Report

3/26/2020 Digital Marketing

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Digital Marketing

With advances in communication and the growth of internet services, digital

marketing has become an important component in the marketing effort of most

companies. Digital marketing involves the application of marketing strategies and

technologies using electronic media, such as computers and smartphones. Digital

marketers capitalize on digital technologies to differentiate their products and

services from competing offers (Gaikwad & Kate, 2016).

Online retail sales have exploded, as internet retailers, such as Amazon, provide

informative, convenient, and personalized experiences. By saving on overhead

costs associated with brick-and-mortar stores, inventory, and staff, these

retailers can offer competitive prices and can profitably sell low-volume

merchandise to their niche markets. While customers scan websites searching

for the lowest prices, online retailers compete to offer the customer a top-caliber

online experience, delivery, and handling of customer complaints and issues. E-

commerce allows customers to connect and interact with the brand of their

choice. Accordingly, customer service is crucial to the success of these retailers.

In addition, B2B commerce is increasingly being conducted online, profoundly

changing the supplier-customer relationship (Kotler & Keller, 2015).

Digital marketers provide their customers with an individualized buying

experience, a wide selection of products, and substantial information to help

them research and evaluate these products. However, it is easy for customers to

visit another website at any time with the click of a button. For this reason,

digital marketers aim to not only attract customers, but to encourage them to

stay on their websites, explore, and buy from them. A website's stickiness—the

amount of time that a potential customer spends on the site—can be used as an

evaluative measure (Marshall & Johnston, 2011).

Anderson (2006) states that innovations in e-commerce and search engine

technologies enhance the efficiency of online retail by encouraging the entry of

even more innovative products. This process creates a long tail of niches while

simultaneously decreasing the market share of blockbuster products. Anderson

argues that internet innovations reduce the marginal cost of products by allowing

online retailers to focus on previously ignored long-tail products. According to

Anderson, in a world of scarcity, the "curse of the traditional retail" is the

obligation to find local customers (p. 17). Traditional retailers typically carry only

products that generate profitable demand. They are constrained by their space

and retail areas and thus prioritize their stocked products according to demand.

By contrast, online retailers exist in a world of abundance, with infinite shelf

Learning Topic

3/26/2020 Digital Marketing

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space and cheap distribution costs. This advantage allows them to carry a

substantial number of niches, which collectively represent a large share of their

business and may rival their blockbuster products.

As examples, Anderson (2006) refers to the online book and music sales of

Amazon and other online retailers, where selection is virtually unlimited and

delivery is cheap. He adds that the market share of niches is increasing, and the

cost to customers is decreasing. These shifts are influenced by technological

innovations in search engines as well as recommendation and ranking tools,

which effectively drive "demand down the tail" (p. 53). Anderson also argues that

three forces underlie long-tail economics: democratization of production tools,

democratization of distribution tools, and connecting supply and demand.

Resources

Management, Strategies, Tools, and Practices in eMarketing

(http://ezproxy.umuc.edu/login?

url=http://search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.umuc.edu/login.aspx?

direct=true&db=bth&AN=111382489&site=eds-live&scope=site)

E-Marketing: A Modern Approach of Business at the Door of Consumer

(http://ezproxy.umuc.edu/login?

url=http://search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.umuc.edu/login.aspx?

direct=true&db=bth&AN=119728209&site=eds-live&scope=site)

References

Anderson, C. (2006). The long tail: Why the future of business is selling less of

more. New York, NY: Hyperion.

Gaikwad, J. M., & Kate, P. (2016, September). eMarketing: A modern approach of

business at the door of consumer. International Journal of Research in

Commerce & Management, 7(9), 56–61.

Kotler, P., & Keller, K. L. (2015). Marketing management (15th ed.). Upper Saddle

River, NJ: Pearson.

Marshall, G. W., & Johnston, M. W. (2011). Essentials of marketing management.

New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.

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