According to the 2016 Small Business Marketing Trends Report, about 1 in 5 small businesses had no plans to invest in digital marketing of any kind in 2016. These numbers are quite surprising when recent statistics show that small businesses need an online presence if they expect to be successful. But what exactly is online marketing? What does it entail and why should it be utilized by small businesses?
Online marketing, simply put, is utilizing the internet to market your company’s products and services. It is also quite fittingly referred to as internet marketing or web marketing. The core of any successful, online marketing strategy is a company’s website. If you don’t have a website, this should be your first priority. You can’t build an effective, online strategy without a fully-responsive, search engine optimized website. Your website should be designed to generate leads, build credibility, and sell products and services.
Other elements of online marketing include search engine optimization, e-mail marketing, social media marketing, blogging, paid search, and affiliate marketing. When creating an effective, online marketing strategy, choose a combination of these tools to utilize and create a clear plan. According to Lorrie Thomas, “Online marketing works to brand, build, and boost business. It can help support awareness, get a message out, serve and connect with current and prospective customers, and generate sales. No one builds a house without a blueprint. The same is true of web marketing” (Online Marketing, 2011).
Why should small businesses utilize online marketing? How does it impact the bottom line? There are three main components to effective, online marketing: awareness, communication, and engagement. All three of these components work together to generate sales and increase the bottom line, which is the ultimate goal.
Building awareness is the first step because if no one has ever heard of your company, how can they buy your products or utilize your services? After potential customers know that you exist, you can start building long-lasting relationships. According to Lorrie Thomas, “Awareness can come from many sources including advertising, search engine optimization, referrals, and word-of-mouth marketing” (Online Marketing, 2011).
Communication is step two. Online communication should answer the questions consumers have during the initial buying process. Typically, it can be summed up into one main idea, WIFM. This stands for “what’s in it for me?” and buyers ask this question when deciding what they should purchase and why. Communication can also provide education to current and potential customers about your industry or to further explain the full value of what you provide.
Engagement is step three. Once consumers know who you are and what you offer, they want to develop a relationship. They want you to care about their thoughts and feelings about new products and services. They want you to respond to any issues or complaints made online by past customers. Engagement is about creating a dialog and showing that each customer is important to your company.
Regardless of the strategy you adopt, think about online marketing as investing your time and money. If done correctly, awareness, communication, and engagement will generate sales, referrals, and create brand loyalty. Online marketing has the potential to reach an extraordinarily large amount of people, but still provide the opportunity to interact with current and potential customers individually.
If you need assistance with web design or developing an online marketing strategy, you can reach me at Alexis@Clevermousemarketing.com or through the contact form below.
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