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Friday, August 28th, 2009
I’m often asked, “how do I optimize my Web site?” I love this question. Just ask anyone I work with, I can answer it for hours on end. I can go on so long partly because search engine optimization (SEO) is a complex process and partly because of my general fascination with search engines and search behavior.
Optimizing your site generally requires numerous changes. They aren’t unmanageable or even very hard, but they do require patience. SEO is not a quick fix and takes time. That being said there are a few relatively easy things you can do to change the way your site ranks. One in particular has resulted in improved rankings every time I’ve done or recommended it. (more…)
Tags: search behavior, search engine optimization, search engines, search marketing, SEO
Posted in Marketing | No Comments »
Thursday, July 30th, 2009
A college roommate of mine sent me a link to a video on YouTube last week. He sent it because he knew it would make me laugh, he was right. After watching it I began to think more about what the video represents. You see for me this video epitomizes the power of the Web and user generated content.
Here you have two brands/bands seemingly unrelated and representing completely different core values existing in perfect harmony – literally. See for yourself. (more…)
Tags: brand experience, brand image, mashup, social media, user generated content, YouTube
Posted in Marketing, Media | No Comments »
Friday, July 24th, 2009
Content may be king for successful SEO but he’s nothing without his queen, and she is accessibility. Think of it this way: you may be the greatest artist the world has even seen but if your work is hidden in a basement, how will we ever know?
Search engines don’t sleep. They never stop working. They send programs called “robots” to gather (i.e. index) content across the Web 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Please note, when I say “content” I’m referring to the copy, or words and other text, on your pages. Without it you will not rank well in search results. Here’s where the queen, accessibility, enters the picture. (more…)
Tags: accessibility, html page, search engine optimization, search engine robots, search engines, search marketing, SEO, web content
Posted in Marketing, Technology | No Comments »
Friday, July 17th, 2009
One thing the financial crisis has pointed out pretty clearly is that everyone is connected. “Pure” capitalism, the kind espoused by economists like Milton Friedman, is based on the idea that all the decisions individuals make based on what is most profitable for them will add up to public good. One reason many are looking for someone to blame in the financial crisis, is that the inherent “goodness” of capitalism (with or without government controls) is at the foundation of our national identity.
I sense a paradigm shift in the offing.
I am betting it will start with the notion (more…)
Tags: business decisions, business ethics, business goals, capitalism, mba oath, milton friedman, moral compass, paradigm shift, public good
Posted in Marketing | No Comments »
Monday, July 13th, 2009
From simple Web sites and e-mail marketing to social media, CRM and viral YouTube videos, if you are a marketer, you are facing the fact that your major marketing vehicles are in the hands of an IT department that often doesn’t even speak the same language you do. Usually they have a very different culture. Often they even work in a different state.
Every day, decisions are made in IT that affect marketing. When purchasing a new software package, their focus is on efficiency, robust technology, or transactions per minute. When you ask “But can I embed a video?” or “How easy will it be for me to do a survey?” they will say “Yeah, yeah, it can do all that,” followed by a lot of what sounds to you like gobbledygook. (more…)
Tags: CRM, email marketing, iPhone app, Marketing, social media, viral video
Posted in Marketing, Technology | 1 Comment »
Friday, June 19th, 2009
Buying stuff, whatever that stuff is, is a process that has changed and evolved significantly because of our bff, the internet. And let’s be honest, we all spend a lot of time on the web. If you’re like me, one of the more productive things to do online is buying something, because we can’t find it anywhere else or it’s cheaper or it’s easier.
Even if we like to see it in person and try it on or try it out, many times we may leave that store to go to our computers to see if we can get a better deal. Nothing wrong with that.
“What’s your biggest pet peeve about online shopping, Eric?” (more…)
Tags: checkout, e-commerce, retail, shopping, UI, user experience, user interface
Posted in Design & Usability, Marketing | 1 Comment »
Tuesday, June 16th, 2009
When we develop training applications, clients are sometimes taken aback that we want to consider their overall business and brand objectives, their sales goals, and to know the competitive advantages of their products, and sales challenges. We see that training applications can represent a great sales opportunity and we want the training that we create to move your company forward and give you great ROI. (more…)
Tags: effective training, Marketing, ROI, sales goals, training
Posted in Creative, Marketing | No Comments »
Wednesday, June 10th, 2009
Being polite is a good way to ensure success. In my experience, if you ask for something in a polite and straightforward manner you will usually get it. So why is it that so many marketers still insist on being rude? They send me messages without first asking my permission. How is it they they know I’m even interested? (more…)
Tags: email, Marketing
Posted in Marketing | No Comments »
Tuesday, June 2nd, 2009
Wait…doesn’t it require some special skill set to be a viral marketer? Is there a multi-part DVD series you can buy online to get “viral” certification? Frankly, the answer to both questions is NO! Well actually, there may be a DVD.
The truth is we are all viral marketers. Think about it. Everyone has told someone about a great experience or product (statistically speaking several bad ones too). Since the emergence of e-mail we’ve been eagerly forwarding messages to friends and family. Whether it was to cheer them up or save them some money – we’ve all done it.
(more…)
Tags: Marketing
Posted in Marketing | No Comments »
Wednesday, May 20th, 2009
Search engines are powerful tools that sift through billions of web pages to return what seem like instant results to searchers. This has changed the dynamic between marketers and consumers. Now searches have all the power – no more waiting for your marketing message to reach them. They simply type what they want into Google or Yahoo and poof, solutions appear. (more…)
Tags: search engine optimization, search engines, search marketing, SEO
Posted in Marketing | No Comments »
Wednesday, May 20th, 2009
There are numerous factors that determine how your site will perform in search engines. Unfortunately, good (visual) design is not one of them. Search engines are blind; they don’t see graphics or pictures. They can only read the text on pages. So, when it comes to search engines, your site is only as good as the text on the pages. (more…)
Tags: SEO, website design
Posted in Marketing | 1 Comment »
