketers can no longer only rely on traditional marketing channels to get the job done. Instead, they need to look for ways to incorporate all sorts of mediums including social media, YouTube, mobile phone applications, websites and so on.
One of the most popular examples of cross-media marketing is Starbuck’s famous Frappuccino Happy Hour campaign. Not only was the campaign incredibly successful but it also had fan raving about the brand altogether. Starbucks initiated the campaign by updating their website and then by releasing commercials on television. But that’s not all, the coffee-chain giant also used tactics like in-app messages and their very own reward program to fuel the marketing campaign.
20.Digital Marketing
Most people don’t do a very good job at describing digital marketing when the term is indeed quite easy to define. Digital marketing involves marketing products and services using digital techniques or electronic devices. What’s surprising is that this type of marketing uses both offline and online methods to get the job done. Because of its effectiveness, many brands are pacing towards digital marketing techniques. After all, people spend countless hours in front of the computer or other digital platforms.
There are many different types of digital marketing which we have discussed in this page including:
- Affiliate Marketing
- Content Marketing
- Email Marketing
- Facebook Marketing
- Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
21.Direct Marketing
Now, this is perhaps one of the most traditional forms of marketing out there. As the name indicates, direct marketing uses numerous ways to sell products and services directly instead of relying on retailers. This can be done using multiple channels including email, distributing flyers, cold-calling or mailing catalogues.
Direct marketing techniques typically include a specific “call to action”. For instance, you will probably be asked to subscribe to the company’s mailing list or call a free-toll number. One of the advantages of direct marketing is that companies can instantly measure results by noting down how consumers have responded to their messages. Some popular direct marketing techniques include:
- Cold-calling
- Emailing
- Text messages
- Mail order catalogues
- Telemarketing
- Direct response infomercials or TV commercials
- Coupons
Practically everybody from media companies, credit card companies and retailers use direct marketing to attract new consumers.
22.Email Marketing
An email list is perhaps your most valuable asset as a brand. Apart from driving sales and boosting traffic, an email list guards your business against algorithm change, diminishing search engine rankings and other unpredictable online changes. With an extensive email list, you can effectively market or promote your products and services. Above all, it allows brands to get close and personal with the consumers and develop meaningful relationships.
Essentially, it’s pretty much the same as direct marketing except the only difference is that you won’t be promoting your message using postal service rather electronic mail. Almost all kinds of businesses both big and small are using email marketing to stay in touch with their consumers. This includes some of the biggest names including Amazon and Barnes & Nobles.
One of the greatest advantages of email marketing is that brands can now send targeted messages to their consumers. This is obviously not possible with traditional channels of ads including television, radio, and print. But now thanks to email marketing, brands can tailor emails to suit the needs and interests of the consumer.
23.E-commerce Marketing
The number of online buyers is increasing exponentially, in fact, it was estimated that over 1.66 billion people purchased goods online in 2017. That’s a whopping number! So it’s safe to say that e-commerce is a booming industry as most buyers now take joy at sitting back at home and ordering necessities online. Additionally, because of a large number of options available online, users can find goods at competitive prices, taking advantage of the best deals.
E-commerce marketing is pretty straightforward. It involves raising awareness about a particular online store’s brand which in turn boosts sales. This is too is a form of digital marketing though e-commerce applies several traditional marketing principals for optimal execution.
The only downside is, since online shopping does not require much commitment, not all shoppers convert to actual buyers (yes, many shoppers tend to abandon their carts after selecting products). To curb this problem, businesses must employ a number of e-commerce marketing strategies and convert as many customers as possible. For instance, e-commerce stores can get up their own company blog and drive users into making a purchase by offering valuable information. This conversion may not be instant but it will gradually help establish a meaningful relationship with the customers.
24.Entrepreneurial Marketing
Kickstarting a business can be a lot of hard work, this is why entrepreneurs must work hard to employ a number of marketing strategies to see what works. Unlike other large corporations, entrepreneurs do not have a large number of resources or a generous budget to work with.
However, at the same time, it’s worth noting that companies like Dell and Microsoft were once small businesses that were just starting to gain recognition. As this distinct category of business has started to gain more focus, entrepreneurs will find themselves open to a plethora of options.
Due to a limited number of resources, entrepreneurial marketing is not about simply employing one marketing strategy, instead, it aims to benefit from a number of traditional marketing practices. A new startup business, entrepreneurs are free to test out unorthodox methods and employ whatever strategy it takes to establish ground. This is why some core features of entrepreneurial marketing include being proactive and innovative. To get noticed, entrepreneurs may start by highlighting their company’s biggest strengths, this could be anything from marketing themselves as the most reasonable brand or that their products and services are of the highest quality. At the same time, entrepreneurs must also improve customer service to get an edge over competitors in the meantime.
25. Evangelism Marketing
Evangelism marketing, more commonly known as word of mouth marketing is a way of getting consumers to talk about your brand and recommend the company. Indeed, this is a more advanced form of marketing that runs on a much deeper level as companies are expected to provide exemplary service. After all, that’s the only way you’ll be able to get consumers to share the benefits of your products with their friends and family.
Unfortunately, as companies grow, they start to become more and more impersonal thus making it challenging for companies to make each customer “feel special”. On the bright side, social media has made it easier for brands to get noticed because of their exceptional quality services and products.
Succeeding at evangelism marketing is the dream of practically every company. After all, what brand doesn’t wish to establish an enormous amount of trust that would lead consumers to spread the word about their excellent services? Such a reputation can be established by creating online communities. Interacting with customers on multiple platforms or by sponsoring events that are of interest to consumers or that will boost their credibility.
For instance, Domino’s Pizza employed evangelism marketing by frequently asking for suggestions on how to improve their services. These suggestions were later incorporated into the brand to improve customer service thus enhancing their reputations in front of customers.
26.Facebook Marketing
As the name indicates, Facebook marketing consists of practically any kind of marketing that is initiated using the social media giant. At present, it would be silly to only think of Facebook as a means to stay connected with friends and family, over the years, the social media platform has channeled into one of the biggest communication systems there this. Apart from that, businesses are also using Facebook to connect with their consumers and develop a strong fan base for their products and services. In fact, you can think of business pages as a free marketing tool for businesses.
These pages can be used for listing products, sharing offers, posts and important links to provide customers a better sense of the brand’s personality. Above all, businesses can drastically boost brand visibility using Facebook ads that can include images and headlines. These ads are placed in the side columns of Facebook are known to be incredibly effective. Another cool way to increase brand awareness on Facebook is by hosting contests or crowd-sourcing ideas.
27.Field Marketing
Field marketing uses a more traditional, face-to-face approach that involves directly reaching out to prospective customers in a given place. This could involve distributing flyers to people at shopping malls or on the streets. On the other hand, some companies may use large sales teams to promote their products and meet prospect consumers face to face unlike other different types of marketing.
Handing out free samples and doing in-store promotions is a popular example of field marketing.
28.Geographical Marketing
In case you haven’t noticed, marketing is all about location! So before you begin emphasizing on all the USPs of your product, you need to pay attention to where you plan on marketing your brand. Geographical marketing is all about integrating geographical intelligence into your campaign. Why is that important? Because collecting data and using facts and figures based on location increases the chances of success of your marketing campaign.
Also thanks to today’s digital technology, it has become incredibly easy for businesses to extract location data from mobile devices and social media. This, in turn, strengthens your approach as a marketer, adding more flair to your campaign.
29.Guerilla Marketing
Pickpocketing and cell phone theft is considered as a major problem in Romania. So much so that it’s been reported that a cellphone is stolen after every two minutes. And while people can conveniently have their cellphone insured against loss, the practice isn’t given much thought. So to raise awareness, Vodafone hired a bunch of pickpockets but here’s the thing. They weren’t asked to steal phones – instead, they were asked to slip fliers into people’s bags, purses and pockets.
The fliers included a call-to-action that urged consumers to insure their phones at Vodafone. Sound amazing now, doesn’t it? And while it might not seem like the most conventional marketing technique, that is the real essence of guerilla marketing. It tosses away traditional marketing methods and instead, looks for more exciting ways to entice consumers.
Looking for some inspiration? UNICEF initiated an amazing marketing campaign that involved setting up vending machines to sell dirty water. Yes, you read that right. The idea of the campaign was to remind privileged masses that there are entire populations out there that don’t have access to clean drinking water. Each bottle was labeled as diseases and the earnings were used to bring clean drinking water in such areas.
30.Influencer Marketing
Now this term is getting thrown around a lot these days, especially on Instagram but what people don’t realize is that the concept of influencer marketing is fairly simple, all it requires is a trusted face to influence a certain audience. Why is this important? Well, the thing is, consumers are getting smarter day by day which is why they’re spending more time looking for recommendations.
Here it’s important to understand that a recommendation from a celebrity or perhaps someone who has an incredibly large social media following is bound to exude more credibility. By reaching out to a consumer, you will be able to position your brand in a place of authority and watch it grow more quickly.
31.Inbound Marketing
Today, using banners and spamming people with online ads is not the best way to attract new customers, you can thank ad-blocking software for this! Anyway, the point is – no longer like being interrupted by advertisements so instead, marketers are coming up with ways to turn ads into content itself. Inbound marketing is a non-traditional type of advertisement that opens up ways for consumers to find you, not the other way around. This is primarily achieved through search engine optimization.
What is Search Engine Optimization (SEO)?
Search Engine Optimization or most commonly known as SEO is a method of optimizing content on your website to get quality traffic. Its main purpose is to improve your website’s search engine rankings on Google. For instance, you must have noticed how high-authority websites always show up on the first page of Google every time you hit the search button. With the proper strategies in place, your website too can find its place on the first page of Google however, this can be extremely challenging depending on the keywords you’re competing with.
Optimizing content for SEO depends on using the right keywords or key phrases. It also helps if your website gets a couple of backlinks. SEO experts employ a number of strategies to get your website to rank better. Unfortunately, some people opt for black hat SEO methods and get their websites penalized. To prevent this from happening, only use white hat SEO techniques and you’ll be good to go.
Other ways to use inbound marketing is by providing users with value-added content such as blogs posts or elaborate social media posts will reel them towards your website.
32.International Marketing
As technology is creating leaps in transportation and communication, the world we live in today is shrinking, slowly growing smaller and smaller. Today, it’s very much possible for companies to target customers and take advantage of business opportunities that are situated far across the globe and that’s exactly where international marketing comes in.
International marketing is used to simultaneously market products and services in multiple countries. It’s important to understand that this is very different from marketing a product locally where marketers would have to keep local traditions and customs in mind.
Want to deep dive into how international marketing works? Consider checking out Red Bull’s amazing international marketing campaigns. The brand manages to do such an excellent job that is almost causing consumers to forget that it is, in fact, an Austrian-based company!
33.Mass Marketing
Incredibly large companies and major corporations need to figure out a way to reach several thousands of people, well that’s where mass marketing comes into play.
Mass marketing provides companies the insight they need to position or market their products and services in the best way possible. It might sound like a shotgun, fuss-free approach but it actually involves a lot of planning.
For instance, Coca-Cola uses a mass marketing approach, often looking for ways to connect socially and emotionally with their audience. Securing the title of the most popular soft drink in the world, other brands can definitely learn a thing or two from this giant corporation.
34.Mobile Marketing
It is now estimated that people spend about five hours on their mobile phones every day. That’s five hours of scrolling and streaming data online so doesn’t it make sense to market products and services to these mobile users?
Mobile marketing is exclusively designed for mobile consumption which means that companies ought to pay close attention to the size of images, fonts and other visual aspects of the advertisement. However, it’s worth noting that mobile devices do not only include smartphones but other electronic devices such as tablets, PDAs, portable gaming consoles etc.
35. Outbound Marketing
To be a successful marketer, you need to be a little stubborn. Outbound marketing comprises of strategies that aim to promote products and services to folks that aren’t necessarily interested in buying something. This is pretty much the opposite of inbound marketing that uses subtle techniques. On the other hand, outbound marketing uses blatant and extravagant methods such as billboards and huge banners.
Outbound marketing can also be initiated using general media advertising such as face-to-face methods or by cold-calling customers. These outbound marketing campaigns efficiently boost sales and help generate new leads. And while some companies do argue that inbound marketing is more effective, consumer experience can be drastically improved by employing both methods simultaneously.
36.Pay-Per-Click (PPC) Marketing
Pay-per-click marketing campaigns involve purchasing advertisement space on the internet. Users are directed to these advertisements via organic search terms. The top search engine giants namely Google and Bing are perhaps the most profitable outlets to experiment with PPC. This is particularly beneficial for small businesses who want to crawl their way up on search engines or want to boost their visibility online at a low cost.
For instance, if you type a keyword like blue running shoes on Google, you might see advertisements for similar products so you see, it’s all about relevance.
37.Product Marketing
Noticed how the video game industry is going through a massive boom? This is all thanks to efficient product marketing. This is a fairly broad term that tries to build product demand and entice potential buyers to use said product.
Unlike conventional forms of marketing, product marketing aims to target the right customers for a specific product. Hence, marketers work hard to create a suitable pitch after conducting extensive research. And of course, if you’re clever, you may be able to come up with a way that communicates industry USPs and product features.
38.Social Media Marketing (SMM)
Ever notice how some companies use their Facebook pages to divert users to their company blog/website? Well, that’s what social media marketing is all about.
However, the kind of strategy you employ depends on your organization’s goals. For instance, for some brands, SMM could only be about increasing traffic while other businesses may genuinely be interested in raising brand awareness.
It’s also worth noting that you ought to pick a social media platform depending on the tone and voice of your brand. Not to mention, you ought to consider where your audience hangs out most. For instance, a mechanic or a company that sells steel is unlikely to benefit from kicking off their social media campaign on Pinterest. On the other hand, crafters and artists will certainly benefit from the online community on Pinterest.
39.Search Engine Marketing (SEM)
A couple of years ago, the term Search engine marketing (SEM) was used to define both paid search activities and SEO techniques. However, at present SEM is only used to define paid search activities.
One of the greatest benefits of paid searches is that you can conveniently have your website listed on the first pages of Google along with other search engine giants such as Yahoo! and Bing. However, that’s only the first step towards SEM. You’ll also have to create an ad that’ll convert to links, allowing you to generate income on your website. Since this model requires you to pay according to the number of clicks, you can quickly start to lose money if you’re not careful. Hence, it is important you figure out a way to generate income from those clicks and bring in more quality clicks to your website.
Regardless of what search engine tactic you use, it’s worth optimizing your website for SEO, even if you adopt an unpaid method.
40.Real-Time Marketing
As the name suggests, this type of marketing uses up-to-date information and satisfies people’s immediate need for gratification. Because of its nature, real-time-marketing cannot be planned unlike other different types of marketing. Such pop-up advertisements are constructed instantaneously when people are online using customer data and browsing history.
For example, you may see a pop-up ad of salad spinners because you were searching for salad spinners online a couple of days ago.
41.Referral Marketing
Referral marketing involves using existing consumers to bring your company new prospects buyers via word-of-mouth or other methods. It just goes to show that people enjoy raving about the products and services they enjoy. One way to do so is by creating viral campaigns that’ll instantly grab the attention of viewers.
For inspiration, check out Dropbox’s referral program. It’s probably one of the most successful examples of referral marketing to exist. As you all would know, the online storage company awards more storage space as a reward for inviting new users. Here, Dropbox understood the needs of its consumers and worked out a way to increase the number of sign-ups.
42.Trade Marketing
Trade marketing, also known as B2B marketing typically involves promotional activities that are designed to increase demands of selected products and services among supply chain partners. So basically trade marketing isn’t just targeting customers. It targets retailers, wholesalers, distributors – you name it.
Some examples of trade marketing include hosting trade shows and with so many prospective clients in the same room, this form of marketing reaps significant results.
43.Viral Marketing
Ever seen content that spreads faster than the speed of light? Well, that’s effective viral marketing. The whole point of viral marketing is to cause your campaign or product to spread like wildfire. Because of this, the aim of viral marketing is to exponentially boost brand awareness at an alarmingly high speed. It’s important to note here that while viral marketing campaigns do not last for long periods of time, they certainly get the job done.
This type of marketing can be initiated by both big and small businesses. Though big businesses are likely to benefit from viral marketing the most because of its cost-effectiveness. For instance, the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge was among the most successful viral marketing campaigns ever created. So much so that the ice bucket challenge was performed by incredibly famous celebrities and successful entrepreneurs such as Mark Zuckerberg and Bill Gates.
Another popular example is PSY’s famous Gangnam Style video so if you’ve been thinking the song went viral by accident, you’ve been mistaken. In fact, its popularity largely depended on the South Korean Label’s vigorous marketing efforts.
44.Web Marketing
The internet has pretty much changed nearly every aspect of our lives. For instance, it has made it easier for businesses, coworkers and family members to connect with one another. This has indispensably helped organizations widen their target market.
But because the internet is evolving in an alarming rate, businesses need to find a way to keep up with new technologies and think of ways to reinvent their online marketing efforts. This is important if they want to increase the number of potential buyers and attract new customers. Web marketing is a broad category of advertising that deals with practically any kind of marketing activity conducted online.
It’s worth noting that web marketing is much more economical compared to other avenues of marketing. For instance, companies can set up their own blogs or start uploading videos on YouTube. What’s best is that the internet has made it possible for companies to collect information about consumer buying behavior, personal preference, customer demographics and so on. Some main components of web marketing include search engine optimization, display advertising, referral marketing, social media marketing and so on. You’ll find that there are many different types of online marketing.
Wrapping it up: Different Types of Marketing
We have that you’ve enjoyed reading our elaborate guide to different types of marketing. Is there something you’d like to add? Tell us about it in the comment section below!