 Steve Craig  A Sacramento native and graduate of UC Davis  Over ten years experience working with web technologies  Associate Product Manager for a global software company  Counselor and Instructor with SCORE, “Counselors to America’s Small Business”

 The marketing of your products or services over the Internet  It is also referred to as Web Marketing, Online Marketing, or eMarketing An Internet marketing strategy is necessary to effectively compete in today’s business environment

 There are over 220 million Internet users in the United States  72.5% of the US population is online

It can help you promote your business by:  Allowing you to easily manage individual or mass communication  Assisting you in managing your brand  Creating and presenting your business identity  Generating customer trust and loyalty

I already have a web site… isn’t that enough?  Building a web site is a great first step  Internet Marketing is necessary to generate buzz and traffic  Traffic generates business  Business brings profits!

A web site without effective marketing is like building a gas station in the middle of a forest!

Traditional Marketing  Television  Radio  Newspapers  Magazines  Billboards  Direct Mail  Word-of-Mouth Internet Marketing  Video sharing web sites  Blogs, Micro-blogs  Social Networks  Widgets  Search Advertising  Direct  Word-of-mouth

 People buy products and services from companies they trust  People are more likely to trust a friend’s recommendation than to trust an ad  Positive word-of-mouth increases credibility

 What is Web 2.0?  The 2nd generation of the World Wide Web  Movement away from static web pages to dynamic web applications  Web 2.0 sites are Social Media that help us communicate A LOT faster! “It’s Word-of-Mouth on steroids!”

 It can connect you with customers, vendors, and potential business partners  Spread the word about your business  Increase your credibility and relevance on the Internet

 Social Media is all about:  Content Delivery – putting it out there  Content Visibility – letting some people see it  Content Virality – broadcasting it to EVERYONE!

 Listening – seeking customer insights for use in marketing and development  Talking – expanding your efforts to more interactive channels  Energizing – finding your most enthusiastic customers and supercharging their word of mouth  Supporting – helping your customers support each other  Embracing – integrating your customers’ feedback Source: Groundswell: Winning in a World Transformed by Social Technologies

What is it? Facebook is a social networking web site where users can join networks organized by city, workplace, school, and region to connect and interact with other people Why use it? Create a customizable presence for your business and connect with your customers on a more personal level How to use it? Go to Facebook.com and create a page for your business, advertise your Facebook page and grow your connections

What is it? Twitter is a service to communicate and stay connected through the exchange of quick, micro-messages Why use it? Communicate with your customers about events, promotions, special offers, and more How to use it? Go to Twitter.com and create a free account, grow your list of “followers” and start communicating with them via “Tweets”

What is it? Yelp is a social networking site that allows users to provide their reviews and opinions on restaurants, stores, and other businesses Why use it? Monitor your customer feedback and keep your business details up to date How to use it? Go to Yelp.com and look up your business to see what people are saying about you, use the user feedback to improve your business

What is it? YouTube is a video sharing web site where users can upload, view and share video clips Why use it? Upload videos about your products or services and embed your videos in your web site How to use it? Go to YouTube.com and sign up for a free account, start uploading videos and advertising your YouTube channel

 Start out small  Clearly define your marketing objectives  Select your target market  Assess your capabilities and know-how  Execute your online strategy  Measure your effectiveness  Most importantly, experiment!

 There is no silver bullet!  Not all online strategies will be effective for all business types  It is up to you as the marketer to determine the appropriate marketing channels and to constantly measure their effectiveness

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