The best way to leverage businesses for the 21st century is to unleash the potential of Internet marketing onto your business promotion methodologies. Here we see how these methods can be put to use.
Summary
Businesses have changed. The change is for the better.
How Businesses in the 21st Century Are Different from Earlier Businesses
As we all know, the way businesses were done before has totally changed in our age. Technology has totally changed the way we look at business methods in terms of marketing, execution, service and other related aspects. The computers have become a lifeline of our business and day-to-day lives. With the help of the latest software applications, computers can execute the work of more than 5 to 6 people and indirectly provide with a great amount of time and financial savings.
Nowadays, people are using emails, blogs and websites as a means of communication which helps us to save time and money, it also helps our customers to know about our service as and when they want. Customer service has become far better due to technological advancements.
In this 21st century, even the way we promote our business has totally changed due to change in thinking of buyers. For example, earlier we used to depend on paper ads but now this is getting changed drastically by the use of online classified ads, TV and radio and ads many other new options that have become available for us to promote our products and services.
Previously, it would be very difficult to get to know how a particular business operates and how they are performing in their business. Hence, it was difficult for businesspeople to keep an eye on each other. However, that has now become possible through the various means available on the Internet.
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...romote our product we use to do cold calls, mail marketing, road promotions, place ads in newspapers, all of which were very costly and also time-consuming. Also, it wasn’t possible to target customers; all you got were general visitors.
But since the time the Internet has become a business mainstay, all this has almost changed. People have discovered better means on marketing online. The major benefit of Internet marketing is that targeted buyers come to you and you don’t have to go in search of them. This makes the conversion rate very high as they are looking for a product and we have it.
There are many different ways of going about Internet marketing, such as those mentioned below:-
1. SEO (search engine optimization)
2. Article marketing
3. Blog marketing
4. Forums posting
5. Blog commenting
6. Social network marketing
7. Video marketing
8. Podcast marketing
Once the target market has been identified it is important to develop a marketing strategy. In today's fast paced, information overloaded society; conveying a message about a product seems to be more difficult than ever. The consumer is bombarded with advertising everywhere they look. Today advertising not only exists on television, radio, magazines, and newspapers, it can be found on billboards, park benches, in our mailboxes, on buses, taxis, at sporting events, and on clothing.
Technological developments and improvements have allowed for businesses to communicate information faster and better by the use of email, live chats, and video teleconferencing. These enhancements allow for a faster flow of information in which a business can easily distribute and receive responses in real-time from its customers. It helps employees to function more efficiently by using software programs such as word processing, spreadsheet tools, statistical analysis software and computer aided design programs. With the growth of the internet and social media, businesses expose its products to a larger customer base. Others advances such as inventory management software are able to track and fill orders, and replace stock when the volume fails a pre-determined quantity at much faster rates. Digital storage of documents and information on servers and multi-media storage
The customer support and customer service functions are more than departments; they are part of an essential strategy for growing your business. In the modern business climate, customers expect answers to their questions immediately. When the right information is available anytime, from anywhere in the world, customers are more likely to have a positive experience, thus customer loyalty will be increased. It is a known fact that the cost to obtain a customer is ten times higher than to maintain and keep existing customers. (Gouran, Dennis, W.E. Wiethoff, & J.A. Doelger. (1994). Mastering communication. 2nd ed. Boston: Allyn and Bacon.) Not in Reference Pg.
Internet advertising is at an all time high, and consumers are attracted to products that they can get more information on over the Internet. Also, "buzz" promotion can be created efficiently via Internet.
When a business aims to be as successful as possible in selling its products and services, it must examine in detail whether or not the products will be attractive and necessary; if the price is optimal; if the product is being distributed in the best locations; and finally, how interest and awareness can be created for the products. In order for a business to target all of these elements at the right people at the right time, it must employ the right type of marketing mix: Product, Price, Place and Promotion.
The first way, businesses express their ways of marketing in the 20th century is through social media and expressing interest in people 's hobbies. It has been recorded by the "Forrester research" all ads trading trafficking on exchanges, which increased about "17.5% to about 629 billion impressions in 2012, from 535 billion in 2011" (Vega, Tanznia). This fact shows how much the Internet has blossomed and started a revolution of different ways marketing can be portrayed to people outside of the area of where your business is located. As a business you can have your ad posted on a website for a lower charge than you would if you wanted to pay for a billboard for a lease. The cost of advertising o...
Customer service is valued as a competitive tool by many organisations. It gives you the ability to gain customer loyalty while meeting the customer’s expectations. Staff will have many skills and knowledge that will provide a competitive edge. Most organisations are known for the quality of their customer service. This means that they are known for good customer service or poor customer service. However, being known for good customer service will attract customers. It will also attract customers who are usually hard to reach.
It's very well known that a companies success is not only dependant on the possession of a good product or service, but the key aspect to a successful business is excellent customer service. As the market grows, now more then ever companies are emerging, they are offering very similar types of products and services. Successful customer service can be a way a business becomes original and unique, it can be the key to attracting and maintaining loyal customers. Good customer service can start-up a business while bad customer service can harm a company. An average customer that experiences an issue will complaint to 9-10 people about the problem. A customer that received support to their problem and a potential solution will tell at least five
The conversion of online searchers or online customers into buyers by researching or marketing for customers through interaction, thereby simplifying the customers of consumer process of finding the products they wish to buy. Secondly, the increase in cross-sell by charming or pleasing the customers by upgrading the quality of the manufactured goods which is one of the factors that are not originally implemented and thirdly, creating successful relationship between customers.
Business today is inextricably intertwined with technology, from the smallest home office, to a multinational corporation with multiple monolithic legacy application. It is impossible to be in business today without confronting the issues of technology. The way we do business today is different than 30 years ago. Technology has evolved around the areas of telecommunication, travel, stock market, shipping even around our daily lives. E-commerce a system by which people can buy, sell and deal without even seeing the person on the other side has taken a front seat in improving the economy of countries around the world. Technology today has made it possible for monetary institutions to help locate the customers resources and help solve their problems at any given time through online banking. The Internet, a boon to all business, is playing a part of a catalyst; it links millions of customers to its suppliers and vice versa due to this, manufactures are able to cut the role of middlemen and are able to deal with the customers, giving them the ability for direct input from the customers about their choices and views of their product. The busi...
To help these businesses, a more appropriate or better marketing plan needs to be designed. Small business internet marketing services can help businesses develop and thrive in a highly competitive market. For the highest quality internet marketing services, hiring an online marketing company to design a customized internet marketing campaign may be advantageous for some businesses (EStartup business blog and contributors, 2010). Identifying the role that marketing plays in a successful business is demonstrated by the use of two examples, the importance of developing a marketing plan, and ethical and legal issues that surround marketing practices (EStartup business blog, 2010). To be a successful business, the owner of the business should use the marketing mix and the results of market research; having identified its key audience a company has to ensure a marketing mix is created that is targeted specifically to those people.
Customer service is still plays an integral role in business. However, how companies serve their customers is changing.
Since the invention of the Internet, and it’s global popularity, the Internet has become an essential resource for companies trying to market their product or service. With consumers attached to their smart phones and other electronics, the Internet, and apps on various devices the controlling platforms for marketing. With the speed of the Internet and its availability to many people, it is the most effective way of marketing. The Internet has strengthened the relationship between marketers and customer.
In this write up the focus is mainly on e-business. It consists of critical discussion and analysis of the impact of adopting e-business orientation. It also contains relevant information on the current state of e-business market.
Li, F 2007, What is E-business ?: how the Internet transforms organizations, Blackwell Publishing, Oxford.