The ‘marketing mix’ is probably the most famous term in marketing, so, when it comes to online campaigns, why are so many companies neglecting this basic principle? The 4p’s of marketing, that is the product, its place, price and promotion, apply to search engine marketing and pay-per-click advertising as much as any other business strategy, and, in today’s economic climate, they may be more important than before.

Product:

As with any marketing campaign, if your product is not right it will not sell. Spending money on any type of campaign, SEO or not, can rarely help a failing product, so it is important to ask if your product or service is correct to sell online.

Pay-per-click (PPC) campaigns, such as Google AdWords, only produce results if a customer types your chosen keywords into a search engine, so if there is no demand for what you sell online then it will not be searched for. This means you may end up spending a lot of time producing an advert for a product that is not suited to search engine marketing (SEM). This also applies to Google’s free listings as if your product is not searched for, it will not appear in the results.

However, if you are looking for a transactional approach for your product or service, PPC could be brilliant for your company. By directing users who click on your advert to a page with an online check out, you could increase your sales and the chances of a return on investment (ROI).

Search engine optimisation (SEO) can also be excellent if you are looking to build brand awareness. Using SEO to increase your search result ranking can mean that more potential customers will see your website as it appears closer to the top of the listings.

Place:

Before you even begin a PPC campaign, you need to optimise your website. Without this process, your website may be buried at the bottom of the free listings, or will not appear in Google’s sponsored links, meaning potential customers may not be aware your website exists. Optimising your website with popular keywords will drive more traffic to the site and ensure that people see your products and information that you have spent time developing.

The content of your website matters too, so it is important to ensure that it is relevant to your targeted keywords. With SEO, the website that is most relevant to what a user has searched for will come top of the search results. By optimising your website so that it appears closer to the top of the search listings, you will direct more traffic to your site and again increase the potential amount of sales.

Market research should also not be forgotten, so it is vital to investigate your chosen keywords to establish if there is a marketplace to deliver a ROI for your SEO or PPC campaign. Like any campaign, if you do not you ensure there is demand for your product, you may end up spending a lot money on something that will not produce results, and, in the current economic climate, you cannot afford to waste money.

Keyword research can help you identify alternative keywords that maybe more popular to include in your site’s content. However, you should keep in mind that no SEO campaign can help you sell a product that there is no demand for.

Promotion:

It is essential to consider whether PPC and SEO is the correct way to promote or sell your product or service. Launching a campaign without examining the alternatives can be expensive if your promotion strategy does not work out, so consulting a sustainable SEO company, like 4Ps Marketing, could help you make a better decision.
Despite this, if your campaign is well thought out with the aid of an SEO firm, search engine marketing can be a great way to promote your business. Certain companies, for example the financial advice sector, could excel in a recession, and PPC advertising could help this.

Price:

It is a hard fact that, in the financial world of 2008, companies have to be careful with their expenses, making ‘price’ possibly the most important of the 4p’s of marketing. With PPC advertising, such as Google AdWords, the customer will decide on their budget, but it is still vital to make sure that your price point reflects your product, place and promotion.
Google’s organic listings, the websites that appear in the centre of the page, are free, but the time demands of SEO may mean you need to hire an SEO firm to manage your campaign. This can be an effective way to promote your website and receive expert advice, but remember that only sustainable SEO companies will provide you with a service that meets Google’s quality guidelines.

Take care when bidding for expensive keywords as they may not be beneficial to you if they do not generate sustainable revenue. Using the 4p’s of marketing can help you choose effective keywords to help deliver a better ROI.
Search engine marketing can be a fantastic way to sell and promote your product or service, but it is important to get it right. Using the 4p’s of marketing will help you plan a campaign that is both effective and value for money, and this important to help you stay ahead of the competition while controlling your finances.

But no need to worry if it all sounds like too much for you to cope with. Employing a SEO company that has expert knowledge of both SEM and the marketing mix, such as London based 4Ps Marketing, can be a great way to manage your online campaigns, while you concentrate on your other business strategies.

Author: Vicki Cole, 4Ps Marketing, London, UK