Integrating Your Web Site Into A Marketing Plan

A web site is a unique marketing tool because it is permanent and global. From the moment you purchase a domain name, it is yours and yours forever. No matter how many times you change your office address and phone number, your domain name will always be the same. Customers will always find you at www.yourcompanyname.com. Your mail will always be delivered to you at John.Doe@www.yourcompanyname.com. Old business cards and letterhead become an eternal beacon to your business, if they contain your domain name. It is quite remarkable and a huge benefit for even the smallest of companies.

For this reason, it is important to consider your web site name and Email address before purchasing business cards, letterhead and advertising. As the one and only permanent aspect of your marketing plan, the web site name should appear on all printed material.

Perhaps the biggest marketing blunder we see is the use of unprofessional Email addresses. John.Doe987345@aol.com or Peggy72@hotmail.com is not professional. It is not an Email address you actually own. It is not an Email address you will use forever. It is not what you want to put in your print marketing materials even if you use this Email address! It identifies you to experienced business people as a rookie when it comes to business communication. Last but not least, it does nothing to promote your company! Marketing is about repetition. Every email you send is an opportunity to market your company. When you send email from a hotmail address, who do you think gets the marketing? That's right, hotmail! And that is why they offer the address for free.

Unlike print advertising, a web site can be very inexpensive. In fact, you do not even need a web site to have a unique, professional email address. All you need is the domain name, which costs about $35 per year. Mail sent to John.Doe@www.yourcompanyname.com can be routed to your favorite AOL or MSN email account. Yes, large Internet Service Providers like AOL and MSN do make their email easy to use, but someday, you will realize its limitations.

While web sites can cost thousands of dollars, they can also cost as little as a few hundred. Now, certainly you get more when you spend more. However, you can always enhance your web site as the budget allows and your vision of the web site's purpose matures. What is important at first is that you have some kind of professional presence on the World Wide Web.