The influence of the Internet on the business of marketing is growing significantly each year, as more small businesses go online. This Info-Guide is designed for beginners. It will explain Internet marketing basics and introduce you to popular Internet marketing techniques. It will offer suggestions for creating a successful Internet marketing strategy and outline techniques that you can use to measure your success online. Finally, it will include additional Internet marketing resources.
Recent studies indicate that 62% of Western Canadian small businesses are marketing their products and services online through Internet tools, such as websites, search engine optimization, banner advertising, and email marketing. Internet marketing can be a time and cost-saving supplement to your overall marketing strategy.
Imagine being able to tap into the global marketplace from the convenience of your home office. Imagine reaching a much wider audience, quickly measuring the results of your marketing efforts, and having the ability to readily and cost-effectively adapt to changes in the marketplace, all with the click of a mouse. The Internet now makes this possible. And, as more small businesses go online, the Internet’s influence on marketing grows significantly each year. In 2005, Internet sales revenues are likely to surpass USD $133 billion worldwide.
This Info-Guide is designed for beginners. It will explain Internet marketing basics and introduce you to popular Internet marketing techniques. It will offer suggestions for creating a successful Internet marketing strategy and outline techniques that you can use to measure your success online. Finally, it will include additional Internet marketing resources.
Internet marketing is the component of marketing that deals with the planning, pricing, promotion, and distribution of your products and services online. Good Internet marketing strategies clearly communicate a firm’s unique selling proposition, or the unique collection of benefits that creates value for its customers.
Everything you do to promote your business online is Internet marketing. For example, Internet marketing strategies include (but are not limited to) website design and content, search engine optimization, directory submissions, reciprocal linking strategies, online advertising, and email marketing.
Here are some examples of the time and cost-saving benefits of using the Internet to market your products or services:
Finding success online is no different from finding it offline. Choosing the right product or service and designing an appropriate online and offline marketing mix is key to successful Internet marketing.
Successful marketing on the Internet is not just about advertising your website in Google or buying banner ads on other websites. Without a quality product or service and a well developed website, a banner ad, for example, would do you little good.
To succeed online, you must develop a comprehensive plan that includes the following:
1. A solid business model and great products or services
2. An effectively designed website with sales as an objective
3. An online marketing strategy that suits your audience and fits your budget
The Internet is not the ‘‘pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.’’ It takes time, dedication and skills to be successful online. Without a solid business model, the skill set to effectively market and sell your product or service online, and a carefully planned marketing strategy, you will have little chance of succeeding online.
No matter what your business, Internet marketing should form part of your marketing mix --- how large a part will depend on your particular needs and budget. The tools you use to develop your online presence and drive traffic to your website will also depend on your particular business and target market demographics.
Internet marketing is a fast-changing industry that readily adapts to improvements in technology. Therefore, there are always new marketing tools available to small businesses (too many to list here). Below, we’ll briefly explain the most common techniques used by beginners. Once you’ve learned the basics, we suggest that you consult a professional to assess your business needs and take your strategy to the next level.
Designing and building a website is only one aspect of bringing your business online. With billions of websites on the Internet, it’s just as important that you ensure people can find your website. And, since most website traffic still comes from search engines and directories --- 98% of Internet users claim they use search engines regularly --- you may want to focus your initial web marketing efforts on search engine optimization.
Search engines such as Google and Yahoo index billions of web pages and rank them according to complex algorithms that assess a page’s accessibility, its relevance based on specific search terms or keywords, and importance indicated by the number of sites that link to it.
Search engine optimization (SEO) refers to the work that is done to a website to ensure it gets noticed and ranked highly by search engines. Ideally, you want to strive for a top ten ranking, because studies have shown that most search engine users don’t scroll past the first page of results.
Keep in mind, SEO is not an exact science, and as such, SEO specialists often use slightly different methods. That said, generally, SEO includes:
The question is often asked: Do I have to submit my site to engines/directories for the search engines to find me? The answer is, yes and no. Some engines will find and list your site on their own, some require you to register, and others offer a combination of both. Further, some registration procedures are free and some require that you pay to be listed.
In short, there are two kinds of search engines out there.
Here is a list of the most popular search engines and directories you’ll want to consider:
It should be emphasized that the more quality inbound links your website has, the more likely it is to be deemed ‘‘important’’ by the search engines. Therefore, a good SEO package includes the development of a quality linking strategy. This is a technique that connects your website to other relevant websites, through the placement of text-based links.
To begin, consider linking with complementary businesses and industry associations. This is as easy as sending out a personalized email requesting a link on another website. Keep in mind, particularly for those just starting out, linking strategies are usually reciprocal. So, be prepared to offer a link on your own site in exchange for the link you hope to receive.
To learn more about SEO, linking strategies and submitting your site to search engines, visit www.searchenginewatch.com.
In addition to optimizing your website and increasing your site traffic through search engines, consider advertising on third-party websites and in search engines using a combination of banner advertisements and text links.
Paid search engine listings are a quick, cost-effective way to get your site into search engines, without the wait associated with ‘‘natural’’ ranking.
Another often overlooked but cost-saving method of marketing your business online is by publishing editorials in third-party e-zines, e-newsletters and on information-based websites. Just as editorials in offline media can help position you as an expert in your field and drive readers to your website, providing articles written (or ghost-written) by you to targeted online media can also drive traffic to your website, often with no out-of-pocket expense. Just remember to include a short biography that outlines what you do and a link to your website at the bottom of each article you publish.
Permission-based email marketing can be a low-cost and very effective component of your web marketing strategy. It can help to build a relationship between your business and target market, and can drive traffic back to your website. Email marketing can consist of direct email blasts and sales letters, personalized auto-responders, and/or email newsletters.
If you have the budget and don’t have the time, you can certainly hire a freelancer or a firm to conceptualize, develop and publish your email messages for you. Although, for many small businesses, the costs associated with fully managed solutions are simply too high. The advantage to email marketing is that you can choose a do-it-yourself option, where you do all of the work, or part of it yourself, saving hundreds, even thousands of dollars.
There are a number of very easy to use self-publishing solutions available to small businesses. The costs of these tools are low --- from USD $20 per month and up --- and they are usually offered at a monthly or per-1000 email rate.
The solutions are hosted entirely online, allowing you access from any computer connected to the Internet. Further, they are designed for small business owners with little technical knowledge. At a minimum, they offer a database, where you can house and manage your email addresses, a selection of HTML templates for your email messages, the ability to import your own templates, plain-text options, testing functions, and added extras such as customizable auto-responders and forward-to-a-friend and unsubscribe features.
You may even find an email-publishing tool designed specifically for your industry. For example, the real estate industry has a number of do-it-yourself and fully managed email newsletter solutions available, some of which even include ‘‘canned’’ articles that users can choose to include in their own newsletter.
Here are some popular self-publishing solutions to consider:
It must also be noted that more and more email marketers are struggling with spam filters, which are designed to protect email users from unscrupulous and unsolicited advertising. The problem arises when spam filters do such a good job that they succeed in filtering out legitimate marketing messages that email recipients have requested to receive.
Unfortunately, as spam proliferates, as it undoubtedly will, the filters will only become better, causing email marketers to scramble to devise new ways to get their messages out to the public.
The easiest way to ensure that your emails will be delivered is to get permission from your client base to market to them through email. Getting permission is critical, particularly since new privacy legislation was introduced in 2004, which regulates how businesses collect, store and use their customers’ personal information. This includes email addresses.
Getting permission may mean asking in advance if you can send emails for a specific purpose, and requesting that your email address be flagged as legitimate in the recipient’s list to ensure your messages bypass any filters s/he may have installed.
Currently, it also seems that HTML emails are becoming caught in spam filters more readily than plain-text emails. This may mean that a simple, plain-text email containing a link to an online message is the most effective method for getting your message out. Alternatively, you can test your email messages for deliverability using software such as SpamCheck (http://spamcheck.sitesell.com) which checks your emails’ subject lines and body copy for filter triggers.
To learn more about email marketing visit www.emailsherpa.com.
A blog or weblog is simply a web page that scrolls chronologically like a journal and contains links to other websites of interest. Technical specialists have used Blogs, as creative online journals, for a number of years. Business blogs, or b-blogs, are just now making inroads into the mainstream. As an alternative, low-cost (or even free) means of electronic communication, blogs can make up a significant part of your overall marketing strategy. Although b-blogs carry an inherent marketing focus not found in creative weblogs, their casual structure provides the opportunity to connect with readers on a more immediate and personal level than traditional websites and newsletters allow.
Since blogs are generally ‘‘do-it-yourself’’ solutions, they can simplify and speed up the online publishing process, allowing users to disseminate information in the timeliest manner available.
Here is a list of websites where you can learn more about blogging:
Affiliate programs, also known as referral programs or partnership programs, involve the use of affiliates to help market a website's products and services in return for a payment for each sale, lead, action, or visitor generated. Amazon.com has created one of the most sophisticated and successful affiliate programs on the Internet --- a program that has no doubt contributed to their high level of brand recognition online, and the significant traffic and resulting revenue their site generates.
The costs to implement Internet marketing strategies can vary widely in the industry. They depend on the particular technique you choose, and the professional you choose to implement it. With a little reading, and a basic understanding of websites and the Internet, you may be able to implement some of these techniques on your own. Or, you may find a freelance marketer or web designer/developer who can implement some of the techniques mentioned above for $25 to $75 per hour, with approximately ten hours required to start.
Alternatively, you may find Internet marketing firms that charge ‘‘project rates’’ rates from $2,500 to $25,000. Therefore, it’s very important to shop around. Also, keep in mind that most Internet marketing techniques require ongoing maintenance and these costs should be addressed in your marketing budget.
Never underestimate the value of using low-cost, offline marketing techniques to encourage people to visit your website. Ensure your website address is clearly listed on all of your marketing materials --- that is, your business card, brochure, published articles, print advertisements, sandwich boards, your vehicle (if you use it for business), and so on. And, don’t be afraid to get creative with your offline marketing strategies. Imaginative promotional techniques can be low-cost, yet attention getting ways to drive traffic to your website.
Examples
Here are some examples of low-cost offline marketing techniques that can drive traffic to a website:
Marketing on the Internet doesn’t consist of cookie-cutter strategies that work for everyone. For that reason, planning is an essential step in being successful online. Careful planning and monitoring will enable you to develop a strategy that fits your needs and budget, maps your progress, measures your return on investment (ROI), mitigates risk, and adapts as required.
When developing your plan, you’ll want to consider the following important aspects:
Any professional marketer will tell you that it’s not worth going to the effort of implementing an Internet marketing strategy (which is going to cost you time and money), without also implementing a system to track your progress and determine what is working for your particular business. By tracking each strategy you implement, you will be able to measure your return on investment (ROI) and determine whether or not the strategy is effective.
What is ROI? Consider the following example: Let’s say you invest $500 in an online advertising campaign that generates $1,500 in revenues. Your profit (sales minus expenses), or ROI, is $1000 or 200%.
Here’s an easy way to track targeted campaigns. First, purchase a good statistics package to measure your website traffic. The statistics generated should tell you where your website visitors are coming from, where they are going, how long they are staying, and from which part of your site they are leaving. Then, use dedicated promotional codes for different campaigns that you test so that you can follow which campaigns are drawing customers to your site.
You may want to measure your progress weekly, monthly and yearly to determine whether you are achieving your objectives and meeting the targets you have set for your business.
Here are some popular website analytics and statistic packages you may want to consider using:
Your completed Internet marketing strategy should address:
For more information on measuring your marketing strategies, visit www.marketingsherpa.com.
Now that you’ve learned the basics of Internet marketing, here are some sources that will provide you with more details on specific online marketing techniques and on Internet marketing plan development.
For a glossary of commonly used Internet marketing terms try:
(This guide was prepared by the eBusiness Connection)
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