For some, the ‘Net is a direct business threat with other suppliers coming into your market but for most, especially local service providers and retailers, the Net is, or should have been, a significant marketing channel for them. But it probably wasn’t. And that was their downfall.

Sure, many will say the economy’s tough, people aren’t buying, the banks wouldn’t give them credit etc. But if your marketing is right, then those issue all go away. You have prospects, not just any, but the right prospects coming to you, ready and willing to buy your stuff.

Why?

Because they have been able to find them where 75% of people being their search for suppliers …in Google.

More and more, people are flocking to the Internet to find suppliers, information about products and services, prices, competitors. Today’s consumer is well prepared.

But that is in your favour because when they do go to see a provider, they are just about sold. They’ve done their research and compared deals so they just need the actual Thing or Service.

But that assumes they can find the information about YOUR Thing or Service. If they can’t, you’re not even in the picture.

So making it easy for prospects to find out about your products and also about you as a potential supplier, is vital.

So SEO or search engine optimisation is the first strategy you have to decide to undertake. Or more precisely, to have undertaken because SEO is not easy. Despite what many amateurs would have you believe.

SEO is a set of skills that requires in the first place, lots of complex analysis which rules out your web designer.

It needs an understanding of how Google works which changes more than once a day so that rules out part-time SEOs like business owners.

It needs creative writing so that rules out most people.

It requires building incoming links regularly so you need to know where to get links which rules out 99.9% of the population.

It requires discipline to build links consistently which rules out just as many.

So if your business is to survive, it has to be in the top ten in Google at the very least.

She said it was uncanny how I’d pre-empted what she was just about to write in her newsletter.  Spooky huh.

Besides the fact that my crystal ball was especially active last week, it’s more that the topic (prospects not making decisions) is so endemic that it affects most of us as far as our business is concerned.

It frustrates the heck out of us because they can’t / won’t / don’t decide to use our service which we KNOW will help them.  It’s plain as day you could take them forward.  Hey, even if they said “No”, at least you would be further ahead.  You could stop wasting time on them.

Yet, many of us are just as guilty when it comes to investing in people who could help us.

Think about it. How many issues do you have in your business where potential service providers have been calling on you but you’ve still not engaged them.

Hmm – my crystal ball is vibrating again.  I think I just struck a chord with a few folks.

If you are resisting taking on suppliers, how can you expect people to take you on?  Same coin, different sides.

So my pressure-point question this week is.

Choose one company on both sides of your business – one prospect and one supplier – that you know you should be doing business with?

Make it your objective this week to commit to converting one prospect and then investing that revenue into your business with a supplier who will be able to take you forward.

Let me know how you get on.

And for the first person to complete both sides, I’ll give you a gratis 27-point SEAT – Search Engine Assessment Test.That’s normally 147 smackeroos.

So, away you go.  Get on the phone.
Now.
What are you waiting for?

And think what that will do for the economy.

Technorati Tags: Action, Internet marketing, local marketing, Small business marketing

As with most business people, the conversation soon turned to business conditions and how each of our businesses are doing.  We both agreed that each was doing significantly better than last year.

Rather than simply saying that the economy was picking up, she said in her case it was because she was doing more marketing, hence her new website. It’s the same for me too – more marketing which may sound odd coming from a marketer.  More on that later.

And then she made the comment “Anyone can sell in good times. In tough times you have to market yourself.”

It was like a breath of fresh air.

I’ve said the same dozens of times but when a client volunteers that thought,  Wow!

Take a look around, see which way the wind blows

When you look around and don’t like what’s happening, you have two choices – do nothing and hope it will all get better or decide to do something about it.

There’s the old saying, “Three types of business; those that make things happen, those that watch things happen and those that things happen to.”

In any economy but especially in tougher ones, the companies that make things happen (the marketers) grow and that growth comes at the expense of those that watch who eventually become those that (unpleasant) things happen to.

And it’s especially difficult when the media you’ve known for years have stopped working.  Just this week Yellow Pages in NZ was put up for sale by its bankers who want to get some cash out of the fast ailing business.

The proof

McGraw-Hill researched companies in recessions and found that those that continued to market grew by 275% over five years.  Those that cut back or stopped marketing grew on average only 19% over five years.  Hmm, makes you think doesn’t it…. Well not for long.

It’s a no-brainer – your competitors are stuck in fear too, so start or pick up your marketing.  Anything but do something.  And if you know you must start to use the Internet but don’t understand how, ask someone.

Not marketing in a recession creates a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Oh and why was it odd that a marketer might be doing some marketing?

Well, we are amongst the worst when it comes to marketing ourselves.

I used to think it was me but talking to marketers from San Francisco to London to Auckland, they all said the same.

It’s almost impossible to do your own marketing.

A case in point just two days ago.

A web marketing buddy rang me and said he’d read my newsletter about procrastinating.  “We need to work together on this project” he said and it sparked him into action.

Why is it so hard to market yourself?

There are lots of reasons but some common ones are:

• You know too much about your area of expertise.
• You don’t want to toot your horn.  (That’s a biggie).
• You are too close to “your baby.”
• It’s scary to try something new.  (Excitement and scary are the opposite sides of the same emotion, it just depends how you look at it).

Among that list is probably the reason why you aren’t upping your marketing too.

So, don’t feel it’s your fault.

97% of other people feel the same.  It’s just that at any point in time, 3% of people decide to

do something about it.  Others take action later. The majority watch and wonder.

As my client said, “Anyone can sell when times are good.”

So what Internet marketing initiative are you going to take this week?

I’d love to hear from you.

And if you are confused about SEO, Social media, Web2.0 or any other buzz term, drop me a line.

I’m here to help and keep it simple for you.

Technorati Tags: local marketing, Marketing, Small business marketing

You switch on your computer.

You pick up the mail and go through it while your PC is booting up.

You see an offer for a seminar to learn the latest developments in your industry.  Hmm that looks interesting you think.

Then there’s another offer for a marketing technique that other people in your industry and others are using.  It’s the same the same price as the course on your industries developments.

You can only afford one so which do you pick?

Like most people you would choose the one to keep up with changes in your industry wouldn’t you?

That’s probably the wrong call.

Why?

Well, unless you are in telecoms or hi-tech industries, there is usually very little change.  May be a slight twist or tweek.  Perhaps a different slant on old methods.  But be honest, when was there a shift in the way accounts were prepared?  Or how plumbing has changed?  Or a particular therapy has evolved?  Or what ever industry you are in>

And how many of your customers’ problems are you unable to solve?  Probably very few because you are already an expert at what you do.

You DON”T need anymore technical skills.

But what is it that causes you the biggest problems in your business?

Customers!

Not enough.
The wrong ones.
Too cheap.
They complain.
They’re not repeat buyers.

Lots of problems with customers.

And all of those problems come down to one thing and one thing only.

Not enough good marketing to attract the best customers into your business.

If you could find and use current marketing tactics that work, the traditional Yellow Pages, newspapers, radio, don’t work any more, you would be way ahead of your competitors.

You could position yourself as the expert so people would be lining up to work with you.
Or you could get your promotions out, cheaper, faster and to more people.
Imagine sacking the pain-in-the-butt customers because you already have better ones lined up.

How cool would your life be?

How much more successful would your business be?

You will only find those new, better customers by using the Internet for your marketing for your local business.

And you won’t learn that at your industry skill seminar will you?

Technorati Tags: local marketing, Small business marketing

How Much Money Are You Losing Because Customers Can’t Find Your Website?

When people look in Google for a local service provider like yours, it’s because they have a real need and they want it sorted.  And the exciting thing is, they are willing to spend money to do it.

The big question is?

Where will they spend the money?

The answer is with a company on Page 1 of Google, and in all probability, the one nearest the top.  Is that you or is it a competitor that will be getting their money? (No.1 gets 41.2% of clicks).

“But it’s not like that in my industry”
Imagine when you want to find a supplier? A plumber, an accountant, an air-con guy, whatever?

What do you do?

• You go to Google to look for a local supplier – like 80% of people do
• You are busy so you only look at Page 1 – like 94% of people
• You click on the top website that looks promising – like 41% of people
• You have a very quick look at the site and if it says “Welcome to our site. We give great service, we’ve been in business…..” you click away and go to find the next site – like 97% of people
• You look for a site that tells you straightaway what you want – like 85% of people
• You give them a call or send an email – like 60% of people

Yes, over 60% of searches for local businesses end up in a sale… with the websites that are the easiest and quickest to find.

And guess what? The people with money to spend on your industry do exactly the same.

“But my website comes up in Google”
If you think typing your website address in Google means you are found, that’s a very costly mistake.  Only 15% of websites are found by typing in the address.

For the other 85%, people type in phrases related to your service.  Usually they type in a problem they have not the solution they want. For example, how to stop a leaking tap

People search using many different variations of the service you provide. Your site must use those Search-terms, the layman’s terms, not the expert’s. or you have no chance of being found.

The next question.
How do you know what words people use when they search?

You can use this free tool in Google  https://adwords.google.com/select/KeywordToolExternal
Then

• Learn what it all means.
• Understand it.
• Workout how to use it.
• Find out how much competition you have for each Search-term.
• Decide which is the best combination of search volume and competition.
• Find out what to put on your website and where.
• Write the right type of pages that will be found.
• Check if you’ve got it all right.
• Do it again until you get it right.

Or…….

To save you time and get Page 1 results like many other businesses already have, you can:

Click here to find out how you can get onto Page 1 of Google or
Emailandrew@gigmarketing.biz or
Call (0064) 021 458089 for a complimentary 30-minute consultation to show you how to get among the spenders.

Can you afford not to?

Technorati Tags: 5S SEO, Search engine optimization, SEO

A quick summary of some of the topics we discussed.

The 3 Secrets to Rapid Google Rankings

A 3 keys for your site

Learn new languages…… your prospects’.
Use their languages… everywhere.
Don’t rely on good design for website success – search engine optimization gets you higher in Google.

B Home page

Don’t have “Welcome to our site.  We’ve been in business for xx years. ..blah blah blah.”
That’s for the About Us page.

Instead write about the services and the people you serve using the language from A above.

C Follow the marketing route instead of product route.

For your Services page, break one general page into 3 pages, one each for your top services plus a general one for the other services.

• Visitors see immediately what they are looking for
• Easier for Google to see the service
• Could be ranked among the few providers for that service rather than among the bigger group of  generic providers  e.g. heating installation instead of plumbers.

As you review the call in your mind, you may be curious about your own website’s ranking.

• You may want to know how you could get your site higher in Google.
• Maybe you want to generate more sales leads from your site.
• Perhaps you think your site needs to be optimized to get ahead of your competitors.

To learn how you can improve your ranking in Google with your 27-point Search Engine Assessment Test (SEAT),  click the Paypal button to the right and then enter your details below.

For the first three people, I will buy your 27-point Search-Engine Assessment Test (SEAT) – value $147.

Or discover the best Search-terms for your website with the Search-term, Traffic and Competition Analysis (STACA) report.

This shows up to 200 different Search-terms under each category or service you offer.  It gives you:

• the exact terms people type into Google,
• how many times per day (Traffic) and
• how may other pages use each term (Competition).

This gives you a complete view of your market place and allows you to select the best combinations of Traffic and Competition so you can get easier rankings (less competition) but still with reasonable traffic.

It also enables you to design your site based on what people are searching for.

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Your details will not be recorded by GIG Marketing.

The 5S SEO Google Ranking Method

5S_Google_Ranking_SEO_Method

Enter your details below.

Thank you.

Andrew Haddleton

andrew@gigmarketing.biz

0064 (0)21 458089

Technorati Tags: 5S SEO, Search engine optimization, SEO