The Three Easiest Marketing Decisions
One of the most interesting things about marketing is that it constantly offers a multitude of choices and options. There’s never a lack of things to try or things to improve.
Sometimes that leads to paralysis. Marketers and business owners just don’t know what to do next.
But some decisions are really no-brainers. Here are three. I’ve mentioned these all many times before. But judging by the questions I get from clients, they’re worth repeating.
1. Fix your website
I’m not going to bore you with stats that I’ve already posted on this subject. Suffice it to say that you’re never going to achieve a high level of quality lead or traffic generation if your website is lame.
That fact is pretty obvious if you sell online. A bad site repels buyers. It may be less obvious to those of you who don’t sell online, but it’s equally true.
If you don’t believe your prospects are looking at your website think about your own buying habits. When was the last time you bought a complex or expensive product or service without taking a look at the company’s website?
That just doesn’t happen much these days. Your website is often the first – and last –  impression.
2. Get visible online.
Unless you’re one of very few companies that have a truly unique solution to a problem no one has thought of yet, your prospects are looking for you online. They’ll find your competitors with or without you. Which would you rather it be?
Personal referrals still top the list of the best lead generation sources for business-to-business products and services, but buyers also search. If nothing else, they’ll look for solutions to compare the referred product or service to. More likely they’ll be compiling a list of vendors to consider.
This means you need to be visible on search engines and websites where your prospects hang out. Otherwise you’re missing your best prospects – the ones who are actively seeking a solution.
3. Start with Google.
Achieving visibility on Google may be harder and more expensive than becoming visible on other search engines, but let’s face it – Google delivers the bulk of the traffic. Last April, Hitwise found that Google’s marketshare in US searches was 67%. Yahoo (at 20%), MSN Search (at 5.25%) and Ask.com (at 4%) – although not insignificant – trail far behind. Google’s dominance is even greater among business searchers.
Even if you can’t afford the click costs on Google, it’s the best testing ground because the heavier traffic allows you to figure out what works best faster.
So there you have it. Three marketing decisions you can make and act on without a lot of agonizing over whether or not it’s the right thing to do.
Technorati Tags: websites, seo, search engine, visibility, google, lead generation, traffic
This article was first published March 27, 2009 on the Tatum Marketing blog
One of the most interesting things about marketing is that it constantly offers a multitude of choices and options. There’s never a lack of things to try or things to improve.
Sometimes that leads to paralysis. Marketers and business owners just don’t know what to do next.
But some decisions are really no-brainers. Here are three. I’ve mentioned these all many times before. But judging by the questions I get from clients, they’re worth repeating.
1. Fix your website
I’m not going to bore you with stats that I’ve already posted on this subject. Suffice it to say that you’re never going to achieve a high level of quality lead or traffic generation if your website is lame.
That fact is pretty obvious if you sell online. A bad site repels buyers. It may be less obvious to those of you who don’t sell online, but it’s equally true.
If you don’t believe your prospects are looking at your website think about your own buying habits. When was the last time you bought a complex or expensive product or service without taking a look at the company’s website?
That just doesn’t happen much these days. Your website is often the first – and last –  impression.
2. Get visible online.
Unless you’re one of very few companies that have a truly unique solution to a problem no one has thought of yet, your prospects are looking for you online. They’ll find your competitors with or without you. Which would you rather it be?
Personal referrals still top the list of the best lead generation sources for business-to-business products and services, but buyers also search. If nothing else, they’ll look for solutions to compare the referred product or service to. More likely they’ll be compiling a list of vendors to consider.
This means you need to be visible on search engines and websites where your prospects hang out. Otherwise you’re missing your best prospects – the ones who are actively seeking a solution.
3. Start with Google.
Achieving visibility on Google may be harder and more expensive than becoming visible on other search engines, but let’s face it – Google delivers the bulk of the traffic. Last April, Hitwise found that Google’s marketshare in US searches was 67%. Yahoo (at 20%), MSN Search (at 5.25%) and Ask.com (at 4%) – although not insignificant – trail far behind. Google’s dominance is even greater among business searchers.
Even if you can’t afford the click costs on Google, it’s the best testing ground because the heavier traffic allows you to figure out what works best faster.
So there you have it. Three marketing decisions you can make and act on without a lot of agonizing over whether or not it’s the right thing to do.
Wed, Nov 4, 2009
Conversion Rates, Strategy, Traffic
Written by: Susan Tatum