Search Marketing in Rush Hour Traffic

The impact of Google's search marketing methods is by now a world-renowned phenomenon, as Seth Godin points out. People will now actively seek out marketing messages via search engine queries, as opposed to having marketing message forced upon millions of people simultaneously through mass marketing (though this tactic can work as well, but most businesses don't have the money to support this type of program). It's one person seeking one thing at one time, and that marketer needs to be there in order to make the sale.

To put it into a real life perspective, you have to be the guy selling water bottles (or flowers, or--if you're from Philly-- soft pretzels) right when a car pulls up at a traffic light or during rush hour. If I'm thirsty and sitting in rush hour traffic, I just might buy a cold bottle of water if it doesn't require me to get out of my car and costs a reasonable price. That's one-to-one marketing at its simplest!

So, if your prospects are riding the (uh oh, please prepare for terrible metaphorical comparison) "information superhighway", is your company right there on the corner when they stop at a light and look your way? Your site needs to contain the right keywords and have strong SEO tactics to rise up high in the search rankings, and/or you need to have relevant, eye-catching, enticing ads if you do a pay-per-click program. That's the name of the game in one-to-one marketing online.

So what's the lesson here?

Simply, be there or be roadkill.