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affiliate marketing guide

A guide to online marketing & website strategies
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A marketing plan is key to a successful business.

This should address traditional channels (e.g such as leaflets, and press) as well as a multitude of others. Depending on the business, the choice includes  email, ecommerce websites to sell products online, channels such as ebay, a web site to promote the  Brand, Products or Service , as well as social media and numerous others.

When we address online marketing as part of the business plan, we have access to a wealth of information & proven strategies that can help to promote your business online and improve performance of your business. Services Summary

 

Consider the following questions, then read the tips below to find out how to achieve better results.

a) Why do we have a website?

b) Is the website generating leads , sales, and profits?

c) Is the website meeting the needs of our customers?

d) Am I making effective use of the website?

Tips, ideas, and best practice

  • website performance
  • marketing strategy
  • SEO key success factors
  • Website Strategies & design
  • Market assessment
  • performance and statistics
  • advertising & promoting your business
  • fulfillment
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    Learn more about online marketing

    Domain registration, web hosting

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    develop a marketing strategy and improve the odds in favour of your website

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    Improve the odds in favour of your website

    1. Website performance and online marketing.

    Website performance can be measured in many ways including number of visitors, positioning of your pages on a search engine, number of enquiries, sales value, and returning visitors, as well as technical performance such as web site availability, speed, navigation etc.

    ! Identify which factors will determine whether your site and the investment in it is being used effectively. You can use this performance information to plan your online marketing strategy.

     

    2. Develop your marketing & advertising strategies.

     

    Your website and online marketing strategy should be included in your business plan to improve your chance of business success. Your plans for sales and marketing should include customer profiles, i.e. define who your target customers are, how you will reach them and define your targets(e.g. for turnover, volume of orders etc.) . You may decide to  use a variety of marketing channels, perhaps including mailshots, press, radio, TV advertising, exhibitions, posters, or other events. You might also use online advertising (such as google adwords PPC - pay per click) to drive visitor traffic to your website.

    ! Decide how and when to measure your website performance & improvement e.g. increased online traffic, costs of internet marketing , access to new markets, number of enquiries,  sales, and of course profit. Don’t forget other key marketing issues such as BRAND awareness and loyalty if it’s relevant to your business.

    3. Key Success Factors   - Visible content

    ‘Search Engine Optimisation’ or ‘seo’, is a popular activity , and there are many tools and methods such as online advertising available to help achieve better search engine placement. However, search engine positioning, good website design,  Meta tags and links are not the only factors that determine whether your website will be successful - customers look at visible content.

    ! Effective website performance in business terms depends on visible content, so focus on content first.

    4. Website Strategies: Use Design to influence Visitor behaviour

    ! Don’t forget to test your site and measure its performance! 

    Your website is a means of advertising your products or services, and typically will contain some combination of images, and textual information. You may also have more sophisticated facilities such as a shopping cart, or individual accounts for users. Many businesses attract a lot of visitors to their web pages, and fail to convert them into customers.

    The website design will affect a visitors perception of your business. In turn this will affect the chances of achieving your objectives, whether that is to sell something,  to receive an enquiry, or to encourage the visitor to return to the site.

    Simple changes can often result in significant improvements in conversion rates and performance. Design improvements may take the form of better navigation facilities, providing clearer or more targeted information (such as using headings or images ) , better site search facilities, or changed layout and design, colour, fonts etc. Think about what you want the visitor to do. Do you want them to buy a product, or perhaps complete an enquiry form. What will they want when they arrive at the site? Make it easy for them.

    Converting visitors into customers: To convert your  website visitors, or enquiries, into customers usually requires that you have a good product or service at a reasonable price. You should also provide the kind of information, follow up material, and processes that make your prospects want to buy.  In practice, websites and associated processes often fail to do this.  For example many online shopping ‘sites perform badly because the buying process , i.e. the shopping cart system, is too complex or doesn’t take into account that people are going to use them and people behave in unpredictable ways.

    5. Market assessment

    There are numerous products and services such as ‘wordtracker’ that can help you to understand your competition, website, and online customer behaviour, bringing competitive analysis and business intelligence within easy reach of most businesses. Even with a limited amount of keyword research you may be able to identify suitable keywords and phrases used by  potential customers,  to help assess demand, develop good content and achieve better search engine placement. ! Do some research and don’t forget to look at competitor websites.

     

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    6. Measures of performance & statistics

    ! Review and update your strategy & plans.

    Website hosting packages usually include statistics. Make sure you schedule time and learn how to monitor, record and measure your website performance. Free tools such as ‘Google analytics’ provide valuable data and trend information about your visitors. Record and evaluate outcomes of enquiries. Good analysis can often help to predict and subsequently influence customer behaviour.
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    7. Promote your Business Online, advertising & promotion

    ! Consider whether it is relevant to use blogs, podcasts, videos or other techniques to promote your business and products online, alongside more traditional advertising and promotional methods. Viral marketing has grown dramatically and new industries have emerged to facilitate it.

    Viral marketing

    Viral marketing refers to marketing that uses social networks to increase brand awareness, or increase product sales essentially through ‘spreading the word’. This can be done using video clips, games, pictures, or even text messages. 


     ! Youtube, facebook, and a number of other social networking channels and tools including the latest Google ‘+1’ may also form part of your online strategy.
    Whilst affiliate marketing and mechanisms such as Google adwords have been around for a while, they could be considered a more traditional method of marketing online.
     

    Google adwords , and other paid for online advertising such as via facebook can be very effective in drawing traffic to your site. Make sure that you understand enough about the suitability for your product or service, 

    8. Fulfillment.

     

    ! Fulfill your promises to the customer, it’s generally easier to retain one than to find a new one. Using contact management database systems such as ACT or Goldmine can help streamline many customer related operations.

    For independent business advice and consultancy on developing your business contact vision4business.
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