EFFECTS OF DIGITAL MARKETING ON BUSINESS STARTUP
Author: Mohit Saraswat, Shruti khandelwal, NDIIT
Corresponding Author: Asst. Prof. Zofail Hassan, NDIIT, New Delhi
(An AICTE approved institute)

Introduction –

Our surroundings are always changing and improving where we live. The development of technology has a significant impact on this dynamic world. Virtually everyone has some kind of connection to digital technologies. People might easily lose hours on their tablets, computers, and phones. This offers a variety of opportunities for enterprises in particular to profit from such a digital transition. Therefore, it should come as no surprise that marketing strategies have radically altered from print and television to internet and digital media.

Regardless of the size, digital marketing is at the center of every marketing effort for every firm. No one today starts a business without creating a thorough digital marketing strategy. The most common form of marketing in today’s technological era is digital marketing. Digital marketing for start-ups enables young companies to adapt to the marketing plans and strategies for the target market while also assuring compliance with the complicated and ever-changing client behavior. For start-ups in the present era, creating a corporate identity is a crucial strategic requirement because modern brand marketing strategies are different from those used in the past. Start-up businesses are proven to be crucial for the expansion of the economy, and during the past 20 years, their significance has grown on a global scale.

Governments all across the world have encouraged and provided incentives for start-up businesses to keep a competitive edge.

It has been advocated that start-up companies focus on digital marketing rather than traditional marketing, because digital marketing allows such organisations to recruit future customers and more efficiently target present customers. Digital marketing strives to build consumer relationships and engagement as well as alternative venues for the delivery of goods and services. It aids in improving engagement with clients as well as understanding their changing expectations. As a result, start-ups must participate in online digital platforms that help enterprises to reach a larger consumer base and successfully communicate with suppliers and customers.

Literature Review –

The literature derived from earlier studies is covered in this chapter. The papers, journals, and books on digital marketing, marketing strategies, start-ups, etc. are among the references taken into account for the literature study. An overview of start-ups, digital marketing, digital marketing techniques, and consequences of digital marketing on start-up growth in the context of brand awareness, trust-building, and consumer awareness will be provided in this chapter.

• STARTUPS: –

Despite being used more frequently, the term “startup” is frequently highly ambiguous since academics have different ideas about what it means. With businesses ranging from small, local businesses to large IT organisations now identifying. Over time, the phrase has changed to refer to start-ups themselves. There are several ways to define a start-up. It can be characterized as an entrepreneurial company founded by one or more founders with the goal of creating and marketing a novel good or service.

According to Laari-Samella et al. (2017), a startup is a business that has been active for less than ten years. There are a few characteristics of start-ups, according to Gruber’s (2004) thorough examination of the literature. The first and most frequently highlighted quality is “newness,” or the firm’s development in its infancy. Another characteristic is the “smallness” of these companies. The third characteristic is environmental volatility, which manifests as fluctuations in sales and income. Therefore, a start-up might be described as a young, small company that was established with a tight budget to promote novel items.

Start-ups must use strategy when marketing their brands because they are recent establishments. They should make the most of their limited resources by employing original and unconventional strategies to build momentum. Startups should place a strong emphasis on the financial benefits of marketing techniques including email marketing, social media marketing, and word-of-mouth (WOM). As a result, they must focus on the 4Is (information, identification, innovation, and interaction) rather than the traditional marketing 4Ps or 7Ps (product, price, place, promotion, process, people, and physical evidence).

• DIGITAL MARKETING: –

The term “digital marketing” has evolved over time from a specific term that refers to the marketing of products and services using digital platforms to a more general term that refers to the strategy of utilizing digital technology to draw customers, establish consumer habits, support brands, keep customers, and increase revenue. Therefore, digital marketing can be defined as an adaptable, technologically enabled framework through which businesses collaborate with clients and partners to create, connect, generate, and maintain value for all parties.

In order to contact consumers through social media, websites, search engines, applications, and other channels, digital marketers leverage media devices like mobile phones, PCs, and other gadgets. The potential of digital marketing is enormous. To understand how consumers utilize new technologies and apply that knowledge to the organization’s advantage, one of the main aims of digital marketing is to help users communicate with potential customers more effectively. Digital marketing can also be used to increase brand value, draw in new customers, and raise revenues. Online or offline digital marketing is both possible. The introduction of internet 1.0 in 1990 marked the beginning of the modern era of marketing known as digital marketing. Internet marketing is the application of digital technologies to the accomplishment of marketing goals. Organisations and marketing managers utilize digital media marketing as a potent instrument to draw customers and develop successful brands.

The aforementioned framework outlines key communication strategies and themes in the marketing process, where new digital technologies will continue to have a significant impact. It contains both the arrangements between the specified components and the specific components themselves. The system also emphasizes the importance of defining the roles and responsibilities in digital media that may affect the organisations either internally or outside. The value of customers and businesses is increased as a result of these digital technologies.

The usage of digital media platforms in marketing has increased, enabling better customer interaction in order to collect data and input from customers and to broaden the target market. The following list of several methods of marketing in digital media is provided:

• INTERACTIVE MARKETING: –

Using dynamic content including layered information, customized content, visual storytelling, and two-way 8 engagement, interactive marketing is a technique for interacting with consumers. The purpose of interactive marketing is to make material interesting and relevant for consumers.

• PERSONALISED CONTENT: –

Personalised content uses advanced technology to collect data about the consumers geographic, demographic and lifecycle information. Then the system creates profiles for each consumer which then can be used to target certain individuals to create a personalised, relatable and meaningful experience making consumers more likely to interact with the content by sharing it.

• LAYERED INFORMATION: –

When the goal of the advertisement is to tell people about the brand name, product, or service, layered information is used. The capacity to, for instance, convey a brand’s story utilizing little amounts of information supplied in short, simple bits that slowly reveal more information to consumers who are interested is provided by this strategy, which delivers detailed information in small increments. When the advertisement is presented as a consumer activity, this is referred to as two-way interaction. Two-way interaction makes use of interactive elements like games, films, and puzzles to give the user a more potent experience.

Rationale of Study –

Digital marketing channels have replaced traditional commercial methods, giving entrepreneurs new ways to connect with their target audiences. This study seeks to determine the degree to which digital marketing tactics influence the development and success of startups in the area because it is unclear how they affect company startups in Delhi NCR. This study will shed light on the role that digital marketing plays in fostering business growth and development in Delhi NCR by analyzing data on the adoption and effectiveness of digital marketing strategies.

Material and Methods –

1. INDUCTIVE METHOD: –

As we began our investigation with the results of the prior study and will provide our study findings at the conclusion of our research process, we will be employing an inductive research approach to carry out our research. As inductive methodology investigates its use in qualitative analysis, where researchers start with their results and hypotheses and recommend, at the end of the analysis process, what findings they generate, we are also employing qualitative research methodologies for the study. Further, we chose inductive analysis, which entails looking for trends through observation and developing interpretations—or theories—for these trends through a series of hypotheses. Inductive experiments begin with no preconceived notions or assumptions, and the researcher is free to change the direction of the study once the research phase has been completed.

2. QUALITATIVE METHOD: –

An exploratory study known as qualitative research uses vocabulary to convey justifications, points of view, and reasons for inquiry. Qualitative analysis seeks to improve theories or notions while also enlarging the problem.

In business studies, the most often utilized qualitative data collection methods include interviews, focus groups, assessments, and action analysis. In contrast, grounded theory and record analysis can also be employed in qualitative research as a tool for data collecting. In this report, the qualitative research methodology will be used. The response will be represented by descriptions, and the outcomes will be carefully assessed. This strategy was used since additional questions were raised during the interviews in order to complete or improve the analytical results. Moreover, a semi-structured strategy.

Research Methodology –

Objective: –

1. TO EXAMINE THE EFFECT OF DIGITAL MARKETING IN STARTUPS.
2. TO STUDY THE EFFECTIVENESS OF DIGITAL MARKETING ON STARTUPS.

Hypothesis of The Study –

• H₁: DIGITAL MARKETING HAS A POSITIVE EFFECT ON STARTUP.
• H₀: DIGITAL MARKETING HAS NO EFFECT ON STARTUP.

Research Design –

Exploratory, descriptive, and quantitative (survey) methods are used in the study. A thorough research study may be able to gather data more efficiently and productively than a hurriedly put together survey. Exploratory research is a type of investigation that tries to provide you a theoretical or speculative understanding of the topic being studied. Instead, then focusing on the why of the subject being examined, descriptive research focuses on the what, when, where, and how. Open-ended questions do not provide a predetermined set of answers because participants must provide their own answers.

Data Collection Technique –

In a descriptive research design, the main tool for gathering data will be a questionnaire, just like it was in the study. The question would be altered in accordance with respondents’ comprehension of the study’s conclusions.

Examining Methods –

SOURCE OF DATA: – The source of data for our research is survey (question answers), form filling, Online portals and Internet research.

Conclusion –

The goal of this thesis was to investigate the importance of digital marketing and its impact on the establishment and growth of start-up businesses. The study’s foundation is the connection between startups and digital marketing. The study also looked at whether digital marketing can significantly impact start-up growth, brand awareness, customer loyalty, and customer relationships.

This study shows that when implementing their company plans, the majority of startup companies do not include digital marketing strategy. They frequently hesitate to make such marketing investments. It does, however, have a significant impact on business growth, and start-ups must participate in the digital media industry. For startups, blogs, content, articles, and videos are most effective, especially when they are posted on channels that are specialized to their business.

This study shows that when implementing their company plans, the majority of startup companies do not include digital marketing strategy. They frequently hesitate to make such marketing investments. But it has a significant impact on In order to respond to our research topic, “How does digital marketing impact start-up business growth”? Start-up businesses may experience a major impact from digital marketing. Due to their limited financial means, startups must be inventive when developing their marketing strategies in order to compete with established businesses. Digital marketing can be extremely important to the development of start-up businesses. Startup businesses can successfully and efficiently sell their products through digital marketing tools, many of which are free to use. Building relationships, customer satisfaction, and trust are crucial when it comes to the fundamental elements of business success. With its worldwide reach, digital marketing gives start-ups the ability to encourage two-way contact with their customers using the appropriate material. Consumers are more likely to emotionally engage with a brand when the correct content is used in the marketing strategy. Additionally, digital marketing encourages businesses to develop their brand identities and get the consumer trust that is essential to any business’ success. Startup businesses have the opportunity to interact with customers, solicit feedback, and improve the quality of their goods and services, all of which will help consumers develop a positive perception of their brands. Building consumer loyalty, brand awareness, and trust is essential for the expansion and success of start-ups. Using digital marketing platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, Discord, Instagram, and content, start-up businesses may also find new investors and business partners as well as hire qualified staff and attract new and repeat customers.

According to this thesis’s conclusions, start-ups lack a defined digital marketing strategy. Despite the fact that they recognize the significance and utility of digital marketing in business development, they perceive it to be time-consuming and difficult. The report also reveals that start-ups used digital marketing primarily for three reasons: brand recognition, consumer interaction, and awareness. Additionally, we discovered that the impact of digital marketing may draw in and keep customers. It has favorable implications on customer loyalty as well. With the aid of digital marketing, start-up businesses can also develop strong brand identities. A start-up company’s success is greatly and favorably impacted by digital marketing.

The number of people using the internet and other digital services is growing dramatically around the world, and this is reflected in the growth of digital customers each year. According to recent forecasts, e-commerce demand will rise even further in the future. In 2019, global e-commerce revenues exceeded US$3.5 trillion.

Therefore, it is essential for new businesses to utilize these resources in order to grow and compete with established ones.