September 7, 2010 at 2:21 pm
By Bob Speyer, Web Success Team
Whether your company sells products or services, think of your website as a virtual storefront, meaning that people from all over can travel to your “store” through the web. Maintain your site just like you would a store. To generate sales and return customers, you cannot let your “store” to do the work for you. Just because you have a site that’s up and running, doesn’t mean you can sit back and relax.
An online business needs to open up shop everyday. This includes looking for new methods to reach the people that want what you are selling. For online business marketing, this is where social networking can help. The social web will help you reach people who have an interest in the fields surrounding your products and services. For example if you are selling vitamins, you can join networks of people interested in health, nutrition, fitness, wellness, alternative medicine, holistic diets or any other related group. You can then collect data on potential customers so that you can plan your next marketing campaign or send email blasts and newsletters.
Continue reading “Turn Your Online Business Into a Virtual Storefront” »
By Bob Speyer, Web Success Team
The attraction of playing poker is the risk-reward paradigm. What separates a good poker player from a successful one is the skill employed in playing the hands. Effective content, whether it is for your social media activities or for your website, is based on how well you craft and communicate your message. In online marketing, you want to stack the deck in your favor. That’s why you need a coherent content strategy to amass more chips, or in web terminology — more desirable actions, conversations and conversions.
Poker Hand
Continue reading “5 Content Strategies to Increase Conversations and Conversions” »
March 18, 2010 at 11:54 am
By Bob Speyer, Web Success Team
All businesses face their own set of marketing challenges, particularly in these trying economic times. However, what many companies have in common is that their problems are not unique. Fortunately neither are the solutions. Sometimes the best way to tackling a marketing dilemma is to utilize the Internet’s vast resources and begin by simply asking your question(s).
Linkedin Discussion Sample
A Community of Experts
One of the best places get answers to your most pressing marketing problems is through Linkedin’s discussion forum. Linkedin as you know is one of the gold standards in professional social networking. It is where business people of all persuasions connect to exchange information. Linkedin provides you the opportunity to join groups or even start one. People select groups that relate to their industry or interests and then participate in their discussions.
Once you have joined a group, Linkedin allows you to post a question or share information that you find useful for the group to discuss. These targeted groups are a great forum to ask your most pressing marketing questions and have the members offer their comments. Depending upon the nature of the question or interest, you will get a wide range of comments as to the best way to approach your situation. Most responses are very useful and full of thoughtful and carefully crafted suggestions. People will share with you their experiences, what worked for them in a similar situation and what pitfalls to avoid. Some will even offer you out-of-the-box solutions you may never have thought of or were unwilling to try without experienced feedback and encouragement.
Sample Responses
A recent Linkedin discussion group responded to a recent query about what to do if a prospective client doesn’t respond to your proposal. It was answered with a few practical solutions. To paraphrase, their responses included
- Ask for a simple “yes” or “no;”
- Put “second request” in the e-mail subject line;
- Give them a deadline to respond;
- Express concern with a personal note inquiring if they are all right;
- Put them on “auto-drip” to keep your name in front of them with a periodic reminder, such as an e-mail newsletter.
Often times, a member will direct you to an in-depth article that discusses your particular request, offering tips, guidelines or actions to take. Remember the social web is just that. It is a social gathering place to exchange ideas, information and offer solutions to problems. People are very candid on the web and Linkedin members in particular enjoy speaking with authority and making their opinions known. They want to help. By commenting on posts, members will establish a reputation as an authority; other members will read their comments as well and may even contact or refer them to someone looking for an expert in their chosen field.
The Fastest Growing Social Network for a Reason
Linkedin is definitely a great resource to gather information from like-minded professionals and can point you in the right direction. Of course, it will not take the place of a web marketing team that can help craft your message, your brand positioning, and ultimately help resolve your marketing challenges. But it is a good starting point. More and more business professionals are utilizing Linkedin and it is one of the fastest growing social media networks today. The more you utilize this network, the closer you are to web success.
The Web Success Team specializes in developing and marketing direct response websites that take full advantage of the latest developments on the Internet. The Team has an arsenal of effective web strategies, online marketing tools and proven customized social media techniques to promote your products and services. And we’ll show you ways to increase the amount of qualified traffic to your site.
For more tips, tools and articles of interest, become a fan of the WebSuccessTeam Facebook page and learn more about online marketing, SEO and social media. Visit us at http://www.facebook.com/WebSuccessTeam. Contact the Team today for a complimentary consultation to your web success.
