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<\/a><\/p>\nBut this ever-changing digital landscape can quickly become overwhelming. I’ve put together this guide \u2014 with a free template \u2014 to help you efficiently create, fine-tune, and maintain an agile digital marketing<\/a> strategy and improve your digital presence.<\/p>\n Table of Contents<\/strong><\/p>\n Are you confused about the difference between a marketing strategy and marketing tactics?<\/p>\n You can think about it like this: strategy is planning, and tactic is doing. Having a strategy without ways to act on it (tactics) is daydreaming, and taking actions with no common goal or plan (strategy) wastes your time.<\/p>\n Let’s dive a bit deeper into the differences between the two.<\/p>\n Marketing or not, there are three parts to any strategy<\/a>:<\/p>\n 1. <\/strong>A diagnosis of your challenge.<\/p>\n 2.<\/strong> A guiding policy for dealing with the challenge.<\/p>\n 3. <\/strong>A set of targeted actions is necessary to accomplish the policy.<\/p>\n Depending on the scale of your business, your marketing strategy may include several moving parts, each with different goals. With that said, working on your strategy can become daunting at times.<\/p>\n So, if you’re ever feeling overwhelmed about your marketing strategy, refer to these three steps to keep you focused on achieving your objectives.<\/p>\n (Psst: Subscribe to Masters in Marketing newsletter for weekly insights from top brands. Plus, for one week only, 100 readers can win our limited Kit!)<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n While strategies provide a framework for your overall vision, tactics determine the specific steps taken to execute that vision.<\/p>\n A good tactic should:<\/p>\n Depending on your marketing strategy, your tactics may include email marketing campaigns<\/a>, publishing a blog<\/a>, or organizing an event<\/a>.<\/p>\n Now, let’s look at digital<\/em> marketing strategy.<\/p>\n A strong digital marketing strategy helps your business achieve specific digital goals through carefully selected mediums.<\/p>\n Similar to marketing strategies versus marketing tactics<\/a>, \u201cdigital marketing strategy\u201d and \u201cdigital marketing campaign\u201d are also often used interchangeably. So, how do they differ?<\/p>\n I\u2019ll discuss that in the following sections.<\/p>\n <\/a> <\/p>\n First of all, you\u2019ve got to lay out your main goals and specific objectives to build an effective digital strategy.<\/p>\n Goals are big-picture ideas, while objectives are more detailed and easier to measure. They have clear deadlines and show what success looks like.<\/p>\n Here is an example of how I like to think about the difference:<\/p>\n See the difference? When it comes to goals, you can define and measure them through SMART goals<\/a> and criteria<\/a>.<\/p>\n Source<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n Next step \u2014 get to know your audience.<\/p>\n Research and identify the specific groups of people you want to reach.<\/p>\n Consider their age, where they live, and how much money they make. What are their interests? What issues do they face? Where do they spend their time online?<\/p>\n Study their online behavior, preferred websites, and what they like to read or watch, so you can pick the best platforms and make content that grabs their attention.<\/p>\n Pro tip:<\/strong> Take it further with Customer Profiling in 10 Easy Steps [+ Templates]<\/a><\/p>\n A content plan is the most interesting and, at the same time, most challenging part of any strategy.<\/p>\n Your content must inform, entertain, and engage.<\/p>\n Here you need to \u201cspy\u201d on your audience again. What kind of content do they devour? Where do they leave the most comments, likes, and shares? When do they mostly check in (morning, lunch, bedtime)?<\/p>\n Here are my top tips for creating a content strategy that works:<\/p>\n Pro tip:<\/strong> Take your content strategy to the next level with this handy guide: How to Develop a Content Strategy in 7 Steps: A Start-to-Finish Guide<\/a><\/p>\n Every digital strategy should prioritize a good user experience. Your site or app needs to be functional, enjoyable, and easy to use.<\/p>\n It must be clear, intuitive, and frustration-free. Otherwise, you risk losing potential customers.<\/p>\n Here are my tips for good UX:<\/p>\n Pro tip:<\/strong> Explore more UX design with our article Perfecting Your Digital UX Design \u2014 The Tips You Need to Know<\/a><\/p>\n Data analytics track traffic, analyze which parts of the campaign resonate most, and even pinpoint where users might be dropping off.<\/p>\n Data analytics can also track how users behave, understand what they like, and even predict future trends.<\/p>\n Managing data analytics can be overwhelming, but HubSpot’s Marketing Analytics & Dashboard Software<\/a> makes it easy to keep track of all your marketing efforts effortlessly.<\/p>\n This lets you identify what\u2018s working and what\u2019s not. You can then refine your approach, optimize content for better conversions, and ultimately achieve your objectives with laser focus.<\/p>\n Pro tip:<\/strong> If you want to learn more about data analytics, I recommend exploring our free guide to data analytics.<\/a><\/p>\n <\/a> <\/p>\n Digital marketing campaigns are the building blocks and actions within your digital marketing strategy that move you toward a specific end goal.<\/p>\n For instance, if the overarching goal of my digital marketing strategy is to generate more leads through social media, I might run a digital marketing campaign on the social platform X.<\/p>\n I\u2018d share some of my business\u2019s best-performing gated content on the platform to generate more leads through the channel.<\/p>\n Let’s tie it all together to help you create a digital marketing strategy you execute with your digital marketing campaigns.<\/p>\n For any marketing strategy \u2014 digital or not \u2014 you need to know who you’re marketing to. The best digital marketing strategies are built upon detailed buyer personas; creating them is your first step.<\/p>\n Featured Resource: Organize your audience segments and strengthen your marketing with <\/span><\/span>these templates to build your buyer personas<\/a>. They’ll help you organize your insights and have a clear visualization of your target audience.<\/span><\/p>\n Buyer personas represent your ideal customer(s) and can be created by researching, surveying, and interviewing your business’s target audience.<\/p>\n I have to note that it\u2019s important that the information you gather is based on real data whenever possible. Making assumptions about your audience can cause your marketing strategy to go wrong.<\/p>\n Buyer personas are especially helpful if you have a niche audience. For example, I run Breaking the Blueprint<\/a>, a HubSpot Blog column for minority business owners and entrepreneurs \u2014 a more specific group than the general HubSpot audience.<\/p>\n I could publish content based on what I think they might look for and benefit from, but I\u2019m much more effective, impactful, and helpful if I dig deep and uncover their specific interests, needs, and challenges.<\/p>\n To get a well-rounded picture of your persona, your research pool should include customers, prospects, and people outside your contacts database who align with your target audience.<\/p>\n But what information should you gather for your buyer persona(s) to inform your digital marketing strategy?<\/p>\n That depends on your business \u2014 it\u2019s likely to vary by whether you\u2019re B2B or B2C or sell a high-cost or low-cost product.<\/p>\n I\u2019ve outlined some starting points that you can fine-tune and tailor to your particular business:<\/p>\n By combining all of these details, you’ll be able to create buyer personas that are accurate and highly valuable for your business.<\/p>\n Your marketing goals should always be tied back to the fundamental goals of your business.<\/p>\n For example, if my business\u2019 goal is to increase online revenue by 20%, my marketing team\u2019s goal might be to generate 50% more leads via the website than the previous year to contribute to that success.<\/p>\n My pro tip: <\/strong>I recommend using a high-level marketing plan template<\/a> to outline your annual marketing strategy, identify top priorities, and more.<\/p>\n Whatever your overarching digital marketing<\/a> goal is, you must be able to measure the success of your strategy along the way with the right digital marketing tools.<\/p>\n For instance, HubSpot’s Reporting Dashboard<\/a> brings all of your marketing and sales data into one place, so you can quickly determine what works and what doesn’t to improve your strategy for the future.<\/p>\n My favorite feature is that you can customize your dashboards with the drag-and-drop editor to ensure your reports feature the metrics that matter most.<\/p>\n When reviewing your existing digital marketing channels and assets to determine what to incorporate in your strategy, it’s helpful to first consider the big picture \u2014 this will prevent you from feeling overwhelmed or confused.<\/p>\n Gather what you have and categorize each vehicle or asset in a spreadsheet so you have a clear picture of your existing owned, earned, and paid media.<\/p>\n To do this effectively, I recommend using the owned, earned, and paid media framework to categorize the digital \u201cvehicles,\u201d assets, or channels you\u2018re already using and decide what\u2019s a good fit for your strategy.<\/p>\n Owned media<\/strong> refers to the digital assets your brand or company owns, like your website<\/a>, social media profiles, blog content, or imagery.<\/p>\n Owned channels are what your business has complete control over. The HubSpot Blog is an example of owned media, but this can also include some off-site content you own (e.g., a blog you publish on Medium).<\/p>\n Earned media<\/a><\/strong>, also called earned content, is anything written about or created about your business that doesn\u2019t come from paid advertising or sponsorships.<\/p>\n It\u2019s published by a third party, like press mentions or media outlet coverage, people sharing your content via their networks, user-generated content, and even word-of-mouth marketing from satisfied customers.<\/p>\n You can earn media by getting press mentions and positive reviews as well as by people sharing your content via their networks (e.g. social media channels).<\/p>\n Paid media<\/strong> refers to any vehicle or channel you spend money on to catch the attention of your buyer personas.<\/p>\n This includes things like Google Ads, paid social media posts, native advertising (e.g. sponsored posts on other websites), or any other medium through which you pay in exchange for increased visibility.<\/p>\n I\u2019ll go over an example now that I\u2019ve outlined the framework.<\/p>\n Say I have an owned<\/em> piece of content on a landing page on my website that’s been created to help me generate leads.<\/p>\n I know I want to incorporate different parts of the framework rather than just working with owned, earned, or paid media alone.<\/p>\n To amplify the number of leads the content generates, I ensure it’s shareable so my audience can distribute it via their social media profiles. In return, this will increase traffic to my landing page. This is the earned media<\/em> component.<\/p>\n To support my content’s success, I might post about the content on my Facebook page and pay to have it seen by more people in my target audience.<\/p>\n This is how the three parts of the framework can work together, although it’s not necessary for success. For instance, if my owned and earned media are already both successful, I might not need to invest in paid methods.<\/p>\n I recommend evaluating what solution will help you best meet your goals and then incorporating those channels into your digital marketing strategy.<\/p>\n Featured Resource: <\/strong>Keep track of your paid media efforts with HubSpot’s <\/span>free Paid Media Template<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n At the heart of digital marketing is owned media \u2014 and it almost always comes in the form of content.<\/p>\n That\u2019s because nearly every message your brand broadcasts can be classified as content, whether it\u2019s an About Us site page, product descriptions, blog posts<\/a>, ebooks, infographics, podcasts, or social media posts.<\/p>\n Content helps convert your website visitors into leads and customers while improving your brand\u2019s online presence. And when this content is search engine optimized, it can boost your search and organic traffic.<\/p>\n Whatever your digital marketing strategy goal is, you’ll want to incorporate owned content. To start, decide what content will help you reach your goals.<\/p>\n Continuing with the example from above, my goal is to generate 50% more leads on my website this year. My About Us page is probably useless to my strategy unless it\u2019s somehow been a lead-generation machine in the past.<\/p>\n If you\u2019re feeling stuck, below I\u2019ve outlined a brief process you can follow to work out what owned content you need to meet your digital marketing strategy goals.<\/p>\n I promise marketing audits are significantly less scary than any other type of audit and much simpler.<\/p>\n Just make a list of your existing owned content, then rank each item according to what has previously performed best concerning your current goals.<\/p>\n For example, if your goal is lead generation, rank your content according to which pieces generated the most leads over the last year (such as a blog post, ebook, or site page).<\/p>\n The idea here is to figure out what\u2019s currently working, and what\u2019s not so that you can set yourself up for success when planning future content.<\/p>\n Based on your buyer personas, identify any gaps in the content you have.<\/p>\n For example, if you’re a math tutoring company and know through research that a major challenge for your personas is finding effective ways to study, create some.<\/p>\n By looking at your content audit, you might discover that ebooks hosted on a certain type of landing page convert really well (better than webinars, for example).<\/p>\n In the case of this math tutoring company, you might make the decision to add an ebook about \u201chow to make studying more effective\u201d to your content creation plans.<\/p>\n Based on your findings and the gaps you\u2019ve identified, make a content creation plan outlining the content that\u2019s necessary to help you hit your goals.<\/p>\n This should include:<\/p>\n This can be a simple spreadsheet and should also include budget information if you\u2018re planning to outsource the content creation or a time estimate if you\u2019re producing it yourself.<\/p>\n Evaluating your previous earned media against your current goals can help you get an idea of where to focus your time.<\/p>\n Look at where your traffic and leads are coming from (if that’s your goal) and rank each earned media source from most effective to least effective.<\/p>\n You can obtain this information using tools like the Sources reports<\/a> in HubSpot’s Traffic Analytics tool.<\/p>\n You may find a particular article you contributed to the industry press drove a lot of qualified traffic to your website, which boosted conversions.<\/p>\n Or, you may discover that LinkedIn is where you see most people sharing content, which increases traffic.<\/p>\n The idea is to build a picture of what types of earned media will help you reach your goals (and what won\u2019t) based on historical data.<\/p>\n However, if there\u2019s something new you want to experiment with, don\u2019t rule it out just because it\u2019s never been done before.<\/p>\n Auditing your paid media campaigns (also a simple, no-frills audit) is the same process: evaluate your existing paid media across each platform (e.g. Google Ads, Facebook, X, etc.) and identify what\u2019s most likely to help you meet your current goals.<\/p>\n Say, for example, you spend a lot of money on ads and find that you don\u2019t get the results you\u2019d hoped for. It might be time to refine your approach or scrap it all together and focus on another platform that yields better results.<\/p>\n Featured Resource: <\/strong>Use this Google Ads PPC Kit to learn <\/span>how to leverage<\/a> <\/span>Google Ads for your digital marketing strategy.<\/a><\/p>\n By the end of the process, you should have a clear idea of which paid media platforms you want to continue using and which (if any) you’d like to remove from your strategy.<\/p>\n You’ve done the planning and the research, and you now have a solid vision of the elements that will make up your digital marketing strategy.<\/p>\n To review, here’s what you should have solidified so far:<\/p>\n Now, you bring all of your findings together to plan the campaign(s) that will make up your digital marketing strategy.<\/p>\n A better understanding of digital marketing strategies is vital to your ultimate success. Earning a bachelor\u2019s in marketing or a related field can be valuable and boost your career.<\/p>\n In the meantime, I made a list of basic marketing strategies commonly used by teams across various industries.<\/p>\n To make it even more helpful, I used our 2025 State of Marketing Report<\/a> to order the list based on what marketers use most and find the most effective.<\/p>\n Digital marketing isn\u2019t one size fits all. Each business has its own unique needs and goals. Therefore, every marketing team will have their own approach.<\/p>\n However, there are many online marketing strategies that you can implement to spread awareness about your business and attract new customers.<\/p>\n Here are some common, effective strategies that can help you build a comprehensive digital marketing plan.<\/p>\n Content marketing involves creating and sharing valuable, relevant, and consistent content to attract and engage your target audience. Instead of bombarding your audience with ads and promotional messages, content marketing focuses on providing your customers with information that is interesting and useful to them.<\/p>\n Ultimately, the goal of content marketing is to build trust, establish thought leadership, and drive profitable customer action.<\/p>\n There are two major trends in content marketing we\u2019re seeing in 2025: Visual storytelling and value-driven content.<\/p>\n Short-form video, images, and live-streaming video were among the most commonly used \u2014 and highest ROI \u2014 content formats in 2024, and our research shows that marketers are increasing their investment in these visual storytelling formats in 2025.<\/p>\n This increase is partly because marketers are shifting their focus to younger audiences.<\/p>\n Younger customers are also more likely to seek out brands whose values align with their own. Content marketers are meeting that demand by creating more content that reflects their brand\u2019s values \u2014 21% of respondents said they\u2019re exploring this trend in 2025.<\/p>\n Brand-led marketing strategies in general are increasing in popularity, as marketers zero in on brand awareness and their customers\u2019 experiences with their brand.<\/p>\n Since buyers view around three to five<\/a> pieces of content before engaging with a sales rep, content marketing is how you give them what they\u2019re looking for. And although we\u2019re seeing a smaller proportion of marketers who are putting more resources toward blogging, 15% still told us that they\u2019re increasing their investment in 2025.<\/p>\n Blogging is a major play for businesses that want to attract customers who are genuinely interested in their products and services. And well-written, well-researched blog posts often answer an urgent need for a potential customer.<\/p>\n For instance, HubSpot sells marketing software<\/a>, and our users are typically marketing professionals who create plans, campaigns, and editorial calendars for their employers.<\/p>\n Recognizing this, Hubspot offers a free blog maker<\/a> to help you get started on publishing content that resonates with your audience, ensuring you can easily share your knowledge and insights without the technical hassle.<\/p>\n The key is not to blog just because: Blog with the intent to solve for the customer. To effectively do so, it\u2019s important to understand your target audience and their pain points<\/a>.<\/p>\n That way, you can write highly targeted content that\u2019s genuinely helpful for readers, especially since consumers say they read between one and four blog posts per month.<\/p>\n The global market for influencer marketing<\/a> has quadrupled<\/em> since 2019, and we\u2019re seeing a particular rise in niche-influencer marketing in 2025.<\/p>\n By partnering with influencers, brands can create content that promotes their products or services while leveraging the influencer\u2019s reach.<\/p>\n There are many ways you can partner with influencers, such as sponsored content, guest blogging, product collaborations, influencer takeovers, and more.<\/p>\n Before partnering with an influencer, it\u2019s important to do your research and make sure they have an engaged following within your industry or niche and are aligned with your values and messaging.<\/p>\n Not sure how to get started? Check out HubSpot\u2019s Ultimate Guide to Influencer Marketing.<\/p>\n Featured Resource: <\/strong>The Ultimate Guide to Influencer Marketing<\/a><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n Influencer marketing might seem unattainable from a cost perspective, as most businesses don\u2019t have A-list budgets. But as Eric Munn, the director of marketing for the Chicago Transit Authority who was featured in our Masters in Marketing newsletter<\/a>, points out, local and regional influencers can be quite affordable and<\/em> have valuable audiences.<\/p>\n \u201cOur campaign was focused on using the CTA because it saves you money, which means more money in your pocket to go do all of the things that Chicago has to offer.\u201d So Munn turned to Chicagoland influencers who make videos with themes like \u201cfive things to do in Chicago this weekend\u201d or \u201cChicago\u2019s hidden gems.\u201d<\/p>\n Followers of those influencers were very likely to be in the CTA\u2019s target audience already, making it a valuable marketing play \u2014 but without paying national influencer prices.<\/p>\n Many marketers prefer working with niche influencers and find them the most effective, which makes sense \u2014 the cost is lower, and these influencers typically have a stronger bond with a smaller and more engaged community, ready and open to hear from them.<\/p>\n\n
Marketing Strategies vs. Marketing Tactics<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Characteristics of a Strategy<\/strong><\/h3>\n
Characteristics of a Tactic<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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Components of a Digital Strategy<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Goals and Objectives<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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<\/a><\/p>\nAudience Analysis<\/strong><\/h3>\n
Content Plan<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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UX Design<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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Data Analytics<\/strong><\/h3>\n
What is a digital marketing campaign?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
1. Build your buyer personas.<\/strong><\/h3>\n
Quantitative and Demographic Information<\/strong><\/h4>\n
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2. Identify your goals and the digital marketing tools you’ll need.<\/strong><\/h3>\n
3. Evaluate your existing digital channels and assets.<\/strong><\/h3>\n
Owned, Earned, Paid Media Framework<\/strong><\/h4>\n
Owned, Earned, and Paid Media Framework Example<\/strong><\/h4>\n
4. Audit and plan your owned media campaigns.<\/h3>\n
Audit your existing content.<\/strong><\/h4>\n
Identify gaps in your existing content.<\/strong><\/h4>\n
Create a content creation plan.<\/strong><\/h4>\n
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5. Audit and plan your earned media campaigns.<\/strong><\/h3>\n
6. Audit and plan your paid media campaigns.<\/strong><\/h3>\n
7. Bring your digital marketing campaign together.<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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1. Content Marketing<\/strong><\/h3>\n
Visual Storytelling is the New Norm<\/h4>\n
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<\/p>\nBrands are Increasingly Value-Driven<\/h4>\n
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<\/p>\nOnline Marketing Benefits of Content Marketing<\/strong><\/h4>\n
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Recommended Reading<\/strong><\/h4>\n
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2. Influencer Marketing<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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<\/p>\nOnline Marketing Benefits of Influencer Marketing<\/strong><\/h4>\n
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