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Marketing Planning - 3 Tips for a Ripe Market Mix

Guest post by: Domenic Manganelli

Article Overview: Whether you are an experienced ecommerce merchant or a newcomer to online selling, a bit of marketing planning can better help you promote your home based business. Take time to form a marketing strategy that will get customers interacting with your brand. Here are three tips to help you develop a ripe market mix

Marketing Planning - 3 Tips for a Ripe Market Mix

Whether you are an experienced ecommerce merchant or a newcomer to online selling, a bit of marketing planning can better help you promote your home based business. Take time to form a marketing strategy that will get customers interacting with your brand. Here are three tips to help you develop a ripe market mix:

Energize Your Website

Start marketing planning with your most valuable asset, your website. Make it a more engaging experience for visitors. Try adding an interactive element that keeps customers on your website. Here are some ideas:

Contests

Host a contest that lets customers stretch their creativity. Product photo contests or video contests are an excellent way to start. Share the news on all your social platforms, including Twitter, Facebook and even LinkedIn. You'll draw some new customers and reinforce your brand with your fans.

Reviews

Onsite customer polls and reviews are proven to foster trust and confidence. Regardless of the poll results consumers appreciate any company that lets customers express their opinions.

Videos

Product videos can get your point across with motion, 360° product views, information, humor and sophistication. Introduce new products with video and ask customers to submit clips for you to post. Video is inexpensive and the rewards are invaluable.

Revisit Social Media

Some online merchants don't understand the point of taking customers away from their main website and sending them to Facebook or Twitter. Social media is no longer just for close friends. Today's consumer wants to interact socially with online businesses much more intimately than in years past.

Feed Your Blogs Often

Don't let social media be an afterthought. Think of it as more of an ecosystem that needs your attention to survive. Update your blogs often and consistently, at least once each week.

Build Links Back

Include relevant keywords in your Tweets and blogs and link back to your main site whenever possible (preferably to product pages).

New Ways to Email

Email remains an effective marketing tool for home based businesses. Here are two ways to make it work even harder:

Segmented Messages

Tracking software can segment visitors by shopping preference and target your email messages to particular shoppers. This means catering your marketing messages according to customers' own choices.

Surveys

Customer surveys can reveal some surprising information about shoppers. Craft an email that asks how your company could provide a better shopping experience. Make it a short survey and easy for customers to respond, and offer a discount coupon for all respondents.

Conclusion

Online marketing is an art and it deserves some thoughtful preparation. Look for ways to engage customers in your brand and also bring attention from search engines. Polish up your market planning and make your home based business shine online.

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Article Tags: marketing mix, marketing planning strategy, promotions and marketing planning, social media marketing, social media strategy



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