What Is Internet Marketing?
Internet marketing is now called so many other names – e-marketing,
web marketing, i-marketing, digital marketing, online marketing and the like.
However, in plain and simple language, it can be defined as the marketing of
one's products or services that a business or person offers through the use of
the internet.
This type of marketing encompasses a very broad area of the
subject as it also includes many types of marketing strategies like e-mail and
wireless media marketing. Under this general scope of internet marketing also
fall the aspects of ECRM or electronic customer relationship management and
digital customer data.
Why is internet marketing a big advantage to many businesses?
The WorldWideWeb has given us many unique and essential benefits.
This technology enabled the entire world to be connected with each other in a
matter of seconds. In terms of online businesses, the internet has provided a
global portal in which goods and services can be sold and bought by almost
anyone and in any part of the world.
- · With internet marketing, all types of businesses have enjoyed the lower costs of information dissemination and advertisements.
The internet's interactive nature has benefited business
marketing through instant responses and its ability to elicit them in the
fastest way possible. Furthermore, internet marketing has tied together all the
aspects of creativity, technicality, advertisement, sales and product
development.
- · With its inexpensive cost, internet marketing has also enabled businesses to save on their means of reaching their target market or audience.
Through a small fraction of the cost of traditional
advertisements, businesses can further allow their customers to conduct
research and eventually purchase their products in the most convenient way.
This also makes them more appealing to their clients because they can provide
results in a very short span of time.
- · Internet marketing has also allowed these businesses to measure their statistics in a much easier and inexpensive way.
Since almost all the aspects of this marketing type can be
measured, tested and traced through the use of ad servers, advertisers can
easily use and observe their data as to which ads reap the most customer views
or purchases. This way, online businesses will be able to determine which of
their advertising messages are more appealing to their target customers. The
results of all their campaigns can be tracked right away since this marketing
initiative simply requires a customer to click the ads, visit a certain website
or perform a desired action like filling out a form or purchasing a product or
service.
Now as a beginner in the world of internet marketing, you will be
responsible for the task of bringing in potential clients by providing them the
services or the company that suits their needs or preferences in various internet
venues. You will help these customers find the product that
they are looking for. The targets are the people who have computers with
internet access. Entrepreneurs like you can visit your online store anytime.
Consumers can also do the same whenever they want. The future of the
worldwideweb is so brightwith its projected online consumer traffic reaching
almost 60% and over 80% of these customers shopping online. So if you are
determined to make it successful for you, you may just find yourself enjoying
the benefits of having an online business that will give you more profit in the
long run.
With that said, internet marketing brings you many advantages of
incurring minimal costs in starting up your business including cheaper
advertising options, a global marketplace, becoming your own boss, promoting
stuff that you are passionate about and profiting from these passions along the
way. Sounds amazing doesn't it?
Any risk?
Though there are many benefits from internet marketing, it does
come with its own share of risks and investments. You must understand that this
process will not let you rake in a lot of cash quickly. Your time, diligence,
persistence and pass ion for learning more are very important in your success
in internet marketing.
Those who think that this is a get rich quick scheme are bound to
be disappointed.
Though many businesses have become extremely successful, you will
find that those who have failed in this venture have simply wished to become
overnight millionaires. The realities of a physical business are still
applicable to your online store, including tax payments, customer services and
even hiring employees.
Furthermore, it is important that you know that starting an online business is not free.
There are costs that may be less than what will be used in building
a physical business, but you will still have to shell out for web
design, software, hosting, domains and advertising costs. Another reality of
having an online business is site downtime. Yes, your site may go down due to
technical difficulties or glitches, and this will probably bring a lot of
frustration not just on your part but also on the customers’ end. Every single
minute or second that your site is unavailable to visitors and potential
customers, you will be losing money. You need to be prepared for this.
Furthermore, you cannot just rely on a certain system and have it
run on autopilot to generate profit. Technology changes and the industry
evolves rapidly, making any “autopilot system” that is supposed to
generate cash a complete lie. A marketing tactic that worked for someone in the
past may not work for you at all in the future. Therefore, it is very important
to keep yourself updated with new technologies and marketing trends.
Competition will always be around so if you do not keep yourself
informed and you donot work hard, you will not stand out in the crowd. You have
to make an impact! Work hard because if not, you can be sure that
one of your competitors is out there doing so.
Besides, if you want your business to be a long-term investment,
your first profits should go back to your site's services and advertising
efforts. Maximize your profits and do not just cash out your first
earnings. It will also be helpful to learn about taxation and other related
laws that affect this industry. This way, you know what your tax and legal
advantages are once you set up your business. This will also help in protecting
your assets, thus, it should never be overlooked.
With all these realities in mind, you will need to be very
determined to stand out in this industry. Internet marketing is not for the
person who likes simple routines. You should be flexible in learning new
strategies and trends in order to keep up with your competition.
Now that you know what internet marketing is and all the good and
bad that comes with it, you will now learn the marketing methods that online
businesses have been using in order to promote their services and products to
the global marketplace.
The following methods that will be discussed further in the next
few passages are:
Affiliate marketing
Article marketing
E-mail marketing
Blog marketing
Pay per click ads or PPC
Search engine optimization or SEO
Pop-up ads
Banner ads
Social media marketing
Mobile marketing
No comments:
Post a Comment