In the last post I talked about the importance of Content, creating a Community and Building a Directory to get your blog noticed, read and followed. Here are 3 more tips to Get Your Blog On:
#4 ~ Add photos. Photos add “life” to a blog, personalize it and make it more interesting. That does not mean EVERY post should have a photo it just means that readers will appreciate if you “mix it up a bit.” Share bits of you.
Let readers into your life by showing your personal side. On my blog Success and then Some, I often post pictures of me networking. Not only does it get people to “see you” in person it also makes you more real. More human. And if they see you as a real person, they are more likely to follow you.
Some great place for Royalty FREE photos include: Fotolia, Fotosearch and Dreamstime. There are also a whole host of free sites from which you can grab photos. A great list of free sites such as Flickr can be found at http://pstutorialsblog.com/44/free-stock-photos/. You can also “google” the photos you are looking for to get some great photos. Be sure you check the licensing from any of these FREE sites before using the photos.
Tip #5 ~ Add Videos to your blog posts. Some of the most popular posts on blogs are the ones that include a video. But don’t just post a video, be sure you also post a commentary about the video. And the video doesn’t even have to be one you created. It can be one you found on YouTube or other video-sharing site. The people who post videos to these sites appreciate the added “publicity” when bloggers refer to their videos and share them with their readers. You can also create your own videos to post to sites such as YouTube, Google Video and Blip.
I created a video about flowers, using Powerpoint, music and Camtasia Studios. You can see it at my blog Tulips Talk.
My good friend and mentor Terry Brock regularly posts videos to YouTube and in fact has one called Marketing with YouTube ~ How to do it.
Robin Goode has a great list of tools you can use to automatically post your videos at the top video sites athttp://tinyurl.com/6bhlre.
Tip #6 ~ Promote your blog on social networking sites such as Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook. And niche social networking sites that cater to your target audience. I belong to several other social networking groups such asBoomer Diva Nationwe help one another promote our “stuff” all the time. For instance we have our own Twitter Tuesdays and every Tuesday we help one another spread the word about our blog posts, events, products and services and more. There are tools and plug ins for most social networking sites that allow you to automatically post your blog articles as they happen. For instance, use Tweetfeed to post to your twitter account. And you can update your profile with videos from YouTube on Facebook, LinkedIn and more.
These tips and others will help you draw more attention to your site and increase the chances of others becoming loyal followers. Stay tuned for my next post when I talk about blog design, connecting with other users and checking stats to increase blog followers.
Starting a blog may be the craze these days, but is it for you? Do you have what it takes to not just start a blog, but stick to it? Do you know what you want to accomplish with your blog? Do you know how you want to position your blog, what you want to write about and more importantly who you want to write for? A blog without an audience is still a blog, but it may not be effective in achieving your overall goals.
If you want to have an audience, you have to market your blog. You have to let people know it exists. Most people don’t write for themselves, they write for a consumer, a fan or someone(s) who has similar interests. Having others read what you write affirms that you have information worth reading. And if you have ever received comments on your blog you know that feeling that someone does take what you have to say seriously. Even when they don’t agree with your stand, they took the time to respond.
If you want to increase your readers and get more feedback from them (comments) you need to create a plan. And there are “little” things you can do every day to make that happen. In fact, I created a list of 15 tips to get your blog on the radar of your target audience and am sharing 3 tips today. That means I have content to span 5 blog posts. Maybe more if I decide to add to it. Here are those 3 tips:
Tip #1 ~ Create good content. Many blog consultants will tell you that content is king and that you need lots of it. I believe what you really need is strategically created informative or entertaining (and best if it’s both) content that interests readers and gets visitors to become followers. Writing posts strictly for the search engines may get you better rankings in the short term, but in the long term could hurt your credibility.
If you are having trouble coming up with content, start with a list of something in your genre or niche. Lists are very popular with readers and often lists get picked up and referred to on other blogs. On my blog WE Magazine for Women, I compile a quarterly list of Women Bloggers to watch. It is by far the highest visited (and commented on) post of all the blog posts we write.
Other types of content that are popular with readers is how-to advice. Teach what you know. On my Redhead Marketing blog I write about how to use weird, zany and unusual holidays to promote your business.
Write a 99 Ways to article. Or 33 steps, or 47 tips. Break those tips down into bite-sized pieces and do a series. For instance, the 99 ways could be broken down into a series of tips over a period of time such as a few days or weeks. Similar to what I am doing here with 15 tips shared over 5 posts.
Tip #2 ~ Many successful bloggers have increased their following and built a loyal base by creating an online community on their blog. You can create a forum, a social network or a simple chat room. In fact, most blog software these days allows or has plug ins that will help you establish your community. For an example of how one person did this, check out JamieOliver.com. Keith Ferazzi (author of Never Eat Alone) has a great mix of website, blog and community to take a look at as well.
If you are not sure if you should include a “community” for your readers, check out “Should Blogs Have a Forum?” at Blog Herald
Tip #3 ~ Create a Directory on Your blog. The Directory can include resources your readers would value and want to visit often. By including the directory link you increase the likelihood readers will return (provided the content is good). You can start compiling your directory content based upon your blog posts.
For instance, if you write a technology blog and offer the latest and greatest gadgets in every post. The gadgets could then be compileed and referred to in a directory of recommended sites that your visitor can refer to often. A directory could work with almost any type of blog. A parenting blog could list parenting resources, magazines, books, experts, educational sources, etc. A social media blogger could create a directory of social media sites, social media tools, resources, plug-ins, experts, etc. You get the idea. One of my favorite blogs BlogHer has a directory of other female bloggers on their blog. It is one of the most popular and respected blogs in the blogosphere.
The point is a directory can increase readers because if the content is good, your readers are likely to refer to the directory on their blogs and in their newsletters and emails. After all, if they find a great resource, they too will want to let their readers know about it. Why not be the “it” they refer their readers to?
Want to build your business by creating a stronger online presence this holiday season?
Wrap up your business networking plan with the 12 Days of Christmas Social Networking
On the first day of Christmas Social Networking create your social networking plan of action
On the second day of Christmas Networking join two or three social networking site (such as Facebook, Plaxo or LinkedIn)
On the third day of Christmas Networking find 10 friends who share the same interests or interest you are trying to promote and invite them to join your network
On the fourth day of Christmas Networking join a forum in your niche and introduce yourself
On the fifth day of Christmas Networking start a blog in your niche or topic expertise and start writing
On the sixth day of Christmas Social Networking create a twitter account for your business, find tweeters you admire and follow them
On the seventh day of Christmas Social Networking share your expertise on your new social networking sites and make sure you have links from your website to your new SN pages
On the eighth day of Christmas Social Networking Tweet your blog posts and retweet posts others have written
On the tenth day of Christmas Social Networking pinfm.com your postsOn the eleventh day of Christmas Social Networking find other bloggers you admire and start building relationships (by leaving comments)
On the twelfth day of Christmas Social Networking start all over again!
Get involved in Social networking sites such as Facebook, LinkedIn, RYZE, MySpace and Squidoo. Participate in blogs and forums related to your topic, expertise or areas of interest. “Lurk” for while so you can get a feel for the personality of the groups, then contribute to the conversations in the forums (a.k.a. bulletin boards).Social networking is a great way to make your business known to people you would otherwise be unable to contact. Although it is not generally acceptable to blatantly advertise your business on most forums, you can share your expertise. Once you have developed relationships with members of these sites you become a trusted resource, and members will often encourage you to promote your business.
Most forums allow you to use your signature file to “gently” let people know what you do professionally. StumbleUponcan help you find great websites, videos, photos and more based on your interests. StumbleUpon learns what you like and makes better recommendations. With Stumble Upon you can connect with friends and share your discoveries, meet people that have similar interests, and check out what other people are discovering. For more on Social networking, read my article “Virtual Networking – 7 Ideas for Making Connections Online and Developing a Loyal Following”
Want more ideas to promote your business on the WEB? Get a FREE copy of the 8-page Special Report Promoting Your Business on the WEB TODAY!
How Cause-related marketing can grow your company and do good.
According to a report published by onPhilanthropy, cause marketing sponsorship by American businesses has been steadily rising over the years.
The potential benefits of cause marketing for nonprofit organizations include a wider audience in which to promote the nonprofit organization’s cause, increased accessibility of potential donors and supporters through a company’s customer base.
The potential benefits of cause marketing for businesses big or small include promoting your company in a positive way, improving your relationships with your current customer base, and attract your target audience. Cause-related marketing can make your company stand out from your competitors and heighten your company’s reputation within your target market.
In the ook Brand Spirit: How Cause Related Marketing Builds Brands by Hamish Pringle and Marjorie Thompson the authors say: “Nothing builds brand loyalty among today’s increasingly skeptical, hard-to-please consumers like a proven commitment to a worthy cause on the part of a company.”
Some ways you can implement a cause marketing campaign include giving a portion of the profits of sales of a product to the cause. Companies have created programs to donate a percentage of their sales to a nonprofit organization through the use of auctions. You can align your company with a cause to brand your business as the official (name of industry) of (name of cause). You can adopt a program and get your staff involved to help implement your marketing efforts such as participating in an event hosted by the cause as a TEAM effort, donating time to mentor youth in the schools or community, giving blood, to name a few.
Think BIG ~ The Let’s say Thanks Campaign by Zerox created a way for individuals across the country to recognize U.S. troops stationed overseas. By submitting a message through the LetsSayThanks website you have the opportunity to send a free personalized postcard greeting to deployed servicemen and women.
Arrow, The Authentic American Brand created the “We are Ellis Island” campaign which ito raise money to restore dilapidated buildings on the south side of Ellis Island. Through association with Save Ellis Island, the Arrow brand is committed to preserving Ellis Island with the help of the National Park Service. Arrow launched the website www.WeAreEllisIsland.com for visitors to post their family stories, share inspiring stories of hope, courage and perseverance, all in the name of living out the great American dream. When you visit We Are Ellis Island you can read thes stories and donate money to the causes Arrow has committed to donate 1% of its 2008 wholesale sales to the project. To learn more about Arrow, visit www.arrowshirts.com.
Start small ~ You don’t have to be a BIG company to adopt a cause. Just look around your community to see what the needs are, what is missing, lacking or could use a little (or big) boost in support. Check with non-profits you believe in, with local chambers of commerce, business groups, niche groups, your trade associations, ask your vendors and customers for ideas. Find out who your target audience supports and see if it meshes with your values and your company’s mission. If so, you are on your way to getting out and doing good. And it is a great way to raise your profile in the eyes of the media. A local retailer could run a promotion donating a portion of the sales goes to support a local school project that is underfunded or donating your products to bring joy to less fortunate families in your communities during the holiday season.
One success leads to others and you can build upon those to get more creative and grandiose in your ideas and strategies. After all, America’s economy is fueled by small business and the companies we keep.
Excerpt from Promoting Your Business on the WEB Special Report.
Make the media your friend… press releases are an excellent business promotion tool as long at it contains information that is newsworthy, and interesting enough that people will read it and then visit your site.
What is considered newsworthy?Have you recently expanded your product or services offerings or changed locations? Do you have a new product? Have you recently sponsoring a charity event? Have you or your company recently won an award? All of these are examples of “news” that you can use to get some free promotion for your business. My friend Ponn Sabra wrote an excellent book called “How to Create a Search Engine Optimized Press Release. Effective Use of PRWeb”. It’s a must-read if you want to make the most of your online press releases.
“Communities can extend the edge of the corporation in truly transformative ways — tapping into new talent, helping design products and services, providing customer support and, most importantly, building the brand with the customer.” Ed Moran
What if your website could be THE place where people connect online? Where they could meet one another, exchange ideas and leads, keep up with current trends, learn about new opportunities and develop relationships?
I’m not talking the traditional Social Networking Sites that are made exclusively for meeting, mingling and networking. Not another Facebook, Myspace or LinkedIn. Although that is not a bad idea ~ and a topic for another post.
I am talking about a website that sells something and offers their visitors a place to share ideas and discuss items of interest to them along the theme of what you are selling. Add a forum to your website to increase your prospects! Forums can generate traffic, provide valuable customer feedback and build loyalty to the brand. Forums can give your customers a voice, a place to express their opinions about the product.
But online forums are not for everyone. It all depends on what you sell and if the product has enough diversity to lend itself to forum topics that would interest enough customers/clients to make the effort worthwhile. Lawn and Garden sites, Network marketing companies, sports fans and sites that sell products for pets are likely highly successful because the visitors have a PASSION for the product or the topic. If you sell detergent or mailboxes or office supplies your site might not be the ideal site to create a community forum. In my opinion a blog might be a more ideal option, a place where you can share your expertise with your customers about how to use the products as well as place to offer advice on ancillary topics that would interest them. Also another topic for discussion.
So why have an online forum for your business site? According to Bobybuilding.com CEO Ryan DeLuca “It’s about becoming the place where people come to talk and learn and meet.”
Consulting companies like the David Allen Company have a growing number of followers and active participants to their forums. According to their site, they have 10,761 Members. And their forum activity looks robust. Why? I am sure it’s because the topics are things their visitors are interested in learning more about or sharing.
I also found GAMING sites with active forums. Sites like GameReplays.org have forums that allow their fans to discuss the Company of Heros game at http://www.gamereplays.org/community/-CoH-Section.html. According to their site they have 90,736 registered members.
And then there’s sites like Bodybuilding.com which espouses more than 1.1 million users!
The drawbacks to forums are many. And you should be aware of them as well. Spam is perhaps the biggest issue. People posting stuff that has absolutely nothing to do with the topic at hand. I was on a forum the other day about how to turn an audio file into a podcast and one of the forum “members” posted the following: “I am searching for a partner to walk around the globe in support of our troups.” Well that may be a worthwhile post but had absolutely nothing to do with the topic. Of course everyone just ignored the poster. But I still find that sort of thing annoying and rude.
Other drawbacks include the cost of implementing a forum, the costs to monitor the forums, lack of participation, inappropriate participation and staying on topic (even for those who know and follow the rules this can sometimes be a challenge), marketing the forums so your target audience knows its available and also really expressing the benefits of participating so people want to be there. And let’s not forget the negative feedback that could occur from a dissatisfied customer. Too many of these can do more harm than good and be the downfall of a company. But then again, what’s wrong with that? If the company sells an inferior product then perhaps it shouldn’t be allowed to sell to unsuspecting buyers!
Building online forums is relatively inexpensive. If you’d like to try a do-it-yourself platform, try the Forum Co where you can set up a free forum at http://www.forumco.com/. vBulletin http://www.vbulletin.com/ is a professional, affordable community forum solution which according to their site has “Thousands of clients, including many industry leading blue chip companies, have chosen vBulletin – It’s the ideal choice for any size of community Or just ask your webmaster or webmistress to design it for you.”
The Wall Street Journal wrote a great article “Why Most Online Communities Fail. According to the article Ed Moran, a Deloitte consultant who just completed a study of more than 100 businesses with online communities said: “Not surprisingly, these sites failed to gain traction with customers. Thirty-five percent of the online communities studied have less than 100 members; less than 25% have more than 1,000 members … The article said one of the reasons for failure was that “Businesses are focusing on the value an online community can provide to themselves, not the community.” You can read the rest of the article here: http://blogs.wsj.com/biztech/2008/07/16/why-most-online-communities-fail/
Before you do consider adding a forum, think about your goals for the forum. What is the aim or purpose of the forum? What do you want your forum to look like? Who would you like to participate? How will you market the forum? And the big question: WHY? Why do you want a forum in the first place?
Forums are one of the original social networking platforms for building communities online. Once you have done your due dilligent, answered the questons above and studied your target audience for receptivity, you will be able to make a better decision about marketing your online business with a forum. Your forum can help you build word of mouth referrals for your small business, help you develop and perfect your brand, your business operations and your business offerings and more than that you will be able to help your targe market have, do or be better at something.
Believe it or not, competitors can be very good partners. For instance, they may offer a service or product you don’t or don’t wish to and vice-versa. They may also have the ability to handle a larger “job” than your company. Joining forces with another business on a project makes you look good to the customer. You become the hero.
In 1999, I had the opportunity to provide all the decorations for a HUGE Floral Fair in Miami, Florida. I knew my small company alone could not handle all the business. So I called several other florists in the community whom I admired and who did similar work. I subcontracted them to do portions of the project and get a piece of the action. Because these were floral importers we were serving, the other florists had the opportunity to network with and find new suppliers of product. It was easy to convince them to participate. It was such a success, that it has been an ongoing project for several of the shops over the years.
How to Use CLASSIFIED Advertising to Sell Your Products and Services
The internet may be the dominant advertising medium these days, but newspaper and magazine classified advertising is still a very powerful advertising medium that can reap big rewards. Classified ads are much more cost effective than other forms of advertising, it is easy to target your niche, and the ads are simple to prepare and submit. Think about it. If someone picks up a paper or magazine or better yet has it delivered to them, the likelihood of them reading your ad has greatly increased. With online advertising it is much more challenging to pull them into the ad space. And those ads only get one shot if that, since most people click by the ad as opposed to clicking on the ad. If you are using any type of advertising campaign at all, consider classified advertisingI discovered classified advertising years ago when my first book Rose Marketing on a Daisy Budget came out. I was reading the latest issue of Flowers & Magazine and was perusing the classifieds when I noticed someone selling books! I thought here’s another great way to see how the potential for marketing Rose Marketing to a highly targeted industry ~ florists will pan out. So I called the advertising dept. to inquire about the cost (I think it was around $40 for a 3 line ad – which is higher today), designed the ad and sent it in. Two things you should know – the ad I created was not terribly impressive and I didn’t test more than one ad to compare results. I simply sent it in. From that ad I received 11 orders (at $19.95 each) and added another 40 + florists to our newsletter database. Had I done some of the things outlined below, I am sure that number would have been significantly higher.
The second time I tried classified advertising was in 2003 for the launch of the Women’s eCommerce Association, International. I did several things such as pay for placement in online newsletters at $10 to $25 per issue (spending a total of about $200) and posted several ads on free advertising sites as well as surfed the net for free advertising in exchange for space in our newsletter. The results were better than expected. We received 537 leads from the ads, most of which joined at the BASIC level (which is FREE), and surprisingly 15 women and 1 man upgraded to paying members.
Since that time, I have traded advertising space with other non-competing women’s groups, online calendars and newsletter publishers who cater to women who do business on the WEB each with positive results. I have also posted classified ads in two smaller women’s magazines with moderate results. Sometimes the trade is a one-time deal and others it is ongoing. The point is – Classified Advertising WORKS and I recommend you research your market to see if it could work for you. The first place I would check out is Craig’s List.
I have also put together a small list of sites that accept FREE classified ads which will be in the resource section.
Keep two things in mind when putting classified advertising into your marketing mix. Writing a classified ad to sell your product begins with the copy. Effective copywriting strategies begin with research.
Here are a dozen more tips to get you started:
1 Start studying the classified ad sections in magazines and publications (online and offline) that reach your target audience – the more targeted the publication, website or ezine, the better.
2. Study how other advertisers are writing their ad copy. You can start with the ads in newspapers, magazines and newsletters to which you already subscribe.
3. Surf the WEB for free classified ad sites and study the ads listed on those sites. Respond to those ads to see what else they do to market their products. (Note: set up a free email account just for this purpose).
4. Use each of the above as “models” for designing your own ads. Test your ad in those same FREE Classified Ad Sites before placing paid ads in paid publications.
5. Find out which category fits your niche. Look for categories with lots of ads. When you see lots of ads selling the same kinds of products that generally means the ads are working and these kinds of products sell well.
6. Advertise in the right places. Before placing your ads, study the publications you have identified that reach your target market.
7. Use the two-step method to sell expensive items from a small classified ad. A two-step method could look like this: send the reader to your website for free information they must register for – when you have captured their info, begin an auto response campaign to send more details that includes longer ad copy to effectively sell your product/service.Keep in mind, the higher the ticket item, the more steps you may need to close the sale.
8. Cast a wide net – Place ads in more than one publication, each with either a unique phone number, URL or other identifying tracking device so you know which ones are getting the most action. Advertising is a numbers game and in order to see results, you must spread the word far and wide.
9. If the copy isn’t working, change it. Effective advertising is all about Testing. Testing headlines, length of ad, wording, and which details you focus on. For instance, in one ad you might focus on a number metric to get results such as 101 people Use ___________, or 2703 People Can’t be Wrong!” Numbers can be very effective in ad copy. Two words of advice here – BE Honest. Use real numbers not made-up ones. And don’t round out the numbers. It is much more effective to use 11193 than it is to say More than Eleven Thousand. The question readers will than ask is “how many more?”
10. Keep records of everyone who responds to your ads. This is where a good auto-respond program such as Constant Contact or aWeber comes in handy. You can then follow-up withappropriate messages about your product. The beauty is that these email management programs have opt-out options built in so you don’t have to manually remove anyone who makes that request.
12. Read the fine-print. Some sites will require a link back so you must decide if the extra traffic is worth potentially loosing the traffic to other sites (and competition). Other require you to subscribe which can mean hundreds of newsletters in your inbox you don’t have time to read.
If your ads fail, don’t get discouraged and don’t give up. Sometimes all it takes is changing a few words in the copy, the headline or even the advertising medium. Classified ads are inexpensive and can be very effective. In order to really see results you have to keep at it awhile. Create a budget you can afford, in a medium that hits your target and run the ad for a minimum of 4 to 6 weeks. If using newspapers as your medium find out which days are considered prime and run your ad in those days only (for newspapers its generally Wednesdays and Sundays. You may pay a little more, but the results will be better because more people will see the ad, read it and if the copy is working will respond.
How are you influencing your current customers and growing your business? And would it make sense to tap into or better communicate with the affluent market? If you’d like to learn more about how to tap into the Luxury Market here are two really good resources I discovered:
Winsperinc.com has a free White Paper – “The 6P’s of Luxury Marketing,” A New Model for Considering Consumers’ Buying Behavior for Luxury Brands. (http://www.winsperinc.com/6Ps/) which I highly recommend you read. Those six P’s include:
People buy from People, The Six Key Characteristics of Product, Passion (Connoisseurship shared in real and virtual communities), Pleasure (Luxury is experiential), Purpose (Luxury may have an element of superfluity but it can also be practical), and Price (the rise of fractional ownership).
BTW, the Luxury Marketing Council event I mentioned on the 17th was held at the fabulous Four Seasons Hotel in Miami. They are the masters at luxury marketing! From the moment I pulled into the valet, walked through the lobby and found the meeting room, it was an experience. There is such pride in the hotel staff, in fact it is more than pride. Each person I came in contact with made me understand why Four Seasons is a world class luxury hotel. As I walked through the lobby (apparently looking lost) the lady behind the valet desk asked if I needed assistance and gave me perfect directions to the meeting.
Once in the meeting room, servers pleasantly held out their trays for us to partake of coconut shrimp and more. I asked one server if I really wanted some shrimp but that I needed to put my things down. She waited a moment for me to get settled and showed up with the tray in hand! And then Ricardo Acevedo, GM of the Four Seasons addressed the group and I realized that great service really does start at the top.
All the best in your marketing endeavors! If you are looking for a marketing coach to help you plan a campaign or work WEB 2.0 strategies into your marketing mix, give me a call!
