Air Conditioning Watertown Wi and Milwaukee Advertising ideas

 The weather outside in Milwaukee was 98 degrees, Watertown WI was at 96.  Can customers find you online when their A/C is out?  Air Conditioning Contractors that are advertising successfully are finding customers in a variety of ways.

  Cranking out advertising doesn’t happen by turning up the thermostat or loading a unit with Freon. You want to get a return on your investment advertising, and should plan a “heated” campaign that ices out your competition. Whether you’re advertising your air conditioning business in a small, local print run or making a website to reach out to the Internet masses, choose marketing options that take the temperature of your target customer.

Click here for the full article
by Filonia LeChat, Demand Media

Get Represented

One way to tie together an air conditioning advertising campaign is to let someone else do the talking for you. Although a small business may not be able to afford a celebrity such as Coolio, Ice Cube or Vanilla Ice, creating your own spokesperson with a “cool” name can create brand recognition and familiarity across your advertising platform. Design a character such as Vanilla Ice Cream, a cartoon superhero who cools down needy customers with a new window unit or central air. You can also create a real spokesperson to use in your print ads, website video clips and marketing pieces. Choose an air conditioning-related name such as “Miz Cool” or “Mr. Breeze” for your new mouthpiece.

Disclaimer: The postings of opinions on this site are my own and do not necessarily reflect those of my clients or publishers. Jim is an experienced Internet Marketing Consultant in Milwaukee Wisconsin. His mission is to help you increase your advertising return on investment and decrease unproductive advertising expenses through proven, online marketing strategies. He works with local businesses, agencies, and Non-Profits. Feel Free to call him at (414)699-5444 to schedule a Free Consultation.

Why Content Marketing is a Great SEO Strategy

 Content marketing is a great SEO strategy – even better than link building. Shifting your strategy from search marketing to content marketing is increasingly leading to higher search rankings and more organic traffic.
Some tests in May that looked at the impact of Google+ to organic search performance produced some interesting results. I analyzed two sets of clients I was working with and categorized them as:

1. Websites with strong social profiles.
2. Websites with weak social profiles.

What this analysis showed was:

• Websites with weak social profiles saw a 19.5 percent reduction in organic traffic.
• Websites with strong social profiles saw a 42.6 percent increase in organic traffic.

Google is now valuing authorship, natural links, and social signals far more highly. So the next natural step is content marketing

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Google is now valuing authorship, natural links, and social signals far more highly. So the next natural step is content marketing.
Full article from  Kevin Gibbons, Search Engine Watch 

 click here


Disclaimer: The postings of opinions on this site are my own and do not necessarily reflect those of my clients or publishers. Jim is an experienced Internet Marketing Consultant in Milwaukee Wisconsin. His mission is to help you increase your advertising return on investment and decrease unproductive advertising expenses through proven, online marketing strategies. He works with local businesses, agencies, and Non-Profits. Feel Free to call him at (414)699-5444 to schedule a Free Consultation.

30 Free Ways To Market Your Small Business Site

Free advertising online?  Really? Yes, Milwaukee small businesses and business anywhere can market their website online for free.  Does it work, yes.  Now, if you have the time you can get yourself found a little easier online.  Now, of course there are SEO companies and PPC companies that want to charge you an arm and a leg to market your business.  I'm not telling you that they don't work, you get what you pay for of course.  The issue is that most PPC companies are out of the price range of most small to medium businesses.  And the jury is still out on if you get what you pay for.  I posted an article about how their churn rate is still unbelievably high, here is the article. 
  It's safe to say that if your churn is high, your customers aren't too happy with your results.  You also have  out of date media companies like the yellow pages and Newspaper companies throwing their hands in to make up for their loss of revenue.  If your budget is low, here are a number of ways to help get your website in front of people that are looking for you.


 30 Free Ways To Market Your Small Business Site 
Carrie Hill, June 26, 2012 Search Engine Watch

Are you looking for ways to market your small business website with a limited budget?
Whether it’s with established sites such as Google and Facebook, or newer outlets like Pinterest, there are plenty of options available to promote your site.
There are at least 30 ways to market your website with a time investment and no credit card required. Some of these are oldies but goodies, while others are newer and exciting avenues you may not have tried out yet.
Here are 30 things you can do today to get started marketing your website for free.

 Click here for the full article

Disclaimer: The postings of opinions on this site are my own and do not necessarily reflect those of my clients or publishers. Jim is an experienced Internet Marketing Consultant in Milwaukee Wisconsin. His mission is to help you increase your advertising return on investment and decrease unproductive advertising expenses through proven, online marketing strategies. He works with local businesses, agencies, and Non-Profits. Feel Free to call him at (414)699-5444 to schedule a Free Consultation.

Google Search Options Get Horizontal in New Test

 It may be just a bit of a minor facelift but I think that this article is correct.  Over the past year and a half Google has been working on including all of its properties in search and I think this is being done to be sure there is enough room for the integration.  I also feel that it will help in its overall look on tablets.  Here is a link to the full article from Search Engine Watch and Miranda Miller, June 21, 2012




Disclaimer: The postings of opinions on this site are my own and do not necessarily reflect those of my clients or publishers. Jim is an experienced Internet Marketing Consultant in Milwaukee Wisconsin. His mission is to help you increase your advertising return on investment and decrease unproductive advertising expenses through proven, online marketing strategies. He works with local businesses, agencies, and Non-Profits. Feel Free to call him at (414)699-5444 to schedule a Free Consultation.

How Google Penguin affected websites SEO

Google Penguin Crashes Wedding Site's Shady Link Building Strategy

 Razvan Gavrilas, June 18, 2012 Search Engine Watch

The past month has been a painful one for thousands of webmasters hit by the Google Penguin update. If your rankings dipped, no doubt you've been faced with a bunch of questions regarding the future of your site and any potential recovery methods that might be available.
After any Google update, be it Panda, Penguin, or any other one, you can fit in one of the following category profiles:

Positive Impact

• You played by Google's rules and your rankings increased.
• You did some shady link building and got away with it.

Negative Impact

• You played by Google rules and you still got hit … “collateral damage”.
• You did some shady link building.
• You had no idea what link building strategies were used because you outsourced it.
• You are confused by how Google might treat SEO or you might have received bad advice and thought you were playing by Google’s rules … but you weren't.

No Impact

• Your rankings weren't affected.

Click here for full article 




Disclaimer: The postings of opinions on this site are my own and do not necessarily reflect those of my clients or publishers. Jim is an experienced Internet Marketing Consultant in Milwaukee Wisconsin. His mission is to help you increase your advertising return on investment and decrease unproductive advertising expenses through proven, online marketing strategies. He works with local businesses, agencies, and Non-Profits. Feel Free to call him at (414)699-5444 to schedule a Free Consultation.

At&t Internet Advertising

 Question about people thinking about having At&t internet advertising manage your online advertising programs.  If your butcher asks for your business to fix your furnace would you have him do it?  Its the same thing.  Honestly, for the last 100 years At&t has been banking on people paying for an ad in their yellow page directory.  Making big money on little investment.  Businesses were paying $1,000 to $20,000 per month to pay for a directory that gets published 1 time a year.  Sure it worked at the time but imagine how much the yellow page companies like At&t banked on that.  Now that yellow page usage has gone down to almost nothing in usage (yes I know some people still use it but come on, really), they have to make up for the loss.  Google is Google, Yahoo is Yahoo, and Bing is Bing.  At&t has no secret partnership with Google and neither does any other company.  It is a totally even marketplace.  At&t seems to have a ton of third party companies doing their SEO and PPC programs also (orange soda, Marchex and so forth) and a huge payroll.  So think of this very simple factor.
 If you give At&t $1000 per month to do your say, SEO, first they have to take out their portion, next, they hand it over to their third party Orange Soda, they in turn have to take out their portion, finally what is left of your investment goes to your campaign.  How much is left?  Who knows, but At&t in turn thinks that if they throw you a discount on their Yellow page print products and Yp.com product.  Whoopie do.  Save your money.  PPC?  Well, First you will need to give them their cut, then Marchex takes their cut, and finally Google and the other search engines take what is left.  Go directly to the source, Google adwords is simple but time consuming, if your time is valuable then find a local company or an independent contractor to do it for you at a flat fee.  This way you will know what your spending and where it is all going.  


Disclaimer: The postings of opinions on this site are my own and do not necessarily reflect those of my clients or publishers. Jim is an experienced Internet Marketing Consultant in Milwaukee Wisconsin. His mission is to help you increase your advertising return on investment and decrease unproductive advertising expenses through proven, online marketing strategies. He works with local businesses, agencies, and Non-Profits. Feel Free to call him at (414)699-5444 to schedule a Free Consultation.

Website Optimization Basics

 When working on your SEO or if your working to get a customers website found higher in Search Engine Results, its important to start at the beginning.  The website.  With a poorly constructed website with little or poor content to work with.  It will be very difficult to be found when Google and the other search engines are indexing for quality and relevant results.  Here is an article that explains some of the basics to Website Optimization.

by Kristine Schachinger, June 14, 2012 Search Engine Watch

As search engine optimizers we hear the term "optimization" all the time. We optimize our content, websites, pages, forms, click paths, designs, strategies, links, and so on.
Do we ever ask ourselves what it means to be a search engine optimizer? And just how do we optimize in the world of Pandas and Penguins? In the end how does this change what we do as SEOs?
Optimization is such a common term and used so generally, it is almost without meaning. Take a moment to think about it. What does it mean to optimize?

Click here for the full article.

"Panda and Penguin and whatever update comes next will continue to change the SERPs and how we do what we do – sometimes, radically. Traditional SEO just isn’t enough any more.
The time has come! If you haven’t learned how to be a site optimizer, now is the time. Don’t let the next Google update leave you in the cold."

Disclaimer: The postings of opinions on this site are my own and do not necessarily reflect those of my clients or publishers. Jim is an experienced Internet Marketing Consultant in Milwaukee Wisconsin. His mission is to help you increase your advertising return on investment and decrease unproductive advertising expenses through proven, online marketing strategies. He works with local businesses, agencies, and Non-Profits. Feel Free to call him at (414)699-5444 to schedule a Free Consultation.
Follow his blog at  http://internetadvertisingmilwaukee.blogspot.com/

Small Business sign of the day

 

Disclaimer: The postings of opinions on this site are my own and do not necessarily reflect those of my clients or publishers. Jim is an experienced Internet Marketing Consultant in Milwaukee Wisconsin. His mission is to help you increase your advertising return on investment and decrease unproductive advertising expenses through proven, online marketing strategies. He works with local businesses, agencies, and Non-Profits. Feel Free to call him at (414)699-5444 to schedule a Free Consultation.

Website Construction in Milwaukee

The Construction of a Search Engine Friendly Web Page

 

 Milwaukee businesses that don't already have a website and are looking to build one have a number of things to consider.  First and foremost, you need to build a website that is search engine friendly.  If you are doing it yourself or having someone or company do it for you, you need to make sure of a few things.  It will benefit you in the long run considering SEO and SEM.  Here is an nice article to help.
Click here 

Things to consider from the article
Have a strong URL
Effective Title and Meta Tags
Reduce Code Bloat
Proper Heading Usage
Navigation
And CONTENT CONTENT CONTENT



Disclaimer: The postings of opinions on this site are my own and do not necessarily reflect those of my clients or publishers. Jim is an experienced Internet Marketing Consultant in Milwaukee Wisconsin. His mission is to help you increase your advertising return on investment and decrease unproductive advertising expenses through proven, online marketing strategies. He works with local businesses, agencies, and Non-Profits. Feel Free to call him at (414)699-5444 to schedule a Free Consultation.

Advertising online by optimizing your Campaigns Across Multiple Goals

 Optimize Your Campaigns Across Multiple Goals to Further Success.  Milwaukee business owners and Marketing Consultants need to be where people are looking for them on the internet.  You need to set more then one goal to be successful. 

Search is a highly effective tool for driving results, be it sales, leads or other unique “goal” actions. Often times, we focus on a single goal action – such as “drive more sales.” This has become standard practice in our industry.Ted Rooke, Search Engine Watch. 
Full Story

Sony Google TV Blu-Ray...$299.00 Abt Electronics & Appliances

Disclaimer: The postings of opinions on this site are my own and do not necessarily reflect those of my clients or publishers. Jim is an experienced Internet Marketing Consultant in Milwaukee Wisconsin. His mission is to help you increase your advertising return on investment and decrease unproductive advertising expenses through proven, online marketing strategies. He works with local businesses, agencies, and Non-Profits. Feel Free to call him at (414)699-5444 to schedule a Free Consultation.

How to Check If Your LinkedIn Password Was Stolen

 Worried if your Linkedin Password was stolen?  Here is how to check.  Click here

Disclaimer: The postings of opinions on this site are my own and do not necessarily reflect those of my clients or publishers. Jim is an experienced Internet Marketing Consultant in Milwaukee Wisconsin. His mission is to help you increase your advertising return on investment and decrease unproductive advertising expenses through proven, online marketing strategies. He works with local businesses, agencies, and Non-Profits. Feel Free to call him at (414)699-5444 to schedule a Free Consultation.

How To Promote Your Business For Free in Milwaukee

 One of the greatest expenses of running a business can be promoting yourself. Running ads in newspapers or trade publications can be very costly and ad campaigns on the television or radio are even worse. Yet, promotion is one of the most important tasks a business owner does because people can’t become your customers if they don’t know about you.         Deborah Sweeney Business Insider 

Here is the full article

Disclaimer: The postings of opinions on this site are my own and do not necessarily reflect those of my clients or publishers. Jim is an experienced Internet Marketing Consultant in Milwaukee Wisconsin. His mission is to help you increase your advertising return on investment and decrease unproductive advertising expenses through proven, online marketing strategies. He works with local businesses, agencies, and Non-Profits. Feel Free to call him at (414)699-5444 to schedule a Free Consultation.

Local Online SEM Agencies Still Battling Massive Churn Rates

 When you purchase a Pay Per Click PPC program from an agency, How much of your money actually goes to the internet and how much is actually being used for your program?   Businesses in Milwaukee and nationally churning at a vary high rate when they use an agency for their PPC programs.  Business Insider has an article here from last year that explains.  Click here for more

Disclaimer: The postings of opinions on this site are my own and do not necessarily reflect those of my clients or publishers. Jim is an experienced Internet Marketing Consultant in Milwaukee Wisconsin. His mission is to help you increase your advertising return on investment and decrease unproductive advertising expenses through proven, online marketing strategies. He works with local businesses, agencies, and Non-Profits. Feel Free to call him at (414)699-5444 to schedule a Free Consultation.

Google Places Is Over, Company Makes Google+ The Center Of Gravity For Local Search

 Searchengineland reports new changes to Google Places Google+ and Local.

Google Places pages have been entirely replaced by new Google+ Local pages. As of this morning roughly 80 million Google Place pages worldwide have been automatically converted into 80 million Google+ Local pages, according to Google’s Marissa Mayer. It’s a dramatic change (for the better) though it will undoubtedly disorient some users and business owners.  May 30, 2012 at 9:00am ET by Greg Sterling

Click here for the full story. 

A Range Of Changes Implemented

 From the article:

Here’s a brief overview of what’s new and what’s changing:

• The substitution of the new Google+ Local pages (as mentioned) for Google Places pages
• The appearance of a “Local” tab within Google+
• The integration and free availability of Zagat reviews (its entire archive across categories)
• The integration of Google+ Local pages across Google properties (search, Maps, mobile)
• Integration of a circles filter to find reviews/recommendations from friends/family/colleagues

Static Places now give way to more dynamic Google+ Local pages. Google’s star ratings are also being replaced by the Zagat 30-point rating scale (for user reviews as well).
Below is an example SERP for “burgers near Seattle.” The top screenshot reflects the “old” Places look and feel. The second is the new search results, sans stars.

 More from the article

A Few Preliminary Final Thoughts

These are major changes that Google is making in the fabric of local — for both consumers and marketers. They will enhance the consumer experience with a relatively small adjustment and learning curve. People will be able to go on using Google as they have but get the benefit of the richer pages and Zagat ratings. They won’t be forced to use Google+ to get the new content.
By the same token Google probably hopes that millions of local merchants creating and enhancing dynamic pages and content can bring additional usage and greater engagement to Google+. We’ll see how it plays out.
Business owners will probably have a somewhat more difficult transition than consumers, as they’re compelled now to pay attention to Google+ — in a big way. They now ignore Google+ at their own peril.
Overall local search also just got a lot more social for Google, as it has recently in a different way for Bing. We’ll explore the social dimensions as well as the SEO implications of Google+ Local pages in companion articles and during next week’s SMX Advanced, especially in the Hardcore Local SEO Tactics session.


Disclaimer: The postings of opinions on this site are my own and do not necessarily reflect those of my clients or publishers. Jim is an experienced Internet Marketing Consultant in Milwaukee Wisconsin. His mission is to help you increase your advertising return on investment and decrease unproductive advertising expenses through proven, online marketing strategies. He works with local businesses, agencies, and Non-Profits. Feel Free to call him at (414)699-5444 to schedule a Free Consultation.

10 Ways to Get Your Content Marketing Strategy in Motion

If your working on your content marketing and are wondering what strategy you should try read this article from Search Engine Watch.   Google Panda has changed a lot of ways people are finding things.  But content is still king.


  Bob Tripathi, June 1, 2012

Content has always been king, but more recently content marketing has started to get more of the attention it deserves in organizations with budget allocated to creating content. In recent years, we have also witnessed many new software platforms entering the market to help companies create content.
As many of you would attest, it’s always easy to go out and spend money on creating content or any marketing campaigns for that matter. Alternatively, in my experience almost all companies have access to lot of content in-house, but for some reason they are either not surfacing them or not using their resources efficiently to create new content that can help them with their content marketing efforts.
Content creation is a huge undertaking. For now we’ll focus on 10 strategies to create great content in your company.

Click here for the full article

 

 

 

 

Summary

Creating content can be resource intensive but more than that it also involves lot of creative thinking to come up with new content day in and day out. The above ideas are just a small sampling of how to come up with great content. Have any other ideas worked well for you? Please leave a comment below.

Disclaimer: The postings of opinions on this site are my own and do not necessarily reflect those of my clients or publishers. Jim is an experienced Internet Marketing Consultant in Milwaukee Wisconsin. His mission is to help you increase your advertising return on investment and decrease unproductive advertising expenses through proven, online marketing strategies. He works with local businesses, agencies, and Non-Profits. Feel Free to call him at (414)699-5444 to schedule a Free Consultation.