Ride the Social Media Bandwagon or Lose Your Clients

admin    Social Media Marketing     Bandwagon, Clients, Lose, Media, Ride, Social

Ride the Social Media Bandwagon or Lose Your Clients

Recently, Dashal received a fantastic question on our blog.  Cindy Kim, a Corporate Communications Executive from Scottsdale, Arizona asked us this question:

“What is your recommendation for agencies that have yet to launch their SM strategy or have no presence at all? I know of several and it’s baffling to me that they are in this wait and see mode. Their media buying is the traditional approach. So I would like to get some recommendations on why it’s critical for agencies to get started and how this impacts results and branding?”

Well according to the classic adage, there are no stupid questions, and this is absolutely not one of them.  The question is so critical and timely that Dashal had to respond immediately on our blog.

We’re just happy to be able to answer this brilliant question in response to Dashal’s recent interview about advertising agencies and social media:

http://www.dashal.com/comments/dashal_interviewed_about_social_media_and_advertising/

Any agency that is not engaged with social media is just like any public relations firm that is not blasting RSS feeds from their own corporate website.  Both types of firms are social-media-phobic and are doing a huge disservice to their cliental. In today’s market, your clients deserve an agency that is both technically savvy and fully vested in social media tools and practices.  And, if you don’t step up to the plate, your clients will turn elsewhere.

Let’s take a look at some current social media usage statistics. Facebook reports that they currently have over 122 million total users and Twitter posts about 22 million average monthly visitors. The difference between social media and traditional advertising is simple. When your company has a “friend,” a “follower,” or a “fan” you have the ability to talk with them again and again and again without having to purchase advertising space to distribute the message each time.  Not only can you reach your friends, fans, and followers, but you have the potential to reach deep into their extended circles of personal friends and contacts.  Then, if your friends and fans each tell two friends, and they tell two friends, and so on, and so on.  You get the picture; the reach of your message expands exponentially – all without the additional hard cost of purchased ad space.

Social media is also extremely powerful in regards to the feedback loop – both for customer service and new product development.  In the world of social media, active participants do not hesitate to tell you what’s on their mind – for good and for bad.  You are able to get instant feedback from your customers about your product or service.  In the best case scenario, your customers rave about your fantastic product or service or give you ideas for new product development.  In the worst case scenario, you can also receive negative feedback.  But, this too, turns into a positive in short order.  Previously, you could not have imagined real-time feedback from customers.  Now, if you receive a negative review or comment, you can address the situation immediately and in real time.  That’s never been possible before.

Here’s the best advice that I can offer for an agency that is on the sidelines of social media: start today (as in right this minute) or direct your clients to another agency – an agency with bona fide experience in the field.  If the agency (or its principals) lack a Facebook page and/or a Twitter account, you shouldn’t take social media advice from them.

If you are starting on your own in the social media world and you are trying to build a presence, the most important thing you need to do is “start.”

The first thing that your company needs to do is to answer the following question: What do you want social media to do for you and your company, product, brand, or service?  Will you use social media to field new ideas for product development?  Will you use the media as another customer service channel to decrease your call center costs?  Will you use social media to help define and preserve your brand identity? Then, decide how you are going to measure the success of your strategy.  For example, if you decide to use social media to augment your customer service channel, will you measure success by a decrease in the number of calls that your off-shore call center fields?

From there, determine which social media tool sets will help you best achieve this objective.  Twitter? Facebook? YouTube?  It’s free and easy to set up your Facebook and Twitter accounts.  Tell all of your friends, and ask them to tap into their networks on your behalf.  Here’s where the “social” part of social media comes in…telling your friends and asking them to tell their friends is just like having a fun conversation.  Make yourself interesting.  Would you want to have a conversation with your online identity? People will spread the word if you are engaging and “unfriend” or “unfollow” you if you’re boring. Rude? Sure, but it’s how the social media game is played.

If you ask people to “follow” you or “be your “friend” in most cases they will. People aren’t as evil as I normally rant about.  But, turnabout is fair play.  Then, return the favor when your friends ask you the same favor.  It’s all about being social! You never know who you will meet across these extended networks; your next great lead might just come from a friend of a friend of a friend. Then, spread the word as far and as wide as possible. Put your social media address on your website making it easy for everyone to be a “friend” or “follower.” Stamp it on all of your print marketing material. I even include our Dashal Twitter account on my work email signature.  Use social media as a powerful tool that can enhance your brand significantly because of the power of your extended network.  Be prepared for the number of people who will see your logo and your company on a daily/weekly basis to grow exponentially.  You and your brand will become a household name within this extended network – even if you are not in real life.

Results as you know can vary, but let’s take a look at the @dashahlgroup Twitter account as an example. Right now we have about 2,100 followers which is not bad for a very new account. If we post a URL on one of our blog posts we average about 2 to 4% conversion of people who actually go to our website to read it. So if I post that same URL on Twitter 6 to 8 times in a single day, an additional 100 to 200 people will read that blog from the Twitter post alone. Our Facebook page averages about a 20% lift.  Keep in mind that once your accounts are established and you have a solid network, it is free to post your articles, your blogs, your products – whatever. Also if people like what you have Tweeted or posted on Facebook, they are likely to spread the word, RT (Retweeting, to those of you still learning) or repost it on Facebook – an almost daily occurrence on our posts.

For agencies with limited social media knowledge and its affective usage, we suggest that you work with an experienced firm like Dashal.  And, trust me, we’re always more than happy to help. I have never subscribed to the theory that I know everything.  And, well, most of the time, I don’t.  If your agency cannot best help you in this particular area, just find someone who can.

Dashal does social media for several agencies and public relation firms on a third-party contract basis. They simply outsource the work to us and bill the client themselves.

On the surface, the power of social media is the ability to post freely (and frequently!) without having to purchase advertising space, every single time you want to say something.  However, the true power of social media lies in the extended personal networks into which your friends, fans, and followers will distribute your message. Spreading your message has never been easier.

There are also several other techniques out there including my favorite, Internet Public Relations. That article will be coming very soon to the Dashal blog.  In the mean time, please post any additional questions that you would like us to answer.

By: Nick Harrison – Creative Director http://www.dashal.com

Ride the Social Media Bandwagon or Lose Your Clients

admin    Social Media Marketing     Bandwagon, Clients, Lose, Media, Ride, Social

Ride the Social Media Bandwagon or Lose Your Clients

Recently, Dashal received a fantastic question on our blog.  Cindy Kim, a Corporate Communications Executive from Scottsdale, Arizona asked us this question:

“What is your recommendation for agencies that have yet to launch their SM strategy or have no presence at all? I know of several and it’s baffling to me that they are in this wait and see mode. Their media buying is the traditional approach. So I would like to get some recommendations on why it’s critical for agencies to get started and how this impacts results and branding?”

Well according to the classic adage, there are no stupid questions, and this is absolutely not one of them.  The question is so critical and timely that Dashal had to respond immediately on our blog.

We’re just happy to be able to answer this brilliant question in response to Dashal’s recent interview about advertising agencies and social media:

http://www.dashal.com/comments/dashal_interviewed_about_social_media_and_advertising/

Any agency that is not engaged with social media is just like any public relations firm that is not blasting RSS feeds from their own corporate website.  Both types of firms are social-media-phobic and are doing a huge disservice to their cliental. In today’s market, your clients deserve an agency that is both technically savvy and fully vested in social media tools and practices.  And, if you don’t step up to the plate, your clients will turn elsewhere.

Let’s take a look at some current social media usage statistics. Facebook reports that they currently have over 122 million total users and Twitter posts about 22 million average monthly visitors. The difference between social media and traditional advertising is simple. When your company has a “friend,” a “follower,” or a “fan” you have the ability to talk with them again and again and again without having to purchase advertising space to distribute the message each time.  Not only can you reach your friends, fans, and followers, but you have the potential to reach deep into their extended circles of personal friends and contacts.  Then, if your friends and fans each tell two friends, and they tell two friends, and so on, and so on.  You get the picture; the reach of your message expands exponentially – all without the additional hard cost of purchased ad space.

Social media is also extremely powerful in regards to the feedback loop – both for customer service and new product development.  In the world of social media, active participants do not hesitate to tell you what’s on their mind – for good and for bad.  You are able to get instant feedback from your customers about your product or service.  In the best case scenario, your customers rave about your fantastic product or service or give you ideas for new product development.  In the worst case scenario, you can also receive negative feedback.  But, this too, turns into a positive in short order.  Previously, you could not have imagined real-time feedback from customers.  Now, if you receive a negative review or comment, you can address the situation immediately and in real time.  That’s never been possible before.

Here’s the best advice that I can offer for an agency that is on the sidelines of social media: start today (as in right this minute) or direct your clients to another agency – an agency with bona fide experience in the field.  If the agency (or its principals) lack a Facebook page and/or a Twitter account, you shouldn’t take social media advice from them.

If you are starting on your own in the social media world and you are trying to build a presence, the most important thing you need to do is “start.”

The first thing that your company needs to do is to answer the following question: What do you want social media to do for you and your company, product, brand, or service?  Will you use social media to field new ideas for product development?  Will you use the media as another customer service channel to decrease your call center costs?  Will you use social media to help define and preserve your brand identity? Then, decide how you are going to measure the success of your strategy.  For example, if you decide to use social media to augment your customer service channel, will you measure success by a decrease in the number of calls that your off-shore call center fields?

From there, determine which social media tool sets will help you best achieve this objective.  Twitter? Facebook? YouTube?  It’s free and easy to set up your Facebook and Twitter accounts.  Tell all of your friends, and ask them to tap into their networks on your behalf.  Here’s where the “social” part of social media comes in…telling your friends and asking them to tell their friends is just like having a fun conversation.  Make yourself interesting.  Would you want to have a conversation with your online identity? People will spread the word if you are engaging and “unfriend” or “unfollow” you if you’re boring. Rude? Sure, but it’s how the social media game is played.

If you ask people to “follow” you or “be your “friend” in most cases they will. People aren’t as evil as I normally rant about.  But, turnabout is fair play.  Then, return the favor when your friends ask you the same favor.  It’s all about being social! You never know who you will meet across these extended networks; your next great lead might just come from a friend of a friend of a friend. Then, spread the word as far and as wide as possible. Put your social media address on your website making it easy for everyone to be a “friend” or “follower.” Stamp it on all of your print marketing material. I even include our Dashal Twitter account on my work email signature.  Use social media as a powerful tool that can enhance your brand significantly because of the power of your extended network.  Be prepared for the number of people who will see your logo and your company on a daily/weekly basis to grow exponentially.  You and your brand will become a household name within this extended network – even if you are not in real life.

Results as you know can vary, but let’s take a look at the @dashahlgroup Twitter account as an example. Right now we have about 2,100 followers which is not bad for a very new account. If we post a URL on one of our blog posts we average about 2 to 4% conversion of people who actually go to our website to read it. So if I post that same URL on Twitter 6 to 8 times in a single day, an additional 100 to 200 people will read that blog from the Twitter post alone. Our Facebook page averages about a 20% lift.  Keep in mind that once your accounts are established and you have a solid network, it is free to post your articles, your blogs, your products – whatever. Also if people like what you have Tweeted or posted on Facebook, they are likely to spread the word, RT (Retweeting, to those of you still learning) or repost it on Facebook – an almost daily occurrence on our posts.

For agencies with limited social media knowledge and its affective usage, we suggest that you work with an experienced firm like Dashal.  And, trust me, we’re always more than happy to help. I have never subscribed to the theory that I know everything.  And, well, most of the time, I don’t.  If your agency cannot best help you in this particular area, just find someone who can.

Dashal does social media for several agencies and public relation firms on a third-party contract basis. They simply outsource the work to us and bill the client themselves.

On the surface, the power of social media is the ability to post freely (and frequently!) without having to purchase advertising space, every single time you want to say something.  However, the true power of social media lies in the extended personal networks into which your friends, fans, and followers will distribute your message. Spreading your message has never been easier.

There are also several other techniques out there including my favorite, Internet Public Relations. That article will be coming very soon to the Dashal blog.  In the mean time, please post any additional questions that you would like us to answer.

By: Nick Harrison – Creative Director http://www.dashal.com

Find More Social Media Advertising Articles

The World’s Most Powerful Marketing Model for Freelance Copywriters And Their Clients!

admin    Web Marketing     Clients, Copywriters, Freelance, marketing, Model, Most, Powerful, Their, Worlds

The World’s Most Powerful Marketing Model for Freelance Copywriters And Their Clients!

As a copywriter and copywriter’s coach, it’s my responsibility to offer powerful, on-target advice to my “mentees.” For them as well as myself…and for you…I keep a keen watch on the world of freelance copywriting to pick up on changes and trends.I spent last month musing over numerous clues, statements, conversations, experiences, and purchased research pertaining to the business side of copywriting.

My conclusion? The world of copywriter marketing is changing rapidly …thanks to the Web.

I built my site in 1998. Back then there were few copywriters on the Internet. For a long time, when you keyed “copywriter” into Yahoo, my site would come in at the top along with Bob Bly’s and Ivan Levison’s. I’m sure there were others, but these are the sites I remember.

With so few copywriters on the Web, I enjoyed a virtual cornucopia of new clients for about four years, until copywriter newcomers started pushing my site down and down and down…until even I didn’t look for my site any more.

Like everyone else, I had to start driving business to my site, and as time wore on, it proved a marketing model that worked very well.

But I believe a radical shift is now taking place…

…one that implores you to forget thinking about your WEB SITE as the centerpoint of your marketing and make your FREE EZINE the centerpoint instead!

Why is this?

Because the ezine is emerging as one of marketing’s most powerful…and inexpensive…and superfast… marketing tools ever.

Note that free ezines have been around for a long time. Note also that there are hundreds of thousands of them! And note that YOU are subscribed to at least one

In the early days of the Internet virtually everyone looked upon this new medium…the Web…as one would look upon an extra-terrestrial. It LOOKS powerful, but where does that power come from?

Companies started pasting their employees’ bios on the Web until pirating ran rampant. Then they moved toward wimpy “online brochures.” Now enough testing has taken place and enough time has passed to offer clear direction on what works, what doesn’t, and what wins.

And guess what wins?

You guessed it…the ezine!

Knowing this, I’ve gone from suggesting that my coaching students create a highly-targeted, content-rich ezine (or blog), to requiring it.

My own experience with an ezine (thanks to my Freelancer’s Business Bulletin subscribers), proves the power of keeping in touch with a group of like-minded people. Because I work hard to bring useful content to my readers, my list grows steadily and my unsubscribe rate is low.

That said, here’s what you must know about marketing your freelance business in 2006 and beyond:

Today’s business-building writer should select one primary marketing method and strengthen it with other marketing methods that suit their temperament, location, goals, and target market.

I used to believe that one should pick two or three favorite marketing methods and do them exceedingly well.

Now I believe that new copywriters who are entering the business at ground zero, with no name recognition in their marketplace, should
use as many marketing tools as they can.

I still recommend direct mail as an essential marketing method because it’s the only way to handpick your target audience…to know that the people you’re reaching are of sufficient quality to deserve your time.

Your direct mailings and everything else you do…
participation in discussion boards, article publication, face-to-face networking, cold calls, public speaking, and so on…should drive sign-ups to your ezine.

And it’s from your EZINE that you do your most effective…and least expensive…selling. Over time, as your ezine readership grows, you can abandon your time-consuming direct mailings altogether.

More evidence that the ezine is becoming the world’s most powerful marketing tool…

While on vacation in Oregon I brought along some overdue reading. One piece was Part 2 of Clayton Makepeace’s interview with the legendary Gary Bencivenga. They’re discussing mailing formats, particularly that of the magalog.

Clayton says, “Everyone’s looking for the next big format breakthrough…”

And Gary replies, “I really think it’s here already. I think it’s an e-zine. I’m finding that with the clients I’m a partner with, I almost don’t want to do direct mail anymore.

“It’s too tough to send a 24-page magalog to a prospect who doesn’t know you. I don’t think that direct mail will ever be dead, but rising paper costs, rising printing, and rising skepticism argue against people responding to cold mailings that are trying to sell them something right on the spot.

“I think these factors argue instead for an elongated courtship of an e-zine that is of great value, where the selling process starts more subtly, a lot more softly. Perhaps in the future, the most profitable use of much direct mail will be to drive people into an e-zine relationship.”

Gary Bencivenga’s take on the ezine only strengthens my long-held position that a free ezine should be an essential part of any copywriter’s marketing toolkit.

Gary supports the age-old premise and marketing tactic that in lead-gen, you must lead your prospect down the path with high quality information that is valuable.

Here’s another prediction:

The Internet will create more competition for the freelance copywriter.

This sounds scary but it’s not. Direct marketers such as AWAI are reaching a vast market of people who want to transition from what they’re doing now to a career with greater flexibility, freedom, and financial promise.

On the surface, it may look like lots of new copywriters are flooding the market…and they are!

But most target the obvious markets…the ones we can readily see…such as alternative health and publishing.

And yes, you will see increased competition in the obvious markets as AWAI and other programs create more and more entry-level copywriters.

But this is a perfect example of tunnel vision. You see what’s before you…not what actually exists.

And that’s one of the things I do for my coachingstudents…I show them how to find lucrative hidden “pockets” in traditional copywriting niches.

But it doesn’t stop there.

I also show my copywriters how to discover exciting markets that other copywriters are unaware of…and under certain conditions, I can even show them how to CREATE their own niche markets!

So while it may seem that the market is flooding with new copywriters, the truth is that the new copywriters will flood only the obvious markets. The world of business is full of markets…hidden and not.

The Internet Has Made Marketing Faster, Easier, and Cheaper for Service Providers Such as Copywriters.

I have long marveled over the low cost of maintaining a Web site. Creating a presence in other Web venues (such as discussion groups and blog postings) is virtually free. You can write articles for free and distribute them online for free or at low cost. My own positive experience is proof that the effort to “show up” all over the Web is worth it.

And in a recent conversation with a successful nonprofit copywriter, I learned that email marketing can work well IF you have a reliable source for names and their email addresses.

To avoid spamming, you’ll need to find lists where prospects in a target market have “put their names and emails out there,” and would not be surprised by a cold contact coming in this way. If you’re in a niche market that has associations, this is the most likely place to find such a list.

Local Clients Can be a Good Source of Income for the Beginning Copywriter.

I used to advise against targeting local clients because they usually want you to come to the office for meetings and to “pick up the check.” It’s a bad use of your time, that’s true, but if you have a connection with someone local who you think would hire you, it’s money in the door, experience, and a sample for your portfolio.

And no, they don’t have to be in your niche market. You do want a “connection,” however weak. I once did fun work for Oregon specialty cataloger Norm Thompson. While they usually don’t hire freelance, they used me because I lived in Lake Oswego, which was a stone’s throw to their Wilsonville location.

If You Have the Stomach, Talent, and Opportunity for Public Speaking, Do It!

It’s one of the most effective marketing tools you can use. And because relatively few copywriters like public speaking (including me), there’s plenty of opportunity to get before groups that are eager to hear what you have to say.

Board members are always looking for their next speaker. Believe me, you will be welcomed! Just be sure to avoid groups that have little to offer, such as groups of other solopreneurs.

In My Opinion, Networking is Equal in Power to Doing Steady Direct Mail Mailings to Your Target Market.

And that means both online and off. This is where you definitely do want to stick to your target market, especially in any offline efforts. It’s simply too time-consuming to hob-nob with groups that you don’t have a strong connection with.

It bears repeating…

Make sure ALL your marketing activities send people to your free ezine.

This is the model everyone is using…first it was the small guys, then the mid-size companies caught on, then

I saw Agora’s Internet marketing model…now even the big guys are putting the ezine at the center of their marketing!

Just be aware that it takes “multiple touches” before you can expect to see your relationships turn into business. Some say to plan a minimum of nine touches, and for some copywriting markets, you may find that it takes up to two years of continued contact to gain the trust of your prospect.

THIS is why I now advocate using as many marketing tools as you reasonably can when first starting out…touch as many people as possible, always driving to your list…then touch your own list with frequent mailings (at least once a month), while staying in front of your audience in as many ways as possible.

When I say “use as many marketing tools as you reasonably can,” I don’t mean use everything at your disposal. We’re all human and we have time limits.

If you try to use every marketing tool at your disposal you’ll dilute your efforts. Best to pick those that are right for you from your burgeoning “package” of possibilities.

This is one place a good coach can help you accelerate your success…by showing you how to create a customized marketing plan. Copywriters are akin to marketers…and smart marketers craft marketing plans that maximum their exposure both online and off.

How Social Media Can Enhance Mail Marketing

Rajeev Guglani    Twitter Marketing     Business, business-more, Clients, companies-still, completely-replaced, make-use, more-channels, not-yet, replaced-the-traditional, the-better, the-traditional, Traditional

Social media have not yet completely replaced the traditional marketing methods. Many companies still make use of mail marketing today.

Read the original:
How Social Media Can Enhance Mail Marketing

Superpages feeds small business clients’ coupons to Twitter

admin    Web Marketing     Business, Clients, coupons, Feeds, Small, Superpages, Twitter

Local search engine Superpages.com began feeding its clients’ coupons to city-specific Twitter accounts on March 18.

View full post on Latest articles from DMNews News

Simple Twitter Tips That Attract Clients and Partners

admin    Twitter Marketing     Attract, Clients, Partners, Simple, Tips, Twitter

Copyright (c) 2009 Meredith Liepelt

According to Mashable.com, a leading authority on social media, there are currently over 12 million users on Twitter. Another resource called istrategylabs.com reports that 46% of Twitter users are college grads, and another 17% have post graduate degrees. Furthermore, 47% are between age 18 and 34, and another 31% are between 35 and 49. Males and females are evenly ranked, with women accounting for 53% of users and men 47%. If your target market falls within these demographics, actively participating on Twitter is probably worth your while.

Twitter is simply a micro blogging service. What does that mean? It means that you write short updates (140 characters maximum) called “tweets” and send them out to your followers. And it is a marketer’s dream come true – it’s an easy way to stay in front of your target market and showcase your authority at no charge!

The myth around Twitter is that Twitter users (called tweeple or tweeps) tweet about useless information such as what kind of coffee they had with breakfast. Yes, some of that exists and it is actually important as you’ll see below, but once you understand the power of connecting on Twitter, you may become a Twitter convert, just like me.

So, if you’re on Twitter or considering starting, the question becomes, “what do I tweet about that will make this a useful tool for me?” Here are some categories you can consider for your tweets. There are others but these will get you started:

Industry Tips

This is a big one. You are on Twitter to showcase your expertise, so industry tips act as your credibility builders. Here’s how to do it: Create a list of high value tips (remember – no more than 140 characters long) and send one or two out every day. If you don’t want to have to manually do this yourself every day, consider a free tool called TweetLater.com to set up your tweets in advance. If your tweets are really good, others will send them out to their lists as well. This is called a “re-tweet,” and it’s a super way to quickly build you list of targeted followers.

Here is one of my recent tweets that had a great response:

Connect Others: Be willing to connect others even if it has nothing to do with your business. What goes around, comes around.

About Your Business

Use this category sparingly. In other words, if you use Twitter as a place to advertise your products and services too much, people will stop following you. This is not what Twitter is about. It is really about raising awareness of you and your business and impacting others. Use the 80/20 rule here. For every eight tweets about things other than your business, you can post two things about your business.

Here is an example:

Hey Columbus: I’ll be on Fox tomorrow at 7:45 where you can see me interviewed about my new book, Flourish!

Re-Tweets

When some re-tweets you, they are giving you the highest compliment you can get on Twitter! It means that the person who re-tweeted you thinks that what you said is worth sharing with their own list of followers. This is like having someone ask you to a meeting so they can introduce you their entire list of contacts. When you get a re-tweet, send them a short tweet thanking them! Re-tweet others who are tweeting things that you agree with or want your followers to read.

If you are not familiar with Twitter, the example below probably won’t make a lot of sense because of all of the abbreviations, but they are necessary given that you only have 140 characters. Abbreviations are outside the scope of this article, but just know that it’s really not as scary as it looks!

RT @getgreatcopy: New blog post: The Sixth Habit of Highly Effective Communicators http://bit.ly/175XGS Gr8 stuff Jan, as usual.

Quotes

Tweeps seem to love quotes. If you are also a fan of quotes, compile a list and send one or two out every day. Again, you can use tweetlater.com to set these up in advance so you don’t have to manually enter them every day. Simply set up these tweets for a month and then watch your re-tweets happen!

Here’s an example of one that I recently posted:

“The pursuit of pleasure must be the goal of every rational person.” Voltaire

Invitations

Invite tweeps to your free events. No-cost events like teleseminars are great to tweet about because people love to share high-value, low-cost information with their lists. When you offer something without a cost – a workshop, teleseminar or report, your tweets about it are likely to get re-tweeted, which provides you with greater exposure to your target market.

Here’s an example of one of my recent posts:

How 2 write your book in a weekend – free telesemimar w/ @donnakozik. http://bit.ly/127GtU

Personal

Include some personal things that are going on with your life. What you choose to include is entirely up to you; however, be sure to be relatable. You don’t have to share your deepest inner thoughts or too much detail about your family, but sharing something about what you did over the weekend makes you more relatatable. Remember, Twitter is about connecting with people. Other people on Twitter want to connect with people – not stale businesses. People often connect on a personal level over food, pets or hobbies. This is why these seemingly unimportant tweets are actually very fruitful. These are pretty safe personal topics. General things about kids are another hot topic under this category. Just be aware that anything you say is out there for the world to read.

Here’s an example I tweeted recently:

Interesting pop culture moment: Told a story to my sister, who lives in Vietnam & realized she doesn’t know who Sara Jess. Parker is!

As you can see, Twitter is simply an online forum for connecting with others in 140 characters or less. Big and small brands are using Twitter to connect and impact their target markets and locate joint ventures. Can you, too?

How I Cut My Clients Google Adwords PPC in Half

admin    Google Optimization     Adwords, Clients, google, Half

Often when taking over a clients Google Adwords campaign, I find that they load one Ad Group with all their keywords.  If this is you, I highly suggest you go PAUSE your campaign right now!

Before we get into how to setup your account to lower your costs, we will go over how Google decides your bid price.  If you go into your “Keywords” area, and hover your mouse over the magnifying glass to the right of the keyword you’ll see a Quality Score.

What is ‘Quality Score’ and how is it calculated?The AdWords system calculates a ‘Quality Score’ for each of your keywords. It looks at a variety of factors to measure how relevant your keyword is to your ad text and to a user’s search query. A keyword’s Quality Score updates frequently and is closely related to its performance. In general, a high Quality Score means that your keyword will trigger ads in a higher position and at a lower cost-per-click (CPC). -adwords.google.com

A lot of people are losing money on Google Adwords because their ads get a “Google Slap”.  A Google Slap is a bad quality score.  When Google Slaps your account you’ll have to pay more money to be able to have your ad show at the same spot that it was… say a week ago.  Having a bad quality score can cause your cost per click (cpc) to go from (this is a real example!) $0.12 a click to $1.00 a click. 

So the obvious route is to increase your Google Adwords Quality Score!  Now the fun part:

Instead of having that massive list of keywords you’ve researched (or just selected from Google) we’re going to bring that up into multiple Ad Groups.  For our example we’ll use is a company that sells blue widgets in Miami, Florida.

We need to break up that large list of keywords into related Ad Groups.  For example, the first Ad Group will be “Miami Blue Widgets” within this ad group we place all keywords with the words Miami, Blue and Widgets.

Miami Blue Widgets Buy Miami Blue Widgets Affordable Blue Widgets etc.

Now the part that will help increase our quality score, ads tailored to our keywords.  This will help us in two ways one increase quality score and two bold the keywords searched.  We want the words “Miami Blue Widgets” in our headline and in our product description, if nothing else at least the headline.

Miami Blue Widgets Make sure to check our store before you buy Blue Widgets!

You should make three or four different ads to test which converts the best, we’ll save that for another lesson!

Now go through the rest of your keywords and lump them base on similar keywords to take advantage of keywords within your ad to boost your quality score.

If want to boost your score even more there is one more thing you can do.  Design a landing page for each Ad Group.  A good idea would be something like: www.domain.com/miami-blue-widgets.html.  On this landing page make sure to have the title and h1 tags have your keyword in it.

It may seem like a lot, but in the end these simple steps can save you hundreds of dollars.  Having targeted landing pages can also increase conversions (another post).  

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South Florida Internet Marketing Firm Shows Clients Climbing Roi’s in a Down-economy

admin    Website Marketing Companies     Clients, Climbing, Downeconomy, firm, Florida, Internet, marketing, Roi’s, Shows, South

SEO.cc creates custom multiple-prong Internet marketing strategies to increase the ROI for their clients considerably, and subsequently see their current client expanding from South Florida build as businesses nationwide seek higher profits in a slow economy.Fort Lauderdale, FL – December 23, 2008 – Clients of SEO.cc have been turning their business around in the down economy by means of the customized multiple-prong Internet marketing strategies of the Fort Lauderdale SEO based marketing company. Since their launch in 2005, the PPC and Online Marketing Agency has been using a multifaceted approach to enhance the Return on Investment of their customers radically. Now, with the support and skill of SEO.cc, companies currently teamed up with the PPC Online Marketing Agency in the South Florida area are seeing their ROI increase – even while the economy continues to falter – and SEO.cc is more than happy to help the Florida community while continuing to build an already stellar client list. Originally getting their start in Sponsored Search Marketing, the Fort Lauderdale SEO company SEO.cc soon began to understand the dynamic landscape of marketing, and observed the distinct importance of a full online and offline marketing plan. SEO.cc now uses a full spectrum of custom Internet marketing tactics to increase the presence of each individual client online. Through Sponsored Search Marketing (SSM), otherwise known as Pay-Per-Click (PPC), they are able to target specific audiences for their clients in the auction-based platforms of search engines including Google Adwords, Yahoo Search Marketing, and MSN Ad Center. Then, via the utilization of natural Search Engine Optimization, they are able to achieve top positions in search engines for their clients as well. Zach Hoffman, CEO of SEO.cc clarifies, “Combining SSM along with natural SEO is quintessential today in reaching the target marketing of a particular business. Our mix of skill sets and long-standing experience at SEO.cc allows us to effectively utilize those tactics and increase the ROI for our clients. We realize that Internet Marketing is a vital part of a broader marketing plan, and we’re thrilled to see the South Florida business community thriving due in part to our Internet Marketing efforts.” The South Florida Internet Marketing Agency SEO.cc is more than just an Internet Marketing company to their clients. SEO.cc also provides valuable education and advice on identifying and reaching target markets successfully with a complete marketing strategy. CEO Zach Hoffman of SEO.cc explains, “Direct Mail, E-Mail, Magazine, Online, Radio, Television, and Web Marketing are just some of the many ways to market a business. About SEO.ccBased out of Fort Lauderdale, South Florida, SEO.cc has been helping their clients build a highly visible Internet presence since 2005. The Fort Lauderdale SEO and PPC Online Marketing Agency began their career providing SSM and SEO, but soon broadened their horizons to integrate a wholesome online marketing service. With specialists in finance, economics, traditional marketing, and online marketing on their team, SEO.cc is forecasting an even more promising future.

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Four Yoga Business Tips to Get Paying Clients From the Web

admin    Website Marketing Companies     Business, Clients, Four, From, Paying, Tips, Yoga

Building a web site for your yoga business is an important and effective means of bringing in new students.

It can be a costly endeavor, however, especially if you hire someone to build the site for you. Building it yourself, on the other hand, can be time consuming, especially if you are new to web marketing.

Here are a few tips to help new and experienced yoga teachers and studio owners get the most from a web site.1. Yoga business marketing starts with your web site’s domain name

Most yoga teachers and studio owners spend far too much time deciding on a domain name for their web site.

One of the first places search engines like Google look for keywords is in the domain name. So it makes sense to put words in the domain name that people will actually look for.

People most often search for yoga classes on the Internet by typing in the name of their city and the words ‘yoga’ or ‘yoga class.’ Unless you or your studio have already established a well recognized brand name that people will actually search for on the Internet, it’s a good idea to incorporate the name of your city with the word ‘yoga’ into your domain name. You can then register a second domain with the actual name of your yoga business that redirects to the first domain name.

Whenever possible, use ‘.com,’ for your site because it is the most respected top-level domain (TLD) and the easiest for people to remember. 2. Flash is the number one killer of yoga web sites

Flash is a powerful program that can produce stunning graphic displays and play music on web sites. Many web designers build beautiful yoga web sites completely in Flash.

Unfortunately, Flash can sink a web site’s chances of success before the site is even launched.

Search engines like Google can’t read text saved in Flash. If Google can’t read what’s on your site, it certainly won’t rank you very highly in search results — even if you offer exactly what people are looking for. And if Google doesn’t rank you on page one of its search results for key phrases related to your business, your site might as well not exist. People rarely scan past the first few search results.

The solution: Have your site built in HTML so that search engines can read your content. Use Flash sparingly for visual effects on part of your page, or not at all.3. An ‘autoresponder’ is an effective yoga marketing tool, turning web site visitors into paying clients

Incorporate a sign-up form on your web site for a newsletter to send by email periodically. The best newsletter programs include automatic responder or ‘autoresponder’ capabilities, which send prewritten messages to subscribers at set time intervals.

For instance, when someone signs up for your newsletter, you can have a thank-you message sent automatically. The next day have the autoresponder send your class schedule. Two days later, send a message about the health benefits of yoga. On day four, your autoresponder can send a coupon for a class discount or private session, and so on.

It takes repeated contact to turn web site visitors into paying clients, building your yoga business slowly but surely. An autoresponder system is an inexpensive and effective method of automatically staying in touch with your prospects. Write your messages once and you’re free to concentrate on other things.4. Slow and steady link-earning ensures long-term success of your yoga business’s online presence

Earning links from other people’s web sites will make sure that search engines recognize your site as an authority on whatever topic your web site covers.

In the past, people submitted their sites to ‘link farms,’ where all kinds of web sites were included with no organized theme. Next, people engaged in reciprocal linking schemes to trade links between two or more unrelated web sites in an effort to game the search engines.

These days the search engines are smarter, so increasing your yoga web site’s authority isn’t simply a matter of submitting your link here and there all over the Internet and getting links back.

The best way to get links is to earn them. This is a slower process of creating content on your site that other site owners will naturally want to link to, earning what is called a ‘backlink’ or ‘in-pointing link.’

Link from your site to other sites sparingly, and only link to sites related to your site’s theme. A rule of thumb is to consider whether the site you’re linking to adds value for your web site visitor. If not, don’t link to it.

For example, it may be a good idea to link to a site with a yoga article you want your site visitors to read. It may also be a good idea to link to a national or international yoga directory so that your students can find a yoga class when they travel. Even linking to your favorite local massage therapist or Reiki practitioner could be a good idea (so long as they’re not also yoga teachers — as a general rule don’t send hard-earned traffic to your competition) as these fields are complementary to your yoga business and may also get you some referrals from those businesses. These types of links add value for your visitor.

On the other hand, linking to a used car lot or your friend’s brother’s daughter’s baby pictures, cute as they may be, are not such hot ideas.

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Coaches, Use Online Marketing Strategy to Get Clients

admin    Web Marketing     Clients, Coaches, marketing, Online, Strategy

If you run a coaching business and want to use the Internet to get clients, here is a question you should ask yourself: “What is your online marketing strategy?”

If your online marketing strategy consists of doing a single marketing task every once in a while, you should change that right now. As an online business owner, you need to market your online business on a regular basis if you want to get tangible results. By results I mean getting more web site traffic and more customers.

When I just started my coaching business I was not consistent with marketing it. I would optimize my web site every year and I would write a single article every six months. I was still able to get some web site traffic and some sales, but they were not very consistent.

However, once I stopped my random marketing campaign and created an online marketing plan I started getting much more web site traffic and many more customers. A steady marketing strategy has been bringing me a consistent stream of customers ever since.

Here is how you can create a consistent online marketing strategy for your coaching business to bring in steady web site traffic, clients and sales:

- Take a look at what marketing that you have already done. Spend some time reviewing the marketing techniques you are already using so that you will not have to do the same work twice.

- Make sure that you have a useful, professional web site for your business. A professional and user-friendly web site is the #1 priority for you, as an online business owner. Your web site is what will help you get more clients and more sales online.

You can use your web site to help your potential customers find out more about you and your services, subscribe to your newsletter and buy your products.

- Create an effective online marketing strategy for marketing your business online. Your strategy is a process that will reliably bring your potential customers to your web site all the time.

Your strategy should use various online marketing techniques, such as article marketing, blogging, search engine optimization, and many more. It should also describe how you are going to use them to bring your potential customers to your web site and get them to buy your products and services.

- Implement your online marketing strategy. Break your online marketing strategy into many manageable 1-2 hour tasks that are easy to complete and that you can add to your schedule.

For example, if your strategy includes blogging, the first task is setting up your blog. The next task is scheduling your blog posts. Next tasks are scheduling blogging 2-3 times a week and creating your actual blog posts.

Make sure that you create a marketing strategy for your coaching business! Having an online marketing strategy and following it is the only way to gain more coaching clients online.

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