Internet marketing, also known as digital marketing, web marketing, online marketing, search marketing or e-marketing, is referred to as the marketing(generally promotion) of products or services over the Internet. iMarketing is used as an abbreviated form for Internet Marketing
Internet marketing is considered to be broad in scope because it not only refers to marketing on the Internet, but also includes marketing done via e-mail and wireless media. Digital customer data and electronic customer relationship management (ECRM) systems are also often grouped together under internet marketing.
Internet marketing ties together the creative and technical aspects of the Internet, including design, development, advertising, and sales.[4] Internet marketing also refers to the placement of media along many different stages of the customer engagement cycle through search engine marketing (SEM), search engine optimization (SEO), banner ads on specific websites, email marketing,mobile advertising, and Web 2.0 strategies.[citation needed]
In 2008, The New York Times, working with comScore, published an initial estimate to quantify the user data collected by large Internet-based companies. Counting four types of interactions with company websites in addition to the hitsfrom advertisements served from advertising networks, the authors found that the potential for collecting data was up to 2,500 times per user per month.
Internet marketing is associated with several business models:
- E-commerce: a model whereby goods are sold directly to consumers (B2C), businesses (B2B), or from consumer to consumer (C2C).[citation needed]
- Lead-based websites: a strategy whereby an organization generates value by acquiring sales leads from its website.[citation needed] Similar to walk-in customers in retail world. These prospects are often referred to as organic leads.
- Affiliate Marketing: a process wherein a product or service developed by one entity is sold by other active sellers for a share of profits.[citation needed] The entity that owns the product may provide some marketing material (e.g., sales letters, affiliate links, tracking facilities, etc.); however, the vast majority of affiliate marketing relationships come from e-commerce businesses that offer affiliate programs.[citation needed]
- Local Internet marketing: a strategy through which a small company utilizes the Internet to find and to nurture relationships that can be used for real-world advantages.[citation needed] Local Internet marketing uses tools such as social media marketing, local directory listing,[6] and targeted online sales promotions.
