How Social Media Is Changing Business | Milwaukee Advertising Tips

Nice article showing how business is changing and has changed already.  Not only on how business find customers, but also on how businesses add employees, and how employees interact with each other and thier clients.  Social media is being used here in Milwaukee more and more.  The way we are using it today will with out a doubt change again. 
Here is the article from Mashable.

A decade ago, businesses didn’t have company Facebook profiles, Twitter accounts or Instagram feeds.
In fact, Facebook didn’t exist.
When you start thinking about how much social media has changed the way that businesses operate in the past few years, you can’t help but wonder how much more — and how — it will change in the coming decade.
According to Sandy Carter, General Manager of IBM Ecosystems and Social Business Evangelist at IBM, there are a lot of exciting changes to come. As an author, speaker and expert in social business, Carter not only makes sure her company stays on top of the latest technology trends and how they can be incorporated into the workforce, but makes sure other companies recognize that potential, as well.
To learn more, we chatted with Carter about what exactly a “social business” is, why it’s beneficial, and how companies can start to adopt that kind of forward-thinking strategy in their business and hiring practices.
What is a “social business,” and why is it so effective?
Over the past two decades, the Internet has disrupted the way companies operate in a huge way — it’s almost unimaginable to think how we got anything done without it. Now, we’re seeing that same transformation in the social realm — businesses are moving beyond having just a Facebook page or Twitter account, and they’re incorporating social functions into everyday business processes and decisions, from sales and marketing to HR and product development.
It’s really a shift in the way we work, communicate, collaborate and share expertise with each other. Social businesses use social tools to listen to customers, spur innovation, identify new market opportunities and create a smarter, more effective workforce.
For example, IBM is one of the most prolific users of social networking in the industry and one of the largest corporate-wide social media communities. Every IBMer has a social network page, as well as access to thousands of internal information sources, blogs, communities, wikis and instant messaging. IBM takes social networking seriously — to develop products and services, enable sellers to find and stay connected with clients, train the next generation of leaders, and build awareness among clients, influencers and other communities.
What is the most important element of a strong social strategy? What advice would you give to an entrepreneur or executive who wants to expand his or her social strategy?
Far and away, the most important element of a strong social strategy is the corporate culture behind it. Without a culture that supports sharing and collaboration, the underlying social technology being implemented is futile.

Click here for the rest of the 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.

Web Design Milwaukee | Web Presence Pros

Having a great looking website for your Milwaukee based company is one thing, but if you don't have anybody seeing it, then it wouldn't be very useful.
Our strategy involves Social marketing, Local representation, SEO, SEM, Video, and more resulting in rich content and relevant results.  People are looking for you in many different ways online.  In order to be found, you need a developed web presence. 

As Internet Marketing and Online Advertising Consultants In Milwaukee, We Specialize in SEO, SEM, Website Construction, Web Design, Reputation Marketing, Display Advertising, Local Advertising, Video advertising, and Social Marketing. Why do we handle all of these areas?  Because in order for a business to to be found online, it needs to be where perspective customers are looking for them.  And that is everywhere.  We handle all of this at a rate lower then most internet marketing firms.  Why?  Because in order for us to provide you with the most effective internet strategy.  You will need all of these areas covered.  Most companies will charge a separate fee for each product that you are using.  We don't, we know that in order to market your company effectively, all of these areas need to be covered at a reasonable cost.   If you want your business found on the internet, contact us. 414-699-5444.

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.

Seo milwaukee | Link Building or Relationship building?

 Being active is important if you want to build a presence online.  Relevant content is important and so is developing relationships.  It shouldn't be that difficult because by doing one, the other should develop with it.
Search engine watch  has a nice article on this,

Do you get queasy at the thought of the term "link building"? Well, maybe you're thinking about link building the wrong way.
Try thinking about link building as a way to build value and loyalty with people in your vertical. Not only will it be a longer-term effort that just spamming people for links, but the effect will be longer lasting and way more authentic.
That was the overarching message from the Screw Link Building, It's Called Relationship Building session last week at SES New York.
Speakers Erin Everhart (@erinever), director of web marketing, 352 Media Group, and Jo Turnbull (@SEOJoBlogs), founder, SEO Jo Blogs, explained how to build a relationship versus a link and broke down case studies to illustrate why relationship building is far more effective than the old ways of link building.

Why Build a Relationship Instead of a Link?

The benefits of relationship building, according to Turnbull, are:

• Low cost for you and your client.
• It’s longer lasting.
• It’s more beneficial to you and the client.
• Quality link building is about relationship building.
• You stay current with shifting market dynamics.
• Don’t be left behind by Google updates.

Sold? Now it's time to start building relationships. Her advice:

• Be honest and open to people.
• Attend events. Building relationships offline should be as much of a priority as building relationships online.
• Take the long-term view when building relationships. The results you get from those relationships will last longer and go further than just one link.
• Do something different and stand out so people will

click here for the rest of the article from  Victoria Edwards

 

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.  For more information go to the Web Presence Pro Website here.

Internet Advertising Milwaukee | Content Marketing for SEO

 Marketing your Milwaukee business online has become more and more based on the content that you are putting out for your customer to read.  Here is some great techniques you can use.

The Cornerstone of Content Marketing

Successful creative content marketing strategies can be broken down into three distinct phases:

• Discover: How does your audience find content?
• Consume: What type of media helps you optimize for that experience?
• Act: What will inspire your audience to take action? How do you want people to feel when they consume content? People act on emotion.

5 Creative Content Sourcing Ideas

Odden shared fantastic takeaways for participants who may struggle with the creative aspect of content marketing. Inspiring people to share and socialize can happen in a number of ways and the more creative you are (within reason), the better the chance of success.

1. Visualize Trends: Export data on trends such as SEMrush, Google's Keyword Tool, Majestic SEO, and Ubersuggest. Visualize these trends so content is easier to consume. Tools like Wordle and TweetCloud are great for this.
2. Your site: Source content from your site such as onsite search (logged queries in Google Analytics), form text area analysis, queries in analytics and data from Google Webmaster Tools. You can also create content by analyzing inbound link text
3. Frontline staff: Utilize your human capital and assets to create content across sales, customer service, and marketing departments.
4. Become a publisher: Think like a publisher, act like a publisher, become a publisher. Source content from magazines (recurring features, themes, short form and long form) newspapers (timely, objective, sensational) and television (storytelling, recaps, previews)
5. Customer Journey: Map, produce and optimize content based on your customers journey and pain points as they move through the buying cycle.

 This is a piece of an article found on Search engine watch written by Andy Betts,
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.

SEO Milwaukee | Call The Pros

 As Internet Marketing and Online Advertising Consultants In Milwaukee, We Specialize in SEO, SEM, Website Construction, Reputation Marketing, Display Advertising, Local Advertising, Video advertising, and Social Marketing. Why do we handle all of these areas?  Because in order for a business to to be found online, it needs to be where perspective customers are looking for them.  And that is everywhere.  We handle all of this at a rate lower then most internet marketing firms.  Why?  Because in order for us to provide you with the most effective internet strategy.  You will need all of these areas covered.  Most companies will charge a separate fee for each product that you are using.  We don't, we know that in order to market your company effectively, all of these areas need to be covered at a reasonable cost.   If you want your business found on the internet, contact us. Effective online marketing at a fair price.  414-699-5444.

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.

Milwaukee Local Advertising online tips

 Local Milwaukee and surrounding businesses need to make sure they are found on all the local search directories and engines along with social media.   Here is a great article explaining....

One phrase that has been ubiquitous when discussing offsite SEO tactics for the past decade is “link neighborhoods.” There have been countless articles, presentations and graphics describing what they are, how to identify them and how best to determine what your neighborhood is so you can focus your link building efforts there.
While most recent articles focus more on how to prevent your site from being associated with bad neighborhoods, trying to associate your site with good neighborhoods is still considered a best practice.
With the advent of local search rising in importance over the past six years, citations have been rising in importance.
There are many tools available to help you mine the citations, but it's quite easy to categorize them into neighborhoods similarly to how links exist. Let's look at some examples of citation neighborhoods, and tips for how you can take advantage of them.

Local Properties of Search Engines

The first set of sites to focus on isn’t really in a neighborhood at all but includes the sites that use the citations in different neighborhoods to verify and confirm the accuracy of their information. Specifically, Google+ Local, Bing Local, and Yahoo Local should all be ground zero for any local search marketing effort. Until a business has claimed and optimized their presence on these, citation generation is probably not the best use of the business owner’s time.
Tip: Claim your business listings, clean up duplicates, and fill out as much information as possible on Google+ Local, Bing Local, and Yahoo Local.

Large Directory Sites

There are dozens of sites in this neighborhood that have large amounts of structured citations, including Citysearch, YellowPages and Superpages. Filled with business listings dominated by data from the primary data aggregators (Localeze, InfoUSA, and Acxiom), businesses should obtain and clean up their citations in this neighborhood after taking care of listings on Google+ Local, Bing & Yahoo.
Tip: Utilize Localeze, InfoUSA and Acxiom to make sure that the information in this neighborhood of the local ecosystem is correct.

Social Media Sites

This neighborhood is rapidly becoming the number one place to generate unstructured citations and can influence heavily how you perform in the search engines for queries with local intent. Facebook and Twitter lead the way, but businesses should not overlook LinkedIn, Pinterest, and Tumblr. Besides making sure they have a business profile properly filled out, business owners should also work toward having people mention and tag their businesses on these sites.
Tip: On Facebook, ask your followers questions that would encourage them to respond with information that would add to your citation count. “Complete the following phrase and add to your timeline and be entered into our sweepstakes! ‘My favorite memory at [your city’s name]’s is...’”

Review Sites

Yelp is still the 800 pound gorilla in this neighborhood, but Angie’s List, TripAdvisor, OpenTable, and Judy’s Book are all important sites as well. Also, many sites in other neighborhoods – including the search engines themselves – offer user reviews which are more opportunities to build citations in those neighborhoods.
Tip: Claim your listings on these sites directly and make sure your business information is correct and secondary information optimized.

Niche Local Sites

A true “Neighborhood” in the classic sense of the word, these are going to be sites that all revolve around people’s current locations. Think of local government sites, local newspapers, local job boards, local event and meet-up sites, local restaurant bloggers, and so on. Any and all of these generally have mentions if not full citations of local businesses, and anytime a business can get its information listed on these sites can have a powerful effect on Google rankings.
Tip: On your next press release, include your address and/or phone number to build extra citations on sites in this neighborhood. Also, make sure your information appears correctly on your local Chamber of Commerce and Better Business Bureau sites.

Niche Industry Sites

There are tons of sites out there focused on a single industry that can be great places to obtain structured and unstructured citations. Often times, sites in this neighborhood are how-to guides, forums and other user-generated content sites that make adding citations relatively easily.
Tip: Start participating on industry sites and making sure to leave your business information where and when appropriate. Adam Dorfman, December 13, 2012

Summary

While it’s unlikely that Google has become adept enough to recognize neighborhoods when it comes to citations similarly to how they are able to with links, businesses with a wide variety of citations often tend to rank better.
As Google continues to refine its local ranking algorithm, it wouldn't be surprising to see them take a more “neighborhood” view of citations in the future; so spreading out those citations sources and going for ones in relevant neighborhoods is something all local search marketers should be focusing on now.

Full article 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.

Proving the Value of SEO | Internet Marketing Milwaukee

 Great Article from Search Engine Watch dealing with those non believers in SEO.

Convincing others of the importance of organic search and the need for SEO management has admittedly become easier over the years. Many have followed suit with competitors to jump into SEO endeavors to keep pace and many are coming to see that online organic ROI often times is much better than traditional marketing, is better targeted and easier to measure.
However, there remains a skeptical, more “old school” crowd, that still needs to be shown the need for organic search devotion. Whether you work for an agency trying to make a sale or on an in-house team tired of not drawing leads, taking a look at your Google Analytics data with this 10-minute drill down on what organic is doing for you can make a great impact.
Google Analytics has taken great strides in the last year or so by adding multi-channel attribution data to site reporting, in addition to maintaining historical bare bones data that can be quite convincing in itself. We now enjoy an analytical progression where additional data on referred visits that shows organic may be playing more of a part in your site conversion success than previously thought.
What follows are some of the common questions and responses you might get as you're painting the picture.

Click here for Full Article from  Josh McCoy on Search Engine Watch.

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.

Research For SEO vs. PPC

Often when I complete a keyword research project for a client, they ask me about keywords I may not have included, or they want to know what the relative competition on the keywords looks like. This happens often enough that I thought I would remind everyone that while research for SEO and PPC can go hand in hand, they’re actually very different.
First, think about what your goals are with each medium. What are you trying to do, and what constitutes success in that area? Next, think about how the keywords will be used. Where, when, how often?
Finally, consider what your margin for error is. If you don’t get exactly the right keyword, what’s the penalty?   Search Engine land Aug 28, 2012 at 11:11am ET by Jenny Halasz

What… Is Your Quest?

In SEO, your goal should be to understand the keyword landscape of a topic. What keywords do people search for, and what does this tell us about their intent? What can we learn from looking at keywords in a broader context?
For PPC, your goal should be to find the keywords that you can bid on. Which keywords are going to make you the most potential money for your cost-per-click investment?
You should focus on keywords that suggest a purchase (or goal completion), that represent a category area that is profitable for you, and that you can’t easily get ranked for in organic (most of the time – there are exceptions to this).

CLICK HERE to go to entire 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.

Reaping the Long-Term Benefits of Content Marketing

Milwaukee business owners trying to be found online have to remember 1 thing,  CONTENT.  Search engines are looking for relevant up to date content.  It is one of the ways that they are able to tell if you are engaged with your customers and that you are a legitimate business.  Here is a great article that explains more.
 

 Content marketing has the power to produce more than just links – it can enhance your brand image and build relationships with key brand advocates who are sure to get you even more links and exposure than you ever could without a content-based strategy.
It may sound counter-productive, but focusing less on link building can actually gain more links.
The four content marketing benefits below can all come with the additional side effect of natural links. Craft your content strategy with these core benefits in mind, and you can spend less (or even zero) time on link acquisition.

Click here for the full article from  Loren Baker, on Search Engine Watch

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.

Back to School Search Marketers

 Ok, time for us SEO marketers to buckle down and see how your customers are doing. 

The end of summer means it’s time for back to school. Kids of all ages are trading in their swimsuits for backpacks and heading back to class.

Now that summer vacation is behind us and a busy Q4 lies ahead, it’s as good a time as any for search marketers to crack open the books and make sure your account is in good shape and you have a solid plan for the future. Dave Ragals, August 30, 2012

Click here for full article from Search Engine Watch

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.

Internet advertising Milwaukee

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 or email him at borntorun1234@yahoo.com.

Call for a free Consultation on how to get your business found online.

414-699-5444

Or Email me at

borntorun1234@yahoo.com

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.

Images, Status Updates, Videos Spur Most Brand Engagement

A recent study from marketing firm Perfomics shows that 33 percent of people are most likely to respond to brand offers when they are reposted by a friend. The study states that 27 percent will do so on the brand's page, 26 percent from the newsfeed, and 20 percent from a social ad.
The study also touched on some valuable information about branded content engagement. Consumers are most likely to engage with branded content containing images (44 percent). A close 40 percent of people said they are likely to engage with Status Updates and 37 percent with videos.ClickZ, July 27, 2012

Another interesting piece of information the study stated was the social media tendencies of mothers and fathers. It showed that moms are more likely to have a Facebook account than dads, although dads are significantly more likely than all other men and women, including moms, to have YouTube and Twitter accounts.
This information is based on the Perfomics Life on Demand social media survey which studied 2,000 Americans who visit a social network at least once a day about their use of social media across devices, channels and screens.

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.

Paid Search Continues to grow

Milwaukee businesses are aware of how well PPC has grown as a part of everyone's online search strategy.  What they may not be aware is that it is now growing much slower then in tie past.
Paid search spend growth is relatively steady, but slowing from the impressive rates seen over the previous few quarters.
U.S. mobile paid search spend increased astronomically, while organic search visits from mobile, mobile as a percentage of total search spend, and mobile clicks and impressions all rose.

Q2 Paid Search Spend Up But Growth Rate Slows

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.

Do Milwaukee buisnesses need a middleman to advertise online?

 Nice article from Searchengineland.com regarding advertising online and the different ways an SMB may use a middleman to market their business.  I have to agree with this article but disagree in the fact that he see's automation in the future.  I think that SEO, Local, and Social media is changing so rapidly that the need for constant monitoring would be required by somebody other then automation if you want to continue to be successful.
Full article here

Having worked in the local search space for a while, I am often asked how is it that SMBs are so slow in adopting self-serve systems in their online advertising. And indeed, in the age of Internet advertising, when anyone can purchase keywords on search engines, is there really a need for a middleman anymore?

by  Hanan Lifshitz

While an important function of these middlemen is to convince the local plumber or dentist to spend their hard earned money on online advertising, they also help guide the SMB owner through the planning phases of the ad campaign, explaining the various options and helping to optimize the campaign.
In this post, I will review a number of local search platforms, from the traditional to the new, and examine the complexity that is involved in advertising on them.
Print Yellow Pages, the forefathers of SMB advertising, are relatively easy to understand – in order to gain visibility, an SMB has to purchase a large ad on the first page of his category. Pretty straightforward and simple:

Online Yellow Pages have added new features to their offerings, but the concept is still mostly the same – visibility is determined by size and placement of the SMB’s ad:

Local Search Sites such as CitySearch have added yet another level of complexity with features such as performance advertising that require some additional explaining.

And then we get to what many regard as the most effective form of local online marketing – search advertising. Search Engines have opened a whole new spectrum of options that make it far more difficult to understand and manage local ad campaigns. There is constant discussion on what SMBs should do to rank better (a couple of weeks ago, David Mihm posted his second volume of Local Search Ranking Factors – 27 experts analyzed and evaluated 49 criteria). Many SMBs may think that if they appear “first” on Google Maps in a certain relevant search, their job is done… However, this is often far from true.
Take for instance the following searches, conducted a few minutes apart, and the results they generate.
Search 1: plumbing contractor los angeles

Search 2: plumbing contractors los angeles – note that “The Best Plumber I Ever Had”, #1 from the previous list, is nowhere to be found.

Search 3: cheap plumber los angeles

Search 4: emergency plumbing los angeles, ca – and here is “The Best Plumber I Ever Had” again…

There are many more possible searches in this category and it is very likely that each of them will yield different results. Small, seemingly insignificant variations of a keyword (e.g. from singular to plural) or a geographic modifier (adding “ca”) can change the content of the 10 pack. This inherent complexity has bred a whole new class of companies like ReachLocal, Yodle and Webvisible, that help SMBs effectively manage such campaigns.
Looking at the development in the local advertising industry, from print to online, and even within the online world, it is clear that if anything, local search advertising services are getting more complicated. It is ironic that the question of whether mediators are still required in this industry has intensified in parallel to the ever growing complexity of online advertising. A complexity that for now, for the majority of SMB owners, can be overcome only with the help of… a middleman.
Being a big believer in self-serve, I predict that one day these complicated ad services will also be automated into systems that mask their complexity and enable users (SMBs) to simply enter their needs and budget and get the right solution. However, that will take some time and until then, the middleman will remain a critical component of this eco-system.

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 & Ecommerce: 10 Things Business Owners Need to Know Before July 

Mary Weinstein, June 29, 2012

 Fifty percent of Google Product Search traffic will be switching to paid Google Shopping by July 28. Online merchants who aren’t ready for the switch will face some serious repercussions. Below we break it down and present all the latest and greatest updates ecommerce business owners need to know about Google and Ecommerce to stay ahead of the changes.

1. Google Shopping is Google’s new paid option for merchants who wish to list products on Google’s product pages.

According to IgnitionOne, between 5 and 10 percent of search traffic for retailers comes from Google Product Search. Google Product Search, Google’s current free product listing program, will gradually be replaced by Product Listing Ads (PLAs) and ultimately Google Shopping.

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.

Milwaukee Pay Per Click customers here are 3 Ways PPC Averages Lie

 Thinking about advertising online using PPC?  Here is an article you need to read before you decide.

3 Ways PPC Averages Lie

Melissa Mackey, July 3, 2012

News organizations love to report averages. For example, in 2002 the CDC released data about the average height and weight of American adults. According to their data, the average adult woman is 5'4" and weighs 163 pounds.
Now think about all the adult women you know. Are they all 5'4"? Do they all weigh 163 pounds? Of course they don’t!

Averages are a necessary evil when it comes to reporting numbers. Averages help us spot trends.
For example, the CDC data comes from a study that shows that Americans have gotten taller and fatter over the past 40 years. It’s a red flag for the health care community, and one that tells them that action is needed to reverse the trend.
The same thing goes for PPC. If your average cost per conversion keeps inching up month after month, it’s probably time to dig in and find out why. It could mean that increased competition is pushing up your bids – but it could also mean that your website is no longer converting as well as it once did, and it’s time for a refresh.

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.

Twitter Cuts Off LinkedIn

As of June 29, users can no longer post updates to LinkedIn from popular microblogging site Twitter. The change marks the end of a two-year partnership between the two social media sites and is the result of Twitter’s clamping down on developers who use their API.   Miranda Miller Search engine watch

Click here for the full story

Head of Content Ryan Roslansky explained on the LinkedIn blog, “Consistent with Twitter’s evolving platform efforts, Tweets will no longer be displayed on LinkedIn starting later today. We know many of you value Twitter as an additional way to broadcast professional content beyond your LinkedIn connections. Moving forward, you will still be able to share your updates with your Twitter audience by posting them on LinkedIn.”
Just prior to the LinkedIn post going live, Twitter’s Director of Product Michael Sippey announced the change on the Developer blog, in a post called “Delivering Consistent Twitter Experience.” In his announcement, he wrote:

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.

Should Your Small Business Advertise on Facebook?

 Conflicting reports have shown Facebook ads to be both an effective and ineffective means for businesses to target their advertising dollars. But despite those dueling findings, small businesses may not want to automatically write off advertising on Facebook, especially if it is done correctly and expectations are managed.   ~ BusinessNewsDaily

click here for the full article 

 A report by Reuters/Ipsos which found that 80% of people said comments and advertisements on Facebook had not led them to make a purchase. On the other hand, a comScore report — which was co-sponsored by Facebook — showed that the ads did help purchases, sometimes as much as 38% over those not exposed to Facebook ads. Despite the different opinions in both those studies, they are both right… in a way.

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 Advertise for Your Plumbing Business In Milwaukee

Plumbing contractors in Milwaukee and surrounding areas are looking to find new ways for people to find them.  Out, or on its way out is Yellow Pages, Newspapers and other traditional media.  With the internet exploding as the go to media for pretty much anything, Plumbers need to find a way to get themselves a better representation so they are found better by local customers.  Still, some traditional media needs to be done to be found.   Here are a few good ideas

The plumbing industry is fairly saturated in a large number of geographic markets, but the target market of plumbing businesses — anyone with a home, apartment complex or office — is so vast that there is always room for new entrants. You can gain a foothold in the plumbing industry by applying innovative, cost-efficient advertising techniques to make your company stand out from established competitors, and by offering first-class customer service.
 by David Ingram, Demand Media

Step 1

Create an eye-catching logo and slogan. A good deal of plumbers do not utilize these time-honored advertising techniques, and those who do can gain a competitive advantage in picking up new clients. Consumers may subconsciously associate businesses with logos and slogans with higher quality and reliability, while associating others with a generic brand image.

Step 2

Use your personal and business vehicles as advertising media. Paint your logo, slogan and contact information on the sides and rear of your vehicles. Use as few words as possible when advertising this way, and make sure that passers-by and other motorists can clearly read your contact information from a reasonable distance to maximize its effectiveness.

Step 3

Pass out service brochures and promotions to apartment and office complexes. Try to secure as many partnerships with apartments and offices as possible, as this can lead to long-term growth opportunities. Offer price discounts to these large customers in return for frequent business.

Step 4

Send promotions via mail to homes in your area. Direct mail campaigns can be most effective when the advertising message has a high degree of relevance to a large number of recipients. In the case of plumbing services, virtually every home in your community is a potential client, making direct mail a highly effective technique.

Step 5

Invest extra money into searchable advertising media. Pay extra for premium listings on search engines, and foot the bill for quarter- or half-page color advertisements in local telephone books and business directories. Place advertisements in local newspapers and general-editorial community magazines as well. Think “wide, local reach” when choosing advertising outlets. Remember that your target market consists of every single home, office and apartment complex in your area.

Step 6

Place coupons in community business publications. Take advantage of opportunities to place promotions in coupon books sold by direct marketing companies and youth organizations, such as sports teams and Scout troops. Place promotions in coupon-circulars as well to increase your advertising exposure and take advantage of the circular's established delivery system.

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.

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.