The digital marketing sphere is dynamic and changing. The advent of social media and mobile platforms and the traditional web have all created new opportunities for companies looking to reach customers online. It’s not surprising that new tools and metrics are emerging daily. With so many things competing for your attention and trying to shape strategy, it’s helpful for every team to have a framework in place as a guide for planning.
What is a digital strategy framework?
A digital strategy framework is a comprehensive plan that outlines how a business uses technology to achieve its goals. It’s a system that helps companies develop ways to use digital technologies to compete, innovate, and grow. This is especially crucial in an era where technology is fast changing. Below are three basic digital marketing models to help you create your own.
1. RACE Planning
The RACE Planning framework is centred on growing customers’ engagement with your brand across four key stages: Reach, Act, Convert, and Engage. Together, these form an acronym (R-A-C-E) that gives marketers a helpful way to think about the entire customer life cycle and how they can grow it over time.
Reach
The first stage is about expanding your presence and making your brand known to more people. You can accomplish this by optimising your website for various search results, engaging on social media, or leveraging advertising or paid promotion.
Act
The second stage is where you want your audience to do something that will drive them further into your marketing funnel (such as a click-through). You’ll focus on getting people to perform specific actions related to your brand and goals.
Convert
This is where you’re trying to get people to become paying customers or leads through free trials, discounts, and other offers.
Engage
This step involves fostering loyalty among returning customers to keep coming back for more instead of leaving for a competitor’s offer.
2. Marketing Funnel Framework
The marketing funnel is one of the most basic digital strategy frameworks. It’s a great way to illustrate the path a potential customer takes from being unaware of your product or service to make a purchase. The marketing funnel consists of four levels: Awareness, Interest, Consideration, and Action.
Awareness
The first step in the marketing funnel is awareness: The consumer becomes aware of the product. Usually, this occurs when they are exposed to an ad for a product, whether online or in real life. At this point, it might be a good idea to use a social media campaign to spread awareness about your product.
Interest
After the consumer becomes aware of your product, they start to develop an interest in it. This might happen by reading more detailed information about your product on your website or by visiting your social media pages and commenting on your company’s posts. It’s important to keep engaging with them at this point so that you don’t lose their attention!
Consideration
The consideration stage is when your prospects start considering their options with regard to solving their problem. They’ve narrowed down their options to a few companies and are now deciding which one will best meet their needs and solve their problems. Your job here is to convince them that you’re the best choice among their options.
Action
In this final stage, your prospects have decided that you are their best option for solving their problem, and it’s time for them to make a purchase or sign up for your services.
3. Flywheel Model
The Flywheel Model is an excellent framework for those just getting started with digital marketing. It helps with planning by focusing on the customer experience beyond the point of purchase. The model consists of three parts: Attract, Engage, and Delight.
Attract
In the Attract stage of the Flywheel Model, your goal is to attract customers interested in what you have to offer. You can attract customers by creating content that’s useful to them or by offering them benefits such as discounts or free trials.
Engage
In the Engage stage, your goal is to give customers a reason to return. You can accomplish this through social media, email campaigns, or personalised messaging via chat tools. When customers feel like they are being listened to and cared for, they will continue doing business with you over time.
Delight
Delighting customers means going above and beyond to give them a fantastic experience. This could mean offering free samples of products and providing coupons for future purchases.
Conclusion
There’s no one-size-fits-all approach to effective planning. It’s a process that changes as your organisation’s needs change. Your strategic goals should dictate what processes are effective and which ones might need some improvement.