Internet marketing is hot…and overwhelming. How do you start? And, more importantly, how do you know that you’re succeeding? If you’re methodical (you know I’m a pragmatic kind of gal), you’ll be able to increase your marketing over time and achieve the results you want. The steps below will show you how to create an internet marketing plan.
Set a goal. This goal should be something that impacts your business positively and it must be something you can measure. Yes, public relations and visibility can help you in the long run, but if you want something to change, focus on what that change should be. The visibility will come along.
It’s also important to know how your internet marketing goal affects your business. Increasing the number of followers on Twitter is good if you know that Twitter sends a lot of business your way. Otherwise? Not so important.
An example of a good goal in your internet marketing plan would be: Increase pageviews on web site by 100% by the end of the year.
Establish the baseline. Once you know where you want to go, figure out where you are. If you want to increase pageviews in your internet marketing plan, how many do you have now? If you want to increase the number of people who call you from your website, how many call you now?
Determine the audience. Who are you trying to attract? If there are a lot of segments in your market (e.g. college students, mothers of college students, professors, etc.), pick one to start with. Why? Because these audiences “live” in different parts of the internet. Looking for women? Go to Facebook. Men your primary target? Check out Google +. This is an important step in determining how to implement your internet marketing plan.
Research how your audience approaches the internet. There are many good articles and surveys on the web giving statistical information about social media platforms (like this one on internet marketing audiences from Aileen Lee on Tech Crunch ). Spend some time figuring out how to drive traffic to your website, your phone, your store, or wherever the goal in Step One of your internet marketing plan points you.
Pick your social media platform(s). Your campaign maybe multi-faceted across multiple platforms, but for a first effort, be careful not to spread yourself too thin. One of the most important keys to the success of your internet marketing plan is consistency.
Determine your message(s) and style. Think about your brand, how people respond to you and what you want them to do. Think about the style of your products/services. Do you want to create an “avatar” as many companies have done? Or do you want to be a little more straightforward as you figure out how to create your internet marketing plan?
Plan out your calendar. Figure out when you’re going to be on social media, for how long and approximately what you’ll say. Make sure that you allow time to respond to people as that’s one of the best ways to build relationships on the internet. Relationships help people get to know you, the first step toward a sale or business relationship which is the ultimate goal of your internet marketing plan.
Plan when you’ll take your measurements. Measurements should be taken at regular intervals, using the same methodology you used to establish your baseline. If what you’re doing isn’t moving you toward your goal over time, take another look at the plan. Don’t keep doing the same thing and expecting different results.
It won’t work. Trust me.
Any questions about how to write an internet marketing plan? I invite you to ask them in the comment section below, or send me an email at caseyATwisewomanshining.com.
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