Most all modern businesses have some type of online marketing for their company.
Be it Facebook, Google, Twitter, or just a website, the companies of today have found reaching new clients through the use of the internet highly rewarding!
Traditional means of advertisement include newspaper, magazine, radio, and television. Most all of these means are expensive, are limited to locality, have limited information, and are not interactive. Websites and online marketing is the solution to traditional marketing, and has become the standard of marketing in the 21st century.
So how do I get started with online marketing?
- Determine exactly what your needs will be, and mold your online presence around that need.
- Pick a url for your website (www.mysite.com), and a domain host provider.
- Design a website that fits your needs. Don’t go overboard!
- Work together with your designer to bring your ideas to life.
- Tell the world about your website.
- Be interactive with you clients. No one likes a company that provides little or no feedback. People want to know you exist, and are who you say you are.
Determine what your online needs will be.
The first thing you might want to do is assess exactly what you are wanting when promoting your business or organization online. This may be nothing more than offering simple information about who you are, what your product is, where you are located, and the best method of contact. Perhaps, you may be wanting to sell your product online through the use of an online storefront, or maybe offer a way for clients to schedule services with your company.
Whatever the case may be, you need to have a specific goal with your online marketing. Research is key at this point. Your target audience will be looking for businesses like yours with specific terms in specific places. You will want to find out what these search terms and locations are, and build that into your website and marketing efforts.
Setup of Domain Hosting & URL Registration.
After you have a goal in mind for your website and marketing, the next step will be to register a URL address and pick a Domain Host Provider. A URL address is the web address for your site, ex. www.myWebSite.com. The Domain Host Provider is a company that provides the computer server to house your website on, and connects the site to the internet 24 hours a day. Most host providers, like FIVE04Media.com, can host your website and register your URL for you.
TIPS-When picking a URL, something easy to remember is always a good rule of thumb. Also, adding popular “keywords” specific to your product to the URL will help later with SEO. For example, if your company makes custom sailboats, then the URL www.customsailboats.com would be a golden choice, if it’s still available for purchase that is.
Time to Design your Website.
Now comes the fun part, design and development of your website. At this point, if you are not familiar in computer languages such as HTML, PHP, jQuery, or CSS, you may want to hire a web designer to assist you in creating the site. There are also some easy and simple page builders available with most domain hosting accounts, if you are interested in tackling this stage yourself.
Please Note- Depending what your end goal is, if you are inexperienced in web design and development, developing your site to your desired effect may present several challenges and take several months to complete.
TIPS- Keeping your site small helps page load speeds and helps visitors find the information they are looking for. DON’T Over-Do Your Website. Keep it Simple Silly!
Working with your Designer.
Web Designers can do many, many things. But, the one thing they can’t do is read minds. During this stage, it is crucial that you describe exactly how you want your site to look and act to your designer at the beginning. Your designer will then come back and talk to you about what is possible to build, how long it will take, and how much it will cost. The more dynamic and interactive, the longer and more expensive it can become.
The goal is to find a nice balance between your desired website functions and your budget. Many small companies do not have thousands of dollars to invest just yet in online marketing, and that is why FIVE04Media.com has custom tailored its design options more towards smaller business for more affordable rates.
Tell the World about your Website.
This part is more commonly referred to as S.E.O. (Site Engine Optimization). This is one of the more difficult and time consuming parts of implementing online marketing. Contrary to popular belief, search engines like Google and Bing do not automatically include your website into their search results. You have to manually set this up.
Now, lets say that you have your site included in Google and Bing search results. The next step is to get your website as high in the search rankings as possible to ensure that your potential clients have a chance to see your listing. To make this possible, the search engines need to see that your site is relevant to your product or service, and is well connected throughout the internet. This builds credibility for your site, which in turn moves you higher up in the results. Your goal, of course, should be first page search results for your main keywords. This can also be effected by competition with other companies offering the same product or service.
TIPS- Research and back check your competitors to see what they are doing, and try to do the same but better.
Engage your Customers.
The number one complaint of most online consumers is the lack of contact with businesses marketing online. Prompt responses to email and chat requests are essential to getting the most out of your online investment.
Potential clients need to feel comfortable with your online offer, or you will never get anywhere. One of the first lines of action is immediate contact options in case they have questions, and prompt, informative responses. The 2 most popular choices in this case are: contact forms, and live chat. Sometimes, websites go with both options to cover all bases. Just be sure to have a qualified associate attentively watching these areas and responding fast and professionally, or all your online marketing attempts will be in vain.
TIPS- Provide a good contact telephone number option. Many people want to hear a real voice to verify the companies legitimacy before ever engaging in any purchases.
