Internet Marketing, Direct or Relational

There has been for some time a split in the Internet marketing world as to how to actually market. Most marketers fall into one of two categories. Let’s look at these two approaches to see which way we should market our business.

Or is there a better way…

Direct Marketing

Direct marketing has been deemed by some to be scandalous. You know a direct marketing site when you visit one. 18 point Tahoma red font, yellow highlighter, and a ton of over the top testimonials about making a million dollars in a month.

It is true, there are plenty of shaddy folks trying to scam a buck by selling some pretty lame products. There are also some very savvy marketers making a ton of money.

Direct marketing when done well will create emotion and demand results. Those two elements are very sought after in Internet marketing.

Relational Marketing

Relational marketing is a term you’ll hear quite a bit in the blogosphere. Give ton of content away, interact diligently with your audience, and hope to make money some how.

If direct marketers are Montgomery Burns then relational marketers would be Smithers. They tend to get walked on, taken advantage of, and are usually not very profitable.

What to do…

So you may be asking yourself, what should I do? Well the answer is both.

Darren Rowse, Brian Clark, and Chris Brogan have coined a term called “third tribe”. They refer this as the combination of the two marketing strategies, but focusing on the positives of each.

Build relationships, provide great content, create emotion, and demand results. These 4 elements combined will create a following, loyal customers, and repeat/referral business.

While marketing your business, be sure not to verve to far to the right or the left.

Here are three questions to ask yourself about your Internet marketing.

1. Am I providing content that adds value to my not-yet-clients
2. Am I professionally positioning myself as a leader in my industry
3. Am I creating a desire to purchase my product or services

This list is not all inclusive, but if you’re not doing these three things on a regular basis your probably looking a lot like Mr. Burns or Mr. Smithers to your traffic.

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