A Holistic Approach to Internet Marketing
It wasn’t that long ago that internet marketing success was solely based on a few things:
- A website with a lot keyword content crammed into every page
- Tons of links to other websites that may or may not be relevant, but received a lot of traffic
Today, success in internet marketing is impacted by a great number of factors and involves a lot of moving parts. With all of the changes that Google has made to their algorithm (Panda, Penguin, and Hummingbird) over the last few years, the path to internet marketing success starts with two simple factors:
- Creating relevant and authoritative content
- Delivering relevant and authoritative content to potential customers/clients
Creating relevant and authoritative content allows a website owner to convey subject matter expertise. Consumers utilize the internet to find information and, dependent upon their needs, will work diligently to find a website/business that can provide them with the expert answers that they need. Subject matter expertise provides a consumer with a sense of security, allowing them to comfortably make a decision to buy, not to buy, act or do nothing at all. With those thoughts in mind, it is easy to understand why Google now demands that websites provide their customers with good, quality content.
The second point above, delivering relevant and authoritative content is just as important as creating the content in the first place. Without a mechanism to deliver the content, no one will ever see it. Here is a list of some of the most important tools for delivering content:
- A website
- A blog
- Social Media
The first tool for delivering content is always a website. A website is typically the first stop a consumer makes when searching for information online. A good website will have a number of good qualities (good color palette, uncluttered, call to action, etc.), but the single most important quality will be great content.
Another tool for delivering content is a blog. A blog allows an author to convey timely subject matter expertise. A business should blog as often as they can and dependent upon their area of expertise, 2-4 times monthly should fit the bill.
Lastly, utilizing social media as a content delivery mechanism is becoming more and more important and businesses who effectively utilize social media are recognizing the benefits. Social media (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Pinterest to name a few) allows a business to connect with the community. A community which is made up of potential customers/clients.
Each of the elements above are important on their own, but become incredibly valuable when they are part of a holistic approach to internet marketing. Bringing consumers to a website from a link on a well written blog, driving potential clients to a blog through postings on social media or pushing potential customers to social media profiles from well displayed icons on a website. Tying all of these elements together, as a part of a well thought out, well planned internet marketing program is the only way to succeed online today.
