The rise of platform businesses is on everyone’s lips. How did a young company like Airbnb provide more rooms than the biggest hotel chains in the world without owning a single hotel, how did it provide more than 4,000 rooms in Cuba while other hoteliers are still looking into entering the market, and how did it accomplish all of this in a matter of years while it took some of its rivals literally a century to establish themselves?
The solution is very straightforward: platform businesses use a different business model that allows them to scale much more quickly by generating network effects. Platforms create value by luring, matching, and connecting diverse groups of customers to enable them to transact, as opposed to traditional businesses, which operate in a linear process with total control over the value chain from beginning to end.
Why are marketing platforms important?
Marketing platforms are crucial for contemporary businesses for a number of reasons, including:
What is a marketing platform?
A marketing platform is a device that connects businesses with consumers and fosters community, engagement, and awareness. An effective marketing platform should allow businesses to develop relationships with customers as its first objective. The second objective is to empower businesses to turn prospects into clients and offer goods and services. Using a marketing platform, businesses can target specific customers and send them tailored marketing messages.
With the help of digital marketing tools, businesses can connect with a large number of consumers and possibly grow their audience through public comments and shares. Examples of platforms include email programs, content creation software, and social media websites. These platforms enable businesses to carry out a variety of business and technological tasks, including online purchases, optimization, and performance data tracking.
Types of marketing platforms
To assist marketers in enhancing the sales process and raising visibility, a variety of marketing platforms are available, such as:
Email marketing platforms
With the help of email marketing, businesses can create a community of prospective customers and existing ones who are interested in receiving sales and promotions. As a result, it works well for raising brand recognition and boosting conversion rates. Email marketing platforms may also provide businesses with comprehensive data analysis to aid in assessing the efficacy of particular marketing initiatives, including email open rates, customer conversion rates, and split testing.
Social media marketing platforms
Social media platforms give businesses the chance to reach prospects with highly targeted marketing messages and ads, foster community, and share inspiring case studies. They enable companies to interact directly with customers in order to develop customer loyalty and a referral network. Utilizing social media platforms, brands can produce interesting content that users will want to share, potentially increasing brand recognition.
Content marketing platforms
Platforms for content marketing allow businesses to tailor their marketing messages to each stage of the buyer’s journey. For instance, blog or social media posts can educate customers about a business’s goods and services when they are still in the research stage of their purchasing process. For customers who are interested in the deals, other posts can share purchase links and offer endorsements. Due to the ability to target prospects through a single marketing channel, this can help businesses market more effectively.
Search engine optimization marketing
The effectiveness of content marketing may be improved by search engine optimization (SEO). In order to optimize content and raise ratings, marketers use other SEO techniques as well as highly targeted keywords in their online content. Considering that the most popular websites typically perform better in online searches, investing in SEO marketing may increase sales.
Video marketing platforms
A form of content marketing called video marketing focuses on the creation of video content. Businesses can establish stronger connections with their customers through video marketing. Companies may be able to create more interesting and successful video marketing strategies by using responsive videos.
Brand collaboration and influencer marketing
Through the use of social media and online tools, brands can collaborate with other brands, celebrities, and experts to promote products and influence purchasing decisions. The marketing impact of each company involved could be doubled by focusing on the customers of two or more businesses. For instance, to promote their products, a digital camera manufacturer might collaborate with a supplier of sporting goods. With the brand’s digital camera, users could record and share videos of sporting goods, helping both businesses raise brand awareness and perhaps even boost sales.
Online marketplaces
Online marketplaces are e-commerce sites that connect sellers with buyers. Several massive online stores let consumers buy products from distributors. Other online markets enable proprietors of small businesses to create goods, sell them, and locate consumers to buy their goods. They might also make it possible for businesses to sell both physical and digital goods.
Service-oriented platforms
Some platforms link service providers and consumers directly and include the back-end server components required for completing sales. Through the use of this kind of service platform, businesses can outsource the development of their complex technological infrastructure. For instance, customers can use service-oriented platforms to book hotel or apartment rentals. The website might make it possible for landlords to get in touch with people looking to rent rooms. A food delivery service that links restaurants and delivery drivers is an additional illustration of a service-oriented platform. This service enables restaurants to offer food delivery without adding additional staff.
Pay-per-click (PPC)
With pay-per-click, advertisers can buy advertisements on other websites or search engines to draw in potential customers. PPC ads are not affected by algorithm changes, which can make this marketing tool resilient. There are several other benefits of PPC advertising, such as:
All-in-one marketing platforms
Businesses can choose from a range of integrated marketing solutions thanks to all-in-one marketing platforms. For instance, they could offer split testing, site analytics, email marketing, lead management, event management, websites, and landing pages. Although these platforms offer a wide range of services, they frequently focus on one or two particular areas of their service offering.
Google Marketing Platform Introduction
FAQ
What is the best marketing platform?
- HubSpot.
- Marketo Engage.
- MailChimp.
- SharpSpring.
- Keap.
- SendinBlue.
- Zoho.
- Pardot.
What platforms are used for marketing?
- Facebook.
- Twitter.
- Instagram.
- LinkedIn.
- Snapchat.
- Pinterest.
What is a platform in advertising?
A company or advertising agency can use an advertising platform independently or not to manage and control online advertising campaigns. Thus, without having to deal with an advertising agency or a medium, the user of an advertising platform can design and oversee his advertising campaigns.
What is social media marketing platforms?
The use of social media platforms to engage with your audience in order to develop your brand, boost sales, and increase website traffic is known as social media marketing.
