The definition of marketing is the management process of through which goods and services move from concept to the customer in a way which benefits the organisation and its stakeholders. The process takes into account the customer and the satisfaction of his or her needs – these then become the focal point of all business activities.

It is not specific to selling – though selling is often the desired result – nor is it defined by one specialised activity. Marketing, outwardly, encompasses the entire business as it’s the view of the whole business seen from the point of view of the customer.

The objective of any one marketing campaign is very specific to its company’s aims. For example, for companies within the corporate sector there is usually a focus upon profitability, where as with public sector and not-for-profit organisations there could be a higher focus upon reputation or the release of public information.

The full process of marketing can be divided into many different areas:

Online Marketing

A broad term, online marking encompasses online advertising, SEO, PPC, Affiliate marketing, video marketing, social media marketing and website design, usually strategised by internet marketing consultants.

The numbers of business’ implementing online marketing are steadily growing, as print media suffers. This is because online marketing is so measurable, making any ROI clear to establish. This saves businesses spending out on an immeasurable offline campaign. For example the production cost of viral video advertising is much less than the cost of a television advertising campaign.

SEO (Search Engine Optimisation)

SEO, in its simplest form, is the process of improving the visibility of a website within the search engine results pages, in order to generate more traffic (and therefore more potential customers) to that website. There are many technical methods that need to be combined together in order to achieve good ranking, such as on-page optimisation, article marketing, link building and directory listing. Used in conjunctive with other SEM (social media marketing) techniques SEO can provide a significant ROI, but requires constant management and is an ongoing process.

PPC (Pay per Click)

PPC is the Internet standard model of charging for advertising on websites. The company that are advertising set a budget in place for their campaign and then only pay the hosting site of their advert when a user clicks on the advert to be redirected to the advertiser’s chosen web page.

With PPC adverts that are displayed within search engine pages, the cost per click is determined by keyword phrases which are relevant to their niche market. Smaller companies often use PPC to get their adverts listed at the top of Google above the organic listings. (These are the adverts that you see on the Google results page in the yellow boxes.)

eMarketing

A marketing method in its own right, eMarketing makes up one part of an entire marketing campaign through the use of its own tools and approaches. Utilising electronic communications technology, eMarketing is a fast way of communicating important information or your latest news to your customers through email. Building up your own mailing list of interested parties is essential in deploying a successful eMarketing campaign.

eMarketing also provides an opportunity to re-engage with potential customers and clients, with whom you have not yet secured business.

Affiliate Marketing

Affiliate marketing is the practice by which affiliates get rewarded by a business for each potential customer that they direct to the said business via their own marketing efforts. The specifics of each scheme are determined by the business that Is offering the rewards, but generally affiliates are rewarded for either a buying customer or website traffic reaching an agreed amount.

Video Marketing

Video marketing is a strategy used by companies in order to advertise products and brands. The proliferation of laptops and smart phones means that the opportunity for business’ to reach their target audience through the use of video marketing is vast. As videos are inherently more interactive and engaging that a long article, they can often be the quickest and most effective method of conveying a message. No other marketing strategies are quite as persuasive as a well designed video.

However, effective video creation is a highly complex art form and takes much more time and effort than writing a blog post. The average attention span of an Internet user can be measured in just seconds, so it is imperative that a video engages the intended audience within the first few seconds.

Social Media Marketing

Many companies are beginning to realise the significant impact that social media campaigns can have upon a business and is therefore increasingly being added to ‘integrated marketing communications’ strategies.

Social media campaigns generally focuses on the creation of campaign-led content which is then seeded across social media platforms and encourages readers to share with like-minded people in order to create the ‘viral effect’. This ensures that a message is passed from user-to-user and resonates with a reader as it has been passed to them from a trusted source rather than a company.

Website Design

A website is the ‘cyber face’ of a company and should therefore continue along the entire branding guidelines specific to a company. The design and layout affects the usability of a website for a user, and so, from navigation to content to colour – the entire website will create a perception of your company to a potential customer. If your site is difficult to use and off-putting to a user then the chances are that you will lose that custom. However, if your site is well thought out in terms of UX (user experience) and SEO, your website can act in the same way as an experienced sales person, converting website visitors into paying customers.

Offline Marketing

With the recent boom in online marketing, it is important that companies don’t forget to invest in traditional offline marketing also. Though more expensive than online advertising, the tri-media method of advertising through print, television and radio ads are a proven method of effective advertising and increasing of product / brand awareness.

Companies reap more benefits if online and offline marketing strategies are used simultaneously to compliment each other. Many offline advertisements can direct a potential customer to a company website where the sale can be converted.

Branding

Branding is the overall underpinning of all of your marketing material and techniques and involves determining the identity of a company. Once this is established you can go on to establish logos, slogans and other marketing materials. Colours, fonts, text and image style are all chosen around the brand’s chosen identity and style.

Companies that market themselves very well (usually with a larger marketing budget), go on to delve a little deeper in to their brand identity and thus create a stronger brand for the public to identify with. Creating videos that allow a user a glimpse into the work environment or company ethos (that you want them to see) creates a feeling of exclusivity and trust from the potential customer / client.

For more information and advice on web design, web development, SEO and CMS web design visit web and SEO agency based in London: Art Division Ltd.

For more information and advice on graphic design and corporate branding visit design agency based in London: BergHind Joseph.

For more information and advice on b2b marketing and design visit Latitude Solutions. Latitude Solutions are business to business design agency based in London.

For more information and advice on email marketing design check out Write About Now, email marketing tool.