ZipSearch Local Search Connecting People with Local Businesses

Articles
Affordable Traffic-driving Techniques in Internet Advertising
Author David Schneider | Oct 28,2007  |  Print  | Share This
Ideally, Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is free. SEO is a technique that uses keywords to make web sites visible to search engines. The only possible cost of using SEO is that you might want to hire someone who has experience writing SEO web copy.

Many consumers don't know which web pages they should visit to get the goods and services that they need. Instead, they rely on search engines to point them in the right direction. When search engines find your web site, then there's a good chance that consumers will visit your page.

The disadvantage of SEO is that search engines often produce millions of results. Usually only the top ten are shown on the first page of results. Most Internet users don't even bother looking beyond the first page, so they might never see your web site.

Pay-Per-Click Advertising

Pay-per-click advertising can circumvent the disadvantages of SEO. Pay-per-click uses search engines, but they aren't displayed in the results section of the page. They are usually displayed to the right of the results. Pay-per-click has two advantages over SEO. You can decide exactly what words you would like to use in the ad and they don't get lost in the millions of search results. The only problem with pay-per-click advertising is that it can be expensive. As the name suggests, you have to pay for each time someone clicks on the ad. If these clicks turn into purchases, then you will usually increase your profits. If they don't, you could spend a lot of money without reaping the rewards.

Mass Email Advertising

Email can be an efficient way to advertise your products and services to millions of people simultaneously. By keeping the email addresses of your customers and asking them for the email addresses of their friends, you can create a large contact group. The problem with email advertising is that most people use spam filters that can block your emails from ever reaching the recipient. While you might still be able to get through to some of the addresses, when people open their email inboxes, they typically delete anything that doesn't seem important. This could make your work less fruitful than other forms of advertising that require the consumer's active participation. The advantage of email advertising is that it is essentially free. While you might need to hire someone to write the ads, sending emails doesn't cost much money. This means that even if a small percentage of the recipients are motivated by the email ads, you can boost your traffic without spending much money.

Internet Lead Generation

Lead generation tends to work better than email advertising. Many online companies sell leads, so getting leads is easy. The amount of money that you will need to spend on the leads depends on the company that you use and how old the leads are. The advantage of lead generation is that many of the people that you contact are already looking to be customers. For instance, if you are in the home loan business, the leads that you get will mostly be people who are currently looking for a home loan. The disadvantages of using leads are that some of them might be out of date and you will have to compete with all of the other businesses that are using the leads. If you offer better services at lower prices than your competitors do, then online lead generation can really boost your business. However, if consumers find that other companies that use the leads can offer them better deals, then you probably won't see a large increase.

Using Banners and Links

Knowing what web sites your audience goes to can help you target your advertising efforts. Many web sites generate revenue by selling ad space. By contacting the other web sites that your target audience visits, you might be able to purchase ad banner and link space that will direct customers to your own site. Depending on the popularity of the sites that you wish to advertise on, this can be expensive. While the high prices of buying ad space on a popular web site might turn you away, you should also consider that more people will be seeing your ad. You also have the option of advertising on sites that don't have a large audience but is frequented by people that will be interested in your business. This can be an affordable traffic-driving advertising technique. For instance, if you own an online record store, then you might want to consider advertising on small music review sites. This won't cost as much money, but because the people that view the site are music fans, there is a larger chance that they will be interested in buying music from you.

By using a variety of affordable traffic-driving Internet advertising techniques, you can often see a significant increase in business. Not all techniques will be right for your business, though, so you should experiment with different types to see which ones will produce the best results. Ideally, Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is free. SEO is a technique that uses keywords to make web sites visible to search engines. The only possible cost of using SEO is that you might want to hire someone who has experience writing SEO web copy.

Many consumers don't know which web pages they should visit to get the goods and services that they need. Instead, they rely on search engines to point them in the right direction. When search engines find your web site, then there's a good chance that consumers will visit your page.

The disadvantage of SEO is that search engines often produce millions of results. Usually only the top ten are shown on the first page of results. Most Internet users don't even bother looking beyond the first page, so they might never see your web site.

Pay-Per-Click Advertising

Pay-per-click advertising can circumvent the disadvantages of SEO. Pay-per-click uses search engines, but they aren't displayed in the results section of the page. They are usually displayed to the right of the results. Pay-per-click has two advantages over SEO. You can decide exactly what words you would like to use in the ad and they don't get lost in the millions of search results. The only problem with pay-per-click advertising is that it can be expensive. As the name suggests, you have to pay for each time someone clicks on the ad. If these clicks turn into purchases, then you will usually increase your profits. If they don't, you could spend a lot of money without reaping the rewards.

Mass Email Advertising

Email can be an efficient way to advertise your products and services to millions of people simultaneously. By keeping the email addresses of your customers and asking them for the email addresses of their friends, you can create a large contact group. The problem with email advertising is that most people use spam filters that can block your emails from ever reaching the recipient. While you might still be able to get through to some of the addresses, when people open their email inboxes, they typically delete anything that doesn't seem important. This could make your work less fruitful than other forms of advertising that require the consumer's active participation. The advantage of email advertising is that it is essentially free. While you might need to hire someone to write the ads, sending emails doesn't cost much money. This means that even if a small percentage of the recipients are motivated by the email ads, you can boost your traffic without spending much money.

Internet Lead Generation

Lead generation tends to work better than email advertising. Many online companies sell leads, so getting leads is easy. The amount of money that you will need to spend on the leads depends on the company that you use and how old the leads are. The advantage of lead generation is that many of the people that you contact are already looking to be customers. For instance, if you are in the home loan business, the leads that you get will mostly be people who are currently looking for a home loan. The disadvantages of using leads are that some of them might be out of date and you will have to compete with all of the other businesses that are using the leads. If you offer better services at lower prices than your competitors do, then online lead generation can really boost your business. However, if consumers find that other companies that use the leads can offer them better deals, then you probably won't see a large increase.

Using Banners and Links

Knowing what web sites your audience goes to can help you target your advertising efforts. Many web sites generate revenue by selling ad space. By contacting the other web sites that your target audience visits, you might be able to purchase ad banner and link space that will direct customers to your own site. Depending on the popularity of the sites that you wish to advertise on, this can be expensive. While the high prices of buying ad space on a popular web site might turn you away, you should also consider that more people will be seeing your ad. You also have the option of advertising on sites that don't have a large audience but is frequented by people that will be interested in your business. This can be an affordable traffic-driving advertising technique. For instance, if you own an online record store, then you might want to consider advertising on small music review sites. This won't cost as much money, but because the people that view the site are music fans, there is a larger chance that they will be interested in buying music from you.

By using a variety of affordable traffic-driving Internet advertising techniques, you can often see a significant increase in business. Not all techniques will be right for your business, though, so you should experiment with different types to see which ones will produce the best results.
 
RSS Feed subscribe
  Check Up To The Minute Lead Availability. Call 866.464.6259  
High closing Leads sent to you in real-time. Start your campaign immediately.
Full Name:
Company:
Email:
Phone:
Type of Business:
 



Lead Generation | How We Work | Our Technology | Get Started | Blog | Press | Contact Us
Client Login | Our Partners | Articles | Publishers | Privacy | Careers | Site Map

LoanLinksPlanetLoanLoanAtlasMoneySearchAmericanLoanSearch

© 2007 ZipSearch®
All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed
without express written permission.