Internet marketing is used by owners of online stores and service websites. It includes, m.in, content marketing, SEO, newsletters, paid campaigns, social media, and even podcasts. What are the individual activities and why is it worth using them?
What is online marketing?
Internet marketing (also known as online marketing or e-marketing) is a series of activities aimed at users on the web. Use a new, common medium to connect with customers, learn about them, and grow your audience.
Advertising on the Internet contributes to improving relations with external partners, and can also reduce the costs that are spent on classic advertising tools. So much for the theory. There is also no denying that the pandemic has contributed to the popularity and use of the online marketing channel.
Website creation
This is where you should start your adventure with online marketing. If you already have a website, you can skip to the subsection on copywriting. If you are facing the creation of a website, remember to take care of your own server (hosting) and domain. Don’t use free solutions that will never be yours. At any time, the owner of the website can close it or introduce fees. It is better to be independent from the very beginning.
It’s the same with building a website. Don’t bet on free solutions, where you can “click” the appearance of the website by arranging individual modules. Personally, I prefer to invest in a WordPress theme or order a design from scratch. Of course, the issue of budget is important here. A theme is always cheaper than a design.
When ordering a website, make sure that the contractors take care of its responsiveness. This means that it will be adapted to computers and mobile devices. Today it is a standard, but it is good to say so. Another element is the adaptation of the website to SEO. All URLs must be user-friendly, and the page should load quickly and structure. These are just a few of the basics, because there are many more important elements.
Copywriting
This is a vast topic, but I will be specific. When deciding on copywriting, it is worth being precise in what you expect from a specialist. Consult with the content creator whether it should be a text typically persuasive for the user, the so-called UX, or also for positioning (SEO). If you are also going to have SEO, you should choose keywords for the text using tools and the experience of a specialist. Then you will create the text in such a way as to avoid keyword stuffing, i.e. placing a keyword by force so that it dominates the text.
Personally, I prefer a short conversation with the client before starting cooperation. It is important to fill out a marketing brief and possibly have marketing consultations. This allows you to explain everything in such a way that the customer is aware of what and why they are paying. This conversation will also allow you to determine how much you want to be involved in the content creation process:
Constant work on content
If you have ready-made texts, a specialist can conduct a content audit, because there is always something worth improving. I do not mean a situation in which everything is wrong (then I suggest editing and proofreading). It’s just that it’s a good idea to update your content over time. In addition, the perspective of an outsider will be fresh and will allow you to refine even the best text.
I am a supporter of creating content before it is placed on the website. However, if the client prefers to create a website on sample content, such as “Lorem Ipsum”, I have no problem with that either. It is about the very style of work of the website developer. Operating on “Lorem Ipsum” is not so much a problem as the need to match the length of the content to the sketch. This happens when the website is already designed and you need to replace the sample content with the final one. On the other hand, by providing the developer with ready-made materials, he can adjust the page to the text and not the other way around.
Content marketing
This is one of the most popular solutions used in online marketing over the last few years. In short, content marketing is about building the image of the role of an expert by answering questions.
The idea is to explain to the customer through content how you are able to solve their problem. This allows you to answer your question before they can ask it by contacting you by phone or email. The information that a potential interested party finds on the company blog increases their trust in you, and this can translate into cooperation. It also works the other way around. If the customer talks to you or your team members on the phone, you can support yourself with a blog or refer the customer to a specific article after the conversation, e.g. in a summary email.
You can create and publish content in the form of: guides, rankings, comparisons, Q&A (questions and answers), FAQ (frequently asked questions), sponsored articles and videos. You can read more in the text “Types of texts in content marketing”. Both a copywriter and a content manager can help you run a blog, choose topics, indicate keywords, create text and optimize it.