What exactly is an Internet marketing strategy?
In very simple terms your internet marketing strategy needs to consider:
Your clients – what do they want and do they actually use the Internet, how do they use it. Know your market.
Your available resources – in time and/or money. If you have the time and inclination to roll up your sleeves and do things yourself, this is certainly achievable – none of it is rocket science, but you do need to understand what will and what won’t work for you. Also do not underestimate the time involved. Even if you do not have the time but can afford to outsource your Internet marketing, having a basic understanding of what it’s all about should enable you to spend your budget wisely.
What are the latest useful tools available on the Internet – this is changing all the time, of course. The rate of evolution and creation on the Internet is astonishing – and understanding just what is going to work best for you will save you time and bring you more business sooner. Blogging has been a big thing in the last year or so – but it’s not going to be useful or necessary for everyone. Do you need a small brochure website, or something more interactive and pro-active? Will a pay-per-click campaign (i.e. Google Adwords) pay for itself?
And what do you want to achieve – what is your overall marketing strategy? The Internet is one part of making that happen. And knowing what you expect means that you can target the most likely means of making that happen.
It’s going to be, at best, a long-term strategy building your Internet activity if your customers don’t actually use the Internet in order to find you. The very first thing you need to consider is your clients – put yourself in their position, ask them – do they use the Internet, are they comfortable with the Internet. Research your market.
The Internet marketing overview document (Word) will be helpful for you to focus on these specific aspects – download and spend some time working on that.
At last some commonsense:
Someone who suggests talking to customers to find out how they want to be communicated with!
I heard an interesting idea recently from a company whose aim is to ‘blaze a trail rather than follow a path’. Listen to customers but don’t always do what they tell you to. Be aware of competitors but don’t use them as a benchmark. Set the standard. You have to be careful that such an approach doesn’t come across as arrogant but perhaps this is how you need to think if you don’t want to be one of the ‘me too’ masses.
This is something I need to revisit, James (and thanks for your comment) – as it is changing, evolving so quickly now. I think that anyone can trail blaze but they have to be good and follow through. Something we could discuss further on http://www.marketinglens.co.uk/ perhaps?