Effective online advertising is similar to other types of advertising in many ways: the advertiser will need to identify a target market, draw up a budget, research various options for advertising, and monitor measurable results from the campaign. Unlike other more traditional advertising routes, however, effective online advertising must also cater to Internet-specific users and platforms. A company can, for example, draw in new customers and retain past customers by maintaining a blog regularly; the company can offer discounts and promotions through the blog, and allow users to comment on the business and its performance.
A well-designed website is perhaps the most important component of effective online advertising. Banner ads and other advertising techniques may go to waste if the person surfing the Internet has nowhere to go to get more information about a company or product. The website should include relevant information only, and it should give visitors a reason to keep coming back to the site. A blog is a good way to accomplish this, as are regularly scheduled coupon offers and other deals. The website is the business's virtual storefront, and it should be eye-catching and useful. If done correctly, the website will be one of the most effective online advertising tools available.
Monitoring the results of ads and blog posts is an important part of effective online advertising as well. The business or company should not be afraid to change tactics if the current strategies are not working; analytics programs will help the business owner monitor which ads are directing the most traffic to the website, and positive or negative feedback on blogs and forums can give the business owner an idea of what products and services are valued and which are not. Involving customers in the process of evolving the business is always a good idea, and such a technique gives a customer a reason to keep visiting the website.
Of course, the website will not do the business any good if no one knows about it. Webmasters should take advantage of search engine optimization (SEO) techniques that will help search engines find the page and recommend it to Internet users. This is not a complicated process, but it will take some patience; the blog posters and anyone else involved with the set-up and regular use of the website will need to monitor keywords and other website objects that are being searched for by Internet users. When these keywords are present on the website, an Internet user is more likely to land on the page.
