Is online marketing that similar to traditional marketing? What is the future of SEO? Is there actually a SEO 2.0? Those questions are going back and forth in my head. The only problem is, even if they have their problematic nature for me, I doubt that they are really challenging and that they represent the issues of the respective industries. Here is my problem, I am new in the industry but I want to think critically about it, to see the big questions, the paradoxes, the challenges, etc. That's why I would like to know your opinion about online marketing, SEO, SEM, ecommerce, Google, ranking etc. What are for you the challenges, the unaswered questions, the burning issues, the problematic situations worth thinking about? With which critical approach should I focus on those fields. What about the situation of the market and the advertising on the Internet? One firm, whose services are used by almost each and every internet user, that seems to rule the web, and some many firms, trying to be loved from it, as it means a lot of trafic, and as it is a key to success. Isn't strange? I should admit that from a business point of view, it is very confusing. What is the future of this strange system? What are the questions that should also be considered?
Have a lot on your mind there eh? I believe for the long run a person wants to keep an eye on the technology that is being developed. Are you seeing computers getting bigger monitors with more and more people turning to the larger sized equipment for getting online? No...everything is going mobile and getting smaller and smaller. So perhaps a key area to devote time and effort to might be mobile device advertisement techniques and presentation? I think a lot of people are missing the bandwagon here and should start developing mobile friendly sites. Yes, Google is god in the search world but many successful sites do not depend upon Google for the majority of their traffic. Look at Amazon.com, the largest retailer on the Internet. You would think that the majority of their traffic would come from search engines. But in fact only about 21 percent of their traffic comes from this. Much of their traffic comes from their affiliates. How smart is that to have other people sell your products for you? Amazon.com is a major mover and shaker and holds a wealth of free research that they have done if you know where and how to look for it. I believe every online retailer should study Amazon's methods and practices along with ideas that they are testing. These guys sink millions upon millions on this research and development. By keeping a close eye on them you can see what they are testing, what they drop, and what they decide to put into practice. I don't know about you but I am not at the point yet where I can spend the millions on this the way they do. Another area to look at is GoogleLabs. http://www.googlelabs.com/ This is the new stuff Google is working on and testing. By keeping an eye on what they are developing helps one to keep ahead of the game and to be ready when a major new app or technology is released. There is a lot to IM and often requires a lot of time and devotion, but the rewards can be great.....or not.. But the one thing to remember is people are still people and want what they think will make their lives happier and or easier. I doubt this will ever change be it online or offline. Good luck in your pondering.. Ken