NEW: 3 Online Marketing Trends Every Successful Entrepreneur MUST Embrace (Before It’s Too Late)

Q: What are the most significant trends in the online marketing industry in 2012? Are things as easy as before to make money… or are there NEW ideas that need to be implemented to maintain the same level of success?

A: This is a very common question that comes up through our articles, blog posts, and even newsletter subscribers. The truth is, if you are a passionate professional or online entrepreneur working in the branding, blogging or business industry, you NEED to know what is working NOW… and what is not working anymore too.

I want to share with you 3 key trends that are critically important in my own business, and that I truly believe each and every successful business owner (or online agency) should embrace ASAP, or risk being trampled. .and left behind for what they are.

1 – Communities are critical

Static websites, or even simple blogs, are no longer enough to stand out in your space. You need to think community FIRST and set up the infrastructure to create an interactive environment where your users can become content creators and evangelists for your blog, your brand, and your business. The good news is that the Facebook-style marketing model can be EASILY implemented on all blogs running WordPress (the most widely used blogging platform in the world) with free plugins that can transform your blog into an interactive community in just one click. hour. (if you are slow!)

2 – Dynamic navigation environments

It used to be that marketers didn’t have to think about design as much…since the direct response mantra was that design didn’t matter. (think of the long text heavy sales pages of yesteryear that are still being used by some marketing “gurus” in 2012)

The truth is, in my own business, I’m seeing firsthand how much design and cross-device access is transforming my own communities and conversions as well. According to recent statistics, roughly HALF of Facebook’s 900 million users access the site a significant portion of the time via a mobile device or iPad (or similar reader). Unless you’re creating responsive or responsive environments that adapt to your users’ screens, you’ll exponentially increase your bounce rates, lose readers, and of course suffer from an SEO standpoint as a result. (since page permanence is a very important factor in determining how relevant your pages are to the searches that are sending you traffic)

3 – Control what you create

Short site marketing strategists are forgoing traditional blogs and websites for social profiles and brand building on social media. The truth is, this is a BIG mistake, because if you don’t control the content you create, you risk losing it all, at the whim of someone else’s agenda or business goals. For example? I’ve seen people who have built a huge Facebook presence lose it overnight… when FB decided to take down their page. Or those who built their entire business around sites like Squidoo or HubPages or even solely on article directories… only to find that when those sites get slapped or punished, you suffer too.

When you control what you create and own where you post, you RARELY risk going out of business due to factors beyond your control. Using social media as a complementary strategy is SMART. But using it as the only strategy is super silly… and very short too.