- Search Engine Marketing (SEM/SEO) is the core of Interactive Advertising
- Wireless Internet and Social Media Advertising expected to grow rapidly and double in size.

Most resources from major market research institutions have a common belief in that the Interactive Marketing market will continuously grow in size. According to Information Technology market research firm Forrester Research, it is predicted that online advertising market within the U.S is expected to grow by an average of 16%. In addition, by year 2014, the market is expected to grow into a massive market worth more than $55 billion.

In addition, Forrester Research said “as online advertising budget continues to increase for marketers, the advertising market share is expected to grow from 12% in 2009 to more than 21% by year 2014. From a wide variety of interactive ads, it is predicted that search engine optimization (SEO) is expected to occupy more than 50% of online promotions and has also become the most basic and essential form of online advertising. As social networking websites where people are able to express their ideas and exchange information with others continue to grow in popularity, marketers are now promoting their products on these websites. In addition, online advertising and promotion on social networking sites is expected to grow by an average of 34% for the next 5 years. In addition, since most people are carrying around and using their cell phones, wireless Internet advertising via mobile phone is growing rapidly.

According to New York-based marketing research firm eMarketer, it was shown that the key measures of online promotion in the United Kingdom were also search engine optimization, search engine advertising, and search engine marketing. Although advertising methods are similar to the U.S, the biggest difference can be seen in that email marketing continues to increase steadily.

WEVIO’s CEO Calvin Yi said “Although new types of social networking websites are continuously being developed, it is predicted that the power of search engines will continue to increase” and “instead of choosing and comparing various advertising mediums, it is important to first consider search engines as an essential part of promotion.

Today I attended the final day of NYC Entrepreneur week.  The opening speaker, Peter Shankman, spoke about the different methods we use to communicate in today’s fast moving world.  Whether it is Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, etc., people all around the world are following others actions using technology.  In the 21st century, we rely on social networking sites to keep track of our friends and family as well as our business contacts.  As the internet grows and more and more businesses are going online, it’s not a shock to see links to our favorite spots spring up on these social networks.  What a great form of free advertising for the business behind the links.  And, for these businesses, there is no better sales person than the potential customer’s friend.  We are more apt to listen to the advice of a friend about how good or bad something is.  For example, the movie critics could give a movie 4 stars and call it the best film of 2009. But, if your friend says it stunk you’re likely going to listen to your friend and skip the film.

For a business, not having a website is no longer an option.  With more and more people communicating through social networking and consulting with Google before leaving the house, companies that do not have an online presence are going to consistently fall two or three steps behind those that do.  Especially now in a rough economy, it is important to cater advertising funds to an area where it is going to receive the most exposure.  Where is there more exposure than online?

While dealing with small to mid-sized businesses, we get a lot of questions like: “I know search engine optimization works, but will it work for me?” The truth is, search engines optimization actually benefits small businesses more than large corporations. Large corporation are already branded and known so most users are not out there searching for them. Smaller stores are like diamonds in the rough, and search engines can help customers find them.

In order to attract customers as a small online store, a slightly different method should be used:

• Find out what specific advantage you have over larger companies
• Figure out who would appreciate it
• Optimize your site accordingly

Here is an example:

Joe owns a small online shop, JoesPetBoutique.com, which sells unique and trendy fashion items for dogs. His inventory is filled with cool dog apparels from Spiderman t-shirts to NFL jerseys as well as some more formal-wears like sweaters and jackets. When Joe opens up his online shop, he automatically assumes that his customers will be searching on Google for the keyword phrase “dog clothes” or “dog apparel.” After months of adding the word “dog clothes” and “dog apparel” throughout his site, he finds out he just cannot compete with larger websites like TerrificPets.com or PetSmart.com in terms of search ranking. Joe realizes that he is doing something wrong and he tries to figure out what he can do to benefit from search engines. (more…)

Most small to mid-sized business websites are built by web developers and web designers with little or no understanding of the commercial needs of your business. You can’t blame them because their expertise is in creative and technical services, not in your business.

There is a simple and fundamental process to consider when it comes to having a successful website:

1. Define the goal of your website. Make it clear and measurable.
2. Find your competitive advantage
3. Create a user-friendly website that will engage your visitors to take action
4. Measure the success of your goal and optimize your website

Here is a good example:

XYZ Candles sells candles that last 25% longer than any other candles in the market. They have a website with lots of information, but it doesn’t really seem to bring in a lot of customers. Here is what they did to turn this around: (more…)