For online retail, 2007 looks to be a very good year. While few can predict where 2007 will take us, the early signs are looking somewhat promising with Australian consumers showing a greater willingness to open their wallets online. While large reatilers such as Harvey Norman, Bing Lee and Myers continue to ignore the online world, innovative Australian companies such as RedBalloon Days , Webjet , The Kid Store , DealsDirect , and Budget Direct Car Insurance are quietly creating strong brands and reaping millions in sales.

Marketers in the know see Internet marketing as having a very high level of strategic importance. In a recent poll by Responsys some 75% of marketers said they are planning to increase spending on internet marketing as a percentage of their total marketing budget this year. Respondents cited low cost of delivery, speed of delivery and measurable ROI as reasons for the using Internet marketing.

With numbers like these it's easy to see that the Internet is not going to go away. We believe the internet will continue to revolutionise the way products and services are sold and will become a profitable source of revenue for most businesses over the coming year. That is, as long as businesses are willing to invest in their web sites now.

The benefits of online sales are plenty including lower costs via direct online distribution, a greater share of the affluent customer base and a lower dependence on online discounters. These advantages make getting the most from your online efforts a worthwhile proposition.

At Amplify we believe there's never been a better time to ensure your web site and marketing strategy are working hand in hand to help you capture a greater share of the online market. The best way to learn is to invest in your online business and ensure you're ready to take advantage of consumer's willingness to transact online.

With most things in life, the greatest risk is to do nothing; the greatest gain is to understand the Internet as a marketing and distribution medium while your competition sits on the sideline.

To help ensure 2007 is a bumper year for your hotel, we've created our Top Internet Goal list:

1. Develop an Internet marketing strategy and budget
2. Aim for > 30% of your sales through the Internet
3. Receive < 50% of your Internet sales via third party discounters
4. Improve web site usability and employ a booking engine to ensure bookings are as easy as possible
5. Establish a Monthly Internet review and comparison of competitors
6. Determine keyword strategy and implement keyword advertising program
7. Implement analytics and tracking tools to measure online/offline marketing success
8. Develop email strategy and newsletter to keep visitors returning to your web site
9. Employ Internet Marketing Expertise - the Internet is a rapidly evolving and requires a specialist focus

If you'd like to jumpstart 2007 and gain a greater share of Internet sales, the easiest way is to let Amplify conduct a search engine and website marketing audit of your web site.

Contact Amplify today to get started.