One of the most frequent questions I hear from potential clients, business owners, website owners and even the people I meet day to day is, “What exactly is SEO anyway, and why do I need it?”

Unfortunately there is no easy one liner answer here, the answer is actually very complex.  When I am in a situation without time or place to explain in detail, I simply say “A website without SEO is like a business with a CLOSED sign on the door”.  If you do not use SEO “properly”, then your potential customers can not find you.

The internet does not work on the WalMart principle of “build it and they will come”, where everyone knows the brands, observes the construction and eagerly awaits opening day.  For small business owners, placing your business in a position on the internet where it will be found, is more of a challenge than any other they may encounter in their business model.

SEO or Search Engine Optimization, is the process of building credibility, identity, recognition and authority in your industry.  This process can be from a local, national or world perspective of search.

Done properly, Search Engine Optimization will position your business or your business website at the top of online searches in the industry.  And, even more importantly, web traffic from an effective SEO campaign will even target specific customers as well as target customers who are ready to buy instead of just curious.

The day of newspaper advertising and other print media driving traffic are gone but not dead. These media are still effective, but only when they are used in conjunction with highly targeted SEO campaign.

I must stress here the importance of proper SEO.  When a SEO project is not done properly, it can actually do more harm than good.  Search Engines, such as Google (and primarily Google), use an “algorithm” process to search websites and to measure their authority for search terms.  In other words, the process of search and search results is very specific and if the process does not meet the guidelines, the website will never come up in the search results.

No longer can you use hundreds of keywords, link wheels and duplicate content postings to drive traffic.  Black hat tactics such as these will have a huge negative effect on your website.  A good SEO professional will have a “hands on” specific plan to drive traffic and rankings to your website, not a software generated program.

Google and others frequently change their algorithm and SEO professionals will keep up with these changes and be prepared to change their clients’ websites to prevent a “slap” in authority.

So, to answer the question, “what is SEO”…

It is a necessity for your business success.

Websites that never change, never offer information or help, websites that just “tell” without the human touch, are simply a brochure.  We all know what happens to brochures today, most are recycled or trashed and never read.

Today, in our world of constant contact and interaction with each other, businesses must get on board and up to date with the trend of their customers and potential customers.  Your business website must contain 5 key components in order to drive traffic and customers:

1. Aesthetics
2. Interest
3. Resources
4. Connectivity
5. Mobility

Aesthetics simply means your site must be easy on the eyes without too much flash and too much required clicking required.  A new visitor to your website should be compelled to enter and look at the information inside.  If there is too much reading required on the entry page or not a clear “call to action” message, the customer will very quickly go to the next website.

Your site must be interesting.  The information on the entry page and every subsequent page must grab attention and curiosity.

It must contain some resources.  Your potential customers want to know you are a leader in your field.  You must provide them with information, not just about you, but what you have to offer.  Articles, videos and any how to information you can provide will quickly build interest and loyalty.

Your customers must be able to connect with you via your website.  Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and other Social Sites must be easily accessible through your website to encourage your customers to recommend you and hear more about you.

And last, but certainly not least (as it is hugely important) is mobility.  More than 80% of consumers today say they find local businesses via their smart phones.  Your website must be easily accessible to this huge segment of the population.  If your website is at least “mobile friendly”, this will help drive customers to your door.  The best solution is to have an actual mobile website to allow your customers to shop right from their phones.

I want to keep this brief for you, so let me at least make this point.

The “internet” world is a living thing.  It is constantly evolving and constantly changing.  Those of us in the business world must embrace these changes and utilize them to constantly grow and improve our businesses.

If we can be of assistance to you and help you with any questions your have, please feel free to contact us through http://emarketingsource.net

To your unstoppable success…

SMS, or Short Message Service, is true text messaging.  It uses actual short code technology and is fee based – each message that gets sent costs a certain amount, depending on your provider.

SMTP, or Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (sometimes also known as Snail Mail Transfer Protocol), is the Internet standard for electronic mail (email) transmission across Internet Protocol (IP) networks.  So sending text messages via SMTP is basically sending an email to a mobile number.  Since sending email doesn’t cost anything, sending a text message via SMTP is technically free.

A lot of business people may misinterpret these as the same thing since both methods are supposed to produce the same result – sending texts alerts and offers to their customers and prospects.  At first glance, SMTP may seem like the better option since there is no per message fee.  But as many have learned the hard way, free is not always better.

Frankly put, sending texts via SMTP is very risky for your business.  Here’s why:

First, there is a good likelihood that messages sent through SMTP don’t even get delivered to your subscribers.

According to the Mobile Marketing Association’s Consumer Best Practice Guidelines:

Carriers, at their discretion, make available SMTP gateways so that subscribers may receive SMS messages originated via email. Example: A mobile subscriber can be reached by sending an email (SMTP) message to [10 digit number]@[carrierdomainname].com. The carriers that support such gateways do so with the intent that they are not utilized for any commercial traffic. To that end, carriers actively monitor and filter against these connections to protect subscribers from unsolicited messages (spam) and utilize a variety of mechanisms to do so, including spam keyword filters, throttling against questionable domain or IP addresses suspected of abuse, and the like.

Wow!  The mobile carriers actively monitor the gateways for system abuse and commercial traffic, and they can and will terminate your messaging just like that.  Your efforts to build a marketing list will be null and void and you won’t even know it.  There is absolutely nothing you can do to stop it or change it after the fact.

Worst of all is paying a subscription fee every month to a company providing SMTP service, when sending SMTP messages has no cost.  These are often marketed as “Unlimited Messages” service plans unknowingly claiming to provide SMS when in fact, they are providing SMTP.  Let the buyer beware; make sure your text marketing provider is a true SMS provider.

Next, you could be facing legal action when your messages are sent over SMTP.

Since SMTP messages get sent via email, they are also subject to Section 14(b)(1) of the CAN-SPAM Act, which means anyone sending unsolicited messages can be prosecuted by law.  Nobody likes receiving spam email so imagine how they’ll react to spam text messages on their personal cell phones?  In situations where you got permission to send messages so you think you’re safe and not spamming, there’s a good chance that customers may see it differently, resulting in people opting out or worse yet, reporting you as a text spammer.

When you use true SMS text messaging with short codes, there are systems in place that actually protect businesses from such accusations.  There are audits that trail opt-ins and opt-outs.

Finally, you put your company reputation on the line, as well as your customers’ loyalty when you do text message marketing ‘wrong.’

Because someone’s cell phone is very personal, any type of mobile marketing becomes very personal as well.  When sending a text message, you will be disrupting your customers with your personal message wherever they may be.  This makes it a powerful medium for marketing, and with power comes responsibility. Consumers won’t put up with anything on their mobile phone or device that isn’t pertinent to them and that provides them with control over the communication when all is said and done.  Fact is, SMTP messaging doesn’t give them that control.

If you are going to choose SMTP for your text marketing, do so at your own risk.  A lot of text messaging service providers created their services thinking they are offering a viable service with a low cost option in comparison to a cost-per-message option.  Despite their good intentions, you’ll want to avoid these types of service providers.

Many of them use the words SMS messaging throughout their websites, but be aware that this does not ensure that you are getting true SMS service.  Bottom line, if there is not a per message fee, it is not true SMS capability or compliant.  Free SMS or Unlimited SMS does not exist, period.

1) A Plan

2) Understanding

3) An unbiased eye

Building a website is like building a brick and mortar store.  You have to have a good foundation with a good solid plan for building from the ground up.  You also must have a clear understanding of what your customer is looking for and more importantly, you must have an unbiased view of what you are doing.

Too often, websites are built on our favorite colors, cute graphics and unpleasant visual components.  We have to realize from a business point of view that what “we” like, is not necessarily what will attract customer attention, and customer loyalty.

We must be able to look at our websites and see what our customers see.  More importantly, we must look at our websites through our customers eyes.  So, with this in mind, let’s take a look at a few things customers may see that you do not

1) Information – Is the “meat” of the page near the top, or “above the fold”.  In other words, do customers have to search for product and service information or is it located at first view of the site?  If you think people are going to search out information you are sorely wrong.  When a customer clicks on your link, they are looking for information, make it easily available to them.

2) Text – This is a huge to me, I hate nothing more than to go to a site and have to read a lot of information to find what I am looking for.  Short, information and strategically located bullet points will draw attention and sales faster than paragraphs.  The short content can link to more information within the site, but on the main pages, keep it short, keep it sweet and keep it enticing.

3) There is nothing worse to me, as a consumer, to go to a website looking for information, products or services and come to something “cute”, looking totally unattractive and non business like.   When designing your site, make sure you don’t just use your favorite colors, but use colors appealing to your customer base.  If you are selling little girls clothing for example, I guess a site with a pink design is fine, but if you are selling business services, pink is not a good choice.  Blacks with red lettering, bright orange and fluorescent yellow for example, are not good business colors.

If you are unsure how your customers see your website, take a look at the big competitors in your market.  Not to copy their look, but to understand why customers go to other websites and learn more about how you should design your own as a competitor in your industry.  See your site, from your customer’s point of view.

I am going to focus over the next few days on how to increase the effectiveness of a business website. For today though, let’s look at a few points to consider when evaluating your website or when designing a new site.

1) What do your customers see when they first go to your website? Did you know that studies have proven you have less than 5 seconds to gain your customer’s interest? All traffic is not equal, you may be getting a great deal of traffic, but how long are visitors staying on your website? How effective are you at grabbing and holding their attention?

2) Do your customers know immediately what you offer and the benefits of doing business with you? Do they know what your business is all about? A customer should not have to read through a lot of words to figure this out. They should know immediately upon entering your site. Afterall, you only have 5 seconds for them to know.

3) Is there a clear “call to action” message on your site? People who visit a business website are normally looking for products and services. Do you have a clear message on the front page to encourage them or “tell them” to take action and buy your products or services? You must gently encourage your potential customers to do business with you and only a clear call to action can do this effectively.

I encourage you to look at your website and compare it to your storefront. These are only 3 of the 30 points that create an effective website, but they are points with great value to your business. Give some thought to what your website looks like to a new or existing customer. Does it nail these first 3 points?

I would like to know your thoughts on these points and I have more to come.

But while business owners have been busy keeping up with the economy and staying focused on running the business on a shoestring, the advertising and marketing world has changed dramatically and in many cases, without them knowing it.

No longer does it take tons of money and print advertising, but now it takes focus and ingenuity to make advertising and marketing dollars pay off big time.  The good news is, effective advertising can cost much less than it did just 1 or 2 years ago. 

Why, powerful and effective online marketing (and I am using the word marketing for a reason, not advertising) costs much less than newspaper and magazine advertisng.  And, online marketing is today much more effective than print advertising.

I will jump out on the limb and say “small businesses that is not actively engaged online with their customers and potential customers today, will probably not be in business at all two to three years from now”.  I know this sounds a little dramatic and you are probably thinking I am just trying to get more business for myself, but that is not my intention.

In fact, I would gladly teach any business owner (for free) what they need to know to do their own marketing online.  I am coming from a place where I am very closely watching the trends and comparing the growth of businesses who are engaging online and those who are not.  And, the bottom line difference is huge, I might even say staggering.

Small business owners are seeing the trends and some are jumping in, while others are watching, analyzing and figuring it all out.  Savvy business owners are seeing their customers, friends, family and the public in general who are on their smart phones constantly.  You have to get this folks, smart phones are the internet.  When you see someone “playing” with a phone, chances are good they are shopping, researching or looking for information or products.  Are they finding you and your business?

I want you to “get this”.  Your customers and potential customers are online, on their smart phones and looking.  Businesses who have a strong online presence are positioned to take advantage of this incredible trend.

I want you to succeed in business.  The world revolves around small business, but small business does not have to mean small thinking.  Engage now, get online, get found and grow your bottom line, your revenue.  This is where your customers are, you should be there too.

To your unstoppable success…

Let’s face reality, when it comes to advertising small businesses, things have changed dramatically. Not only do newspaper advertising, yellow page listings, direct mail ads and inserts no longer work, they are quickly becoming obsolete.

And, it’s not just the internet that has changed things. With technology expanding the reach of customers faster than anyone could have ever imagined, the small business owner is finding they are not only left out, but totally unaware of the best advertising methods available.  Read More…

Small business owners have found it very challenging to compete with “the big boys” online. Without spending a lot of time and/or money to optimize and write extensive amounts of content for their sites, they are just not being found by their customers.

But this has changed dramatically. In fact, store front business owners, regardless of the size or lack of size, now are on a level playing ground with the big guys. In some cases, the small businesses may just have the advantage. Google Local has changed the playing field with a search emphasis on your geographic location.

How can this be? Let’s take a look at a few facts first…

1) 80% of in-store purchases are made within 15 miles of home
2) At last report, 20% of all web searches are for local business and this number is growing constantly.  After all, no one uses the telehone book to find businesses any longer.
3) Google displays businesses with “Google Places and Map” established, first in display results
4) Most people do not go beyond the first page of the search engine results
5) Businesses on the first page of Google experience a much higher conversion rate than others

Google Local, or Google Places has dramatically changed the look of search results. Now, the small business owner has an opportunity to capture the customers with ‘intent-to-buy’ searches. Consider for example you own a small bar. When potential customers in your area search for “bars”, Google recognizes the physical location and returns results for bars in the area. The preference however is “Always” given to those companies who have been listed in Google Local. The search results would therefore include the name of the company, a map to show the location and a breif description of the business.

Now add to this the information that 80% of searches are now from Smart Phones, then you are looking at a mobile customer base. They may be driving around looking for a great place to stop with friends and without your businesses location on Google Local, they may never find you.

Just some thoughts for business owners. I definitely suggest getting up to date on the tools available and take advantage of them.

To your unstoppable success…

They are QR Codes, and they have nothing to do with checking out at the local WalMart.

But, they are all about:

1) Marketing and growing customer base
2) Traffic in the door and to the website
3) Making more money

So here is the gist. How many people have smart phones these days? Unless you have been under a rock (sorry not borrowed from Geico ad) how could you possibly miss that millions of people have smart phones. And along with smart phones comes apps and cool features. One of those features is the ability to scan, swipe or photo a QR code.As a business owner, what would it mean to you if everyone with a smart phone who came to your business, saw your sign, visited your website and on and on, instantly had access to your business?

How can this be? When someone with a smart phone takes a picture or scans a QR code, one of many that could happen are:

1) They might be taken directly to your website (yes, right on their phone)

2) They might receive a coupon (bring this code to our shop and get a 20% discount)

3) They might receive your phone number and automatically load into their contacts

4) They might get a text message

And on and on. Now think about it. As a business owner, what value would that have on your bottom line?

You are probably not convinced because you have not seen the QR codes out there. I was at the same place, but it’s just like deciding to buy a great car, all of sudden you see hundreds of the same car on the road.

When I first heard about QR codes, I had never seen one. That afternoon I was pumping gas (yes, I pump my own gas), I happened to look up and right there over the gas pump was a QR code! I quickly grabbed my phone and scanned it. Voila! I received a message stating “Thank you for shopping with us. Bring this message in on your next visit and get 20% back on your purchase”!

All I could think at the time was, cool, I will come back for my 20% off. Since then, I have seen (and scanned) QR codes on Real Estate signs, newspaper ads, at the local fast food and pizza restaurants and even at the coffee shop I frequent. QR codes are hot, but more than that, they are effective.

Customers who respond to your mobile marketing become loyal customers. The reason for this is actually very simple. They feel connected to the business who engages them electronically. I truly believe this is because in today’s high tech world, when a customer feels engaged, or connected, they consider it very personal. People miss the local community feeling of businesses, they miss being known and recognized when they walk in the door. Mobile marketing, or as I like to refer to it, mobile connecting, brings back some of those feelings.

If you have not yet gotten into the Mobile Marketing world, as a business owner, it is time to do it. There has never been a better time to be on the cutting edge. Take the steps immediately to implement this means of marketing into your business plan. You will be hugely grateful that you did.

But, one word of warning before you run out and grab a code. Everyone is getting on the bandwagon with QR codes. People are charging enormous sums for QR codes and the management of the codes. Well, more power to them, but the bottom line is, QR codes can actually be free. And, even though they are easy to get, you really do want to hire a professional to handle the process for you. But it should not cost you an arm and a leg. A good QR code marketing company can take care of the process for a small fee and even manage the code by implementing various marketing campaigns with either the same code or multiple codes. This in itself can be very time-consuming. Do it right from the beginning and you will find QR code marketing is an amazing addition to your business.

To your unstoppable marketing success…