In May, 2013, Luma Partners released the chart below that illustrates just how complex the online marketing world is today.  Don’t worry if you can’t read anything in the chart.  The point is there are so many online marketing companies popping up that they don’t even fit on one graphic like this.  In fact, this is just one of TEN graphs Luma Partners created to illustrate the online marketing landscape.

 

It’s no wonder business owners struggle to keep up with all this online marketing stuff!  I have a hard enough time and it’s my full time job to stay up to date.  Most business owners I talk to don’t have the time or patience to study a chart like the one above.   Let alone the 9 other charts you need to study to get the full picture.

But here’s a little secret to make your life easier, and your marketing more simple.

 

Look for the Big Shifts In the Landscape

New online marketing companies and technologies will continually come and go.  If you try to memorize the exact names in the chart above, then you’re wasting your time and you’re making online marketing overly complicated.  The names and even some of the technology does not really matter.

What’s important are the trends, or shifts in the landscape.  How are online marketing strategies and tactics changing and what will they look like in a year or two?  As a business owner, that’s where you need to focus.  Everything else is just noise in the media.

For example, our Inner Circle members receive the Main Street Marketing Letter every month, which includes the most important trends in online marketing.  Some of the recent trends include:

  • Mobile device traffic is on the rise and will soon affect all search engine rankings.  By 2015, mobile traffic is predicted to be greater than desktop traffic in the US.
  • People now use multiple devices (desktops, tablets, and mobile phones) to research and make a single purchase.  Google AdWords overhauled their advertising platform this year  to account for this important trend.  That’s why on July 22, all AdWords campaigns are automatically transitioning to “Enhanced Campaigns.”
  • Search engine optimization tactics that used to get you ranked #1 in search engines can now get you penalized or even banned from Google.  Penguin 1.0 and 2.0 made some businesses extinct overnight.

 

The trends like the ones listed above represent huge opportunities. That is, of course, if you’re aware of them and you take action quickly. If you set up a mobile friendly website, then you’ll be in a position to capitalize on all the mobile traffic.  If you’re advertising in Google AdWords and you create sales funnels for all the different devices, then you’ll be head and shoulders above your competition.  If you’re investing in SEO, then find an SEO company or train your in-house team so that you’re following up-to-date best practices.  As your competitors are penalized or kicked out of Google, you’ll replace them in the search results.

Unfortunately, a lot of business owners I talk to feel “too busy” trying to keep up with everything listed in the graph above, that they miss these bigger picture trends.  It’s safe to ignore most of the noise in the online marketing world.  Instead, always be on the lookout for big shifts that can have a real impact on your business.

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