Marketing online has mainly to do with a few specific categories in various stages of engagement with your consumer.

• Search Engine Marketing
• Search Engine Optimization
• Paid Marketing
• Email Marketing
• Web 2.0 Marketing
• and of course… Social Media Marketing

There’s probably a few more that can be thrown in there – with the internet it seems like you can tack the word “marketing” on the ass of a word and it would make sense (bikini marketing? Maybe.)

The end goal of online marketing methods (particularly social media marketing) is obviously to drive traffic to a site and convert those visitors into something that resembles a broken cash machine spitting money at you.

When it comes to marketing online though I’m not talking about branding in any way – though that is relevant. This post is specifically pointing towards the four P’s – Product, Place, Pricing and Promotion

Your Product and your Price are pretty self-explanatory. The Place is the online POS (but can also include offline POS) and then there’s Promotion.

The guiding principles within social media marketing are fairly similar to other forms of marketing with the exception that the communities involved here ultimately form conversations and dialogue. Unlike other one-way marketing gimmicks, social media marketing is a two way street. The convo goes both ways.

Your common and popular social networks are the core tools involved in social media marketing, as they’re used to facilitate the messages that go between the individual and the organization. It’s through these tools that businesses and marketers are able to build communities, reinforce brands, promote products and services and draft an identity that was never quite possible before. Ultimately, they are machines for driving sales.

Those brands that have successfully churned out valuable content and had a community rally behind them for their personality, image and efforts are the ones that truly understand social media marketing and they’re reaping the rewards that come from proper use of the four P’s

That content has a huge impact on the success of a brand through social media marketing. When that content is replicated and shared by the visitors within your community, then you become the beneficiary of priceless word of mouth marketing through social media. That’s the viral buzz that a lot of companies aim for but fall short of.

Unfortunately their focus, in those cases where they stumble, is on the buzz. They’re less focused on the content which will show itself through that content. You have to focus on delivering true value within your social media marketing and the content you provide or your stage dive becomes a face plant. Noone is going to carry you.

Create a message that will get people talking and rest assured that it will take off like a wildfire.

When marketing your content within social media and working toward your brand improvement, always remember that you do not control the environment. You do not control your brand image. You also do not control the conversation. You are a contributor, and the visitor is in control. Start your conversation from that standpoint, and the visitors will be able to sense your respect and appreciation for their presence.