www.linxonesolutions.com
More and more, business managers and owners are starting to realize the importance of Search Engine Optimization (SEO), to their business. With the majority of customers turning to the Internet for answer to their questions, having a presence on the sites people frequent most is critical. But there is one factor of SEO that many Internet Marketing agencies attempt to misconstrue.
Search Engine Optimization, SEO for short, is a term has many business owners scurrying for a dictionary. They hear this term and how it’s important to their business, but really have no idea how to implement into their current practices.
By definition, SEO is the process of improving the quality and/or volume of traffic to a web page from search engines through unpaid, “organic” search results. But, you may be wondering why you should care about this.
In today’s market, the importance of a strong website that allows a means of communications with customers is ideal. A great number of companies promote their blogs just as much, if not more so, than their actual website because a blog allows you to send out constant updates in a relatively easy fashion. It also enables the customer to have a voice, as blogs have an area after each post where they can leave comments and insight of their own.
In the past, companies had to rely on how much revenue they could pour into promoting their brand awareness through commercials, billboards, and a wide variety of other advertising mediums that spoke to a large audience. The more they promoted, the more of a percentage of that audience they could turn into paying customers.
Now, consumers are taking a new approach to buying. All the noise from all the companies with huge marketing budgets became distorted and unclear…no one knew which message was best. So, instead of trying to decipher a message geared at the masses, consumers took a more individualistic approach and decided to gather information on their own terms. They purchased when they were ready, not when a voice told them they were.
This theory is the foundation in which effective Search Engine Optimization is defined. The fact that people have taken it upon themselves to consult the Internet when they want to purchase something means your website and your content needs to be in a position for them to find it so they make their purchase through you! And in order to do that, you have to delve into the mind of your customer and determine exactly how they think.
As a business owner or manager, your time is very valuable. There are plenty of tasks you’re expected to conquer on a daily basis, and mastering the game of SEO isn’t necessarily one of them.
And therein lays one of the biggest misconceptions about Search Engine Optimization. I’ve spoke with business owners who have met with SEO agencies who danced around an answer to the following question:
“As a business owner, can I perform SEO duties myself?”
The answer to this question is a resounding “Yes You Can!” But many people are led to believe they can’t.
Learning SEO is the same as learning the craft you currently master. It takes effort, patience, and practice. And to do it effectively to the point where you see the results your business requires, it takes a significant amount of time.
So, in order to get the most out of Search Engine Optimization, you need to ask yourself whether you have the time it takes to get the most from your efforts. If you do, you can get to work immediately! But, chances are, adding more to your daily to-do lists is something you simply can’t endure.
If lack of time is the case, it can be a smart business decision to hire someone who specializes in Internet Marketing and Inbound Marketing strategy. This will allow you to keep your focus on maintaining your current customer base, as well as continuing to tackle the every day tasks that presently make up your to-do list.
But keep in mind the big misconception that the ability to learn SEO is out of range. If time is on your side, you can learn how leveraging the power of the Internet can lead to remarkable results for your business.
“The Conspiracy Against Your Advertising Dollar” is a FREE Report designed to raise awareness of the inadequacies of print media. As a business owner or manager, effectively positioning your message, products, services, and features in a location where potential customers can find them is imperative to long-term stability. And in today’s on-demand world, the big yellow books aren’t getting the job done anymore.
Many businesses have fallen behind the times and are spending THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS on advertisements that the vast majority of people never see.
Does your company fall into this category?
If it does, it’s time to discover how everything has changed.
Today’s consumer market is a whole new animal. The interruption-based, traditional marketing methods of yesterday are quickly becoming a thing of the past. No longer is a consumer forced to flip through a big yellow book or wait for the Sunday newspaper to get a coupon on their favorite products. No longer does a customer need to be persuaded by a commercial advertisement.
The world of today focuses on the consumer’s ability to make their own decision, and the Internet is responsible for that. Instead of having a salesman make up their mind for them, a customer has the ability to gather as much information as they want, analyze it, get real-time reviews from other people through social media networks, and make purchases by putting the pieces together themselves.
With the Internet continuing to evolve and offer new ways to connect, gather, share, explore, and purchase, the necessity to build an online presence on the Internet’s most popular websites becomes more crucial by the minute.
We are currently giving away “The Conspiracy” Video Report FOR FREE at www.linxonesolutions.com to help businesses better understand the importance of creating a web presence. And as a bonus, you get an opportunity to get a “sneak peak” at the video that’s making business owners throw their current marketing playbooks in the recycle bin (right next to their big yellow books) and develop new ways to get found on the World Wide Web!
Enjoy the Preview!
www.linxonesolutions.com
Many businesses have fallen behind the times and are spending THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS on advertisements that the vast majority of people never see.
Does your company fall into this category?
If it does, it’s time to discover how everything has changed.
Today’s consumer market is a whole new animal. The interruption-based, traditional marketing methods of yesterday are quickly becoming a thing of the past. No longer is a consumer forced to flip through a big yellow book or wait for the Sunday newspaper to get a coupon on their favorite products. No longer does a customer need to be persuaded by a commercial advertisement.
The world of today focuses on the consumer’s ability to make their own decision, and the Internet is responsible for that. Instead of having a salesman make up their mind for them, a customer has the ability to gather as much information as they want, analyze it, get real-time reviews from other people through social media networks, and make purchases by putting the pieces together themselves.
With the Internet continuing to evolve and offer new ways to connect, gather, share, explore, and purchase, the necessity to build an online presence on the Internet’s most popular websites becomes more crucial by the minute.
We are currently giving away “The Conspiracy” Video Report FOR FREE at www.linxonesolutions.com to help businesses better understand the importance of creating a web presence. And as a bonus, you get an opportunity to get a “sneak peak” at the video that’s making business owners throw their current marketing playbooks in the recycle bin (right next to their big yellow books) and develop new ways to get found on the World Wide Web!
Enjoy the Preview!
www.linxonesolutions.com
The Super Bowl has become the biggest spectator extravaganza of the year. People from all over the world tune in for the event…regardless of their feelings about football or the teams on the field. It’s an excuse to have a party, come together as friends and family in a non-traditional holiday sort of way. And, if the game is good, it’s a bonus.
With so many eyes glued to the television, companies with hefty marketing budgets have ran out of ink writing a check for a 30-second commercial spot during the game, spending upwards of $2 million. Some companies purchase two, three, or more commercial time, and usually fire their biggest creative bullet for the worldwide spectacle.
But here’s a question: Without giving it too much thought, how many commercials do you remember from this year’s game?
Off the top of your head, you probably struggled to piece together three, even two commercials. And the reason for that speaks volumes towards the paradigm shift that’s taking place in the way the world consumes the information and products they crave.
The lion’s share of sales and revenue used to go to companies who spent the most on advertisements. Now, the rules have been rewritten. This dramatic change has revealed that companies with enormous advertising budgets are not calling the shots anymore.
The consumer is in control. And interruption-based marketing tactics that once worked like a charm fail to pack the same punch.
Interruption-based marketing, also known as “outbound marketing,” are commercials and emails that serve to make noise and hopefully grab a handful of people’s attention. The problem is, with so many companies making a loud racket, consumers don’t know where to focus their attention.
Now, with the rise of “inbound marketing,” meaning companies set themselves up to “get found” on the Internet when a consumer searches for their particular goods or services, a small business with a small advertising budget has the opportunity to reach a wide consumer base…one of similar, or even greater size, to a major corporation with billions to invest in advertising.
Consumers aren’t paying attention to the commercials like they used to. They’re not digging through coupon fliers and yellow books. It’s a world of instant gratification, and the Internet satiates all consumer needs. Everything they need is at their fingertips, and you need to make sure your business is there, too.
In order to be successful with inbound marketing, you need to position yourself for visibility where customers are frequenting, much like the trade shows and expos of yesterday. More specifically, you need to have a presence in three of the biggest and rapidly-growing segments of the Internet.
1) The Search Engines - The majority of people use sites like Google to shop and gather information, with the average person initiating dozens of searches on a daily basis. The real-time results and plethora of information gives consumers the ability to sit at their computers and collect the information they seek. To take full advantage of this new trend, you must completely re-evaluate the way you market your business and take into consideration that traditional forms of advertisement are falling on deaf ears.
2) The Social Mediasphere - The Social Mediasphere consists of many different sites that you’ve probably heard of: Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Linked In, Digg, Reddit, StumbleUpon, MySpace, etc. These sites were once viewed as niche, but are now considered much more mainstream. Many companies are privy to the fact that MILLIONS of people frequent social media sites daily, therefore realize that creating a presence on these sites opens up an opportunity to build their brand in front of a sizable audience.
3) The Blogosphere - The blogosphere is over 100 million blogs and growing, and all consumer niches have blogs run by bloggers who really know their stuff. The days of reading a trade publication have been replaced by finding a blog on Google and subscribing to it in order to receive information directly from the horse’s mouth.
In order to be successful with your marketing today, it’s important to stay current with trend developments and match your efforts with the way consumers learn about and shop for your products. Building a web presence in today’s online, on-demand marketplace has never been more important than it is today.
http://www.linxonesolutions.com
With so many eyes glued to the television, companies with hefty marketing budgets have ran out of ink writing a check for a 30-second commercial spot during the game, spending upwards of $2 million. Some companies purchase two, three, or more commercial time, and usually fire their biggest creative bullet for the worldwide spectacle.
But here’s a question: Without giving it too much thought, how many commercials do you remember from this year’s game?
Off the top of your head, you probably struggled to piece together three, even two commercials. And the reason for that speaks volumes towards the paradigm shift that’s taking place in the way the world consumes the information and products they crave.
The lion’s share of sales and revenue used to go to companies who spent the most on advertisements. Now, the rules have been rewritten. This dramatic change has revealed that companies with enormous advertising budgets are not calling the shots anymore.
The consumer is in control. And interruption-based marketing tactics that once worked like a charm fail to pack the same punch.
Interruption-based marketing, also known as “outbound marketing,” are commercials and emails that serve to make noise and hopefully grab a handful of people’s attention. The problem is, with so many companies making a loud racket, consumers don’t know where to focus their attention.
Now, with the rise of “inbound marketing,” meaning companies set themselves up to “get found” on the Internet when a consumer searches for their particular goods or services, a small business with a small advertising budget has the opportunity to reach a wide consumer base…one of similar, or even greater size, to a major corporation with billions to invest in advertising.
Consumers aren’t paying attention to the commercials like they used to. They’re not digging through coupon fliers and yellow books. It’s a world of instant gratification, and the Internet satiates all consumer needs. Everything they need is at their fingertips, and you need to make sure your business is there, too.
In order to be successful with inbound marketing, you need to position yourself for visibility where customers are frequenting, much like the trade shows and expos of yesterday. More specifically, you need to have a presence in three of the biggest and rapidly-growing segments of the Internet.
1) The Search Engines - The majority of people use sites like Google to shop and gather information, with the average person initiating dozens of searches on a daily basis. The real-time results and plethora of information gives consumers the ability to sit at their computers and collect the information they seek. To take full advantage of this new trend, you must completely re-evaluate the way you market your business and take into consideration that traditional forms of advertisement are falling on deaf ears.
2) The Social Mediasphere - The Social Mediasphere consists of many different sites that you’ve probably heard of: Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Linked In, Digg, Reddit, StumbleUpon, MySpace, etc. These sites were once viewed as niche, but are now considered much more mainstream. Many companies are privy to the fact that MILLIONS of people frequent social media sites daily, therefore realize that creating a presence on these sites opens up an opportunity to build their brand in front of a sizable audience.
3) The Blogosphere - The blogosphere is over 100 million blogs and growing, and all consumer niches have blogs run by bloggers who really know their stuff. The days of reading a trade publication have been replaced by finding a blog on Google and subscribing to it in order to receive information directly from the horse’s mouth.
In order to be successful with your marketing today, it’s important to stay current with trend developments and match your efforts with the way consumers learn about and shop for your products. Building a web presence in today’s online, on-demand marketplace has never been more important than it is today.
http://www.linxonesolutions.com
Facebook is the king of social media outlets. 400 million people and counting flock to it to connect, share, learn, inform, and unwind. Whatever your electronic cup of social media tea may be, Facebook has something to satiate you. Live chat, lifestreaming, photos, interactive games, etc, etc. Its diversity and easy platform make it a medium that users young and old ‘Like’ (a little Facebook pun there).
And if you pay very close attention to sports teams, news media, as well as small and major corporations, they’re promoting their Facebook and Twitter accounts just as much, if not more, than their actual website.
This is an incredibly smart strategy. Think about it: If 400 million people were at a party, wouldn’t you want to attend as well?
Despite some deeming Facebook a waste of time, the majority of the world remains faithful and continues to cultivate those virtual farms like they did in days of old (only, it was real, not virtual). And thinking about this phenomenon made me comb through my own Facebook News Feed, where I made a bold observation:
There certainly are a lot of messages about lonely, lost brown cows, aren’t there?
Yes, I’m aware you can block the messages out. But go with me on this…
One of the many reasons some companies have deemed Facebook ‘counterproductive’ is because of the countless hours spent tending to crops, giving people cakes, and attempting to virtually live vicariously through Tony Soprano. Many companies have blocked the site completely…thus dismissing a major opportunity to build their brand on the world’s most popular platform.
Facebook is a connectivity tool and continues to be so. But that purpose can get blurred amidst the sponsored games that keep their company running like a locomotive. In an effort to use Facebook as a productive tool, it’s important to look past your friends asking you for wood and nails so they can have a barn-raising next week and focus on the other great applications that can benefit you and your business’s branding efforts.
Facebook’s built-in instant messaging feature is a fantastic way to connect and network with clients, customers, partners, and industry leaders. You can share and gain insight on a variety of topics. In addition, great content can be found and posted in Status Updates. One of your connections may be working on a new business idea and you may be in need of what they’re planning to offer. Strike up a conversation with them and they’ll be more than willing to point you in the right direction.
The ability to generate a lead and, more importantly, a sale, with virtually no money spent or time wasted is a very real possibility with Facebook. Position yourself correctly and provide remarkable value to the Facebook community and you’ll be pleasantly surprised how well-received your message becomes.
Facebook has also become a very popular site for Pay-Per-Click (PPC) advertising, much like Google. The Facebook ads appear in the right-hand column and are targeted towards a user’s profile information, thus putting information in their line of sight that closely relates to their interests. It doesn’t get much more focused than that.
You also have the capability of embedding landing pages and opt-in forms to your profile, which is a tremendous way to provide valuable information to a potential customer or client in exchange for their name and email address.
Finally, the need for Fan Pages, Business Pages, and Community Pages cannot be overlooked for any business, regardless of size. These pages create excellent ways to keep the public up-to-date on news and happenings within your organization, as well as interact with your fans and followers. With the number of users on Facebook continuing to rise and the potential for your message to reach huge audiences, a business cannot afford to be without one, or all, of these pages.
Become a Fan of the LinXone Solutions Fan Page!
Businesses ‘in the know’ already have a leg-up in the social media game. If you haven’t started utilizing Facebook to your advantage, chances are tremendous your competitors are stealing business from you this very moment!
http://www.linxonesolutions.com
And if you pay very close attention to sports teams, news media, as well as small and major corporations, they’re promoting their Facebook and Twitter accounts just as much, if not more, than their actual website.
This is an incredibly smart strategy. Think about it: If 400 million people were at a party, wouldn’t you want to attend as well?
Despite some deeming Facebook a waste of time, the majority of the world remains faithful and continues to cultivate those virtual farms like they did in days of old (only, it was real, not virtual). And thinking about this phenomenon made me comb through my own Facebook News Feed, where I made a bold observation:
There certainly are a lot of messages about lonely, lost brown cows, aren’t there?
Yes, I’m aware you can block the messages out. But go with me on this…
One of the many reasons some companies have deemed Facebook ‘counterproductive’ is because of the countless hours spent tending to crops, giving people cakes, and attempting to virtually live vicariously through Tony Soprano. Many companies have blocked the site completely…thus dismissing a major opportunity to build their brand on the world’s most popular platform.
Facebook is a connectivity tool and continues to be so. But that purpose can get blurred amidst the sponsored games that keep their company running like a locomotive. In an effort to use Facebook as a productive tool, it’s important to look past your friends asking you for wood and nails so they can have a barn-raising next week and focus on the other great applications that can benefit you and your business’s branding efforts.
Facebook’s built-in instant messaging feature is a fantastic way to connect and network with clients, customers, partners, and industry leaders. You can share and gain insight on a variety of topics. In addition, great content can be found and posted in Status Updates. One of your connections may be working on a new business idea and you may be in need of what they’re planning to offer. Strike up a conversation with them and they’ll be more than willing to point you in the right direction.
The ability to generate a lead and, more importantly, a sale, with virtually no money spent or time wasted is a very real possibility with Facebook. Position yourself correctly and provide remarkable value to the Facebook community and you’ll be pleasantly surprised how well-received your message becomes.
Facebook has also become a very popular site for Pay-Per-Click (PPC) advertising, much like Google. The Facebook ads appear in the right-hand column and are targeted towards a user’s profile information, thus putting information in their line of sight that closely relates to their interests. It doesn’t get much more focused than that.
You also have the capability of embedding landing pages and opt-in forms to your profile, which is a tremendous way to provide valuable information to a potential customer or client in exchange for their name and email address.
Finally, the need for Fan Pages, Business Pages, and Community Pages cannot be overlooked for any business, regardless of size. These pages create excellent ways to keep the public up-to-date on news and happenings within your organization, as well as interact with your fans and followers. With the number of users on Facebook continuing to rise and the potential for your message to reach huge audiences, a business cannot afford to be without one, or all, of these pages.
Become a Fan of the LinXone Solutions Fan Page!
Businesses ‘in the know’ already have a leg-up in the social media game. If you haven’t started utilizing Facebook to your advantage, chances are tremendous your competitors are stealing business from you this very moment!
http://www.linxonesolutions.com
Millions and millions of social media enthusiasts use Twitter to communicate with their friends and family, follow the lives of celebrities, and simply share with their followers what they’re doing. Many business owners use this powerful tool as a means to generate traffic to their websites and develop leads for their business.
But, like just about every other social media platform on the world wide web, some people just don’t get it. They spend their day doing absolutely nothing but spamming a link to their website. It’s the equivalent of the stranger who chases you down in the mall parking lot to tell you all about his “super business opportunity” and “how great the compensation plan is.” And we all know that guy is annoying as hell.
When using Twitter for building your business, you want to make sure you’re not the person everyone tunes out because you do nothing but spam your business.
Here are some tips to help you get the most out your tweets!
1. Personalize Your Profile and Brand Yourself – Above all else, make sure you post a picture. People want to interact with YOU, not the provided Twitter avatar. Be sure your profile informs your visitors who you are, your experience, your goals, and what separates you from the next person. People are looking to join other people, so use Twitter as a platform for them to familiarize themselves with your business. You can design your own background on PowerPoint or visit TwitterImages.com for a customized background to enhance your Twitter site.
2. PROVIDE VALUE – This is crucial! As I mentioned, you don’t want to be the person who spams their link every single tweet. Make sure you give your followers something that is OF VALUE TO THEM. You can tweet links to videos, articles, quotes, jokes, even random thoughts that pop into your head. This shows people that you’re a real person and not someone who’s automated their Twitter usage to only advertise their business.
3. Pay Attention to What Industry Leaders and Gurus Do – Industry leaders don’t spend their day spamming. They provide useful knowledge that educates and entertains their followers. They build a self-image based on who they are, not what company they’re apart of.
4. Build a Targeted List of Followers – You want your tweets to be seen by those they’ll matter to, so it’s important to build a list of followers that is targeted to your niche. For example, if you send a tweet about a great recipe, you want other people interested in cooking to see it, not a group of people who love bowling. Use the Twitter Search feature to find people who have similar interests.
5. Don’t Be a Snob – You never know who’s going to provide value to your life. With that being said, you don’t want to build a massive following of people, but only follow a handful yourself. Give everyone the benefit of the doubt. If they turn out to be a spammer, simply unfollow them. It’s that easy. One rule of thumb: this is your choice, but I do not follow anyone who does not post a picture of themselves. If they do not care enough about themselves to put a face with their message, then chances are they’re not going to provide you with any value.
6. Follow People You Find Interesting – As I said in #5, you never know who can provide value to your life, so be on the lookout for those interesting cats that truly get the meaning of Twitter. Those are the ones you want to follow closest. Send them messages, retweet their valuable content, and get to know them more personally.
7. Automate Your Twitter Marketing via Plug-ins – We’re all busy people, and the last thing we have to do is sit in front of the computer 24/7 tweeting with our followers. However, in this world of short attention spans we live in, if we don’t send any messages for days at a time, our followers will forget about us and move on to someone else they find interesting. Fortunately, there are several tools, such as TweetLater.com and Hootsuite.com, that allows you to schedule tweets so your followers remember you! Also, you can set up your accounts to follow those who follow you, as well as several other options to enhance your Twitter usage.
8. Implement a Tweet/Post Strategy – Determine times during the day that you want to tweet and be sure your messages are filled with content people want to see. There are several services that can help you determine what’s best to tweet about, such as Alltop.com. You can also check the Trending Topics on your home page to find out what’s hot in the twitterverse that specific day, and then send tweets with links to that content.
9. Manage Your Twitter Followers and Followings – To avoid being a snob, it’s good to follow those who follow you, unless that person has proven to be a spam-bot before you even get the chance to follow them. You should also unfollow those who do not follow you…unless it’s a guru in your niche that you know will provide you value, or one of your favorite celebrities that you want to keep tabs on.
10. Let Your Personality Show – Social Media is a great place to not only brand your business, but yourself. Even when the most successful people in the world go to a party, they don’t talk about business the whole time. This is a great chance for you to let your personality beam. Nobody wants to talk to someone who does nothing but talk about work. So talk about the fun things in your life, the people you enjoy, post links to funny quotes and videos. It’s all about transparency, so let the world see who you are.
11. Set Up a Second Account To Follow Gurus in Your Niche – This will give you the opportunity to see exactly what the experts do, plus give you access to what they find valuable. Chances are, if they’re tweeting it, their enormous group of followers finds it valuable. So take that information and tweet it yourself. Your followers will most likely find it just as valuable, and begin to view you as an expert as well.
12. Interact – Send Direct Messages, ReTweet your followers’ messages, send @replies, ask questions, and by all means, always reply to a Direct Message someone sends you. You never know when you’re going to meet the person who’s in dire need of what you’re offering, or is simply interesting to interact with. If someone takes the time to send you a Direct Message, chances are you said something that impressed them. Get to know that person.
13. Be the Person Everyone Wants To Know – You see these types of people every day. Famous people, athletes, and celebrities do a superb job of branding themselves based on their line of work; therefore everyone wants to be around them. You want to become that person, too! And the only way to do that is to give the people something that will make them see you in that light. And trust me, sending them a link to your website every ten minutes isn’t it! Make YOURSELF attractive. Be yourself.
14. Be the ‘Life of the Party’ – You can pick this person out from across the room. The person that everyone is gravitating towards and telling everyone else about. That’s who you want to be! Your goal is to build a network of followers who are interested in what you have to say and what you’re doing. If you’re M.O. is to talk nothing but business, you’ll suffer the fate of being the boss that no one invites to happy hour. No one will want to be around you. Be interesting! Be fun! Again…BE YOURSELF.
15. Do Not Spam 24/7 – I mentioned this before, but it bears repeating. If you want to create a presence on Twitter, do not think it’s going to happen by consistently tweeting a link to your website and expecting people to click. You’ll get labeled as a bot in minutes, and people will unfollow you. So be sure to give your followers something they want. If you’ve properly branded yourself and your business on your profile page, they can check out what you do from there.
The purpose of Twitter, and all social media, is not to make money, but to brand your business and build rapport with potential and existing customers. You need to treat it as any social function you’ve ever attended. Parties, chamber meetings, live networking events…these are all venues to meet new people. And at these events, “work talk” is mixed with “life talk.”
So do the same thing on Twitter. Put these tips into action and you’ll be on your way to becoming a Twitter rockstar!
http://www.linxonesolutions.com
But, like just about every other social media platform on the world wide web, some people just don’t get it. They spend their day doing absolutely nothing but spamming a link to their website. It’s the equivalent of the stranger who chases you down in the mall parking lot to tell you all about his “super business opportunity” and “how great the compensation plan is.” And we all know that guy is annoying as hell.
When using Twitter for building your business, you want to make sure you’re not the person everyone tunes out because you do nothing but spam your business.
Here are some tips to help you get the most out your tweets!
1. Personalize Your Profile and Brand Yourself – Above all else, make sure you post a picture. People want to interact with YOU, not the provided Twitter avatar. Be sure your profile informs your visitors who you are, your experience, your goals, and what separates you from the next person. People are looking to join other people, so use Twitter as a platform for them to familiarize themselves with your business. You can design your own background on PowerPoint or visit TwitterImages.com for a customized background to enhance your Twitter site.
2. PROVIDE VALUE – This is crucial! As I mentioned, you don’t want to be the person who spams their link every single tweet. Make sure you give your followers something that is OF VALUE TO THEM. You can tweet links to videos, articles, quotes, jokes, even random thoughts that pop into your head. This shows people that you’re a real person and not someone who’s automated their Twitter usage to only advertise their business.
3. Pay Attention to What Industry Leaders and Gurus Do – Industry leaders don’t spend their day spamming. They provide useful knowledge that educates and entertains their followers. They build a self-image based on who they are, not what company they’re apart of.
4. Build a Targeted List of Followers – You want your tweets to be seen by those they’ll matter to, so it’s important to build a list of followers that is targeted to your niche. For example, if you send a tweet about a great recipe, you want other people interested in cooking to see it, not a group of people who love bowling. Use the Twitter Search feature to find people who have similar interests.
5. Don’t Be a Snob – You never know who’s going to provide value to your life. With that being said, you don’t want to build a massive following of people, but only follow a handful yourself. Give everyone the benefit of the doubt. If they turn out to be a spammer, simply unfollow them. It’s that easy. One rule of thumb: this is your choice, but I do not follow anyone who does not post a picture of themselves. If they do not care enough about themselves to put a face with their message, then chances are they’re not going to provide you with any value.
6. Follow People You Find Interesting – As I said in #5, you never know who can provide value to your life, so be on the lookout for those interesting cats that truly get the meaning of Twitter. Those are the ones you want to follow closest. Send them messages, retweet their valuable content, and get to know them more personally.
7. Automate Your Twitter Marketing via Plug-ins – We’re all busy people, and the last thing we have to do is sit in front of the computer 24/7 tweeting with our followers. However, in this world of short attention spans we live in, if we don’t send any messages for days at a time, our followers will forget about us and move on to someone else they find interesting. Fortunately, there are several tools, such as TweetLater.com and Hootsuite.com, that allows you to schedule tweets so your followers remember you! Also, you can set up your accounts to follow those who follow you, as well as several other options to enhance your Twitter usage.
8. Implement a Tweet/Post Strategy – Determine times during the day that you want to tweet and be sure your messages are filled with content people want to see. There are several services that can help you determine what’s best to tweet about, such as Alltop.com. You can also check the Trending Topics on your home page to find out what’s hot in the twitterverse that specific day, and then send tweets with links to that content.
9. Manage Your Twitter Followers and Followings – To avoid being a snob, it’s good to follow those who follow you, unless that person has proven to be a spam-bot before you even get the chance to follow them. You should also unfollow those who do not follow you…unless it’s a guru in your niche that you know will provide you value, or one of your favorite celebrities that you want to keep tabs on.
10. Let Your Personality Show – Social Media is a great place to not only brand your business, but yourself. Even when the most successful people in the world go to a party, they don’t talk about business the whole time. This is a great chance for you to let your personality beam. Nobody wants to talk to someone who does nothing but talk about work. So talk about the fun things in your life, the people you enjoy, post links to funny quotes and videos. It’s all about transparency, so let the world see who you are.
11. Set Up a Second Account To Follow Gurus in Your Niche – This will give you the opportunity to see exactly what the experts do, plus give you access to what they find valuable. Chances are, if they’re tweeting it, their enormous group of followers finds it valuable. So take that information and tweet it yourself. Your followers will most likely find it just as valuable, and begin to view you as an expert as well.
12. Interact – Send Direct Messages, ReTweet your followers’ messages, send @replies, ask questions, and by all means, always reply to a Direct Message someone sends you. You never know when you’re going to meet the person who’s in dire need of what you’re offering, or is simply interesting to interact with. If someone takes the time to send you a Direct Message, chances are you said something that impressed them. Get to know that person.
13. Be the Person Everyone Wants To Know – You see these types of people every day. Famous people, athletes, and celebrities do a superb job of branding themselves based on their line of work; therefore everyone wants to be around them. You want to become that person, too! And the only way to do that is to give the people something that will make them see you in that light. And trust me, sending them a link to your website every ten minutes isn’t it! Make YOURSELF attractive. Be yourself.
14. Be the ‘Life of the Party’ – You can pick this person out from across the room. The person that everyone is gravitating towards and telling everyone else about. That’s who you want to be! Your goal is to build a network of followers who are interested in what you have to say and what you’re doing. If you’re M.O. is to talk nothing but business, you’ll suffer the fate of being the boss that no one invites to happy hour. No one will want to be around you. Be interesting! Be fun! Again…BE YOURSELF.
15. Do Not Spam 24/7 – I mentioned this before, but it bears repeating. If you want to create a presence on Twitter, do not think it’s going to happen by consistently tweeting a link to your website and expecting people to click. You’ll get labeled as a bot in minutes, and people will unfollow you. So be sure to give your followers something they want. If you’ve properly branded yourself and your business on your profile page, they can check out what you do from there.
The purpose of Twitter, and all social media, is not to make money, but to brand your business and build rapport with potential and existing customers. You need to treat it as any social function you’ve ever attended. Parties, chamber meetings, live networking events…these are all venues to meet new people. And at these events, “work talk” is mixed with “life talk.”
So do the same thing on Twitter. Put these tips into action and you’ll be on your way to becoming a Twitter rockstar!
http://www.linxonesolutions.com
Getting found on search engines is a very critical element to your business’s success. Having your website at the forefront of your niche market makes your site authority and popularity. In order to position your website for maximum exposure, strides need to be taken to increase your web presence in many other facets of the Internet.
So you’ve set up a website for your business. You’ve hired someone to build it for you, or you did it yourself. You’ve purchased the domain name, you’ve purchased hosting, and you’ve set up an email address that reads something like ‘yourname@yourdomain.com.’ You’re ready to go.
It may seem like all the heavy lifting is over. But in reality, it’s only just begun.
Having a website set up is simply not enough. In order to get the most from it, you have to have visitors, otherwise known as traffic. Without it, your website just sits there, unnoticed, collecting dust, and not serving the purpose you need it to serve: Increasing your business.
You may be asking yourself, “Why isn’t anyone visiting my website?” Well, simply put, your average consumer isn’t jumping online and looking for your site…they’re looking for any site that will answer their questions and provide a solution to the problem they’re facing. And if your website is not in a position to be found to provide that solution, someone else’s website will.
Getting found on the Internet is not easy, but it doesn’t have to be hard either. Often times, the process of optimizing a website is over-complicated by tricks and short cuts that are meant to manipulate search engine rankings. But in actuality, it’s basic Customer Experience 101 that truly makes a website rank well.
Before I reveal a few simple pointers for improving your web presence, I want to share a philosophy I’ve adopted that simplifies a website’s presence.
According to statistics gathered by Pingdom, as of December 2009, there were 234 million websites on the World Wide Web.
With that stat in mind, think of the Internet like the ocean. It’s vast and seemingly never-ending. And your website is a tiny little island in the middle of that ocean, with a guy writing letters, placing them in glass bottles and sending them out to sea in the hope that someday, someone will find him and rescue him.
Before I go further, realize you’re not competing with 234 million sites. However, you are competing with all the websites in your particular niche, whatever that number may be. So how do you get more visitors to your site as opposed to your competitors?
First, determine your target audience and the keyword phrases they’re searching. Once you determine what phrases you want to optimize on your site, place them in the tag and in another location on the page. Normally, it’s easy to get a high ranking for non-competitive keywords. But if you want to go after a more competitive phrase, it takes more diligence. Repeat the steps for non-competitive keywords and put a strong emphasis on providing value to your consumer, both on your site and in your advertising.
Next, search engines rank websites based on popularity, and popularity is gauged by the number of backlinks pointing back to your site. Backlinks are the links in your content that point back to your site. These can be found in various forms of social media, articles, videos, press releases, etc. If there are hundreds of links that redirect consumers back to your site, the search engines will recognize this and rank you higher.
Finally, don’t expect instant results. Many people write one article or create one video and expect a flood of traffic to hit their site. It simply doesn’t work this way. It’s important to maintain consistency with your marketing efforts, as well as provide content that’s jam-packed with value. The more value your readers get, the more they’ll share your content with their audiences, thus creating more links pointing back to your sites.
Don’t over-complicate your efforts or try to manipulate your way to the top of the search engines. Focus on properly optimizing your website for the keywords in your niche that consumers are using and providing value in every way possible, and the rest will fall into place.
http://www.linxonesolutions.com
It may seem like all the heavy lifting is over. But in reality, it’s only just begun.
Having a website set up is simply not enough. In order to get the most from it, you have to have visitors, otherwise known as traffic. Without it, your website just sits there, unnoticed, collecting dust, and not serving the purpose you need it to serve: Increasing your business.
You may be asking yourself, “Why isn’t anyone visiting my website?” Well, simply put, your average consumer isn’t jumping online and looking for your site…they’re looking for any site that will answer their questions and provide a solution to the problem they’re facing. And if your website is not in a position to be found to provide that solution, someone else’s website will.
Getting found on the Internet is not easy, but it doesn’t have to be hard either. Often times, the process of optimizing a website is over-complicated by tricks and short cuts that are meant to manipulate search engine rankings. But in actuality, it’s basic Customer Experience 101 that truly makes a website rank well.
Before I reveal a few simple pointers for improving your web presence, I want to share a philosophy I’ve adopted that simplifies a website’s presence.
According to statistics gathered by Pingdom, as of December 2009, there were 234 million websites on the World Wide Web.
With that stat in mind, think of the Internet like the ocean. It’s vast and seemingly never-ending. And your website is a tiny little island in the middle of that ocean, with a guy writing letters, placing them in glass bottles and sending them out to sea in the hope that someday, someone will find him and rescue him.
Before I go further, realize you’re not competing with 234 million sites. However, you are competing with all the websites in your particular niche, whatever that number may be. So how do you get more visitors to your site as opposed to your competitors?
First, determine your target audience and the keyword phrases they’re searching. Once you determine what phrases you want to optimize on your site, place them in the tag and in another location on the page. Normally, it’s easy to get a high ranking for non-competitive keywords. But if you want to go after a more competitive phrase, it takes more diligence. Repeat the steps for non-competitive keywords and put a strong emphasis on providing value to your consumer, both on your site and in your advertising.
Next, search engines rank websites based on popularity, and popularity is gauged by the number of backlinks pointing back to your site. Backlinks are the links in your content that point back to your site. These can be found in various forms of social media, articles, videos, press releases, etc. If there are hundreds of links that redirect consumers back to your site, the search engines will recognize this and rank you higher.
Finally, don’t expect instant results. Many people write one article or create one video and expect a flood of traffic to hit their site. It simply doesn’t work this way. It’s important to maintain consistency with your marketing efforts, as well as provide content that’s jam-packed with value. The more value your readers get, the more they’ll share your content with their audiences, thus creating more links pointing back to your sites.
Don’t over-complicate your efforts or try to manipulate your way to the top of the search engines. Focus on properly optimizing your website for the keywords in your niche that consumers are using and providing value in every way possible, and the rest will fall into place.
http://www.linxonesolutions.com
