We live in a world where personal devices know more about our preferences than our friends and family. A single post or tweet could elevate or depreciate the value of a product, service or brand in no time.  This is the power of digital marketing in driving growth and success to businesses.

Something that started simple with banner ads and email blasts has now unlocked endless possibilities with a data driven, creative approach backed by technology. In recent years, digital marketing has expanded beyond just social media posts and SEO, to serve as a foundation to customer engagement, growth and personalized solutions.

Numbers Speak: Why Digital Marketing is Essential?

There has been an evident growth in the global digital advertising spend, reflecting the growing importance of digital marketing strategies in enhancing the online presence of businesses. By the end of 2025, the global advertising investment is expected to reach around $740 billion-a steady increase from previous years. Marketers are adopting digital- first strategy rather than traditional advertising methods.

 A study conducted by Accenture revealed that around 91% of customers prefer brands offering personalized recommendations. This includes tailored email campaigns, creative web content etc., everything leading to conversions. If your brand doesn't appear in Google’s search engine results-processing over 8.5 billion searches per day- it's as if it is non-existent.

Immersive Brand Experiences Beyond Ads

Today, non- interactive TV and newspaper ads have lost their appeal. People now want to engage, interact and experience products, services or brand before making a decision. AR and VR campaigns provide an immersive experience to customers. It is interesting to witness how IKEA has enabled customers to try how the furniture would look in their spaces virtually, and Sephora letting their customers try makeup through AR before buying. Influencer marketing is dominant over traditional marketing where GenZ trusts and values the opinion of an influencer more than any conventional ad campaign.

Precision Marketing with AI & Automation

With integration of artificial intelligence (AI) in digital marketing, the decisions are no longer intuition based but rather smarter. Chatbots powered by AI could handle standard customer queries, improving 24/7 service. AI-powered email marketing tools performs audience segmentation, optimize send times and personalize subject lines to target specific audiences, enabling precision marketing. Customer behavior can be anticipated with predictive analytics tools. It is fascinating how platforms like Amazon could recommend products to users based on their shopping preferences.

Voice, Image & Video Content

The key lies in making the content short, visually appealing and easily discoverable through voice and visuals. Around 27% of global queries are through voice searches which necessitates conversational SEO.  Short video contents on YouTube, TikTok and Instagram reels have higher engagement rates compared to advertisement posts. New brands and products are more discoverable to customers through these online platforms. Google Lens enable cameras to turn into search engines allowing users to find their intended products and services.

Clicks to Conversion

The digital marketing strategy must convert brand visibility into tangible value for businesses. Every click and view matters, accounting to measurable outcomes. One of the oldest digital marketing tools, E-mail marketing, continues to deliver exceptional results with higher ROI. Retargeting Ads play a crucial role in converting potentials to leads. Platforms like Shopify directly integrates with social media and marketplaces to achieve easy conversion. Social commerce is expected to excel in global sales by 2026.

Balancing Personalization & Privacy

The move towards a cookie less internet has made marketers rely only on user provided data and ethical data practices. Personalization must be respectful and helpful building customer loyalty without being intrusive. Marketers must adhere to privacy regulations to collect, store and use data.

In the fast-moving world, digital marketing is all about understanding, connecting and adapting to the audiences and influencing their decisions. With digital marketing exploring new frontiers of social commerce, voice search, AR, VR, AI and automation, they help businesses operate and grow. The question isn’t about investing in digital marketing but how fast businesses can adapt to keep up with the pace!

Connect with us at: www.ektova.com to know more on the digital marketing opportunities for your business.