Critically evaluate and discuss the role of online information in helping organisations
develop online Marketing Strategy, competitive advantage and managing the consumer
behaviour process. In addition you will need to consider the role of online technology
and how it has shaped the online Marketing process.
The availability of and access to online information has increased rapidly since the
introduction of the internet in 1994 (Chaffey and Ellis-Chadwick, 2012). This online
information has a role to play for any organisation when considering a marketing strategy.
Understanding the relationships between company and stakeholders and competitors in the
traditional and digital market develops better marketing strategies and help ascertain
development in making competitive advantages. Therefore it is important to any
organisation to recognise the benefits of online technology when developing a good
marketing strategy in the age of such mass digital networks. The paper discusses the role
of online information considering how online technology is shaping the strategies
implemented.
There are many organisations that use digital spaces for their promotion or indeed for their
entire company status. These organisations can be categorised into for profit; e-commerce,
brand sites and non-profit and public; social networking and portals (Ryan and Jones,
2012). Stakeholders of these sites can be the customer or client, a partner company, or a
shareholder and also employees or general citizens. Understanding who the stakeholder is
in the digital world is important in developing a strategy for targeting such stakeholders.
A person becomes a stakeholder in a company as soon as they make an active response to
anything that may be marketed to them. Digital stakeholders also engage in a web
experience of browse and search, interaction and transaction. An example of an online
stakeholder would be a person who is talking to a friend socially over the internet, whilst
browsing other sites, then happens to mention an item in conversation on a social network,
or click a like on a particular product, this becomes a chain of event for marketing
managers to understand and strategize (Sheldrake, 2011).
Taylor, Nelson and Sofres (2002) reported that in 2002 around 20% or more internet users
where buying items regularly through the online environment, this has obviously increased
since 2002 and companies need to be placed at competitive advantage by proper use of
digital marketing strategy.
Marketing as defined by Sheldrake (2011) is ‘the process by which a company creates
value for customers’ and build a strong customer relationship in order to capture value
from customers in return. The 4P marketing tool of product, price, place and promotion
known as the marketing mix is important to address for marketers as an aspect in
comparing traditional and digital marketing (Ryan and Jones, 2012).
E-marketing as opposed to traditional marketing uses the internet communication
technology as a tool to achieve a company’s objectives, and the way that it is used is
different to the traditional because the traditional pushed goods and services towards a
customer. Yan, Wang, Wang and Lin (2011) define that the difference in traditional and
digital marketing is that the cost is reduced and that the distance between consumers and
company is smaller as more channels of communication are readily available. Information
exchange developed with Google and Blogger, allowing customers to share opinions about
the services and goods experience giving people a sense of opting in or rejecting certain
marketing through their interpretation of information accessible on the web (Borrel, 2010).
This placed the digital market or internet against the traditional as a two way interaction of
information sharing to pull clients in as well as pushing goods and services at them
(Chaffey and Ellis-Chadwick, 2012).
This interaction relationship is registered by the company regarding the intelligence of the
customer as important. Companies therefore seek to gain data about who the customer is
and what type of product they are seeking which helps the company to create any web or
digital content to a particular customer so the importance of an excellent database to
support the company is essential (Yan et al,2011).
The negative of information database is mass customisation, or viral marketing strategies,
which was seen in 1996 where Hotmail using email signatures caused masses of spam
messaging to its service users (Chaffey and Ellis-Chadwick, 2012). Online companies
mass market to a much wider audience in hope of gaining more clients, but as Kelly (2006)
states this may actually hinder the customer relationship and halt future sales. Mass
message marketing can send the message which is received after the offer, irrelevant
information, repeat messages and unqualified messaging where the customer has no
chance of making a purchase (Kelly 2006).
The right sort of data needs to be held to avoid such complications so a database strategy
that records a rich feed of information from client events enables the company to send out
the right segments of marketing to the right customer (Yan et al, 2011) which is more
individualized. However Sheldrake (2011) argues that this individual marketing strategy is
not necessary as the system variable are so great in a complex digital world that planning
particular individualistic routes hinder the range and response to any marketing of any
particular good.
The traditional flow of influence in comparison with a digital flow of influence compares
that the company is no longer the main influence rather it is the influence flow between
customers (Sheldrake, 2011). The consumer however is by being exposed to the virtual
market
“…under the marketer’s direct control, likely to influence the buying behaviour of the
