Social Media Marketing vs Digital Marketing- The 4 Major Differences

If you are also wondering about Social Media Marketing vs Digital Marketing- let’s all find out now.

Digital marketing and social media are often confused in the minds of consumers. It’s a common misconception that social media advertising is digital marketing, however, this is untrue.

All types of marketing strategies that a company can use to promote itself online fall under the broad phrase “digital marketing.” Social media marketing is merely one of several digital marketing mediums.

Everybody uses social media in their online activities. Facebook, Instagram, Tik Tok, Twitter, YouTube, and LinkedIn are all well-known to everyone with internet access. These social media platforms are used in digital marketing to raise brand visibility and engagement. The term “social media marketing” is too easily misunderstood in the general digital era.

Every experienced businessman knows that to reach their customers, they must go to them.

Therefore, to advertise their services or products, brands engage in a variety of digital marketing activities, both online and offline. These activities are collectively referred to as digital marketing. On the other hand, one of the digital media marketing platforms is social media marketing. Social media networks like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and others are used for marketing.

Let’s look at the differences between digital marketing and social media marketing.

Digital Marketing vs Social Media Marketing

Digital marketing and social media marketing are both forms of internet marketing. Their goals are similar – generate profit – but the execution varies, from planning and communication to the tools used.

What precisely is digital marketing?

The act of promoting products and services to maximize their profitability is referred to as marketing in the dictionary. You can alter the definition by including the word “digital,” which refers to the activity or business of advertising products and services online to boost their profitability.

Putting aside the technical terminology, digital marketing is basically about using a tailored combination of digital marketing channels to achieve any of the following objectives:

• Growing your sales and profit
• Build awareness and develop a relationship with your audience
• Add Value: Implement inbound marketing strategies that will cause customers to seek you out
• Promote your brand, product, or service
• And much more

While social media marketing is focused on social media platforms, digital marketing encompasses more of the digital medium as well as the offline world, including SMS, radio, and television. Any brand plan must include digital marketing. It makes a business known through numerous channels available to internet consumers, of which there are currently over 4.70 billion worldwide. To achieve your goals, keep in mind that not all of the different digital marketing platforms are necessary. Instead, you will create a distinctive mix of digital marketing channels that are suitable for your business, your target audience, and your budget.

Digital Marketing platforms

Digital marketing relies on digital technologies to deliver information on what people are looking for, regardless of where they are located. It assists both present and prospective customers in locating and purchasing a product or service.

While you can learn more about the finest digital marketing techniques later, any strong digital marketing strategy will have all or part of the following elements.

• Search Engine Marketing (SEM)
• Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
• Pay Per Click Advertising
• Video Marketing
• Email Marketing
• Affiliate Marketing
• Social Media Marketing
• Content Marketing and Curation
• Mobile Marketing

Digital marketers develop a plan for each channel, which may or may not include all of the above, depending on the budget, target audience, and brand values. They conduct marketing research to determine which kind of clients will purchase the product. They also investigate channels/components that will be advantageous and make improvements based on results from Web Analytics. They have the authority to decide which components of a marketing campaign should be removed if they do not achieve the intended ROI.

Customers nowadays like to do their homework before purchasing a product, thus digital marketing is essential. Businesses use this type of marketing to address client pain points and provide better information than their competitors.

Does digital marketing extend beyond the internet?

Yes. When you advertise a business online, whether through Twitter, email marketing, or SEO, you are engaging in digital marketing. However, several additional platforms and channels use digital marketing, including television, radio, and even digital billboards and signage. You are theoretically using digital marketing if you run a restaurant and display your daily specials on a digital sign outside.

The majority of businesses, however, are relying more on Internet-related parts of digital marketing, such as SEO, PPC, emails, banners, content, web, mobile, and, yes, social media, because consumers do so much of their research, browsing, and shopping online these days. Generally speaking, developing a digital marketing plan requires time, and outcomes are rarely immediate.

What exactly is social media marketing?

Just to be clear, social media marketing is only one part of the digital marketing mix. It simply refers to advertising goods and services on social networking platforms like Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Google+, and YouTube. Engagement with followers, identifying influencers, running contests, sharing content, live-streaming, and any other tactics you might use to draw attention to a tweet or an update are typical components.

Many businesses and brands can see faster results from their social media campaigns when compared to other forms of digital marketing, but it’s frequently insufficient. Because of this, brands and businesses must use social media in conjunction with as many other aspects of their marketing strategies as possible.

Likewise, social media marketing is a part of a bigger digital marketing plan. When done correctly, it is the most powerful element when used as a whole. Customers do want a close relationship with their favorite brands, after all. Target audiences can engage with the company through social media channels in a more individualized way.

On social media, when a brand engages with a customer, everyone can see it. Social media networks are also the ideal places to discover brand devotees who fervently support the company’s mission and products. Anyone who visits the brand’s page on a relevant social media platform can see the conversation (comments and likes) or learn about it through word-of-mouth advertising.

They can decide to buy or simply follow it depending on these considerations. The main distinction between social media marketing and digital marketing is in their communication tactics. In digital marketing, for example, the tone of a brand’s website content is consistent, highly educational, and not overly salesy, but on the correct social media outlet, the tone can be lighter and cheerful encouraging the audience to react promptly, even if they don’t buy the products and services.

Read Also: Social Media Marketing Tools That Will Triple Your Results

Social Media Platforms

Choosing the correct social media platform(s) for business can make or break a social media strategy. Some of the most popular channels are listed below.

• Facebook
• YouTube
• Instagram
• TikTok
• Reddit
• Twitter
• LinkedIn
• Quora
• Snapchat
• Pinterest
• Discord
• WhatsApp
• Tumblr

Social media allows businesses to fulfill their goals, however, the importance of each goal may not be assigned equally. Increasing website traffic may not be as crucial as raising brand recognition or engaging customers. Creating social media content varies depending on the sector. The channels to be used are determined by live videos, tales, photos, and reels, as well as the brand voice and industry competitors.

Read Also: Is Social Media Marketing an Effective Marketing Strategy?

Social Media Marketing vs Digital Marketing- The Differences

So, what distinguishes social media from digital marketing? The quick answer is that SEO, Email Marketing, Content Marketing, Public Relations, social media, and other types of marketing fall under the banner of digital marketing. One of the various platforms that make up a digital marketing campaign is social media.

Even by those who work in these fields, the terms “digital marketing” and “social media marketing” are frequently used interchangeably. Some people who use simply social media may even think they are doing digital marketing.

However, if you are involved in “digital marketing,” you are likely using several digital marketing channels. For instance, your company might develop a digital marketing plan that incorporates social media, email marketing, SEO, and content marketing.

Let’s go over the key differences between the two

Digital Marketing

• Promotes the brand through both online and offline media.
• Reaches the intended audience through the website, social media handle(s), email, and all digital platforms.
• Increases business awareness to increase website traffic, and measure the performance of content, social media, and media.
• It takes time to plan a long-term strategy across multiple channels.

Social Media Marketing

• Uses social media outlets but does not expand beyond the internet
• Only reaches target audience through social media platforms
• Concentrates on engaging audiences directly through social media accounts, as well as influencers, and measures customer engagement
• It takes less time to create and implement a strategy that works right away.

So, which is better: Digital or Social Marketing?

A modern business needs both. Any brand or organization must have a digital marketing strategy, as well as social media marketing too, but the latter is not a necessity.

Social media has a lead-to-close rate that is 100% greater on average on HubSpot than outbound marketing strategies. This might be the case since every update you make and every conversation you have on social media presents a chance to turn a prospective client into a satisfied client.

Many of these digital marketing strategies allow you to attract customers rather than having to actively seek them out as you might on social media. Brian Halligan, CEO of HubSpot, has given this new marketing strategy the name “inbound marketing.” Inbound marketing strategies like SEO and content marketing are frequently quite successful in boosting ROI over time and building brand equity.

By implementing inbound marketing through your website, you can control your data. It may surprise you to learn that not everyone has an Instagram account. Although it might take longer, combining several digital marketing channels into your strategy will help you reach a bigger audience and create a more thorough marketing funnel.

Conclusion

Social media marketing and digital marketing are interdependent. To identify appropriate channels and maximize earnings from your marketing activities, both demand research into the marketing sector and your own company. So, take some time and have a look into the Social Media Marketing Tools That Will Improve Your Marketing Strategy, to see which marketing tools best suit your marketing goals.

Read Also: What Affiliate Marketing Is, How It Works and How To Make money with It