It is no secret that the online business world is expanding and evolving rapidly. With the success and accessibility of the world wide web, a great many small, medium and large-scale businesses carry out their operations exclusively online.
For others who operate in a more traditional ‘bricks and mortar’ environment, having an online business presence that operates in parallel with the physical world shop, showroom or office has not only become standard practice, and it has become a necessity.
For many business owners, the secrets of driving a successful online business presence seems to be just that – a secret. Many get lost in the apparent complexity, and without expert guidance, they fall back on simplicity – setting up a good-looking website and hoping for the best.
Unravel the “secrets” and optimize your control
This article is a starting point to explaining the concepts behind what appears to be a complex concept – getting potential viewers to your website and then converting those viewers into customers.
Knowledge is power. After reading this primer to understand the concepts better, ensure you then follow these tips to maximize online business opportunities.
Large traffic numbers don’t necessarily mean success
In the context of a business website – large numbers of site visitors alone are not necessarily a measure of success.
Understanding marketing metrics
It is not enough to observe the number of visitors to a website. A basic concept is the need to convert those visitors to prospects and convert those prospects into customers.
Digital customers are extremely mobile and can bounce quickly between sites to view, compare and select goods and services, and often do so while they are on a break or commuting. This is something that you need to keep in mind when you are planning your marketing campaign.
Potential customers move around – that’s the beauty of the online world. They have choice and variety, and they change their minds. Ask these questions:
- Is the business adjusting its online marketing strategy to suit?
- How will it know what changes are required or what changes need to be made?
To better understand how the market is moving, a range of analytics tools is readily available to give the online business a better control over these factors and respond with strategic changes.
How did your site visitors find you?
There’s an old saying – “All roads lead to Rome” – but which road did they use to get there?
In the context of an online business, there are many potential ways for potential customers to reach a website. But the successful online marketer needs to know exactly which road potential viewers took to “widen” that road.
Visitors can reach a website through social media posts, search engines, a link from a blog post or other page, or an advertising campaign.
Dressed for success
Market intelligence in the online world means looking a little deeper than site visitor numbers. With this basic understanding, look a little deeper, follow the tips and maximize online business success.