Download Marketing on the Internet Information technology Directors’ Briefing

Information technology
Directors’ Briefing
Marketing on
the Internet
The Internet gives you access to a number
of powerful marketing techniques.
Most of them involve driving visitors to your
website to help you win new customers. This
briefing assumes you already have a company
website.
This briefing covers:
• The opportunities for marketing online.
• Online advertising and affiliate schemes.
• Other online channels.
1 Email marketing
Email is an effective way to reach new and
existing customers at a low cost.
• Include information about your company to
build customer loyalty.
• Send one-off messages containing special
offers and voucher codes.
• By collecting other information alongside
their email address, you can send more
targeted mailings.
For example, email people who have not
purchased from you in the last six months.
1.3Target new customers by renting email
lists.
• Only use lists where people have specifically
agreed to receive unsolicited emails about a
certain topic.
These are called ‘opt-in lists’.
• Use a reputable broker.
1.4You may need to use specialist software
1.1You can build a list of email addresses to
market to.
• You can only send marketing emails to
people who have explicitly opted in to
receive them.
• Encourage customers to sign up to your
mailing list by providing a prominent ‘sign
up’ option on your website.
• When customers order from you, ask if they
would be happy to receive your newsletter.
• You could maintain a different list of supplier
email addresses.
1.2There are many ways you can use the
email list(s) you build up.
• Send regular newsletters containing
information about your latest products and
offers.
England
Updated 01/08/09
Directors’ Briefing
to send your marketing emails.
• You can use standard email software
for small mailing lists (fewer than 20
addresses).
Make sure you put the recipients in the
blind carbon copy (bcc) field, so they
cannot see each others’ email addresses.
• For larger lists, use an online email
marketing service.
They are more effective at getting
messages through spam filters, and should
be able to manage your subscriber list(s)
and opt-out requests.
• Some agencies can take care of the
Tread carefully
If you do not know the rules, marketing on
the Internet can backfire.
A Sending unsolicited emails to unwilling
recipients can get you into serious
trouble.
• Regulations require that you obtain
recipients’ prior consent before sending
commercial emails.
• You must also provide a clear and easy
opt-out mechanism in your emails so that
recipients can easily remove themselves
from your list.
B When creating web advertising apply
the same rules and standards as you
would for print media.
• Your advertising must comply with
Advertising Standards Authority rules.
C The use of blogs and discussion groups
is a sensitive area of Internet marketing.
Rules of etiquette apply which rule out
heavy-handed commercialism.
• Always be genuine on blogs and
discussion forums.
The power of these tools is that they
enable you to connect with people on
a personal level, putting a face on your
business.
• Do not expect to see sales increase
overnight.
Blogs and forums are soft-sell channels
which allow you to demonstrate your
knowledge and credibility.
• Spend some time reading forum
messages before contributing yourself.
If you are unsure of whether to post
something, it is usually best not to.
2
design, content and sending of your emails.
This will cost much more.
1.5Think carefully about the design and
content of your emails.
• Make sure your subject line grabs the
reader's attention.
• Personalised, highly targeted content gets
the best results.
• Test your emails in common email systems
like Microsoft Outlook and Hotmail.
Make sure they look right and all the links
work.
2 Online advertising
You can pay to have adverts on other websites
promoting your business. When users click
these adverts, they are taken to your company
website.
2.1Display advertising involves showing
banners or images which promote your
website.
• Banners are eye-catching areas on the
screen which draw attention to your
products or services.
• They can include images, text, animation
and even sound and video.
• Adverts can have an interactive element
which encourages users to engage with
them.
For example, the ad could expand or reveal
text when the mouse hovers over it.
• Pop-ups are windows which open on the
user’s computer unprompted.
They can annoy people and are best
avoided.
• Overlays are graphical adverts which appear
on top of the page.
They are best used carefully, as they can
annoy users by obscuring content.
• Display advertising is usually charged by
the number of impressions, or views your
advert get.
You could pay anything from £10 per 1,000
views.
2.2You can advertise your website on search
engines. This is called search marketing.
• The most common form of search
marketing involves displaying text adverts
on search engine result pages.
• This is called ‘pay-per-click’ (PPC)
advertising, because you pay each time
someone clicks one of your adverts.
• PPC advertising is the most targeted form
of online advertising, and therefore highly
“
Regular email
marketing is all
about building
relationships over
time. It’s about
turning strangers
into friends and
friends into
clients.
Sean McPheat,
MTD Sales
Training
”
Directors’ Briefing
•
•
•
•
effective.
For example, a Google search for ‘piano
lessons’ would return adverts for piano
teachers.
The cost of PPC adverts is normally
determined by a bidding system.
They could cost anything from 10p to
£10, depending on competition between
advertisers.
Costs are controllable because you can set
a maximum amount to spend.
This means you can test PPC advertising at
a relatively low cost.
The best PPC advertising campaigns target
many search terms with specific ads for
each one.
They can be time-consuming to manage.
The Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB) has a
comprehensive guide to PPC advertising on
its website (www.iabuk.net).
2.3You may be able to sponsor pages or
sections on other websites.
• Sponsorship allows you to customise a
page or section of a website with your
branding and links.
• You could approach complementary
websites to your own.
For instance, a piano teacher could
sponsor a ‘how to play the piano’ section
on a manufacturer’s website.
• Your business may benefit from being
associated with other prestigious brands.
• Sponsorship is usually a set price for a set
amount of time.
• As an alternative to paying for sponsorship,
try and arrange a reciprocal deal.
Offer to supply another website with
interesting articles in return for credit and
links back to your website.
2.4New types of online advertising are being
developed all the time.
• Users tend to filter out online adverts, so
new ways to attract their attention are
constantly being developed.
• The IAB regularly updates its advertising
guides.
• If you use a web-design agency, they may
be able to advise on the different types of
advertising available.
3
• Test different types of advertising online.
You can add tracking codes to your adverts
to see which ones work best.
• Consider consulting a specialist online
advertising agency.
Look for an agency which is a member of
the IAB.
2.6There are some easy ways to get the most
out of your online advertising.
• Many advertising programmes allow you
to run a few ads without any long-term
commitment.
So you could sign up and see what sort of
response you get.
• Try out alternative banner designs and
measure the clickthrough rates to see which
work best.
• Be as targeted as you can.
Tailor adverts to the audience, and make
sure links lead to a relevant page.
• Bring in the experts.
An agency can help you put together an
advertising plan so you spend your budget
wisely.
3 Affiliate schemes
An affiliate scheme rewards websites which
send you new business.
3.1Your affiliates will be anyone else who
runs a website.
• This can include your existing customers,
shopping comparison sites, bloggers and
more.
• Your affiliates place links to your site on
theirs.
• Each time somebody clicks the link to your
site and buys something, the affiliate earns a
commission.
• Commission levels vary, but are generally a
percentage of the order value.
3.2Benefits of an affiliate scheme include:
• You only pay when you make a sale, so
your return is guaranteed.
• The additional links to your website can
improve your search engine ranking.
2.5It can be difficult to decide which methods
of advertising to use.
3.3You can run an affiliate scheme through an
affiliate network.
• A mix is often best.
For instance, you can use PPC adverts to
target specific search terms, and banner
advertising to raise awareness of your
brand.
• Using a network means you do not have to
develop your own affiliate system.
This usually the easiest way to start an
affiliate programme.
• A network can track sales and
“
People don't
consume media in
single channels, so
make sure you’re
advertising across
multiple channels
to get the most
effective exposure.
It’s vital to ensure
that, whatever
mix of channels
you use, your
advertising creates
a consistent brand
image and that
your marketing
messages are
relevant to the
specific target
audience.
Stuart Aplin,
Steak
”
4
Directors’ Briefing
commissions for you.
• Affiliate networks include TradeDoubler
(www.tradedoubler.com) and Commission
Junction (http://uk.cj.com).
3.4Some affiliate programmes may be targeted
by fraudsters.
• Ensure you have some way of tracking
unusual activity.
For example, have you made a large
number of sales through a particular
affiliate?
• Affiliate networks usually have checks in
place to protect against fraud.
See the IAB website (www.iabuk.net) to
download a comprehensive guide to affiliate
schemes.
(www.blogger.com).
• There is a guide to business blogging on
the Movable Type website
(www.movabletype.org/documentation/
business-blogging/checklist.html).
Good examples of business blogs include
Moo (www.moo.com/blog) and Avis
(www.wetryharder.co.uk).
4.3Take part in online conversations.
Expert
contributors
Thanks to Sean
McPheat (MTD Sales
Training, 0800 849
6732) and Stuart
Aplin (Steak, 020
7420 3500, www.
steakdigital.co.uk).
• You can raise the profile of your business by
participating in online discussion forums.
• Use search engines to find discussion
groups or forums relevant to your industry.
• Unsolicited advertising on forums is usually
regarded as spam.
Instead, get involved and answer queries.
Your reputation will grow over time.
4 Word-of-mouth marketing
5 Measuring response
Word-of-mouth marketing is as effective online
as it is offline. Building a buzz of personal
recommendations may not cost much, but it
can bring in lots of new business.
The usual test of marketing is the number
of sales that result. Measure and analyse
customer response to your site.
5.1Track visitors to your site.
4.1Generate positive online coverage for
your business.
• Consider encouraging relevant bloggers,
websites and online magazines to try out
your products.
• It is impossible to guarantee positive
coverage and reviews, but if your products
are good then the chance of negative
coverage is small.
• However, always be upfront and genuine.
Most bloggers can detect deception a mile
off, and will happily write about your efforts
to curry their favour.
4.2Start a blog of your own.
• A blog is like an online diary.
It allows you to put a human face on your
business.
• It can demonstrate what goes on in
your business — with pictures of staff,
information about your processes and
more.
• You can generate interest in forthcoming
products by writing about them, or offer
tips on how to use your products in
different ways.
• Allow readers to leave comments to create
a real dialogue with your customers, and
elicit valuable feedback.
• You can set up a blog for free using a
service like Wordpress (www.wordpress.
com) or Blogger
• Online marketing is the most easily
measured type of marketing.
• You can see exactly where your visitors
have come from, and what they do on your
site.
• Use web analytics to track visitors in detail.
Google Analytics
(www.google.com/analytics) is
comprehensive and free.
• Examine which keywords visitors use
to find your site and amend your site
accordingly.
• Track how visitors find your site, so you can
see which of your advertising methods is
working best.
5.2Monitor the number of website visitors who
convert to customers.
• It is relatively easy to create a large volume
of traffic, but it is better to create a smaller
number of relevant visitors with a high
conversion-to-sale ratio.
• You may wish to establish some other key
performance indicators.
For example, the number of visitors per
week or average spend per visitor.
Published by BHP Information Solutions Ltd, Althorp House, 4-6 Althorp Road, London SW17 7ED
Tel: 020 8672 6844, www.bhpinfosolutions.co.uk
© BHP Information
Solutions Ltd 2009.
ISSN 1369-1996. All
rights reserved. No
part of this publication
may be reproduced or
transmitted without the
written permission of the
publisher. This publication
is for general guidance
only. The publisher, expert
contributors and distributor
disclaim all liability for
any errors or omissions.
Consult your local business
support organisation or your
professional adviser for help
and advice.