Nowadays, digital communication is inevitable in the communication strategy of a company.
Why ?
Well, did you know that out of 7.75 billion humans there are:
- 5.19 billion have a cell phone
- 4.54 billion have internet access
- 3.80 billion are on social networks
These figures come from the 2020 report of "WeAreSocial".
In this article, we will explain to you what digital communication is, why it is important in your communication strategy.
What is the
digital communication?
Digital communication is also known as “digital communication”. This refers to all the exchanges and information transmitted via all digital media. It defines communication strategies as well as actions carried out on the internet. This in order to transmit messages, results and even values to attract the attention of target Internet users and thus increase the visibility of a company. To simplify these few lines, digital communication looks at the interaction between Internet users and companies.
You should still know that digital communication is constantly evolving. And it should not be confused with digital marketing, which focuses on questions of offers and user experiences on the web.
What is a
communication strategy ?
Communication strategy is the process of selecting and implementing the actions necessary to achieve communication objectives. This process includes:
- Market analysis
- Definition of objectives
- Choice of target audience
- The design of the communication axis
- Developing the communication plan
- Finalizing the budget
The covid-19 crisis clearly shows that digital communication has become essential for all companies wishing to increase their visibility in several ways. Thanks to its new tools, it is no longer necessary to have a wealth of technical knowledge to find a place on the web. A new generation of digital elements that are more intuitive, simpler and easier to access allow you to communicate easily online.
Why is digital communication important
in your communication strategy?
In the context of increasingly close connections between consumers, the implementation of digital communication becomes an important step in the development of a company.
For example: if your future customers use the web to guide their customers and service providers, wouldn't it be a shame not to be present on the internet?
Indeed, this is unthinkable for a company wishing to continue its activities without deploying them on the internet and / or social networks. In addition, digital communication offers a large number of advantages and allows:
- Improving the visibility of a company
- The development of an online business
- Controlling My Online Business Reputation
- The use of targeted advertising while controlling the budget
- Specific monitoring of investment returns
- Competitive intelligence and business development
The closer the communication is to its objectives, the more effective it is. This will be effective, because it will grab the attention of the intended target, and because the content will be shared and broadcast after its initial broadcast.
What are the challenges of
digital communication?
The web has become the main source of information before a purchase. Indeed, it has been proven that 81 % of consumers research on the internet before making their purchases. This is when we realize that the challenges of digital communication are sizeable.
First of all, it is important to know your target as well as their expectations. As written a little above, digital communication must be as close as possible to the expectations of its target to be effective. Done well, it can bring success. Otherwise, it can create unnecessary expense and waste of time.
To avoid this inconvenience, here are the 3 main challenges of digital communication:
- Visibility and notoriety
For a company to gain visibility and notoriety, it is important that the latter multiply the distribution channels. It must also create and publish relevant content, but above all visible. This offers an opportunity that should not be overlooked. To achieve its objectives and thus gain visibility, SEO is the first step to put in place. This is possible by creating a website, by being present on social networks, by carrying out a communication campaign ...
- Improving the customer experience
Here is the second step that cannot be ignored: improving the customer experience. Indeed, a consumer takes pleasure when making a purchase. It is therefore important to create a unique and personalized experience. For this, it is strongly recommended to build a real animation of communities. It simply consists of animating the various social networks such as Facebook, LinkedIn, etc.
As a result, the company will be able to establish a real relationship with customers by:
- Showing up to listen;
- By reacting to comments;
- By developing a community.
- Loyalty and sustainable development with customers
In order to face the competition, developing an engaging content strategy is essential. With this, the company will be able to feed its various communication channels with personalized content. This method is known as "Storytelling". The goal is to create emotion for Internet users forever, but also so that they can identify more easily with the company. It is also interesting to arouse their curiosity in order to create a lasting relationship with each of the clients.
For more loyalty, it may be wise to set up a loyalty program.
What are the different
digital communication channels?
As you have understood, if a company wants to convey information, it must disseminate its message using one or more communication channels. These are established according to its target, its expectations and its budget.
To summarize the list, here are the 7 main communication channels:
- The media;
- Paper supports;
- The website ;
- Social networks ;
- The blog ;
- The e-mailing;
- Trade shows and fairs.
It is very important to choose the most suitable medium for your target audience. Indeed, let's take a small example: carrying out a campaign to sell a product intended for the elderly will have much less impact on social networks. Therefore, it is essential to accurately understand the operating environment of the business and the products.