NMC Report header
February 23, 2010  
Greetings!

Dear Friends:
 
This edition of The NMC Report is all about Social Media, and howNancy Marshall to integrate it into your overall marketing efforts.  We believe that social media is a cost-effective way for you to raise your profile with your target market.  It's similar to using public relations to get your name out in the media, as it is a low cost means of generating exposure, but it takes more of an ongoing effort than most ad campaigns. With advertising, you create your ads, pay to place them in the media, then monitor the results. With social media and PR, you need to engage in an ongoing dialogue with the media and the public.
 
Thanks to Eric and Anna for weighing in with their expert opinions. If you have opinions, please let me know by emailing me at nmarshall@marshallpr.com. We are eager to hear your thoughts on this important topic which has great relevance in today's world of marketing and communications. And please engage in the dialogue with us on an ongoing basis by friending Nancy Marshall Communications on Facebook, following us on Twitter, and reading my blog at www.maineprmaven.

Best,

Jay Sig B&W
www.marshallpr.com




Internet Marketing: What Really Works (Part 1)

By Anna McDermott, NMC Account Executive


Using the internet as a tool to market your company's products Anna McDermott, Account Executive for Nancy Marshall Communicationsor services just makes sense these days. It's often inexpensive or even free to do it, your audience is online already (unless you exclusively sell to people to abstain from all uses of electricity) and it's very effective when done well. With so many options to market yourself online, it's easy to dive in, get overwhelmed and then sink.  There are three main aspects to marketing online I like to focus on: SEO for your website, social media and email marketing.

SEO: If you have a website, it has to be optimized for search engines; otherwise, what's the point? If you're creating a website, invest in good copy for each page so those friendly little spiders can find you, and like you. If you have one already, have an SEO expert look it over to see if you need a tune-up. Most likely, the answer will be yes. Your web copy should read well and incorporate well-researched keywords.

Social Media: When using social media, your choices matter.  Just because many online software programs are indeed free, it doesn't mean you should automatically sign up. Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, etc., are all fantastic methods to reach a potential customer but you need to first think through your product and how much time you want to spend Facebooking or tweeting. Factor in the time you will spend reviewing what others are doing online. Participating in social media by commenting on other's Facebook posts you find interesting, or re-Tweeting a tweet you like, all work towards strengthening your presence online. This is a great venue for casual, colloquial remarks - "We have an awesome new product arriving today! Stop by and check it out."
 
Also, these are not well-suited to everyone and if you realize this once you already have followers or fans, you will generate negative PR when you stop posting news or responding to folks. It is best to carefully choose a manageable amount of programs and commit to them. It is also helpful to consider your personality and the information you're sharing when stepping into the world of social media.

Participating in social media makes you your own publicist; you are sending out messages and reinforcing your company's brand each and every time you tweet or post on Facebook. Make it count!

Next Issue - Part 2: email marketing 101, keeping your brand consistent and what not to do online i.e.: Blackhat Techniques.


Internet Marketing: What Works Now and
the Triple-M Method
 
By Eric Reynolds
Jay Sig B&W
With any Internet Marketing (IM) method, you want to follow what I call the Triple M approach. Triple M stands for message, market, and method.

You must craft a laser-focused message using a specific keyword topic.

You must write a message with your target market in mind.

You must focus on one Internet Marketing method at a time.

Get any part wrong and your entire campaign could fail.

Use the wrong message in a video and your market won't bite, rendering the method useless.

Follow the Triple M method on the following 3 Internet Marketing methods.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

The most important IM method is SEO. Ignore advice that you shouldn't do SEO. Any website can be overcome in the rankings.   

SEO Success Tips
    • Half of your SEO effort is "on page optimization" or changes you can make to your website. The other half of your SEO effort is getting links back to your web pages.
    • Each page should focus on a specific keyword phrase or topic.
    • For "on page optimization," you should do the following.
Focus on web page Title and Meta Description tags.
      1. Use keywords in the title at the beginning and keep branding at the end of the title.   
      2. Write the title as a headline that sells the click. Remember, you'll show up in a list of search engine results along with many other websites. Be sure you compel visitors to click on your site.
      3. Your Meta Description tag should contain keywords and, like the title, should be written to compel searchers to click.
Improve your page's body content.
      1. Use keywords in an H1 tag.
      2. Use descriptive sub headers in H2 and H3 tags before every paragraph or every few paragraphs.
      3. Use bulleted and numbered lists to break up your content.
    • For getting links back to your website pages, do the following:
Get links to your website pages, not your main domain, from authoritative websites.

An authoritative site is one which Google is already ranking high for your keyword phrases. Somewhere in the top 100.

Make sure the link text within incoming links has your target keywords.

Make sure your link is one of only a few on the page.


Pay Per Click (PPC) or Cost Per Click (CPC) Marketing

After SEO, focus on PPC.

PPC Success Tips

    • Use Google Adwords and practice the "Google triad."
      1. Create Ad Groups with related, similar keywords.
      2. Create Ads related and similar to your Ad Groups.
      3. Create Landing Pages related and similar to your Ad Groups and Ad
    •   Ad writing tips.
      1. Use capitol letters for the first letter of words
      2. Use keyword in ad
      3. Don't be cute, clever, or funny. Tell them what you've got and be specific.
    •   Landing page tips.
      1. Landing pages must be optimized using proper SEO.
      2. Be sure to include your company contact information and a privacy policy page and a terms of service page.
      3. Landing pages must be related to the keyword on which you're bidding.
Video Optimization (VEO)

You must create and publish video for your website.

Video marketing tips

    • Keep each video focused on one specific topic
    • Use keywords in the title and descriptions of each video.
    • Put your domain name in the bottom 3rd of the video.
    • Keep video under 3 minutes.
    • Use your website name as your YouTube username.
    • Embed your video into websites, threads and blogs.
Each IM method should be laser focused on one topic.

Remember to use the Triple M method. Make sure your message matches your market in each method you employ.