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Attention small business owners! I explain what you need to know to market your small business in today's online world. You NEED to know this to reach and connect with new customers. P.S. Do NOT share this with your competitors!
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Maria Verven• Entrepreneur and owner
of Verve P.R. and Vaping Vamps
• 25 year career in P.R., former V.P. of Piper Jaffray, Fleishman-Hillard
• Lecturer at the U of MN, Teacher of New Rules of Marketing & SEO classes
• Passionate about helping small businesses get found online
There’s been a massive shift from traditional marketing to
Internet (or inbound) marketing
What happened?
The Big Picture
• Of the entire North America population (350 million), 275 million are online (80%)
• Of the world’s population (7 billion), 2.4 billion are online (35%)
• There are 630 million websites (Jan 2013) • Nearly 7 million publish blogs on a blogging
site; 11 million publish using social networks
Old School Marketing Yellow Pages
Newspaper AdvertisingDirect Mail
Telemarketing
Internet (Inbound) MarketingSEO: Search-Optimized WebsitePPC: Targeted Banner AdsSocial MediaContent Marketing, “New” P.R.
Why the Shift?Because it shortens the sales
cycle in half or more
Customer searches on the web for your products & services
It’s a whole new world.A new way of doing business.
A new way of communicating.
Don’t miss the BOAT!
What is Internet marketing and how does it work
Change
Content
Channels
Credibility
4 C’s of
Inbound Marketing
CHANGE“Build it and they will come.” NOT!!Your audience won’t find your site if it’s “low quality:”
• Page content (+title tag) doesn’t match keyword search
• Stagnant site (no updates)
• Low amount of original content
• High bounce rate, low visit times, low returns
• Low number of inbound links and mentions in social media and other sites
CONTENTis King (& Queen)
Think multimedia! • Articles, e-books, blogs,
tweets• Podcasts, screencasts, videos
Change is good Quality + quantity Keyword richBuilds AUTHORITY
CHANNELSSo many to choose from. FOCUS!
Where’s your target audience?Be consistent, use keywords
Don’t start without a follow-through plan
CREDIBILITY or Building TRUST
Clean, easy-to-navigate websitePlenty of good, up-to-date, keyword-rich content
No broken links, typos, old info., etc.Inbound links from trusted sites
Blogs are the BEST!!
Like a Brick House
The House = SEO on every page
The Chimney = blog, social media, etc.
The Smoke = keyword-rich updates
SEO = Search Engine Optimization• “SEO is the process of improving the visibility of a website or
a web page in search engines via the "natural" or un-paid ("organic" or "algorithmic") search results.”
Where would you hang a Picasso?
“When you build a website but don’t optimize it for search, it’s like hanging a Picasso in your basement.”
Maria Verven
Paid Ads
Title Tag
Meta Description
Google Places
Keywords – They’re KEY!
Words associated with your product or service, usually strung together into 2-4 keyword phrases
Goal: To have your site come up on the front page
The sweet spot: Use keywords with high number of searches, but low competition
Keyword Chart – One Example
Keyword Daily Search Vol. Competition
Where to use keywords
• Title and Meta Description• Website headings and content on every page• Title and alt tag on website images and videos• Anchor text (text with a link to your website)
– Internal and external links
Build Links – Establish Authority!• Ways to build links
– Online directories – Get reviewed– Guest post on influential blogs, online forums – Links from sites with related products/services– Social Media (Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, etc.)– P.R. and Article Marketing
• Create remarkable content on your website that others will want to share – Include sharing mechanisms
Social Media for Local Merchants
Optimize your site for local searchCreate consistent keyword-optimized profile
Get recommendations from happy customersJoin & hold MeetUps
Send releases to local media, bloggers
More Sage SEO Advice• Build all website content from the outside looking in.
Optimize every page for search.
• Web content and link-building need to appear natural and not spammy
• Experiment and examine the web stat’s. Forget about the Google algorithm, focus on core strategies
• SEO = part art, part science. And it takes time. Ranking can take months, so get on the right track
Your ChimneyWhat’s your Content Strategy?
• Blogging
• Social Media
• P.R.
• Article Marketing
Blogging
Huge for SEO, search (think: keywords)It should pass the “blink” test
Educate | Entertain | Engage | EnrichAddress your audience’s key concerns
Your blog is the HUB of all of your communications
Blogging 101
• Anyone and any company can blog• It’s a huge SEO play• You need a blog strategy • Four A’s of blogging:
– Attract & entertain. Think multi-media– Alert your audience to news, deals, etc.– Ameliorate their lives (how-to’s, tips)– Attitude – really SAY something!
What is social media?
A Huge Shift in Your Audience
Millennials & Gen Y now outnumber Baby Boomers
They have $350 billion in direct spending power
96% join social networks
A Huge Shift in How to Build a Brand
78% of consumers trust peer recommendations
Only 14% trust ads
Only 18% of traditional TV campaigns generate a positive ROI
34% post opinions about products on their blog
36% think more positively about companies that have blogs
Social Media Connect with customers, prospects
B2C: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn
B2B: LinkedIn, Twitter, MerchantCircle
It’s about conversations, dialogue (don’t preach, spam or be too salesy)
Give them a reason to connect
Good content (and a good blog) is the key to driving traffic
If you’re not listening, you’re missing what people are saying about you online!!
Put your referral business on steroids
Increase SEO
Respond to negative comments
Join conversations happening about your brand in real time
Why Facebook
• 1.2 billion users (11% of entire world population)• More than 70 billion pieces of content: links, blogs,
photos, videos, etc. are shared on FB every month• 42 million business pages with 10 or more ‘likes’• Average FB user is attached to 80 pages, groups, etc.• Fastest growing segment on Facebook: 55 to 65 year-
old women
Facebook Do’s and Don’ts
Do:• Give them a reason to “like” you• Update your page frequently• Take a clue from which posts engage your fans• Respond to every comment on your page• Engage with other business pages
Don’t:• Ignore complaints• Make all your updates all about you• Sound like a robot• Offer special FB discounts that you can get elsewhere• Stop posting. Keep up a regular schedule
Why LinkedIn?Connect with customers & their groups
See what questions they’re askingBecome an expert
The perfect place for B2B companies to be
LinkedIn How-To:
Step 1: Set up your profile for search• Give them a reason to connect with you• Choose a professional looking headshot• Use all 2,000 characters (but make it easy to read)• Get recommendations
Step 2: Network like crazy!• Whom do you want to connect with? Be strategic.• Join groups
Step 3: Engage (listen first, then participate) • Answer questions, be genuinely helpful• Be strategic in your answers
• 2nd largest search engine in the world
• 490 million users every month
• Google loves YouTube. Highly indexed
• 2 billion videos viewed every day (almost double the prime time audience of all 3 major U.S. networks combined)
Why
Why Twitter
10 billion tweets. . . and counting
Connect with customers and prospects
Converse with them in real time
Listen and provide customer service
Drive traffic to your blog and website
Twitter is for both B2B and B2C businesses
B2B Companies: This means you, too!Content engages prospectsBecome a trusted resource
Blogs, ebooks, white papers, webinarsFAQ’s, competitive comparisons, case studies
What’s your call to action?
So how do we get this done?(Hint: it’s not
magic)
Social media is here to stay. If you’re not doing it, your
competitors are.
Skill set: • Understand marketing strategy, messaging• Excellent communicator, versatile writer• Familiar with social media, webosphere, etc.• Have time to dedicate to this every day
Just make
sure they know what
they’re doing
You have to put the ball in someone’s court.
Someone has to be responsible for:• Website updates and SEO• Content strategy and updates• Blog strategy and updates• Social media strategy and updates
Three options:
1. Assign it to an existing staff member
2. Hire someone on staff
3. Hire a freelancer or agency
P.R. – It’s Good for SEO!
• Good P.R. is worth tons of link-building efforts• Optimize the title, lead & 1st 250 words of your
news releases• Use free pitch services• “Deep link” to inside pages • Article marketing, using keywords
– eZineArticles.com, etc.
The New Rules for News Releases
• Keyword-rich news releases will be found by reporters & customers
• Helps build credibility & visibility
• Incorporate links to your website
• Think multi-media
• Online newsroom a must-have
CTA = Call to Action
• Now that you got them to your site, what do you want them to do?
• Your CTA should be simple but compelling
• Capture name and e-mail. They won’t want to give you much more than that.
• Make it obvious from the front page what they should do next
• Use this same CTA in your outreach efforts
Contact
Maria Verven
Verve P.R.
www.verve-pr.com
linkedin.com/in/mariaverven