PRINT
EMAIL
COMMENT
BUZZ UP
DIGGEXECUTIVE POLL
Bernard Madoff, convicted of running an $65 billion Ponzi scheme, was sentenced to 150 years in jail. What’s your take on his punishment?
OUR PREMIUM CONTENT
The Kiplinger Agriculture Letter
The Kiplinger California Letter
Kiplinger's Biofuels Market Alert
Kiplinger's Retirement Report
SUBSCRIBER HELP
CURRENT LETTER
Overhauling
Financial Regs
PREVIOUS ISSUES
fuelNet Monthly is a marketing newsletter published by The Pohly Co. consulting firm and is a monthly contributor to Kiplinger Recommends. Tam Harbert is an award-winning freelance journalist who has covered business, technology and public policy at a variety of national publications and Web sites for 20 years. She is a former executive editor at Electronic Business magazine.When Lincoln Sign Company creates and installs a new handcarved sign, it posts a photograph and a short article about the job on its Web site, signsnever sleep.com. The New Hampshire–based company also displays photos on its custom-designed pages at Flickr and Facebook and maintains a daily blog written by owner J.D. Iles. It's just one example of how growing businesses are successfully using integrated online marketing to drive traffic to their sites, increase brand awareness and build customer loyalty.
Studies show that consumers are increasingly scouring the Web for information on products and services before opening their wallets. By using a well-coordinated combination of online marketing techniques, some of which are free, you can ensure your business pops up when potential buyers search for what you're selling. Here are five secrets to developing a powerful integrated online marketing strategy:
1. Optimize your Web site for the search engines. "Search engines don't discriminate between large companies and small companies," notes Paul Gillin, a Framingham, Mass.-based consultant and speaker and the author of The New Influencers: A Marketer's Guide to the New Social Media. In fact, small businesses sometimes have an advantage with the major search engines because their sites are more likely than a large company's to be written in basic HTML. More robust sites often use complicated content management systems that make them harder for Google to search and rank, Gillin says. "By doing things like using simple page titles combined with frequent use of the right keywords, small businesses can zoom up the ranks in very specific Google searches," he adds.
Lisa Wehr, president and CEO of Oneupweb, an integrated online marketing company in Traverse City, Mich., says the title tags in the HTML coding of a Web site are especially critical because search engines use them to rank a site. Be sure your site's title tags contain the two or three keywords that your potential customers are most likely to type into a search engine, Wehr recommends.
2. Launch a blog. A blog, or Web log, is among the online tools with the greatest marketing benefit, Gillin says. It's simple to set up, inexpensive to maintain, and flexible in that you can incorporate photos and even audio and video. By posting frequently and including keywords relevant to your business, you'll get your blog indexed on a regular basis and, as a result, get a high ranking on the search engines, says Jonathan Fields, a marketing consultant in New York City.
3. Write once, syndicate widely. When you create a piece of valuable, high-quality content, Gillin suggests, repurpose it in as many ways as possible so that you reach a broader audience. "Nothing that you write, photograph, or record should be used just once," he points out. For example, you can take your blog entries and include them in your e-newsletter or post them on your Facebook page. Offer a Really Simple Syndication (RSS) feed so customers can subscribe to your blog. Provide myriad ways for users to access the information in exchange for their name and email address.
4. Use social networks. Establish a corporate presence on Facebook or another social networking site. Social networking helps you build a community of potential customers that you can leverage in many ways. For example, Facebook lets you conduct polls. Your business can also use the platform to distribute news about your company or invite customers and prospects to events, such as a workshop.
5. Use pay-per-click advertising judiciously. Paid search can be costly unless you're careful, Wehr points out. She suggests that you be as specific and descriptive as possible when choosing keywords -- but choose a lot of them. By using a bevy of very narrowly focused keywords, you will pay less per click because they're unlikely to be in high demand. The broader base will also drive more traffic to your Web site's topic-specific landing pages, making it more likely that people will buy from you, Wehr says.
This article was originally published in the customer communications and marketing newsletter fuelNet Monthly.To read more marketing tips from the publication, click here.
POSTED BY: Ashley (January 18, 2009 09:43 AM)
As someone who has 12 years of online marketing experience, this article is woefully simplistic and gives the impression that online marketing is somehow easy with the right tags, a blog, RSS, a Facebook page and some pay per click. At the end of the day, what truly matters is that your company/brand/whatever is providing a service to online users - whether that service be a tool, entertainment, or some financial treat. Yes, you can start a blog, but if it's boring, it's not going to help you. You can start a facebook page, but if no one cares about your brand, no one is going to be your "friend".
The rules of marketing and advertising don't just change because they are now online. There isn't some sneaky way to get traffic and customers to your site with these tools. You've got to give something to people which they value. Online tools can help spread the word, but if you've got a lame product, no RSS feed is going to fix that.
And Kiplinger, this is like the 5th article about online marketing I've seen you guys post and it's like you're having some 16 year old who started a MySpace page give you advice. Up your game, please, and stop pulling your content from amateurs and provide your readers some real advice so they don't waste their time and hard-earned money employing ineffective strategies.
E-Mail Article
Print Article
