Covid-19 irrevocably changed the marketing landscape. For a significant period of time, gone were the out-of-home advertising on billboards and posters; marketing had turned digital in an effort to reach consumers who no longer went out. And this was a successful strategy given that the number of connected users grew to 4.9 billion in 2021 from 4.1 billion in 2019.

But even now that life beyond the home is finally resuming again, and out-of-home advertising is once again popular, digital marketing is not showing any signs of slowing down. The pandemic has clearly shown just how efficient and cost-effective digital marketing can be, and made more and more marketers realize the potential of a robust and well-executed digital marketing strategy.

But oftentimes, digital marketers make the mistake of thinking that digital marketing equates to influencer marketing. That’s simply incorrect; while influencer marketing is a very important and effective aspect of digital marketing, there’s a lot more that goes into a well-rounded digital marketing strategy. If you’re new to the world of digital marketing, you should consult with a digital marketing agency to help you take your digital strategy off the ground. But before you do so, let’s run through a quick list of other digital marketing tactics, and why you should use them.

Digital Marketing Tactics

Content marketing

Content marketing can often form the lifeblood of a digital marketing strategy. It is usually the core around which the rest of your marketing strategy is built. Content marketing involves publishing content specific to your brand and brand missions and values and is closely tied to your brand image. It helps the brand create and develop a persona that is useful and relevant to their audience.

Content marketing can include all types of content: pictures, videos, blog posts, social media posts etc. When developing a content marketing strategy, it is important to always keep the brand image you desire and the brand image projected to your audience at the forefront of your mind. All the content you publish must be aligned with this brand image, and aid in creating a stronger and value-added brand image in the minds of your consumers. Through successful content marketing, your audience will regularly return to your owned media pages to engage with the brand’s content, and perceive this content as useful to them and their lifestyle.

Community management

Community management is the logical follow-through from content marketing. Community management involves building a strong network of followers or fans through engagement and interaction, and guiding the discourse. Effective community management is what turns a follower into a dedicated brand advocate. Brand advocates are usually repeat purchasers who are loyal to the brand and are high-value customers. They are also most likely to spread positive word about the brand to their personal contacts or on their social media accounts and help bring new customers to the brand. They are indispensable to any brand.

Community management is usually conducted through a brand’s social media pages or discussion forums where a brand’s customers are able to interact with the brand’s representatives. Prompt and helpful replies to customer queries and suggestions, addressing customer needs and issues through content, and even casual engagement with customers can go a long way to building a loyal and enthusiastic community.

Paid Media

When talking about digital media, it’s easy to devolve the conversation into organic reach and growth and forget about the importance of paid digital media. Paid media has been shown to be far more effective in growing reach than organic channels, and at a much faster rate. If you have the budget to implement a robust paid media tactic, then it’s definitely worthwhile to do so.

Paid media tactics can include promoted posts on social media channels, influencer marketing, sponsorship deals, promoted posts on search engines, and banner ads on webpages. And the best thing about paid media, is its ability to be controlled. With paid media you can choose who to target, when to target them and where, and what budget to fit. It can also greatly boost the visibility of your posts and advertisements, and often return an assured eyeball level.

Live Streaming

While many of the above-mentioned tactics have been in use for a while, a relatively new tactic is live streaming. Live streaming has surged in popularity recently on social media platforms such as Instagram, TikTok, and Twitch. Not only do you have influencers and celebrities getting on live streaming platforms, but so are brands!

Oftentimes, brand involvement in live streaming is tied together with influencer marketing in that they leverage the fanbase and popularity of an influencer to talk about their products and/or review them during live streams. This is usually best suited to products that are helped by having a live session where consumers can view with their own eyes the product quality and specifications. If your product is highly technical, you can even staff the live stream with your own people and have them demo the product and answer any consumer questions. As such, live streaming is becoming a popular tool to reassure consumers about the authenticity and quality of a product.

Gastric band, also known as lap band, is one form of bariatric surgery that is used to help severely obese patients to lose weight. It works by having a silicone band wrapped around the top part of the stomach, essentially restricting the amount of food the stomach can hold. This results in the patient having to eat less to feel full, and in turn consuming less food and gaining less weight.

Bariatric surgeries are highly recommended for severely obese people who have tried all other ways to lose weight like lifestyle changes and medication with no success. Those with health complications related to their obesity like diabetes and heart disease are also strongly encouraged to undergo these procedures if they meet the requirements, as they are very effective.

Gastric Band Surgery is Effective and Quick

Although more and more people are choosing other bariatric surgeries over gastric band in the last decade, it still remains as an effective and viable option. Gastric band surgery has several advantages as compared to its more popular alternatives, and is a great choice as long as the patient meets the requirements that allow for the surgery to be effective.

One of the best features of gastric band surgeries is that it is the least invasive procedure among other weight loss surgeries. This is because unlike the other procedures, this one does not require any cutting or removal of the stomach and intestines. As such, it is one of the quickest options, with most patients only having to stay in the hospital for less than 24 hours. Recovery time is also shorter, with most patients being able to return to work shortly after one to two weeks of rest.

Not having to physically alter the organs in the body also means that this procedure is completely reversible, and can be removed if needed. The band itself is also easily adjustable to meet the needs of the individual. Those who undergo gastric band procedures are also less likely to experience malnutrition since the digestive system’s ability to absorb food is not affected as in procedures like gastric bypass surgery.

Most importantly, gastric band surgery effectively helps with reducing excess body weight, with reports of up to 40 to 60 percent loss of excess weight. While the short-term results tend to be a bit slower as compared to other weight loss surgery options, overall results in the long-term have been proven to be highly successful. Follow-ups on the conditions of type 2 diabetic patients 10 years after their surgery revealed that they showed significant improvements in quality of life over the course the years.

As with all major operations, there are possible complications during and post-surgery, such as infections and haemorrhages. However, gastric band surgery has the lowest mortality rates and lowest risk of early surgical complications among bariatric procedures. But they do require frequent follow-ups to check for erosion or slippage of the silicone band, sometimes requiring adjustments or replacements.

So, although gastric band surgery is no longer as popular as it once used to be, it is still one of the most effective weight loss methods available that is relatively quick and safe. But gastric band surgery is not for everyone. For this option, being able to lead a strict and disciplined lifestyle is very crucial for its success. This includes a restricted diet, consistent exercise and regular medical follow-ups.

Handling Post-Surgery Lifestyle Changes

To prevent side effects like nausea and vomiting post-surgery, patients have to follow a special diet. This usually lasts for a month, with the first week consisting only liquids, the second week consisting of pureed foods, the third week moving on to soft foods, before finally going back to regular food. Even after that, good dietary habits have a big part to play in making sure long-term weight loss is effective.

Sounds like too much to handle? Not to worry. Apart from being more proactive and organized, aiming to live a minimalist lifestyle can help to make the transition into the post-op lifestyle a breeze. With so many more conditions to live by, it might sound like the opposite of a minimalistic approach. But take a look at it this way: a minimalist lifestyle is all about cutting out the unnecessary so that one can focus on more important things in life.

In this case, those who opt to undergo bariatric procedures are likely to have a clear goal in mind, be it to feel better in their own body, to live a longer life, or to be more confident about themselves. Living a minimalist lifestyle can help to filter out things that take up unnecessary time and resources so that more focus can be put on things that help in the long term weight loss journey, like preparing food and attending frequent follow-up appointments.

Consistent physical exercise is also a must for the success of this procedure. Most who opt for the surgical approach have negative experiences with exercise, since their bodies do not respond well. Minimalists suggest sticking to a simple routine, with emphasis on consistency. By living mindfully, eventually these lifestyle changes should no longer feel like chores, but part of an enjoyable lifestyle.