If you aren’t actively marketing for local search prospects, you are missing out big time. With close to 300 million searches per day, there is no denying that people use search engines. But do they use them when looking for local products and services? There is an abundance of public data suggesting that as high as 80% of potential prospects turn to the internet first when looking for a local product or service. The yellow pages are a thing of the past. The new yellow pages are local internet directories and a new medium called Pay Per Click advertising. If…

This last week has been quite the time for me. In the last few years of working and building my online business I had very little time meeting in person with others that I know. I often get together with Alice and Diana since we all live here in Vancouver. Yaro recently mentioned on his blog that he was coming to Vancouver before he heads off to Toronto. I have to say that it was a really great time to meet him. I also met with several others and had a great time chatting it up with David at the…

When you build a business with extreme focus you are positioned to move quick when the need arises and that is often something that business owners with a fractured focus have trouble with. I have one target market and know it well. Because I’ve chosen to devote myself to this one snug market of business owners it is easy for me to stay in tune with their needs. When an opportunity comes to introduce them to something new I can spring into action with minimal additional research. I can decide fast, act fast and see results fast. Can you say…

Have you ever attended a meeting which goes on and on and on and doesn’t achieve anything? Or where people keep repeating themselves or talk just for the sake of talking while others sit there huffing and puffing because they want to be elsewhere? A number of years ago I came up with a formula which I have found really useful as an ‘on the spot’ communication strategy. This strategy I call ORFF. You can use it in any communication situation – meetings, one to ones, presentations, video conferencing, whatever, to help create focus and realise objectives. It’s not a…

So spend it wisely. I got a packet today, from someone who is trying to sell me a service that I’m probably interested in. We’ll call me a lukewarm buyer. I don’t know enough to be a hot buyer, but the potential is there. I had asked the rep to send me some information. I received a very nice folder/brochure, a DVD and a cover letter. The cover letter says: “Blah, blah, blah…. In addition, there is a DVD enclosed that will tell you all about the products in about the first 20 minutes.” What? The FIRST 20 minutes? Are…

From my work, I notice a lot of businesses think that throwing money at advertising is what they need to get more customers. Sure it’ll help, but why waste your money when you can convert more leads for less cash? Out of the research I’ve done and my own experience, here are a few checkpoints that I work through to increase website conversion: 1. Be clear about what you do If visitors don’t see your site as being relevant to them – they can leave in 3 seconds. So make sure you’re clear about what you do. Use strong headings…

In my line of work you get to have a lot of fun working with companies. They come my way sort of lost. Many have achieved impressive success but feel that they can do better and feel that something is missing. While others are absolute start-ups and want to hit the ground running. What is typical in almost every case is the fact that they never considered positioning themselves from a point of differentiation. They all want to go to market with a laundry list of services and shout out that they do everything. Since this is what ‘most’ businesses…

In the world of internet marketing branding plays a very critical role in an overall marketing strategy. Branding tactics, designed to increase familiarity, ultimately result in front of mind awareness, trust, and purchases. To leave it out of a business marketing equation is to risk future success and sustainability. The good news is, becoming a familiar brand doesn’t mean spending millions of dollars on a Super Bowl ad. Becoming a familiar brand simply requires patience and a strategy that encompasses a variety of marketing tools designed to increase brand recognition. Recognition means you’ve established front of mind awareness. When people…

Marketing is the breath that keeps your business alive and kicking. It is essential for life and it is essential for your business. Without marketing, your business will go nowhere. That being said, marketing doesn’t have to be a stressful and excruciating experience. Developing a marketing strategy is a fairly straight forward process that involves three basic steps: – Creating a marketing strategy – Implementing it – Testing it and improving Now you may be looking at that list and saying, “How do I create a marketing strategy?” That is of course the first step. As a small business owner…

What do you use when creating accounts at social networks, video sharing sites, forums and the like? If you’re using a nickname from your school days you may be missing out on the opportunity to further spread your brand name. Why? Because on some networks, usernames are what people use to look you up. Usernames are also sometimes used in the URL of your profile’s pages. Also, on average many of us belong to more than one social network. The more consistent we are on all these sites, the more often we get our name in front of our audience. For many of…