In choosing your marketing strategy, it would be helpful to know the difference between the two. Of course, one involves investment of money — hence, “paid.” However, organic still involves an investment: time. Beyond the classic quandary of time vs. money, there are still other elements to consider to choose what’s best for you.
Let’s first define Organic Marketing. As the name states “organic,” it involves a natural progression of growth — similar to planting a seed and patiently waiting for it to bear fruit. In this case, the seeds to be planted in the internet are content. Typically, this refers to SEO-optimized blogs and social media posts. Like a plant, this requires nurture and consistency, such as daily posts or weekly blogs. While this may involve greater time and effort, it does provide a great foundation for brand identity and, therefore, a stronger base for loyalty or in revenue terms: “repeat customers.” Creating content can be a daily toil. Lucky for you, that’s a blümink specialty! You can strengthen your brand identity and influencing power by providing a continuous narrative, such as your social media feed. This strategy also provides greater leeway for course correction — meaning — changes in strategy/target/mission are less noticeable. Therefore, organic marketing is more forgiving for a company/brand/organization that is in the earlier stages of development.
While it is always best to be clear in messaging or campaigning, Paid Marketing is less forgiving in the sense that the message will reach a wider audience at a single moment. Bear in mind that the size of the audience is proportional to the size of the monetary investment. For example, a regional Facebook ad greatly differs to a Superbowl halftime show both in cost and outreach. So if you’re planning a massive campaign ad, it is best to be committed to your identity and message! Unlike organic marketing, the results of a paid marketing strategy are more immediate; however, it is not necessarily sustainable. If you have an upcoming holiday sale or news that you need to the public to know right away, this strategy will do the job. Though sales or traffic typically drop off when the ad campaign is over. The flash of an ad can instantly engage your audience and prompt for clicks and conversions. Yet after the wave of excitement, it doesn’t have the staying power like continuous content where growth is compounded. For that reason, ads will need to be repurchased to sustain the same sales or traffic results.
From a horticultural perspective, it compares to an avocado tree vs. a tomato plant: tomato plants are much quicker to bear fruit yet must be replanted after harvesting. On the other hand, an avocado tree will take longer time to bear fruit but when it does, it will reliably do so for seasons to come. Inevitably, organic marketing is for long-term gain and paid marketing is for short-term, immediate results. Both strategies can be simultaneously used for successful growth and you might get something amazing in the end, like guacamole. Happy planting!
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