Your Marketing Reference

Add Internet Marketing To Your Marketing Mix

Friday, October 23, 2009

Freestyle Blogger , Posted in Marketpedia , Tips , 0 Comments

The importance of Internet marketing is continuing to expand. Surveys of all kinds show a major shift in traditional marketing budgets to dollars being spent online to market all types of products and services.

Internet Marketing Defined. Internet marketing is the use of the Internet to advertise and sell products and services. Within the definition of Internet Marketing you will find mention of pay per click advertising, banner ads, e-mail marketing, search engine marketing (including search engine optimization), blog marketing, and article marketing. Each of these subject areas is important to consider prior to planning your internet marketing strategy.

Internet Marketing Provides Many Benefits. There are many advantages to having a fully executable internet marketing strategy. These benefits include measurability, flexibility, and affordability. Many online marketing tactics provide marketing professionals with the ability to customer acquisition costs. Moreover, marketing professionals are better able to track what marketing campaigns are working and quickly allocate their spending towards higher producing media placements.

Internet Marketing Tactics. As the Internet has expanded, so have the opportunities for marketing online. Here we will take a brief look at each type of Internet marketing and explain the benefits of each.

1. Pay-per-click Advertising. Sites like Google offer pay-per-click advertising for anyone interested in getting their message in front of the right segment or prospective buyer. This method is highly targeted and offers one of the best and most popular forms of internet marketing. Marketers using pay-per-click advertising only pay a fee, based on the competitiveness of a keyword or ad title, when a link is clicked on.

2. Banner Ads. Once the king of Internet marketing, online banner ads have evolved to include animated and flash banners, but the premise remains largely the same. Marketers purchase a specified number of impressions to run on a single site or network of sites and are generally not guaranteed a specific number of clicks.

3. Email Marketing. Effective among current clients and prospects who have requested information form your company, email marketing is a well established means to communicate and marketing your products. However, be aware of CAN-SPAM requirements and contact preferences of those you plan to reach.

4. Search Engine Marketing. If you want web browsers to visit your site, than focusing on search engine optimization and search engine marketing is a must. No Internet marketing plan is complete without ensuring that your site is submitted and included on major directories like Google, Yahoo!, and DMOZ. The dollars spent on Search Engine Marketing of any type will pay huge dividends.

5. Blog Marketing. Getting mention of your site or information related to your products can quickly scale if you are able to effectively tap into the countless blogs that are being created everyday. It is essential that you focus your efforts on blogs covering topics relevant to your product or service offering.

6. Article Marketing. One of the most important aspects of Internet Marketing, is to improve the link popularity to your site and improve the awareness of your product or service offering. To do so, many companies are focusing on publishing valuable content and making available for other to post to their website's.

Regardless of the Internet marketing tactics you choose, be sure to consider an integrated marketing strategy. Be sure that your internet marketing has a specific goal and is supported with a definitive plan and budget. Lastly, be sure to pick up a book, conduct some research, or work with professionals to enhance your Internet marketing know-how.

The Psychology of Marketing

Tuesday, October 06, 2009

It takes some knowledge of basic psychology and human behavior to succeed at marketing. People buy things to either meet their needs or satisfy their wants and desires. As a marketer, you are looking not at what your product has to offer, but at what is motivating your target audience to buy your product or service.

For example, people aren't buying perfume because of the aroma. They are buying romance. The new exercise machine doesn't sell because of the latest features, but because the customer is buying a healthier, perhaps thinner look. The end result of a product or service is what it does for buyers — how it makes them feel, look, or act. Even children are looking to have the same games as their friends, not just to play with, but to be popular and fit in. Therefore, you need to keep broad motivational reasons in mind when planning your marketing campaign.

There is also a psychological aspect to establishing trust and forming a relationship. Most customers have been burned, treated badly, swindled, or disenchanted at least once. They will not necessarily jump at the opportunity to buy something unless they have a sense of confidence in the seller. In an age where people are tired of receiving spam and a glut of marketing materials, the modern consumer has become savvy and somewhat cynical. Only a company with a strong proven reputation will gain their trust. You, therefore, want to always build a level of trust through quality of service, and this should be reflected in your marketing.

Finally, there are practical factors that enter into marketing. If it is simply inconvenient for a customer to purchase from you or you simply cannot satisfy their needs with the product they are seeking, then don't attempt to fit a square peg into a round hole. Too many sales are lost by trying to do so. More importantly, you may risk ending a future relationship with the customer by losing their trust.

In the end you want to sell customers by gaining their trust and building a relationship based on customer satisfaction and by being honest and not trying to be everything to everyone.

Titik Terlemah Bisnis Franchise di Indonesia

Saturday, September 12, 2009

Freestyle Blogger , Posted in News , 0 Comments

Bisnis franchise saat ini tengah menjadi model bisnis paling popular di negeri ini. Laiknya sebuah mode, system bisnis franchisepun banyak diperbincangkan di mana-mana. Seseorang yang baru mendirikan bisnis resto, terlintas untuk segera memfranchisekan bisnisnya. Begitu juga dengan pebisnis bengkel, pijat refleksi, hingga software komputer. Hampir dipastikan, semua sedang berfikir bisnis apa lagi yang dapat difranchisekan.

Meski hal ini bukan sebuah kekonyolan, tetapi masyarakat pebisnis hendaknya menyadari bahwa sebuah bisnis dapat difranchisekan jika telah memenuhi syarat yang telah ditentukan. Bukan mengikuti kelatahan belaka. Syarat tersebut, menurut buku Franchising the Most Practical and Excellent Way of Succeding : Membedah Tawaran Franchise Lokal Indonesia terbitan Gramedia Pustaka Utama tulisan Bambang N. Rachmadi, franchisee outlet McD di Indonesia ini, menyebutkan bahwa franchise merupakan sebuah system bisnis atau usaha yang telah terstandar secara baku dan teruji kesuksesannya. Lalu system ini dijual lisensinya ke pihak lain dengan imbalan fee kepada pemilik system tersebut.

Ingat, dalam difinisi di atas ada kalimat yang sengaja diberi penekanan, yaitu teruji kesuksesannya. Bambang N Rachmadi bahkan mendefiniskan secara khusus, bahwa sebuah bisnis difranchisekan karena memiliki kinerja unggul karena didukung oleh sumberdaya berbasis pengetahuan dan orientasi kewirausahaan yang cukup tinggi dengan tata kelola yang baik, yang dapat dimanfaatkan oleh pihak lain dengan melakukan hubungan kontraktual untuk menjalankan bisnis di bawah format bisnisnya dengan imbalan yang disepakati. Uraian di atas jelas memberikan gambaran khusus mengapa sebuah bisnis difranchisekan, yaitu memiliki reputasi sukses, memiliki standar secara baku baik pengelolaan maupun prosedur layanannya. Lantas apakah para pebisnis cukup memahami syarat-syarat tersebut dan memahami kriterianya?

Menangkap dengan Tenang

Banyaknya pameran bisnis, maupun iklan-iklan yang menawarkan bisnis franchise kepada masyarakat harus disikapi dengan upaya edukasi yang optimal terhadap pelaku bisnis franchise, baik kepada franchisor maupun franchisee. Lembaga terkait seperti Asosiasi Franchise Indonesia (AFI), konsultan bisnis franchise, dan lembaga pendukung lainya, termasuk didalamnya peran pemerintah yang terkait, harus semakin menyadari bahwa bisnis franchise yang hadir tengah masyarakat adalah sebuah keniscayaan. Masalahnya adalah apakah ada aturan yang kompatibel untuk mengaturnya? Apakah masyarakat pebisnis sudah teredukasi dengan baik, undang-undangnya memadai, serta ada iklim kondusif yang membuat system bisnis franchise dapat berkembang dan tumbuh seperti yang diharapkan. Ibarat menangkap ikan, para pebisnis harus tetap tenang menangkapnya, dengan keadaan sadar dan penuh perhitungan.

Angin Segar

Kehadiran system bisnis franchise disisi lain telah memberikan angin segar bagi tumbuhnya ekonomi baru karena adanya duplikasi system bisnis yang memungkinkan sebuah system bisnis dapat berkembang secara cepat dalam waktu yang relative pendek. Lihatlah bagaimana McDonald’s, Kentucky Fried Chicken, Pizza Hut, Wendy’s. Atau brand lokal seperti RM Padang Sederhana, Bakmi Japos, Ayam Bakar Wong Solo, Es Teler 77, Alfamart, Indomart, dan ratusan merek lokal lainnya yang telah berkembang dan berbiak menjadi menggurita dengan system bisnis ini dalam waktu singkat ke seluruh tempat.

Banyak pihak berpendapat, kelebihan system bisnis ini memungkinkan seseorang yang ingin berbisnis serupa tidak usah terlalu repot-repot menjalani proses trial and error yang dijalani bertahun-tahun dan dengan biaya yang tidak sedikit. Tetapi pihak lain mengungkapkan argumentasinya bahwa untuk menggunakan system bisnis franchise pada sebuah produk atau merek harus teruji kehandalanya. Seberapa jauh keandalan dan reputasi itu, waktu yang menentukan. Bukan dua, tiga atau lima tahun, yang merupakan waktu-waktu yang pendek untuk rentang sebuah usaha disebut teruji kehandalannya.

Apapun, kesadaran masyarakat memahami bisnis franchise lebih penting agar sinergi diantara franchisor dan franchise dapat saling menguntungkan dikemudian hari. Para franchisorpun tidak serta merta menginginkan usahanya berbiak dengan mengabaikan syarat untuk menetapkan franchisee yang baik. Syarat tersebut diantaranya adalah menetapkan bahwa franchisee juga harus memiliki kreatifitas dan inovatif yang didasari semangat kewirausahaan dalam menjalankan bisnisnya, dan harus tunduk pada kriteria-krieteria yang ditetapkan oleh franchisor.

Tujuannya agar standarisasi merek bisa tetap terjaga. Jangan sampai ada sebuah upaya seseorang yang memfranchisekan bisnisnya tetapi ia sendiri masih harus berjuang bagi keberlangsungan bisnis yang dijalankannya. Jangankan tentang support bisnis, SOP, atau standarisasi, dan sebagainya, masih banyak pebisnis yang produknya masih belum teruji dan belum memiliki reputasi bisnis tetapi sudah berani menjualnya dengan system franchise. Tentu itu sah-sah saja, dan inilah titik terlemah system bisnis franchise di Indonesia.

Maximizing Your Small Business Marketing Strategies

Saturday, September 12, 2009

Freestyle Blogger , Posted in Marketpedia , 0 Comments

With the explosion of new media, small business has never had so many options to reach markets. Yet, how do you know what marketing strategies work and how can they be more effective?

To maximize your small business marketing strategies, you need to understand marketing is more than buying ads and targeting a wide audience. Marketing takes more than guess work. It's a measurable process that when managed properly can provide a good return on the money invested. Managed poorly, marketing can exhaust your marketing budget, impact revenues and ultimately put you out of business.

Consider these important aspects when putting together your marketing strategies:

Market Research: It's common to assume that if we love our product or service, others will too. Many businesses skip the simple step of doing market research to discover what customers want in a business offering. Take time to research your market before you begin implementing marketing strategies.

Buying Behavior: Customers will buy for their reasons, not yours. Buyers go through various stages of the buying cycle. By aligning your marketing strategies to tailor to what stage your customer is in of the buying process, your odds of success are greatly increased.

SWOT Analysis: The marketplace is wide and deep fulfilling many wants and needs. Before you craft your marketing message, get a sense of who your competitors are including their strengths and weaknesses. A simple SWOT analysis will put your market in perspective.

Marketing Mix: There are a multitude of channels to reach your customers ranging from radio and yellow pages to the Internet and trade shows. Target your marketing strategies on multiple channels to increase your reach and frequency.

Low Cost Marketing: The most effective marketing isn't the most costly. There are ways to market without breaking the bank including joint ventures, PR and referrals.

The best marketing strategies are those that reach a specific target market in an affordable and effective way. Marketing is a game of experimentation. Test your marketing, adjust your efforts and you will maximize your opportunities.

The Advantages and Disadvantages of a Marketing Plan

Saturday, September 12, 2009

Freestyle Blogger , Posted in Marketpedia , 0 Comments

A well-written, comprehensive marketing plan is the focal point of all business ventures because it describes how you plan to attract and retain customers, the most crucial aspect of a business.

The marketing plan is essential to any successful business. It is the heart of the business, the basis from which all other operational and management plans are derived. Marketing offers you a wealth of information that if applied correctly virtually can ensure your success.

Therefore, it is important that you, as a first-time business owner, develop a comprehensive, effective marketing plan. If you need assistance in accomplishing this task, contact your local SBA office. Consult the local telephone directory under "U.S. Government" for the telephone number and address of the office nearest you.

An effective marketing plan will certainly boost your sales and increase your profit margins. You must be able to convince customers that you have the best product or service for them at the best possible price. If you cannot convince potential customers of this, then you are wasting your time and money. This is where the marketing plan comes into play, and this is why it is so important.

There are numerous advantages you can extract from the marketplace if you know how. And the marketing plan is an excellent tool for identifying and developing strategies for extracting these advantages.

Business Advantages

identifies needs and wants of consumers
determines demand for product
aids in design of products that fulfill consumers needs
outlines measures for generating the cash for daily operation, to repay debts and to turn a profit
identifies competitors and analyzes your product's or firm's competitive advantage
identifies new product areas
identifies new and/or potential customers
allows for test to see if strategies are giving the desired results

Business Disadvantages

identifies weaknesses in your business skills
leads to faulty marketing decisions based on improperly analyzed data
creates unrealistic financial projections if information is interpreted incorrectly
identifies weaknesses in your overall business plan

Review

Now is good time to review what goes into a marketing plan. Write down what you can remember on a blank sheet and then compare it to this quick fact sheet. The marketing plan offers numerous advantages; however, as you can see, there can be drawbacks. Remember, however, the advantages outweigh the drawbacks, you can seek professional assistance when you are developing the marketing section of your business plan. It may be worth the investment.

Defining Marketing

Saturday, September 12, 2009

Freestyle Blogger , Posted in Marketpedia , 0 Comments

A brief history of marketing

In some ways marketing is as old as civilization itself. You may have seen films based in ancient Greece or Rome with images of bustling market stalls and traders actively engaged in persuasive communications. Of course these traders would not have called their activities marketing and their activities may seem far removed from someone ordering airline tickets via a website.

The concept of marketing that we now see has more to do with developments during the industrial revolution of the 18th and 19th centuries. This was a period of rapid social change driven by technological and scientific innovation (see BBC history website). One result was that for the first time the production of goods was separated from their consumption. Mass production, developing transport infrastructure and growing mass media meant that producers needed to, and could develop more sophisticated ways of managing the distribution of goods.

The production orientation era

For much of the industrial revolution goods were generally scarce and producers could sell pretty much all that they could produce, as long as people could afford to buy them. Their focus was therefore on production and distribution at the lowest possible cost and what marketing management that there was considered these issues (for example, reducing distribution costs, opening new markets).

The sales orientation era

From the start of the twentieth century to the period following the Second World War (although the development was interrupted by the wars) competition grew and the focus of marketing turned to selling. Communications, advertising and branding started to become more important (see archive at the History of Advertising Trust website) as companies needed to sell the increasing outputs of production in an increasingly crowded market. Marketing was therefore still a 'slave' to production, but focussed on distribution, communication and persuading customers that one manufacturers goods were better than anothers.

The marketing orientation era

From the 1960s onwards most markets have become saturated (the size of the market remains the same). This means that there is now intense competition for customers. The sophistication of marketing management has therefore developed into what we now see in a modern marketing department. Marketers are involved at a strategic level within the organisation and therefore inform an organisation about what should be produced, where it should be sold, how much should be charged for it and how it should be communicated to consumers. Modern marketers research markets and consumers. They attempt to understand consumer needs (and potential needs) and allocate organisational resources appropriately to meet these needs. Modern marketers are particularly interested in brands. They are also increasingly interested in ensuring that employees understand marketing, i.e. that everyone within the organisation involves themselves with marketing activities.

So what might you take from this very brief historical perspective?

Firstly, consider that marketing started as an inward looking discipline – focussing on what the organisation produced. Now marketing is outward looking. It brings an understanding of markets and of consumers into the organisation.

Secondly, you might consider that the marketing that you are familiar with today is, in fact, a very recent development – marketing is still a very new subject. You might also note that although we can talk about a ‘marketing orientation’, many organisations – especially small and medium enterprise – act as though they are still in the period of production or sales orientation. In the absence of a good understanding of marketing, organisations may still focus on production or sales.

Thirdly, modern definitions of marketing hide the fact that the development of modern marketing management has not been a coordinated process. Origins in production and managing distribution mean that manufacturers have been quicker to adopt marketing practice than, say, the service sector, including banks and much of the tourism industry.

Finally you might consider that marketing has changed rapidly over this century and it continues to change. The sorts of activities that you might be involved with at the end of your marketing career might be very different from the marketing we see today. As a professional marketer you should be particularly sensitive to changes in society, technology, and the world economy.