I wouldn't agree with the statement that digital marketing is a waste of money, rather it is a value addition to the brand. TV viewing audience is shrinking on a continuous basis, esp in the younger adult segment who spend most of their time on internet. It is extremely important for a company to make sure the target audience is not reducing in number, hence they are changing their way of working with the changing consumer behaviour. It is a market trend and impact of this is the change in media vehicles.
No doubt the traditinal media of advetising esp. TV has its own benefits (talk about the 30 seconds adv. premiered during the TV soaps directly targetting and mesmerizing women, who are the major customer segment), it lacks the platform the digital media can offer.
Although we’re in the age of blogging and social media, being featured in the traditional media (TV, print and radio) is still important. In many ways it’s even more important than it was a decade ago. The recognition factor that traditional media offers is immense. Most consumers will be able to recognize and identify popular newspapers, magazines or TV station much more readily than then will the most popular blogs. The traditional media have built credible brands that carry weight, influence and credibility.
However, cost effectiveness is the main term being used and followed across industries. Every company is looking higher return over a little spend. A spend on digital advertisement is way less than cost incurred for a TV advertisment. Moreover, digital media offers a two-way communication, fetching results on the very spot. Companies are getting more impressions at less CPC/CPM in digital over traditional media vehicle.
Marketing is ever more heading towards direct campaigns, with major organisations leading the way. Rather than hiring a massive billboard ad, they’re using marketing automation software to promote their brand and reach their market in intelligent and targeted ways.
Lately, P&G reduced its advertisement budget of about $10 billion for traditional media over digital media on account of its more efficieny and less cost.
Regards,
Manish