I asked them to examine their client project and answer these six questions each cascading from the previous:
- define your online presence and channels
- describe the objectives to be met via each channel
- describe the content types required to meet those objectives
- determine the source(s) of that content and plan for its sustained publication
- define the website structure with a focus on its integration with all your online channels
- define your SEO and include an Adwords campaign
Once upon a time the Internet channel was a website -- a one size fits all solution. No longer; now you can combine a variety of channels and you'll need to choose a combination right for your audience. Marketing a service to women 34-55? You'd better include Facebook.
Go to your audience don't wait for them to find you. Achieving this goal means finding out what Internet channels your audience uses and then combining them to achieve your goals. This can include websites, social media, mobile apps and so on.
2) Channel Objectives
Again, knowing your audience will help you make decisions here. If you're selling products you may decide to use Twitter to provide customer service, but your objective is that they'll click through to your site or mobile storefront app and make a purchase. Be clear why you're using a channel and what outcome you expect from it. That could easily mean a different call to action in each channel.
3) What Content is needed?
Now, you've determined the results you wish to achieve you can work out what you need to say and how you'll say it. Your Youtube channel might focus on product demos and information and feed people to your website to chat to a service rep. Different content and goals in your channels, but all leading to your ultimate call to action. Be clear what these will be and you'll save time and money and be more effective working with your clients.
4) Budget & planning content creation
What content have you decided you need to produce or acquire? Podcasts, whitepapers, articles, bloggng, news feeds, photography, charts? It won't fall from the sky. Aligning your content needs to your objectives will answer that question for you. Equally important, you need to budget for this work and see that it gets done in a timely fashion. Someone has to write that twice weekly blog: set aside the time, or assign someone as appropriate to your situation.
5) Your website is a hub of activity, not a static lump of pages
Your website is still a tremendous resource for static content and as a hub pulling together your other channels and pushing content back out to them. Organize your site to support these goals. For many organizations this might mean abandoning the traditional "our site mirrors our organization chart" approach and replace it with a viewer-centric approach to presenting content.
6) Gain position on Google
Our goal here isn't only to attract people who already know your brand name, but especially those who do not. A big part of this objective is a recommendation to use AdWords as well as optimizing your site for search engines. SEO is important; adding Adwords to the mix will amplify its effect. Even with a Pagerank in flux you can still buy position in front of your audience. Paul Downs tells you why: My Grand Experiment: Turning Off AdWords and Debating the Use of Google AdWords
Summing up: The process is a series of standard marketing 101 questions: who are my audience; what do I want to say to them; what action do I want them to take? Answer those questions first and the content you need and where you need to place it will shake out for you. All of this takes time and long-term effort -- yes, they were fibbing when you overheard people say, "Internet marketing is practically free."
