The web offers unlimited possibilities for exposure of your brand. There are various ways in which you can market your products and services. Marketing avenues such as Search Engine Optimization, Pay-Per-Click Marketing, Social Media, and Web Development are crucial to your success on the internet.
Depending on your marketing skills and technical knowledge some of these avenues may be challenging. As a word of advice I would seek an internet marketing specialist or search marketing company for consultation and guidance. Leveraging these marketing avenues requires time, commitment, and an investment just like anything else. One of the greatest advantages of online marketing lies in the ROI and should be a goal to set for yourself as an accomplishment.
Shifting Your Marketing Mix Into Gear
While you can choose to execute in any of these avenues at random I would strongly recommend that you follow as outlined below.
Your Web Presence & Development
Before you start marketing anything on the web pertaining to your brand consider strongly a proper web presence. Your target audience will expect a sharp virtual representation of your brand. Consider this as the first step in your marketing mix. There are various open source applications available on the web at your disposal to assist you in creating a user-friendly and effective website. Some of the most popular ones include WordPress, Joomla, and Drupal just to name a few. Seek an experienced web developer or internet marketing specialist if you need some assistance in this area.
Sending Targeted Traffic – Pay Per Click Marketing
If your website is new therefore never existed on the web chances are nobody really knows about it. While word of mouth advertising works it’s time consuming and something that should be considered as a long term strategy. In the meantime driving targeted traffic to your website domain will help generate leads and build ROI. Google’s AdWords platform gives advertisers the ability to advertise on Google.com and it’s partners. A great opportunity for you to connect with your target audience on Google. Each time a visitor performs a search query related to your products or services one of your ads will be displayed to them. Microsoft’s AdCenter works in the same fashion although giving your brand visibility on the Yahoo and Bing search engines. Pay Per Click Advertising will require a budget that typically varies upon your industry. Seek an experienced internet marketing specialist or search marketing company to assist you with the creation of your new PPC account.
Why Consider Search Engine Optimization (SEO)?
It’s a rather touchy avenue especially for the skeptics or simply those just starting out. SEO is another form of Search Engine Marketing. Most commonly also referred to as organic or non-paid traffic. It’s a long term investment that can help generate targeted traffic, leads, and exposure of tour domain in major search engines. To be successful with SEO you need to strongly evaluate the content of tour website and the message it’s sending to web visitors. Additionally your website needs to be optimized for specific keyword terms focused on your products or services. As I mentioned above it’s a long term benefit that requires lots of optimization, patience, and perhaps plenty of strong coffee (if you’re a drinker that is). Seek the consultation of an internet marketing specialist or search marketing company on hoe to approach this efficiently.
Leveraging Social Media For Your Brand
The success of social media has proven high ROI, targeted leads, and more exposure for over 60% of U.S. based business. That’s more revenue and money in the bank for you. Regardless of your industry or specific niche social platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIN, and YouTUBE are amongst the few your brand will benefit from. A company profile page on LinkedIN should be something your brand should have in order to connect with other companies or networkers. Facebook’s advanced platform offers business pages available to brands. Consider creating one in an effort to reach tour target audience. Real time communication with potential prospects can be utilized via Twitter’s unique capabilities. Establish a presence for your brand by creating a Twitter handle. Customize your page and start communicating with tweeps in the Twittersphere. Video marketing has become a vital ingredient to any marketing plan and you should leverage it accordingly for your brand. Start by creating a YouTUBE channel.
Success of your marketing mix lies in the time, effort, and engagement that you put into it. Certain avenues are a long term investment while others will help generate immediate results. If you’re unfamiliar with the core capabilities and effectiveness of all of the above mentioned seek the expertise of an internet marketing specialist or search marketing company.