1. Research
Any marketing strategy not founded on research probably has no more chance of success than the roulette table. That doesn’t mean it has to be incredibly expensive, but some market research built on real facts and figures is crucial for a winning marketing strategy.
2. Branding
Before launching any new marketing strategy, you must have developed your brand image in order to ensure maximum results in both the short- and long-term. This development should at a minimum include a unified brand incorporating your business name, web domain name, a toll free vanity number, and a logo. Unified branding will result in the biggest yields in terms of direct responses as well as repeat and future business.
3. Testing
Testing is absolutely critical for maximizing marketing ROI and survival in every industry these days. Once you have done your research and branding, get your online assets up and running quickly because without action, there can be no returns. However, instead of throwing your whole marketing budget on one channel or ad set, start slow, see how you can improve conversions, and constantly be improving your marketing strategy.
4. Grow Traffic
Before you can make a real impact in your industry and see high volume results from your marketing strategy, you are going to need to be able to get your message in front of a lot of prospects. It is true that paid Internet advertising is still an essential and effective part of any marketing strategy. Yet, growing your fan base, followers, subscribers, and website traffic will ensure you get the highest possible return on all of your future marketing efforts. Try building your opt-in email list with free reports, and run competition and promotions to bolster your social media fan base.
5. Create Your Funnel
While the main focus of your marketing strategy right now may be to generate immediate deals and revenues, do not overlook the future value of your contacts. Build out your product funnel so you can automate follow up and make the most out of every lead.
6. Monetize
Once you have your online marketing flow working smoothly and have cultivated a large following or at least a large amount of regular web traffic, it is time to monetize it and start really turning on the profits. Your main product line may be performing, and you may be converting others down the road through your funnel, but by joining leading affiliate marketing programs and working them, you can dramatically increase the value of every visitor to your site and really put the icing on your marketing strategy.
Image Credit: © Dmccale | Dreamstime.com
One of the major differences that quickly distinguishes companies that offer quality affiliate programs and are dedicated to the success of their partners is the affiliate marketing tools they provide.
A company that has taken the time to develop affiliate marketing tools demonstrates its belief in its product or service and also says a lot about how much care and dedication it has committed to its own offering. At a minimum, this offering should include affiliate marketing copy that can be used on websites or in newsletters or other promotional materials. Email copy is also essential for quickly and easily enabling affiliate marketing partners to spread the word about the new addition to their product lines to prospect and customer databases.
Affiliate marketing tools offered by businesses that are linked in to the latest and most effective online marketing channels should also include items like blog posts and Tweets that not only spread the word among your current and past customer base but can help you attract more traffic to your blog and website and generate more new prospects that may not only acquire your affiliate marketing items but your core services or good as well. If a company isn’t providing up-to-date marketing tools, it may be a red flag that what it wants you to promote isn’t up to date either, or it isn't expending the time and resources it should for staying on top of the market. If you are going to expand your revenue streams, you want to be working with the best in the business since the company's products are a direct reflection on your own brand.
Look for a partner that has gone the distance and created banners and image ads as part of its affiliate marketing for you; you should be able instantly to plug into advertising campaigns and begin reeling in revenues right away. Some cutting edge businesses like leading toll free service providers have gone as far as developing sticky widgets and other tools that can add incredible value to your website presence to help you retain web traffic and keep them coming back.
In the last few years, 800 numbers have rocketed from being solely the domain of huge corporations to mark their territory and of vanity toys for small and medium enterprises to becoming one of the most valuable and critical tools for businesses of all sizes around the world.
The branding benefits of 800 numbers are now widely publicized, and organizations of all types have recognized their power both to attract new prospects and minimize chargebacks. In fact, more recently vanity numbers have even been credited with being responsible for the incredible success of new enterprises in many industries that have used their 800 numbers to rocket their businesses to industry dominating status. This use not only includes flower delivery services and contact lenses but even new books.
Branding, publicity, efficient lines of communication and attracting masses of new prospects are all important for both new and established businesses. However, none of them are any use unless prospects are turning into closed deals and dollars. It doesn’t matter how much website traffic you can generate, how many incoming calls you can create from direct mail campaigns, or how great your products and services really are if no one is actually acquiring them.
Fortunately 800 numbers have also been shown dramatically to increase closing ratios, adding tangible benefits and bringing in real revenues. Toll free numbers can improve closing ratios in multiple ways. Using 800 numbers for testing before launching large campaigns enables organizations to hone their messages and target markets, increase advertising effectiveness and maximize marketing ROI. Getting the right message to the right prospects at the right time means that not only will your response rates be higher, but those who respond are those most ready and willing to acquire what you are offering. On top of this advantage, the credibility that great 800 numbers can add to your image instantly positions you as the best if not the only choice for meeting prospects' needs so they are left with almost no option but to work with you.
Image Credit: © Dario Bajurin | Dreamstime.com
2010 has certainly seen its share of significant domain name transfers, further demonstrating just how valuable a good Internet domain name really is. Transfers include Dating.com for $1.75 million, Poker.org for $1 million, Guns.com for $800,000, BlackFridaySales.com for $90,000 and one adult-orientated domain name going for a cool $13,000,000!
Clearly a good domain name is the best investment many businesses can make. It could one day be worth more than the rest of your company’s revenue streams put together. True, most companies do not have that kind of cash to invest at start up, but those that do can lock in success from day one. Acquiring a winning web domain name from the start also makes attracting investors and obtaining funding much easier. It not only looks cool, but through evidence of existing and estimated web traffic, it can show that your new venture is a sure thing with revenues just waiting to roll in.
However, you can still be incredibly successful and even dominate your industry with a lower cost domain. Branding is key, and having an Internet domain name that unifies your branding can mean plenty of savings and help your marketing budget go a lot further. One way to guarantee your success and position your enterprise to grab up market share quickly is to acquire a powerful toll free vanity number and use the number as your web domain name. For example 1800FLOWERS.com.
Do not despair if all of your domain name choices are already taken or they are being advertised for high dollar amounts. A leading domain name search and negotiation firm can assist by using its expertise and honed strategies in order to get you the best deals on premium domain names.
Are you analyzing marketing strategy metrics to improve the quality of your website? If not, then it's time to start now. There are key metrics you need to look into and study. It is important to have an in-depth understanding about your customers in order to gain time and a competitive edge in today's marketplace.
Some important marketing strategy metrics that deserve your attention include the following:
Website Visits: Consider those statistics by day, week, month, and year. These will give you an idea about when your peak season is and what time of day visitors usually go to your site.
Besides all the facts stated above, it is crucial to study marketing metrics to determine how effective your campaign is toward fulfilling your company's goal.
Marketing is not an exact science, but ways exist to make your campaign as effective as possible through targeted metrics. For example, while it is almost impossible to determine the accurate dollar amount generated by your advertising campaign, you can have a rough idea about how well it is doing. The number of queries and phone calls you get along with sales can be used for evaluation.
When your PPC advertising isn’t getting hits, you must first determine why before you can take positive action. Was it working and has it all of a sudden ground to a halt? Then perhaps your competitors have moved in on your turf and are driving up the bid price it takes to get sufficient volume. If you are launching new campaigns, perhaps your bid amounts are not high enough or you do not have enough keywords to drive sufficient volume. Whatever the reason, before giving up on PPC advertising, spend a few weeks testing marketing strategy and various factors of your campaign.
When your PPC advertising isn’t getting hits, you must first determine why before you can take positive action. Was it working and has it all of a sudden ground to a halt? Then perhaps your competitors have moved in on your turf and are driving up the bid price it takes to get sufficient volume. If you are launching new campaigns, perhaps your bid amounts are not high enough or you do not have enough keywords to drive sufficient volume. Whatever the reason, before giving up on PPC advertising, spend a few weeks testing marketing strategy and various factors of your campaign.
Your website is both one of the key places to feature your toll free number and also one of the key parts of your brand image that should mesh with your choice of vanity number. Ideally, you will have researched the availability of domain names, business names, and toll free numbers before registering any of them in order to develop the strongest brand identity possible. While it may not always work out, it is wise to choose a web domain name and toll free service number that compliment each other.
