St. Patrick’s Day is for the wearing o’ the green. While we like that, Search Engine Pros believes in the making o’ the green when it comes to implementing search marketingstrategies for clients. We always tell clients that great SEO marketing isn’t a matter of luck. It’s a combination of knowledge, dedication, and persistence. As a web marketing agency, we’re providing these six lucky tips to help improve your search engine optimization:
Relevance: What you write on your blog must be relevant to the searcher’s keyword. Content optimization builds your site’s relevance. In addition to providing interesting content, it must be posted using meta tags, alt tags, headings and intrasite links.
Longer Content: Despite supposedly shorter attention spans, longer content of 1000-2000 words shows up well in search engine rankings and also serves to demonstrate your authority. The only caveat is that the piece must be of high quality, or you will waste your own time and that of your readers.
Back links: Search engines look for pages and sites that are connected to one another through links. This can be done by testimonials, reviews, blog comments and social media shares that let the search engines know that your site is respected by other web denizens.
Social Media Marketing: Your marketing plan should interweave SEO and social media to expand your online reach. Social media posts which point to relevant website information or blog posts increase the amount of shares and “likes” for existing content.
Build Relationships: Increase your trust factor by showing that others respect what you have to say. Over time, you will become more well-known by the company you keep in your link-building and social media strategies.
Authority: Good content attracts attention, but being relevant builds authority. With a high search engine ranking and high number of links, prospects will tend to trust your online business presence more.
Don’t just select one point and focus on that. Each of these must be combined into an all-in-one, connected, online marketing plan. Each area needs to be functioning smoothly so that the sum of the parts is greater than the whole. You won’t need the luck to improve your SEO when you have Search Engine Pros as your marketing expert.
We are getting ready to turn the page on the calendar and it’s hard to believe that we are in our final month of 2014. It’s been a great year for us here at Search Engine Pros, and we hope that your year was equally as rewarding. As we take the time to prepare for 2015, we’d like to wish you and your family a happy holiday season and a safe New Year.
Now might be a good time for you to look back at 2014 and think about whether or not you were getting the type of online traffic that you had hoped for your business. If you didn’t get the type of traction that you had wanted, then you may realize that you failed to reach your expected earnings as you tally up revenues in the fourth quarter of the year. Luckily, a new year is just ahead, and you can start fresh with an improved marketing plan that will make 2015 an incredibly rewarding year.
With the help of web marketing, you can take your business to brand new levels of exposure. Before online search marketing, it was much more difficult for small businesses to compete with large companies. However, there are now a variety of tools that an online marketing team can implement to increase the presence of your brand.
If you are looking for a boost in holiday traffic that will carry over into the new year, here are 4 tips to consider.
1. Spruce Up Your Website
Many companies realize that they have to have a website if they want to get recognized online. But not all of those companies realize that a standard website isn’t going to be enough in today’s responsive world. Instead, it might be time to revamp your approach by stripping down your website and building it to maximize search engine optimization results.
2. Get Help When You Need It
With a marketing group that is familiar in SEO, you can have a customized online presence that is tailored to your every request. With the advice of these marketing experts, you’ll get some of the top web design ideas that will interest your audience and keep them on your page. In addition, these web marketing methods will help with your online search engine rankings by accommodating to required expectations. If any part of your online presence is outdated, you may be hurting your SEO wherewithal. This is why it’s important that you make a beneficial change that will quickly boost your presence and maximize your online efforts.
3. Re-Target Your Marketing Approach
Along with other methods of online marketing, you’ll also want to evaluate your marketing plan to see how well it is targeting your audience. In many cases, we’ve worked with business that have a viable approach in place. However, once we dig a bit deeper, we realize that their SEO marketing plan is limited and they aren’t getting the sort of exposure that they desire. To make the shift, your new approach should include an emphasis on social media marketing. The way that customers interact with companies is drastically changing on a day-to-day basis. This is why you need a marketing agency thatcan help you keep up with these changes on social media and other online avenues.
4. Track Your Results
No matter what sort of marketing service you implement, it won’t matter if you don’t know how it’s working. This is why it’s vital that you track your results and use analytics to formulate any changes that are necessary. If you are unfamiliar with tracking analytics, your marketing agency can assist you. The more that you track your results as to what is working for your online approach, the better of an idea you will have into what works. You can then use this information as you move forward and tailor your online marketing toward your target audience.
Q: Is it too late to jump start my online marketing for the holiday season?
A: Traffic from Google Adwords can be sent to your web site in less than an hour.
Q: How does online marketing compare to other forms of advertising?
A: Online marketing has changed the way that people connect with businesses. Instead of sending out mail flyers or other physical services, online marketing lets businesses communicate with their clients instantaneously. In doing so, your business will be able to bring in new clients and build your reputation as a reliable brand that people can trust in.
Here are some fantastic events to attend that will be sure to grow your company by leaps and bounds.
Social Media Strategies Summit: Las Vegas 2015 – Anyone who is anyone will want to make sure that they visit the Social Media Strategies Summit in Las Vegas. This year, the event will be from February 10 – 12. You can learn more about how to market your brand online at this great conference.
Social Media Marketing World – There will be over 2,500 people in attendance at the Social Media Marketing World from March 25-27. The event is held in San Diego, so be sure to get your ticket early to be part of one of the biggest social media events around the nation.
You’ve heard of newsjacking, but are you familiar with holiday-jacking? If it isn’t an official marketing term, it definitely should be. The bigger the holiday, the larger the interest among consumers and the associated volume of search on Google.
By effectively targeting your marketing materials to upcoming holidays, you can capture the interest of consumers who are attuned to the season. According to the National Retail Federation, a record 170 million Americans say they’ll celebrate Halloween this year. Halloween is the second highest grossing commercial holiday after Christmas and spending in the United States this year is estimated to reach $6.9 billion.
The Halloween market is bigger than ever, and adults are having just as much fun as kids. There’s a huge opportunity for your business to join the celebration with some seasonal online content and clever Halloween social media marketing.
7 Halloween Marketing Tips:
1. Hold A Halloween Contest A fun Halloween contest could be for the best jack-o-lantern, the best costume, the best recipe – you name it. Ask your customers to post pictures of their entries, and don’t forget to offer a prize; a free e-book, gift card, or coupon would be perfect.
2. #DoAHashtagContest Setting up a hashtag can help your Halloween contest or promotion get seen by a wider audience. Even those who don’t participate could retweet it or mention it on Twitter getting you on more timelines and generating more buzz.
3. Engage Facebook fans with images Images are a proven tactic for attracting attention to your website, Twitter timeline or Facebook page. On Facebook specifically, with the new timeline for brands, images pop on your news feed and engage visitors, often earning more likes and comments than other posts.
4. Write A Halloween-Themed Blog Post This idea is truly limited only by your imagination. Relate Halloween to some aspect of your business and run with it. Do you have a pet supply business? Blog about tips for keeping your pet safe when trick-or-treaters flock to your porch. Run a home improvement website? List your top ten scariest DIY mistakes made by homeowners. This is also a good place for “awareness” topics like child safety or drunk driving on Halloween.
5. Make A Halloween Video Dress up team members in Halloween costumes and make a promotional, entertaining, or educational video. Halloween tips are a good place to start for inspiration. Tips for applying Halloween makeup. Tips for examining your child’s trick-or-treat candy. Exercise tips for working off all that Halloween candy. The witch-filled sky’s the limit.
6. Do a tweet-vote A tweet-vote can help you earn new followers and engage your current ones. For Halloween, you could have followers vote on the costume contest you held in your office, which has the added bonus of humanizing your brand.
7. Host a Halloween (social) event Making your event social can help you not only generate buzz and attract attendees before it starts – it can also help you engage followers and fans during the party and after it’s over.
Fun Things to do in Santa Barbara on Halloween:
Downtown Halloween Safe Trick-or-Treat October 31, 2013 Times: 3-6PM Location: Downtown Santa Barbara Address: State Street, Santa Barbara, CA 93101 Phone: call 962.2098 ext. 24 Downtown businesses get into the spirit of the haunting season by welcoming hundreds of costumed children with treats, stickers, coupons or other Halloween goodies.
Halloween Bash at Carr Winery October 31, 2013 Times: 7:30PM-11:00PM Address: 414 N. Salsipuedes Street, Santa Barbara, CA 93103 Phone: 805-965-7985 Venue: Carr Winery Join us in the haunted wine cave! Sip wicked wines and jam to music by Tommy & the High Pilots. Georgia’s Smokehouse will be serving up their frightfully delicious BBQ. 21+, Costume required. A Halloween party you will die for…Get on the list before the event sells out.
Voodoo Lounge 2nd Annual Canary Rooftop Halloween Dance Party October 31, 2013 Times: 9PM-1AM Address: 31 West Carrillo St, Santa Barbara, CA 93101 Phone: 805-895-3402 Venue: Canary Hotel VIP Access 8:00 – 1:00 am $75 in advance, space is limited – Enjoy Bubbling Brews and Bewitching Bites- 8:00 – 9:00 pm – VIP Entrance to the Party – Two complimentary drink tickets to be used at the Voodoo Lounge Party – Access to VIP bar General Reception 9:00 pm to 1:00 am General Admission $40CURATED COCKTAILS WITH ASCENDANT SPIRITS October 31, 2013 Times: 5:30PM-9PM Address: 653 Paseo Nuevo Santa Barbara, CA 93101 Phone: 805.966.5373 Venue: Paseo Mall MCASB partners with a new local mixologist every Thursday in October from 6-8 pm to offer unique $5 MCASB signature cocktails. Visitors can enjoy music from DJ Emtpy Priest and guided tours of the current exhibitions: Call For Entries and Bloom Projects: Ro Snell, All that is left.
Google Reveals the highest searched terms for Halloween costumes of 2013:
Thinking of dressing up as a Minion for Halloween this year? Judging by recent searches, you aren’t the only one. Both Google and Yahoo agree that Minion costumes – from the “Despicable Me” movies – are the top trending costumes of 2013. With Halloween less than a week away, here’s a look at the top 5 costumes people are searching for most this year:
1.) Minion – from the movie “Despicable Me” is popular with both adults and kids 2.) Breaking Bad – searches are up nearly 3x vs. last year for the popular AMC series, which just saw huge ratings for its series finale. 3.) Fox – supposedly inspired by Ylvis’ viral video “The Fox”. 4.) Duck Dynasty – searches are 3x higher this year vs. last year; search volume is highest in Texas. 5.) Miley Cyrus – not surprising following her post-VMA performance and latest “look at me” antics.
Join us at Lunch & Learn e-Marketing Tomorrow Time: Fridays 12:30pm-2pm Location: 532 State Street (Next Door Joe’s Cafe) Join The Facebook Event
Lunch and Learn e-Marketing is a web marketing seminar presented by yours truly, Taylor Reaume, Fridays 12:30pm-2pm at Verde Restaurant @ 532 State Street. I would like to welcome everyone to this new venue for our e-marketing discussions every week. VerdeSB.com is a new mexican cuisine restaurant located on lower State Street. At this lunch meeting you will have a unique opportunity to share online marketing secrets with other business owners. Learn online marketing and social media marketing strategy on the web. One lucky attendee will have their web site analyzed live by the lunch group and feedback is provided, to help optimize online presence.
Expand your knowledge of web marketing and learn advanced search engine optimization strategy. COST is $20; Includes lunch, a drink, e-marketing discussions with local business people – GREAT BUSINESS NETWORKING. Discover valuable web marketing secrets that will help you outrank your competition on Google. Bring your questions, business cards and laptop (optional). Leave with a full stomach and clarity/sanity on 2013 web strategy and web marketing options. Attendees participate in a live web site review and offer constructive feedback as part of the group. It’s educational. It’s informative. It’s delicious. Find out if your web site is winning the race to the top of Google. Open to everyone!
In the early centuries, the crusaders sought after one treasure. Finding the Lord’s cup would be the secret to their success. With attorneys, there is one true treasure that will build your business, and that treasure is more clients. If you seek new clients, you should try law firm internet marketing – the Holy Grail.
There is a myth among many law firms that referrals are all that are needed to build the business.
The story can be told in various ways but the gist is always the same.
I have had my practice since before you started school. All that I need in new business comes from referrals from satisfied clients. Those referrals are free advertising.
Everyone agrees that referrals are a good source for new clients, but they should not be the only advertising that you do. Certainly, referrals should not be an excuse to exclude other strategies for growing a practice. So how does a company find new clients, then?
Referrals are not free advertising. While many attorneys think that a referral is incidental to his practice, this is not always true. The false thinking goes along the following lines: If I represent the client, when his friends or family will be referred to me in the future when they need an attorney.
Alternately, the thinking goes along this line: My other lawyer friends know about my competency or like me so they will refer clients to me. This is not an effective referral network.
Referrals come through building relationships. As with all relationships, this one takes nurturing. There is a cost to nurture a relationship. The cost maybe money or it may be time, but to get the best referrals, an attorney must make the investment. {youtube2}AcwiMP1Ffs0{/youtube2}
By depending only on referrals, your do not target your best clients. Face it; the people you represent are not attorneys. Without a thorough knowledge of law, they do not know about all your specialties. In addition, your other attorney friends, may only have a general idea of your fields, so they also cannot as effectively target the correct clients for you. In addition, if they are in a closely related law field, they are already taking the best clients for their own firm.
Lastly, there is only a low volume of clients that will be generated through referrals. Even the most extensive network cannot compare to the effect of a good marketing campaign.
Today, some of the most effective marketing in all fields, including law is being done online. By finding an internet marketing expert, your firm can increase your flow of new clients almost immediately. This will result in a higher profit margin for both you and your partners. Natural search strategies and other internet marketing techniques can easily be your biggest source of new clients.
Referrals cannot be the only place your firm looks for new clients. If the internet marketing of your firm is not acceptable to you, then you need to find another effective source or finding new clients. Marketing will still cost money or time. However, the fee that you pay a marketer will have a high rate of return. It will most assuredly be higher than your referral network.
To market effectively, you need to know what strategy works in your market. Keep track of both the investment as well as the rate of return. For each new client that contacts your office, ask the question, “How did you hear about us?”
