The Bella Buzz: Successful Web Design, Internet and Social Media Marketing Strategies from Desiree Scales, CEO--Bella Web Design, Inc.

Guest Columnist Svy Nekrasas: Why a Strong Marketing Strategy is Critical for your Business

If you took some time to listen to my guest podcast with Desiree Scales and Joe Magennis a few weeks back, we talked about how important it is for small and medium size businesses to have a marketing strategy in place before designing a powerful website. We did not delve into specifics then, but agreed that I would return to the subject and provide a few tips about marketing strategy in a follow up blog post. 

What is marketing strategy? Wikipedia defines marketing strategy as “…a written plan that determines the choice of target market segment, positioning, marketing mix, and allocation of resources.” 

In more simple terms, think about marketing strategy as a GPS device for your business where you plug in your destination (your business vision and short- and long-term goals) and use it to chart potential ways to get there (your marketing creative and execution). 

A well-defined marketing strategy should directly support your business plan. It doesn’t change too often and is usually focused on a long-term approach. When thinking about marketing strategy consider the following tips:

·         Focus on the Big Picture

·         Stick with it for a few years (3-5 years)

·         Center it around customer/client

·         Review, observe, and adjust it periodically based on market conditions 

There are many marketing strategy models to consider. This post is too short to explore them in depth now. However, the most common ones are:

·         The Marketing Mix Model (also referred to as the 4Ps)

·         The Ansoff’s Product Marketing Matrix

·         The Porter’s Five Forces Model

·         The Consumer Centric Model 

You, as a business owner, are free to choose what “go-to market” strategic model fits your individual business best i.e. the model that best supports and communicates your company’s culture, competitive advantage, and marketing mix (product, price, place, and promotion). Then use the model to build your marketing plan (messaging, branding, positioning) and select the media (traditional media, social media, website) to execute it. A perfect example was Jeff Bezos’, (CEO of Amazon.com) YouTube video announcement about Amazon’s acquisition of Zappos.com last week. He used social media (an 8-minute video) to explain Amazon’s strategic marketing model centered on “Customer Obsession and Innovation.” 

Personally, I thought it was a quick and brilliant way for Amazon.com to communicate the company’s culture (marketing model) and its vision for Zappos.com. Obviously, this communication piece was a part of their overall marketing strategy and fit perfectly with their brand and innovative business model. 

Now take a look at your existing marketing strategy. Does it fully support your business plan and your brand? If not, you need to reevaluate it. You know where you want to take your business, and a well thought out marketing strategy will help you get there.

Why Hiring a Marketing Strategist Before Building Your Website is Crucial

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Are you the type of person who would construct a home by hiring all of the contractors yourself instead of hiring a General Contractor? If so, then you are a rare individual. Most people feel more comfortable finding a good GC they can rely on and can help find the best sub-contractors with special skills and to oversee the entire project ensuring that all of the laborers achieve the overall objective of constructing a quality home. This is just the role an experienced Marketing Strategist can play in your quest for a great website.

On this week's Bella Buzz podcast, hosts Desiree Scales and Joe Magennis welcome Svy Nekrasas. He is just that type of General Contractor or "General Marketer" who works with small and medium sized businesses to develop, review, revise and implement complete marketing strategies.

There is an abundance of marketing tools available for business owners to choose from to deliver a brand message espeically now that social networking tools are so prevalent and efficient. In many cases implementation is more a case of jumping in rather than having a plan. Svy helps businesses to determine that plan before embarking on a web design campaign to review where things are and make recommendations for improvement.

Having a marketing strategist on board also helps when it comes to identifying the best resources for implementing a plan. Svy has been through the web design process before and has vetted specialists with the skill set to tackle specific aspects of the plan will save business owners a considerable amount time and money. The strategist can help find partners to build a web site, create a graphics standard, construct compelling content and craft an appropriate media plan.

When trying to focus a business owner on developing a comprehensive marketing plan, Svy likes to use the basic marketing axiom of Product, Price, Place, Promotion. Each of these elements are something that can be controlled and established when launching a brand message. Consumers today have a lot of access to information and a solid disciplined marketing plan will clearly communicate a brand in the mind of the target consumer.

Svy will also make sure that the full story is composed based upon the information that is obtained by using Google Analytics on a web site. Traffic sources, keywords, users, and goals are just some of the key variables that appear on these comprehensive reports. Making sense of this data and taking action based upon the results serves as a strong foundation of any marketing plan.

Getting involved with someone outside of a company to analyze a marketing strategy can be very difficult for many business owners especially owners who are extremely connected personally to a business. Allowing good ideas to come from numerous sources in this day and age is the hallmark of an open and transparent organization. Consider the extraordinary resource that Starbucks has implemented by allowing customers to submit their ideas through the web site MyStarbucksIdea.com. It is an extraordinary resource, ensuring that the company is responsive directly to their base.

To talk more marketing with Svy, he can be reached at svy@bellawebdesign.com or by contacting Desiree.

Theme music for The Bella Buzz is Fallen by Digital Chemistry, available for download at the Podsafe Music Network.

You can subscribe to The Bella Buzz directly from ITunes by following this link, and we would be happy to receive listener feedback and ratings at The ITunes Store.

Social Media Trumps Traditional Media In Iran Elections -- History is Made

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This may be one of the most important topics we will ever address on The Bella Buzz podcast. Joe Magennis and Desiree Scales discuss the events that transpired over the weekend regarding the election in Iran and the impact of Twitter and social networks, including Facebook, on accessing the coverage in real time.  This might just be the watershed moment historians point to as the time when social networks outperformed the traditional media in providing news coverage.

We first want to point out that the events taking place in Iran and the actions of the courageous people willing to voice their opinions in a society that can be overtly oppressive is far more important than media analysis and online tools.  However, it cannot be under-emphasized the power that these tools provide for distributing alternate points of view that may never have had the chance to be expressed publicly. The ability to be heard is powerful force in initiating change of any kind.  This can be just as true of corporate policies as much as governmental policies. 

To set up the our discussion on the podcast, there were two Hashtags that trended to the top of Twitter this past Saturday evening / Sunday morning, one was #iranelection and the other was #cnnfail.  The first conveyed a story of a population in Iran that was unwilling to accept the election results that were being presented to them by their government officials.  The second was a vocal, global community unwilling to accept the fact that a major news event was taking place in the world and CNN (nor any other television news network) was not providing coverage of the story.  They were instead airing reruns.

It is still unclear the reasoning behind CNN's decision not to have an in-studio anchor presenting the story and analyzing the impact that these actions would have on the rest of the world. In fact, as of Monday afternoon following the recording of this podcast, CNN was claiming that they had indeed done a good job of covering the story and felt that it was a "compliment" according to Rick Sanchez that the audience was expecting more from them.

It appears to be a somewhat defensive stance on their part, however it must be pointed out that Rick Sanchez at least has some social media credibility, and is someone who has made it a point long before now to incorporate social media tools and direct feedback from his audience into his broadcasts.

As an attempt to tie this story into a business dialogue, since it is the overall focus of The Bella Buzz podcast, it can now be clearly seen communicating powerful messages are no longer only possible on major broadcast outlets. Decisions will have to be made regarding the placement of marketing dollars and moving resources away from the traditional outlets towards the social networks.  This spiraling effect only leads to a further reduction in resources, which we speculate may have been a contributing factor for why this story didn't receive comprehensive coverage.

We do have to provide a particular caveat for this transition from traditional to dispersed media consumption.  Although there is a liberating aspect of getting unfiltered news, we must also caution that it now becomes incumbent upon us as consumers to dig a little deeper into the messaging we are receiving. Even though there is information coming via Twitter that would indicate the uprising is representative of a majority of the population, or that there are irregularities in the election process, we don't actually have any verifiable evidence that these are indeed the real truth.  Learning how to filter information on the web will be a skill that all educational institutions should immediately begin to add to their curriculum so that the population can identify memes, hysteria, spam or any other form of manipulating messages.

Our role here on The Bella Buzz podcast is not to tackle the political or social issues of the day, but when they intersect with the use of social communication tools that are a part of our every day environment, we feel that it is necessary to point out how they are being used and to turn it into an analogy for our audience to better understand how powerful they can be.

For those who weren't convinced, Desiree tweeted yesterday, "We are now all participants on a world stage, helping others communicate their plight against all odds. We are witnessing history." and "The Iranian election coverage on Twitter proves to everyone that we don't talk about what we ate for lunch anymore. Its purpose is clearer."

How do you feel about the events that took place in Iran and the intersection of new media with traditional media?  Did you have opinions regarding the lack of broadcast channels covering the events?  Let us know what you think in the comments, we would love to hear your ideas!

Theme music for The Bella Buzz is Fallen by Digital Chemistry, available for download at the Podsafe Music Network.

You can subscribe to The Bella Buzz directly from ITunes by following this link, and we would be happy to receive listener feedback and ratings at The ITunes Store.

Why You Might Want to Consider a Social Media Coach for Your Business

Social Media Marketing is here. Is your business ready for it? Think about the following:

• Are you and your company fully represented on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and YouTube? 
• If you aren't, why not? What is keeping you back? 
• If you are, are you maximizing each post to benefit and attract the type of people you want to work with? 
• Do you know what Social Media is? 
• Are you currently following anyone who can help you on any of these platforms?  
• Do you know and follow the experts in your field and/or competitors who are currently using these tools? 

A lot to think about, right? 

Business is moving at the speed of light. Using social media tools can help you reach more people in a smarter, more cost-effective way. If you aren't participating in the conversation, you are soon going to be dead in the water. A Social Media Coach will give you the oars to row your boat in the right direction. 

A few things to think of before hiring a Social Media Coach:

1. Is this person maximizing their own use of the tools they want you to use?
2. Can they give you some statistics and metrics which backup their advice? 
3. Are they personalzing the strategy to work for your company or just using cookie-cutter ideas? 
4. Does this person study Social Media every day and know more than you do? 
5. Would you feel comfortable taking a class from this person? Are they easy to relate to and make the topics easy to understand? 

I think the role of Social Media Coaches is becoming more and more important in business just as Life and Business Coaches have become mainstream. Look for this role to be an even more integral part of the marketing arm in business just as it has already for Starbucks, Dell and Whole Foods who have in-house Social Media experts at the helm. 

If you are a small to medium size business just putting a toe into the waters of Social Media, you might just want to spend a little more this year to hire a Social Media Coach for your company to get you pointed in the right direction. You'll save a lot of time and money by not having to research these methods on your own and you'll also learn invaluable tips and tricks from someone who's "been there" and has made their own mistakes already.  

Does Your Website Educate or Frustrate?

There are many types of sites out there: ecommerce, web brochure, informational, data. The ones that bring business to their owners are ultimately the sites that educate their audience.

So ask yourself, are you educating your audience? Five signs of a good educational website:

1. Articles that are updated weekly about recent developments in your industry and/or business


2. A list of links or resources which are updated regularly which help your customers understand your/their business


3. Link to your blog or some other pages which discuss new techniques, news, inventions or anything that can help your customers gain knowledge about your/their business


4. Informational whitepapers or essays of how you helped other customers and have good testimony of how you came up with solutions to common problems for your customers

If you're not doing any of these, start on at least one this month, then slowly move into the others. Customers can get frustrated with a lot of fluff. They don't have time for it.

Education is information which is currency in today's business market. Enpowering customers enpowers your business.

Ready for Social Media?

Our friends (and fellow web developers) at Flyte Media in Maine were interviewed and posted a great video about "social media." Social media means taking the news to the people from the people. "We" create the media and spread the information ourselves. This has great possibilities for business use because it gives businesses another platform to become "experts in their field" and share knowledge easily with others. Take a look at the video of Rich Brooks being interviewed and talking about social media. Click here.

Watch for our Social Media Webinar coming in 2008! Click here for more information about how to make webinars part of your company's online marketing success plan.

Does Your "Long Tail" Wag Your Business?

I'm having so much fun with my guest bloggers, I thought I'd invite Barbara Moss to join us this week!

Barbara Moss, Senior Account Manager at What a Concept!

For the past few decades, Barbara Moss has been a technical evangelist connecting people with the tools that enhance collaboration efforts and streamline processes (starting with dual floppy PCs in the early 1980s!). Her roles have spanned across the spectrum from developer, trainer and recruiter to manager/director, project manager, and sales. Her industry experience includes insurance, banking, software, retail and health care/bio tech.  As a Sr. Account Manager with What a Concept!, she currently helps organizations understand how to implement Web 2.0 interactive technologies into their business practices.

“The Long Tail” and Small Business

I have been reading The Long Tail, Why the Future of Business is Selling Less of More by Chris Anderson, editor of Wired magazine.  The basic premise of the book is that businesses with strong distribution power (i.e., online stores) can sell a greater total volume of otherwise hard-to-find items in small amounts than they can sell of popular items in large amounts (see graph below).  This situation has evolved because traditional brick and mortar stores don’t have the physical space to carry the depth of inventory that online retailers can carry, especially when the inventory is electronic or can be produced on-demand, such as publishing on-demand.  Unfortunately, the book restricts long tail theory to large businesses.

The yellow area under this graph represents the Long Tail

So, does the long tail theory apply to small, niche online stores?   If so, how can online retailers apply the theory? 

The answer to the first question is YES.  Thanks to the Long Tail economics made possible by major online retailers, a large number of online consumers now expects and searches for an ever increasing array of “obscure,” niche products.  Smaller online retailers who are also smart can reap the benefits of the path their larger counterparts have laid.

Here are several simple things small online retailers can do to expand their reach to online consumers:

1. Search Engine Optimization: a lot has been said about this subject because it can’t be stressed enough.  Ensure that your website is designed with SEO in mind and revise it as necessary to keep current.  Did you know that the more you talk and are talked about on the web, the higher your SEO rating?  The recommendations below are other ways to increase SEO ratings.
2. Blog: get out there and talk about your passion as it relates to your product.  Have your own blog and comment on other people’s blogs.  Be willing to share ideas and help others.   Don’t make your blog an advertisement - people want to hear about you and your expertise, not be sold to.
3. Post videos on YouTube and pictures on Flickr:  Again, share information, don’t sell.
4. Participate in online communities: Almost all niche markets have at least one community.  Get involved!  Communities like FaceBook and MySpace have all kinds of niche groups – join these as well.
5. Meta Tags: Tagging is a way to categorize web pages and blog posts.  Since any entry can have multiple tags, use as many tags as needed to reach your relevant audience.  Tagging is another way to increase SEO.

Don’t forget, your customers are your best advertising.  Solicit and use satisfied customer comments wherever possible.  Find out if they’re hanging out on the web in places that relate to your business and join them there. 

It’s time to let your long tail WAG THE DOG!

How to Write Good Web Content

This week I'd like to introduce another member of our team, our writer in residence--Sallie Boyles! Sallie has been assisting us with writing our client's web copy for 2 years. Clients love when she steps in to help. We hired her because we saw that most people froze up when asked to send us their copy for their site and caused some serious delays in the progress of their projects. Sallie has now cut the project times in half and has become a very important part of the Bella Web Design team. She is this week's guest blogger. Enjoy her article on "STOP-Wise Words for the Web."

STOP—Wise Words for the Web
By Sallie W. Boyles 

What happened to the days of “build a website and they will come”? It seems that era ended when “we don’t have a website” was no longer quaint. Today, your Web business must not only look highly professional, but it must also communicate effectively. If you want to attract prospects as well as convert them to clients, remember: Good looks will take you only so far. 

Rapidly changing technology, savvy Internet users, and stiff competition demand that our online verbal communications evolve as well. Therefore, as we race to keep pace, let’s consider the acronym STOP:

1. Search Engine Optimization: In order for your prospects to find you, your website better be a headliner among countless competitors. Using the right keywords and phrases in your content is a starting point.

  Does your language accurately define your reason for being?

2. Target the Market: You cannot be all things to all people. The longtime reminder is worth repeating when we see the world and want it all.

Can you effectively appeal to people in Toronto, Tennessee and Timbuktu?

3. One -Two Punch: Get to your point quickly in as few as words as possible.

  How hard are prospects willing to search for the punch line?

4. Point of Difference: Hook them by sharing your unique benefits. Your staff photographer speaks six languages. Your auto mechanic services race cars. 

What extra advantages will customers gain when they choose to do business with your company? 

Though not rocket science, effective Web writing is a skill. If you’re going to take your presence online, make every word count... 

Be Consistent When Marketing Your Brand

We're going to try something different this week. I'd like to welcome our guest blogger Russell Fair--our new Sales Manager. Russell has quite a bit of web development and sales experience and he will be contributing once in a while to the Bella Blog as a guest blogger. I hope you enjoy his first blog post!

Although it seems obvious, I am still surprised when I see inconsistent branding between a company's web site and their non-web marketing efforts such as printed materials and TV commercials. This happens for different reasons I am sure, but primarily, I have observed, it is just because people do not think that it was important to match the online and offline marketing "look and feel." When these inconsistencies are minor, they can slide, but when they are obviously different, the company loses a lot of validity and might even lose potential customers. Companies don't always realize how much it can hurt their business when their customers have an inconsistent experience with the company's branding.

One of my long time friends and business associates had this problem. The majority of his website had a light blue and white theme, the sign outside his company was navy with silver letters, and his printed materials were black ink on ivory parchment. I knew that his customers were getting an inconsistent experience and thus he was most certainly losing business or at least not impressing some folks because of it. His branding message was weak. Once he decided to ensure all materials matched, his business started to pick up. He also gained more confidence in his company's brand which spilled over to his presentations.

I myself have picked up a business card (often without a web address) and go in search of that company. I enter the company name into my favorite search engine and hit the first link. When I get to the website, it is the right company name, but it just does not look like the right place; the colors are different, the logo is different, the fonts, phone number, even the slogan is different. It can be a little disconcerting. So I try a couple other sites. I can't find the one that looks right so I buy my widget from the third or fourth site I visit. Oh, not to mention I threw away the business card, because the information on it was not relevant to me anymore.

When people see different styles and themes they get confused and often are deterred from sending their business your way. When getting a new website, I strongly advise my customers to phase out their old marketing materials and replace them with newer, fresher content which match the new look and feel of the website so their customers get a clear and consistent experience. If these efforts are arranged correctly, they add a lot of validity to your company. That almost always translates to more customers. If you would like more information about how to align your marketing materials to give a consistent experience to your customers please feel free to contact us at 770 509 8797. We can review your current materials, make suggestions and help implement the changes. We look forward to hearing from you!

 

Top Online Advertising Strategies in 2006

I just got my latest issue (June 2007) of Entrepreneur Magazine and saw a poll from U.S. marketing gurus who were asked their best and worst performing strategies in 2006. Here are the results:

Best:
1. Paid Search Ads  49%
2. Email-House List  47%
3. Search Engine Optimization  45%

Worst:
1. Email--rented list 56%
2. Pop-up and pop-under ads  45%
3. Ads in email newsletters 47%

What's interesting about this list is how predominant search engines are, both in paid and organic listings. I have a feeling that Search Engine Optimization would be number 1 on the list if there were more companies who could actually do a good job at it. This would then push paid listings down the list a bit. A combination of the two might be more of an accurate picture of what's really going on.

Email marketing comes in second which is no surprise. What better customers to sell to than people that are already buying your products and/or services?

I don't think any of us are shocked that pop-up ads, pop-under ads and rented lists are part of the "worst" category. These are all very annoying for us all and should be banned along with banner ads and other advertising junk.

I'm still surprised at the majority of my clients who aren't taking advantage of both email marketing and search engine submission. I really don't understand how you can compete without doing at least one or the other. If any of them know a secret I'm not privvy to about marketing offline, let me know. I'll be the first to try it out!