Online advertising expert Thomas Harpointner explains to bMighty why smaller businesses can no longer afford to ignore the Internet when developing their marketing campaigns
More and more businesses are banking on online advertising to generate interest -- and revenue. Smaller businesses can no longer afford to ignore this cheap, easy, and very effective way to connect with their customers, drum up business, and develop their brand. But how should smaller business go about moving their advertising online? Should they ignore traditional advertising? How important is their Web site to their business? If they have limited resources, what aspect of online advertising should they focus on? To answer these and other questions, bMighty spoke to online advertising expert, Thomas Harpointner, CEO of AIS Media, an e-business marketing firm. Harpointner covered everything a smaller business needs to know from why smaller businesses should be developing an online advertising strategy to when they should do it to the most effective ways to go about it.
bMighty: Will online advertising replace traditional advertising?
Thomas Harpointner: Print is not going away soon. The Internet doesn't represent the end of traditional advertising -- it will make traditional advertising more effective. The Internet provides immediate feedback. A [smaller business can] use the Internet to generate sales leads. E-mail marketing is a great way to test ad campaigns -- and it's less money than postal campaigns. [A smaller business] can try two different headlines with the e-mail and can see how many were sent and clicked on. With postal [campaigns], you can't know if the [mailings] were read or thrown away. With e-mail campaigns, if people clicked on it and went to the Web site, it's a good indication.
Some of the best marketers are using multichannel campaigns. For example, Motorola sent an e-mail blast to remind customers it was the last day to receive free shipping. I wouldn't be surprised if postal mail campaigns backed that up to maximize response. The costs that lie in production and postal campaigns can be repurposed for e-mail. Historically, online advertising can be responsive and more intuitive. But many people do research online and go to stores [to buy]. Multichannel marketers sell products on Web sites and in stores. They give the customers options. Those marketers have the greatest potential. They see the Internet and traditional marketing as a collaborative effort. TV didn't kill radio; the Internet didn't kill TV. We are rediscovering all the new revenues it generates.
bMighty: What should small and midsize businesses know about online advertising? Why should they consider it now?
Harpointner: In 2008-2009, we'll see more companies get into online advertising. [Online advertising] is easier for smaller companies. They can do things more quickly. I see smaller companies using e-mail to test different prices. They do e-mail campaigns to blast best prices and they can see what works and what doesn't.
Smaller companies have to be more efficient. They're moving online because they can't afford not to. It's less than a cent per e-mail -- they can't afford to do postal [campaigns]. According to the Direct Marketing Association, e-mail marketing delivered $51.45 ROI for every $1 spent. It's an amazing return on investment. Of course, some will do better, some will do worse. Catalogs historically average ROI of $7.20 per $100 spent. From a financial standpoint, if a [smaller company] has to choose one or the other, they will choose e-mail.
If [smaller businesses] are not running an e-mail newsletter, they're behind the times. When people think of e-mail marketing, they think of spam, which is not good, but permission-based e-mail -- signing up for newsletters, alerts -- encourage people to subscribe to their content. When they subscribe, they are clearly more interested. We encourage businesses to incorporate that into their model. An e-mail newsletter is a great way to encourage potential clients and get new clients. You can give out news, tips- and strategies. Also, e-mail can be forwarded.
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