#Optimize Your Online Marketing With Social Media, SEO & Content

With the boom in brands publishing content and the explosion of user generated content from social networks, the competition to stand out is only going to get more challenging for companies that rely on the web to attract new business.  Online Marketers that adapt, evolve and scale through a more holistic approach to marketing online gain both short and long term benefits, distinct from competitors reliant on the latest tactic du jour.
The process of change starts with acknowledgment that change is needed and then extends to identifying goals, understanding target audiences & communities, developing an approach and tactical mix for reaching business objectives. Assessing a starting point is usually accomplished through an audit, research and benchmarking for future performance tracking.
When taking a look at our TopRank Slideshare account for past presentations I found one on Social Media & SEO from back in 2007 offering the following advice:

• Inventory your media & content
• Keyword optimize your media
• Research social media communities
• Make it easy for readers to save/share content
• Create profiles and grow a network of friends
• Participate in the community
• Measure results

That’s as solid advice today as it was then. As a advocate of the power of optimization (not just search engine optimization but optimizing online marketing for better performance) it’s interesting how much hasn’t changed in the past 4 years.  No matter what BS certain mainstream publications or social media pontificators say, SEO brings a competitive advantage to an online marketing mix.  It may not be the silver bullet it once was, but SEO is an amplifier and catalyst to Social Media and Content Marketing. What smart marketers know, is how and when to apply SEO best practices to extend the reach of their social media and content marketing efforts.
Last week I gave my first presentation at Social Media Breakfast Minneapolis St. Paul #SMBMSP on the intersection of SEO, Social Media and the importance of Content in Online Marketing. In order to scale the impact of Social SEO & Content, internal advocates need to become Social SEO Heroes that can lead, educate and support the organizational change necessary to empower business social media and SEO literacy.  This presentation starts with context and perspective, then provides a framework and even specific tactics for the Content Marketing Trilogy of  Discovery, Consumption and Sharing.

This article is written by Lee Odden of Top Rank Online Marketing Blog

The four pillars of online marketing success

The four pillars of online marketing success

Pillar 1: Relationships

Creating strong relationships with an audience is critical to everything we do here. Rather than constantly hunting down new customers, we’d much rather create a valued environment that benefits our existing readers and customers and keeps pulling them back. We don’t advertise in the traditional sense; instead, our readers do a great job of “spreading the word” for us.

It’s about having consummate respect, always, for your audience and your market.

It’s about focusing almost obsessively on their needs, over and above your own (and getting what you want, almost magically, in the process).

It’s about making a commitment to creating a quality experience for your readers and subscribers.

Pillar 2: Direct response copywriting

We certainly stay abreast of the latest social media trends (and sometimes create them), but underlying everything we do here is solid copywriting techniques.

Starting with a killer headline and moving strategically through the copy to a stirring call to action, traditional copywriting technique works amazingly well in social media.

“Old-fashioned” copywriting advice can make all the difference between a business or blog that limps along and one that truly thrives.

We’ll show you precisely what we mean in the initial issues of the newsletter.

Pillar 3: Content marketing

What’s the backbone of the Copyblogger formula?

Deliver great content.

Then keep delivering great content, but in a strategic and focused way.

Every once in awhile, make a great offer that benefits the reader and involves the exchange of cash money.

Of course, we’ll give you some more specifics on how to do that once you’re on board.

Pillar 4: Have something worth selling

Everyone is selling something. It might be a product, a service, a download, an idea, or a worthy cause.

Whatever you’re selling, it’s got to be worth the price. (And never forget that reader attention is a valuable commodity that’s in strictly limited supply.)

Whether you’re asking for dollars, euros, yen, or valuable time and attention, you’ve got to deliver something that towers above your asking price.

Bringing it all together

Each of these four pillars enhances the others. Together, they’re much stronger than they would be if any of the pillars were missing.

Blog and Interact with your Visitors

Make It Easy for Your Visitors To Interact

Imagine a salesperson trying to get you to buy a car. He tells you all about the benefits and features of the car and you are sold. You want to buy! "I'll take it," you tell him. Great! He then sends you to the secretary, who sends you to an inside salesperson, who says he'll go find the manager, and you are left to wander around on your own.

What happened? Don't they want your money? Why do they work so hard to sell you, but then make a mystery out of the purchase process? It doesn't make sense. However, many websites inadvertently make the same mistake.

You Need Clear Calls to Action

Calls to action are typically "buy now," "subscribe," and "download" links -- the things you want the people who are visiting your site to do. They are the keys to unlocking the actions you want visitors to take. It's amazing how many sites hide links and buttons; it's almost as if they don't want you to find them!

Even the sites that do a good job of putting the action links in obvious places sometimes make the mistake of expecting too much of visitors. "More info" and "details" links are often missing, and the user is expected to click on the picture or product title. You'd be surprised how many potential customers give up and move to the next site.

An Example: Land's End

Land's End is a retailer known for their descriptive marketing copy. They describe the joys of reinforced taped collars in such a way that you just know you are getting the very best of the best when you buy a golf shirt.

However, their online shopping process is terrible. I'm going to save their navigation issues for another time, and focus on how you actually buy something once you've found it. This sample page for kids' moccasins gives us a picture, a brief summary of the benefits, then a list below with colors and available sizes listed next to each color. Lower on the page we see a sample of the copy that Land's End is famous for...but no purchase button.

We can get assistance by phone (and I imagine that is how most people end up placing their orders) and we see the privacy link...but it doesn't tell us HOW to buy a pair of these shoes. The button under the price is actually a size chart and not a purchase button.

If we read everything on the page (and most people won't bother) we find this at the top of the color and size chart:

INSTRUCTIONS: Click color for larger view. Click size to select item.

Click the size to buy the item? Yes, that's how it works. This is okay for Land's End because they are primarily a catalog/mail order business, but I think they'd be shocked at the savings they would reap in customer service support if they made it a little easier to buy online. People expect to select their size and color, then click an "Add to Cart" or "Buy" button. Why? The majority of e-commerce sites are set up that way -- it's become the norm.

Your links may be obvious to you, but not to everyone else.

I run a few niche directories and was surprised to realize that I made this mistake myself recently. The advertisers in the directory were finding that those browsing the directory didn't seem to realize that when they saw a business listing, they could click on the business name and be taken to the advertiser's website. The advertisers were getting lots of phone calls from their listing, but not much website traffic. Obviously, they would prefer that potential customers visit their site first to have basic questions answered!

As it turned out, the brightly colored, bold text with a hover color applied that I was using for the business names was not clearly a link to many people. My assumption that if people were savvy enough to be using search to find a business, they were smart enough to recognize the typical attributes of a link was simply wrong.

Once we added instructions to the page ("Click the business name to view the company's website") as well as their URL hyperlinked at the end of each listing, clickthroughs have more than doubled.

CLICK HERE Is Still Useful

I don't care what anyone else says, "click here" is a very useful instruction. When in doubt, it's a good idea to just tell people flat out what you want them to do.

• Click here to subscribe, it's free!
• To buy now, click here.
• For more information, click here.

Don't hide your links by coloring them the same color as the text. If you don't like underlines, consider adding an underline as a hover effect so that there's no doubt that the text is a link.

Increasing Interaction

Include your call to action in 2-3 places on a page if possible -- a graphic button at the top and bottom of the page as well as a text link in the body of the description ensure that wherever your visitor's eye wanders, they will know how to complete the transaction.

Could you increase your sales, subscriptions, or memberships by something as simple as moving the buttons and links to more obvious spots, putting them in several places, and/or changing their appearance? Yes, it's very possible!

You are probably too close to your site to see the issues, though. Run a few user tests with people who haven't really used your site before to see where they stumble. Shoot for 5-7 people and be careful not to coach them -- just observe them trying to process a transaction. Better yet, make some changes on a test page and gauge their reaction to the new and old pages. What you learn could make a significant impact on your site's performance, so it's worth a few hours of your time!

This article is written by Scottie Claiborne of Right Click Web Services

Facilitate and Run Contests and Giveaways via your Web Site

Increase Traffic To Your Blog Via Contests & Giveaways

It’s true. I love to win free stuffs through blog contests and giveaways. Off course all people want to win free stuffs. Then why don’t you use any nice giveaways or good blog contests to increase your blog traffic? I am not any expert in blogging, but, I am learning to take my blog higher. If you don’t have many visitors to your blog and you are new into the blogosphere, then this article is for you.

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By the way, let’s come to the point. I also saw a huge viral effect on my Tech blog after announcing a Nokia X3 Giveaway, from which I got more Facebook likes and subscribers. You can understand the profit behind a good giveaway and blog contest. This is the Win-Win situation for both the bloggers and its readers. But be careful and sure to check the below points:

For Organizers:

• Don’t just announce a contest and sit back. Market it in social media and through Facebook friends and Groups. Take some time to visit other blogs and websites to announce your contest. Your friends will first take part in your contest and it helps to spread your contest viral.
• Provide a nice giveaway to your contestants. It should be attractive and find sponsors for your contest. If you won’t find any of them, then there is no any problem of giving something from your pocket. You should send the prize to the winner by your own money, which will make a standard impression. There is a beautiful saying, “To achieve something, you should giveaway something!”
• Keep the contest as simple as possible. If you make any tougher ideas as compulsory, then you will lose many contestants. Remember, you need many contestants and finally you need to increase the identity of your blog.
• You can have a contest like “tweet in twitter” or “share in Facebook”, which is very simple and effective to go viral.
• Importantly, make your contest or giveaway information visible to your blog visitors. Make it as sticky post, so that it will stay in front till the contest ends. It should not hide away, if it does, then you will miss the real visitors of your blog to participate in your contest or giveaway.

For Contestants:

• Actively take part in the contests like “tweet in twitter” or “share in Facebook.” You will not going to lose anything by doing this. But, you might have the chance to win free goodies and stuffs worth some bucks.
• If you are a blogger, and you want to increase traffic to your blog, then participating in blog contests creates your identity. And think, if you win the contest, then you will have a good follower to your blog and you will become a celebrity blogger (at least for some time!). You can continue to be a celebrity blogger, if you continue to take part in the contests and win prize.
• You will get some Backlinks through participating in the contests. If your article is providing some good information and solves the problem of your reader in contest article, then readers will follow you to your blog.
• If your friends are struggling to get market to their contests, it is well and good to take part and spread the word. He might help you in near future. This is the matter of humanity and friendship. As Vijay Kumar said in one of his blog post, Newton’s law applies here: For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction!

So, if you are really interested to do some crazy things and become an online celebrity, then organizing contests and actively participating in contests leads you towards the Celebrity in the blogosphere. By the way, I won in one of the contest for guest articles. I have written 5 articles for that contest and I won the prize of “1000 Facebook Fan”, which is going to be delivered to me soon.

To increase traffic to your blog, do some other important stuffs too, such as Optimizing your blogs to Search Engines (Google, Yahoo, Bing etc), Social media marketing (Facebook, Twitter, Digg, Stumbleupon etc), Creating Backlinks to your blogs in high page ranked blogs or sites(Commenting and guest posting!) and Actively participating in forums of your niche. Final word for you, take participate in the contests and organize contests, increase your visibility and identity in online world. Now tell me, who don’t want to win free goodies in this easy way?

This article is written by PythonSkynet from TekNoise

Write and publish online press releases

How to Write a Great Press Release

The first question editors and journalists ask when they pick up your release is “Is this important?”. And you know what? – Most press releases do not work.
That’s because they are written in a way that is antiquated, outdated, and deadly boring. These often come as templates in your word processing program. Don’t use them – they’re probably OK for some people, but they are not really good at creating the kind of excitement and interest that you want from the people who are receiving your press releases.
You have to actually have a message that is newsworthy, and if your news is not of such, you must develop the skill of adding a value to your story. (To learn more about art of storytelling in PR please read our recent article on advanced PR techniques).

Press Release Headline

In headline, state your most exciting news, finding or announcement in as few words as possible. Emulate the headlines you see in the newspaper every day.

Bad Press Release Headline:
NEW WEBSITE THAT OFFERS EVERYONE THE OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE LITERATURE ONLINE
Good Press Release Headline:
BIG LAUNCH: ONLINE NOVEL WRITING PROJECT THAT EVERYONE CAN JOIN

You’ve just thrown a meaty hook at the reporter.

The Press Release Subhead

Subheads are remarkably useful tools, yet usually overlooked by press release writers. Basically, the press release subhead gives you the opportunity to flesh out your angle and further hook the reporter, without stepping on the drama of the press release headline.

The Lead

The lead is the most important element in a news story; it is the story opener when written in the inverted pyramid structure. The inverted pyramid is a graphical representation of how information should be arranged within a news story. The most important information – made up of the 5 W’s – comes first and the information of lesser importance follows.
It is essential that the lead catches the interest of the reader immediately and by rule-of-thumb it includes the core information of the story, or the traditional 5 W’s: Who, what, when, where, and why. Its objective is to satisfy the reader’s curiosity.
Occasionally an H, for how, is included in the lead. In addition, a news story usually includes the answer to “what’s next?”.

The Rest of the Press Release

The balance of the press release serves to back up whatever claims were made in the lead and headline. Use enough supporting material to make your case, and to demonstrate that, whatever angle you’re promoting, it wasn’t something you slapped together carelessly.
An important question to ask in addition to establishing newsworthiness is simply: “so what, who cares?”

Quotes

Quotations are great additions to news stories; they add credibility and weight and make your story readable and interesting. Quotations can support arguments and information, as long as you attribute your quote, making it more credible and showing you did research, while avoiding any legal or ethical issues.

Inline Tip:
Never start a story with a quote; your story is what’s important, not your company’s president.

Boilerplate

Finally, spend a sentence or two describing your company and what you do. This paragraph is known as the “boilerplate” — an old newspaper term meaning a block of standard text that’s used over and over again (e.g. the explanation of symbols on the stock price page).
In this case, it’s text that you might use at the bottom of all your releases. Place your boilerplate right above the # # #’s.

Inline tip:
Below the ###’s, add a line that says something like:
If you’d like more information about this topic, or to schedule an interview with John Smith, please call Pat Brown at 555/555-2222 or e-mail Pat at pr@yoursite.com

Common Press Release Copy Styles

Press releases falls into a few well-defined categories, each used in accordance with the general format and theme of your headline. The style of copy you use in the body of your release must follow the pattern and pace established by your attention-getter. If you use a direct, factual headline, your body text will usually be most effective if it, too, is factual.

• Straight-line copy
  This is the most frequently used type. It directly follows the headline and proceeds in a straight and orderly manner from beginning to end. It does not waste words, but starts to sell the benefits of your PR subject immediately.
• Narrative copy
  Follows the headline with a story that logically leads into a discussion of your PR subject. This can be a dangerous style to use because you must construct an interesting story that will keep the readers involved long enough to make your point.
• Institutional copy
  Sells an idea, organization or service. Your copy must create confidence in the company or organization, not your PR subjects itself.
• Dialogue and monologue copy
  Permits the person giving the endorsement in your headline to do the selling in his or her own words. The trick is to retain the attention-getting power of the testimonial and at the same time sound natural and convincing.
• Gimmick copy
  Depends upon humor, poetry, foreign words, great exaggeration, gags and other devices to create promotional power. This is rarely used because in most cases you are writing a press release to tell a straight, informative story.

Use these techniques as guidelines, not as rules. You should practice writing headlines in several different styles and then write supportive body copy for each.


This article is written by Elementary Writing

Publish Articles or Get Listed in News Stories

How To Get Your Articles Published Online More Often

Article marketing, using articles to boost your traffic and sales, is one of the most effective online marketing strategies you can use. Why you ask? Because articles are the perfect marketing tools for promoting any website or product.
 
However, it is not just simply a matter of throwing a few words together on a webpage and hoping for the best. To effectively use articles as marketing tools you must follow some simple procedures and practices in order to get your articles published online and in ezines more often.
 
Here are some article marketing tips you can try. These methods are proven and have worked for thousands of professional online marketers including the one writing this piece.
 
Why Articles Work
 
But before we start, you must understand why articles are so crucial to your marketing in the first place. You must truly understand why and how articles work so effectively as marketing vehicles in our newly wired world. It all boils down to one word... information.
 
The main reason articles work is information. The whole Internet is based on information. People use the web to access information and your well written article can help satisfy this need. You must place your article squarely into this whole information cycle.
 
Your article must be informative and provide some benefit to the reader. Tips, advice, how-to... your reader should gain something from spending a few minutes reading your article. The more beneficial your article, the more popular it will become and you will have a better chance of getting it published.
 
Title & Keywords
 
Your article title should contain two vital elements: Keywords and Benefits. Your title must contain your keywords or keyword phrases, these are the exact words someone types into the search engines to find what they are looking for on the web.
 
You must find the exact words people are using and include these in your title as well as in your article. Many professional marketers use keyword research software like Keyword Elite but you can also use free keyword suggestion tools like WordTracker or Overture.
 
I find short catchy titles are best for capturing the attention of the reader. With our split second surfing habits, the title may be your only chance you get to hook your readers and keep them on your page. Another tactic is to make all your articles easily scannable with your main points highlighted for quick absorption.
 
Length
 
Most experts suggest you keep your articles short, in the 500 - 700 word range. Many authors/marketers use even shorter formats in the 200 - 300 word range in order to fit neatly on webpages.
 
I personally have found my more meatier articles in the 900 - 1200 word range have worked the best for me and seems to get featured in important ezines like Addme, SiteProNews... more often than shorter articles.
 
My best advice is to cut out any unnecessary fluff but write in your own natural style which is comfortable for you.
 
Submission
You must distribute your articles on the web. You can personally submit your articles to the many article directory sites on the web or you can purchase a service which does this for you. I do both.
 
I personally submit my articles to the major high PR6 or PR7 sites which display my articles. I have found articles placed on Ezinearticles.com, Buzzle.com, Goarticles.com, Articlealley.com, Promotionworld.com, Thumbshots.org, Site-reference.com, Ideamarketers.com, Selfgrowth.com... do extremely well.
 
I would suggest you use 9 or 10 of these highly popular sites to display your articles, not only for the traffic
they deliver but for increasing your rankings in the search engines, especially Google.
 
I have also found using a paid online service like SubmitYourArticle is really helpful, especially when I am on vacation or away from my computer for any length of time. I also use this service to quickly write different versions of my articles for the best search engine optimization. I am also concerned with covering different article lengths because many webmasters will only publish short articles.
 
Resource Box/Anchor Text
 
Your resource box is at the end of each article and this is where you place URLs for those all important One-Way links back to your site. Many marketers are careful to place their targeted keywords and variations in the anchor text of their links. It is also a good idea to provide some benefit or free gift to enhance your 'call to action' and improve your chances of getting that all important click.
 
Be Consistent
 
I have found a steady supply of fresh articles on a regular basis works the best. These articles keep your site or products fresh in the search engines and in front of your potential customers and editors/webmasters who publish your content. Try for at least two articles per week.
 
Own List of Editors
 
Along the same lines, build your own opt-in list of editors and webmasters who have opted in to receive your latest articles. Send a copy of your article to these interested parties and you will increase your chances of getting your articles published.
 
I also make it a point of including my most popular articles in my own ezines and blogs. This helps to kickstart or launch my newest articles.
 
Autoresponders
 
Many marketers place their articles in autoresponders so anyone requesting your article can easily use email to retrieve it. Many marketers also use RSS feeds to distribute their articles. If doing your own feeds seems too complicated, then just use any of the major article directories like Ezinearticles which will supply you with a convenient RSS feed for your articles.
 
Spam Check Your Articles
 
I always make it a point of testing my articles for any words or phrases that will trigger the spam filters and block my articles. This is extremely important if you want your article to be featured in ezines and newsletters. I check my articles within my Aweber autoresponder service but you can use a free SpamCheck service offered by SiteSell.
 
Personality
 
Articles that show some originality and personality have worked the best for me. Showing and telling your own story and experiences in a light hearted way seems to work really well in the somewhat impersonal online world. Having a sense of humor also helps, try to make your articles entertaining as well as informative and your articles will be picked up more often.
 
Conclusion
 
Writing unique informative articles is one of the most effective ways to market on the web. Remember to keep your articles informative, personable, keyword rich, short and to the point. Take a pro-active approach to promoting your articles: submit them to the major online article directories, send them to editors and webmasters who request content from you and place your articles on your site, in your blogs and RSS feeds.

Used properly, articles can be effective marketing tools for boosting both your traffic and sales. Perhaps the best part of all, article marketing is completely free. What more can you ask for?

This article is written by Titus Hoskins of Idea Marketers.

Build a Responsive Opt-in Email List

Building a responsive optin list?

The best method of building a responsive optin list is to first find a profitable market, find out what kinds of problems they have, create an enticing free product that solves one or more of those problems and offer it to them through an optin page (squeeze page). Then build a relationship with your subscribers through regular email contact.

It’s relatively easy to build a list but if you don’t know what you’re doing it’s much harder to build one that’s “also” responsive. In other words whenever you send out an email to your subscribers they click on your links and buy stuff from you.

The solution is simple… publish a high value PDF newsletter which contains useful and relevant articles and promotions for whatever you’re selling. As well as publishing a regular newsletter also email your list in-between this with solo emails making recommendations on other products you’re selling as an affiliate.

The goal here is to publish valuable content mixed with relevant marketing promotions on a regular and consistent basis.

If you’re just getting started with building a list of responsive subscribers. Or perhaps you’ve been trying to build yourself a subscriber list for quite some time but without much success, here’s my simple solution.

This article is written by Big Selling Answers