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Customers DO Exist Outside of
Cyberspace!
© 2003
by Angela Wu
This one statement might not mean much -- if anything --
to you until you actually try promoting your business in the
'real world'. I know it didn't mean anything to me; for
years I heard 'experts' repeatedly say that the one thing
online marketers neglected was the offline market.
It wasn't until I opened up a new website where most of the
audience preferred good old postal mail that I had my first
taste of offline marketing. My worst campaign barely broke
even; my best earned me back my costs by a margin of 7-to-1!
It's easy to become comfortable just marketing online; after
all, it's relatively cheap, a big advantage for those just
getting started. Still, it's by no means 'perfect'. Some of
the problems include:
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* Email marketing, one of the most prevalent and
popular ways to market online, is getting harder. With the
vast amounts of spam (unsolicited email) we receive every
day in our email boxes, legitimate email can easily be
overlooked. Many people simply press the 'delete' key if the
email isn't from someone they immediately recognize.
* Anyone can put up a web page. There's no easy way
to differentiate legitimate businesses from the 'scammers',
and there seems to be an huge proliferation of scams online.
* It's difficult to get the *right* people to see
your website. With billions upon billions of web pages, how
do you attract people to your little corner on the web? And
once they're there, how do you keep them? Another website is
just a 'click' away!
These problems make offline marketing much more
attractive!
Offline marketing has many advantages that cyberspace can't
offer. Consider this:
* You are not limited to a web page or online ad. For
instance, you can use texture and taste (ie. product
samples); or enclose stickers in your mailings to help
engage the customer in your message.
* It's something tangible that your prospect can hold
in his hands... and with things like brochures, postcards,
and business cards, although they might initially be tossed
aside, the recipient can 'rediscover' them lying on a
counter, on the fridge, etc -- or he may hand it to someone
else he knows.
* You can reach a whole new segment of the population
that would never see your ads online. Some people don't use
the Internet at all (or rarely)... while some of those who
do, don't necessarily know how to search for specific
information.
* People can more easily focus on your message. For
example, let's say you're stuck in traffic behind some guy
with his URL on his car. There isn't much for you to do or
to look at, so you read his decal.
Similarly, a brightly colored postcard in someone's mailbox
is more likely to stand out (and get read!) than an email
that appears alongside dozens of others, most of which are
spam.
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Granted, offline marketing isn't always cheap when you
consider the cost of paper, envelopes, ink, postage, and
much more that can go into an offline campaign. But not all
offline marketing has to be expensive; for instance, one of
the easiest and most affordable methods I've used is a
simple decal on my car ( I got mine at Web Decals, http://buildyourhomebiz.com/rd/webdecal.html
).
The decal displays my tagline and URL, and every time I
drive, get stuck in traffic, or park at the mall, my
business gets exposure. I keep a few brochures in my glove
compartment to give out to people who ask about my site.
Online marketing is a wonderfully affordable way to reach an
audience. However, a combination of online and offline
marketing can help your business thrive! More ideas on how
to market your business offline can be found in the article,
'A Beginner's Checklist to Promoting an Online Business':
http://onlinebusinessbasics.com/articles/checklist3.html
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Angela is the editor of Online Business Basics, a practical
guide to building an Internet business on a shoestring
budget. If you're tired of hype and just want solid,
down-to-earth information, then visit us now -- and in
moments you can have access to loads of instantly useable
tips, specifically chosen for beginners!
http://onlinebusinessbasics.com/article.html
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