Whilst sitting at my computer thinking of what I could write about next, it occurred to me that all my articles, and most other articles I read from other writers, look at internet marketing primarily from the standpoint of the marketer. Perhaps we should look at things from the angle of the customer for a change. If we can understand exactly what the customer is looking for or is expecting to find, surely that is going to help us in our business. I read somewhere that most people go on the internet to find information, not to spend money. That sounds like bad news for online marketers.
The majority of potential customers go online with a very specific intention; they know what they want to find and where they expect to find it. I imagine that most of us are the same. If I want to get up-to-date football information I go to the BBC Sports webpages. If I want to get a “Postman Pat” DVD for my daughter I would go to Amazon. There are other possible outlets that some of you may use, but Amazon is always my first port of call for such items. If we have a clear-cut need we will often have a clear idea in our minds as to which website to visit to meet that need.
However, there are occasions when we have only a vague idea of what we are looking for and no real idea as to where to look. This is when we turn to the Search Engines; we “google” a word which we hope will help us to solve our problem. Very often the first attempt doesn’t help us a great deal, often creating even more doubt and confusion in our minds, as we are faced with a list of two million websites and the first page doesn’t give us what we had hoped to find. We then try all kinds of related words to fish around for whatever it is that we need, or think we need. We are looking for something specific in this situation even though we may not be absolutely certain what that specific thing is!
This brings me very neatly to the issue of Keyword Selection. Good research will give us a list of niche words for the search engines. Customers who are fishing for help will often use niche words in their search. Hopefully, this is where we meet up and make a connection. If the customer ends up on an attractive website which they feel may well give them the answers they seek, they will not just rush off and look elsewhere but stay to look around. That is what we want!
Already we have arrived at the first three steps in the internet marketer’s chain: – Keywords – Traffic – Website. Once they are on your website you can give them items of interest to explore or indeed, purchase. You can offer them a free gift via a signup form which will then add them to your list. Even if you can’t meet their specific need at this first visit you have the means to contact them again to begin building a relationship and ultimately send information about other related services and products which you might have for sale.
So, people may well end up on your website more-or-less by accident. Although by clever use of Keywords you will have helped to cause that accident. If you want to catch a particular kind of fish you need to use the appropriate bait. In the light of the known behaviour of internet surfers, we can easily see why the internet business plan works the way it does. Each of the issues we learn about has an essential part to play in the overall scheme of things.
I am a musician. I know how important it is to know my audience and perform the right kind of music in the right place. If I perform music from the avant-garde at a music club where the audience have a preference for Mozart I’m in trouble; – and vice versa! Try to think ahead of your customers, imagine what they are looking for within your niche and give it to them. If you don’t know and understand your customers how do you expect to sell to them.