Web Savvy Marketers

Content Marketing 101: Show ‘Em Your Family Jewels

content marketing 101When should you let your customers in on those secret gems you’ve been holding back? You know, the things they are always asking but you’ve kept under wraps.

It’s time to open the doors to your treasure trove and show ’em your family jewels. The content marketing game in the digital world is on, and it’s your turn to show your best moves by showing your true self.

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

What does this mean, anyway?

It’s simple. Marcus Sheridan of The Sales Lion said it best in his New York Times interview on how he turned his pool sales company around.

Answer your customer’s questions. Rather than talk about your business, *yawn* give them the answers to the questions they are most likely to search for on the Internet.

When he said give them what they want to know, he didn’t pick and choose. The number one question his fiberglass pool customers ask is, “How much does it cost?” So he told them.

In his TEDx talk, Sheridan addressed the used-car-salesman stigma, something no one wants. So give them what they do want – the truth!

What happens when you dare to tell the truth? Besides sharing the family jewels, you’re also letting the proverbial skeletons out of the closet. This is just crazy, right?

Yes, especially when you’re scared of chasing people away.

Here’s the thing. Your potential customers want the truth, and when they see that you are giving it to them, and are also willing to give away information for free, they will begin to trust you.

Sheridan made another brilliant and brave move. He answered the second most asked question. He told them what the problems are with his product.

Two things are bound to happen when you embrace the truth. Your customers will decide you are honest, and when they do a search for the problems inherent with your product, your website will show up.

How scary is that? Your business shows up as an authority on the subject,  you get more traffic, and you get the opportunity to share the benefits too. Remember the family jewels we were talking about?

It’s All Good

Truth and transparency will begin to change how your customers see you. Are you ready to be the business they choose simply because you are willing to be a teacher?

So how do you begin? How do you become a teacher who educates and not an information magpie who hoards?

In a digital world, it’s got to be accessible by the Internet, so that means creating content for your website. Content that teaches customers about your product or service. Content that answers their questions. Content that makes them tell their friends about you.

Stop by next week to see how to make Content Marketing 101 happen.

Steal Some Social Media Ideas Here

social media strategiesResults show that small businesses are experimenting with and investing in social media. Nearly 50% are increasing their expenditure, and 39% are already getting a return on their investment. This return will continue to go up as businesses “shift from the experimental stage to a results-focused phase.”

Not only do you need to set goals, but deciding on a social media strategy is important. Your strategy could involve more than one campaign, and getting there includes experimenting with ideas.

Take a Shot of Creative Adrenaline

The best way to fuel your creative fix is with some of the social media strategies currently being played out in the field. Get your game on with these social media tactics.

  • Cuteness Fusion with Four-Legged Critters

Facebook “Like Ads” show that the most successful ads were those with adorable animal images. The least engagement came from text-only ads, with logo-based ads being marginally better in response rate.

Ads with product images received the best long-term customer engagement. Incorporating product with appealing animal photos could be your newest approach to reaching your audience.

  • Buy a Banana (or Save Some Other Silly Fool)

When Henry Gribbohm lost $2,600 playing a carnival game for a dreadlock-and-beanie-topped stuffed banana, CollegeHumor developed a Facebook Like ploy to pay him back. At 26,000 Likes at $.10 a Like, Gribbohm’s bank account will be restored, along with his infamous reputation.

Give your brand some recognition with a similar campaign. There are bound to be enthusiastic souls who need saving and won’t mind having fun with it.

  • Stir Up Some High Velocity Winds

The Weather Channel stirred up some hashtag fun and games with #TornadoWeek. Interns sat working in front of a “wind tunnel” while broadcast live. Followers controlled the wind speed through tweet mentions of the hashtag, upping the wind velocity to 200 mph when they reached  1,000,000 mentions.

What other Tweet-powered hijinks can you think up?

  • Launch a Beauty Contest

Hawaiian Tropic’s Facebook page search for the woman who best epitomizes “beauty, confidence, style, enjoying the sun and keeping skin healthy” wins a trip to Hawaii and becomes a Hawaiian Tropic spokeswoman.

A focus on inner beauty and healthy skin reflects the need for skin protection and an awareness of the whole woman. Give your followers a way to applaud their strengths with a campaign to put their best face forward.

  • Broadcast Your Superpowers

Dominos Pizza is pounding the Internet pavement each night with a live broadcast of their pizza-making prowess from a store in Salt Lake City. Because their online ordering has been so successful, they felt it a natural move to take the whole pie to the World Wide Web.

People love behind-the-scenes, real-time viewing.  Social media gives us the opportunity to be more transparent and more authentic. So give them something to gawk at!

  • Play a (Safe) Prank

The idea of tricking someone for a laugh is only as good as it’s received. Trying for a repeat of Nathan Fielder’s, star of Nathan for You, tweet-a-gram might not be advisable, yet the humor is inescapable.

He asked his Twitter followers to text their parents “Got 2 grams for $40,” then claim it was meant for someone else, and screenshoot the responses. Needless to say, the replies were worthy of social media Oscars.

Rallying for entertainment with shenanigans that you know your audience will enjoy might be your ticket to a winning streak of fun and fame.

  • Offer a Feature Photo Challenge

Appeal to your consumer’s love of the local, like Mashable did in their Hometown Photo Challenge. Anything your audience will want to share and get some star treatment as a reward is an offer they’ll find hard to refuse.

While you’re at it, you can use more than one social platform to bring in the submissions. Mashable used Twitter and Instagram for photo uploads, as well as their website.

  • Grow a Mustache

When thirty guys decided to raise awareness for cancer research, they reinvented Movember, a movement to bring back the mustache in November.

They asked guys to grow a mustache and ask friends and family for donations. They gave them a variety of social tools to invite people, share the spirit of competition, and embrace the sense of brotherhood that was central to the movement.

Most importantly, growing a mustache for a cause is positive and proactive. Having fun while you spread your message makes it more contagious.

What will your next social media move be?

 

 

Is Author Rank Magic Waiting to Happen?

get active Google+It’s not for real…yet. Author Rank is being touted as the most significant up-and-coming SEO influence. Definitely sounds like magic, right?

Author Rank is Pixie Dust Today, a Flying Algorithm Tomorrow

When – not if – it comes into play, those who’ve been sprinkling their efforts in preparation for Author Rank will – at the very least – have established authority, according to SEO expert A.J. Kohn of The Blind Five Year Old.

Author Rank is Google’s push to rank the landslide of data in a way that will help you:

  • link to your great content
  • build a website with authority
  • get quality content into your SERPs
  • make relationships with other people in your field
  • share relevant content – your own and others

The strategic steps towards building a platform where authors will be ranked according to their content creation are already in place:

1.  Identity platform (Google+ profile)
2.  Social search (Search + Your World)
3.  Google verification method (Google authorship)

What flies next logically follows, especially when you take into account Google’s patent application and Google insider statements:

4.  Graded ranking in search results (Author Rank)

This verified author content will be given a grade that will influence its rank in Google search results. When Author Rank actually happens, that is.

In the meantime, taking the steps toward building authority is a prudent and practical move. Whereas Author Rank is still fanciful pixie dust, Google Authorship Markup isn’t hocus pocus; it’s real and you need it to stay relevant.

Here’s what else you can do to prepare for Author Rank and build authority.

  • Get active on Google+. Keep your participation on the upswing. It’s good right now for your Authorship Markup because Google is putting Google+ posts in SERPs of your circles. Think building your circles, posting original work, resharing, liking, commenting, replying, and hangouts.

  • Maintain your social profiles. This could give your overall ranking a boost, while giving you added exposure now.

  • Produce great content. Give your readers the information they want while publishing your best work. Now that your name and headshot are attached to your work through Google Authorship Markup, building your reputation is unavoidable.

Like Google Glasses, there’s a chance the technology won’t pull through to do what’s expected. But what if the fairy dust makes it fly and Author Rank is “the next Pinterest plus Amazon plus Facebook plus the iPhone put together,” as analyst Sarah Rotman Epps with Forrester Research suggests about the glasses.

What if someday we wear Google Glasses and our brains help rank content as it travels over the lens? What if we refuse to dabble in the magic?

What if all you had to do was be a wizard in your field and sign up?

 

 

 

SEO is Not a Silver Bullet to Sales

This morning I came across a post offering the top things not to do when optimizing your site for Google search.  See “Search engine optimization Elite Review On Google Prime ten NoNo’s”  The points are all valid and a well optimized site should follow all the rules if they want to have their site rank as high as possible.  The problem I see with many customers is their laser-sharp focus on getting a good search engine rank  while neglecting other marketing and possibly even the website itself.

This hyper-focus may have been enhanced by the glut of SEO experts telling people how vital SEO is to their success.  But, web site owners would be wise to remember that the only thing good SEO will do is have your site show up in a site search.  It’s not a silver bullet to sales.  It will only improve the odds or bringing customers to your website.  After that it’s up to you and your website to impress potential customers with amazing content–content that’s current, clear, accurate, informative, and attractively designed.

So while you’re reviewing SEO strategies (because I’m not discounting the effectiveness of a well-optimized site at getting people to the door) don’t forget to review your website.  The stuff that customer’s actually see is as important as a good SEO strategy.   Here’s a brief checklist of things you should be looking at:

  1. Is it clear (to the layperson) within seconds of landing on any page in your website what you’re selling?
  2. Is your phone number visible? On every page?
  3. Do you give people a reason to call you?  Do you clearly state benefits of doing business with you?
  4. Is your navigation easy to follow?
  5. Are your markets clearing defined.  Do you provide market specific content for different market segments?
  6. Do you update your content with current information?
  7. Does your site design look professional?  Does it look current or dated?  Does it show well on mobile devices?
  8. Is your site design (colors, typography, logos, images)  consistent with your brand?
  9. If you have a shopping cart, is the cart secure? Are products clearly displayed and identified?
  10. Are customer service policies, shipping methods, return policies, privacy policies in place.
  11. Do you provide a physical location and multiple ways for people to contact you?
  12. Are you using social media sites, like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and others that are appropriate for your markets?

Always focus on building a website that benefits your clients and potential clients.  If you keep that in mind as you optimize your site and your content you may find that customers are not only finding you, but they’re also buying from you.  And that’s really the ultimate goal isn’t it?

What I learned from Twitter this morning

It’s 6:49 am and I’ve been scanning my Twitter feed with CNN on the TV in the background.

I use Twitter to primarily follow web designers, application developers and SEO experts, with a small dose of news sources and random other hobbies and interests.  By scanning through my Twitter feed I learn of new tools and techniques in my industry.

Here’s what I’ve learned from Twitter:

  1. From @smashingmag: How other digital designers are using Fireworks – (one of my favorite tools).  In reviewing this post I realize there are techniques I can try that will make me more efficient in my daily workflow.  The post also made me want to upgrade to CS5.
  2. 10 reasons why business card size matters.  Some interesting design samples — it’s always inspirational to look at other designer’s work.
  3. From @1stwebdesigner: 10 tips for designing better infographics.  Insights into making a better bar graphes, pie charts, etc.  Some good pointers.
  4. From @catswhocode a Black Cat Rescue Shelter in the Boston area.  Black cats are less likely to be adopted.  People are weird.  Beautiful black cat featured available for adoption. Hope he finds a good home.
  5. From @ZarkoCompare – Link building guide from the Bliss SEO blog.  (Found the color scheme of the website hard to read)
  6. From @Biz: Large, slow moving plane video. (okay this one was a waste of time)
  7. From @CNN: Senate blocks vote on jobs bill
  8. From @CNNMoney: Foreign buyers scooping up US homes.

Here’s what been on TV this morning:

Gadhafi’s dead, Gadhafi’s Dead, Gadhafi’s dead… Jackson’s doc on trial.  7 billionth baby

Who do you follow?  What’s in your Twitter feed?

Best Design Practices for Effective Email Marketing

When I read email, I typically have one finger on the delete key.   Like most people, I get a lot of e-mail.  And like most people, I don’t have time for games.  So when designing an email marketing piece I’d advise you to avoid techniques that may slow down the email scanning processes of your readers.

Avoid over-reliance on images

More and more often I see email marketing in my inbox that is made up entirely of images.  Since my e-mail client is set not to download images until I tell it to, I see a blank white screen with some red x’s where the images should be, until (or unless) I click the “download images” button.  Unfortunately for the email marketer, I’m more likely to click the delete key than the “download images” link.  And once I hit the delete key, the message is gone.  All the effort that was put into choosing the right images to portray the message is lost forever.

Instead of concentrating on “wowing” the reader with the beautiful design that they’ll likely never see, think about using a clever phrase to wow them.  Or just use clear, straightforward language that the reader can quickly scan and comprehend without having to click the download images link.

Avoid unnecessary click through links

If you expect me to click through to something, you had better give me a compelling reason to move my finger from the delete key to the click through link.  Sending an email that is an image with a click here link isn’t very compelling.

However if you provide an interesting sentence or two, with a link to more information, you might get me to  click. If you offer an enticing discount on a product I might click through. If you give me some interesting details to an event you’re promoting, I might click through.

Keep the design simple

Remember that people are using email clients to read your piece.  Not only are there countless email clients that may be in use by your readers, but many people read their email on their phones. What renders well for one reader may unreadable for the next.  Current techniques used to design websites or print pieces simply won’t work consistently for email.   Keep it simple if you want it to get read.

Funny proofreading errors

I just got back from a long road trip. While traveling, I noticed a few proofreading errors in marketing materials that were worthy of a Jay Leno spot.

1. A truck stop billboard ad said. “EAT HERE! (Get Gas Later).”

2. A road service billboard ad: “24-HOUR TOE SERVICE!”

3. A menu at a major hotel chain restaurant offered “A side of fires“. The embarrassed server reported that it was the 2nd printing with the error–when they changed the menu they missed it again!

The moral of this post: Remember to take the extra time to proofread your marketing copy to make sure you mean what you say and say what you mean.

Anyone else have any funny proofreading errors? Feel free to comment.

Why is my new website not on Google?

The website went live at around 3:00 PM.  At about 4:00 PM I got the email asking “why can’t I find my website on Google?” I’m happy that clients recognize the importance of being found in a Google search.  But as good as Google is at indexing the web it’s likely going to take their software longer than an hour to find your new website.

Google and most search engines have software that constantly crawls the web (often referred to as spiders) following links from web page to web page and indexing material as it crawls. Given the vast size of the web, you can imagine it might take a while for even the fastest, most efficient spiders to find  and index your website.  However, there are techniques you can use to expedite and improve the chances that your site will be indexed soon.

  1. Create a Google local listing and while you’re at it, create a Bing and Yahoo listing too.

    screenshot of Google local listing
    Screenshot of Google Local Listing

    A Local listing allows you to create a free business listing on each of the search engines.  When you create your listing you’ll have the opportunity to select business categories, a business description, types of payment you accept, your hours, and your contact information.   A local listing is especially advantageous if you have a local market, but it doesn’t hurt to be “on the map” even if your market extends beyond local.

  2. Have business and trade associations link to your site.
    Inbound links are one of most overlooked aspects of SEO (search engine optimization).  Think about how search engines work.  Their spiders crawl the web from link to link and index websites.  If there are no links to your website it will be harder for the spiders to find your website.  If there are many links to your website they will find you more often.

    Contact associations where you are a member, like your Chamber of Commerce, or other trade associations and if they offer a link on their website make sure you give them your new website address.  Contact any strategic alliances you may have and see if they’ll put a link on their website to your new site.  Do a search online for directories that specialize in your industry and create listings where appropriate.

  3. Submit your URL to the search engines. You can submit your URL to  search engines, and although it doesn’t guarantee they will list it, it doesn’t hurt to tell the search engines your url.  Here are the links to submit your url.
    1. http://www.google.com/addurl/
    2. http://www.bing.com/webmaster/SubmitSitePage.aspx
    3. https://meme2048.appspot.com/search.yahoo.com/info/submit.html

Finally, remember that search engines are in the business of indexing information, so make sure that the information on your website is clearly written and kept current and relevant.  Keep your website on your marketing schedule and make sure that it is updated regularly as your business changes and grows.

Manage your domain name and beware of domain renewal scams

You own your domain name and it’s an important part of branding your business.  Some businesses are even named after their domain name–think Google, Yahoo, and yes, even cgwebhelp.  So it’s important that you have control of your domain.  You should know where it’s registered, when it will be due for renewal and how the process of renewal works.  And you should watch out for domain transfer scams.  Here’s a couple of scams that I  see regularly.

Domain Registry of America

This company may be a legitimate domain registry service, but their methods for obtaining customers is so unethical, I certainly wouldn’t want to do business with them.  Their technique for obtaining new customers?  They send an invoice.  Well it’s not really an invoice–it’s a solicitation to transfer the domain.  If you look very closely at the fine print, you will read that by sending payment you are authorizing them to transfer your domain to their registry service.  So the unsuspecting person sends them the $35 (which is likely more than their current registry charges to renew a domain) and unwittingly starts the process of transferring the domain.

Chinese Domains

This one arrives by email and suggests that your trademark is about to be infringed upon unless you swiftly purchase your domain with the .cn extension, as in yourdomain.cn.  This might be of benefit if you have a market in China or you anticipate developing a market in China, but most of the folks I’ve known who have received this solicitation have no intention of marketing to China.  For more information on this scam see http://professionalwebservices.blogspot.com/2007/10/chinese-domain-name-scams-from-china.html.

Know Where Your Domain is Registered

If your domain is important to your branding, and it most likely is, you should always know the following:

  1. Where is it located?  GoDaddy, Register, Network Solutions, Enom, OpenSRS, or one of the many other registry services available.
  2. Know how to access the information  and keep it updated with current contact information.
  3. Know when it is due to expire and the process for payment.  If it’s set for auto- renewal, make sure you keep a current credit card and contact information on file with the registry service.  If they can’t  charge your card because it’s expired, and the e-mail address on file is outdated, you’ll likely lose the domain name.

What are common sense internet solutions?

Let’s break it down. Merriam-Webster defines “common sense” as “sound and prudent judgment based on a simple perception of the situation or facts”.

We also find reference to the pamphlet Common Sense written  by Thomas Paine during revolutionary times.   Paine’s Common Sense made a straightforward argument for colonial independence that common folks understood. The plain-spoken pamphlet was widely read and is likely to have influenced the course of American history.

Given the definition of common sense, what are common sense internet solutions? If you define “solution” as being a problem solved, you could conclude that “common sense internet solutions’ translates to “a straightforward, sound and prudent course to solve your internet problems“.

Whoa! We can’t solve all the problems of the internet! But what we can do is solve your internet problems as it relates to your website.  So if your website is not performing as expected, we can help diagnose the problems and take steps to improve it’s performance.

How do we do that? Let’s break it down.

The problem: Your website is not performing as expected.   Perhaps you’d like to see…

  1. increased traffic and exposure
  2. increased sales
  3. increased leads
  4. better branding

Once your expectations are clear, we can take specific steps to solve your problem(s).  First we would look at your website.

  1. Is the website customer friendly? Is it well-designed? Will it appeal to your target market?  Does it look professional?  Is the content well-written and organized for on-screen viewing?  Can the average person find the information they need quickly when visiting your website?
  2. Is the website current?  Does it have relevant updated information? Does it provide a way for customers to communicate with you? Is it inviting?
  3. Is the website technically sound?  Does it comply with current coding standards?  Do all links, forms, carts, pages work the way they’re supposed to?

Once the website is user-friendly and polished, we look at how to spread the word.

  1. Is the site coded for search engine optimization?  Does it have well-written keyword title and descriptions tags?  Does the content include keyword rich headings?
  2. Are you tracking traffic?  Are you using a good statistics program like Google Analytics to analyze and review your website traffic?
  3. Are you or should you use social networking sites like LinkedIn, Facebook, YouTube or Twitter to help spread your message?
  4. Would an e-newsletter or e-promotion strategy help?
  5. How about online advertising such as pay-per-click programs or banner ads?
  6. Could you benefit from online public relations strategy using websites like ezinearticles.com?

Once we’ve worked through these steps, we can create common sense internet solutions that will fit your business and your website will be in a better position to meet your expectations.

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