| The recession is no excuse for local and small | | | | Links in a local directory |
| businesses owners to experience marketing | | | | -- A link in the local Chamber of Commerce directory |
| depression. In fact, it's a great time to take | | | | -- Links to your site in the blog roll of local bloggers |
| advantage of your network of contacts and your | | | | -- Partnering with non-competing local websites to |
| geographic location. Small business owners can | | | | exchange links |
| actually take advantage of economic downturn and | | | | Whenever possible, request that the "link back" have |
| learn new marketing strategies to sustain the future | | | | one of the key phrases you are targeting. |
| of their organization. Here are some simple Web | | | | Tip #5 -- Get on Low-Cost/No-Cost Local Search |
| marketing tips for small and local business owners to | | | | Opportunities |
| try so they may boost their Website's search visibility | | | | Businesses that operate or have a mailbox in a |
| and to build Web marketing buzz. The key is to stop | | | | geographic location can add their listing (usually at no |
| selling and start Serving your consumer. Customer | | | | charge) to Google Maps, Yahoo Local, MSN Live, |
| service via well-managed websites, educational | | | | SuperPages, Yellow Pages and other local sites. Some |
| content, helpful tips, easy to find contact, frequently | | | | local search engines require a call or will mail a |
| asked questions pages, blogs, email newsletters, etc | | | | postcard to verify address, but with most all you |
| that have VALUABLE content will allow you to do | | | | need to do is add your business online. |
| what marketing is really all about, build relationships. | | | | Since Google, Yahoo, and MSN often include local |
| Tip #1 -- Define Your Optimized Key Phrases | | | | businesses above other listings in their search results, |
| Focus on key phrases before any search | | | | local businesses can often leverage their geographic |
| optimizations are executed. Define keywords that | | | | edge to get top listings. |
| describe your business, product(s) or service(s). Next, | | | | Online phone book sites offer paid options that are |
| marry those descriptive keywords with city or | | | | worth exploring, as well. Another approach is to ask |
| county locations. Remember this equation: Business or | | | | your clients or customers to post comments about |
| service + Location or region = Optimized Key Phrase. | | | | your business on local Internet listings to boost |
| For example: | | | | credibility and awareness. |
| Business or service: Wardrobe consultant + Location | | | | Tip #6 -- Place Contact Information and Place-Names |
| or region: Santa Barbabra = Optimized Key Phrase: | | | | on Each Page of Your Site |
| Wardrobe consultant Santa Barbara | | | | The simple act of adding contact information to |
| The power of targeted phrases pays off when you | | | | every page of your site can boost search visibility. If |
| begin to optimizing page titles, meta tags, site | | | | you serve multiple cities, give your address, then a |
| content, internal links, and external links with the | | | | descriptor such as: "Serving the Tri-Counties, Small |
| accurate, descriptive key phrases you have | | | | Business Bank for Ventura, Santa Barbara and San |
| developed. These will help attract targeted search | | | | Luis Obispo County." |
| results and bring the right customers to your site. | | | | Tip #7 -- Re Purpose Your Marketing Assets and |
| Tip #2 -- Be an Educator. Teach to Build Trust and | | | | Collateral Online. |
| Credibility | | | | Videos can be edited and hosted on video-sharing |
| Business owners are usually experts in their field and | | | | sites, photos can be posted on your blog, and great |
| have a great deal of passion for what they do. A | | | | content can be re-purposed on your website and |
| business owner can offer value with educational | | | | shared on ezine sites, newsletters, blogs, sites like |
| materials, content and tips. Being an educator via | | | | and more. If you are in the news, populate your |
| online content can help you go from being experts to | | | | press page with news and write your own press |
| AUTHORITIES and that is where credibility and buzz | | | | releases that share company news, awards, events, |
| kick in. Utilize the social media networks, blogs and | | | | new services and push them out to free PR wires. |
| micro blogging as a platform to reach consumers and | | | | You can use what you already have to build buzz |
| educate them with your expertise. | | | | and boost credibility and content = search results. No |
| Tip #3 -- Craft Valuable Content that Also | | | | need to reinvent the wheel, be creative and recycle |
| Communicates Location | | | | marketing collateral! |
| The slogan "content is king" still holds true. Define | | | | Tip #8 -- Web Marketing is NOT about the Tools- it |
| your key phrases and weave them into all your | | | | is About HOW You Use the Tools |
| content.Content such an important element to Web | | | | Web marketing is NOT about the tools (blogs, banner |
| marketing because it: | | | | ads, paid search, social media) Web marketing is |
| (1) fuels search indexing, | | | | about HOW you use the tools. The key to successful |
| (2) builds indexed pages for a website, | | | | marketing is to maximize the relationships to grow |
| (3) serves customers, and | | | | revenues and profit. Strategy is how small businesses |
| (4) boosts visibility. | | | | build awareness and boost business. |
| Local businesses can maximize their search visibility | | | | Think about marketing not as "spending" but instead |
| by crafting content written with geo-specific key | | | | "investing" and make your investments count. Put |
| phrases. Once that is accomplished, try adding it to | | | | dollars into "marketing capital" that will sustain and |
| online press releases and blogs and sharing the | | | | work for a long time. Web marketing collateral is a |
| content in social media communities. Here are | | | | brilliant place to invest, (it's low cost or no cost) and |
| examples of headlines with geo-targeted key phrases | | | | lives forever (unlike print ads, online ads, direct mail or |
| that could be used in press releases or blog posts: | | | | TV/Radio that die when you stop doing them). |
| Local Ventura Dog Trainer Volunteers Studio for | | | | Websites that communicate who you are, what you |
| Humane Society Rescue Day | | | | do and why you are worth working with are great |
| Beverly Hills Wardrobe Consultant Event March 31st | | | | supporting capital to a small company. This is a |
| Tip #4-Build Links with External Websites | | | | stressful environment, so consumers are more |
| Increasing links back to your Website boosts search | | | | conscious -- they need to 1. know 2. like and 3. trust |
| engine visibility. Local businesses can maximize links | | | | before they buy...does your Web marketing evoke |
| from other sites by taking advantage of their | | | | trust? Invest in marketing that supports these points |
| tremendous assets: contacts and community. Use | | | | and it will be an investment that carries you for |
| your connections to initiate: | | | | years. |