One Entrepreneur On Web Marketing: Imran Karim

This is part of a series called "The Entrepreneurs on Web Marketing."  This interview is with Imran Karim.

What are your primary ways of promoting yourself and your business online?

I primarily promote the company and generate online buzz through three different avenues. The first is reaching out to blogs and publications in the medical device, health, and beauty segments that have an influential following and are opinion makers. I essentially run my own online PR campaign by courting bloggers and reporters that are interested in cutting edge beauty and dermatologic devices.

The second is using the search engine advertising tools available through Google, Yahoo, AOL, and Bing to target high value keywords. This is a highly competitive way to market, so staying on top of which keywords are performing is crucial and is something I do on a daily basis.

Finally, I use SEO tactics including writing my own blog, optimizing my company site, and link building to promote the organic search results for high value keywords. This is essentially a never ending process, and one that must be constantly worked on to stay ahead of the competition.

Do you use social networking?  If so, how is that working for you?

Social networking is the newest segment of our web marketing strategy, and so far it has gone well. We have created a Facebook fan page that we update regularly, and have also launched Facebook advertising that is starting to produce results. It remains to be seen whether the cost will be worth the results over the long run, but so far the initial signs are good. We plan on expanding our social networking presence to Twitter and other sites as the company grows, and will also be writing our blog on a more regular basis about relevant topics.

What have been your keys to success when it comes to growing your web presence?

Having a very appealing, user friendly, and professional looking website is really key in any industry, and even more so in the health and beauty industry. Especially with an e-commerce site, keeping a potential customer on your site and engaged long enough to complete the sale is paramount. We have designed our website as a pathway to learning about our device, seeing validation of the results it can produce, and then ultimately purchasing. This "sales funnel" is a key tactic, and we supplement it with proactive live chat to engage the visitor and find out if they have any questions.

How important is web marketing to your business?

Web marketing is extremely important to our business, as 100% of our sales come from the web. Lately we have been expanding our distribution with branded healthy and beauty e-commerce sites, which give our products added reach and increase the brand awareness. Also, online word of mouth from our customers on Amazon, Google, and other review sites help drive sales.

What percentage of your customers or clients would you say come from your web marketing efforts?

100% of our customers at this point come from web marketing efforts.

Any final thoughts on web marketing?

Web marketing is a continual process that must be cultivated on a daily basis across many different channels. The great thing about web marketing, as opposed to traditional marketing like TV and radio, is that web marketing is highly trackable. It is very easy, and essential, to track the results of each campaign you have running. It allows you to see down to the keyword level what is working, what needs improvement, and what mediums can be cut. This allows marketing on the web to be highly efficient and produce a better ROI. It lowers the level of risk when done properly and allows businesses to get started in a very lean manner.

Imran Karim is the founder of Trophy Skin, a home use medical device company that offers effective and affordable light therapy devices for the treatment of common skin conditions such as wrinkles, acne, and rosacea. These devices use the same FDA approved technology found in dermatologist offices and have been proven effective by numerous clinical studies. They are safe for use at home, easy to use, and produce noticeable results within 2 weeks.