Posts Tagged ‘marketing’
Your website is probably going to be your most important marketing tool. It should be the hub of all information related to your business. That’s why it is very important to have a domain name (url) that is descriptive of your business, easy to memorize, hard to misspell and of course available. Here are some easy tips to help you decide on the best domain name for you.
- Try to use your company name / brand in your domain name.
- Keep your domain name simple, short and easy to remember.
- Avoid using hyphens and underscores. They can cause confusion.
- Use key words related to your business. It’s best when your url describes what it is you do and what people would be searching for.
- Use dot com whenever possible. It’s the most recognized url extension.
- Avoid using numbers. Again, it’s confusing not knowing whether to use the number or to spell it out.
- Don’t add an “s” to an existing popular domain name. The “s” is easily forgotten and your potential client will end up at your competitor’s site.
For more helpful information on domain name selection and search engine optimization check out SEOmoz.org or SearchEngineGuide.com.
You can find hundreds of books to talk about Social Media Marketing, formerly known as Web 2.0. And I’m going to give you crash course in just a few paragraphs.
Blogs
Your blog is an extremely powerful social media hub. If done correctly, it can boost the visibility of your business in ways never before possible. Think of it as an online magazine. You’re in charge of design and content. Your blog can help promote your company’s website or it can be a part of your website.
Setting up a blog is very easy. You can try using a free blogging system such as WordPress.com or Google’s Blogger. But if you want to appear really professional you need to go for a self-hosted blog. The most popular and easiest way to do this is through WordPress.org. You have lots of options for design themes and plugins. Of course a professionally designed unique theme that utilizes your company’s brand identity is best.
Maintaining it regularly can be a challenge. You have to constantly come up with copy that is interesting, relevant and remarkable. This could be once a week. Daily would be great. A few times a week is good too. The trick is to write posts that people want to read. Show your personality and have fun.
Facebook is the most popular online social network today, with over 400 million active users of all ages creating a home page and making “friends”. Facebook is a place where “friends” gather. Let everyone know what you’re doing. It’s easy to set up and is free. Show photos, play games, network, add applications. What’s your status? Your Facebook profile can be made public or private. You control the settings of who gets to see your page.
If you have a business you need a “Fan” page. A fan page is part of your original Facebook account. It is visible to everyone, registered or not, including all your customers. While a Facebook Group is better for hosting discussions, for long-term relationships, a “fan” page is best. Personalize your fan page with your company brand or image.
In order to get people to become a “fan” of your company, you need to drive them to your Facebook fan page. Therefore it is important to link your social media together. Create a button on your blog and company website, inviting visitors to become a Facebook fan. You want your fan page to be a fun place to visit. Create content and invite discussion and participation. Make your fan page a resource of information about your company and related products.
Another way you can entice users to join your fan page is by creating contests or coupons specifically for your Facebook fans. This could include discounts on products, free shipping, or other special deals. The goal is to get people to join your fan page and come back often. You need to give them a reason to participate. Encourage comments and input.
Creating a successful fan page takes planning, time and dedication. It’s not something you can set and forget.
Twitter can be a very powerful business tool with over 17 million users, a large number of which are older professionals with high incomes. It is called micro-blogging because your “posts” are limited to 140 characters. But you can create an unlimited number of posts.
With Twitter you have access to immediate feedback from people all over the world, 24/7. When you need help, just ask for it. You’ll be surprised at the number of people who will answer your questions and offer assistance. This is also a great way to do market research.
Use Twitter to let people know who you are. Your tweets can include links to photos and video. Send links to helpful or interesting websites. Promote contests, specials, sales, new products, whatever. Inform people when you make a blog post. Direct people to visit your website. And don’t forget to create a unique Twitter backdrop with your company brand and information.
Coming soon to Twitter will be “Promoted Tweets”, a way of advertising on Twitter. And you will be able to pay for a Commercial Twitter account which gives a business detailed analytics tools and the ability for several people to post to the same Twitter account.
LinkedIn is a business social network with over 65 million professional business users with an average income of over $100,000 a year. If you’re selling to other businesses you’ll want to have a LinkedIn presence. It’s a great way to drive targeted traffic to your website and further build your social network by exchanging “information, ideas and opportunities”.
Building Buzz and Getting Noticed
The best way to get noticed is to remain consistent. That means you must post to Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and write your blog posts on a regular basis. If you don’t, people will stop following you. That’s not good. Sign up with HootSuite and you can write one post and send it to any or all of your social media at one time.
The more followers, friends and fans you have, the more you’ll get. It’s kinda viral. People want to follow popular people. And when you give people what they want in terms of information, tips, discounts, promotions, contests, customer service, etc., they’ll keep coming back for more.
When you’re involved with social media marketing, you’re also a part of the exciting new world of mobile marketing. Facebook, Twitter and Blog news-feeds are a huge part of mobile phone apps. Even Apple has entered the arena with it’s new iAd concept coming to an iPhone or iPad near you. Imagine interactive mobile ads and videos that are graphic and enticing. Google already has a big presence in mobile text advertising. You don’t want to be left out of this new marketing frontier.
So that’s the essence of Social Media Marketing. It’s all part of Search Engine Optimization. The goal is to get people to your website or social media hub. This can also include being part of social bookmarking sites like StumbleUpon, Delicious, Reddit, Digg; photo sites like Flickr; rich media sites like YouTube and Spoink and don’t forget MySpace.
For more information on how you can become a part of this exciting and powerful world of social media marketing contact Chuck at Creative Juices.
Does your pet have their own blog? It’s can be rewarding and you can make money through affiliate marketing and selling merchandise. You can also use it to market your own business. Why not?
I set up a blog for my Chihuahua using WordPress. It’s called AllMyChihuahuas and I’ve entered it in the first ever “TrainPetDog.com 2010 Dog Blog Award” Contest.
If you want a unique WordPress template created for your little pet, give Creative Juices a call at 310.791.5803.
Today marks the 29th anniversary of Creative Juices. We have seen many changes in the graphic arts industry. We have lived through the days of typesetting, paste up, hand inking, negs and veloxes. Then came the Mac and desktop publishing. Remember Pagemaker? Then came e-mail, the World Wide Web, Quark, Adobe and AOL. Now we have Twitter, Facebook, WordPress, Joomla, Drupal and of course the iPhone.
As technology changes Creative Juices changes too. We have many new services, including designing WordPress templates, Twitter backdrops, search engine optimization, marketing and blog copywriting. Of course we still do logo designs, brochures, websites, ads and printing. Don’t forget we can also host your blog or website and set up your domain name. I am in the process of converting my website and blog into a WordPress format. I will be adding new and exciting features which I will soon introduce. Look for more updates here.
As always, we are dedicated to giving our clients personalized, one on one service and free advice on how to improve your business image and online presence.
Feel free to call any time or stop by and visit (appointment required). Lucy the Chihuahua is always eager to greet you. Keep up on her latest musings at AllMyChihuahuas.com.
I thank all my past, present and future clients for their patronage and friendship and look forward to working with you all again in 2010 and beyond.
Unemployment may be at 7%, but that just means a greater majority of people who want to work, are working.
Anyway, the point is that there are still employed people spending money. Sure a lot of people have cut back. But the best way for you to increase your sales is to let more people know what you do. What is your service? Where are you located? What do you do that’s better than anyone else? How can you help them?
If you don’t advertise or market your business in some way, no one will know you exist. Or worse, they’ll think you’ve gone out of business. And these days there’s a lot of that happening.
Update your website and let people know what is going on with you and how you can help them. Promote your brand. Keep your image at the top of people’s minds.
If you don’t already have a website, you’re missing out on one of the most cost effective ways to showcase your business or service.
If you do have a website and it’s out of date, you need to update. And fast. A tired, out of date website show’s you are not on top of your game. You may be perceived as irrelevant.
Remember, when you cut your marketing and advertising, you are essentially giving your competition a clear advantage. Is that really what you want to do?
Don’t forget to call Creative Juices if you need marketing and advertising advice. 310-791-5803. Did you know weekend appointments are now available?
First thing, don’t panic. The economy may be tanking but your business doesn’t have to. Unless you let it.
Now is the time to market your business. Actually marketing your small business should never stop. The trick is to focus your marketing. Now more than ever you have to budget your money. To be successful you need to figure out what types of marketing to do, and then do it.
Direct mail pieces such as postcards, sales letters or brochures are a great way to reach your target market. Create your own mailing list. You can find dba’s in the newspaper for new businesses. Or you can look in the phone book (the old yellow one) or online. Send out a few each week.
E-mail blasts are great. And there’s no postage. Or printing costs. Add a form to your website to collect e-mail addresses from people who want to subscribe to whatever you have to say.
Don’t forget ads in local newspapers and throwaways. Ads need to be seen a multiple of times before people remember them and respond. Placing an ad once in a while will be a waste of time and money.
If you must cut costs, don’t skimp on your marketing. Just focus your efforts.
- E-mail marketing is relatively easy to create
- The fundamentals of e-mail marketing are relevance, strategy and testing
- Most recipients accept and even welcome targeted, opt-in e-mails
- A survey from Jupiter Research says “60% of business decision makers prefer e-mail and the internet over other mediums for receiving marketing messages”
- E-mail is cost-efficient for nurturing your existing leads
- E-mails are personalized
- Using a service like Express E-mail Marketing comes with built-in tracking features with statistics on bounce rates, delivery and open rates, click-through analytics and more
- Using e-mail is a quick and cost-effective way to test market your messages and offers
- Sending an e-mail message before delivering direct mail pieces helps boost awareness
- A great way to follow up on direct mail deliveries
If you’re reading this blog then you know that blogging is one of the most popular parts of Web 2.0. Using the format of blogging to help promote your business is a powerful way to reach new clients. The whole purpose of writing a blog is to constantly create new content. All search engines, such as Google, Yahoo and MSN, love blogs because they constantly look for new content. And if your content is optimized correctly, the search engines will find it. This is a great way for your blog to be listed high up in search results.
How does this relate to your business and it’s success? Just follow these simple steps:
- Create content that people want to read. You want to be a useful resource, so make sure whatever you’re writing about is something people will learn from.
- Include keywords, but make sure the copy is easy to read, short, to the point and useful.
- Bulleted items and lists are very helpful and precise.
- Make sure to include a link to your website. Don’t include too may links as search engines may interpret that as spam and reject your site.
If you do link to your website, it’s best to link to a specific “landing page” that covers the topic of your blog.
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