Want World Domination? Read this post…

Throughout history, people always wanted to dominate the world! Nowadays, it’s no longer about world domination – it’s all about google domination. Yup, if you really want power, fame and fortune, you need a good strategy to dominate the world’s leading search engine - you need to rank as #1 on google.

Of course that it is our job to help your website climb on top various search engines and rank as the best in the business, but if you want to know more about SEO you might consider picking up this new book called “SEO Made Simple: Strategies For Dominating The World's Largest Search Engine.”

It’s a handy little guide that can always help you understand what’s behind all of this SEO mumbo- jumbo and weird web lingo and teach you some interesting techniques and tricks that you can always utilize and tweak on your website. It’ll teach you all the basics and elementary stuff like link building, on-page optimization, off-page optimization, and world domination. Ah… actually, not sure about the world domination thingy.

So if you’re just launching a business or have a friend that is starting a new venture – this book will be the perfect gift! Well, this book and our services of course…

If a company is not on Google, does the company exist?

I know it’s kinda sleazy, but go ahead… google yourself! Really, I dare you! Come on, google your company’s name and see what comes up. What? Nothing comes up? Can’t be. Oh, your competitors come up. Well, that’s not good!

Did you ever hear about the philosophical debate “If a tree falls in the forest and it doesn’t come up on google – does it make a difference?” Hey, you can ask yourself the same question when it comes to your business too. Because when the internet is google, you have to secure yourself a place at the top, or nobody will care about you.

SEO is more than just a nice to have. In these days, advertising campaign is the new nice to have and SEO means just about everything. Millions of prospective customers are surfing the internet right now, and you have to make sure that when they need the services you provide, they will get to you and you alone! Not having a clear SEO roadmap is basically losing money. Every day. Every minute. Every second.

By the way, ranking high up on google is not that complicated. All you have to do is open your mind and join the internet marketing revolution.

So think about it over Christmas. Maybe you can ask Santa for a better ranking on search engines. Or maybe you can just contact Ajax Union. Because we’re much closer than the North Pole!

Happy New Year from the Ajax Union team!

Why would an FAQ page rank above a site's homepage?

Alex asks:

"Sometimes, when you search for a company or so, you won't get the main page as a search result. For example, you search for *example-company-name* and get their FAQ page listed first. How does that happen and how can we avoid it on our own websites?"

Search Engine Marketing Ethics- Google Yourself?

Search marketing is all about doing what you can to bring your name and your brand in front of prospects to increase sales. People use keywords, pay-per-click, sponsored links and a myriad of other ways to move their links to the top of the SERPs (Search Engine Results Pages.) All's fair in love and business, right?

It seems game is changing, according to the gang at Google, anyway. Google has long been known as the king of search engines by many people and they offer some great services to help anyone doing business online. Some people are taking umbrage with Google's efforts into marketing oneself, however. Google is offering reputation management services. Google suggests if you don't like what you find when you "Google yourself," well, simply create some information you do like and load it up with keywords and other search engine friendly fare.

The specific phrase used on Google blog is "proactively publish information." The blog talks about publishing blog posts with flattering photos to try to overcome negative photos or asking people to write positive reviews about your company to compensate for some that may not paint such a pretty picture. Reputation management is nothing new in search marketing- people have been doing it since the dawn of the Internet age. Somehow, Google advising it seems a bit unseemly, though, doesn't it? Maybe they will publish some other blog posts to knock this one off the first page of the SERPs. After all, whose reputation should they be managing- yours and mine- or their own?

Google Caffiene GFS2

Google Writes on thier sandbox page:

"We appreciate all the feedback from people who searched on our Caffeine sandbox.

Based on the success we've seen, we believe Caffeine is ready for a larger audience. Soon we will activate Caffeine more widely, beginning with one data center. This sandbox is no longer necessary and has been retired, but we appreciate the testing and positive input that webmasters and publishers have given."

Well for all those concerned about page rank, don't be. Matt Cutts made it clear that the objective is to change the engine under the hood but not to change the ranking philosophy.

"Caffeine is a fundamental re-architecting of how our indexing system works," Cutts says. "It's larger than a revamp. It's more along the lines of a rewrite. And it's really great. It gives us a lot more flexibility, a lot more power. The ability to index more documents. Indexing speeds - that is, how quickly you can put a document through our indexing system and make it searchable - is much much better."

How To Use Twitter Lists Effectively

We knew it wouldn’t be long before Twitter came up with a new feature…Twitter Lists. But like all new features, users have to learn how to use them effectively, and more importantly, how to use them with a Twitter account in conjunction with your internet marketing plan.

So what exactly are Twitter Lists? Basically you create a Twitter List named whatever you like, “My Fave Tweeters” for example, and you can add people to those lists and make those lists visible or invisible. For example, if you create list named “People I Should Unfollow” you probably wouldn’t want to make that lists visible, and only you would be able to see that lists.

So how exactly does this benefit you or your potential customers? This is where the creativity begins to flow. Let’s say you own an online bookstore and you are promoting a new author. You can create a Twitter List named “Friends Who Would Love John Doe’s New Book”. Once you make that lists visible, people you add to the list, which should be tweeters who have bought books from you before or are interested in books, will be notified on their homepage.

Once they see they’ve been listed, they’ll be flattered and probably check out the new book on your website.

Another cool feature is the ability to use the url of that list in your internet marketing plans. Let’s say you wanted to let other people on your website know exactly who are on the “Love John Does’ New Book” list. You can copy the url of that list and include it into your webpage for another level of interaction. Usually people just use their Twitter urls to promote Twitter, but now there are more ways to use Twitter to promote your interest and more importantly, your business.

What should I do if I don't know why my website was penalized on google?

Will Google Wave Change Internet Marketing?

With the launch of Google Wave, marketers and online businesses have been wondering...will this new application change everything for me? Will it allow me to get closer to potential customers or make them harder to find. Will it expose hidden marketing agendas that have been effective, or will it cause a new wave to opportunities?

Our verdict? We believe Google Wave will allow marketers and businesses who are doing their own marketing, to work more effectively. The pros definitely outweigh the cons. For those of you who are just hearing about Google Wave, Google Wave is "a web-based service, computing platform, and communications protocol designed to merge e-mail, instant messaging, wikis, and social networking." (Source: Wikipedia)

The main reason we believe The Wave is going to change marketing of the past to a new effective future is the implementation of cloud computing. Cloud computing allows for a laptop users to use applications and programs from a hub instead of having to download it to a computer. The idea here is the ability to take "real-time" to the next level. Marketers can utilize this real-time component to interact and communicate with customers in real time.

Just imagine, releasing a email offer that immediately allows customers to engage, communicate and ask others about an offer that they also received...and even ask you questions about the offer..in real-time. Something that email has yet to do.

Learning to utilize this powerful tool now by interacting with developers and testing the product out now is imperative to the success of any marketing campaign going forward.

Want to learn more? Visit our previous post on What Exactly is Google Wave..

Article Writing Guidelines: Ajax Union

Article Writing Guidelines:

· Your article must be at least 500 words long.

· Include a compelling headline. “How to” headlines work great.

· You will be provided with a number of keywords. Please implement the words throughout the article and in the headline.

· We might ask you to write about “Choosing a Car Stereo” and you don’t even have a license. It’s okay to google for ideas. It’s not okay to cut & paste from other sources. Not even one sentence. If you use stuff that is already out there - make sure you launder the material well. Turn it around and use new words.

· Never repeat a sentence twice in the same article or even in a series of articles.

· You are writing for an internet audience so always keep in mind that youtube is a click away! Don’t go all New York Times and don’t use big words. Use simple, intimate style and share (or make up) your personal experience.

· Keep the paragraphs short and get to the point quickly.

· Try to maximize the use of bullets or numbers

· Although we are a marketing company, you should not try to advertise or promote any business in your writing. Keep it objective and deliver unbiased articles. When writing about Selling Gold for Cash don’t say “sell gold online, it’s better than sex.”

· But don’t be too negative as well. This is not investigative reporting so “don’t sell gold online – it’s a scam” wouldn’t work. Although you can definitely write “when selling gold online, watch out from unscrupulous businesses” and provide tips for safe transactions.

Also, please include a two sentence summary before each article and the main keywords you were using.

Canonical Link Element, Duplicate Content

Ever wonder about duplicate content? Watch This Video.



Matt Cutts of Google introduces the canonical link element.

Matt Cutts of Google introduces the canonical link element.

Resources:
Blog post on Google webmaster blog:
http://googlewebmastercentral.blogspo...

Yahoo blog post:
http://ysearchblog.com/2009/02/12/fig...

Microsoft:
http://blogs.msdn.com/webmaster/archi...

Ask:
http://blog.ask.com/2009/02/ask-is-go...

Google Help Center documentation:
http://google.com/support/webmasters/...

Joost de Valk: WordPress, Magento, and Drupal
http://yoast.com/canonical-url-links/

Matt Cutts Teaches Bloggers About SEO... Great Video

Smart Internet Marketing begins with Smart Keywords. Here's how to choose the best Keywords for your site

Keywords, keywords, what are keywords and what makes them so important? Actually, keywords are just like roads and traffic signs to your site and if your keywords look like New Jersey you’re in big trouble.

The importance of keywords is pretty simple: Use the wrong keywords and the only one that will be surfing your site is… you! But use the right keywords in your site and you’ll get huge amounts of traffic that you never thought you’d have.

You see, internet is all about searching. That’s the reason Google eliminated the address bar from its new browser. No one actually types in http://www.whatever.com. No. You just search “whatever” and you pick some result, usually from the top ten. So if your business deals with “whatever” you should make it your keyword.

But wait! It’s not that simple. There are millions and millions of sites who also use “whatever” as their keyword. So how can you maximize traffic and make sure that searchers ends up at your site?

Here’s how the magic is done: you need to manipulate the keywords and make them special. Use several variations of your keyword and you can get your fair share of traffic. For example, instead of just using “whatever” you can use “buy whatever” or “cheap whatever” or “where can I rent whatever?” so when people search that phrase, they will reach your site.

Let’s say you sell watches. Don’t make “watch” your keyword. You’ll be buried beneath millions of watch retailers and the dedicated fans of BayWatch. Try “buy watch online” or “discounted luxury watches” or “2010 brand watches” in order to get your share of the search pie.

Want to know more about smart internet marketing and how to use keywords? Log on to www.ajaxunion.com and find out how you can maximize the best display window in the world.

What exactly is Google Wave? What will/can it do?

Google Wave is a project announced by Google at the Google I/O conference on May 28, 2009 [see above video] It is a web application and computing platform designed to bring together e-mail, instant messaging, wiki, and social networking, with a strong collaborative focus, mixed with spellchecker and translator extensions, which are able to work in concert, in real-time. It is planned to be released later in 2009.



Find out more about Google Wave

How To Choose Your SEO Keywords

Choosing good SEO keywords is the key to promoting your website and reaching your target audience. Why? Because is the key to smart internet marketing success when competing with other online business that also focus on your targeted audience.

Before you start writing down keywords you should think like a normal person searching online. What would someone type into Google when looking for your product or services? Keeping that in mind here are a few tips to help you go find your keywords.

Brainstorm
The first step is to brainstorm keyword ideas as they pop in your head and write them down. A good idea is to talk to other people and customers to get an idea of what they think of when looking for your product.

Use Online Tools
Keyword search tools can be used to help you think out of the box. For example, if you type in "hat" these tools will give you top search terms that include the world "hat" including "red hat" or "nba hat". The list can go on and on.

Start Picking
After your research its time to choose some keywords by deciding which ones are going to provide you with the best return on your investment.

Analyze
Now that you've chosen your keywords watch your analytics carefully to decide exactly which ones are reaching your online goals and change as needed.

If you feel overwhelmed by this process, it may be time to find a professional agency or freelancer that is well versed in SEO and can provide you with everything you need the first time around so you won't have to change it later. That's smart internet marketing.

10 Ways To Promote Your Company Blog

Many companies hire internet marketing companies to set up their blogs, design their social media profiles, write a few articles and then the experience is over!

But what happens after everything is setup? How can you use smart internet marketing to promote your company blog and get readers interested in your brand? Here are 10 tips to put you on the right track.

1. Find some high ranking blogs, websites, and other sites and start exchanging links on blog roll.

2. Make sure you sign up for Google Analytics and track your web statistics

3. Submit your RSS feed and url to rss and blog directories as well as search engines

4. Comment on other blogs that are within your industry and that has an influence on their readers.

5. Post, post and post at least 3 to 5 times per week. Content is probably the number one reason a blog boost to number one.

6. Be polite by always responding to comments on your blog as well as thanking other bloggers who have linked to you. Also, always site where you got your story lead or content.

7. Don't be afraid to interview other bloggers.

8. Use your blog to get media credentials

9. Get off the computer and network with your targeted audience. Add your blog address to your business card.

10. Promote your blog using social media networks.

Should You Hire A Internet Marketing Company?

One question that should be answer before you start marketing your business online is... "Should I hire a internet marketing company?". The benefits of hiring a internet marketing company are amazing but many people doubt making the investment because they don't understand exactly how important hiring one can be. Enter the age of smart internet marketing which allows you to get it right the first time and start reaping the benefits today.

However, if you are still hesitant here are a few questions to ask yourself:

Question 1: How important is internet marketing to the growth and success of my company?

Things to consider: Am I in competitive market? Do I want to make sales outside of my community? Do I plan to expand?

Question 2: Do I understand how to increase my presence online through link building?

Things To Consider: Do I know how to obtain high quality inbound links? Do I know which links to avoid? Do I understand how to get search engines to pay attention to me?

Question 3: Can I optimize my website via meta-tags, title pages, product descriptions, and key word phrases?

Things to consider: Do I know how to find high value keywords that relate to my website? Do I know the best way to insert words into my meta-tags? Do I understand html, headings, and title pages?

If you cannot confidently answer these question with the expertise needed you may want to think about hiring an internet marketing agency.

Marketing Job Titles

Agency Account Coordinator
Provides administrative and customer service support to Account Executives, Media Planners, and Client Services Managers. Assists with advertising and media research; client reports and presentations; and project coordination, timelines, and budgets. Responds to client needs and requests.

Agency Account Executive
Manages accounts of advertising clients. Helps clients develop advertising strategies; media plans; and solutions to creative, logistical, and technical problems. Responsible for estimating costs and monitoring project timelines. Involved in new business development.

Agency Account Planner
Acts as the bridge between the customer and the agency’s account, creative, and media teams. Gains insights into customer attitudes and needs through quantitative research; qualitative research including focus groups; and competitive analysis. Translates customer insights into advertising, brand, and creative strategies.

Agency Account Supervisor/Director
Supervises Account Executives in the management of agency accounts. Oversees formulation of advertising strategies; the internal direction of accounts including creative, media, and traffic; and timelines and budgets. Involved in new business development.

Agency Assistant Account Executive
(See Account Executive) Assists in the day-to-day management of accounts under the supervision of the Account Executive.

Agency Client Services Manager
Oversees client relationships, internal-team relationships, and account operations during the planning, development, and execution of advertising campaigns. Responsible for client communications with regard to advertising needs and requests, budgets, workflow, and billing. Participates in new business development efforts.

Agency New Business Development Specialist
Specializes in developing new accounts and augmenting the business of existing accounts. Identifies prospects’ advertising, marketing, and business issues and matches these with agency capabilities and ideas. Develops strategies and tactics for pursuing selected prospects. Participates in sales presentations, negotiations, and sales closings.

Associate Product Manager
(See Product Manager) Under the supervision of the Product Manager, is responsible for the success of all phases of the product or service life cycle—conception, definition, launch, and post-launch.

Brand Manager
Develops and implements the brand strategy of a product or service. Positions products and services in the marketplace. Plans and executes brand marketing and advertising programs to raise brand awareness and value. Sets the direction of brands through awareness of market research and consumer trends.

B-to-B Product Manager
(See Product Manager) A Product Manager with responsibilities for a business-to-business (B2B) product or service.

Chief Marketing Officer
Oversees the planning, development, and execution of an organization’s marketing and advertising activities. Responsibilities can include market research; pricing; product marketing; new business development; marketing communications; advertising; and public relations.

Consumer Product Manager
(See Product Manager) A B2C Product Manager with responsibilities for a consumer product or service.

Direct Marketing Manager
Oversees the development and implementation of direct marketing programs to raise the levels of customer acquisition, retention, and cross/up-selling. Designs campaigns using direct mail, email, websites, telemarketing, catalogs, and marketing collateral. Develops return-on-investment goals, testing plans, and segmentation strategies.

Email Marketing Manager/Specialist
Conceives and executes Email Marketing programs to increase customer acquisition, retention, and conversion rates. Develops communication plans; segmentation strategies; and online offers. Evaluates effectiveness of email communications. Works with design and copywriting teams on creative treatments.

Event Marketing Specialist
Develops and executes marketing plans for trade shows, conventions, seminars, and other events. Supports the marketing of existing and new products and services. Coordinates advertising, marketing communications, and public relations efforts. Measures success of events.

Event Planner / Manager
Plans, schedules, and coordinates events including conventions, trade shows, conferences, seminars, sales meetings, and other events. Oversees event budgets, timelines, ordering, and logistics. Researches and selects venues, vendors, and other resources. Also can be responsible for creating event marketing plans.

Market Researcher
Determines demand for new and existing products and services through the use of statistical procedures and data analysis. Gathers and analyzes data on competitor activity; and on customer demographics, buying habits, and preferences. Forecasts consumer and industry trends. Designs surveys, opinion polls, and questionnaires.

Product Manager
Develops strategies to ensure the success of all phases of the product or service life cycle—conception, definition, launch, and post-launch. Communicates needs and requirements across the organization with market research; design/engineering; promotions; packaging; marketing communications; and outside vendors. Also manages and coordinates timelines and budgets.

Marketing Communications Manager
Plans, directs, and implements an organization’s marketing communications activities. Responsible for communicating consistent messages across print and electronic media. Ensures that key, strategic messages are communicated effectively to target audiences. Produces, or acts as liaison with firms that produce, public relations materials, advertising, and marketing collateral.

Marketing Database Manager
Manages database systems designed to analyze and increase customer value. Generates marketing lists; segmentation, contact, and testing plans; and campaign reports. Analyzes customer preferences, trends, profiles, and purchase histories. Identifies factors that influence and are predictive of customer behavior.

Marketing Director
Conceives and executes marketing strategies and programs to increase the profitability of new and existing products and services. Responsible for pricing policies; product and market development; and gathering, analyzing, and utilizing market research. Also manages advertising and marketing communications activities.

Marketing Manager
(See Marketing Director) Under the supervision of the Marketing Director, conceives and executes marketing strategies and programs to increase the profitability of a product or service.

Media Buyer
Purchases and places print, radio, TV, and online advertising. Works for advertising agencies or directly for advertising clients. Negotiates rates with media outlets and recommends media buying opportunities. Also conducts post-buy media analysis and tracks and reports on results.

Media Coordinator
Provides administrative and customer service support to Media Planners and Media Buyers. Assists with media research, reports, and record keeping; the evaluation of new media opportunities; and advertising placement. Also responds to client needs and requests.

Media Planner
(See Media Supervisor) Develops, executes, and monitors media plans for advertising clients under the supervision of the Media Supervisor.

Media Research Analyst
Measures the effectiveness of print, radio, TV, and online advertising using various research and statistical methods. Develops measurement strategies and goals to support client decision-making and planning. Analyzes and reports on the returns on investment of advertising campaigns.

Media Supervisor
Develops, executes, and monitors media plans for advertising clients. Analyzes the audiences, content, and ratings of a wide range of media outlets. Within specified budgets, selects the media outlets, target audiences, scheduling, and geographic emphasis, which enable clients to achieve their advertising and marketing objectives.

Online Marketing Director
Develops and implements marketing programs using websites; email; online advertising and promotions; and search-engine marketing (SEM/SEO). Conceives strategies and tactics to raise rates of customer acquisition, retention, and cross/up-selling. Oversees online market analysis.

Online Marketing Manager
(See Online Marketing Director) Under the supervision of the Online Marketing Director, conceives strategies and tactics to raise rates of customer acquisition, retention, and cross/up-selling.

Online Promotions Manager
Using media including email and websites, conceives and implements online promotional programs to raise customer acquisition and retention rates. Creates strategies for targeting and gaining access to existing and new markets. Oversees promotional communications and develops tie-ins and partnerships.

Online/Interactive Media Buyer
(See Media Buyer) A Media Buyer who specializes in online media outlets, such as websites, Web portals, and e-newsletters; and online advertising methods, such as banner ads, pop-ups, and paid search-engine placements.

Online/Interactive Media Planner
(See Media Planner) A Media Planner who specializes in online media outlets, such as websites, Web portals, and e-newsletters; and online advertising methods, such as banner ads, pop-ups, and paid search-engine placements.

Search Engine Marketer
Creates, analyzes, and tracks paid-search marketing campaigns. Formulates bidding and keyword strategies with major search engines such as Google & Yahoo. Monitors, tests, and adjusts campaigns to raise customer click-through and conversion rates. Can advise online marketers on increasing website rankings through adjustments to website content.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Specialist
Raises the rankings of websites in search engines without the use of paid listings. Develops keyword and linking strategies to improve website search results. Boosts rankings by making revisions to website structure and copy. Analyzes and reports on results of SEO campaigns.

Is Your Website Hindering Your SEO?

Good or bad...SEO affects your website. If you are having problems climbing above your competition it's time to take a close look at your website and decide if its affecting your SEO.

There are a few things that your website should NOT have:

1. Too Many Images. Images are great and they allow you to have a great looking website but search engines don't recognize links that are mad in graphics. Text format links are much better.

2. Flash. You can use it but use it creatively. Allowing flash to be one part of your website just for eye candy is a great idea. The rest of your website should be plain text.

3. Invisible Text. Search engines hate this so don't do it or you will be put on a black list.

4. Search Engine Vision. Oxymoron? Nope. Build your site for you users not for a search engine and the search engine will like you better. This means to leave doorway and gateway pages behind.

5. Randomly Place Keywords. Smart internet marketing comes into play here. You picked your keywords and that's great, but you still should put them in the right places including your Title tag.

6. Bad Links. Swapping links with a banned website is like supporting the bad neighbor with the trash in his yard. Reciprocal links are great as long as they are relevant links to good websites

Sometimes bad SEO can effect the best of us. But if you stay informed you will know what's right and what's wrong and you won't have to start all over.

3 Great Beginner SEO Videos

Here are three great informative videos on SEO and smart internet marketing. If you are a beginner...these are must watches!

Ilegal SEO Techniques

We've been talking about smart internet marketing lately on our blog which got us thinking about dumb internet marketing. By far, the number one dumb SEO move is to implement illegal SEO techniques to try to move your website to the top of search engines.


So what exactly is illegal? Well...

1. Stealing Web Pages

Why? Who knows? But some people actually copy other high ranked businesses web pages and submit them to search engines.


2. Using Trademarked Keywords

You know you don't own McDonald's so why use the "BigMac" keyword to promote your burger joint? Not only will you get caught but you will get sued. You can't use trademarked keywords to increase your rankings.


3. Creating Domains with Trademarked Keywords

Lets go with the McDonald's example again. If you own a burger joint and want to buy a domain name don’t' try to be sneaky. www.MacDonulds.com, www.MickeyDees.com or www.BigMac.com may work for a while, but once they find out, you might as well flip your last burger and file for bankruptcy because you will be sued. Using a person’s trademarked keywords to try and get customers is definitely illegal!

The moral? Smart internet marketing can be described as avoiding dumb internet marketing. Just don't do it!

What Is Smart Internet Marketing

Many business that want to increase their presence online pay for some of the most ridiculous things such as temporary links, ineffective ads and spammy articles. All these may increase your online presence for a small period of time, but it’s not smart and it will fail. With more business becoming conscientious of this, professionals want to know what is smart internet marketing and how do we incorporate smart internet marketing into our online marketing plan?

Smart internet marketing is simply doing things the right way to increase your rank and visibility online by focusing on longevity. So what is smart internet marketing?

1. Great articles that are distributed correctly


2. Frequently updated company blogs that draw in readers


3. Strategic classified ads that are posted near your target audience


4. Increased presence on social networking sites that are relevant to your product


5. Increasing linkage using popular websites that will lead potential customers back to your website.

These are just a few examples of smart internet marketing, of course a little expertise and a lot of hard work can take your business from virtually unknown online to having a sustainable online presence.

The best job in the world - Aussie!

The Caretaker of the Islands of the Great Barrier Reef is a newly created position. There are a few minor tasks that need to be taken care of, but the most important duty is to report back to Tourism Queensland (and the world) and let us know whats taking place on the Islands of the Great Barrier Reef.

Island Job

Social Media Marketing

Internet Marketing Article Writing for the Web

Writing for the Web

Article Length & Structure


Studies have shown that readers read nearly 25% slower and tire much quicker when reading content on the computer as opposed to paper; therefore, Web content should be brief.

• Limit articles to 2,500 words
• Be concise – avoid ornate and extraneous words

Write Using the Inverted Pyramid Style


Readers don’t like to have to scroll through paragraph after paragraph of text to find what they’re looking for; therefore, online articles should be structured differently than articles in print.

Unlike some articles in print, which begin with background information, online articles should begin with the conclusion. Yes, that’s right. You need to "give away the ending", so to speak. Then, include a brief summary of the contents of the article. This "introductory" information, which should be included in the first and/or second paragraph(s) of the article body, should be written so as to grab and hold the reader’s attention.

You should structure your article:

• With the conclusion at the beginning of the article
• Followed by a summary of the article content
• Proceed with progressively less important information as you continue down the page.

Scannability

Research has shown that approximately 80% of readers do NOT read every word when reading online content; they scan the page, quickly searching for key information. Therefore, it is critical that your content be easily scannable.

In order to make your articles easily scannable, you should:

• Keep paragraphs short (3,000 characters maximum)
• Discuss only one idea per paragraph
• Use subheadings to divide article into sections that allow readers to quickly find key information
• Distinguish 2 or more ideas, key points, etc. using the list tags

Using Lists


Lists are much easier to the eye than a paragraph of text. However, you need to keep your lists short. Studies have shown that people can remember approximately 8 items at one time, so keep your lists to a maximum of 8 items. If you have more items to list, try separating them into two lists, each with its own subheading.

Also, when writing your lists, keep the words per line brief. For instance, don’t bullet sentences or paragraphs. The items in your lists should be either a word or a phrase.

Street, Ambient, Ambush, Viral, Buzz and Guerrilla Marketing

FUNNY George Bush Idiot Quotes

2009 New Year's Resolution - New Marketing Plan

New Year's Resolution Song



Celebrate the New Year with a comprehensive marketing plan! There’s no better time to review last year’s performance than now. Using your company’s year end results you can begin to plan where your valuable marketing dollars should be spent. Here are four steps that will help you develop a great plan that includes goals, tactics and anticipated results.

List your business goals

The first step for the New Year is to list your company’s goals. Is growing top line sales the main objective? Maybe increased customer service results, improved gross margin or reduced employee turnover? Have your quantified your goals? Growing top line sales is nice idea; growing top line sales by 10% is a goal.

Determine your targeted customer for each goal

There are key customers that affect every goal and you need to know who they are before you can plan any marketing efforts to reach them. For instance, growing top line sales by 10% might mean focusing more assets on your core customer or developing a secondary market or expanding to a new territory. Reducing employee turnover might involve improved communications (i.e. marketing) to your internal customers. For each targeted customer list the various communication channels that might influence them.

Decide on the methods you want to use and quantify expectations

There are always multiple marketing methods to reach your targeted customers; develop a list that includes methods you’ve already used (say, direct mail) as well as those you haven’t (maybe new sales materials). With some methods you may be able to expect specific sales results (advertising campaigns usually yield immediate results) while others may be used to increase awareness (comprehensive marketing campaign to explain benefits to your employees).

Focus on specific tactics

Now you can determine exactly which marketing tactics will help you support each method, reach each customer and realize every goal. If direct mail is one of the communication channels you’ve committed to, what will you promote, how often and to whom? What are anticipated costs and what is your planned ROI for each effort.

Businesses should develop marketing goals on an annual basis in conjunction with all other company goals and objectives. Then build a full marketing plan every six months, with course correction and revisions along the way based on performance. A plan allows your company to proact, not just react to market trends and helps an organization, no matter the size, stay focused on the reaching their objectives. The best way to ensure a happy, prosperous New Year is to plan for it now.

Happy New Year!