Digital Marketing vs. Social Media Marketing

In the ecommerce landscape, the most valuable currency is attention. Understanding how to allocate your marketing dollars isn't optional — it's survival. And yet, so many brands confuse digital marketing with social media marketing, treating them as interchangeable strategies. They're not. One is a universe. The other is a planet.

That confusion creates costly inefficiencies: bloated budgets, misaligned campaigns, and under-leveraged channels. This guide breaks the two apart, looks at where they overlap, and gives you the strategic lens you actually need — whether you're scaling an in-house team, managing client campaigns, or simply trying to figure out which path to specialize in.

Let’s start with clarity.

What Is Digital Marketing Today?

Digital marketing is the umbrella term. It includes every form of marketing that happens through digital channels. That means email. It means PPC ads. It means the retargeting campaign that followed you for weeks after you left that sneaker site. And yes, it includes social media, but only as one slice of a much bigger pie.

Some of the most common types of digital marketing include:
- Search engine optimization (SEO)
- Search engine marketing (SEM)
- Email marketing
- Content marketing
- Influencer partnerships (even off social platforms)
- Affiliate marketing
- Programmatic advertising
- Marketing automation

Each of these comes with its own toolset, KPIs, learning curve, and integration requirements. The power of digital marketing is in its versatility and trackability – the ability to measure ROI and optimize based on behavior, not just impressions.

What Is Social Media Marketing?

Social media marketing, on the other hand, is entirely focused on platforms like Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, and Pinterest. It’s about meeting your audience where they scroll, not just where they search.

It includes:
- Organic posting and content calendars
- Paid social ads
- Community management
- Social listening and trend response
- Influencer collaborations
- Short-form video campaigns
- Engagement-building strategies (likes, shares, comments, saves)

The goals here are different. Social media marketing excels at building brand identity, emotional connection, and user-generated buzz. While it can absolutely drive conversions, its superpower lies in storytelling and discovery. It’s not just what you say. It’s how your audience feels when they engage with your brand in real time.

So while digital marketing is built for the funnel, social media is built for the feed.

What's the Real Difference Between the Two Types of Marketing?

Let’s break it down by scope. Digital marketing casts the widest net — covering any form of promotion or communication that happens through a digital device. Think of it like the infrastructure behind the scenes: tracking pixels, customer journeys, CRM pipelines, and multi-channel attribution models.

It’s the kind of work that starts with a strategy doc and ends with dashboards. It’s about optimizing each part of the funnel: acquisition, consideration, conversion, and retention. Most digital campaigns stretch across multiple touchpoints — an SEM ad, a landing page, an abandoned cart email, and a retargeted banner.

Social media marketing, meanwhile, is what most users see. It’s where the narrative gets shaped, where brands interact in the comments, and where culture moves faster than most ad teams can keep up. It’s leaner and more reactive. The timeline is the playing field.

This is why the most effective marketing leaders don’t silo the two — they stack them. They run demand capture through Google Ads and demand creation through TikTok. They use email flows for nurture and Reels for reach. Because at the end of the day, no single channel drives the entire customer journey.

Tools of the Trade: What Each Approach Requires

If you’re building out a stack, the tools you’ll need depend on your channel mix.

Digital marketing tools include:

Google Ads, for running search and display ads across the web to capture high-intent traffic.
SEMrush or Ahrefs, used for keyword research, site audits, and improving organic visibility.
HubSpot or Salesforce, platforms that manage leads, automate marketing flows, and track pipeline performance.
Google Analytics, which measures site performance and helps attribute traffic sources to conversions.
Mailchimp, Klaviyo, or similar platforms that automate and segment email marketing campaigns based on behavior.

Social media marketing tools include: ‍

Meta Business Suite or TikTok Ads Manager, which help manage and optimize paid ad campaigns on their respective platforms.
Buffer, Later, or Sprout Social, which allow you to schedule posts, track engagement, and manage multiple profiles in one place.
Canva or Adobe Express, which provide templates and design tools to create platform-ready visuals and videos.
Brandwatch or Sprinklr, which offer social listening capabilities so you can track brand mentions and sentiment in real time.
Aspire or Upfluence, influencer platforms that help brands discover, track, and manage creator partnerships.

There’s overlap, sure. But the mindset behind the tools is different. Digital marketers are thinking in terms of CAC, LTV, and ROAS. Social media marketers are optimizing for engagement, reach, and relevance.

And that matters — because what you measure shapes what you create.

How Campaigns Are Structured

Digital campaigns often follow a linear build:

Define audience personas to understand who you’re speaking to and what their pain points are.
Set KPIs tied to revenue so every tactic is aligned with a clear business goal.
Build funnels with touchpoints across paid, earned, and owned media to support decision-making at every stage.
Optimize via conversion rate, cost-per-click, and attribution to continuously improve campaign efficiency.

Social campaigns look more like this:

Identify content pillars and brand voice to stay consistent across creative formats and platforms.
Map out a calendar for platform-specific posts that account for timing, trends, and campaign objectives.
Mix in real-time content like trends, memes, and Q&As to stay culturally relevant and increase engagement.
Amplify through paid boosts and influencer content to expand reach and build social proof.
Measure performance via saves, shares, comments, and reach — metrics that reflect resonance more than revenue.

Both require rigor. But the paths to performance are different.

What Does Success Look Like in Each? Metrics That Matter

Let’s talk KPIs. Because one of the biggest differences between social media marketing and digital marketing is how success is measured — and what that says about your goals.

In digital marketing, the goal is usually conversion. You’re not just trying to be seen. You’re trying to be clicked. You want someone to buy, sign up, download, or schedule a call. That’s why most digital marketers obsess over metrics like:

Conversion Rate (CVR): The percentage of users who take a desired action after clicking on an ad or landing page.
Return on Ad Spend (ROAS): How much revenue is generated for every dollar spent on ads.
Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC): The average amount of money it takes to acquire a new customer.
Click-Through Rate (CTR): The percentage of users who click on a digital ad after seeing it.
Cost Per Click (CPC): The amount paid each time someone clicks on a digital ad.
Revenue per Email or Campaign: The total earnings generated by a specific email or marketing push.

These numbers live inside dashboards. They fuel A/B testing, audience targeting, and budget reallocation. They’re tied to business outcomes, not just engagement.

In social media marketing, you’re often higher up in the funnel. Awareness and community-building take center stage. That means focusing on metrics like:

Reach: The total number of unique users who saw your content.
Impressions: The number of times your content was displayed, regardless of clicks.
Shares and Saves: Indicators that users found your content valuable enough to resurface or pass on.
Follower Growth: The increase in your account's audience over time.
Engagement Rate: A measure of how actively users are interacting with your content (likes, comments, shares, clicks).
Sentiment and Comments: Qualitative data that reveals how people feel about your brand or message.

Can you track ROI in social? Yes — especially with tools like UTM parameters, social commerce integrations, and retargeting pixels. But more often than not, social media is judged by its ability to influence, not just convert.

Smart marketers tie these efforts together. A viral post might not drive immediate sales, but when paired with a retargeting ad or a follow-up email, it becomes the fuel behind a broader conversion engine.

Career Paths and Roles: Who Does What?

If you're hiring — or thinking about a career shift — the skillsets for each discipline are different, even though they sometimes overlap.

Digital marketing roles often include:

Digital Marketing Specialist: A generalist who supports campaigns across email, paid media, content, and analytics.
Performance Marketing Manager: Focuses on paid acquisition, using platforms like Google Ads to drive conversions at scale.
SEO Strategist: Works to improve a brand’s visibility in search engine results through keyword optimization and link-building.
SEM Manager: Manages pay-per-click campaigns and budgets across search platforms like Google and Bing.
Email Marketing Manager: Designs and optimizes campaigns for engagement and conversion via the inbox.
Marketing Automation Lead: Builds workflows and sequences that trigger based on user behavior, using tools like HubSpot or Marketo.
Marketing Analyst: Interprets data to guide decision-making and assess campaign effectiveness.

Social media marketing roles include:

Social Media Manager: Oversees day-to-day posting, engagement, scheduling, and content planning across all social platforms.
Content Strategist: Crafts a cohesive narrative across formats and channels, often overseeing copy and creative alignment.
Influencer Marketing Coordinator: Builds relationships with content creators, negotiates campaigns, and tracks performance.
Community Manager: Acts as the brand’s voice in replies, comments, and DMs, driving engagement and sentiment.
Video Editor (Short-Form): Creates quick-turnaround video content for platforms like TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube Shorts.
Brand Voice Strategist: Ensures that all communication on social platforms aligns with tone, message, and brand personality.

The most effective teams collaborate. A social manager’s audience insights can shape email copy. A performance marketer’s landing page metrics can inform social creative. When roles are siloed, campaigns miss their potential.

Why the Best Campaigns Combine Both Marketing Approaches

Digital marketing and social media marketing aren’t competitors. They’re collaborators. The most successful brands know how to weave them together — not just tactically, but strategically — so that every touchpoint works harder because of what came before and what comes after.

Let’s say you’re launching a new product.

Your digital team might run a paid search campaign targeting high-intent keywords. At the same time, your social team could roll out teaser content on Instagram and TikTok, using influencer partnerships to drive early awareness.

The retargeting pixels from those visits get pulled into display ads. A drip email sequence educates new subscribers. Meanwhile, social polls and stories provide real-time feedback on which messages are landing. It’s one story told across multiple mediums.

That’s the kind of integration that drives results. But to get there, both teams need to understand the full customer journey — and their role in it.

Real-World Example: From Scroll to Sale

Imagine a fitness brand releasing a new supplement line. The strategy might look like this:

Social Media Marketing Tactics:

Influencer demos: Trusted creators test the supplement in their routines, adding credibility and relatability.
Instagram Reels: Short, visually dynamic videos highlight benefits like increased energy or faster recovery.
UGC challenges: Customers are invited to share before-and-after content, creating social proof and community involvement.

Digital Marketing Tactics:

Google Ads: Target high-intent search queries like “best supplements for post-workout recovery.”
Lead magnets: Offer a free downloadable meal plan in exchange for an email address, growing your first-party data.
Email automation: Educate leads over time with product benefits, testimonials, and promotions.
Retargeting ads: Serve personalized ads to warm leads who visited the product page but didn’t purchase.

The social content sparks curiosity. The digital follow-up closes the deal. One channel builds culture. The other drives commerce.

Why This Marketing Integration Matters in 2025

Platform behavior is shifting. TikTok is no longer just a Gen Z app — it’s a search engine. Instagram is moving deeper into messaging and shopping. Meanwhile, email open rates are harder to track. Search ads are getting more expensive. Algorithms are becoming less predictable.

That means no single channel is reliable on its own.

You need the brand awareness and agility of social, paired with the trackable performance and intent signals of digital. Together, they create a full-funnel strategy with both depth and reach.

Where Brands Go Wrong

The biggest mistake companies make is assigning these efforts to separate teams who don’t talk to each other. The social team is pushing brand stories. The digital team is optimizing landing pages. But without communication, the messaging disconnect becomes visible — to customers and to the bottom line.

Successful integration requires:

Shared metrics: Both teams should be aligned on what success looks like — whether it’s conversions, engagement, or blended ROI.
Coordinated calendars: Campaign launches and content rollouts should work in tandem across platforms.
Feedback loops: Social insights should influence ad copy. Paid performance should inform creative direction.

It’s not about blending job titles. It’s about aligning objectives.

Audience Targeting: How Each Approach Reaches People Differently

The way you target audiences in digital marketing is rooted in data: intent signals, behavioral patterns, demographics, even the keywords someone types into a search bar. It’s a world of logic and tracking. The goal is precision.

You can create lookalike audiences, remarket to cart abandoners, and layer location data on top of search queries. Platforms like Google Ads and programmatic DSPs offer advanced segmentation and automation based on real-time behavior.

Social media targeting, however, leans into interest and identity. You’re reaching people based on what they follow, share, engage with — their communities, not just their clicks. The social graph tells you who they are, not just what they do. For example:

A PPC ad might target someone searching “best CRM software for startups,” signaling high buying intent and immediate interest.

A Facebook ad might target someone who follows five SaaS product pages and regularly comments on startup memes, reflecting shared identity and brand affinity.

Both approaches are powerful — but in different ways. Digital marketing is about intent capture. Social media is about identity-based discovery.

This difference shapes everything: your creative, your copy, even the CTA. A user scrolling TikTok isn’t in the same headspace as someone comparing pricing pages on Google.

Privacy and Regulation: A Moving Target

The digital landscape is being reshaped by privacy-first changes. Apple’s iOS updates, Google’s phase-out of third-party cookies, and a global shift toward first-party data are making it harder to track users across platforms.

For digital marketers, this means:
- Doubling down on owned data: Collecting emails, preferences, and behavior directly from your audience through lead magnets, content downloads, and account creation.
- Relying on clean attribution models: Ensuring your systems can still connect marketing actions to revenue, even with less pixel-based data.

For social media marketers, it means:
- Prioritizing platform-native analytics: Trusting the reporting tools built into Meta, TikTok, and LinkedIn to measure reach and engagement.
- Building audience loyalty: Focusing on content that keeps users coming back — not just following but commenting, saving, and sharing.

This isn’t the death of targeting. It’s a call for smarter, consent-driven personalization. The brands that win in the next five years will be the ones that stop treating data as a shortcut and start treating it as a relationship.

In short: targeting isn’t going away — it’s growing up.

The Risk of Over-Reliance

There’s also a risk in putting too many eggs in one basket. Brands that depend solely on Meta or TikTok for traffic can suffer major drops when algorithms change or ad costs spike.

Digital marketing — with its mix of search, email, and direct response — offers a level of stability and ownership that social alone can’t match. But social brings culture, speed, and trust in a way no search ad can replicate.

That’s why the smartest marketers diversify. They don’t just chase performance — they build ecosystems.

Budget Planning and ROI Expectations

Let’s talk money. One of the key differences between digital and social media marketing lies in how budgets are structured and what kind of ROI you can expect.

Digital marketing tends to require more upfront investment, particularly if you’re running paid search campaigns or building automated email sequences. But it also tends to be more predictable. With solid targeting and optimization, you can get relatively consistent returns — especially in bottom-funnel environments like Google Search or retargeting campaigns.

Social media marketing, by contrast, is often less expensive to start — especially on the organic side. You can build momentum with strong content and brand storytelling without spending a dollar on ads. But the returns can be spikier. A viral post might drive thousands of site visits one day and then go quiet the next.

When allocating budget, smart marketers consider:
- Campaign goals: If your goal is immediate conversions, you may want to lean on paid digital tactics. If it’s awareness or engagement, social may offer better value.
- Platform costs: CPMs (cost per thousand impressions) vary widely. Google Ads may cost more per click, but reach users with stronger intent. Social ads may be cheaper but require more creative testing to break through.
- Content production: Social requires a steady stream of visual, snackable content. That means investing in creative — video editing, design tools, and often influencer fees.

The best approach? Treat your marketing budget like a portfolio. Some spend should go toward reliable performance drivers (email, search), some toward experimental campaigns, and some toward long-term brand building on social.

How to Choose the Right Mix Between Digital and Social

So, which is better — digital or social media marketing?

That’s the wrong question.

Instead, ask: what are you trying to achieve?

- If you’re a new eCommerce brand looking for conversions, paid search and email automation might drive the most immediate ROI.
- If you’re building a new brand and need visibility, community, and buzz, platforms like TikTok or Instagram might give you faster traction.
- If you're an established business looking to scale, integrating both with smart attribution is essential.

Ultimately, your strategy should reflect your audience, your goals, your budget, and your bandwidth.

And remember: it’s not either/or. It’s sequencing and synergy.

Marketers who can fluently move between brand storytelling and performance optimization — who know how to build both emotional resonance and measurable impact — are the ones who thrive in today’s landscape.

Conclusion: The Playbook for Modern Marketing

Digital marketing gives you reach, structure, and performance. Social media marketing gives you culture, agility, and authenticity. The real power comes from combining the two — building campaigns that not only convert but connect.

As platforms evolve and attention spans shrink, it’s not about choosing sides. It’s about playing the full field.

If you’re a brand, ask yourself: where are the gaps in your funnel? Are you converting without connecting? Or connecting without converting?

If you’re a marketer, ask: how fluent are you across both disciplines? The more integrated your understanding, the more valuable you become.

And if you’re ready to step up your marketing game — PBJ Marketing can help you build the mix that makes sense for your growth.

Let’s get to work!