High-Tech Marketing
When I first started my web-design business on the Internet in 1996,
I believed a widely circulating rumor that all one had to do to become
successful (and wealthy) was to build a web site.
However, I quickly realized that online marketing was the key to success
on the web. In an effort to save you from emotional woes, or relieve
you of them if you have already encountered them, I am going to provide
you with information on how you can realistically garner success online.
And you, likewise, can use these same methods to successfully promote
any product, service, or information online as well. So, let's get
started...
1. Pre-Promotion Campaign - Prior to beginning your active
promotion campaign, initiate a pre- promotion campaign by joining
as many online discussion lists relating to your area of business
as possible.
You should be able to easily find such lists at Egroups.com,
Listbot.com or a few other lesser- known list groups.
Next, place a reference to whatever you wish to promote, within your
email signature file so that when you post notices, questions, concerns,
or answers to your lists, information regarding your business will
automatically be viewable in your responses for others to see and,
hopefully, acquire what you are promoting.
Your signature file reference should contain an attention-grabbing
headline, along with a 4-5-line text of information regarding your
business. Review the "Help" section of your Email software
or manual in order to learn how to set up your signature file correctly.
2. News Releases - Pull up your favorite search engine(s)
and search for "news sites," "news posts," or
any related term. What you are seeking are sites that allow postings
of news releases and notices regarding your business, products, services,
information, ventures, etc. These are very detailed and instructional
on how to get your information posted within them.
One of the most recognizable regional site is http://www.pressreleasenetwork.com,
which requires a fee and will send your news release via e-mail to
the editors and publishers of magazines, newspapers, TV, radio and
other publications of your choice from a selection of over 75 different
global and regional lists.
Also, forward news releases to the editors of any online e-zines.
You can also locate most of these through search engines by searching
on the term, "ezines." Popular sites for offline publications
include the AJR Newslink, and Gebbie's Press.
3. Articles - If you are familiar with various details of
your business (and you should be), consider the idea of providing
tips, shortcuts, advice, and any additional helpful information to
editors of ezines and magazines.
There are also databanks whereby you can list your articles for other
publishers and editors to freely use with the condition that they
maintain your byline with your article to insure credit to you. One
such databank is at http://www.ideamarketers.com;
and there are more.
Ongoing content is the primary need at any publication. At the end
of your article, include a notice that is commonly known in the publishing
industry as a "by-line." This is actually 2-tools-in-1.
First, the content of the article itself, then, the byline containing
information regarding your own business, product, service, or information.
4. Search Engines - List, not only the main or home page of
your web site with the search engines, but also your additional pages,
as long as they are different and titled accordingly. Doing this,
will dramatically increase the traffic to your site. In fact, at some
point, you should experience an increase exponentially.
5. Announcement Sites - This is a 1-shot opportunity, so make
it good. What you want to do at announcement sites is provide the
most attention-getting information you possibly can for your venture.
Generally, you can only do this once for new start-up businesses.
This service is also provided by http://www.pressreleasenetwork.com.
6. Announcement Lists - There also exists email announcement
lists, much like announcement sites, whereby you can provide notices
and posts regarding your product, service, or information.
The main difference, however, is that as announcement sites only allow
for a 1-time post, announcement lists allow postings periodically,
and generally, on a weekly or monthly basis. You can also find these
at the Egroups, Topica, and Listbot sites.
7. Ezine Ads - Ezine ads are great, as long as their publications
contain high enough circulations to warrant the CPM (Cost Per Thousand)
readers. However, the drawback is that many readers pass them by,
having more interest in the content of the publication.
Additionally, ads tend to get "lost" in publications that
publish a high number of ads in issues. In most cases in the offline-publishing
world, an ideal CPM rate is 10,000 readers per $1.00 spent. Try for
this same ratio in your Ezine ads as well.
8. Publisher Swaps - This promotion method is exclusive to
Ezine and newsletter publishers, whereby publishers trade ads with
each other to be placed in their respective publications in the effort
of gaining new subscribers. Successful ad swaps can provide dramatic
increases in the subscriber base of your own publications.
9. Newsletters - Newsletters are read by one and all and are
very useful in sending a summary of information. A very successful
Middle East business newsletter is offered from http://www.ameinfo.com.
You can submit your business news stories to them and they will publish
it in their newsletters. For a fee, you can sponsor an issue of such
a newsletter and have your logo and a link tour site, placed prominently
in the newsletter.
10. Opt-In Direct Email - To "opt-in" means to voluntarily
accept information or notices via Email from outside sources regarding
particular interests that you have. There are literally millions of
people online who are members of such lists.
As a business owner interested in promoting your product, service,
or information, you rent such a list from the opt-in service, providing
your sales letter or material to the service, then allowing the information
to be sent via email by the service to the list members you have selected.
This is the popular and preferred alternative to unsolicited bulk
emailing or "spamming." Once a list is mailed, your response
is almost immediate.
The interested responders then purchase your offer, or request more
information, at which time, you should have an auto responder already
set up to "feedback" more sales literature. An auto responder
is an automated email address that, when accessed, returns certain
pre-input information.
Once purchases are made, these particular list buyers then become
your own customers, and you can usually provide them with similar
follow- up products, services, or information in the future without
re-renting their name from the list. The most widely known is Postmaster
Direct at http://www.postmasterdirect.com.
These are the methods and techniques that I have found to be realistic,
sound, and most importantly, successful. They are applicable to any
commercially viable idea, whether it is a product, service, or information.
