The History of and Evolution Digital Marketing: What’s Next?
Nowadays, not having a well-formulated digital marketing strategy can be detrimental to a brand’s success. It’s so deeply ingrained in our current marketing strategies that many people don’t realize that the term “digital marketing” was first coined only 30 years ago. Despite being around since 1990, digital marketing didn’t truly begin to rise into popularity until the 2000s.
What is Digital Marketing?
In simple words, digital marketing is advertising through digital channels. These channels include social media, email campaigns, search engine use, web applications, or any other digital channel.
The History of Digital Marketing
The Rise of the Internet
The rise of the internet played a fundamental role in the creation of digital marketing. After all, without the internet, you wouldn’t be reading this right now. In 1994, Yang and Filo launched Yahoo. Soon after, Google was established as the first-ever search engine. As a result of this, serval key e-commerce players, such as Amazon and eBay, entered and created a new market of globally selling their products online.
Google’s SEO Algorithm Change
Google, which was launched in 1998, quickly saw the opportunity to implement content targeting services and implemented AdWords in 2002. By 2004, Google began using algorithms that specifically catered content to its users. And from this, search engine optimization (SEO) was born.
As time passed, Google’s algorithm modified and changed to provide a better experience for their users. As a result, digital marketers could no longer keyword stuff, and Google began to punish sites that didn’t comply with their terms and service guidelines. This created a significant turning point for digital marketers because they realized they could no longer rely on just keyword stuffing but instead shifted focus onto various forms of content marketing.
The Start of Social Media
The launch of social media caused a major shift in digital marketing. In 2004, 2006, and 2010, we saw the launch of Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, respectively. This created a whole new channel for digital marketers to publish content on, increase brand awareness, and ultimately make sales.
Wide Stream Use of Mobile Technology
The very first smartphone was launched in 2003 by Blackberry. This phone allowed users to assess email and web browsing. In 2007, Steve Jobs released the first iPhone and caused a smartphone revolution. As time passed, businesses saw the opportunity and need for mobile site optimization to reach their target audiences on-the-go.
What’s Next for Digital Marketing?
As technology continues to advance, there are so many opportunities for digital marketing to evolve. The implementation of voice search, through voice assistants such as Siri, Alexa, and Google, highlights how artificial intelligence will continue to play a role in the future of digital marketing.
If your brand is looking to add digital marketing into its marketing strategy, don’t hesitate to reach out to the digital strategists at Kraus Marketing! Contact us today to get started!