Internet Marketing

• Search engines & directories

• Advertising - you and your product / service

  • banners ads
    - paid
    - free
    - market segment focus

  • links to your site

  • referrals and recommendations

  • affiliates and associates

  • Web rings

  • newsgroups?

  • mail shots [spam?]? - that is a No No

  • mail lists

• offer an incentive to visit

• Free information and advice

• Samples and special offers

• Newsgroups

• Mail

• Web site features

• Contact details
  
• Order forms (e-commerce)
  
• Company information
  
• Product / service info.
  
• Guest book
  
• Customer care
  
  • Feedback forms
    
  • Supporting and related Information

Market Research:
Who are our customers?

Identify the markets and types of customers that you could sell your products/services to by using:

• Web directories (e.g. Yellow Pages) and search engines
• business newsgroups
• subscription to business services (received via e-mail)
• chat rooms
• business enterprise agencies
• business support and news services
• what's new? - to monitor trends in the Internet community
• consultants
• business solution providers

Consider the geographic location of potential customers
- how far do you wish to distribute your products/services -
by using the Web to access:

• regional databases
• national databases (e.g. Enterprise Zone)
• European databases
• global (or country specific) databases
• export agencies and government bodies

The above sources of information will give you additional leads
- in the form of contact details, e-mail addresses and links to other relevant Web sites.

Conduct your own market research by:

• sending e-mail questionnaires to your customers
  and potential customers
• providing customer feedback mechanisms
  (using e-mail and/or Web forms)
• monitor and analyse purchasing trends of your customers
• having a guest-book to collect feedback from visitors to your Web site
• contracting a market research agency
• reading market research reports (summaries) on the Web
• using newsgroups to gain opinions

How do we approach potential customers?

Advertising

Advertising banners on popular Web sites (e.g. search engines and directories)

Careful use of newsgroups

Direct e-mail (be careful not to become a spammer)

Web site

Take advantage of the Web to present your product/service in the best way possible

Promotions of new services/products on 'What's New?' sites and in appropriate announcement newsgroups

Pricing

Consider different pricing structures on the Internet

Remember customers can easily compare prices and products on the Internet

The increased profit (reduced cost) associated with Internet trading may allow you to reduce your prices

Follow-up

Encourage visitors to fill in the guest book ... and add the information to your customer database (automatically)

Contact the customer using e-mail (focusing on their stated interests; automatically)

If possible give a taster of the service/product available (e.g. snippets of a report, or information, trial/evaluation copy of software, trial period for a service, etc)

Interact with the potential customer using: a chat room, or conferencing/collaboration tools

What's happening?

Monitor 'What's New?' sources for trends

'Subscribe' to business information services (e-mail, newsgroups, Web sites)

Monitor your competitors (adverts, Web site)

Look for examples of good practice