Posted by Kathleen Ion on July 14, 2011 · Leave a Comment
Google Plus Basics by Kathleen Ion, Certified Internet Marketing Consultant
Google Plus is a brand new social media project that has been created by Google that works in similar ways to the larger social media outlets, such as Twitter and Facebook. Although many that have used the new social media project have compared it to Facebook and Twitter, there are numerous differences that make this social media outlet unique. Features include groups that you create to share information with, called “Circles”, group chats, called “Huddles”, video chats called “Hangouts”, and Web content streams based on your interests, called “Sparks”. Another large difference in this social media outlet is that there is no limit to how many characters that can be posted on a comment. Comments and streams are easily visible from the people you have added to your “Circle”. Many of these features are just the beginning of a wonderful social media platform. Google Plus is already claiming to have around 10 million users, even though it has not been officially released and is in the beta stage. This wonderful social media project requires an invite from a person already involved with the beta, so make sure to ask around, to see if you know somebody that can gain you access.
Google Plus and Business
At this point, Google Plus is exclusive to personal profiles, but will be adding a business pilot page as soon as possible to large and small businesses that have completed a form of request to be a part of the pilot program. The date as to when Google will stop accepting applications is yet to be determined. Although, no time frame has been announced for the public to use the business side of Google Plus, there will be many powerful tools to help your business prosper. The first tool will be how your business can share content and information on Google Plus. Your business will be able to share items such as deals and sales, business information, and also work with other business owners to learn new information, as well as share your own information. The second tool will be in adding links through Google Plus. With Google Plus your business can add a profile about your business and also link your website and other social media sites on one convenient site. This will drive more traffic towards your company website, which in turn creates more potential customers. The last tool that will help your business is the way you connect to people. By using the “Circle” function explained earlier, your business can connect to businesses in the same industry and people in your own area, which can increase your presence and visibility to the public, as well as competitors. It will be very easy to monitor what your competitors are doing within your marketplace, so they do not have an advantage over your business. You will also be able to connect to these people by using video and live chats. These are a few of the tools that can be used on Google Plus, which will help your business gain an upper hand within the marketplace. Make sure that you take advantage of this great new social media platform to stay ahead of your competitors, by contacting someone currently involved in the beta.
Posted by Kathleen Ion on April 28, 2011 · Leave a Comment
Have you either claimed or created your “ Places” (formerly known as Google Local Business Center) listing with Google? It’s FREE! Google recently changed their Search Engine Results Page (SERP) and a “Places” listing is now more important then ever because Google has pushed their maps and Places listings to be much more prominent on the SERP. As the Internet matures so do the search engines and following Google’s mission to delivery the most relevant results possible to it’s users, their algorithms have changed yet again, to favor the more “local” results. Below are some tips on how to make your business Places page as good as it can be. Stay tuned for next month’s Tip on How to more effectively control your on-line reputation … |
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| 1. Make sure your Google listing has a 100% score – There are more than 20 different fields in your Google Places listing and surprisingly most businesses don’t bother to fill them all in. At the end of the day, the difference between showing up on the first page of Google Places or not can boil down to not having a video as part of your listing.
2. Include the product or service keywords in your listing description – I suggest you also list one or two of the cities or suburbs where your target market lives. As with any content on the Internet, be sure not to overuse your keywords. Your description should be always written for people with an eye for SEO.
3. Encourage your clients to write a review on your Google Places listing -Think about this: if you and 10 local competitors all have 100% scores on the listing, which one will fast become the favorite, and what will Google use to rank these businesses? The one component of the profile that is open-ended is the review section. So in many cases, the business with the most reviews can win the day.
4. Make sure you are listed in your local phone book – I know this sounds counter-intuitive, but the fact is Google looks to established sources of data to both build their database and check for local business information. If you’re not listed there, it may affect your rank on the first page.
If you follow the advice above, your business listing will have a better chance of getting on the first page of the search results, and in many cases, may even appear above the organic search results. |
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Posted by Kathleen Ion on April 26, 2011 · Leave a Comment
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Just as you google a business name or individual before you call them or go to their place of business, your prospects are doing the same to your name or your business name. When you type in your name or your business name into a search engine, what do you see in the results? Is it good? Bad? Non-existent?
Since the search engines have been changing their algorithms to display more “local” results, your efforts should be dedicated to appearing in those results. One of the primary changes is that the search engines (especially Google) are pushing more local results to the Search Engine Results Page (SERP), in the organic section. Below is a list of resources where you can get a free listing for your business and rank well for services that you provide. Ask happy clients/customers to give you or your business positive on-line reviews and they too will start showing up when your business is googled.
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Here is a short list of some of the prominent local business listings where you can establish or claim your business listing, get reviews and really start affecting your on-line reputation:
- Google Places (see last month’s Newsletter for tips on how to maximize this very powerful free listing)
- Yelp
- Bing
- Yahoo
- Best of the Web
- Merchant Circle
- Hotfrog and
- Foursquare
Local listings and SEO have always been important for small business on-line marketing, but now they’re essential. Next month we’ll talk about how Google has changed it’s local search ranking.
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| If you don’t have the time to do this but still want to establish a local on-line presence, call us. We have local packages that offer these services for you or your business.
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Posted by Kathleen Ion on March 24, 2011 · Leave a Comment
The idea of link building drives many internet marketers to temporary insanity, however, the reality is that link building is an integral part of any successful internet marketing campaign. A valuable trump card for internet rankings, link building combined with strong search engine optimization has proven to be the most effective way for a search engine to judge the importance and trustworthiness of a website.
Link building strategies
There is a myriad of successful link building strategies. The most popular strategies are to build lists, such as “101 ways to do whatever”, extensive resource lists or “Top 10 link building myths” etc. Such lists lend themselves to link building and create a sense of authority on whatever their subject matter, providing it makes sense.
By creating authority and making yourself easy to link to, your readers are more likely to do exactly that. By providing a useful service, good quality products and having a well written website, the world becomes your linked oyster. Word of mouth is still a very effective marketing tool and in today’s world where everyone has a blog and wants to tell the world about the fabulous product they just bought, the amazing hotel they stayed in or the awesome meal/service they had, your link is merely a click away. Just be careful, however, as it can also work against you if they find something negative to say.
Another brilliant link building strategy is to submit informative articles on relevant subject matter and posting them on related article sites or with other webmasters who will publish them.
Link building services in Phoenix, AZ
As with all internet-related marketing strategies, there is a wide range of options available. Some are more suited to certain businesses than others. It is therefore advisable to approach an experienced internet marketing consultancy in Phoenix, who also specializes in link building, to look at your website and business. Developing the best internet marketing and link building strategy could be what your business needs to really take off.
WSI is a market leader in the area of internet marketing, link building and search engine optimization. Contact us today to find out how we can establish a successful link building campaign and develop a clear and successful content marketing program for your internet business.
Posted by Kathleen Ion on March 17, 2011 · Leave a Comment
Internet marketing in Phoenix has become less of a “nice to have” and more of a necessity in today’s market. With the billions of websites on the internet, it’s important that your potential clients can distinguish the difference and uniqueness of your website, your products or what you have to say; and this is no longer a matter of simply publishing the right web pages.
Internet marketing isn’t rocket science, but it’s important that you understand how to use the various available tools in order to boost the rankings of your site effectively.
Internet marketing tools
A wide range of internet marketing tools is available to help you boost your site’s rankings. There are several software packages, many of which are expensive, that can identify your key words, give you search engine optimization (SEO) tips and show you the best way to optimize your website in order to rank highly on the various search engines. There are also many free online internet marketing guides that will allow you to do these exact same things, from keyword research tools to SEO guidelines.
However, many companies are turning to internet marketing consultancies for help because they do not have the time and resources to do it effectively themselves: you need a lot of time to study and research the best tools and guidelines for your particular site and put these strategies into place.
Internet marketing tips
There are three main areas you need to focus on when starting an internet marketing campaign. These are: client and prospect communication, lead generation and credibility and online branding. If you focus on these three points and integrate them effectively, there’s no reason why your website marketing shouldn’t yield results.
If you need some more direct assistance and guidance with the marketing of your website, please contact us in Phoenix today to find out how we can improve your traffic and grow your client base through successful internet marketing strategies.
Posted by Kathleen Ion on March 10, 2011 · Leave a Comment
Content marketing means creating and freely sharing information so that you can convert prospects into clients and these clients into regular customers. The main goal is to get the prospect to give you permission to deliver content to them via email, SMS, social media channels or another marketing platform. With regular exposure and contact, you can build a relationship and trust with your prospects, providing multiple opportunities for conversion.
Content marketing is not about advertising in the traditional sense, although it often does use copywriting techniques. Unlike “interruption” marketing such as TV or radio advertisements or direct mail, content marketing involves delivering requested information with independent value that creates trust, credibility and authority for your business.
Content marketing plans and strategies
Giving your readers something that will help them or which they find entertaining and interesting will enable you to create trust and desirability of your content. This will make sure that your readers open their emails, visit your Facebook page or Twitter feed, read your latest blog post and ultimately look forward to what you have to say, because there’s something of value in it for them.
Whether a good offer or simply some entertaining and useful reading material, the most important thing to remember is to give your readers something of value. By enticing people to open the emails you send and click through to ‘read more’ or participate in your offer, you will grow and develop your client database.
Content marketing in Phoenix
By making use of some clever copywriting techniques, you can establish a very successful content marketing campaign for your business.
There are many internet marketing consultancies that offer content marketing solutions in Phoenix. WSI are a market leader in the area of content marketing and the various options available. Contact us today to find out how we can grow your database and develop a clear and successful content marketing campaign for you.
Posted by Kathleen Ion on March 7, 2011 · Leave a Comment
Finding reliable internet marketing consultants could be a rather daunting task as there’s always news of the many spoof companies out there claiming to do just that.
As with most things, word of mouth is always a great start. Speak to family members, friends and colleagues about their websites and those who have used internet marketing consultants to grow their business. The internet is and always will be your best source of information. Think about it, a good internet marketing consultancy should market their business well. If not, how will they be able to do it for yours?
Look for an internet marketing consultant who offers a combination of the following services:
- Search engine optimisation
- Content marketing
- Social media marketing
- Online reputation management
- Link building
- Pay per click management
- Web analytics services
Tips to finding internet marketing consultants in Phoenix, AZ
From a search engine, type in a relevant search phrase such as “internet marketing consultants in Phoenix, AZ” and see which sites rank highly. The websites with valuable and relevant information will be ranked accordingly and should give you a clear idea on who to contact.
Online reputation is imperative when it comes to internet marketing. Once you’ve found an internet marketing consultancy’s site you like, do some research on them. Type the company name into a search engine and see what others have to say about the company.
As leading internet marketing consultants in Phoenix, AZ, WSI specializes in all related aspects. Please contact us to find out how we can help to take your website to its full potential and grow your business accordingly.
