How Digital Marketing Can Drive Retail Marketing ROI

You may know that integrating your marketing message across multiple channels helps to amplify your results and success. But if you haven’t done a full dive into an omnichannel approach yet—integrating your digital marketing with radio advertising, social media, and other marketing efforts for a seamless brand experience—it’s time to consider taking the plunge.

According to a Forbes Insights’ report, “A Split Screen: Online Information and a Human Touch,” almost half of retailers report that customers research big-purchase items online, and then visit the store to buy. In other words, customers are looking for an omnichannel experience—and not all retailers are providing one.

In that same report from Forbes, 73% of retailers describe omnichannel as important, but only 38% say they are past the beginning stages of their omnichannel journey. Automotive parts retailers are the farthest behind.

3 Big Ways Digital Can Boost Retail Marketing ROI

1. Ramp Up Mass Reach Results

When digital marketing becomes part of your integrated marketing strategy, you’ll find it helps to boost the power of other marketing investments, including your radio ad dollars.

Radio promotions can be designed to encourage online searches and drive audiences to your website or social pages for more information, special signups, limited offers, and more. If immediate action isn’t taken after hearing an ad, your radio spot can be what primes your target audience for engagement when they see your ads online later. The impact of your overall message builds—meaning you get the most benefit from your investment in both radio and digital.

2. Zero In on More Qualified Customers

You may rely on customers coming in the door, but targeting customers online with local search ads can help them find you in the first place. Research from Google shows that 50% of consumers who conducted a local search on their smartphone visited a store within a day, and 34% who searched on computer/tablet did the same.

Target your ads accordingly by specifying a particular neighborhood, zip code, city, region, or radius. Make sure that when potential customers are searching for solutions you provide, they find you—and your mobile-friendly website. Retargeting—whereby customers who have visited your website will be served your ad during later searches or on other sites—can help reinforce your message and send them back to your site.

3. Drive Engagement with Personalized Content

Not everyone wants the same thing from your business. In a previous blog post, we covered how personalization is much more than a marketing buzzword—people expect content and brand interactions to be relevant, interesting, and valuable. By fulfilling these expectations, providing consumers with personalized experiences can help drive related, unplanned engagements.

For example, if someone visits multiple articles on your blog covering mattress comparison and selection tips, you can tailor future email marketing to serve up related educational content or special mattress deals.

From an ROI perspective, digital marketing just makes sense for retailers—whether your business is in a big-purchase industry or not. Adding digital can help support and complement your radio advertising and other marketing efforts, while refining your reach and creating more valuable customer experiences.

It’s one thing to know an integrated marketing strategy is important, and another thing to put that knowledge to work for your marketing. Don’t drag your feet any longer! Click here to explore more digital marketing tips from our blog.