You have a great looking web. Your online identity is firmly planted as one of the best. You have purchased into one of the best brands in your industry. But what if no one could find your locations. If you are part of a franchise or own a set of stores anywhere in the nation you will need to make sure that the stores have their own online identity and location crawled by search engines.
It is still possible to have a great looking web/brand that is usable however it needs to be functional. It needs to produce results - get people to your stores. End users want to know where to go, have the contact info readily available, print out the driving directions from their residence to your front door. One of the very last things you want to do is to hide your locations behind a search form or a post form.
Here is what you want to do.
Create a unique crawlable url for each store.
For example, ww.yourstore.com/colorado/denver/store_naming_convention.aspx
Sitemap, Sitemap, Sitemap. Have the sitemap crawled frequently and make sure to create and link to an HTML sitemap that points to the web pages for your stores.
Each store needs a unique URL.
400 stores, 40 stores or 4 stores. Create a single page if you have a small amount of stores or if you have a lot of stores create a page for each store.
Community events or sponsorships that your business engages in on the local level. For example, you donate time and money to animal shelters. Let people know you and your business believe in it.
Must haves - phone, address, email, hours, Google maps, Google places, driving directions, coupons, specials, internet only specials.
Now that we have that in place lets look for some things that may come up. When you have multiple locations you can get duplicate content. Not the worst thing in the world but you should still make sure that it is taken care of. Make sure that each location page has it own, unique content. Employ the rel=canonical tag if you are having this issue. I have found that this helps immensely.
Next step, resubmit your sitemap. Business move locations, get new owners, etc. Make sure that they are always fresh and communicate effectively. Good luck and let us know if you need any help!
Lately we seem to have a few clients step aboard who have received websites and SEO from some shady places. You know those places on the internet - give us $1 to get you on the front page of Google or better yet for $29.95 a month we will build you a website and make your profits grow with SEO. Well, these snake oil salesmen have other intentions for your website and unfortunately you are going to get burned.
If the offer is too good to be true....well....you know the rest
It is unfortunate because these business have made sound decisions in running the enterprise however when it came to websites, SEO, online presence and brand they just wanted one result.
Get my business to the top spot…NOW!
A shortcut in web design, web presence, SEO or any other area is not a viable solution for any business and just plain-old, flat-out, any day of the week DOES NOT work. If you are in a rush to build your web, get rankings and visibility because you believe this translates to dollars - you are 5% correct - 95% wrong. The 5% correct is true. Visibility can translate to dollars, however there are more factors involved than just putting up a cheap website and paying $1 to climbing online rankings to get the $$/leads to come in through your web and business.
I am talking about your brand.
Establishing a brand is a long term commitment that translates into other areas of your business. Branding is a process which creates a unique name and image for a product or service in your customers” mind. Using websites, logos, advertising campaigns and other marketing media you will begin to establish a consistent theme that resonates with your customers.
The mistake of purchasing the snake oil from the salesmen is it does not establish trust, resonate your message or really even make a long term commitment to establishing your website (your online identity- your online brand).
Branding aims to establish a significant and differentiated presence in the market that attracts and retains loyal customers. A dollar cannot get me listed on Google let alone get me on the bus or get a cup of coffee (Bus Fare in Phoenix - $1.75 one way — Cuppa Joe - $1.95 ($2.07 with tax) I have the receipt to prove it )
So lets look at a few things about your company that can really translate well online and in daily business life.
Brand Relationship with your customers - How do they see you? Are you a quick stop or do you have a relationship with them?
Company wide branding and marketing strategies - What is your voice and how well do you communicate it out to the business world?
Reputations and buzz-worthiness - Do you have a buzz worthy product? This is great for PR, Search, Media Channels and Blogs!
Creativity and market relevance - How does your creative stack up against your competitors? The more knowledge you have, the more creative you can be.
Review your online and company brand identity and understand how it resonates with your customer segment and how it ranks with your competitors. It takes the right marketing mix to effectively communicate, brand and market your message to the business world. Remember brand, marketing, reputation, SEO and creativity are intertwined with one another. Their relevance to the web, interpersonal relationships and customer relations do get you that visibility which translates into dollars.
So, moving forward what do you need to do next?
Take a look at our brand identity and web services:
Earlier today I was asked by a FireDrum client about the the difference of singular versus the plural of a keyword in SEO/Google Adwords. It was a simple question with a “somewhat” straightforward answer, however the answer does not apply to all singular versus plural keywords.
Does singular vs. plural make a difference?
Is one better than another or are they the same? Does it really even matter? It is a good question that so often people look over who are not experienced with keywords/adwords. So, I thought I would investigate further and write about it.
For example purposes only, lets take a look at some keywords, “dental bur” and “dental burs”. For those of you who do not know what a “bur” is - do not feel bad, not a lot of us do. As my Economics teacher once said, “It could be widgets or butter - it really does not matter, your job is to figure out a solution to the problem.” So, with that said let’s jump over to Google Keyword tools to help determine which one is going to be the best performer as well as figuring out the difference of singular and plural versions.
Keywords and SEO local and global search
As you can see, there is a difference in the local and global search volume as well as advertising competition for each keywords. One thing to keep in mind as well is how this affects the SEO of your website. Since the plural version outperforms the singular version this is something to keep in mind down the road.
Lets head over to Google Insights for Search and see what is happening. Google Insights is a tool SEO’ers use to compare search volume patterns across a section of where you are looking to advertise. This is a great tool for SEM because …well it gives great insight into what terms people are using to search.
As you can see “dental burs” is searched considerably more that the singular across the US and the world. With Google insights you are also able to pick a region and take a look at what activity was happening in your section of the world.
Google Insights for Keywords
Another thing to keep in mind is how the people purchase the product, online and in a store. Dental burs are bought in groups, so the plural version is more applicable, however consumers search for ”individual” items they are looking to purchase in singular terms, ”Apple Computer” or ”iPod Shuffle”. These products also have singular naming conventions so this makes it more straightforward as well. Normally people do not surf the plurals of these terms.
So, I hope I have given you some insight into what Keywords to keep an eye out for when you are looking at some of the tools/products Google offers. As always we are here to help so please give us a call and lets talk about your next project.
Do you have a Google Local Business Listing? If not, get one. Google’s local listings differ greatly from organic and pay-per-click listings by letting the business owner open their “virtual doors” through Google Maps. The ease of use, the physical location and phone number is critical for businesses that want a direct connection to their customers.
Here are a few tips to make sure you are connected locally;
1. Photos – A recent change on Google’s end now allows photos. Add as many photos as you can and a company logo. (Here is a great example - FireDrum Listing)
2. Reviews – Feedback. It is important what people think about your company on the web. It’s is also important that these be from real customers. Start asking clients what they think. (Hint, Hint - It can make for a great email campaign to ask your customers what they think!)
3. Use Keywords in Company Description – Keywords define who you are on the web. Google offers an area where you can describe what your company offers. Leverage it. Put in a keyword filled elevator pitch. (BTW – If you need some help with your keyword development strategy – Contact Us)
4. Add a Coupon – Google allows printable coupons to be added by your listing. When that person shows up at your business, ask them to give you some virtual feedback! Check out some of our online savings!
5. Video – Pictures say a lot, but imagine what a video does. Get a YouTube account to host the videos. If you have a storefront, get a virtual tour so people can see your store’s interior online.
Add these elements to your Google Local Business Listing and start climbing those ranks!
So where can Firedrum help? We will help you craft a keyword strategy, create email marketing, design a website or develop your SEO.
Tell us how what you think. Write a review on Yelp! and Google Review
Check out our latest special - Click here for an internet coupon.
On Tuesday night I completed the 2nd seminar hosted at Entrust Arizona, entitled Blogging for SEO. As per a seminar hosted by FireDrum a rousing discussion of the evening’s topics always takes place and is encouraged.
This discussion was wide a varied, and while we kicked around technical aspects of the blog, I was really interested in the how to mentally prepare for blogging and the biggest factor is to…
BE FEARLESS!
Being fearless when blogging can mean a lot of things:
Getting over that “Nobody wants to hear what you have to say”
Yea you are probably right, but no good author, Twain, Hemingway, HST, the list goes on was a read author right away. They built up creditability through writing, just like how you are going to have to do.
or how about this doozy “I don’t have anything to say”
Really, you have no passions, hobbies, or even enjoy your work? Most people who blog in business are the business owners themselves, and if you stick to what you know, servicing clients, service offerings, success stories, best practices, industry trends and news, then you will quickly find you do have A LOT to say.
Here is another favorite “What if someone doesn’t like what I have to say?”
This was the topic of discussion with the group for a nice chunk of the evening. The bomb lobbers, haters, keyboard warriors troupe…..
So frustrating, you as a blogger are out there meaningfully contributing to the conversation in your industry and some bully behind a keyboard comes by and drops some rain on your parade. Now grated unless you are writing about controversial topics you are not going to run into much resistance however if you do, we had some great suggestions, examples and discussions for what to do:
Ignore it
Respectfully comment back
Or Ignore it and let the crowd source it and rebuke the hater (Definitely the best)
And what not to do:
Retaliating with some equally heavy words either through a comment or a direct message
But really at the end of the day, the only way to blog success is to BE FEARLESS, well that and stick to a schedule, but you should have came to the seminar to hear about that…
First of all I would like to thank everyone for attending. We had a great turnout with a lot of crowd interaction. I love a vibrant group…
The seminar last night was focused on Importance of Calls to Action. Now every marketer worth their weight should know what a call to action is. So why have this seminar? I wanted to focus on Optimizing that call to action in a web based world.
Why is this important?
In this interactive marketing medium web developers, search engine optimizers, and us folks that excel in the complete internet marketing game are met with new challenges when it comes to phrasing and language. I think this is totally exciting and embrace the challenge!
Interactive components and hyperlinks can be both content and navigation to inform and provide the action the user should take. This gives us many more opportunities to convert that potential lead into a CUSTOMER.
But only if we Optimize correctly…
I spoke at length last night about how to best optimize your call to action both on your website and within the push marketing medium of email marketing. Does you website prioritize the tasks you would like your reader to take? Or in other words is that first call to action, the action you want that potential customer to take? Many if not most of the websites I come across do not take this approach.
This is also true with the 1000’s of email marketing messages I view each week. I think it is a safe assumption only 10% are optimized correctly.
But how do you optimize an email?
It is as simple as the bullets below:
Create compelling subject lines
Use proper Call to Action Placement
Provide Relevant Content
Test your message
Measure your results
Revise all steps
REPEAT
Yet I am amazed how often ALL of these steps are overlooked!
What did I learn?
From my conversation with the group there is a real need and a desire to have more effective Calls to Action. More people than I thought are interested in how to not only Optimize their emails for Human eyes, but also Optimize their emails for Search Engines…
Ooooops done went and said too much… That topic is for another Bat time and another Bat channel… although if you dropped me a line and shared your Sour Patch kids with me, I might be inclined to tell you more…
Next week Tuesday August 18th FireDrum and I will be hosting a seminar on the Importance of Calls to Action. The seminar will be located at Entrust Arizona 20860 N Tatum Blvd Suite 240 Phoenix, AZ 85050.
The event will cost $15.00 dollars to attend and we will be accepting the fee at the door. A part of the proceeds to this event will go to my favorite local charity Hands On Phoenix.
Networking will start at 5:30PM and the seminar will begin at 6PM. If you need further information please feel free to drop me a line.
I wanted to do this “Importance of Calls to Action” seminar for two reasons. One because everyday I educate business owners who are currently doing Search Engine Optimization that they are wasting resources by not having a compelling call to action to prompt that highly qualified lead to leave an email address to market back to them…
If you are optimizing for search engines, take that extra step with a conversion optimization analysis!
I also wanted to conduct this seminar for marketing professionals and business owners on how to have a more compelling call to action in their email marketing efforts. A few topics we will be covering on that end include, optimized subject lines, placement of calls to action, and when to announce that sale…
I am really look forward to this seminar, and I look forward to seeing you there.
By now you’ve heard of social media and the impact it is having on the interactive world. Bridging the gap between email marketing and social media is a good way to increase your online presence and grow your email lists without having to lay too much groundwork.
and businesses are starting to recognize this growing trend. According to a report from Forrester Research, email marketing will grow by $2 billion by 2014, and social networking sites have become the largest portal for sharing information online. But recognizing and utilizing these features are two different things.
By including a Share-to-Social feature in your emails, you allow your recipients to share your content with their social networking contacts and followers. A few reasons to utilize this feature are:
Increase user interaction with your recipients.
A modern twist to the “Forward to a Friend” methodology.
A good resource to build quality links to your content.
Increase traffic to your content.
Grow your email lists.
Choosing which social networks to utilize on your Share-to-Social feature depends greatly on your industry, but the big three to add are Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.
To add Share-to-Social features to your email marketing campaigns, or to get started with an online marketing campaign, contact FireDrum today and a sales representative will work with you to create a package that will fit your needs.
Somebody must be smiling down upon me lately. I am always winning stuff at networking events! Last week I was the Local First Arizona Mixer at Honey Bears’s BBQ in Tempe Arizona. That was some good local BBQ! The contest tonight was an attempt to meet everyone at the networking event by figuring out clues of the attendees. Well, I must admit I didn’t really take the contest too seriously, until they instantaneously created the category of Messiest…
Well I love BBQ and since my hands were already sticky I figured using my unused contest form as a napkin was a no brainer… And I won, Messiest…
The prize I won was from Julie Wright at Wright Choice Promotions, and they feature Earth Friendly Promotional Marketing products. My loot was great, I got a messenger bag, a pen, a shopping bag, a water bottle, a multi purpose tool, a pencil, a compass, and a book printed on recycled paper. The book was titled Greening your Office. That got me to thinking about other ways to green your office.
And the best way I know to go green is go online. Using your website as sales collateral, your Search Engine Optimization campaign as your customer awareness, and your email marketing as your direct communication are the best ways to create a green sales process. Yea Carpooling with your co-workers, Recycling, and turning off your computers at night might reduce your carbon footprint more than taking your sales process to your computers but not by much. And it will save on printing costs…
So I gave another presentation today about Internet Marketing. I am really getting into this public speaking thing. I was talking with members of the Arizona Trucking Association about a general overview of how FireDrum views Internet Marketing. Big thanks to the ATA for having us out. I was just doing my normal routine, comparing houses to websites and Search Engine Optimization to buying real estate…
It is a great analogy, if you want to hear it in full, give me a shout. Anyways, I wrapped up my section of the presentation and was followed by two gentlemen that are extremely knowledgeable in the realm of Social Media. These two guys Michael Hayes of Momentum Specialized Staffing and Bret Wingert of Souvia Tea are knowledgeable because they have real world experience since they use Social Media everyday for their businesses.
At the end of the presentation in the Q and A section of the morning we started to feel some resistance to change…. Arms were crossing and brows were furrowing amongst the audience. Should my business be on MySpace? What do I do when someone requests me to join Facebook? What has been your return on investment, and how long should I spend on social networking? Uhmmm….. No, Ignore it, and Not much…
See don’t get me wrong, I am a Facebook addict and you personally will probably find value in having a Facebook page. I seriously could check it like 8 times a day. I love the concept of social media, and feel that it is the way of the future, but for the majority of businesses my house/website foundation analogy applies for your entire Internet Marketing presence. It goes something like this. If you don’t have a strong foundation, your house will fall down. Same with a website, if the foundation (the parts you and your customers will never see) is not strong your website will essentially fall down.
This holds true for starting a social media campaign for your business as well. If your Internet Marketing presence doesn’t have a good foundation with a strong website, a deep Search Engine Optimization campaign, and an effective follow up email marketing campaign, do not even think about adding that Social Media addition to the second floor of your business.
Again big thanks to the Arizona Trucking Association and to Michael and Bret that presented with me. Rest assured Momentum and Souvia have strong foundations.
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