Marketing is changing. We all know that. Traditional marketing for business has included cold calling, mailings, walk-in sales reps, Yellow Pages, TV, print & radio advertising. These methods continue to be used to this day, of course, but they are disruptive by nature. A potential client is interrupted from their task at hand, and delivered a message. The marketer has to overcome the negative feelings of disturbing a busy prospect to deliver a sales message. Basically, there is already a strike against you before you even begin.
And online marketing started out no better: pop up ads, pop unders, spam emailings, and riotous ads crammed onto a website, pushing information into the furthest reaches of the page. Of course only having a little bit of content on each page makes the page views go up, which creates more ad inventory. But reading a paragraph, and waiting for the new page to load, and again and again, makes for a big chore.
Even worse, clients and customers go into a defensive mode around these disruptive marketing methods. Caller ID, spam filters, TiVo and the trash can all take the punch out of your presentation. This drives down your ROI, while simultaneously irritating potential customers. Great, huh?
Well, there is a better way. I propose using the web as a web. Use the 'Net as a net. Cast out far and wide with bits of bait - good, relevant information - and draw the fish in. Make them interested in what you do and how. Keep them engaged and then they will come to your website. Use your website to build on this goodwill - you already have some by then (rather than an irritated prospect) - and move the sales cycle forward to a contact page, a request for more information or an online purchase.
Your website is one part of that, put just one part. Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, and Local Business Centers all contribute to the web as a web. So do suppliers, employees, blogs and review sites. Search engine optimization plays a role as well. There is a lot going on with your business online right now - smart business people need to interact with those conversations to attract prospects to your website, where they will be converted into lifelong customers. It's all part of a interactive series of connections. There is no "end" to it, you are never "done." A conversation about your business is a good thing - it shows interest in what you offer. Social media allows you create value before a customer buys from you, lowering resistance and building goodwill. All good things.
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