Ellis Communications, L.L.C.

Traditional Marketing Is Not the Way of the Dinosaur;
Online Marketing Is Fine When Blended With Other Methods

Online marketing is growing in popularity as a tool to grow a business.  But are some nutritional retailers relying too much on it?

"Some people think you’re a dinosaur if you use traditional marketing such as advertising, direct mail, public relations and brochures to grow your business," says Martin R. Baird, president of Phoenix, Ariz.-based Nutritional Marketing.

 "I believe online marketing is a great support tool for the rest of a retailer’s marketing.  It’s one more way to ‘touch’ customers and prospects but it’s not the be all and end all of marketing."

Baird offers the following seven tips that put online marketing into perspective and show how to properly use it.

Number 1 - Be careful and professional with online marketing.  Retailers can buy a list with thousands of e-mail addresses and send a marketing message to all of them with one mouse click, Baird says.  "But what does that say about you, your store and the level of service you provide?" Baird asks.

Number 2 - No single marketing tool is right for all situations.  Mix and match the best tools, including online options, to meet the target market’s needs and desires.

Number 3 - Buying a list of e-mail addresses and sending an unsolicited e-mail about your wonderful products and services is spam.  Buying a targeted list of people who can benefit from what you have to offer and then e-mailing them information that helps them make informed decisions is marketing.

Number 4 - Online newsletters are an excellent method for cost effectively educating customers and prospects.  Electronic magazines also are effective.  "E-newsletters are easy to package and you can make additions and deletions at a moment’s notice," Baird says.

Number 5 - But e-newsletters and e-zines have a common problem.  They’re not easy to plan and write.  "It can take hours to develop the material and that could be time you simply don’t have," Baird notes.  "Save a huge amount of time and energy by getting permission to share other people’s information and stories in your electronic publication."

Number 6 - Online conferences also are an excellent marketing tool.  "You want people to attend your seminars, but just getting them to drive to your location can be a challenge," Baird says. "Bad weather can make a dent in attendance.  Online conferences avoid all those hassles and you don’t have to buy lunch or dinner to entice people."

Number 7 - For every benefit online marketing offers there also can be an equal or greater challenge.  "You may save the cost of a meal but you could also miss out on landing a great customer because they are not computer friendly," Baird says.

"Online marketing is an opportunity for you to reach new customers and try new things," Baird notes.  "But it’s not the solution to all your marketing ills.  It’s just one more choice that you need to use wisely."

Nutritional Marketing provides a variety of services to nutritional retailers to help them improve their marketing methods and increase revenues, including seminars and conference speaking engagements on such topics as referrals, marketing, goal setting and customer service. 

Nutritionalmarketing.com is the premiere Internet-based source for free marketing advice, information and tools for self-driven, success-oriented nutritional retailers who are demanding information that helps them market their business, meet the needs of their customers and increase sales.  It offers such services as a free weekly electronic newsletter, free reports on how to conduct different kinds of marketing and evaluation of retailers’ marketing materials that is provided at no charge when the critique is posted online for all nutritional professionals to read.  Nutritionalmarketing.com also offers an electronic forum where retailers can learn from each other by discussing common problems, sharing ideas and gaining new insights from their peers. 

Nutritional Marketing may be reached at 480-991-6421.