Hybrid Marketing Strategy & Tactics

In a previous post, we discussed hybrid marketing and the traits of a hybrid marketer. In this article, we explore hybrid marketing strategy and tactics.

Hybrid marketing merges both traditional and digital marketing approaches to develop a holistic marketing strategy that better engages, communicates, markets and sells to customers in a digitally evolving world.

From a strategic perspective, a business’ overall marketing strategy must be a hybrid one. This simply means thinking both traditionally and digitally as you develop your strategy.

While getting into a hybrid marketing mindset is something you will have to do consciously when you first start, developing a hybrid marketing strategy will come more naturally to you over time; especially if you are more familiar with one form of marketing over the other.

And remember, it is always strategy before tactics.

If we use the Marketing Inverted PyramidTM as the fundamental business model, hybrid marketing will influence the three aspects of marketing, value creation, communication and brand equity, by thinking in both traditional and digital terms, as one.

As in a previous post on the Inverted Pyramid, value creation can refer to product creation as well as innovation. Thinking like a hybrid means looking at creating value online and offline to maximize the customer experience from the value produced.

If you are creating a digital product, consider how offline touchpoints can improve the customer experience. Likewise, if you are developing an offline product or service, utilize digital channels and platforms to increase the convenience, speed and efficiency of the transaction with the customer.

Communication and building brand equity use similar offline and online channels to engage and interact with customers but at different stages of the customer journey.

Hybrid Marketing Strategy | Evolve & Adapt

There are ways offline media and methods can reach and engage with customers that digital marketing cannot. And, vice versa. Hybrid marketing means utilizing the best resources that will prove to be the most effective and generate the highest ROI.

Here are some simple examples of hybrid marketing tactics used in communication and building brand equity:

  • Outdoor media large format displays that have a website link or QR code to direct prospects to a landing page.
  • Sending a direct mailer to prospects and following up with an email that directs them to a landing page with video content. 
  • Digital Search and Display Ads that lead to a landing page with call-to-action of making an appointment with a sales representative. 
  • Participating in a trade show or exhibition to encourage online sign-ups for a digital service at the show and following up with an email for those who do not. 
  • A personalized email marketing campaign that is followed up by a telephone call from a sales representative the next day. 
  • Influencer marketing, where a limited number of digital discount coupons are given out to followers that can only be spent in a brick-and-mortar store or restaurant.
  • Offering brick-and-mortar customers a chance to be part of a “cyber club” that entitles them to exclusive discounts and a catalogue of online-only products. 
  • Offering online purchasers to attend a customer-only live event if they buy a product above a certain amount within the next 7 days. 
  • Collecting customer information at a brick-and-mortar store and emailing them an invite to participate in a live webinar.

Use these examples as a starting point to develop your own hybrid marketing strategy and tactics.

J C Sum

J C Sum is a certified management consultant (TR 43:2015), an American Marketing Association Professional Certified Marketer (PCM®) in marketing management as well as a certified digital marketing strategist (SSG-WSQ accredited) with 12 years of experience specializing in search engine optimization, content marketing, and analytics. J C holds a Bachelor of Arts from National University of Singapore and is the author of "Evolve, Adapt or Collapse". He has been featured on The Straits Times, Business Times, Channel News Asia, The Edge Singapore, CNA938, and Money FM 89.3.

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