The digital marketing consultant role is one that has evolved in the marketing industry. This person may be part of a group or company or maybe a solo, independent entity. In any capacity, the digital marketing consultant is considered to be a highly professional advisor and strategist who assists in the marketing efforts of a business.
To be formal about it, a digital marketing consultant is an external advisor with extensive experience in digital marketing who provides services to companies or other entities
The consultant establishes effective strategic approaches backed by analysis and a data-driven framework. He provides the ability to embed the branding strategy and design the essential processes for digital marketing activities as well as marketing plans and optimization of channels.
With digital marketing getting headway, marketing consultancy started to evolve and has moved from a phase of hypothesis to that of practice. The technology available now has reshaped the marketing industry. The technological capabilities and data have now become a cornerstone of strategies and activities. Thus, consultation tasks started to include digital marketing technology and data analytics
The Rise of the Digital Marketing Consultant
A new generation of experts started to evolve in every category of digital channels. Experts on SEO, PPC, and content creation can now be found in the internet space. Consultation services started to be specialized and broken into the different marketing channels, technology, as well as automation software.
The changes and expansion have pushed the task of the digital marketing consultant into a very sophisticated and complex profession and specialization. It is difficult to find a marketing consultant who has knowledge and experience in some facets of marketing. He may have knowledge of strategic marketing but may have a lack of experience on digital channels like organic, performance, and campaign optimization.
These capabilities require professionals who have technical experience with optimization as well as the experience of end-to-end marketing projects for brands all at the same time. These are the ones who can be called digital marketing consultants.
When to Hire a Digital Marketing Consultant
Many companies hire a marketing consultant to help gain an efficient analysis of the consumer scene as well as the market. These companies are eager to get unbiased feedback and another perspective about their business. The needs could be different for every company or business. When they need a consultant to analyze the digital data from their website or find n effective means to do digital promotions, they require a digital marketing consultant
Digital Marketing Consultant Skills
A digital marketing consultant may need these skills to be able to be effective:
Understanding of the current market scene
An effective analysis of the customer personas is a vital key in marketing. With the help of analytics software and other monitoring apps, the consultant should be able to give details of where the traffic comes from in detail. An effective analysis of the customer personas is a vital key in marketing. WIth the help of analytics software and other monitoring apps, the consultant should be able to give details of where the traffic comes from in detail.
Ability to think about strategies
The foundation of a good marketing strategy is the ability to align marketing plans, design the process and establish KPIs. The digital marketing consultant must be able to put such strategies into the appropriate digital channels. Marketing objectives like lead generation, re-targeting, retention, growth hacking, and guerilla marketing must be put into the good process and use
Mastering digital marketing channels
The consultant must be an expert on the most essential digital marketing channels. These must include SEO, social media, content, paid search, and paid social channels. There are other main strategies that should be included like email marketing, video marketing, and influencer marketing.
Must be able to dominate technology
Digital platforms are best managed by experts that also require the ability to optimize and audit. The digital marketing consultant can peruse Google Analytics, Facebook Ads, Social Media, and SEO tools. He is able to audit and optimize for running and planned campaigns for every platform. This also extends to the use of marketing automation, AI, CMS, and CRMS.
Manage expectations and performance
Data-driven campaigns and strategy are the main demands of digital marketing. Establishing reliable KPIs and data reporting are the main framework of the consultant’s role. Advanced analytics and skills are needed as well.
Digital marketing consultants mainly focus on improving the marketing process by sustaining a solid roadmap of marketing ROI and profits. They will be able to answer questions of when and where the business should design a digital marketing campaign.
