Digital distribution

Digital distribution, also known as content delivery, online distribution, or electronic software distribution, among others, is the delivery or distribution of digital media content such as audio, video, e-books, video games, and other software.

The term is generally used to describe distribution via an online delivery medium such as the Internet, thereby avoiding physical distribution methods such as paper, optical discs, and VHS video cassettes. The term online distribution is typically applied to independent products; Downloadable add-ons for other products are more commonly known as downloadable content. With the advancement of network bandwidth capabilities, online distribution became prominent in the 21st century, with prominent platforms such as Amazon Video and the Netflix streaming service beginning in 2007.

Three types of content distribution channels:

Owned
Earned
Paid

1) Owned:

“Owned” channels are those over which your brand has the most control. When you own a channel, you decide what you post and how you share it with the world.

Website and blog: This includes your standard web copy, such as your home and about page. It also includes blogs and articles, white papers, or case studies that you publish.

Social media channels: Your social media content is technically your property until you put it on a site that retains ownership of the content, like Quora or Reddit.

Junk mail: Email marketing is both a channel and a type of content. Email drip campaigns can be an incredibly effective form of advertising.

Educational content: Think of ebooks, whitepapers, webinars, and any instructional content you’ve created. You can host most of these materials on your website.

Podcasts: Podcasts are usually hosted on third-party apps like Spotify or Google Podcasts. Still, it’s not uncommon for brands to distribute podcasts on their websites.

2) Earned:

Earned channels are those that your organization does not own or control. This form of content distribution is created and published by a third party.

Mentions, shares, and user-generated content (UGC): Engagement like this shows that your followers are truly interested in your content. You can (and should) reuse this type of earned content in your social strategy.

Backlinks: Google loves backlinks, so this is a particularly valuable earned channel. The best way to get backlinks organically is by posting authoritative information.

Blog features and media coverage: Like backlinks, some blogs or articles may mention your brand by name. Summaries, product or service reviews, and best-of articles are great examples of earned content distribution.

3) Paid:

Paid content distribution channels require you to pay to promote your content. Some of these channels are native to the platform you will advertise on, such as Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram Ads, or Google Display Ads.

Types of Paid media channels:

Advertisements: When we talk about paid advertising in a digital sense, we often refer to PPC (pay-per-click) or PPM (pay-per-impression) ads. An advertiser pays every time a user interacts with or views their ad.

Boosted social posts: They are similar to regular ads, but instead of creating content that only displays as an ad, you pay to increase the reach of your organic social content.

Influencer marketing: Influencer marketing can be done on virtually any content distribution channel. You’ll find an influencer who vibes with your brand.

Sponsored content or paid UGC: Similar to influencer marketing, but in this case you don’t pay for the influencer’s audience. Instead, you’re sharing content created by “regular people.”

How does Content Distribution work?

The process of accessing the content cache at the edge of a CDN is almost always transparent to the user. The CDN management software dynamically calculates which server is closest to the user, makes the request, and delivers the content based on those calculations. CDN edge servers communicate with the content origin server to serve cached content and new, uncached content to the user.

Edge servers reduce the distance content travels and the number of hops a data packet makes.
The result is lower packet loss, optimized bandwidth, and faster performance.
This minimizes wait times, latency, and jitter, and also improves the user experience.

Advantages of Using a CD:

Faster delivery of content:
More simultaneous users
Constant availability
Reliable content delivery
Control over the delivery of assets
Protection against traffic spikes

Disadvantages of Using a CD:

Costs
Location of services
Restrictions
Support availability
Loss of control
Additional risks

Conclusion:

The question of whether you should use a CDN or not depends on the needs of your business. If you have a popular website with lots of traffic and enough resources, it will pay off. For the cost, you’ll get a faster website and an extra layer of security.

oizgek

Content Distribution