The Zen of Social Media Marketing. Shama Hyder

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       Online Marketing Basics

      “Success is neither magical nor mysterious. Success is the natural consequence of consistently applying the basic fundamentals.”

      Jim Rohn

      BEFORE WE LOOK AT ONLINE MARKETING, let’s look at traditional or offline marketing. This will help set the foundation for marketing on the internet. Before the advent of the internet, there were predominantly three main ways to market. These traditional marketing avenues were print, TV, and radio. Print included newspapers, magazines, Yellow Pages, posters, billboards, and even direct mail. Radio and TV included commercials and spots or segments. Traditional marketing worked very well for many years for three main reasons.

      REASON 1: Marketing was a one-way street. Companies talked at the consumers, and this was expected because there really was no viable way for customers to talk back. Sure, word of mouth existed. However, you would realistically only tell Joe, Sally, and maybe Mary (if she was in town) before moving on. Moreover, it took a long time for word to get around. So, basically, if the nice-looking lady on television said the laundry detergent was amazing, we believed it. Today, we can go on a company’s Facebook page, find them on Twitter, or even comment on their blog. Customers can—and are—talking back!

      REASON 2: We were all the same, more or less. Let’s face it! We wore the same clothes, had the same habits, and enjoyed the same activities. It was easier for marketers to target buyers because they knew exactly who and where they were. Targeting a woman in her thirties? She was most likely a married mother of two and a stay-at-home mom. She put her family first and most likely went to church on Sundays. Try targeting a woman in her thirties today. She may be a stay-at-home mom to two kids and go to church on Sundays. But she may just as likely be a single woman focused on her career who enjoys hiking on the weekends. Today, you need a multipronged approach. You can’t reach a demographic through one channel. You have to reach people through the channel of their choice.

      REASON 3: We were less tired—and a little less jaded. At first, we believed the man on television when he said that his product could eliminate any stain. We believed it when the woman who reminded us of Grandma said the cookies tasted freshly baked. We believed it all—for a while. We were so transfixed by the well-written copy in the magazine or the flashy ad on TV. Today, we are a lot savvier. We check reviews, leave comments, and demand trial versions.

      Does this mean traditional marketing is over? Not at all. It has, however, evolved. The internet has woven its way through every form of traditional marketing. When was the last time you got a piece of direct mail that didn’t have a website address for you to visit? Every morning I listen to NPR (National Public Radio), and every morning the broadcasters invite me to tweet them my questions or fan their Facebook page.

      What is online marketing? Online marketing is the art and science (dare I say the Zen?) of leveraging the internet to get your message across so that you can move people to take action. Whether that action is donating their time to your cause or buying your product or service, the goal of marketing has always been the same—to get people to take action. The tools just keep changing.

      If online marketing is the act of leveraging the internet in general to get your message across, social media marketing is the act of leveraging specifically social media platforms (places where people connect and communicate) to promote a product or a service to increase sales.

      The social media movement has provided the business owner powerful tools for reaching thousands of prospects and clients at the click of a mouse. However, without a strong business strategy and knowledge of online marketing, these tools are often used in vain. Success in this new media requires you to lead with a strong business mind-set.

      To that end, ask yourself:

       • What exactly am I trying to accomplish with social media and why?

       • What are my readers’ most pressing challenges, and how can I help them overcome these?

       • What are the most effective delivery tools for my messages?

       • How can I build enduring relationships and turn strangers into lifetime customers?

      Mitch Meyerson,

      author of Mastering Online Marketing and eight other books (www.MitchMeyerson.com)

      First I want to share with you a simple framework for marketing online. This framework is necessary because social media marketing is not a stand-alone process or an outcome. So, before we delve into the specifics, we have to take in the big picture.

      Successful online marketing can be broken down into three distinct components. I like to use the acronym ACT to describe the process.

       The ACT Methodology