Digital Marketing Essentials
INHOUD
INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................ 5
Digital marketing covers a very wide range of marketing tactics and technologies. .......................... 5
Digital marketing changes at a rapid pace. By the end of the year, this course will be outdated… ... 5
the “digital first” consumer ................................................................................................................. 5
Ultimate convenience: easy and fast .............................................................................................. 6
Ultimate convenience: personalisation .......................................................................................... 6
what’s your digital strategy? ............................................................................................................... 7
building blocks ................................................................................................................................. 7
CHAPTER 1: YOUR BUSINESS ......................................................................................................... 8
digital strategy: building blocks ........................................................................................................... 8
core commitments .......................................................................................................................... 8
digital maturity ................................................................................................................................ 9
target group insights ....................................................................................................................... 9
competition ................................................................................................................................... 12
summary chapter 1 ........................................................................................................................... 14
CHAPTER 2: INBOUND MARKETING, OBJECTIVES AND KPI’S ......................................................... 15
1. inbound marketing ........................................................................................................................ 16
Traditional marketing vs. inbound marketing ............................................................................... 16
awareness – see ............................................................................................................................ 18
consideration – think ..................................................................................................................... 18
conversion – do ............................................................................................................................. 18
remarketing or retargeting ............................................................................................................ 20
2. objectives....................................................................................................................................... 21
digital objectives and KPI’s ............................................................................................................ 22
summary chapter 2 ........................................................................................................................... 26
CHAPTER 3: CONTENT MARKETING ............................................................................................. 27
1. what is content marketing? ........................................................................................................... 27
2. objectives of content marketing ................................................................................................... 27
3. who produces content?................................................................................................................. 28
a 5-step-approach in content strategy .............................................................................................. 28
Step 1: Message & big topics ........................................................................................................ 28
Step 2: Editorial content plan ........................................................................................................ 31
1
,Digital Marketing Essentials
Step 3: Create smart content ........................................................................................................ 33
step 4: Manage conversations ...................................................................................................... 37
step 5: meassure succes ................................................................................................................ 37
CHAPTER 4: SEM, SEO, SEA ......................................................................................................... 39
4.1. introduction ................................................................................................................................ 39
Search engines............................................................................................................................... 39
4.2. what is seo, and what are keywords? ........................................................................................ 40
visibility through seo ..................................................................................................................... 40
keywords ....................................................................................................................................... 40
4.3. how do search engines find your site? ....................................................................................... 45
4.4. how to improve your serp results? ............................................................................................ 46
4.4.1. on page – content................................................................................................................ 46
4.4.2. technology ........................................................................................................................... 49
4.4.3. off page – authority ............................................................................................................. 55
4.5. seo support tools ........................................................................................................................ 56
4.6. sea .............................................................................................................................................. 57
4.6.1. Google search ads: how does it work? ................................................................................ 58
4.6.2. Setting op Google search ads .............................................................................................. 60
4.7. seo versus sea............................................................................................................................. 60
CHAPTER 5: ONLINE ADVERTISING .............................................................................................. 61
5.1. display advertising ...................................................................................................................... 61
5.1.1. what is it? ............................................................................................................................ 61
5.1.2. types of online ads .............................................................................................................. 62
5.1.3. google ads............................................................................................................................ 63
5.1.4. display targeting strategies ................................................................................................. 64
5.1.5. DCO ...................................................................................................................................... 65
5.1.6. buying ads............................................................................................................................ 69
5.1.7. inbound marketing funnel ................................................................................................... 71
5.2. Location based advertising (mobile) .......................................................................................... 72
5.2.1. Ad Blockers .......................................................................................................................... 72
5.3. Native ads ................................................................................................................................... 73
5.4. Affiliate marketing ...................................................................................................................... 74
CHAPTER 6: SOCIAL MEDIA LANDSCAPE ...................................................................................... 75
6.1. Daily social media use in Belgium .............................................................................................. 75
2
,Digital Marketing Essentials
6.2. Social Media channels ................................................................................................................ 76
6.2.1. Facebook ............................................................................................................................. 76
6.2.2. YouTube ............................................................................................................................... 76
6.2.3. Instagram............................................................................................................................. 77
6.2.4. TikTok .................................................................................................................................. 77
6.1.5. LinkedIn ............................................................................................................................... 78
6.1.6. X (Twitter) ............................................................................................................................ 79
6.1.7. Snapchat .............................................................................................................................. 79
6.1.8. Twitch .................................................................................................................................. 79
6.3. What is the best channel ............................................................................................................ 80
6.3.1. How to pick the right social media platform? ..................................................................... 80
CHAPTER 7: SOCIAL MEDIA GENERAL GUIDELINES – ORGANIC & PAID ......................................... 81
7.1. purpose of social networks ........................................................................................................ 81
7.2. what do you see on social media ............................................................................................... 81
7.2.1. organic content (overload) .................................................................................................. 81
7.2.2. paid content ........................................................................................................................ 85
CHAPTER 8: FACEBOOK............................................................................................................... 89
8.1 Facebook : the biggest reach....................................................................................................... 89
8.2 Facebook organic is almost zero ................................................................................................. 89
8.3. Paid advertising .......................................................................................................................... 89
Step 1: create a Facebook business page...................................................................................... 89
Step 2: set-up your campaign ....................................................................................................... 90
Step 3: monitor your campaign ..................................................................................................... 93
8.4. Campaign structure & inbound marketing funnel ..................................................................... 93
8.5. Meta ads library.......................................................................................................................... 93
CHAPTER 9: INSTAGRAM ............................................................................................................ 94
9.1. Professional accounts: business and creator ............................................................................. 94
9.2. Instagram’s focus........................................................................................................................ 95
9.2.1. creators on instagram ......................................................................................................... 96
9.2.2. video on instagram – reels .................................................................................................. 97
9.2.3. Shopping on Instagram........................................................................................................ 97
9.3. The Instagram algorithm ............................................................................................................ 98
9.3.1. Instagram stories (vs. feed) ................................................................................................. 98
9.3.2. Instagram Explore page ....................................................................................................... 99
3
,Digital Marketing Essentials
9.3.3. Instagram Reels ................................................................................................................... 99
9.4. Hashtags ..................................................................................................................................... 99
9.5. Instagram & Inbound marketing .............................................................................................. 101
CHAPTER 10: YOUTUBE..............................................................................................................103
10.1. How the YouTube algorithm works ........................................................................................ 103
10.2. YouTube for business ............................................................................................................. 106
10.3. Advertising on YouTube ......................................................................................................... 106
10.3.1. Youtube shorts ................................................................................................................ 108
10.3.2. inbound marketing & YouTube ....................................................................................... 108
CHAPTER 11: LINKEDIN ..............................................................................................................110
11.1. What is LinkedIn? ................................................................................................................... 110
11.2. Why LinkedIn .......................................................................................................................... 110
11.2.1. Your personal LinkedIn profile ........................................................................................ 110
11.2.2. Your professional network .............................................................................................. 110
11.2.3. LinkedIn Posts .................................................................................................................. 112
11.2.4. sales via LinkedIn ............................................................................................................. 112
4
,Digital Marketing Essentials
INTRODUCTION
DIGITAL MARKETING COVERS A VERY WIDE RANGE OF MARKETING TACTICS AND
TECHNOLOGIES.
Today, there about 11.038 digital tools to help you with your digital marketing strategy.
− Who said it would be easy?
DIGITAL MARKETING CHANGES AT A RAPID PACE. BY THE END OF THE YEAR, THIS
COURSE WILL BE OUTDATED…
How to stay on top of the latest digital marketing trends
Newsletters: Podcasts:
− Digitalmarketer.com − Social media Marketing podcast by
− Marketingprofs.com Social Media Examiner
− SocialMediaExaminer.com − The Science of Social Media by Buffer
− Moz Top 10 − Social Pros by Jay Baer and Adam Brown
− Social Media Today
Online learning platforms – certificates:
− Google Digital Garage − Google Analytics
− Facebook Blueprint − Google Ads Search
− Hubspot − Semrush
THE “DIGITAL FIRST” CONSUMER
The digital consumer shows emotions and power
− Reviews are often written on the Internet (usually negative because in everyday life it is less
natural to express negative thoughts)
The digital consumer cares about the opinion of others
− Reading reviews
− Following influencers
− Gathering likes
5
, Digital Marketing Essentials
The digital consumer wants ultimate convenience
− Easy and fast
− personalisation
ULTIMATE CONVENIENCE: EASY AND FAST
The consumer of today is very distracted; this can be attributed to the overwhelming amount of
messages constantly bombarding our online devices.
When we go online, we behave like monkeys looking for bananas. We want it fast and easy. If you
don’t see something interesting in a couple of seconds, you click and you are gone.
Your message / product needs to be easy to find on the website (no scrolling, not too much text, not
too many clicks before you get to the right page, no 10 minutes before the webpage has loaded, …)
Mensen kunnen maar heel kort hun aandacht op iets houden, daarna
willen ze iets anders zien.
ULTIMATE CONVENIENCE: PERSONALISATION
Research proves that the majority of consumers get
frustrated when the content is not relevant.
Personalization ensures that your offers are relevant.
Adjust Navigation to Visitors’ Interests.
− Another good ecommerce personalization example is changing your homepage and navigation
based on visitor interests.
For example, when we typed in the URL of the ASOS home page, it automatically redirected to
the women’s section because that’s what we’d looked at before.
o Mensen hebben vaak ook al een automatische adblocker
− Recommend Product Categories Based on Browsing Behavior
One of the most common eCommerce personalization examples is from Amazon. When you
visit their site, and navigate to your personal page, you’ll see categories based on your
previous onsite search and browsing behavior. Of course, it’s not perfect, as gifts you shop for
will also show up here, but it’s still pretty accurate.
6
INHOUD
INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................ 5
Digital marketing covers a very wide range of marketing tactics and technologies. .......................... 5
Digital marketing changes at a rapid pace. By the end of the year, this course will be outdated… ... 5
the “digital first” consumer ................................................................................................................. 5
Ultimate convenience: easy and fast .............................................................................................. 6
Ultimate convenience: personalisation .......................................................................................... 6
what’s your digital strategy? ............................................................................................................... 7
building blocks ................................................................................................................................. 7
CHAPTER 1: YOUR BUSINESS ......................................................................................................... 8
digital strategy: building blocks ........................................................................................................... 8
core commitments .......................................................................................................................... 8
digital maturity ................................................................................................................................ 9
target group insights ....................................................................................................................... 9
competition ................................................................................................................................... 12
summary chapter 1 ........................................................................................................................... 14
CHAPTER 2: INBOUND MARKETING, OBJECTIVES AND KPI’S ......................................................... 15
1. inbound marketing ........................................................................................................................ 16
Traditional marketing vs. inbound marketing ............................................................................... 16
awareness – see ............................................................................................................................ 18
consideration – think ..................................................................................................................... 18
conversion – do ............................................................................................................................. 18
remarketing or retargeting ............................................................................................................ 20
2. objectives....................................................................................................................................... 21
digital objectives and KPI’s ............................................................................................................ 22
summary chapter 2 ........................................................................................................................... 26
CHAPTER 3: CONTENT MARKETING ............................................................................................. 27
1. what is content marketing? ........................................................................................................... 27
2. objectives of content marketing ................................................................................................... 27
3. who produces content?................................................................................................................. 28
a 5-step-approach in content strategy .............................................................................................. 28
Step 1: Message & big topics ........................................................................................................ 28
Step 2: Editorial content plan ........................................................................................................ 31
1
,Digital Marketing Essentials
Step 3: Create smart content ........................................................................................................ 33
step 4: Manage conversations ...................................................................................................... 37
step 5: meassure succes ................................................................................................................ 37
CHAPTER 4: SEM, SEO, SEA ......................................................................................................... 39
4.1. introduction ................................................................................................................................ 39
Search engines............................................................................................................................... 39
4.2. what is seo, and what are keywords? ........................................................................................ 40
visibility through seo ..................................................................................................................... 40
keywords ....................................................................................................................................... 40
4.3. how do search engines find your site? ....................................................................................... 45
4.4. how to improve your serp results? ............................................................................................ 46
4.4.1. on page – content................................................................................................................ 46
4.4.2. technology ........................................................................................................................... 49
4.4.3. off page – authority ............................................................................................................. 55
4.5. seo support tools ........................................................................................................................ 56
4.6. sea .............................................................................................................................................. 57
4.6.1. Google search ads: how does it work? ................................................................................ 58
4.6.2. Setting op Google search ads .............................................................................................. 60
4.7. seo versus sea............................................................................................................................. 60
CHAPTER 5: ONLINE ADVERTISING .............................................................................................. 61
5.1. display advertising ...................................................................................................................... 61
5.1.1. what is it? ............................................................................................................................ 61
5.1.2. types of online ads .............................................................................................................. 62
5.1.3. google ads............................................................................................................................ 63
5.1.4. display targeting strategies ................................................................................................. 64
5.1.5. DCO ...................................................................................................................................... 65
5.1.6. buying ads............................................................................................................................ 69
5.1.7. inbound marketing funnel ................................................................................................... 71
5.2. Location based advertising (mobile) .......................................................................................... 72
5.2.1. Ad Blockers .......................................................................................................................... 72
5.3. Native ads ................................................................................................................................... 73
5.4. Affiliate marketing ...................................................................................................................... 74
CHAPTER 6: SOCIAL MEDIA LANDSCAPE ...................................................................................... 75
6.1. Daily social media use in Belgium .............................................................................................. 75
2
,Digital Marketing Essentials
6.2. Social Media channels ................................................................................................................ 76
6.2.1. Facebook ............................................................................................................................. 76
6.2.2. YouTube ............................................................................................................................... 76
6.2.3. Instagram............................................................................................................................. 77
6.2.4. TikTok .................................................................................................................................. 77
6.1.5. LinkedIn ............................................................................................................................... 78
6.1.6. X (Twitter) ............................................................................................................................ 79
6.1.7. Snapchat .............................................................................................................................. 79
6.1.8. Twitch .................................................................................................................................. 79
6.3. What is the best channel ............................................................................................................ 80
6.3.1. How to pick the right social media platform? ..................................................................... 80
CHAPTER 7: SOCIAL MEDIA GENERAL GUIDELINES – ORGANIC & PAID ......................................... 81
7.1. purpose of social networks ........................................................................................................ 81
7.2. what do you see on social media ............................................................................................... 81
7.2.1. organic content (overload) .................................................................................................. 81
7.2.2. paid content ........................................................................................................................ 85
CHAPTER 8: FACEBOOK............................................................................................................... 89
8.1 Facebook : the biggest reach....................................................................................................... 89
8.2 Facebook organic is almost zero ................................................................................................. 89
8.3. Paid advertising .......................................................................................................................... 89
Step 1: create a Facebook business page...................................................................................... 89
Step 2: set-up your campaign ....................................................................................................... 90
Step 3: monitor your campaign ..................................................................................................... 93
8.4. Campaign structure & inbound marketing funnel ..................................................................... 93
8.5. Meta ads library.......................................................................................................................... 93
CHAPTER 9: INSTAGRAM ............................................................................................................ 94
9.1. Professional accounts: business and creator ............................................................................. 94
9.2. Instagram’s focus........................................................................................................................ 95
9.2.1. creators on instagram ......................................................................................................... 96
9.2.2. video on instagram – reels .................................................................................................. 97
9.2.3. Shopping on Instagram........................................................................................................ 97
9.3. The Instagram algorithm ............................................................................................................ 98
9.3.1. Instagram stories (vs. feed) ................................................................................................. 98
9.3.2. Instagram Explore page ....................................................................................................... 99
3
,Digital Marketing Essentials
9.3.3. Instagram Reels ................................................................................................................... 99
9.4. Hashtags ..................................................................................................................................... 99
9.5. Instagram & Inbound marketing .............................................................................................. 101
CHAPTER 10: YOUTUBE..............................................................................................................103
10.1. How the YouTube algorithm works ........................................................................................ 103
10.2. YouTube for business ............................................................................................................. 106
10.3. Advertising on YouTube ......................................................................................................... 106
10.3.1. Youtube shorts ................................................................................................................ 108
10.3.2. inbound marketing & YouTube ....................................................................................... 108
CHAPTER 11: LINKEDIN ..............................................................................................................110
11.1. What is LinkedIn? ................................................................................................................... 110
11.2. Why LinkedIn .......................................................................................................................... 110
11.2.1. Your personal LinkedIn profile ........................................................................................ 110
11.2.2. Your professional network .............................................................................................. 110
11.2.3. LinkedIn Posts .................................................................................................................. 112
11.2.4. sales via LinkedIn ............................................................................................................. 112
4
,Digital Marketing Essentials
INTRODUCTION
DIGITAL MARKETING COVERS A VERY WIDE RANGE OF MARKETING TACTICS AND
TECHNOLOGIES.
Today, there about 11.038 digital tools to help you with your digital marketing strategy.
− Who said it would be easy?
DIGITAL MARKETING CHANGES AT A RAPID PACE. BY THE END OF THE YEAR, THIS
COURSE WILL BE OUTDATED…
How to stay on top of the latest digital marketing trends
Newsletters: Podcasts:
− Digitalmarketer.com − Social media Marketing podcast by
− Marketingprofs.com Social Media Examiner
− SocialMediaExaminer.com − The Science of Social Media by Buffer
− Moz Top 10 − Social Pros by Jay Baer and Adam Brown
− Social Media Today
Online learning platforms – certificates:
− Google Digital Garage − Google Analytics
− Facebook Blueprint − Google Ads Search
− Hubspot − Semrush
THE “DIGITAL FIRST” CONSUMER
The digital consumer shows emotions and power
− Reviews are often written on the Internet (usually negative because in everyday life it is less
natural to express negative thoughts)
The digital consumer cares about the opinion of others
− Reading reviews
− Following influencers
− Gathering likes
5
, Digital Marketing Essentials
The digital consumer wants ultimate convenience
− Easy and fast
− personalisation
ULTIMATE CONVENIENCE: EASY AND FAST
The consumer of today is very distracted; this can be attributed to the overwhelming amount of
messages constantly bombarding our online devices.
When we go online, we behave like monkeys looking for bananas. We want it fast and easy. If you
don’t see something interesting in a couple of seconds, you click and you are gone.
Your message / product needs to be easy to find on the website (no scrolling, not too much text, not
too many clicks before you get to the right page, no 10 minutes before the webpage has loaded, …)
Mensen kunnen maar heel kort hun aandacht op iets houden, daarna
willen ze iets anders zien.
ULTIMATE CONVENIENCE: PERSONALISATION
Research proves that the majority of consumers get
frustrated when the content is not relevant.
Personalization ensures that your offers are relevant.
Adjust Navigation to Visitors’ Interests.
− Another good ecommerce personalization example is changing your homepage and navigation
based on visitor interests.
For example, when we typed in the URL of the ASOS home page, it automatically redirected to
the women’s section because that’s what we’d looked at before.
o Mensen hebben vaak ook al een automatische adblocker
− Recommend Product Categories Based on Browsing Behavior
One of the most common eCommerce personalization examples is from Amazon. When you
visit their site, and navigate to your personal page, you’ll see categories based on your
previous onsite search and browsing behavior. Of course, it’s not perfect, as gifts you shop for
will also show up here, but it’s still pretty accurate.
6
