Top 5 Marketing Strategies

Small business owners can now compete with big business by infusing technology into their marketing campaigns. The Internet has brought large and small companies to a leveled playing field, especially when it comes to using marketing strategies that reach customers anywhere and anytime. Marketing is everything you do to place your product or service in the hands of potential customers. In 2010 entrepreneurs will be expanding their use of the internet as part of their marketing plans.

What's Hot?- Top 5 Marketing Strategies

I am sure you will agree that the Internet has changed the way we do business, especially our marketing strategy.Below are 5 marketing strategies that are currently used by the: Obama Administration, Oprah Winfrey Show, Internet Gurus, and many small business owners. Three of the five strategies include technology.

1.Blogging
2.Cause-Related Marketing
3.Fusion Marketing
4.Online Marketing
5.Social Network Marketing

Blogging

"Blog" is an abbreviated version of "weblog," which is a term used to describe web sites that maintain an ongoing chronicle of information. A blog is a frequently updated, personal website featuring diary-type commentary and links to articles on other Web sites. Blogs range from the personal to the political, and can focus on one narrow subject or a whole range of subjects. Blogging for business is hot because you can: build a loyal community, increase your creditability, build your brand, and increase product exposure. Plus, it's very affordable....FREE.

What benefits can you imagine your business would receive by blogging?

Cause-Related Marketing

Cause-related marketing is defined as the public association of a for-profit company with a nonprofit organization, intended to PROMOTE the company's product or service and to RAISE money for the nonprofit. Do you remember the Red Campaign? It was a cause-related marketing campaign by Gap, Apple and Motorola to help fight AIDS in Africa. The Red Product campaign was enormous and got major buzz by media mogul - Oprah Winfrey.

What cause can you relate your business to that will garner you media coverage?

Fusion Marketing

Simply put, fusion marketing is when you form a strategic partnership with another business to help expand and mutually benefit each other's business. An ideal business that would serve as a good partner is one who shares a similar target market with a different niche. As entrepreneurs, we always think we have to do things alone, but its amazing the synergy available from collaborating or aligning with others. Fusion marketing can take your business to levels you never thought possible before now. Fusion marketing online is done via link exchange, email marketing and many other creative campaigns. We see this daily with the "I'm Lovin' It" campaign by fast-food company McDonald's. They market GM cars, movies, and of course their food.

Who comes to mind, as an ideal strategic partner to create a fusion marketing campaign?

Online Marketing

There are a wide variety of options available when it comes to online marketing. The popular ones include: article, email, internet and website. Article marketing is a type of advertising in which businesses write short articles related to their respective industry and syndicate them online in article directories or via RSS. Email marketing is when you send your targeted Email or Flyer to a database of email addresses. Internet marketing is when you successfully convert web site traffic into actual sales. Website marketing is having an online presence for your product or service whether your business is web-based or not.

Of the online marketing options, which one is most beneficial for you to implement?

Social Network Marketing

Social network marketing is an advertising method that makes use of social network service and to increase their web presence. This ranges from simply advertising directly on social networking sites, viral marketing that spreads throughout the web, email, and word of mouth or providing niche social networking sites focused around the item being advertised. Sites enjoying this social phenomenon are Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and MySpace. All social networking sites aren't created equal, do your research before implementing this strategy into your marketing mix. The Obama Administration continues to use Twitter as part of its marketing campaign.

What are the benefits of social networking?

Be sure to include a combination or all the above mention strategies in your next marketing campaign. The list is alphabetical order, not order of importance. The question at the end of each paragraph is meant to empower next-level thinking and get you to take action on improving your marketing strategies.