MDS Resource — Digital Ad Agency

Tag: new customers

Online Reputation Repair Can Be Avoided By Effective Online Reviews and Reputation Management
Do You Know What People Are Saying About Your Business Online?
What Is Online Reputation Management?
Here’s Wikipedia’s definition of Online Reputation Management:
Online reputation management is the act of monitoring, addressing or mitigating search engine result pages or mentions in online media and Web sphere content. It primarily involves tracking what is written about a client on the Internet, then utilizing sophisticated online and offline techniques in promoting positive and neutral content, while at the same time pushing down those links the sponsor may not want to show when their name is searched.
Did you know the 2011 “Social Shopping Study” indicates that 50% of consumers spend 75% or more of their total shopping time conducting online product research? Furthermore:
- 92% of Adult Buyers Regularly Check Online Reviews Before Purchasing
- 70% of Consumers Trust Other Consumers’ Opinions That Are Posted Online
Why Is Online Reputation Management Important?
Marketing local business online flourishes because the whole world is coming online, too.
1. Your prospects are online
2. Your competitors are online
3. Your customers are online
4. That includes your unhappy customers, too!
The Internet Has Changed Everything !?!?
Local small business marketing has benefited in so many ways from the Internet. However, the online universe has also empowered consumers.
- Before the Internet, businesses delivered their messages to consumers via one-way communication channels that they controlled (think – TV commercials)
- Business NO longer completely control their message!
- Thanks to the Internet, everyone comments on business messages via blogs, social media, customer reviews, etc.
What Are People Saying About Your Business?
Your company’s online reputation is being discussed:
1. By former employees
2. By bloggers
3. On forums
4. On social media
5. In customer reviews
Online Reputation Is Crucial For The BIG BOYS, Too!
Don’t believe me? Google the company names for which these all too common
namesakes sprang up:
- www.walmartsucks.org
- www.homedepotsucks.com
What Are The Negative Effects Of A Bad Online Reputation?
1. Bad customer experience
2. Unresolved customer issues
3. Bad reputation
4. Lost revenue
What Can Happen If You Don’t Repair Your Tarnished Online Reputation?
Internet marketing for small business needs every advantage possible to succeed. A tarnished name puts you at great risk.
1. You could lose existing customers
2. New customers may be difficult to find
3. Your business can suffer financial loss
4. You could go out of business!
What Happens When You Repair & Defend Good Reputation?
1. Your positive good online reputation stands out from the crowd
2. You will retain existing customers
3. You will get new customers easily
4. Your positive brand image will be credible & authoritative!
How To Maintain Your Online Reputation
Marketing your business online is about building and nourishing relatinships. So, too, is reputation management.
1. Be proactive instead of reactive
2. Monitor online conversations about your business
3. Respond and interact with consumers online
4. Regularly create and distribute positive content
What Are The Benefits Of Actively Seeking Online Reviews?
Actively seeking online reviews from satisfied customers is certain to:
- Boost conversions, and
- Provide feedback about your product or service
Consumers trust and expect online reviews and, seeing them, will gravitate to your business.
How To Get Customer Reviews To Build Or Repair Reputation
Referrals and new sales leads continue to be your ultimate goal. What better way to build social proof than to ask for a review?
1. Survey all of your customers for feedback all of the time
2. Offer incentives in exchange for reviews (e.g., coupons, discounts, free samples)
3. Ask customers to review products by placing calls-to-action on your product pages
4. Send customers to your business listings on Google Places, Yelp, CitySearch, etc.
5. Link your business listing profiles to your website
Always Create Positive, Branded Content To Promote Reputation!
Flood the first search engine results pages with positive, branded content:
- Your well-ranked website must be the first result for your company name
- On-going search engine optimization (SEO) for all of your webpages
- Videos, press releases, photos, articles, etc. promoting your good name
- Tips, tools, helpful tutorials & other useful content for your visitors
Monitor Online Conversations For The First Line Of Reputation Defense
Find out what people are saying about your business:
- Do a Google search for your business name …
- What do you find when you search for you?
- Check articles, blogs, forums & customer review sites
- Frequently check your own blog & website for comments
- Pay close attention to the social network sites
Reputation Repair Requires Response & Interaction
1. Listen to what people are saying
2. Be respectful
3. Display a helpful & friendly demeanor
4. Respond to both positive and negative comments
5. Always quickly offer solutions to problems
Why Respond & Interact To Fix Online Reputations?
- It builds relationships
- It allows you to actively manage & control your brand
- It allows other people to see your point of view
- It shows that you care
You do care, don’t you?
How To Repair Your Reputation
Do you already have negative online comments and reviews?
1. Make brand optimization your main focus
2. Use SEO to drive negativity further down the SERP’s
3. Create and publish videos, press releases & articles
4. Create a blog — regularly publish fresh & unique content
5. Engage in social media to build a loyal & eager following
How to Improve & Fix Your Online Reputation
1. Ask for negative reviews to be removed
2. Promptly address issues
3. Don’t ignore unhappy customers
4. Don’t argue with customers
5. Know when to walk away
6. You cannot please everyone!
Call Now
Answer Reputation Management Questions: 612-235-6060
1 June 2012
How To Begin Inbound Marketing Your Business Online Success
Inbound Marketing Your Business Online Begins With Keywords
Marketing your business online effectively depends, of course, on getting great new customers from the Internet. On the one hand, you must be found on the first page of search results or your chances of being found at all drop precipitously. When was the last time you searched online and actually clicked on a link on page two, ten or one hundred? Yes, I, too, sometimes go beyond page one; but, how often do you do it?
Inbound Marketing Your Business Online Depends On Being Found
On the other hand, you must be found by a large enough population of searchers. Clearly, not even you can sell everybody who crosses your path today, can you? The truth is, some are ready to buy from you today, some later and some, quite frankly, will never buy from you. That they many not buy from anybody any time is no consolation, is it?
Marketing Your Business Online Puts You In Front Of Great Prospects
The trick is putting yourself directly in front of the very best of the best prospects. Quite some trick, indeed! Anticipate eager buyers shopping specifically for what you offer and you can appear before them as if they sought you out. Inbound marketing is all about empowering consumers. Be found by enough of the right people and inbound marketing your business online is profitable.
Keyword Analysis Drives Marketing Your Business Online
Taking a tip from the search engine optimizers (SEO’s) you need to study the key words and phrases those eager shoppers type into the search box before clicking search. For simplicity, let’s call the words or phrase of words people type into the search box a keyword. Keyword analysis then is the study of keywords and how you will be found by people using them.
Answer Four Marketing Your Business Online Questions
There are four questions every business must answer if they are to get great new business from the Internet:
Marketing Your Business Online Seeks Buyers
1. What are people actually searching for?
  Although many start by listing those keywords by which they want people to find them, nobody can control the keywords searched by others. If you want to be found by a specific keyword, but nobody is searching by that keyword, you will not be found. Hence, anticipate eager buyers shopping for what you offer.
Marketing Your Business Online Demands Buyers
1. What is the commercial intent of each search?
  The history of the Internet is a long story about sharing information between government agencies and educational institutions. Little by little all of this world’s information is finding a home online. Any type of research you can imagine can be conducted over the Internet, including names, addresses and phone numbers; texts of the greatest world literature; and known species of fish near New Zealand. I can’t speak for your business; but, my business needs paying customers. Hence, anticipate eager buyers shopping for what you offer.
Begin Marketing Your Business Online Simply
1. How difficult is it for me to be found on the first page of search results?
  Even if eager buyers are searching for your keyword and they have every intention of purchasing, there remains the daunting task of being found in search results. Some companies have been at this for many years. Some have earned great authority, credibility and trust from search engines and consumers. Difficulty to reach the first page is a function of passing your competitors on the way from last page to first. Many well searched keywords may be easier for your business than others.
Marketing Your Business Online Demands Your Choice
1. For which keywords do I want to be found?
  Knowing the keywords eager buyers search to find you, knowing which keywords are searched for purchasing purposes and knowing the less difficult keywords on which you can build success demands another decision from you. From this sea of opportune keywords you must sort, prioritize and select a subset on which to build your foundation. Know this, a list of keywords by itself holds little promise for you. Great prospects already know the keywords they are using — it’s the solution to their problem that they seek.
Inbound Marketing Your Business Online Begins With Keywords
Inbound marketing your business online effectively depends on delivering great content to great customers on the Internet. The truth is, some are ready to buy from you because they come to believe that you have the solution to their problem. That they use specific keywords when searching for that solution means that content featuring those keywords will attract their attention. Once you have their attention, then you have the right to call them to action and invite them to interact with you. Nonetheless, inbound marketing your business online begins with thorough keyword analysis.
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Answer Marketing Your Business Online Questions: 612-235-6060
20 March 2011
How Inbound Marketing Attracts New Sales Leads And You Give Them What They Want
New Sales Leads Are Looking For You
New sales leads, I am told, are the bane of small business today. Or, shall I say, there is a dearth of new sales leads everywhere struggling business looks. To what do we owe this sparsity? I talk with a lot of business owners. Lately, the two biggest problems I hear are too few targeted sales leads and poor return on advertising investments. Do either of these ring true with you?
How Rare Are New Sales Leads?
Was it always this way? Most business owners tell me, “No, in better times customers were plentiful.” Is this only a matter of good times versus bad times? They tell me that not too many years ago, new customers found them in the yellow pages and called for an appointment. New customers read a newspaper ad and came through their door ready to buy. New customers used to answer the telemarketer’s call eager to give up their credit card number. Really?
Did The Internet Destroy New Sales Leads?
Some bemoan the Internet. “The Internet is a scam!” they tell me. “There are so many hooligans out there selling Google salvation.” OK, now we’re getting somewhere. It’s true, Google is not in business to give you customers. Google is in business to make money and lots of money they are making. Their best customers, however, are not you and me, business owners, and not you and me, website owners. Google’s best customers are advertisers who pay Google to place their ads where eager shoppers will find them, click on them and see what they have to offer.
Does Google Eat New Sales Leads?
Why, then, is Google so large, so dominant and everywhere we look nowadays? They are in our smartphones. They are renting out commercial movies and competing with broadcast media. They are developing a driverless car. But, clearly, they started on the Internet and the Internet is the foundation on which they built this behemoth. Why? The Internet is where consumers have migrated. Yes, those consumers not flipping through yellow pages, those consumers not calling the classified ads, those consumers not answering their phones — those consumers are on the Internet. Eager shoppers are scouring the Internet to buy today’s whim. And they’re telling their friends and family what they found.
New Sales Leads Respond To Inbound Marketing
Inbound marketing takes advantage of the Internet and the sea of shoppers there. Anticipate eager shoppers searching for what you offer. Identify the best of these shoppers, identify that most interesting of your offering and place your virtual kiosk directly in their path. Instead of intruding into their lives shrieking “Buy me!” and “Give me money!” demonstrate to them what you have to help them. Offer your visitors some token of your expertise with no strings attached. Show them that, indeed, sometimes lunch is free. New sales leads like that.
Can New Sales Leads Can Find You?
Inbound marketing success is predicated on three things:
1. Be found! Until you are found there is no chance new sales leads will come to you.
2. Be found by enough people. It’s truly unlikely that you will sell all of your prospects today. Some will buy, some will not and others may buy another day.
3. Be found by enough of the right people. At any given instant, some percent of the world is looking to purchase what you have to offer. Regardless the number, these are your prospects — nobody else. How likely are you to persuade a diaper shopper or diner looking for great Chinese food to open their wallets to you?
New Sales Leads Are Looking For You
Are new sales leads the bane of small business today? To what do we owe this sparsity? Many business owners say, “In better times customers were plentiful.” The problem is you are looking in the wrong places. Worse, your best prospects are looking for you and you’re nowhere they are looking. Inbound marketing attracts new sales leads and you can give them what they want.
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Answer New Sales Leads Questions: 612-235-6060
14 March 2011
How To Get Great Customers With Online Marketing For Small Business And Search Engines
Online Marketing For Small Business Creates Great Customers!
OK, sure, if you’re big business like Wal Mart or Amazon the Internet is great. But, what do search engines have to do with online marketing for small business? In short, search engines are a tremendous opportunity to be found. How’s it working out for you in the Sunday newspaper classifieds? How many new customers found you in the yellow pages last month?
Online Marketing For Small Business Works Locally
Truth be told, right this minute, right here in the Twin Cities, eager buyers are searching for what you offer. Anticipate these eager buyers and you have the opportunity to stand up directly in front of each of them and tell them your great story. Once you identify the buyer personae of your greatest customers, what’s to stop you from stalking your perfect prospects? Isn’t creating great customers the best action you can take in growing your business? Is it possible to have too many great customers?
Search Engines Help Online Marketing For Small Business
Let’s look closely at typical search engine results to see what’s in it for you. For the sake of illustration, we’ll use Google. Sure, lately we’re seeing a lot of commercials about Bing, and certainly Facebook, too, has an impressive number of searches. Google recently reported four billion searches every day, one billion of which are seeking to buy locally. With two-thirds of all search engine searches, Google epitomizes the online search experience.
Depending on your specific search phrase, the Google search results page may contain three different types of results:
Paid Search And Online Marketing For Small Business
Pay-per-click (PPC) advertising may appear above all other results and/or down the right side. First and foremost, know that these are paid advertisements. Every time somebody clicks on one of these ads, whoever placed the ad pays Google. From the time you sign up to the time you start seeing results can be as quick as a few hours. Paid advertising can quickly pull prospects, test landing pages and gauge the market.
Local Business Results And Online Marketing For Small Business
Have you noticed the maps? Unless you’re totally oblivious to the Internet and online search, these last two years of online marketing for small business are remarkable because of the local business results.
Google and the other search engines realize that there is an enormous demand for local and neighborhood search results. Why? Because eager buyers are shopping and ready to buy; but, they’re not prepared to put a new house in a shopping cart and purchase it from Amazon. For many items consumers still insist on buying from a person. They still put the relationship before the deal. And that is great news for local business.
Getting on the map is not a function of paid advertising. Nor is it simply a matter of having a great website. Local business results feature businesses that are remarkable in their community. First, they claimed their listing in the local directories, such as Google Places, Yahoo! Local, Yelp, etc. Second, these businesses made the effort to standardize their listings everywhere, including using the same local telephone number and spelling consistently. Third, customers find them remarkable enough to leave online reviews, endorsements and testimonials for local business. The search engines are gathering many public reviews into the local business results.
Organic Results And Online Marketing For Small Business
Last but not least are the well known organic results. They are called organic because they are the “natural” ordering of all web pages cataloged across the Internet. Although, different search engines rank and order web pages differently, the notions of credibility and trust and back link references from other websites are shared. Clearly, if your business is found on the first page of Google results, eager buyers searching for what you offer may click on your link. Also, the more eager buyers find your link the more likely your business is to sell. Although, many say organic results are “free,” do not forget that consumer searches vary and the search engines change their rules to appeal to searchers.
SEO And Online Marketing For Small Business
Search engine optimization (SEO) is the process of appealing to search engine algorithms in order to place high in their rankings. Effective online marketing for small business must consider SEO because each business must be found by buyers if they are to sell. Neither SEO nor marketing, however, is simply a matter of adding some ingredient to your website. If marketing is the relationship between a business and its marketplace, and every relationship begins with a single conversation, how many conversations with eager buyers do you want online?
Online Marketing For Small Business Creates Great Customers!
Is it possible to have too many great customers? Search engines are a tremendous opportunity to be found. Right this minute, right here in the Twin Cities, eager buyers are searching for what you offer. Is creating great customers your goal in online marketing for small business?
Call Now
Online Marketing For Small Business Answers: 612-235-6060
8 March 2011
If You’re Marketing Your Business Online, You Can Double Your Leads & Triple Revenues In Ninety Days
Marketing Your Business Online Increases Sales
OK, admit it, marketing your business online or offline is not the most interesting topic, is it? Working with your best customer on a great job that turns out perfectly for all of you is interesting. Summer golf tournaments and family vacations in Cancun and your sister’s wedding are interesting. Marketing your business is not quite there, it’s usually something more of a chore than interesting. So, what are you doing here reading this?
Is Marketing Your Business Online Or Offline Working?
Are you sitting around waiting for new customers to walk in your front door handing you money? Is that plan working so poorly that you’re bored to tears with nothing else to do but read this blog post? O, I’m sure it’s not that bad. After all, you could be pestering your receptionist instead, telling her a better way to file last month’s bills. Instead, you’re here looking for answers, right?
The Marketing Your Business Online Question
Answers to what question? If nobody’s reading your yellow pages to find you and call you and come on in, where are all of the new customers finding where to go to buy? Well, the Internet is teeming with consumers young and old. Google statistics pronounce that there are over four billion searches conducted every single day. More than one billion of those daily searches are by eager buyers looking to buy something locally. When would you like to be introduced to some of them? Of course, Google is not the only game in town. Facebook membership is the third largest country in the world, behind only India and China. According to iStrategyLabs, the number of Americans age 55 and over using Facebook grew nearly 59% during 2010. Do you think any of them are going to buy what you offer?
One Marketing Your Business Online Clue
Let me give you one simple yet priceless clue that you can take away from here and implement all by yourself this afternoon. ComScore reported more than 175 million unique American viewers in October 2010 watching an average of over 900 minutes of online video. In 2009 Cisco predicted that by 2013 video will be 90% of all Internet traffic. Video is here, video is popular and video is boosting brands of everyday businesses just like yours. Don’t believe me? Google four words: ‘san diego trial attorney’ — how many trial attorneys do you think there are in San Diego? Look closely at the top two results. The first result was put online nearly five years ago, and the second nearly three years ago. The search engines recognize that Internet users want to watch videos. Video is everywhere: on our smart phones, in stores, on television and everywhere on the Internet.
Marketing Your Business Online With Video Is Easy
The most watched videos are not Super Bowl commercials. Video is ideal for marketing your business online, because online video can be simple, easy and inexpensive. If you can make a Powerpoint presentation, you can do a simple voiceover, add background music and convert that into a great video marketing piece. Affordable video cameras are everywhere, too. Plan to tell your story online just as you would eyeball-to-eyeball with your best customer. Tell us how you solve problems for real people and how that has changed their lives for the better. Every company has something fascinating, unique or funny that put into a video people will want to share. You do, too.
Marketing Your Business Online Increases Sales
See? Marketing your business online is an interesting topic, isn’t it? Make marketing your business more interesting than a chore. If you’d rather sit around waiting for new customers to hand you money, then you better start being found by eager buyers searching for what you offer. After all, you could be pestering your receptionist instead, remember? You can double your leads and triple revenues in ninety days by marketing your business online with video.
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Answer Your Marketing Your Business Online Question: 612-235-6060
5 February 2011
Give Me New Sales Leads That Immediately Convert Into Loyal Customers & I’ll Burst Through Doldrums
Call New Sales Leads To Action
Are you a business owner in desperate need of fresh new sales leads? Leads are the lifeline of just about any business. No matter what market you’re in every business owner knows that there will be dry spells from time to time. But we’re living in very tough times. Business is tough because unemployment is depressing, many are losing their homes in droves and people just generally aren’t lining up to part with their money.
New Sales Leads Are On The Internet
Although, there may be many answers to this problem, for the purpose of this article we’ll discuss using the Internet to generate new sales leads. Do you think that the Internet is just a fad? What can this crazy caprice, this virtual amusement park for kids and geeks have to offer your local small business? How can this haven for spammers, hackers and Amazon.com stimulate your business’ economy? Simply said, the Internet is where eager buyers are shopping for what you offer. Right this minute they are shopping online and they are going to buy from somebody. How much of that business do you want?
Can New Sales Leads Find You?
So, what’s the secret to producing new sales leads on the Internet? First, your business must be found. You must be found by eager buyers. You must be found where eager buyers are looking. Anticipate eager buyers shopping for what you offer and everywhere they look you can be there. Furthermore, the more people are shopping there, the more targeted sales leads will enter your sales funnel. If you want a lot of leads, make sure you’re offering something in great demand. This combination of great demand and being found everywhere those demanding are looking is critical to success.
Respect New Sales Leads
Second, treat your visitors like the honored guests they are. Once found, be worthy of their visits. Consider what’s interesting about you and your company. Why do existing customers like to do business with you? How are you unique? Tell your story online and leverage your interesting and unique business character. Never talk about services and products again — instead, focus on eager buyers and how you can solve problems for them.
How can you push the envelope of what is tried and true in your market? Remember, your guests are visiting because they want a solution to their problem. How can you benefit them? Tell them about benefits and they will stay; otherwise they will go elsewhere. Give them valuable and relevant information and you grow in credibility. If it’s easy it’s already been done and it’s no longer valuable.
Call New Sales Leads To Action
Third, at the height of your guests interest, ask them to take action. Think about how information spreads online. What valuable content can you offer totally free? Think in terms of spreading ideas — not generating leads. Make your content easy to find and consume.
In exchange for a little information about your guest, you offer them an opportunity to receive more valuable information. Take them to your squeeze page where they give you permission to continue this relationship. An eBook, consultation and samples can nurture their interest until they’re ready to purchase. Every company has something fascinating, unique or funny that can be turned into a video that people will want to share. You do, too. As long as you hold their interest they’re not going to buy elsewhere.
New Sales Leads Cure Doldrums
Don’t be in desperate need of fresh new sales leads. Leads are the lifeline of your business, too. Great new customers always cure the doldrums. Still think that the Internet is just a fad? This crazy caprice, this virtual amusement park for kids and geeks also offers salvation to your local small business. Simply said, the Internet is where new sales leads congregate when they are ready to buy.
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Answer Your New Sales Leads Question: 612-235-6060
2 February 2011
Secrets Of Marketing Your Business Online: The Easiest Way To Be Found Everywhere Eager Buyers Look
Marketing Your Business Online Is An Opportunity
So, you have a business and you’ve finally taken it online. Everything is ready to go. The website is up and looking to win a trophy! Forms are working and email, too. You hired an extra hand to answer the phone and greet newcomers in your door. All your best features and advantages are bulleted and bold. You spent a load on all of this, including that SEO guy who said all you’ll ever need is 1st place on Google.
But, where are the new customers? Everybody everywhere promised you, Build it and they will come! Yes, it’s true, you’re really Google numero uno for a keyword you wanted. And, it’s also true that you’re getting a bunch of online visitors showing up on your homepage, at least for a couple seconds. What more can you expect? Darn it! Where are your new customers? Is this Internet marketing thingy all hogwash, only a cruel hoax, a costly scam?
Nobody seems interested in your website or your business or what you have to offer. Sure, you have the gosh darned prettiest website in the world — you shelled out lots to make that happen! You have pages of content full of information about your products and, yet, your website fails to make sales. Where, then, have you gone wrong? Marketing your business online is critical for any business, small or big. Unless you tell the world about it, until you are found, how is anyone supposed to know?
Targeted Leads Come From Marketing Your Business Online
How you market online is key to filling your sales funnel with targeted leads that convert to great new customers. The Internet has not so much changed marketing as it has transformed the way we consume. As we learn to search and find what we want on the Internet — when we want it — we respond less and less to offline media. Therefore, anticipate eager buyers shopping for what you offer and, when they search, everywhere they look you are there. Ergo, it’s crucial that your business is found on the search engines; but, that’s more a factor of what they type than what you want them to type.
Once you’re found by eager buyers searching for you — what then? Think about your own searches and buying patterns. Suppose you search for a four-slice toaster. Google, for example, presents a search result page with ten “organic” results. Each of these includes a headline of up to 60 bold characters followed by a description of up to 160 characters. Has that ever sold you then and there? Of course not! You start at the top, numero uno, and decide among the ten which to click and follow the link. Follow that link — whither? If it takes you to my homepage and you need to search again for four-slice toasters, how likely are you to continue and buy from me? Rich, rewarding and relevant content remains king. When I give you exactly what you expect after following my link, are you more or less likely to become my customer?
Make Marketing Your Business Online Drop Dead Simple
Once I’ve got you, targeted lead, on my site and you find what you’re looking to buy, how can I make it drop dead simple for you to buy from me? If you are confused, if you don’t instinctively know what to do next, if I don’t simply ask you to take that next step, what’s to keep you from simply slipping away? At this point, marketing your business online draws a play from the age old offline playbook. Conversion is a function of your Call-To-Action, plain and simple. Once you’ve found what you want and I make it simpler to follow my yellow brick road than wander off into the jungle, this is where great new customers are made.
Marketing your business online is about four decisive factors:
1. Targeted Leads
2. Relevant Content
3. Call-To-Action
4. Conversion
Marketing Your Business Online Is An Opportunity
Once you know your buyer personae, it’s easy to give them what they want. Follow relevant, compelling content with a simple and clear request, whether that be call me, come in for a demonstration or sign-up for our newsletter. If marketing is about relationships and every relationship begins with a single conversation, then conversion is more about continuing a good conversation with a great new customer. Marketing your business online is about the opportunity for unlimited conversations.
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Answer Marketing Your Business Online Question: 612-235-6060
15 January 2011
WARNING: New Sales Leads Will Ignite Your Business Into A Bonfire Through Which You Cannot Sleep
New Sales Leads Burn Brightly
The Internet is the prime tool for generating new sales leads today. You may have heard this a million times before and ignored it, but I’m really serious. The old ways of getting sales leads flat out do not work anymore. There’s little spark left, far more smoke than flame. Honestly, how antiquated can the old ways be?
Are New Sales Leads Scarce?
How many new customers did you make last month due to yellow pages or telemarketing? Does anybody really watch commercials on Tivo? Although trade fairs are still viable for promoting interest in your booth visitors. Am I the only one questioning the quantity of quality leads trade shows produce? Perhaps, it’s best to use offline media as kindling for a new, hotter fire.
A Multitude Of Quality Leads
Really, the most effective way to get new sales leads today is on the Internet. Not all website visitors are online leads; and not all sales become customers. But, with billions — billions more than millions — of online page views every month, your sales can explode practically overnight. The trick is visibility, findability and conversion. These are the embers from which your bonfire will roar to life. You need to get your business seen by as many eager buyers as possible.
Call New Sales Leads To Action
That’s why the Internet is just so great! Honestly, how many people will actually read your yellow page or newspaper ad? How many eager buyers will stop by your booth at a trade show? Anticipate how eager buyers shopping for what you offer seek you online and what’s stopping you from being everywhere they look? For example, thousands of people are searching Google for your products and services every single day. You need to ask these visitors to stick around, to interact with you and call them to action. Which is easier seen, an open flame or the glimmer of an old reflection?
Start A New Sales Leads Frenzy
Internet marketing can be far, far cheaper than any traditional marketing. When some tactic disappoints you, simply change your message mid-campaign until you find that glorious log that really stokes a fire. Well, of course you want new sales leads! What are you going to do with great leads once you have them? After you give them free information, collect their email address and receive their permission to help them, you need to nurture these prospects and convert them to great customers.
Fan the flames. Create a frenzy of eager buyers clamoring for your attention. Let new sales leads compete with each other to become your next greatest customer.
New Sales Leads Burn Brightly
The Internet is the location of new sales leads today. You’ve heard this million of times before. You ignored it. The old ways of getting sales leads have burned out, far more smoke than flame. If you want to party all the way to the bank, start an Internet fire with terrific customers. Let new sales leads dance around the online inferno you create together. Let them fan the social media flames and, together, you celebrate successful business with new sales leads.
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Answer Your New Sales Leads Question: 612-235-6060
12 January 2011
How To Succeed At Online Marketing For Small Business With Any Realistic Budget
Don't Ignore Online Marketing For Small Business
Are you a small business owner? Do you want to see a lot more customers coming to you in 2011? Certainly, every business owner I’ve met answers these in the affirmative! What’s your plan to grow your business with great new customers?
Clearly, every new customer is a function of new leads in your sales funnel — we know this as conversion. And, every new sales lead is a subset of the number of eager buyers shopping for what you offer who are exposed to your business — we know this as marketing. Admit it, the numbers of people exposed to your business depends on marketing strategy, tactics, advertising, etc. Times change and so has effectiveness of traditional marketing tactics and offline advertising. Whereas, telemarketing, yellow pages, newspaper ads and other previously effective tactics are seriously lame today, online marketing for small business produces more targeted sales leads everyday.
Don’t Ignore Online Marketing For Small Business
Most small business owners ignore online marketing, because they don’t understand how the Internet has dramatically changed consumers. Furthermore, many unwary businesses have been duped into costly schemes to fool Google and other search engines. Have you been duped into believing that #1 on Google first page or a million website visitors in a month are ends in themselves? How do they add to your bottom line? Here’s a clue: work both of them into a business plan, pass it on to your banker and ask for a business loan. Point is, show your banker a plan to get more targeted sales leads calling you on the phone and then they’ll talk money. Google itself and random website visitors do absolutely nothing to grow your business.
Fortunately for you, this Internet thingy has totally changed the way we consume! No longer flipping through yellow pages or browsing the Sunday Trib classifieds, eager buyers shopping for what you offer are on the Internet right this second searching for you. Every time they search they receive a search results page. If you’re not on that page, they will buy from somebody else. Online marketing for small business has one goal: everywhere they search they find you there.
Affordable Online Marketing For Small Business
Fact is, effectively marketing your business is now possible with any realistic budget:
- Email marketing has long been the favorite of Internet marketers, perhaps because it’s the online equivalent to direct marketing. Done right, instead of intruding in the Inbox, you ask and they grant you permission to nurture them and keep them informed with current and relevant information. Keeping permission marketing foremost in your mind, think of events, specials and successes that you’d appreciate knowing about your favorite vendors. Your customers and prospects will appreciate the same about you.
- Online articles are another great way to increase awareness of you, your business and, especially, those special things you do that benefit your customers. Do you remember fondly thumbing through a magazine, reading interesting articles and clipping some articles so you can refer back to them later? The Internet is several magnitudes greater than any paper magazine. This very minute somebody is reading an article about your product and service and today she’ll bookmark it and maybe tell her friends about it. Have you ever tried to find a article in a magazine you threw out a long time ago? That won’t happen online, because it’s always available to be found, 24/7, 365 days a year.
- Social media is all about family, friends and vacation pictures — right? No. It, too, can be tremendously effective in putting your business in front of eager buyers. Facebook membership alone is the third largest country in the world: China, India, Facebook, USA … In 2010 it’s been reported that the largest growing Facebook demographic is middle aged women. Again, keep in mind how online marketing for small business is primarily about developing relationships with your marketplace. What better way to start a conversation with a new prospect than at a huge party? Facebook, for example, is a neverending party of friends, family and coworkers, and they’re all talking about what’s on their minds. Strike a positive chord with just one, and they’ll tell somebody about you, and on and on.
Follow Online Marketing For Small Business To Success
Online marketing is about branding. The more people recognize your personal name, your business name and your place in the community, the more likely that one of them converts into a customer. Notice how we haven’t mentioned traditional advertising agencies and TV commercial production crews — the prohibitive prices of traditional marketing simply are not necessary online. It’s more about leaving thousands and thousands of bread crumbs from your business throughout the Internet. Whenever some eager buyer happens on one crumb while shopping for what you offer, Hansel and Gretel will follow the trail to your door. Like all marketing, the only goal of online marketing for small business is to create customers.
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Answer Your Online Marketing For Small Business Question: 612-235-6060
9 January 2011
Give Me Ninety Days And You Will Be Successfully Marketing Local Business Throughout The Twin Cities
Marketing Local Business Has Changed
Marketing local business is not as simple today as it was in the past. A long time ago, it seems marketers promoted local business by putting ads in the yellow pages and buying ad space in the local newspaper. Business has gotten very hard in The Twin Cities. Eager buyers no longer look at the newspaper ads to shop for products and services. Today most consumers start by doing an Internet search before they buy. What will happen when you anticipate eager buyers shopping for what you offer? Knowing what they type into the search box, what’s keeping you from appearing everywhere they look?
Marketing Local Business Online
Take roofing for example. Drop by Google.com and search for the following:
- twin cities roofing
- minneapolis roofing
- saint paul roofing
As I write this, the search engine results pages all show one thing in common: that gorgeous map! Local business results are your key to marketing local business successfully.
There are three sections to each Google search results page:
1. Pay-per-click advertisements at the top and down the right side;
2. Local business results and that gorgeous map above the fold; and
3. Organic or natural search results everywhere else.
So, each roofing company has at least three (3) chances to show on each page. And, take note, this is only Google! We’re not looking at Yahoo!, Bing, Facebook or any other search results. Is Your Website Marketing Local Business?
Consider your own company website. You may have paid big bucks to publish your online business card — did you? Did you pay for pretty? Or, did you intend to pay to produce more customers? How many new customers did you get last month because of your pretty website? What is your return on that investment?
What about your website content? Is it relevant to your visitors? Is it compelling them to take action and buy from you once they’re on your pages? What would persuade you to buy from you? Are you calling them to action on each page? If you don’t ask them to call you, what do you expect them to do? Not calling you, not buying from you and going away may be exactly the message they’re getting from you.
As a local business, what are you doing to make sure that eager local buyers know that you exist? How would you find your company if you didn’t know about it? Remember that cool map? Google will only place you in the local business results after they recognize that your business is local to that search. What is your service area? As a Minneapolis roofer, how interested are you in Duluth business? Or, business in Fort Lauderdale? The best marketing local business strategy pulls customers directly from your local community. Even if business thousands of miles away can be good, won’t local business be better?
Marketing Local Business Has Changed
Marketing local business online is not that different from marketing offline. Eager buyers want to taste, hear, smell and feel your products and services. Give them a great reason to walk through your front door and they’ll come to check you out. There are rating and review sites providing places for your customers to express their feelings about your business. Claim your business listing on social rating and review sites like Google Places, MerchantCircle, Yelp, Angie’s List, etc. With half a reason to stand up in public and tell the world about your remarkable work, many customers will do just that.
How much of that do you want?
Community involvement will certainly build your brand quickly. The more your neighbors talk about your business, the sooner marketing local business brings them to you. Marketing local business is different today than in the past. Today most consumers start by doing an Internet search before they buy. Anticipate eager buyers shopping for what you offer and, of a sudden, everywhere they look you are there. In fact, marketing local business online is different: it is effective.
Marketing Local Business 90 Day Challenge
Give me ninety days and you will be successfully marketing local business throughout the Twin Cities.
6 January 2011