What is Digital Marketing? A Comprehensive 2024 Guide

Digital marketing is the practice of promoting products or services through online channels and electronic devices. When exploring what is digital marketing, businesses find that it encompasses every promotional effort performed on the internet, including search engines, social media, email, and websites. Modern consumers rely on digital platforms to discover new brands and make purchasing decisions. According to data from WordStream, the global digital advertising and marketing market reached an estimated $667 billion in 2024. This figure represents a significant portion of total global advertising spend, as businesses continue to shift budgets away from traditional print and broadcast media.

Business owners often ask digital marketing what strategies will help them reach local customers more effectively. Research from Visual Objects indicates that 76% of consumers look for a company online before visiting a physical store location. This behavior makes a digital presence a primary requirement for small businesses. Digital channels allow for precise targeting, which ensures that marketing messages reach specific demographics based on their interests, location, and online behavior.

Core Pillars of a Digital Marketing Strategy

Digital marketing functions through several distinct channels that work together to attract and retain customers. Each pillar serves a specific purpose in the customer journey.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Search Engine Optimization is the process of improving a website to increase its visibility in organic search results. This strategy focuses on ranking for specific keywords that potential customers use when looking for products or services. According to Emailmonday, the average ROI for SEO in the three years leading to late 2024 was 825%.

SEO involves three primary components:

1. On-Page SEO: Optimizing individual web pages, including content, headings, and metadata.

2. Technical SEO: Improving the backend structure of a site, such as page speed, mobile responsiveness, and site security.

3. Off-Page SEO: Building the website’s authority through external signals like backlinks from other reputable sites.

Organic search accounts for 40.9% of the global digital advertising and marketing market, as reported by WordStream. Unlike paid advertising, SEO provides long-term results without a direct cost for every click.

Pay-Per-Click Advertising (PPC)

PPC is a model of internet marketing where advertisers pay a fee each time one of their ads is clicked. The most common form is search engine advertising, such as Google Ads. Search advertising spend reached approximately $132 billion in 2024 according to WordStream.

PPC provides immediate visibility. While SEO takes months to produce significant traffic, a PPC campaign can place a business at the top of search results within hours. Google estimates that for every $1 spent on Google Ads, businesses see an average profit of $8. This high level of predictability makes PPC a standard choice for businesses looking to scale their lead generation quickly.

Content Marketing

Content marketing involves creating and distributing valuable, relevant, and consistent material to attract a clearly defined audience. This includes blog posts, videos, infographics, and whitepapers. Forbes Advisor reports that the three most popular content formats in 2024 are short-form articles, videos, and in-person events.

Content serves as the foundation for other digital marketing channels. SEO requires high-quality written content to rank in search results, while social media relies on engaging visuals and videos to capture user attention. Data from the Content Marketing Institute shows that 72% of successful companies track the ROI of their content marketing, compared to only 22% of less successful firms.

Social Media Marketing

Social media marketing uses platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok to build a brand, increase sales, and drive website traffic. As of July 2024, 5.17 billion people, or 64% of the global population, are active social media users according to Statista.

Small businesses use social media to engage directly with their audience through comments, direct messages, and live videos. HubSpot research indicates that Facebook and Instagram currently offer the highest ROI for marketers. Furthermore, social commerce is expanding, with 52% of social media users making a purchase directly through a platform in 2024.

Email Marketing

Email marketing remains one of the most effective digital channels for customer retention and lead nurturing. It provides a direct line of communication with people who have already expressed interest in a business by signing up for a newsletter or making a purchase.

According to Litmus and MailerLite, email marketing generates an average return of $36 to $42 for every $1 spent. This ROI is higher than any other digital marketing channel. Automated email campaigns, such as welcome sequences or abandoned cart reminders, increase revenue by 320% compared to non-automated emails.

The Growth of Mobile and Video Marketing in 2024

The way consumers access the internet has shifted heavily toward mobile devices and video consumption. These trends dictate how businesses must format their digital marketing materials.

Mobile-First Marketing

Mobile advertising accounts for over 60% of total digital advertising spend. In 2024, mobile ad spend is expected to approach $400 billion. Marketers focus on mobile-first strategies because more than half of all web traffic now originates from smartphones.

Mobile marketing includes:

In-app advertisements. SMS marketing. Location-based services that trigger ads when a user is near a physical store.

A study mentioned by WordStream found that consumers are 35 times more likely to open mobile messages than emails, highlighting the immediacy of mobile communication.

Short-Form Video Dominance

Video content is predicted to account for 80% of all internet traffic in 2024. Short-form videos, typically under 60 seconds, are the most used format by marketers and offer the highest ROI. Platforms like TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube Shorts have changed how brands present information.

HubSpot reports that 56% of marketers plan to increase their investment in short-form video throughout 2024. This format is particularly effective for small businesses because authenticity often outweighs high production quality. Simple videos showcasing a product in use or a behind-the-scenes look at operations can generate significant engagement.

Measuring Digital Marketing Performance

One major advantage of digital marketing over traditional methods is the ability to track performance with high precision. Business owners can see exactly where their traffic comes from and which actions users take on their websites.

Key Metrics to Track

To understand the effectiveness of a campaign, businesses monitor several Key Performance Indicators (KPIs):

Conversion Rate: The percentage of visitors who complete a desired action, such as making a purchase or filling out a contact form. Cost Per Acquisition (CPA): The total cost of a campaign divided by the number of customers acquired. Click-Through Rate (CTR): The ratio of users who click on a specific link to the number of total users who view an ad or email.

• Return on Ad Spend (ROAS): The amount of revenue generated for every dollar spent on advertising.

According to a report by the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB), digital advertising revenue grew by 15% year-over-year in 2024. This growth is driven by the ability of marketers to use data-driven insights to refine their strategies in real-time.

The Shift Toward First-Party Data

Privacy regulations and technical changes, such as the phasing out of third-party cookies, have changed how marketers collect data. In 2024, businesses are pivoting toward first-party data. This is information collected directly from customers through website interactions, newsletter sign-ups, and purchase history.

Utilizing first-party data allows for hyper-personalization. Research by Epsilon found that 80% of consumers are more likely to make a purchase when brands offer personalized experiences. AI-powered tools now help small businesses analyze this data to predict future customer behavior and automate personalized messaging.

How Small Businesses Use Digital Marketing

Small businesses often operate with limited budgets, making the efficiency of digital channels necessary for growth.

Leveling the Playing Field

Digital marketing allows small companies to compete with larger corporations by targeting niche audiences. While a large corporation might use a broad approach, a small business can use local SEO and targeted social media ads to reach people in a specific geographic area.

Budget flexibility is another factor. Digital platforms allow businesses to set daily limits on ad spend, ensuring they do not exceed their marketing budget. Social media marketing and email campaigns are often much cheaper than traditional TV or print ads.

Influencer Marketing for Small Brands

Influencer marketing has evolved into a $21 billion to $24 billion industry. In 2024, the focus has shifted toward micro-influencers—creators with 1,000 to 50,000 followers. These influencers often have higher engagement rates and stronger relationships with their audience than celebrities.

Working with micro-influencers is a cost-effective way for small businesses to build trust. According to research from Vihadigitalcommerce, 61% of consumers trust recommendations from influencers over traditional brand advertisements.

Customer Engagement and Retention

Digital marketing is not just about finding new customers; it is about maintaining relationships with existing ones. Social media provides a platform for two-way communication. Responding to customer reviews and comments builds brand loyalty.

Accessibility is another benefit. A digital presence ensures a business is "open" 24/7. Customers can find information, ask questions through AI chatbots, or make purchases at any time, regardless of the business’s physical hours. Statistics from Curved Sphere show that 73% of customers are willing to spend more with a brand that provides complete transparency online.