The Difference Between Marketing Digital Products and E-Commerce

Marketing is everywhere. It’s on the shelves of grocery stores, on billboards around town, on and in your phone, on the air freshener in your car, and in your email.

And if you are a marketer, it should be in your head 24/7.

Whether you are selling a physical product or an info one – you will not get far without marketing. Both physical e-commerce and digital info products and services have similarities in how you market them, but they also have differences.

Today, we’d like to discuss both of those. By the end of this article, you should know exactly what to do when marketing your digital products or selling your e-commerce goods.

Similarities In Marketing E-Com and Info Products

Here are some of the main similarities in marketing e-commerce and info products:

• Understanding Your Target Audience: Whether you are promoting a digital or a physical product, having a deep understanding of your target audience is the root of your success. This includes knowing their demographics (age, location, interests) and also their needs, pain points, and motivations. 
  
  

• Lead Generation: It’s only logical that once you have an idea of who to sell to and why, your next step is to attract people who align with the characteristics of your TA (target audience). Lead magnets can be of help in doing so.
  
  Lead magnets can include discounts, free shipping or trials, extra items or services, and exclusive offers in exchange for contact information.
  
  Your goal is to build a database of potentially interested customers, which you will then convert into paying ones.
  
  
• Email and Content Marketing: Email marketing for both e-com and info products can consist of follow-ups, product or service recommendations, new styles, courses or update launches, and promotional offers.
  
  As for content marketing, blogs, tutorials, and webinars would work for both, but while info products would focus on educational and informational content, e-com products would focus on product and brand exposure, user-generated content, and visual representations of their products.
  
  High-quality content is important for both industries. It helps increase brand exposure and user/customer engagement, builds trust between the brand and the consumer, and encourages long-term connections with your audience.
  
  All of this leads to increased conversions and sales.
  
  
• Paid Ads are a good way to drive targeted traffic and conversions for both types of business models. Both e-com and info product business owners commonly use Instagram, Facebook, and Google Ads / YouTube.
  
  Similar to email content marketing, info-product-business-owners focus on promoting valuable and educational content, while e-com ones showcase their physical items.
  
  

• Branding and Storytelling: Both info-product and e-commerce businesses heavily rely on branding and storytelling to connect with their audience. Telling the brand’s story and sharing your journey and passion for your product helps people get to know not only your brand but you as a person.
  
  People want to buy from people. Whether they are purchasing a t-shirt or a coaching session, they want to know you’re not just a sales machine, but also a human with your own story.
  
  Most people seek emotional connections, so branding and storytelling are good practices for both business models. They establish trust and loyalty, both of which can result in increased sales.
  
  (By the way, we have a good branding guide in The VIP Zone, too!)
  
  

• Seasonal Campaigns: We recently discussed this in Vavoza Insider. Seasonal marketing is a great way to increase engagement and sales for your brand, regardless of what you promote. People enjoy holidays, so help them enjoy them a little more with seasonal discounts and irresistible promotional offers!
  
  
• Analytics: A common and practical strategy for businesses – analytics provide you with valuable information that helps you understand which campaign or ad did best and why. If you haven’t already, analytical tools are something for you to look into.
  
  Most CRMs provide you with those, but you can also look into Google Analytics and Hotjar.
  
  

Though the basics of marketing are similar across the board, it’s important to note that everyone’s marketing journey is different and may require a unique and personalized approach.

Differences Between Marketing E-Com and Info Products

The following describes the most significant differences between marketing e-commerce and info products:

• The Message: When promoting their products, e-commerce business owners should emphasize their product quality, features, and benefits. The best way to achieve that is through visual content, where potential (or existing) customers can see why and how they could benefit from your product.
  
  Show instead of explain. For example, TV car commercials show the luxury and freedom one can experience after purchasing a vehicle; they don’t just list its features.
  
  The message to consumers of digital (info) products should focus heavily on transformation, knowledge, and results, as the TA for info products often looks for self-improvement and financial growth.
  
  

• Customer Journey: Customers often make the purchasing decision on physical products quite fast, depending on visual appeal, convenience, needs, and pricing. The customer journey for e-commerce products is relatively short: awareness – interest – purchase, especially for low-ticket products.
  
  The customer journey for info products is longer. While info products offer valuable information, they typically do not offer anything tangible, so the decision process for the customer has to go through stages like trust and evaluation of risk and reward prior to purchase, and those typically take time.
  
  While the customer journey for info products consists of similar stages to the one for e-com, it has more steps, such as trust building and free “attractions” like webinars, e-books, mini-courses, testimonials, and customer reviews.
  
  
• Targeting and Traffic: While both info and e-com businesses advertise on social media giants like Facebook, TikTok, and Instagram, info product business owners often also prefer landing pages, email marketing, YouTube videos, blog posts, webinars, and podcasts.
  
  
• Value, Upselling, and Cross-Selling Strategies: Repeat purchases, such as subscriptions, valuable additions, or membership programs, are much more common in info products than in physical products.
  
  While brand loyalty exists in the e-com business, customers are less likely to see lifetime value unless the product you are selling is something that a customer may need on a repeat basis, like health supplements or skin care.
  
  For both info and e-com products, cross-selling and upselling involve offering related products based on the customers’ interests, but they differ in approach and the value they provide.
  
  If you want to take your business to the next level, consider upselling and cross-selling.
  
  
• Ads and SEO: When advertising e-com products, ads with product imagery and a direct call-to-action are often used. The SEO for such things is also typically focused on the product itself and its surrounding categories, e.g., long black dress.
  
  As for digital products, ads are often educational and descriptive. They focus on value-driven content, and the CTA is often towards a free webinar, book, or course, targeting contact information.
  
  The SEO focuses on long-tail keywords, mostly relating to education and problem-solving.
  
  

Closing Remarks

Today, we’ve discussed the key similarities and differences in marketing strategies for e-commerce (physical) and info product (digital) business models.

Both revolve around marketing and selling products online; e-commerce focuses on physical products, and info-product marketing focuses on promoting information, expertise, and digital products.

Both can be profitable when marketed correctly; just follow our advice on either one of them.

In today’s edition, we have also mentioned some topics like lead magnets and upselling strategies, which we discuss in full detail in Vavoza Insider Plus. We encourage you to check them out if you are striving to take your business to the next level.

If you keep scrolling, you will find the latest news and trends about the marketing world.

Stay tuned for more actionable marketing ideas from Vavoza Insider, and we’ll share more useful tips with you weekly.