Our Holiday Gift to You - Ten Top Must-Do's for Marketing Your Business Online

Identify!

1. Identify Your USP

            What is Your Unique Selling Proposition?

            What do you do differently or better than anybody else around?

           

If you have an existing business, get help figuring out what it is.

If you’re thinking about starting a new business, figure out what people need or want (see “keyword research” below).

Example: At SEO Ann Arbor, we started out serving SE Michigan businesses. Our selling proposition, which was somewhat unique in internet marketing, was that if you aren’t getting the results you want, you can sit across the desk from one of our founders and tell us exactly what you DO want!

If you don’t have a USP, create one!

2. Identify Your Best Customers

What customers are most profitable, the least trouble, and the kind of people you most enjoy doing business with?

Most business owners who take the time to research this are surprised by how often the most troublesome customers are the least profitable, and the most rewarding customers are the least trouble!

Can you identify your best three customers? What makes them the best?

3. Identify the pains or problems of your best customers that you can solve!

            My website’s not on Page One of Google!

            I can’t get my web guy to call me back!

            My neighbor’s sister in law designs websites and ....

            What are some pains or problems of your best customers that YOU can solve?

 Engage!

4. Explain Your Solution in “Engaging” Terms

            Engaging 1 - From the customer’s point of view

At last, someone I can meet with face to face who can explain what I need to do to get on Page One of Google!

            Or: Wow! A web guy who actually returns my calls!

Remember your USP? Keep in mind that if you make promises in your marketing, you have to structure your business to KEEP the promises. Nothing will destroy a bad business quicker than great marketing!

Engaging 2 – Designed to convince the customer to enlist or take action.

                        Learn Based Marketing

A lesson in SEO

                                    How to shop for internet marketing experts

                                    Top 5 List

                        Offer something in return for their participation!         

5. Use the contact information you get to build a base of interested people

Treat those people very, very well.

Be generous with your information. The days of withholding professional information are over. I can find virtually every secret of what you do on the internet. My problem is not finding the information, it’s finding the time, the specialized equipment, or the expertise to do what you do.

Inform, educate, entertain, and nurture your customer base.

6. Craft Niche Campaigns – one at a time!

            Base each campaign on a specific segment of your target customers.

            Dentist Offices: what do you say besides “hey, customers, I’m a dentist!”

            Pain: I get frequent headaches!

            Our solution: We diagnose TMJ problems.

Customer point of view: “Amazing! My dentist cured my tmj headaches in four appointments!”

Is it within your USP?

            Are the customers within your target customer profile?

            Can you fulfill the promise made in your marketing?

           

Saturate!

7. Create marketing copy

            Articles

            How To’s

            Top Ten Lists

            FAQs

            Videos

            Write for the web

            Engaging

            Divisible

8. Be social, be very social

            Twitter

            Facebook

            LinkedIn

Youtube         

Blog

            Articles

            email Newsletter

           

            Stay within the niche campaign – create Page One Power!

            Educate, inform, entertain .... enlist!

9. Be consistent, continuous, and considerate

            Pick a day every week to add info. Or two. Or three.

            Don’t miss those days. If you have to use Hubspot or Hootsuite.

            Don’t stop doing it.

            Make sure you provide a way to opt out.

            Actually provide useful information – don’t waste people’s time.

Test and Measure!

10. Test and Measure

            Are you actually getting more calls or emails?

            How many unsubscribes?

            What kinds of calls are you getting?

            Can you tweak your content to get different kinds of calls?

Don’t use the word Cadillac if you want Toyota customers!