What Businesses Benefit Most from Online Marketing?

Among the small business owners I counsel at SCORE, many have dipped their toes into online marketing. What types of business does it work best for, I ask myself? The answer is obvious and not so obvious.

1. Businesses selling things that people buy frequently on the internet. My clients selling military loans and electronics get lots of hits. JustMilitaryLoans got so many they had to rebuild their “back end” processing capabilities to handle the traffic.

2. Businesses selling niche products. With the right keywords and a clear understanding of the market, these business owners can reach their buyers directly. The small biz owner selling caramels at Das Foods could target just these candy-lovers, for example.

There are pros and cons here. I often advise these owners to advertise as well in more general websites that resell lots of related products. For example, the company selling a specialized international tour may also benefit from advertising on a site that sells a broad range of tours. And Das Foods, the company selling caramels, also advertises in Amazon’s gourmet food section.

3. Businesses that have in-house people who have skills to use the web and its marketing capabilities. I think here of a printer with a tech-saavy son who generated business internationally for his dad’s business.