As we can witness how the world is moving faster and getting diverse by the day, it is almost impossible to keep count of the number of brands there are in the market. Especially with the introduction of digitization, more and more startups have come up and people have started giving importance to marketing plans to stand out in the crowd. 

In the times of COVID-19, when businesses were shut down and only a certain number kept running, it has been realized that not every marketing strategy works for all businesses. Since each company has different services, resources, customer base, and objectives, they need a unique set of ideas to market their brand. So, in this article, we will take a look at why exactly brands need marketing strategies in the present world and their different types so that they complement each marketing plan according to individual companies’ goals. 

What are Marketing Strategies?

A marketing strategy is a set of marketing plans, steps, and idea structures that a company comes up with in order to increase its overall value in the market and rev up its profit margins. It is a strategic approach through which a brand is marketed effectively to its target audience. This includes an introduction and advertisement of the brand, its type, the services it offers, and the expression of the company’s ways of working, its message, core values, and ethics to the market and the public.

Basically, it is an opportunity for businesses to indulge in activities that help them identify their target audience and convert them into potential customers. This is done by collecting demographic data, personal information, purchasing behaviors, and creating a database of potential customers. All the steps taken in the process are centred upon how effectively the brand can satisfy the customers’ needs, promising the audience the best customer service, and making their experience worthwhile. 

Why do Brands Need Marketing Strategies?

Seeing how the business world is getting smarter and more ambitious, there is cutthroat competition in the market. There are more companies than products in the market, making the consumers confused about which brand to choose. And in order to make sure that it is your brand that gets chosen, marketing strategies are vitally important. 

To say the least, there are more than hundreds of ideas and plans available out there that are used to market a brand. But it is important to understand the fact that all the companies are different in their own way as each has different backgrounds, services, potential audiences, ethics, goals, etc. And because each brand has to collaborate on a unique set of marketing plans, ideas, activities, and ways of advertisements, is why brands need marketing strategies. 

Marketing strategies allow companies to efficiently create marketing agendas so that they can effectively reach their target audience and grow the customer base. It is, in short, an opportunity for businesses to sustainably consume their limited resources in a smarter way that yields more results. 

Types of  Marketing Strategies

According to the needs, available resources, customer base, advertising preferences, and goals, each and every company and brand needs a unique marketing strategy that meets its objectives sustainably. Here it follows:

Online Marketing

Since the worldwide lockdown when people were barred from stepping outside and forced to stay inside their homes, there has been a vast shift toward digitization. From basic necessities to entertainment, people took the help of the internet to get things done. Even in the field of business and marketing, entrepreneurs, tycoons, marketing specialists, etc. made their services available online so that they could survive. 

Online marketing is a type of marketing strategy that includes activities, ideas, and ads which can be seen on an electronic device with the help of the Internet. Content marketing, Email marketing, google ads, SEO marketing, pay-per-click ads, message marketing, and most importantly, social media marketing comes under the umbrella term “online marketing”. In this strategy, businesses and marketers identify their target audience and analyze where on the web their potential customers can be found most often. Then, they put up ads related to their products and services on web pages, websites, social media pages, etc. 

This way, the audience is continuously in contact with the brand and its offered services. And needless to say, online marketing is the most versatile marketing strategy that every business in the current situation should make use of. Social media marketing is a useful category, as it is one place where businesses can get a diverse audience. 

Cause Marketing

As the name suggests, this type of marketing is done by companies to show their support and contribution to a positive social cause by spreading awareness, raising funds, and doing charitable work. This helps the brand to express its core values and ethics to society as well as build a constructive image. 

While being a social campaign, it is also a very smart marketing strategy, as it directly focuses on triggering the moral aspect of people. And to a surprise, most people start purchasing from that particular brand just because they also support that social cause and it becomes their way of contributing towards it. 

Take the example of companies that sell sanitary pads, like Stayfree. Most of their marketing ideas revolve around the concept of promoting menstrual hygiene and breaking the stereotypes associated with periods. And for a long while, there has been a debate among women and famous personalities that indirectly helps these companies to gain more customers and profits.

Event Marketing

This type of marketing strategy is carried out by organizing shows, seminars, programs, conferences, or any kind of event, for that matter. Basically, these events are performed in a public space where it is accessible and practical for the audience to join. A set of activities are included in the event to introduce and promote the brand and its services. 

This allows the company’s employees to have direct face-to-face interaction with the target audience, helping them connect effectively and build personal long-term relationships. It maximizes exposure, generates leads, and increases the base of potential customers so that they can filter their target audience and spend their resources and efforts in the right direction. 

Emotional Marketing

This marketing strategy is mostly used by companies that sell basic household or necessary items. The goal of such tactics is to focus on one feeling, be it happy, sad, angry, patriotic, fearful, etc., and tap on it. The brand uses that one emotion and puts effort into triggering that emotion in people to make them identify with and notice the brand as they get sentimental.

Through this marketing strategy, the company tries to form a deep emotional connection with potential customers. Often we have seen ads for the food company named “Everest”. The tagline says, “Taste mein Best, Mummy aur Everest”. Here, the advertisement very smartly triggers our motherhood and makes use of that to influence customers. 

Reward Marketing

In this marketing strategy, people, target audience, and buyers are provided with some rewards in the form of coupons, discounts, points, virtual coins, etc. It gives people a compelling reason to make purchases from that company. For the people who already have made purchases, loyalty points are given which makes them even more wanting.

This marketing strategy can often be found in online payment apps. Customers get some points, cashback, or vouchers every time they use their service for making an online transaction. And truthfully, it is a major reason why people have started stepping out cashless.

Word of Mouth Marketing

This is the smartest and one of the most effective forms of marketing strategy. The key to applying this strategy lies in the ability to naturally manipulate people into putting out good words for the brand to their friends and family. That is what makes it an interesting concept.

It needs minimal effort into putting the plan together, though, the brand and its employees have to make sure that the consumers have had a satisfied customer experience. It creates a chain where people themselves after using the brand’s service refer it to other people. This goes on and on, which increases the potential customer base for the brand to convert them into actual customers.

Personal Marketing

In this marketing strategy, the employees and working staff of the company, collect personal information like address, members of the family, household needs, and purchasing behaviours of people and create a database. Then, the employees personally contact the target audience with the motive of selling their brand

Since the data consists of information about the person, the company modifies its approach accordingly. The employees use the collected information to give a personal and intimate touch to the conversation. This makes the customer feel special and the chances of them getting influenced increase.

Conclusion

Considering the above points of different marketing strategies and their examples, it can be therefore concluded that each and every type of marketing strategy has its own importance, purpose, and place. The way the customers have distinguished needs and wants, the company has different customer base, resources, and goals, and marketing strategies also have distinct features. 

Although, the important thing here is that the purpose of all these strategies is to provide the customers with a compelling reason and the uttermost satisfaction to increase the potential audience.