To realise the benefits of Internet marketing that we have described, an organisation
needs to develop a planned, structured approach. As we will see in Chapter 4, which
covers Internet marketing strategy, there are many risks if an ad-hoc rather than strategic
approach to managing online channels is used. Some of the problems that we have com-
monly seen in organisations are:
Unclear responsibilitiesfor the many different Internet marketing activities shown in
Figure 1;
No specific objectivesare set for Internet marketing;
Insufficient budgetis allocated for Internet marketing as customer demand for online serv-
ices is underestimated andcompetitors potentially gain market sharethrough superior
online activities;
Budget is wastedas different parts of an organisation experiment with using different
tools or suppliers without achieving economies of scale;
New online value propositions for customersare not developed since the Internet is
treated as ‘just another channel to market’ without review of opportunities to offer
improved, differentiated online services;
Results from digital marketing are not measured or reviewedadequately, so actions cannot
be taken to improve effectiveness;
An experimental rather than planned approachis taken to using e-communications with
poor integration between online and offline marketingcommunications.CHAPTER 1· AN INTRODUCTION TO INTERNET MARKETING
Benefits
The owners describe the benefits of the improvements to the site as follows:
Increased Direct Sales – ‘The new launch increased sales and appealed to a broader audience –
young and old’. The annual turnover of the business has increased from £250,000 to £350,000 and
this is mainly attributable to the new web site. The high profile launch aimed at existing customers,
the greater visibility in search engines, and the greater usability of the site have all contributed to this.
Improved Promotion of the Whole Range of Stock – ‘We started selling stuff that we hadn’t sold
before’.The changes in navigation, particularly division into two market segments (military and
outdoors) and greater use of sub-categories, meant that products were easier to find and hence
easier to buy, leading to increased sales of products that had previously been slow sellers.
New Customers – ‘We now send more items abroad’.The better performance of the site in search
engines has led to an increase in orders from new customers and from abroad. The company now has
regular sales to Canada, Australia, New Zealand and various European states. 60% of orders are from
new customers – not bad for a business that initially set up on the premise of a niche market for UK
based cadet forces.
Adding Value to the Brand – ‘New corporate clients could look at our Web site and see we weren’t fly-
by-night and that we meant business’. Improvements to the design have raised confidence levels in
visitors and this has led to increased sales. But perhaps more significantly, the professional image of
the site was a good boost to confidence for potential business partners in the emerging business-to-
business division that started to trade as North Star Contracts.