Kind of a mixed bag in my round up this week though the articles are loosely tied to creating great content. If you are worried about “giving too much away” then give “Claim Your Oscar” a read. (BTW, I honestly believe that in our current marketing climate you can never give too much away.) If you are a looking for a fresh idea to create more content, then check out “Using a Social FAQ….” It is an interesting case study. Answering FAQs (in any format) is an excellent source for content.
Viewing ‘Marketing tips’ Category
11
Mar
2011
Posted by Jasmine
Blogging for Business Webinar
Thank you to everyone who attended our March Webinar “Blogging for Business.” We have posted a recording of the session below for those who could not make it or simply want a refresher. For written instructions, be sure to check out series Blogging for Website Traffic. It covers some new stuff as well reviews the keyword research process.
Be sure to download the materials referenced in the article, to follow along. If you have questions, post them to the comments sections below and we’ll answer them!
- Keyword Research Spreadsheet
- Content Distribution Tree (shows how to post to multiple social media sites with one upload)
02
Mar
2011
Posted by Jasmine
Backlink Builders Beware
This week’s roundup is a two-for-one on the wrong way to get backlinks. What is a backlink? For those who don’t know, backlinks are the most effective way to boost your search rankings. It is not something we cover much in this blog mainly because it also takes the most skill of any SEO activity. Most of the SEO tactics we cover involve on-site SEO (in laymans terms the stuff that you put on or do to your site). Why on-site? Well, it is a lot easier to make changes to your own site than to request links and post quality content to other people’s websites. And that is the basic definition of backlinks or link building. (Check out Wikipedia for a more in-depth definition of a backlink.)
We will save the in-depth for another day. Instead, today’s article is meant as a cautionary tale of what not to do. In the past weeks, several large companies have been busted by Google for black hat (no nos in other words) link building practices. What did they do wrong? Paying for links on irrelevant sites and offering discounts for links. Check out the two articles for more.
Photo credit goes to Michael Hayslip Photography. Thank you!
23
Feb
2011
Posted by Jasmine
Reviewapalooza
This week we look at something that is becoming increasingly important in Internet marketing: reviews. The good news is that it is something that is pretty easy (it still takes time) and can be mastered by anyone (not just a fancy pants marketing expert). Say yeah for reviews and embrace this phenomenon.
Making Local Reviews Part of the Content Strategy
Excellent case study on how one Brooklyn optometrist is kicking ass with review on Yelp. I have just started working with a local optometrist and think this might be a good strategy for him. We have been focusing on improving his website but it is going to take a while to get it where we need it be. Pumping up his Yelp profile might be a great intermediary step.
Using Surveys to Automatically Create Reviews and Referrals
This article taps into things that we have been working on in our marketing—how to get more referrals and launching a customer satisfaction survey. Almost as long as 910 West has been in business, we have been planning to create an after the sale survey to ask customers how we did. We have been dragging my feet on it because we weren’t sure what to ask. This article has given us a great idea and we love the fact that it starts off with one question. Who wouldn’t be willing to take a one-question survey? Looks like we might actually have to stop thinking about the satisfaction survey and actually do it!
Photo credits goes to fengergold on Flickr Creative Commons. Thank you!
16
Feb
2011
Posted by Jasmine
I Love the Smell of Fresh Content in the Morning
Our loyal readers may have noticed that we slacked off a bit on our blog this month. Shame on us! We are definitely not alone—starting a blog is the easy part. Feeding it is a whole other matter. Just in the nick of time, two articles with outside-the-box ideas for creating fresh content.
Using Skype for Content and Collaboration
We have been reading a lot about Skype as a collaboration and marketing tool and this article provides some solid examples and how-tos. An idea that we are playing with is using Skype to conduct and record vide interview for our blog. Related businesses (who are not your competition) are the perfect candidates. They get free publicity and you get someone else’s voice on your blog besides your own.
The Power of the Press Release in Small Businesses
Press releases are an often overlooked tool for small businesses. Don’t think that they are just for corporations with an entire PR staff. Releases are excellent tools for building backlinks (especially when us a distribution service like PR Web). Even if you take a less formal route, they are a great way to spread the word about your business.
03
Feb
2011
Posted by Jasmine
Blogging for Website Traffic: The Art of Blogging
If you followed along with our previous post, then you have researched and found some awesome keywords for your website. (If not, feel free to skip back and read Part 1: Intro and Part 2: Keywords.) Now it is time to get to the real meat of the matter, the blog post. There is no secret to writing a great post but there are few guidelines to follow:
13
Jan
2011
Posted by Jasmine
Just a Taste: Blogging for Business
While I am busy getting my notes and resources from yesterday’s blogging for business organized and onto the website, I thought you might want to check out a couple of articles on the subject.
Make it Bigger: The 4 Types of Corporate Blogs
This is a must read for any business who is just starting a blog or has one that is not performing. It is especially helpful if you are unsure or unclear of the purpose for your blog. It lists four types of corporate blogs and provides real world examples of each—truly helpful for any business blog in search of an identity. Blogging for web traffic is the fastest way to get more people on your site, but you must be consistent to keep readers coming back.
11 Ways to Improve Your Blog Posts With Interviews
In the workshop yesterday, we touched briefly on ways to make blogging easier by getting outside help. Interviews are technique that is easy and brings a lot of value and a way how to get inspiring blogging topics. Blogs can get too bogged down in your views so having an outsider bring fresh perspective can liven things up. Interviewing someone is also really easy—it can be as simple as using Skype to record an audio or video chat. If you are in need of blog content, consider adding interviews to your toolbox.
09
Dec
2010
Posted by Jasmine
Let Them Come to You
Last week I volunteered to be a Salvation Army bell ringer at our local Bass Pro Shop. Though I have walked by the bell ringers and collection pots a million times before, this was my first time on the other side. It seemed like a pretty easy way to give back to my community so why not?
I was pleasantly surprised by how friendly, chatty and generous people were. (Apparently not everyone is like me and skulks by because they never carry cash. Thought after this experience, I am going to change my bah-humbug ways.)
Since the bell ringing really does not require much thought and I did have some lulls in foot traffic, I did get to thinking about how bell ringing relates to marketing. The best marketing behaves just like the bell ringers—they make enough noise to get your attention but don’t get up in your face. The bell ringer does not harass or pursue the foot traffic instead they smile, look approachable and wait for you to come to them. This approach absolutely works. We collected an average of $25 per hour for the entire day. That isn’t too bad if you ask me.
I have been using this approach to marketing since I began my business and have experienced an abundance of growth year after year. It is a simple fact that no one wants to feel like they are being sold to—that is why direct mail and traditional advertising are struggling right now. They focus on the push not the pull. Just remember, don’t be pushy! Let the prospects come to you and so will success.
