Posted by Stacie Chalmers on Tue, Feb 02, 2010 @ 09:02 PM
Hiring a web expert? Below are 12 things to discuss with your web expert before making a decision.
From the recent webinars and research Ive been involved with, 2010 appears to be the year of the website redesign. If you're planning on a new website or a redesign in 2010 it's important to think about why? What are your objectives, what do you hope to achieve? Don't lose site of the fact that you're in business to make money, not to have the best looking website. Research shows that a good looking website doesn't equate to more traffic or more leads.
A web expert who understands optimization for business goals and how to convert visitors to leads will ask about your business and offer training or ongoing support for search engine optimization. Here are the 12 key things you should discuss before hiring a web expert:
1. Who is your target audience?
2. How do you solve a problem or meet a need?
3. Why would prospects buy from you?
4. What are your business goals?
5. How do they decide on the best keywords to target?
6. Ask them to explain the optimization process. What is done initially and what is done on an ongoing basis.
7. Do they know how to set up a landing page designed to convert?
8. Will they provide training or ongoing support?
9. If they provide a link-building strategy, how do they do it?
10. Are they conducting a competitor analysis?
11. What analytics are they measuring and why?
12. Blogs should be a part of your optimization process. Can you post blogs on your website? Do they offer any training or support for blogging best practices?
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) strategies such as blogging and link building are ongoing. If you're getting a price to start this know what the ongoing cost is going to be. If you're going to be trained to do it yourself make sure you're clear on how much time it will take versus paying a professional to handle it for you.
In conclusion, make sure the web expert you decide to employ takes the time to learn about your business.
If this is overwhelming, confusing or you have some questions. Please feel free to post them in the comments or contact Inbound Marketing Solutions directly to discuss the best Website Marketing and Search Engine Optimization strategies for your business.
Posted by Stacie Chalmers on Tue, Jan 19, 2010 @ 09:40 AM
The most overlooked marketing tool that (almost) every business has is their website. I continue to meet many business owners, especially in small business, who have a misunderstanding about the purpose of their website, and as a result aren't seeing the results they should and can get.
The average website conversion is 1 percent to 2 percent.
Proper search engine optimization could double your traffic and an effective call to action can boost conversion to 4 percent to 5 percent.
Optimization is a key component for driving qualified traffic to your site, therefore it must be done correctly. Because search engine optimization (SEO) is something most people don't fully understand, it overwhelms them and so they trust the SEO "experts." What's concerning is that I see many websites that have been "optimized" by an "expert," when in fact they haven't. The first thing to remember when it comes to SEO is that this isn't something just done once - it's ongoing and needs to have an ongoing strategy (and training if needed).
CHOOSING THE 'RIGHT' KEYWORD PHRASES
In order to determine the "right" keyword phrases for your business, you need to know (not guess) what keywords your prospects use when searching online for the products and services your company offers. You need to know why they are searching for your product or service, and what their need or problem is. Knowing the answers to these questions will help determine the right keywords that will increase the chances that your visitors will convert to leads.
Choosing obvious keywords that have a high monthly search volume can be extremely competitive and almost impossible to rank. Often keyword phrases that have a low monthly search volume are highly targeted and will attract your target audience, giving you a better chance of converting them to a lead. Just getting visitors to your site that don't convert to leads means nothing to your business. Focusing on quality rather than quantity will yield a better result for your business.
KEYWORD PLACEMENT
Each page has its own URL, title, meta description and header, and all of these need to be optimized with the keywords for that page.
Keywords need to be used not only on your website but as part of an ongoing marketing campaign. Keywords should be used in e-mails, blogs, online articles, press releases and social media with links to relevant pages on your website. Keywords that are used in other online content (not your website) that include links to pages on your website are called inbound links or back links.
INBOUND LINKS (OR BACK LINKS)
These are hyperlinked words that link to your website and are a major influence when it comes to search engine rankings. A link building strategy should be part of your ongoing marketing, implemented by someone who understands how to develop and implement a link-building strategy. There are obvious ways to get inbound links, such as listing your company with online directories. However, there are other clever ways to encourage links through blogs, press releases and other online activities. Purchasing links and doing link swaps may negatively affect your search rankings so make sure that if you're paying someone to develop a link-building strategy you understand how they are doing it.
THE LANDING PAGE
This is the page that the visitor lands on after clicking an inbound link to your site. The keyword used in this link needs to be prominent on the page they land on. You have three seconds to provide this visitor with the information they're looking for, or you may lose them forever.
In order to have this visitor convert to a lead you should have some understanding where this visitor is in the purchase life cycle. If they're at the research (information gathering) phase, make sure this is what's available on the page they land on. Provide a call to action that would encourage the visitor to sign up for more information such as a free e-book or subscription to your blog or e-newsletter.
If your visitor has clicked on a keyword that indicates they're ready to speak directly with a salesperson -in other words they're a little further along in the purchase cycle - make sure your call to action offers something along the lines of a "free consultation with a sales representative" or "free tool, to test your product/service."
When choosing an expert to develop your website and search engine optimization, make sure they understand your business and marketing objectives. Specifically inbound marketing and how optimizing your site will do more than just drive traffic to your business, but increase conversions that have a direct impact on your bottom line.
Does this information help you? What other questions do you have about your website and attracting prospects and converting them to leads?
If you found this blog article helpful please share with your online social network, thank you.
Posted by Stacie Chalmers on Fri, Jan 08, 2010 @ 09:35 AM
Understanding Inbound Marketing could be your best advantage in 2010!
Many businesses are still yet to hear the term "Inbound Marketing". Understand how to use their website as a lead generation strategy rather than an online brochure. Know how to rank organically for the ‘right' keywords for their business. And appreciate the scope that social media can bring to their business to achieve their business goals for 2010!
I've written several blogs on Inbound Marketing but I decided to do some research to see what the experts are saying about Inbound Marketing for 2010.
Below is a list of 5 valuable articles that explain Inbound Marketing and its value to business. I believe every business regardless of size and budget should be learning and applying Inbound Marketing (to some degree) in 2010, so I wanted to share what I found.
1. Why doesn't social media work for traditional B2B marketers?
2. Evolving with the marketplace. Do you face extinction?
3. 2010: The year Inbound Marketing crosses the chasm
4. How a solid Inbound Marketing vision can help your website redesign in 2010.
5. Inbound Marketing and the next phase of marketing on the web.
If you found this blog post insightful and helpful don't keep it to yourself, please share it with your network on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter or any other social media outlet you use.
What are your thoughts or questions on Inbound Marketing for your business? I would love to hear from you.
Posted by Stacie Chalmers on Fri, Oct 30, 2009 @ 11:25 AM
... the customer! Not YOU, not your company, not your brand, not your product nor your service.
It's about marketing to your prospects when they want to hear from you, how they want to hear from you and what they want to know.
It's about building relationships.
It's about listening their needs.
It's about giving your prospects an option to receive your emails and status updates.
It's about having a web presence when and where your prospects search online.
It's about offering information that is of value to your prospects.
It's about making the conversion process clear, painless and quick.
It's not about emailing your social media connections to push your product or service to, with relentless monotony. If you want to use your social media connections for marketing take the time to find out what they need, and offer valuable information sparingly. You'll get a better result!
And as for search engine rank don't try and take any short cuts with promises of front page rankings. This isn't sustainable marketing for long term success. Take the time to do the research on your market and competitors, and identify the ‘right' keywords for your business. Integrate search engine optimization (seo) into your marketing mix so that you start to rank organically for your keywords. This is a long term strategy that generates better quality leads and is extremely cost effective as there is no additional expense involved in paying for your search rank.
In my opinion, Inbound Marketing isn't a numbers game... its about quality and relevance.
What do you think?
Posted by Stacie Chalmers on Mon, Oct 19, 2009 @ 06:00 AM
We're living in a revolution and Inbound Marketing is at the forefront of this revolution, says David Meerman-Scott in his Foreward of the new book Inbound Marketing Get Found Using Google, Social Media and Blogs. He goes as far to say that traditional marketers need to unlearn what they've been taught, in order to learn the new rules of Inbound Marketing and continues with saying that the outbound marketing era, also known as interruptive or push marketing is over.
I love this quote...
"Direct Mail is what you send as a marketer. Junk mail is what you receive as a consumer."
We can't deny that the internet, websites and social media are changing consumer behavior and the way we do business. Based on current growth stats of internet usage and social media sites, any rooky could surmise that marketing is changing. So I tend to agree with David, a new era in marketing is dawning and Inbound Marketing is leading the way. The internet has leveled the playing field for business, no longer can large corporations gain market dominance because of their large advertising budget. It doesn't matter what size your company is or how much you have available for marketing, at this point in the game it is just a matter of starting.
So where do you start, what are the new rules, what do you need to do, when, how and why?
The Inbound Marketing Book does more than just explain terms such as: search engine optimization, blogging and social media, or how to use; Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. At the end of this book you'll understand the value and purpose that Google, search engine optimization, your website, blogging and social media bring to your business. How they serve as the tools to achieve your business goals such as; lead generation, brand awareness, market research, competitor analysis, public relations and customer relations. Plus you'll know what you need to be measuring to identify your return on investment (ROI), cost per lead and cost per acquisition (customer), which are crucial to any business success. The authors Brian Halligan and Dharmesh Shah explain what can be complicated technical jargon to many business owners and marketers, in simple business terms with practical examples, case studies and an action plan to get you started.
If marketing your business is about creating awareness, getting ahead of the competition, generating leads, knowing how to nurture those leads until they're sales ready and how to test and measure results and ROI, then The Inbound Marketing Book, available through Amazon, is the business reference guide for you.
If you know someone in marketing or business please let them know about the Inbound Marketing Book. And if you're using social media please Tweet, Digg or use whatever your social media site of preference is to share this article to marketers and business owners around the globe.
What are your thoughts on Inbound Marketing? Are you planning on reading the book? Why or why not?
Posted by Stacie Chalmers on Tue, Oct 06, 2009 @ 04:11 PM
When I asked this at a recent business networking function no hands went up.
Now this is a group of proactive, dynamic, driven small business owners and I had expected that at least one person would have caught onto the ‘Inbound Marketing' wave. Admittedly this is a new term, or as some marketing veterans would have us say an old term, applied to new technology. Basically it's a term that is applied to ‘permission' marketing and developing a strategic web presence so your prospects can find you when they're looking. With the rapid pace the internet is growing and changing with new technology it's no wonder business owners are being left behind with the latest tools to market their business.
The toughest thing for small business is having the money to market their business and with the recent tough economic climate, increasing marketing expense without knowing its ROI is something business owners aren't prepared to risk.
So let me explain in brief how inbound marketing is helping small business and why it must be part of every business's marketing mix in 2009.
1. Your Strategic Web Presence:
This is more than a website, it's about all your online activity showing up in searches when your prospects are looking for your product or service. It's about having a presence across all search engines and the various social media sites for your web pages, blog articles, videos, podcasts, press releases, photos and presentations.
2. Your Website:
Your website is to provide the information your prospects are looking for and providing an easy process to convert your visitors to leads and leads to customers. The purpose of your website is to ‘CONVERT'.
3. Choosing The ‘Right' Keywords:
The right keywords are often not the high volume keywords that you think, so it's important to do research and learn what terms your prospects are using when they're searching or interacting on the internet. It's about targeting some of the more specific keyword phrases that may have a lower search volume but better chance of ranking in the top 10 and driving qualified prospects to your site.
4. Organic Rank:
With 80% of searchers clicking on organic listings over the paid listings, organic rank should be part of your long term goal. The best way to boost your rank is through inbound links; directories, industry listings, blogging and social media.
5. Blogging:
Blogging for business serves many purposes and should be on every business owners weekly ‘to do' list, and definitely part of any marketing strategy. In saying that, there should be some planning done before you jump into blogging so that you get the results you're seeking. You need to think about who your audience is and what information is of value to them. Each article should use your keywords, hyper linking these keywords to your website or other pages of your website. Part of successful blogging is also about subscribing and commenting on others.
6. Search Engine Optimization (SEO):
Optimizing all your online content and constantly reviewing your position in the search engines compared to your competition and against your goals. Testing and measuring new strategies to get you closer to your desired goal. There are tools to help you do this and experts to do it for you.
7. Social Media Marketing:
Social media strategies should be focused using social media tools to achieve business goals through: customer relations, market research, customer research, competitor tracking, building strategic partnerships, networking, promotion, optimizing and driving traffic to your website.
8. ROI:
It's all about testing and measuring and knowing your ROI. For this you need the right SEO and social tools and reporting. There are some easy to use tools for business owners and inbound marketing experts available to train you or do it for you.
None of this should be started without an Inbound Marketing Plan. The first step, like any traditional marketing includes research and analysis to know your market and identify your opportunities. The second step is to identify clear marketing goals and thirdly a strategic inbound marketing plan that will achieve your goals. Not every social media tool is right for every business based on goals, budget and market, so take the time first to have a Strategic Inbound Marketing Plan developed that is aligned with your goals by a inbound marketing professional who can walk you through each step of the process and coach you if needed.
Are you ready to include Inbound Marketing into your marketing mix? The first step is to book in a complimentary consultation to talk about your goals and identify the best strategies and tactics for your unique situation.
Does that help explain Inbound Marketing or are you still unsure how it will benefit your business? I would like to hear your comments or questions regarding Inbound Marketing.
Posted by Stacie Chalmers on Thu, Sep 24, 2009 @ 03:22 PM
Two days before the event I learnt Social Media FTW ‘09 was sold out, completely full with 225 delegates and a waiting list. Wow! I was impressed I had no idea so many people in Maine were so hungry to learn about social media. I was pleased I had decided to go, I was curious to meet all these people who also have in interest in Social Media.
In just half a day #ftw09 covered topics for the beginner wanting to learn more about Twitter, Facebook and Blogging for Business to Mike Lewis' session on Social Media ROI. This was extremely popular and obviously is one of the biggest challenges for organizations using (or considering) adding social media to their marketing mix.
The value I saw was the diversity in presentations and speakers, choosing which one to attend was difficult as all seemed valuable, fortunately all presentations were recorded so as a delegate I will get to view the ones I missed. Overall the conference was a success, just checking out the Twitter stream of comments is proof to that.
It really is the speakers who make an event. How well they know their topic and how well they engage with the audience. CostVidaFred made a session about podcasting interesting, entertaining and valuable by engaging with the audience and sharing his own experience. My congratulations to Rich Brooks at Flyte for attracting outstanding presenters, who are obviously passionate and knowledgeable about social media, Im sure that was no easy task. And thank you to all those who took time out of their busy schedules to present and share their knowledge at #ftw09.
Im wondering though, did #ftw09 feed the hungry, or increase our appetite. After all social media is continuing to grow and evolve and with it so does our hunger to stay up to date. Im definitely looking forward to Social Media FTW 2010.
Posted by Stacie Chalmers on Tue, Sep 22, 2009 @ 03:33 PM
Several years ago I identified the need to optimize our website with keywords so we could rank higher in the search engines. Through my research in looking for the ‘best' search engine optimization company to employ, I quickly learnt that SEO wasn't something that you do once, it was ongoing and continually changing. Not only that, the seo experts I was speaking with charged in excess of $1000 with no guarantee. I decided it was going to be cheaper and better long term, for me to learn seo and make the changes myself. So I spent a considerable about of time studying SEO until I knew what we needed to do with regards to optimizing the website, headings, page titles, meta descriptions and rewriting the website copy. But the next challenge I ran into was updating our website. Our web developer charged $100 p/hr to make the changes. This didn't provide me with the flexibility I needed to upload new content, test and measure results and change offers, calls to action. Also we needed to start a blog, but again the cost factor outweighed any financial benefit we could foresee. It was frustrating and expensive, to say the least.
So you can imagine my excitement, as a business owner when I discovered Hubspot. As a business owner, entrepreneur, who isn't a tech geek or web developer Hubspot made website development, seo and social media marketing doable and affordable.
As a marketing consultant, I help business owners develop an effective website, incorporating SEO and social media marketing. The one and only product, that I've come across, that is both user friendly, effective and helps business owners implement strategies, test and measure and ultimately get results is Hubspot! And that is why I asked to be a Hubspot Partner.
If you haven't already, check out the marketing effectiveness of your website with Hubspot's Website Grader. And if you have any questions about Hubspot or Inbound Marketing please ask, I look forward to helping you.
Posted by Stacie Chalmers on Thu, Sep 10, 2009 @ 08:10 PM
Search engine optimization (seo) is an integral part of effective social media marketing. Done well it will drive qualified traffic to your website. But an increase in traffic means nothing to your business if they're not converting. Before you spend any more money to drive more traffic to your site, think about what you want your visitors to do and how you can encourage them to convert to a lead. If your traffic is not converting, it's not a numbers game, you need to go back to the planning stage and focus on leads. Here's some basic pointers on how to convert your traffic to leads.
The first step is to understand your audience, and I mean really know your audience:
1. Who are they?
2. What are their needs, problems?
3. How does your product or service help them?
4. Are they looking for information or are they ready to buy?
The second step is to give them what they're looking for:
1. Make sure the keyword phrase they clicked on takes them to a landing page on your website that is relevant.
2. You have 3 seconds, so make sure the content on the landing page is what they're looking for, easy to read or scan.
The third step is the conversion:
1. Make sure your call to action is clear and easy.
2. If extra information is required provide an option to subscribe to your blog, enewsletter or even download a free ebook.
3. If a free trial of your product would help, offer a free sample, free trial or complimentary consultation.
4. Make it clear for those visitors who are finished researching and are ready to purchase what they need to do. Make the purchase process as easy as possible.
My challenge to you is to focus on leads not traffic, here's what you need to do:
Choose a keyword phrase that represents just one of your products or services, that talks direct to a specific audience and addresses a specific need or problem. Follow my steps above, test and measure and see if you get a better result in lead conversion. More than likely your traffic will be much lower, but if you've done your homework the conversion should be higher. Generating leads, not traffic is the start of effective inbound marketing and a successful business.
If you need some assistance or have a question before you get started, ask me. And don't forget to let me know your results.
Posted by Stacie Chalmers on Mon, Aug 31, 2009 @ 04:43 PM
If we take a look at history, marketing is continually changing, largely influenced by technology. Over time technology has changed production, distribution, communication, advertising, consumer needs and buyer behavior, necessitating a change in marketing strategies and marketing psychology.
Today, the technology introducing the new era of marketing is the internet and more specifically social media marketing. The internet has created a platform which has changed distribution, advertising, consumer needs and buyer behavior, introducing a new psychology and approach to marketing. In order to run a successful business, understanding how this technology is influencing and changing your market is paramount to guaranteeing marketing victory. It's the marketers and business owners that harness this change in marketing and the psychology who will be the ones that build sustainable businesses and not only survive these tough economic times but position themselves to prosper in the future.
One of the significant benefits for small to medium size businesses (SMBs) is that there is now a level playing field for large and small business. No longer do you need a huge marketing budget to reach your market, conduct market research or get media coverage. Your market reach is the same as large business and your marketing costs are significantly reduced. This is true for both B2C and B2B businesses.
It's not easy though. There is a learning curve to understanding the new technology and psychology behind social media marketing.
The new marketing psychology is about:
1. Valuing your time on the internet: this is no waste of time
2. Appreciating the value of writing: the ‘new' advertising
3. Transparency: your audience expects it
4. Listening: customer relations and market research
5. Giving: creating brand/company awareness
6. Patience: it's a long term strategy
7. Your website: it's about lead generation and conversion
I hope this article has provided some value to marketers and business owners in understanding how marketing is always evolving and the importance of changing your marketing psychology accordingly to get the best return from your marketing efforts and to build a sustainable and profitable business.
Welcome your comments, feedback, questions.
