Marketing has evolved over the years with the changing preferences of target audience. As the target audience is shifting online, marketers are leveraging the digital channels to communicate with them accordingly. The primary role of marketing is demand creation, in order to attract the target audience & address their needs & requirements. Marketing owns one of the powerful channels which is the website - the face of the company. The website is not limited to devices or boundaries & is available 24x7x365 for targeted audience & hence it makes all sense to have web as a Digital Marketing Platform (DMP).
What is Digital Marketing?
So the question is what is Digital Marketing, it is a way to reach out to the target audience through various digital channels. Initially marketers used to follow ‘one message for all audience approach’ but with the advent of digital marketing, they now have the potential to tailor the messages to match the audience expectations. AIDA - Attention, Interest, Desire & Action, are the stages through which the target audience go through while making a choice. It is vital for marketers to customize messages at all the stages & move customers to desired outcome which is possible through Digital Marketing.
DMP is an integrated platform with website as a center. DMP should have website integrated with various tools and applications in order to gain insights and at the same time drive message out to targeted audience. DMP enables creation and management of digital properties, data management, coordination with multiple partners, and campaign execution.
Few necessary components of DMP are
- Web with web analytics to understand how web visitors are landing on the site, how they are using the site etc.
- Social media integration – to connect with audience on social platforms
- Marketing automation software – to manage and coordinate marketing activities with ease
- Email campaign tool – to run focused campaigns for lead nurturing
- Content syndication - publish content on popular sites
Drupal – A fit for Digital Marketing Platform
Drupal is an Open Source web content management platform built, used, and supported by an active and diverse community of people around the world. Over million users in 230 countries, speaking 181 languages power Drupal. It is ready to download from www.drupal.org & is packed with capabilities that give marketers the power and flexibility to organize, manage and publish content, with an endless variety of customization.
Drupal based DMP empowers companies to build brand loyalty, generate demand, and expand digital footprint to the widest target audience. Leveraging DMP, marketers can create rich experiences, connect more deeply with target audience, convert more prospects into buyers, and capture rich insights to drive optimization at the next interaction point.
Drupal to serve as a Digital Marketing Platform (DMP) allows:
- Integration of Drupal based website with
- Marketing automation tools: Act-on, Marketo & HubSpot
- Social media channels: Facebook, YouTube, Google+ & others
- Web analytics: Google analytics, Omniture & PPC
- Email marketing tools: Constant Contact & Chimp
- Content Syndication: RSS & Outbrain
- CRM Integration: Salesforce & Sugar CRM
- ERP & ECM: SAP & Alfresco/ Documentum
- Responsive design
- Content in control of business users – add/modify content without dependence on IT team
- SEO friendly
- Ease to develop and manage microsites
- Multi-sites customized delivery
- Cloud ready
A Drupal based website can integrate with various different tools/apps to serve as DMP & provide insights to marketers.
Implementation Examples
Drupal being a proven technology platform for Digital marketing is being currently used by various enterprises.
CIGNEX – www.cignex.com site is developed on Drupal & is integrated with marketing automation tool (Act-on), has microsites with integrated Google analytics, Piwik analytics & Social Media integration.
Please check out http://drupal.cignex.com to learn more about our Drupal expertise.
