Internet Market Power

Entrepreneurship and the Internet: A Match Made in Heaven

admin — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 00:00:00 +0000

Starting your own business can be complicated, but the existence of the Internet has made entrepreneurship easier than ever before. Here are A Few of the ways to harness the power of Internet technology to make running your own business more successful.
Market online – There’s no better way to reach out to your target market than over the World Wide Web. Invest in and SEO strategy early on and consider techniques like e-mail marketing and online coupons.
Stay connected – Ever since wireless internet became widely available, entrepreneurs everywhere have found it easier to manage their business when they’re not in the office. Hotspots are a thing of the past when you’re connected all over town with wireless Internet.
Streamline logistics – If your business requires some type of inventory management, using the Internet is a great way to stay organized. Inventory companies everywhere are creating software programs that can be managed over the Internet to help small business owners stay in check.
Manage HR – When you start hiring people, things get complicated, so use the Internet to keep track of everything from schedules to payroll to benefits.

Craigslist: Any Real Returns for Business Advertisers?

admin — Sat, 03 Sep 2011 00:00:00 +0000

Craigslist.org connects buyers and sellers in more than 700 communities in 70 countries. Users self-publish approximately 50 million new classified ads every month. Business advertisers can realize the marketing power of utilizing Craigslist.org that boasts more than 20 billion page views per month.

The online classified ads format is organized by city or region. Posting on the site is FREE for the most part, i.e., there are a select few cities that must pay fees for ads. Whether you provide services locally or sell products regionally, businesses should consider the marketing potential of Craigslist.

Although extremely simple to use, properly advertising on Craigslist requires some strategy. It is important that you acquire an understanding of the rules that prohibit spamming and over posting.

Because Craigslist offers a free outlet for advertising, you may find that your ad does not provide you with the traffic you might expect. There are an overwhelming number of new classified ads being placed daily, therefore, some business advertisers may feel that their ads have gotten lost in the shuffle. This is quite possible. Yet Craigslist offers the opportunity to place a classified ad at no cost. Business advertisers should take advantage of this unique resource.

PR Tools and New Media

admin — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 00:00:00 +0000

In the field of public relations, more is always better. More publicity equals more exposure which, in turn, equals more profit. PR professionals need to find newer, bigger, more innovative ways to tap into that base and expand at an ever-expanding rate. If your product/service is the run of the mill then you will need to work hard and creatively, making it appear to be better, more improved and needed more than all others of the same ilk.

When delving into the realm of internet marketing, there are some tried and true methods, such as blogging, email campaigns, etc., which have worked throughout the years. In today’s world, however, the new age of social networking has delivered a brand new way for you to improve upon your PR profile.

With the advent of social media, you should be looking at capitalizing on your strengths through the use of social ads on various networking sites, user-friendly social pages, tweeting sites and message boards and various other mass-media allocations.

Once you find which options work best for your situation, try to expand on them. Do not, however, let those that have not reaped benefits go unnoticed. Continue to improve on them, adding to your PR reputation and supplementing your current publicity standings.

Using the Internet to Drive Inbound Calls

admin — Sun, 17 Jul 2011 00:00:00 +0000

You might be surprised by the amount of traffic you can bring into your business just through the use of the internet. The internet is basically the easiest way for you to be able to catch the attention of a very large audience. If you can design a professional looking and seo ready website, then you are likely to see a nice spike in activity.

One of the things that many business owners use their websites for is to bring in more inbound calls. This is possible by just making sure that you are including a number that people can call in for more information. People will most likely call in when they would like to know more about your products. It is something that you are providing as a service to your customers, but you are really doing yourself a service at the same time. You should strongly consider building this website soon. If you are not skilled at being able to put up a website for yourself, then you should just call in some of the experts to help you out. They have the skills that are needed to make sure that your websites will actually be seen by a wide audience.

How to Make Your Website More Interactive

admin — Fri, 29 Apr 2011 00:00:00 +0000

There are many ways you can make your website more interactive. Here’s a few tips to keep people visiting your site over and over:
Allow user generated content that is family friendly. By allowing people to express their, values, opinions, comments and add pictures about topics, your site users will be sure to come back.
You could also add a game for the younger users, as well as older users, for entertainment. Online games are a big success and would be sure to attract users to your website.
Add on either daily or weekly quizzes or popularity polls. The users would get to test their knowledge on different topics, allowing them to share what they know or even learn some new things with quizzes. Polls are a great way to attract users as well because it gives the user a chance to share their favorites on different topics.
Placing a well updated and maintained blog will also boost the interactive activity for your website. People love to read good stories and advice in relation to a topic they’re fond of. You could also add a comment section on your blog to let the users voice their opinion on the topic.

Key Considerations for Transactional Sites

admin — Sat, 16 Apr 2011 00:00:00 +0000

If you own or are thinking owning an online business then there are some considerations you have to think about. Everything from search engine optimization to how your customers are going to check out will be at the top of your priority list. You also have to design an appealing website that will keep your customers coming back time and time again.

An easy to use and visually appealing site is hard to come by for most companies. These sites can cost thousands of dollars but they can bring much more in with sales. So if you’re establishing yourself as an online presence then you will need to hire a professional that will bring out the best in your company.

When picking a professional to design your website make sure they have a thorough understanding of what it takes to build a proper transactional site. They need to have an understanding of the multiple ways to process transactions, how to optimize your site for search engines, and how to make sales as easy as possible for your business. If you aren’t satisfied then you should always press for a redesign when appropriate. This is a great way to expand your business if you utilize its potential.

Using Online Advergames Effectively

admin — Sat, 02 Apr 2011 00:00:00 +0000

Marketing techniques have changed greatly over the past decade with the rapid growth of technology. Companies now have a plethora of advertising options available to them, and many are beginning to use the new marketing platform known simply as “advergames.” Companies use advergame marketing to help build their brand image and to help raise product awareness among customers.

There are several ways that a business can use advergames effectively. Some companies may choose to take a classic arcade game, and infuse their products into the gameplay. A business who uses this tactic will have a much greater response from customers when they incorporate a unique twist that improves the overall gameplay. By improving on a popular game, a company can drastically increase the chances of their advergame going viral.

Companies may also use advergames for simple in-game advertising. A business can use this tactic effectively by choosing the best advertisement placements available in an online game. For example, a company that produces batting gear may choose to display their products or logo within a baseball advergame. The developers of that baseball game could incorporate the company’s logo onto the batting gear found in the game, which could effectively build that company’s product awareness anytime a customer plays the game.

Why Pop-ups and Pop-outs Actually Hurt Advertisers

admin — Sun, 06 Mar 2011 00:00:00 +0000

Advertisers on the Internet are familiar with various methods that get the potential customers attention and make them want to know more about their products or services. Many use one or two of the methods with varying success. One method used are the pop-up ads. Let’s face it. People really hate those pop-up ads because they are very invasive and interfere with the browser and ruin their surfing activity. Although the pop-up advertising method is frowned upon by millions, they are still used by advertisers. Advertisers should realize that the pop-ups are bad news and have a negative effect on their advertising campaign.Pop-unders are also gaining a bad reputation across the Internet. Pop-unders are considered tricky and very invasive. Pop-under ads open a new browser window under the current browser window. The pop-under ad opens when the current browser window is closed. Although seen as less invasive, it is still frowned upon by Internet surfers. It can take several clicks to get rid of the annoying ad. Both types of advertising are continuing to receive bad press. The savvy Internet marketer should take this into consideration when planning their advertising campaign and try more subtle and less invasive ways to get their advertising message across.

Google Instant Poses Instant Changes to Online Marketing

www.internetmarketpower.com — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 21:27:06 +0000

If you used Google to find InternetMarketPower.com, you might have noticed a slightly different search experience than you’ve been used to for the past decade or so. Early in September, Google launched Google Instant, a new tweak to the traditional search engine that no longer requires you to hit “Enter” before seeing where your search might take you. Google Instant displays searches in real time as you type. For example, were you to search for “carbonation,” as you are typing you might see results for cars, followed by pages for carbon, then finally once, your word is complete, results for carbonation in its entirety. Of course, there are many factors that play into exactly what Google gives you, such geotargeting, which may bring up results for Carowinds (an amusement park just south of Charlotte) after your first 3 letters are typed.The ultimate benefits of Google Instant, at least according to Google in principle, are primarily focused around time saving, estimated to save approximately 2 to 5 seconds per search by not requiring full words or phrases to be typed. The new model also seeks to ease the burden of searcher indecision, helping users find exactly what they are looking for with a host of suggestions. You might be looking up some statistics for an article but aren’t sure exactly what prompt will bring you the best results. Google Instant’s streaming recommended searches and pages gives you more direction in your query. This increased guidance will hopefully lead to less time wasted on errant searches that bring you irrelevant results or outdated results.One question still to be answered regarding Google Instant is how it will affect internet marketers. There will undoubtedly be changes, as impressions may appear in just a split-second window of time between characters. But just as Google’s technology has advanced to enable this instant search capability, so will the strategy and approach of SEO and PPC marketers adapt to use the change to their benefit. Only time will tell what online marketing innovations are in store in the near future.

Advertising on the InternetSorting through the Clutter

admin — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 21:26:46 +0000

Usually, when a pop up appears on your screen the only thing you look for is the little ‘x’ button in the corner. However, these pop up ads are usually not legitimate ads for legitimate products. Whether the ad is legitimate or not, our reaction to the intrusive clutter just about sums up most people’s feelings about the abundance of advertising on the web. Since its creation, advertisers have been taking advantage of all the World Wide Web has to offer. However, the internet has proved to elicit both good and bad results for advertisers and consumers alike. On the bright side, the internet provides consumers with the ability to search for specific products and turn up immediate results. This gives advertisers the opportunity to narrow their target market and advertise to only those looking for their product or idea. Furthermore, pay-per-click ads, banner ads, and other forms of online advertisements make it easy for advertisers to track their progress.The downside to online advertising is the pure volume of material out there. It is virtually impossible to access a website without being bombarded with flashy ads and annoying pop ups. Most advertisers realize this, and it is important to remember respectable agencies and products are not behind the mayhem associated with pop up ads or annoying banner ads.On a separate note, the internet has opened the door for a whole new genre of advertising. Today’s advertising industry is experiencing a sensation referred to as the ‘viral video,’ part of the larger concept of viral marketing. Don’t let the name fool you, these videos are perfectly harmlessthe only thing they spread is laughter and entertainment. Marketers and advertisers are leaping on the opportunity to catch the public’s attention through free word of mouth publicity. Examples of wildly successful viral videos that have garnered millions of views and increased the sales of their featured products include: Will it Blend?, The Coca-Cola Happiness Machine, Duckbill masks, and Extreme Ironing. While some aspects of internet advertising may be annoying and unavoidable, it is doubtful that the web will be free of ad clutter anytime soon.