Social SEO Strategies to Start Using Right Now
This is an interesting and spot-on article about the need to use social SEO strategies along with your traditional SEO work. Neither is going away anytime soon!
Thursday, March 22, 2012
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
Social Media for Small Business
Think you've done social media because you have a Facebook and Twitter site? Even if you happen to be posting as much as you can and effectively, there are still quite a few social media sites out there that you should consider for promoting your business. Here are a few I suggest:
Merchant Circle - this is a great site for interacting with other local businesses. While I believe they may be light on the interactivity, I do think there are very good prospects here for businesses. It is certainly good for most small businesses who offer services to other small businesses. If little else, it proliferates your brand by getting your company's name on the web in the business community. Consider it an internet based Chamber networking event. <a href=\"http://www.merchantcircle.com/\" title=\"http://www.merchantcircle.com\">www.merchantcircle.com</a>
Manta - this is one of several listing sites out there, but it is still free. They furnish free company profiles and having a listing will certainly help with your backlinks and influence the page rankings of your website. Again, I think it is a growing B2B social site that offers plenty of opportunity. It is more sophisticated than Merchant Circle. <a href=\"http://www.manta.com/\" title=\"http://www.manta.com\">www.manta.com</a>
Yelp - Yelp started out as a way for individuals to give eachother experiences about local businesses, both negative and positive. It has evolved into a robust rating system for all sorts of businesses, with a lot of valuable suggestions for restaurants, shopping, and other verticals. For those who don't \"own\" your Yelp listing, you should go online very soon and make sure you capture that. First, it will prevent anyone else (like a competitor) from taking control of your business on Yelp. Secondly, it should assure you maintain a listening ear to whatever individuals are saying about you on the site, providing you with the opportunity to respond right away.<a href=\"http://www.yelp.com/\" title=\"http://www.yelp.com\">www.yelp.com</a>
YP - once upon a time we use to have these big books with telephone listings and business ads in them and that was how we found merchants. The yellow pages have moved online and now provide listings and ads coupled with news and information about events and activities. They have mobile apps and \"deal of the day\" to encourage engagement.<a href=\"http://www.yellowpages.com/\" title=\"http://www.yellowpages.com\">www.yellowpages.com</a>
This is a brief overview and there are many more social sites for B2B marketing. If you d like to know more about getting your business more visibility online, just Email<a href=\"mailto:Kim@DeppeCommunications.com\" title=\"mailto:Kim@DeppeCommunications.com\">Kim@DeppeCommunications.com</a>.
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
Lose the "One and Done"
So, this whole starting your own business thing is pretty imposing! I am finally done with all of the legal things (I think) and got all the systems and processes in place to do the back end work. I think. I reflected the other day that I am playing a lot of roles now - not just president/ceo, but also the chief financial officer, chief marketing officer, HR, IT - well, you get the picture. I'm head of marketing but also procurement, business development and janitorial services. Whew, no wonder my head has been swimming.
And, of course, like the cobbler's children who went without shoes, I've neglected my own marketing. Of all people, I should know better, right? I guess it is a good sign, in part, that I haven't had the time or felt the need in a pressing way. It means I am working and that's a good thing. But I also know that marketing is a long-term investment and you can't be "one and done." That is always something I fought against in the corporate world, and that I try to impress upon my clients today.
One and done. It's the soft underbelly of marketing, a place where initial success can spell resulting failure. Because when the first campaign rolls out and brings in a lot of business, some companies think that's all they need to do. They expect the business to just keep on rolling in without the need to sustain the marketing efforts. I can't tell you how many times I have witnessed a company discard a campaign that is really working because - well, because it is really working. It is a short-sighted vision that ultimately leads to lost market share.
I have also seen companies that bounce around from one strategy to another, never satisfied with what they've got and thinking there is always something better around the corner - even when the current strategy is delivering results. The idea of consistency seems dull and boring to them, repetitive in a negative way, and the powers that be insist on changing things up.
This is a bad idea, as my fellow marketers know. The next shiny thing is not as effective as the dull, boring yet effective campaign you have. Consumers want to know what to expect from you as a company. They want to know that they will get the same products, the same level of service and the same basic pricing from you every time they walk in your door. Your marketing is the window through which the consumer sees your company. If you have a revolving door instead of a window, it makes it that much harder for the consumer to understand what it is you are doing. If you constantly change the location or the color of the window - to extend the metaphor - you are just confusing the heck out of your customers. They won't know who you are anymore, or what you stand for.
That is not to say, of course, that you shouldn't freshen your marketing regularly. You must keep current with the trends in your business and respond to changes in the market. Occasionally you will even need to completely revise your marketing approach. But this should be something that takes place every few years, not every few weeks. Think of the big companies like McDonald's, Sears, Home Depot, Apple. They have a solid foundation of marketing messages that they deliver over long periods of time. I bet you can tick off in your head their current ad slogans, and probably a couple of older ones, too. And while the messaging may be tweaked based on the audience they are talking to, the underlying message is rock solid and consistent.
So fight against the urge in your company to abandon a perfectly good campaign. One and done is a waste of your money.
So, this whole starting your own business thing is pretty imposing! I am finally done with all of the legal things (I think) and got all the systems and processes in place to do the back end work. I think. I reflected the other day that I am playing a lot of roles now - not just president/ceo, but also the chief financial officer, chief marketing officer, HR, IT - well, you get the picture. I'm head of marketing but also procurement, business development and janitorial services. Whew, no wonder my head has been swimming.
And, of course, like the cobbler's children who went without shoes, I've neglected my own marketing. Of all people, I should know better, right? I guess it is a good sign, in part, that I haven't had the time or felt the need in a pressing way. It means I am working and that's a good thing. But I also know that marketing is a long-term investment and you can't be "one and done." That is always something I fought against in the corporate world, and that I try to impress upon my clients today.
One and done. It's the soft underbelly of marketing, a place where initial success can spell resulting failure. Because when the first campaign rolls out and brings in a lot of business, some companies think that's all they need to do. They expect the business to just keep on rolling in without the need to sustain the marketing efforts. I can't tell you how many times I have witnessed a company discard a campaign that is really working because - well, because it is really working. It is a short-sighted vision that ultimately leads to lost market share.
I have also seen companies that bounce around from one strategy to another, never satisfied with what they've got and thinking there is always something better around the corner - even when the current strategy is delivering results. The idea of consistency seems dull and boring to them, repetitive in a negative way, and the powers that be insist on changing things up.
This is a bad idea, as my fellow marketers know. The next shiny thing is not as effective as the dull, boring yet effective campaign you have. Consumers want to know what to expect from you as a company. They want to know that they will get the same products, the same level of service and the same basic pricing from you every time they walk in your door. Your marketing is the window through which the consumer sees your company. If you have a revolving door instead of a window, it makes it that much harder for the consumer to understand what it is you are doing. If you constantly change the location or the color of the window - to extend the metaphor - you are just confusing the heck out of your customers. They won't know who you are anymore, or what you stand for.
That is not to say, of course, that you shouldn't freshen your marketing regularly. You must keep current with the trends in your business and respond to changes in the market. Occasionally you will even need to completely revise your marketing approach. But this should be something that takes place every few years, not every few weeks. Think of the big companies like McDonald's, Sears, Home Depot, Apple. They have a solid foundation of marketing messages that they deliver over long periods of time. I bet you can tick off in your head their current ad slogans, and probably a couple of older ones, too. And while the messaging may be tweaked based on the audience they are talking to, the underlying message is rock solid and consistent.
So fight against the urge in your company to abandon a perfectly good campaign. One and done is a waste of your money.
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