Predator or Prey

As we sit here, pondering whether or not we’re in the middle of a recession or entering a recovery, I’m reminded of an old business adage: “When times are good, advertise. When times are tough, advertise more.” Now, that adage certainly isn’t a truism. There are plenty of businesses out there for whom spending extra … Continue reading “Predator or Prey”

Small Business Marketing Goals

Before you set off trying to do this thing called “marketing”, there is probably no single thing more important than that you understand your goals. Specifically, you should have goals at varying degrees of granularity (e.g., strategic goals vs. tactical goals), and regardless of their granularity your marketing goals should be desireable, measurable outcomes.

Social Networking

As we come to the close of the last quarter of the year, I look back to the close of the previous quarter, where I briefly digressed from this introductory series on on-line marketing to take a closer look at Twitter. The fact that that article was one of my most popular ever makes me … Continue reading “Social Networking”

On-Line Display Advertising

As a business owner you are probably just as, if not more, likely to have used display advertising than direct mail. Display advertising covers billboards, but it also covers ads in periodicals, and, most significantly, ads in your local Yellow Pages. Here you’ll learn the basics of display advertising on the Internet, and the tremendously powerful ways you can use it to target your audience.

Using Twitter in Your Marketing Campaign

Twitter is all the rage, but is rarely used effectively. This blog gives an introduction to what Twitter is, and provides a few case studies on companies that are effectively using Twitter in their marketing campaigns.

Understanding e-Mail Marketing

Of all the on-line marketing techniques, e-mail marketing is probably the closest analog to a traditional marketing technique which you have probably used. Essentially, it’s the on-line version of direct mail marketing. As with other on-line marketing techniques, its two biggest advantages over its non-digital equivalent are the ease with which results can be measured and the speed with which they can be measured.

Search Engine Marketing and Optimization

For most businesses, the goal of on-line marketing is to get customers to come to your web-site. There are other ways to do this (email blasts, banner ads, etc…), but in reality, most new customer traffic to your website is likely to be driven by search engines. This post talks about two popular ways of using search engines in your marketing campaign: SEO and SEM.

Introduction to On-Line Marketing

These days, everyone is interested in on-line marketing. This is the first in a five-part series on the topic, and will focus on key aspects of any on-line marketing campaign.