TL;DR
Digital marketing offers diverse strategies, from social media campaigns to search engine marketing, to engage audiences and drive growth.
Digital marketing examples include successful campaigns from Planet Fitness, Chase, and Dollar Shave Club.
Campaign types like social media marketing, influencer marketing, and content syndication help brands connect with their target audiences effectively.
Utilizing a mix of digital marketing tactics allows for long-term growth, immediate engagement, and better ROI.
Marketers are shifting to a digital-first approach as online platforms dominate consumer attention. With social media, search engines, and video channels driving significant traffic, brands now have the opportunity to reach their target audience in more direct and personalized ways than ever before.
The possibilities for digital marketing are endless. By drawing inspiration from successful digital marketing examples, brands can develop strategies that stand out and resonate, ensuring long-term success and growth.
In this blog, we’ll explore 15 types of digital marketing campaigns that have delivered impressive results, offering inspiration for your next campaign.
Types of Digital Marketing Campaigns and Examples
Digital marketing offers various strategies to engage audiences, each with its own goals and approaches.
Below, we’ll see the different types of campaigns and provide examples of how top brands have used them to drive results:
1. Social Media Marketing Campaign
Social media marketing is a powerful tool for reaching and engaging audiences across platforms like Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and LinkedIn. Brands can use organic content and paid ads to connect with users, build brand awareness, and drive conversions.
Social media campaigns enable direct customer interaction, allowing brands to foster community and loyalty.
Social media's ability to segment and target ads based on user interests, behaviors, and demographics makes it highly effective for personalized marketing.
Planet Fitness' Use of Facebook Live Streams During the Pandemic.
Planet Fitness leveraged Facebook’s livestream feature to offer daily workout classes during the pandemic, keeping its existing members motivated while attracting new audiences.
How they did it: The gym transitioned its fitness classes to daily, free Facebook livestreams, making it accessible for anyone to join.
Outcome: This campaign not only kept their existing members engaged but also attracted a new audience, with thousands of views, positive feedback, and a surge in online memberships.
2. Influencer Marketing Campaign
Influencer marketing taps into influencers' popularity and trust with their followers. By partnering with influencers, brands can increase their reach and build credibility with a targeted audience.
Influencers bring credibility to campaigns, as their followers trust their recommendations over traditional advertising methods.
Brands can benefit from influencers’ established audiences, increasing reach and engagement.
Chase’s partnership with Andy Roddick at the US Open.
Chase partnered with tennis star Andy Roddick to create engaging content around the US Open. Roddick posted live commentary, Q&A sessions, and personal insights to connect with his audience.
How they did it: Roddick’s posts and live sessions included taglines linking Chase to the event, enhancing brand visibility.
Outcome: The campaign generated millions of impressions, significantly boosting Chase’s brand exposure and engagement with tennis fans.
3. Brand Awareness Campaign
Brand awareness campaigns introduce your brand to a broader audience, building recognition and trust over time. These campaigns focus on creating lasting impressions rather than immediate sales, aiming to make your brand top-of-mind when consumers are ready to purchase.
These campaigns are essential for establishing your brand’s identity, helping consumers recognize your products or services in a crowded market.
Brand awareness campaigns can foster emotional connections by communicating your company’s values and mission, which can ultimately translate into customer loyalty.
Anheuser-Busch’s pivot during the COVID-19 pandemic with hand sanitizer production.
In response to the pandemic, Anheuser-Busch redirected its production facilities to manufacture hand sanitizers, emphasizing its commitment to community health.
How they did it: The company repurposed its brewing facilities to produce hand sanitizers and distributed them to hospitals and frontline workers.
Outcome: This act of social responsibility gained massive media coverage, strengthening the company’s brand image as a caring and responsible entity during a global crisis.
4. Rebranding Campaign
Rebranding is a strategic effort that involves updating or refreshing a brand’s image, logo, or messaging to stay relevant and appealing to its target audience. It’s often used to reinvigorate and align the brand’s presence with current market trends.
Rebranding can help businesses reconnect with existing customers while attracting new audiences by offering a fresh, modern take on their brand.
It involves more than just a new logo—it’s a complete overhaul that can include everything from messaging and product design to marketing strategies and customer experiences.
Kellogg's significant rebranding effort for the European market.
Kellogg’s rebranding campaign aimed to modernize its image by redesigning its cereal packaging to appeal to European consumers. The campaign focused on natural ingredients and a fresh design.
How they did it: The company worked with designers to create visually appealing packaging that reflected natural ingredients and modern aesthetics, giving the product a more contemporary look.
Outcome: The rebrand resulted in a 70% increase in product recognition, with a 50% boost in purchase intent, showcasing the effectiveness of a well-executed rebranding strategy.
5. User-Generated Content (UGC) Campaign
User-Generated Content (UGC) campaigns empower consumers to create content that promotes a brand, fostering a sense of community and trust. By encouraging customers to share their experiences with products, brands can harness authentic content that resonates more deeply with potential buyers.
UGC builds trust by showcasing real, unfiltered experiences from customers perceived as more relatable and genuine than traditional advertisements.
It’s a cost-effective marketing strategy that allows brands to use content already created by their audience with minimal effort or expense.
The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge.
The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge encouraged individuals to pour ice water over themselves and share a video to raise awareness and funds for ALS research. Participants nominated others to do the same.
How they did it: The ALS Association launched a social media campaign where people filmed themselves completing the challenge and shared the footage on their social platforms.
Outcome: The viral campaign generated billions of views across social media platforms, leading to a 2,000% increase in donations, exceeding the organization’s fundraising goals.
6. Product Launch Campaign
Product launch campaigns generate excitement and buzz around a new product. These campaigns aim to create anticipation and drive sales, often using multiple channels to build awareness and enthusiasm before the launch.
A product launch typically involves a coordinated, multi-channel strategy to reach the target audience and build momentum.
Successful product launch campaigns often include sneak peeks, early access offers, and exclusive content to create hype.
Robinhood’s innovative product launch campaign for its stock trading app.
Robinhood created an exciting product launch around its commission-free stock trading app, building anticipation months before the release.
How they did it: Robinhood invited users to a waiting list and incentivized early sign-ups by offering limited-time benefits, creating a sense of urgency and exclusivity.
Outcome: The launch generated significant buzz, driving thousands of sign-ups and a strong initial customer base, ultimately making Robinhood a major player in the financial app market.
7. Referral Marketing Campaign
Referral marketing taps into the power of word-of-mouth by encouraging existing customers to recommend a product to friends and family. These campaigns use trust within personal networks to acquire new customers.
Referral programs typically reward both the referrer and the referee, creating a win-win situation for all parties involved.
They are highly effective in generating quality leads because they rely on recommendations from trusted sources.
Uber’s referral marketing campaign uses cash credits for riders and drivers.
Uber’s referral program rewarded both riders and drivers with cash credits for every successful referral, creating an incentive to spread the word.
How they did it: Uber provided unique referral codes that riders and drivers could share with friends, rewarding everyone involved once the new user completed a ride or drive.
Outcome: The campaign helped Uber rapidly expand its user base, with significant increases in sign-ups and rides, playing a key role in its global growth.
8. Guerrilla Marketing Campaign
Guerrilla marketing is all about creating unexpected, unconventional campaigns that significantly impact a small budget. These campaigns use creativity and surprise to capture the audience’s attention and generate buzz.
Guerrilla marketing campaigns often use viral tactics to spread awareness quickly and inexpensively.
The goal is to create a memorable experience or reaction, making the brand stand out from competitors.
Cards Against Humanity’s quirky Black Friday stunt.
In a twist on traditional Black Friday sales, Cards Against Humanity launched a bizarre campaign asking customers to donate money to dig a hole with no specific purpose.
How they did it: The company used social media to promote the campaign, offering no discounts or deals, but instead, encouraging customers to "fund the hole."
Outcome: The campaign went viral, garnering widespread media coverage and social media attention. It became a memorable moment that increased brand recognition while generating significant buzz for little investment.
9. Digital Public Relations (PR) Campaign
Digital PR campaigns are designed to manage a brand’s online reputation and gain media coverage across digital platforms. These campaigns focus on building relationships with online media outlets, bloggers, influencers, and social media to enhance brand visibility and credibility.
Digital PR campaigns often rely on compelling stories or online events that can be easily shared across digital channels, helping brands reach a broader, more engaged audience.
By gaining coverage in high-authority online publications, brands can improve their online reputation and drive consumer trust, often leading to increased traffic.
Dove’s “Real Beauty Sketches” Campaign
Dove’s "Real Beauty Sketches" campaign redefined beauty standards and became a prime example of how emotional storytelling can resonate deeply with audiences.
The campaign featured a forensic artist who drew women first based on their descriptions and then based on strangers’ descriptions. The stark contrast revealed how women often perceive themselves more critically than others.
How they did it: Dove created an emotional video highlighting this disparity. The video was shared across social media and earned massive media coverage, sparking global conversations about self-image and beauty standards.
Outcome: The campaign went viral, reaching 114 million views in just one month, and generated widespread media coverage.
10. Video Marketing Campaign
Video marketing is one of the most potent ways to engage an audience. It tells stories or demonstrates products in a visually compelling way. Videos can drive awareness, explain products, and entertain viewers quickly.
Video campaigns are highly shareable and can be adapted across platforms, from social media to websites and YouTube.
Videos have a higher engagement rate than other content types, making them ideal for capturing attention and driving conversions.
Dollar Shave Club’s viral video marketing campaign.
Dollar Shave Club went viral with a humorous video introducing its razor subscription service. The footage captured attention with its witty script and bold approach.
How they did it: The video featured the company’s founder delivering a funny, memorable pitch about the brand’s simplicity and value, which resonated with their target audience.
Outcome: The video quickly went viral, leading to over 12,000 orders in the first 48 hours and helping the brand grow rapidly before being acquired for $1 billion.
11. Content Syndication Campaign
Content syndication involves partnering with third-party websites or publishers to distribute your content and expand your reach. Brands can increase visibility and establish authority in their field through their audience.
This strategy allows brands to access a broader audience that might not otherwise encounter their content through organic channels.
Content syndication can boost traffic to your website, enhancing brand recognition and credibility by featuring your content on reputable platforms.
American Express and PayPal’s content partnership with Marketing Dive.
American Express and PayPal collaborated with Marketing Dive to create an ebook that provided valuable insights for small businesses, while subtly promoting their services.
How they did it: The companies distributed the content using Marketing Dive’s platform, reaching an engaged audience of small business owners.
Outcome: The content reached a wider audience, generating leads and increasing awareness of both brands among their target demographic.
12. Conversational Marketing Campaign
Conversational marketing allows brands to engage with visitors in real time, making interactions more personalized and efficient. Using live chat or AI-powered chatbots, brands can respond instantly to customer inquiries, driving higher engagement and satisfaction.
It provides a direct, real-time connection with potential customers, leading to faster problem resolution and more personalized interactions.
Conversational marketing improves customer experience and increases the chances of converting visitors into leads or customers.
JivoChat’s omnichannel business messaging solution.
JivoChat enables businesses to engage customers in real time across multiple platforms, including live chat, Facebook Messenger, and WhatsApp.
How they did it: JivoChat's software uses behavior-triggered messages to initiate visitor conversations, ensuring timely and relevant engagement.
Outcome: By streamlining communication channels, businesses using JivoChat reported higher conversion rates and improved customer satisfaction due to the immediate assistance provided.
13. Retargeting Campaign
Retargeting campaigns target users who have visited your website, added products to their cart, or previously engaged with your ads. The goal is to re-engage these users and remind them of your product or service to drive conversions.
Retargeting is highly effective because it focuses on an audience that has already shown interest, increasing the likelihood of a successful conversion.
By displaying ads tailored to their previous actions, brands can nurture these leads through the final stages of the purchasing funnel.
StoryWorth’s Retargeting Campaign Using Customer Testimonials
StoryWorth leverages Facebook ads to retarget website visitors with a compelling strategy: using testimonials from satisfied customers. They recognize that consumers trust other people’s experiences more than brand messaging.
How they did it: The retargeting ad showcases a video slideshow featuring customer testimonials alongside powerful imagery. This visual approach reinforces the emotional connection and highlights the personalized stories users can create with StoryWorth’s service.
Outcome: This strategy successfully re-engaged potential customers, tapping into their emotions and providing social proof that encouraged them to revisit and complete their purchase.
14. Pay-Per-Click (PPC) Campaign
Pay-Per-Click (PPC) campaigns allow brands to target specific keywords on search engines, display ads, and other platforms, paying only when users click on the ad. This digital strategy offers brands an immediate way to gain visibility and drive website traffic.
PPC campaigns provide immediate results by placing ads in front of potential customers who are actively searching for relevant products or services.
They offer precise targeting and detailed performance tracking, allowing brands to optimize their ads in real-time for maximum effectiveness.
Converse’s “Domaination” Campaign
Converse took an innovative approach with its “Domaination” campaign, tapping into Google’s PPC potential before many brands even considered it. The strategy focused on targeting niche, low-competition keywords that their teenage and young adult audience was searching for.
How they did it: Converse identified standard search terms such as “How to kiss,” “How to talk to girls,” and “Spelling bee,” and used these topics to create engaging microsites with how-to guides. They named these sites "converse-actions" and ran PPC ads to drive traffic.
Outcome: By targeting low-cost, low-competition keywords, Converse saved money and generated significant traffic to their microsites.
The campaign succeeded in using inexpensive, niche keywords that larger brands didn’t dominate. This allowed the campaign to stand out and capture the attention of its young target audience.
15. Search Engine Marketing Campaign (SEM)
Search Engine Marketing (SEM) involves using paid ads on search engines like Google to drive traffic to a website. By bidding on relevant keywords, brands can target users actively searching for their products or services, increasing the likelihood of conversion.
SEM campaigns allow brands to appear at the top of search results, giving them visibility when potential customers search for related information.
It’s a highly measurable strategy that allows brands to track the effectiveness of their ads and optimize them in real time for better results.
Upwork’s SEM strategy targets freelancing-related keywords.
Upwork utilizes search engine marketing to target specific keywords, such as "best freelancer" or "freelance jobs," to drive qualified traffic to its platform.
How they did it: By carefully selecting high-traffic keywords, Upwork ensures that its ads appear to users searching for freelance talent or job opportunities.
Outcome: The strategy has helped Upwork maintain a prominent position in search results, attract a steady stream of users and clients to its marketplace, and boost traffic and sign-ups.
As we’ve seen, there are countless ways to approach digital marketing, each offering unique opportunities for brands to connect with their audience and drive meaningful results.
Conclusion
Reaching potential customers through digital channels is essential for today’s brands, as more consumers engage with content online. With countless ways to connect, brands can use innovative strategies to make meaningful connections that drive engagement and growth through social media or targeted ads.
Agencies play a key role in helping brands create these campaigns, providing expertise to ensure the right approach is used for the right audience. They help streamline the process, from campaign strategy to execution, ensuring brands make the most of their marketing efforts.
At GoMarble, we help brands create ads that generate real results. Our team works with you to craft campaigns that drive profitable growth and achieve measurable success.
Ready to create ads that deliver? Let GoMarble help you grow your brand.
FAQs
Q1. What are some digital marketing examples that have driven significant results?
A1. Successful digital marketing examples include Planet Fitness' Facebook Live sessions, Chase’s influencer marketing with Andy Roddick, and Dollar Shave Club’s viral video campaign. These campaigns helped brands increase engagement, reach new audiences, and boost conversions.
Q2. How can digital marketing and social media complement each other?
A2. Digital marketing and social media combine the broader reach of digital platforms with social media's targeted engagement. Digital marketing helps establish a long-term online presence, while social media drives immediate interaction and brand visibility.
Q3. What makes marketing online digital so effective for modern businesses?
A3. Marketing online digital allows businesses to target specific audiences based on behavior and interests, making campaigns more personalized. This data-driven approach enhances engagement, increases conversions, and delivers better ROI.
Q4. How can businesses get inspiration for their digital marketing campaigns?
A4. Businesses can look at digital marketing success stories and campaigns from top brands like Robinhood, Anheuser-Busch, and Converse. These examples show how creativity, timing, and targeting can produce impressive results.
Q5. What role does digital marketing play in a brand's overall strategy?
A5. Digital marketing is essential for building brand awareness, increasing visibility, and driving measurable results. It allows businesses to reach potential customers through multiple online channels, ultimately supporting long-term growth and customer engagement.