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Archive for the ‘Website Promotion’ Category
Link Partnering – A form of “Fusion Marketing”
These days’ businesses have to think outside of the box when it comes to advertising and getting the word out about what they do and that they are the best place to go for that product of service. Many small businesses are branching off into “link partnering.” This Guerrilla Marketing approach is known as “Fusion Marketing.” This almost free source of advertising is growing in popularity.
Link partnering is not hard to do, you simply exchange links on your site with a company that have the same kind of prospects and standards as you. You definitely do not want to just partner with anyone, you will want to carefully analyze who you partner with.
Here are some examples of possible link partners; again these are just a few examples to get you thinking about possible partners.
Real Estate – Mortgage Company
Web Designer – Computer Tech & Repair
Office Supply House – CPA
Mortgage Company – Closing Attorney
Auto Detail – Car Dealership
Contractors – Inspectors
I am sure that you get the idea. Ultimately, you want to look at the possible partner and ask yourself, “Will my client find value if I send them to this person?” If the answer is no then keep looking.
How do you link partner?
There are many different ways to partner with a company. One way could be that you each place a graphic (banner or button) on the other person’s website or perhaps each of you could place a link on the links page of the site. Whatever way you decide to do it, the placement of the link and the size of the ad needs to be as close to equal as possible. You don’t want bad feelings to arise with the relationship.
How do you find link partners?
Think about your customer or client, what are some of the other types of products they would be interested in? Once you have the type of business(s) that you want to partner with, you need to decide which company you want to work with. If you already have a relationship with them, then the decision is obvious. If you do not have a relationship with them, then you will want to do some research into a few of the companies that you are considering. Ask around and see what type of reputation they have, their customer service record etc. Basically they have to prove to you that they are worth partnering with.
How do you measure your link partnering results?
This is really easy. The internet allows us to “label” links. You simply add a few characters that describe where you are partnering with at the end of your address. Like this: http://www.yoursite.com?partnername then anything after the question mark is a labeling method that most all tracking software will pick up on as a referral. I prefer Google Analytics. This would come up as partnername (referral) in your traffic sources page.
The 5 P’s of Marketing
If you have read any marketing books or taken any marketing classes one of the first things we learn are the Five P’s. The Five P’s stands for Product, Price, Placement, Promotion and People. We keep these ideals in mind while positioning our marketing efforts. How can we do this with our website?
Product – The product is what you sell this could be a service, a product, yourself (think resumes), an idea, or someone else (think politics). People are looking to have the best of the best, continually finding ways to improve your existing products creating new products or services will add value to your company and the website.
Price Price is not only the list price on an item or service but also adjustments such as discounts through coupons, frequency rewards, quantity discounts and free samples. Offering online coupons, and special promotional sales on your site will drive traffic if your product is seen as useful.
Placement – Placement is where you present your product to the customers and or clients. Online this is determined by search engine placement, a professional website that is easy to use and the navigation, a consistent look on each page. Your website should be arranged in a way that your visitor doesn’t have to think about it they should just be able to”Click.” This can also be seen as online advertising in places that your clients and visitors visit frequently.
Promotion - Promotion is all the sales activities, advertising, publicity designed to inform or persuade people about your product or service. Sometimes this simplicity is lost in the mix, in sales it is hard for some to ask for the sale. The same goes into the website, often times we get so wrapped up in colors, content, layout, search engine rankings that we forget the most crucial part of the site; Asking for the sale. On a website this is considered a conversion invitation. Some of these include; Add to Cart, sign up now, Checkout Now, Call Today, E-Mail us with any questions and many more. On every page and in a few different locations you should have a conversion request.
People - In my opinion, this is the most important factor; this is your personal relationship between you, your company and you clients and customers. Often times our referral market keeps us busy enough but if you don’t nurture those relationships they will start to fade as well. Taking time for your clients and/or customers will build loyalty and a strong referral base. Offer a newsletter or a blog where these people can interact with you.
Might I suggest that you write down the Five P’s; have them close at hand so you can consider the basics in all of your marketing efforts.
AAR5N8HT9TWX
Six Free and Easy Ways to Advertise your Site
You new website is built; you are ready for the masses to max out your bandwidth. But wait, they don’t know that you even exist.
Most do not know that it can take search engines several weeks, months and sometimes years to list your site in the top 10 especially if you are going for a highly competitive keyword or phrase.
I have put together a short and easy list of some things you can do now to help get your site some visitors and possibly push your site closer to the top of the search engines.
1. List your web address on all of your ads, business cards, letterhead etc. That is usually the first place people will go to check you out before doing business with you.
2. Include your web address in your company’s e mail signature line. When you send out or replay to e mails people will see your link.
3. If you have a feedback form on your website market it to your existing clients and customers. You could offer a coupon that comes up after the form is submitted. Don’t forget to ask if they want to join your newsletter list.
4. If you participate in online forums add your link in your signature line. If the forum is related to your keyword or phrase this could also improve your site’s ranking with the search engines. If you are not participating in online forums and blogs start it now.. Get interactive in your marketing efforts. Look for forums and blogs that are industry specific to your type of business. As you interact on these forums and blogs people check you out by clicking on your link in your signature line. Don’t forget to also complete your profile on these forums.
5. If you attend marketing events, seminars, classes when you exchange cards or talk to people about your business ask if they mind if you send them an e mail every now and again. You would be surprised at how many will say yes and appreciate the fact that you asked permission first.
6. If you are an existing business just now getting your business online let your existing customer base know it. Some have created a page just for this. They make a page that isn’t linked from the rest of the site and asks those exiting customers or clients to enter their e mail address in exchange for a 10% coupon their next order.
There are many ways that you can market your site. Some of these may seem easy but sometimes we overlook the obvious. Get active and promote your site every chance you get.
Three easy ways to build customer satisfaction with your website.
As the newness of the internet has worn off it has become more of a tool that people use to both shop and socialize locally. How you use the internet to reach new customers and clients and service your existing client base will deeply depend on your type of business. Many of these can be tweaked to your business type.
1. Offer a survey -Offer your in-house customers a discount or a chance to win if they fill out a survey on your site. This can be 3 – 5 questions on what they thought of the service they received, the quality of products or services you offer. You can even ask open ended questions so they have more freedom to express themselves. You can use this data to improve your services of course but you can also use this information to stay in touch with your customer. There are many providers that offer the ability to create and post a poll on your website. I prefer Constant Contact’s polls options and the many capabilities that it offers. The next time you are running a sale you can e mail the details to them. If they really like the service you can use it as a testimony in your advertising or right there on the website.
2.Offer online specials – Offer a printable coupon that is only available on your website that your customers can print out and bring in to the store. Include an expiration date and change it often. Many retailers use this method of driving traffic.
3.Send out a newsletter – A newsletter is a permission based, direct connection with your clients or customers. You can send out news about a new product or service you are offering or announce a sale or event you are holding that weekend.