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Web News & Tips - Issue #254 Web News & Tips Published by MateMedia, Inc. Your Partner on the Web Providing quality Web services at affordable prices since 1995 MateMedia provides the following services: * Small Business Web Hosting (Shared & Managed Dedicated Servers) * Web Design & Development - Custom Web Applications * Database Development & Hosting * Website Maintenance & Webmaster Services * Search Engine Promotion (Optimization & Submission) * E-Commerce - Shopping Carts - Sample Shopping Cart * Domain Name Registration * Domain Name Affiliate Program * Web Hosting Affiliate Program * FREE Website when you order a web hosting account! For more information about our services email sales@matemediainc.com or call us at 877-309-7521 - Read what our clients have to say about us IN THIS ISSUE: Become a MateMedia Domain Name Affiliate Become a MateMedia Small Business Web Hosting Affiliate Free Webmaster Tools Free Scripts for Your Website Creating Your Internet Marketing Plan Web News A Step by Step Guide to Getting Started on the Web Recommend this newsletter to a friend Advertise in Web News & Tips JULY SPECIAL! - $7.00 per month web hosting from MateMedia Creating Your Internet Marketing Plan By Megan Corwin For large corporations, a marketing plan is a huge document detailing strategies for the fiscal year. It may include competitor analysis or a sales forecast. While these elements are important to a large business, do you as a small business owner (without a well paid marketing staff) have the time or energy to devote to putting together a huge document? Unless you are trying to get a financial loan, probably not... But that doesn't mean you should totally scrap the idea. A marketing plan can be a wonderful tool to help you refine your focus. You've heard the old saying "If you fail to plan, you plan to fail." That's because when you don't plan you lack intention and attention. My suggestion is to create a "micro-plan." Open up a new document and take an hour or two to answer the following questions. “Micro-Plan” Questions What is your purpose for being online? - Awareness - Sales - Community What % of your overall marketing to be done online? - How much time do you expect to spend marketing on internet? What strategies will you use? - Contests - Forums - Free reports/e-book - Newsletter - Pay per click advertising - Banners - Articles/content - Viral marketing Timeline Assign a project date to each of the strategies. Will they be one time events (contest) or something you need to do frequently (forums)? While you are thinking about it, schedule your projects in your time management system or planner. Analysis - How will you track the success of your marketing plans? - What is your ROI? Budget - What is your total yearly internet marketing budget? - Assign a dollar amount to each of the strategies you will use. A successful internet marketing strategy begins with a plan. The time you take to put together your "micro-plan" will be well worth it to your business. E-mail: megan@wahwoman.com Author's URL: http://www.wahwoman.com Megan Corwin has combined her marketing and web site development skills with her love of Internet surfing to become an online marketing coach. With over eight year’s experience developing software and marketing for a software company, she enjoys sharing her talents with small business professionals to help them enhance their online presence. JULY SPECIAL! - $7.00 per month web hosting from MateMedia Increase your rank in the search engines! Check out our new search engine optimization plans Become a MateMedia Web Hosting Affiliate Web News JULY SPECIAL! - $7.00 per month web hosting from MateMedia The broadband market is set to explode, with access expected to more than double to 46 million-plus households in the United States by 2008, up from 21.5 million at the end of last year. That surge, spurred by increased competition between cable and DSL providers, is forecast in a report released by Jupiter Research Travelers are including the Web in their journeys by researching and booking trips, and responding favorably to online marketing, according to a report from the Travel Industry Association of America (TIA) that examines how the Internet has impacted travel. Not only have nearly two-thirds of the 95.8 million Internet users that travel consulted online resources for trip planning, but 37 percent have subscribed to travel-related e-marketing promotions or registered with travel Web sites. Switching from dial-up to broadband Internet access improves productivity and efficiency in small organizations, but the telephone is the dominant business tool, according to a joint report from Covad Communications and Sprint, and conducted by Equation Research. The survey of nearly 500 representatives of companies with fewer than 100 employees found that respondents spent more time online than they did on the phone, yet more than half chose the telephone as the item their business couldn't function without. Online scammers robbed Americans of more than $437 million in 2003, mostly using stolen identities, fake Internet auctions and fraudulent shop-at-home schemes, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) reported. In its year-end Consumer Fraud and ID Theft Report, the FTC said it received more than half a million consumer complaints during 2003, a 40 percent jump over complaints in 2002. More than 40 percent of all complaints related to identity theft perpetuated through "phishing" and other Web-related scams. Copyright 2000-2004 MateMedia, Inc. |