From blind pursuit to sober reflection: the limitations of social media and digital marketing

In the digital age, social media and digital marketing have become an integral part of business promotion and branding. However, the overall trust of users in social media platforms has declined over the last year, while spending on social media advertising is still on the rise. Should we continue to blindly pursue social media buzz and new trends in digital marketing. In response to this Mark Ritson calls it a mess in the marketing industry and he has an impressive perspective.

In Mark Ritson’s presentation it mentions the death obsession in marketing. It seems that people can’t wait to announce the demise of traditional marketing and digital marketing is the marketing. People can’t seem to wait to announce the demise of traditional marketing and that digital marketing is marketing. This seems to be related to the nature of marketers who love to pursue technology and new things. And digital marketing and social media are exactly the new things they are pursuing right now. However, is social media marketing really as effective and influential as these voices claim. The data says two-thirds of Australians are not actively following any brands on social media. The remaining third, 87 per cent of them, follow fewer than seven brands. And an average Australian consumer is seen as being targeted by 13,500 brands a year.

We can’t deny that social media and digital marketing offer great opportunities, but we also can’t ignore their limitations. At the heart of digital marketing is the marketing itself, not just the pursuit of technological and platform novelty. Effective digital marketing always requires careful diagnosis, strategy development and tactical implementation. Marketers and brands need to keep their cool in digital marketing, always focusing on meeting user needs, providing valuable content, and building genuine connections. Only then can they achieve long-term success in the digital age. Social media and digital marketing tools can be powerful aids, but they should never be our goal.