Inernet Marketing Concepts

The Internet is changing the way we do business. Not exactly a news flash by any means, even the stodgiest small town banker is confronted by the marketing revolution we are in the midst of. Yet the Internet as an advertising channel, when compared to traditional channels like TV, radio, print, outdoor etc., is the only one that effects everything from sales to information technology infrastructure.

If I want to launch a new radio ad campaign, I can fire up my Arbitron app and I am off to the races. I can go from start to finish without involving many people or departments. On the other hand if I want to launch a new Internet campaign, I need to involve the IT or web departments and the sales department. Why the sales department?

In marketing 101 we learn that any given marketing strategy generally abides by one of the following concepts.

• Production Concept - This idea holds that consumers will favor products that are readily available and highly affordable.
• Product Concept - This holds that consumers will favor products that offer the most in quality, performance and innovation.
• Selling Concept - This idea assumes that the company will not sell enough of its products unless it undertakes a large-scale selling and promotion effort.
• Marketing Concept - This method concentrates on knowing the needs and wants of the target market and delivering satisfaction better than the competition.

Back in the day, you could tailor these concepts to your product offering, inventory, and other market fluctuations. But, the Internet has put a stop to all that. Why? Let's consider how companies used to sell products, this dialog sums it up.

Old School:
Company - "This is my product, you know you really need it won't you please buy it?"
Consumer - "You are right, I do need that. Thank you for selling me what I need".

New School:
Consumer - "This is what I need, won't you please make it for me"?
Company - "We better me making this or we are goners".

Ask any good salesmen what he would prefer, 10 Internet leads or 10 traditional leads. 9 out of 10 will say traditional leads are easier sales. Why? Simple, expectations and information. An Internet lead is; informed, has shopped competitors, and wants more information than they know what to do with. A traditional lead, expects to be shown what they need and does not know any better.

You can make a valid point that the Internet has empowered the consumer, organizations that focus heavily on the selling concept face the largest hurdles because they are selling products that the consumer may not be looking for or know that they want. Insurance, blood donations, and investment opportunities fall into this category. Oftentimes these companies have the "selling" mentality so embedded in the corporate identity that they refuse to adapt their marketing and business model and miss out on potential revenue. "we've done it this way for 20 years", is my favorite CEO comment.

The Internet, for most companies, is an untapped revenue source. From my experience existing companies that have legacy marketing models are just beginning to realize this potential and begin the transition from traditional models to emerging models. But, it's a path loaded with pitfalls and obstacles.