Inner Circle Media

Everyone seems to be asking the Magic 8-Ball these days, “Should I pay for online advertising?” The Magic 8-Ball is giving all sorts of answers ranging from “Signs point to yes” to “My sources say no.”  Does it make sense for your company to pay for Google Adwords or placement in other search engines? Take this quiz to find out.

1. Do you sell your products directly online via an e-commerce / online store?
   
2. Is your product or service new to the market?
   
3. Is your product or service easily searchable by people in your target market? For example, “Brighton remodeling company” is an easily searchable term; “Ethical Assurance Engineering Consultant” or “Unrefined Idea Specialist” are probably not logical, intuitive searchable terms.
   
4. Do your prospective and current customers already look for products or services like yours online?
   
5. Are you in a hurry to get placement in the search engines?
   
6. Are you willing to invest at least several hundred dollars a month to online advertising?
   
7. Does your website currently get listed on page one of Google for your top search terms?

If you answered YES to any of questions 1 through 6, then you should definitely consider paying for Google Adwords and placement in other search engines. If you also answered YES to question 7, then you should be strategic about what search terms you target in your Adwords campaigns. For example, if you already rank at the top of page one of Google for “Ann Arbor mechanic,” then you could use Adwords to target other more widely searched terms like “Ann Arbor auto repair“ or “Michigan car maintenance.”

Question 3 is a tricky one. If you answered, NO then you believe that your product or service is obscure, difficult to define, or not immediately thought of by your target audience. This means you might have a marketing problem, and before you commit your hard earned money to any type of advertising (online or offline) you need to clearly define your target market’s needs and the ways your products or services meet those needs. Then you need to write marketing messages that help your prospective customers immediately understand what your product or service can do for them.

The good news is obscure products or services (or those with a very targeted niche market) can actually benefit greatly from using Google Adwords. For example, a new trend in exercise is AcroYoga (it’s a combination of acrobatics and yoga, and I’ve heard from participants that is fun but hardcore!). While “acroyoga” is currently a very obscure term, AcroYoga franchises could benefit from Google Adwords by targeting broader search terms like “fitness classes,” “yoga strength training,” and “power yoga.”

As business owners, you hear a lot hype about marketing your products and services on the Internet. Experts tell you to “Improve your website. Launch a blog. Build a gigantic mailing list….” The trouble is the marketing information and advice provided online is often directed at companies who sell products and services that are sold exclusively through the internet.

But if you are like the vast majority of service-based companies, your services are delivered by interacting directly with your clients (in person or at least on the phone), so promoting your professional services is NOT the same as promoting a retail product or a service provided only online (i.e. website hosting).

Here are 4 internet marketing myths that could be misleading to service-based companies:

Myth #1— You must have an awesometastic, cool, interactive website.

Reality: You must have a website that clearly defines your service and explains how you help your customers alleviate their problems. Don’t even think about hiring a web development firm until you are clear about who your target customer is, what their pressing needs are, and how you can meet those needs. Design matters, but only so far as your website should look better than your competitors. Content matters MOST. If your content (copy, images, videos, articles, case studies, etc.) is personable, engaging, and speaks to the needs of your audience, they will begin to feel connected to you (and hopefully take the next step of contacting you).

Myth #2—More traffic means more revenues.

Reality: More traffic means only that more people are visiting your site each month. It does not mean that those people are taking any action on your site (reading your blog, filling out your contact form) or ever coming back to the site again. Before you spend money with search engine marketing firms, online advertising, or pay-per-click listings, make sure that your website attracts those people who actually need your services. And be sure that once they get there, they are logically guided toward specific actions.

If you’re wondering if your website compels users to do the things you want them to do, Google Analytics has a great tracking tool called “Site Overlay” where you can see an actual overlay on your own website to see what percentage of users are clicking each link on each page.

If you don’t have Google Analytics to measure your website’s performance, you could do your own user test or survey where you ask some of your customers to critique your website, carry out specific tasks, and provide feedback. The big question should be – “Based on my website, do I look like a credible expert you’d like to do business with?” If they answer YES, then pat yourself on the back. If they answer NO, then improvements must be made!

Myth #3—Build a gigantic mailing list.

Reality: A large mailing list is valuable, but only as long as the people on the list are qualified buyers, current customers, or referral partners. More people are likely to join your list (through your website or by receiving your e-newsletter from a friend or colleague) if you offer them insightful information, incentives, or coupons.

Myth #4—Killer copy will make people buy from you.

Reality: You are selling a service. You are not selling a ShamWow (the chamois, towel, and sponge all in one!). Hype might sell products, but TRUST sells service-based companies and professional consultants. Your website should bolster own brand by showing how you listen to clients, advise them with thoughtfulness and care, and provide exactly the services that meet their needs. If need be, hire a good writer to help you communicate what sets you apart.

Before you post one more thing on Facebook, Tweet on Twitter, or update your LinkedIn profile, ask yourself this – what’s my comprehensive marketing strategy? If you’re not sure why you’re on the web, how do you know if your efforts are successful? Just being there isn’t necessarily going to improve your business. In fact, without a strategy, your scatter shot approach and multiple online personalities could annoy, aggravate, or even scare away prospects, clients, press contacts, and potential business partners.

It seems people are in such a frenzy these days to jump on the online social media band wagon that they forget about marketing basics – who needs your product/service? And how will you reach those people?

Social media should be just a part of your overall marketing/communications plan. It should NOT replace your other efforts (advertising, press, media, website, etc.) Nor should the tools be used in standalone ways – i.e. you build a following on Twitter, but do nothing to reach out via email marketing, blogs, Facebook, etc.

As you create your strategy, consider your audience:

• Who are you trying to reach?
• What are they already doing online?
• Where are they finding out about you?
• Do they use online social networking tools?
• Are they talking about you online? What are they saying?
• What do you want your target audience to do – connect with you, repost your tweets, call you, email you, buy your stuff?

Now consider what tools and/or initiatives you already have in place. Which tactics do you use? Which ones work well for your audience? How could you make better use of these tools?

• Website
• Blogs (yours and others’)
• E-newsletter
• Personal� vs. Professional Facebook page
• Personal vs Professional Twitter profile
• Other social media tools: LinkedIn, Plaxo, Flickr, MySpace, YouTube, Squidoo, Epinions, Digg, Delicious
• Offline initiatives: Marketing, ads, press, radio/TV

Once you’ve evaluated your current online marketing efforts and determined what works best for your target audience, then you should create a plan for how you’ll employ the tools listed below.

By the way, sometimes our clients wonder how all these tools work together. That’s when I like to use my outer space analogy.

Your website = Your home planet; Your #1 goal is to bring visitors to your home planet

Your blog = Moon station where visitors stop in before they visit your home planet

Other blogs = Other moons and planets you visit where you engage with people and encourage them to come visit your home planet

Social networking sites = Your outer space outposts

Your e-newsletter =� The rocket ship you send out into the galaxy to remind people to visit your planet

OK, back to your plan. Determine how you’ll employ each of the following tools to your advantage:

1. Your Website: Your website is one of your most powerful marketing tools. Make sure it’s a breeze to navigate, it’s design makes you proud, and the content on the site changes OFTEN (i.e. daily or weekly). On your website, allow users to subscribe to Twitter, Facebook, RSS, your e-newsletter. Share articles, links, documents – be a resource.
2. Your Blog: Craft succinct, powerful, well written posts about your target audience’s most pressing needs, as well as industry insights. Make sure to share other people’s blog posts. Remember – Your blog posts, podcasts, videos, press coverage shows up in search engine results.
3. Other Blogs: Discover the blogging community related to your area of expertise. What blogs work best for you? What bloggers do you relate with? Begin commenting and building relationships. Offer advice, criticism, and praise.
4. E-newsletter: Offer timely, pertinent content. Write with your own voice. Link to your own site, other sites, yours and others’ blogs. Make people WANT to read your copy. Make people want to forward your e-newsletter to their friends.
5. Social Marketing Channels: Use the channels/tools that your target market uses – i.e. if they don’t use Twitter, then why bother.� Choose 2-3 channels that you can easily manage. Remember – your social marketing channels (Twitter, Facebook page, LinkedIn page) show up in search engine results.

And don’t forget about all of your offline initiatives. Regardless of the marketing tool or tactic, make sure you have a unified message resonates with target audience.

On Saturday night (March 14th), Catherine Hayes and I were featured on WJR’s Internet Advisor, a Detroit radio show that’s been on the air for 11 years on News/Talk 760 AM. For those wondering – no, we did not get to meet Mitch Albom, but we had a great time talking with Gary Baker (local leader, technology expert and entrepreneur), Foster Braun (with that name and that voice, he was destined to be a radio star), and Ed Rudel (computer support guru).

During the show, Catherine and I covered the basics of website development – from content to design to search engine optimization. We were interviewed during the first hour of the show. Listen to the podcast here. We’re looking forward to doing more shows in the future.

It was really fun to visit the gorgeous, historic Fisher Building and watch the sun set over Detroit. I’d encourage all of you to visit downtown Detroit again. We had an awesome dinner at Mosaic in Greektown, and the city was bustling with event goers (at all the local theaters and event venues), and party goers (the St Patty’s Day crowd was in full force).

In 2009 BIG fonts are still all the rage!

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Since it’s January 2009, it seems the trendy thing to do is to talk about web design trends for the coming year (and you know how I like to be oh-so trendy). Smashing Magazine put out a good list of the top 10 trends for 2009 (they’ll expand the list in the coming months and present some color trends too). The list of trends provides good fodder for web designers in need of inspiration; however, I found that most of the “trends” have been around for the past few years and became increasingly popular in 2008. So technically, these aren’t new or upcoming� trends; they are the current style.

Just for fun, here are design trends from the past two years:

2008 Design Trends
Best of CSS Design 2007

You’ll notice that many of the old “trends” continue to hang around. I’d argue that’s because they aren’t trends, they’re standards in typography and layout that have been around for eons – in newspapers, books, propaganda posters, and even the art world.� This year’s trends – including letterpress, huge typography, font replacement, the “magazine look,” and introduction blocks – are all standards from the world of print design. PNG transparency is the web’s take on the use of background images and collage. By comparison, rich user interfaces, modal boxes, media blocks, and carousels (slideshows) are the trends that are truly WEB trends because they rely on technology and interactivity, and can’t be achieved in print.

I appreciated a few of the smart comments on the Smashing Magazine article. One said, “I always like hearing about trends.. gives me guidance on what NOT to do too often.” I know what he means. As a designer, it’s often easier to follow the pack and create designs that look like everyone else’s stuff, but your work will be stronger if you worry less about the current fashion and more about what the user wants/needs to most effectively interact with the site you’re designing.

Also noted in one of the comments – “There are no such things as web design trends, only good, appropriate design.” Clearly trends in print media, TV, video, and most importantly user experience are influencing and guiding us on our path as web designers. I think in coming years we’ll continue to learn that ease of use can be beautiful. � On that note, keep an eye on the ways mobile devices affect design styles in the coming years. Here are some inclinations – Mobile Web Design Trends For 2009 (again from Smashing Magazine).

And in case you’re desperate for one more list of trends for the year – here’s an informative list of the 20 Internet Marketing Trends for 2009 from Start Up Nation. Good stuff!

On occasion we have a client who asks, “If one website is good for my business, then doesn’t it stand to reason that 2, 3, 4 or more sites would be even better?” The answer is “MAYBE – It all depends on your audience.”If you serve just one audience, then one website is probably all you need.

If you serve multiple audiences, you should first determine – are their information needs different enough to warrant separate websites? If yes, then perhaps you should have multiple websites geared specifically at each audience.

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For the sake of example, here’s a story…

Imagine you sell goats. For the past 20 years your target audience has been people who buy your goats for milk production. You’ve had a website for the past 6 years that promotes your goats’ abilities to make prolific amounts of tasty, nutritious milk.

Then you get a phone call one day. Someone visited your website and wants to know if your goats are good grazers. You say, “Why sure, our goats are good grazers. They eat just about anything, but they prefer to eat the finest clover hay which makes their milk taste ever-so-sweet.”

And the caller says, “Oh no, I don’t want your goats for milk production. I started a new company called Rent-A-Goat Services. We’re looking for friendly goats to use as an efficient, holistic, environmentally healthy approach to weed control. It sounds like your goats wouldn’t be good for this since they’ve been spoiled on the finest clover hay. I’ll call someone else. Toodle-loo.”

Initially, you are surprised, but because you are such a brilliant entrepreneur, you recognize a new market for your goats. Immediately you call your favorite web design company and get started on a new website that promotes your goats as the world’s most voracious weed eaters. Six months later you’ve sold more goats than the previous five years combined. You decide to establish a company called, “Hungry Goat Staffing Services.” A year later you are the preferred goat provider to Rent-A-Goat Services all over the country. Two years later you decide to sell your goat staffing company and move to Tuscany to learn Italian, drink good Chianti, and perfect your Mostaccioli recipe.

You get the picture? If you decide you need more than one website, keep these things in mind:

1. Multiple sites can be good for your search engine ranking - because you can cross link between sites and because you’ll have multiple search engine listings.

2. Managing multiple sites can be time-consuming. Don’t spread yourself to thin. If you can’t handle the maintenance of several sites, then just stick with one.

3. Don’t cannibalize from your other sites. If you set up two or three sites that market the same product, they may compete for visitors and may not help you increase market share.

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By the way, Rent-A-Goat is the real deal. We don’t make this stuff up!

There really are Rent-A-Goat services sprouting up around the country. Here’s a link to one in San Francisco City Crazing.

For small lawns and those hard to reach places…

… consider baby pigmy goats. They’re cute, bouncy, always hungry, and many people will think they’re just strange looking cats – which means you can keep them in your backyard in Ann Arbor. Perhaps they’ll become friends with your flock of urban chickens.

Does your website look a bit rusty? Is it time for a fresh new site design? Often prospective clients come to us with websites that were built at the turn of the century (the 21st century that is), and they want to get a head start on planning for their new and improved site. If you are revved up to revamp your old, stagnant website, you can get a jump on the process by considering the following questions before you even meet with a web development company:

GOALS:

• What are the high level business goals for your company or organization?
• What are the goals for the new web site?
• How are those goals different from your previous website?
• How will you measure success of the new web site?

AUDIENCE & MESSAGE:

• Who is the primary audience? Secondary targets?
• What will visitors do on the site? Consider age, education level, gender, tech savvinesss, and any other visitor attributes that might help you understand how they’ll use your site.
• Please sum up your customer’s/audience’s needs and concerns in a sentence.
• What are your key marketing and communications messages?
• What does your audience think you do/are? What do you want them to think?

ARCHITECTURE & DESIGN:

• Will the new site’s architecture differ from that of the current site?
• Have you established hierarchy and labeling for navigation for new site? (Global navigation/main buttons, local navigation/subsections, etc.)
• Has style guide been approved by your company? (i.e., colors, fonts, etc.)
• What is the desired site attitude/look and feel?
• What sites inspire you? What do you find appealing about these sites?
• Who are your competitors (or comparable organizations)?� What do you like/dislike about their sites?

CONTENT:

• Is content already prepared for the site, including illustrations, photography, and other graphic or audiovisual content?
• Who will write the content for your site? Who will be the main editor?
• Do you have a plan for creating, gathering, tracking, and managing site content assets prior to site development?
• How will the site be maintained?
• Will you use a Content Management System (CMS?
• Do you have a specific CMS in mind?

SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION:

• Search Terms: Please list the most common terms that users might type into Google to look for a company/organization/service like yours:
• Outgoing Links: Please list sites that your site links to.
• Incoming Links: Please list websites that already link to your site.

FUNCTIONALITY, IMPLEMENTATION, INTEGRATION, AND LAUNCH:

• What functionalities will the site incorporate? � Here are some possible items you might want to consider: keyword-based site search, advanced search (specific parameters – i.e. search by last name, title, city, etc.), Flash / animated areas of site, blog, discussion forum, wiki, RSS feeds, online forms, online surveys or polls, eCommerce/shopping cart, online donations, event calendar, event registration, photo gallery, video clips, audio clips/podcasts, web cams, advertising/sponsorship, member/user management, password protected content
• Do you have/use a database for contacts, membership, products, etc.? Do you want your site to tie to your database?
• Do you have any requirements for how the site is built? i.e. you would prefer the use of open source technologies.
• Are there any 3rd party applications which will integrate with the site?
• Did you buy your domain name(s) yet?
• Do you have a hosting company in mind?
• Who will test the website? (It’s best to test the beta site with at least 7-10 actual site visitors)

If you complete this long list of questions, you’ll be well on your way to a well-planned website. But hey – you’re not off the hook yet. This is just the start. You should expect (or even demand) that your chosen web company bombard you with further questions.

This may sound crazy coming from a business owner trying to grow her company, but we send away business every day. When prospective clients call, we ask a bunch of probing questions, and when it makes sense, we direct them to a trusted group of web freelancers. But, why would a company EVER send business away? Because a good fit is vital to a good outcome!How do you know who’s right for your next web project? Here’s some quick guidance on how to choose between a freelancer and a web development shop:

Reasons to Choose a Freelancer:

• You want a basic informational site.
• Your budget is limited (i.e. under $3-5 K).
• You’ve already designed your site; now you need someone to code it.
• Conversely, you need someone to design your site, and you’ll have one of your in-house techies code the site.
• You already have a decent website; you just need someone to help you make changes or additions.

Reasons to Choose a Web Development Firm:

• Your new website will be complex – perhaps it’s database-driven, with a login area, an online store, and a content management system.
• You want to work with a team with a wide breadth of expertise – marketing, search engine optimization, design, programming, animation, video for the web – you want your web team to have it all.
• You want to hang out in a funky, orange office (+ spend time with Norm the dog).

If you’re still not sure who would build you the best website, you might consider talking to both freelancers and web shops. Here are some considerations when interviewing one-woman shops vs. larger companies:

Considerations when choosing a freelancer:

• What’s in the freelancer’s portfolio? Do you like their work?
• Does s/he ask the right questions, listen intently, and understand your goals?
• Do you have a good fit with the freelancer? (This is important since it’s a one-on-one relationship.)
• How quickly can the freelancer complete the work?
• Does the freelancer build websites part-time? Do they have a day job?

Considerations when choosing a web firm:

Almost 2 years ago, I wrote a blog post about this very topic. It tells you what questions to ask when choosing a web development firm. Here’s the link – Choosing a Web Firm: 20 Questions For Prospective Web Developers. The next time you come talk to us about a web project, make sure to ask these questions, and give me a dose of my own medicine!

When I talk with new web designers, they frequently ask – How do you keep up with the latest web design styles, industry trends, and the newest possibilities for user interface design? Of course, I tell them that it’s super easy because the “Web Design Fairy” visits me on a weekly basis and imparts her wisdom with the touch of her wand.

Seriously, if you want your designs to forever be cutting-edge, contemporary, and hip, it takes a lot of research (i.e. books, websites, blogs, etc.), a hyper critical eye, and an inner drive to continuously push yourself. It is NOT easy. It requires vigilance. Moreover, if you want to improve your designs, you have to be able to look at your own work with an unbiased eye and say, “Golly I bet I could do better” – which sounds easier than it actually is.

Here are my thoughts and recommendations for all you creative types who are worried about doing outdated web designs and are seeking continuous improvement:

1. First of all, you’re taking a great first step by being concerned about improving your designs. Many designers get into a groove and rarely stray from it. At some point in their careers, they do a design they like and then all future designs look like that treasured first design. They choose their favorite color palette, fonts, graphical elements, etc. and they stick with them. My recommendation is this – as you design, keep your mind and your eye loose. Try new things. Try to emulate other designs you like. Remember – nothing about your design is precious or unchangeable. Also, work the entire layout equally. Don’t get hung up on the perfect color for the search button. Make your best choice and move on. You can always make changes later.

2. Refer often to websites and blogs about good design. Here are a few sites that I check on weekly. They provide compiled lists of the latest and greatest new sites.

• http://www.designmeltdown.com
• http://bestwebgallery.com/
• www.stylegala.com
• http://www.webdesignerwall.com/trends/best-of-css-design-2007
• http://www.web100.com/index.html
• http://www.coolhomepages.com/
• http://www.designinteract.com

3. Save the sites you like in your “Bookmarks”and refer to them often. My list of fav’s is gigantic and very helpful, especially when a client says, “I want my site’s design to be really awesome and organic (or some similar combination of abstract words).” Then I show the client sites from my fav list that might fit his/her vision, and the client tells me “yes, that’s what I mean,” or “no, I that’s not what I was thinking at all. I really just want you to use earth tones and photos of leaves…”

4. No matter what trend is occurring, remember to always rely on underlying design conventions to guide users toward the intended action you’d like them to take. Use the page layout and a strong message to provide order and meaning. Don’t make users search for information or think too hard about what to do next. Don’t crowd the page – keep your design simple and make it easy for users to quickly accomplish tasks. No matter how funky your color scheme and design elements, it’s easiest for users to comprehend content that is arranged on an underlying grid (with columns and rows). Use various sized fonts (headlines, subheads, body type, navigation) to delineate the space and guide visitors. And finally, as the architect Louis Sullivan preached, remember that FORM FOLLOWS FUNCTION. In other words, “Don’t decorate. Communicate.”

As promised, here’s a follow up to last month’s experiment with Google Hot Trends. In my previous post, I explained how Hot Trends let’s you see what terms people are currently searching for on the web – which can be helpful to your search engine optimization efforts because if you know what people are looking for online, you can tailor your website content and blog posts to their interests.

On June 9th, folks were searching for all sorts of terms; I chose to focus on two terms – “tree with purple flowers” and “Spanish port.” I wrote about these terms in my blog post and then tracked our web statistics to see if those terms drew increased traffic to our site and blog. Indeed, we saw increased traffic. Out of the top 10 search phrases, 3 of them were related to “tree with purple flowers” and “Spanish port.” That’s all fine and dandy, but my experiment begs a few questions:

1. Will your site get more traffic if you talk about the terms listed in Hot Trends? Yes it probably will, but…

2. Is it the TARGETED traffic you want from people who actually care about your products, services, or organization? No, not if you’re a web and multimedia company talking about purple flowers, which have nothing to do our customers’needs or pains.

3. OK, so how can I use Hot Trends to write relevant site content and blog entries and hopefully get better search engine ranking? Here’s how:

On Friday, June 29, 2007, several of the top 100 keyphrases in Hot Trends were related to Facebook (the online social networking hub). That day Facebook suffered a lot of extended downtime, and people were searching the web to figure out what was going on and why they couldn’t access one of their favorite sites. I could use this search trend to my advantage by writing about a related topic as follows:

1. I could write about building an online community (using Facebook, Myspace, and a bazillion other examples). I could talk about how to plan, create, and market that community, and point out the importance of making sure that community is secure, not filled with spam, and scalable.

2. OR I could write an edgier post about how Facebook (and others like it) seem more like popularity contests than real “communities” where people connect deeply, care about each other, fight for a common cause, and strive to improve the world around them.

Either way, these posts (both of which I may write in the near future) would benefit our company and our search engine ranking because they would speak to the needs of my company’s target audience (organizations who want to build and/or improve their own online communities) AND they would also help position me as an expert in my field AND they would be relevant to the terms people are searching on Google. Sounds like a win-win-win to me