Every business owner understands that making sales is the ultimate aim of running a business and the way to guarantee sales is by constant advertisement of the brand’s goods or services. Now, to reach the target audience that will make sales happen, you need to look into advertising. These prospects eventually convert to customers, and these customers convert to loyalists. Right from time, radio advertisement, TV advertisement, billboard advertisement, print ads, and other forms of traditional media have been the go-to means of marketing.
The advent of new media – social media advertisement, web ads, virtual reality ads, in-game ads, and other forms of new-age marketing has caused a disruption to the ground rules of advertising around the world. This has begged the question – “has new media caused the redundancy of traditional media in new age advertising?” Long gone are the days when advertising was reserved for the big companies with a proper budget. Now, as long as the internet exists, new media will always cause a decentralization of access to advertising. Whether as a big company or a home business.
What is Traditional Media?
Traditional media refers to advertising channels that have been used for decades. These are the tried-and-true methods that businesses have relied on for years. These channels can be pretty effective, and for many businesses, they account for the entirety of the advertising budget. In terms of dollars spent, digital research firm e-marketers estimated that businesses would spend $104.32 billion on traditional marketing techniques in 2021.
Examples of Traditional Media
Traditional media include radio, TV, print, newspapers, and creative billboards. These are the forms of advertising that have been around for years, bringing massive success to several long-standing, iconic brands
What is New Media?
We wonder if it would still be called “New media” 50 – 100 years from now. However, it can best be described as digital channels that have gained popularity in the advertising space in the last decade or so. As more and more consumers rely on their mobile devices for everything, new media has become an increasingly effective way to advertise. Spending in the new media industry continues to grow, with experts estimating businesses will spend $172 billion on digital advertising by 2021.
Examples of New Media
New media encompasses internet-based forms of advertising such as website banner ads, GDN, social media, and apps. This form of media can be highly targeted, even allowing businesses to reach consumers as they enter their store, for example, using cell phone push notifications. Targeted ads are another popular form of new media– if you’ve ever noticed advertisements related to your recent search history, you’ve encountered a targeted ad.
When it comes to deciding which option to go for, entrepreneurs would most likely ask questions like ;
“What’s the cost of radio advert in Nigeria”?
“What are the best agencies to run marketing campaigns in Nigeria”?
“How can I get my business on print ad or newspaper headline” ?
“How much do TV ads cost in Nigeria”?
Even though almost all the questions are hinged on money, business owners are much more concerned about getting the result of their marketing and advertising expense.
Traditional Media vs New Media: The Battle for Relevance
One characteristic of traditional media is that it requires a large advertising budget. For that reason, and because of the emerging popularity of new media, businesses are beginning to diversify their marketing strategies to include less traditional mediums as well. Thanks to the option of more precise targeting, and the fact that you can spend as little as $50 – $500 to run ads on social media. Also, new media gives you a level of precision in your post-campaign analytics that might not be attainable with traditional media.
That said, there are some areas where traditional media takes the lead over new media. Consumers tend to associate a certain amount of prestige with different forms of traditional media. Seeing a business advertised in the newspaper, or on TV for example, gives the perception that the business is doing well enough to advertise. It also helps build a sense of trust with the prospect or the consumer. Rightly so too, because even with the advent of new media, the cost of advertising via traditional media did not drastically nosedive.
When critically juxtaposed, any business would quickly realize that rather than a versus situation, traditional and new media are complementary forms of advertising. As a matter of fact, big, old-time businesses who have remained relevant and successful in this age and time, are those who have successfully mastered the art of combining both traditional media and new media. When reviewing the effectiveness of an advertising campaign, it can be helpful to go over both the results from your traditional campaign, as well as your new media analytics.
Together, the two can paint a fuller picture of exactly what kind of consumer is interested in your business, which in turn, tells you who you should be targeting.
