Online marketing has definitely progressed a lot in the last few years. It used to consist of creating a website or placing banner ads on other websites. Nothing more. Nothing less.
But now, it is much more complex, as more and more companies are turning to online marketing to boost their sales, and beat the competition.
So what can you do to keep up with the competition? To make your online marketing strategies stand out from the crowd?
Firstly you need to break down all the facts into delectable chunks and learn to understand them. Yes, understand all the ins and outs before you start trying to put them into practice.
By knowing your market, and knowing your targeted audience, you’ll know exactly what they will respond to when they come and visit your website.
They won’t be able to resist!
To help you get started, here is a quick run down of what to expect in online marketing.
Online Marketing objectives
Before we go any further, you need to ask yourself this one question: what are you trying to achieve by promoting your company on the internet?
More sales… wider visibility amongst your competitors. You need to know the answers to these as online marketing is built up of one of many things:
Communicate your company’s message – who you are? What are you trying to sell? What are your services and availability/ services online? Let your surfers know exactly who you are.
Research – this is your chance to directly compete with other businesses and see where the demographic lies in surfers preferences. With this information you can improve your website and attract more customers.
Sell a product/service – when you create a website you are essentially advertising your company to all potential clients not in your local area, but across the globe. To anyone who has got the internet and can type in all the right keywords to find you. With this perspective it is important that you make the right first impression.
Now with these pointers in mind, your next step is to actually set up, design and create your website, so that it is ready to launch your online marketing strategy.
And what will be your strategy? A number of things which we will guide you through.
Setting up a website
Content, imagery and possibly even audio elements can all be used to get your message across to potential or existing customers – that you are the only company to invest with amongst the rest.
To do this you can essentially use your website to do two things. You can treat it the same way you would use a brochure detailing who you are; what your business/ product is about and all your services and offers. Alternatively you can use your web design to create leads, sales and conversions directly off your links. From a quote of a service to placing an order online, your website can provide them with instant accessibility with no waiting around.
SEM (Search engine marketing)
There are several tools you can use to create these. Essentially when we say SEM, what we mean is increasing your websites ranking on search engines, such as Google, Yahoo and MSN.
The three we recommend are:
SEO (Search Engine Optimization) – focuses on the use of certain key words to increase traffic
PPC (Pay-per-click) – here you pay for key words within ads, which when clicked upon will direct surfers to your website link. PLEASE NOTE: These usually cost $0.20 per word, per click.
PFI (Pay-for-inclusion) – where you openly advertise your company on another site.
Email Marketing
This a simple technique which enables you to distribute information about your product/service, whilst at the same time receiving information back from your customers. And it all takes place over email.
The only thing that will require some extra effort is gathering email addresses to send these emails to. This can be done through one of two ways. From a list of your existing customers who will have most likely given you their email address when they first registered or you can gather prospective clients by purchasing their address.
Now the email itself can be sent out in several formats: as an informative weekly newsletter, a personalised email detailing current deals or as part of a mass mailing run.
Banner Advertising
We know what you’re thinking, we’ve mentioned banners before. That they are old school. But they are in fact a great way to increase the traffic and visibility of your website.
And they are something you can do offline too. For example, placing an ad within newspapers.
Press releases
Similar to banners, you can do these both as either an online press release or offline. Just make sure you have got something newsworthy to declare. A promotion or a story that needs to be shouted from the roof tops. Once you have got the story launch them on your site, to PR companies and in the papers.
This will instantly increase your visibility, but is another easy way to attract attention to your website.
Blog Marketing
This is a much more personal approach that removes all the necessity for technicality.
By posting comments, expressing your opinion and making regular announcements in a discussion forum or a newsletter grouping, you can increase awareness.
All you need to do this is to host your own blog or post your comments on blogs which will relate back to your product.
There needs to be a connection – a link – between your comment and what others are posting. Otherwise they will scan over it.
Article Marketing
Articles are a great way to spread your news across the internet, as they have got the tendency to be picked up by article services who allow re-publication (as long as all links within the article are still maintained).
Through their republication, surfers will have increased opportunities of finding your company; liking what they see and clicking on the link back to your site.
So what have you got to lose?
These are just a few of the basics you’ll need to know to get into online marketing. Once you know these, you’ll be well on your way to creating a website, and finding success through online marketing.
Isabelle Newton has been working in digital marketing at a creative design agency for over 8 years. This new media agency deals with large corporate website design and marketing.
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