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Papers & Articles > Web Site Promotion > Discussion

...Web Site Promotion

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS
There are a multitude of promotional methods, all valid and effective means to drive traffic to web sites, if used in the right way and in the right circumstances.

In the course of this project, it has become clear that there are no 'good' or 'bad' techniques - with the possible exception of 'junk' email and illegal activities. Informal discussions with many business owners and marketing specialists strongly suggest that the success of any particular promotional method is highly dependent on individual circumstances and how well a plan has been implemented.

Even the much disparaged banner ad is highly successful for some people, achieving click-through rates of over 10% and good sales conversion rates, while others manage less than 1%.

The metrics used to quantify the cost of promotion appear to be misleading in many cases. The focus on CPM exposure models and CTR for banner advertising conceals the most important data that people need to make informed decisions - the frequency or value of positive outcomes. It is possible that 0.5% click-throughs deliver more profitable results in one situation than 10% click-throughs in another.

We have the means to measure and analyse this data from the first casual visit to a web site, to final transaction and after sales contacts, including records of everything a visitor has seen, and choices they have made on a web site (Kimball and Merz 31). Few people seem to be measuring and using this data.

The large portal sites and others selling 'space' for advertising are reluctant to let go of the traditional offline pricing model, for fear of being held too accountable. Also some marketing managers with mainly offline media experience are more comfortable with the traditional CPM based pricing.

Online promotion, by its very nature tends to be more personal and targeted than offline promotion. It is therefore not surprising to find that the selection and implementation of online promotion is more critically dependent on how well it is targeted and managed, and on the precise circumstances of an individual business. It is therefore impossible to prescribe a promotional plan or provide a 'blueprint' of procedures to follow, as originally conceived for this project.

Rather, it is better to understand the strengths, weaknesses and opportunities of the principle methods outlined in this section, and to apply a rational method of evaluation of these to arrive at a sensible balance to meet the specified objectives.

It is not uncommon for promotional decisions to be emotional or even impetuous - particularly for offline media where the data and metrics are incomplete. An attempt has been made here to highlight the importance of understanding the relationship between the costs of an operation and the benefits that result.

The accountancy model of a break-even chart has been introduced to illustrate the relationships between web site origination costs, and the ongoing costs of maintenance and promotion.

A new conceptual model has also been developed to try and assist with the decision making process of selecting the most appropriate media channels. The model needs to be tested in a practical situation with a number of users, and if it has merit, will probably need further refinement or modification.

Finally a check list of promotion methods, and a practical guide to the key stages in planning and implementing web site promotion has been produced.

There is evidence that many SMEs, and particularly the smaller businesses, are not investing adequately in web site promotion. Many rely on online methods to publicise their web sites, and hope that search engines will deliver traffic for them.

As observed in Section 2 (not published here), it is becoming increasingly difficult to generate search engine traffic, especially without expenditure and relying only on free registration. With the increasing commercialisation of online resources, such as search engines, and the ever growing volume of competition online, it is now imperative that businesses actively invest in promotion of their sites. Failure to promote will only waste the original investment in a web site.

Promotion must also be considered from a much wider perspective, to yield the highest returns on investment. A mix of both offline and online media should be considered, and as WebCMO (51) commented two years ago, most WWW users inhabit the offline world more than they do the online version.

The right balance must be sought, to get the optimum benefit to cost ratio. The diversity of opinion about different promotional methods, and some of the extreme accounts of successes and failures using the same techniques is intriguing. Clearly some people are getting it right and some are not. It would be useful to do further research to try and identify the critical success factors involved. Also, it would be interesting to know if some methods are prevalent in some industry sectors, and not others - i.e. are there successful promotional mixes (or profiles) that are industry specific.

A number of industry observers have commented on the critical success factors (CSF) necessary for an online business to succeed, and some of these are undoubtedly applicable to aspects of web site promotion. A distillation of these CSFs as reported and discussed by many, including Chaffey et al (8), Judson (30), Seybold, Aldrich (2), Edlington (18), Schwartz (45), and de Kare-Silver (15), are given below:

A web site must have a unique value proposition. This must also be reflected in the promotion. Unless the message clearly differentiates the company from its competitors and is able to project a unique value proposition, there is no incentive for people to take any action. 'Rational branding' or 'solution branding' is the new paradigm that businesses should focus on to meet customers needs, rather than the 'emotive branding' espoused by traditional advertising.
Target the right customers. Knowledge of customer preferences and behaviour patterns, and the ability to apply this in as focused and personal a way as possible is vital.
Clarity of message. Whether on a web site or in a promotional campaign, the message must present a rational appeal to take action. Broadcasting a brand image appealing only to the emotions is not applicable in the pull environment of the Internet.
Clearly defined objectives.
Familiarity with technology and the market.
Strong senior management support.
Willing to experiment.
Flexibility and reaction speed - to be opportunistic, and to back out of wrong decisions quickly.
Able to measure and analyse results.

Further study of these factors in relation to promotional issues, as well as any others that can be identified, would be rewarding.