In a Web 2.0 world, marketing is now a two-way street. A multitude of interactive marketing techniques have emerged beyond the basic banner ad. Utilizing social media to dialogue with customers is incredibly cost-effective (usually free!) but be prepared to invest some time. If you’ve done your market research, you should have a good idea in which social media sites your target clients participate. You’ll have to experiment, and remember – quality counts far more than quantity. Online marketing also offers ways to tracking users’ behavior and measure the effectiveness of your effort.

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SEM & SEO

Search Engine Marketing (SEM) is the practice of increasing your website’s visibility and driving users to it. This includes search engine optimization (SEO) and contextual advertising (such as Pay Per Click ads). Note that all of your online marketing efforts should contribute to your SEM.

SEO is a must for any small business website so that it can be found in the boundless network that is the World Wide Web, and it’s the foundation of any search engine marketing plan (SEM). We could fill tomes about optimizing websites, even with just the basics of SEO. Two important things to know are:

1. There’s no magic bullet because there are many factors involved in improving search rankings.
2. Continually developing relevant content is an ongoing process that will serve your site very well in the vast online universe.

Tip: While we want those search engine crawlers coming back to examine our updated content, ultimately we are creating websites for human users. Increasing the quality and volume of happy human users on your site is what will help grow your customer base and improve page rankings.

An optimized, content-rich website will back up all of your online marketing efforts. Because whether you are blogging or advertising or sharing images online, when people want to find out more about your company, your website should be ready.

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Search Marketing

You know those text ads you see along side your search results or to the side of a blog article? Those are Pay Per Click (PPC) ads, meaning the advertiser pays the host only when they are clicked. Prices can be fixed, or bid on (usually the case with search engines). Referred to as “contextual advertising,” the ads appear when their key words are relevant to the user’s search or the content displayed.

Sponsored results – when the ads appear above the organic search results (often in a blue shaded box) – are another form of contextual advertising. One advantage of ads triggered by keywords is that your ad is displayed to users who are already searching for what you offer – the work of finding your target is done for you.

If you are familiar with websites related to your industry that host ads, inquire for their rates. With search engines, costs vary depending on competition for your keywords and the likely number of times the ad will be clicked on. Yahoo has a great estimate calculator for PPC ads.

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Email Marketing

You may already receive some email newsletters. Probably too many, right? Think about the ones you stay subscribed to – there must be some reason you stay on their list. Either it’s educational, keeps you informed on new developments in your industry, or offers special discounts. That’s the kind of email campaign you want to run.

An email blast is a cost-efficient way to the get the word out to your permission-based list, but it’s often a soft sell. Whether you are announcing your opening or a new service, be sure to offer something to the reader: useful information related to your business, a discount, or other benefit.

Some companies use informative newsletters to stay connected to customers, positioning themselves as experts in an industry but never outright selling. The strategy here is that when the customer decides they want the product, the newsletter sender will likely be in the foremost of their minds.

Tip: We don’t want to become spammers and risk everyone unsubscribing, so limit the amount of emails sent. Send an email blast only when you have something of value to offer, or on a regular schedule.

The challenges of email marketing lie in getting the emails actually read (crafting compelling headlines is vital) and growing your list (make it easy with a forward button or offer promotional incentives). Email marketing services, such as Constant Contact, track open and click-through rates so you can analyze what recipients are doing with your emails. Overtime, these statistics will help you focus your messaging. These services are generally user-friendly, or you can raise the bar by having a professional designer create an original, branded look for your campaigns.

Observation: We have a client who publishes articles in a variety of law journals. When a new one is published, he sends out an email blast with the article to his list. This shows his expertise on the topic and keeps his business top of mind with subscribers.

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Blogging & Twittering

There are many reasons to blog. It’s a great way to add fresh content to your website – a plus for human visitors and search engines. A blog gives you another way to address current issues related to your industry with which to engage potential customers. And then, through comments, customers can have a direct dialog with you – something consumers now expect. Through informative and insightful posts, you can position yourself as an expert in the field. Your blog is an extension of your company, and adds a voice to your brand.

And that voice should suit your brand, whether the tone is more professional or more casual. If your writing has room for improvement, never fear, there’s help out there. Copyblogger has many helpful articles about how to write for blogs, and corporate blogging expert Debbie Weil shares great insights. Also, some companies have more than one staff member contributing, or even hire freelancers to post.

Blog posts don’t have to be long; they can be short and current. If really short and sweet suits you best, consider joining Twitter. This much talked about micro-blogging service limits posts to 140 characters, forcing you to be succinct. It’s easy to use, and with its social aspect, can introduce you to people with whom you would never have otherwise made contact.

Keeping a blog or Twitter stream updated is important. It should be replenished on a regular basis so there is a reason for users to check back, subscribe, or follow you. Some bloggers post every day, some just once a week. Twitter posts (“tweets”) are usually much more frequent. Just know that if you take a break, so will your traffic. But post quantity isn’t the most important thing, the quality of the content is. Posts should be relevant, authentic, and thought-provoking, not just numerous.

Tip: Commenting on other blogs is another way to participate and create links back to your site. Again, contributing something meaningful will get you more attention than simply making several appearances.

There are many free blog software and services out there, including WordPress, Movable Type, and Blogger. The initial set up can take a bit of concentration, but once in place, these blogs are very user friendly. For a more customized look, it’s worth it to hire a professional designer.

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Social Networking

Networking in general is important because pairing a person with your brand helps connect with potential clients. Networking online is essential because it can greatly expand your reach. By now you likely have at least one profile for yourself or your business online (and if you don’t, stop reading this and go set one up!). Now, think beyond just reconnecting with old high school friends (yes, it is fun), and about how to use these networks to find new customers.

With the two-way mega-highway that Web 2.0 is, social networking has two parts: finding others, and making it easy for them to find you. As for finding others, the value is often in your contact’s contacts so you can expand your own network. That’s one of the main ideas behind the business-oriented site LinkedIn.

The second part, being found, is just as important. Enabling users to find you on LinkedIn or another network is like optimizing your website: you want to make your profile searchable with descriptive phrases. The online bio should sound professional and add credibility to your business. Beyond managing your own profile, you can make your presence known by recommending colleagues and participating in groups, such as alumni or current and former employees of a particular company.

For many, Facebook is more about friendship than business, but businesses with pages can gain “fans,” give customers the opportunity for dialog they seek, update existing clients on new developments, and more. A page (for non-profits, Facebook Causes) functions as an outpost to your website, with news, video posts, newsletter sign up, etc. But a status update on Facebook will be seen by users hanging out on there, who probably wouldn’t have visited your site that day. That’s where the target market research comes back into play: find out where your target is spending time online and then create a presence there.

Tip: In addition to the well-known networks, there’s tons of niche social networking sites tailored to specific interests such as fashion or technology – a great opportunity to reach more of your target market.

After you’ve “listened” for a while to an online community, you will understand what sort of contributions the community values most, and you can better cultivate your relationships with customers and potential customers. Wherever you create online profiles, recognize the power you have in shaping your company’s image. The more active and accessible your business is, the more control you have over that image. Just as any customer interaction is a public relations opportunity, so it goes with online interactions.

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Sharing Content: Videos, Webinars, Photos, Podcasts

Like blogging or social networking, posting content to site other than your own can help increase your online visibility. In fact, more and more people are using the video-sharing site YouTube as a search engine. So, if you have a product demo, webinar, or other video about your company, get it up there.

Speaking of webinars, SlideShare is well-known site for posting presentations. Another easy-to-produce format for sharing your expertise is podcasting. You can make these free, episodic audio presentations available for download on your website, iTunes, and other podcast sharing sites. If photography – of recent events, current projects, new products – can showcase your business, post photos to a photo-sharing site like Flickr. A pro account is very inexpensive, a basic account is free, and it has a very active user community. All of these outlets enable you to shape your online presence through contributing entertaining, relevant, and educational content.

Tip: Use descriptive titles and accurate keyword tags so your content will come up in a search. It’s all about being found, and then driving users to your website.

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Article Marketing

If you are into writing, consider article marketing as a way to raise online visibility of your business. Being published by another site validates your expertise. The way article marketing works is you post original articles specific to your industry on sites such as EzineArticles.com or ArticleDashboard.com where content publishers can search for what their sites need. A descriptive and specific headline will help your article rise in search results. There’s no pay; the exchange for your free article is the exposure from being posted on someone else’s site.

The idea is share helpful information, not just blatant self-promotion (how-to articles are popular). It can take time, and many articles, but it’s a great way to build credibility, reach new targets and create links back to your company’s site (usually in the author bio).

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After all the talk about engaging with customers, an animated banner ad may seem like old news. But if there’s a site your target market visits often, a well-placed ad could be great exposure and increase traffic to your website.

Where the user goes when they click on an ad is just as important. The “landing page” the ad links to should correspond, and provide more in-depth information and clear instructions on what you want the user to do next (call, buy, sign up, etc.).

What’s great about online ads is the tracking. You will be able to analyze click-through rates, traffic sources and other statistics, so you’ll know if the placement was worthwhile or not. (Note: check with the ad host to see what tracking statistics are available, or if you need to use a service).

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