09 Aug 10 3 Cs of Online Marketing

The core of marketing is same, regardless of the medium it usage, but the principle and tools changes with the medium. And with every new medium, rules and face of marketing also change, sometimes for better and sometimes for worse. This happened when newspaper came into being, it happened when the Radio was invented, same phenomenon repeated when television came along, and so did when the Internet hit the scene.

The rules and tools of Internet Marketing have not been same even on the Internet. It has changed a lot over the year. But three things remained at the core of it, and will always remain so. These are the things we will discuss in the following paragraphs.

Content

Content is the driving force behind media. Media is nothing if not content serving engine — I know it is marketing vehicle as well, but that is the hidden part of it, which we all feel convenient in ignoring. So to make our media vehicle (read websites, blogs, or forums, etc.) successful, we need to have high-quality content that keeps the visitors reading and asking for more. This eventually will make them join our mailing list.

And do I need to tell you what a stupendously big e-mail list can do to your online business!

Conversion

What is the goal of website content? What is the reason behind its being? Have you asked these questions? If not then now is the time to ask so because I am going to tell you the answer to this question.

The ultimate, mega, final goal of content is to persuade, nudge, or coax our customers to buy from us, or to subscribe to our mailing list. In other words, the ultimate goal of content is to push people to take desirable action. So again, it went out to content.

Who said content is not important…huh!

Community

This is the final C. This is what we want to build around our product. This is what Harley Davidson got, and other bike brands do not.

A community is so powerful that it can save a company from inevitable bankruptcy. It saved Harley Davidson in early part of 20th century, and it even forced Coca Cola from changing its formula in 1980’s.

Building such a loyal fan base is not going to happen in a day, and for more than 99% of businesses it never happens. But this should be the ultimate goal of a business, for this is very rewarding. You should build, foster, and nurture a community around your product.

Is there anything that can pull all your customers together? Find out what it is and start working upward, until you have a community that grows itself.

Who said organic community…?

The 3Cs we discussed above can easily make or break your business. You should, therefore, take measured steps and not let any of the three go out of control.

Tags: Bankruptcy, Big E, Bike Brands, Blogs, Driving Force, E Mail, Face, Harley Davidson, High Quality, Internet Marketing, Mail List, Online Business, Online Conversion, Online Marketing, Paragraphs, Phenomenon, Principle, Quality Content, Radio, Tools