Internet Marketing Ideas

How Online Marketing Will Change in 2011

2011-01-14T04:25:00.000-08:00

Technology and the ways we use it are constantly changing. Online marketing will change in 2011, and it is important that business owners monitor these changes to stay competitive this year.

Mobile marketing will continue to grow in 2011. The success of Foursquare and use of Facebook Places indicates that mobile marketing and offline marketing will integrate to provide customer reward programs. The increasing use of mobile devices, inexpensive RFID chips and credit card integration will make this process easier to manage.

Social media will change this year. While its usage may not increase, companies will place a greater emphasis on social media than they did in the past. It will focus more on creating a culture that engages customers. Social media will change the way that many people conduct business.

SEO has been thrown around for the past few years, but it will become even more important in 2011. More companies are taking advantage of optimized websites. Small businesses gain a particular advantage by choosing to optimize their websites to certain key search terms that showcase their products and services. Along with increasing SEO, more businesses will choose to invest in online marketing. An online presence is now necessary for the survival of any business, and more energy will be placed in the Internet.

The use of metrics and measurements that gauge the effectiveness of online marketing will rise in 2011. This began last year and will continue to increase in the future as more people strategize their online presence and creating marketing models with measureable achievements. However, the ability of companies to track their progress may become harder as privacy issues take center stage. Government policies may intervene and make tracking more difficult.

More companies will integrate their websites with social media. They will add features of social media to their web designs. This will allow them to control their brands while engaging their customers on a personal level. As websites develop, shopping online will change. Customer feedback and algorithms will streamline online shopping and improve the experience.

Online publishing will increase as the cost of printing becomes unsustainable. Many publishers will endeavor to do more online, and the shift will be difficult. This year will test the staying power of most publishers.

Email List Mistakes

2010-11-15T22:06:00.001-08:00

Company email lists are fast becoming a common business practice. When done correctly, they are useful tools that allow you to stay in close contact with your customers. However, many small businesses fail to benefit from a successful email list because they make common mistakes.

Forgetting to ask people for their email addresses is a mistake that most small business owners make; even companies with Facebook and twitter accounts make this mistake. Email lists are much more cost-effective and useful at communicating with customers directly than any other marketing method. Along with directly asking for email addresses, websites need to have clear email list opt-ins. The opt-ins should be visible and not buried in the back of the webpage.

When requesting email addresses, be consistent. Make sure that employees understand the importance of requesting as many email addresses as possible. Provide them incentives for gathering information, and train them in the appropriate techniques. As important as it is to gather email addresses, it is equally important to keep customers happy. If a customer does not want to share any personal information, tell your employees not to force the situation. Harassing a person for his or her email address will only create tension and possibly cost you business. Try creating a script for employees to follow that is informative and low pressure.

When asking customers if they want to join an email list it is essential to provide them with a valuable exchange. In an age when identity theft is rampant and inboxes are spammed with useless information, people need to know what signing up for an email list will do for them. Inform your customers about the many benefits that the email list will provide. For example, tell them about any money that they will save. It is also important to promise not to spam people, and then do not spam them. Unless you already agree to sell customer information, promise them that you do not share their information with anyone else. Often, people opt-out of email lists because they do not trust companies to keep their personal information secure and confidential.

Submitting Your Website To Yahoo: The Basics

2010-11-04T08:16:00.000-07:00

If you have an e-commerce website, a company website (or really any type of website in which you'd like to attract more visitors), you will typically rely upon search engine crawlers to find and rank your site. However, an additional method utilized in order to have your site rank in a specific category for various search terms is to use website directories.

Yahoo is easily one of the most popular website submission directories, and as such, it is inundated with thousands of requests each day, which obviously causes your website submission to be delayed, sometimes for months.

Delays aside, HOW you submit your website is what counts. You will want to ensure that you are placed in the proper category, or your website is liable to fall into the abyss of websites that never get found due to poor placement. There are a large number of specific categories to choose from, however, so finding one that best fits your website shouldn't be a problem.

Additionally, Yahoo will ask you for a short description of your website. Choosing the proper keywords here can be critical, as they can help you rank higher than other websites within a specific category.

You can also pay to be included within the Yahoo directory, which ensures you a quicker response. Paying does not increase your chances of receiving a higher ranking.
 SEO within your site will still play an important role regardless of whether your site has been approved by Yahoo into their directory or not. Strong SEO will help you rank higher on Yahoo, both within directory categories and for organic search results.

SEO: True Facts For SEO Success

2010-10-11T09:03:00.000-07:00

Everyone wants to rank high on search engines. Search engine optimization (SEO) is a frequently used term, but SEO success is difficult to obtain and there are many myth circulating on the subject. However, understanding the facts related to SEO will increase the chances of success.

The most important aspect of SEO writing is content. A badly written entry will not compensate for a search term appearing frequently. You should always consider your reader. Your ranking on a search engine will not help your business if your audience cannot understand the content. Besides, a link can fall in ranking if the readers do not share the link and generate further hits.

Word counts are another fact to consider when developing SEO content. There is a rumor that blog content needs to be 450 words and that a new post needs to be added each day. The truth is, however, that the word count should fit the content. There is no magic word count, although people are more likely to read short and concise entries over long rambling pieces. Include at least two keywords placed throughout the content to increase the chances of SEO success.

Research can definitely separate your SEO content from the crowd. There are two ways to research key words: long tail and short tail research. Long tail research is useful for targeting a particular market and will allow you to choose the most effective key words available.

Be careful about your inbound and outbound links. Links can increase your presence online and lend authority to your content. Choosing the appropriate links for your content will enhance your visibility and increase the number of hits you have which is the point of SEO in the first place.

Writing and posting SEO content is not enough to guarantee success. Social networking sites are essential to getting content noticed. People often share links and content through social networking sites. Promote your content on as many social media platforms as you can. Using this technique will help you find referrals, increase your lead generation and promote recognition of your content and your company.

Successful LinkedIn Marketing Strategies

2010-10-07T05:54:00.000-07:00

Social networks are useful for doing more than socializing. Networks such as LinkedIn act as a helpful marketing strategy to help businesses increase their client base. There are, however, ways to ensure that your LinkedIn marketing strategy is successful.

The first step is to determine your target market. Identify people whom you need to make connections with, and locate them. Search for these contacts directly and also look through the networks of your existing contacts. Once you locate your customers, identify your objectives. For example, the objective may be to increase your network or increase your client base. This will require a different plan of action than simply creating business recognition.

Look for relevant connections to add on LinkedIn based on your market and objectives. Inviting people to join your network is not always straightforward. There is a standard introduction line with LinkedIn, but it might be helpful to personalize your introduction to contacts. Unless you are adding a close friend, remind people of who you are and how you met.

Take the time to build strong relationships with your connections. Staying connected with people will breed trust and enhance the business relationship. When doing this, remember to be genuine. People usually do not react well to a simple sales pitch. They are more likely to trust someone they can relate to. Personalize your connections by exporting their information in order to make it easier for you to keep track of important contact information as well as remembering birthdays and other important dates.

Your profile allows you to stand out. Make sure that your profile is professional and creates a good impression. It is also helpful to include SEO keywords in your profile. Use LinkedIn Answers to develop a rapport with your connections and future customers. The polls connected with these questions include everyone in your network. This is an effective way of indirectly communicating with your contacts.

If you join a professional Group, you will be notified of any group discussions. Adding professional and insightful opinions will allow you to increase your credibility and establish your reputation in front of potential clients.

Using Google Alerts for Marketing Trends & Strategies

2010-09-26T09:17:00.001-07:00

Google alerts have the ability to inform you about any topic you are interested in a matter of seconds. They are useful for planning marketing trends and strategies. This tool allows you to track of different subjects, products and stories. Simply create an account and choose the keywords relevant to your subject, and have the alerts emailed to you. It is possible to

Google alerts allow you to keep tabs on the online reputation of your company as well as your own online reputation. Monitoring your personal and business name will provide you with the opportunity to make necessary changes that will draw in new customers. You can also keep track of your domain name. This way you will know who is linking to your domain and why. To track your domain name, you do not need to add the www at the beginning, but be sure to add the .com, .org etc. The same rule works for keeping an eye on your blog, if you have one. Monitoring your blog will let you know who is reading or sharing it, which will give you an idea of your target market.

Google alerts will also email you if someone is linked to any of the articles you have online. These alerts will show you who your audience is so that you can create effective marketing strategies for your demographic. Your target audience and niche market has a number of keywords associated with them, so discover what they are. Monitor these keywords to discover new trends and changes in the market. This will keep you aware of new products and allow you to develop the ideas and promotions that are necessary to give you a competitive advantage in the marketplace.

Along with keeping track of your own presence online and the developing trends in your market, Google alerts are a great way to keep track of the competition. Use them to monitors the news, biographies and websites of your competitors. Keep an eye on any changes in their products or ideas. Monitoring the competition is an effective way to stay informed about the industry in general.

Why Your Facebook Marketing Strategy Isn't Working

2010-09-24T03:09:00.001-07:00

The popularity of social networking makes advertising on Facebook a logical marketing strategy. It can compliment traditional marketing strategies and allow you to find new clients in your target area. However, many people make critical errors when they first use Facebook to market their businesses, which will limit the effectiveness of the marketing technique.

Advertising on Facebook is not free. However, if your have the budget, it is effective. Facebook is not a quick fix. Social networking takes work, and if you begin with unreasonable expectations you are sure to fail before you begin. Make sure that your goals are reasonable and attainable. Each business and user is different. Just because one person on Facebook has 1 million fans, there is no guarantee that yours will.

There is a risk of marketing a new venture on the social networking site. Specifically, any failures that the venture experience occur in a public setting, which will deter future clients. Using Facebook as a marketing strategy can only work if it is allowed to grow at its own pace. Use natural ideas to build an audience. The further that the ideas develop, the greater potential there is for expanding the audience. Facebook is able to connect with a great percentage of your audience quickly.

In order to reach your target audience it is important to understand who they are. This will help keep you from overestimating your audience. Once you know who your audience is, you will need to create a message that speaks to your audience. The message that your audience receives is an essential marketing strategy. Take the time to understand your audience and appreciate your core customers. This will allow you to frame a message that will draw supporters beyond your first supporters.

Marketing through Facebook requires time, energy and dedication. It will give back what you put into it. Over time, it is possible to grow a large audience base. There is no easy marketing strategy, and understanding your audience will keep you from creating unrealistic goals, which is the greatest mistake that people who market on Facebook typically make.

Get Involved in Social Media Marketing Before You Need It

2010-09-20T07:19:00.000-07:00

Most online marketing campaign strategies such as SEO and PPC, and especially email marketing, are utilized at specific points in time for specific purposes, and often have measurable results with a relatively short period of time.

Social media, on the other hand, is a very different beast, which is why many are still wary of it or unable to understand how it might be beneficial. Additionally, the ROI may be somewhat difficult to determine for quite some time. However, if done effectively, social media marketing has the potential to be an extremely powerful online marketing tool.

The trick is investing in social media before it may be absolutely necessary to do so. Creating profiles on various social media sites and taking the time to build a following will ensure that you have a captive target market when you are in fact ready to promote or market something specific.

Posting press releases or promotional messages will garner little results if you don't already have a strong following. Begin by posting informative or entertaining content that your target market will find interesting. Do so on a consistent basis, and soon you'll find that your followers will grow on a continual basis as your content is shared. Then, you'll be able to recognize a huge ROI as you command a much larger and influential reach amongst various social media communities.

Four Important Factors To Increase Blog Traffic

2010-09-13T13:49:00.000-07:00

Sometimes, when attempting to attract more visitors to a blog, bloggers and online marketers tend to overlook simple factors and considerations and instead focus on more advanced online marketing techniques. This is all well and good, but possibly unnecessary. Online marketing methods such as SEO, PPC, backlinks, etc., mean very little if the content of the blog isn't informative and engaging. Even if you succeed in getting visistors to your blog, the appearance of the blog or boring, uninspired, or confusing headlines may quickly make them leave.

Focus on Captivating Headlines
Your content may in fact be great, but a bland headline won't let visitors know that. Clue them in as soon as they visit your blog as to the main idea of each article that is presented to them. Try to capture their attention by letting them know why the information contained in the article is important for them to read, or how it can benefit them. If you can work in a few SEO keywords, even better.

Avoid Rambling
The great thing about blogs is they give us the opportunity to write as little or as much as we want. But not all blogs benefit from long posts. When attempting to market to consumers or other businesses, it's best to keep your content strictly to the point, providing only the necessary, critical information. If you tend to go on rambling a bit or being repetitive, consumers, and especially those in B2B, will start to lose interest in the content. Keeping your posts self-contained will keep the information fresh.

Graphics: Yes or No?
There's nothing wrong with using pictures and graphics, provided they are relevant to the blog post. Try not to clutter up the page, don't overdo it, and be careful about the sizing. Unless you are displaying artwork or photographs, you don't need graphics that consume the entire page and force visitors to scroll past them in order to locate the remainder of the article.

Using Visitors to Get the Word Out
Satisfied visitors are your best means of getting the word out about your blog and attracting new visitors, so long as you make it easy for them to do so. Most blogs allow you to integrate "sharing" buttons for each blog post or on the sidebar of the blog, as well as RSS feeds. These buttons allow visitors to instantly share your blog post on social networking sites such as Twitter, Digg, Facebook, and many others with just the click of a mouse. This type of online marketing exposure is invaluable and should definitely be utilized.

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Is Your Social Media Marketing Campaign Illegal?

2010-09-03T07:47:00.000-07:00

It was reported a few days ago that the Advertising Standards Authority in the UK is gearing up to crack down on social media marketing campaigns that do not adhere to a set of guidelines.

Beginning March 1, 2011, the ASA will attempt to effectively police all social media marketing on major networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter. Marketers utilizing these networks for unpaid advertising and promotion may be found in violation of the code of standards involving misleading advertisements and social responsibility.

Business that are found to be in non-compliance may have their ads forcibly removed. According to IFA Life founder Philip Calvert, social media sites should be used strictly for networking, not marketing, as using it for marketing is a waste of time. He states that, “IFAs should use social media to network, listen to consumers, add value, share news and expertise and to build a digital reputation.”

Obviously, the numerous studies touting the effectiveness of marketing and advertising on these sites have escaped his attention. Should we in the United States be wary of some sort of similar action in the future? Will our own social media marketing campaigns fall victim to such a ruling?

And what would such a ruling mean for individuals who use the networks for both networking and promoting their own products or services, such as a book they've written or jewelry they've made? Will they receive warning notices as well?

The whole concept seems ridiculously absurd and extremely difficult to enforce with any degree of fairness and efficiency. What do you think?

E-Commerce Websites and Business Blogs

2010-08-31T07:44:00.000-07:00

E-commerce websites benefit from common online marketing solutions such as search engine optimization (SEO) and Pay-Per-Click (PPC), but in an extremely competitive marketplace, businesses can further maintain and increase their share of the market with a business blog as well.

The blog is often overlooked as a viable marketing tool by many e-commerce websites for a variety of reasons, the most common of these being that managers simply don't understand the marketing potential. Essentially acting as an extension of your website, a blog's content can help lure in new customers and clients by attracting them with engaging, informative content. A well-maintained blog will continue to attract new visitors, which in turn will utilize the blog as a portal to your corporate e-commerce website. This serves to increase both brand awareness and ROI.

Of course, maintaining an effective blog can be time-consuming, as fresh content must be written on a consistent basis. If you do not have a copywriter on staff, you can hire freelancers to write content for your business blog, or retain the services of a web marketing agency.

You should also note that a blog is most effective not only when the content is fresh and interesting, but also when it is search engine optimized. Integrating SEO into your blog posts will ensure that your blog will be find easier and more often during relevant search engine queries. A solid understanding of SEO is essential, as well as experience and knowledge of which keywords might work best to capture the attention of your particular target market.

While you can take advantage of free keyword tools to help you choose and utilize keywords in your blog posts, an experienced SEO team can expand upon and improve the SEO of your entire blog. SEO keywords can be integrated into your blog description, metatags, links, and tags relative to each particular blog post.

Search engines such as Google also notice and prefer blogs that maintain consistent updates, so fresh content posted on a regular schedule is important to both the search engines and to your readers.

For further tips on maintaining an effective blog for your e-commerce website, you might want to read " RSS Feeds: An Easy Way to Generate More Traffic for Your Corporate Blog."

Contact Active Web Group, Long Island's leading full-service web marketing agency, for information regarding SEO content services, e-commerce, email marketing and more.

Email Marketing is Most Effective for Businesses Who Understand Their Customers

2010-08-30T05:24:00.000-07:00

Taking time to properly research and understand the wants and needs of your customers leads to more effective email marketing campaigns. Gathering this valuable market data can be done through several means, such as surveys, keeping track of consumer buying habits, and engaging with the customers through social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook.

Not every option will be suitable for every brand or business, and gathering market data on specific target markets may be time-consuming and difficult for large companies with an expansive product line and several segmented target markets. Small business may have an advantage when it comes to understanding the needs of their customers, and effective email marketing is not only cost-effective, but also delivers the greatest ROI for your online marketing dollar.

While a combination of online marketing solutions is always preferred over a single option, in these difficult economic times, small business are finding that email marketing is an especially viable option when the marketing budget is stretched thin.

For a strong email marketing campaign, it is best to utilize the services of a full-service web marketing agency. The online marketing experts at a web marketing agency will be able to utilize and seize upon critical factors that will enhance and strengthen your email marketing campaign.

Active Web Group is the leading full service online marketing agency on Long Island, a pioneer in email marketing and website development. The online marketing experts and email marketing specialists at AWG can help you properly identify your target market and create or add to your email list, compose and design your email campaign messages, make any necessary modifications, and analyze your results.

If you want to decrease your marketing costs and increase your customer base, contact Active Web Group today!

RSS Feeds: An Easy Way to Generate More Traffic for Your Corporate Blog

2010-08-24T09:27:00.000-07:00

The expansion of social media technologies and widget applications has made it easier than ever to reach a wider audience and attract more followers to your pages and visitors to your website and blogs. Many of these useful tools can be easily integrated into your websites and blogs to be utilized by visitors with the simple click of a mouse, thereby sharing and spreading your information to many others. Traffic generation possibilities are limited only by the quality of your content and how interesting or informative visitors actually find it.

If your business has a blog, or if you have at least visited a blog or two, you no doubt have noticed a link along the sidebar or at the bottom of each posts labeled as an "RSS Feed." This link essentially allows you or other visitors to subscribe to future postings. As new content is posted on a blog, subscribers can receive notifications via email or access to the actual content in a program that collects RSS feeds from any number of blogs that someone has subscribed to. If your content is of particular interest or value to a subscriber, they will certainly want to subscribe to the RSS feed. If your own blog doesn’t have a link to its own RSS feed easily locatable, it should.

To further capitalize upon the marketing capabilities of RSS feeds, you can submit your RSS feed link to blog directories. Blog directories allow you to categorize your blog and gain wider exposure with more specific target markets. There are many blog directories available: simply submitting the term "blog directories" into a search engine will bring up a large amount of popular listings.

Traffic generation for your corporate blog does take time. But as long as you continue to post to your blog on a consistent basis, and as long as you offer content that is useful, informative, or interesting to the user, your subscribers should continue to increase.

B2B Facebook Marketing Tips

2010-08-16T15:50:00.000-07:00

There should no longer be any doubt that Facebook is a viable B2B marketing tool. While other social networks such as Linked:In and Twitter have their own advantages for B2B online marketing, Facebook should not be discounted simply because it appears to focus more on social friendship rather than social business.

Several studies have already proven that the social media platform is more than adequate for marketing to a business audience and networking with other professionals. However, there are three keys to successful B2B Facebook marketing that you'll need to follow in order to maximize the effectiveness of your Facebook B2B marketing campaign.

1. Content is Key

It applies to your corporate website, and it applies to your Facebook page as well. The consistent creation of specialized, unique, informative content is necessary in order to engage and attract the interest of other businesses and professionals on Facebook. Establishing yourself as an expert is critical, and reinforcing that perception is an effort not to be taken lightly or dismissed.

2. Optimization is Beneficial

Just Google and other major search engines utilize SEO as part of their algorithms in determining the placement of websites in search engine results, SEO can also benefit your Facebook page. Optimizing your content for search engines will help other businesses locate your Facebook page both through organic searches and also within Facebook.

You can utilize Facebook to more efficiently target specific audiences and businesses with rich keyword content in your company profile and in the content you add to the page. Determine what other businesses might use as their search terms when seeking the services or products you provide.

3. Interaction is Necessary

It isn't called "social" without a good reason. Users enjoy Facebook for its social networking capabilities, and B2B marketing on Facebook allows for tremendous networking capability. Direct messages of special news, events, press releases, videos, etc. can be sent directly to your followers within seconds, and your page can be updated continuously and effortlessly.

You'll be able to engage and interact with other professionals quickly, further instilling brand recognition and showcasing your commitment to professionalism and customer service.

For more information about B2B Facebook marketing and how to optimize your Facebook page to fully harness the powerful marketing capabilities of the social networking site, contact Active Web Group, Long Island's premier web marketing agency.

Monday Afternoon Online Marketing News Wrapup

2010-08-09T14:31:00.000-07:00

Some interesting news in the world of online marketing today:

Mobile Marketing Expected to Account for $5.5 Billion in 2011

How to Find Your Ideal Internet Marketing Company Effectively
There are many reasons why an internet marketing company is useful for your online venture...

Online Job Market Gains 45% 
Skills in Google App Engine development, HTML5, SEO, social media in high demand, finds Elance study.

Monday Morning Online Marketing News Wrap-Up

2010-08-02T06:57:00.001-07:00

An interesting batch of articles today concerning online marketing methods Visa, the future impact of Web 3.0 (are we already done with Web 2.0? That was fast!), and how social networking is ever-growing, ever-changing.

What is Web 3.0 and how will it impact PR? 
A video and summation of Web 3.0 and it's possible future effects on social marketing and PR

Visa launches a marketing push for online shopping service Rightcliq
The leading credit card brand launches today a major marketing push for its Rightcliq online shopping service. It’s an online wallet combined with merchant discounts, all wrapped up with social networking features.

Take Advantage of Increased Time Spent Social Networking
 A new Nielsen study titled "What Americans Do Online" shows that Americans spend a growing percentage of their time online visiting social networking sites. Businesses need to be aware of trends like this in order to focus marketing efforts where the target audience spends its time.

Small Businesses Say Goodbye to Yellow Pages and Hello to the Internet

2010-07-30T11:07:00.000-07:00

When you go out to get the mail one morning, you might notice a big, heavy book-like object leaning against your front door. Standing confused, wondering who might have left such an obtrusive package, you unwrap the plastic encasing. The tome within appears to be a directory of sorts, with the words "Yellow Pages" printed across the cover in black, bold letters. Somewhere in the back of your mind, a distant memory surfaces of a time when people used this crude publication to locate tradesmen and businesses in the area. You shake your head in wonderment: Who still has need for such a primitive tool?

Granted, the above scenario is slightly exaggerated. There are still plenty of consumers who rely upon their local yellow pages, and the directory isn't likely to disappear into obscurity for quite some time. However, many people now cast the Yellow Pages directly into the trash, relying instead upon the Internet to find whatever they might be looking for.

Within the past ten years, consumer use of Internet has exploded. Search engines and Internet directories, including YellowPages.com, have become the optimal choice of millions to search for local tradesmen, contractors, businesses, and more.

Gone are the days when local businessmen could simply rely upon word of mouth and a prominent listing in the Yellow Pages under their appropriate category. Consumers today want more than just a name and phone number and a few short sentences touting the reliability and quality of service.

While the Internet certainly provides businesses with the means to promote and market themselves in a much larger capacity than the Yellow Pages, there may be more costs associated with doing so, as well as the risk that they might never be found amidst the sea of competitors that also populate the Internet.

However, if done properly, and with ample online marketing solutions used in a cost-efficient, effective manner, a small business can easily trump larger companies. This can be evidenced in the case study "How SEO & Active Web Group Helped Construction Book Express."

The Internet can certainly help level the playing field, but only if a business, large or small, is willing to make the necessary investment to ensure that their online marketing efforts are done properly. For more information about online marketing solutions, visit Active Web Group, Long Island's premier full-service web marketing agency.

Internet Marketing Strategy: Purchase a Domain Name With Strong Keywords

2010-07-26T06:59:00.000-07:00

Let’s assume you own a virus protection software company whose name is Walsh Software. Obviously, the name does little to let new potential customers exactly what it is you create and market, other than the fact that it is some kind of software. Internet users who have never heard of your company will not be searching for it on the web. However, there are thousands that will certainly be search for “virus protection software.”

If you corporate website contains quality search engine optimization (SEO) content, then it is possible that your website will appear in a decent position amongst the results of the search engine query. But if you purchase a keyword rich domain name, you vastly increase your chances of being discovered, and the cost is often minimal.

In regards to the sample company above, if you were able to purchase the domain www.virusprotectionsoftware.com, it is extremely likely that this particular domain would soon be the first result to appear in response to the search term “virus protection software.” Adding a bit of content utilizing those same keywords will further strengthen your Internet rankings and visibility, and providing a link on the page enables visitors to this domain to discover your corporate website.

If you are seeking to buy a domain name that relates to a niche market, such as www.longislandsushiclasses.com, then it is likely that the domain name might not exist, and could cost you as little as $10. But a commonly used search expression such as “virus protection software” is likely to already be owned by either a competitor or an individual whose business consists of purchasing domain names and then selling them at high prices to those who desperately want them.

Some businesses also purchase many similar domain names that relate to their own business in order to keep competitors from claiming them in the future.

To learn more about utilizing additional domain names with strong keywords and SEO content, contact Active Web Group. AWG is Long Island’s leading online marketing solutions agency, specializing in Pay Per Ranking, a marketing strategy for businesses seeking good search engine rankings within the search engine result pages.

See how keyword-rich domain names and Pay Per Ranking can help you cut down on online marketing expenses and increase your online visibility and website traffic.

Social Media vs. Email Marketing - Don't Forsake One for the Other

2010-07-25T04:54:00.000-07:00

The ever-rising popularity and evolution of social media has shifted the focus away from other traditional forms of online marketing, such as email marketing and SEO. While social media marketing is certainly a viable, proven method, studies show that most forms of online marketing work best when used in conjunction with one another, as opposed to relying on a single method.

Additionally, while utilizing social media powerhouse sites such as Facebook, Linked:In and Twitter can cost you virtually nothing if the marketing is handled in-house, a large amount of time must be devoted to each site if the marketing is going to be effective. Producing engaging, interesting and informative content for each site is also necessary, along with time to engage with consumers or network with other peers.

Recent studies show that email marketing currently remains the most cost-efficient method of online marketing, with the highest ROI. A report by Direct News stated that "almost four in ten shoppers said they had been prompted to make an online purchase as a result of email marketing," and also that "more could be done by firms to improve their email marketing strategy, as 50 per cent of consumers said emails were devalued by irrelevant information and a similar proportion claimed messages hold no value because they did not have a special advantage by receiving them."

For a Free Email Marketing Analysis, Contact Active Web Group.

You might also be interested in reading "Five Reasons Why Your Email Marketing Isn't Working" and "The Importance of Social Media for Your Business."

Detailed Map of the Social Media Universe Created

2010-07-20T06:17:00.000-07:00

With all the new social media sites and tools popping up every day, it can be difficult to determine which sites might be worthy of your attention and which ones are just a quickly-passing fad, soon to be lost in the nether-regions of cyberspace. The map of the social media universe is an ever-changing entity, but that didn't stop Overdrive Interactive from creating one.

While the map be be outdated within a number of weeks, it's still a valuable resource and a good way to showcase exactly what types of social media sites are out there and which ones might work best for your business.

Click the image to enlarge it.

3 Ways to Improve Your Email Marketing Performance

2010-07-19T10:59:00.001-07:00

Email has the greatest ROI of the majority of common online marketing strategies. However, some companies have much better results than others. If you think your email campaign could be performing better, examine your organizational strategies to determine whether or not you need to make any changes in your approach. If you are not achieving your goals, try implementing the following three strategies to improve your email marketing performance.

Technology is constantly changing and email is not different. Modern email options are useful for deployment. They include a greater use of targeting and segmentation, better address acquisition and improved message design. Email marketing managers, chief marketing officers and heads of digital marketing should stay up to date on email options and discuss them with management. Newer options also have updated integration of email and web analytics as well as CRM and subscriber-centric perspectives. Subscriber-centric perspectives are now able to include relevant content and more transparent processes for subscribing and unsubscribing.

Employees are probably too focused on current email campaigns to ask for better resources. However, if they had the time to stand back and look at other options they would recognize how useful these tools could be.

Look at email as more than a selling tool. Do more than peddle the latest promotion with an email message. Use email to up sell and cross sell merchandise. Email is also a way to introduce yourself to new customers and guide them to different resources. Email is also useful form of communication when it comes to customer support, and it will help you keep in touch with past customers.

Provide your employees with the training and equipment they need in order to use email to its full potential. Buy new equipment and send employees to seminars. Investing time to train employees, along with the money, will give your email marketing performance a boost.

Appreciate employees who take it upon themselves to improve email performance. Do not penalize them for taking the time necessary to gather information, edit a list, divide that list and write different messages. Not to mention testing the messages, overseeing deployment and evaluating the results. Thank those employees who take the time to do the job well, and encourage your team to optimize the email marketing program. Try to reorganize the workflow of the person in charge of email marketing and invest in his or her training. Support creativity in the area and you could be pleasantly surprised by the results. Remember that email is an essential tool for marketing to clients, and it deserves your time and attention.

To learn more about email marketing and to For a Free Email Marketing Analysis, Contact Active Web Group.

PPC Ad Basics - 5 Simple Ways to Increase the Effectiveness of Your PPC Campaign

2010-07-12T05:58:00.000-07:00

Pay Per Click Advertising (PPC) is a popular online marketing solution that can effectively increase your online visibility and brand recognition, especially when combined with other online marketing techniques such as Search Engine Optimization (SEO).

However, certain PPC basic must be considered and utilized skillfully in order to maximize the potential of your PPC campaign. These 5 PPC ad basics may be common knowledge to those already well-versed in Internet marketing, but to those who are relatively new to PPC, they are required reading.

1. Keywords in the Ad

Keywords are going to be the most important aspect of your PPC ad campaign. When constructing your PPC ads, there are two places that keywords will come into play: the first is in the ad itself, and the second is related to what keywords might relate best to your ad and the products or services you offer, enabling your ad to align better with search engine queries.

Keywords used in ad should be the strongest possible. You won’t be able to overload your ad with keywords, as content of a PPC as is rather limited. So choose keywords that work best for what you are advertising. Keywords in the ad headline are essential, and should be repeated in the ad text as well if possible.

2. Keywords for Your Campaign

You will need to create a list of targeted keywords that relate to your ad. When Internet users enter a search engine query that uses these keywords, your ad may show alongside the search results.

You can choose as many keywords as you want for this list, but it is always beneficial to utilize keywords that may only appeal to your specific target market. This will ensure that those who click on your ad are definitely interested in what you have to offer, and eliminate those who click on your ad merely out of curiosity or because of misinformation, which will cost you money unnecessarily.

3. Include a Call to Action

Integrating keywords into your PPC ad is a good first step, but you must also include a call to action in order to better entice your target market to click on your ad. Because actual content allowance is limited, it will have to be short and to the point.

For example, suppose you are a moving company. Your PPC ad may contain a call to action that says “Get a free quote for your move,” or “Save 10% when you move with us,” or even “Learn more about why we’re the best choice.”

Note that these call to actions all contain an element of enticement, letting the reader know what he will get in return for clicking on your ad.

4. Visual Appeal

PPC ads have very little visual appeal, and at a glance, they all appear to look the same. But there are subtle things you can do to make your ad stand out a little. You can bold specific words to emphasize importance, or use capitalization as well if you feel it suits the ad without making it appear sloppy and unreadable.

5. What is the Competition Doing?

Chances are you have a decent amount of online competition. Most businesses on the Internet do. See what their ads look like, and which ones come up most often in a search query that uses the same keywords you intend to use. There is nothing wrong with tailoring your ad to look like that of the competition. If it works for them, it should work for you. But be forewarned: your competitors may do the same to you!

While Pay-per-Click Advertising can be quick to implement and begin producing results immediately, is not a marketing technique that should be entered into lightly by a novice. You are paying every time someone clicks on your ad, and if the PPC campaign is not properly managed, you may incur expensive click charges that would diminish your return on investment (ROI).

Active Web Group's PPC marketing and management specialists are experts at building successful campaigns. We begin with a few carefully selected key words or phrases and constantly analyze and test the results. Active Web Group can assemble a program that brings you the best results for your advertising dollar.

Contact Active Web Group for a Free Pay-per-Click Campaign Analysis!

You might also want to read Pay Per Click Management: Not All PPC Management Services Are Created Equal

The Importance of Social Media for Your Business

2010-07-08T16:15:00.000-07:00

The first and most important aspect of social media that should be quickly recognized by anyone wishing to delve into the realm is that it is "social". Interaction is key to a successful social media marketing campaign. Those who fail to realize that will likely have very little response to their efforts, and may also probably give up on social media platforms altogether, believing them to be a waste of time.

Doing so would be a terrible disservice, as social media is quickly incorporating itself into the daily lives of millions – prime target marketing for those who better understand how to use the marketing capabilities of social media effectively.

Currently, three social media platforms dominate the Internet: Twitter, Facebook, and Linked:In. Each serves its own specific purpose, but all three are also able to work in conjunction with one another. From a marketing standpoint, a company that can harness the power of all three can become a marketing powerhouse.

You can learn more about each social media platform in the article "Social Networking: What Is It, and Why Your Company Should Use It."

In addition to the information found within that article, following are three key components of social media marketing, each one specific to a particular platform, that will help marketers gain an inside edge.

Marketing with Twitter

Your first instinct might be to amass as many followers as you can. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but your efforts might be better rewarded by focusing on attracting targeted followers who would be most interested in your "Tweets" and with whom you can interact, thus increasing brand recognition. This will also help you acquire free marketing when your followers "retweet" your tweets to their own followers.

Marketing with Facebook

Pretty much the same concept as Twitter, except followers are referred to as fans. It is better to have a group of fans that you can engage with on a consistent basis than a large number of fans that never really look at your page to see what's new or don't respond to informative messages.

Be a Fan of AWG on Facebook >>

Marketing with Linked:In

Again, somewhat the same concept, except the connections you make here matter highly if you’re a B2B company. You'll want to seek recommendations from some of those connections: perhaps from satisfied clients. Recommendations on Linked:In work in essence as customer testimonials, and are highly visible by anyone that may view your profile.

Join our network on LinkedIn >>

Twitter Expands the Online Marketing Map With E-commerce

2010-07-07T06:47:00.000-07:00

An article in the NY Times describes how Twitter is moving into the realm of e-commerce...

Twitter Gets Into E-Commerce
By CLAIRE CAIN MILLER

Last year, we wrote that Twitter was considering e-commerce as one of its revenue models. On Tuesday it unveiled its first foray into selling products.

The company announced @earlybird Exclusive Offers, which will be time-sensitive deals on products and events that will appear on the @earlybird Twitter account. People can follow that account to get access to the deals.

Read the whole article here...

Launching an Email Marketing Campaign that Works

2010-07-02T05:20:00.000-07:00

Email marketing is emerging as the most popular and most cost-effective online marketing solutions this year, and predictions for the future have revealed that more and more companies will be utilizing email marketing as the main component of their online marketing campaigns. In order to compete with dozens of competitors and ensure that your emails are more effective and not simply cast out to the trash bin, consider these tips.

Make It Professional
Email marketing is a simple way to reach customers, but you should always take the time to make sure that your email is professional, polished, and useful or interesting to the customer. The first thing to do is to designate an email address to send your email from. Always try to make sure that the address you use is from yourcompany.com, or else your customers may think it is spam and delete it before opening the mail.

You will also want to use professional, appealing graphics that link back to your company. Using the company logo in your email marketing campaign is typically a key aspect in order to ensure brand recognition. The content is also very important. If the email is just rehashing the same thing that customers have seen before, they may be less tempted to open future emails from your company. Keep is short, simple and useful for the best results.

Newsletters
Newsletters are a great way to increase sales through an email marketing campaign. You will need to be able to provide customers with fresh content on a weekly or monthly basis. Other great ideas include offering newsletter subscriber’s discounts, or offering a sweepstakes or contest open to anyone who subscribes. You may be surprised at just how effective these simple marketing techniques are.

Be Clear and Concise
Your email marketing campaign will work much more efficiently if you are able to produce an email message that is clear and concise, and that calls for action from the recipient. You will always want to include a relevant link to your website, and if you are discounting or promoting a particular item, then link to that item. You can also include special discount codes in your email if you are having a sale on any goods or services to entice your email customers to your site.

Lastly, keep your email marketing simple. Don’t try to include tons of links or promotions in one email. Instead, focus on one thing at a time. You may find it more effective to send emails out on a regular basis, rather than trying to fit too many messages into one email.

Three Rules for Successful Bulk Email Marketing

2010-06-25T05:28:00.000-07:00

Bulk email marketing is a technique used for professional internet marketers. On the other hand its cousin, spam, is anything but professional. While it seems that the two might be closely related, once you learn the three rule strategy for successful bulk email marketing you’ll see why spam isn’t anywhere close to the same league. Always double check your actions before you send out mass or bulk emails to ensure that you are not even entertaining spamming.

Rule 1: Use Permission as Part of Your Strategy

The basic difference between bulk email marketing and spam is permission. Spam doesn’t have to contain anything nasty or elicit, it’s simply email sent to people without their permission. Permission can come in the form of subscriptions, which means that users actually request that you send them the information you want to offer. This not only protects you from spam issues, but it also indicates that there is already a predetermined value for the user. He or she is primed for your information.

Opting in is what it is called when someone agrees to be on your mailing list. This can be done any number of ways. Any time you’ve ordered something and you see that there are boxes pre-checked indicating your interest in future offers you’re witnessing opting in. You can also have a splash page where your web visitors land and are encouraged to sign up for email mailings prior to entering your website. It’s not a requirement of the law that you send out confirmation emails, yet many internet marketers find that this is helpful. While it does offer the subscriber a chance to change their mind, it also means that those who respond positively are a more targeted audience.

Rule 2: Become Familiar with the Whitelist, Get on it, and Stay on it

Most of us understand what it means to be blacklisted. A blacklist is basically a list of those who are not tolerated for one reason or another. When it comes to email marketing, you want the whitelist. Really, this list is nothing more than the list of contacts in any user’s email account. These contacts indicate some familiarity with the sender.

A whitelist means that the user is interested in the things that you have to say or offer and is willing to put your email address in their system. The whole point is to prevent the spam filter system from preventing your email from hitting the inbox. How do you get on this list? You simply ask. Include the recommendation to add your email address to their contact list when they initially opt into your mailing and again during your initial emails. If a user is interested they will follow through.

Rule 3: Basic and Simple Campaigns Equal Success

How often are you willing to read through a long winded email that is filled with droll and poetic language, even if it’s from a friend? Most of us just want the information handed to us in a clear format that doesn’t take long to read.

Bulking up your emails to include serious advertising efforts is actually a turn off to most users. You’ll find your bulk email marketing campaign is much more successful if you simply let people know the basics right away. Just like a Journalism 101 class, answer who, what, where, when or why within the first fifteen seconds of reading material in order to keep your readers. If you have the best deal, if you’re starting a new website, or even if you’re looking for feedback from your readers cut to the chase in a respectful manner.

Avoid deceit in your subject headings. Keep it simple and give the direct information from the beginning if you want your emails read and your credibility to remain intact. Deceit only creates distrust. Simple and honest headers and subject lines create familiarity. The user may not open every email, but when they do open one you don’t want to do anything that might prevent them from opening any future emails.

Visit Active Web Group to read more about email marketing and how it can work for you, or contact us today!

Easy Tips for Adding Subscribers To Your Email List

2010-06-15T06:45:00.001-07:00

Building an email list is easy. You simply gather as many email addresses as you can from a bevy of sources, right? Not exactly. The key to a successful email list is to build a targeted email list. That means your email list should not only be comprised of individuals who would be interested in the content of your email, but also those who willingly accept your emails. Better yet, those who volunteered to receive email from you, usually by subscribing.

So how do you get these valuable email list subscribers?

It takes a bit of work and strategy, but it can be relatively easy, provided you abide by these simple rules and tips. The effectiveness of these tips might also vary slightly, depending upon the type of emails you send to subscribers, but generally apply to most types of emails, from newsletters to promotional messages about sales or special announcements.

The first and best way to get new subscribers is to simply ask them to join sign up for the email mailing list. You have to promise them something of value in return though. This can be anything from informative articles to exclusive discounts on products, or even a free sample of a product. There are many ways to get the message out across the Internet about your email mailing list. Currently, the most common, popular and effective method is utilizing social networking sites, and blogs and forums to a slightly lesser extent.

Another surefire way to add subscribers is to ask them as a follow-up to a sale, or as they register an account on your site. More often than not, if a potential future customer registers and account on your site, they will not shy away from also electing to receive emails from you (once again, provided they are aware of the potential benefits of receiving such emails.) Likewise, include links to sign up for the mailing list or a checkbox option for customers who have just purchased a product or service from your site.

It is important to remember that ease of use and quick results are important factors contributing to the overall happiness and satisfaction of visitors to your site. It should not be overly time-consuming or difficult for subscribers to sign up for the mailing list. Asking too much information or making them go through a series of links and pages is simply too much; you will annoy them and they will leave before finishing the signup process.

Beware of Twitter Scams

2010-06-11T03:12:00.001-07:00

Anyone who has spent even a minimal amount of time on the Internet has learned that cyberspace is home to a plague of scams designed to extract money from unsuspecting victims, collect and use private information, and even seize control of their computers through malicious hacks.

Social networking site Twitter is not immune to scammers; in fact, the rate in which Twitter scams are being discovered and reported is growing steadily as more sophisticated criminals try their hand at Twitter scams.

Many of the Twitter scams are just slight variations of phishing scams: you receive an email that appears as though it is sent by Twitter or by a Twitter user. The email either mentions that there is a problem with your account, of, if pretending to be from a Twitter user, displays as a direct message asking you to log into Twitter to view a posted picture or some other item or message of interest. In both scenarios, the key factor is that you are being enticed to click the link provided in the email to log into Twitter.

However, this is in fact a classic phishing scam. The link does not actually go to Twitter, even though the page you land on might look like Twitter. It is in fact a cleverly designed copycat site that will capture your username and password when you attempt to log in.

A somewhat inventive Twitter scam utilized Twitter itself to gather usernames and security question answers from users. Dubbed the “Twitter porn name scam”, this hashtag trend invited users to create a funny porn name for themselves by adding their answers to common security questions to their username. Once this was tweeted, the Twitter scammer now possessed the usernames and security question answers to many accounts. Because Internet users often use the same info for various accounts, scammers could often hack into users email accounts with a few tries, and possibly even a bank account.

Another Twitter scam sends a message to Twitter users that tries to convince them that they have just won a free cell phone, and provides a link to claim their prize. Clicking the link sends users to a website where they need to fill out their current cell phone number and a few minor details. The scam then succeeds in enrolling the user in a subscription text service of one kind or another.

These are just a few of the Twitter scams populating the social networking site; some are still being used, and new ones appear regularly. It is important to always remember never to give anyone personal information without being able to accurately verify who they are, and always type the Twitter web address into a browser yourself in order to login, rather than using links provided in emails.

Pay Per Click Terms You Need to Know

2010-06-09T05:35:00.000-07:00

The world of Internet marketing can be a confusing place for the uninitiated or those relatively new to the Internet itself. But if you wish to attract customers to your website, you need to stop treading water in cyberspace and jump in headfirst to discover the benefits of commonly used online marketing solutions.

Pay Per Click (PPC)

One of the most widely used methods of attracting visitors to your website is called Pay Per Click. This is also more commonly referred to as PPC. With Pay Per Click, you create targeted keyword ads. These are short ads consisting of a short headline and 1-2 lines of copy, and a link.

Keywords

The headline and the copy below it should integrate the best keywords possible that will attract visitors to click on the link, as well as align properly with search engine queries by Internet users.

For example, a Pay Per Click ad might look like this:

New YA Fantasy Novel on Kindle

Download the 1^st 3 chapters free.

Fantasy Novel Only $4.99 on Kindle

http://www.talesoftanglewood.com

The keywords in this ad are “Fantasy novel” and “Kindle.” When individuals search Yahoo, Google, or another search engine for “fantasy novels on the Kindle,” this ad is likely to appear in the sidebar of the search results.

Cost Per Click (CPC)

It costs you nothing to create the ad and have it appear in search results. However, when users click the link in your ad, you will incur a cost. The amount is known as Cost Per Click (CPC) and will vary according to how much you are willing to pay for an ad that utilizes specific keywords. For example “fantasy novel” is likely to be used in a large amount of ads by competitors, and so you would need to place a higher bid on the keywords. This means you are willing to pay more than your competitors each time someone clicks on your ad; it also means your ad will likely appear more often than those of your competitors, and in a better position.

Cost Per Thousand (CPM)

This is another method of payment utilized with PPC ads. It essentially means that you will pay a flat fee for every thousand impressions. An impression is the instance of your ad being shown alongside a search result, regardless of whether it is clicked on or not.

To learn more about Pay Per Click ads and how they can benefit your website, contact Active Web Group for a free Pay Per Click campaign analysis. Active Web Group is Long Island’s leading online marketing solutions agency, with expertise in PPC Management.

Avoid These Three Common Email Marketing Campaign Mistakes

2010-06-07T06:45:00.000-07:00

Email marketing can produce the highest ROI when done effectively and professionally. Unfortunately, many companies attempt to initiate an email marketing campaign without proper knowledge of specific strategies and guidelines, or without utilizing a professional online marketing agency experienced with email marketing.

The result is often an ineffective campaign due to one or more mistakes that are actually quite common, yet usually easy to remedy.

Email Marketing Mistake #1 – Vague Subject Lines

The easiest mistake to make is to place all of your focus on the content and none on the subject line. The subject line is the first thing recipients of your email will see, and if it doesn’t grab their attention, into the trash it goes. Regardless of whether the recipient has voluntarily subscribed to your emails, or if you’ve added them as part of a targeted campaign, you need to display something about the content of your email in the subject line in order to pique their interest. Simply stating “July Newsletter” isn’t going to cut it. You need to spice it up a bit: try something like “July Newsletter – The Heat is Rising but Our Prices are Dropping!” or “July Newsletter – The Latest and Greatest Online Marketing Strategies!”

Email Marketing Mistake #2 – Sending Emails to Those Outside Your Target Market

Sending 1,000 emails to targeted subscribers is effective email marketing. Sending 10,000 emails to everyone in your email database or on a purchased list is a mistake. Too many managers are under the assumption that sending as many emails as you can, as often as you can, will increase the chances of achieving a high ROI. The reality is quite the opposite. Sending emails to those who don’t elect to receive them, or to those who may not be your target market for this particular campaign will likely result in annoying many recipients and instill a negative image of your brand. It likely won’t be long before you receive many “unsubscribe” requests.

Choose your target markets wisely: do the research and send emails to those most likely to respond or appreciate your message.

Email Marketing Mistake #3 – Out of Control Design Elements

Of course you’d like your email to stand out from others. But a simple design produced by a professional graphic designer is typically more aesthetically pleasing than an email that contains a multitude of graphic intensive elements. Keep your color palette simple, don’t use more than two or three different fonts, and use fonts that are easy to read.

Including images is fine – in fact, images go a long way towards achieving better results, but be sure that they are optimized for the web. Slow loading times or images that display incorrectly, as well as distracting Flash movies and other elements you might think are clever only detract and distract from the message content.

While these are just a few of the more common mistakes in email marketing, there are certainly a host of others committed everyday by those with little experience in online marketing. Email marketing is an extremely tricky type of marketing strategy can work against you if not executed properly.

Active Web Group is the leading full service online marketing agency on Long Island, a pioneer in email marketing and website development. Our email marketing professionals possess the technical and marketing expertise to help you launch your email marketing campaign right from the email design all the way up to the content of your email newsletter.

For a Free Email Marketing Analysis, Contact Active Web Group!

Free Keyword Selector Tools

2010-06-03T09:26:00.000-07:00

There are actually quite a few free keyword selector tools on the internet that can help you come up with a much more powerful keyword list than you probably can on your own. These tools offer all kinds of information that can help you make firm and sound decisions to help you avoid wasting money on guesswork.

The most recognized tool is Google Adwords Keyword Tool. All you have to do is enter your main keyword and watch as a whole list crops up. You can see as you go through the list that there is an objective and easy to understand statistical application to each word on the list. This tells you how popular the keyword is.

Some people reverse the theory of using the most popular and try to gain high search results using mid to low rated words. For some niches, this has paid off. Look before you leap, as some niches don't have a lot of wiggle room.

Of course, you're not limited to Adwords. Wordtracker and KeywordDiscovery websites offer you help that is just as thorough, although formatted a bit differently. The user friendly versions of these tools makes it easy for just about anyone to find the words they need to start setting their business apart from the rest of the crowd.

Check in often. Don't assume that because today your top five keywords were listed as such that they will remain the top five in another month. While many will stay relatively static, the internet and its applications is a fluid ideal. This means that even the best statistics are bound to change from time to time. Checking back regularly will help ensure that your efforts (and advertising money) are focused in the right area.

There are more free keyword selector tools like these popping up all of the time. It's not a bad idea to use two or three and compare the results. It only takes a moment of your time and can save enough waste to make it a worthwhile daily endeavor for serious web business builders.

Using a Twitter Profile to Gain a Following

2010-06-01T06:16:00.000-07:00

When you use Twitter for marketing purposes, one of the first things you want to focus on is your profile. This will not only indicate to other users who you are, but whether or not you have something of interest for them. How you create your profile can either encourage or discourage others from becoming part of your marketing success.

Keep your profile highly intentional and well targeted. Stick to the plan and don’t mix your personal profile with your marketing profile. Don’t include unnecessary personal information, pictures of your pets or your most recent vacation, or stories of that funny thing your two year old did the other day if it has no bearing on your marketing.

Use a real name, not a company name. Most people will use their real name, although some people prefer to use a pseudo name when they start marketing on Twitter in case they make a mistake and have to create a whole new campaign. If you use a company name you’re going to turn people off. A real name is a personal connection.

Your username should reflect something important, powerful, and relevant. You can use branding here if it fits. You can also use your profession. Avoid usernames that are irrelevant and personal like soccerguy, catlady021, or sailingfan if they have no bearing on your business.

Make sure you take the time to enter the information that is requested in the profile set up. People like to know who they are dealing with and that there is an actual person on the other end. An incomplete profile is actually a red flag that will keep potential followers away.

Your bio is the place to interject who you are. It’s not a resume or a chance to write a brief cover letter. This is where you can bring some of your personality and even an interest or two into the limelight. You can present yourself as a real person here. This helps to create connection in the right setting.

While you might be tempted to lock your Tweets to feel like you have control over who is following you and who isn’t, this is a bad idea. Remember that this is for marketing purposes. Any locked settings will often prevent someone from following you. Make it an open account. Set up a locked account for your personal Tweets, not your marketing ones.

A headshot is not a bad idea as it gives a face to the name. If you are busy on more than one site, it’s usually recommended that you use the same headshot for all sites. Tweeters are often Facebookers and etcetera. Maintaining the same look will help. However, use something different for your personal accounts. Avoid avatars, especially those that are cutesy and irrelevant.

Marketing isn’t just about being out there. It’s about being out there and getting noticed. Therefore, taking the time and using a custom background in order to reflect either your brand or the proper qualities of your business is a great idea. It shows your potential followers that you are not just here for a day to “see what happens” and it helps extend your familiarity.

Twitter has a very useful tool for helping your profile become more follower friendly. If you take a moment and use the grader (twitter.com/grader) you’ll be able to receive direct feedback in helping your profile reach more users in a more productive manner.

9 Ways to Unleash the Profit Potential of Landing Pages (Part Two)

2010-05-26T16:33:00.000-07:00

Reiterate:

At this point, you’ve convinced them that you have the most powerful, easy to use, underpriced problem solver in the world. They are going to get free bonuses (list them again) and as a special thanks for ordering by the deadline or being one of the first hundred orders of the week, you’ll also include another special bonus. Make sure this bonus is even more intriguing and valuable than the first ones. You’re trying to create urgency so that they will respond right now instead of deciding to consider it for a few days.

Guarantee:

Provide the reader with the promise of a real guarantee and be prepared to stick to it. Don’t assume that you’ll be able to push off someone who wants their money back. If you need proof of attempts to use the product, include that in the promise. Let them know that any free benefits or bonus material they receive is theirs to keep anyway, just so that they feel like you’re willing to give away information even if it doesn’t work out as planned. They are better off for ordering and returning than they would have been for never ordering at all.

Use the guarantee and the other positive aspects to remind them that get all of this plus a solution to their problem if they respond immediately. Everything you’re offering is a package. If they want the package, they need to be in a hurry to get it.

Post Scripts:

Remind the reader of the urgency once again by reminding them how quickly they can have the answer to their problems. Remind them that receive more than just the product, but emotional benefits as well. Tell them how good they’ll feel, how they will finally experience peace of mind, and how they will be able to sleep better tonight knowing that they’ve made such a positive step forward.

Lift Letter:

This is a section devoted to those who have yet to make a decision. Give them a separate button to click on so that you don’t distract the users that are ready to order. Usually placing it below the “order now” button will help filter through the prospects.

This is a great place to add in some testimonials. Using people that didn’t initially order your product and found out later how much time and money they wasted is a good way to connect to the undecided. At this point, you want to take some time to remind the user that they stand to lose something without ordering your product. By giving them this information now, you give them more reason to consider the importance of action today.

9 Ways to Unleash the Profit Potential of Landing Pages (Part One)

2010-05-25T11:42:00.000-07:00

In order to create powerful conversion numbers, your landing page will have to carry a number of components that are known to provide proven success. Everything you write will have to contribute to making the right type of connection with the reader.

Instant Attention Grabbing Headlines:

We all know that it’s a competitive world out there on the internet, and if there is nothing to attract the attention of the reader they are simply going to move on. The first thing most readers see is the headline. Making it compelling enough to keep the readers’ attention often means the use of a pre-headline.

A pre-headline is just as it sounds. It come right before the actual headline and its main goal is to shout out something imperative to get the reader to develop interest in what you might have to say.

Your pre-headline is the attention grabber, which is then followed by the main headline. The main headline is still looking for attention from the reader but is more willing to offer up some more detailed information. Use the pre-headline to attract readers who are trying to solve a problem like, “End Your Financial Troubles Today!” Use the headline to give them a little peek into how you’re going to help them solve the problem like, “Use This Powerful Technique to SkyRocket to Powerhouse Profts.”

Support Your Headline:

Don’t forget your headline once you start writing. Back up your headline with some sort of evidence that what you’re saying is credible. Otherwise you end up looking like you tried to trick the reader into hanging out on your landing page. If you feel you can support your own claims through the use of your own personal experience or your position, use a subheading to indicate this and use a simple paragraph or two to explain why you get to be the authority on their situation.

Support the headline farther by expressing clear understanding of how challenging it can be to solve their problem. The more you address the difficulties, especially targeting the tricks they have been subjected to in their previous efforts, the better. This can include explaining how you understand that most marketing scams are there to take your money and offer little information, that the same information is found all over the internet just regurgitated in different ways, and that many of today’s leading programs intentionally leave out vital information.

Make sure that you can prove that your solution is different because it is ideal. List the benefits and list the differences between your solution and the other run of the mill solutions. Give them a reason to believe that they will have the power to solve their own problem if they just have what you are offering. The more personally connected they feel to your product the more likely they are to purchase it immediately.

The Power of Social Agreement:

Testimonials are good way to back up your statements from the previous paragraph. Testimonials show the reader that there are others out there who were feeling just as frustrated as they are and they were able to solve their problems because they went ahead and trusted your statements.

Free Benefits:

Always have a free benefit or two. Whether it’s a report on furthering your profits through other marketing means or its access to a list of marketing businesses that are proven winners, give away an extra bonus.

Keep it Easy:

By now you’ve provided the reader with tons of information, even if it’s compact and in bulleted form. This means that they are starting to feel like there must be a lot of complicated steps to the solution is there is so much information you feel you can share with them. Now is a great time to remind them that too can have success and it can be simple to follow and is priced well under market value. You want to encourage them to believe they are getting much more than they are paying for and that they will not be overwhelmed with any sort of difficult steps that they will find to be overtly taxing.

Part Two of this article will be posted tomorrow.

Building Backlinks For Better SEO

2010-05-10T15:27:00.000-07:00

Having optimized content on your website is great, and may certainly help increase your searchability , but there are other online marketing methods associated with SEO that should not be ignored. The practice of creating strong backlinks can go a long way towards moving your website to the top of the search engine results, as well as enable visitors to find your website through many other corridors.

Backlinks work essentially by having a link to your website somewhere on an external site, preferably in a place where it is bound to get noticed. But SEO also comes into play when creating these links. For example, let’s say you’ve answered a question of a message board related to your industry, and you want to post a link that leads back to your own site where readers can get more information. Many people mistakenly paste a whole link into the message, which is often not search engine optimized, such as http://www.facebook.com/pages/Active-Web-Group/47276216541

Another mistake that that is typically made is the preference to create a hyperlink that simply says Click Here For More Information, or something similar. But suppose you create a hyperlink that says this: Free SEO Analysis

Now you’ve got searchable keywords integrated into your hyperlink, and search engines like that. If you can get links like this on websites that major search engines consider strong, quality websites or authoritative sources, it only increases your chances of achieving high search engine rankings.

For maximum effectiveness, try building backlinks on websites that contain content that is related to your own industry. You can also build backlinks on blogs, forums, and social networking sites. However, be careful not to spam your links across the Internet and on other people’s blogs or forum topics. This can quickly instill the community with negative thoughts of your brand.

Learn more about SEO: Increase Web Traffic and Improve Search Engine Rankings

Top 10 Benefits of Social Networking for Businesses

2010-05-05T08:12:00.000-07:00

Unless you live in the middle of the forest or at the top of a mountain, with virtually no human contact or connection to civilization, you’ve heard all about the rising popularity of social networking sites. Obviously neither of those scenarios apply to you, or you wouldn’t be reading this now. So you likely know all about Twitter, Facebook, Linked:In, and other popular sites. But are you aware of the benefits of social networking sites for businesses both large and small?

Many online marketing companies and self-proclaimed Internet marketing gurus are touting social network marketing as a must for any business, but how many of them help you to understand the reasons why?

In a nutshell, here are the top 10 benefits of social networking for business:

1. Increases Brand Recognition

2. Increases Website Traffic

3. Engages Potential Customers/Clients on an Interactive Level

4. Enables Additional Means of Advertising & Promotion

5. Decreases Online Marketing Costs

6. Acquires New Sales Leads

7. Facilitates Reaching Local Target Markets

8. Content Can Be Search Engine Optimized

9. Reach New Audiences

10. Strong Online Visibility/Social Networking Acts as an Extension of the Corporate Website

For more information about social network marketing and other online marketing solutions, contact Active Web Group. AWG is Long Island’s leading full service online marketing solutions agency.

Retailers Realize the Benefits of SEO

2010-05-03T08:37:00.000-07:00

There are many online marketing solutions to choose from when seeking to increase your customer base, but Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is still the top priority and method of choice for retailers. Pay Per Click is a close second, and typically, retailers utilize a combination of both to increase the effectiveness of their online marketing campaigns.

Recent Internet marketing research studies have shown that most retailers claim that natural website search engine rankings produced by strong SEO are responsible for the most significant portion of website traffic. Retailers also stated that SEO click conversion rates were steadily rising.

Marketing budgets allocated to SEO have also increased: many retailers use half of their marketing budget for SEO marketing. These findings show that many of the misconceptions or general wariness of SEO held by retailers in the past is diminishing, and the online marketing solution is now instilling confidence among the majority of search engine advertisers.

However, as new technology advances and Internet trends work to shift a focus from search engine advertising to social network marketing and mobile marketing, many retailers and businesses have yet to catch up. There is a vast amount of SEO potential to be found in social network marketing, and it statistical evidence has already proven that social network marketing is a successful means of increasing your customer base and customer loyalty.

Retailers should not seek to leap into these new online marketing strategies until a solid SEO foundation is in place. To learn more how SEO can increase web traffic and improve search engine rankings, and to receive a free SEO analysis of your website, please visit Active Web Group. AWG is Long Island’s leading marketing solutions agency, with expertise in SEO campaigns, PPC management, E-Mail marketing, E-commerce, and website design.

When Does SEO Start to Work?

2010-04-28T20:19:00.000-07:00

SEO professionals are often asked “How long will it take for me to see results?” The answer varies, but is usually based upon two factors: how long a website has been online, and the current level of competition. There are of course many more elements that contribute to the results of an SEO campaign, including new vs. redesigned/reformatted websites, and the skill and experience of the SEO professional.

To realize when SEO starts working you must also be able to realize that when you are working with a relatively new domain, it is going to be difficult to gain or gage rankings for about three months. Sometimes this will range closer to 6-9 months to see a significant rise in rankings. When working to establish a time frame, set realistic expectations and recommendations. You should also expect these projections to be updated post-launch as your site’s index and crawl patterns are established.

When redesigning a website, one should keep in mind that search engines will still use the old URLs for some of their searches and so many users will find themselves inundated with robots.txt files, 404 errors, etc. However, if a site relies on home page rankings for top keywords then a redesign will not usually hurt any rankings too much.

New domains should have brand term rankings almost immediately after the initial crawling. Benchmarking therefore is important to understand how post-redesign crawl behavior is working for a website. You should be monitoring cherry keywords and measuring them with search engines to better understand how this is working and your rankings.

Redesigned websites will almost always experience a slight drop (or perhaps a major one) in traffic even when using a SEO. However, if you do well in maintaining high volume keywords then the dip will not always be based on the redesign but also seasonal dips in your branded traffic. Perhaps the best way to monitory post-launch success is to use analytics that have been properly configured. Google Webmaster Tools and Yahoo Site Explorer are great tools for finding new and continued rankings.

Perhaps the worst thing for SEO success is lack of SEO implementation. This can be dangerous because even the smallest problem can become a huge problem later down the line. When you partner with an SEO provider you should remember the “fear of flying” analogy. New sites should set their first goal to rank for potentially some local or other modified tail searches and brand. Rankings should visibly rise within six months.

The first goal for redesigned websites is to maintain their current rankings for traffic. After this you should expect to establish that your optimization is in place and then you should work to develop the trust of your customers in your new pages.

To learn more about SEO and how an SEO campaign can benefit your website, contact the SEO professionals at Active Web Group for a free SEO analysis of your website.

Online Marketing Solutions for E-Commerce Websites

2010-04-22T06:15:00.001-07:00

Perhaps the most important factor improving the chances of success for an e-commerce site is searchability. A high ranking on search engines gets you noticed faster and more often than the sites of your competitiors. To achieve a high ranking, you can utilize either Search Engine Optimization (SEO), which produces what is known as “organic” results, and search engine marketing such as Pay Per Click (PPC), which achieves what is referred to as “paid” results. and Pay Per Ranking (PPR), which is a specialized SEO technique.

SEO Marketing works by integrating targeted keywords and keyphrases within the content of your website to enable search engines to better understand the relevance of the content of your site to specific targeted search terms.

PPC marketing is a type of online advertising, also utilizing relevant keywords. When a search is conducted related to your keywords, a sponsored ad link will appear alongside organic search results. People who click on the ad will be taken to your website or the landing page you’ve designated, and you will a pay a small fee for the click.

The combination of SEO and PPC can be an extremely powerful and effective marketing campaign.

Pay-per-Ranking is an innovative, cost effective Search Engine Optimization service developed by Active Web Group that allows a business to gauge their online web presence and cut down on their marketing expenses that only requires them to pay for results. Pay-per-Ranking® is an extremely attractive marketing strategy for businesses seeking good search engine rankings within the search engine result pages.

Facebook Ads Improve Brand Awareness and Increase Sales

2010-04-20T12:07:00.000-07:00

A recent article published in Advertising Age by by Jack Neff discusses the effectiveness of advertising on Facebook and the different types of online advertising strategies available on the popular social networking site.

An excerpt from the article states:

Facebook-home-page ads on average generated a 10% increase in ad recall, a 4% increase in brand awareness and a 2% increase in purchase intent among users who saw them compared with a control group with similar demographics or characteristics who didn't.

But the increase in recall jumped to 16% when ads included mentions of friends who were brand fans, and 30% when the ads coincided with a similar mention in users' news feeds. Brand awareness saw similar bumps: up 2% from just a home-page ad, 8% with a "social ad" bearing mentions of friends who were brand fans and up 13% when a home-page ad appeared along with a mention of friends who were brand fans in the users' news feeds.

Purchase intent was 2% higher among viewers of home-page ads vs. nonviewers, but got a four-times-bigger bump, up 8% either from social ads or when ads appeared alongside organic mentions of the brand in the news feed.

Read the full article: Nielsen: Facebook's Ads Work Pretty Well

Visit Active Web Group for information about online marketing solutions

Email Marketing Embraces Video Emails

2010-04-15T06:14:00.000-07:00

Sometimes, despite the best efforts of your online marketing and creative teams, an email marketing campaign can seem stagnant or repetitive. And even when your copywriter has composed outstanding content, the possibility exists that the email might never get read by a significant portion of your target audience.

A growing trend for increasing interest in email and email marketing campaigns is the addition of video files in email: video email marketing. Adding a video to your email marketing messages has the potential to attract and engage new customers and subsequently increase your market share. With the rising online marketing trend of utilizing YouTube videos or video files on a corporate website proving to be increasingly effective, the concept of adding compelling video messages to an email is an obvious transition.

A customer or client may not take the time to read through a few paragraphs of content, but statistics show that 80% of Internet users will in fact sit through a two-minute video, provided it is exciting, informative, engaging and entertaining. Online marketing studies also reveal that approximately 50% will respond to a call to action after viewing the video email.

Creating a video for your email campaign does not need to be expensive. Short videos can be produced quickly and in a cost-effective manner. You can utilize inexpensive video editing software, and using a simple, no-nonsense format works best. Just as email text content should be short and to the point, so should your email video. Title it effectively so that recipients will know what they are about to watch, and then show that. Eliminate any fluff or filler.

There are several video creation companies who will create email videos for you or your corporate website, but they aren’t wholly necessary. More often than not, a B2B email video appears more authentic and valuable when it doesn’t appear to have a small Hollywood budget.

Thinking of Starting a Small Business Blog? Active Web Group Offers These Top Tips.

2010-04-09T10:02:00.000-07:00

The Internet marketing professionals at Active Web Group, Long Island’s leading online marketing solutions agency, know that today’s Internet marketplace is more competitive than ever. Businesses both large and small need to explore every online marketing avenue in order to remain competitive, and a corporate website simply isn’t enough anymore – businesses are utilizing marketing methods such as SEO, PPC, Email Marketing and more. But many fail to recognize the potential benefits of starting a small business blog.

A blog can act as an extension of your website and attract new visitors and customers, and increase sales and brand recognition. But there are important factors to consider before starting a small business blog. Although initiating a blog is a fairly simple process and requires very little or no expense, your company’s marketing efforts may be in vain if the following tips offered by Active Web Group are not considered.

1. Determine your goals – What is your ultimate purpose for starting a blog? Will you be posting informative articles, marketing related content such as press releases and promotional messages, or utilizing the blog as a means to open further communication with your client base? Perhaps all of the above? How closely related will your blog be to your main corporate website?

2. Decide upon a name – The name of your blog should be short, easy to remember, and incorporate targeted keywords that will make it easily searchable by your target market.

3. Who will host the blog – There are many options available for free online blog hosting, making setup quick and painless. Wordpress, Blogger, and others allow you to easily customize templates, colors, fonts, and more, so that your blog can closely resemble the theme of your corporate website if you so desire.

You might also choose to purchase your own blog software and host the blog on your own servers. Assuming you have an employee who is well-versed in such technical skills, then these efforts might be worthwhile.

4. Design & Content – Both will affect how well-received your blog is by visitors. Typically, you’ll want the design of your blog to accurately represent your brand, image, and corporate colors. Most blog software allows you to easily cutom-design your blog. Content is a bit more tricky.

You want to provide content that offers some value to visitors of your blog. This is what will keep them coming back on a consistent basis, serving to increase brand recognition and convert clicks to sales. If you plan on posting a variety of content, it would be best to determine specific categories and integrate this into the blog design, enabling visitors to quickly navigate to the desired section. To increase the searchability of your blog (enabling search engines to find you blog in response to specific search terms ), you’ll want to try to integrate SEO keywords into whatever content you post.

Regardless of whether you’re posting informative articles and industry-related news, press releases, or promotional sales and specials, SEO will go a long way towards attracting new visitors.

Lastly, be sure to update your blog on a regular basis. At least twice a week should be sufficient. A good method of ensuring this practice is to have an in-house copywriter or a freelance or online marketing agency writer deliver a steady flow of blog content so that something is always ready to be posted.

5. Promote Your Blog – Use social networking tools such as Facebook, Twitter, forums, and Linked:In to promote your blog and post links to articles and postings. Also, be sure to include links to your blog on your corporate website, as well as a reciprocal link from your blog back to the website.

As your blog grows in content and visitors, you’ll want to examine advanced marketing methods such as analytics, and methods of increased interaction with visitors.

Niche Marketing Online Businesses to Rise in 2010

2010-04-07T07:00:00.000-07:00

According to the Internet Marketing Center, the number of new online businesses has been steadily increasing since November of 2008. This is likely due to the high rate of unemployment, with consumers searching for new ways to generate income. The lure of being self-employed and running an online business has gained suitable attraction, but of course, without proper marketing, many of these new businesses are becoming lost amidst the hundreds of thousands that populate the vast ocean of the Internet.

Online marketing has also seen an increase, though much it focuses on low risk, low cost solutions such as email marketing which is relatively quick to implement. But while online marketing has definitely played a major role, the most successful online businesses have been those that have tapped into a niche product or service. Competitive pricing and marketing will account for some success, but a niche product will keep a steady tide of consumers repeatedly coming back.

With so much competition online, it can be fairly difficult to find such a product. Consumers who are interested in niche marketing should try and sell a product or service relative to their own knowledge and experience, rather that attempt to market a product in which they possess little or no knowledge.
Then, after suitable market research is conducted, building a website is typically the next step. It is at this point that many online businesses stand to fail before they are even begun. Building a website without first exploring, and more importantly, understanding the different options available, from pre-designed templates to custom-built websites, can result in a website that receives zero visitors, and subsequently zero sales.

It is understandable that once a particular niche product or service is found, you might want to get a website up and running as soon as possible. But just as you’ve properly conducted important research regarding a niche marketing endeavor, so too must you research website design, e-commerce solutions, and search engine optimization (SEO). Understanding these concepts and employing them efficiently are all factors of a successful online business.

To maximize the speed, efficiency, and cost-effectiveness in which your website is built, it is best to utilize a full service online marketing agency that can handle all of the above online marketing solutions and more. One such company that has worked with a large share of niche marketers is Active Web Group, based on Long Island, NY. With over 70 years combined experience in web marketing, AWG has designed and built websites, as well as implemented other online strategies, for a large variety of niche marketing companies.

To learn more about how to market your own niche product or service online, visit Active Web Group today.

How to Promote Your Business on Your Facebook Page

2010-03-30T11:20:00.000-07:00

If you haven’t yet set up a Facebook page for promoting your business, you might first want to read our previous articles regarding the benefits of Facebook marketing. You can read “Does your Business need a Facebook account?” and "Why Businesses should embrace Facebook instead of blocking it" for more information about why a Facebook is important for your business.

After you've created a Facebook page and added company information and content, it’s time to consider the possibilities of how best to market your Facebook page and increase your fans, subsequently increasing your brand recognition.

The first step is of course acquiring fans. To begin doing, be sure that you have provided links to your Facebook page on your company website, and in other social networking sites, such as Twitter and Linked:In. Submit a press release announcing your Facebook page. You can also invite people to become a fan of your Facebook page through blog posts, forum posts, and in articles or newsletters.

As you begin to acquire fans, you’ll want to ensure that they stay interested in your page. There are a number of ways to do this, but the most important factor is to consistently provide interested and informative content. Enable your blog posts to feed directly into your Facebook page. Post links to relevant, industry-related news. Offer promotional sales and discounts to Facebook fans, and encourage them to suggest that others become fans of your page as well. Ask your fans to share feedback about your company, or its products and services.

Once you’ve hooked your fans with content, engaging in conversation is a great follow-up. Interaction provides fans with a rewarding visit, and serves to increase brand recognition. You can also send links, videos, photos, or special messages to specific fans. This is great for announcing news or special promotions to specific demographics or target markets.

A number of tools are available to help you group fans into specific categories or demographics, and other tools allow you to gain valuable marketing insight into the habits of your fans when they visit your page, so that you can better determine what they might be interested in.

Additionally, you’ll want to try to include targeted keywords and SEO in the content you post on Facebook, as this will increase your page’s searchability. And be certain to provide links back to your website, and a call to action if relevant.

Using Social Networking to Promote Your Company

2010-03-29T05:55:00.000-07:00

Many companies today have strict rules about using social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter in the workplace: sometimes access to these sites is completely blocked. Other companies have embraced social media and social networking sites as a new means to market their products and services and increase brand recognition. In fact, there are now employees or online marketing agencies retained by some companies whose sole purpose is to focus on promoting the company via social networking sites.

While it can be difficult in some cases to balance healthy social networking activities in the workplace versus those that affect productivity in a negative way, it is ultimately beneficial to a company to allow its employees to promote the company, provided certain guidelines are implemented and enforced.

As a manager or owner of a company, you’ll likely find that satisfied employees will promote the company not only in the workplace, but also during their personal time at home, via social networking and social media sites. Provided your employees are aware of and understand the social networking policies developed by your company, such promotion should be welcomed and encouraged. Today’s online marketplace is all about brand awareness and visibility – having a team of employees furthering the cause while off the clock translates to cost-effective marketing with a high ROI.

Social Networking Guidelines for Employees
Allow employees to post links to industry-related information, or announcements about upcoming specials or sales. You might even consider paying employees to do this on an ongoing basis. However, some employees might also take their own initiative and do this anyway during their own personal social networking time at home. While this is generally a good thing, there might be reasons you prefer not to have employees engage in these marketing tactics. Therefore it would be worthwhile to instruct employees as to whether or not these actions are desired, and if you would prefer them to focus on any particular method or means of promotion.

Of course, if using social networking to promote your company is permitted, then the postings or Internet discussions by employees should always be supportive and positive. Additionally, managers should make it clear as to what types of company-related information is permitted to be posted, and what is to remain private information. Posting or discussing the wrong types of information, or even worse, confidential company information, can damage a company’s reputation, not to mention an employee’s career and employment.

A refined example of a company’s social networking guidelines for employees can be found at the Oracle website. Aside from the guidelines posted there, additional suggestions for employee’s efforts to promote their company online include using social bookmarking sites to share articles, press releases, or other industry and company related information. Employees can also share videos, pictures and links, and encourage others to become friends, followers or fans of a company’s Facebook or Twitter account, if applicable.

If your company employs a copywriter or web marketer versed in SEO techniques, it may be helpful to have them instruct your employees about the usefulness of keywords. Employees that promote your company online by using specific targeted keywords when applicable will make it much easier for others to find that information and subsequently find their way to your website. Likewise, including hyperlinks in blog postings, forum postings, or other related means also serves to increase ways in which your website can be found.

For additional web marketing resources, articles, and industry-related press releases, visit the resources section of Active Web Group, Long Island’s leading online marketing solutions company. Additionally, be sure to sign up for their free email newsletter, which offers even more internet marketing tips and information.

Improve Your SEO by Hiring a Copywriter

2010-03-22T09:35:00.000-07:00

It is no longer an understatement to say that "Content is King" when it comes to search engine optimization. Your site needs the right articles that can attract traffic and make your sales projections become real. This is not an easy process, because you have to know the right keywords and create anchor links within your articles which can eventually lead to your landing pages. This is where a good copywriter can assist you to achieve high site statistics and improve your SEO.

Here are a few areas where a good copywriter can help you reach your SEO goals:

Site Content
The contents of your site are the criteria that search engines use in ranking your site. Search engines use keywords in determining site ranking so it is important to choose the right keywords and know how to use them properly. The number of times a keyword is included in your site copy should not be too overwhelming, that the reader will find it difficult to understand what you are really trying to say. When optimizing your site, make sure that you use a natural voice and remember that your ultimate goal is to keep your site visitors informed and interested.

Writing Articles
Articles posted in different search engines can help boost your search engine rating. A good copywriter can create unique articles that are based on facts and not hearsay and are easy to read, yet optimized for SEO. Make sure that you include your bio when posting the articles as well as the link to your site to produce inbound links, which can improve your SEO.

Interconnecting Hubs
A good copywriter can help you create several hubs, each with links embedded that lead to your site. This not only increases your web presence, but also helps to improve your SEO. You can then post your hubs in Squidoo or Hubpages which are free web hosts for your content.

Blogs
One way you can improve your linking profile is through a blog. A blog that is updated regularly and has a strong following through RSS will be ranked high by most search engines. Again, content is important for these blogs to attract traffic and improve your SEO.

Content in your site should never be taken for granted, as it is the lifeblood of your site. By hiring a good copywriter, you are assured of a professional service that can achieve your SEO goals and at the same time bring you long term benefits.

Utilizing SEO to modify a Website is just one of the many services performed by Active Web Group, a full-service Internet Marketing agency located on Long Island, NY.

Contact Active Web Group for a Free SEO Analysis of your Website!

Four Important Benefits of Email Marketing

2010-03-19T06:00:00.000-07:00

Email marketing is certainly currently one of the cost-effective online marketing solutions favored by Internet marketers and businesses both large and small. Listed below are four important benefits associated with email marketing.

Up-sell/Cross-sell Products and Services - Email marketing provides a great opportunity for businesses to up-sell or cross-sell their products and services. Sophisticated email marketing software allows businesses to easily create a series of email messages (auto-responders) that will automatically follow up an initial email with offers that customers may find interesting, based on previously collected data.

Receive valuable feedback from visitors - Customer feedback is an important tool for any business that allows you to further refine your target market, realize the amount of money your target market is willing to spend, and determine other products and services you can offer.

Encourage web users to make offline purchases - Email marketing often encourages web users to make offline purchases. According to one survey, 59% of email users said that they made offline purchases after receiving an email containing information about a special sale or promotion.

Generate Repeat Sales – Due to increased competition, acquiring new customers is much harder and expensive than retaining established customers. Keeping open communication lines with your established customers on a regular basis through email marketing has been shown to generate up to four times more profit. Two excellent email marketing tactics is sending email newsletters, which has shown to increase repeat purchase frequency from your existing customers, and offering loyal customers a reward, such as a special discount or a promotional freebie.

For a Free Email Marketing Analysis, Contact Active Web Group!

Email marketing is an extremely tricky type of marketing strategy that, if it is not done properly, can work against you. Active Web Group is the leading full service online marketing agency on Long Island, a pioneer in email marketing and website development. We were among the first full-service online marketing firms to blend extraordinary technical expertise with extraordinary design and marketing savvy.

How to Cut Costs of Search Engine Advertising without Cutting Results

2010-03-14T11:26:00.000-07:00

When it comes to pay per click advertising it seems that there are those that spend a little and make a fortune and there are those that spend a fortune and make very little. Most of us are aware that those who are successful can find themselves with a very high return on what seems like a brilliant, across the board investment. However, in the face of being realistic we all know that sometimes we just have to find the most fiscally responsible method of advertising.

Pay per Click Decisions

When it comes to making pay per click decisions you have to consider the market, what you have to offer, and whether or not your product or service is even capable of bringing you a great return for your advertising dollar. Not everyone will make a fortune, and it’s wise to know when you should try other forms of advertising. Business suppliers, business to business companies, and highly specialized items don’t always do very well when it comes to pay per click advertising. While you might offer the best restaurant stoves in the industry for your area, pay per click is likely to bring you a lot of homeowner consumers. This demographic will be looking for stoves that are appropriate for their home.

Website Analytics are Worthwhile

Compared to traditional forms of advertising, internet based advertising is very cheap. Consider what it would cost you if your only option was radio or television advertising. That cost alone might be prohibitive enough to prevent you from even having your own business. Yet, because of the exorbitant costs of most media advertising you can usually bet that there is a business owner with a close eye on how well their advertising dollars are serving them.

Perhaps it is because the price tag isn’t forbiddingly high but there seems to be a significant trend among web based business owners. The advertising dollar is spent and then suddenly forgotten about. Many web based business men and women take on web based advertising the same way they take on the slot machines. They toss in their money and then hope for a lucky roll.

Website analytics can help you put in your due diligence, make educated and informed decisions, and then help you draw conclusions about your advertising decisions. In the long run a high quality analytics package can not only save you money when it comes to advertising, but it could literally save your business. Overspending on ineffective advertising, the improper use of keywords, and haphazard advertising can easily be blamed for more than 60% of all failed internet businesses.

Website Optimization before Advertising

There is a connection between your website’s ability to be located on the internet and the effectiveness of your advertising. While many new internet marketers have heard of things like PPC and article marketing, there is a tendency to ignore revving up the site for search engine friendly results.

Keeping your web content search engine friendly not only helps you get found and stay within view of the public, but it also helps to create cohesion between your website and your advertising. Users will be able to tell immediately that the link they’ve clicked is actually taking them to a relevant website. When you’re trying to advertise for less, your website can literally do quite a bit of the work for you.

In order to make your website competitive and to keep it competitive you’re going to have to make sure that it stays visible. You can do this through advertising alone but you’ll find you have much better results when you work your website’s continually updated optimization into your advertising campaign.

What about Budget Caps?

Budget caps are integrated into various advertising programs in order to help keep your campaign within a given budget. On the surface this sounds safe. And it is safe. You will not spend more than you allot when you integrate budget caps into your program. However, there is a significant downside.

The system calculates your budget differently than you might expect. It would make sense that your bids, your keywords, and your campaign would be playing fairly against those without budget caps, but this isn’t true. Just for argument’s sake let’s say you set your budget at $50.

Then let’s say that you have the stars and the moon lining up with you that day and your website link should be in the number two position based on normal calculations. So logic and a sense of fair play would tell us that you should be able to maintain your earned position all day long until you hit your limit. If it took 4 hours to blow through that $50 you might expect to be in the earned position for 4 hours. Then you’d expect you’d pretty much drop out of sight. This is not the way it works at all.

Your budget cap gives the system permission to spread out your results based on the cap. That means even if the sun and moon and stars are all in perfect alignment for you, your site will be listed rather poorly on the results page. It’s much better to make sure that you are able to watch your performance and make adjustments to prevent overspending.

Top Slot Doesn’t Mean Top Earnings

Be wary of trying to bid competitively enough to become one of the “sponsored” listings. Usually, this means bidding very high and it tends to incorporate brand names. Sponsored listings are found either along the side or in highlighted colors at the top. You’ll pay dearly for this position and yet most users ignore these results. They are not considered by most users to be organic results and therefore have less sense of trust from the user. “Sponsored” means to the user that the slot was purchased, and historically these have been seen by the user as advertisements, not web page results. Perception is an interesting thing. By being listed in the top five organic results you save quite a bit on your bid and end up with more visitors.

Don’t Forget the Quality Score

A lot of internet marketers are unaware that the quality score of their ads, which is designated by Adwords, impacts their overall placement. The lower the score is the more you end up paying and yet the less frequent you will find yourself on the results page.

The more you can blend your campaign together with optimization techniques the better your score will reflect. Simply optimizing your landing page can enhance your quality score several points.

Copy Success

We’ve been told all our lives not to copy, to think for ourselves, and to be original when it comes to success. Internet marketing success works backward from that principle. You want to be able to copy the success of others. How do you do this? Simple. Check out the ads that are constantly outperforming everyone else.

You don’t have to become a marketing expert, reinvent the wheel, or create ad copy that is so stellar you are waiting to hear from the Nobel Prize committee. Look at the simple advertisements that are consistently hitting high ranks and you’ll see what you need to do. Adgooroo.com is a simple free site that will allow you to find the relevant information that you need with the simple entry of a keyword. From there, you can build your ads to reflect the same qualities of the most successful advertisements online.

For more information and to speak to someone about cost-effective web marketing solutions and how they can help your business, please visit Active Web Group, Long Islan's leading online marketing solutions agency.

Email Marketing Spending Beating Other Internet Marketing Methods, But is It Working for Everyone?

2010-03-11T09:29:00.000-08:00

Beginning with the holiday shopping months of 2009, and continuing through now, email marketing spending has risen significantly for all manner of companies and businesses. Numerous surveys has shown that many companies are utilizing email marketing campaigns or plan to in the near future in favor of other online marketing methods.

But what many of these survey don't detail is how effective email marketing has been for everyone. After all, for every successful email marketing campaign, there are likely dozens that are ineffective, for any number of reasons. These include target markets that are too broad or too lacking, inadequate email messages that fail to engage the reader, or being to "spammy" in nature, to name a few.

An effective email marketing campaign can be extremely cost-efficient and possibly provide the highest ROI for your marketing dollar, but how do you measure your results?

Measuring the results of an email marketing campaign entails planning beforehand. Email campaigns should first be segmented to specific target markets. Second, links in emails should lead to specific landing pages. These factors will help you better analyze the results.

Don't fall into the easy habit of sending email marketing campaigns out into the vast space of the Internet without having some method in place of measuring your ROI. Recent surveys revealed that not only do nearly 39% of companies utilizing email campaigns have no idea what their ROI is or how to measure it, and even 33% of online marketing agencies have no idea as well, which is inefficient, unprofessional, and just plain lazy.

For more information about email marketing campaigns and how best to measure the results, please visit Active Web Group, Long Island's leading online marketing solutions company.

Safe Domain Registration: Avoiding Potential Domain Name Scams

2010-03-10T11:39:00.000-08:00

Domain registration is a relatively simple process and one that isn’t expensive at all. Most of the time you can get your domain name for between $10 and $20 annually. Of course, just like everything else on the internet, domain name registration has been opened up to scam artists.

Since domain name registrars are public information it’s not hard for someone to locate your email address and the domain you have registered. This also means that it is not difficult for them to contact you. Most domain scams take place via email, although there have been a few attempts to attract victims via websites. Email is much more anonymous and direct, and therefore it is more likely that you’ll be a victim of a domain registry scam in this fashion.

The basic idea of the most common scam is to convince you that your registration is ready to expire. Naturally, if that were true, you would want to take immediate action so that you could hold onto your success thus far and continue building on it. The scam artists have taken care to create an official looking invoice to encourage you to fix the pending problem right away. Of course, they make it seem as though this is all for your convenience.

The first thing you’ll notice is that the cost for renewal is well above the cost for the initial registration. Instead of $10 per year you will be opening an invoice that is set at ridiculously high prices for the industry. Most victims state the price was around $75 for the renewal. Obviously, those who have paid have ended up having to legitimately renew their registration for their domain name.

Of course, that’s not the only scam you’ll find online. Some are so finely tuned that they technically aren’t illegal. Domain name search engine registration is not the same thing as domain name registration. Official looking emails, professional looking invoices, and selective use of words like “final notice” and “urgent notice” give the illusion that you must take immediate action.

Some of these companies imply or directly state that a merger has taken place and they now control the company. From there, you are supposed to register and handle your renewals through them. If you register through these fraudulent companies the only thing you’re registering is the domain name search engine registration. DomainUSA is the most commonly known company running this barely legal scam. There are others, naturally.

We can’t ignore the infamous emails that are generally coming out of China that are willing to “help you out.” In this scam you are being made aware of “foreign companies” that are intentionally trying to sabotage your online business by buying up websites that carry your domain name and/or your trademark name. In all of their “concern” for the small business owner they want to give you the opportunity to protect your hard work by purchasing these competitive domains and trademarks names so that your brand will remain intact and under your control.

So how do you avoid these scams as well as others like them? There are some rather basic ground rules that can help keep your money actually going into your business and out of the hands of internet criminals.

Start by being aware of the going rate. If you are registering a domain for the first time, be sure to check out many prices so that you will notice when the charges are excessive. Usually you will find the preferred rates through the well known domain registries. Sites such as GoDaddy.com are very well known and only charge about $9 annually. Any time you need to renew or you want to make adjustments go to the site. Never pay for something through an email link. Always hand type the web address into the browser. It’s even better if you have the domain registry site book marked from your initial visit with them.

Know when your domain actually expires. If you paid your annual fee in August you don’t have to pay again until August of the following year if you’re dealing with a reputable company. If someone is trying to tell you that your year is over three months after you registered your domain name you are staring at the largest and most glaring red flag of all.

Unsolicited emails and faxes should always be looked at with great skepticism. It is illegal to contact you in these methods without your consent. Thus, doing business with anyone that ignores the laws for their own financial benefit is usually a good sign of a company with shady standards.

Pre-registration of a domain name can not give you the guarantee of any kind of special treatment. Those who are in the legitimate business of domain name registry aren’t specifically interested in guiding you toward one name over another. Their service is not to help you get ahead in your marketing efforts with a “special and personalized” domain name. Actual domain registry services are a first come, first served business.

Stay informed. Any time you receive correspondence that just doesn’t seem quite right, check it out. Any time a new company is asking you to pay an invoice you know nothing about, research it. Most of the time you can find lists of these scams all over the place. The consumer fraud website of choice is www.ftc.gov. Here, you’ll be able to confirm suspicions, learn about new scams, find answers, and report fraud if it is attempted. Staying informed is the best way to protect yourself against unscrupulous scam artists.

Who has the best Social Media Strategy?

2010-03-09T06:09:00.000-08:00

The Social Analyst is a weekly column by Mashable Co-Editor Ben Parr, where he digs into social media trends and how they are affecting companies in the space.

Facebook (Facebook); Twitter (Twitter); LinkedIn (LinkedIn); YouTube; Wordpress (WordPress): these companies, built from the ground-up, are mainstays in social media. None of them were created by a large tech company, and all but one remains independent. Read More!

What do you think?

Internet Marketing Mistakes to Avoid

2010-03-08T07:49:00.000-08:00

Many people and businesses are eager to jump on the Internet marketing bandwagon in an effort to increase web traffic and sales. However, many do so without researching which methods may work best for them, and how best to properly utilize those methods to reach their target market.

For more insight into the world of online marketing and how best to use it in 2010, read "Internet Marketing Trends for 2010."

A recent article published on PromotionWorld details 7 mistakes to avoid when marketing online. These mistakes include:

Failure to Build a List
Overusing Graphics
Ineffective Sales Copy

Click here to read "7 Mistakes to Avoid When Marketing on the Internet."

Be sure to sign up for our Internet Marketing Newsletter, which offers informative articles, info, and tips for online marketing.

Internet Marketing Trends for 2010

2010-03-03T08:22:00.001-08:00

With all of the pundits trying to predict the next online trend and telling everyone that they know what to expect or what they think will be coming down the line. In actuality, the prediction business has never been harder to keep up with, whether the newest online trend will be an expansion to mobile platforms, social media marketing or the evolution of new Search Engine Optimization techniques as this post from SEOMoz illustrates.

Active Web Group recently created an article that focused on what we thought the Latest Web Design Trends for 2010 would be and how they would evolve as the year progressed. Based on that Active Web Group decided to look at some of the latest online trends and what we have identified as what the hottest trends that businesses will face in 2010. Whether it is the creation of a Social Media Marketing campaign, developing an effective E-Commerce campaign, creating a Mobile Website are just a few of the trends Active Web Group can develop for a business looking to meet the challenge of 2010.

Contact Active Web Group for a Free Marketing Analysis for your business!

Mobile Web

If your business is not aware that more people are using smartphones, you should learn quickly and realize that their use is on the rise. However, few businesses have actually developed mobile websites that are designed for handheld devices, such as an iPhone, Google’s Nexus One, etc. The use of mobile devices and the applications available also allows individuals to connect to their social network sites like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, FourSquare, etc.

As mobile users purchase gadgets with larger touchscreens and internet browsers, the mobile space will become bigger and small to medium sized enterprises need to jump on the bandwagon. If a business’ website is not accessible through a smartphone application or other handheld device, your visitors will become frustrated and find some other business that does have a mobile website, making you lose traffic and potential sales.

Overall satisfaction between smartphone users and traditional mobile phone users has shown a significant increase among smartphone users, according to a recent J.D. Power and Associates press release.

Satisfaction among consumer smartphone owners has increased by 14 index points (on a 1,000-point scale) from just six months ago, while satisfaction among business owners has increased by 43 index points from 2008 as these devices have become more stylish, customizable and user-friendly.

Among traditional mobile phone owners, overall satisfaction has declined by six index points from April 2009, likely as a result of heightened awareness among traditional mobile phone owners of advanced features available on smartphones.

Smartphones and mobile devices provide individuals the ability to access the Internet and use them the same way a laptop can be utilized, creating an opening for users on the go.

SEO – Search Engine Optimization

Back in the day, SEO experts would use search engine optimization tactics to get a website on the first page of the search engines. With the coming of 2010, that will become harder due to the advent of personalized and real-time search.

Twitter started the trend when by designing the first real-time search engine. Users that search for a certain term will be updated with the latest and newest “tweets” as they are submitted.

Recently, Google introduced its own real-time search function complete with indexed tweets. Microsoft’s Bing search engine made a deal to show tweets in search results and Yahoo! recently announced that they have struck a formal partnership with Twitter allowing you to tweet directly from your Yahoo! homepage.

This is not to say that businesses should run out and begin a real-time search strategy, it will take some time for users to fully understand and begin to integrate this trend into their everyday lives, but there is real potential here.

The utilization of on-page optimization factors will still apply though Google will start returning results with personalized search and real-time search will surely play a part. The objective for any business is to still get on the first page before becoming a factor in a users personal search results.

Matt Cutts, Google’s head of Web spam, has mentioned that site speed may be a new ranking factor for 2010. Businesses should work to ensure that their website load time is as fast as possible. Some factors should be proper HTML, clean CSS and JavaScript (externalize any code), there are a number of resources that can help you determine how fast your site is:

• HTML Validation
• CSS
• Page Speed Firefox extension
• Closure (compiles JavaScript into compact, high performance code.)

Social Media

In 2009, Facebook and Twitter were the social networks of choice and 2010 will see an even greater surge in their popularity. Both of them will begin to introduce new features, including paid accounts for business.

As mentioned in a previous article, businesses need to pay attention to social networking sites and the trends on these sites. While the article referenced focuses on Facebook, the creation of a social media strategy is not an option. An effective social media strategy is not only vital to the health of a company but also into its ability to develop an online user-base.

As online activity moves towards social media, marketers need to be aware that social media can be used to build brand awareness, develop buzz (will this be trademarked by Google?), and generate leads. In 2010, businesses must adapt to social media or get leapfrogged by their competition.

Online Retail

According to ComScore, the 4th quarter of 2009 marked the sign of positive growth in the year with both retail and e-commerce showing gains. ComScore also stated that a social media is becoming an important driver of commerce, where social media influenced 28% of holiday purchases.

A recent report from FFP Global states that: “online shopping is moving from a transaction mentality to one that embodies discovery, entertainment and social bonding experience.”

The report goes on to list five key e-commerce trends for 2010:

• Smarter Mobility: Smartphones have continued to grow due to their wider screens and applications. Mobile phone and handheld devices will see more applications to help drive ecommerce sales.
• Fulfillment Rules: Retailers will begin to consider “regional fulfillment centers” due to rising fuel costs and the demand for quicker delivery times.
• Customer Service: Consumers will begin utilizing an ever increasing number of communication channels: i.e.: texting, accessing information, free expression, immediate feedback, etc. All of these pose a challenge that e-retailers must take seriously.
• Relevancy is Virally Important: E-retailers are starting to become more than suppliers of goods and services and must proactively develop a personality that market segments can accept. They must listen; actively engage in conversations with their current and potential customers and more.
• Business Intelligence meets Business Process: In 2010, businesses will need to commit to the information in their data banks to create marketing and sales business processes to help provide them a competitive advantage.

According to a recent Razorfish report, "65% of consumers report having had a digital experience that either positively or negatively changed their opinion about a brand." Additionally, "97% of that group said that their digital experience influenced their decision whether or not to purchase a product or service."

Consumers seem to be evolving to the point where the best of both worlds is what they are looking for when it comes to shopping online. They want great service and value combined with an overall smooth transaction from the very beginning of the transaction all the way to delivery of the product or service. Businesses also seem to benefit from having the perception of a direct relationship with the customer that is making the purchase.

Online Reputation Management

Most businesses have a website, but even a business needs to realize that the website could be subject to bad publicity. Any business in the online space needs to realize how fast rumors and allegations can be disseminated in the digital age. Several companies have had their reputations tarnished within hours from the activities of disgruntled employees, a poorly constructed advertising campaign and more.

Online Reputation Management is the process of managing a businesses search engine results and protecting their brand reputation. This involves marketing and public relations management combined with search engine marketing.

Online Reputation Management enables businesses to both protect and manage their brand as well as their reputation becoming actively involved in the outcome of search engine results.

The development of proactive social media platforms along with risk mitigation strategies will become standard fare for those companies looking to protect and enhance their brand and reputation.

Mobile Marketing

According to Mobile Marketing Watch, a recent report published by the UN indicates that mobile subscribers comprise 67% of the world’s population. A recent post on the Huffington Post, Chris Curtin and Bob Greenberg offer a look into the impact mobile will have on business.

Mobile marketing involves the process of marketing to people through their mobile phones or smartphone devices (I know what you are saying, but stay with me). Mobile marketing is slowly moving into the mainstream and small businesses have been slow to warm to the idea of engaging consumers on mobile devices, 2010 looks to have the potential to change that thinking.

With the increasing demand for mobile applications and web-browsers due to the iPhone, Google’s Nexus One and others in 2010, businesses will begin to provide low cost mobile marketing solutions such as mobile websites; location based marketing, mobile e-mail marketing and more.

Web Content/Blogging

The growth of the Internet has allowed businesses to publish their own content about their business or industry. This includes blogs, pictures and even videos. A business blog can be a valuable corporate tool for communicating with customers and employees allowing them to share their knowledge and expertise about their industry and are sweeping across the business community.

Presently, there are a number of blog software programs available for businesses that want to start blogging. The following software companies, Blogger .com, Typepad and Movable Type offer easy blogging tools to get you started in your business blog.

Blogging offers an inexpensive way for business owners to get their company name on the Internet. Simply write your thoughts, link to resources and publish your blog. Updating a business blog provides a business to share their expertise and knowledge with customers and potential customers.

The 5 Rings of Conversion Optimization

2010-02-24T07:29:00.000-08:00

Over at Search Engine Land, Scott Brinker has a great article about a new way of looking at way to look at your website and conversion optimization.

You can read the full article here. I highly recommend it, let us know what you think.

The 5 Rings of Conversion Optimization

2010-02-24T07:23:00.001-08:00

HOW TO: Build a Facebook Landing Page for Your Business

2010-02-23T07:14:00.001-08:00

HOW TO: Build a Facebook Landing Page for Your Business

Posted using ShareThis

Will MySpace's "Discovery" be Discovered?

2010-02-23T06:13:00.000-08:00

TechCrunch recently reported that MySpace executives have developed a new product strategy in an attempt to get users to do something different on MySpace that they can't do on Facebook.

The strategy is "Discover and be Discovered" and the overall thought is that people will want to visit MySpace over and over again.

Not sure how effective this strategy will be and whether it is too little too late? It is obviously an answer to Facebook's dominance and the loss of users of MySpace.

Do you think it will work? Read the article here.

Google reports that MySpace will now show in Real Time Search Results.

2010-02-22T06:34:00.000-08:00

Google recently reported that they will be reporting MySpace results in real time search. Here is the excerpt from Google:

Also in real-time news, starting this week we officially added MySpace content to real-time search. Now you can tap into the pool of news, photos and blog posts that MySpace users have chosen to publish to the world. These updates are all ranked to reflect the most relevant, freshest results, many of which are just seconds old. In all, real-time search includes more than a billion documents and processes hundreds of millions of changes daily. We're quite excited to offer this enhancement so that real-time search becomes even more useful. You can find the MySpace updates in our real-time mode by clicking on "Show Options" and then "Updates."

Now that Google is incorporating MySpace in real time search results, how soon do you think Bing/Yahoo will follow suit?

Facebook and Ustream Premiere New MTV Dance Flick Tonight [VIDEO]

2010-02-19T11:39:00.000-08:00

It’s Friday night, so before you shamble out to make copious mistakes at the clubs, you can brush up on your dance skills by catching the premiere of the new MTV flick, Turn the Beat Around, via Facebook and Ustream.

Thanks to Mashable for the link. Will any of you watch the video?

Micro-hoo Deal gets over one hurdle.

2010-02-19T06:48:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, it was announced that Microsoft and Yahoo received approval from both the US government and European Commission regarding their search deal announced last summer.

Now the search technologies, businesses, etc need to merge and actually work. Yahoo! organic rankings will become part of Bing and the paid search will be adCenter.

With all of the issues that need to be ironed, does anyone out there think that this merger will be completed by the self imposed plan, which is by the 2010 holiday season?

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Email List Mistakes

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Using Google Alerts for Marketing Trends & Strategies

Why Your Facebook Marketing Strategy Isn't Working

Get Involved in Social Media Marketing Before You Need It

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Is Your Social Media Marketing Campaign Illegal?

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Twitter Gets Into E-CommerceBy CLAIRE CAIN MILLER

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9 Ways to Unleash the Profit Potential of Landing Pages (Part One)

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Online Marketing Solutions for E-Commerce Websites

Facebook Ads Improve Brand Awareness and Increase Sales

Email Marketing Embraces Video Emails

Thinking of Starting a Small Business Blog? Active Web Group Offers These Top Tips.

Niche Marketing Online Businesses to Rise in 2010

How to Promote Your Business on Your Facebook Page

Using Social Networking to Promote Your Company

Improve Your SEO by Hiring a Copywriter

Four Important Benefits of Email Marketing

How to Cut Costs of Search Engine Advertising without Cutting Results

Email Marketing Spending Beating Other Internet Marketing Methods, But is It Working for Everyone?

Safe Domain Registration: Avoiding Potential Domain Name Scams

Who has the best Social Media Strategy?

Internet Marketing Mistakes to Avoid

Internet Marketing Trends for 2010

The 5 Rings of Conversion Optimization

The 5 Rings of Conversion Optimization

HOW TO: Build a Facebook Landing Page for Your Business

Will MySpace's "Discovery" be Discovered?

Google reports that MySpace will now show in Real Time Search Results.

Facebook and Ustream Premiere New MTV Dance Flick Tonight [VIDEO]

Micro-hoo Deal gets over one hurdle.

Twitter Gets Into E-Commerce
By CLAIRE CAIN MILLER