Archive for the ‘Education and Training’ Category

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Unlock the Power of Video

Tuesday, September 13th, 2011

As Internet marketers, we’re always looking for a way to push our businesses to the next level. A great way to drive a ton of visitors to your site is through creating and uploading YouTube videos. Sure, there are other video sites on the Internet, but YouTube is far and away the most popular and most visited of them all.

According to their website, YouTube receives more than 45 hours of uploaded content every minute and over 3 billion videos are viewed every single day. These statistics make YouTube an indispensable marketing tool for businesses of every kind. Whether you upload a DIY commercial, a series of how-to videos or simply an introductory clip that showcases your staff, YouTube is a great way to get information into your clients’ hands and bring more attention to your company.

Of course, with all of the competition, you want to do whatever you can to push your video to the top of the rankings. So, here are some tips for you:

•    Always include your keyword or keyword phrase in your video’s headline. You want your target market to be able to find it easily.
•    Keep your video short, sweet and entertaining. If folks stop watching your video before it’s over, you’ll be dropped in the ratings.
•    Promote your video in other areas. For starters, be sure to blog about it, Tweet about it and list it on Facebook.
•    Make sure to list your video in the proper category for the best results.
•    Write an accurate, eye-catching description for each video you upload.

A final tip for getting your YouTube videos ranked higher in search results is to watch your video statistics. YouTube provides users with comprehensive information on their viewers’ demographics as well as other factors. By staying on top of this information, you can adjust your keywords, content and descriptions accordingly.

The most important thing to remember is to have fun! If you have a good time writing and shooting your video, most likely your viewers are going to have a good time watching it. Use your videos as a way to create a relationship with your audience that will keep them coming back for more … and, don’t forget to smile for the camera!

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Top 5 SEO Tips and Tricks

Tuesday, September 6th, 2011

As any good Internet marketer knows, SEO stands for search engine optimization. Basically it’s a fancy term for “try to get your page ranked #1 on Google.” You should know that there are no sure fire methods for increasing your ranking on search engines but there are several strategies that we can offer that will help.

To increase your ranking on search engine results and drive more traffic to your website, try these ten tips and tricks to establish your presence on the Internet:

•    Keyword Research: Make sure that the terms and phrases you use on your website are ones that your target market are looking for. Think from your clients’ point of view to come up with the best ones.
•    Increase the Links: Try to get as many links leading to your website from around the Internet as possible. Also, make sure that they don’t all lead to the home page. Look to blogs, social networking sites and the like to increase your traffic.
•    Be Original: Unique, interesting content is mandatory for attracting the attention of search engine spiders. Believe us, nothing will get you dropped to the bottom of the results like copying and pasting material from other sites.
•    Keep Current: Just because your keywords are perfect for your target market today does not mean that they’re everlasting. Check in on their effectiveness from time to time and make sure to adjust as necessary.
•    Stay in Touch: Be sure that your website and business information are listed on local guides like Citysearch or Yelp, and submit articles to sites like EzineArticles. You’ll get your business name out there and begin to establish yourself as an expert in your field.

Realize that SEO is not a one-shot deal. In order for any optimization strategy to be effective, you have to be persistent. Now, getting ranked #1 on Google (or Yahoo or any other major search engine) isn’t easy, but with a little hard work, you can definitely increase your presence and begin your journey toward the top.

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Get Help with SEO

Tuesday, August 23rd, 2011

As an upstart entrepreneur, you know that the bulk of the work for your business is going to be done by you. However, as your company starts to grow and thrive, you may find yourself needing some help. This is especially true in the area of SEO.

When you decide to outsource your SEO services, you want to make sure that the company you choose practices the best, most effective techniques available. Even if you don’t know all of the top strategies yourself, you should be careful to select a company that does.

Here are some questions you want to ask a new SEO firm – before you sign a contract:

•    Can you provide previous success stories?
•    How well does your site rank in Google?
•    What techniques will you use?
•    How will you measure your progress?
•    When can I expect to see results?

There are a lot of tactics for driving traffic to a website and increasing search results, and there’s no one-size-fits all strategy. Your SEO firms should customize a plan specifically for your business. Just make sure that they use only “white hat” techniques, meaning they don’t use deceptive or misleading campaigns.

Sure, “black hat” strategies like hidden texts and cloaking might produce results, but they’re also a great way for your site to get dropped to the bottom of search engine results, or even banned entirely. So, don’t do it.

The number one question to ask a potential SEO firm is, “Can you promise that my site will get a first page ranking?” You should know from the outset that no one is able to guarantee search engine rankings, not even Google themselves. So, if you find a SEO company that says they can, you’ll instantly know it’s time to move along.

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How to Identify Your Client Persona

Tuesday, August 16th, 2011

Can you identify the type of person who’s looking for your services online? Have you gotten a good grasp on exactly whom your target audience is? No? Well, then how do you know the best way to attract them?

When you create a client persona, you’re basically writing a description of your ideal target market as an individual. By thinking of customers and potential clients as an actual person rather than a faceless mass of Internet searchers, you’re better able to connect to your audience.

Usually businesses have a variety of client personas since, in most cases, not just one specific type of person will be attracted to their products and services. Still, narrowing down the field by identifying the 4 or 5 different people who would fall into the “ideal client” category will give you some remarkable insight into your audience, and into how to market to them directly.

To create your own client persona(s), start by identifying the following characteristics:

•    Age
•    Gender
•    Career
•    Education
•    Location

Once you get the basics down, you can then go into more details about whom your ideal client is: what kind of clothes they wear, whether they have kids, where they hang out on weekends, what their hobbies are and so forth.

The clearer your image of your client persona, the better your chances of connecting with your ideal market and providing the products and services that they want.

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The Value of Content Marketing

Tuesday, July 26th, 2011

Content marketing is a technique where you develop and distribute the best possible content to directly engage your target market and ideal clients. It’s not so much about selling a product to your customers as it is about creating an ongoing relationship where you communicate relevant information to them as a value-added service. The theory being that the more you provide consistent, valuable content to your users without trying to push them to buy something, the more likely they are to give you their business.

One of the most critical aspects of content marketing is keyword research. The more effective your keywords, the greater your chances of increasing your visibility and driving traffic to your website. So, how do you find the best keywords for your ideal market?

In a previous post, we discussed several “Cool Tools for Keyword Research” that will help you come up with a comprehensive list, but you still need to make sure they’re relevant to your target clients. As Internet marketers, we sometimes forget that the jargon we use in our field doesn’t always reflect the terms our potential clients would use when searching for information. Try to think from your target market’s perspective. Brainstorm a list of possible keywords or phrases that your users would use then do a little research to find out how effective they might be.

One great way to see how folks are really looking for things in your market is to check out social media. Twitter’s search function, for example, is a good place to find out how your clients think and talk about topics relevant to your business. Simply input a specific subject or concept that you’re focusing on to get an idea of the conversations that are going on around your topic.

The more you know about what’s being said about the things that relate, directly or indirectly, to your business and your market, the more you’ll understand how your target consumers might be researching topics related to your services. And, when you’re able to meet your potential and current customers on their level, you’ll have a much better chance of gaining their trust and their loyalty.

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See Me at the San Jose Social Media Conference – June 23

Wednesday, June 22nd, 2011

I will be presenting “Introduction to Social Media” at the San Jose Social Media Conference – Growing your Small Business with Social Media, on Thursday June 23, 2011.

The City of San Jose and http://www.businessownerspace.com/ have developed an event to provide small businesses interested in leveraging Social Media with an understanding of the offerings of the large social media outlets as well as some of the newest concepts coming on the market.

My presentation will include information about the origins of “social media”, considerations about developing a social media plan, and ideas on determining the metrics of success.

Learn more about this San Jose Social Media Conference and I hope to see you there.

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Run Your Own Race

Tuesday, June 7th, 2011

If you are a frequent reader of our blog, you know that originality is the number one way to attract attention whether it’s from real, live customers or web crawling spiders of search engines like Google and Yahoo. Okay, so you’re not the world’s only fuzzy bunny slipper supplier. You’re not even the only company that offers them in 17 colors plus cheetah print. But you do have one thing that none of the other companies have. Can you guess what it is?

 

The one thing you have that can make your business stand out from the crowd is you. You are the key to making your business fresh and unique. As a burgeoning bunny slipper magnate, it’s expected that you will look to other successful slipper manufacturers to find out their secrets to their fortunes and that’s fine. Just don’t fall into the trap of trying to mimic their every move without adding in your own fresh take.

 

It’s great to get ideas from successful companies that have similar products and services as yours. After all, you will need the same basic structure as other businesses – a website, an online shopping cart, Facebook and Twitter accounts – but you don’t want yours to be indistinguishable from every other company. When your clients come across your webpage, for example, you want them to know that they are on YOUR site and not just one of many cookie cutter pages.

 

If it helps, think of running your business as running a marathon. People who win those competitions don’t expend all of their energy looking side to side to pace themselves with the people they’re running against. They train hard, they prepare themselves for the long haul and once they’re running, they run their very best race while keeping their focus straight ahead on the finish line.

 

Don’t waste your time and energy trying to measure up to bigger, more successful companies. And, don’t beat yourself up if you feel you’re less accomplished or will never be the number one slipper supplier on the planet. Remember those companies you’re looking at were once startups too.

 

Trust that your very best is your very best. Strive to create a unique business persona and know that your success will come from a job well done and a client base that is attracted to your particular style. To create the company you want and enjoy and generate the success you hope for, you have to learn to run your own race.

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Steps for Building Your Brand

Tuesday, April 26th, 2011

It all starts with an idea, a spark in your mind that says, “Hey! I could create a business out of this!” As an Internet marketer, your company begins small, with maybe a website and a few email contacts, and grows from there. But, just because your business is a one-person operation to begin with, doesn’t mean you have to present it as one.

The more professional your company image is, the more your clients and potential customers will view it as such. Market and promote your services as if you are already at the level you strive for; that way you’ll not only get there faster, you’ll have your brand and company all set once your major success hits.

Sure, you’re not Coca-Cola or Google (yet) but remember, Coca-Cola and Google weren’t such big shots when they started out either. Don’t forget, Facebook began with a guy in his college dorm room playing around on a computer for fun, and just look at it now.

Here are some ideas for making your upstart business look professional:

  • This should be a no-brainer but make sure to have a real domain name. www.professionalcompany.wordpress.com is not going to cut it.
  • Provide a real mailing address on your contact page. If you don’t want to give out your home address, find a mailbox rental service that allows you to use their street address. Only having a PO Box smells a little like scam-city.
  • Customize your web pages and provide accurate, up-to-date information that applies directly to your business. If you’re using templates, be sure to fill in or edit every section to make sure your clients don’t come across an “insert terms of service here” page.
  • Invest in a custom logo and treat it as a legitimate branding tool – because that’s what it is. Create your own branding standards and stick to them.
  • As a savvy marketer, you can spot a non-legit site from a mile away. Take an objective look at your website and make sure it looks authentic and polished.

Your website should give your customers a sense of confidence and trust. Your visitors should know that they are dealing with a professional organization that will provide them with the utmost level of service. As you build and grow your new company, take care to treat it not as the upstart it is, but as the major brand it will eventually become. Here’s to your success!

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The Importance of Online Reputation Management

Tuesday, February 15th, 2011

The Internet is flooded with business review and rating websites, which means reputation management has become quite a matter of concern. Entrepreneurs from every field are scrambling to maintain their online integrity and character, and some business owners are even compelled to write positive reviews for themselves on as many sites as they can access.

The thing is, with so many consumer review sites out there, it’s practically impossible to monitor every comment that is made about your company, good or bad, and reviews written by business owners about themselves are usually pretty obvious, and kind of unethical. So, what’s a worried entrepreneur to do?

As a business owner who is concerned about your company’s online presence and reputation, here are some simple steps you can take to improve your business’ reviews and manage your online reputation:

1.     Do a little research and find out what the top rating and review sites are for your industry. Not sure where to find that? Google your business name and category and you should get an idea of what sites are coming up for your customers.

2.     On most review sites, you have the option of creating your own company profile.  Go to the top review sites you find and create a personalized page for your business on each of them.

3.     Invite your clients and customers to visit these sites and give you a review. Be sure to ask them soon after you’ve done work with them so their experience with you is fresh in their mind. Feel free to skip anyone who might not portray your company in the brightest light.

If you have a hard time finding industry-specific review sites for your company, here are a few of the more popular business rating sites to get you started:

And if you’re sitting there wondering whether all of this effort is even worth it because – How many people are actually reading those things anyway? – think about the last time you wanted to make a purchase, try a new restaurant or find a good mechanic. What did you do? You went online and read the reviews, right? Enough said.

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Learning Twitter Talk

Tuesday, February 8th, 2011

As a reader of our blog, you already know that social media is a great way to go for free, easy marketing and is the way all of the cool kids are keeping in touch with their client base and staying current with the online conversations in their field (as well as keeping up to date on what all their pals are doing). And you know that the top three networks you absolutely must be a part of are Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.

In fact, you’ve probably already developed your Facebook profile, created a presence on LinkedIn and even have designed your company’s own Fan Page. You frequently update your status, have cultivated some serious connections and feel pretty confident in your ability to maneuver both Facebook and LinkedIn with a certain degree of proficiency. But, although you’ve developed a decent enough following on Twitter, if you’re like most folks, you don’t feel quite as secure when it comes to tweeting.

There’s just something about seeing all of those people #-ing and @-ing that tends to throw Twitter newbies for a loop. To help you out, we are going to offer you some easy-to-follow explanations on what those special Twitter symbols mean so you can be tweeting away like a pro in no time.

Here goes:

Twitter: A social networking site where you can post updates, links, promotions or the like to your followers, as long as your message is 140 characters or less.  (Letters, numbers, punctuation and spaces all count as characters.) Use your posts to update your followers on the latest happenings at your company, provide helpful tips to your client base or direct people to a link you feel might be useful to them.

@: Using the @ symbol in your tweets is a way to direct your message to a certain user or reply directly to a comment from them. When you use @UserName at the beginning of your tweet, this directs your comment directly to that user’s feed and it will not be broadcast to everyone on your list. However, if you want to make note that you’re responding to someone in particular, but would like everyone to be able to see what you wrote, simply put a period (.) or any other character before the @ and all of your followers will be able to see it.

#: Known as a mathematical symbol for weight or the “pound sign” when using a phone, on Twitter, the # is known as a hash tag and is used to signify a particular thread or label a tweet as referring to a specific topic. For example “Loving the info #YourTeleclass” would allow other people on your teleclass, for example, to chat with each other about the event.

RT: This is an abbreviation for re-tweet and using RT at the beginning of your tweet is a way to let your followers know that you are sharing something that you got from another tweeter. The way you use it is to start your post with “RT @UserName” followed by the info you’re re-tweeting. Simple enough.

Of course, there are other symbols and abbreviations used on Twitter and nuances that accompany all of them, but these three – the @, # and RT – are the most common. Experiment with them a little and see how they work. You’ll better communicate with your more tech-savvy clients and be a full-blown social media geek before you know it! (And, that’s a good thing.)

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