Out of the Fog Marketing

In an attempt to find a revenue generation model, LinkedIn and other social media sites now allow direct pay-per-click advertising on their sites. So when should you advertise on these sites and other content networks. Here's my advice....
1. You've maxed out search network PPC and have budget to spare. When folks search for terms in the traditional search network, you know they are looking for something particular to the keywords you have in your ad campaigns. On LinkedIn they might just be looking for their buddy's phone number and many times don't even see the ad. That being said it is another channel and your cost-per-click (CPC) should be much lower than a search network CPC.
2. You can advertise on a niche site. If you sell a medical device for headache relief and can advertise on a migraine discussion forum site, then content network advertising makes a whole lot of sense.

Labels: LinkedIn, pay per click, web marketing

Believe it or not, "Twitter" beat out h1n1, Obama and Michael Jackson as the most popular word in the English language in 2009. While it's not completely fleshed out, online social interaction is here is stay. Read the full story.

If your company doesn't already have a social media strategy, now is the time to get one. In the very least you should do a land grab for vanity name URLs on Facebook and claim your company profile on LinkedIn and corporate/product fan pages on Facebook. And start to play with Twitter. There are tools such as Ping.fm that link all these social sites and your blog together, so in 5 minutes per day, you can provide a status update on each site with just one login.

Labels: interactive marketing, Internet marketing, ping.fm, social media, social networking, twitter, web marketing

Interview with Matt Cutts more than hints to the fact that the speed at which your site loads may start to enter into the search ranking factors. You can test the speed of your site and get access to many free tools at the this Google site speed page. We especially like the Page Speed Firefox app.

Labels: google, google search, Internet marketing, matt cutts, web marketing

Although it's been out awhile, I just started playing with Google's Wonder Wheel. If you perform a Google search, you will see a "show options" link at the top. If you click on this link, you will get a bunch of different Google tools including the Wonder Wheel.



I've found the Wonder Wheel really useful in trying to come up with keywords and key phrases for websites. It's a much different tact than the Google Keyword Tool which just starts spitting out phrases and data at you. The Wonder Wheel makes you think visually about the relationship between words and phrases. I thought I had exhausted volume-getting terms for a particular niche, just to find a couple more using the Wonder Wheel. It's just another tool to add to your keyword analysis arsenal.

Do you have a particular tool you use often for building keyword lists?

Labels: keyword analysis, SEO, web marketing

Welcome to the last installment of my Wow with Web Copy series. In past blog posts I've discussed setting website goals, finding the most effective key phrases and setting up a web content template. Today I'll address writing the actual on-page copy for a site.

Step 4. Write keyphrase-rich headers & body copy with anchor text links. Now that you know the primary and secondary phrases you are targeting on your page, you need to figure out how you can link to other pages within your site. Since your homepage is probably going to have the most authority in Google’s eyes (link juice to pass on), you’ll especially want to ensure you have keyphrase-rich links off your homepage.

As an example, consider the copy on the Clarity Quest homepage in the graphic below. We link to several sub-pages within the Clarity Quest site. We also use keyphrase-rich copy "Marketing Agency...Technology Companies" in the H1 header.


We've also put a small flash area at the top of the page and it's here where we inserted our snazzy copy which is not keyphrase-rich, but eye-catching and attention-grabbing.

There is a Google penalty if you try to stuff too many links into a page, especially if you put a whole bunch in the footer. The key is to provide just enough links so you are guiding the user to particular areas of your site and not putting in links just for their own sake. If you write for a site visitor, Google rarely penalizes you.

I hope this four-part series has been helpful for those who write copy for websites. As always, I welcome any feedback.

Labels: on page seo, SEO, web marketing, website design, website development

Part 3. Create a master web copy template.
In my ongoing series on crafting the perfect copy for your website, this week I'll discuss creating a master copy template. I recommend you setup a master copy document in a word processing application. I create a new page for each web page and insert a table with the following headers at the top of each page.

Page Name
Call to Action for this Page
URL
Title Tag
Meta description
Keyphrases to use

Here’s how to complete each field in the table. I will use the Clarity Quest outsource marketing landing page as the example.

a) Call to Action for this Page – Earlier you determined the overall goals for this site, now it’s time to figure out what you want the visitor to do as a result of visiting this page. In the case of the Clarity Quest outsource marketing page, I want the visitor to either request a proposal or further investigate our other marketing service offerings.

Clarity Quest’s Outsource Marketing Page
Call to Action for this Page: Go to request proposal form, check out our clients or additional services.

b) URL – Use your primary keyword phrase in the URL. In this case “outsource marketing” is the primary phrase for the page. If you do not already own a domain name, it will help your search rankings if you can obtain a domain containing the keyphrases such as www.outsourcemarketing.com. However, since we already owned a domain, we just used the keyphrase at the end of the URL separated by underscores. There’s debate in the search engine community on whether dashes are better separators than underscores. The consensus seems to be dashes are better, although we have not seen a detrimental effect using underscores.

Clarity Quest’s Outsource Marketing Page
URL: http://www.clarityqst.com/services_outsource_marketing.aspx

c) Title Tag - Although visitors don’t often know where to find the title tag, it’s one of the most important pieces of information in the eyes of the search robots. It’s located at the very top left of your browser window and it’s the first line you will see in a search engine results page listing.
a. Use the title of your site or your company brand at the beginning or end of every title tag. If you are working with a nationally-known brand such as IBM or Apple, put the company name first for brand awareness. For all other companies, I recommend the putting the brand at the end of the title tag.
b. Limit the length of the tag to 65-70 characters (including spaces) or less. The search engines limit the number of characters they display on the results page listings.
c. Use keyphrases in the tag. Incorporate your primary and secondary keyphrase in the title tag without keyword stuffing.
d. Use different keyphrases or variations in every page’s title tags. This is one rule we see violated all the time. If you use the same tag on different pages you’ll force the search engines to decide which page is more relevant. For example, on the Clarity Quest site we use “technology marketing agency” on one page and “high-tech marketing firm” on another. This way I've fulled used each page of real estate to my advantage.
e. Use a divider symbol to separate your brand name from the rest of the title tag. We like to use the “|” (pipe) symbol but the forward arrow “>” or hyphen “-“ also work effectively.
f. Use the title tag keyphrases in your headlines. Re-using the keyphrases in your H1 and H2 header tags makes search engine robots happy because it is confirmation you didn’t falsely keyword stuff the title tag. More importantly, it makes visitors more comfortable when they land on your page and it actually has something to do with their search term.

Clarity Quest’s Outsource Marketing Page
Title Tag: Outsource Marketing Department, Virtual Marketing |Clarity Quest

d) Meta description - The meta description tag is most often seen as the descriptive text in a search engine ranking page listing.

If you do not provide a meta description tag, the search engines will scrape the content off your page that most closely matches the search terms. However, if you provide the meta description you can target your keyphrases within the descriptive text.
This tag is not so important for the search rankings, but it makes a big difference in click-through rates. Here’s where you can write the eye-catching, ad-like copy that is compelling and gets attention. Remember there are 9 or so other listings on the search engine result page and you want your site to stand out.
The tag should describe your page clearly and accurately. Google allows the fewest number of characters at 160, so use this as your limit.
There is controversy in the internet marketing world on whether or not you should always provide a meta description. Here’s a general rule. If you are targeting 1-3 high-volume, highly-targeted keyphrases on the page, then write one. If your page is a blog or product model catalog with many possible long keyphrases, then let the search engines scrape the best descriptive text off the page. As with many aspects of web copy, it’s always best to test for the best conversion rates.

Clarity Quest’s Outsource Marketing Page
Meta description: Clarity Quest provides outsource marketing services serving as the virtual marketing department for technology companies across North America.

e) Keywords to use - I like list primary and secondary keywords to use on the page just so I have them staring me in the face when I go to write the body copy for the page.

Clarity Quest’s Outsource Marketing Page
Keywords to use: outsource marketing, outsource marketing services, outsourcing marketing

Once you have your template, you'll be ready for our next blog post covering Step 4: Writing Headers and Body Copy with Anchor Text Links. Stay tuned.

Labels: google web design, Internet marketing, SEO, web copywriting, web marketing

A microsite is an individual web page or group of web pages which are used to support, enhance, or supplement the primary or parent website. The main difference between a microsite and the parent site is its focus on one main topic or theme compared to the broader scope of the parent site. Often, microsites are used to target new markets or to create focused content for niche audiences (sometimes geographic specific). Offering companies a chance to add value to their brand by informing, entertaining, engaging, and interacting, microsites can also be optimized with keywords for better search engine rankings and click through rates.

1. Choosing the size and scope of your microsite is very important. How large and in depth your microsite is may very well depend on your resources and budget. You could simply make a one-page microsite that acts as a great landing page for a pay-per-click campaign and links back to the parent site or it could be a fully functional, self-contained mini website with its own contact page and e-commerce engine (if you are selling products). Adding user generated content features such as forums, enabling comments, and file uploading should also be considered at this stage.

2. Deciding on a domain name depends on several factors. If the product or service is something not normally associated with the parent brand, then it may be best to consider a secondary, non-branded domain name. Keep in mind, however, that branded URLs generally produce higher click through rates. You may also consider sub domains (microsite.yourcompany.com) or sub folders (yourcompany.com/microsite).

3. The microsite’s topic, information, and call-to-action should be compelling. Once you get a visitor to the site, you should provide content that guides the user down the path you have planned. That end goal could be filling out a form, calling a number, downloading a white paper, making a purchase, or simply clicking over to the parent site. Tracking these goals is crucial and can be done easily with a product such as Google Analytics.

4. It’s important to consider how to tie the brand into the microsite. It could be as simple as placing the brand’s logo somewhere on the site and having multiple links back to the parent website. Using a similar color scheme and design style as the parent site can also help to create brand recognition. For smaller brands, the microsite may act as a launching pad to introduce the brand to a new audience.

5. Microsites can and should be optimized for search engines. Take advantage of the focused content you are presenting by using topic-specific keywords and key phrases throughout your microsite.

6. If you build it, they will come... but only if you promote the site. Once your microsite is launched, be sure to let everyone know about it by utilizing your internal email list, PPC campaigns, social networking sites (Facebook, Digg, Reddit), and industry-related blogs.

Labels: search engine optimization, web marketing

If you revamping a site or doing on-page search engine optimization, then you know finding the keywords and key phrases for which your buyers is crucial. I recently found Seed Keywords which lets you come up with a scenario question such as "What would you type into a search engine if you were looking for web marketing services?". Once you enter the scenario the site generates a unique URL which can be sent to clients, friends, co-workers, etc.

This is a great tool if you can't afford a full-blown keyword analysis or if you want a starting terms for keyword analysis.

Labels: improve search engine rankings, Internet marketing, keyword analysis, keyword research, seed keywords, SEO tools, web marketing, website marketing

A number of respected SEO experts have lately been somewhat negative on the use of press releases as part of internet marketing campaigns. Press releases with keyword-rich titles do work - a little better on Yahoo! than Google, but they work.
Here's an example... if you type "michigan marketing firm" into Yahoo! Search you'll see the Clarity Quest website at #2. However, check out #1 - it's a PR Web link to a press release we issued back in June 2007!
Now I don't recommend you fabricate topics for a release or issue junk releases. There should be an actual news story as the basis for the releases. But completely ignoring SEO PR as part of your internet marketing strategy is a mistake.

Labels: Internet marketing, link building for SEO, press releases., SEO press release, web marketing

Free Website Evaluation Tool

Website Grader is a free tool that performs an analysis of the online marketing effectiveness of your website. It analyzes your website in a detailed way and gives you a score. What's unique is that it measures your website on a relative basis compared to other site. It also gives you some very detailed information on how to make your site more effective.

Labels: Internet marketing, Michigan SEO, web marketing

Designing a New Website? Think Sitemap First.
There seems to be alot of buzz around designing new websites these days. The process is more complicated than ever since firms want great a great storefront, amazing search engine rankings AND a creative design. Balancing these requirements is much easier if you start with a web outline or sitemap. Many small to medium-sized firms just hand over a web project to a creative agency without goals or exacting requirements. This is a recipe for disaster.
Seeing the entire structure of a website on screen or paper makes it much simpler to design the right side the FIRST time. When interviewing creative agencies or marketing firms for your next web marketing project, ask them about their pre-production process and make sure you are getting all your requirements meet to save costly re-works later.

Labels: web marketing, website development