Internet Marketing creates consumer awareness and demand for products and services using the ever-growing collection of internet resources. Some examples of internet marketing programs are:
- Creating and managing a consistent brand, product or service image across all internet properties, i.e. local and global directories, social media sites, industry and trade associations, etc.
- Optimizing website pages to improve & sustain high search engine page rank
- Creating online search or social ad campaigns
- Engaging customers on business networking and social media platforms
While the number of options and choices can be intimidating, successful internet marketing relies on the same principle that successful marketeers have used throughout the ages: Know the customer.Knowing the customer means knowing what keeps them up at night and what makes them feel secure. It’s knowing their tastes, what information they need accomplish their goals, and their priorities.
Knowing the customer also means knowing where to find them. This is perhaps the most important principle in internet marketing, but is often neglected, in favor of getting bogged down in technology.
Let’s illustrate with an example of traditional print marketing campaign. A vendor of sporting goods would probably get better results advertising in Sports Illustrated Magazine than in People Magazine. The same principle holds for internet marketing: not every social media site or online directory or online marketing platform is appropriate for every type of product and service.
