Outsourcing Your Web Marketing

The online world is constantly evolving. You may be thinking about outsourcing your Web promotion to an expert who is immersed in this world as their fulltime occupation, rather than trying to acquire this knowledge yourself, and cope with the pace of change in-house.

So, what should you look for in a consultant, and what guarantees can you expect?

Choosing The Consultant

The consultant should ask a lot of questions about your business and your objectives. They need to be very clear about the specific goals of your site. Do you want as many visitors as possible (as in: "We get millions of hits on our Web site"), or are you more interested in attracting qualified leads? Are you selling products? Are you looking for new customers, sign-ups for your newsletter or events, media coverage, etc.

It's possible that there could be different markets for each of your objectives. The consultant should show that they clearly understand the demographics of the audience you want to attract. This includes whether your markets are currently online, whether they are comfortable using e-mail, etc. It's also important to clarify any restrictions on your marketing - for example, if you're only targeting specific locations.

The key to effective Web marketing is to have a comprehensive, integrated plan that focuses on where your markets "hang out" online. It's absolutely not enough to concentrate your efforts on search engines - that's a passive rather than an active approach. You want to reach out to your potential visitors, not wait for them to come to you. And, you want to ensure that your offline marketing includes your Web site - up to a third of your traffic can now come from real-world sources.

So, the consultant should propose to you a wide-ranging plan (assuming that's appropriate for your goals) that includes:

* Search engine strategies
* Paid (bid for placement) listings
* Review sites and directories
* Linking with other appropriate sites
* Advertising / e-zine sponsorships (depending on your budget)
* Online public relations opportunities
* Integration with your real-world marketing

Effective Web marketing must also include an e-mail strategy. The consultant should include in their proposal some ideas for targeted, personalized (and fully opt-in) e-mail that is compliant with all State and Federal laws. This requires a contact database that you can use to select out the different audiences that you might have for these messages. The consultant should also be able to help you create this, if required.

And finally, the consultant should explain how they propose to evaluate the success of any marketing campaign against your goals and objectives. Marketing is an ongoing process, during which you'll learn a lot about your site and about your visitors. This knowledge should be analyzed and used to tweak your site and refine your business strategies. A good consultant will be able to work with you to achieve this.

What Guarantees Can You Expect?

Let's be very clear - there is a distinction, which often gets blurred, between sales and marketing. The job of a marketing consultant is to bring qualified traffic to your site (or in other words, into your storefront). Completing the sale is then a separate challenge.

Marketing is also a very gray area, in which it's difficult to provide cast-iron guarantees of results. This is particularly true in the area of search engine optimization, since the search engines are so unpredictable. In my opinion, if a consultant promises you "top ten placement" you should be very wary - it's possible that they are using tactics that could be classified as spam - soon if not now.

And that can really hurt you - I have a colleague who was banned from Google because he hired "experts" who used this type of approach.

Obviously you do want to check that the consultant has a good track record, and that they can provide references from other clients. I believe that good Web knowledge and proven online marketing tactics are as important as an in-depth familiarity with your industry.

In setting your contract with the consultant, it's important to have a mutual comfort level with your goals, expectations and budget. There are many opportunities for free promotion online, but if you're prepared to spend some money, you can potentially build your traffic faster. Since building awareness of a site takes time, perhaps a minimum six-month period would be advisable, but with appropriate get-out clauses for both parties.

Conclusion

Good Web marketing is a team effort! Hire a consultant who you feel very comfortable with, who asks lots of questions to really understand your business and your goals, and who seems genuinely interested in promoting you. But then be prepared to work with them - respect and consider their suggestions, and allow them to be creative in their approach.

© Philippa Gamse, 2003. All rights reserved.

Philippa Gamse, CyberSpeaker, is a Web strategy consultant and professional speaker. Check out her free tipsheet for 23 ideas to promote your Website: http://www.CyberSpeaker.com/tipsheet.html Philippa can be reached at (831) 465-0317.

---

The Seven Tips That Ensure Your Success Online

Whether you are now looking for opportunities to start your... Read More

Niche Marketing - The Way to Succeed Online

If you think that all money to be made online... Read More

Make Use of the Signature Line in Your Email

Think about it, how many emails do you send out... Read More

Local Search Makes Your Business a Big Fish in Your Local Community

The Internet Contains Billions of Website Pages - All Clamoring... Read More

Two Steps to an Investment-Free Online Empire

If you're like most of us, you're not on a... Read More

The 13 Hidden Treasures of Internet Marketing

Most people get into internet marketing because it looks like... Read More

You Can Become A Successful Internet Entrepreneur!

Everyday people ask me if they will make money with... Read More

Can You Provide an Internet Advertising Solution?

This year, 2005, will see the demise of some well... Read More

Choosing Effective Programs for Your Internet Marketing Plan

Objectives, strategies, and tactics (i.e. programs or action plans) -... Read More

Anatomy of an Online Marketing Failure

Wife: "I'm getting sick of these harrassing bill collectors who... Read More

10 Ways To Get Your Ads Or Messages Noticed

Do you post to message boards, e-mail discussion lists, classified... Read More

8 Excellent Ways to Sell Your Back-end Products More Successfully!

A back-end product is a product that you attempt to... Read More

Website Sales: 10 Shocking Tactics To Energize Your Sales

Let me reveal to you a few shocking website sales... Read More

Marketing Your Web Site

Congratulations! Your Web Site is finished! Now what? Your first... Read More

Using An Autoresponder To Manage Your Email Campaigns

Automatic RespondersWhether your e-business is planning to launch an email... Read More

Internet Marketing for Dummies!

There are many people every day jumping into the online... Read More

Become an Affiliate Later Rather Than Sooner

I attended a presentation a couple of weeks ago given... Read More

7 Tricks for More Holiday Web Sales

"Black Friday" has just passed, marking the traditional start of... Read More

Start a Fire Sale! Give Your Faithful Clients Bonuses!

When is the last time you received an unexpected gift?... Read More

Online Paid Survey

Basic IdeaAround the world, companies spend over $250 billion dollars... Read More

10 Things You Should Try To Barter For Before Buying

1. Information Products - it could be ebooks, "how to"... Read More

How To Make Your Market Throw Their Money At You!

The use of free, relevant and meaningful content can single... Read More

Do Your Words Need Protection?

Recently, attending a local event, I found myself chatting with... Read More

Yanik Silver Asked Some Questions That Peaked My Curiosity

It's so simple! I wish I'd discovered it a year... Read More

5 Secrets to Building a Successful Internet Business

Everyday I talk with people who want to get started... Read More

Scared Of Creating Your Own Info Product?

Don't be scare off when you hear about product creation... Read More

What The Internet Marketing Gurus Are Doing That You Are Not

Do you want to join the well known gurus like... Read More

The Internet F-Word

For the last several months I've been collecting and organizing... Read More

How To Make Money Online

Catch the cash on the net?in more ways than one.Thousands... Read More

Viral Marketing - Use This Free Reminder Service to Go Viral

The busier you are the harder it is to remember... Read More

10 Sure-Fire Viral Marketing Strategies To Increase Traffic To Your Website

"Viral Marketing" is giving something away for free and allowing... Read More

Web Success Secret - Overdeliver

A few days back I got an email telling me... Read More

How To Use Pop-Ups Effectively To Generate More Profits!

What I'm about to explain to you will change to... Read More