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Internet marketing strategies for small businesses... |
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Written by Kenneth Doyle
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Tuesday, 22 April 2008 |
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Marketing your small business on the Internet does not need to be expensive, nor does it need to be complicated. However, there is still a lot of confusion (and the associated mis-information) about how to market a bricks and mortar business on the net. Most small businesses continue to ignore the Internet as a promotional medium thinking that it does not apply to them. They continue to do this at their own peril.
by KennethDoyle
Marketing your small business on the Internet does not need to be expensive, nor does it need to be complicated. However, there is still a lot of confusion (and the associated mis-information) about how to market a bricks and mortar business on the net. Most small businesses continue to ignore the Internet as a promotional medium thinking that it does not apply to them. They continue to do this at their own peril.
And, just like in the real world, there are many small business marketing options available to you.
Small business Internet marketing can be a very cost-effective way of promoting your bricks and mortar business locally and/ or to the world. All that one does is choose from the wide variety of marketing options available, and then consistently apply them to get measurable results.
So, what are these strategies and how does one apply them?
There are numerous approaches, and this is where most people get confused. In essence there are THREE main approaches to small business Internet marketing, being...
1. PPC marketing (Pay per click marketing, e.g. Google Adwords), and... 2. Information link marketing (linked via content on a specific topic), and... 3. Educational search marketing (all involving original content that educates).
So, what are the PROS and CONS of these different approaches?
1. PPC SEARCH MARKETING:
Paid search marketing is paid advertising. You pay for your ad to be placed before people searching on specific keyterms. The effectiveness of your PPC campaign is directly related to the keyterms you chose to use, as well as the sales path you set up on your landing page (where people land when they click on your PPC link).
The benefits to you (the pros). Well, when correctly targeted, you'll reach prospects, fast.
The CONS: A) Specialist skills required. And, you can lose a lot of money, fast! B) PPC specialists are not cheap. C) You continually need to run your ads. D) Can be very costly (especially for commercial keyterms). You only get to play as long as you continue to pay.
2. HYPERLINK within CONTEXT LINK MARKETING:
This approach uses other people's web site content as the platform for your advertising. The links are embedded inside the content on their web pages. This content is usually keyword focused. For example, let's say that you sell wood heaters. When you engage in in-context link marketing your hyperlinks are placed within content on specific web site articles and/ or web pages about wood heaters.
The PROS: Information is the currency of the Internet. When you use these embedded hyperlinked, and within context ads correctly they can be a very effective advertising medium for small business. The clickthroughs may be lower than the PPC model, but the quality of visitor is usually much higher.
The CONS: A) You have little to no control over what web sites your links are placed on, which means that links can be placed within content that doesn't quite fit sometimes. B) Best results are achieved by driving prospects to especially designed landing pages. Skill is required to set up these sales funnel paths. C) The demand for good, profitable commercial keyterms always exceeds supply, thus pushing up the price for the good terms.
3. NATURAL SEARCH MARKETING:
Natural search is where people go to the Internet, type a keyterm into a search engine, and the search engine returns a list of the most appropriate web page on the web with has that keyphrase in it. When done correctly this marketing method has significant benefits for small business marketing their bricks and mortar businesses on the web.
Note: Search marketing is different from SEO. SEO (search engine optimization) relates to the optimization of existing web sites to make them search engine friendly to the search engines.
The PROS: Natural search marketing is about being found FIRST when people search the net for a solution to a problem. This type of web marketing actually benefits the searcher, and it is never viewed by them as an advertisement. Search marketing allows savvy local businesses to compete on a global level, because there is no shortage of niches one can dominate using search marketing strategies and methods.
The CONS: A) Search marketing strategies require more effort than the potential throwing money at the wall techniques of the other strategies. B) It can be a slower approach than the other methods discussed. However it has been proven time and again that search marketing is an ideal and cost effective method for small businesses to use on the net.
To summarize... Marketing on the Internet for small businesses no longer needs to be seen as a mysterious event. There is still be a great divide between those businesses who are using the web properly, and those who don't. However, armed with this information, you now have a choice.
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