Nowadays, the sheer number of available online marketing options is enough to intimidate any business owner. With so many digital media platforms clamoring for your dollars, each offering their own “proof” of relevance, even the web-savviest entrepreneur is likely to be confused as to which are best. Throw in the time and energy it takes to run your own business, and your perceived uncertainty about web marketing likely makes it the last thing on your priority list.
But web marketing is important, and it’s crucial to set aside time to decide how you’re going to advertise your business to an online audience, if even a small amount. We’ll now pose to you three important questions to consider before deciding on the specific elements of your digital presence:
What’s The Scope Of Your Target Demographic(s)?
Understanding the breadth of your ideal customer base is a key step in determining which online platforms will suit your business best, and which ones would be more trouble than they’re worth. For example, if you run a well established family-owned bakery in Small Town USA, chances are you won’t need a Google AdWords Pay-Per-Click campaign, and would more likely benefit from a simple website with Facebook to complement it. Targeting a nationwide or international audience, however, is a different kettle of fish, and warrants a more comprehensive strategy with an arsenal of different media.
Do You Want To Sell Product Online?
If you want to sell products or services online, there’s no way around it: You must at the very least have a website with eCommerce functionality. Short of naturally getting discovered by Amazon (unlikely), there’s simply no other way a web audience would be able to find your wares in numbers that would denote a return on investment. Additionally, the work and investment required to establish a successful eCommerce platform warrants a wider margin of risk in choosing your digital media: Having a virtual space where customers can commit to a purchase immediately (as opposed to looking up their desired product and waiting until the next day to buy it at a retail store) increases their likelihood of making an affirmative decision.
What Are Your Available Resources?
Determining your available resources (both time and labour-wise) is essential to narrowing down your digital marketing options. As good as it is to think big and be ambitious, maintaining a digital presence is a lot of work, particularly across multiple channels. If you find yourself in a position where you need to get establish yourself on the web, but simply don’t have the resources, it may be time to recruit outside help to develop an online strategy.
Image Credit: FEBC
Nowadays, the sheer number of available online marketing options is enough to intimidate any business owner. With so many digital media platforms clamoring for your dollars, each offering their own “proof” of relevance, even the web-savviest entrepreneur is likely to be confused as to which are best. Throw in the time and energy it takes to run your own business, and your perceived uncertainty about web marketing likely makes it the last thing on your priority list.
But web marketing is important, and it’s crucial to set aside time to decide how you’re going to advertise your business to an online audience, if even a small amount. We’ll now pose to you three important questions to consider before deciding on the specific elements of your digital presence:
What’s The Scope Of Your Target Demographic(s)?
Understanding the breadth of your ideal customer base is a key step in determining which online platforms will suit your business best, and which ones would be more trouble than they’re worth. For example, if you run a well established family-owned bakery in Small Town USA, chances are you won’t need a Google AdWords Pay-Per-Click campaign, and would more likely benefit from a simple website with Facebook to complement it. Targeting a nationwide or international audience, however, is a different kettle of fish, and warrants a more comprehensive strategy with an arsenal of different media.
Do You Want To Sell Product Online?
If you want to sell products or services online, there’s no way around it: You must at the very least have a website with eCommerce functionality. Short of naturally getting discovered by Amazon (unlikely), there’s simply no other way a web audience would be able to find your wares in numbers that would denote a return on investment. Additionally, the work and investment required to establish a successful eCommerce platform warrants a wider margin of risk in choosing your digital media: Having a virtual space where customers can commit to a purchase immediately (as opposed to looking up their desired product and waiting until the next day to buy it at a retail store) increases their likelihood of making an affirmative decision.
What Are Your Available Resources?
Determining your available resources (both time and labour-wise) is essential to narrowing down your digital marketing options. As good as it is to think big and be ambitious, maintaining a digital presence is a lot of work, particularly across multiple channels. If you find yourself in a position where you need to get establish yourself on the web, but simply don’t have the resources, it may be time to recruit outside help to develop an online strategy.
Image Credit: FEBC
