Web Marketing 101

I've Got the Fever: Viral Marketing

johnws@cboss.com — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 05:00:00 GMT

Have you ever experienced something so special that you just had to tell someone? I recently heard a story that I just had to share with someone. I must point out that I can’t remember where I heard it, but it certainly left an indelible mark on my personal outlook.

All day, I thought about how I would deliver the story for the best theatrical effect. On my way home, I went over the important details so I wouldn’t forget anything. I wanted my girlfriend to feel the same way I did when I heard it. I wanted her to get the most out of this emotional and uplifting story of humanity at its best. I walked into the house wearing my best “had a great day” face, sat down on the couch, and launched into my narrative.

I was in all my glory laying down the progression of facts that would lead to the heart- wrenching conclusion. I saw the corners of her mouth start to turn upward as a smile formed on her face. It was at that I point I knew I had her; she was being sucked into the emotional tornado I had experienced when I heard the story. I saw that gleam in her eye that only comes when she is truly feeling joy. I swear I could see a tear forming at the base of her left eye. My story went on, emotions building, my girlfriend nodding as I reached the climax of my extraordinary tale of self-sacrifice.

Upon my conclusion, I asked, “Isn’t that the most amazing story you ever heard?” “Yes,” she replied, “almost as amazing as when I told it to you last night!” Well, at least she let me finish my story.

You may be asking yourself what does this have to do with web marketing, while knowing that I must have some point I’m trying to illustrate. Of course I have a point. Today’s Web Marketing 101 topic is one of the oldest concepts of marketing known to the human race. Many of you are looking at the title of this issue and saying, “I’ve never heard of viral marketing.” Perhaps not, but I assure you by the time you finish reading this you will understand that you are already well-versed in its foundational principles.

What is Viral Marketing?

At some point a cave person (my attempt at political correctness) determined that a circular object rolled smoothly and made it easier to move heavy items around. He looked at his friend and said, “Ugg make wheel.” Ugg’s friend went from cave to cave telling the other cave people about Ugg’s discovery and before long the first wheel dealership was probably formed. What this story demonstrates is a form of marketing that has been around as long as the human race, Word-of-mouth marketing.

Essentially, in its most simplified form, that is what viral marketing is. An article on Wikipedia contained this definition: “The buzzwords viral marketing and viral advertising refer to marketing techniques that use pre-existing social networks to produce increases in brand awareness, or to achieve other marketing objectives (such as product sales) through self-replicating processes…” Let’s break that down….

Pre-existing Social Networks and Self-Replicating Processes

If I go to a restaurant and the food is great, who am I most likely to tell? Well, for starters, I would tell my immediate family, and I would probably rave about it to co-workers. Also, I would be sure to share the information with my close friends. If the people I tell go and try the food at the restaurant and it’s still great, who are they going tell? I think you get the point. This is an example of a pre-existing social network. It also illustrates the concept of a self-replicating process. If I tell five people about the food, and they each tell five people about the food, and those people each tell five more… and on and on it goes.

Marketing Techniques

So we’ve already talked about word-of-mouth, but what other marketing techniques work as viral marketing media? Last week’s issue of Web Marketing 101 focused on email marketing which definitely has viral marketing potential because the recipient can forward the email on to as many people as they choose. However, it doesn’t matter if the media used is a blog, a video, a multi-media ad, or an email. What’s important is the content you are delivering. It needs to invoke a response in the recipient, some enthusiasm that will create an urge to share it with everyone they know. It also needs an easy method of delivery. Emails obviously have a built-in method for forwarding. I’m sure many of you have seen web pages with “Forward to a Friend” options that allow you to send a link, and share what you are viewing with others.

What? Check. How? Check. Why? Check. What about who?

Who should you send too? Does it matter? The simple answer is no, from a cost perspective it doesn’t matter. Viral marketing can be very cost effective and therefore, you don’t have to be as worried about directing the marketing effort as much as you would with traditional marketing such as direct (mail) marketing, TV or radio advertising. This doesn't mean that you disregard targeting an appropriate audience. It just means it won't necessarily be your budget that determines the 'who'.

The complicated answer is yes, it really does matter who you send to, if you want to get a significant impact from your Viral Marketing efforts. You need to target an audience that will spread your initial efforts. There is a concept called SNP (Social Networking Potential) which according to Wikipedia represents the size of an individual’s social network and their ability to influence that network. SNP is actually a numeric value derived from some algorithms that probably don’t have practical applications for many of us. Yet, the concept of targeting people with large social networks can be seen on social networking sites such as Facebook and LinkedIn.

If you have seen the movie Captain Ron with Kurt Russell and Martin Short you may remember a scene where the two characters argue about whether or not there are gorillas on the Caribbean island they have landed on. Martin Short’s character is adamant that there are in fact no gorillas on the island since gorillas are from Africa. Eventually we find that Kurt Russell, as Captain Ron, meant guerrilla, not gorilla. If you haven’t seen this movie… rent it today, it’s funny! Where I’m going with this is that Viral Marketing is rooted in another marketing concept known as Guerrilla Marketing, a term that was created by Jay Conrad Levinson, and focuses on creativity rather than an endless marketing budget.

The great thing about many Web Marketing techniques is that they allow us to use our imagination and creativity while not necessarily expending our entire marketing budget. If what we create strikes the correct responses from our audience, then they will share that information with other and it can spread like a potent virus, albeit an innocuous, friendly virus.

Until next time… I’m John W Svoboda, Web Marketing guru, a known carrier of the Web Marketing virus (and yes, I’m contagious!)

The Truth about the Tortoise and the Hare

johnws@cboss.com — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 05:00:00 GMT

Ahh… spring is in the air. Can you smell it? No, not the exhaust of the car in front of you on your way home, I’m talking about that smell of grass and soil. It smells great, but it reminds me of all the yard work I’m going to have to do. I’m seriously considering putting in artificial turf which will alleviate the need for mowing. This got me thinking about what else I could do, and as a grin spread across my face, I laid out my plan of genius. I decided that if I was going to go to the trouble of replacing the grass, I better yank out all the trees and bushes. Faux greenery doesn’t drop its leaves in the fall or have to be pruned. Plastic flowers don’t need to be watered and won’t die.

I decided that it would be best to run these ideas past my girlfriend. As I gleefully divulged my master plan, I watched the changing expression on her face. The anticipated look of awe never materialized and I quickly realized I was getting the “This better be a joke!” look. I scrambled for a punch line to salvage what was left of my dignity. Then I remembered what day it was… salvation was at hand. I yelled, “April Fools!” I knew my gambit had failed when she looked at me and without a pause replied, “You’re a fool alright!”

I crumpled up my landscaping plan and began working on this week’s issue of Web Marketing 101. It was while I was hiding in the garage that I looked at the lawn mower I had hoped I would never have to use again. The lever used to control the speed caught my eye and gave me the inspiration for this week’s topic. Slow is illustrated with a turtle and fast with a rabbit.

You see, the change of the seasons also reminds me that it’s the time of year when a lot of businesses start advertising spring sales and promotions and I’m almost guaranteed to have my mailbox stuffed with flyers and catalogs I don’t want. In this issue of Web Marketing 101 we will discuss the differences between traditional mail marketing (The Tortoise) and email marketing (The Hare). I said it before in a previous issue and I’ll say it again…

I don’t care what Aesop says… Slow and steady doesn’t win the race!

Let’s ignore the fact that the Hare in Aesop’s classic fable was an arrogant, self-centered, egotistical narcissist. Had he not spent the race lollygagging he surely would have beat the tortoise hands down.

Now, I recognize the fact that time is not always a factor, but let’s assume for a moment that it is. Traditional direct (mail) marketing is sometimes referred to as snail mail. As the name implies it takes time to get delivered. Where the intended recipients are located in relationship to the sender can impact how long it takes. Email marketing on the other hand is quick. Your message can reach your intended audience in a matter of minutes instead of days. Since email has become an integral part of business for many of us, it has sped up and simplified our ability to communicate one on one. Email can deliver the same quick and easy benefits to our marketing efforts.

That’s not an end table… it’s just a stack of today’s catalogs!

A few years ago my parents made a purchase from a catalog they had received in the mail. This single act sparked a course of events that became at first laughable, then annoying, and finally seriously debilitating. They started receiving more catalogs… a lot more. At first it was one or two here and there, but eventually it got to the point where they were receiving one or two catalogs a day. This went on for months before they were able to get themselves off whatever mailing list they had inadvertently subscribed to.

It’s true that this kind of thing does happen in the world of email marketing as well. However with legitimate email marketing campaigns, opt-out features provide a hassle-free way of removing yourself from the list. That’s something I can’t seemed to find on the 42- page cheese catalog I just received in the mail.

In marketing you don’t always get what you pay for!

We’re going to perform a mathematical experiment to illustrate the differences in cost between traditional mailing and email. We will simplify this by looking only at the cost associated with sending the information and not the cost of creating the marketing materials including costs for design, production and printing and envelopes -if they are required.

If we are marketing to 1,000 recipients once a month what will are costs be? In the case of traditional email we will pay $2,288 in postage (Bulk business rates for postcards ranged from $0.199 - $0.223. For the purposes of this exercise we will use $0.199). Email marketing costs vary depending on what service you are using. With the iContact service for example, the fee for reaching 1,000 recipients once a month for a year would be $228. You don’t have to be John Nash to appreciate those numbers… don’t let communists know.

Don’t hold your breath!

One problem with traditional mail marketing is that after you send your material out it’s really hard to determine the impact you’re having on your audience (sort of like blogging and never getting any feedback. Ahem!). So after spending over $2,000 to send out our marketing piece using direct mail, we have no idea if it has had any success. Did anyone read it or was it simply pitched out? Email software such as iContact gives us statistical data, such as read and click-through counts to help determine if what we are doing is working or not.

It is very important to note that I am not trying to get you to eliminate traditional mail marketing and replace it with email marketing; on the contrary, it is still an important advertising tool and can play an important role in your marketing campaign. I would recommend including email marketing into your campaign at certain critical points within your plan to cost-effectively increase touch points with the customer. Email marketing can be an ideal complement to your existing campaign or an excellent substitute when cost or timeframe are the deciding factors.

Aesop’s fables were chocked full of life’s little lessons… but a Web Marketing Guru he was not!

Until next time… John W Svoboda, Web Marketing Guru, Fool every month of the year!

Bloggers: Bards of a New Generation

johnws@cboss.com — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 05:00:00 GMT

In October of 2008, we decided to start an informative newsletter/blog about marketing techniques for the web. The primary goal of any marketing tool is to favorably position your company, brand, products, services, and staff. Web Marketing 101 is no exception. By sharing my experience in web design and web marketing practices, I promote the collective knowledge and expertise of CBOSS. In this issue of Web Marketing 101, I will discuss what I have learned in my first six months of blogging and my discoveries of how blogging can be a powerful marketing tool.

I like to tell stories and I love to make people laugh. My girlfriend tells me I like to hear the sound of my own voice. She may be right, but at heart, I am the court jester, the traveling minstrel, or perhaps the bard of a new generation. What I do isn’t unique, but I’d like to think that my approach has a style that is my own.

Every other week I sit down at my computer and begin to write. I have a goal, of course, which is to inform you, my readers, of some topic related to web marketing. Yet, I have a second goal, one that is very likely related to my desire to entertain. I want you to laugh and smile while learning something new. I want you to look forward to each new issue of Web Marketing 101.

I also want my sphere of influence to grow. Luckily, unlike the minstrels and bards of old, I don’t have to wander the country side for this to happen. I have you, my audience. My hope is that Web Marketing 101 will be something you enjoy enough to share by forwarding it to your coworkers and friends. I’d love to see these events occur instantly, but…

Rome Wasn’t Built in a Day!

They say that patience is a virtue. Unfortunately it is not one with which I have been blessed. I, like many in this cyber world, want it now, as fast as my bandwidth can provide. Strike that, I want it faster than that. When I sent out my first issue of Web Marketing 101 the results were not what I had set my hopes for. They were not spectacular results.

So, what was the problem? Was there something wrong with my blog? It turns out the problem was not with the quality of my blog. In fact, there was nothing wrong with the response I got either. It was my expectations that were completely unrealistic.

It pains me to say this, but it takes time to nurture and grow your audience. How much time? I’ve read that a minimum of six months is necessary before you can start gauging the effectiveness of your blog. After six months and 12 issues of Web Marketing 101 we have seen a slow but steady increase in the number of reads, click-throughs, and ultimately traffic to our web site. However, I think I will hold off celebrating for another six months and see where I am at that point. In the mean time I will continue to share information and tell my jokes because as we all know…

All the World Loves a Clown!

Truth be told, my girlfriend doesn’t like clowns. She thinks they’re creepy, but that’s a topic for a completely different blog, and I digress. My point is that I could simply churn out the web marketing facts and tips and still provide information of great value, albeit dry and boring. Would it still be appealing to an audience?

When writing a blog you want to make sure that what you write will engage the reader and bring them back again and again. I try to use humor to give my blog something special that I hope my readers appreciate. This brings me to…

If a Tree Falls in the Forest…

…and no one is present, does it make a sound? This is a debate that’s right up there with the chicken and the egg. Now, I know that people are reading my blog, thanks to stats I get from iContact and Google Analytics, but I don’t know what those people think about the information that they’re reading. When I write these blogs my hope is that we will continue the discussions through your comments and questions. The problem is there aren’t any comments or questions. Therefore my question to my audience is, “If I write a blog and an audience reads it, but don’t provide any feedback, is that good or bad?”

A few years ago I was involved in a seminar about email marketing. I presented an email marketing tool we were using at the time. During the demo I tried to use humor to engage the audience and make the overall presentation a little more interesting. A couple of my jokes fell flat. Now my colleagues assured me that my jokes were funny and perhaps it was the wrong audience. My point is that without feedback, I can’t tell if I’m connecting with my audience.

With that in mind, if for no reason other than the fact that I made you smile and you want to return the favor, a comment would be appreciated now and then. Yet, I’m really looking for a little more interaction with my audience. I want to know what you’re thinking. I’d like to try building upon what I write in the blog with some lively discussion and dialogue. (Yes, even I yearn for lively discussions!)

I have found blogging to be a worthwhile endeavor, both in how it performs as a marketing tool, as well as an outlet for my creativity. Web Marketing 101 has helped boost traffic to the ArchITech CMS site by increasing our profile with search engines and providing sticky content that visitors return to view week after week. Can a blog provide the same results for your web site? Why don’t we discuss it and find out?

Until next time… I’m John W Svoboda, Web Marketing Guru, and aspiring court jester (Can’t help it, I love the uniform, especially the hat!)

Design by Committee: The Proverbial 'Camel'

johnws@cboss.com — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 05:00:00 GMT

The other day we decided to go out to eat. My girlfriend, her daughter and I jumped into the car, excited about a meal without all the effort of preparation and clean-up. As we were driving down the road, I asked, “So what are you in the mood for?” It seemed like such an easy question but, as is often the case in my life, nothing is truly easy. Everyone said the same thing: “Doesn’t matter to me.” I suggested Mexican cuisine, but tacos had been on the menu at school today. “How about pizza?” I asked. “No” was the unanimous response.

We continued to drive down the main strip pointing out restaurants as we passed, but no one could seem to agree. Nerves began to wear thin and before long no one wanted to participate in the discussion. My girlfriend has since corrected the problem by declaring herself dictator. It’s not that her daughter and I aren’t permitted to voice our opinions, it’s just safer not to.

It may appear to you that I am changing gears and talking about something unrelated to the normal topics of discussion for Web Marketing 101, but as you’ve heard me say before, your website should be your most cost-effective marketing tool.

But, unfortunately, in many situations, it is not just one person making the decisions about design and content. Much like our family adventure of selecting a dinner location, many people may have input, or in some cases a lack of input, that impinges on or delays your ability to manage your web site effectively.

It is here that I’d like to introduce you to the proverbial ‘Camel’. I believe it was Sir Alec Issigonis that said “A camel is a horse designed by committee”. Today, we will talk about some ways of combating the problems associated with designing our “camel” and ensuring that our web sites keep performing optimally as powerful marketing tools.

No Such Thing as a Bad Idea?

Some of my co-workers are going to shake their heads and frown at the following statement. Its OK, guys, hear me out. There really are things that are bad ideas… if they are actually carried out. What I’ve always found hard to grasp is that when you’re brainstorming that “no idea is a bad idea.”

For example, if my girlfriend and I were brainstorming ways for me to speed up my morning routine and get to work sooner, it would not be a bad idea for her to suggest that I make breakfast and shower at the same time. However, it would be a bad idea, if I implement her suggestion by taking the toaster into the shower with me.

Not every idea that sees the light of day is going to be one you can or will use, but it is the free exchange of ideas that helps spark the really good solutions. By opening up the process to any and all ideas, we ensure that we don’t miss the best solution because of someone’s fear of rejection. My co-workers are now smiling because they can see that the light bulb has finally lit up and I didn’t even have to stick my finger in a light socket as they had initially suggested.

Divide and Conquer

It is most likely that you have a group of people who invariably have wide ranging skill sets; you’ll want to make the most of these resources. Focus individual members’ talents where they will be best utilized. This may seem like something that need not be said, but many times people get tasked with jobs they are not best suited to perform.

The problems caused by this are two-fold. First, if your resources are not properly allocated, you’re not likely to get the absolute best product. In this case, the product is your web site, which, as we have said, is an extremely important marketing tool. Second, you want the committee working on your web site to function like a well-oiled machine. If the individual members are comfortable with their roles it will go a long way to producing the desired work environment.

Also, I would be neglecting my duties as a CBOSS employee if I didn’t point out that having a content management system like ArchITech CMS would allow the individual members of your committee to update their own portions of the web site. This will help reduce the bottleneck created by having all content changes funnel through one resource.

In the End… There Can Be Only One!

If you can tell me what movie that quote is from, you’ll win my endless admiration and a membership in my newly formed Geek Club! Seriously, at the end of the day, there has to be a decision-making process. This can be facilitated in a few different ways. You’ll need to decide which method works best in your organization. I like to think of them as the dictatorship and the democracy.

In the dictatorship, you have a final decision maker that collects the information from the committee and dictates the course of action. This course of action may or may not reflect the consensus of the committee. On the other hand, the democracy method is one in which a committee votes on a course of action and majority rules.

I think you will agree, both methods have positive and negative attributes. I personally like the dictatorship as long as I am the dictator, and I also don’t mind the democracy as long as everyone agrees with me.

I’m not convinced that Issigonis got it right. I’m pretty sure that the camel, while smelly and ill-tempered, is much better suited to desert life than the horse. Perhaps the committee got it right in the end and really did come up with the best possible design. Keep that in mind the next time you get frustrated in those group discussions. I know I will.

I would like to point out that this is my 12th issue of Web Marketing 101 and marks 6 months which I feel are note worthy milestones. Next issue will be a blog about blogging and I hope you will look as forward to reading it as I will in writing it.

Till next time, as always…. John W Svoboda, Web Marketing Guru, Friend to Camels Everywhere!

Web Analytics: Gaining Proper Perspective

johnws@cboss.com — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 05:00:00 GMT

I’m an animal person. I’m not implying that I’m something off of The Island of Dr. Moreau. That would just be silly. What I mean, of course, is that I am fond of animals. We have four cats, a dog and a guinea pig. My girlfriend likes to refer to it as “Wild Kingdom”. Among our menagerie is a cat named Ferman. I have never had a cat that was as sweet and lovable as Ferman. We like to say that he is needy, and quite frankly, it’s the honest truth. You see, Ferman has a handicap that leaves him very vulnerable. He has only one eye.

There isn’t a day that goes by that Ferman doesn’t put a smile on my face. He walks with an uneven gait due to his impaired vision. He lacks the depth perception that gives most cats their amazing agility, gracefulness and balance; Ferman is never quite sure of his surroundings. When he wants to jump up on the couch, he shoots up twice as high as needed and plops down gracelessly.

We joke that Ferman is a lover not a fighter, but in truth it’s his handicap that forces him to take that position. In battle, he can’t trust his target and if he misses he can’t make the proper adjustment. It is this fact that makes Ferman a perfect illustration of the topic of this issue of Web Marketing 101.

How can we determine if our marketing efforts are working if we don’t have the proper information? How can we make good decisions about our marketing efforts if we don’t understand what that information means? Like Ferman, we’re not quite sure if we are overshooting or undershooting our goals. Web analytics are reports that help us gauge and fine-tune the position and effectiveness of our web site with customers in this vast web universe. In this issue, we are going to discuss web analytics and what those valuable reports can tell us.

All Visitors Must Sign In

When I started working at CBOSS 10 years ago, it was popular practice to place a hit counter on the bottom of web pages. Each time someone viewed a page the counter would incrementally go up by one. The problem with many of these counters was their inaccuracy in providing the sought-after data on how many people had, in reality, visited the site. The same user could simply refresh the web page which would incrementally increase the counter, thereby causing bloat and distortion of a very important statistic.

Web analytic reports, such as Google Analytics, provide a stat called Visits, a useful tool for accurately determining web traffic to your site. Unlike the old hit counter method, refreshing a given web page will not alter the visit statistics. This information helps you answer questions like, “Did my email campaign drive traffic to my web site?”

Ok, so now you know how many people are visiting your site, but how valuable is that information? It really doesn’t show you anything more than the ebb and flow of the traffic hitting our site. To make educated decisions, you need to know what those visitors are looking at, and how they arrived at your site.

Request Lines Are Now Open!

Knowing what pages your web site visitors are accessing the most keeps you informed about which pages are working for you and which aren’t. This provides information that you need to make important content change decisions. It also tells you which pages are most valuable to potential advertisers. Pageviews, as the name implies, is the number of times a page has been viewed by your web site visitors.

Appointments Are By Referral Only!

Let’s say you’ve decided to spend some money on banner advertising. How do you determine if the money is well spent? To figure this out you need to determine where your traffic is coming from. The stats you use to do this are called Referrers. This includes direct traffic (individuals who typed in your address or used a bookmark), search engines (both organic and pay-per-click), and referring site click-throughs.

We Need to Adapt to Survive!

In previous issues of Web Marketing 101, I have discussed SEO as a constantly evolving process. Part of that process includes looking at what keyword combinations were used to find a web site. This is just one more important piece of data that would not be available to you without analytics.

Web analytics are not just a nice tool that can add to your web marketing efforts. They are a crucial and necessary part of building an effective marketing strategy. It doesn’t matter if you are attempting email marketing campaigns, search engine optimization, banner ad placements, or traditional marketing strategies. If your goal is to drive traffic to your web site, then you need analytics. With powerful free analytical tools such as those provided by Google, everyone with a web site should be taking advantage of this type of information.

If you have any questions about web analytic or any other Web Marketing 101 topic, please let us know. As always I encourage you to comment to help spark additional discussions on these topics.

Remember… in the land of blind cats… the one-eyed cat is king!

Yours truly… John W Svoboda, Web Marketing Guru

The Social Revolution of the Web!

johnws@cboss.com — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 05:00:00 GMT

I've been fighting the growing peer pressure for quite some time. Sure, it starts out all innocent; all fun and games. They say, “You should try this, its fun!” But after a while it starts to feel like harassment. “Everybody is doing it!”… “You’re not cool if you don’t try it!” Maybe you've felt pressured in a similar way. I’m reminded of the old Dr. Pepper^® commercials:

“I'm a Pepper, he's a Pepper,
She's a Pepper, we're a Pepper,
Wouldn't you like to be a Pepper, too?”
(Click Here to view the Commercial)

“No!” I said defiantly. "I don’t want to join the masses. I don't want to become one of the sheep being lulled by this craze." However, like most things in life, it was my girlfriend who finely cracked my defenses and I gave in to the insurmountable forces at work. I joined Facebook! Even worse… I’m hooked!

A revolution has been brewing on the web for years. I remember when it was confined mainly to services like AOL with its chat rooms and instant messaging, but it has finely exploded everywhere. There’s no denying the power of the major social media sites. In this issue of Web Marketing 101 we will discuss some of the groundbreak ones and how they can be harnessed as a potential marketing tool for your business.

You might be asking, what is social media? According to Wikipedia (which is itself a form of social media) social media consists of “…tools for sharing and discussing information among human beings…” and “… often refers to activities that integrate technology, telecommunications and social interaction…” They conveniently left out the fact that it has the addictive properties of crack cocaine.

Glued to the Tube!

Background: YouTube was created in February of 2005 and in four short years has become the third most visited site in the world according to www.alexa.com. Only Yahoo and Google currently receive higher global traffic. It was founded by three former PayPal employees with the goal of providing an easy way to share videos.

How to Use It: Well, first and foremost it’s a great way to post videos for many purposes such as: training videos, product demonstrations, or commercials. While the videos hosted on YouTube can still be watched from your web site, it has the added benefit of YouTube’s search features. This can bring your videos, your web site, and your business an extra boost of exposure.

I have Personal Space Issues!

Background: MySpace is a social networking site started in August of 2003. One of its benefits is that it allows people to create web sites without requiring web design skills. This, however, in my opinion is also its negative feature as well.

How to Use It: I have to admit that I am not the biggest fan of MySpace, with its clashing user- created themes and Mp3 music playing upon page load. Yet many small businesses and organizations have successfully used it to gain exposure and increase traffic to their website. First of all, MySpace gets a lot of traffic and does well in search engines. You can easily create a profile for your business or organization that contains your contact information and most importantly links to your web site. However, this should not be used as a substitute for a professional web site.

Face the Facts!

Background: Facebook is a social networking site that was opened to the public in September of 2006. Unlike MySpace, Facebook profiles are not viewable by the general public. To view profiles you first need to set up your own Facebook profile and then request to be someone’s friend. Once they approve you, you can view information and communicate with your new friends. Seriously, I don’t even need a high school reunion now!

How to Use It: You can create a special page that is focused on your business or products. Unlike a Facebook profile these pages are visible to the public and can show up in search engines. However, Facebook users can become a fan of your page, and this is where the real power comes into play. You can add event notices, post YouTube videos, and announce special promotions and all your fans can be notified. I was recently invited to a wine tasting at a local business and I was also notified of a webinar being held by a major IT-related company that I really respect.

I have created a Facebook Page for Web Marketing 101 as an example. I encourage all of you to view it and if any of you are Facebook members to become a fan!

Be a Twit!

Background: Twitter was started in March of 2006 and is a social networking site with a twist. It’s really a micro-blog site that allows you to post 140-character blurbs. Members can become followers of your tweets (That’s what they’re called… I’m not making this up) and receive updates via RSS feeds.

How to Use It: Twitter can be used by businesses in couple of ways. I think the most obvious is as a tool for syndicating news items and press releases. It could also be a way to post product recall notices, service outages, and other customer support related information.

The Missing Link!

Background: LinkedIn was launched in May 2003 and is a professional networking site. It allows former and current classmates, co-workers and colleagues to form networks of professionals thereby promoting communication channels.

How to Use It: While LinkedIn may be geared more to the individual professional, it does provide you with the ability to promote not just yourself but the company or organization you represent. In addition, you can join professional groups and gain possible business relationships that are always a plus.

These are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to social media. If you have any questions regarding these sites or any other sites that may fall under the category of social media sites, as usual feel free to ask questions. I hope all of you will visit my Facebook page for Web Marketing 101 and if you consider yourself a fan of the blog and if you’re a member of Facebook you can officially become a fan.

If you’re not a member of Facebook, then what are you waiting for?? Come on! Everybody’s doing it… wow… how the tables have turned… it’s like I’ve been brainwashed.

Until next time… John W Svoboda, Web Marketing Guru, Recovering Facebook Addict!

SPAM: It's Not Just a Processed Lunch Meat!

johnws@cboss.com — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 05:00:00 GMT

When I was growing up my mother would make a ham and egg casserole for special occasions. It was one of my favorites. Everyone who tried it fell in love with the cheesy delight and wanted the recipe. However, in a bizarre echo of “Soylent Green”, there was a deep dark secret that no one was talking about. You see, it wasn’t ham in the casserole. It was a tasty processed meat product known to the world as…Spam^®! When I was young, I never understood why it had to be such a big secret, but as I got older I began to notice the look on people’s faces change when they found out that what they were eating was not ham.

A few years later while I was attending Youngstown State University, some local radio station DJs held a contest called “Toss the Spam^®”. I played and I can tell you that I have never looked at my mother’s casserole the same way!

So what does this all have to do with Web Marketing? That is exactly what my girlfriend wanted to know when I was rambling on this morning about Monty Python and canned meat products. As many of you undoubtedly know, SPAM is the name given to the insidious junk email that clogs our mail boxes. It has become a hot topic in today’s electronic world, but what is SPAM and who are Spammers? Am I one? Are you? In this issue of Web Marketing 101 we will try and answer these questions.

SPAM… Just another Acronym???

Is SPAM an acronym? This is up for some debate. “Self Promotional Advertising Message”, “Sales Promotional Advertising Mail”, and “Simultaneously Posted Advertising Message” lead the pack of possible meanings. In addition, there are numerous versions that I can’t repeat in this blog.


	However, another popular theory is that the term is derived from the Monty Python skit in which almost everything on the menu in a restaurant contains Spam. I can hear the Vikings now… “Spam, spam, spam, spam…” ...as Graham Chapman, dressed as a woman, in a high-pitched voice, belts out lines such as “Have you got anything without spam?”, “I don’t want ANY spam!”, and “I don’t like spam!”

I think we can all agree, we don’t like the electronic SPAM plaguing us every time we check our email. Yet the “…Lobster Thermidor á Crevette with a mornay sauce served in a Provencal manner with shallots and aubergines garnished with truffle pâté, brandy and with a fried egg on top and spam” sounds delightful.

It should be a Crime! Wait…it is!

The late, great George Carlin said, “I’m sure looters don’t call it looting. They probably think of it as extreme shopping.” By the same token, I’m sure that many spammers don’t think they are sending out SPAM; they simply don’t understand what constitutes SPAM.

In 2003, CAN-SPAM (Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography And Marketing) Act was drafted to combat the increasing amount of SPAM being sent and received. (If you would like more information about the laws protecting you from SPAM visit the website, www.spamlaws.com.)

This law helps define SPAM and tells what we can and cannot do such as:

Emails must contain an accurate “from” line.

Emails must contain a visible and functional unsubscribe method.

Emails must contain a non-deceptive subject line.

Emails must contain a legitimate physical address of the sender.

Emails must be sent to a solicited list.

The last item on this list is in my opinion the most important. Does the individual want to receive email from you? Are they expecting email from you? Because of this, Harvested lists (A harvested list is one in which the addresses have been collected without the permission of the individual form a variety of sources such as the contact page of their web site) and Purchased lists (Some companies try and turn a profit by selling their email marketing lists) are out of the question. In reality, you’re going to get a much higher and more satisfying response rate from a Solicited list (a list where the recipients have opted to join or have in another way given permission to be sent emails), which will provide much better leads than an un-solicited list.

Running the Gauntlet!

Since checking your email had become as difficult as breathing in the middle of a Sahara sand storm, many major ISP and email software providers have built in SPAM filters to help. The benefit is that by reducing the amount of garbage we have to sort through every morning, we feel more comfortable using email as a method of communication. However, these filters are not error-proof and often flag legitimate emails as SPAM.

So, if you’re interested in reaching your customers via an email marketing campaign, there are some definite rules you need to follow regularly to ensure your messages are not being tagged as SPAM by the big email service providers. A simple mistake can derail your email marketing campaign, so here are some tips and pointers to remember and follow:

1. Forbidden Words…MUHAHAHA! (That was suppose to sound scary)

There is a list of words and phrases that should never be used in the subject line of your marketing emails. It’s a pretty big list, however, here are ten examples that should give you an idea of the types of things you should try and avoid:

• Anything containing “FREE”
• As seen on… TV, Oprah, Dr. Phil
• Now Only, Act Now, Act Fast, Limited Time
• Important Information Regarding…
• Guarantee, Guaranteed…
• Samples, Gifts, Prizes,
• Discounts, Special Promotions, Special Offers
• Amazing, Hot, Satisfaction
• Lose, Win, Winner
• Cash, Money, $$$

2. K.I.S.S.

Try to keep your subject line short and to the point. It’s very important that the recipient be able to discern who the email is from and what it is about. Many emails get manually blocked because the recipient didn’t recognize the email. So, as the saying suggests, Keep It Simple…Subject. (My girlfriend said that it’s not nice to call someone stupid!)

3. The Pen is Mightier Than the…. Camera!

Emails consisting of too many pictures can become a dead-end for your marketing campaign, and emails created solely out of images that contain no text are a major no-no. Many email software programs initially suppress images leaving your email message blank until the recipient decides to download them.

4. Everybody follow the bouncing… email!

It’s very important to make sure your list is healthy. This means cleaning out bad or bounced email addresses; continuing to send to these can cause problems with major email providers. This would be a tedious task if it had to be performed manually. However, services such as iContact will automatically keep your list clean.

5. Nobody likes Red Tape!

I know that once you have someone in your email marketing list it’s hard to let go, in the event they want to leave. That being said, it is crucial to provide an obvious and easy way for recipients to opt out or remove themselves. In fact as we learned in this blog it’s the law, but it’s just good business to do so anyway.

Email marketing is a great way to connect with you customers and share important information. Don’t be discouraged if your initial campaigns don’t provide the results you're hoping for. Remember, it takes time to develop a great mailing list.

If I can answer any additional questions or concerns regarding email marketing, please let me know.

“And now for something completely different…”

Until next time… I’m your web marketing and Monty Python Geek… John W. Svoboda!

Unlocking Search Engines: Choosing the Right Keywords and Phrases

johnws@cboss.com — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 05:00:00 GMT

I hope everyone is as excited about the New Year as I am. 2008 was a bit rough and while we can’t expect things to magically improve over night there are a lot of things to get excited about in 2009. Besides, I personally don’t like to spend too much time fretting over the things I have no control of. Instead, I want to focus my energy on those items I can make an impact on.

I made this comment to my girlfriend over the weekend and she laughed at me. I asked her what was so funny and she replied, “John, I’ve never met anyone who can brood over spilt milk like you can!” At that moment I decided to make a resolution not to be overly concerned with the unavoidable, be anxious about the inevitable, or lose sleep over the unforeseeable. In other words, I resolved to not sweat the small stuff. But as soon as that earnest aspiration was voiced, I found myself worrying about my ability to make good on this resolution. Foiled again Batman… oh well, there’s always 2010.

So, it’s funny and a little ironic that I’d like to talk to you about SEO (Search Engine Optimization). Why? Because SEO is comprised of things we can’t control namely the algorithm used by the search engines.

However, it also has many pieces we can strive to improve upon and thereby increase the overall performance of our web site in those search engines. In previous issues of Web Marketing 101 we discussed a variety of elements that make up SEO.

This week, we are going to focus on one very important point that we can do something about, and that is selecting the right keywords and/or phrases for our web site.

1. The Whole is Greater then the Sum of Its Parts

When selecting keywords and phrases it’s important to remember that there is a limit. The limit was once 20, but it has been reduced to 10 keywords and/or phrases. Why? The answer to that question is found in the element mentioned above that we can’t do anything about- the algorithm. The watered down explanation is that these keywords are used during the analysis (by search engine spiders) of our web site content to judge the relevance. As the pool of content on the web has increased, the search engines have tightened their belts in an attempt to create a more refined index.

Combining keywords into relevant phrases does two advantageous things. First, for example, the phrase ‘Search Engine Optimization’ takes up one item, while the keywords; ‘Search’, ‘Engine’, and ‘Optimization’ would take up three. By combining them we have freed up two keywords or phrases. Second and more importantly, we have more clearly defined what our page is optimized for. The individual words could be used in a variety of searches such as; ‘talent search’, ‘engine repair’, and ‘performance optimization’. However, our phrase helps show the search engine that this is not our intention. The next three topics will help us create the appropriate key phrases.

2. Geography for $200, Alex

Some of you might remember a cartoon that was popular a few years ago called “Pinky and the Brain”. For those of you who are not familiar with the premise, it’s quite simple. The show followed the exploits of two white mice held captive at the famous Acme Labs (Of course, made famous by my personal favorite, Wile E. Coyote - Super Genius). Every episode Pinky would ask, “Gee Brain, what do you want to do tonight?” and the Brain would always answer with, “The same thing we do every night, Pinky… try to take over the world.”

Search engines give us the illusion of being able to take over the world, by placing our web sites just a search away from anyone with Internet access anywhere. However, in many cases the services we offer may be limited by geography. For example, if you are a plumber, there is most likely a limit to the area you can service. It doesn’t help you to get web site visitors from outside your service area. Also, it is probable that potential customers will include some type of geographical identifier in their search criteria, because finding plumbers that don’t service the area where they live is equally worthless.

3. The Usual Suspects

If you have ever watched a crime drama on television or scanned the pages of a murder mystery novel, then you are already acquainted with “Motives”. Motives are the reasons someone does something. In our case, it is the reason for the search. I read a case study by Craig Hordlow of Red Brick Media that was interesting. Although it was focused on Pay per Click (PPC) advertising, aka Search Engine Marketing (SEM), it’s still very relevant to our discussion on SEO practices.

What is the purpose or reason for the search being made? If you can determine what the most likely motives are, then you can formulate your key phrases around them. Is the searcher trying to find a solution to a problem? Are they trying to find product comparisons? These are just a few of the possible motives behind a person’s search criteria.

4. To Thine Own Self Be True

Shakespeare would have had apt advice for selecting keywords and phrases. That’s right, the “Bard of Avon” would have told you that the practice of selecting highly searched keywords and phrases that have zero relevance to the content of your site isn’t just underhanded, it’s also not likely to yield the desired results. As I mentioned earlier in this issue, keywords and phrases are used to gauge the relevance of your content. So if you list phrases that don’t exist in your content, your rating in the search engine index will suffer. After all Sir William wrote, “Now go we in content to liberty, and not to banishment.”

5. No Such Thing As Fire and Forget

During the first Gulf War there were very vivid images of smart bombs taking out enemy buildings and tanks. It presented an image of a high tech war in which the battle was performed at the push of a button. What they didn’t show you, and what many people didn’t know, was that there was more to this show than met the eye. These “smart” bombs could not have hit their targets if it were not for the Special Forces personnel that had stealthily moved behind enemy lines and illuminated the target with an infrared marker. You see, these weapons were not “fire and forget”, meaning that when fired they still required some form of assistance or adjustment to perform accurately.

As I have said in past issues of Web Marketing 101, SEO is something you can’t do once and then assume it’s providing you the desired results. You need to use web analytics and other SEO tools to diagnose the effectiveness of your optimization. In doing so you may find that you need to adjust the keywords and phrases to better position your web site for success.

Remember that it is recommended that you perform these suggestions for each page, selecting the appropriate key words and phrases that will best represent the content.

Again, I encourage all of you to ask questions or post comments regarding this and past blog topics, as I am interested in what all of you think.

If anyone has a question that might be turned into a future blog topic please let me know at johnws@cboss.com. Who knows, perhaps your idea will be in the next issue of Web Marketing 101.

Until next time: “Be not afraid of greatness…” nor of geekiness.

Yours truly,
John W Svoboda, Web Marketing Guru!

Spinning a Sticky Web Site: Drawing Recurring Traffic

johnws@cboss.com — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 05:00:00 GMT

I was at my girlfriend’s aunt’s house on Christmas Eve, and I asked for some Figgie Pudding. Everyone looked at me with blank stares… so I repeated: “bring me some Figgie Pudding”… and I then added: “I won’t go until I get some!” I was apparently very, very mistaken as I left without getting any. I’m not quite sure if I’m getting invited back next year… maybe I should send them a nice sticky fruitcake or maybe a Chia Pet!

As you can see I’m still trying to recover from last week’s holiday festivities, yet I’m going to try and give this issue of Web Marketing 101 my best shot.

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When a Good CMS Goes Bad!

johnws@cboss.com — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 05:00:00 GMT

That’s right, friends; it’s time for another fun-filled issue of Web Marketing 101. This week, I’ve decided to switch gears a bit and discuss a topic I hope you’ll all take to heart.

Even if you aren’t using a content management system such as the ArchITech CMS this is still very relevant information. Content management systems and WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) editors have shifted the power of web site management from the web designer/developer to just about anyone. This is a wonderful More...