Before you begin an online campaign the first thing you should consider is whether there is a market for your products and services. So many times we have seen our clients or prospective clients open a new business, or start a new line of products and services without first assessing the online demand for their services.

Unless you have unlimited funds to “create” a market and a strong demand for what you want to sell, it’s a bad idea to go into business without evaluating whether or not people actually want to buy these things from you. You have to think like a marketer, which means that you have to find a ”hungry” crowd, and then “feed” it whatever it is they want. If you open up a new restaurant, what you should ask yourself is not “where should I open this restaurant?” but rather, you should be asking yourself “where is there a hungry crowd, and what kind of food do they like to eat?”. Then, you open a restaurant close to them, and give them exactly what they want.

The same formula applies to any online venture. You have to find a crowd that needs or strongly wants something, and then you have to deliver it to them. In doing so, you also have to be aware of who else is trying to provide the same service to this crowd, because if there are too many others trying to do it already, then perhaps the market is saturated and your sales would be too slow. On the other hand, if nobody else is trying to sell what you want to sell, be very cautious, because this is a strong sign that there is no online demand for what you want to sell.

You have to differentiate online demand from offline demand, because even if there is a strong demand for something offline, it doesn’t mean that there is a strong demand for it online. The same goes for geographic areas. The fact that San Francisco has a strong online market for some product or service doesn’t necessarily mean that New York has the same market. If you’re in a local service industry that is limited by your geographic location this applies to you more than a company that sells products online to anywhere in the country or in the world. You have to take a close look and do some sample tests to see what kind of a reaction you get to your marketing before you jump headlong into an aggressive online campaign.

After gauging your online market you should take the time to get to know your online competitors. A helpful way to think about competition is to be thankful for their existence, and learn all you can from what they do well and what they don’t do so well. Take what they do well, and incorporate it into your own business. This could be a great source of inspiration for you without having to invest large amounts of money in research and development yourself. Another helpful aspect of competition is to see what they don’t do so well, and make sure that you’re not making the same mistakes. The more you pay attention to your competitors, the better your insights will be into how you can grow your business faster and better. Just make sure you don’t get consumed with your competitors, and try to learn what you can from them, and apply it all to your own company’s growth.

When we do an online market analysis for our clients we do everything described above, in addition to a lot of other tests and online research to determine your market depth and chances of success. We evaluate your competitors’ SEO and PPC campaigns, and look for strengths and weaknesses. Not all companies have great SEO campaigns, and many SEO/PPC providers are unqualified to carry out a well-executed campaign, so there are often many things you can do to exceed your competitors’ marketing efforts and position your web site for a carving a larger market share.

Once we analyze your competitors’ web sites and online campaigns, we begin examining your company’s web site and take note of all the web site’s strengths and weaknesses. We find the elements that are hurting the bottom line, and make suggestions on how they can be modified and turned into strengths. We learn as much as we can about the service you offer (or the new service you want to offer), and we find all the ways that we can give you a competitive edge over your rivals.

Isn’t it time to analyze your online market and get the competitive advantage you need to compete more successfully in your industry?

Call us today to learn more about our search engine optimization and pay-per-click packages.