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Web Sites, Email and Search as Marketing Tools
- 3/25/2009 -
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There is much ado about Facebook, Twitter and other forms of social media engagement nowadays. I, myself, am very fond of the subject and am even writing a book about it.
With all the buzz, it's easy to forget that there are other, very potent forms of online marketing that deserve just as much attention. Proven approaches that have withstood the test of time. I'm talking about Web sites, email and search.
I am going to go so far as to say before you begin using social media, three elements need to be in place: You (and your clients) need to have an engaging Web site, should at least consider using email as a form of marketing and should keep a focus on search engine marketing clearly fixed on the forefront of your mind.
CREATE AN ENGAGING WEB SITE
The Day of the Online Brochure is Over
Remember the early days of the Internet when Web sites were little more than electronic brochures, static relics of the days when most companies barely noticed the Web. Because content never changed, visitors weren't predisposed to return. Neither did search engines.
Thankfully, those days are long gone, replaced by sites that provide value to both groups of visitors, human and machine. Even with all this talk of fancy Web 2.0 paraphernalia, I believe the company Web site still lies at the heart of everything, or it should.
Now, I do believe the Web in its current iteration is less about "destinations" and more about "connections." Take, for example, the Skittles.com experiment.
Instead of taking a more traditional route, the brand's Web site is nothing more than a widget that resides in the upper left-hand corner of the browser. Primary navigation links take visitors to social media sites where Skittles has a presence. Click on the "Friends" tab and Skittles Facebook public profile appears.
Click "Chatter" and a Twitter search page for the word Skittles comes into view. Click "Media" and you are taken to Skittle's YouTube channel. Similarly, click one of the product links and users are escorted to a Wikipedia page containing product information.
Needless to say, this campaign created quite a stir. In my view, it was a recognition that what consumers have to say about the brand is as important as what candy company Mars itself had to say. If nothing else, it got people talking about Skittles, if not actually purchasing the candy.
Disregard Skittles execution of their campaign for a moment and focus on the underlying philosophy that drove it. This extreme example lends credibility to the notion that the Web has changed from a one-way broadcast medium to a many way conversation.
(I would even go so far as to suggest that sites now include, in addition to their primary navigation, a social media navigational structure linking to all the other places a company has a presence on the Web, assuming that's the case.)
However, that is not to minimize the value of an engaging, useful Web site where visitors can find information they are seeking.
Creating an Engaging User Experience
Think about how and why you use the Web. Chances are you use it when you are looking for something specific like a product, a service, information or advice. And when you are looking for that specific something, which sites annoy you and which do you most appreciate?
Do you enjoy sites with pop-up windows, "click here to enter" pages, blinking banner ads or flash animations that have dozens of transitions before you ever see the first bit of content? Or, do you eventually do business with the site that loads quickly, is well designed and makes the path to the information you are seeking obvious and accessible?
Visitors on the Web are task-oriented. They aren't "surfers" so much as they are on a mission. They're following an information "scent trail."
If your site can quickly and easily facilitate that search, providing answers to their questions and the information they seek, there is a likelihood they will return. If not, access to millions of other sites is just a mouse click away. That's why it is important that you provide and engaging experience.
DON'T FORSAKE THE USE OF EMAIL
There was a time when I predicted that email would go the way of the albatross in terms of its usefulness as a marketing tool. After all, with the increasing prevalence of spam, overcrowded inboxes, spam filters that often catch valid emails and send them to the junk folder if not blocking the email altogether, how could it continue to be effective as a marketing tool? Or, so I thought. Despite its woes, email is too ingrained in the psyche of the Internet and is not going anywhere. Nor should it.
Email is Still a Very Potent Form of Online Marketing
For a time it was fashionable to "dis" email as a marketing tool. With the advent of blogs, RSS and social networks like Facebook and Twitter, there were those who foretold its demise. While it's true that people now use social networks and blogs more than email, according to a report from Neilsen Online, email is far from dead! In fact, it appears to have a very bright future.
Consider these facts:
- According to an October 2008 report by the Direct Marketing Association, the return on investment for email was $45.06 for every $1 spent, as opposed to non-email Internet marketing’s $19.94.
- Email provided more than double the effectiveness compared to other online marketing methods.
- By the end of 2008, email was estimated to have driven $28 billion in sales and is projected to drive $32.6 billion in sales in 2009.
- A survey of B2B marketers in November, 2008 noted that 68.3% intended increasing spending on email marketing in 2009 (source: B2BOnline.com).
- The DMA estimates spending on email marketing (in the USA) would increase from $600 million in 2008 to $700 million in 2009.
A study from email reputation monitoring firm Habeus shows "consumers primarily connect with one another by using email" and that "Email is expected to remain an oft-used communication tool, despite the rise of social networks like Facebook."
I agree that email can be a pain. We're all plagued with overcrowded inboxes and information that often gets lost or sequestered away in some folder becoming virtually unretrievable. Still, that doesn't change the fact that an old-fashioned, opt-in email marketing is an effective tool when best practices are followed. Email is tried-and-true and has withstood the test of time.
Bizzuka just rolled out its own email marketing platform called Soundoff. Get a 15-day free trial by clicking here.
MARKETING VIA SEARCH ENGINES
Google is the New Yellow Pages
I have a confession to make. I don't know where the Yellow Pages directory is in our house. Why? Because I never use it. Google has become my new yellow pages.
It is my default source for finding everything, especially since Google created its browser, Chrome, which integrates the search query and URL fields into one. It has become a magic mirror I can ask any question and it instantly returns useful information, more or less. With the growing prevalence of local search is it any wonder the old print Yellow Pages directory has become obsolete?
The outlook for search marketing is bright. Search volume continues its upward climb, as does spending on search, both organic and paid.
AdAge, in its 2008 Search Marketing Fact Pack, said that search volume rose 20 percent and that search marketing spending approached $14 billion. Search marketing, especially in hard economic times, will only continue to gain ascendancy.
"During uncertain times everyone looks for the most affordable ways to drive new traffic to their site," says Bizzuka Internet marketing specialist Brian Bille.
One of the ways most often overlooked, especially by small business, are free listings through local search says Bille. "Listings are a win-win. Not only are you claiming your business listing and making sure no one hijacks it, but you are also giving your business a fair chance in ranking via local search," Bille adds. "Claiming and editing your listing is quite easy. Each major search engine features simple, step-by-step directions."
Search in Now Universal
Another reason to place continued emphasis on search marketing is because all the major engines – Google, Yahoo, MSN and Ask – now use what is known as blended or universal search. (The latter is Google's term.)
Data is pulled from multiple databases and it's no longer unusual for results to include video, images, product information or news stories. Social media tends to fare well in returns, which is yet another reason to have a strong presence on sites like Facebook, Flickr, YouTube and Wikipedia. It's all about creating content search engines can consume.
CONCLUSION
While I heartily encourage the use of blog, social networks and other forms of social media for marketing, first make sure you've got your Web site working for you, are making use of email as a marketing tool and ensuring that everything piece of content you create appeals to Google. These three things are foundational.
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