An old prospect contacted me recently to tell me about this fabulous opportunity he was involved in and how it was internet marketing and how it was something I needed to look at. However, when I clicked on his links and looked at what he was doing, I was appalled. All he had was a website, and he called that internet marketing because he was posting his links on Facebook.
It's what led me to write this article today. It's not that this prospect didn't really grasp the true concept, but he went on to try to show off his knowledge but got caught red-handed. I want to make it cut and dry for any reader of this article:
It is not about having a website and that's it. That's like wielding a knife and calling yourself a chef. It's not that simple. It's about lead generation and smart marketing.
A lot of Facebook users are going to be disappointed about this article. They are going to argue that what they do on Facebook IS the proper usage of the term. Now, if you are generating serious retail from your Facebook fan page, and from your friends and people you know buying your product, then that's great and all. However, that's just one tiny piece of the grand scheme of internet marketing.
Be cautious in what you term as internet marketing, especially if you are a network marketer who has a replicated website where all they have changed is adding their tagline to the end of a domain that your corporate company owns. What you are actually marketing is THEIR product, and you are not branding yourself. If you are not branding yourself, people can see through it.
What is a proper definition nowadays? We're talking strictly about 21st century internet marketing. It's about leveraging multiple channels of social media, low-cost advertising, capture page conversions, and more importantly, exchanging free information for leads. It's about attraction marketing. The individuals who make millions on the internet leverage multiple channels and facets to build their internet empire. Internet marketing is about exploiting as many channels of distribution as possible.
If you are a new internet marketer, what should you do? You should use EVERYTHING within your ability to push your brand out to as many channels as possible. Here is an internet marketing checklist that every internet marketing student should follow:
BloggingPinterest or InstagramTwitterFacebook/Google advertisingFree information (eBook, or pamphlet, or free video)VideosSEO/SEM understandingCapture pagesArticle Marketing
Ensure that you invest the time to make your efforts at this list the best possible. You want to create the marketing piece, and get it out there. Then, you want to use analysis tools such as Google Analytics or Ad Tracking to see what areas are suffering. Analyze your downfalls, edit them, and repeat the process, until it brings about efficient results. Don't waste money with sub-par work!
Internet marketing is about the mastery of each one of these facets. I can honestly tell you that if it had to, each of these pieces could be a university course within itself. It's an art to know how to use them all skillfully. This daunting list can only be tackled by picking one or two to develop an expertise in if you are just starting out. If you are looking to make money fast, use a marketing platform to learn how to use them all quickly and harness the power. This is the best way to level yourself with your competition, who has already been in the field for quite some time.