2010 Internet Marketing Checklist for Small Business Owners

Wednesday, December 30th, 2009

Yet another year comes to an end and it’s the time to re-evaluate our personal and business performance. This is the time when we all make a promise to do better next year. I thought I would take you up on this promise and make a mini checklist to ease your job in the Internet Marketing field. 

Even if you were a good student in 2009, and you already know about these social media marketing tools, here you are again. It’s never a bad idea to review and revise after all:

1) Get Intimate

Needless to say, social media simply exploded in 2009. Facebook reached over 300 million users, and Twitter’s projected growth in the next year is 50 percent. This is just the tip of the social media iceberg! From one hand it might be scary and intimidating to a social media virgin; for a small business owner to make the plunge and not drown! I would say, take it easy and do not over-do it. Get started with the basics and once you conquer the fundamentals, then you will feel more comfortable with the rest of it.

Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn – three essentials for your business for 2010. These social networking sites will help you to stay connected to your clients and to get the word about your company, your new products or general business happenings out there. They are free (in most cases) and fun to play with. Check them out, if you have not already.

2) Blogging Shmogging

What is blogging? It is the easiest way to tell the masses about yourself and your business. Blogs are easy to set up and manage, and they keep your brain on the creative wave when you write often. Yes, everyone is blogging nowadays, so you will have to make sure you know your audience and you write something useful for them.

When you create a blog for your business make sure you reap all the benefits from it. Your blog name should be www.yourdomain.com/blog, and not blogspot.domain.com or something of that sort. Feel the difference? When your blog is set up on your own domain; 1) it looks more professional, 2) it helps your Search Engine Optimization (if you post often).

Having a company blog is an excellent way to show your expertise and engage with the clients by answering their questions, giving your general advice or sharing your knowledge.

3) Email and Marketing

Although some people might think that Email Marketing is slowly dying, in reality this is not the case. Email Marketing is still one of the most cost-effective ways to communicate your marketing message to your clients, and it is a great customer retention tool as well. Newsletters, white papers and email blasts are your chance to stay connected with your clients and to remind them about your awesome services and products. Make sure you do not become too annoying, by sending out too many emails. Once a month for a company newsletter, or occasional business news email blast is a good amount. If you have more news than you can fit in one newsletter, then make sure it’s not more often than once a week (tops!)

Make your email communications fun and informative. Life it too short to be subscribed to a boring newsletter!

Speaking of which, please feel free to subscribe to our super awesome newsletter that will be sent to you not more than once a month.

4) Talk and Be Heard

My guess is that you already read your industry forums and blogs on a regular basis. Why not to take the full advantage of them? Participate and leave comments. Make sure to put your real name or your company name and link it to your website. Once your comment goes live your name will become a link to your site, attracting more traffic. If you are a regular in forums, make sure your signature includes your primary keywords and that it is linked back to your site. For example my signature would say “Internet Marketing Vancouver.” ;)

5)  Be In The Know

Everything happens so quickly in this world. A mom dragged her kid into a supermarket and a video of her is on You Tube and TV in a matter of minutes. Know what people are saying about you and your business, and gain the edge. Set up Google Alerts for your name, your company name, and receive instant notifications once someone mentions it on the Web. You can also set up an alert for your competition to see what they are up to.

It is happening; social media is changing the marketing landscape as we know it by providing business owners with new tools and endless opportunities. Take advantage of them today and you will see the results tomorrow.

Let us know if we can be of any help on your Internet Marketing journey!

Tags: Blogging
Posted in Internet Marketing | 2 Comments »

Three Reasons Why Small Businesses Should Start Blogging

Tuesday, November 24th, 2009

#1 Show Your Expertise

A blog is the easiest way to show your prospective clients that you are the master of your domain. Demonstrate knowledge of your field by writing useful “how to” posts. Blog about the latest news in your industry, and be sure to answer people’s questions in your comments.

#2 Get The Word Out There

Launching a new product? Blog about it! Get the word out there about your offerings by bookmarking your blog posts in popular social media sites like Digg, Reddit, StumbleUpon, etc. If people like your product they will talk about it on twitter, link to your blog from their site, or recommend it on popular local listings sites like Yelp, HotFrog, etc.

#3 Attract Visitors and Improve SEO

Blogs are fantastic for attracting new traffic. Search engines index new posts very fast, especially if you write often.

Consolidate your blog with your main business site and direct visitors to your product pages with a strong call-to-action.

Need a hand setting up your blog? Give us a call and we’ll be happy to get you started! Contact us!

Tags: Blogging
Posted in Internet Marketing | No Comments »