Website Marketing Myths (or Free Chocolate here.)
The Oxford English Dictionary defines a myth as
"a widely held but false belief or idea."
It is said myths are based in fact. Whether or not that's
true is debatable. What isn't debatable, however, is that
Internet Marketing also has myths. Below are some of the
biggest web marketing myths.
1. Business on the
web is free
Nobody expects to advertise on TV, radio, in newspapers,
magazines, or any other media for free. Yet, people think
they can just come online, not spend any money, and
advertise their business for free. This shows a lack of
respect for the single most important communication medium
since television.
There are free advertising opportunities available on the
Internet, but the fact remains, you still need money to do
business online effectively.
2. Get rich quick with just a website
We've all seen the stories about individuals who came
online and made money very quickly. Sensationalism
notwithstanding, those individuals are the exceptions not
the rule. The fact is, far more people fail at marketing
their websites than succeed.
The Internet is not some form of magic. It's not the
medium that makes people successful, it's the individuals.
People who succeed, online or offline, are generally
talented, hardworking, organised, focused and determined.
3. E-mail marketing is dead
With the advent of social media sites like Twitter,
Facebook and LinkedIn, alarmists have all but declared
e-mail marketing dead and buried. Wrong! Here are the facts
according to Nielsen...
Consumers are spending more and more of their Internet
time on their mobile devices. E-mail activity on mobile
devices increased from 37.4% to 41.6% of mobile Internet
time. And when you consider the fact smart phones now
comprise 25% of the mobile phone market, there can only be
one conclusion:
E-mail marketing isn't dead its gone mobile!
4. You Need to be at the top of Google to
be
successful
Yes, Google is by far the most popular search engine on
the planet. No-one would dispute that. But Google only has
ten places available on the first page. So, not only is it
unrealistic, it's impossible for everyone to achieve first
page status.
But even if it were possible for everyone to achieve
first page status, you mustn't totally rely on Google
anyway. When Google next changes its search algorithm you
could find yourself not even indexed. That's why you should
strive to have a multi-pronged marketing approach. Utilize a
variety of methods to generate traffic.
For example, blogging, newsletters, social networking,
article marketing, forum marketing, online and offline
advertising, question and answer sites, etc. Diversify.
5. Saturated niches are not profitable
This is true if you don't know what you're doing. Have
you ever wondered why a niche is saturated? It's because
that's where the customers are. If you know what you're
doing, and have a good marketing strategy there are plenty
of customers. How well you do in a particular niche depends
on how you position yourself within that niche. Success or
failure is all about differentiating yourself from your
competitors.
Clearly explain to people what makes you different or
better than your competition. Then, exploit those
differences consistently. Don't run away from a crowded
niche, embrace it.
6. People don't read long copy on the a
computer screen
If people don't read long copy on the Internet, who is
reading all those e-books out there and how come the Amazon
Kindle is so successful? This myth was disproven years ago,
but still persists despite overwhelming evidence to the
contrary.
Research shows long copy generally outperforms short copy
- provided that the copy is compelling, well-written and
interesting. Also and in addition to reading e-books, people
regularly read long newspaper and magazine articles online.
People WILL read long copy IF the subject matter is
interesting to them.
7. All traffic is good traffic
This myth is on a par with the tooth fairy. If your
traffic is originating from traffic exchanges or guaranteed
traffic programs, its rubbish traffic, plain and simple. If
you simply want traffic Free, sex and chocolate are good
keywords - but will they get you clients?
If you are advertising on websites, or in publications
that have no relevance to your site or service, you are
wasting your time. And if you're exchanging links with
websites that have absolutely nothing in common with your
site, your efforts are futile because that traffic is not
going to convert. All website traffic is not created equal -
with relevance comes quality and quality matters!
8. Anyone can succeed at Internet Marketing
Even though it’s pure fiction one of my favourite TV
shows/books/characters is Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock
Holmes. I am fascinated at how he can solve crimes with
minimal evidence, animal hairs and insect larvae. It's
nothing short of amazing. It is also something I could never
do I simply don't have the mental aptitude for it.
The same can be said about Internet Marketing. Despite
how easy the emails, sales letters and e-books make Internet
Marketing sound, not everyone has the right mental aptitude
for it. It’s a fact. Not everyone has what it takes to
succeed at web marketing. So stick to your core
business and let someone with the right aptitude take care
of your website.
9. Article marketing isn't as effective as
it used to be
Nonsense! I'm experiencing more success with article
marketing than I ever have. While it's true, there are more
people involved in article marketing these days, it is also
true there are more bad and poorly written articles. This
has the unintended (yet beneficial) consequence of making
well-written, quality articles stand out in the crowd. And
quality publishers do notice.
10. If you build it, they come...
Do you know what happens if you build a website and don't
tell anyone about it? Nothing - that’s all, absolutely
nothing will happen.
Unfortunately, far too many small businesses think all
they have to do is build a website and customers will
somehow magically appear at their doorstep. It simply
doesn't work that way. Building a website is the first step.
You then have to advertise your website to the world and not
just with free methods either. That will only take you so
far you also have to be willing to spend money.
So yes, if you build it, they will come. But only if
they know about you.
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