Biggest Challenge with Online Marketing?

[Beni]

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With so much information out there, SEO, SEM, Adwords, Social Media – what is your biggest challenge in promoting your business online?

Is it getting enough traffic to your site?
Adwords campaigns running into thousands$$ with little ROI?
Converting Visitors into emails, leads, calls, bookings or sales?
Facebook Advertising technical issue?
Updating Content to your site?

[Mariangeli9ca]

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Just started

[Paul – FS Concierge]

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Mariangeli9ca, post: 248816, member: 66230 wrote:

Just started
Then, would your answer be attracting people willing to buy your product to your website?

[Mariangeli9ca]

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Paul – FS Concierge, post: 248821, member: 78928 wrote:

Then, would your answer be attracting people willing to buy your product to your website?
HI Paul, I do not understand your question?

[Beni]

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Paul – FS Concierge, post: 248821, member: 78928 wrote:

Then, would your answer be attracting people willing to buy your product to your website?

Paul, it would seem that you have confused Mariangeli9ca

or was you question directed to myself, the OP?

If so, it is my understanding in joining FlyingSolo that it was to contribute and seek out assistance from others and not a ‘Sales’ oriented forum.

If there was any mercenary motive, it would have been to collect information of what is currently besetting SME’s and their online marketing objectives:
and
“Produce content that is current and most relevant to my audience for my blog.”
for example… just published today… “10 Basic WordPress Mistakes made by the Average Small Business Owner”

I hope that clarifies my position and view of what I see FlyingSolo is about.

P.S in time I may be invited/approached to be a Contributor.

Thanks

Ben

[Beni]

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Mariangeli9ca, post: 248816, member: 66230 wrote:

Just started
Hi… what do you mean “Just Started”
– the business or
– promoting yourself online?

If its the latter, very happy to help out where possible.

Please let me know of any specific issue that you are currently experiencing.

[Paul – FS Concierge]

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Hi [USER=65825]@Beni[/USER] and [USER=66230]@Mariangeli9ca[/USER] – I am just trying to clarify what Mariangeli9ca’s biggest challenge with online marketing is.

More explicit answers than, “Just started” helps to promote discussion which in turns offers insights to our members.

Cheers

[Trent Tran]

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I think for most people it is the ultimate unknown: “How long do I have to wait before seeing my ROI for my AD”

Facebook Ad (except for re-targeting) will take time to optimise itself. As a start up, Facebook suggested $5 a day but this budget WILL NOT WORK, it is good for testing only. Simple, within 7 clicks, $5 is gone. Good conversation rate is 5% (this is extremely good not just good), so in 100 clicks you hope there will be at least 1 purchase or more, and that purchase need to be over $100 which is extremely hard. So, you need to spend more than $5 a day until the ad can convert 15 sales per week.
Some are extremely successful, I guessed even selling cocaine can’t compete with the below screenshot

Google Adwords
Again, it takes on average two months to be optimised, from $2 per click to $0.6 per click. Within this 2 months, several hundred will be gone without return or if lucky, you would see part of it

The catch 22:

Small business does not have large budget but want to get the ad run. “Digital marketer” will charge before seeing result or NO RESULT or even worst, NO PROMISE of it will work

Then, this one comes in “We do not get paid until you see result” => what the catch then, read on the fine print


Eventually, small business owner will be told by “Digital experts” that their pages are not good and sales funnel are needed. $1000 to set up with NO PROMISE of return.
“we only bring traffic to your site, it is your job to make sure those traffic turn into buyers” Classic response

So small business owners, we need to be passionate about what pain we are solving, blog about it, the blog alone with high-quality content will bring you traffic. Slow but a sure way to go and yes the cheapest way. When you get about 100 visitors (approximately) a day, it times to get advertising or engage someone with SEO experience or do it yourself or even buy an app to do that at a fraction of cost.

It takes a lot of sales to pay those gurus, making your profit margin razor thin. The issue is there is no promise of return on those gurus !

[Beni]

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Grandawood, post: 248844, member: 66994 wrote:

I think for most people it is the ultimate unknown: “How long do I have to wait before seeing my ROI for my AD”

Facebook Ad (except for re-targeting) will take time to optimise itself. As a start up, Facebook suggested $5 a day but this budget WILL NOT WORK, it is good for testing only. Simple, within 7 clicks, $5 is gone. Good conversation rate is 5% (this is extremely good not just good), so in 100 clicks you hope there will be at least 1 purchase or more, and that purchase need to be over $100 which is extremely hard. So, you need to spend more than $5 a day until the ad can convert 15 sales per week.
Some are extremely successful, I guessed even selling cocaine can’t compete with the below screenshot…..

Thank you what a great piece.. informative and comprehensive.

ROI in any marketing or advertising has always been a challenge, be it digital or the traditional mediums.

To me, the term ‘Guru’ conjures up mystic Indian Sharman image.

Your piece does raise some thought provoking points for the SME’s which has peeked my interest, enough to look into this further

[Mischelle]

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Hi Beni,

I think for me, my biggest challenge is more about what platform to use as a B2B. I have to admit my attention has been on development of my products and not my website or marketing yet, but somehow I am still getting clients (5 new ones this month) – I think mostly from my old website and old products.

Obviously my new website SEO is critical (getting to that – LOL) but my challenge is about which social media platform to use.

I have chosen LinkedIn at the moment, but I am doing it organically through LinkedIn by gaining connections rather than advertising – at this point.

I do plan on advertising, BUT, if they are anything like me on LinkedIn I tend to ignore the adverts (Darn It) So I am worried it will be a waste of money.

I think my SEO is more important.

Mostly my overall strategy is a dual focus plan, with on-line SEO, LinkedIn etc etc combined with networking and face to face events to reinforce the connection.

Cheers
Mischelle

[Beni]

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Mischelle, post: 248942, member: 60404 wrote:

Hi Beni,

I think for me, my biggest challenge is more about what platform to use as a B2B. I have to admit my attention has been on development of my products and not my website or marketing yet, but somehow I am still getting clients (5 new ones this month) – I think mostly from my old website and….

Hi Michelle,

Thank you for your response

That is a huge challenge, that I too struggle with – B2B + Social Media = ??

LinkedIn, would for most be the most intuitive social platform to go with for B2B. Connections can be made and insights can be garnered.

Many years ago when I first started in Marketing, a wise old Sales Manager (National Media Group) told me to make sure that I got my clients into at least 3 Channels (i.e Radio, Press, TV, Magazine, Expo’s & Conferences, Direct Mail, Merchandising, Telemarketing etc.) to meet their expected returns for the campaign.

To this day, I do not rely on any one channel… and try to focus on 3 – achieve the most I can from 3 and treat the others as background noise, ignoring them until I attain the returns expected.

Which 3? Trial and error, more errors than success…. still testing

Regards

Ben

[marchflower]

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great discussion! I like such topic. While it is always place for improvements and there are so many points and channels which should be taken in to consideration to achieve real success. I try to invest money in all possible channels but the biggest problem for me is SEO strategy. It is difficult for me to get knowledge in SEO and I can not find a good specialist to do that for me

[Beni]

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marchflower, post: 249005, member: 99064 wrote:

great discussion! I like such topic. While it is always place for improvements and there are so many points and channels which should be taken in to consideration to achieve real success. I try to invest money in all possible channels but the biggest problem for me is SEO strategy. It is difficult for me to get knowledge in SEO and I can not find a good specialist to do that for me

Thanks for the response, SEO Strategy hmmm, let me put it simply brutally honest, it needs to be fluid, flexible take advantage of the good and not be surprised when it turns bad.

If its working for you today good, as tomorrow may be another story.

Why do I say this, well any SEO Specialist may be a little reluctant to admit that they really do not know everything nor are they in control and how could they be – since they are only reacting to signals being given out by Google and interpreted to mean something to act upon.
– Sounds religiously similar? Let’s not go there

Lets, just say like the Colonels Secret KFC recipe Google is not disclosing their formulae for their Algorithm.

So the best that ‘we’ as SEO Specialists do and can hope for is to follow Googles published ‘Best Practices’ and the only catch is, what is best practices today may turn out to be bad tomorrow – all up to Google.

I have a blog article coming out on Wednesday titled “Black Hat SEO that will Kill Your SEO” – funny thing some of these practices were once considered White Hat… once upon a time, in a Galaxy not so far away (Sorry the imagery for my post is aStar Wars themed).

So MarchFlower, an SEO Strategy is one where you set a determined game plan, today, follow through with it having the genuine and committed belief that it is sound which delivers the desired results today.

[John Romaine]

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I work with hundreds of people each year and the biggest problem I see is a lack of patience.

Everyone wants near immediate results. Some want those results without wanting to do any work.

The other issue I see are people being led astray by misinformation.

[Beni]

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John Romaine, post: 249450, member: 39536 wrote:

I work with hundreds of people each year and the biggest problem I see is a lack of patience.

Everyone wants near immediate results. Some want those results without wanting to do any work.

The other issue I see are people being led astray by misinformation.

John, I feel your pain… they read about the ‘overnight’ success of so and so, B]misinformation[/B then they try to emulate them and 30-90 days later give up because it does not work for them B]lack of patience + reality[/B.

I try to align those who are seeking to develop their online presence to relate it to real world situations – the type of Fame, Success, Recognition and Reputation that most want – that being genuine, empowering and positive, does not come in instant form.

Hey! but if they want instant… go rob a bank! you get all the above with short time financial gain plus the thrill of the chase thrown in and the added bonus of a life time, 10 to 15 years to replay your fame in your own mind

Idea!! – your comment has given me an idea to write a piece on the time-line of ‘SEO’.. even an infographic?… thank you John.

[Author]

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