I caught myself using this seemingly overworked phrase?again'in the midst of a sales presentation: ?Just Google it.? I have heard this phrase on TV and radio and in conversations with friends?everywhere. And Webster's has added the new verb ?google? to the dictionary!
Why is Google the first name that comes to mind when we think of looking for something? Classical marketing laws would tell us it's the ?first in market?first in mind? rule. That rule points us to such brands as Coke, Xerox, Kleenex, Lite (Miller), etc.
But we ?FedEx? a package now?right? Many other shipping companies were in the market long before FedEx. We ?Google it,? not ?Yahoo it??or ?MSN it??or ?Lycos it,? etc. So the first-in-market rule doesn't seem to hold water in today's fast-paced, high-tech marketplace.
Consider this modification to the rule:
?The first to make the biggest brand impact and reinforce its image with a great product or service will eventually become first in mind and in market?sometimes.?
OK, that's better?and note that I left some wiggle room.
How do you keep that initial brand momentum in place?
After being marketed for decades, ?Coke? is still used as a generic term. If you ask for a ?Lite? and you get a Bud Light, you give the bartender the evil eye. And when we want to look something up'we ?Google it.?
Why do some brand impressions last while others fade? That's because some companies continue to reinforce their ?brand language? with smart marketing and advertising. And it's because these companies produce very good products that are constantly improved and expanded upon. For businesses of all sizes, here is a list of media we find highly effective:
?Web Site Overhauls?Make your site more compelling and maximize it for strong conversions, by helping customers find what they want, piquing their interest and having calls to action that match their buying habits. Internal and external research has shown that sites in numerous industries fail to achieve core objectives.
?E-mail Campaigns?With a 56/1 ROI, they are the best way to keep in front of prospects as they go through a normal sales cycle.
?Online Advertising and Promotion?PPC, organic SEO, ads, social and viral campaigns?all work extremely well for most products and services.
?Impactful Print and Electronic Media?Echo your brand language and intrigue your prospect base from all marketing challenges.
?Blogs and Online PR?Effectively use blogs and press releases to enhance your ?online value? relevant to your industry (which Google loves).
?Trade Show Marketing?This differs from industry to industry, but these shows are a great way to get in front of a large percentage of your target market in a short time frame. Today's shows are much more interactive and informative than those in the past.
What can businesses of all sizes learn from this?
Create great products or services, and make sure your marketplace is aware of and impressed by your brand. All companies need to continue to effectively promote their brands and their key advantages to their target customers and prospect base. This should be done by a reputable firm or agency through the use of innovative and compelling media and strategies.
For more marketing information and tips, visit www.brandsthatsell.com *See studies from Forrester at http://www.forrester.com. (Numerous studies concern Web site research.)
?Since 1999, Forrester has evaluated the experience of more than 1,000 Web sites. During that period, only 3% of the sites received passing scores on our Web Site Review methodology.??Bruce D. Temkin
Want to make money while directing more traffic to your website? You might consider pay per click advertising streams. They can direct Internet users who might want to pay for your information or products to your site at the same time you offer advertising space to sites your users might be interested in. Before you sign up with the first pay per click or affiliate program you see, do your homework.
Google AdSense is the most popular pay per click program out there today. It has the benefits of being in the game for a long time and offering a great deal of research and development into their keyword matching. But what if you have been removed from Google AdSense or just want to branch out and try other services as well? There are other options out there.
Yahoo! also has a pay per click program, theirs is called Yahoo! Publisher Network. It works similarly to Google's AdSense program but has only recently come onto the scene. Users of both AdSense and Publisher Network have found that, though Google is quicker to remove an advertiser, they are still the most valuable. The Yahoo! service is likely not far behind, though.
Chitika and AdBrite are just two of the other pay per click advertising streams currently online. They offer a marketing service and affiliate program. Here's how it works:
- You create your website to sell your goods or information
- You sign up for Chitika or AdBrite or a similar marketing program
- Other companies who sell goods or information that compliments yours also join the marketing program
- The program matches your goods/information and the complimenting companies
- You advertise their site and they advertise yours, through a variety of marketing formats that feed directly to your sites
There are four basic benefits of using a streaming advertising service:
- Intelligent, targeted recommendations bring product and information links related to your site content to the visitor
- Database that handles your ads continually "learns" which ads work best for your site and changes the ads as needed, in addition to regular ad rotation
- You get paid when your visitors click through the ads on your site
- You can usually bid on the cost of your ad appearing on other sites (at least with Google and Yahoo! programs), allowing you to easily manage your online marketing costs
Affiliate programs offer similar, but not the same, website advertising. There are large affiliate programs out there that only permit businesses with mid to high level traffic. There are small affiliate programs that swap a one-for-one link and let anyone take part. New businesses should look for something in the middle.
The best banner ads are those that are not rich with graphics. Textual link ads are the quickest to load so they are the most effective. The cost of affiliate programs range from tenths of pennies per click to monthly fees of $5 or more.
Regardless of the affiliate or pay per click program you use, it is good business practice to run reports frequently and change the ad streams if you aren't making money from the ads on your site or aren't receiving much traffic from your ads on other sites. It is also important to change the information on your site often or offer freebies to encourage visitors to return again and again.
Both Scott C. Margenau & Babainder are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Scott C. Margenau has sinced written about articles on various topics from Web Development, Internet Marketing and Web Development. Scott C. Margenau is president of ImageWorks Studio, an award-winning specializing in online and off-line media in web d. Scott C. Margenau's top article generates over 18100 views. to your Favourites.
Babainder has sinced written about articles on various topics from Advertising Guide, Web Development and Internet Marketing. Did you find this article useful? For more useful tips and hints, points to ponder and keep in mind, techniques, and insights pertaining to eBay, do please browse for more information at our websites.. Babainder's top article generates over 22200 views. to your Favourites.