RJ Web Dev: Web Marketing for your Business

Privacy on Facebook: Subscriptions & How to Manage Them

2012-02-28T10:13:00.000-05:00

I've been asked many times, how do I make sure no one can see my Facebook page? With social media these days, and even Google, we know that it's very hard to keep things private. What you put on the Internet is permanent, no matter how you look at it! So, word to the wise, be careful and think twice (or three times) before posting something to begin with. And, if you still want to be private, here is how you can turn up your privacy settings on Facebook.

There are a few steps to being private on Facebook:

1. On the homepage, in the top right, click on the down arrow.

2. Click on Privacy Settings

3. Where it says "How You Connect" click on Edit Settings

4. If you truly want no one to see your photos, posts, friends, or if you don't want anyone to send you a friend request or a message, then make sure to set all of your settings to "Friends" only.

The next part of Facebook privacy settings has to do with their new Subscriptions to Timelines. Facebook offered this Subscription button so you can choose what you see in your News Feed. You can choose to subscribe to a celebrity or personality that you don't know personally, but is also not a Business Page. You can also choose what types of posts you see from your friends in your News Feed. Unfortunately, this also means that people can subscribe to your posts as well. And, if you aren't making sure that you aren't posting to the public, those who you are not friends with may be able to see what you post. Is that what you want?

How to ensure no one can subscribe to your posts unless they are your friend on Facebook:

1. Go to your own Timeline page

2. Where you see the Friends, Photos, etc. you may see Subscriptions...or you may have to click on a number that will expand this section of the Timeline so now you will see Subscriptions.

3. Click on Subscriptions.

4. Click on Edit Settings

5. Make sure to turn Subscribers Off

Now only your friends can subscribe to either all, most or none of your News Feed posts.

For more information about the Subscribe button and Subscriptions on Facebook, you can check out Facebook's Help Center.

Google's New Privacy Policy & How to Protect Your Privacy

2012-02-22T17:24:00.000-05:00

Effective March 1, Google will roll out their new Privacy Policy which has streamlined all of the Privacy Policies they've had for all of the different channels Google owns (think: YouTube v. Google Chrome v. GTalk and so on).

Google collects a lot (a lot is an understatement) of information from you. But, until March 1, your web search history (what you search and what sites you visit from Google) was considered private to Google. It was separated from your searches on YouTube, Google+ and others, because of all the sensitive information that they capture from your Google searches such as location, religion, age, interests and more. Google uses this information to create their amazing search algorithms and ensure that the most relevant and highest quality websites are in your top searches. This is why an experienced search engine optimization specialist is important for your website if you want

If you want to make sure that Google does not retroactively use this information, it is possible to remove all items from your web history and stop your future web history from being tracked and recorded.

According to Electronic Frontier Foundation, these are the steps you should take in order to protect yourself from Google's Privacy Policy starting March 1:

1. Once signed into your Google account, you should go to the URL: https://www.google.com/history

2. Easily, you can click on "Remove all web history" and "ok."

3. By removing all web history, you are actually also pausing it and therefore your web history is now turned off completely. There is a way to re-enable it, but do you really want to do that?

Let me know if you have any questions going into this.

Twitter Continues to be a Breaking News Source

2012-02-13T19:17:00.000-05:00

News broke out on Saturday evening that singer-songwriter, Whitney Houston, had passed away. (RIP). There were rumors and people shook their head in disbelief. It's hard to imagine that Whitney Houston had died...because it was reported on Twitter. In case you have never heard of the rumor mill on Twitter before, it's there. And, it's quite humorous at times (okay, no one wants to joke about death, but rumors about pregnancies, break-ups, etc.), but also embarrassing.

Embarrassing? Yes, "mainstream" media, embarrassing. Really? You let some random man on social media, with 14 Twitter followers break the news about Whitney Houston's death almost 45 minutes earlier than you reported it? Okay, let's figure out how this happens. (The first "official" tweet citing Houston's death was sent by the Associated Press about 41 minutes after the original tweet)

omgg , my aunt tiffany who work for whitney houston just found whitney houston dead in the tub . such ashame & sad :-(
— Aja Dior M. (@AjaDiorNavy) February 12, 2012

* This man may have some inside information from a friend, family member, or hotel employee of where Ms. Houston was found.

* The media must check their sources and confirm a story before they report it.

* Twitter is at your finger tips. Most mainstream media have to either make a phone call to confirm, then type it out. Double check their work. Then, boom!

Okay, just so we're clear, Twitter is a great resource for reliable breaking news as well. What else has been reported prior to the mainstream media?

* Osama bin Laden's death. Someone who works in Pakistan as a computer programmer was tweeting (mistakenly?) about the raid that eventually killed bin Laden.

What does this mean for the future of news?

Well, it's interesting to note that the BBC has told their reporters not to report anything on Twitter. I don't really think that stopping your employees (and, how can you even stop them. Twitter is so anonymous) will stop the news from breaking on Twitter. I honestly believe that, and although it has been happening already, local and national and even international media outlets will start turning to the likes of Twitter, Facebook, and other social media sites to break their stories. It reaches a lot of people at once and it's a push notification, as opposed to your readers/viewers/followers/listeners actively seeking out the news. It's about intention and what society wants. Society wants to know everything now, and is the reason why social media continues to soar as the one-stop-shop for people. If you're the last to know, you're out in the cold. Society doesn't want to have to check the newspaper every day, once a day, anymore. They want the news to come to them...and that's precisely what Twitter does.

FYI. I just came across Twitter's "embed this Tweet" feature. Now, THAT is cool!

Quick SEO Tips for Everyone

2012-02-07T12:59:00.000-05:00

I believe in a comprehensive search engine optimization plan, if your website is a marketing tool for your company. While we don't all have the time and money to move forward with a full-fledged SEO plan, there are still a number of actions you can take to ensure better search results, or even just the chance to show up in search results of your choice.

Search Engine Watch shares some of these tips. Here are my thoughts on each of them:

1) Review the Robots.txt file and assess the meta robots tags

It is possible that if you have a /robots.txt file on your site, you need to make sure you are not excluding any pages or information from the search engines. SEW also suggests using a site scan tool to determine whether you are withholding any pages using a meta robots tag.

This is extremely important for the web developer to double check. Sometimes when you are building a site, you update a page, or redesign a portion of the site, or even switch your web developer and you'll forget about tags and robot.txt files.

2) Review the site CTR by page and revise your worst page's title element and meta description

Although this tip has to do with your conversion click through rate, that should be just as, if not more, important than your search engine results. Search engines these days are not only taking into consideration your validity and relevance, but also the user experience and navigatability of the landing page or website.

3) Analyze your canonicalization of your domain name

Make sure you have a permanent 301 redirect for ALL of your site's web pages. This will ensure that you do not have duplicate content. I can't stress this enough. Duplicate content is a bad thing.

4) Look at the most visited linked pages on your website

You want to make sure not to delete pages that are linked from other websites. Can you imagine if someone has the opportunity to visit your site from somewhere else and they hit a 404 code? Nooo!!! Make sure that if it's permanently deleted that you at least set up a redirect of the page so as not to lose the traffic.

5) Make sure to look for duplicate title elements!

If you look through your Google Webmaster Tools, you can check for duplicate pages, cannibalization and title elements. Make sure to write unique titles or use redirects where needed.

6) Find the strongest links and change your anchor text if necessary

You don't always have to have keyword-rich anchor text, but if you know which links are your strongest. If you find that your strongest links are branded to off-site pages, then you can reach out to the sites and request text changes to non-branded variations.

With these small and simple tips, you can ensure better search results. There are, obviously, a number of other factors that are taken into consideration and you may want to check out some other SEO tips that I've posted, but these are a great start when you really only have about 15 minutes to play with it. If you have any questions about what some of these terms mean, please don't hesitate to contact me. I love this stuff.

The Pinterest Phenomenon

2012-01-30T14:36:00.000-05:00

If you are female, between the ages of 25-45 and spend time on the Internet, then you have probably heard of Pinterest by now. What I find crazy is that between the time that Pinterest started (March 2010) when it operated as an "open beta" and now, the site has just made leaps and bounds in popularity. If you were to look at a graph of Pinterest users, it is definitely an exponential one. In November of 2011, the site already had as many users as Facebook did five years ago. That's a lot, given that Facebook started in 2004, giving it two years to get there.

What is Pinterest? It's a social networking website based on the notion of visual sharing. Just like you have a corkboard at home and you "pin" your favorite recipes, motivational quotes, dreams, and the like...Pinterest is a virtual bulletin board that you share with the [Pinterest] world.

Who uses Pinterest? I'd say mostly women (though, there are men on there), artists, crafters, mommies, cooks, designers, fashionistas, dreamers, travelers, photographers, and other creative beings.

What is great about Pinterest? The search function. Where the search function for Facebook and Twitter both still have serious problems (in my opinion), Pinterest's is pretty darn good. Sure, if you search "New Orleans" there might be some pins that show up that actually have "New York" in them, but that's just a matter of exact matching or broad matching. Yep, how simple and fantastic!

What else is great about Pinterest? The simplicity. The designers who put this site together either had it all figured out from the get-go, or they had some ran some great usability tests / focus groups. Well done!

What is not great about Pinterest? Addiction!! If you are a fan of this website, then you'll find yourself sweeping through board after board and pin after pin. It's like an encyclopedia of creativity. Throwing a party? Get some ideas from Pinterest. Need to make dinner? Get some ideas from Pinterest. Want to entertain your children with new crafts? Get some ideas from Pinterest. Redecorating your home on a budget? Get your ideas from Pinterest. .... and I could go on!

My advice to you, if you have joined the amazing and endless world of Pinterest, is set time aside in your calendar to search Pinterest. Do not go over that time allotment. You will regret it later. Happy Pinning!

How do you Measure Social Media Results?

2012-01-23T17:12:00.000-05:00

How do you measure social media marketing results? You are spending money, you're building a fan base, but do you know whether you are heading in the right direction? Do you know whether your social media campaign is helping your sales?

One of the first things I always tell people is to start with your strategic goals. Write them down. Remember why you started a business to begin with. Some people don't want to turn a profit for themselves, but rather want to reach out to millions of people around the globe. Therefore, write those goals down. You will need them when you decide how to measure social media results. Get as specific as possible. Determining your business goals is extremely important to how you will measure your social media results and whether your measurements help out your business.

According to Social Media Examiner, there are "6 points of a compass" when measuring your social media results.

1. "Brand Health"

This measurement is not so cut and dry. But, it's not hard to determine whether someone is praising your brand or criticizing your brand. Researching your brand and what people are saying about you is extremely important when measuring your social media results. Keep in mind that you will never be able to "hear" everything that everyone is saying about you due to privacy settings and the amount of information that is captured, but also not shared with the world after a certain period of time (i.e. Twitter). Using Google Analytics can help with your listening campaigns.

2. Marketing Optimization

SME is kind of all over the place with this point. You want to make sure that when you are optimizing your website and your social media profiles / updates, you want to take into consideration the analysis of keyword search. You want to use Google Analytics, or your built-in web analytics, to determine which keywords are sending traffic directly to your site. Use those keywords throughout your marketing campaign.

3. Revenue Generation

In other words, is social media driving sales? Are you generating revenue? Social media is not generally expected to become direct sales. But, it takes time and strategic efforts to turn your social media followers and fans into customers or bigger and more loyal customers.

4. Operational Savings

When you are using social media as a way to connect with your customers and extend your customer service, you will ultimately save money on operational costs that you may have had without social media. Staffing. Crisis management. Public relations. Your customers also become your brand advocates, thereby cutting back on your cost to do further marketing or advertising.

5. Customer Experience

Read about Kraft Foods recent experience with social media and how it aided in the new and safer design of a salad dressing bottle.

6. Innovation

There are all sorts of ideas out there that people have not yet come up with. Social media (And, let's face it, technology) has created a whole new department of creativity and innovation.

Did You Miss the Golden Globes? Don't Worry. Twitter & Your Favorite Celebrities Have You Covered.

2012-01-16T16:14:00.000-05:00

I can't get enough of how social media is starting to (yes, I said, starting to) shape our lives and how we live. In case you missed the Golden Globes last night, there was no lack of both play-by-play, commentary as well as analysis from other celebrities. Here are some good ones:

(Katy Perry) @katyperry: Yes Downtown Abbey! Right on, imo. #sorryforthelivetweetingGG #itsgonnabealongnight

(Sarah Hyland) @Sarah_Hyland: Only me. I'll tell ya. Zipper blew on the carpet. I guess I ate too much :/ http://t.co/TybgHri1

(Alec Baldwin) "@SweetTeeWoods: @alecbaldwin what do they feed you at those type of award shows?" An international buffet of bullshit

(Joseph Gordon-Levitt) @hitRECordJoe: Zo shoulda had it, but speaking of Laura Dern, y'all oughta watch @davidlynch's Wild At Heart. @zooeydeschanel #goldenglobes

(Valerie Bertinelli) @Wolfiesmom: Salma and Sofia looked amazing...that's how you do a too tight dress, Madonna!

(Katy Perry) @katyperry: Madge looks goooooood. I'd tap that. #goldenglobes

(Sandra Bernhard) @SandraBernhard: i wanted kristen wing but michelle williams has channeled marilyn. she is so sweet about her daughter!

(Mindy Kaling) @mindykaling: Dear Brian Cranston, please be getting hammered with Poehler and @ZooeyDeschanel in the lobby.

(Katie Couric) @katiecouric: I've watched American Horror Story. It's great and kind of kinky! #goldenglobes

(Natalie Maines) @NatalieMaines: Madonna...seems to have picked up...Siri's speech cadence. #somodern

(Zooey Deschanel) @ZooeyDeschanel: I am wearing a gown but my nails are wearing tuxedos!!! #goldenglobes http://t.co/n4pN5GAH

(Juliette Lewis) @JulietteLewis: Matt Lablanc is talking like he just found out he's got jury duty. #GoldenGlobes

(Kelly Osbourne) @MissKellyO: shocked at how well behaved ricky gervis was tonight i know its bad but i really wanted him to be more like last year it was brilliant!

(Ellen DeGeneres) @TheEllenShow: I knew it! Congratulations Meryl Streep. Your performance was brilliant. #GoldenGlobes

(Melissa Joan Hart) @MellyJHart: I wanna be Michelle Pfeiffer!!!!!

(Justin Guarini) @justin_guarini: Since when is sublime pronounced "subleem"?! #ihatecommercials #goldenglobes

(Sandra Bernhard) @SandraBernhard: i just want to thank everyone for having the courage to still be watching the #goldenglobes

(Leonardo DiCaprio) @LeoDiCaprio: Busy night. Happy to be here 4 #JEdgar. RT @mobli @LeoDiCaprio on the red carpet at #GoldenGlobes http://t.co/ybzjMDIO

(Sarah Silverman) @SarahKSilverman: Sidney Poitier's hair was just kind of turned into a gas

(Mindy Kaling) @mindykaling: #goldenglobes highlights: Stringer Bell, Clooney cane bit, @sethrogen, Bryan Cranston's facial hair, Charlize Theron's headband. Good night!

What does not surprise me is that most of these tweets are from comedians, or actors that can put themselves in a comedian category. If the tweet isn't funny, then it's probably not worth reading. We can get news, and we can get info, but the best tweets make you laugh, cry, or gasp for air. (anyone remember when we killed Osama Bin Laden?) And, these celebrities (or their PR person...) made it happen.

On the flip side, many people (see: population of the United States) do not understand Twitter, or why they would join (on a personal level) because they see it as another way to read about gossip. Despite what you think, there are people out there who are not interested in a celebrity's analysis of an awards show. Marketers are trying to turn Twitter on to those people, and therefore, tweets like these won't go very far in that world.

Thank you to @mashable for offering this Tweet collection. If it weren't for Twitter, how would I know what Madonna was wearing or even who won? No need to set your alarm or your DVR to stay home to watch the #goldenglobes, because you now have a number of streams available to choose from!

The Social Media of Politics

2012-01-09T13:37:00.000-05:00

No, this is not about the politics associated with social media, but rather the social media that is associated with politics. The year 2012 is turning out to be a big political year, given that it is a Presidential election year (as they usually are big). I am not going to spew anything political one way or another here, but I do want to talk about how important social media is playing a role in the political landscape of both the primaries and the upcoming Presidential election this fall.

"Social media" is media no matter which way you look at it. The landscape of politics is so influenced by media, that we cannot ignore the importance of how social media impacts political influence and political thought. Instead of watching television to get your news, or reading the newspaper, people are turning to Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and blogs (oh, political blogs).

United States politics is supposed to put control of people's live in their own hands. (Whether that's true or not, is up to you to decide and I have no opinion on the matter) Social media allows politicians to speak to masses of people on a personal level. They no longer need to hold town hall meetings in order to be on a first name basis with someone in their district. You can now Tweet with your political office holders. Granted, most politicians probably have a PR person handling their social media accounts, but the People of the United States still feel closer to those in office (or those seeking office.)

This year, when the spotlight is on "the candidate," social media allows the candidates to bypass traditional media such as newspapers, television and radio and engage directly with their constituents whereby gaining support through social media platforms.

Even candidate, Mitt Romney, announced his formal bid for Presidential nomination through a YouTube video, showcasing his knowledge about the power of social media.

Politicians can share their ideals, their goals, their accomplishments, and more using social media. They can post photos, videos and anecdotes while on the road campaigning, or while visiting other countries, cities, or places of success of devastation. Social media creates a capacity of engaging the politician with their constituency. In turn, politicians are able to reach out to and listen to their followers, creating true supporters and possibly even volunteers.

It is true that social media plays a huge part in all of our lives now, and politics is nothing to shrug your shoulders at. Just pay attention to the debates and Twitter. Hashtags have made the debates even more engaging enabling people to pay attention and actively listen.

Please note: This post has no bearing or support for any political party or candidate. This is also mainly focused on the United States, but social media is playing a huge role in politics around the world as well.

What's Your New Year Resolution for 2012? Here's My SEO Resolutions.

2012-01-04T22:50:00.000-05:00

Photo by Chris Ratcliffe

Happy New Year! New Year's Resolutions are strange. People resolve to lose weight, eat better, quit smoking, be nicer, and all of these other attributes that one should concentrate on all the time. Regardless, you can always make a resolution that helps your work and business.

I recently read an article from Promotion World and the author came up with 12 SEO Resolutions for 2012. SEO is an ever-changing industry and you must stay on top of it in order to succeed. You are directly and indirectly competing with every website out there to rank better. I bring you six of Brian Easter's SEO Resolutions for 2012.

1) I resolve to stop buying useless links

I find this one funny because buying links is so 2000. SEO is not about buying links, and the relevancy of your website to a keyword does not depend on the number of links your page is linked to. This is a cheat method. Not a true and tried SEO method.

2) I resolve to make my #1 KPI conversions and not rankings or traffic

If you have a million people coming to your site every day because you rank #1 for (for lack of a better term) "pornography," but you are making $0, then your rankings and traffic are terrible key performance indicators of how well you are doing. You want conversions, people! Yes, if you have a 50% conversion rate, that's great...if you have more than two people visiting your site. So, although rankings and traffic are important, conversions are key.
3) I resolve to incorporate analytics and CRO into my SEO efforts

When measuring SEO, your analytics will pull you in the direction that you should be going in. Without checking your statistics and analyzing the data, you will be running blind and your campaigns are pretty much hit or miss. If you want to do it properly, you will have to make your next move based on the data and the facts. Why would you want to waste all that time and effort without knowing what will make the best results?

4) I resolve to measure actual conversion value since they are not all equal

I already mention that conversions are more valuable than your rankings & traffic volume, right? Well, just because Company A is measuring their lead conversions as a valuable KPI, does not mean that you should be too. Maybe you should be measuring those that actually purchase. To each his own, and to own is wise.

5) I resolve to create an integrated content strategy

When you write on your website, or your blog, or even your social media marketing channels, you need a plan. And, each of the pieces of the puzzle should be integrated in order to create the most effective marketing campaigns. That is why an integrated content strategy is key to your performance.

6) I resolve to stop writing poorly written, SEO-spammed articles

Okay, I am not guilty for this, but we all know they are out there and people continue to write them. Google has put a damper on content-farms and we hope that this will help minimize the collection of crappy articles we find on the Internet. Who wants to read an article with zero substance and 100 links in it linking right back to another article within the website. We want actions, people!

Here, you can read the remainder of the SEO Resolutions on Promotion World. I hope you can come up with some New Year's Resolutions of your own, but if not, these are some good ones to abide by.

2011: The Year of the Social Media Video

2011-12-27T10:46:00.000-05:00

Videos have been viral for many years now...basically since the Internet started and people could post videos online, leading the pornography industry which still remains the top dog.

But, YouTube and using it for social media marketing purposes (i.e. advertising - see, VW Star Wars) has come a long way. Last year marked the first year that companies chose to take their Super Bowl advertising dollars out of the budget (by choice, or no choice) and create an advertisement strictly for the free YouTube platform. So, what exactly were the most popular online videos (let's say, YouTube videos since it still dominates the online video arena putting Vimeo and others far behind) in 2011?

1) Ultimate Dog Tease - Dogs can talk!

2) Rebecca Black - Friday - Official Music Video

3) Jack Sparrow (feat. Michael Bolton)

4) Talking Twin Babies - Part 2

5) Nyan Cat (original)

6) Look At Me Now - Chris Brown ft. Lil Wayne, Busta Rhymes (Cover by @KarminMusic)

7) The Creep (ft. Nicki Minaj & John Waters)

http://youtu.be/tLPZmPaHme0

8) Maria Aragon - Born This Way (cover by Lady Gag)

9) The Force: Volkswagon Commercial

10) Cat Mom Hugs Baby Kitten

How to Use Social Media to Send Holiday Greetings

2011-12-19T12:03:00.000-05:00

Once upon a time, writing Christmas / Holiday cards was as important as brushing your teeth. Then came along electronic mail and websites such as American Greetings or 123 Greetings. Next, came along text messaging to multiple people at the same time as a replacement to wishing a happy holiday to someone. Sometimes you will call a family member or close friend that you do not see often to wish them a happy new year. Nowadays, your options have extended beyond all of this and you can now wish a Merry Christmas or Happy Hannukah to someone through Facebook, Twitter, or some other social media platform.

1) Post your American Greetings card on someone's Facebook Timeline. American Greetings has an annual paid service for approximately $20 per year where you can send people a number of different types of e-cards. In addition, they offer cards that you can post on someone's Facebook Wall or Timeline. These cards have a higher open rate nowadays due to spam folders and people's inboxes flooded with coupons from various retail stores they don't even shop at.

2) Wish your favorite celebrity Happy Hanukkah on Twitter. You no longer have to stick to your friends & family members to wish them a happy holiday. You can now reach out to celebrities due to their public Twitter handles. Want to send someone a greeting? Send them a photo or video now with Twitter! I'm sure Ashton Kutcher is looking for some lonely female photos this winter.

3) Offer a guest blogger to shout to family members. You know an expert in your field that is willing to write a guest blog post? Great! They can now wish your readers a very happy new year this year. The more wishes given, the merrier!

4) Wish the whole world best wishes through Google+! Now, with Google+, you can wish the public well wishes this new year. If someone were to google "well wishes" it is possible they will come up to your page and receive your wishes. Fantastic!

These are just some of the few ways you can use social media to wish the world a happy holidays and happy new year. Of course, you would be hard pressed to find someone that would turn down the good ol' Christmas card via snail mail.

What are the best e-commerce Wordpress themes?

2011-12-12T15:52:00.000-05:00

As a lot of people I know are trying to create their own websites using WordPress, I have been doing a lot of theme research lately. The theme is essentially the website design with some additional features, if needed. For instance, one real estate agent is looking at a theme that requires a plugin especially for real estate. A real estate agent is going to require different sections on their website than any e-commerce retailer. Therefore, I was curious which were the most popular e-commerce Wordpress themes and thought I would share them with you.

Trip Wire Magazine provides a good list of the best e-commerce Wordpress themes. Here are just a handful:

1) ABUNDANCE

Theme from: Themeforest
Plugin: WooCommerce

2) FRESHSHOP

Theme from: Themeforest
Plugin: Jigoshop

3) STORE

Theme from: Templatic
Plugin: Built-In

4) SOMMERCE SHOP

Theme from: Themeforest
Plugin: Jigoshop

5) SPORT AND GRUNGE

Theme from: Themeforest
Plugin: WP e-commerce

These are some pretty sleek, simple yet sophisticated themes that can be used across a variety of e-commerce retailers. From baked goods to sporting equipment to food and furniture, you are sure to find a good working e-commerce website design theme for your WordPress website.

Event Marketing is the Original Social Media Marketing

2011-12-07T14:53:00.000-05:00

Event marketing is the original social media marketing, though it wasn't digital. It requires attendance, communication, participation. It showcases activities, entertainment, information, networking.

If you host an event , whether it's a one time event or a recurring event (daily, weekly, monthly, annual, every four years....whatever), then you know how much work goes into it and how important it is to get your attendees to participate in activities.

Why is event marketing so similar to social media marketing? Because it is social! And, because social networking is just an event taking place online.

Now, if you host events today, you should know how important it is to integrate today's social media marketing with your event marketing. Here are some tips you can take away:

1) If your event exists off line, there should be a "meeting" place online. Whether this is a website where people can interact, or just a Facebook page, there should be a place where your past, present and future attendees can all meet up prior to, during, and after the event.

2) Pictures & Videos! Someone can't make it to your event? Then, you'll want them to feel like they are there with pictures and videos.

3) Real Time. Having someone Tweet live from an event is just like hosting a Tweet up linked to your event. Someone not sure if they want to spend money to attend your event this month, but you're having another one next month? Prove to them why it's worth it. Real time updates will allow your online attendees have an opportunity to get a feel for your event.

4) Make people feel special. This is kind of vague, but it's true. It's true in all marketing platforms. It's easier if you can integrate social media with your event. If they are attending an event with 100 people, there might be 1,000 people online also "attending" the event. The audience is bigger. By point them out of a big crowd, you can make them feel special (though, keep it positive!).

5) Make it a game. I have to admit that I use Foursquare because I want more points than my friends. It's a game. It has no prize but pride. If you can create a virtual game that incorporates being at the event, participating in activities, writing reviews, posting photos or videos, then you will see a jump in activity and engagement.

These are just merely a few tips on how to incorporate social media into event marketing. If you are looking for more ideas, you can contact me and I will be happy to discuss your event!

#CyberMonday Deals! Who's #Winning?

2011-11-28T17:21:00.000-05:00

Want to know how your Cyber Monday deals can be seen by as many people as there are on the planet? Check out the top paid search and search engine optimized sites for 2011. Do you want to be there next year? I can help.

Cyber Monday Deals Are Here, Who Has Optimized to the Top and Who is #1 on Google AdWords?

Thanksgiving Week: What Are Consumers Searching?

2011-11-21T13:14:00.000-05:00

Black Friday looms upon us (if it's called "Black Friday" you would think it's a gloomy holiday...but clearly people get excited about it). What used to be a day where consumers would line up at Circuit City (RIP) and Toys R Us at 4 a.m. for the 7 a.m. doors opening, is now...midnight openings at stores, Black Friday deals online (Amazon) the prior Monday...and a hefty bidding war on keyword terms.

Since it's already November, I know you've already set up your campaigns, tested them, and chosen your keywords. But, if you are curious (whether you're a marketer or just a random SEO nerd) what people are searching for, here are a list of top holiday keyword terms (in no particular order):

1. walmart black friday ad 2011

2. sweet potato casserole

3. cyber monday

4. cranberry sauce recipe

5. green bean casserole

6. best buy black friday 2011 ads

7. christmas

8. black friday ads

9. black friday 2011

10. frases

11. kay jewelers

12. benetton

13. nike

14. coupons

Most of these are not long-tailed keywords, so don't use this as advice on what you should bid on. It will be expensive and your CTR and conversions will probably be very low.

Best wishes this Thanksgiving and Black Friday. I am thankful for my loyal readers and hope you enjoy my posts.

Usability Testing: Does My Website Require It?

2011-11-14T14:45:00.000-05:00

Website design comprises of many different facets of design, but also includes navigation and the 'usability' of a site. What does this mean? Usability refers to how easy or complex a product or design is for a user to navigate. Many websites have a goal of converting, while others may just want to provide the user with information that is easily accessible. Regardless of your website's goal, your website's navigation and usability will help determine how successful you are at attaining this goal.

What is usability testing? Usability testing is a method used to analyze a product by testing it. Sounds simple, right? It can be.

How do you test a website for usability? You can do an independent review of a website by a usability principal with a set of goals in mind as well as standard usability heuristics and web principles. You can also perform a usability test with a facilitator and observer. This is a very detailed and more accurate test than using a principal to review your website.

What are you testing? There are a few principles you should definitely test for including, but not limited to, understanding the navigation of the website, directing a user to your purpose, and how easy it is for a user to guess where to find things on your website.

What do you want to find out? You want to know if they can find what you are asking them to look for, how do they interact with your site, what confuses the user, where does the user get lost, what makes the user feel insecure, what does the user like and/or dislike.... among a number of other questions you can ask yourself.

So, does my website require a usability test? It won't hurt and it can be relatively cheap. If you need to consult an expert to come up with a list of questions and tasks for your user to complete, then you may have to shell out a few dollars, but if you conduct everything in-house, find a reasonable compensation for your user, then you are well on your way to a usability test to get closer to your website's goals!

Google+ Introduces Google+ for Business Pages

2011-11-08T08:22:00.000-05:00

It's like Deja Vu all over again, really. You no longer need to create a personal profile for your business on Google+, you can now create a business / brand profile (but, you must have a personal profile set up first in order to do this...just like a small known competitor of G+...). Okay, not a small known competitor. Google's goal of dominating social media marketing just begins.

The similarities of Facebook Pages and Google+ Business Pages are eerie. And, not surprising. I know that Google has taken a prototype, in Facebook Pages, and will eventually unfold an amazing navigation that will enable users to interact and show their appreciation and interest in certain businesses and brands. I do believe that G+ Business Pages will make G+ a little more popular. Hopefully a lot more popular because I'm ready.

People don't like change and it took years for Facebook to become a mainstream tool. I sat in a meeting the other day determining whether we wanted to create a Google Groups or Facebook Group (Google won) which was very interesting given that there are still people not on Facebook today. If you work in business, though, the likelihood is very high. Given that everyone is now on Facebook, do people really want to "make the switch" over to G+? Haven't we done this already? Didn't we, at one time or another, have a Friendster, MySpace and Facebook page? Was that overkill? Friendster is dead. MySpace has been bought, sold, ripped to shreds and singled out. Facebook has become an evil empire of sorts. Google, on the other hand, dominates so many markets (that you would never have even thought would exist at any point) that it's hard to even think of life without them. I honestly believe that people will make the switch. They've done it before. In my opinion, it's almost similar to getting people to 'like' your Facebook Page. You need to give them a reason. So, Google+, what's our reason for joining?

Guest Blogger: Marketing, ETC

Happy Halloween!! And...Happy Holidays!! SEO Tips for Holiday Season

2011-10-31T14:39:00.000-04:00

Happy Halloween from RJ Web Dev!

For most, Halloween means trick-or-treating, wearing costumes and separating your kids' Halloween candy ... one for you, two for me. For others, Halloween means the beginning of the holiday shopping season and that means you have already planned your inventory stocking, marketing campaigns and maybe even your web presence. Does your company set up a special Google AdWords or SEO campaign designed to boost your rankings or presence during the holiday season.

I wanted to bring you some very important tips to remember when setting up your SEO campaign for the holiday shopping season. A more extensive explanation can be found here at Searchengineland.com.

1. No need for a code freeze

2. Do a quick audit of your site

3. Arrange your internal links for holiday shoppers

4. Revise your meta descriptions for holiday shopping keywords

5. Remember the 80/20 rule

6. Who doesn't want something "Free"

7. Blog, blog, blog!

8. Don't just blog....participate in other blogs!

9. Be where your customers are. Listen to your customers. In other words, engage in social media!

10. Connect your offline campaigns with your online campaign!

I wish you all a very happy, safe and fun Halloween. And, remember, if you have any SEO questions for this holiday season, I am happy to help you. No trick!

Google Decides to Delete the + from the Search Box

2011-10-24T17:31:00.000-04:00

I just wanted to point out to you that Google has decided to eliminate the ability to use the + sign when users type keywords into the search box. I read a great article about this from SearchEngineLand.com and I wanted to bring it to your attention.

The best conclusion from this article is that Google removed this because they have big plans for their social network. In Google+, if you type a + you will direct what you say to someone in your circle. Similar to the @ symbol in Twitter and Facebook.

Here's SEL's take on it. I also think that Google's explanation of why they removed the + from the search options...is confusing. Hence, why I agree it has to do with Google+.

Occupy Social Media: Would Occupy Wall Street Exist Without Social Media?

2011-10-17T12:07:00.000-04:00

I am going to be completely honest here. I knew about Occupy Wall Street (and the various other Occupy [Insert Random U.S. City Here]), but was not 100% sure what the objective of all these protests were. I understand why they are protesting, but, for what? That's besides the point. It led me to read as much as I could about OWS which led me to this blog: http://www.occupytogether.org/ Is social media the reason why OWS can grow to the level it has grown?

So, without a blog. Without Twitter. Without Google+. Without Facebook. Would Occupy Wall Street be what it is? Where would people post their infamous notes indicating they are part of the 99%?

Ten years ago...what would it be? Would there be a website where people can upload photos? Well, that would make it a social networking site. Therefore, Occupy Wall Street, is the result of social media. Isn't it? It's the epitome of people around the country getting together because of a specific cause and creating events based on communication over the 'net.

I guess in all the questions I have, I can conclude that it's a movement. #occupywallstreet means something today that it wouldn't have meant in 2005. Sure, the movement could have existed, but it may not have the momentum that it does today - it may not have moved away from NYC like it has today - and it may be harder for people to catch on. This is the ultimate social media campaign.

Tribute to Steve Jobs: Timeline of a Legend

2011-10-10T12:00:00.000-04:00

As you all know by now, the great visionary (is that a noun?), Steve Jobs, passed away last week at the tender age of 56, losing his battle to pancreatic cancer. This resonated around the world, as many people paid tribute the great founder of Apple and all things i-.

As a web designer, you can understand the impact Steve Jobs' design and visualization had on all things web. Although he did not "invent" the Internet, nor did he define the algorithms for search engine optimization, but Steve Jobs laid the groundwork for everything. (Arguably, speaking).

If you have not watched Steve Jobs' commencement speech at Stanford University's 2005 Graduation, I present it to you here because it is one of the best I have, personally, ever heard:

Some of my favorite quotes about life, in general, come from this speech. If you did not know any of this about Steve Jobs, now you know. And it makes him seem even more of an extraordinary man. And, that he is, extraordinary. After his passing, I was trying to think of who else would be put in such high regard in the tech world. Possibly Bill Gates. Most definitely not Mark Zuckerberg. When Walt Disney died, did anyone believe that there would be another great creative thinker/leader? Will there ever be another Steve Jobs?

To get a little better information about what Steve Jobs did in his short lived 56 years on this planet, you can check out this timeline of Steve Jobs' life that I found, pointing out his accomplishments (one of which, birth).

You can also get a short summary on the greatest inventions that were created by Apple with Steve Jobs at the helm of its leadership.

And, in case you didn't know, Steve Jobs was fired from Apple and started two companies. One, NeXt, was bought by Apple (where he was essentially re-hired/acquired back to) while the other was Pixar Animation Studios, later bought by Walt Disney Company. Pixar essentially revolutionized cartoons and animation films. Toy Story was the very first Pixar movie, and not even close to being the last. It's amazing to think that one man started both of these companies. Let's take a moment to reflect on his famous words in our heads, so we can hope that more people will create and lead like Steve Jobs did.

"Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice."

"you can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something — your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever."

"Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking. Don't settle. As with all matters of the heart, you'll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking until you find it. Don't settle."

Sports in Social Media: How MLB Fared in 2011

2011-10-04T16:12:00.000-04:00

The Major League Baseball playoffs are upon us as we pick our apples, carve our pumpkins and sip our hot apple cider. This past season, MLB embraced social media by celebrating Social Media Day on June 30th along with the rest of the digital, nerdy social media world (Hey, who are you calling nerdy?!). The teams, and MLB, celebrated by offering sweepstakes to those who "Like'd" teams on Facebook, used specific hashtags on Twitter, and checking-in on Foursquare at the stadiums that were holding games that day.

During the 2011 State Farm Home Run Derby and MLB All-Star Games, fans could stay connected through Twitter using specific hashtags and following Twitter accounts.

MLB's Fan Cave was a big hit this year where two lucky die-hard, MLB fans were chosen to spend the entire season in a storefront in NYC watching every single MLB game. Celebrities visited. Everything was documented on social media from blogs to passerby's Tweeting it up as they walked by to videos of concerts that were put on in this glass enclosure.
Now that the postseason is here, you would not expect Major League Baseball to just stop their social media campaigns because fewer teams are playing. This is the most talked about time of year for baseball fans. And, boy, do baseball fans like to talk about baseball. Social media was pretty much invented for baseball fans to brag, rant, talk their mind, question, comment, spit, cheer, and just breathe baseball. Those Fan Cave buddies are great to follow and watch (they even have their own web series) because they are living and breathing this entire season.

Interested in following MLB's Fan Cave during this year's playoffs? @mlbfancave

Looking for their blog?

Additionally, there are a number of professional MLB players that tweet regularly. Want to ask Heath Bell about his role on the Padres? You can try to reach him @HeathBell.

MLB is all over social media like white on rice. We love it. In other words, Play Ball!

So Many SEO Myths. Which Ones Are True? Which Ones Are False?

2011-09-26T11:04:00.000-04:00

I have a friend who knows a little about SEO, but isn't an expert at all. Her aunt is always asking her questions, which she can answer authoritatively but advises her aunt not to take everything she says to heart. "Why?" asks her aunt. "Well, there are a lot of different experts in the field and each one of them has their own idea of what makes for good SEO content and what can increase the rankings of your website in the search engines."

While reading this article from Noupe.com, "The 21 Greatest SEO Myths of the Modern World," I was reminded of why search engine optimization is such a heavy topic and an ever-changing topic. I'm just going to list the 21 myths here and tell you which ones I agree with (most of them). I'd love to hear your comments as well...do you agree with all of these "myths?"

1. Google is the only search engine - I agree. I know this. Bing is actually an awesome search engine and you should consider it when building your websites.

2. You need to submit your website to Google - I agree. There are many ways to have Google index your website. Do not, do not, do not pay anyone to submit your website to Google.

3. You can "SEO" a website just once - I agree. It's an on-going process. And there needs to be analysis!

4. You don't need to worry about SEO - I agree. No explanation needed. Unless you're Coca-Cola, IBM or Sony (and countless other big brands), you probably should be concerned with SEO.

5. Your rankings don't matter - I agree. You won't be found on Page 10.

6. An XML Sitemap will boost your rankings - I half agree. You should have an XML sitemap. Without one, you may not be ranked as high. On the flip side, it's not going to "boost" your rankings.

7. Keyword domains trump all other tactics - If you put it that way, I agree. Though, it will not hurt you and can, also, help you.

8. Copying a competitor = a strategy - Unless you know what you're doing, I agree. You should know what your competition is doing. But, you shouldn't copy their strategies. It might actually work against you because search engines are smarter than you think.

9. Meta data is worthless - I agree. Although it does not hold the rank & file that it did in 2000, it is still important and should still be there.

10. You can learn SEO by reading up - I agree. Duh. This is my whole point. You cannot know everything about SEO just by reading about it. You need to actually practice it, study it and test it. First-hand experience is your best teacher.

11. Google Adwords can hurt/help your rankings - I agree. This is a huge myth. Some people refuse to believe this isn't true.

12. Google will never figure out what I'm up to - I agree. JCPenny. 'Nuff said.

13. Scraping is a content strategy - I agree. You cannot have duplicate content and you must have legible content. Therefore, this is a terrible strategy.

14. Keyword density rules - I agree. This may have been the case one day, but the search engines realized that those are not the websites people are searching for. Therefore, they are not ranked lower.

15. You should crank out as much content as possible - Again, if you put it that way, I agree. Though, I also am a big believer that you should have original, fresh content and once per day is not too much. Make sure your content has relevancy, though, otherwise it may hurt you.

16. There's an ideal word-count - I only agree in regard to SEO. Okay - this article is about SEO rankings, but I disagree that there is an ideal word-count. Studies are done, people read to an extent online. If you don't want people leaving your site, you should stick to a under 500 word-count. Otherwise you get into too much scrolling, less interaction and fewer actions.

17. It's all about great content - I partially agree. There are other components to SEO, but if you are a small business and don't have the resources to put into managing these other components, you should remember that it is all about great content, because that is what you have control over.

18. PageRank is the only metric that matters - I couldn't agree more. This is a Google tactic that gets refreshed every so often, and has no bearing on your search rankings.

19. Toolbar PageRank and PageRank are the same thing - I agree. The Toolbar is never up to date. Don't rely on it for accuracy. You can use it to get an estimate gauge on a site, but that's about it.

20. Quantity of links is what matters - I agree. Quality over quantity, relevance over quality.

21. No-follow = Not worth it - I agree. You need some no-follow's to make the site look like you actually built it and not a bot.

So..which ones do you agree with? Are there any other myths out there that you can think of?

Now Trending: Qwikster & Reed Hastings

2011-09-19T17:00:00.000-04:00

In case you woke up this morning and missed an e-mail in your inbox, or you missed the news, you didn't sign onto Facebook or Twitter, and you haven't spoken to a single soul (hey, some of us work from home!)...then you may have missed the apology letter from Netflix CEO, Reed Hastings, this morning regarding the recent price increase for Netflix services.

In July, Netflix increased their pricing by splitting their DVD and streaming services. They offered little explanation. It caused chaos back then. My first thought this morning when I opened his e-mail, was that for the last couple months his PR department must have been fighting him on writing this apology letter. Unfortunately, I also think it was too little, too late. He didn't really get into why prices went up so dramatically, but he did explain that they were separating their DVD service from their video streaming service. This caused more chaos in the social media world as he announced the re-branding of Netflix's DVD service...to Qwikster. Really?

He actually indicated that the two services will now have two completely different URLs and they will not be integrated with each other. Okay, that explains some of the price increase ("some"), but how is that user-friendly and how does that help cross-promote the two? We shall see. I'm just perturbed by it all. In July, I chose to cancel the DVD service because I hardly ever watched the movies. I'll keep the Netflix video streaming, because it's convenient. But, is it really necessary to separate the two for those people who actually want both? I guess there aren't many of those people out there. Are DVDs a thing of the past?

Qwikster & Reed Hastings are both trending topics this morning on Twitter. Apology not accepted, as it turns out.

Remembering 9/11 Ten Years Later...Through Social Media

2011-09-12T12:38:00.000-04:00

As we all know, yesterday was the 10th anniversary for the horrific 9/11 terrorist attack to the United States.

As many people gathered at various sites to hold candlelight vigils, sing the National Anthem, hold a moment of silence, say a prayer, sing a song or, simply, remember, the events, many more people were reaching out and remembering online through social media and social networking. Are we surprised? Absolutely not. Did this change things? I believe that it brings people closer together. As I sat on Facebook yesterday, I read countless anecdotes of where people were at the exact moment they heard about the Twin Towers. I read about a friend who worked in one of the Towers, but he chose to vote that day and head into work late. So many of his Facebook friends had no idea. It's amazing what social media can do to make people look in a different light.

I found this blog on the NYTimes blog and absolutely loved it's account of how social media shaped the 10th anniversary of 9/11. To take a bit out of the blog, check out the numbers and Twitter trending:

The volume of conversation about the 10th anniversary has grown exponentially on Twitter since Sept. 2, based on an analysis by Trendrr, a social media analytics firm. On Tuesday, Jason Damata, of Trendrr, said there were 135,000 posts on Twitter about Sept. 11, 238,369 on Thursday and more than 451,350 on Friday. The most commonly shared hashtags, he said, were #9/11, #911 and #neverforget. And the top five cities posting about the anniversary have been New York, Washington, Los Angeles, Philadelphia and Chicago.

There's even a new Facebook App that acts as a tribute to the events. YouTube created a channel dedicated specifically to 9/11.

What did I see? I saw a lot of Twitter posts. When you think about the term "a lot," I mean a LOT. Also, about 80% of Facebook friends had something to say about the remembrance. Groups were dedicated around the events. Business Facebook Pages all had something to say about remembering. Sports teams all remember where they were, what they were doing, and how it affected them. Videos of children singing songs about NYC were posted all over the web via social media. In my opinion, if you didn't show up to a candlelight vigil, moment of silence, church congregation, or event site, you weren't left out. This was about the United States of America remembering who we are and what makes us different. We came together offline, but we also came together online. God Bless America.

Is BranchOut the next big thing?

2011-09-09T12:35:00.000-04:00

I signed up for BranchOut a few months ago. Didn't really think much of it. I was just sitting around on Facebook and noticed someone had signed up for it. So, I did too. How can I not be a part of another work/job-focused social networking website?

I haven't touched it since. I knew two people (out of my 850+ Facebook friends) that were a part of it. I didn't even know what the point of it was, considering I used LinkedIn for most of my networking contacts. Oh, I did invite "friends" to join. I really only invited my closest friends and colleagues that I knew would be interested in it.

I've started receiving e-mails in the last week or so indicating that more and more people are connecting with me on BranchOut. "How interesting," I thought. Why are people joining this App? I don't even know if the website is of any use - it's basically a Facebook App!

Well, now I know why all of these people are starting to join the website, regardless of whether they know what to do with it. (I'm actually starting to believe this is the second coming of Google+...I won't be surprised if Google buys BranchOut).

BranchOut Making SEO Push With Vanity URLs

There you have it, folks. What do you think? Is BranchOut worth joining? Or it is just another social networking fad.

SEO Plugins for your WordPress Blog

2011-09-04T16:18:00.000-04:00

Out here in Northern New Jersey, we were hit hard with Tropical Storm/Hurricane Irene last week. So, my apologies for the late blog as I got settled in after losing power for a few days.

I know that I talk a lot about blogging and search engine optimization often and I recently came across a post by Searchenginepeople.com that outlines the best SEO Plugins for your WordPress blog. I thought this was particularly interesting as most bloggers I speak to are very interested in increasing their search rankings for certain keywords, but aren't sure where to start or how to monitor it. These five PlugIns will help you with everything. As I mentioned in a previous blog post, although I don't use WordPress, I believe it is one of the best blogging platforms for those who want to use their blog as their website and blogging is their primary line of work. Here are the best SEO Plugins for WordPress, according to SearchEnginePeople.com.

1. All in One SEO Pack

You can customize Meta HTML for those who don't know any coding. You can also change your title, image tag descriptions, and keywords.

2. Google XML Sitemaps

If you want high search rankings, you want a Google XML Sitemap on your site. This plugin will help you increase your changes of being indexed by Google quicker.

3. CBnet Ping Optimizer

Ensures your blog doesn't ping unnecessarily every time you save something.

4. SEO Smart Links

This plugin automatically creates links on your website! Saves you a lot of time.

5. WP Super Cache

This plugin caches your pages to speed up on your website reducing load time (thereby increasing rankings).

What Does Google's Acquisition of Motorola Mean to You?

2011-08-22T00:00:00.000-04:00

In the last few weeks, attention has shifted from the growth of Google+ to Google's purchase of Motorola. It's amazing how short our attention spans are. While Google+ probably has a lot of changes coming up in the near future (i.e. the addition of Business Accounts), it seems that it has become a stagnantly used social networking tool. If you take a look at everyone who is actively using Google+, you will be pleasantly surprised (or not surprised) that it is all bloggers, web developers, IT officials and anyone else who finds the Internet, computers, and social media public relations to be the be all and end all of society. (Who...me?)

Anyways, Monday morning, 8/15, Google announces their purchase of the giant hardware telecommunications company, Motorola, for $12.5 billion or something like that. I think I sat stunned for an entire day which is why I was unable to blog about it last week. Wow. Really? At first, I was thinking...so we're all going to be walking around with Google in our ears. Well, something like that. Google basically paid for Motorola's patents, which is smart considering their recent accusations by Apple (I believe they are still in meditation? Does anyone know the deets on that?). Google still has to have this purchase approved by the SEC and other governing bodies as well as accounting firms. So...let the games begin.

Meanwhile, I read so many articles in the past week about the sale to Google that I would like to share with you some of the more interesting articles. For instance, a BNET columnist pointed out 12 of the products that Google just bought. This one was funny and I highly recommend reading.

Geek.com has the best explanation of the Google sale, why it happened, what they plan to do, and whether it will go through or not. I highly recommend this reading as well.

There you have it, folks. You are watching a giant monster (no one said monsters are terrible...check out Monsters, Inc. for more details confirming that) gobble up all the little guys or the necessary pieces of the puzzle. Kind of like in Transformers when all the cars have to combine together to make one huge one. Yeah...

Good Homepage Web Design, 8 Tips from Mashable

2011-08-15T11:12:00.000-04:00

In a recent article by Mashable, the popular internet marketing blog website, one of the lovely writers gave us eight tips for small business homepage website design. It’s a great article and therefore, I would like to bring it to your attention and give you my thoughts on each of the points as well.

1. Keep in Simple

You would think that is a fairly “simple” principle to follow, but the more websites I work on that want to be ranked organically high, the less easy it seems for businesses to understand. User navigation is a key principle to ranking well and therefore a simple design is typically going to leverage that navigability. She goes on to say here that large companies can afford clutter on their site because people have become accustomed to their sites. That may be true for some, but it also means that they cannot afford to have a redesign of their site any time soon. That will ultimately leave users frustrated and overwhelmed.

2. Be Scroll Conservative

Above the fold, above the fold, above the fold…actually, just keep everything above the fold and try to eliminate the scroll bar as effectively as you can. This is why determining the navigation of your site is so important. And keeping your site simple is important as well. The more clutter you have, the more likely you are to have a scroll bar…one that might scare away your users and potential clients.

3. Display the Right Links

This sounds simple, right? You’ll be surprised how many small businesses forget to put a “Contact Us” section on their website. Or they don’t even have a section for their product or service that they are selling. In this Mashable article, she says a good rule of thumb is “About, Product, News.” I have to agree…although, keep in mind that ‘Product’ could also mean ‘Service’ and ‘About’ should at the very least include ‘Contact’ information.

4. Keep Featured Products Above the Fold

Since I agree that you should keep scrolling to a minimal and almost everything should be above the fold, this is about as straight forward as it gets. You have a nanosecond to impress your potential customers and those who end up on your website. ‘Wow’ them in that nanosecond.

5. Make It Current

In addition to giving your readers a reason to come back to your website, current news is important for your search rankings. It’s also important to stay up to date to make sure that people aren’t coming to your website and receiving incorrect or old information. The worst thing you can find on a website is old or outdated information. It shows that the owner of the site is not on top of things and can turn people off in a second. Always make sure to update your website with new information!

6. Create a Homepage That Reflects Your Physical Theme

Marketing 101 at business school is brand consistency. If you create brand consistency, you will have a better chance of growing your brand and creating awareness. Your website is one of your most important marketing tools so it should not be left out of the equation, but rather set an example of brand consistency for all your other marketing tools.

7. Attach a Featured Image to Your Homepage

I found this tip to be interesting, yet completely necessary. When people link to your page, it looks so much better if there is a compelling image included than say some generic arrow on the site or the Facebook logo. Use your own logo if you can’t figure out what a compelling photo for your business would be. Images of your face are not always the most attractive if no one knows who you are.

8. Be Quirky!

I LOVE this advice. Quirky creates lasting impressions. It puts smiles on people’s faces. It’s different. All of these are reasons why you should be quirky on your homepage. Have no creativity? Hire someone else. Hold a brainstorming session with your entire team. Start browsing other websites. Have a few drinks and then start brainstorming. You’ll get there, I promise.

Thank you again to the Mashable writer for the article and I hope that my commentary makes some sense. Good website design for a small business is extremely important in this day and age. If you don’t have a website, then it’s time to start thinking about getting one. Have any questions? Comment here and I’ll be happy to answer your questions.

Google+ for Marketers: Video Tips from Experts

2011-08-08T10:10:00.000-04:00

I recently came across a great video from the makers at SEOMoz.org discussing how to effectively use Google+ as a marketing tool. In its early stages, Google+ is being used most often by Internet marketers, whether they are bloggers, SEO experts of social media marketers. Here, SEOMoz discuss Google+ with the founder of Distilled, Will Critchlow. Here is the original article for Whiteboard Friday.

What are the Best Social Media Campaigns Ever? Ever?

2011-08-01T12:00:00.000-04:00

Ever.

That's a tough one. You can claim that social media marketing started long before social media marketing actually started. Sounds silly, but I think you catch my drift. Anyways, here's a little collection (five, to be exact) of what I think are the best social media campaigns EVER.

5) Gap / Groupon - This may not be considered one of the best social media campaigns ever by most, but I believe that Gap had the right idea and they succeeded. Gap offered a $50 gift card for $25 as a nationwide offering on Groupon. That alone brought in $11 million revenue and is probably one of the most successful Groupon campaigns ever. Their goal was to bring in new customers and they believe that they've succeeded initially. They will only really know their level of success by card redemption's and surveying those who use them to see about repeat business.

4) Hotmail - You can't deny that Hotmail did no advertising but still managed to sign almost everyone up for a Hotmail account simply by adding "Get Your Free Email at Hotmail" to the bottom of every outgoing email from a Hotmail user. If that's not viral, then I'm not sure what it is. Unfortunately for Hotmail, their competition is simply too much right now. They should also have better security as it seems more Hotmail users acquire viruses than do other email account types.

3) Old Spice 'Smell Like a Man's Man' - Mustafa is about as famous as Paris Hilton. Sure, he's on TV as a commercial character, but he's even more popular on the web. In one summer, Isaiah Mustafa was asked question after question on Facebook and Twitter. They filmed 186 YouTube videos last summer and the views and hits were out of this world (5.9 million on Day 1 alone...190 million in total and counting). Mustafa is an instant celebrity and has even proposed marriage to a female fan over the Internet. Oh, sales also soared 107% that summer.

2) OfficeMax / 'Elf Yourself' - This social media campaign still exists today (I believe) but was started in 2006 where OfficeMax allowed people to upload photos of themselves into 'elf bodies' to sing and dance online. They increased sales and brand awareness from this campaign and the 122 million elves that were created in just that year alone.

1) Blair Witch Project - I have to agree with FORBES Magazine here. Does anyone vividly remember the hype around this movie? People believed that this movie was real. I was only a small teenager when this came out, so I cannot actually understand how people believed the movie to be real, but they did. They posted on message boards, create fake newspaper clippings and more. The viral message about this movie was light years beyond other viral campaigns today. Bravo to the people who created this movie (and on a shoestring budget at that).

Why Do Blogs Fail? The "Examiner" Weighs In...

2011-07-25T13:32:00.000-04:00

Last week, my favorite social media marketing website, Social Media Examiner, gave us a brief explanation of why blogs fail.

Let’s explore these reasons and figure out if you are failing or not. (Please note: “failing” could be a subjective answer, in my honest opinion. If you don’t want anyone to read your blog but prefer to have the satisfaction of just writing…then these mistakes probably don’t apply).

According to Social Media Examiner, the top seven mistakes for a failing blog are:

1 – “It’s All About You”

I agree with this, if you are a business writing an industry blog. On the other hand, I have a client who writes a blog about herself. Why? Because she’s a personal trainer and fitness model / competitor. Her source of income includes personal training, but, on the other hand, her clients and potential clients are the type of people who want to read about her and about her accomplishments as a fitness competitor because they want to learn from her. Therefore, I don't always agree that writing about yourself is going to cause failure to your blog. As soon as this client started writing about herself personally, her followers skyrocketed.

2 - "You're overselling"

This is pretty self explanatory and if you are currently "over-selling" using ads, straight forward marketing messages, and more ads, then you might have to reconsider why you're writing a blog. Is it to make a quick buck on the site, or is it to gain a following of influencers who will spread your message virally?

3 - "You're not embracing outside experts"

I'm not quite sure if this is a reason a blog is a failure. This can be one reason, but I am pretty sure that if you do everything ELSE right and you don't embrace outside experts, then you're less likely to fail. I, clearly, embrace outside experts to the nth degree given that this whole blog post is paying homage to Social Media Examiner. (and I have praised some other blog experts...)

4 - "You don't produce useful information"

This is probably going to stand as my number one reason why your blog is failing. Well, see #5 below and add that one to it as well. If you aren't saying anything interesting, then no one is listening. If no one is listening, then the blog was never written (see: if a tree falls in the woods...). Write something that captures people's attentions. Why do you think "tabloids" are so popular? Learn a thing or two from them about interesting content information...but always keep your target market in mind!

5 - "You haven't made it easy for people to share"

This probably goes along the same lines as "if a tree falls in the woods and no one hears it, does it make a sound?" Well, if your blog exists, but no one knows about it, then are there really words on a page?

6 - "You aren't engaging people"

I am a culprit of this. I try to ask questions. I get some response. I'd love to get more. This is probably one of the most difficult aspects of a blog. It's like writing a book, but an interactive book. It's like writing marketing material, but you're not selling. It's like asking questions, but you can't force someone to answer.

7 - "You're not giving people a reason to return"

I think this kind of just is the sum of #1-6. If you have interesting content, and you're engaging people, then you're going to have people returning. Therefore, #7 is not necessarily a reason for failure, but rather it is the definition of failure (in this case).

Is there any other reason why you think your blog could be failing? Or someone you know has a failing blog?

NYC is Looking for a Web Design!

2011-07-18T12:00:00.001-04:00

Apparently, Mayor Michael Bloomberg and New York City are looking for a new web design for their website, NYC.gov. If you are a web designer, then you should apply (I may if I find the time!) and submit a design for their site. There will be a two-day event in NYC to determine finalists and then the public will vote!

Bloomberg says this about the event:

“Enhancing NYC.gov, New York City government’s website, is another way to make it easier, faster and more rewarding to get the information and services you need. The Reinvent NYC.gov hackathon is an opportunity to open up the redesign process to innovation and creativity from New York City’s incredibly talented design and development community.”

I would like to know what your idea of the New York City website should look like? Here is my opinion on the current site.

1) Boring!
2) NYC has a lot of life, it's the city that never sleeps...this website sleeps.
3) It's too busy and too much text on the homepage. To read everything I have to scroll down for five minutes.
4) Navigation seems pretty reasonable. Who is coming to your website? It's listed at the top. Bravo.
5) If I'm a resident, and I click on the resident's webpage, I'm not interested in reports on depression as the most important topic. I'm interested in when rubbage pickup is, street closings, where to print out certain documents, school calendars, and when the next street fair or parade is. Not articles about depression.

These are just a few of my initial thoughts. So, what do I envision then?

Design-wise, I envision NYC's nightlife. Central Park. Statue of Liberty. 9-11 Memorial. Empire State Building. NYPD. Macy's Thanksgiving Parade. Times Square. Wall Street. Ellis Island. Yankees Stadium. You get the idea. You want the feeling that you're visiting or in the city. Of course, I want to know the demographics of who is visiting the site. Is it more tourists or is it more residents? If it's tourists, you definitely want to make sure that you give people the sense that they're visiting NEW YORK CITY. Not...your local town government website. That's boring. I'm sorry, current NYC web designer. I just don't dig the web design.

What is your ideal web design of NYC.gov?

Google+: What Are People Saying?

2011-07-11T12:00:00.000-04:00

Now that Google+ has been launched and invitations have been re-instated, it seems that every other blogger out there (related to technology, social media, SEO, geekdom, computers, the Internet, Google, and...just general lifestyles) are writing about Google+ and their thoughts. There are guides, there are opinions, there are now even third-party apps popping up (URL link shorten-er, anyone?).
I thought I would share a few of the blogs that I've read and their opinions. I'll tell you that my current thoughts are...it's awesome. I particular love the Sparks stream, filtering my streams, the fact that I can place a person in many different circles, the Android app is killer, and on the app you can read a "Nearby" stream which, right now, has some pretty insightful stream posts.

Chris Brogan: Google Plus 50

Cartoon about Google+

The Next Web: Google+ is Set to Take the Social Gaming Industry by Storm

Marketing Pilgrim: Next Six Weeks Hold Big Changes for Google as We Know It

Soshable: 7 Reasons Why Google+ Will Succeed (and 1 reason why it will very likely fail) (with a cartoon on Page 2!)

MediaVision: Google Plus: Temporary Bus Pass or Permanent Passenger?

So, now that you have read a few of the opinions out there. What are your thoughts? Do you think Google has what it takes to overcome Facebook? I really believe this is the biggest threat Google has thrown Facebook's way. I'm not sure if both could survive in this world. To be honest, I believe one of them will go the ways that MySpace has and become a niche to a specific group of people, businesses, or industries. For instance, Facebook might be used for marketing tools while Google+....well, who am I kidding, Google is all about the money.

What is Google+ and Is it For Me?

2011-07-05T09:45:00.000-04:00

Google would like Google+ to be for everyone. If there are 12 billion (made that up) people on Facebook, then Google wants 20 billion people using Google+. Of course, that is really difficult when it requires an invitation to join and invitations are temporarily paused.

But, if you remember Gmail...it was the same thing.

Regardless, what is Google+? Google+ is Google's answer to Facebook: Take 2 (Remember Google Buzz). It is social media marketing built it with the "best" search tool around. I put best in quotations because some will argue against that. I might even argue with myself about that.

I digress. In playing around with Google+ so far, I have come to the realization that it will work much better once everyone I know is on it. For now, I defer to Facebook and Twitter. I have not yet come up with how businesses can use Google+ unless your brand is you (i.e. Chris Brogan) but that is in due time.

Google+ has a news stream similar to Facebook. The better part is that you can share with a select group of people, i.e. your Circles. This way you don't have to clutter up people's streams with content they don't care about.

Google+ is obviously integrated into search results, so if you're trying to promote yourself or your ideas, then make sure to create good content on your About section and more. If you're trying to hide from search results, I would suggest never signing up for Google+.

The +1 button is like a "like" button on Facebook, but actually has some meaning. It's actually quite complex and integrative with Google and can create wonders for paid search campaigns.

What a great way to promote Google-owned Picasa. I have not used it in many years, but if I plan to use Google+ then it only makes sense to share on Picasa in order to make sharing on Google+ that much easier.

I have not yet shared videos, but I am excited to do that because I often already do that on Facebook. What a cinch from YouTube to Google+!

There is a lot of exploring yet to do and I'm sure Google has a ridiculous roll-out calendar for the next couple years to enhance and integrate with all of their products. I'm nerd-excited. This is the ultimate search and social media marketing combination.

What are your thoughts on Google+?

Social Media Examiner Takes on Search

2011-06-27T11:45:00.005-04:00

Last week I introduced to you my favorite social media marketing website, Social Media Examiner. I was pleasantly surprised to read a great article about how to improve your Google rankings. In other words, the social experts are taking on search. Here is a summary of the article and a link to it. Let me know what your thoughts are.

1. Remember that it's about the user experience - So, when you're writing your content and determining keywords you should think about your users. What are they looking for and why.

2. Quality over quantity content - Nothing has changed. If you have too much text, users are turned off. Choose your words wisely.

3. Quality over quantity links - Having every other word as hypertext...is annoying to users. And will no longer help your rankings.

4. Utilize social media! - Google is incorporating your Facebook and Twitter (and other) profiles into search. So, write your descriptions wisely.

5. Google needs to know you exist - Use meta titles and descriptions so Google knows to stop and read (crawl) your page.

6. Duplicate content is non existent - If you have duplicated content, you don't get penalized. You just don't show up in search results.

7. Monetize wisely - Too much advertising is still a nuisance to users. It can also lower your Google search rankings because it is a nuisance to users. Google is here to serve the people.

Source

Social Media Examiner: It's like the Social Media Marketing Bible (non-religious)

2011-06-20T12:20:00.000-04:00

This blog post is a big shout out to my favorite social media marketing daily blog website, the Social Media Examiner. If you are trying to understand how to leverage social media as a marketing tool for your business, turning to this website on a daily basis (or receiving their RSS feeds as I do) is a wise choice. They offer tips, give case studies, talk about the latest in social media, interview experts, and more. Obviously, there are a lot of blogs out there that do the same, but Social Media Examiner provides very clean, easy to read, visually appealing and consistent content.

With that said, I just want to promote the founder of Social Media Examiner's new book, Launch. He is offering a FREE chapter in .pdf and it is a great start to probably a great book. I will have to pick it up myself and do a book review here. I encourage you to start reading the Social Media Examiner if you're looking for additional tips from some of the best in the industry.

Without further ado, here is your free chapter to Launch: How to Quickly Propel Your Business Beyond the Competition.

Social Media Marketing Tips for Restaurants, Bars & Cafes

2011-06-13T15:36:00.000-04:00

In my opinion, restaurants, bars, cafe's or anywhere that serves food, drink or entertainment has an enormous opportunity with social media marketing. I'm talking, gigantic-enormous.

Think about it. You have a location, returning customers, new customers, a product, a service, and a lot of creativity. The social networking and social media marketing for restaurants are endless. You can use social media to gain new customers, retain your current customers, provide promotions and give them an outlet to spread the message about your establishment. So, how do you do all this? This is where you have to go back to your original marketing plan and figure out what your goals are and who your market is. Now we'll start incorporating social media into your existing marketing plan and tweaking budgets where tweaking needs to be tweaked.

Here is a short list of social media and internet marketing channels for restaurants' marketing plans:

1. Foursquare: Foursquare is a location-based social marketing tool. It is based on GPS location services within the mobile devices and has become increasingly popular over the last 6-9 months. People check-in to a business or location when they are within 50 yards of that location or business. The businesses have the opportunity to offer promotions, specials and discounts for those who either check-in often (loyalty), check-in first (sense of urgency) or check-in with other friends (virally spreading the word). Check-ins can be commented on by other friends, photos can be left on check-ins, tips can be left about a location and photos can be added to a location. Make sure to add your Foursquare bubble window cling to your window so people know to check-in. If someone is within 200 yards or so, and you have a special going on, they will be notified of the nearby specials. This might be a way to attract new customers that would not otherwise venture into your location.

2. Twitter: I have been preaching that Twitter is an amazing tool for marketing, especially if you are trying to attract completely brand-spanking new customers who have never heard of you before. This is an excellent tool for your current customers to relay to their followers who can then "re-tweet" to their followers and if you have a good message, discount or just amazing information, your reach can become much bigger, much faster. Twitter has a great search tool which makes this possible. Some topics to tweet about include your daily specials, weekly specials, promotions, events, new dishes, hours, history of your food, images of your food, and the list goes on. Twitter is a real-time, immediate conversation with your customers. You can share articles and reviews about your establishment and industry to your followers.

3. Facebook: Facebook is a great place to send your current customers so they can receive the latest and greatest information form you. This is where you want to engage in dialog with them. Ask them what their favorite dish is or remind them of a weekly special: Thirsty Thursday! You can also now spread your message on Facebook to other businesses in the area by 'Liking' their business as well. This creates a great platform for local businesses to support each other. It doesn't always have to be competition with the guy next door, but rather sharing your customers with each other.

4. YouTube: Want to show off your employees, the bands that play in your establishment, a busy night at your restaurant, or just simply record a "welcome message" for your customers? YouTube is the second largest search engine and therefore, this is a great opportunity to put yourself out there for a whole new set of potential customers. Make sure you talk with an SEO specialist or read my blog post about search optimizing for videos to make sure that you maximize the potential of your videos. Use these videos on your Facebook page, your website and add them to Vimeo. You'll get more exposure, more links, and people will grasp a better understanding of who you are as a business, and what you can offer customers.

5. Your Website: It's no secret that you should have a website for your business. What you put on this website is important, as well as the design of your website. Navigatability is extremely important as well as making sure you have all the information people might be looking for on your website. Make sure to list your location (you'd be surprised how many businesses forget this), phone number, e-mail address or contact page for questions about reservations, events, or catering, menu with or without prices (though people get turned off when no prices are listed), images of your food, establishment and any entertainment you bring in, a calendar of events if you have them, promotions, catering opportunities, event opportunities, and more! How do you tie this into your social media marketing campaigns? Make sure to ask visitors to follow you on Twitter, or 'Like' you on Facebook, or if you have a blog, tell them!

6. Blog: This is a great way for your customers or potential customers to find out who your business is and who you are as a personality. As the owner, the chef, the booking agent, a waitress, a hostess, a sous chef, a bus boy, the caterer, the events director. It doesn't matter who you are. All of those people would make great blog writers for an industry or company blog. This is a great tool because it creates return visitors to your website or provides you followers with consistent messaging and information so you always stay top of mind. Just remember to be consistent with your delivery, try to create a niche for your blog (Are you a French restaurant? Stick to all things French cuisine or French culture for instance), and read up on these blog tips.

Now that I've covered a few of the social media marketing channels you should consider, here are a handful of social media tips to remember:

1. Determine how much time will be needed to manage this campaign.
2. Determine who will manage this campaign. Is it a shared effort? Someone internally? Hire someone else?
3. Tell everyone who works at this location about your ideas. Everyone needs to know because in the end, it will always be a team effort.
4. Commit to your promotions by advertising them on your social media outlets.
5. Start small. Pick a few of these channels and as your see the opportunities elsewhere, expand.
6. Be consistent! I can't stress this enough.
7. Answer your customers! This is almost the most important piece of the puzzle. It isn't social if you're not being social.
8. Consider apps! These may be a little pricier, but if done correctly, there is a great opportunity here to be creative and unique.
9. Be friendly. People go out to eat and drink to relax. Keep the same tone when you're out there on the 'net.

So, if you are a restaurant, a bar, a cafe, a diner, or any other food, beverage or entertainment establishment, get out there and market! Little budget is needed to start, but much planning is encouraged. What other tips do you have for restaurants? Any success stories?

Social Media Marketing....The Right Way

2011-06-06T12:00:00.000-04:00

There are a lot of people to claim they are social media marketing experts these days. This is actually great news because all businesses should understand social media marketing and therefore they will need to learn, if they don't already. Here are a few videos from and about so-called "experts" (some are..some might be...some I have no idea!). Some are funny, some are informative.

Which video is your favorite?

Constant Contact

The Social Media Guru (Explicit Content!!)

Social Media Expert Interview from Xtra Normal (Hysterical!)

Mari Smith, from Social Media Examiner

Social Media Marketing in 3 Minutes

The Social Media Expert Guru Super Awesome Person from Xtra Normal (Again...but they're so funny)

Social Media in Plain English

Ask your questions about social media marketing to RJ Web Dev. Figure out yourself if we're the "expert" you're looking for. Or, better, become the expert at your business.

XXX: Facebook Should Be Adults Only...Not 13+

2011-05-31T11:58:00.000-04:00

Mark Zuckerberg, the infamous social media marketing Facebook Mark Zuckerberg, believes that sub-13 year olds should have access to Facebook.

What?

No, Facebook is not allowing access to those younger than 13 years old, per the news here.

Apparently his words were taken out of context.

Here is my opinion: really Facebook shouldn't be accessible to anyone under 18 years old. Yes, my opinion, and here is why:

* Facebook has established itself as a lifestyle. It's where you go to communicate, create lists, play games, post pictures, RSVP for events, show your support to a cause, and more.

* Facebook is also a business marketing platform. This is twofold:
1) Facebook Pages are like free interactive websites for businesses.
2) Facebook Ads allows a platform for businesses to buy advertising targeted at an extremely targeted group

* Facebook is using whatever data you enter into your profile (whether it's for public consumption or not) to advertise to you. Whether this violates privacy or not, is a matter of opinion, but anyone under the age of 18 years old is not old enough to make a decision to join war, make a decision to vote, make a decision to watch inappropriate adult content, or old enough to consent to sex.

Then, why is someone under 18 years old already old enough to make the decision to post or not post the information about where they live, how old they are, photos of themselves, and the like. Then there are the other issues with preteens and teenagers on Facebook...cyber-bullying which has become a tremendous boom. Bullying will always exist, but normally it ends with the school day. Now, a kid can come home and continue to get bullied from the comfort of their own home. Those under 18 are not yet aware of the consequences that bullying does to others.

Additionally, I have a strong opinion about advertising, and online advertising. It's one thing to advertise on television the latest video games, etc. It's another thing to flash an ad, have a kid fill out their contact information and the next thing you know 25% of the teenage population has their identity stolen in the next 25 years. What? I know, that's totally absurd and paranoiac, but it's possible.

Social networking should be monitored, as it is to an extent, and we should understand that children are still children until they are 18 for a reason.

Web Writing Tips for an SEO: Blogging Checklists

2011-05-22T12:00:00.005-04:00

I don't think I've talked much about blogging lately. Blogging can be a great strategy for both your SEO strategy as well as your social media marketing strategy. Why? Well, for starters, if you embed your blog into your website, you are generating new content every time you publish a new blog post for your website and not only will you have more visitors, but uniques, and searches. I know that I use Blogger and it is not embedded into my website, but I have my own reasons for using Blogger (no, they are not paying me..but, they are owned by Google...).

I love writing about blogging. That's probably because I love to blog - though I don't do it often enough.

One of my favorite SEO's blogs to read is Ian Lurie and his Conversation Marketing blog. I can't stress enough how much I like this guy!

I have to share some of my comments regarding his recent "publication checklist." He helps you ensure that you write clean, professional, engaging, easy-to-read blog posts. In no particular order, here are Ian Lurie's pre-blog publishing checklist.

1. Check links: This seems so obvious because no one wants to click on a link that doesn't work. Makes your blog look sloppy and who gets embarrassed here? Not Ian Lurie, that's for sure.

2. Delete the first 2 sentences: I totally understand what he means by this. When you go to write a blog post, you get really excited and you start with an introduction to your topic. Unfortunately, your introduction is usually a bunch of mumbo-jumbo that no one cares about. Just get right into it already!

3. Count lines per paragraph: Writing on the web is different than writing an essay on paper. People have shorter attention spans (that could also just be today's world vs. 2 generations ago!) and if there are too many sentences in a paragraph...they are turned off. Period. Sad, I know.

4. Turn two words into one: Blogging is not as succinct as professional writing, so sometimes you write what you would say aloud. Don't do that. Clean up your sentences for the sake of the reader.

5. Link to related posts: Why have your readers read one of your blog posts? Link to the others! According to Ian, his page views went up 25% when he added his "other stuff" list.

6. Preview your post: I always have to do this. Sometimes the font looks weird. Sometimes the spacing is weird. It's always just weird, so I make sure to preview first.

7. Check spelling: Simple enough...

8. Check grammar: In this day and age, you might think it's okay to get away with a little bad grammar. And, it probably is. But, if you sound like you just completed 6th grade English, you may want to try again.

9. Use your noggin: Sometimes when you write a blog post -- it might be 11 p.m. on a Saturday night. Well, just because you are so excited to publish it...does it mean that you should? Absolutely not. Unless your readers are typically reading your posts on Saturday nights...but I find that hard to believe.

Thank you again, Ian. I couldn't have said it better myself and since I look up to you, I think so should my readers. The closer you follow these guidelines, the more readers you can attain. The more readers you can attract and retain, the higher your page ranks could get. Or...you could just show up in more searches. Good luck!

Source

Website Tips from Derek Halpern via Chris Brogan

2011-05-16T12:00:00.000-04:00

On this dreary Monday morning, you're probably checking your site stats, your sales, and trying to determine why are your website conversions so low. Okay, I hope you're not, but maybe you are. This morning, I saw a great under 10:00 minute video from Derek Halpern of Social Triggers discussing great website design tips. Some are very basic tips, but at the same time, listening to him explain it helps you understand why certain tips help you convert your website traffic into sales.

Please take a few minutes to watch this video, thank you Chris Brogan.

I agree with a lot of what Derek explains and if you can see at his site, Social Triggers, he implements everything that he describes.

If you like my blog, take a minute to subscribe to RJ Web Dev blog by clicking on the "Follow" button on the right.

Social Media Marketing: The Why & The Why

2011-05-09T10:08:00.000-04:00

We talk an awful lot about social media marketing here at RJ Web Dev. Why? Well, here's a few reasons as to why we think your business needs to be involved and engaged in social media marketing. Courtesy of Sociolnomics:

Additionally, here is a little clip to show which companies have proven that social media marketing can result in an extremely great ROI:

What are your thoughts on these videos? Do they prove anything or just merely showcase the successes in business? Well, we believe that because of these successes, this proves that if you engage in social media correctly, you have the opportunity to increase sales and exposure. The key phrase in that sentence is that you engage in it correctly.

Optimizing Your Social Media Profiles for Search Engine Optimization

2011-05-04T13:07:00.004-04:00

If you haven't been able to convince your management team whether they should be investing in search engine optimization or social media marketing, maybe some recent studies will be able to help with their decision making.

Did you know that your social media pages (Facebook Page, Blog Profile page, Twitter profiles, Foursquare profiles, etc.) are searchable and can show up as a search result on Google or Bing? Well, since this is the case, you are going to want to optimize your social media pages for the highest results in organic search.

Many of the most successful social media marketers are going to spend more time than just throwing up a bunch of words and descriptions on your social media profile. They'll invest time and effort in creating the content and distributing the content to fans, followers, those who 'like' you and so on.

Since each of these are orchestrated, updated continuously and related to your brand or products, then these profiles are actually very important! Unfortunately, in some cases, these profiles aren't easy for your potential customers to find through a Google, Yahoo or Bing search.

In a recent study, SEO platform, BrightEdge discovered that less than 1/3 of the top 200 Fortune 500 brands had Facebook pages appearing within the first two pages of Google search results for their brand's name. Almost HALF of those 500 brands didn't have social media profiles appear in the first FOUR pages!!

Twitter profile results were very similar so it seems that those who are spending the time on their profile pages are doing so on both Facebook and Twitter.

The good news is that all of the search engine optimization practices that you know, still apply to optimizing your social media profiles so you won't have to learn anything new. If you link your profiles together, this creates authority so this is a good best practice.

Making sure to update content, which is a SEO best practice, is also a good idea. So, freshen up your profile approximately one-two times per month.

Source

We All Have a Proven Track Record...Or Else You Would Not Exist

2011-04-25T16:26:00.000-04:00

I read a great article a couple weeks ago about writing your "About Us" page on your company website. It went through ten different words that you should never have on your website...more specifically on your 'About Us' page. Here are my personal thoughts about these words and some advice on a different word of choice:

As a small business, you should think about your audience...and those who matter: your clients, customers, potential clients, potential customers, and those who want your business. Because everyone else can read your website, love it, hate it, but if they're never going to pay for your services you might as well be that tree that just fell in the middle of the woods.

So...words you should never use. Right?

1. Innovative - The writer of this article says that everyone claims to be innovative when most really aren't. I believe you are able to use this word if you truly are innovative and can prove it.

2. Service Provider - The writer says that everyone is a service provider. My thoughts? He's right. Be more specific and claim what kind of service you provide. I don't actually even know what "service provider" means unless you are talking about a cable company.

3. Proven Track Record - Here's my response: duh! Yes, of course you have a proven track record. Everyone has a proven track record...or else it's not proven which means you don't have a record at all. Okay...so it basically means you've been in business for more than one client. Okay, great, now tell me what was so successful about each of these records / clients.

4. Unique blend of... - Okay so the writer says that only KFC (or other restaurant) can use this. I disagree. If you are truly UNIQUE, then okay. If you are a social media marketing company that also specializes in search engine optimization...well, I'm sorry to say you are not unique. But, you can be considered a blend. So...it's up to you.

5. World-Class - This writer is right. Unless you are Apple, Sony, Pepsi, Ford, or any other global brand...it is difficult to call yourself world-class. Go ahead if it makes you feel better, but you better live up to your description.

6. Collaborative approach - I think this is just a fancy way of saying that we will work with you. Well, and the writer states this, I think that's pretty much the only way you should be working with your clients...together! Unless your product is a non-customizable piece of software, product, program, etc. then as a "service provider" (ha!) you should probably be "collaborating" with your clients. Do not use this unless you want to sound fancy and confusing for no reason.

7. Outstanding customer experiences - I hope you have outstanding customer experiences. If you don't, then maybe you shouldn't be in business. If you're telling someone that they will have an outstanding experience...what do you mean? Do you mean that they will be successful, that they will enjoy working with you?

8. Dynamic - The writer thinks unless you are the definition "vivorously active and forceful" then you should probably keep this out. I disagree, as I believe if you are a company that keeps up with the times, makes adjustments based on needs, technology and the market, then you can consider yourself dynamic.

9. Myriad solutions - This does not explain what you do. You should be specific. If you are a full service marketing agency and you can provide solutions based on many different areas or mediums, then list those. Something doesn't exist yet that you might think of in the future? Great! But, you don't have to categorize it as "myriad solutions."

10. Results oriented - This should not be on your 'About Us' page so much as it should not be on your resume.

What do you think of these words? Are they on your 'About Us' page? Are any of these words on RJ Web Dev 'About Us' page? No, I don't think so. Let me check :-)

Facebook in China?

2011-04-20T22:39:00.000-04:00

I'm not an expert on all (or any) things China, but I do know that their strict government laws make it difficult for foreign Internet companies to bring their business to China. So, why is Facebook getting involved over there?

A recent article stated that Facebook has actually signed an agreement with the largest Chinese search engine, Baidu, to set up social networking. If you remember correctly, Google was in China but had to pull out last year because there was too much government censoring.

Is Facebook making a good move here? There are no details as to what Facebook is getting out of this, but probably a lot of money. They may simply be providing the technology, expertise, maybe manpower, and respect from Baidu and the entire country of China.

What do you think about Facebook's decision to embark on this? Is Baidu making the right choice to "buy" Facebook to develop their social networking? Essentially they are paying Facebook to create their own competitor? Seems odd and fishy, but when dealing with nations and governments such as the Republic of China, I would assume that it probably makes sense if the dollars (or yen) are there.

Internet Marketing: Video Marketing Tips

2011-04-11T11:58:00.002-04:00

I always stress to clients that video is a great marketing tool. You can use it in blogs, your social media platforms such as Facebook, your website as well as starting your own YouTube channel. All of these are great marketing tools as video is becoming increasingly popular among consumers and those seeking out information. Don't know how to fix your toilet? There's a YouTube video for that. Not sure how to change the oil in your car? There's a YouTube video for that. Want to wash your dog but not really sure how to do it? There's a YouTube video for that.

It's miraculous, but if you think about it - YouTube is the second most popular search engine behind Google (and, since it's owned by Google, Google just is light years ahead of the rest of the industry).

If you want to make videos, you don't need to be a professional or hire a professional. These days, home-made videos are just as popular, great for marketing and mainstream as a professinoally-edited video.

I recently read a few tips that are great for video marketing and thought I would share them with you.

1. Provide Value

I always say that when you are writing content, whether it be on your blog, your website, your Facebook page, your Twitter feeds, etc. You need to provide value! So, why should it be any different for videos. These should definitely provide value because you have to capture someone's attention for an extended period of time. Otherwise, no one will watch your videos for more than a few seconds, let alone in its entirety.

2. Remember Your SEO

Search engine optimization can be used for content, but it can also be used for video. Make sure to title your video appropriately, use targeted keywords for both the title and the description and even the links! Since YouTube is a search engine...make sure to optimize :-)

3. YouTube...and all of the other video sites..

There isn't really just YouTube. There's also Vimeo. There's also DailyMotion. There's also Metacafe. There are others too! If you're uploading to YouTube, upload to the others. Upload to your social media platforms such as Facebook and your blog.

4. It's Video..but You Need Content Too

Just because you are adding videos, doesn't mean you can eliminate your content. You need to know when video is appropriate and make sure to maintain a good balance between text and video.

5. Enjoy!

How much fun can video be? A LOT of fun! Some of the best videos are quirky but provide great value. Show your personality. Don't be a robot! In the great words of Madonna, express yourself!

Now that you have a few tips on how to use video as a marketing tool, make sure to go out and execute. Here are my two videos that show you how to get a website that have helped many people.

Source

Your Website: Why People Hate It

2011-04-05T09:02:00.000-04:00

I recently read a very informative, but straight to the point, article about why people might hate you website. As a website designer, I can attest to all of these, even #7. You will see why. So, here it goes - here are ten reasons why people hate your website:

10. Missing Information - Before you build your own website, you should think about the consumers who are searching for your website and what kind of information are they going to look for on your website. If you are missing anything key - people will be turned off, immediately.

9. Broken Links - Nobody wants to click on a link that takes them to a 404 error or the wrong page. It shows sloppiness and unprofessionalism on your part. Check your links twice, three or even four times before you go live.

8. Missing Contact Information - If someone is actually checking out you website, interested in what you have to sell, and wants to know more information about, you better believe you should have contact information available for them. How else are you going to make a conversion?

7. No Blog - Like I said, I am fully supportive of this one. I believe that a blog shows updated content and allows your users to interact with you. It's engaging. It's fresh.

6. SEO Farming - When you're writing for SEO, make sure you're also writing English. No one wants to read a sentence that has the same word in it three times in a row!

5. Poor Navigation - When someone comes to your website, they want to find what they are looking for. If you have poor navigation, you will only frustrate your users and possibly drive them away.

4. Confusing Layout - This is similar to poor navigation and if someone comes to your website and already doesn't know what to do because your directing them in all sorts of directions, then you need to re-think your user experience. Make sure they can easily find what they are looking for and direct them down a direct path.

3. Terrible Graphics - If your graphics and images are not appealing, you may turn people away from your site before they've even read one word.

2. Slow Loading Time - Many studies have been done to show that faster load times lead to more conversions. Anyone who has to sit and wait for an extended period of time will leave. And if they are waiting, then you are probably already doing well.

1. Too Many Ads - Google AdSense is great for some, but if you clutter your whole page with ads, people will think that that is the purpose of your website and possibly leave. It also distracts from the focus and navigation fo your website.

Have an outsider evaluate your website using these ten points. Ask them for their extremely honest opinion. Even better, ask a current client. They will tell you from their perspective. You can also turn to a professional website designer's opinion once you've evaluated you website to see what their suggestions could be.

Source

What to Expect From Your Corporate or Industry Blog

2011-03-28T12:00:00.000-04:00

Many potential clients want to know what the point of writing a corporate blog is. How do you measure the success of a corporate blog? There are some things to consider and some things to make sure you do when writing a corporate blog.

First you want to make sure that you know your goals before you know how to measure for success. Goals? How do I know what goals to use? I know that writing a blog is time consuming, so I want to make sure I have my goals in place first. Well, here are a few goals, or objectives, that you might consider before you choose to write a corporate blog.

1. You will learn to find out what your customer wants. Once you know what your customers are looking for, then you deliver it. It sounds much easier than it is, but it can be easier than you think! (Does that make sense?)

It is so much easier to find out what your customers want if they are reading your blog and comment on your blog. If you ask surveys or polls, you'll get straight up answers (if your readership represents your customers). You can look at the stats of your blog and see which posts get read the most, which have the most comments, the most inbound links, etc. All of this information will tell you more about what your customers want.

2. You will learn to build trust which includes generosity, humanity, authority and reliability. What I always tell potential clients is that a blog will put you in the position of expert in your field. By writing about topics that you know, you should your potential clients or even your current clients, that you know what you are talking about, that you are always researching your industry and you're always in the know.

By offering information, advice, tips and inspiration, your readers will see this as a generous way of reaching out to their readers, customers and potential customers.

By writing and publishing consistently, you will be seen as reliable by your readers. Make sure you are consistent...or else the blog will backfire and everything I'm talking about here...will not happen. ;-)

Writing a blog makes you a real person...if you write it like you are one. You want to sound like it's you speaking and not a robot..or "the company." This brings out the human in your company, rather that the web presence.

3. You should gain traffic to your website. Even though your blog is your blog, and possibly not your website, if you set things up correctly...everyone will be going to your website to read your blog. One thing to point out is that you want to set your blog up as part of your website (WordPress allows you to do this). Secondly, with the depth of content and the ability to rank high for organic searches, you will have traffic coming to your blog that would not otherwise find you when searching for a company like yours.

4. Your corporate blog should...drum roll...bring your revenue! Isn't this what everyone wants to hear? If you have learned about your customers, gained their trust and a lot more people are learning about you, gaining your trust and telling you what they want (which in turn you will give them), then you will eventually see a return on your investment. You will hopefully see conversions on your site, if you are doing everything correctly. Results will vary. One good thing that you can guarantee to save money is if people start asking questions or addressing their concerns on your blog, it will save you time and money to have someone stationed at a phone call.

So, remember that your corporate blog is part of your marketing plan. You can drive traffic to your blog, your website, your social media platforms, and even your offline marketing efforts such as events or in-house promotions. I truly believe that a corporate blog is one of the best online marketing puzzle pieces, especially for B2B companies. We'd love to hear your success stories...our blog has been a success. To you, we hope the same.

Source

Tips to Convert Social Media Leads

2011-03-24T18:30:00.000-04:00

If you are in sales, or you do a lot of the legwork for sales, you know how important leads are. Most businesses design their websites with the intention of capturing sales leads. And, those businesses that are utilizing social media marketing are also trying to capture leads. Have you been noticing lately that you are not generating enough sales leads? Or maybe you are getting leads that just aren’t workable. We have a little bit of advice for you.

First you must identify where in the process of obtaining and working a lead are you going wrong? You have to look at your sales funnel in order to identify this area and then eventually fix it. It could be possible that now that you are generating social media leads that the sales process to work these leads is not effective. Here are four tips that I found to help you convert your social media leads.

1. First, identify your traditional online leads

The reason you want to identify your traditional online leads is because you want to determine what the similarities are between these. Do you put up media buys through paid search, banner advertising or even affiliate advertising? You are probably using some sort of call to action, the lead is actively clicking, searching or even inquiring. These leads go through a shorter sales cycle.

2. Now, identify your social media leads

Your social media leads are probably coming through Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, Blogs, maybe even social bookmarking sites. What is different about these leads than your “traditional” online leads? These leads are engaging with your content, not a landing page or ad. But, are you sending them to the same landing page that your traditional online leads are being sent to? Well, if these leads are driven differently, engaging with you differently, then why is the landing page the same?

3. Differentiate between your traditional and social media leads

Let’s break out your leads into three groups: those who respond to direct conversion places, those who respond to indirect conversion places and those who respond to engagement conversion places.

a) Direct conversion places: These are people who respond to ads in order to buy your product or service. These people have clearly shown that they are interested in your product or service and want to buy it soon. More often than not, they are responding to a paid search, display or affiliate ad because they want your product or service.

b) Indirect conversion places: These are people who have downloaded an eBook, attended a webinar, or subscribed do your newsletter, e-mail list, blog, etc. They are interested in you, but maybe not necessarily in your product or service that you are trying to sell. You do have their contact information because of this.

c) Engagement conversion places: These are people who have read your tweets, clicked on your links, followed you, ‘Liked’ you on Facebook because they heard about you, maybe liked your status update or commented on your page. They interact with your company, but they haven’t shown an indication that they are interested in your products or services. You don’t have their contact information.

Since each conversion place is different, you must treat it differently. That is why you need to scrutinize your sales process when working the leads…all leads! You must work each lead differently in order to create a conversion. Time frames for social media leads typically are much longer and could take anywhere from 30 to 120 days to create a sale.

4. Identify where you are losing your social media leads

Now that we have discussed the different types of online leads, and you’ve recognized that each lead should be treated differently, it is time to determine where in your sales process you should make the change. Where, in your sales process, do social media leads fit? Now, what do you change?

The best way to approach this is to identify a lead or two and track it. Document how often you communicate with that lead and where they might fall off into cyberspace before converting into a sale. If you start to see a pattern, then you know that this is the point in which you need to alter your sales process for the social media leads.

Source

Social Bookmarking Tools

2011-03-14T14:26:00.000-04:00

I recently read a forum about whether Social Bookmarking for link building is a good idea. Let me tell you what my thoughts are for using social bookmarking as a social media marketing and search engine optimization technique.

If you do it methodically, diligently and with thought, then it is extremely beneficial to your web presence and eventually your search rankings.

If you decide to slap up a bunch of your pages onto any and all social bookmarking sites and then never visit the sites again...you may be setting yourself up for just a waste of time.

Here are some tips if you choose to go the social bookmarking route:

1) Don't expect your rankings to soar in a few weeks. This is still part of the whole SEO process and it will take time.

2) Find niche sites for your business's industry. The market and quality of your content might be more important that slapping up some links on StumbleUpon or Digg.

3) Join relevant groups and lists for your business's industry on these websites. This will ensure targeting the right market and allows others to find you easier.

4) Monitor your traffic from these sites and determine which work the best, and concentrate on those few.

5) Only submit relevant articles or content to these social bookmarking sites. If your content is not relevant, no one will take you as credible.

6) Use creative headlines and tags to interest the readers.

7) Use links in your articles and/or content on the pages that you are submitting to the social bookmarking sites. This way you can ensure some tracking back to your website in case people are reading your articles through a third party site.

8) Make conversation with other users out there. If there are discussion forums, groups, etc, make sure to engage in dialogue and interact with others so they know who you are, they you are legit, and that you have credibility.

I hope that these tips help you when deciding whether to utilize social bookmarking as a social media and search engine optimization tool. Any questions, you can always reach out to RJ Web Dev for answers.

Great Title Tags: Five Title Tags Begging to be Clicked

2011-03-10T08:59:00.002-05:00

You know from a consumer's standpoint that you have searched for something on Google or Bing and your search results come up all looking the same. How to differentiate?

Well, from a marketer's standpoint, now consider what makes someone click on one ad vs. another ad? Or click on this search results rather than this search result? These are all very important questions to consider and think about.

Here we will go into five different title tags that are more popular than others. Good title tags can help a site rank well seeing that you will have higher click through rates and traffic.

When you look at the examples below, you will see that in addition to being the number one search result, the listing offers something additional that is begging to be clicked.

1. Marketing Copywriter - This result provides additional reason to click on it while also delivering details about who the person is serving.

2. SEO company - This result is offering an obscene claim, but it works, doesn't it? No one knows that for sure. How can anyone analyze every single SEO company in the world? They can't. They also include the phone number in their Title Tag which makes it easy for people to contact you right away.

3. Internet marketing company Edmonton - This first listing is creating authority by everyone else seems to just be using a bunch of strong keywords and therefore no one stands out aside from the authoritative first listing.

4. Graphic designers South Florida - Apparently if you have a catchy, quirky company name, this can also lead to more clicks. The company's name is Tangled Spider. Pretty quirky if you ask me.

5. Wedding photographer New Orleans - Even though all of these listings are listed using Google Places, which will help you tremendously, the top listing uses words like award-winning, artistic, destination, world, etc.

Now it's your turn. You might not be in these industries. Start doing some keyword research. Look at the top listings. What makes them stand out? Make sure you are thinking about your Title Tags meticulously. Look at the other listings. What can you do to make yours better? This is a great start for search engine optimization for your business's website.

Reference Site.

Social Media: Facebook is-a Changing

2011-02-28T14:00:00.000-05:00

Facebook has made changes. If you're planning to take advantage of your business's social media marketing, then you might want to take a look at these changes to see what you can do to leverage your social media campaign.

Facebook Pages, which is what your business Facebook Page more than likely is, were updated so that they look similar to the personal profile page updates that were recently brought about a few months ago. Here is a list of the changes (courtesy of Social Media Examiner).

1. Functions Were Changed

As an admin, they have made it much simpler to use with one-click access to several of the admin tasks. You no longer have to go through the "Edit Page." You can now manage page admins, edit information, edit page category and edit the page with one click of a button. Additionally:

X "people like this" brings up a pop where admins can edit the fans or make them admins
"Information" has been removed
"View Insights" & "Suggest to Friends" have been moved to the right
"Links" is removed

2. Photo Images Layout

What they call the "masthead" can be altered so that you can show off a number of images right on the page itself without delving into a photo album. Unlike the profile pages though, you cannot alter the order of your images and therefore cannot create a cool six photo landscape image.

3. No More Tabs

Instead of tabs, all of your information can be found on the left hand column. Tabs were getting cluttered with all the new available apps so it's much cleaner to have the navigation on the left hand side of the page. You will need to keep a few things in mind to maximize the visibility of the left hand side:

Keep your profile picture under 200 px high
Consider text in your profile picture
Keep your navigation short and sweet

4. Use Your Page As a Person

This is by far the coolest feature, I think. You can now move and navigate Facebook as your Page, and not just your personal profile. You can comment on other Facebook Page walls (not personal profiles though because you are not friends) and like other Pages. This is great for B2B. You can also switch back and forth between your personal profile and your page easily.

5. Featured "Liked" Pages

Sounds ridiculous calling them "Liked Pages" but that's what Facebook wants. If your Page likes another brand or business Page, then you will have the ability to make some of these "Liked Pages" featured on the left hand side of the page. It's great exposure for your clients, customers, partners, etc.

6. Wall Filters

You can now see "Everyone" or just your posts on the wall..which is located in the top right. Unfortunately, Facebook is using EdgeRank (Facebook's own algorithm to determine the most relevant posts) and therefore posts are not chronological which can be annoying. Actually, it is quite annoying! You can also view "admin view" which will show you non-page posts in reverse chronological order.

7. Email Notifications for Page Activity

This is also one of the best changes! As a page admin, you now know when someone posts on your wall or comments on your status. Of course, this sounds so easy but it wasn't available before and now it is.

8. ...for the developers out there...No More Static FBML (Facebook's Coding Language)

As of March 22, 2011, admins will no longer be able to add their Static FBML applications to their Facebook Pages. Facebook has migrated over to an iFrame only system. You can still use existing installations of FBML applications and custom tabs, and you can edit them as well. You just cannot add new ones. You must migrate to iFrames eventually.

So, what do you think? I think most of this is really great! I hope that you have learned how to leverage your social media marketing through the new Facebook Page updates. If you have any questions, let me know!

Source: www.socialmediaexaminer.com

Twitter Can Improve Your Search Rankings

2011-02-21T23:39:00.000-05:00

Social media marketing has a number of different benefits for your exposure on the web. Not only is social media marketing good for link building, but also for search rankings. As it turns out, according to Google & Bing spokespeople, using Twitter correctly and with authority can improve your organic search rankings. You must find your advocates first though, these are your influencers and those with authority.

Identify Your Advocates

You need to make sure that you Follow the influencers of your industry. Do your research of who those people are, find out their Twitter handles and make sure to Follow them. Not everyone will follow back, but because many of these people are in the same industry as you and have the same interests as you then the odds that they will follow you back are there. If you start doing this, make sure that your tweets stay relevant to your interests and industry. If you have these advocates following you as well, and you say something interesting and noteworthy, you want to make sure that you link to your website or blog with hopes that these advocates will click on your link...and if you really do have something relevant, interesting and noteworthy to say then you should hope that they will re-tweet your tweet.

Twitter Etiquette

Make sure to retweet tweets of the advocates every time you like what they have to say. This might lead them to retweet your tweets later on as this is proper and unspoken Twitter etiquette. If they are not already following you then it's possible if you retweet their tweets they might start following you. Just don't get carried away and use common sense.

Share Buttons

If you add Twitter share buttons at the bottom of all of your articles, blog posts and any other timely content then you will add to your back links if people start sharing your content on Twitter. Now you need to hope for a high quality, advocate to share your content on Twitter through your Twitter share buttons.

Hashtags

Everyone always asks what the pound or number sign is used for. Well, that's a hashtag... or, a #. This is used because Twitter has great search functions. When posting a tweet, you can use hashtags to identify a topic or subject if the word is not used in your tweet. Try to determine which ones are popular ("Top Trending") right now and see if you can use those because that means more people are searching those keywords.

Become the Advocate

It might be about quantity but it's also about quality. Your number of Twitter followers only counts if those people are real, interested in what you have to say and read what you write. Some advice would be to tweet about relevant and interesting information so new followers find you through searches or retweets. If you tweet tips, advice, quotes, news, link these to your blog or website. You can also make sure to talk back and forth with other Twitter users. This creates a dialogue and you can start relationships with people that you don't even know. People catch on and start following because they see that you are human.

Viola! Backlinks, web traffic, keywords...

Don't forget that tweets show up in Google searches also. Social media marketing can increase your organic search rankings. This is why social media marketing and search engine optimization walk such a fine line and many times blur the lines. Consider your Tweets part of your SEO campaign and hopefully you'll start to see your rankings increase soon. Happy Tweeting!

When Should You Redesign Your Website?

2011-02-13T12:00:00.001-05:00

Is a Full Website Redesign Necessary?

Sales are down, traffic on your website is slow, and you've run out of marketing ideas. Oh, I know, let's redesign our website and plaster it all over social media. Is that what you're thinking right now? Are you thinking about redesigning your website? Well, although you might think that this will shake up sales, create a new marketing campaign and whatnot, you should probably take some serious time to consider this.

I am always approached with small businesses who want to redesign their website. And, of course, I obviously enjoy having the business, but I'm not always going to recommend a redesign if you already have a navigable, user-friendly, aesthetic looking website. It is usually common practice to look at other websites in your industry (a.k.a. competitor's websites) to get a feel for what you want to do, but just remember to look at those...and try not to compare your website to a website in a different industry...like the tech industry.

Well, if you are thinking of a redesign, there are reasons why you should try very small things at first...rather than an entire site redesign.

Is there something wrong?

Make sure you evaluate exactly what you don't like about your website. What is not working? Is there something wrong with it? Because you don't want to look at that website every day is not a reason to redesign your entire website.

If your sales are down, then it is possible that the reason is not your website design. Maybe you should consider redesigning your marketing strategy instead first. I know that sounds more difficult and like a lot more work...well, it is. But, the results are much more rewarding if you do it right and work hard at it. And, hey, you never know, they might be more cost effective as well.

Ask a Professional

If you think the conversions on your site are down, then reach out to a website designer for some questions. You can possibly get some answers from them as to why you might have a lot of traffic but little sales. If there is a chance that you need some redesign in your website, then make sure that the changes you make only correspond to your marketing strategy from when you built your business. Think of your goals first. What kind of goals could these be? More traffic, more exposure, more media coverage, more inbound links, more downloads, more leads, more time spent on the site...and the list goes on and on. Use this goal to determine whether you need a full redesign.

So, now you have determined that through your marketing strategy, your business goals, and your current website that you actually do need some changes. Well, why would are we suggesting that you make changes little by little? Simple. Here goes:

1. Brand Identity

Hello, isn't your website part of your original brand? Do you know how hard it is to re-brand yourself? Have you heard of NEW COKE? Yes, it is so hard to re-brand yourself to the point that even a huge brand like Coca Cola was not able to do it. Your website is an extension of who you are. Remember that. If your website changes, your consumers or clients might think that means you, as a business, are changing also.

2. Everything Takes Time

A full website redesign will take time to build. So, if you are definitely going to make changes, start with the areas that need the most improvement or will drive you towards your goal first. If you start with just this, it will take less time to design & implement and you can see if these little changes make a difference at first before you decide to go back and redesign the rest of the website.

3. Your Current Customers Might Get Lost

You still have traffic on your site, right? By updating and redesigning your entire site, you might drive these customers away. Confusion sets it. Patience is lost. Boom, you lose some of your traffic. Those customers are priceless and if you need to redesign something..you sure better tell them first.

After you've done all of your analysis and thinking, spoken with a web designer, and even then you think that a redesign is the best idea, then okay, you might be right. After all, I've redesigned websites for small businesses before. Maybe your site wasn't designed well in the first place - well, then it is probably a good idea to redesign it. Remember, if you have any doubts or thoughts about redesigning your website, RJ Web Dev is here to help and provide a free quote for your website.

Attention: Google's Search Engine Algorithm has Changed!

2011-02-07T11:37:00.000-05:00

Google's Search Engine Algorithm

It's possible that you already know this as it did happen last week, but Google updated it's search engine algorithm once again and it is important you keep up with it so your website does not drop in rankings as many have, even web pages that have been indexed for many, many years.

Whenever a search algorithm changes, it might affect your web pages for weeks, months, or longer unless you do something about it. They will need time to work through the differences, but you should get started immediately.
Don't Panic Yet

Some sites will make it back to their prior position, so remember that before you start panicking completely. Some others, won't. (still don't panic yet)

Unfortunately, you'll never know which metric caused your page to slip. Sometimes you might be over-optimizing your page for search and this can cause an un-natural site to drop in rankings.
Inbound & Outbound Linking

Make sure that you go lightly with your linking and make sure there is a balance of on-page and off-page (linking) SEO. Balance is important! You do not want to create something so off balance that Google will red flag you.

You have the #1 Ranking?

If you are sitting at the number one ranking for a keyword, leave that page alone...you are obviously doing something right. But, monitor closely. It might take forever to get to the #1 spot...and only seconds to drop out.

You can't truly know if your ranking factor for each page is being provided from your domain (trust, strength), content development, internal or external links...or a combination of everything. You also never know what your competitors are working on that might affect your rankings.
We understand how scary an search engine algorithm change could be to your business..especially if your business is your website!

Search Engine Algorithm Change - Tips

1. If you ever change code and you see a drop, then change your code back.
2. If you're goin to make changes, make them only very little at a time. Change is not liked by search engines. Especially changes that involve redirecting or adding many pages in a short period of time.
3. Use common sense and natural flow.
4. Always create new & relevant content. This can never hurt your site.
5. If your page is ranking well, let it be.
6. If you're working with a page that has been indexed for years, be very careful with your changes.

Good luck. If you are still have troubles, RJ Web Dev will be happy to discuss it with you. Follow some of our SEO tips from our website as well as our SEO blog posts and you should be able to see some improvements.

5 Steps to a Great SEO Campaign

2011-01-31T12:09:00.000-05:00

So if you think you can do the search engine optimization for your website without the help of an expert, here are at least five steps to a great SEO campaign.

1. Research

The very first step you need to do when you decide to optimize your website is to do your research. This is probably the most important part of your SEO campaign and making sure that you choose the best keywords for your website is crucial.

Okay, let's say that you are a Nursery & Plant shop in Northern New Jersey as an example of how you go about your research. You want to consider your niche, products, services when doing your keyword research. First, come up with a list of keywords that your customers might be searching where you might show up in the search. So, let's say...first your niche should be considered plant shops in Northern New Jersey or nurseries in Northern New Jersey or your town. So here goes..

* Nursery in Northern New Jersey
* Plant Stores in Northern New Jersey
* Nurseries
* Flower Shop
* Buy Flowers in Moonachie
* Moonachie Nursery

And so on...

The next step you want to do is check out Google's Keyword Tool. You can check the competition, number of monthly searches (and unique searches) and the strength of the competitors that are currently found on page one of that search.

2. Competition

Next you want to check out your competitors' sites. After you've put together all of your keywords in a list, list all of your competitors that are on page one of Google for that keyword next to it. You are going to want to use an SEO tool such as SEO Quake to collect some data, such as the competitors' PageRank, number of indexed pages, number of inbound links, etc. You will get an idea of how long it will take you to reach page one, based on the depth of your competitors' pages.

3. Content

Now you can get started on your site. Content is king. You will hear this over and over again.

Content will keep people on your website. They will come back to your website. If you have relevant content, and you have riveting content, people will come back and thus in turn your rankings will go up due to your traffic.

I know this sounds silly, but make sure that all of your code such as your header tags, your image alt tags and all of your HTML is done correctly or else you will have errors on your page and people will be turned off.

Make sure that you have a site map, it's correct and you submitted it to all the search engines. This increases your chance of having more pages indexed by the search engines.
4. Backlinking or Inbound Linking

The more one-way page links linking to your site from other quality websites, the better. You can submit articles to websites, or your URL to directories. There are so many out there, you won't ever get around to all of them. This will take a lot of time and you might want to hire someone to help you with this. Also be aware that this will take time so don't expect results tomorrow.

5. Promotion of your website

This might include all of your social media marketing (directing traffic to your website), video marketing, e-mail marketing, article or blog marketing, and even local search marketing such as Google Places.

If you would like more tips on how to get your SEO campaign off the ground, or need a little expert advice to get started, make sure to contact RJ Web Dev as they have all your answers.

How to Optimize Your YouTube Videos for Search

2011-01-24T12:23:00.000-05:00

Optimize Your YouTube Videos for SEO / Seach Engine Marketing

Did you know that YouTube is now the second largest search engine, only behind Google? If this is the case, then you had better start optimizing your videos just as you do your web pages. I'm going to try to give you some tips on how to optimize your YouTube videos for search.

If I wanted someone to come to my video that offers advice on how to get a website...I've done research and "get a website" is a popular search term hence why I've titled my video as such.

A good tip is to start and end the title of your video with the keyword you are targeting for best targeting results.

When writing the description of your video, you should continue to use best practices for SEO copywriting. You should test with a leading link and without a leading link. You want people to watch your video, but you also want them to visit your site (right?). So, depending on the compelling nature of your video it will make a difference as to what kind of views or visitors you will receive. This is why I suggest a split test.

Similar to a blog post, you can add tags for your video. Make sure to use appropriate tags and only between 5-10.

The greatest tip I can offer is that you should identify link partners. If you can boost your video by linking to a high quality URL then you will be helping yourself. If you can create quality content then people might want to link to your video. Make sure you network and see if anyone will allow you to guest blog. If this is the case, linking to your video from a high quality blog or website will be good for your search rankings.

Look at what your competition is doing. This will help you in reaching out to similar media as they are so you can keep up with them.

The last thing you want to make sure of, and of course this is pretty common sense, is the relevance of your video to the search terms, keywords, links and partners that you are using. There is little more important than search relevance. You can also use the "Video Reply" option on YouTube to reply with your video to related vidoes. Make sure these videos are RELEVANT and do not replying to more than 1-2 videos in order to keep away from being perceived as spam.

I hope these tips on our how optimize your YouTube videos for search are helpful and if you have any questions, please be sure to contact RJ Web Dev. We also offer services in social media marketing which includes uploading and maintaining your YouTube videos and/or managing your YouTube channel.Just like you do for Google, you want to keep your keywords in mind and find out what the popular keyword searches are on YouTube. If you do a little research, you will be able to find some less competitive keyword searches that you have the potential to rank extremely well for. It is best to find a niche within your keyword search, or research some long-tailed keywords that are searched often.

Clean Up Your Online Image

2011-01-17T12:00:00.004-05:00

Whether you think you don't, or you know you do, you and your business have an online image. You might not even have a website, but you are out there on the web somewhere. If you're not, then you must live on Mars.

Just as in the offline world, you wouldn't let your storefront get infested with termites; you wouldn't hand out business cards that were torn up; and you most likely wouldn't wear your pajamas to work, remember these things when thinking about your online image.

Before we all knew how important the web would be to our lives and image, we probably made some mistakes once or twice. Maybe a bad Facebook status. Maybe you wrote on an old blog. There are ways to clean up your image, and I'm here to give you some tips I read.

1. Even though you can control your own image in person (offline), oftentimes your online image is not in your control. Do what you can to clean up your online image, but if there is someone out there that is attacking you uncontrollably with no real backup...then use your best judgement. There is probably something more wrong with that person rather than you.

2. Use the tools that are out there for you

If you want to monitor your company's brand, there are tools out there that can help you with this. Here are just a few free tools:

Google Alerts -- Sign up for e-mail alerts every time a keyword (such as the name of your company) is published online somewhere.

TweepBeep -- This is similar to Google Alerts, but it searches Twitter for the same keywords.

Kurrently.com -- Basically a search engine for Facebook & Twitter

search.twitter.com -- Twitter's search engine

Boardreader -- A site that lets you search community forums to see what the public is saying about your brand or company.

3. You don't have to go it alone - there are those (like RJ Web Dev!) that you can hire at affordable costs to do this monitoring.If you choose to monitor your brand yourself, you are using time which equals money. So, if you want to make sure that you aren't taking away from what you do best, there are those out there that you can hire. RJ Web Dev offers these services. We can manage your online image for you, and we are experts at it.

4. Put your name out there yourself.

It's probably wise to create your own image. Don't wait for someone else to write about you. Write about yourself. Start a corporate blog. Talk about your products or services. Establish yourself as an industry expert.

5. Don't forget about your offline image.

Don't forget to do your job. Keep your storefront clean of termites, make sure your business cards are not torn and don't wear your pajamas to work. If you can't run the social media yourself...then find someone to help. RJ Web Dev is here to help. We don't want your social image to be negative and neither do you.

Build a Social Networking Website

2011-01-10T12:00:00.005-05:00

Do you look at Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and the other social networking sites and wonder, how come I didn't think of that? Would it be possible for me to build a site that is similarly successful? (Dreams do come true!) Well, here is a little information about social networking scripts that might help you on your way to realizing this dream.

Why do social networking websites exist in the first place? They exist so that individuals, or even groups, can connect with other individuals or groups. Web developers use software or a social networking script to build these sites. Deciding on the right application depends on your budget as well as the desired function of the website.

Web designers have the abilities to gain control over their website with the best software and it also allows them to use and manage the features that they want included on the website. Using these tools, widgets or functions correctly will make it easier for the communication and social relationships between individuals and groups. Because of this, the website will be more successful and your return on investment will increase over time.

Tips to Design Your Social Networking Website

It might sound cliche, but choosing a title or name of your site that is catchy or unique will draw people to your site and give your website a purpose. You must define your purpose so individuals who visit the site can measure the usefulness of the website.

You must also decide on the look and feel of your website. Remember your objectives while you are designing the site. Hire a graphic designer if that's not your forte. Include images that point to a call to action...your call to action should be to sign up for the website.

Decide on the look of the site. Always stick to the objectives of the site when designing the site. Include graphics that tells visitors you’re urging them to browse through and sign up on your site.

Use interactive features to draw people to your website such as videos, music, games or images. There are widgets available to add features such as Instant Messaging, RSS feeds, and other interactive features that will enable interaction amongst individuals. Incorporating blogs or other message boards will also allow users to express their opinions, and interact with others.

Another factor you should incorporate is content. Users should want to not only come back to interact with their friends, etc. but also because you have compelling content and information that they can't get somewhere else. If your site is a special niche then create content specified towards that niche so people with similar interests are brought together.

How to Choose a Software for Social Networking

Before you make a decision and put a dent in your budget, look for applications that offer a free trial so you can test them out to see which one will work best for your website.

Look at all of the features that each software application offers. Determine which ones you need, which ones are superfluous and which ones you don't need. This will help you in determining which software application is best for your website. Make sure to use features that you think will attract your target market to signing up for your website.

After everything that happened with Facebook and their Privacy Policy, a good social networking script should allow members to customize privacy in order to keep private information private if they want to and public to those whom they want to share with.

If you would like help in designing your new social networking website, please contact RJ Web Dev for further questions.

Fresh Internet Marketing in 2011

2011-01-07T22:36:00.000-05:00

Each one of us wants to start anew in a new year. Sometimes we feel like we are dragging towards the end of a year, especially with all the holidays and parties taking up our precious time. You start to feel like you're not all there, professionally. You get in a rut. As an Internet Marketer, you feel like you've lost all of your marketing ideas. Well, now is the time to start fresh!

You have hear of the word 'mojo' maybe since watching Austin Powers in recent years. Apparently, it originally referred to a voodoo charm, but since Austin Powers used it, it currently refers to a person's self-confidence.

So when you started to doubt your abilities, feel lethargic, start staying at your computer when you can't think of anything to write. Even when you start to think that you hate internet marketing, or you can't remember why social media marketing is so important...what do you think you can do to get your mojo back? It's a new year, so it's a new you and we'll tell you how!

Before you decide to throw everything out the window, it is time to take a step back. Take a day, go exercise, don't look at your computer, make a cup of tea, read a book.
Once you have finished this, it is time to remember exactly why you are doing internet marketing and why you got into it in the first place. You might have wanted to just be your own boss, or make more money, or buy a house, or work alone, or work with customers. Whatever reason, just remember exactly what it was.

This might sound cheesy, but the next thing you should do is find images of these reasons of why you went into internet marketing to begin with. Cut these images out of magazines or download and print them off your computer. Then pin them up on what we like to call a "vision board" so that you can see them every day.

It is best if you want to use a bulletin board for this so you can pin up any new photos or images you come across that inspire you. This way you are able to see these images every day so they remind you of why you are doing what you are doing. You will also feel more focused and relaxed at the same time. And the bottom line is that we hope you will find the renewed enthusiasm to get back to your work.

A great example is the fact that I'm looking at a photograph of the Eiffel Tower. If I can reach my next business goal, I am going to book a flight to Paris. Just the image excites me enough to get my butt moving and in gear for the new year!

Referring Article

Convincing SEO Non Believers

2010-12-27T16:55:00.000-05:00

Recently I came across an article for the "SEO Non Believer." This made me remember that there are people out there, especially CEOs and other Executives that make budgetary decisions, that do no believe that SEO is worth the time, effort or money to make their business more successful.

Many of you out there already know how important a search engine optimized website is, but you have a hard time convincing those in charge of the budgets otherwise.

Here are some points to remember when presenting your idea of spilling more budget into search engine optimization in 2011.

1. SEO is more than just search engines and rankings.

Explain that SEO is not just about Google and rankings. Sure, you build links to increase your rankings and you update your title and tags to make sure you are moving up, but there is more to SEO than just moving up. Think about why you are moving up? What are the keywords you are most successful with? You don't consider success just to move up the rankings...you consider success when your visitors convert and at a higher rate. You want sales and conversions which is what SEO will help you to succeed.

2. SEO is usability.

When you write for SEO, what you are writing is clean and straightforward. Therefore, you are not just writing for SEO purposes but it is also easy for users to find your site and determine whether it is what they need or what they were looking for. Keywords are a great example of great usability. You want users to find your website because of what you offer. So use the right keywords. It makes not just your life easier, but it makes your potential visitors' lives easier as well. In other words, you're providing a good user experience. Site structure is a part of search engine optimization as well as creating a great usability, so having an organized website is important for both.

3. SEO is marketing.

If you want to sell something to someone, you are going to use the same words that the consumer does, right? They are going to search for keywords and you best use the keywords that you are selling. Same thing goes for when you are link building. You want to make sure that you are building on other sites that might help attract the types of consumers you are looking for. This is marketing.

Remember to tell your decision makers what they are missing out on. Not only would they be investing in SEO but they would also be simultaneously investing in usability & marketing as well as quality coding, social factors, data and content.

If you are able to convince your decision makers that they need some search engine optimization efforts in 2011, or are wondering what kind of budget you might need to ask for, please contact RJ Web Dev. We'll provide a free quote.

The Importance of Outbound Links

2010-12-20T15:41:00.000-05:00

When learning about SEO strategies, you learn about the importance of links. Do you know that there is a right and wrong way to outbound linking?

Why are you linking out?

Anyone can randomly add links into content on a page, but if the links don't actually serve any purpose then you will just tempt your readers to leave your site forever. You might also find that your visitors may become frustrated or confused if the links don't serve a purpose related to your content.

Six Basic Reasons to Link Out:

1. Funnel traffic to another page
2. Bring traffic from another page / site
3. Add information to the current content
4. Back up or references for your points
5. Move "link juice"
6. Show authority

Don’t Be a Link Fool

If you are publishing content for link building purposes, you will want to link back to your own site, obviously, using specific keyword anchor text. On your blog you may also link out to almost anything that might enrich the content you are writing and helps the reader to make sense of everything. Make sure to use linking strategy to improve your content, and try to make it seem natural. Adding links wherever you please, because you can, does not always help.

Provide links for recognition and information purposes. You can always go back after many readers have read your content and edit your existing content. This way, you can get the benefits of the improved site structure without makin the user experience for most unpleasant. If the content doesn't garner that much attention or gain a lot of links then you can probably just leave it alone and build links to it first.

Additionally, you want to make sure that you are linking to sites that are reputable and worthy.

A Few Important Exceptions To the Rule

There are exceptions to the rules?! Yes. First, you need to know your audience. Does your audience know what you are writing about and know all the experts you might be referencing? Or, are you writing for a group of people that don't know who you might be referencing. If you quote and link out to other experts, you are undermining your own expertise. Think about it...isn't the point of your site or blog to establish some sort of expertise so people are always coming back to your pages? Yes. If you are linking to other experts, make sure your audience already knows that person. Yes, it's okay to link out to..say..Bill Gates...we all know he is an expert in his field.

If the people that frequent your site aren't considered a client or didn't actively seek you out, then do not, and I repeat, do not link out to a competitor or any big name. The changes are, they do not know who those big names are in the first place and you want to make sure they stay on your site.

You do want to support your expertise with research, studies, surveys, and detailed explanations of the points you make. This will show your authority in your industry.
Another exception are your landing pages. Landing pages are supposed to be designed to make your visitors convert and stay on this page. This is your call to action page. Don't let them wander off by linking to another site or even another page in most instances. Links on your landing page might confuse visitors as it seems like multiple calls to action.

Are you interested in learning more about how to correctly build your SEO strategy? Contact RJ Web Dev for your free consultation.

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SEO Web Design Tips

2010-12-13T13:06:00.001-05:00

You must integrate SEO, design and cues from your conversion all together in order to make sure to make sure that visitors reach your website, listen to what you have to say and connect to what they see on your site. In other words, you want to make a connection with your site visitors.

Creating a visually appealing website that ranks high and looks good is important. You must embrace simple SEO web design tips that will help your website overall and put you on top of your competitors.

1. Visual Cues

Not everyone is logical. Not everyone is technical. In order to appeal to all market segments...people of all intelligence levels...all common sense levels...you must rely on both intellectual and visual cues to convey the message that you are trying to get across.

You want to make sure that you emphasize images, ads and offers "above the fold" because people do not take the time to scroll down. Hardly ever. Sometimes, it is not only the time that they have or don't have, but also their focus and patience! So...create appealig visual cues! You want your user to see your offer, or ad, or image, or whatever, and actually have the desire to look further into it. To spend the time to read more about it. Possibly to even click and scroll below the fold. You want them to benefit from the message and you want to create emotion within them.

Some tips on how to create an appealing visual cue:

Large headlings
Directional images
Bullets (instead of streaming content)
Good use of white space (don't stick something in every single crevice of your page)
Use font size and type for emphasis

To make sure that you are able to create these appealing visual aids while also maintaining good SEO, follow these tips:

Make sure that you still have crawl ability with your pages and content (not java script, dynamic content or flash)
Make sure you have enough links from enough pages to create sufficient link flow
You want to make sure that you have enough content to distinguish each page from something else
Make sure that each template is unique so you don't create duplicate content

2. Prioritization of Information

It is very important, even before you build a new website, to prioritize the information you want to list on your website. Whether you sell something on your site or you just provide content to send visitors to other sites, you still need to make this priority list.

Remember that "above the fold" items should be the most important. This will help you prioritize where on your pages you want information to go. Make sure you get straight to the point above the fold so as not to expect people to scroll. Just assume they won't. Your appealing visual cues should lead them in the right direction to complete a conversion. Remember that you don't have to be too clever...the more straightfoward, sometimes, the more likely your user will become a conversion.

3. Supporting Content

Make sure that if your page is designed especially for the search engines, remember that there is a threshold required for the relevance of your content. Depending on how competitive the keywords you choose are and how many other pages are covering the same topics/themes, this will help you determine how dedicated this page should be to the same topic and whether you can use it as a landing page or as a keyword-rich page.

4. Link Flow

If you know anything about SEO, you know that link-building is important! You want to make it both internally within your site as well as linking from other sites. If you are not using your landing page as a crawlable page, the supporting pages can help you get indexed as well as rank in the search engines. You can then link to the landing pages.

Regardless of whether you want to first get indexed and then link to the landing page or first rank and then redirect to a new landing page, you still want to make sure that your visual cues are designed for your users and their needs but are also make sure that each page is linked from similar pages that either rank or should be ranking within the site.

Link flow is important to keep in mind. Make sure that you have links going out and coming in. The more links leaving the page, the harder it will be to get that page to rank unless your site is strong and the pages linked from the page are also strong. Landing pages should have minimal links going out, as it is the most important page, therefore every link leaving it should be for conversion or ranking another page only.

With these tips you can ensure that not only will you have an search engine optimized site but also a design that will provide your visitors with the knowledge to know where to go, what to do and how to return...or in other words, you will have users convert. SEO and web design should not be two separate entities but rather one whole concept with a single-minded goal in mind...higher conversions!

If you need help with web design and search engine optimization on your website, please contact RJ Web Dev.

Referring site.

What is a Good Bounce Rate?

2010-12-06T09:31:00.000-05:00

Many people constantly ask, what is a 'good' bounce rate for my website? They also want to know what is a 'good' time on my website.

Unfortunately, the answer is not as clear cut as you would expect. The best goal you can set for yourself is this: better than your current bounce rate and better than your current time on site.

I know this is not what you wanted to hear!! No, I don't have a concrete number for you simply because you should focus on improving what your current analytics are. Here are a few reasons why:

1. There are no accurate benchmarks in this industry.

Good luck finding accurate internet-wide data on web analytics such as keyword searches, competitors, or anything else.

I know you have checked out Compete.com and Alexa. They cover an extraordinary range of websites. Just think about it. Do you really think that someone coming to your small business website is going to spend any comporable time as they are on the Wall Street Journal website?

Even statistics in your own industry will include websites that run the gamut of newsworthy content to a quick purchase process. There are companies that have invested ten or a hundred times more money into having the highest conversion rate optimization they possibly can. How can you compare yourself to that?

2. Can you really trust Google's keyword search information?

Keyword data from other sources may be more trustworthy, but those sites don't show you the whole picture.

3. You've heard this one before: Numbers lie.

We already said that it's not possible to get accurate industry benchmarks. Even if you could get those numbers, we still say they lie. You can't compare yourself to a competitor no matter how similar they are to your business and website. You never know what is going on behind the scenes there. Maybe someone was recently fired and conversion rates slumped. Maybe something happened that brought media attention to another company and their recent numbers might indicate more traffic to the site, lower conversion rates and higher sales. Who knows? Unless you have the whole story from every competitor, just remember that numbers lie. You won't get the whole story. Ever.

4. Bottom line is focus on improving.

I said it before. Don't expect to compare yourself to others. Only compare yourself...to yourself. Focus on improving now because the only thing you should be focusing on is yourself. You want more visitors for a certain keyword? Make your benchmark higher than what it is today. You want to get a better conversion rate? Then you should look at what it is today and aim for improving on that.

Eventually, once you start improving, you might notice that you are improving beyond your competitors...which is your ultimate goal, right?

For more information on how you can get a website or improve your website, contact info@rjwebdev.com.

Social Media Marketing for Lead Generation

2010-11-29T11:51:00.000-05:00

We haven't discussed lead generation much here, but it is a form of sales and marketing for many companies and website design and search engine optimization are two key components to those who do internet lead generation. As of late, in the B2B world, the lines between lead generation and branding have started to blur. Therefore, many sites that engage in lead generation are trying to get into social media marketing, despite what critics are claiming. Here are four tips that will support your theories:

1. You can measure engagement and lead generation with bookmarking tools. Do you want to put that "share" button on your website, but can't convince the development team that it is worth their time? Make sure they know that by using a tool like AddThis, you can track every single instance of someone sharing a link or e-mailing it to their friend. This leads to great marketing analysis.

2. You can review the referring domains of your leads. The "referring domain" report is a standard report in your web analytics tool, and it shows the number of visits and the percentage of visits coming from each domain. To get real analytical though, you should track those visits through your site with a conversion funnel review to see how many converted into leads. Another great tool for marketing analysis.

3. You should use a link shortening service so that you can track clicks from your social media marketing campaigns. You can actually track who is clicking on your link even if it isn't on your own server. Using a URL shortening service like Goo.gl that provides analytics as part of the service makes it easy. By tracking this valuable data on traffic sources and demographics, and then combining it with the referring domains report, you can easily make the case for including links on social networks.

4. Make a Facebook page for your company. Recent research has shown that you can improve your organic rankings by being "Liked" on Facebook. Hopefully your company has already recognized that organic search is a major driver of leads; this can help if you can get your volumes up, if not, you have more work to do.

I hope that these tips will help you convince corporate to go social. If you need the resources, don't have the time, needs some additional tips or are in need of a social media marketing strategy, feel free to reach out to info@rjwebdev.com.

Social Media Marketing: LinkedIn

2010-11-22T21:34:00.003-05:00

Last week, Social Media Examiner, looked at LinkedIn and gave a run down on how to leverage it as a social media tool. The great news about LinkedIn, is that it is constantly evolving and adding new, useful features. Sometimes it is hard to keep up. In case you don't know what LinkedIn is, it is pretty much the Facebook of the business world. If you plan to go utilize social media marketing, you will most likely want to be a part of LinkedIn. You can find RJ Web Dev on LinkedIn, so make sure to follow!

According to SME, regularly updating your status, joining and participating in groups and answering questions is only the start of how to utilize LinkedIn.

There are also a number of ways to build deeper relationships with your connections on LinkedIn. Let's listen to SME and see what they have to say...
Spend some time on LinkedIn connecting your contacts. If you really want to consider LinkedIn a social media and you want to build social influence, you should probably start with being, well, social. How do you connect your contacts? Think strategically. Think creatively. Who does this person want to be connected to? Oh, you know someone in that industry. People want to be connected through a connector! In addition to influencing your contacts, you will also benefit from the rule of reciprocity and you will start getting connected to those outside your current network.

Here is SME's three-step process on how to connect your contacts and use LinkedIn as a social media influencer.

1) Analyze Your First-Degree Connections

SME suggests the following exercise to determine which of your contacts are the most influential, most important to you, and which ones would connect well with others.

Go to the Advanced People Search tool within LinkedIn. Under the “Relationship” section on the left, filter for your first-degree connections only. This will bring up a list of all of your first-degree connections. Make sure to choose “Expanded View” to see more details about your connections within this search. A free LinkedIn account will show you up to 100 profile results per search. The Advanced Search tool is located at the top right of your profile page. Filter for first-degree connections.

Once you’ve pulled up the search results, scroll slowly through your entire list of first-degree connections, looking closely at faces and titles. Simply spending some time scanning through this list of connections can help trigger and uncover common ground among your connections that you may not have thought about before. Take notes.

Next, identify your 10 best business relationships from this list and jot them down. Also add the 10 most influential people you’re connected with (there may be some overlap). Now it’s time to analyze your first-degree list of best relationships and top influencers.

Are there similar personality types? Do any of the career and business paths of your connections intersect or have complementary characteristics. Whom can they benefit from knowing, being connected to, or working with on your list? Do any of these individuals live in the same geographic area? Do any of them have similar personal interests or belong to the same LinkedIn Groups or outside organizations?

Unfortunately there is no quick way to conduct this in-depth search other than to view the profiles manually and identify all the potential links (for now...maybe in the future it might be easier!). However, it will be well worth your time! Bringing together relationships is always beneficial and strengthens your current relationships and influence.

2) Filter Your First-Degree Search by Geography, Industry and/or Keywords

This time, start your Advanced LinkedIn search for first-degree connections, but run some filters. We’ll start by filtering your search results for geography and get more specific from there.

Using the Geography filter, choose the location where you have the most connections. Now study these profiles and go through the same questions listed in exercise #1. Who in this group of connections should be connected to one other and why? Can you see any professional common threads among those professionals who live in your area?

You can now filter by industry. Who doesn't already know someone? Who would benefit from a relationship with the other?

Finally, narrow it down by keyword filter such as a hobby or interest. The strongest ties happen to be those that center on personal interests rather than business interests.

3) Send Both Connections a Private Message

Before you utilize the LinkedIn introduction tool, I would suggest you send a private message to each of the individuals you’re going to be connecting. First you’ll need to decide who’ll be the person you introduce and who’ll receive the introduction. Send a private message first to the person you’ll introduce. Make sure you tell him or her what to expect.

For the person who will be receiving the introduction, send him or her a private message as well as notification that your introduction will be coming soon. Always send these private messages first to make it clear to both parties what you’re trying to accomplish, otherwise it can be confusing.

Once you’ve sent the private messages, you can send over the official LinkedIn introduction. You can access the link entitled “Make an Introduction” from your connection’s profile.

The best way to ensure that these new connections you’re creating on LinkedIn will evolve into potential relationships is to do the work up front like figuring out what they have in common and why they (and you!) would benefit from connecting them. The more people have in common—especially around personal interests—the more likely a new relationship will develop and thrive! You’ll be appreciated and respected for taking the time to connect the dots and piece these introductions together, and most importantly, you’ll build significant social influence!

Reference: Social Media Examiner

Increase Conversions through better Website Design

2010-11-17T08:40:00.000-05:00

I recently came across a Top 10 Ways to Increase Web Conversions article and I just had to share it with you because no matter how nice your website design is, no matter how user-friendly, the bottom line is you want to convert into sales/leads/etc. Right?

If you want to get a website to convert visitors into leads, it would be best to follow some of these rules. Your website’s design and search engine optimization will play an important role in shaping the success of your business. I have mentioned this before, but a good website design involves effective keyword rich content, a welcoming layout that is in sync with the business image, attractive colors, and easy navigability.

Some of the elements that are crucial for successful website design are described below.

1. Impressive Landing Page

Your landing page is the page that a user is sent to once they've clicked on the advertisement from another site. This could be your homepage, but this could also be another page that will lead to a sale. The content and images on this page is what customers will give a quick look to determine what the website is 'selling.'

2. Headers & Titles That Grab Attention

Every page of the website should have a engaging title that is unique and attracts attention. You want customers to want to read the rest of your website once they've read the headers!

3. Attractive Web Design

The design of the website should be asthetically-pleasing to the eye. You also want to encourage users to browse your website. The more time spent on your site, the more likely he or she is to make a purchase. An easy test would be to find some friends or family that you really trust and give them some tasks on your site. Have them speak out loud about their experience and document this. Was it easy for them to finish your task? Did they have a hard time? Congratulations, you just conducted a usability test of your website. Once you determine your conclusions, and you find out you need some improvements, make sure to find a good web designer to help with this.

4. Compelling Content

Content. Content. Content. You've heard it 100 times. In order to increase conversions, you want to make sure that your content is rich in meaning. I know you've worked hard on your SEO, but does it make sense to the average visitor? Language and layout can engage customers’ interest. Your language should engage the reader and be assertive without being too sales-pitchy. Remember what you say on your site might be your last chance at a sale with them.

5. Clear Subheadings

Subheadings provide visitors with an idea of what is on your whole website. You must think of why are people coming to your website? You want to make it clear to users what you provide and what they can do at your site. Make sure this is somewhere on the top of your page and spread evenly. (or on the side, but somewhere above the fold)

6. Easy Navigation

This goes hand in hand with our usability test prior. You should make sure that it is easy for all users to navigate your site no matter what their purpose of visiting your site is.

7. Make Sales Stand Out

Products and services that are being promoted or sold should be available on the front page! Make it easy for the visitors to make their purchases immediately.

8. Give Your Customer a Reason to Come Back

Impressive copy and quality web design together make a website standout from its competition. Happy clients will tell others about their sites. They discuss with their associates, friends, and social networks and help grow your website’s name. With good service, you not only win repeat visits from existing customers but also attract more potential customers every day.

9. References & Testimonials (or Reviews)

Websites appear more trustworthy with references, reviews and client testimonials. Web designers use images, text, animations and videos to highlight the benefits of the website and make any assertions appear believable. Testimonials tend to stay in the minds of customers when they are determining a purchase.

10. Address Customers' Needs!

Since you want to sell your products and services to the customers, you naturally want to present your business in good light. Address your customers' needs...always. Images, text, videos and offers should address the customer directly about the benefits of using the product.

These ten tips should help with making sales from your website. Now you can see how important your website design is. For more website design tips, or for a free quote for your new website design you can contact info@rjwebdev.com.

Referring site.

Fix Your SEO Quickly

2010-11-08T10:00:00.000-05:00

Here are some SEO tips that you can look at really quickly if everything else you have been working on is failing you.

1) Use Your Competitors’ Keywords
Look at the keywords they use in their title tags and look at the keywords they are linking to their best pages.
You might be able to find the keywords in the meta keyword tags. That makes it easy to find out what their keywords are. You can take a look at these, but just remember that the really good SEO specialists won't actually do this. In fact, some might actually put bad keywords in there just to mess with competitors!!
2) Fix Your URL
You shouldn't be able to access your website by typing in http://website.com and http://www.website.com. Google will consider this duplicate content and can actually hurt you. In order to fix this, you can create a file called .htaccess with these three lines and put it in the root folder of your website:
RewriteEngine On
RewriteCond %{HTTP_HOST} !^www\.site\.com$
RewriteRule (.*) http://www.site.com/$1 [R=301,L]

Make sure you know what you are doing since all servers are different. Or call a webmaster.
3) Watch Your MozRank (you're what?!)

SEOmoz has a tool called LinkScape that calculates your MozRank. MozRank is a metric that evaluates the quality of your incoming links. You might have more inbound links than your competitors, but if they are ranking higher than you, then you should check the MozRank because they might have higher quality inbound links.
4) Use Google Webmaster Tools

There is no reason you shouldn't be using this. Look what you can do:
- Submit a sitemap of your site to Google so they know what pages to index
- Tell Google what the canonical URL you want to use (does it have a www. first?)
- Detect issues with duplicate title tags and meta descriptions
- See a list of URLs restricted by robots.txt
- Detect crawling issues
- Find 404 error pages
- Find out which are the most common keywords people use to find your site
- See what links are linking to your site
- You can tell Google how they should be indexing your images
5) Create a Google Sitemap

Using Google Webmaster Tootls, create a sitemap using this: GSiteCrawler.

6) Use The Google Keyword Tool
Start typing in keywords. They'll give more more suggestions.
7) Learn About Quality of Links
- Links from authority sites (news sites) are worth more than links from other sites (blogs)
- Links from related sites (to your website) are worth more than unrelated sites (have nothing to do with you)
- Links with your keyword in the text are worth....more than links from other text
- Your link quality is going to be worth much more than your link quantity
To learn more about SEO and what you can do, contact your search engine optimization specialist, RJ Web Dev.
Read more here.

Social Media Marketing: Where's the ROI?

2010-11-01T10:00:00.007-04:00

It's pretty understandable that as a company, no matter what you are investing in, whether it be equipment, people or services such as web design, you strive for a return on that investment. Sometimes, this investment is not as cut and dry as a simple dollar sign. Most of the time, a lot of work is required in determining what your return on this investment is. A service such as social media marketing is one of these...is investing in a social media marketing analyst or specialist...worth it?

Here are some tips on determining how to measure the your social media marketing return on investment.

You're probably asking yourself whether social media marketing is even measurable. Well, of course it is. If it weren't, then social media wouldn't have so many success stories for actually increasing the bottom line or an actual success story of a return on the investment by the company. Okay, so, yes, social media marketing is measurable.

Now you're wondering...well, how on earth do we measure social media marketing's return on investment?

This is very important that you know how to do this..or else you may end up wasting a whole lot of money on a poor social media specialist or investing in a campaign that isn't working. Ideally, you would like your social media marketing campaigns to do the following increase your revenues and decrease your costs. Right?

Whenever I meet with a client for the first time, it is very important that we go over what your goals are. Specifically for your company as well as for your marketing and social media marketing campaigns. It is critical that you review these in order to create the right campaigns with your social media marketing specialist. No ROI is complete without a baseline to shoot for.

What is a baseline? We could set these goals:
* Facebook 'Likes'
* Twitter Followers
* Retweets / Mentions
* Impressions on all social media platforms

...and more!

Like I said earlier, your return on investment is not always going to be about the dollar sign. In social media marketing, you would love that to be the case, but it takes time...a lot of time! The more fans, followers, etc that you gain may not always lead to direct sales. What it can do is...increase traffic on your website, spread the word about your brand, or even just create a buzz about your company! Over time, you hope that this will lead to the bottom line. A well thought out social media marketing campaign can help a business by reducing its cost in advertising while also increasing the sales over time... (sometimes a long time, but it's worth it!)

You must stay in the game. There's a great social media marketing specialist out there, Brian Solis, who has a book, Engage...he talks about being engaged with the community. If you are not using social media as a business, then you are missing out on so much. You could be missing out on the next big PR plunder...or you could miss out on listening to your customers and their wants/needs.

Regardless of all this, you must check up on how you are doing with your social media marketing campaigns by measuring it up to your baseline that you set originally. This is how you can help determine your social media marketing return on investment! Are you on your way to your goal? Did you reach your goal? Maybe you even surpassed your goal.

If you would like to further discuss how social media marketing might be a good investment, please leave a comment below or contact me.

Search Engine Optimization for Online Retailers

2010-10-25T10:34:00.000-04:00

RJ Web Dev performs search engine optimization for at least one online retailer. SEO should be top of mind for online retailers, yet there still remains some confusion around SEO. This is clear considering the search industry is an evolving world and nothing remains the same algorithm or solution for very long. For instance, Google Instant has thrown a wrench in many's search strategies. Instant search allows those browsing the web to get results with fewer keywords (or short tailed terms). This is just one example of why retailers need to constantly change their SEO efforts in order to remain at the forefront of current and prospective customers.

Online retailers should look and examine the 3 most important SEO factors: content, structure, and inbound links.

Content: This is by far, one of the most important factors in SEO. This includes all of the words and images describing your company, products, and/or services and is the information that you want customers and search engines to search and find you with. The search engine should be presenting "searchers" or consumers with the most relevant and recent information there is out there so the more content and the more frequently updated content the better. Relevance & recency - remember those two terms. To stay relevant and recent, you can add new products, start a blog, upload product manuals, or create videos.

Structure: Another important SEO factor to consider is the structure or how your technology presents content. Make sure that you plan ahead prior to developing your website, because otherwise you will end up spending a lot of money trying to re-work everything you've already done so that it is SEO-friendly. Examples of good structures include: clean and natural language URLs without changing variables (You should be able to read your URL); clear and good site map, all images & content should have alt tags and meta information, and the architecture should be flat and easy for Google (or another search engine) to read.

Inbound Linking: Finally, online retailers should increase your quantity and quality of inbound links to your site. Search engines are reading your site with their complex algorithms, but they are also giving a lot of credibility to the rest of the web and how you fit in. The more credible sites that link to your site, the better. If these sites that are linking to you, have 1,000 or so links linking to them? Guess what? Your network is that much bigger and search engines know this.

The best way to share your site in social networks, use social e-commerce to sell or market products, offer promotions, and offers in social networks like Facebook and Twitter. Use a technology that has a blog pinging service that connects your content to the massive established blog communities....and massive they are!

If you are thinking of starting an e-commerce site, you must think about including SEO into your site prior to building the site. Many times, online retailers forget about SEO until the very end and then they end up scrambling to get it found on the Internet because they realize that without the original search engine optimization, no one can find them and therefore, no one even knows that their products exist. Make sure you find a website developer with SEO experience who will make building out SEO just as important as the usability of the site. Take these thing important factors into consideration when developing your site and you will be that much more ahead of the game.

For more information, please visit RJ Web Dev for tips on search engine optimization, social media marketing and website development.

Pick Your Website Designer

2010-10-18T13:00:00.003-04:00

RJ Web Dev wants to make sure that you avoid website design bumps a few months or a few years down the road after you have your website up and running.

If you are in need of a good, quality website design or redesign, you probably have difficulty deciding where you should turn to for help. RJ Web Dev hopes to be able to help you with not only your effective website design, but also your search engine optimization and the marketing that surrounds not only your website but your entire business as well.

Just to make sure that you are on the right track in finding a website designer, make sure you follow these tips so you don’t end up making a costly mistake. Not only can you lose financially if you choose the wrong web developer, but there may be unanticipated costs, a lack of communication with your developer, un-met timing expectations and other related problems that can take a toll on you and your business.

1. Make sure to research the web developer’s history and relay to him or her exactly what your project needs are.

2. Make sure to communicate effectively from the very beginning. Being able to openly communicate with your designer is so important because if you are not on the same page from Day 1, then you may never be on the same page and your goals will not be met. Pay close attention to the communication style of the designer.

3. Check past performance of your designer. You can probably visit your designer’s business website to see who his or her clients are. Visit those sites! You can even reach out to those clients to see how they liked working with this developer.

4. Be detailed and thorough when you make requests and state your expectations. It is so important to communicate everything you want, how you want it, where you want it and every detail you can possibly put together. The best thing you can do is outline this in writing. Your designer should be doing the same so that everyone is on the same page…from Day 1.

I hope that this helps you choosing your website designer or re-designer. For more information and to see RJ Web Dev’s clients, you can visit our site or contact info@rjwebdev.com.

Get A Website: Steps 1 & 2

2010-10-15T14:23:00.000-04:00

RJ Web Dev now has videos on how you can get a website. Check out Steps 1 & 2!

Get A Website: Step 1- Get a Domain Name

Get A Website: Step 2 - Get a Hosting Account

Effective Website Designs

2010-10-11T22:32:00.000-04:00

An effective website design is all about the usability and not just the visual design of the website. Since your website is being used by a ‘user’ you want it to be ‘user-friendly’ for he or she to navigate and this user-centric design has become standard for successful business’s website designs.

In order to understand usability and effective website design, you must understand your users and how they think. The good news it that users’ habits on the web are the same as if they were shopping in a store. They glance at a new page, scan some text and click on something that piques their interest or looks like something they want. Many times, the user doesn’t look at anything other than what they are looking for. Once the user finds what he or she is looking for they will click…if there is something to click. Users are looking for something to click or away they go.

Users want to see quality and credibility. If the page is not of high-quality content then it’s possible to woo the user with the design of the site. Content is still more important than design support.

Users scan text – they do not actually read text. Make sure that you use bullet points or anchors which will guide them through your content.

Users are impatient and want everything immediately. Instant gratification is the age we live in. If a website does not meet a user’s expectations, then your website design has failed essentially. The more work a user has to do, the less likely they will stay on your site and convert to a sale or your end goal.

Users use their intuition to make choices. This means that no matter how logical you make the website, it might not be the most user-friendly. This is why it is important to understand your user and how he or she thinks.

Users want to be able to control their browser as much as possible and rely on a consistent presentation throughout your website design.

Visit RJWebDev for more website design tips and for further questions, feel free to e-mail info@rjwebdev.com.

What To Do if My Site is Flagged

2010-09-27T11:59:00.000-04:00

So, if you've chosen not to hire an SEO specialist like RJWebDev, but you decided to try it on your own, it is possible that you may run into some unfortunate situations such as Google flagging your site or a particular keyword for your site. Google can ban or flag a site that uses spam SEO techniques such as duplicate content, keyword stuffing or door-way pages. How do you know if Google has flagged your site?

Here is a simple sequence of steps, courtesy of MasterGoogle.com, that can help you determine whether your site has been flagged by Google due to a number of SEO reasons.

1. Copy some of your site's content (at least 2 sentences, preferably more) and paste into Google as an exact match within quotes. If you only see your site in the search results, then you're in the clear. If you see other sites listed next to yours - well, then someone has copied from your text, but you are still not flagged or blacklisted. If you do not show up at all, the possibility you have been banned is pretty good.

2. Search Google for some of the keywords that are in your title tag (this is the tag that appear's within the site's backend code as the text after

Acquisition v. Retention

2010-09-20T11:38:00.000-04:00

There are many levels to marketing in general, even social media marketing, and understanding what works best for each level is just as important as understanding your market!

Let's discuss the difference between what works for acquiring new customers (Acquisition) versus what works best to retain your current customers (Retention).

The definition of acquisition is the act of acquiring or gaining possession. This is an important step in gaining traction on any marketing campaigns that you may have. If a tree falls in the woods and no one is there to hear it, did it make a sound? That's essentially the same as if you are running a marketing campaign, but no one sees or hears it, does anyone actually know who you are?

The definition of retention is simply, the act of retaining. Simple enough, right? Once you have acquired your customers (or fans/followers in the case of social media marketing), you need to keep them around for your next campaign, next product, etc. Here is where it gets interesting...

Why am I bringing this up? Well, I read an interesting article on eMarketer today regarding social media marketing and a study that was done indicating it works better for retention rather than acquisition. So, if your marketing plan includes "Growing Customers: Make a Facebook page." you might want to rethink it.

Take a look at the results of this study and let me know what you think. There are many small businesses out there that have succeeded in acquiring new customers through social media marketing, but it doesn't and probably won't work for everyone.

Search Marketing v. Social Media Marketing

2010-09-13T10:02:00.000-04:00

Advertisers spend a lot of money on search engine marketing. They purchase ads through Google (Google AdWords), they hire web designers & search engine optimization specialists to design their websites in order to show up on the first page of most search engine searches, they run banner ads through an entire network of websites that run search boxes on them and so on. What is interesting is how social media marketing has dominated the market in the past 12-18 months. Facebook's new "Questions" feature may indeed be the next Google (or if you remember Ask Jeeves...now Ask.com) search box. Instead of asking an entire world of people, you are asking your network of friends and their friends...probably people you are more apt to trust.

Check out this New York Times article regarding this phenomena of "Search Making a Social Turn."