The goals are simple: Get new customers and keep the old ones engaged. Fitting together the pieces of internet marketing—websites, email campaigns, social media, etc.—gets complicated. Each one requires its own expertise. Each one supports the other. Put them together right and you maximize your marketing money and time; let some pieces slip and you can waste both time and money.
Whether you manage the online marketing for your small business yourself or rely on a pro, you should have a handle on this list of marketing components, how they support each other and fit into an overall strategy.
Website
The hub of your online marketing…
- Written and organized for maximum effect on SEO
- Hosts landing pages for SEM advertising, with special offers
- Gateway to Lead Generation Stuff like
- Appointment and reservation booking
- E-commerce
- Coupons
- Contact forms
- Displays Phone Numbers to drive phone calls
- Displays Store Locations pages to drive foot traffic
- Links to Social Media
- Hosts signup forms for Email Newsletters and Marketing Messages
- “Responsive design” – it automatically adjusts size to look its best on a mobile phone.
SEO (Search Engine Optimization)
Organizing, writing your site and getting the right incoming links so search engines rank you highly…
- Search engine listings drive free traffic to the Website and Lead Generation Stuff or Store Location pages
- Listings can display Phone Numbers to drive calls
SEM (Search Engine Marketing)
Buying ads on search engines, sites or social media for specific marketing campaigns…
- Drives traffic to landing pages on the Website and Lead Generation Stuff or Store Location pages
- Displays Phone Numbers to drive phone calls
- Can be used to reinforce SEO – paid ads, along with free listings can dominate a search return page
Listings Management
Hundreds of directory sites around the web list your business, and it’s your responsibility to make sure the information is correct…
- Directory listings drive traffic to the Website and Lead Generation Stuff
- Reinforces SEO by establishing a presence on the web in the eyes of search engines. Fixes wrong or inconsistent information on directories that harms SEO.
- Listings display Phone Numbers to drive calls
Reputation Management
Reviews and chatter on directory sites, review sites and social media will directly help or hurt your business; you need to keep track and respond…
- Monitors reviews on directories to support Listings Management
- Monitors reviews and comments on Social Media
Social Media
Two-way communication with clients that’s partly customer service, partly consumer reviews, partly marketing messages, partly prospecting for new customers…
- Supports Reputation Management
- Drives traffic to Website
- Alternative to Email Newsletters and Marketing Messages to push info to customers
- Alternative to Phone Numbers to handle customer questions or complaints
Email Newsletters and Marketing Messages
Highly effective and targeted, and best of all, customers choose to join your mailing list…
- Drive traffic to Website, Lead Generation Stuff and Store Locations pages
- Drive traffic to Coupons or in-store offers to drive foot traffic
- Drive traffic to Social Media
- Display Phone Numbers to drive calls
- Alternative to Social Media to push info to customers
Text Messaging/Mobile Marketing
Customers give you permission to alert them in a way that’s sure to get noticed…
- Display Phone Numbers to drive calls
- Send sale alerts or Coupons to drive foot traffic
Customer Relationship Management System
This is where it all comes together. A CRM system should track individual customers’ responses to online marketing and log their purchase behavior and may include some or all of these…
- Tracking response to Email Newsletters and Marketing Messages
- Phone Call tracking
- Tracking Lead Generation Stuff (appointments, reservations, e-commerce, etc.)
- Response to Text Messaging/Mobile Marketing
- Social Media activity
- Tracking purchase history in-store
