How & Why Web Marketing Works

– What exactly IS web marketing?

Web marketing is basically promoting your business, or product, through various channels on the internet. These can include banner ads or the mention of your company/product on commercial websites, informational websites, social media sites, etc. There are also more advanced options such as retargeting and behavioral web marketing which automatically keeps your advertising in front of prospects.

– How can I make my website searchable?

You need to have a knowledgeable web developer and SEO person properly prepare the website code to include the keywords, page titles and tags that your customers are searching for. The content (text and images) contained on your site must be relevant to the industry or subject of your site. Your website also has to be designed to be ‘search engine friendly’ meaning using proper programming and not using software that search engines cannot support.

– Why is link building important?

Link building is the process of having links to your website included on other websites so viewers can go directly to your site from another website they are on. It is important to build links only with other sites that are relevant or related to your industry or product type.

– Is social networking really worth all of the hype?

It depends. Many business categories do get activity on the major social networking sites (Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Pinterest, etc.) by people interested in their industry or products. There are some business categories though, that do not have much activity. A good way to judge the decision to be involved in social networking is to survey your customers or prospects, or simply see if your competitors have a social media presence.

– Is there such a thing as having too many web pages for a business?

Having lots of pages on a website is usually not a problem, provided that the website is well organized, easy to navigate and not cluttered so viewers can easily find what they are interested in. Lots of good content is great for search engines as long as it is legitimate and relevant.

– What is the best way to beat the competition?

Beating the competition in web marketing requires good research into what they are doing with their web marketing efforts. If you do good investigative research you can usually employ tactics that go a step better than your competition.

– If my business is only online, are business directories, such as Yelp and Merchant Circle necessary?

Absolutely. These are great tools for driving traffic to your website.

– How does website design factor into web marketing?

Good web design allows search engines to ‘research’ your site quicker and easier. It also makes for a better experience for the viewer when they find your site. The better the experience, the more likely a viewer will convert to a customer.