As a business owner, you most likely do not have the time to learn how to create websites, write and understand computer code, optimize your website for the search engines, get involved in social networking (MySpace, Facebook, etc.), utilize article marketing, set up a Pay Per Click campaign or do anything related to internet marketing! This stuff can be completely confusing, like Chinese to you, but it still needs to be done. It really can’t be ignored.

If you want your business to thrive in modern times, it is crucial that you look into getting an individual or a company to handle your internet marketing campaign, or at very least give you a consultation on as to what you need to do to get more exposure on the internet. It will not only make a substantial difference in your profits, but it will secure the future of your business.

One of the best ways I have found to automate your marketing is through the use of auto-responders. An auto-responder is a system that automatically sends out “preset email messages and promotions” to your client list who has bought from you in the past, current customers, or opted in to your email list to get something for FREE.

These emails can be text based in nature or short little videos which ad more of an entertainment experience.

Just imagine pre-typing a well thought out email campaign (specifically for your customers) that was designed to educate and give back to your customers by giving them “special subscriber discounts”.  One of the many questions I get asked is….”Tony…do you mean to tell me I can “pre-program” my promotions and communications (to my customers) over a year in advance….and its all on autopilot?

To be honest…this is one of the true joys I personally get in consulting when I see my client’s eyes light up like Christmas Trees when they picture how they can implement this marketing strategy in their business. The next question is usually “Tony, can I implement this in my business”.  I always respond with an astounding “yes”… just let me know and when you want to get started.

If you’re doubting the legitimacy of email marketing’s current and future power, let me share some cutting-edge marketing stats that some research firms have found:

1. “More than one-third said they checked throughout the day.” - AOL/Beta Research Corporation (June 2008)
2. “More than seven out of 10 employed respondents also said they checked their personal email at work – and nearly one-third said they did so more than three times a day. - AOL/Beta Research Corp.(June 2008)
3. “Nearly 70% of respondents said they had multiple email accounts. – AOL/Beta Research Corporation(June 2008)
4. “75.8% said they are using more email than three years ago.” – Direct Marketing Association (2008)
5. “66% of those surveyed said they had made a purchase because of a marketing message received through email.” – ExactTarget, 2008 Channel Preference Survey (2008)
6. “ 2/3’s of US Internet users surveyed said email was their preferred channel for written communications between friends. – ExactTarget, 2008 Channel Preference Survey (2008)
7. “67% of respondents prefer email as a communications channel over other online vehicles and 65 percent believe this will continue to be the case in five years. “- Habeas (2008)

Can you start to see how you can gain an advantage against your completion? Do you think they even know this technology is even available…not unless they meet someone like me of course.

Can you see how this technology can make your business a lot of money by sending them promotions all on auto-pilot?

However, just like a diet program, you can exercise all you want but if you don’t have the right diet to go along with the exercise— losing weight is extremely difficult. Making money with your marketing is no different…. you need a right balance between Offline & Online Marketing — otherwise you will plateau with your business profits. In when I was in the real estate industry. Most of your good real estate guru’s have a great balance between selling their programs offline (in seminars) as well as online (in teleseminars and website shopping carts).

In case you didn’t know, online marketing purchase behavior is continuing to increase at a rapid rate around the world. Here are some startling statistics by some major research companies:

Nearly half (49%) of shoppers intend to do their holiday gift buying online (versus in-store), and 72% are planning to research products online prior to purchasing (vs. 65% in 2007). (“Mindset of the Multi-Channel Shopper Holiday Survey,” e-tailing group, October 2008).

According to eBit, for this year, it is expected that Brazilian online consumers will spend about BRL 8.5 billion (US $5.9 billion). The numbers focus only on B2C (Business-to-Consuner).

Online marketing research firm comScore just released new numbers that reveal U.S. online spending during the 2007 holiday season (Nov. and Dec.) exceeded $29 billion, a 19.1 percent increase over 2006’s holiday sales (1/10/08).

Overall, eCommerce sales in Asia will grow at about a 23.4 percent annual rate, reaching over $168 billion in less than three years from now, according to eMarketer (1/16/08).

Are you starting to get just a “glimpse” of the future of the internet? Do you think your competition maybe strategizing how to strategically get some of your local clients to come to their establishment instead of yours? And in my opinion most local small business owners haven’t even begun to tap into the wealth of marketing their business online.

That as a foundation, I’ve also witnessed this behavioral pattern in a lot of my small business owner clientele.  They get into trouble “doing” the wrong marketing activities.  Specifically, marketing activities that were programmed into them since birth.  Most people think…well we need to market the business so let’s put $1,000 per month into Radio, Yellow Pages, or Newspaper Advertising (like most do) and they see if it generates any results.  Now don’t get me wrong, I’m all for testing to see if different marketing may work.  However, the majority of business owners (I run into) follow the pattern of just seeing what marketing sticks in traditional popular marketing channels.  But that sad thing that I see is this type of business owner does not have any concrete basis (or statistics) for it.  If you want to “do” the right marketing activities the right way, you must start with a good marketing plan.

Definition of a marketing plan is as follows:

A marketing plan is a written document that is an organized set of activities that is designed to promote your product, service and/or company.  A marketing plan is designed to increase customers and company profits and usually “planned out” between one and five years in the future.

CAUTION ALERT: Solid marketing strategy is “the foundation” of a well-written marketing plan.

While a marketing plan contains a list of actions, a marketing plan ( without a sound strategic foundation) is of very little use to businesses.

Elements of a good marketing plan

Wisdom: “focus your efforts on a few BIG things”

1. Conduct quality research as the foundation to build your marketing plan
2. Business & Marketing Mission Statements (they should be different but connected)
3. Determine specific goals and time frames to reach these goals
4. Determine what your effective “marketing channels” are
5. Determine your marketing budget (do steps 1-3 first)
6. Delegate responsibility to carry out each segment of your plan
7. Measure the effectiveness of your marketing campaign and re-valuate