Google rumored to be in talks to buy YouTube
$1.6 BILLION DEAL FOR ONE OF THE FASTEST-GROWING INTERNET SITES
By Ryan Blitstein
Mercury News
Paul Sakuma / Associated Press archives
Workers walk in front of Google headquarters in Mountain View, Calif. in a file photo from Feb. 1, 2005. According to a Wall Street Journal report Friday, Internet search leader Google Inc. is in talks to acquire the popular online video site YouTube Inc. for about $1.6 billion.
Google seeks rivals' data for lawsuit over libraries
More Google coverage
Google is in talks to acquire the video sharing Web site YouTube for approximately $1.6 billion, the Wall Street Journal has reported. Several blogs, including TechCrunch, have contributed to the rumor mill surrounding alleged discussions.
``We do not comment on rumor and speculation,'' said a Google spokeswoman.
A spokeswoman for YouTube also declined comment.
YouTube allows users to post and share videos -- some self-produced, others captured from copyrighted material, including film clips and music videos. The San Mateo-based company, founded in 2005, is one of the fastest-growing sites in Internet history. Its audience now watches more than 100 million videos a day.
Google Video, a similar service from the Mountain View company, attracted a unique audience of about 13 million people in August 2006, compared to more than 34 million for YouTube, according to Nielsen/NetRatings.
YouTube has been criticized by major entertainment companies because of the copyrighted content its users post. Recently, the company has signed deals with NBC and Warner Music, which have helped to lessen the criticism. These deals have also begun to bring in much-needed revenue to a site that still lacks a clear business model.
Source: http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/business/15696466.htm
Reposted by:
Zach Hoffman
www.SEO.cc - Online Marketing Agency
Zach@SEO.cc
Dial Up: 954-763-1130
Friday, October 06, 2006
MySpace Attracts Older Audience - WSJ Article - Online Marketing Demographics
MySpace Attracts Older Audience
Associated PressOctober 6, 2006;
Page B4NEW YORK --
Half of MySpace's users are 35 or older, according to comScore Media Metrix's analysis of its U.S. Internet traffic measurements. Only 30% are under 25, despite a common belief that the site is mostly populated with children and young adults.Just a year ago, teens under 18 made up about 25% of MySpace, the popular online hangout run by News Corp. That is now down to 12% in the comScore analysis released yesterday.By contrast, the 35-to-54 group at MySpace grew to 41% in August, from 32% a year earlier."This analysis confirms that the appeal of social-networking sites is far broader," said Jack Flanagan, executive vice president for comScore, adding that the data suggest that social networking is becoming mainstream.Sites such as MySpace encourage users to stay in touch by offering tools such as message boards, photo sharing and personal profile pages. Members can expand their networks by adding other users as friends and, in turn, connecting with their friends.The study was based on comScore's regular panels for measuring Internet audiences, rather than MySpace's registration information, where users often lie about their age.ComScore also reported that MySpace had 56 million unique U.S. visitors in August, much less than the 100 million-plus registered users MySpace has world-wide. The company has said about 10% of its users are abroad. A better explanation for the gap is the fact that many people have multiple profiles, each counted separately by MySpace but not by comScore.Facebook had 15 million unique visitors, Xanga eight million and Friendster one million, according to comScore.
Copyright © 2006 Associated Press
Reposted by Zach Hoffman
Online Marketing Agency
Dial Up: 954-763-1130
Associated PressOctober 6, 2006;
Page B4NEW YORK --
Half of MySpace's users are 35 or older, according to comScore Media Metrix's analysis of its U.S. Internet traffic measurements. Only 30% are under 25, despite a common belief that the site is mostly populated with children and young adults.Just a year ago, teens under 18 made up about 25% of MySpace, the popular online hangout run by News Corp. That is now down to 12% in the comScore analysis released yesterday.By contrast, the 35-to-54 group at MySpace grew to 41% in August, from 32% a year earlier."This analysis confirms that the appeal of social-networking sites is far broader," said Jack Flanagan, executive vice president for comScore, adding that the data suggest that social networking is becoming mainstream.Sites such as MySpace encourage users to stay in touch by offering tools such as message boards, photo sharing and personal profile pages. Members can expand their networks by adding other users as friends and, in turn, connecting with their friends.The study was based on comScore's regular panels for measuring Internet audiences, rather than MySpace's registration information, where users often lie about their age.ComScore also reported that MySpace had 56 million unique U.S. visitors in August, much less than the 100 million-plus registered users MySpace has world-wide. The company has said about 10% of its users are abroad. A better explanation for the gap is the fact that many people have multiple profiles, each counted separately by MySpace but not by comScore.Facebook had 15 million unique visitors, Xanga eight million and Friendster one million, according to comScore.
Copyright © 2006 Associated Press
Reposted by Zach Hoffman
Online Marketing Agency
Dial Up: 954-763-1130
Tuesday, September 19, 2006
What's your profile? Businesses tap into MySpace
What's your profile? Businesses tap into MySpace
Jun. 11, 2006 12:00 AM
MySpace.com, the social-networking Web site that has attracted tens of millions of teen and young adult users, is beginning to lure a new type of member: corporate America.Dozens of companies have established MySpace profiles since the Web site's launch in January 2004, hoping to create buzz for their products, cultivate customer loyalty and build brand awareness among the popular Web site's more than 83 million users."It's the electronic version of grass-roots marketing," said Chris Arnold, a spokesman for Denver-based Chipotle Mexican Grill, which launched its MySpace profile this month. Twentieth Century Fox, which like MySpace is owned by Rupert Murdoch's News Corp., used the Web site to promote its movie X-Men: The Last Stand, which arrived in theaters last month.
Source: Denver Post
Reposted by: Zach Hoffman - Online Marketing Agency - PH: 954-763-1130
Jun. 11, 2006 12:00 AM
MySpace.com, the social-networking Web site that has attracted tens of millions of teen and young adult users, is beginning to lure a new type of member: corporate America.Dozens of companies have established MySpace profiles since the Web site's launch in January 2004, hoping to create buzz for their products, cultivate customer loyalty and build brand awareness among the popular Web site's more than 83 million users."It's the electronic version of grass-roots marketing," said Chris Arnold, a spokesman for Denver-based Chipotle Mexican Grill, which launched its MySpace profile this month. Twentieth Century Fox, which like MySpace is owned by Rupert Murdoch's News Corp., used the Web site to promote its movie X-Men: The Last Stand, which arrived in theaters last month.
Source: Denver Post
Reposted by: Zach Hoffman - Online Marketing Agency - PH: 954-763-1130
Benefits to Using MySpace.com to Promote Your Practice
Benefits to Using MySpace.com to Promote Your Practice
By Zach Hoffman, www.SEO.cc – Online Marketing Agency
MySpace.com is quickly being adapted as a part of many small and large business marketing plans. The reason is MySpace.com is currently the world’s 4th most popular English website and the 3rd most popular website in the United States (Source: Alexa.com August 2006). The site is attracting new users at a pace of over 230,000 new users per a day which means the network is only going to get larger and spread to additional demographics.
What advantages in marketing does MySpace.com allow?
Outright it shows your practice is progressive and with the times. The site offers the following advantages:
Demographic targeting,
Technical advantages (HTML coding for profiles),
And external marketing capabilities.
Your profile can also be updated quickly (within minutes) and resubmitted for the general public to see. Additions to your profile in regards to material can also be added in an instant.
Demographic Targeting
You can find people to invite to your social network based on a variety of criteria including:
Age,
Sex,
Marital Status,
Zip Code Proximity,
And, Income Level.
For example if you are a cosmetic doctor and would like to target both Males and Females who are divorced, single, and between the ages of 35-60 you can access all these profiles at the click of a button. You set your search criteria and let MySpace.com bring you back the results. Now the tedious work comes in inviting these people to join your profile. But once you invite them to join your profile you have extensive access to these people. You can now make posts on their profiles comments, send them e-mails, and bulletin board postings which appear on their internal profile with any promotions you may be offering.
Technical Advantages
Your profile is HTML capable which allows it to be programmed similarly to websites. You can adapt all of your forms of marketing mediums (including audio, newsletters, pictures, and videos) to be displayed on your MySpace account. Capabilities are built onto the site to allow for easy Blog updates. Photos can also be easily uploaded and commented on within your MySpace account.
External Marketing Capabilities
Traditional media is quickly attempting to adapt to the fast paced new age marketing environment by adopting MySpace. All types of media networks today plug their profiles throughout their telecasts, movies create profiles for fans and loyalist to talk about them, actors use it to maintain fan relationships, MySpace is even spawning its own celebrities, the list goes on of different types of people and businesses using MySpace to push their web presence to the next level.
Some of the capabilities for your external marketing include the ability to post bulletin board messages on your friend’s profiles, send e-mail’s to your network, and communicate within your network on an intimate level with potential clients.
The quicker you decide to get onto MySpace.com the better off you will be in communicating your message. MySpace.com is quickly being adopted and many players in the market have a lot to gain from first mover advantage on this network.
Thank You for Reading this & Good Luck on MySpace (If you have any questions feel free to contact me),
Zach Hoffman
www.SEO.cc – Online Marketing Agency
SEO, Inc., CEO
Zach@SEO.cc
954-763-1130
By Zach Hoffman, www.SEO.cc – Online Marketing Agency
MySpace.com is quickly being adapted as a part of many small and large business marketing plans. The reason is MySpace.com is currently the world’s 4th most popular English website and the 3rd most popular website in the United States (Source: Alexa.com August 2006). The site is attracting new users at a pace of over 230,000 new users per a day which means the network is only going to get larger and spread to additional demographics.
What advantages in marketing does MySpace.com allow?
Outright it shows your practice is progressive and with the times. The site offers the following advantages:
Demographic targeting,
Technical advantages (HTML coding for profiles),
And external marketing capabilities.
Your profile can also be updated quickly (within minutes) and resubmitted for the general public to see. Additions to your profile in regards to material can also be added in an instant.
Demographic Targeting
You can find people to invite to your social network based on a variety of criteria including:
Age,
Sex,
Marital Status,
Zip Code Proximity,
And, Income Level.
For example if you are a cosmetic doctor and would like to target both Males and Females who are divorced, single, and between the ages of 35-60 you can access all these profiles at the click of a button. You set your search criteria and let MySpace.com bring you back the results. Now the tedious work comes in inviting these people to join your profile. But once you invite them to join your profile you have extensive access to these people. You can now make posts on their profiles comments, send them e-mails, and bulletin board postings which appear on their internal profile with any promotions you may be offering.
Technical Advantages
Your profile is HTML capable which allows it to be programmed similarly to websites. You can adapt all of your forms of marketing mediums (including audio, newsletters, pictures, and videos) to be displayed on your MySpace account. Capabilities are built onto the site to allow for easy Blog updates. Photos can also be easily uploaded and commented on within your MySpace account.
External Marketing Capabilities
Traditional media is quickly attempting to adapt to the fast paced new age marketing environment by adopting MySpace. All types of media networks today plug their profiles throughout their telecasts, movies create profiles for fans and loyalist to talk about them, actors use it to maintain fan relationships, MySpace is even spawning its own celebrities, the list goes on of different types of people and businesses using MySpace to push their web presence to the next level.
Some of the capabilities for your external marketing include the ability to post bulletin board messages on your friend’s profiles, send e-mail’s to your network, and communicate within your network on an intimate level with potential clients.
The quicker you decide to get onto MySpace.com the better off you will be in communicating your message. MySpace.com is quickly being adopted and many players in the market have a lot to gain from first mover advantage on this network.
Thank You for Reading this & Good Luck on MySpace (If you have any questions feel free to contact me),
Zach Hoffman
www.SEO.cc – Online Marketing Agency
SEO, Inc., CEO
Zach@SEO.cc
954-763-1130
Long Copy vs. Short Copy
Long Copy VS Short… Which One Sells Better?
By Susan Greene
If long copy leads to poor results, it isn’t because of the length. Rather, it has to do with the copy’s content. If the copy is boring or doesn’t contain some kernel that the reader can instantly relate to, then he’ll stop reading. However, if the copy, lengthy though it may be, engages, entices, educates or entertains, then you’ll have no problem keeping the reader’s interest.They say, “The Internet is a fast medium. People don’t want to read long blocks of text. They’ll click away.”
The reality is that prospects who are genuinely interested in the product you offer always want more information about it, not less. If they are not interested in the product or not qualified, no matter how long or short the copy is, they will just never buy. They won’t read 15 words, much less 1,500. If long copy leads to poor results, it isn’t because of the length. Rather, it has to do with the copy’s content. If the copy is boring or doesn’t contain some kernel that the reader can instantly relate to, then he’ll stop reading. However, if the copy, lengthy though it may be, engages, entices, educates or entertains, then you’ll have no problem keeping the reader’s interest.When it is well written, long copy can significantly outperform short copy and lead to a much greater level of response. Prospects want more product information, particularly when buying on the Internet where they can’t see in person, touch or test-drive the product. Detailed feature and benefit statements are the golden nuggets that tempt prospects and cause conversions.Shorter copy can lead to several potential outcomes: a lower response rate due to lack of compelling information; a barrage of information requests because the copy didn’t successfully answer the prospect’s questions; or a higher number of cancellations or refund requests because the product or service was not what the customer anticipated based on the limited information he read.So, if you’re writing for the Web, just how many words should a page contain?
The optimum size is 250 words for maximum effectiveness. While it may seem like a lot, a 250-word count for each page balances search engine and reader needs. Search engine spiders crave content, especially keyword-rich content. You may see “a lot of words,” but the search engines see “a document with lots of important data to extract.” As long as you follow usability principles, you can write tons of text without overwhelming your reader. Besides if the search engines see a lot of key phrases combined with a low-word count, they may flag your site for spamming. A longer word count makes it easier to include your key phrases without sacrificing your marketing message.
Do you lose customers with scrolling copy? No, according to a study by User Interface Engineering (UEI). “One of the most significant findings of our research on web site usability is that users are perfectly willing to scroll. However, they’ll only do it if the pages gives them strong clues that scrolling will help them find what they’re looking for,” reports the article As the Page Scrolls from UEI. “In the trade-off between hiding content below the fold or spreading it across several pages, readership increases when the content is on a single page.”
Susan Greene is a freelance copywriter located in Orlando, Florida. Visit her website at (www.SusanGreeneCopywriter.com) or contact Susan at
susan@susangreenecopywriter.com, (407) 578-5528.
Reposted by Zach Hoffman - Online Marketing Agency - 954-763-1130
By Susan Greene
If long copy leads to poor results, it isn’t because of the length. Rather, it has to do with the copy’s content. If the copy is boring or doesn’t contain some kernel that the reader can instantly relate to, then he’ll stop reading. However, if the copy, lengthy though it may be, engages, entices, educates or entertains, then you’ll have no problem keeping the reader’s interest.They say, “The Internet is a fast medium. People don’t want to read long blocks of text. They’ll click away.”
The reality is that prospects who are genuinely interested in the product you offer always want more information about it, not less. If they are not interested in the product or not qualified, no matter how long or short the copy is, they will just never buy. They won’t read 15 words, much less 1,500. If long copy leads to poor results, it isn’t because of the length. Rather, it has to do with the copy’s content. If the copy is boring or doesn’t contain some kernel that the reader can instantly relate to, then he’ll stop reading. However, if the copy, lengthy though it may be, engages, entices, educates or entertains, then you’ll have no problem keeping the reader’s interest.When it is well written, long copy can significantly outperform short copy and lead to a much greater level of response. Prospects want more product information, particularly when buying on the Internet where they can’t see in person, touch or test-drive the product. Detailed feature and benefit statements are the golden nuggets that tempt prospects and cause conversions.Shorter copy can lead to several potential outcomes: a lower response rate due to lack of compelling information; a barrage of information requests because the copy didn’t successfully answer the prospect’s questions; or a higher number of cancellations or refund requests because the product or service was not what the customer anticipated based on the limited information he read.So, if you’re writing for the Web, just how many words should a page contain?
The optimum size is 250 words for maximum effectiveness. While it may seem like a lot, a 250-word count for each page balances search engine and reader needs. Search engine spiders crave content, especially keyword-rich content. You may see “a lot of words,” but the search engines see “a document with lots of important data to extract.” As long as you follow usability principles, you can write tons of text without overwhelming your reader. Besides if the search engines see a lot of key phrases combined with a low-word count, they may flag your site for spamming. A longer word count makes it easier to include your key phrases without sacrificing your marketing message.
Do you lose customers with scrolling copy? No, according to a study by User Interface Engineering (UEI). “One of the most significant findings of our research on web site usability is that users are perfectly willing to scroll. However, they’ll only do it if the pages gives them strong clues that scrolling will help them find what they’re looking for,” reports the article As the Page Scrolls from UEI. “In the trade-off between hiding content below the fold or spreading it across several pages, readership increases when the content is on a single page.”
Susan Greene is a freelance copywriter located in Orlando, Florida. Visit her website at (www.SusanGreeneCopywriter.com) or contact Susan at
susan@susangreenecopywriter.com, (407) 578-5528.
Reposted by Zach Hoffman - Online Marketing Agency - 954-763-1130
AOL, Intel Launch PC-to-TV Programming
by Jason Lee Miller
Staff Writer WebProNews
Published: 2006-09-18
AOL and Intel launched an on-demand video service for Intel Viiv-based PCs. The joint effort provides AOL Video's online library of movies, TV shows, music videos, concerts, and sports videos, viewable on large-screen televisions.
Much of the programming from the PC to TV screen is free to consumers with a large number of videos available in DVD quality via AOL's Hi-Q format.
The service offers 45 channels of on-demand video programming featuring original, licensed and branded content; downloadable movies; AOL's video search index. The user interface offers menu choices to search the entire video library, browse a video category, or choose from AOL's recommended viewing list via remote control.
"We are very excited to launch our 10-foot AOL Video service with Intel and make what we believe to be the best online video experience on the Web available to consumers on the next generation of PCs and TVs," said Kevin Conroy, Executive Vice President, AOL.
"AOL Video on Intel Viiv technology-based PCs combines the best premium Web video experience with the best media PC platform to deliver a whole new experience that will forever change how consumers use their TVs," said Kevin Corbett, vice president of Intel's Digital Home Group and general manager of the company's Content Services Group.
Viiv-based PCs will also include AOL Radio, featuring XM Satellite Radio, and AOL Pictures, a free online digital photo service. In the future, AOL will include Music Now, the company's online digital music store and subscription service.
AOL set up a new site called Digital Lifestyle Web site, designed to educate consumers about digital media consumption in the home and on the go for devices and technology platforms related to video, music, photos and home networking. The Digital Lifestyle Web site has articles and video clips from consumer technology experts, online classes, and buying guides for technology products.
The site also features an Intel-sponsored multimedia blog called "My Plugged In Life," focusing on user-generated content.
Reposted by Zach Hoffman - Online Marketing Agency - 954-763-1130
Staff Writer WebProNews
Published: 2006-09-18
AOL and Intel launched an on-demand video service for Intel Viiv-based PCs. The joint effort provides AOL Video's online library of movies, TV shows, music videos, concerts, and sports videos, viewable on large-screen televisions.
Much of the programming from the PC to TV screen is free to consumers with a large number of videos available in DVD quality via AOL's Hi-Q format.
The service offers 45 channels of on-demand video programming featuring original, licensed and branded content; downloadable movies; AOL's video search index. The user interface offers menu choices to search the entire video library, browse a video category, or choose from AOL's recommended viewing list via remote control.
"We are very excited to launch our 10-foot AOL Video service with Intel and make what we believe to be the best online video experience on the Web available to consumers on the next generation of PCs and TVs," said Kevin Conroy, Executive Vice President, AOL.
"AOL Video on Intel Viiv technology-based PCs combines the best premium Web video experience with the best media PC platform to deliver a whole new experience that will forever change how consumers use their TVs," said Kevin Corbett, vice president of Intel's Digital Home Group and general manager of the company's Content Services Group.
Viiv-based PCs will also include AOL Radio, featuring XM Satellite Radio, and AOL Pictures, a free online digital photo service. In the future, AOL will include Music Now, the company's online digital music store and subscription service.
AOL set up a new site called Digital Lifestyle Web site, designed to educate consumers about digital media consumption in the home and on the go for devices and technology platforms related to video, music, photos and home networking. The Digital Lifestyle Web site has articles and video clips from consumer technology experts, online classes, and buying guides for technology products.
The site also features an Intel-sponsored multimedia blog called "My Plugged In Life," focusing on user-generated content.
Reposted by Zach Hoffman - Online Marketing Agency - 954-763-1130
Make Your Website Sell As Well As Your Best Sales Person
Make Your Website Sell As Well As Your Best Sales Person By Charlie Cook, In Mind Communications, LLC.
How would you like to make your website as personal as meeting someone at a tradeshow? Your website is available 24/7/365 and it’s worldwide. Maybe you don’t have to fly all over the country with a booth after all! Charlie Cook offers four sound tips for bringing in as many sales as your best salesperson does.
1. Target People Who Are Looking To Solve a ProblemPeople come to trade shows because they are looking for a product or service. When they walk up to your booth, you know they’re at least mildly interested and want more information. Online, the best ways to attract people who are looking for your products and services is to make sure your site can be found in the search engines, to use pay-per-click ads like Google Adwords and to get your articles published everywhere you can online.
2. Start a Conversation What’s the first thing you do when a prospect walks up to your booth at a tradeshow? Do you immediately start spouting product features and prices, or do you introduce yourself and try to get a conversation going by asking them a question? Of course, you don’t immediately try to sell them. First you find out what you can about their business and which product would best suit their needs. The same is true online. If you immediately try to sell people, you’ll turn them off and they’ll go away. Instead, write marketing copy on your web site that begins a virtual conversation with prospects. Start by asking them the biggest or most common question on their minds relative to your product or service. Continue to ask questions about their problems and aspirations. Use this virtual conversation to spell out their concerns and, once you’ve defined them, explain how the solutions you provide solve their problems.
3. Build a Relationship by Being HelpfulWhere does your best business come from? From clients you’ve been helping for years; clients who know and trust you. When you’re standing in front of a prospect, you can hand them a free report, answer their questions directly and demonstrate your expertise.Converting online prospects to clients involves doing the same things with your web site marketing. Offer a free report to prospects to prompt them to give you their contact information. List commonly asked questions; then answer. Include content on the site that demonstrates your expertise and knowledge of your customers’ business needs.Think about how many ideas and how much information you’d share with a prospect in a 15 minute face-to-face conversation at a tradeshow. Your web site needs to present at least this much information. In fact, it gives you the opportunity to present more.
4. Make it PersonalMake a personal connection with your prospects. If you’re an entrepreneur or a business owner, use your web site to help prospects get to know you. Help your prospects see you as more than just an anonymous site that wants their money. Do this by:
• Putting up snapshots of yourself in your office or on the golf course.
• Using audio and or video clips with ideas prospects can use throughout your site.
• Providing free Telecalls. Not only does this give your prospects a chance to hear you demonstrate your expertise, it gives you an opportunity to find out what they’re really thinking about.
• Using ‘Live Help’ on your site. Most businesses have hundreds, if not thousands, of competitors and many of them market similar products and services. Whether you’re marketing in person or online, your best competitive advantage is the strength of your relationship with your prospects. For getting a conversation going or closing a sale, nothing beats being there in person, talking face to face with a prospect. But your website marketing can and should do as good a job. You don’t have to live with conversion rates in the thousandths of a percent. Put the four ideas above to work and make your site sell.
Reposted by Zach Hoffman
www.SEO.cc - SEO, Inc.
Dial Up: 954-763-1131
How would you like to make your website as personal as meeting someone at a tradeshow? Your website is available 24/7/365 and it’s worldwide. Maybe you don’t have to fly all over the country with a booth after all! Charlie Cook offers four sound tips for bringing in as many sales as your best salesperson does.
1. Target People Who Are Looking To Solve a ProblemPeople come to trade shows because they are looking for a product or service. When they walk up to your booth, you know they’re at least mildly interested and want more information. Online, the best ways to attract people who are looking for your products and services is to make sure your site can be found in the search engines, to use pay-per-click ads like Google Adwords and to get your articles published everywhere you can online.
2. Start a Conversation What’s the first thing you do when a prospect walks up to your booth at a tradeshow? Do you immediately start spouting product features and prices, or do you introduce yourself and try to get a conversation going by asking them a question? Of course, you don’t immediately try to sell them. First you find out what you can about their business and which product would best suit their needs. The same is true online. If you immediately try to sell people, you’ll turn them off and they’ll go away. Instead, write marketing copy on your web site that begins a virtual conversation with prospects. Start by asking them the biggest or most common question on their minds relative to your product or service. Continue to ask questions about their problems and aspirations. Use this virtual conversation to spell out their concerns and, once you’ve defined them, explain how the solutions you provide solve their problems.
3. Build a Relationship by Being HelpfulWhere does your best business come from? From clients you’ve been helping for years; clients who know and trust you. When you’re standing in front of a prospect, you can hand them a free report, answer their questions directly and demonstrate your expertise.Converting online prospects to clients involves doing the same things with your web site marketing. Offer a free report to prospects to prompt them to give you their contact information. List commonly asked questions; then answer. Include content on the site that demonstrates your expertise and knowledge of your customers’ business needs.Think about how many ideas and how much information you’d share with a prospect in a 15 minute face-to-face conversation at a tradeshow. Your web site needs to present at least this much information. In fact, it gives you the opportunity to present more.
4. Make it PersonalMake a personal connection with your prospects. If you’re an entrepreneur or a business owner, use your web site to help prospects get to know you. Help your prospects see you as more than just an anonymous site that wants their money. Do this by:
• Putting up snapshots of yourself in your office or on the golf course.
• Using audio and or video clips with ideas prospects can use throughout your site.
• Providing free Telecalls. Not only does this give your prospects a chance to hear you demonstrate your expertise, it gives you an opportunity to find out what they’re really thinking about.
• Using ‘Live Help’ on your site. Most businesses have hundreds, if not thousands, of competitors and many of them market similar products and services. Whether you’re marketing in person or online, your best competitive advantage is the strength of your relationship with your prospects. For getting a conversation going or closing a sale, nothing beats being there in person, talking face to face with a prospect. But your website marketing can and should do as good a job. You don’t have to live with conversion rates in the thousandths of a percent. Put the four ideas above to work and make your site sell.
Reposted by Zach Hoffman
www.SEO.cc - SEO, Inc.
Dial Up: 954-763-1131
Thursday, September 07, 2006
Bargain Hunters Lose Papers, Find Craigslist
By: Jason Lee Miller
Staff Writer @ WebProNews.com
Published: 2006-09-06
People are more and more putting down the red markers, forsaking ink-stained fingers in favor of carpel tunnel and blue-light specials at online classified websites. comScore reports the industry has grown by 47 percent over the past year - not so much from the folks in the Ozarks, though.
The highest concentration of US online classified users is where you'd think it'd be: in Silicon Valley and up the West Coast. The Pacific region accounted for nearly twenty percent of visitors, followed by the South Atlantic and Mid-Atlantic. Along the Old Man's brow, in the East South Central region, the river folk make up just four percent of online job seekers and bargain hunters. Craigslist leads all others, growing by 99 percent over the last year, attracting nearly 14 million July visitors, or over a third of the 37.4 million classified site visitors. "As the category leader, Craigslist has clearly impacted the way in which new and traditional media companies approach the classifieds business," said Andrew Lipsman, Senior Analyst of comScore Networks. Trader Publishing Company wasn't far behind with over 10 million unique visitors, but if taken as a whole with third place AutoTrader, which TPC owns as well, the total moves to over 16 million. With Craigslist and TPC controlling 75 percent of the online classified sector, the remaining 10 million visitors preferred, in order, Cars.com, Apartments.com, Livedeal.com, Homescape.com, Backpage.com, Oodle.com, and RegionalHelpWanted.com sites. The demographics for online classified visitors didn't skew as young and rich as other categories. The majority are between the ages 35 and 54, representing nearly 43 percent. Nearly the same percentage, 41.4, making less than $60,000 per year.
Craigslist, Online Classifieds
Republished by www.SEO.cc
Zach Hoffman
Zach@SEO.cc
Dial Up: 954-763-1130
Staff Writer @ WebProNews.com
Published: 2006-09-06
People are more and more putting down the red markers, forsaking ink-stained fingers in favor of carpel tunnel and blue-light specials at online classified websites. comScore reports the industry has grown by 47 percent over the past year - not so much from the folks in the Ozarks, though.
The highest concentration of US online classified users is where you'd think it'd be: in Silicon Valley and up the West Coast. The Pacific region accounted for nearly twenty percent of visitors, followed by the South Atlantic and Mid-Atlantic. Along the Old Man's brow, in the East South Central region, the river folk make up just four percent of online job seekers and bargain hunters. Craigslist leads all others, growing by 99 percent over the last year, attracting nearly 14 million July visitors, or over a third of the 37.4 million classified site visitors. "As the category leader, Craigslist has clearly impacted the way in which new and traditional media companies approach the classifieds business," said Andrew Lipsman, Senior Analyst of comScore Networks. Trader Publishing Company wasn't far behind with over 10 million unique visitors, but if taken as a whole with third place AutoTrader, which TPC owns as well, the total moves to over 16 million. With Craigslist and TPC controlling 75 percent of the online classified sector, the remaining 10 million visitors preferred, in order, Cars.com, Apartments.com, Livedeal.com, Homescape.com, Backpage.com, Oodle.com, and RegionalHelpWanted.com sites. The demographics for online classified visitors didn't skew as young and rich as other categories. The majority are between the ages 35 and 54, representing nearly 43 percent. Nearly the same percentage, 41.4, making less than $60,000 per year.
Craigslist, Online Classifieds
Republished by www.SEO.cc
Zach Hoffman
Zach@SEO.cc
Dial Up: 954-763-1130
Tuesday, August 29, 2006
Craigslist.com – Great Resource to Find Information & Post
Craigslist.com remains a solid asset to people around the country looking to grow their business. On the website you can post free information in their classifieds. The classifieds are broken down by state and then city. You can use the site to recruit employees, post for jobs, find used goods, and many more. The classifieds are very well organized and allow you access to all marketplaces around the country.
Also, the search engines constantly read Craigslist.com for relevant information pertaining to local areas. They are listing Craigslist.com postings in there results as a service to consumers seeking information about a local area. As a free service Craigslist.com is worth dropping in to at least browse and see if you can find any information of use.
We will follow up in a later posting about how to use Craigslist.com as a tool for SEO and to grow your business.
Thanks for reading,
Zach Hoffman
www.SEO.cc
SEO, Inc., CEO
Zach@SEO.cc
Dial Up: 954-763-1130
Also, the search engines constantly read Craigslist.com for relevant information pertaining to local areas. They are listing Craigslist.com postings in there results as a service to consumers seeking information about a local area. As a free service Craigslist.com is worth dropping in to at least browse and see if you can find any information of use.
We will follow up in a later posting about how to use Craigslist.com as a tool for SEO and to grow your business.
Thanks for reading,
Zach Hoffman
www.SEO.cc
SEO, Inc., CEO
Zach@SEO.cc
Dial Up: 954-763-1130
Monday, August 28, 2006
Web Presence Building Blocks (Step 2): Site Map Building (Site Blueprints)
Web Presence Building Blocks (Step 2): Site Map Building (Site Blueprints)
By Zach Hoffman – www.SEO.cc
Blueprints are the key to building a sound structure in both the physical and virtual world. For the virtual world of the Internet we call our website blueprints “site maps.” The creation of a site map makes navigation of your site more efficient for both consumers and search engine robots (computers building search results). A site map should organize all information you plan on having on your website into a logical format.
Benefits to a site-map:
Guide to building out your site,
Increased browsing efficiency for potential consumers and search engines,
Organization to information,
Search Engine Optimization Benefits.
The site map should start at your home page (index page) and build down into categories and sub categories. Below is an example of the initial break down off of the home page (index page) for a basic dental website:
SITE MAPS ON DOWNLOADABLE DOCUMENT FOR NEWSLETTER SUBSCRIBERS @ SEO.CC
Chart 1: Home Page site map
Location + Dentist (Home Page)
Cosmetic Dentistry
Sedation Dentistry
About Us
The beginning of your site map focuses on the initial index page and builds out into sub-categories. The sub-categories will build out into various solutions for cosmetic dentistry, sedation dentistry and about you.
It is important to give prominent information first on your website and then to build out into details about what you do. Your sites main page should rarely have individual service offerings mentioned. The higher up you mention certain topics on your website it is given increased relevance to the people reading and search engines weighting of importance. The reasons it may be negative to list some detail items with prominence on the site is that it may draw away some readers and give the search engines suggested prominence of topics people are less concerned about searching for on the web.
For example, in dentistry an item would be porcelain veneers or teeth whitening, both of these would fall under the broad category of cosmetic dentistry. Therefore your primary category “Cosmetic Dentistry” should be given priority over individual items. An example site map for your cosmetic dentistry section of your page would look as follows:
SITE MAPS AVAILABLE TO NEWSLETTER SUBSCRIBERS @ SEO.CC
Cosmetic Dentistry
Bonding
Teeth Whitening
Porcelain Veneers
Before & After Photos
Testimonials
Before & After Photos
Testimonials
Before & After Photos
Testimonials
There are many ways you could choose to break down your site. You could breakdown dentistry concerns into a few different ways. You can make it symptom based vs. want based. You could also use various breakdowns to discuss solutions for various symptoms:
Sensitive teeth,
Chipped teeth,
Aching Jaw,
Migraines,
And many more symptoms/self-diagnosis your patients may bring to you on a daily basis.
Sites like WebMD didn’t get famous because they are selling services; they are giving people answers and solutions to their problems. Web speak on most sites are at a level that is too technical for your target audience. People are looking for information about what you are going to be doing to them and for them. They know what you offer because that’s what your profession provides the solution for. As an example when somebody is looking up teeth whitening they probably want to know:
How long it will take?
How long the results will last for?
Are there any health effects they need to consider?
The average searching consumer won’t see the use of Discus Dental vs. Bright Smiles as a primary concern to solving their issue. More on this will be discussed when we talk about web copy development in our next newsletter. Back to site map development.
When constructing your site map be sure to remember you want all roads you are developing leading to a destination. We have increased our client’s web conversion rates for new patients exponentially by making one small tweak 98% of dental sites lack.
Be sure your content on your site links back and forth to relevant information someone would logically want to virtually step to. An example would be if you come to us with a broken tooth there are many options to how we could help you solve your problem. This can include porcelains veneers, bonding, and other solutions depending on the concern.
If a patient is looking to have these concerns fixed they may also be a candidate for gum contouring which is where you integrate information about your laser procedures into the content. This will allow you to educate potential patients of pertinent information to concerns they would like addressed before they even come in. It will allow for more educated consultations, and a potential patient with an educated mind as to what they want from you.
Here is an example of a start to the dental site map we worked on today (it is not completely built out because this is a client service we provide):
SITE MAP AVAILABLE TO NEWSLETTER SUBSCRIBERS @ SEO.CC
Location + Dentist (Home Page)
Cosmetic Dentistry
Sedation Dentistry
About Us
Bonding
Teeth Whitening
Porcelain Veneers
Our Team
Contact Us
Before & After Photos
Testimonials
Once you have created your dental site map, the next step is to develop your copy for each section of the website. We will be discussing this in our next newsletter about building out your web presence.
Web Presence Development Recap:
Step 1: Choosing the Right Domain Name
Step 2: Site Map Building (Site Blueprints)
Dental Information Technology Seminar – Saturday, December 9, 2006
Fort Lauderdale, FL
Contact Us for Details…And More Coming Soon!
Until Next Time, Zach Hoffman
www.SEO.cc – Online Marketing Agency
SEO, Inc., CEO
Zach@SEO.cc
Dial Up: 954-763-1130
By Zach Hoffman – www.SEO.cc
Blueprints are the key to building a sound structure in both the physical and virtual world. For the virtual world of the Internet we call our website blueprints “site maps.” The creation of a site map makes navigation of your site more efficient for both consumers and search engine robots (computers building search results). A site map should organize all information you plan on having on your website into a logical format.
Benefits to a site-map:
Guide to building out your site,
Increased browsing efficiency for potential consumers and search engines,
Organization to information,
Search Engine Optimization Benefits.
The site map should start at your home page (index page) and build down into categories and sub categories. Below is an example of the initial break down off of the home page (index page) for a basic dental website:
SITE MAPS ON DOWNLOADABLE DOCUMENT FOR NEWSLETTER SUBSCRIBERS @ SEO.CC
Chart 1: Home Page site map
Location + Dentist (Home Page)
Cosmetic Dentistry
Sedation Dentistry
About Us
The beginning of your site map focuses on the initial index page and builds out into sub-categories. The sub-categories will build out into various solutions for cosmetic dentistry, sedation dentistry and about you.
It is important to give prominent information first on your website and then to build out into details about what you do. Your sites main page should rarely have individual service offerings mentioned. The higher up you mention certain topics on your website it is given increased relevance to the people reading and search engines weighting of importance. The reasons it may be negative to list some detail items with prominence on the site is that it may draw away some readers and give the search engines suggested prominence of topics people are less concerned about searching for on the web.
For example, in dentistry an item would be porcelain veneers or teeth whitening, both of these would fall under the broad category of cosmetic dentistry. Therefore your primary category “Cosmetic Dentistry” should be given priority over individual items. An example site map for your cosmetic dentistry section of your page would look as follows:
SITE MAPS AVAILABLE TO NEWSLETTER SUBSCRIBERS @ SEO.CC
Cosmetic Dentistry
Bonding
Teeth Whitening
Porcelain Veneers
Before & After Photos
Testimonials
Before & After Photos
Testimonials
Before & After Photos
Testimonials
There are many ways you could choose to break down your site. You could breakdown dentistry concerns into a few different ways. You can make it symptom based vs. want based. You could also use various breakdowns to discuss solutions for various symptoms:
Sensitive teeth,
Chipped teeth,
Aching Jaw,
Migraines,
And many more symptoms/self-diagnosis your patients may bring to you on a daily basis.
Sites like WebMD didn’t get famous because they are selling services; they are giving people answers and solutions to their problems. Web speak on most sites are at a level that is too technical for your target audience. People are looking for information about what you are going to be doing to them and for them. They know what you offer because that’s what your profession provides the solution for. As an example when somebody is looking up teeth whitening they probably want to know:
How long it will take?
How long the results will last for?
Are there any health effects they need to consider?
The average searching consumer won’t see the use of Discus Dental vs. Bright Smiles as a primary concern to solving their issue. More on this will be discussed when we talk about web copy development in our next newsletter. Back to site map development.
When constructing your site map be sure to remember you want all roads you are developing leading to a destination. We have increased our client’s web conversion rates for new patients exponentially by making one small tweak 98% of dental sites lack.
Be sure your content on your site links back and forth to relevant information someone would logically want to virtually step to. An example would be if you come to us with a broken tooth there are many options to how we could help you solve your problem. This can include porcelains veneers, bonding, and other solutions depending on the concern.
If a patient is looking to have these concerns fixed they may also be a candidate for gum contouring which is where you integrate information about your laser procedures into the content. This will allow you to educate potential patients of pertinent information to concerns they would like addressed before they even come in. It will allow for more educated consultations, and a potential patient with an educated mind as to what they want from you.
Here is an example of a start to the dental site map we worked on today (it is not completely built out because this is a client service we provide):
SITE MAP AVAILABLE TO NEWSLETTER SUBSCRIBERS @ SEO.CC
Location + Dentist (Home Page)
Cosmetic Dentistry
Sedation Dentistry
About Us
Bonding
Teeth Whitening
Porcelain Veneers
Our Team
Contact Us
Before & After Photos
Testimonials
Once you have created your dental site map, the next step is to develop your copy for each section of the website. We will be discussing this in our next newsletter about building out your web presence.
Web Presence Development Recap:
Step 1: Choosing the Right Domain Name
Step 2: Site Map Building (Site Blueprints)
Dental Information Technology Seminar – Saturday, December 9, 2006
Fort Lauderdale, FL
Contact Us for Details…And More Coming Soon!
Until Next Time, Zach Hoffman
www.SEO.cc – Online Marketing Agency
SEO, Inc., CEO
Zach@SEO.cc
Dial Up: 954-763-1130
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