The Evolution of SEO: Beyond Keywords to Authority Content
A person can claim to have been in their career for a long time. When I hear this, I think in terms of 20-25 years. But in digital marketing, though...
- Mar 24, 2025
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- by Chris Jenkin
Let me just start by saying this: marketing is everywhere. Like everywhere. From the clothes you’re wearing right now to the shampoo in your shower to the overpriced snack you impulse-bought at the checkout line. It’s all marketing.
And once you start noticing it, you can’t unsee it.
I was thinking about this the other day while getting dressed. I threw on a hoodie I’ve had for years. Comfy, reliable, kind of my go-to. And without thinking about it, I caught myself admiring the logo on the sleeve. It’s not even a brand I care about that much—but it’s there. In my face. Reminding me it exists. That’s marketing. That hoodie? It didn’t just randomly show up in my drawer. I chose it. And I chose it because, at some point, I was influenced. Maybe by an ad. Maybe by a friend wearing it. Maybe because I saw it on TikTok and didn’t even realize it.
That’s the wild part. So much of what we buy, believe, or even think about—it’s been marketed to us. On purpose. And it works.
Think about the last thing you bought. Maybe it was a supplement. A candle. A pair of sneakers. You probably didn’t just randomly walk into a store and grab it. Nah.
We don’t just shop anymore. We experience brands. Constantly. From every direction.
But here’s the thing I really want to talk about…
Let’s say you’re walking around and you see someone wearing shoes you love. You’re not gonna chase them down the street (I mean, maybe, but let’s be real). You’re gonna do what all of us do: pull out your phone and Google that brand.
Boom. Offline experience → online curiosity.
Or maybe you hear about a new coffee shop. You want to check it out. But first, you’re gonna see if they have:
If they’re not online? You lose interest. You forget. You move on. That’s the reality.
So even when something feels super organic—like “I just stumbled on this brand!”—digital is still the glue holding it all together. Without it, that connection doesn’t stick.
Every brand you interact with online or offline? If they’re smart, they’ve got a whole digital strategy running in the background.
That’s not by accident. That’s digital marketing.
And the truth is: without it, most brands would be invisible. I don’t care how good your product is—if no one can find you, it doesn’t matter.
Let’s be blunt for a second.
I don’t care if your product changes lives. If I can’t find you online in two seconds flat, I’m over it. And most people are the same.
We don’t have time. We don’t want to dig. We don’t want to work for it.
We want:
So yeah. The shirt you wear might be marketing. The water bottle you bring to the gym? Also marketing. But the real power move is what happens when someone sees that and goes, “Ooh I like that—let me look it up.” Because that’s where the sale happens. That’s where trust is built. That’s where your brand either shows up or disappears.
You can do all the things—sponsor events, get into retail stores, get featured by influencers, whatever.
But if you don’t have your digital sh*t together? You’re missing the point.
You need:
Because no matter where someone sees you—real life or online—they’re gonna look you up. And when they do, you better be there, loud and proud.
The next time you see someone rocking a brand and think, “That’s cute,” just remember: that didn’t happen by accident. Someone, somewhere, spent time, energy, and money to make sure that brand was in your line of sight.
And behind the scenes? There’s a digital strategy doing the heavy lifting.
So if you’re building a business, launching a brand, or trying to grow—don’t sleep on digital. It’s not just one piece of the puzzle. It’s the whole damn frame holding it together.
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