Web Marketing 101: A Guide to Marketing Your Business on the Internet

If you're looking for a quick guide to online marketing, then let's not waste your time and get right down to the point. Here are some of the more important marketing tools you can use to boost your online presence: Search engine optimization One of the first things we'll discuss in this web marketing 101 guide is increasing the visibility of your website by applying search engine optimization (SEO) techniques. SEO involves "optimizing" a website around a set of keywords to make it more attractive to search engines like Google or Bing. When a search engine user types in a specific set of keywords, a well-optimized website can rank in the top listings of a search engine's results page. This makes it easier for potential visitors to find and visit your site instead of the competition. Create content with backlinks Any good guide to online marketing needs to cover backlinks. This involves creating online content that people find relevant, useful, and interesting, and then adding a link within the content that links them back to your website. Some of the more common examples include writing articles related to the content of your website, creating how-to tutorials, posting videos on You Tube or, posting a comment on a blog. All these content-based items should include a link back to your own website. Opt-in programs All websites that sell products or services should include an opt-in box. Visitors have the option to receive a "special offer" or free giveaway when they give you their email address and opt-in to your mailing list. The special offer or giveaway should be a reward for potential visitors and customers to receive in exchange for allowing you to send them emails. Examples of good giveaways include e-books, e-courses, downloadable audio or video, newsletters, success tips, and/or strategies. The content needs to be extremely relevant to the visitor. In the long run, you hope to convert casual visitors into paying customers while encouraging current customers to stay loyal to your business. Social networking Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Google+ are great marketing tools if used strategically with other marketing 101 strategies. These tools allow you to reach out to a wider audience while keeping touch with the needs and wants of your current audience. You need to be careful with social networks because an unhappy visitor can instantly post less than positive feedback about your business, or products and services to a big online audience. It's best to use social networks as a place to post information of interest to your potential customers-rather than using these platforms to sell products. The object of the game is to build relationships with your visitors-and eventually make them your customers or clients. Other Online interaction One of the simplest methods that many overlook is simply interacting with potential customers in online communities. Go out and talk to people - give advice and share your expertise. Online forums and blogs can be great places to interact with people and share your expertise on a particular subject matter. You can then discreetly insert a link leading back to your website. In these communities be careful not to self promote too aggressively. You want to appear as someone trying to give help-this gives the perception of being an expert in your field. People want to establish relationships and ultimately buy from people they perceive as experts. Your web marketing 101 guide should include: SEO for your site, create web content and distribute it with links back to your website, develop attractive opt-in programs, use social networks to keep an open line of communication, and interact with the people you want visiting your site. Make these simple strategies part of your own online marketing guide consistently and you'll see an increase in your web traffic and ultimately your customer base.