The struggles involved
in marketing a web site over the Internet continue for many as the number
of web pages continues to escalate. The odds of getting your web site
to show up in search engines is quickly diminishing and banner and email
advertising are proving to be not as cost-effective as originally planned.
To market your site successfully today, you need to be creative. Think
'out side of the box'! Many businesses assume that successful on-line
marketing must originate through a web browser. A web browser is just
one method of distributing your URL. Depending on your type of business,
the web browser may actually be the least-effective vehicle for reaching
your target audience. Here are some alternatives that don't reside in
a web browser.
Marketing Collateral
(Print)
Every piece of marketing material printed should clearly display your
web address. While to many this seems like a 'no-brainer', trust me
when I say it is often disregarded. Your corporate brochures are an
excellent marketing tool but do not provide the flexibility that the
web has to offer. By listing your URL on the brochure, you can constantly
make up-dates and revisions to your product offerings that are always
available over the Internet. Besides, it costs you nothing to simply
place your web address and it will only increase awareness of your web
site.
Marketing Collateral
(Interactive CD-ROMs)
The demand for CD-ROM's is quickly on the rise. Cyber-NY, (www.cyber-ny.com/bizcards.html)
a Silicon Alley based interactive agency of which I am a partner, has
introduced a 'business card-sized' CD-ROM that has gained mass attention
from businesses of all sizes. This tool allows for a full color presentation
of your products or services with audio and video enhancements that
can be distributed on a CD-ROM the size of a business card. This product
will make your business card stand out from the rest and will greatly
improve your web presence by offering the user a direct link to your
web site. Often times, we are able to integrate the CD-ROM presentation
into your web site.
Advertising and
PR
If you run television ads, radio spots or print campaigns or distribute
press releases to the media, make sure your URL is mentioned. Depending
on the message or campaign, you can create specific URLs (yourname.com/something)
that coincide with the campaign's offerings. This allows you to cater
a specific message to a specific offering. By not placing your web address
you are simply not optimizing your advertising efforts.
Being involved in
business development for an interactive agency, I have seen numerous
companies fail to leverage their traditional marketing strength. They
treat the Internet as a completely separate entity and fail to integrate
the web into their overall marketing communications approach. For some,
this is because they are not confident in what their web site has to
offer while others are just unsure how the integration should take place.
Whatever the reasoning may be, businesses not utilizing their web site
as a marketing tool are probably missing out on golden opportunities.