Tag: internet marketing

How to Optimize Google+ Local without Trashing Your Rankings

The title says it all – that’s what everyone’s afraid of. Work your butt off for hours and then find out you ticked off the king of the search world by accident, seriously damaging your business in the process.

If you’re not already familiar, Google+ Local replaces Google Places, combining both Places and Plus. It provides both search and map results as people search the web.
Here’s what you’ll need to do in order to make yourself as effective as possible on Google+ Local: Continue reading How to Optimize Google+ Local without Trashing Your Rankings

4 Reasons Link Building Is Essential for Your Business Website

121211012

Link Building is about more than just getting click-throughs to your website.

Do you want to survive the competition to boost your digital market share? If so, pay careful attention to this post: it’ll show you exactly what link building is and why it’s not just important but vital to the success of your business.

What is link building?

Google uses links to determine if your website acts as an authority within your niche. Using a simple metaphor, links act like “votes” in that your website popularity increases with each link you receive. Unfortunately, Google does not take a democratic approach in this regard—as some links count hundreds or thousands of times more than others.

Google evaluates the quality of each link source. The idea here is that if you get a link from the New York Times, for example, it should count much more than one from a specific-interest website (e.g., from a handyman who restores antique furniture). Yet, website reputation is just one factor that determines link source the quality. Google also evaluates the relevance of the linking website to your content as well as the actual link text, among other factors.

So, why is link-building so important?

Now that you know what link building is and basically how it works, why are these links so crucial for your website?  Links are essential for several reasons:

1. They’re a huge Google ranking factor. Google uses hundreds of different factors to determine where and how far up your site should rank for various search terms. Not all factors are clear or known, but the quality/quantity of links to your website are 100% an element that will impact your search rankings.

2. They generate quality, targeted traffic. Remember our New York Times discussion?  Imagine if the Times featured you on their website and then linked to yours! You could get 100s, or even 1000s, of visits from that single link. Nevertheless, don’t assume this happens in all cases. Linking is best viewed as hard work, and eventually, you’ll notice a nice influx of traffic as the fruit of your efforts.

3. Quality links attract more quality links. Get your article or content noticed on someone else’s website, and others may choose to link to your site or the article. In either case, you’ll win more quality links and publicity out of the endeavor: ultimately boosting your website traffic.

4. Links are a form of digital networking. People won’t just link to your website—they’ll contact you via e-mail, social media, and/or over the phone too. You might not have in fact realized this, but it does happen often in the digital world.

All This Linking Builds Your Business

Eventually, all these links pointing to your website will increase your chance of business success. After all, links from sites that attract your target market drive additional qualified traffic and build up your search rankings.

Your job is to make sure your website converts these visitors into paying customers once they land there.

Judging a face(book) by its cover (photo)

[Update: Since the publication of this post, Facebook has changed their cover photo rules. Read the new guidelines here.]

The old adage says pictures are worth 1000 words. It’s therefore no surprise that in today’s ultra-visual society, the value of an image continues to grow exponentially. For businesses that actively use Facebook to market their company, products, and services, an eye-catching and unique cover photo is nothing short of priceless.

In their professional opinion, Facebook recommends that businesses “Choose a cover photo that represents your brand and showcases your product or service. It’s the first thing people will see when they visit your Page.”

It’s also important to consider any rules and regulations as they relate to your cover photo. Although these continue to evolve as Facebook and other social networks constantly adapt to shifts in the marketplace, user expectations, and the world at large, as an internet marketing company that offers social media management services, it is our job to stay informed so that we can protect and promote our clients. After all, if we can’t follow the rules ourselves, our partners might have cause for concern.

With this in mind, remember that cover photos are not meant to be used for promotions, specials, advertising, etc. Instead, they should serve to represent your brand’s identity. Looking to optimize your current Facebook cover photo? Here are a few suggestions with respect to best practices:

DON’T

  • Infringe on anyone’s trademarks or copyrights
  • Include contact information, calls to action, prices, or promotions
  • Reference other Facebook features (i.e., copy asking people to “like” or “share” your page)

DO

  • Resize your cover photo to at least 400 pixels wide and 150 pixels tall (keeping in mind that it will load fastest as an sRGB JPG file that’s 851 pixels wide x 315 pixels tall and less than 100 kilobytes)
  • Left-align your photo with a full bleed and 16:9 aspect ratio
  • Employ the help of an eye-catching graphic or photo reflecting your brand identity (use your logo as your profile picture, as this will display with your Facebook activity)
  • Have fun choosing a cover photo—and change it often to entice repeat visitors!
  • Follow i5ww on Facebook for even more social media and internet marketing tips!

Technology Tools to Grow Your Business in 2012

In today’s digital world, business and technology are joined at the proverbial hip. A business that does not embrace, and take advantage of, new technology is missing opportunities to grow. From improving operations, communicating better with customers, and expanding marketing reach, here are top tech trends that can positively impact your business in 2012:

Continue reading Technology Tools to Grow Your Business in 2012

New Customers are Online. Are You?

Where do people go to search for a product, investigate a business, or solicit a recommendation for everything from a doctor to digital cameras? Yes, the internet. While this comes as no surprise, it is surprising that many business owners have not yet incorporated internet advertising into their overall marketing strategy. According to a recent report by eMarketer, businesses not advertising online are missing the proverbial boat. Or more significantly, new customers. The logic is simple: People spend more time online today than they do reading the newspaper, watching television or listening to the radio. So, doesn’t it make good business sense to go where your customers are?

Continue reading New Customers are Online. Are You?