Digital Marketing CBMMM4T04

Syllabus topics (RTMNU)

• Digital marketing: Meaning, concept, evolution
• Difference between digital marketing and traditional marketing
• Opportunities and challenges in digital marketing
• Digital marketing channels: mobile marketing, search engine optimisation, affiliate marketing, content marketing
• Online consumer: concept, factors influencing, latest trends, business requirements for online consumer
• Customer value journey: Meaning, stages, factors influencing
• 5As Framework
• The Ozone O3 Concept

Digital Marketing: Meaning and Concept

Definition: Digital marketing is the promotion and selling of products and services using digital technologies – the internet, websites, search engines, social media, e-mail and mobile phones – to reach and engage customers.

Concept: It is customer-centred, interactive and measurable. Every click, view and purchase can be tracked, so a firm knows which campaign works. It can target people by age, place, interest and behaviour at low cost.

Evolution of Digital Marketing

1. 1990s – first websites, e-mail and banner ads; early search engines.
2. 2000s – Google search ads and SEO grow; e-commerce begins (in India, sites like Rediff and later Flipkart, 2007).
3. 2010s – social media (Facebook, YouTube, Instagram) and smartphones; cheap mobile data in India after 2016 brought crores of new users online.
4. 2020s – video, short reels, influencer marketing, UPI-based payments, quick-commerce, and AI-based personalised ads.

Digital Marketing vs Traditional Marketing

Opportunities and Challenges in Digital Marketing

Opportunities: (1) huge and growing internet and smartphone users in India; (2) low cost reach for small businesses and start-ups; (3) precise targeting and personalisation; (4) easy measurement and quick changes; (5) direct sale through e-commerce and UPI; (6) new careers – SEO expert, content creator, social media manager.

Challenges: (1) heavy competition and ad clutter; (2) frequent changes in platform algorithms; (3) privacy and data protection rules (Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023); (4) fake reviews, fake news and online fraud; (5) negative comments spread fast; (6) need for skilled staff; (7) poor connectivity and digital literacy in some rural areas.

Digital Marketing Channels

1. Mobile marketing – reaching customers on smartphones through SMS, WhatsApp Business, mobile apps, in-app ads, push notifications and location-based offers. Example: Swiggy and Zomato sending meal-time notifications.
2. Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) – improving a website so that it appears higher in the free (organic) results of search engines like Google for relevant keywords.
3. Affiliate marketing – a business pays a commission to outside partners (affiliates, bloggers, influencers) for each sale or lead they bring through their special link. Example: Amazon Associates programme.
4. Content marketing – creating and sharing useful, interesting content (blogs, videos, infographics, e-books, podcasts) to attract and keep customers rather than directly selling. Example: banks' YouTube videos on saving tips.

Online Consumer: Concept and Factors Influencing

Meaning: An online consumer is a person who searches, compares, buys or uses products and services through the internet – websites, apps or social media.

Factors influencing online buying:

1. Convenience – shopping anytime, anywhere, home delivery.
2. Price and offers – discounts, cashback, easy comparison.
3. Trust and security – safe payment, brand reputation, return policy.
4. Reviews and ratings – opinions of other buyers.
5. Website/app experience – speed, easy design, local language.
6. Payment options – UPI, cards, cash on delivery, EMI.
7. Social influence – friends, influencers, social media posts.
8. Personal factors – age, income, digital skill.

Latest Trends and Business Requirements for Online Consumers

Latest trends: mobile-first shopping; quick-commerce delivery in minutes; short-video and live commerce; voice and vernacular (regional language) search; social commerce through WhatsApp and Instagram; buy-now-pay-later; AI chatbots and personalised recommendations.

What a business needs to serve online consumers: a fast, mobile-friendly website or app; clear product information and photos; secure payment gateway; reliable delivery and easy returns; quick customer support (chat, WhatsApp); active presence on search and social media; data privacy and protection of customer information.

Customer Value Journey: Meaning, Stages and Factors

Meaning: The customer value journey is the path a person follows from first hearing about a brand to becoming a loyal customer who recommends it to others. Marketers plan content and offers for each stage.

Common stages: awareness → engagement → subscription (gives e-mail/phone) → conversion (first purchase) → excitement → ascension (buys more) → advocacy → promotion.

Factors influencing the journey: quality of the product, customer experience at each touchpoint, price, trust, reviews and word of mouth, after-sales service, and personalised communication.

5As Framework

Given by Philip Kotler and co-authors in Marketing 4.0 (2016) to describe the customer path in the digital age:

The O-Zone (O3) Concept

Also from Marketing 4.0. It says a customer's decision is shaped by three influences:

1. Own influence – the customer's own past experience, preferences and judgement.
2. Others' influence – friends, family, online reviews, social media communities (word of mouth).
3. Outer influence – the company's own marketing: advertising, sales staff, offers.

Marketers try to manage the outer influence and encourage positive others' influence, so that customers move towards advocacy.

Likely exam questions

1. (Long, 8/16 marks) What is digital marketing? Distinguish between digital and traditional marketing and explain the opportunities and challenges of digital marketing in India.
2. (Long, 8/16 marks) Explain the customer value journey. Describe the 5As framework and the O-Zone (O3) concept.
3. (Short, 4 marks) Explain any two digital marketing channels.
4. (Short, 4 marks) State the factors influencing an online consumer.
5. (Short, 4 marks) What is affiliate marketing?

Syllabus topics (RTMNU)

• Introduction: Meaning, factors influencing, need, process of digital marketing strategies
• Types: Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Content Marketing, Pay-Per-Click (PPC) Advertising, Affiliate Marketing, Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO), etc.
• Framework of digital marketing: POEM Framework
• Segmenting & Customizing messages
• Skills in Digital Marketing
• Digital Marketing Plan
• Digital advertising Market in India: Concept, Meaning, Scope & Importance, Key Trends and Developments

Digital Marketing Strategies: Meaning and Need

Definition: A digital marketing strategy is a long-term plan that decides which online channels, content and budget a business will use to reach its marketing goals, such as brand awareness, leads or sales.

Need for a strategy:

1. Gives clear goals and direction instead of random posting.
2. Helps reach the right target audience.
3. Uses the budget wisely and avoids waste.
4. Allows measurement of results (ROI – return on investment).
5. Keeps the brand ahead of competitors who are already online.
6. Gives one consistent brand message across all channels.

Factors Influencing Digital Marketing Strategies

1. Business objectives – awareness, leads, sales or loyalty.
2. Target audience – age, location, language, devices and platforms they use.
3. Budget – free (organic) vs paid channels.
4. Nature of product – visual products suit Instagram; B2B services suit LinkedIn.
5. Competition – what rivals are doing online.
6. Technology and platform rules – algorithm changes, ad policies.
7. Legal factors – data protection, advertising standards (ASCI guidelines, e.g. disclosure of paid influencer posts).

Process of Digital Marketing Strategy

1. Situation analysis – study the business, market and competitors (SWOT).
2. Set SMART goals – Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound. Example: increase website sales by 20% in 6 months.
3. Define the audience – make buyer personas (imaginary profiles of ideal customers).
4. Choose channels and tactics – SEO, social media, PPC, e-mail etc.
5. Create content and budget – content calendar and cost plan.
6. Implement the campaigns.
7. Measure and improve – track KPIs (key performance indicators) using tools like Google Analytics, and refine.

Types of Digital Marketing Strategies

1. Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) – improving the website's content, keywords, speed and links so it ranks high in free search results. Long-term and low-cost traffic.
2. Content marketing – blogs, videos, guides and posts that educate or entertain the audience and build trust.
3. Pay-Per-Click (PPC) advertising – the advertiser pays only when someone clicks the ad. Example: Google Ads, Meta (Facebook/Instagram) ads. Gives quick results.
4. Affiliate marketing – partners earn commission on sales they bring through their links.
5. Conversion Rate Optimisation (CRO) – improving the website so a higher share of visitors take the desired action (buy, register).
   Conversion rate = (Conversions ÷ Total visitors) × 100. Example: 50 sales from 2,000 visitors = 2.5%. Methods: clear call-to-action buttons, faster pages, simple checkout, A/B testing (comparing two versions of a page).
6. Others – social media marketing, e-mail marketing, influencer marketing, video marketing, mobile marketing.

Framework of Digital Marketing: POEM Framework

POEM classifies media into three types:

A good strategy mixes all three: paid media brings people to owned media, and good experience creates earned media.

Segmenting and Customising Messages

Digital tools allow the audience to be divided into small groups by demographics, location, interests, behaviour (pages visited, past purchases) and device. Each group gets a customised message – for example, a cart-reminder e-mail to people who left items in the cart, or Marathi-language ads for users in Maharashtra. Customised messages increase clicks and sales and reduce wasted spending.

Skills in Digital Marketing

• Technical: SEO, PPC/ads management, web analytics, basic website and CMS handling, e-mail tools.
• Creative: content writing, copywriting, graphic design, video editing, storytelling.
• Analytical: reading data, KPIs, A/B testing, budgeting.
• Soft skills: communication, customer handling, creativity, adaptability to new tools and trends.

Digital Marketing Plan

A digital marketing plan is a written document that puts the strategy into action. Its contents: (1) executive summary, (2) situation and SWOT analysis, (3) goals and KPIs, (4) target audience and personas, (5) channels and tactics, (6) content calendar, (7) budget, (8) timeline and responsibilities, (9) measurement and review method.

Digital Advertising Market in India

Concept and meaning: The digital advertising market means the total buying and selling of advertisement space on digital platforms – search, social media, video/OTT, websites, apps and e-commerce sites – in India.

Scope: search ads, social media ads, video ads (YouTube, OTT), display banners, e-commerce/retail-media ads (on Amazon, Flipkart), in-app and gaming ads, influencer marketing; used by FMCG, e-commerce, banks, auto, education and small local businesses.

Importance: reaches a very large online population at low cost, allows exact targeting and measurement, supports small businesses and start-ups, and creates jobs for agencies, creators and freelancers.

Key trends and developments: industry reports show digital as the fastest-growing share of Indian advertising spend; growth of short video and influencer marketing; regional-language content; retail media on e-commerce sites; programmatic (automatic, software-based) ad buying; AI for targeting and ad creation; more focus on data privacy after the DPDP Act, 2023; Connected TV advertising.

Likely exam questions

1. (Long, 8/16 marks) What is a digital marketing strategy? Explain the factors influencing it and the process of developing a digital marketing strategy.
2. (Long, 8/16 marks) Explain the various types of digital marketing strategies such as SEO, content marketing, PPC, affiliate marketing and CRO.
3. (Short, 4 marks) Explain the POEM framework.
4. (Short, 4 marks) What skills are required in digital marketing?
5. (Short, 4 marks) Write a short note on the digital advertising market in India.

Syllabus topics (RTMNU)

• Social media Marketing: Meaning, concept
• Steps involved in social media marketing
• Social Marketing V/s Commercial Marketing
• Medias of social Marketing: YouTube, Facebook, LinkedIn, salient features
• Benefits of utilisation social marketing
• Selecting Target Audience for Social Marketing
• Career in social marketing
• Display Marketing: Meaning, process, benefits of display marketing
• Types of display marketing: Types of display advertisement, different advertisement formats
• Techniques of display marketing

Social Media Marketing: Meaning and Concept

Definition: Social media marketing (SMM) is the use of social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn and X (Twitter) to build a brand, connect with customers, increase website traffic and sales.

Concept: SMM is based on conversation and community. The brand shares posts, videos and stories; users like, comment and share; the brand replies and builds relationships. It includes both free (organic) posts and paid ads.

Steps Involved in Social Media Marketing

1. Set goals – awareness, followers, leads, sales.
2. Know the target audience – who they are and which platforms they use.
3. Choose platforms – e.g. Instagram for fashion, LinkedIn for B2B.
4. Study competitors – what content works for them.
5. Create a content plan/calendar – posts, reels, videos, stories with fixed timing.
6. Publish and engage – reply to comments and messages quickly.
7. Run paid campaigns where needed, with targeting and budget.
8. Measure and improve – reach, engagement rate, clicks, conversions, using platform insights.

Social Marketing vs Commercial Marketing

Social marketing means using marketing techniques to change people's behaviour for the good of society, not for profit. Examples: Swachh Bharat, "Do Boond Zindagi Ki" pulse polio campaign, anti-tobacco and road-safety messages.

Media of Social Marketing: YouTube, Facebook, LinkedIn – Salient Features

YouTube – video-sharing platform owned by Google. Features: long videos and Shorts, channels and subscribers, live streaming, video ads (skippable, non-skippable, bumper), analytics. Best for tutorials, product demos, brand stories.

Facebook – owned by Meta. Features: business pages, groups, Marketplace, Messenger, very detailed ad targeting (age, location, interests), shared ad system with Instagram. Best for reaching a wide consumer audience and local businesses.

LinkedIn – professional networking site owned by Microsoft. Features: company pages, professional profiles, articles, job posts, sponsored content and InMail ads targeted by job title, industry and company. Best for B2B marketing, recruitment and building professional image.

Benefits of Utilising Social Marketing

1. Low-cost reach to a very large audience.
2. Builds brand awareness and brand personality.
3. Direct two-way communication and quick customer service.
4. Precise targeting of paid ads.
5. Increases website traffic and sales.
6. Gives customer feedback and market insights.
7. Chance of viral spread and word of mouth.
8. Helps social causes reach people quickly.

Selecting Target Audience for Social Marketing

Steps: (1) define the purpose of the campaign; (2) segment people by demographics (age, gender, income, location), psychographics (interests, values) and behaviour (online habits, past purchases); (3) build audience personas; (4) find which platforms they use; (5) use platform tools – custom audiences (existing customer lists), lookalike audiences (people similar to existing customers), interest targeting; (6) test and refine using results.

Career in Social Marketing

Job roles: social media manager, content creator/influencer, social media strategist, community manager, copywriter, graphic designer, video editor, paid ads specialist, analytics executive, and freelancer for small businesses. Skills needed: creativity, writing, design and video tools, knowledge of platform ads, data analysis, and communication. Free certifications from Google, Meta and HubSpot help beginners.

Display Marketing: Meaning, Process and Benefits

Definition: Display marketing is online advertising through visual ads – banners, images, videos, animations – shown on websites, apps and social media, usually through ad networks such as the Google Display Network.

Process: (1) set goal (awareness, clicks, sales); (2) define target audience; (3) choose network and placements; (4) design ads in standard sizes with a clear call-to-action; (5) set budget and bidding (CPM – cost per thousand impressions, or CPC – cost per click); (6) launch; (7) track impressions, click-through rate (CTR = clicks ÷ impressions × 100) and conversions; (8) optimise.

Benefits: visual and attractive; wide reach across millions of sites; builds brand recall; precise targeting; retargeting of past visitors; measurable results.

Types of Display Marketing and Advertisement Formats

Types of display ads:

1. Site-placement ads – advertiser chooses the exact websites.
2. Contextual ads – shown on pages related to the ad's topic (cricket bat ad on a sports site).
3. Remarketing (retargeting) ads – shown to people who already visited the brand's website.
4. Social display ads – image/video ads on Facebook, Instagram.
5. Native ads – ads that look like the normal content of the site ("sponsored" articles).

Advertisement formats: static banner (image), animated (GIF/HTML5), rich-media (interactive – expand, play game), video ads (in-stream, out-stream), pop-up/interstitial (full-screen), and responsive ads that adjust size to the screen.

Techniques of Display Marketing

• Targeting – demographic, interest, location and device targeting.
• Retargeting – following up with past visitors.
• Programmatic buying – software buys ad space automatically in real time.
• A/B testing of designs and messages.
• Frequency capping – limiting how many times one person sees the ad to avoid irritation.
• Strong creative – clear image, short text, visible logo and call-to-action.

Likely exam questions

1. (Long, 8/16 marks) What is social media marketing? Explain the steps involved in social media marketing and distinguish between social marketing and commercial marketing.
2. (Long, 8/16 marks) What is display marketing? Explain its process, benefits, types and advertisement formats.
3. (Short, 4 marks) State the salient features of LinkedIn as a social marketing medium.
4. (Short, 4 marks) How is the target audience selected for social marketing?
5. (Short, 4 marks) What is remarketing (retargeting)?

Syllabus topics (RTMNU)

• Overview: Meaning of search engine marketing, objectives, types and procedure
• Search engine Optimisation: concept, process, goal setting in SEO
• Search Advertising: Meaning, benefits of Paid Search, basis of Ranking
• Creation of Google advertisement
• Augmented reality and virtual reality: Concept, utilisation of AR and VR, significance in marketing

Search Engine Marketing: Meaning and Objectives

Definition: Search engine marketing (SEM) is the process of increasing a website's visibility on search engine results pages (SERPs) such as Google and Bing. In a broad sense it includes both free (organic) methods – SEO and paid methods – search advertising/PPC. Many marketers use "SEM" for paid search only.

Objectives:

1. Increase visibility when people search for related products.
2. Bring more relevant traffic to the website.
3. Generate leads and sales at the moment of need.
4. Build brand awareness and trust.
5. Beat competitors on important keywords.
6. Measure results and get a good return on investment.

Types and Procedure of Search Engine Marketing

Other forms: local search marketing (Google Business Profile, "near me" searches) and shopping ads with product photos and prices.

Procedure of SEM: (1) set goals and budget; (2) keyword research – find words customers type, using tools like Google Keyword Planner; (3) optimise the website (SEO) and/or create paid ad campaigns; (4) prepare landing pages; (5) launch; (6) track clicks, CTR, cost per click, conversions; (7) improve keywords, bids and ads.

Search Engine Optimisation: Concept and Process

Concept: SEO is the practice of improving a website so that search engines understand it and rank it higher in organic results for relevant keywords. Search engines work in three steps: crawling (bots visit pages), indexing (pages stored in a database) and ranking (best pages shown first).

Process / types of SEO:

1. Keyword research – choose words with good search volume and fit, including long-tail keywords ("best coaching for B.Com in Nagpur").
2. On-page SEO – keywords in title tag, headings, meta description and URL; quality content; image alt-text; internal links.
3. Technical SEO – fast loading, mobile-friendly design, secure HTTPS, sitemap, no broken links.
4. Off-page SEO – backlinks (links from other reputable sites), social shares, online reviews, guest posts.
5. Local SEO – Google Business Profile with address, hours, photos and reviews.
6. Monitoring – track rankings and traffic with Google Search Console and Google Analytics.

White-hat vs black-hat SEO: white-hat follows search engine rules; black-hat uses tricks like keyword stuffing and paid spam links, which can get the site penalised.

Goal Setting in SEO

SEO goals should be SMART and linked to business goals. Examples:

• Increase organic traffic by 30% in 6 months.
• Rank on the first page for 10 chosen keywords.
• Increase leads/enquiries from organic search by 20%.
• Reduce bounce rate (visitors leaving after one page).
• Improve page speed and mobile score.

KPIs to track: organic sessions, keyword rankings, click-through rate, conversions, backlinks, bounce rate.

Search Advertising: Meaning and Benefits of Paid Search

Meaning: Search advertising means paying the search engine to show a text ad when a user searches for chosen keywords. It usually works on a pay-per-click basis through an auction. Google Ads is the most used platform in India.

Benefits of paid search:

1. Instant visibility at the top of results.
2. Reaches people with intent – they are already searching for the product.
3. Pay only for clicks; budget fully controlled (daily limit).
4. Precise targeting – keyword, location, time, device, language.
5. Measurable – every click and conversion is tracked.
6. Flexible – ads can be changed, paused or tested any time.
7. Useful for small businesses and local services.

Basis of Ranking in Search Ads

Ad position is not decided by money alone. Google uses Ad Rank, based mainly on:

1. Maximum bid – the most the advertiser will pay per click.
2. Quality Score (rated 1 to 10), which depends on expected click-through rate, ad relevance to the keyword, and landing-page experience.
3. Ad assets/extensions (call button, site links, location) and the search context (device, location, time).

Simple idea: Ad Rank ≈ Bid × Quality Score. So a relevant, good-quality ad with a lower bid can rank above a poor ad with a higher bid.

Creation of Google Advertisement

1. Create a Google Ads account with a Google ID and business details.
2. Choose the campaign goal – sales, leads, website traffic, awareness.
3. Select campaign type – Search, Display, Video (YouTube), Shopping, Performance Max etc.
4. Set location, language and audience targeting.
5. Set daily budget and bidding strategy (e.g. maximise clicks, target CPA).
6. Make ad groups and select keywords with match types (broad, phrase, exact) and negative keywords.
7. Write the ad – headlines, descriptions, final URL (landing page) and assets.
8. Add billing details and publish; after review the ad goes live.
9. Track results and optimise keywords, bids and ad text.

Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality: Concept

Augmented Reality (AR) adds digital images or information on top of the real world, seen through a phone camera or smart glasses. Example: Lenskart's 3D try-on of spectacles; furniture apps that place a sofa in your room; Instagram/Snapchat filters.

Virtual Reality (VR) creates a completely computer-made 3D world that the user enters with a VR headset. Example: virtual property tours, virtual test drives, virtual travel experiences.

Utilisation of AR and VR and Significance in Marketing

Uses: virtual try-on (clothes, make-up, glasses), product visualisation at home, virtual showrooms and store tours, real-estate and hotel walkthroughs, interactive ads and AR filters, virtual events and product launches, training of sales staff.

Significance:

1. Better customer experience – "try before you buy".
2. Higher engagement and brand recall.
3. Fewer product returns because customers know what they buy.
4. Higher conversion and sales.
5. Brand looks modern and innovative.
6. Reaches customers anywhere without a physical store.

Limitations: high development cost, need for good devices and internet, and possible discomfort with long VR use.

Likely exam questions

1. (Long, 8/16 marks) What is search engine marketing? Explain its objectives, types and procedure, and the process of search engine optimisation.
2. (Long, 8/16 marks) What is search advertising? Explain the benefits of paid search, the basis of ad ranking and the steps in creating a Google advertisement.
3. (Short, 4 marks) Distinguish between SEO and paid search (PPC).
4. (Short, 4 marks) What is Quality Score in Google Ads?
5. (Short, 4 marks) Distinguish between Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality.