Small businesses are planning on doing more online marketing in 2010, according to studies from Vistaprint and Ad-ology. Small businesses are looking to increase their marketing plans for social media (14%), online and search advertising (11%). Also, only 38% of small businesses currently have a company website, but 32% of respondents said they would be interested in building a website if they had more time and money to spend on it. In a separate survey, Ad-ology found that 46% of US small businesses did not have a website. With more small businesses becoming interested in online marketing, it is critical to have a website ...

2010 is well on its way and it can be easy to get caught up in the day-to-day activities. However, with the year still new, it is important to reflect on your business' 1-to-1 marketing and see if you are effectively executing your online solutions. Here are a few things to review and see if they are being properly utilized. Review your website. Look at your website with a fresh set of eyes. Is the information you want conveyed properly to your target audience? Could new visitors quickly find information about your products and services? Are you clearly highlighting how to find ...

It can be easy to have a clear direct investment with paid search results. You invest exactly how much you want and get a certain amount of return back. However, the majority of clicks occur from the natural search results. The difference between having a SEO website showing up on the first page of a search engine and a non-SEO website on the third page can result in hundreds of clicks and thousands of dollars added to your revenue every month. Creating a SEO website that can compete not only with your competition but also with other articles and websites that all ...

According to a recent article published in DMNews by Dianna Dilworth, FedEx is getting ready to execute a multichannel marketing campaign in 2010 as part of the company’s new strategy to integrate its brand messaging and creative across channels. The marketing efforts include both online and offline channels with a unified message directing consumers to a microsite designed to engage them. Steve Pacheco, director of advertising at FedEx, stated that, it is the first truly integrated marketing campaign launched by the company. He firmly believes that it is crucial to integrate as many channels of communications as possible since consumers are ...

"The lack of proper advertising and marketing is one of the top seven reasons cited by the SBA that lead businesses to failure."    - Alan Jackson, Global Cash Flow Network With the emergence of web and social media, mass advertising and marketing is no longer something only the fortune 500 companies can afford. With the power of online marketing, small and mid-size companies can reach to millions of people around the world cost-effectively. Not only can you reach them with powerful message and strategy, you also have the ability to track how people are responding to your marketing efforts and make ...

It seems that everyone’s talking about landing pages these days.  So you already have a website, why create a landing page?  Isn’t that just like having a one-page website in addition to your current website?  Not exactly. A landing page is a page that directly contains the content your visitor/customer is looking for.  This may mean that it’s a direct link to a promotion off your e-mail marketing campaign or newsletter, search engine advertisement or even a direct link from a directory or other related website.  The great advantage of landing pages is that your visitors get the information they need ...

Website, e-mail, and search spending made up the top of the list in changes business-to-business marketers would make in their online spending in 2010, according to BtoB magazine. More than half of B2B marketers would also increase their spending in social media and video marketing. However, more than half wanted to use social media for thought leadership while 49% wanted to use it to generate leads. On the other hand, 13% of B2B marketers would decrease their spending on online banners and 10% would decrease their spending on sponsorship. Want more information on how to increase your company’s reach online? The experts at ...

It might be tempting for local business owners to make changes to their business listings in order to improve their search engine optimization (SEO), but they actually might be ruining their listing. Changes like adding a slogan to the business name or changing office locations to seem local will actually negatively impact your listing and possibly get you delisted by the major search engines. Here are a few simple ways that you might be ruining your local business listing. Change your phone number in your business listing While call tracking might be an important way to measure success in advertising, your online business listing ...

With everyone jumping on the social media bandwagon, it is easy to get caught up in the hype and lose focus. Tapping into social media requires more than just a single idea, it requires an effective plan to help your company and brand create opportunities for community and engagement. Follow these tips to help you get started on your social media campaign. Create a vision Develop an idea of what you want your brand or company to be in social media. Will you be offering special deals or coupons? Is it to personalize your brand? What is the message you want to ...

With social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter becoming the latest word-of-mouth venue, it is becoming more pertinent for businesses and companies to have a presence on these sites. According to the report Social Commerce on Facebook, Twitter and Retail Sites, almost 75% of the merchants in the Internet Retailer Top 500 Guide have a presence on at least one of the major social networks or social shopping sites. Social networking users of all ages are more likely to make online purchases, so they are considered a highly sought-after group by internet retailers, according to a May 2009 survey by Anderson Analytics. Many ...

The new digital era is keeping everyone on their toes. One of the most recent and frequently used forms of digital media is video marketing. While video marketing used to be something that only large companies could afford to do, with a decent budget, smaller companies are jumping on board. Before you jump into making your video piece, make sure you keep a couple of things in mind. First, you want to clearly define the purpose of your video. Is it an advertising opportunity? An endorsement? New product/service introduction? Product demonstration? Whichever the purpose of your video, make sure you stay ...

It all started just a few years ago with Facebook. While it began as a private social networking site, Facebook has served as a template for a variety social networking sites that are becoming ever more popular not just among users but also marketing experts. Today, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Bebo, LinkIn. and MySpace are just a few of the many online social networking options available. You may ask, “Why bother?” There is a reason why major companies are using them. Next time you’re visiting a website look for a “follow us on Facebook” or similar message alerting you to join some ...