Internet Marketing Strategy
Today, the most efficient way to find most products, services or solutions to specific problems is through the World Wide Web. Every day, more people shop on the web for replacement parts, movie tickets, automobiles and even homes. Corporate buyers connect with new suppliers of equipment, technology and outsourced services on the Internet.

This is particularly true for highly-specialized products and services, and explains why the percentage of business relationships that are initiated via the web is growing so dramatically. If your company is not leveraging the Internet, then chances are you are missing an enormous opportunity.

In a nutshell, Internet marketing is what you do to increase targeted visitors to your website and convert them once they land on your site. Internet marketing consists of developing an Internet Marketing Strategy, promoting your website, converting visitors, and tracking and measurement so you can constantly improve the process. Your promotion and conversion strategy can include Search Engine Optimization, Pay-Per-Click advertising, and support off-line campaigns with on-line mechanisms, such as custom landing pages and forms for direct mail offers.

It Starts with an Intelligent Internet Marketing Strategy
Your business is unique. Maybe you can sell products that people will buy via the Internet, 24 hours per day, seven days per week. Perhaps your business needs to cultivate relationships first, through education and a lengthy sales cycle, before you can make a sale.

There are many functional areas in which the Internet can impact your company’s business. But almost all business organizations can benefit dramatically from excellence in just one Internet marketing strategy: attracting and engaging new prospects via the web.

If a prospect finds your company on the web and thinks, based what they see on your site, that you can help them, then there is a good chance that they will contact you or buy from you. Selling to prospects who initiate the first contact is much more productive than trying to find the needle in the haystack through cold-calling or some other means, and then maneuvering your way into a sales presentation in person or on the phone.

As more marketers are becoming aware of this new business dynamic, they are shifting resources away from “classic” forms of prospecting, like trade shows, direct mail, telemarketing and advertising in favor of internet marketing. The temptation is to jump right in, rewrite the web site, rent an email list, and buy some banner or pay-per-click ads. We strongly recommend developing an Internet Marketing Strategy first.

An Internet Marketing Strategy for your company that will bring a positive return on investment is more than just making the decision that you want to increase website visitor traffic and convert visitors to prospects and buyers. You’ll actually save time – and a lot of money – if you first assess where you currently are, where you want to go, and detail the steps you will take to get there.

If you already have a website, start by looking at the traffic that is already coming to your site. Do you know how many unique visitors your site is currently attracting? Are they coming from search engines or being referred from other sites? If they are coming from search engines, what keywords are they entering? What are they doing once they get to your site?

Is your need for increased traffic short-term, for example because you sell seasonal items, or ongoing? This has a profound impact on the approach you should take to promote your site.

Does your site already provide the mechanisms and incentives to get people to enter into a relationship with you? What assets, such as demos, print collateral or case studies do you have that could be offered as incentives in exchange for contact information?

These questions and others should be considered and a clear plan developed before investing in website reconstruction or promotion. It needn’t be a lengthy process, and, to be sure, your plan will probably need to be tweaked once you start measuring results. But you wouldn’t build a house without a site plan and a blueprint, and you shouldn’t treat your marketing investment lightly either.

One way to jump-start the process is with a Market-Vantage Website Marketing Assessment. This evaluation and report can generally be completed in a couple of days, depending upon the size of your site, and gives you a professional, candid understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of your web presence. Included are sections on usability, performance, promotion and visibility, messaging and conversion.

Perhaps you already have a solid assessment of where you are and a realistic plan to get where you want to go. If not, Market-Vantage can help you develop your strategy quickly. We are experienced marketers who have worked in a variety of companies and industries, and have been applying Internet marketing strategy since the mid 1990’s. We know what works and what doesn’t. We can save you time and money and help your company connect better with customers. Bottom Line, we can help you increase your profitable revenue, which is what this is all about.

• Planning and Strategy
  
  
• Website Promotion
  
  
• Visitor Conversion Optimization



• Website Visitor Tracking