The promise of technology has always been the magnification of human activity. Technology allows us to do more in less time and at lower cost.
Marketing is not sales but it leads to sales. The purpose of marketing is to get/keep customers interested in your product/service. It’s all about staying in front of the customer in a constant and positive way.
It’s a busy world and even those customers who need, want and know about your product/service may space you out without constant and positive contact.
This article is about how you can use the internet to generate interest in your product/service in less time and at lower cost.
Old Time Marketing
Before the internet and email there were mass mailings of brochures, newsletters, and other printed materials. Mailings were and are a lot of work, they’re expensive and there always seems to be a problem with the printer (commercial not mechanical), problems which drive up costs. And then 98% plus of mailings end up unread and in the trash, what a waste.
Sponsoring a bowling team or 5K run is another traditional way to market; if your customers bowl and run. Pens and coffee cups are a good way to stay in front of people. I once sent out some very nice coffee cups to clients and centers of influence only to have a man, who’s been a great source of business, call and say, “I love the coffee cup; but did you have to put your mug on the mug?”
New Time Marketing
Websites are great, sometimes. To be successful business websites must have two things; compelling content and traffic. Compelling content includes things like ease of navigation, good color, quick loading time and buttons that work. And something of interest/value to the user/visitor when and if they get where they want to go on the site. Traffic is critical. The best site with the most compelling content is worthless without traffic.
Listing/registering your web site and its key words with search engines is like running ads in the phone books; if and when someone searches for a key word that matches your key words they may find your site on a list of sites. It used to be that those sites with the most hits/visits were listed first, but no more. Top listing is for sale or rent, but that’s ok because “top listing” is just the tip of the iceberg anyway.
A Word on Search Engines
What would you find if you did a search for “search engines” and then did the same search on all the “search engines” that come up? “Larger fleas have smaller fleas upon their backs to bite ‘em and smaller fleas yet even smaller fleas and so on infinitum.”
The Iceberg Internet Marketing Model
Top listing and registering sites and key words are all good, but it’s only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to pulling traffic to your site. Where internet marketing comes into its own is in that area below the waterline, below search engine listings.
There are thousands of e-zines (electronic magazines), hard copy magazines/newspapers and broadcasters of all types, with an on line presence, that deal with every subject you can imagine. Determine what kind of pubs your customers read, listen to, watch and make up a group email list. Access as many search engines as you can and harvest names and e-mail addresses and then set up a group for your pub-list. E-mailing pubs is not spamming because they want input and content, they’re pubs. E-mail lists for pubs are also available for purchase or rent if you don’t want to harvest.
Alliances are arrangements with other websites whereby they provide a link to your website. First, determine what associations, business groups, newsgroups and non-competing companies with whom your customers have contact. Next, harvest, rent or buy names and e-mail addresses. Your first e-mail to your alliance list should be a short introduction and proposal offering to provide content for their site if in return they provide a link to your site. Always have a statement on all group e-mails giving the receiver an easy way off the list.
The last component of the Iceberg Internet Marketing Model is a list of those who have asked to be on your e-mail list. Make it easy, no long forms, for people to get on your list, and get off.
Once you have your lists, you’re ready to send out articles, press releases, information of interest. All with your website address given, or better still, linked.
In Summary
Ever since we figured out how to use a rock to crush bones or nuts, and how to use a stick to extend our reach, we’ve been on the ever changing road of technology. The way to make money with new technology is not to reinvent the wheel by coming up with something brand new; it’s by doing more in less time and at lower cost.
Abe WalkingBear Sanchez is an International Speaker / Trainer / Consultant on the subject of cash flow / sales enhancement and business knowledge organization and use. Founder and President of www.armg-usa.com, WalkingBear has authored hundreds of business articles, has worked with numerous companies in a wide range of industries since 1982 and has spoken at many venues including the Shakespeare Globe Theater in London.
