If you have a small business that you are attempting to promote and are having trouble, it may be because you have not first created an internet marketing plan. Internet marketing is extremely complicated and is much more difficult than simply putting some keywords in the text of your site. An internet marketing plan consists of 8 basic steps: strategic planning, situation analysis, customer analysis, market and product focus, product positioning, pricing strategy, product distribution, and internet promotion.

Step Number 1: Strategic Planning…
When promoting your business online, you need to keep some things in mind. Ask yourself the question, “what am I good at?” You need to discover how your business is different from the rest by discovering the advantages that you have over your competitors.

Step Number 2: Situation Analysis…
This is basically learning about the market that you are in. This can be achieved though various studies such as SWOT analysis, conducting an industry analysis, and analyzing your competition. The more you know about the industry you are in and how you can succeed in it, the better.

Step Number 3: Customer Analysis…
Simply put, this step involves learning about your customers. How you are going to effectively market to someone that you know nothing about? You need to know their likes, dislikes, hobbies, jobs, family life, etc if you are going to market to them effectively. In fact, some businesses do invent personalities that act as the target customer and develop a plan of marketing to them.

Step Number 4: Market and Product focus…
This step involves segmenting your market and making your company different from your competitors. This is often times referred to as the “Unique Selling Point” or “USP”.

Step Number 5: Product positioning…
Simply put, when a person hears a company name, certain thoughts come to mind. When somebody says your company name, what thoughts should come to mind? This is something you need to think about. You need to know how to position your business in your customer’s mind. If you haven’t learned about them yet, acquaint yourself with the 4 Ps of marketing: product, position, promotion, and price.

Step Number 6: Pricing Strategy…
This is also one of the 4 Ps of marketing. You need to know how to effectively price your goods or services. A good way is to take a look at what the competition is charging. If you are new to the business, you will need to undercut their prices.

Step number 7: Product Distribution…
This is the second P in the 4 P’s of marketing, also known as position. This is the physical location where your product or service is offered. And yes, if you have an internet business then you position is the internet.

Step Number 8: Internet Promotion
This is how you are going to advertise your business on the internet. There are plenty of different methods at your disposal including newsletters, search engines, article marketing and pay per click advertising. Experiment with each of them and try to find what best suits your business.

Hopefully, you can make use of this information to create your own internet marketing plan.