Internet Marketing- It's Still Marketing

Why is Internet Marketing like Science?

 

Ready or not- it has been here for a while and if you are just coming around to this realization you may have some catching up to do.

But you are here, so you are looking at the right map to drive your marketing towards measurable growth for your business.

So what is this so called new age of marketing? Is it social media, is it SEO, is it email, is it web analytics?

Yes....and more.

In this new age of marketing, your customer is in more control of your message than your own marketing department. How you measure and understand that message is just one part of internet marketing. Don't believe me? See how fast a bad review of your product or service spreads on Twitter and that is all the evidence needed.

Having just returned from training at Omniture University, I will sum it up with this- the new age of marketing is when you start using data to make marketing decisions, not ego or guesswork. Scientific marketing is the new age marketing where you:

 

• Ask a Question (what is the offer and what is it's value, who is the target audience,   what do we define as success , how will we measure it and what action will we take from those measurements?)
• Do Background Research (who is the competition, what other options do customers have, what information do they need to make a purchase decision, how do they want that information presented to them and when?)
• Construct a Hypothesis (design and develop your campaign)
• Test Your Hypothesis by Doing an Experiment ( launch your campaign and track pre-determined measurements)
• Analyze Your Data and Draw a Conclusion (what are the numbers telling us, what worked, what didn't, and why? What action is to be taken from the data?)
• Communicate Your Results (share and celebrate success, learn from and optimize failures)

 

Sounds like a lot of work? Well, I suppose it is much easier simply throw your marketing dollars into an inferno and hope for the best, but I would not recommend it.

It is time to move beyond the thought of recession marketing and into scientific marketing where you can actually plan for success.

 

 

How Can Conversion Optimization Help Your Business?

 

Recently, I heard a salesman say that his CEO is telling his sales team that they are going to have to work for 20% more business just to generate the same amount of revenue as last year. And he is most likely completely correct.

The question then becomes, where will your extra 20% of business come from? Can you afford to spend additional advertising dollars that do not give you the measurable impact you need to generate 20% more sales leads, 20% more requests for information, or 20% more sold online (or in your store)? How will you know that your hard work is giving you the 20% more you will need to be able to survive the winter ahead?

How does the Golden rule help you and your business? As Bryan Eisenberg of Future Now said recently in a webinar focused on conversion optimization, the Golden Rule is simply that the person with the gold, makes the rules. That has never been more true than in this tight economic atmosphere! Your customers are in control, creating a customer focused website will increase your online conversion rates, giving you that extra 20% you need to survive the tough economic times ahead.