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View Full Version : The biggest questions you face when creating Internet marketing materials?



Bnonn
07-23-2010, 07:06 PM
Hi everyone. I'm thinking of writing an info product on internet marketing for SBOs (my specialty is direct response copywriting). I'm pretty certain there's a market for such products, but I want to be sure I answer the right questions. So:

What are the biggest problems you face when creating Internet marketing materials. What are the top questions you'd ask if you had an expert standing over your shoulder? What are the major issues you'd want him to help you tackle?

Thanks in advance!

PS. I'll be giving away free copies of this product to everyone who's helped me with feedback, so don't be shy!

vangogh
07-26-2010, 04:34 PM
Hey Bnonn. I don't think I'm your target market since the issues you're asking about aren't really problems for me. However I thought I'd offer some thoughts in part to make sure this thread moves up to the top of the new post list so others can see it. Sometimes activity here isn't much over the weekend and I didn't want to see your questions fall through the crack.

I'm guessing a bit, but I would think what people would most need help with is writing the copy in a way that helps convince people to buy or take whatever action they want people to take. Oddly as important as copy is, so many people don't seem to think they need help writing it. Everyone can write, though not everyone can write well.

Another issue might be discover where to place the marketing materials and how to specifically create those materials for the specific place. The design and formatting of the materials could also be another potential issue.

What I see with a lot of people is they might try sending out something as part of a marketing campaign and then see very limited or even no measurable results. After that the conclusion seems to be the marketing won't work for their business. Maybe some thoughts on how to run a real campaign as opposed to sending a single piece of marketing material with explanations about what each part of the campaign is meant to accomplish in the overall goal of generating a sale.

Hopefully more people will see this now and chime in with better responses.

Bnonn
07-26-2010, 06:26 PM
Howdy vangogh; thanks very much. Hopefully others will put their oars in soon (:

nealrm
07-26-2010, 09:45 PM
To what Vangogh said I will add - Getting people to see it in the first place. Really internet marketing has two front. First you need to get the message infront on the right custmer and then have something good for them to read.

Patrysha
07-27-2010, 12:02 AM
And then you leverage that initial traffic and great content and work on generating word of mouth...

The small business owners I work with are half terrifed of computers and really have no interest in going beyond the basics, so they wouldn't be creating info products. As for myself, I've learned and worked for some of the best in the world in terms of marketing and info-products...I just find it harder to apply than any of the pros make it look...but I know they didn't get where they are overnight either...

vangogh
07-27-2010, 12:15 AM
To add to what Patrysha said I've seen the same thing. Many of my clients are usually not those that would want to create their own marketing content and if they did it's likely because they aren't willing or able to spend money to hire someone. Is it possible that a better market for you info product would be the people the typical small business owner would hire to create their marketing content.

Take me for example. I don't specifically offer the creation of marketing materials (other than a website) as a service, but it's an easy fit for my business. I do offer limited seo services for example, including content creation. If I were to hire a couple of people as part of growing my business someone to design marketing materials and write the copy for them are likely choice. Maybe someone like me and the people I hire would make for a better market for your product. Just a thought.

KristineS
07-27-2010, 03:10 PM
I know the one thing I would avoid is making Internet marketing sound easy. So many people start talking about having a Twitter or Facebook account or even a website as though simply having one is enough to create clients and business. No one ever spells out the fact that it takes work and time. Another item that rarely gets mentioned is the fact that there is more than one way to be successful online and that the business owner may have to experiment a bit to find the way that works best with their customers and their business.

seolman
07-27-2010, 04:32 PM
Some great advice here - just my 2 cents about "web marketing".

I remember a couple years ago I read an article indicating 1-800-flowers.com (a business that is 100 percent web based) shifted about $40M to print ads because people were becoming "ad blind" on the web. I think most would agree there is a lot of competition on the web for eyeball time. I just wanted to mention "web marketing" may include a mix of web based and non-web-based components such as email, blogging, social marketing, web based ads or even radio, TV and printed publications to name but a few. I am reminded of LegalZoom.com - a site that used TV to build web traffic. If you have a catchy or easy to remember web site name it may be possible to use radio, TV and of course printed media to get traffic up.

Bnonn
07-27-2010, 10:26 PM
Hey guys, thanks for your great feedback. Keep it coming.

Just to clarify: I'm targeting online entrepreneurs and small business owners. People who are relatively comfortable with the idea of having a website, who want to improve their website (and associated online material), but who haven't currently got the budget to hire someone for that.

vangogh
07-27-2010, 10:44 PM
Are you thinking this would be more of a general basic guide or more a step-by-step kind of thing? Just curious as to the approach.

KristineS
07-28-2010, 12:55 PM
Hey guys, thanks for your great feedback. Keep it coming.

Just to clarify: I'm targeting online entrepreneurs and small business owners. People who are relatively comfortable with the idea of having a website, who want to improve their website (and associated online material), but who haven't currently got the budget to hire someone for that.

So you're talking more whitepapers and things? Or is it more SEO?

Bnonn
07-28-2010, 11:15 PM
The approach I'm thinking of taking is to produce a kind of "everything you really have to know, and nothing you don't" guide to writing web copy. Basically guiding an untutored reader through the general architecture of a piece of copy, the simplest techniques to use that are still effective, etc. I'm not looking to create something very complicated to read and understand; nor something that goes into advanced techniques. And I would be up front in saying that it will not help you produce great copy—but it will help you produce good copy that should sell well. I'd like it to be something that a reader could get through in a fairly short amount of time, and refer back to when needed. So key principles, templates, and practical examples would be a big thing (and I'll be including a couple of free reports which include headline templates, "power words" and so on).

Harold Mansfield
07-29-2010, 10:27 AM
Internet Entrepreneurs and Small Business owners are 2 different kinds of people. I deal with mostly small business owners and only about 10 percent have any interest, or time in taking things further than just putting up a website, no matter how many different directions they hear from otherwise. Personally my problems don't stem from a lack of knowledge, but more a lack of time.

When you say "Internet Marketing Materials" I assume you mean the website, articles, and professional and social media profiles.

In my opinion, information geared to Small Business Owners about SEO, SEM, and other forms of marketing and advertising online will fall on deaf ears because it's not that there is a lack of information out there, they just don't care or have the time. Only Business owners who rely or intend to rely on the internet solely for lead generation will pay any attention and they usually know the basics already.

If you gear it towards new internet entrepreneurs, you will likely not sell many because noobs don't want to pay for anything.

So...in my opinion...if you are going to target Small Business Owners, tackle the subjects that won't put them to sleep.

*Properly structuring the information on their website
*Creating online profiles that attract clients
*Facebook, Twitter, Linked IN and how to use them
*Fresh content, where to put it,and how to use it.


Things like that. Things that they have heard of and are more likely to spend time on....because if you start talking SEO to people who don't spend all day in the web...they will be asleep by the second paragraph. They just aren't going to do it until the situation is critical and then it's too late anyway.
In order to sell it to them, you have to make them see the importance of it and I wish you luck, web consultant have been trying to do that for years and the average small business is just not listening.

This is what I would do for the first product and if that goes well, then you have a doorway for more advanced stuff on the next one.
And even then, you have to package it into bite sized morsels. Again, you can't give them everything at once. You have to give them individual projects to work on one at a time.

Lyrafire
07-29-2010, 03:59 PM
Bnonn--one thing you have going for you is that your copy is amusing. I just looked at your website. It made me smile! I also think that what you're proposing could surely be a useful tool, but as a way of building your business, it will have to be one part of a bigger campaign, but I'm sure you know that.

As for me, I'm part educator as well as writer, so I think that giving readers more copy than they need may be a problem for me. I always want to teach. On the web, I already know that people respond to well-written helpful content. But as marketing materials go, how much is too much? Not sure if that helps you.

Bnonn
07-30-2010, 01:18 AM
Only Business owners who rely or intend to rely on the internet solely for lead generation will pay any attention and they usually know the basics already.
This is the market I'm thinking of, actually. The impression I've got is that a lot of these sorts of people either think they know the basics when they don't, or are looking for good guides to the principles they're trying to use, so they can be sure they're doing it right.

What I'm going to be doing to test the waters is create a number of very short videos, each focusing on a single point. The reaction I get to these should help me to gage the kind of response I should expect from a more systemized version of that information.

Harold Mansfield
07-30-2010, 09:02 AM
This is the market I'm thinking of, actually. The impression I've got is that a lot of these sorts of people either think they know the basics when they don't, or are looking for good guides to the principles they're trying to use, so they can be sure they're doing it right.

What I'm going to be doing to test the waters is create a number of very short videos, each focusing on a single point. The reaction I get to these should help me to gage the kind of response I should expect from a more systemized version of that information.

I guess there is probably some truth to that now that I think about it. A friend of mine just came to mind that recently started a business and is/was hoping to generate sales online, but has/had no idea what that entails so they are struggling. The curious part is that they won't ask me for help to avoid some of the mistakes that they are currently making and I don't see them as the type to order any informational materials..so how would you market to them? They would be more inclined to watch a video or two though.

It's a big undertaking. A question was asked recently "what would you recommend to someone who is just starting out" ? And I drew a blank. I have no idea how to talk to people that don't know anything, don't use the web, and barely use email. To me that would be like trying to teach someone how to read.
So where would you start?

I was talking to a call in the other day, a person that had a Wordpress site installed last year and was left hanging by their provider and now needs some stuff... I started to explain something with "Log in to your dashboard and go to..." and they stopped me with "What's the dashboard and how do I log into it?" Whoa!

I guess that's why you are embarking on this..you obviously have a plan and vision to get those people to listen. Which brings up another market..people like me that need to recommend materials to clients that want to learn or need to learn more.

vangogh
08-02-2010, 12:25 AM
people either think they know the basics when they don't

Keep in mind if some people think they already know the basics they aren't going to see your product as something they need. They might not make for the best customers, since you'll need to convince them they don't know as much as they think they do. You might be better focusing on the people who are looking for guides and more info. You can create a blog with a DIY feel for the people who think they know already. Bring them in by offering free tips. As they read many will likely realize they don't know as much as they thought and become interested in buying.