Small business internet marketing techniques consist of more than just simple advertising. There may have been a time, in the early days of the net, when any online ad could bring in new customers and generate profits. The internet has matured over the years and nor the placement of basic ads isn’t enough to qualify as a marketing campaign.
For the sake of our discussion we will say advertising is a more passive activity and marketing is more active. When you place an ad it just sits there doing its job (hopefully), but marketing is about getting people to see those ads. To be clear, marketing encompasses more than getting people to view your advertising. Marketing is everything you do to promote your business. Of course advertising is a vital part of any full-fledged campaign, but it is only one part.
When it comes to small business internet marketing techniques, very few of them are passive. A common online marketing technique is SEO (search engine optimization). This takes time to set up, but it also needs to be kept up to date on a regular basis. When you add any new content to your site, you are affecting its SEO in one way or another. Search engines tend to favor fresh content, so adding to it is a smart move from a marketing standpoint.
Static advertising like pay-per-click and banner ads usually require a large outlay of money before they return any noticeable results. That doesn’t mean you should rule them out, but it does mean that you have to be careful of anything that promises to “put your advertising on autopilot.” Generally speaking, the more dynamic marketing techniques are the ones that will give you the most return for your efforts.
One of the best methods of internet marketing is building an opt-in mailing list. The way it works is that you get people to share their e-mail address with you, and then you can market to them as often as you wish (within reason). It’s as easy as giving them a reason to enter their e-mail address. You can do this by offering special deals, exclusive information or a free gift of some kind. How you do it isn’t all that important; what is important is building a list.
They say it takes seven to twelve exposures to your message before people will take action. It’s too risky to assume people will come back to you website that many times to see your offer. But once they are on your e-mail list, you will be able to keep sending them messages. This can be incredibly effective when it’s done correctly. Every message you send needs to have value. Whether you are providing information or selling something, it has to be of value to the person reading it. The best part is that they will continue to receive your messages until they unsubscribe or you stop sending them (hint: don’t stop sending messages). Either way, having an e-mail list is one of the most essential small business internet marketing techniques.