Marketing Science Blog

Marlon,

I just read your most recent article…

Internet Marketing Made Simple — The ONLY 3 Steps You Need To Know To Promote Anything To Anyone Online.

I hope you’ll forgive me for posting my comment here, but I could not find your new article on your blog or Squidoo lense…and I am fired up and wanted to comment.

All I can say is you hit the nail right on the head — once again!

This “tell it like is” article details exactly how I feel about today’s Internet marketing landscape. I’m sure it is also represents what a lot of honest marketers out there are feeling:

• the squeeze of big companies and
• the market dilution by crap-pushing, me-too, anything-to-make-a-buck Internet “mock”-eters.

Yep…That’s what I call ‘em. Because they make a mockery out of Internet marketing. They are making it tougher for honest vendors to make a living.

And as for the larger companies, they are absolutely trying to squeeze us Mom and Pop operators. Here is one example I have been dealing with myself:

I have been posting a lot of simple survey questions lately to social networking sites and to my list. What I am finding is that “experienced “corporate marketing consulting types” seem to take enjoyment in trying to trip you up with technical “analytics” questions they think you can’t answer as a “Mom and Pop” marketer.

For example, my most recent survey question was: “What is your single most important question about Internet marketing even if you’re just starting out?”

I was basically targeting newbies and intermediates…but to my surprise, I had all these expert marketers throwing “curve ball” questions at me…questions they think a small non-corporatist can’t answer.

I was expecting questions like…”What’s the most cost effective way to get website traffic?” and such.

And I did get some of those questions.

But I also received a lot questions from people who are in corporate marketing, people who know a lot more about marketing “analytics” than I do.

These folks seem like they are trying to intimidate me by asking questions like:

“For 2008 what are the functional KPI’s Fortune 500 companies should be keying on?”… and endless blather questions about this metric and that metric.

I’m convinced these people with advanced degrees and corporate experience know the answers to these questions. Why would they post such technical, jargon-laden questions to someone who is obviously a small business operator? Unfortunately, I think I know the answer to this question.

I think some are engaging in a form of marketing intimidation. I won’t broad-brush all corporate marketing types with this, that would be totally unfair. But I think there are plenty of them out there who want to make us small operators look foolish.

And the reason is probably due to the fact that they think ALL small marketers are crap-pushers with no value-added contributions to make. In some way, I can’t blame them. There are a lot of those types out there.

In closing, I want to leave you with one more example. It relates directly to what Marlon was saying in this most recent article.

I was looking at a question posted at LinkedIn the other day. The question was:

What is the synergy between search marketing and email marketing and can you give examples?

Most of the “answers” posted to this question were laden in technical language, jargon and the latest marketing-speak.

Most answers were written in a way that seemed to say: Hey look at me, I’m a really smart corporate marketer, and I know a lot more technical stuff than you…”

The big thing that is missing in almost every blog post, social networking post I see from these types, is that Internet marketing is about PEOPLE..it’s about humanity, society… I rarely hear these marketing know-it-alls talk about “people”.

Sure they talk about “targets”, “prospects”, “buyers”…but the language is almost always cold and technical.

In response, I wrote and posted an answer (that resonates with much of what Marlon is saying in his newest article) that Online marketing is more about getting traffic and building relationships through value-driven email marketing and that is what is really important in terms of “synergy”. You can see more of my answer below if you’re interested.

My Answer

My answer probably made some of the corporate types think: “Who the hell is this guy?? That’s his answer?? What a simpleton”…

I don’t care what they think. Simple works. People are simple creatures after all. Simple sells.

Listen, many corporate marketers are very good at what they do, I’m not taking that away from them. Most are very smart people. All I’m saying is that many seem like elitist surgeons with no bedside manor or concern about the “people” who are ultimately responsible for their paychecks. And some of them seem to enjoy trying to belittle the “little guy”.

Ok, I’ve had my say here.. Sorry for the ranting post Marlon, but you really touched off a nerve with your article. Keep up the good fight!

- Bob

While surfing around LinkedIn.com the other day I ran into the following question from a member…

“What’s the synergy between search engine marketing and email marketing and can you provide examples of the synergy?”

Here are my thoughts on this…

Search marketing (as well as search engine optimization SEO) and email marketing are to an Internet marketer what the “one-two punch” combination is to a boxer. Left jab, then right cross. That’s a classic knockout combination. It’s your bread and butter if you’re a fighter. And it always produces greater results than the individual punches themselves.

Now, let’s put this in context with today’s web users, prospects and buyers… Nearly everyone turns to a search engine first to find what they are looking for Online. So, being found in search results, organically or by paid placement is arguably the most important element of Internet marketing. Search marketing is the left jab that sets up your right cross: email marketing.

Search marketing is also like a headline in a sales letter. If you don’t stop people dead in their tracks and get them to read more, the rest of the sales letter is meaningless, no matter how good it is. Without search, you would not be able to capture names and email addresses for marketing purposes (except if you advertise offline and drive traffic to your site). Search marketing is typically the starting point of a potential relationship between web marketer and prospect.

Enter Opt in Email Marketing…

The majority of times, your prospect has found your website and offer but is NOT ready to buy from you yet. She is not sure she can trust you, she just met you so to speak. Plus there are other offers and vendors to investigate. The web is big place with lots of choices. This is where email marketing comes in to create synergy with search…

People have more information and choices than ever. Unfortunately the more choices and information, the tougher it is to make a decision. More vendors, more information and more choices translate into more work for prospects. As a result many people get bogged down in “analysis paralysis”, procrastination or both. They are ruled by fear, uncertainty and distrust.

Because of all the information and choices available to Internet consumers, it is difficult to create lasting marketing relationships. There are so many vendors competing for mind and wallet share.

Search marketing does the heavy lifting of attracting qualified prospects to your sites and offers and creates potential relationships. Since a majority of people do not buy on the first exposure to an offer, it’s email marketing’s job to capture the name and email address and to break down barriers and inhibitions to buying over a time sequence.

Through email marketing you build solid relationships on trust, reciprocity (because you give something of value to them) and develop credibility as an expert in your field by providing good content on your website and in your email newsletter.

The success of the individual parts — search marketing and email marketing — can be attributed to the combination of these two forms of marketing. One without the other would produce poor results (an exception is offline advertising i.e. sending prospects to your home page or opt-in page directly from space or classified ads).

Also, synergy occurs when a web user is exposed to multiple instances of your brand, products, offers & websites.

For example, if a prospect keeps running into you online when they search on keywords related to your products/services and hears from you regularly through email marketing, credibility with that prospect is sure to increase because of the combined exposure.

Search marketing and email marketing are strongly dependent on one another for overall marketing success. Together they help you create relationships and online sales.

Of course your sales message has to be strong. But generally speaking any exposure in search results combined with email marketing is going to help your cause. It will help build trust and decrease buying resistance. This plus a good offer will produce solid online sales.

- Bob