Yesterday I was running through my slides in preparation for the Socal AMA Internet Marketing Intensive. I had two C level execs for an audience and when I was done, the one guy- - who is fairly new to the idea of internet marketing – commented that one datum really hit home with him: the market place has changed and potential customers behave in a very different way on the Internet. The flow of information has reversed. Instead of companies looking for an audience, people are online actively looking for the company that will best meet their needs. They are talking to other users and they are no longer just passively receiving marketing messages. If you don’t know what keywords they use to find companies like yours, and your website does not show up one page one in these searches, you are not even in the running. The business goes to a savvier competitor. I found this very interesting because I don’t particularly stress this fact. Yet at one of our Internet marketing forums a few months back I had this same feedback from an attendee. He listened to people talk for two hours and came away with the same AHA! moment: I have been using traditional marketing methods to reach an audience that has shifted. It’s no longer me looking for them, it’s them looking for me. They are getting the clue! Markets are conversations. So make sure you have done your keyword research. It is the linchpin of Internet marketing. | 
