| Building Web sites with a Marketing and Advertising plan
For marketers, the internet combines the strengths of print and television advertising. It’s benefits include use of text and graphics, plus sound and moving pictures, while eliminating the time and space limitations of traditional media. Unlike magazines and TV, the internet is interactive, making it a cost-effective, one-to-one marketing tool.
Companies use Web sites to establish their presence on the Internet. Web sites consist of text, images, sound, video, and animation organized into sections called web pages. Companies also promote themselves online through web advertising, publicity, newsgroups, and e-mail newsletters.
With a Web site, your company can:
· Increase product awareness
· Communicate with customers and partners
· Sell product direct
· Generate and qualify leads
· Improve customer service
· Gather feedback
· Decrease sales, support, marketing, and training costs
· Expand distribution
Online marketing offers many benefits, including:
Extensive customer reach: The Internet is global, reaching millions of people of every age, nationality, and profession.
Attractive user demographic: Most internet users are highly educated with above average incomes.
Interaction: Forms, e-mail, and surveys let users interact with Web sites, helping companies build customer databases and user profiles and also helping them to customize offers.
Flexibility: Unlike printed materials, it's easy to change information online. Product updates don't result in obsolete information, and marketers can test messages, prices, and more online.
Automation: Automating sales, marketing, or support processes can save money and time.
Many small businesses have discovered that marketing geared at drawing online visitors is the single most important part of building an online presence. Simply creating a Web site does not guarantee that users will visit it, so many businesses now advertise on the Internet through online city guides and yellow pages. An online yellow page directory allows companies to expand their geographic reach beyond local customers, connects businesses with consumers who are ready to buy, and gives users the ability to search the directory's listings in a variety of ways. Evaluating Your Online Potential
Marketing online delivers results for many businesses, but not all. To decide if your company will benefit from Internet marketing, answer the following questions:
1. Are your customers online? If not, invest elsewhere.
2. Are your competitors online? If so, has the Internet helped their businesses?
3. Does your product lend itself to direct sales? If not, use the Internet for marketing rather than selling.
4. Do you have the distribution and/or resources to handle Internet customers?
5. Does your company sell to regional or national customers? If your business is strictly local, will Internet marketing help meet business goals?
Don't develop a Web site without reasonable, business-oriented goals. Like any other marketing campaign, online marketing success comes from measurable objectives, strong content, and comprehensive marketing plans.
B.) Online Marketing Objectives
Before your company develops a Web site, define specific objectives by answering:
1. What are your marketing goals?
2. Who is the target customer? (Business professionals? Computer novices?)
3. How does the Internet fit into your company's plans? Are you expanding into new regions? Selling new products?
4. How will the Internet change business? Be prepared for new ways of working; be ready to adapt. For example, many car dealerships believe the Internet shortens the buying cycle because customers now research choices online, visiting dealerships only when ready to negotiate price.
5. What's your budget? Some companies develop Web sites for as little as $5000, with costs averaging between $10,000 to $20,000 for small businesses. Fortunately, many online marketing activities cost little or nothing.
C.) Design and Deployment
Objectives in hand: Always check references carefully and start with a trusted web site designer (such as Megabite Design) because many of the design choices you make will impact hosting services. The right Internet Service Provider (ISP) will host the site, while the designer will upload and maintain it.
Ask the designer for customer referrals. You can also check the bottom of Web pages you like for the designer's name.
D.) Naming Your Web Site
When choosing a domain or site name (e.g., companyname.com), look for something intuitive and easy to spell. For instance, Disney can be found at www.disney.com, and Megabite Design is simply www.megabitedesign.com. Keeping your name simple makes it easier for customers and partners to find you and remember your web address. Unfortunately, many names are already taken, but you can always combine two or more words. Make sure the domain name is registered correctly under your name, not the ISP's.
E.) Creating Content
Next, plan and gather information for your Web site. The right content will boost effectiveness by establishing credibility, providing useful information, encouraging repeat visits, and building business.
There are three types of material you can use:
· Existing collateral copied to the Web
· Information created specifically for the Web
· Materials integrating online and print campaigns (for example, details provided online to support TV or print ads)
When defining content, consider the following: Navigation. Make it easy for viewers to move around your site through hyper links and buttons.
Download times. Graphics and media files take longer for viewers to download than text. Be careful to not overload your site with time-consuming features that are unnecessary.
Media technologies. Sound, video, and animation can be added for greater impact.
Forms. Gather visitor information by asking people to register or fill out surveys.
Maintenance. Develop a schedule for keeping information up-to-date.
F.) Marketing Your Web site
Just as you actively promote an event or a contest, you must market your Web site to attract visitors. Without proactive marketing, people won't know where to find your Web site or why to visit.
1. )Directories and Search Engines
Megabite Design will get you noticed. We will list you in Directories such as Yahoo, and search engines such as Alta Vista and Lycos list Web sites. We will supply your information to Web directories, So their search engines automatically scan your Web sites and then categorize it correctly.
2.) Links/Online Referrals
Ask other Web sites to link to yours. Most sites feature lists of other Web sites of interest. Set up reciprocal links so both companies benefit. Or consider using a paid referral system. For example, the online bookstore Amazon.com pays referral fees to sites who refer visitors to them for book purchases. Always include a signature in all your out going e-mail’s, business name, address, phone number and web address. you never know who it will be forward to.
3.) Publicity
When you launch your Web site, issue a press release. You can send the release by regular or electronic mail, depending on editors' preferences. Don't forget to include online publications in your distribution list. Awards also help generate publicity.
4.) Online Ads
Banner ads are the graphical messages you see on commercial sites. There's very little room for information on banner ads, so companies use them to encourage viewers to "click through" to their Web sites. To do this, viewers position their mouse over a banner ad and click on it. The ad is linked to the advertiser's Web site. There, the viewer finds detailed company or product information. A banner ad works much like a television ad that encourages viewers to call for a free brochure only online, the desired response is for the viewer to visit the company's Web site. Costs for banner ads are based on impressions (i.e., the number of times your ad is viewed). Consider joining Lens Banner Swap service that will find sites where your banner ad can be posted for free in exchange for posting other companies' ads on your site.
5.) Online Events
Use special, online-specific events such as celebrity chats, real-time audio broadcasts, or online sweepstakes to attract visitors.
6.) Print Promotion
Don't forget to include your Web site address on stationery, brochures, business cards, print ads, etc.
7.) Online Newsgroups and Newsletters
Online newsgroups and newsletters attract targeted audiences. However, there are many etiquette rules regarding newsgroups, so take the time to learn them. Also, consider sending a biweekly or monthly e-mail newsletter to interested customers to keep them informed. But always remember to ask for the customer's permission to send e-mail. Like other forms of direct advertising, it's important that your tactics not be seen as overly aggressive or intrusive.
8.) Do's and Don'ts
There are four cardinal rules when advertising on the Internet:
1. ) Don't spam. Spamming is sending unsolicited e-mail, the online equivalent of junk mail. Internet users get very angry with junk e- mail.
2. ) Experiment. The Internet is constantly evolving. Megabite Design researches Major companies' sites Web and attend seminars to learn about new marketing techniques. Keep trying new ideas on your site.
3.) Respond quickly. Reply to visitors' e-mail within 24 hours. People online expect immediate results.
4.) Measure results. Take advantage of Internet technology to monitor your success. Measure the number of visitors, what they view, how they respond, how changes impact response, and so on.
TIPS
As you evaluate potential domain names, you can check a whois server, which lists all registered domain names and their owners, to see if names are taken.
There's a tradition of free information online. Most Internet experts believe that free and useful content helps attract viewers and build loyalty. Evaluate established Web sites to learn how they combine marketing and sales information with so-called objective content such as news and other journalistic pieces.
Don't just list your company's URL address. Give people a reason for visiting your Web site. For example, "Visit for special online pricing!" Click here! to get started. | |
