out of the blue

First, let me state the obvious. A website, no matter how beautiful and elaborately designed, doesn’t do anyone one bit of good if no one visits. Next point: With the millions of websites out there (it’s not 1996 anymore people) it’s not easy to make people visit YOUR site. It is tough! So before (or after for you unfortunate souls who didn’t consider this matter before you launched your “awesome” site) you launch your number one site selling the fruit of your loins, you should consider how you’re going to be found in Google. Yes, that’s right, I said Google. Google is the number one site for people who don’t know where they’re headed. But YOU need to know where your site is on Google in order to hope to make back at least a few of those dollars you sank into your website (so it’s not all in vain).

Ok, so let me start by saying that I am not the expert on how to be found in search engines. DPro Marketing (my employer) contains many folk with SEO (you’ll learn later) knowledge, but I am a novice. This makes me the perfect author of this article. This, folks, is SEO vs. PPC for dummies. Written by a novice. Makes sense, right?

Key Words to Know:

Organic/natural SEO: This is the term used to describe the rise of your website in search engines. SEO stands for search engine optimization. Still with me? Hang in there! Basically, Organic SEO as I understand it is your website showing up sooner on search results naturally. That is, versus paying for your website link to show up on the side. Organic/natural SEO is a good thing.

PPC: PPC stands for PPC. This is when you pay for your website to show up on people’s screens when he or she types in certain keywords (of your choosing). So you will rise in the search engines, but not naturally (now you’re getting it…)

SO WHAT?:

So why do you care about this? Well, you obviously want to be in the top of search results if you actually want people to visit your website. So the question is, how do you want to go about being found? PPC can get pricey and tricky, but it does yield guaranteed results (guaranteed in the fact that people will see your link, not that they will buy from you). Organic SEO is harder to achieve, but with inbound links and updating your site frequently to contain more keywords, you can do so. It seems that to achieve Organic SEO, it would be optimal to consult someone who actually knows what they’re doing, but go ahead and knock yourself out if you think you’re that awesome.

Either way, it is important to know the difference between these two search terms, both as a consumer and as a company. Whichever route you decide to take ( I feel as though I would recommend a combination of both), make sure your website is up to par so that when people actually get to the website (however they may get there) they are impressed and want to learn more.

That’s all my wisdom for the day. Surf on people, surf on.

Source: “Organic SEO vs. PPC?” by Kara Ratcliff

 Ahhh…Happy New Year.  I can’t say I’m too sad to see oh eight leaving us, especially with  the continuous decline in the economy (to top it off, I’m in Michigan), and I think we’re all looking forward to oh nine.  A new president will be entering the office and it feels like a fresh start for everyone.  That’s the hope anyway.  Of course, nothing comes easy and the same is going to go for your business.  In order for your business to thrive (or in some cases even just survive) in ‘09, you’re most likely going to need to switch up your marketing techniques.  You’re playing to a different crowd now that everyone is holding onto their money with the death grip.  In order to get your potential customer to part with their hard-earned cash, you’re going to have to make them want it….bad.  It goes without saying that the main place you’re going to need to worry about your marketing techniques is the internet.  So, without further delay, here is an article useful to what will be known as the hardships of ‘09.  Read it, learn it, own it, do it.  And good luck!!
20 Internet Marketing Trends of 2009

One of the most important yet overlooked aspects of marketing is the wording.  What you write does matter.  For many people, how their product/website looks is focused on and perfected to the tee, but when it comes to what their site actually says, it is just quickly slapped together.  This can, and most likely, will hurt your business. Sure, visually your website/brochure needs to draw your customer in, but your words are what actually keeps the customer’s attention.  Some pointers to keep in mind when writing: 

*Avoid the passive voice.  If you don’t remember active vs. passive voice from your days in elementary school- here’s a quick refresher.  In an active voice sentence, the subject is performing an action.  Example:  The dog ate my homework.  On the other hand, in a passive voice sentence, the receiver of the action in an active voice sentence will now become the sentence.  Therefore, the dog ate my homework will become: The homework was eaten (by my dog).  As you can see, the excitement of the passive voice sentence does not even compare to the active voice.  There are times, however, when passive voice is necessary-perhaps when you are trying to deflect blame, because in a passive voice sentence the agent of the action is not a necessity as in active.  Overall, just avoid being passive, ok?

*Vary your sentence structure/words.  No one likes to see the same thing over and over and over and over and over (Ok, you get it) again.  Vary your sentence structure, sentence length, and the words you use.  If you use the phrase “for example” in one paragraph, try “to illustrate” in the next.  Thesauruses are your friend- use them!

*Don’t get too hung up on grammar but know the basics.  The rules of grammar are constantly changing mostly because of the presence of the web.  The internet, instant messaging, emailing, and texting are changing the rules of grammar.  It IS acceptable to use LOL in the right context or the proper medium.  You probably shouldn’t use it in a brochure, but in a blog, it’s perfectly acceptable.  Don’t sweat the small stuff, but do learn the basics.  Example:  their vs. they’re, you’re vs. your, etc.  These will save your life and your business.  If I’m reading  even a blog and someone uses you’re as a possessive, I laugh at them.  Yes, that’s right. I’m that mean.  I can’t even take them seriously after reading that.  Learn the basics but know there are exceptions to the rules with the internet/text/email.

*Avoid the ordinary.  I recently read a story online about a homeless man who had a sign that read “Help me. I’m blind.”   A marketing lady took a marker and changed the sign to read “It’s autumn and I can’t see the leaves change color, please help.”  He made a lot more money panhandling.  So, even though you’re probably not a panhandler on the streets, you are a panhandler in the business world- plan accordingly.

Hope these help- just remember writing is important and to state the obvious:  spellcheck!