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Going
Beyond Banner Advertising
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by:
R.M. Blackledge
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Going
Beyond Banner Advertising
R.M. Blackledge
©Copyright 2005
A major stumbling block for many internet marketing newbies is the
false belief that the
placement of a banner ad on a web page is all that's required to
immediately start making a few sales. This is a false premise.
There are a couple of key principles of internet marketing that can
prevent any newbie from
falling into this enticing trap.
No. 1) Choose A Relevant Affiliate Program
Let's hope at least that as a newbie you have chosen an affiliate
program to promote that has
relevance to your online interests. As an example, if you have placed a
website online that
discusses the care of young infants, it is certainly easy enough to
find affiliate programs that
deal with infant health, nutrition, clothing, or even security, such as
baby monitors.
The affiliate program doesn't have to exactly match your website
content, but it should be very closely related. If your site is about
infants why on earth would you
want to promote rock videos?
Only perhaps, if you think your own child is a future musical prodigy.
Yet, many first-time internet entrepreneurs make just such a mistake.
Even an affiliate program that deals with teens or preschoolers is not
close enough, because the
people coming to your site, presumably are not seeking information
about those subjects.
Tiny infants are not preschoolers.
Of course you might make a sale or two, by virtue of blind luck, but
that is not the way to run an internet business.
You want at all times to be lean and focused. Don't waste effort
promoting anything that is going to be a hard sell. Your effort is best
spent elsewhere.
No. 2 ) Write Informative Articles and Testimonials
Using the same example above, let us propose that you have wisely
chosen an affiliate program that relates to young infants. Now what?
You've had your banners up for
a month or two, and you just aren't making many sales. This despite the
fact that your site
receives a reasonable amount of traffic.
One of the problems you've unwittingly created for yourself, is that
banner ads are too easily
ignored. They are like background music. Each hour online, anyone who
surfs the web is going to be bombarded with banner ads, such that they
become invisible. And it
doesn't matter even if the banner ads are of excellent quality.
They are still banner ads.
Text-based ads are a much more effective advertising method, although
at first glance it would seem exactly the opposite.
But, let's look at this idea more closely.
Banner ads say out loud that you're attempting to sell something. One
of the major precepts of internet marketing is that people DO
NOT WANT TO BE SOLD. People are
online to gather knowledge. Even if they are online as a time for
recreation and
pleasure, they are still interested in learning.
Human beings are innately curious. This is a plus for you, as you
attempt to make a sale.
Here's how.
One way to introduce text-ads into your web site is to write articles.
Or to write a review of the
very product that you're trying to sell. { you aren't trying to market
something you haven't
purchased yourself, are you? }
Testimonials are an extremely effective advertising device. That's why
so many web merchants place testimonials on their site, and frequently
on the very first page
of the site, where the testimonials are most likely to be viewed.
Also, testimonials are a form of "aggressive" advertising, that doesn't
look aggressive at all. This is because testimonials deliver valuable
information to the consumer.
Thus, the consumer is more likely to make a purchase because they never
form the negative
impressive in their mind, that they are being SOLD something.
A person who is feeling negative is much less likely to decide to make
a purchase.
~~~~~~
One final point before we conclude this article. Banner ads are not
going to disappear. They can still serve a useful purpose. Sometimes a
banner ad or two, can help
dress-up a drab,
uninspired-looking site. You don't want your website to resemble a
plain white term paper.
A little sizzle is okay. But, NEVER let banner ads be your main
advertising method.
Also, if every other affiliate is using the same banner ads, then the
impactof the ads on your site will be further lessened. The key to
online marketing success is to be
unique. Online, as opposed to the offline world, uniqueness is an
endearing trait.
Don't plaster those same ads all over your pages everyone else in your
marketing niche is using.
Write your own articles. The customer will become comfortable that you
know what you are
talking about. This gives them a reason to return. { a key factor as
people rarely make a purchase the first time they ever visit a website.
}
Stay on your toes, don't become complacent, and never miss an
opportunity to improve the content, relevance, and usefulness of your
site. If you have a thought or an
idea about something. Then place it online. You're always more likely
to receive a click-through
from a well-written informative article than from some flashy banner
ad. Give the customer
more of what they want, without trying to sell them.
That is the simple key to increasing the overall marketing
effectiveness of your website.
R.M.B.
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Resource Box:
R.M. Blackledge is the owner of TheWorkAtHomeBlog.Com.
Additional articles and important, up-to-date home business
news and information is available almost daily at the following url:
http://theworkathomeblog.com/index.html
contact: http://theworkathomeblog.com/contact.html
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
About the Author
R.M. Blackledge is the owner of
TheWorkAtHomeBlog.Com and is the publisher of numerous business and
self-help articles.
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