Advertising offline has been a traditional form of marketing since the beginning of time¾using billboards on busy highways and in popular cities to capture the essence of a company or specific product and creating a buzz for the consumer. Nowadays, we call this
offline marketing, as we now have online marketing too. With the creation and fast development of technology, a lot of consumers are now spending more time online¾they have a lot more options there when it comes to entertainment, shopping, communications, and downtime.
Offline Marketing
If you create brochures, flyers,
TV adverts, radio adverts, billboard displays, door-to-door sales, etc., then this falls under the offline marketing umbrella. These were all things that marketing companies did to create a buzz about a brand before technology was as advanced as it is today.
Pros
Offline marketing has a proven track record for being successful when trying to reach a specific demographic. For instance, for those who don’t use online services or the Internet much; the older generation, businessmen who don’t have the spare time to scroll the Internet, and those who prefer traditional forms of campaigns. It is in these types of campaigns that a lot of face-to-face interaction occurs, like word-of-mouth referrals, networking, expositions, and many other interactions.
Cons
Traditional forms of marketing are very expensive and can sometimes not be as cost-effective as they want to be. As a lot of consumers are now online, a lot of people don’t listen to the radio or watch TV as much as they used to, therefore, advertising on these platforms is essentially a waste of money. Also, with traditional forms of marketing, you can’t track how well your advertisement has done and where your new customers have come from in order to rank your marketing strategies from most useful to least. Nowadays, off-line marketing is seen as an interruption rather than an advertisement¾those who advertise on music streaming platforms, door-to-door, and on TV are essentially interrupting someone’s day to show their advert.
Online Marketing
Online marketing is what it says on the tin; using technology and online platforms to reach consumers in a fraction of the time that it would take to send something in the post. Forms of online marketing include social media pages, web-based advertising, and multimedia messages (also known as SMS campaigns).
Pros
A lot of online marketing campaigns can cost little to no amount of money. The use of social media platforms allows you to reach mass demographics within seconds, without having to invest any form of money first. A lot of online marketing companies spend a fraction of their marketing budget on social media influences; people who already have a platform of fans whom they could advertise to. For instance, with the rise in
cryptocurrency prices, it is no surprise that there are a number of celebrities and social media influencers who also invest in and advertise for the
cryptocurrency list. Using online marketing campaigns, such as Facebook ads, social media platforms, and mailing campaigns, allows companies to track where new customers come from and which campaign was the most successful, for future reference.
Cons
As it is done online, a disadvantage of online marketing is that there is little to no face-to-face interaction, which could make it harder to establish trust between a consumer and brand. Although a lot of the world is online, there is still a demographic that does not have access to online marketing if they don’t use the Internet. For instance, as cryptocurrency is 100% virtual, if people wanted to know the current
cryptocurrency prices, there would be no offline marketing for them to find this out from.
Conclusion
Overall, advertising offline and online both have their advantages and disadvantages. Offline marketing has years and years of experience, with a proven track record for marketing companies to look over and have faith in. However, online marketing is much newer and could be seen as high risk to those who want solid proof of its success. Although it may seem redundant for online industries to advertise off-ine, it can open up their marketing to a broader demographic that may be interested in their brand. For an online industry, the majority of advertising should be done online, as it is the most cost-effective method and also where the majority of your consumers will already be; a small fraction of the marketing budget could be spent off-line, with the purpose of broadening your niche audience. Technology is forever evolving, and more and more people are logging on as time goes by, so creating a relationship with consumers offline will make that transition to online a lot smoother and easier for both them and your brand.-
