The New Rules of Marketing and PR: How to Use News Releases, Blogs, Podcasting, Viral Marketing, & Online Media to Reach Buyers Directly

Chapter 13. How Web Content Influences the Buying Process

Today when people want to buy something, the Web is almost always the first stop on their shopping trip. In any market category, potential customers head online to do initial research. The moment of truth is when they reach your site: Will you draw them into your sales process or let them click away?

When prospects use search engines and directories to reach your site, link to it through another site, or respond to a marketing campaign, you have an opportunity to deliver a targeted message at the precise moment when they are looking for what you have to offer. Yet marketers often fail to realize the potential of their Web sites, which must hook buyers in from the start and hang on to them until the sale is complete. Individuals don't go to the Web looking for advertising; they are on a quest for content. By providing information when they need it, you can begin a long and profitable relationship with them. Editors and publishers obsess over readership, and so should you.

In this chapter, we're going to build on some of the ideas and concepts that I've already introduced in the book. In Chapter 3 we talked about reaching buyers directly with your organization's online content, and Chapter 10 was when we put together a detailed plan to identify buyer personas and target each one with an individualized approach. Remember, great Web content is about your buyers, not about you. Now I'll provide some ideas for how you can make a ...