What Is Online Marketing? Learn Tools, Tips, and Winning Tactics

Online marketing (also called digital marketing or internet marketing) is the practice of leveraging digital channels to spread a message about a brand, product, or service to a target audience.

While traditional marketing methods like TV and direct mail have limited reach, online marketing can target local, regional, national, or global audiences.

By reaching buyers through channels where they already spend time—whether social media , search engines, or email—businesses of all sizes can create and maintain profitable relationships.

7 Online Marketing Channels You Need to Know

It involves choosing strategic keywords, crafting valuable content, optimizing technical website factors, and attracting backlinks, among other important factors. The goal is for pages on your website to appear high in search results for relevant keywords.

For example, pet brands Chewy, The Foggy Dog, and Ruffwear have optimized their sites for terms related to dogs. You can see they compete for the term “dog collars” at the top of the search engine results page (SERP) :

While there are many aspects involved, the crux of basic SEO is fulfilling users’ search needs by creating relevant, high-quality content and providing great user experiences.

Social media marketing involves leveraging popular social networks to build brand identity and achieve marketing goals.

As part of your digital marketing strategy, you can use platforms like Facebook , Twitter, TikTok , Instagram , and LinkedIn to:

For example, U.K. wireless network operator GiffGaff used Twitter to promote a competition for a new product:

Social media marketing also includes social media advertising , where you can pay to have your content appear in front of targeted users.

Affordability . Email is free, and email marketing tools are generally affordable. You can send a huge volume of content for little to no cost.

The popularity of email marketing makes it a competitive field. You’ll need a thoughtful, data-driven strategy to stand out in consumers’ inboxes.

Online advertising includes avenues like paid search , social media ads , display ads , and shopping ads . These techniques let you pay to put your business in front of highly targeted internet users on search engines, social media, websites, and similar platforms.

Paid search ads appear on SERPs above organic results when users look for related terms. For example, search “online florist” on Google and you’ll get something like this:

Almost all the results in the image above are “sponsored.” In other words, they’re Google pay-per-click (PPC) ads.

Businesses can also pay to advertise on social media sites. Major social media platforms all have advertising options, allowing you to target precise sections of their users.

Content marketing is the process of creating and distributing valuable, relevant content. The aim is to expand, engage, and retain a target audience of potential or existing customers.

For example, our own blog offers plenty of advice, how-tos, and tools. And it’s a form of content marketing.

A well-executed content marketing strategy will make your brand stand out to web users at all stages of the customer journey, from research to conversion and beyond.

Influencer marketing is when brands collaborate with individuals who have a sizable and engaged following online to promote their brands, products, and services online.

For example, U.S. rail operator Amtrak uses influencers to promote its Pacific Surfliner service on Instagram:

Consider this tactic a way to borrow another person’s audience. You’ll typically need to pay and make it clear your content is sponsored—hence the inclusion of “#Ad” in the example above.

Affiliate marketing is a performance-based advertising method where businesses pay a commission on conversions to an affiliate.

You may see subtle notes about affiliate marketing on media sites, like this one on the tech review site Pocket-lint :

That means businesses (likely retailers or the manufacturers of the featured tech) have arranged to have Pocket-lint promote their products.

Affiliate marketing is similar to influencer marketing in that a brand is relying on someone else’s audience. The difference is you only pay affiliates for successful sales, where influencers generally get paid for exposure.

No matter the size of your audience of marketers and business owners, our Program is your gateway to kickstart your affiliate marketing endeavors.

Explore enticing commissions, enjoy consistent support, and be part of a trusted affiliate marketing program that has earned the loyalty of thousands!

Digital marketing has many benefits over its traditional equivalents. Here are some of the most significant ones to consider.

Global Reach

DataReportal reports there are 5.16 billion internet users globally, meaning 64.4% of the world’s population is online.

It’s virtually impossible to match that level of potential reach with traditional business marketing methods, which also tend to be more expensive.

For example, a direct mailer could cost you $250 per 1,000 flyers. And there’s no perfectly reliable way of knowing whether you’re putting them in the right mailboxes.

In contrast, Shopify says the average cost per mille (CPM)—the cost per 1,000 impressions—for Facebook ads is just over $12. And Facebook allows precise targeting so you know exactly who you’re reaching.

Cost Efficiency

Considering lack of budget is one of the top marketing challenges for small businesses, these potential cost savings are important.

It’s telling that most businesses maintain or increase their marketing spending, even if they start out small. For example, only 3% of respondents in our State of Content Marketing: 2023 Global Report said they planned to decrease their content budgets.

Measurability

Many online marketing tools allow you to track and analyze performance. They also paint a much clearer picture than you’d get from counting the calls you receive after a TV or radio ad airs.

Data from online marketing shows what works and what doesn’t. So you can spend your budget more effectively with each campaign.

For example, you can use Google Search Console to track your organic CTR (click-through rate), or the percentage of users who click on your website from the SERP. As well as keyword rankings, organic clicks, and impressions.

You can set up your Google Analytics dashboard to track other metrics, such as traffic and bounce rates. And see how they impact your overall marketing goals.

Versatility

Rather than focus on one channel, you can use a range of different platforms that complement one another.

Say you create a “how-to” blog post for the largest section of your audience but want to reach a smaller segment, too. You can use key takeaways to craft a shorter community post for Quora or a shareable social media graphic.

Targeting Accuracy

Online marketing lets you target incredibly specific audiences so you can deliver more personalized, relevant interactions.

According to one McKinsey study, 71% of consumers expect companies to deliver personalized interactions. And 76% get frustrated when that doesn’t happen.

Cole Haan uses customer data—like purchase histories and browsing patterns—to recommend relevant products in marketing emails:

Such specific targeting isn’t possible with traditional marketing platforms like TV ads and billboards. You’d need to take a broader approach, which is less relevant and therefore less likely to engage your ideal demographic.