by Alyssa Seaney | Aug 31, 2016
Promotional materials, also called premiums, are products that have your logo and/or tag line on them. People use them, wear them, and give them away, while spreading the word about your business. They can be used in numerous ways from sponsorships, to gifts, to surprise inclusions with a purchase. Expand Brand Recognition Having people wear and use merchandise with your logo on it will increase the number of people who notice your brand. When a friend has on a hat with your logo on it, they may check out your business and even buy something. Relatively Low-Cost Advertising TV advertising can be expensive, depending on where you live, but promotional products aren’t that expensive when you consider the benefits. You can sponsor a sports team inexpensively and all the parents will see this logo every game and when doing their laundry. It will keep you at the top of their mind. Great Business Card Replacements Business cards are a very important piece of branding. But, if you really want to stand out at your next event, instead of handing out business cards, hand out key chains, book marks, t-shirts, hats, balls, bumper stickers, or USB drives. People will remember you because you’ll likely be the only one doing it. People Like Touching Something In today’s digital world, getting something that can be touched is a revelation. It feels good to touch something that’s real instead of only looking at digital things. Consumers Keep Promotional Materials When you give usable and targeted items to your audience, they will keep them and use them. This means...
by Ken Seaney | Aug 26, 2016
In this video we explain what SEO and PPC mean and how they can impact web traffic to your website and your business. If your current online advertising isn’t getting the results you want or expected, give us a call. We offer free analysis of your current Adwords campaigns and can almost always find ways to make your ads more effective and save you money. Give us a call today at 541-210-9521 or email...
by Ken Seaney | Aug 24, 2016
Every business that wants to be successful in today’s marketplace must participate in online marketing. We are living in a digital world. Operating in an analog frame of mind will do nothing for perpetuating further success. Stay up with your competition by learning how to ease your way into digital marketing so you can experience all of the benefits it has to offer. Get a Mentor, Coach, or Consultant No business can succeed by itself. Instead of trying to take on online marketing alone, find a professional who has achieved success in this area. This could be a mentor, coach, or consultant. The shortcuts that come along with connecting with people who are already knowledgeable about online marketing are priceless. Not only do you avoid the many different headaches that come with going about things the wrong way, but you will also get a helping hand to ensure that your efforts results in more revenue. Educate Yourself A successful business owner is always learning. There are many facets of online marketing, so gain more insight by doing a little research. Do a search for online marketing sites and start reading up on the different options and how they work so you have some idea before you get started. Download free reports and sign up for e-newsletters on the topic. Go to your local book store, and peruse the many magazines and books about online marketing. Go to your library, and check out some books. You can even upload books to your Kindle reader for extra learning convenience. Join Networking Groups Networking groups are just as important...
by Ken Seaney | Aug 23, 2016
The change from Google’s 7-pack, to a reduced 3-pack has had a major impact on local SEO. Many businesses struggled to get featured when there were seven spots available. Now getting into the top three can seem like rocket science. The good news is that this goal is not impossible. However, it does take time, skills, and knowledge to get it done. Being seen by local consumers just as they’re searching for your type of product or service is the most targeted type of marketing known today. But getting there can be tricky unless you really know what you’re doing. To help you get started down the right path, here are three helpful tips: 1. Get more citations When it comes to ranking your local listing, one thing Google pays close attention to is how often a company is mentioned in other sources. In other words, it looks for “citations” to validate your business. A citation is a mention of your business name along with another piece of business information anywhere on the web – with OR without a link back to your website. The additional information could be your phone number, website URL, or physical address – combined or individual. In order to count as a citation, the information must be an EXACT match to the information on your Google My Business listing. Citations help prove to the search engines that you are a real company; therefore, the more of them you have from quality sources, the better your local listing rankings will be. 2. Add photos to your listings It’s no secret that consumers love...
by Ken Seaney | Aug 20, 2016
The new Google search results page for desktop has caused a bit of a stir since it rolled out in February 2016. While once featuring three Google AdWords pay-per-click (PPC) ads at the top of the page and multiple ones down the right-hand side of the page, things have changed quite a bit. They have wiped out the ads on the right-hand side and there are now four ad spots at the top at three ad spots at the bottom of the page. In fact, Google will only show three ads at the top unless it’s a highly-commercial inquiry, which in that case, it will show four. So the total number of possible ads in any given search has been reduced from 11 to down to 7 at the most. Besides making the page appear a lot more basic, this has also left marketers wondering how it will affect them. Organic Search Is Affected Not only does this shrink the potential advertising space, but it also pushes the organic results farther down the page. Therefore, search engine optimization (SEO) is more important than ever before. Companies that want their websites to show up on the first page of the results will have to work a lot harder to grab and secure one of the limited spots for long-term success. Paid Search Has Become A Lot More Competitive Due to the fact that several Google AdWords ad spots have been dropped, the fight for the top four available spaces just became even more important. In order to stay ahead of the competition, businesses are now going to have...
by Ken Seaney | Aug 19, 2016
Thinking of focusing more of your marketing efforts on local search but you’re not sure if it’s worthwhile? Consumers have been using the internet to search for information for well over a decade. Search engines have revolutionized the way we handle everyday life. During this journey, location-based searching has shown steady growth as well. Location-based searching is the practice of searching for a product, service, or business based on location. Couple this with the fact that mobile usage has grown exponentially in recent years, you can only image how this has impacted the level of local searches performed by consumers. Both local and mobile consumer buying habits have had significant impacts on the marketing world and are becoming more popular as time goes on. Here are some statistics you may not know and what they mean for your feild: Most local consumers use local information in ads Google actually carried out a survey into local search behavior and the results showed over 60% of consumers wanted ads to be customized based upon their location. Around 61% prefer ads that are customized to their exact location, while 67% want them to be customized to include at least their zip code and city. So what does this mean? It means your business needs to ensure that the ads you place are extremely targeted by making uses of location extensions. Nearly 70% Of Consumers Use “Call” Or “Get Directions” If you’re wondering just how important it is to list your phone number and address, this statistic clears it up. With this amount of smartphone users claiming to use...
