Realize the Potential of New Media

New media surely isn’t new anymore, although if it is new to you, you are in danger of getting behind the curve. In the space of only a few years the power of the Internet has exploded like an ancient volcano, tending to cover a company’s well honed marketing structure with molten lava or ash. In the face of the new media onslaught, you should not try and desperately dig out your old marketing plans from underneath all those layers of ash, but you should embrace the potential and understand that we are now doing business in a very different world.

Traditional forms of media, print ads, television, radio, cold calling, promotional gimmicks and the like will all have their place in our future, but they must not be front and center anymore. It doesn’t matter what kind of business you have, whether it is traditionally a complete “bricks and mortar” style operation, you must now have an online presence and a proactive one at that.

It is somewhat ironic that a medium as “faceless” as the Internet has in many respects turned us all into more personable and identifiable business people. The advent of social media means that there is now a human face to the corporate body and each organization should ensure that it engages social media this way. Never forget the social element, even though you are primarily focused on doing business. You may have a corporate persona, but people want to know about the human side of the business now.

Put every effort that you can into designing your website well. You must be super targeted when it comes to your keywords, the way that you describe your business. In a highly competitive business environment you need to set your organization apart and must focus on specific or long tail keywords and keyword phrases. Construct your website and optimize it so that your business stands out among its competition. Everything points back to your company website from a marketing perspective.

While your corporate website should adequately reveal who you are, what you do and why people should buy from you, including the ability to do so (a sales funnel), you should also have an educational and informative site for your business, through the maintenance of a top-quality blog. This is your opportunity to show just how much of an expert you are in your niche and don’t hold back when it comes to giving good advice, education or information. Your objective here is to reveal that you are “good guys” and that people should trust you, ultimately, to buy products or services to help assuage their needs.

Interact with social media platforms and do it well. You should have a Facebook page for your business, a Twitter presence, even your own branded YouTube where you show videos of products, services, solutions – video is a hot medium these days. Set aside time to maintain your social presence on a very regular basis. Don’t just set it up and believe that you have done everything you need to. These platforms and channels can work well for you, if you work at them.

Create good content, regularly and distribute it for maximum marketing effect. Once again, the more that people begin to realize that you know what you’re talking about, through the provision and distribution of such targeted content, the more they will believe that they should trust their hard-earned dollars to you when it comes to buying your associated products or services.

Are you still digging ash, or engaged?

Matthew Toren