Today, more than ever, the Internet is the media of choice for millions of people. Iconic publications such as Australia's famous Bulletin magazine have failed because of it, and many more publications are struggling to sell advertising space.

Afternoon newspapers have long since disappeared and social media sites like YouTube and MySpace now connect people and communities around the world. EBay has replaced a trip to the mall for gen Y's looking to buy clothes, shoes and collectables. Hundreds, maybe thousands of Australians generate their entire income either from selling goods on eBay or by selling information products online.

Offline directories such as the Yellow Pages are finding it harder to sell advertising space because savvy advertisers know that the Internet can generate more business with less expense.

So how are your customers going to find you?

The power of a search engine

The most powerful, influential determinant of buying behaviour today is Google, which is the search engine of choice for close to 90% of Australian Internet searches. Most business owners want their site to be on the front page of Google. More often than not, they fail to recognise that the sites that do appear on the front page have had hours of research and strategy put into gaining that position.

In addition, these sites generally have several "Inbound Links" from other relevant sites. These links help the search engines to rank the degree of relevance of the site. You must remember that the aim of any search engine is to provide you with a list of what it considers to be the most relevant sites in response to the search term you enter.

Another key issue is that business owners rarely take the time to investigate what search terms their customers are using to find them and, as a result, when those keywords and phrases are used, their site doesn't show up at all.

How do your customers think?

Knowledge of how the customer thinks and behaves is highly important, and shouldn't be left to guesswork. Today, we use sophisticated tools and software to analyse and interpret buyer behaviour in order to optimise the site’s likelihood of appearing when certain terms or phrases are entered.

As an example, when a woman searches for shoes, she will likely enter "women's shoes". When men search for anything to do with women, they invariably enter "woman".

Likewise, if you're a printer selling invoice templates, you have to remember that your buyer is looking for an invoice template. If you're a travel agent selling Pacific Cruises, someone searching for Tom Cruise isn't looking for a Pacific Cruise!

The relevance of keywords

This keyword research has relevance in other areas, too. It helps us to identify what each page of your site should be called, what combination of words and phrases should be used to generate visitors and even how the pictures on the page are referenced.

Next time you use a search engine, take a look at the little adverts that appear down the right hand side of the page. These adverts provide heaps of valuable information, both about your customer’s behaviour, and which copy (the wording of the advert) generates the best response. This is an example of a Sponsored Link that appears on the Google search result page when you search for "electrical estimating software".

All of this information is trackable, allowing us to test various combinations of keywords and copy to enable us to help you achieve your desired results.

Moreover, it can even help us help your sales team by giving them certain combinations of words and phrases proven to get better response. Knowing how your customer thinks and behaves is a valuable tool!

Other forms of Internet Advertising

Internet advertising doesn't stop with just sponsored links (the technical name for ads on search engines). It includes various other techniques such as affiliate links (where you pay a commission on sale to the owner of the site where your affiliate commission is placed) and banner advertising.

A great example of how an affiliate banner advertising program can deliver you great results was demonstrated by a photographer who specialised in golfing photos. He was introduced to the concept of banner advertising and had an affiliate banner placed on a series of golfing-related websites. His sales increased by close to 100% within two months and all he had to do was pay a 10% commission to the sites that brought him sales.

You can also pay other site owners for delivering you sales leads. You might do landscaping and you place an affiliate link on the site of a swimming pool contractor. Every time that site delivers you a lead, you pay a small fee for that lead.

As experts in internet advertising, we can help you with all of these methodologies. We're just a call away on 1300 139 467 or you can fill in the form and we will contact you.