• Three Tips for Allocating Local Search Budgets

  By Matt Insley | Posted Sep 24, 2009 | 0 Comment(s) | Filed in: Marketing

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  This is a guest blog post by Matt Insley, a Senior Account Executive at TMP Directional Marketing who specializes in Print and Internet Yellow Page programs.
  
  What was the first search engine that you used?
  
  Did you Webcrawl? Were you a Yahoo! original?  For the past few years, has the word “search” been replaced by the word “Google” in your vocabulary?
  
  Believe it or not, you were using a search engine years before the idea of the Internet popped into Al Gore’s head.

  

  I give you the Yellow Pages. Think about it…how did people find a product or service before computers? The book works just like a search online. A heading replaces the search term and the book is already filled with local businesses in your area.  

  But, let’s face it. Unless you are selling pizza, wrenching cars or fixing leaky toilets, the Yellow Pages should really be used to compliment your other marketing efforts. Over time, searches in the Yellow Pages have given way to searches online with search engines and Internet Yellow Page (IYP) sites, like yellowpages.com or superpages.com.  
  
  While the printed Yellow Pages are still a viable lead generator, the question facing most businesses today is how to incorporate online advertising with print in their marketing mix. 
  

  1. Prove Results

  The greatest advantage to local search advertising is that the results are very easy to track. Call tracking lines can be put into your yellow page ads both online and off to see exactly how many calls your ad is generating and who is calling you. Internet Yellow Page placements offer even greater levels of tracking, giving you impression counts and click through rates. Having this information can go a long way in determining your ROI and what your level of investment should be in the future.      

  2. Take Advantage of the Climate

  While print usage is on the decline, Internet Yellow Page usage continues to grow. Each of the major print publishers has an online platform. To increase content in their sites, publishers are offering incentives to print advertisers to begin shifting their dollars online, while maintaining a presence in the book for little to sometimes no added cost to the advertiser. This allows the advertiser to dip their toe into the online world without overextending their budget. 

  3. Find Balance

  If you find your print ad not returning the bang for your buck, scale back and re-invest those dollars elsewhere. But, do not cut just to cut. Whether the money goes toward IYP or search engine marketing, have a purpose in allocating your budget.
  
  Once your correct local search mix is found, leads will increase, costs will be controlled and ROI will be maximized.
  
  

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  Photo Credit: How Can I Recycle This

• Wedding Vendors Must Adapt Online to a Changing Industry

  By Lyndsey Walker | Posted Sep 1, 2009 | 0 Comment(s) | Filed in: Internet Marketing, Social Media

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  The final countdown has officially begun - five days to the Big Day. I can't believe it's almost here. Since our engagement last June, my fiancé and I have had a busy 15 months filled with meetings, errands, parties, photo shoots, high emotions, joy, and all not without a few tears.

  Just like many little girls, I always imagined the day full of colorful flowers in a sea of white, frilly bows, happy couples and a book of memories to house it all. But never, in any of those dreams, did I ever think I'd replace a wedding journal with a blog, swap out a guest book for an interactive Website and ditch printed wedding photos for an online photo- and video-sharing album.

  The tradition of today's wedding has changed. Social networking and the Internet are making it easier to manage tasks, update and interact with guests and, most importantly, cherish the memories along the way.

  Gone are the days of snail-mail Save-the-Dates and invitations, guest books and printed photo albums. With sites such as eEvite.com, OneWed.com and TheKnot.com - and the list goes on and on - a new wedding tradition is evolving.

  

  Why send one-way invitations when you can interact with your guests and keep an accurate headcount? Why waste paper, and money, printing wedding photos when you can post and share your photos online with space for hundreds more?

  And why wait until the day of the wedding for advice? Create an interactive Website instead, where guests can post marriage advice, propose a toast to the happy couple or stay informed about the upcoming extravaganza.
  

  So, what does all this mean to the wedding vendor?

  Because brides today are looking to the Internet first for information and ideas, wedding vendors, such as photographers, caterers, bakers and musicians, cannot just rely on word-of-mouth referrals. Businesses need to be where their audience is congregating. And, the audience is online - online search accounts for more than 61 percent of all primary sources for local business information, according to TMP Directional Marketing's published reports.

  Consumers are not just utilizing one source for local business information, and vendors should not rely on a single source for advertising either. Below are a few ways to better reach your audience and adapt to a new tradition:
  

  Get Listed 

  List your business on Internet Yellow Pages and local business directories. Many of the top search engines and local directories allow businesses to update or add their listings for free. Plus, obtain listings on industry-specific Websites such as TheKnot.com and Weddepot.com, which house databases of local vendors for a one-stop shop. Be sure your business information is consistent across your listings.
  

  Encourage Customer Reviews

  Ask satisfied customers to rate your business and/or write a review. When online searchers find a business, they'll likely find competitors as well, and statistics show positive reviews will add more credibility and help businesses stand out in the crowd.
  

  Advertise Online

  Instead of relying solely on referrals or traditional ads, consider advertising through PPC and relevant social networks, such as TimeToast.com, where brides can create interactive timelines and schedules to share with friends, family and the wedding party, or OneWed.com, a free social wedding planning platform - think Facebook - where brides can create a private wedding site for interaction with guests, share photos and post event details.
  

  Optimize your Website

  Develop an On-Page Optimization strategy to get found organically. Incorporate priority keywords and phrases throughout your Website, including: URL, page title, meta tags, description, headings and image alt tags. If necessary, optimize locally by incorporating an "Areas We Serve" on your homepage, and include geographic terms throughout your Website and keyword Meta Data.
  

  Generate Inbound Links
  

  Develop a link-building strategy. Inbound links are the most important factor in your Website's ranking and its ability to attract qualified traffic. Look for linking opportunities through your business' partnerships, sponsorships and reputable companies with whom you've worked, such as caterers or event halls. Also, be sure to include outbound links on your Website to your various local profiles and citations directly from your landing page.

  Monitor relevant blogs to discover opportunities to get listed on them, and continually publish fresh content that is valuable and link worthy. Content can not only build inbound links and drive traffic, but it also positions your organization and experts as thought leaders, and boosts search engine rankings.

  In addition, consider reaching out to industry-specific sites for inbound links such as TheWeddingLens.com - an interactive photo- and video-sharing site - or MomentVille.com - where brides can build an interactive Website for free with a plethora of applications, such as photo album slideshows set to music (guests can upload photos as well), a blogging platform to chronicle events and share stories, and activity RSS feeds to alert guests and update your Facebook profile.
  

  Lyndsey Walker is a Consultant for PR 20/20, a Cleveland-based inbound marketing agency and PR firm. She found many of the wedding Websites listed in this post resourceful and fun while planning her wedding. Follow my updates on Twitter: @lyndseyfrey.

• Keyword Optimization Drives Business through Local Online Search

  By Paul | Posted Jun 1, 2008 | 0 Comment(s) | Filed in: Internet Marketing

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  Underdogs and innovators are looking beyond traditional, outbound marketing (e.g. mainstream media advertising, trade shows, telemarketing, direct mail) and discovering the ability to influence consumers through inbound marketing (e.g. search engine optimization, pay-per-click, blogging).

  One of the most powerful inbound marketing activities is optimizing your Website for local search, also referred to as geographic keyword optimization.
  
  In his May 30 blog, “Winning the Local Search Battle,” Gregg Stewart of Search Engine Watch says that, “. . . consumers are becoming better and smarter searchers, moving from simple one- and two-keyword searches to more specific four- and five-keyword searches.”
  
  Stewart goes on to say that, “. . . the more specific a consumer is in the search query, the higher propensity to purchase. The consumer is shifting from 'what to buy' category searches (e.g. plumbing, drain cleaning) to 'where to buy' phrases (e.g. draining cleaning in Austin, Texas).”

  Getting Started with a Keyword Analysis

  
  The foundation of every successful inbound marketing campaign, including those built to drive business through local online search, is a highly targeted keyword analysis.
  
  It’s important that the software used (by you or your Internet marketing firm) to build your keyword database goes far beyond search volume. Keywords should be graded and prioritized based on relevance, search volume, competition and difficulty.
  
  On average PR 20/20 monitors 300 - 500 keywords at all times for each client, but concentrates keyword optimization activities on 25 - 50 favorites that are the most relevant. These keywords are segmented into four categories for tracking and reporting: Brand, Product/Service, Industry/Division and Geographic.

  Generate Website Traffic and Increase Leads 

  
  Once your keyword analysis is complete, it's time to start generating qualified traffic and leads. Keywords should be continually evaluated and used for both on-page and off-page optimization, including:

  • Website content
  • Landing pages
  • Meta data (i.e. page titles, tags, descriptions)
  • Blog topics
  • Product/service naming
  • Optimized press releases
  • Pay-per-click campaigns
  • Social media tagging
  • Anchor text
  • Content publishing (e.g. by-lined articles, case histories, white papers, ebooks)

  Define Your Internet Marketing GamePlan 

  
  Request a complimentary Internet Marketing GamePlan from PR 20/20 to learn more about keyword optimization and how to grow your business online.

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