- Start with a web promotion plan and an effective web design and development strategy.
- Get ranked at the top in major search engines, and practice good Search Optimization Techniques.
- Learn to use Email Marketing Effectively.
- Dominate your marketing niche with affiliate, reseller and associate programs.
- Request an analysis from an Internet marketing coach or Online Marketing consultant.
- Build a responsive opt-in email list.
- Publish articles or get listed in news stories.
- Write and publish online press releases.
- Facilitate and run contests and giveaways via your web site.
- Blog and interact with your visitors.
Online Marketing Has Changed the World of Commerce
Definition:Online Marketing (also known as eMarketing, Internet Marketing, Web Marketing, or Digital Marketing) is an all-inclusive term for marketing products and/or services online – and like many all-inclusive terms, internet marketing means different things to different people.
Essentially, though, internet marketing refers to the strategies that are used to market a product or service online, including:
- website design strategies
- search engine optimization and search engine submission
- online promotions
- reciprocal linking
- email marketing
- social media
- blogs
- pay-per-click advertising
This still puts it almost $30 billion behind advertising spent on TV. However, online advertising grew by 13% in 2015, the fastest of any category.
How Important is Internet Marketing?
According to Link Humans, as of 2016 more than 3 billion people worldwide have internet access. This gives a marketer an unprecedented number of customers to reach with product and service offerings, available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The interactive nature of the internet facilitates immediate communication between businesses and consumers, allowing businesses to respond quickly to the needs of consumers and changes in the marketplace.
Online reviews have become one of the most important components in purchasing decisions by consumers in North America. According to a 2013 survey conducted by Dimensional Research which included over 1000 participants, 90 percent of respondents said that positive online reviews influenced their buying decisions. Interestingly, negative reviews typically came from online review sites whereas Facebook was the main source of positive reviews. Forrester Research predicts that by 2020 42% of in-store sales will be from customers who are influenced by web product research.
The Impact of Social Media
According to Statistica, 70% of the U.S. population has at least one social networking profile and by 2018 the number of worldwide users of social media is expected to reach 2.5 billion (a half billion of these from China alone). Of the social media platforms, Facebook is by far the most dominant - as of the end of 2015 Facebook had approximately 1.6 billion active users worldwide, comprising 38.6% of the global online population (Statistica). Mobile devices have become the dominant platform for Facebook usage - 68% of time spent on Facebook originates from mobile devices. Other popular social media platforms for marketing include Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest and YouTube.
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From a marketing perspective social media is becoming more and more important, however many businesses are unsure whether embracing social media has improved the bottom line as it is difficult to correlate social media marketing activities with increased sales. According to Business 2 Community:
- 90% of adults aged 18 to 29 use social media (compared with 35% of those over 65)
- One third of millennials say that social media is their preferred way to communicate with businesses.
- 84% of CEOs and VPs say they use social media to help make purchasing decisions.
- All 100 of the top global brands maintain at least one company YouTube channel, and more than half (27 of 50) of CEOs in top global companies have appeared in a company video.
- Despite the lack of metrics or executive involvement, the share of overall marketing budgets devoted to social media marketing is expected to increase from about 10% on average to nearly 25% by 2021.
If you’re new to internet marketing and wish to get online as quickly and inexpensively as possible you can start with a social media platform like Facebook - you can create a business Facebook page in less than an hour. However, if you want more control over your online presence, a customized website is more appropriate. Ideally you should have both a website and a social media presence, with each linking to the other.
For more information on marketing your business online see :
5 Step Online Marketing Plan
Marketing Online: Basic Strategies Any Business Can Use
How to Create a Social Media Plan
How to Promote Your Business on Twitter
7 Tips on How Best to Use Pinterest for Your Business