The Competitive Side to Online Advertising

From newspapers and billboards to flashy banner ads, competition has always been rampant among businesses. The marketing landscape may have changed over the years, but the fundamentals are still the same: reach your target audience. 

With the rise in internet advertising, many marketers have praised how easy scheduling and planning an online campaign can be. While the low start-up costs may seem enticing, the accessibility of the platform has led to fierce competition within most industries. Due to this broader reach and high accessibility, online ads create a hostile environment for companies with a smaller marketing budget. 

Low Barrier of Entry = More Ads

Marketers often recommend digital marketing for small businesses due to its simplicity and lower costs. And this is true to some extent, any company with a marketing budget can create and publish a digital campaign in one afternoon. Your business may have access to a new online audience, but so do billion-dollar corporations around the globe.

Recent developments in internet advertising have led to a surge of ads appearing on every search query, browser, and social media site. 

With an estimated 4,000- 10,000 ads viewed per day, it has become harder and harder to differentiate oneself among the noise. Businesses are now bidding against competitors within the same industry and the user’s attention span. 

Related: The Emotional IMPACT of Direct Mail Marketing

High Competition Among Google Ads

Google Search Ads are one of the most popular forms of advertising for small businesses and corporations alike. It’s algorithm prioritizes high-quality ads, so one would think that the top search results would reflect this. 

However, companies with less relevant ads may still rank first if they have a larger budget.

A competitor could easily outrank a small business by outbidding them in the search results, regardless of ad quality. 

Related: Has Online Advertising Influenced Our Attention Spans?

High Competition Among Different Platforms

Not only is there high competition, but the environment of online advertisement constantly changes every day. Many digital marketers prioritize Facebook and Twitter advertisements; however recent shifts have compelled businesses to advertise on Snapchat and TikTok with different types of content. 

The changing competitive platforms add pressure onto marketers and small businesses. While one marketing strategy may work for an audience on one platform, the same strategy could be completely different on another, even if you are targeting the same audience. 

Direct Mail has Less Competition

Due to the higher barrier of entry, many new businesses hesitate to include direct mail within their marketing framework. However, it is because of this perceived risk that results in less competition overall. 

With the average household receiving 1.3 items of addressed mail per day, your company is much more likely to reach your audience and keep their attention. Less ads in their mailboxes also mean potential customers are more likely to shift through their mail and read your ad. 

But how does one begin with a direct mail campaign? That is where DK Solutions can help. 

Related: The Emotional IMPACT of Direct Mail Marketing