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Value of Web Marketing
The Internet is changing the rules of business. As trite as these words may seem now,
they are true. Like radio and television, the Internet has brought about an undeniable shift
in how business is conducted. Unlimited information, instantaneous communication, and a
market more vast than anything before have become available to both massive conglomerates and
small home businesses. However, one underlying factor remains the same: advertisement.
While the traditional business plan of a "Brick and Mortar" company has always included
extensive advertisement, the same cannot be said about many Internet businesses. Many
webmasters go to great lengths to craft wonderful web sites, putting little or no thought
into advertising them. And any business that doesn't advertise is doomed to failure.
Web sites need to advertise and promote themselves to create traffic on their site, to stay
in business, and to grow.
Businesses on the Internet share a kind of equality that Brick and Mortar businesses
do not. When a visitor arrives at a website, they really have no idea how large or small
that company may be. In the Brick and Mortar world, it is easy to distinguish between the
two--the larger will have the bigger store, flashier advertising, and a more expansive
inventory. On the Internet however, small companies can project an uncharacteristically
large presence by creating and properly promoting their web sites. While the Brick and
Mortar retail world is consolidating and merging towards giant discount oriented retailers,
the Internet is teeming with thousands of small, successful companies who might not otherwise
be able to compete, or even start-up, in the Brick and Mortar world.
No matter how large or small your company is, you need to advertise. Unfortunately
for most small businesses, Dot-com or otherwise, traditional advertising methods require
immense capital and human resources. This is exactly why many smaller businesses fail--they
spend too many of their resources in trying to compete on somebody else's turf.
The most obvious medium of advertisement is television. However, television's effectiveness
in attracting customers is questionable. Its effectiveness lies in achieving brand
recognition. Yet at this point most businesses are trying to increase traffic to their
websites and gain more customers--brand recognition can wait until after the IPO.
Television advertising is also the most expensive medium. More than one previously
unknown Dot-com spent all of their available resources on a Super Bowl spot. They may or
may not have been successful, but nevertheless, they spent millions of dollars for 30
seconds of airtime. Most businesses are more shrewd when it comes to spending their
dollars, and they want more than just thirty seconds of exposure.
If you thought that targeting an Internet-based audience would be more effective at driving
traffic to a website, you would be right. Banner ads and mass-mailings are much less
expensive than television. However, they have their limitations as well. While remarkably
cheaper than a TV spot, a small banner ad on a major portal website can still cost over six
thousand dollars a month. Furthermore, it is generally agreed that banners are not a cost
effective way to bring visitors to a website. Most potential customers see banners as just
a nuisance. Mass mailings have a similar drawback. If you opt out of spending money for
your own list, you can buy space in someone elses. But you'll be competing for the customers
attention with whoever else bought space. Another disadvantage that banner ads and
mass-mailings have is that they aren't targeting the people who are most likely to be
interested in the content you have to offer. They may reach a wide audience, but most
of that audience will recoil in horror, yell "Spam!", and delete your expensive ad before
having the opportunity to realize that you are exactly what they're looking for. While both
traditional methods can and do work, they require a lot of what most of us don't have: money.
The most cost-effective advertisement would have to be both cheap and targeted at exactly
the right customer. Years ago this was something of a pipe dream--today it is a reality.
The Internet is the most comprehensive source of information in human history. But like
any library of knowledge, it must be catalogued and organized to be used effectively. And
therein lies the perfect solution: search engines. Like the card catalog of a library,
search engines are a customer's way of sifting through the Web to filter out what they're
looking for. And what better way to make sure you are found then to have an influence on
what they find? Search engine listings meet both of our criteria in terms of focus and
affordability. No other form of advertising is so focused that the customer is actually
searching for you. A search engine user is a highly receptive and targeted audience because
you are not trying to sell them on something they dont already want. They have come looking
for you and they already want what you specifically have to offer. Furthermore, the great
majority of search engine listings are free. Return on investment couldnt be better-- with
none of your dollars spent, the very first dollar returned is profit.
According to the Georgia Institute of Technology, 88% of Internet users find new web
sites through search engine listings1. WebCMO data shows that in a side-by-side comparison
of different forms of promotion, search engine listings are the number one way to generate
traffic on websites2. Search engine listings send droves of visitors to your site and they
are free. I have personally seen websites where traffic has increased ten-fold as a result
of good search engine positioning. Nothing could be better, but there is a catch.
Getting listed on a search engine below 499 other websites simply wont work. You need to
get a listing near the top of your category to collect all the traffic a search engine can
deliver. But the good news is that you can dramatically improve your positioning with a
little bit of elbow grease. All it takes is some key modifications to your website and
a little thought. Its not that hard and you can do it.
Using one help of our consultants
to guide you through this process is the ideal way to simplify your work. It guides you
through every aspect of the Search Engine Positioning process so you dont have to be a
tech-savvy guru to get excellent results. With good search engine listings a small
business can project a large image on the Internet and get the kind of traffic that so
many big business sites get.
AddWeb Article- Copyright (c) 2000 - 2002
Cyberspace Headquarters, LLC. All rights reserved.
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