The flea market fills the entire field. Rows of tables and tents present treasures of all kinds. Antique hub cabs from forgotten trucks. Wooden spools of thread with pale shades of color. Tools both new and old. You have to take an organized approach to surveying the booths if you want to make sure you see every last thing. Without a plan, it is easy to get distracted and forget which way you are going, accidentally visiting the same items twice, but missing out on other hidden finds.
The woman who is with her 84-year old father and 15-year old daughter tries to keep both of these companions in sight. The daughter continues to gravitate toward the refurbished decorator items. Looking closely at the details, she is certain that she can recreate some of these items herself for her bedroom and basement study area. The woman’s 84-year old father is looking for something specific. A grill for his antique Case tractor. He is certain there is a guy here who knows where to find this difficult to find tractor part. In the mean time, however, the oldest of the three has a way of dictating how fast they make their way up and down the long rows of booths.
One interesting stop the 84-year old made was to jokingly ask if one flea market table had any $250 stirrups? With a smile on his face, the owner of the booth presented a $575 pair of handmade single mounted Jack Ferguson stirrups. A lively conversation ensued as the customer and the seller swapped stories of similar items they had seen at other auctions and flea markets. No purchase was made, but the conversation was fun.
A few tables later, the following conversation occurs near a stack of five very large metal rings:
84-year old potential potential customer: “What are those rings.”
Seller: “I have no idea. I bought them myself five years ago and they have been doing nothing but hanging in the garage ever since. Brought them here today to see if anyone else has a use for them.”
84-year old potential potential customer: “They would be pretty hard to make so I guess if you wanted them it would make sense to buy them.”
Again, no sale.
Before they leave the flea market, the group also stops to hear a discussion about the use of a wrench used for getting to the basket strainer under a kitchen sink and a traveling guitar with an accompanying amplifier.
No purchases made, but plenty of lively chats about possible treasures.
Traveling Through the Internet or Walking Through a Flea Market
Search engine marketing serves the same purpose as a flea market booth owner trying to get someone to buy something from a specific table. Just as internet users wander randomly through a variety of sites anytime they are researching a purchase, flea market visitors also wander through many interesting items while they look for something that they want. And just as it is easy to lose your way and get off track at a flea market, it is also easy to get off topic and wander through websites until users find themselves far from their original purchase.
Web design and development attempts to capture potential customers and keep them interested and intrigued enough to make a purchase. Search engine marketing teams know that they are battling a lot of unwanted trash in their quest to get a potential buyer to find the treasure that their client is offering. In fact, digital marketing firms realize that they have to battle every popup on a social media site in their efforts to get the customer’s attention. And just as an 84-year old flea market visitor can be distracted by traveling guitars, metal rings, and a $575 pair of stirrups while looking for a antique tractor grill, internet users can be distracted by social media posts, online games, and news updates while they are shopping for their needed items.
Search engine marketing is about capturing the attention of a potential client even if they stray from their intended tasks. A search engine marketing team knows that they have to constantly remind their potential customers of their intended purchase plan.