Online Marketing For A Recession
15 December 2009Participation on social networking sites will be executed by 94% of businesses in the coming year. “Despite risks associated with participating in online communities, the internal costs of community formation and management and the fact that we are in the midst of a profound recession, organizations’ continued and enhanced investment in online communities underscores the perceived potential for the value that they may provide to the enterprise,” says Ed Moran, director of product innovation at Deloitte Services LP. “Social media and communities are expected to continue to play a significant role in the way in which companies are interacting with employees, customers, partners and the larger business ecosystem, thereby redefining the very edge of the corporation.” Social media is just one area of online marketing to consider, but it’s certainly one of the fastest growing sections.
The “State of Online Advertising and Marketing” study found that business owners spent nearly 60% of their online advertising budgets on Search Engine Optimization (SEO) — including both organic and paid. More and more companies find that simply increasing their website’s traffic is not enough. They need to gain insightful analytic research that shows them where paying customers are coming from and where dissatisfied customers are going. They also need to look at ways to bring in more targeted traffic that is eager to buy. Most of the Fortune 500 companies allocate 10-20% of their online marketing budgets to conversion optimization services. Another 10-20% goes toward other online advertising methods like social networks, banner ads, pay-per-click, and affiliate marketing and viral videos.
The “2009 Tribalization of Business Survey” found that some of the top online marketing strategies during a recession include: increasing word-of-mouth (38%), improving customer loyalty (34%) and creating brand awareness (30%). Many executives feel this can be best done through the matrix of social networks. However, certain obstacles exist — like getting people to join, return and stay engaged. To gain the best results, market plans should include partnering up with other vendors, running exciting promotions and contests, offering special perks for participating and giving community members something of value for their time. In addition to these objectives, executives are also placing some emphasis on idea generation (29%) and customer support (23%).
Loyalty programs are a popular online marketing strategy that offers excellent customer retention and return-on-investment. Research firm CIO Insight reports that nearly 75% of U.S. shoppers belong to at least one loyalty program, although these initiatives aren’t functioning as well as they could. The key to making these programs work is to offer continuous incentives to spend and special perks that really make the customers feel important and valued. These days, consumers want coupons and contests, but they also want content and substance, which is where marketing newsletters come into play. To read about four successful case studies of loyalty programs, visit www.cioinsight.com/c/a/Special-Reports/Loyalty-Programs-How-4-Companies-Foster-Loyalty.
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