In 2021, digital marketing is marketing. Richard Lindner, co-founder of DigitalMarketer, joins Melissa Dixon (Director of Content Marketing at BigCommerce) to discuss the current state and future of marketing.
Brands have had to be more creative over the past year to make their brand stand out in a digitally saturated space and connect with customers. The basics remain the same: It is the job of the marketer to direct and channel customers' needs, not create them.
Episode 1 of The Make It Big Podcast
Melissa Dixon - Tell us about your journey to marketing and how it led you to DigitalMarketer.
Richard Lindner: "Absolutely. I was just lucky to get started. I didn't intend to get into digital marketing, much less marketing in general.
"When I started my business, I didn’t understand the Internet. I wasn’t tech-savvy. But I came across a mentor who was a serial entrepreneur. He had just moved from brick and mortar to online. I was able mentor him and almost learn from him. He grew his business from an offline operation to one online in just two years.
"Imagining co-founding or founding a company that taught others how to market online effectively and efficiently was a dream that I had never imagined.
We have a serial entrepreneur bug. We launched many new businesses, or acquired them. We leveraged our media assets to create new properties and businesses. This led to a lot of growth. Because different founders and principals were asked to speak at different events and share their knowledge, we started teaching what our company was doing. We began to produce some of this knowledge and charge for it. Although we made courses in the early days of our business, we saw it as a way of selling the by-products of what we were doing to reinvest in our'real businesses em>
"We created Traffic & Conversion Summit eleven years ago. The first was held in Austin, Texas. 1000 people came to the event for the third consecutive year. This was before DigitalMarketer existed.
"It wasn't until then that we took a step back and said, I don't believe this is what the children would call today a side-hustle.'
"So, I believe we have engaged an audience and we must serve that audience. It was the second day of Traffic & Conversion Summit 3. That's when we committed to launch DigitalMarketer. We are consummate planners and we made the announcement at Traffic & Conversion Summit on Day 3 of Year 3.
"So it was about extreme ownership, extreme accountability and just going all-in. This is how it all started accidentally and led to DigitalMarketer em>
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MD - Let's discuss the current state in marketing. It may seem like a simplified question but, how would you define marketing in 2021? What does it mean?
RL: Melissa, I will tell you, it's a great question. How would you describe marketing? Most people will answer, "What's the state digital marketing?" What would you say about digital marketing? The great news is that all marketing in 2021 will be digital.
Digital marketing is marketing. It's marketing at any point, regardless of whether you are marketing via a digital platform.
"It's either digital advertising space or you're going online at some point. Everything is going digital. Digital radio ads drive to digital TV ads, digital print ads drive to digital. Marketing is the origin of the way you communicate your message to your target audience.
"Maybe there's one thing that doesn't always start digitally but everything returns to digital. Digital is now mainstream...
Digital marketing is marketing. All marketing is digital. We saw a 10 year increase in online sales during the pandemic. That's insane. The pandemic can't take away what it has forced. There are new ways to do things. Each person forms new habits.
"The first three months COVID have been 10 years of growth. There are no signs of slowing down. Even though the world might open up again and some aspects of what was once are being restored, these buying trends will not disappear.
"What consumers expect from non-online businesses is the same as what we had in pre-pandemic days. Digital marketing will be the norm for all marketing. This is not industry-specific, nor business model-specific. This is ."
MD - What's your view on how to become an expert in empathy marketing? How to understand your audience and create a connection with them? What are some ways they can do this?
RL: "I understand that a lot marketers, a lot ecommerce store business owners and any type of digital marketer, have a high likelihood that they are an introvert. I understand that. I can also suffer from it.
"I can be an extrovert on TV but at the end the day I'm an introvert. This is why I am pre-apologizing. I am telling introverts that you can do this. It's okay.
"This is the first step to figuring out how to clearly communicate what your customers feel or say. How are they already engaging in the conversation, regardless of whether you're part of it? He must be talked to, she had to speak to him. I don't mean via a phone. It could be 100 conversations with customers. This should be your goal. If your headline is just a simplified version of what your ideal customer said to you fifteen times, then your ideal customer who has never heard of you will be impressed. They will love it.
"The content you create should only solve the problem or improve the day of the customer you have already spoken to." To understand your customers' pain and desires, you need to talk to them.
MD - What do you consider the essentials of copywriting? Why are they so important to you?
Copy is copy. Copy should be broken down and chunked. Two larger copy chunks should then be created. But what I see most often is that someone opens Microsoft Word or a Google Doc. Instead of having a conversation as you and me are having, it becomes formal even today.
"I can recall this: I learned how to write business letters in middle school. Marketers who use this tone in their marketing messages are very formal. That is the best way not to form a relationship.
"So, the tone of your conversation is crucial. Knowing who you are talking to is the next step. If you can understand this, then I love your words, empathy and empathetic marketing. Step one is understanding the needs, hopes, and desires of your customer.
These must be clearly stated. Here are where you are now and here is where you want it to be. Here's how what I have to offer you will help you get there. Marketing is conversational. It's clear and concise, benefit-based. We start with the benefit. Marketing people often confuse benefits ."
MD - What should brands really be focusing on when it comes to graphic design?
RL: "The tangible manifestation of that brand. Or the physical embodiment, or human embodiment of the brand. Everything must be in harmony. Your message must be clear and concise in your copy. If you want to communicate empathy and understanding, your podcast voice must be there. Although the design may be a bit more in depth, it must all convey the same message. Images should represent your customer's core desires.
Think about the average day for your customer today. Now, think of the desired average. It doesn't matter what it is: a widget, clothing, or coffee. What are you selling?
"Remember, what marketing are you doing? Are you marketing happiness or luxury? Are you marketing luxury?
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