Why Legacy Promotion Is Only Costing You More

We currently live in the digital age, and despite this, many public companies in traditional industries are spending large amounts of money anywhere from one hundred thousand dollars to one million, sometimes more, on legacy marketing and promotional campaigns which simply do not attain the same results anymore. Public companies, both new and established, need to adopt technology driven digital marketing techniques to build an omni-present brand and following. The digital space is highly competitive, and while there isn’t a simple answer to create the ultimate marketing campaign, it seems that many public companies take the approach of “more is better”.

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Overconsumption is something which lives and breathes in most countries throughout the world. It is something which humans have become very competent at, particularly as technology has evolved in the last 15 years. Whether that be overconsumption of information, food, alcohol, or even shoes (who doesn't love that new shoe smell?). Because of this, companies have convinced themselves that the more ‘in your face’ the marketing and promotion is, the more successful it is. Therefore, they will continue to put ads in newspapers, on TV and radio, hard mail letters/brochures through your door etc. which ends up costing them significant amounts of money.

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It is evident that traditional marketing techniques are still effective however it is very much dependent on the product or service offered along with the target audience. Pizza Hut for example is consumed by many all over the world, regardless of age, race, sex, etc. and so their marketing campaigns need to encompass legacy and digital in order to maximize brand awareness - spending millions of dollars for a TV ad during the Super Bowl is worthwhile! On the other hand, if you're a SaaS start-up, your brand awareness will begin in the digital landscape and will continue there as it grows (at least for the majority). Spending exorbitant amounts on legacy marketing, which many companies still do that shouldn't, is costing them money and consumers and followers (so more money!).

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Promotion in the Modern Era

The digital age is upon us! It has been for a while now and will be for a long time - the opportunity it presents for the success of your company brand cannot be understated so use it to your advantage. Utilizing social media platforms and digital ads has shown to get companies significantly more results based on their spend than conventional ‘old style’ advertising. If you spent $5.5 million on well designed social media advertising, rather than a 30 second ad spot during the 2021 Super Bowl, it is almost a certainty you would see better returns. At the very least you will be able to measure the results more accurately which provides your team with extremely valuable insights and data for the following campaigns.

The key to promotion in the modern era is creating quality content that is valuable to the consumer. There’s a phrase in the online marketing world, and that is “content is king”. Original copywriting and effectively optimized images will lead to online posts ranking and being shared organically. This to some extent has become less of a strong tactic in recent years as the internet becomes engulfed in blogs and people creating mass amounts of content. However, it is still effective in small niche areas.

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The latest digital content to become "king" is video. It is an area which is often ignored due to the complexity of doing it well. Plus it's awkward and most people cringe at their own voice let alone the sight of themselves on video so there is a fear that must first be tamed. Once that fear is overcome, ironically by posting more and more videos of one's self, the success will have you wondering why it took you so long. YouTubers and TikTokers should be evidence enough that video content is ‘over-consumed’ in mass amounts. The publics' hunger for video content is such that content-based companies such as Instagram have integrated video (reels) into their platforms and what's more, they've changed their algorithms to "favor" it. Our over-consumption of content won't change however what we consume will and for now video is a great way to use experimental marketing and boost huge viewership.

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Whether you're in digital marketing, a company trying to market, or just here as a consumer, it is clear that due to quick-changing technology and marketing landscapes, there are many businesses that aren't doing a good job of using modern day digital marketing to their advantage. These companies are spending significant amounts of money on traditional marketing means, achieving the same lackluster results, and not attracting any of the estimated 4.5 billion people online. Early adapters to web and social media use understand the benefits it has provided and they will continue to be early adopters of the next trends as we evolve so it is imperative to the success of your company that you modernize your business.

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