Web site promotion

If a web site owner wants visitors to their site so that they can avail themselves of the products or services on offer. They need to let potential visitors know that the site is available and what it has to offer. SEO is only part of the story, the following article will provide a number of possible promotion options which will help generate traffic to the site and thereby increase the opportunity to sell to visitors.

With the number of sites potential customers can find with products or services that can meet their needs increasing, it is important for a web site owner to undertake suitable promotional activity to get their site noticed above the all the noise.

A site should have suitable Search Engine Optimisation (including search engine submission and directory listings) applied and this should be addressed with your web site developer. However don't only rely on this alone - it won't work by it's self.

To promote your site and hence your product and services, you need a suitable marketing plan and budget. Make sure you develop a plan and associated goals and budget.

Use simple promotion techniques such as:

• Domain names on stationary, flyers, brochures and company vehicles.
• Signatures on emails.
• Use an email address with business domain name - not an ISP address. It looks a lot more professional.
• Word of mouth, - your best referral, friends, family, business associates, clients are all worth their weight in marketing budget if they can spread the word. Even better if they like your product.
• Link exchanges with suitable associates.

Now ensure your plan includes:

• Suitable "targeted" advertising, just as you would do you normal product and service advertising, but ensure all adverting includes reference to your web site. Consider all media such as:

• Radio
• TV
• Magazines
• Classified ads
• Newspaper
• Internet - e.g.Google Adwords

• Yellow pages advertising - if using the yellow pages ensure your web site is linked. Note the yellow pages advertising is biased i.e. it does favor those with bigger budgets.

• Other directories, such as local directories, UBD , on line (free and paid) e.g. "Finda".

• PR or advertorial, great if you can get some positive PR. Also if any opportunity for a advertorial occurs - grab it, otherwise make you opportunity by contacting and submitting to various media outlets.

• Tradeshows / events, if appropriate and budget able consider these and build it into you marketing plan.

• Charity / events, often opportunities occur which allow you to support / sponsor a charitable event or organisation without major costings (see Northcote junior rugby on this site).

• Promote via suitable forums, where you can positively add to the discussion don't be afraid to do so but be careful to not just advertise.

• Consider Newsletters or enewsletters, however don't set an expectation which you can not deliver, most people don't like signing up and then not getting anything.

• Try seeding sales via Trademe auction site. Simply sell some items on trademe to build a list of repeat customers.

Where ever you spend money advertising or promoting your site, try to ensure you measure it's success. Watch you site activity and compare trends to see if site activity corresponds with promotional activity. If you attend fields and have a stand there, check to see if there was an increase of traffic to your site and did this reflect in sales of your product or service?