By Greg Trim 
Those who are new to the world of online marketing often misunderstand the nature of promoting an Internet business. There’s a widespread misconception that setting up an advert on Facebook or stuffing your website full of keywords can lead to the customers rolling in and the bank balance becoming inflated. But that’s usually not the case.
In reality, the sheer number of advertisers actually present on the Internet these days means that you have to be strategic and go above and beyond if you want to get your message out there and be successful in reaching new customers. This article will share three top tips for those Internet-based businesses looking to promote their messages far and wide on the web.
Rely on search engines
Search engine optimization – or SEO – was for a long time the strategy of choice for social media marketers. But Google is mysterious about how it ranks (or prioritizes) websites in its search results – and the result is that relying too heavily on SEO can lead to big problems if the ranking rules change and you suddenly lose your position – and your customers. In general, though, it’s still possible to develop a site with good SEO. Ensuring that you top up your site regularly with unique, readable and quality content – both text and multimedia – is one way to do it. Hiring organizations including Wolverine Solutions Group is possible if you want to outsource it, or you could do it yourself – although that may require a time and research investment.
Another option is to pay Google for advertising – or, basically, to appear at the top of search results on some occasions, depending on the wider advertising market and competition for whatever keyword you choose. You’ll have to ensure, of course, that the value of the time you spend researching the best advert and the cash you put behind it does not exceed the revenue you make back – but if you can do that, you could be on to a winner.
Promote on social media
The rise of Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram and Twitter has been crazy – and for those who want to promote their online business, tapping into the millions of potential customers who are on these sites is something of a no-brainer. The downside, perhaps, of incorporating social media into your promotional strategy is that there is sometimes a general perception that online business opportunities which are promoted through Facebook or similar are of low quality.
That’s why you need to ensure that your social media marketing strategy is high-quality and targeted. In order to avoid being flagged as spam (either mentally by users, or literally by algorithms) you need to work hard on creating testimonials and other verification signals which will cause users to build trust. But if you can do that, it really makes sense to build social into your promotional strategy, and it could end up being a goldmine for you.
Go offline
Finally, one “thinking outside of the box” option for a marketer of an online business to consider is the possibility of heading offline in order to bring people back online. The reason this is an option lies in the fact that the Internet is now so pervasive that it’s starting to become fashionable to head offline.
As a marketer of an online business, this supposed challenge – the moving of potential users away from devices and mediums where they might find your business – can actually be turned into an opportunity. If your client base is now more likely to go out for a walk in the local neighborhood than switch on their laptop, for example, why not stick up posters on trees or even invest in billboard advertising? If you’re targeting a particular geographic area, why not print out leaflets directing people to your online product or service? It may seem counterintuitive at first and it’s not necessarily the only strategy you can follow, but it’s certainly one that could supplement other, more technologically-minded options.
For the online marketer, the “game” has got harder in recent years. Gone are the days when rising up the ranks of Google search results was possible with just a tiny amount of work. Now, it’s difficult to get traction in most areas of the Internet – and given the amount of noise generated by other marketers, it can sometimes feel a little like screaming into the void. But the good news is this: there are still some ways in which it can be done. From opting for a strategic Google plan to actually heading offline and thinking up some creative tricks and tips to get people back online and straight to your site, there are many ways to do it.
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Sitetrail Research Team