Most businesses can’t afford to bid for placement at the top of searches engines; instead, they follow the whispers … “if you optimize, they will come.” Search Engine Optimization essentially means preparing your site content in a way that will make it easier for search engines, like: Google, Yahoo or Bing, to find that proverbial needle (your company) in the haystack (the marketspace). E-Marketers from across the globe continually preach about Search Engine Optimization being the key to reaching the top of consumer searches and therefore consumer minds. What they fail to say is that it can be a long road to the top. And, many never really make it; not because SEO doesn't work, but because businesses don't have enough follow through.
Now, don’t misunderstand; the intention is not to deter you from optimizing a site, but rather to offer a little perspective of what you’re in for. First, you shouldn't expect that you'll be #1 or even #20 on search engine results simply because you submitted your site to the various search engines, added a few meta tags, or started including some reciprocal links. Instead, you should be aiming to create an advantage over the millions of sites that aren't optimizing, by: CONTINUALLY improving your search engine rankings with improved content.
According to 55 Quick SEO Tips Even Your Mother Would Love, CONTENT is KING! Fresh Content adds relevancy to your site in the eyes of the search engines. Search spiders like fresh text, so if your site content doesn’t change often, then you should add a blog to give the little crawlers something to chew on. Also, don't forget that content is what KEEPS customer's on your site once the search engines help them get there.
Once you've got the content part figured out, don't forget to stay up to date with how web-crawlers are looking for your site, because the methods can change periodically; and you certainly don't want all your hard work to go to waste. Making continual improvements will systematically increase your odds of reaching the top!
In the end, what I hope you will take from this is that, when comes to Search Engine Optimization, persistence is what truly pays off.
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Has Social Media become Critical to Brands?
Some say that a company can’t survive if it ignores social media. Statistically, the involvement of many companies in social Media has been steadily trending upward, and according to a study of Social Media Engagement of the Top 100 Brands, “companies that are both deeply and widely engaged in social media surpass their peers in terms of both revenue and profit performance by a significant difference.” So, does that mean that engaging in social media is critical to brands? The short answer is yes, but there are always exceptions.
As with any business decision, opting to engage in social media has its pros and cons. However, the benefits of participating in social media far outweigh any reasons to ignore it. On the downside, social media can be very labor intensive for a business. Once a company chooses to participate, there’s no turning back. If that company doesn’t have enough resources to actively maintain communications via social media, it could run into issues. Too many unanswered complaints or stale and boring content can push customer's away instead of pulling them in. However, the financial impact of ignoring Social Media all-together could prove to be much more detrimental than increasing a marketing budget to include it.
Today’s marketspace is very competitive. There are countless brands battling for market share, and new competitors are popping up daily. Social Media helps build the awareness that can either maintain a brand, or assist in establishing one. Furthermore, engaging in social media gives customers the perception that a company is stable and “with the times” in terms of technological advancement. In addition, the ability to incorporate dynamic content allows a brand to position itself in a way that systematically embeds the value proposition within the minds of its consumers. Social Media also ensures a high-level of dialogue between a company and the market; which is highly relevant for providing excellent customer service, communicating promotions, developing ideas for product improvements or extensions and as a worst case scenario: managing public relations crises. Lastly, and maybe most importantly, the endless array of social media analytics tools available can provide businesses with invaluable market information that can facilitate offline marketing efforts.
In short, Social Media is becoming increasingly more critical for businesses of all types. Yet, the relevance of social media for a brand varies significantly by industry. Manufacturers, like Caterpillar, Luxury brands, like Dolce & Gabana, Cartier, Rolex, or Financial Institutions like CapitalOne, would likely not see too much detriment to sales if they opted to keep their distance from social media. However, it probably wouldn’t hurt them to participate either.
As with any business decision, opting to engage in social media has its pros and cons. However, the benefits of participating in social media far outweigh any reasons to ignore it. On the downside, social media can be very labor intensive for a business. Once a company chooses to participate, there’s no turning back. If that company doesn’t have enough resources to actively maintain communications via social media, it could run into issues. Too many unanswered complaints or stale and boring content can push customer's away instead of pulling them in. However, the financial impact of ignoring Social Media all-together could prove to be much more detrimental than increasing a marketing budget to include it.
Today’s marketspace is very competitive. There are countless brands battling for market share, and new competitors are popping up daily. Social Media helps build the awareness that can either maintain a brand, or assist in establishing one. Furthermore, engaging in social media gives customers the perception that a company is stable and “with the times” in terms of technological advancement. In addition, the ability to incorporate dynamic content allows a brand to position itself in a way that systematically embeds the value proposition within the minds of its consumers. Social Media also ensures a high-level of dialogue between a company and the market; which is highly relevant for providing excellent customer service, communicating promotions, developing ideas for product improvements or extensions and as a worst case scenario: managing public relations crises. Lastly, and maybe most importantly, the endless array of social media analytics tools available can provide businesses with invaluable market information that can facilitate offline marketing efforts.
In short, Social Media is becoming increasingly more critical for businesses of all types. Yet, the relevance of social media for a brand varies significantly by industry. Manufacturers, like Caterpillar, Luxury brands, like Dolce & Gabana, Cartier, Rolex, or Financial Institutions like CapitalOne, would likely not see too much detriment to sales if they opted to keep their distance from social media. However, it probably wouldn’t hurt them to participate either.
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Is Free Online Content just another “Limited Time” Offer?
According to a recent article, The New York Times will soon be switching to a paywall approach that will basically block access to content unless the consumer pays to continue reading. A change like this, by such a prominent news source, could prove to be a very risky business decision, particularly if free quality content is still available. However, it could also symbolize the beginning of the end for free content.
The recession has caused a significant loss of ad revenues for many content sites that depend on it. This revenue gap is driving companies, news sources in particular, to re-evaluate their online business models. However, this carries many risks. First of which is a significant loss of readership. Why would consumers pay for News, when they can still get it for free? Without any added gains or benefits, it’s highly unlikely that consumers would be willing to pay a fee for news. If the readership declines considerably, then the subscription revenues will probably still not be sufficient enough to make up for the ad revenue decline. And, the decline in readerships would decrease ad revenues even further; leaving NYT in an even tougher position than they are today. In short, it’s a lose-lose situation and NYT would likely be forced to revert back to free content.
On the other hand, if the trend towards free content is in fact reversing; then consumers are left with two equally unappealing choices. They can pay the subscription fees at their favorite news websites or get information from unknown and/or unreliable sources. Unfortunately, the recession is affecting consumers just as much as it’s hurting business; so it’s not too unlikely that many, albeit reluctantly, will choose the latter. In short, quality news could become a luxury that only the affluent could afford. However, if consumers persisted in choosing free over paid content it would surely drive businesses to devise alternative methods of generating revenue from content driven sites.
So, IS free content just another "Limited Time" offer? That remains to be seen...
The recession has caused a significant loss of ad revenues for many content sites that depend on it. This revenue gap is driving companies, news sources in particular, to re-evaluate their online business models. However, this carries many risks. First of which is a significant loss of readership. Why would consumers pay for News, when they can still get it for free? Without any added gains or benefits, it’s highly unlikely that consumers would be willing to pay a fee for news. If the readership declines considerably, then the subscription revenues will probably still not be sufficient enough to make up for the ad revenue decline. And, the decline in readerships would decrease ad revenues even further; leaving NYT in an even tougher position than they are today. In short, it’s a lose-lose situation and NYT would likely be forced to revert back to free content.
On the other hand, if the trend towards free content is in fact reversing; then consumers are left with two equally unappealing choices. They can pay the subscription fees at their favorite news websites or get information from unknown and/or unreliable sources. Unfortunately, the recession is affecting consumers just as much as it’s hurting business; so it’s not too unlikely that many, albeit reluctantly, will choose the latter. In short, quality news could become a luxury that only the affluent could afford. However, if consumers persisted in choosing free over paid content it would surely drive businesses to devise alternative methods of generating revenue from content driven sites.
So, IS free content just another "Limited Time" offer? That remains to be seen...
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Marketplace to Marketspace: A Big Change from Traditional Distribution Channels
Traditionally people used to go to a “marketplace” or a physical location to buy products. However modern technology changed that dramatically. The boundaries that used to confine distribution have faded with the introduction of the internet and e-commerce. Today, consumers can shop from anywhere at any time with very little restriction. They no longer need to make an effort to get to a physical location; instead they can make purchases from home, work or on the go. This expansion of the marketplace into a “marketspace” has drastically changed the way marketers view traditional distribution channels.
Distribution for most businesses has generally been regional; however, with the creation of the marketspace, businesses have expanded their reach exponentially. In addition to increasing the market potential, the marketspace has many other unique features that make it nearly impossible for businesses, both large and small, to ignore. For starters, the marketspace makes distribution possible across borders with minor limitations. It also offers businesses countless tools to gather an array of consumer information that facilitates sales. One such tool, Google Analytics allows businesses to gather information about consumer behavior on their sites; which can be used to segment the market, customize product offerings, and create more targeted ads, just to name a few.
Lastly and most importantly, the marketspace allows for interactive communication. Prior to e-commerce, marketing communications were always one-sided. Businesses talked and hoped consumers listened. Today, consumers are actively seeking out and even blatantly asking for information that’s relevant to them. Therefore, allowing businesses to engage in two-way conversations with their customers. On top of that, consumers also have the ability to voice their opinions and significantly influence other consumers or even business decisions. Bottom line, the marketspace has changed the landscape of traditional distribution and opened many doors for new and old businesses of all sizes.
Distribution for most businesses has generally been regional; however, with the creation of the marketspace, businesses have expanded their reach exponentially. In addition to increasing the market potential, the marketspace has many other unique features that make it nearly impossible for businesses, both large and small, to ignore. For starters, the marketspace makes distribution possible across borders with minor limitations. It also offers businesses countless tools to gather an array of consumer information that facilitates sales. One such tool, Google Analytics allows businesses to gather information about consumer behavior on their sites; which can be used to segment the market, customize product offerings, and create more targeted ads, just to name a few.
Lastly and most importantly, the marketspace allows for interactive communication. Prior to e-commerce, marketing communications were always one-sided. Businesses talked and hoped consumers listened. Today, consumers are actively seeking out and even blatantly asking for information that’s relevant to them. Therefore, allowing businesses to engage in two-way conversations with their customers. On top of that, consumers also have the ability to voice their opinions and significantly influence other consumers or even business decisions. Bottom line, the marketspace has changed the landscape of traditional distribution and opened many doors for new and old businesses of all sizes.
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