An Online Marketing Lesson From the World of Professional Football

Whether you're a sports fan or not, you have to appreciate the parallels between what happens every year in professional football and the world of online marketing.

That's because, in an off-season of optimism, owners and general managers of the biggest teams spend untold amounts of money for the privilege of bringing a championship home to their city and franchise. A few of these gambles work out, but a lot of them will end up seeming like ridiculous expenditures in just a few short months.

If you don't see how this relates to Internet marketing, then you've obviously never had a comprehensive plan go up in smoke. To help you avoid that kind of experience – whether it's again or for the first time – here are a couple of quick online marketing lessons from the world of professional football:

It's not always about what you spend... but what you get from whatever you are spending.

In other words, having a big online marketing budget is an advantage, but it isn't anywhere near as important as having a sense of creativity when devising a plan to attract customers over the Internet.

Success is about the right fit, not the right pieces.

It doesn't matter if your search engine optimization plan is outstanding if your pages don't convert, or if you excel at social media marketing when your company's online reputation is terrible. To be profitable, all the pieces of your Internet marketing plan need to be working together.

Efficiency is the name of the game.

You might not have a salary cap to work with, but you probably do have some budget constraints. Making the most of them, and finding solid values when they are available, means more than simply writing a bigger check.

Proven performance is always worth a premium.

On the other hand, having the right web design or online marketing team on your side – one that has a track record of growing other businesses – is worth a little more since it takes the guesswork out of the process. Big-name coaches and star players are worth more to franchises because they're proven winners; creative professionals and online marketing teams are no different.

The team at Kayak has fashioned a selection of online marketing game plans for your consideration. Check them out.

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