The Offline Google
Search engines are probably the biggest development in the world of marketing since the first TV ads hit our screens decades ago. As marketing tools, SEO and PPC are effective not because of the technology but because they use simple marketing concepts that are just as true offline as they are online.
So what offline ideas can we (re)learn from SEO? Here are a few to start with …
1. Give them what they’re looking for - Broadly speaking SEO is about attracting the people who are already looking for what you have to offer. Google rewards the businesses that use the right terms in their web sites by sending them visitors - precisely because they’re most likely the sites the searcher was looking for in the first place. You type in your need, Google serves up the best matches for a solution.
Offline, the same is true. If I am a business owner looking for an accountant, there’s no shortage of options. But, if I’m given the choice between a generalist firm or one that specialises in working with companies from my industry, I’ll likely choose the latter. The best match (ideally) wins. The lesson – be specific, address your customer needs, and find a niche where there’s less competition.
2. Know what they want - Good SEO depends on knowing what people are searching for – the terms they use. Online that means doing research on popular keywords – offline that means understanding your customer and how they go about solving their needs.
If you find out what your potential customers are looking for – and how they are looking for it (think who is their ‘offline Google’?)– putting two and two together becomes pretty easy.
3. Build Links - From Google’s perspective, the fact that one website links to another is at some level an endorsement of that second website. Moreover, if that endorsement comes from a reliable source (i.e. a well-ranked website itself) then it carries that much more weight.
Going offline the same applies in two key ways. Firstly, a third party endorsement is always stronger than your own paid efforts. Case studies, testimonials, word-of-mouth – they all use or reflect this fact.
Secondly, by building lots of links with other relevant businesses you improve your own profile and ‘ranking’. Links into your business can come from past customers, referrers and marketing partners. In other words, one of the key focuses of your marketing efforts should be creating links from, and relationships with, reliable, trusted sources.
A good marketing strategy will include both online and offline elements. The good news is that what you learn from one almost always applies to the other as well.
What other offline marketing ideas could be inspired by SEO or other online efforts?
Mark Nagurski is a Director of The Really Practical Marketing Company, who provide marketing advice and resources to small business owners, freelancers and startups. You can read his daily marketing ideas blog at www.reallypractical.com
Tag:June Reader Poll Results
The latest reader poll has just come to an end and with some interesting results. I asked my readers the question:
Should PR companies approach bloggers differently to journalists?
And the answer, most definitely yes.
73% of voters agreed that bloggers need to be treated differently. Of the remaining, 18% didn’t know and 9% were happy with traditional methods.
For me this is fairly conclusive: bloggers want to be treated differently, something both PR agents and others who want to influence bloggers should bear in mind.
Ok so for this next month I’m asking:
Which of the following direct sales tactics are most effective:
Telesales
Email shots
Direct mail
Face to face
Please answer in the poll on the right hand sidebar now.
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Tag:Reader PollsSome Fantastic PR Advice
I’ve worked with a lot of small companies and always they want to get involved in some PR activity. However more often than not they struggle to really understand how to engage with journalists. This is one of the key skills a good PR consultancy will bring: the knowledge of what journalists want, when they want it and crucially, which journalists are most relevant for your story.
However, that’s not to say you can’t do a good job yourself, given enough time. I came across a fantastic blog post yesterday that I think any small business owner would benefit from reading. It’s written by Sally Whittle, a freelance journalist based in the UK, and outlines 5 great tactics for small businesses in getting to grips with PR.
A tactic Sally mentions is entering awards competitions. This is something I have been working on with one of my clients - an architectural practice - for some time. In fact we have now won one award and are finalists in another, both national awards in the UK. Aside from the obvious PR opportunities of entering, they have actually been beneficial on other levels too. For example, it now helps in the sales process to mention the client is an award winning practice.
Anyway, check out Sally’s post and don’t forget to leave a comment on her blog to say thanks.
Great Advice Sally.
Tag:Public RelationsPromoting an Online Business Offline
The Internet is a tremendous tool for marketing any business, online or offline. But what if we turned the tables a little and asked, ‘If you run a business that’s primarily online, are you ignoring the offline opportunities to promote your business?’
Why market offline?
1. It’s there. Bloggers still write books. Online marketing gurus still go to conferences and carry business cards. Why? Because it gives them another way to connect. More channels equals more customers.
2. There are customers there. Not every potential customer spends their day hanging about on Digg or reading blogs. Investing some time in offline marketing helps reach out to those customers and widens your customer base.
3. Your competitors aren’t there. Most online businesses invest little in offline promotion. You might not want to spend tens of thousands on a TV spot but simple, consistent efforts will help set you apart from your competitors.
4. It doesn’t have to cost much. A simple direct mail postcard costs less than one Adwords click in a competitive market. Public relations, referral programs and face-to-face networking cost next to nothing.
How?
One of the main benefits of online marketing is that you can automate quite a lot of the legwork. If you’re going to venture offline you’ll want to make sure you develop processes and procedures to do the same. Start by splitting your marketing into two groups.
Process Marketing – Process marketing is the stuff you can every day as part of your normal routine. It’s long term, grows over time and rarely requires you to spend your hard-earned cash. Use business cards, brand all your stationery with your URL, talk to people about your business and look for PR opportunities in the local press.
Campaign Marketing – By contrast, campaign marketing has a beginning and an end. It’s a dedicated, outward effort to attract new business or raise your profile. You could try a simple direct mail postcard campaign with an offer designed to drive traffic to your site. If you operate in a specific niche are there magazines dedicated to that niche? If so, test some small print ads. If networking online helps build traffic, why not invest some time into offline networking events?
Online or off, the principles of marketing remain pretty much the same – focus on benefits, have a clear point of difference and think long-term consistent marketing as opposed to one—off blasts.
If you run an online business, what offline promotional techniques have you tried? How did you get on?
Mark Nagurski is a Director of The Really Practical Marketing Company, who provide marketing advice and resources to small business owners, freelancers and startups. You can read his daily marketing ideas blog at www.reallypractical.com
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