Posted: March 5, 2010

No other form of media has matured as quickly as the Web has. At no time in history have we seen changes, modifications and new avenues of communication appear so fast.

In the midst of this rapid development, the Web continues to offer advertisers unique marketing opportunities. How can you apply these strategies and begin prospering from them? First, a little history lesson on the Web's most popular destinations:

• Google. What began as a college project in the late '90s is the world's largest search engine generating more than $23 billion in revenue a year.
• YouTube. Created by three former employees of PayPal, the first video was uploaded in February 2005. Recently, Google bought YouTube for a reported $1.6 billion. YouTube remains one of the top four most visited Web sites.
• Facebook. In August 2005, founder Mark Zuckerburg purchased the domain name Facebook. What began as a site for college students soon became the world's most popular social networking destination.

  So what makes the Web so intriguing to your customers that they can't go a day without it? Here are a few attributes the Web offers that you might be able to incorporate into your business to give you a competitive advantage:

• Speed. Nothing beats instant gratification. Go online, plug in what you want to find and in less than a few seconds, thousands of choices appear. How fast are you at getting your customers what they want?
• Entertainment. People are looking for a fun, pleasant and enjoyable experience. Most businesses would see dramatic increases in revenue and customer loyalty if they simply provided what people want in a gratifying manner.
• Communication. Every sales and customer service trainer will tell you to speak less, and listen more. The Web is the leader for listening and letting customers do the talking. Your business can see dramatic growth if you stopped talking, and started listening.
• Innovation. Business development experts have always touted innovation as the path to long-lasting success and profitability. For your company to remain viable, you must constantly change and provide new ways to solve your customers' problems.
• Free. The most pleasant word to any customer has allowed the Web to capture the attention of more consumers faster than any other medium. E-mail, video, audio, information, entertainment, discussion groups, social networking, etc. What can you offer for free?

  For your business to thrive and prosper, think how you can apply these lessons from the Web.

  Ronald A. Heider is the owner of Heider Marketing & Advertising. He can be reached by calling 288-9957 or e-mail at ronald@ronaldaheider.com.