Google Boost

Are you looking to get into Pay Per Click advertising but are slightly intimidated by the process? Soon, Google will be launching Google Boost to help simplify setting up a Google Adwords campaign. Boost will use the information provided in your Google Places profile to automatically research and select competitive key words for your local market, and create the ads. All you have to do is set a budget and Google Boost does the rest.

Currently, Boost is being tested in a few select cities, and will be launched nationally within the next several weeks. Boost will not be replacing Google Tags, instead it is designed to integrate with Google Places, Adwords, and Tags; making it simple to manage your complete Google advertising presence.

Of course, Seyego will also be testing out Google Boost, and comparing it’s effectiveness in various markets. Like most SEO and online marketing, we suspect it won’t be a set-it-and-forget-it solution, but we’re excited to introduce a simplified option to our clients. We’ll keep you posted.

Seyego? I never heard of you.

I recently spoke to a client who, before we reached an agreement to do business, asked me, “If you’re so great, how come I never heard of you?” It didn’t take long to explain who we were, and show him what we do, but it did get me thinking about how people associate quality and trust with brand names.

I’ll admit it, I am swayed by big name brands just as much as the next person; especially when I shop for things like clothing or groceries. The fact of the matter is, most of us rely, to a certain extent, on brands to tell us what to buy. But is the most well known choice always the best choice? I think a lot of times we confuse brand recognition with quality and reputation. I always like to use McDonald’s as an example of a branded name that delivers a low quality product. Because of branding, they have the best selling hamburger in the United States: the Big Mac. For the same amount of money, you can get a better quality burger, but people tend to go with what they know.

Best Buy is the country’s largest electronics retailer. Are their prices the best? No. Do one quick Google search, and you’ll find better prices at a dozen other retailers. Do they provide the best customer service? Heck no! Nothing personal against Best Buy or their employees, but more often than not, you know more about the products than they do. But again, people go with what they know; and they know Best Buy.

Even stores like Target, whose whole marketing strategy is “Expect more. Pay less.” doesn’t have the best prices, and the quality of their merchandise is mediocre. So why do we shop there? Target is convenient, and most of all, it’s well branded. It’s so well branded, that when someone wants to push mediocre quality products, they get a celebrity to put their name on it, and they sell it exclusively at Target.

So, clearly, branding does not always mean best in class, and when someone says they never heard of Seyego, I don’t get upset or rattled. I know that we’re just one of the many small businesses out there who are working hard and putting out quality products. Would I love it if Seyego became a household name? You bet I would. For now, I’m satisfied taking the extra few minutes to enlighten prospective clients; and then I let our results do the rest of the talking.

Do You Tweet?

Twitter is transforming how people interact and share information online. If you’re not already using Twitter, it should be incorporated into your overall marketing plan right away.

Still don’t know what Twitter is? Twitter is a social networking platform that lets you post updates to share with the world. Just like other social networking sites like Facebook and Myspace, you can “follow” other Twitter users and subscribe to their updates. Users who follow you will receive your updates.

Updates can be anything you want: a thought, a link to an article, a quote, link to a product review, announcement of a sale or special offer, links to photos. What makes Twitter updates unique is that they must be 140 characters or less. The character limit is designed to encourage people to post meaningful, relevant, and to the point updates. Sometimes this can be a challenge but it also has resulted in some very creative Twitter posts. It’s almost like writing a Haiku.

Post Twitter updates
Just one forty characters
Get to the point please

Twitter is free to join, and it only takes a few minutes to set up.

Once you have an account you can begin posting updates. Again, your posts don’t have to be just sales copy or marketing fluff. You can use your updates to deliver information, humor, entertainment, nonsense, random thoughts. By using Twitter, you can create a persona for yourself or your business that connects with people in a way that a commercial website may not.

Just like any other social networking site, building your list of followers takes time. You can accelerate that process by consistently posting updates that people want to read, and by linking to information that is helpful or entertaining. If you’re lucky or smart enough to develop some sort of viral content, then Twitter can be a great tool to help distribute it. The possibilities are endless.

Preparing for the Seyego.com Relaunch

Seyego is poised to launch our new website. Our team of talented web designers and programmers are busy making the final touches. The new, modern look to the site will highlight our full menu of online services and make it easy for our clients to find the info they need fast.

As Seyego moves into the future, our goal is to increase our exposure on the web and expand our web development and SEO client base beyond the service industry. Of course we will to continue to develop and support Power Dispatch Pro, the industry leading dispatch and management software.

Our pre-ranked service industry website rentals continue to be a big success for our clients wishing to generate business online. Call us at 888-933-1033 to find out what sites are available for your local area.

Exciting things are around the corner. Stay tuned!

How Can a Blog Help Your Business?

You have a website already. What the heck do you need a blog for?

By now, most people have heard of blogging. If you’re one of the few still left in the dark, a blog is sort of like an online journal that you share with the world. It is organized chronologically so that readers see the most recent entry first. Blogs can be used for a variety of purposes such as talking about your day, discussing current events, reviewing products, sharing recipes, providing tutorials, promoting products or services, and much more. You can pretty much blog about anything and everything; and some people do.

The greatest benefit of having a blog is improving your ranking and exposure in the search engines. Even if no one reads your blog, adding relevant content to your site on a regular basis lets the search engines know it should continue to check back with your site to index the updated content. The more you add content, the more the search engines index your site, and the faster your new content will become searchable.

From a business standpoint, having a blog that you update on a regular basis gives people incentive to return to your site. It creates another opportunity to put your products or services in front of another potential customer. People also love to share interesting blog posts with friends and family. So, if your content is good, there’s potential for second-hand word-of-mouth advertising.

A blog for your business also allows your existing customers and potential customers to get to know you better. Sharing information about your industry or yourself helps create a connection between you and your readers. It builds trust and credibility, and can influence someone to do business with you over a similar competitor.

No matter what type of business you have, there’s something to blog about. For example: if you run a carpet cleaning service, you can blog about the jobs you take on, and show before and after results. You can blog about do it yourself tips on how to remove stains or stop pets from soling the carpets. Don’t be afraid to mix in some personal anecdotes and humor and let your personality come through in your posts.

Seyego can help you set up a blog for your business as well as offer some ideas for blog topics. We also specialize in content writing and can provide unique articles for your blog. Give us a call today, and let one of our business consultants customize a blog marketing package to fit your business’ needs and budget.

WordPress 3.0 Released!

The latest iteration of the much loved WordPress web content management system was released to the public today. Version 3.0 features a new default layout, custom menu interface, integrated ability to manage multiple blogs on subdomains from one WordPress installation, and more.

Seyego uses the WordPress platform to create dynamic, SEO friendly website networks and blogs for many of our nationwide clients. WordPress’ interface and huge library of plug-ins help streamline the web development process, allowing us to focus most of our resources on internet marketing and search engine optimization.

For more information on WordPress 3.0, check out the video below:

Ads by Google Saves the Galaxy

Next time you complain about advertising, remember this and be thankful:

Free Advertising (almost)

How many times have you seen a business open up in your neighborhood that made you say, “Hey that’s a great idea!” then a few months later… *poof* they’re gone? Just having a good idea, or a good product or service, in most cases, isn’t enough to keep a business afloat. In fact, you could say you don’t even have to have a good product! For example, how many people would say McDonald’s makes the best tasting hamburgers in the world? No one, right? Heck, you probably grill a better burger! Nevertheless, you see McDonald’s all over the world on practically every street corner. Why? Marketing! Unfortunately most business owners don’t have the advertising budget McDonald’s has, but they do have the same power to reach millions using free and low cost strategies. Here are just a few to get you started:

Word of Mouth:
Tell everyone you know and everyone you meet about your business. You never know where your next customer will come from, but they’ll never know you unless you tell them who you are and what you do.

Business Cards:
Some say the age of the business card is dead. I say nay. The beauty of business cards is they can end up anywhere. Get some business cards with your name, address, phone number, website address, and email address on them and use them. Everyone you talk to about your business should get your card. I can’t tell you how many times I received a telephone call from a complete stranger who got my card from someone else. Handing out your card directly to someone will have a greater impact than randomly leaving it at someone’s front door. Some businesses will allow you to display your cards at the front counter, but unless you have a visually catchy display, or the shop owner personally recommends you, I’m not convinced that’s the best use of your cards. If you send out mailers, always include two business cards and request that they be given to friends or family.

Make a Website:
It’s very probable that you already have a website for your company. However, potential customers may not directly search for a commercial website when they are in the market for a product or service. They may do some research on the industry first or go to a consumer review site to get recommendations. It could be very effective to create a website relevant to your product in order to draw in more traffic. For example let’s say you had a computer repair business, you might try creating a website directed at computer enthusiasts. Then, on that site, you can advertise your repair business using banner ads or links to specific products or services that pertain to the content on the site.

Press Releases:
A press release notifies members of the news media of any potential news-worthy events. While starting a new website or opening a new location of your business may not seem news worthy to you, it could be to someone else. Services such as http://www.24-7Pressrelease.com, http://www.PRLog.org, and http://www.1888PressRelease.com allow you to create a press release for little or no cost. Be sure to read and follow the guidelines for submission, and make sure you categorize your press release correctly.

Social Networking:
Social networking is a relatively new form of marketing which, if done correctly, can yield some awesome returns. Social networking websites such as Facebook and Myspace focus on building online communities with shared interests. They provide a variety of ways for users to interact such as e-mail, photo sharing, instant messaging, blogging, online bulletin boards, event calendars and much more.

When you’re using social networking as a marketing tool, you want to first establish yourself as part of the community. You don’t have to pretend you’re not promoting anything, but you also don’t have to bombard your network with sales pitches and website links. Take the time to get to know people and build some credibility.

Online Groups:
Online groups are a form of social networking, but for a much more focused niche. For example, if you had a pet grooming business, you could go to Yahoo! Groups or Google Groups, and join a group specifically for animal lovers in your area. If the group doesn’t exist, you can create it. By joining multiple groups, you can experiment with different techniques and marketing strategies, but be mindful of your time. Networking with people can become a distraction if you don’t stay focused on the task at hand.

Blogs:
With free software you can create your own blog. A blog is short for “web log” and is a sort of online diary used to post commentary, articles, graphics, and descriptions of events. Your blog should have an overall theme (preferably related to your business) and should be intended to appeal to a target audience. You can also link your blog to your website in order to provide additional content and to promote interaction with your visitors. If you don’t want to start your own blog, you can find other people’s blogs and comment on them. Be sure your comments are relevant, not just an advertisement for your business. Make sure your comments include a link to your site (most blogs provide a field to input your URL). When commenting, try not to be too controversial, and never post any abusive or insulting language. The last thing you want to do is to get into an online flaming war with total strangers.

Go Local:
Get a free local listing at on Google Locals and Yahoo Locals. These are local business directories which are tied into Google Maps and Yahoo! Maps which allow users to search for businesses within a specified area. People want to support local businesses, so let them know you’re out there. You can also get free local listing at yellowpages.com, brownbook.com and other similar sites.

Newspaper:
The newspaper?!?! You remember that black and white rolled up tube you used to get on your front porch, don’t you? People still read that thing, and there’s a classified section in almost every one. Placing small ads in the paper is a method that has been around since the dawn of time. It may not be cost effective to place ads in the most popular local paper, but there are smaller publications which may offer very low cost or even free listings.

CraigsList.org:
CraigsList.org is a centralized network of local communities featuring free classified advertisements. CraigsList serves over nine billion page views per month and over thirty million unique visitors. They offer various classified categories such as jobs, housing, personals, communities, pets, and of course, products for sale, and services for hire.

Get Published:
This one may be easier said than done, but if you excel at writing, you can submit articles and content to other websites. You can then link your content to products or services on your website.

Video:
YouTube.com is a site where visitors can upload and share videos. Essentially this is an opportunity for you to make free television commercials for your business. You have to make sure you honor the terms of agreement and not make any outlandish statements, but for the most part you have a lot of room to be creative. Be sure not to use any photos or images in your ads that you do not have permission to use, and above all, be safe. Performing a dangerous stunt in order to promote your business may sound like a good idea, but you’ll have a hard time enjoying any potential profits from a hospital bed.

Email Signature:
An email signature is a block of text automatically appended to the bottom of any e-mail message you send. It should contain your name, your company’s name, email address, website URL, and perhaps your business logo and a brief description of your business. You can create a signature in most email clients such as Outlook or Thunderbird. Consult your email program’s help file for instructions on setting it up.

Email Campaigns:
If you have a large network of email contacts, you can create an email advertising campaign. A brief email describing your company, with a call to action in your text that evokes a sense of urgency could generate some quality customers. Make sure you make it easy for your customers to respond by telling them what to do (e.g. register here, click here, reply here). If you automate your email marketing, make sure there is an easy way for people to unsubscribe from your emails. You don’t want to be known as a spammer.