Online Advertising – PR 2.0 is the way to go!
The Internet is not going away. You have to hug. The Michigan Chronicle is even online and some of the publishers blog there! So how can you, as an author or aspiring, make the most of the internet? Here are some tips:
1. Write a website plan. Know what you want me to do before creating a site. Create a favorable shopping experience for your ministry products. Make the website user friendly. Please provide good customer service by shipping the goods within 5-7 days. Use automatic responses when people make purchases. Make your site “buyer friendly”.
2. Attract people to your site by promoting it through frequent email campaigns with links to the site. Make your site content rich to keep visitors on your site, wanting to share it with others. This is called viral marketing.
3. Capture the names of the visitors by using a “compression page”. Offer something free like a CD or brochure if they provide their contact information. Obtain their email address as a minimum to be able to send the brochure as a PDF file or the CD as an MP3.
4. Publish a regular online magazine called Ezine. This is a motivational tool for people to be eager to receive. It has the ministry updates.
5. Include recent news hits in your ezine. Broadcast television interviews and audio clips. Use a template from an Internet database management company like Constant Contact. I have used them for years!
6. Join discussion groups and gatherings like ChocolatePagesNetwork dot com. You can get a lot of information this way in any particular industry. There are groups for pastors, ministry communication professionals, Christian authors, or whatever your specialty is. Search for your area of interest on Yahoogroups, connectplatform.com, or Google.
7. Place banner ads on other sites that your target audience can visit. If it’s Gospel Today or DetroitGospel. These ads are usually very inexpensive. You can promote your television ministry program or other products.
8. Update your site frequently. Current information sends the message that you are up to date in your ministry. It keeps people coming back to your site. Try new things on your site, like podcasting or webcasting. Keep it cool.
9. Focus on great content so that search engine optimization will rank you high when people browse online through search engines like Google or AOL. Adding links is another great way to increase your site’s ranking and get noticed among search engines.
10. Add a “newsroom” to your site. The media will access your high resolution photo (300 dpi), get a press release, ministry history and a good bio from this section. It makes their life easier and shows that you are a professional in handling media interviews. This is also a good place to list other media hits you’ve received, such as magazine / magazine articles, radio interviews, and columns you’ve published.
11. Create a blog. Do this only if you have time to continue. A good blogger posts 2-3 times a week. A blog is like an online journal. A blog is an abbreviation for “weblog”. It’s the online version of you. It is more personal and informal than a website and visitors can respond to you directly. Go to blogger dot com to set one up for free. See the Ministry Marketing Solutions blog. It will also give you ideas.
12. Use a signature at the end of each email that includes your tagline, website, blog, and contact information. Please. The best form of advertising, and it’s free!
