Deb and I are speaking on business blogging and New media Marketing at three events in Australia. We were asked to come “down under” by Australia’s #1 business and wealth educator Jamie McIntyre CEO of 21st Century Academy to speak in Sydney, Brisbane, and Perth.
I’m sitting in the presenters area in the Brisbane conference right now on Sunday morning. I’m finally catching up on emails and catching my breath from our first week here. It’s been so amazingly fast-paced and fun, with dozens of exciting new friends and JV partners. I can’t believe the Sydney leg is already complete.
Deb and I have been snapping a ton of cool pictures of the people and sights here in Australia. We’ll share some of those later this week. For now though, here’s the schedule overview:
1st stop:
21st Century Academy Internet & Business Mastery:
Secrets of Marketing With New Media
Sydney, Australia
October 21-23rd
Mercure Hotel
20 Levey Street, Wolli Creek
2nd stop:
21st Century Academy Internet & Business Mastery:
Business Blogging and New Media Marketing — 5 Simple Steps That Double Your Popularity, Publicity, and Profits Every Month
Brisbane, Australia
October 28-29th
Chifley at Lennons
66 Queen Street mall, Brisbane
Note:we’re staying in Noosa, Australia on the Sunshine Coast 10/25 - 11/1. Noosa is about 90km North of Brisbane right on the coast.
3rd Stop:
Same topic as Brisbane
Perth, Australia
November 3 -5th
‘Harbour Suite’ Rendezvous Observation City Hotel
The Esplanade
Scarborough,
Internet access has been unbelievably slow here, but we’ll be making some updates this week.
Optimizing your business blog to boost your page rank and search engine rankings is much simpler that you think. The foundation is developing legitimate authority content that others find relevant. On the other hand, discovering how Google determines those primary contributors of search ranking are what remain a black box for most business bloggers, owners, and marketers. But here’s something that will help.
Many experts in the search engine optimization and search engine marketing arena believe Google has derived their primary algorithm from a document titled, “Hilltop: A Search Engine based on Expert Documents.”
As someone using business blogs and other New Media to market, this paper will be a great help — both practically and as motivation. You’re on the right track! Here’s just a brief excerpt of why:
“… our technique is a dynamic one and considers connectivity in a graph specifically about the query topic. Hence, it can evaluate relevance of content from the point of view of the community of authors interested in the query topic. Unlike Topic Distillation we enumerate and consider all good experts on the subject and correspondingly all good target pages on the subject. In order to find the most relevant experts we use a custom keyword-based approach, focusing only on the text that best captures the domain of expertise (the document title, section headings and hyperlink anchor-text). Then, in following links, we boost the score of those targets whose qualifying text best matches the query. Thus, by combining content and connectivity analysis, we are both more comprehensive and more precise.”
(Emphasis added.)
The authors Bharat and Mihaila define the roots of optimization for top search engine rankings, and why business blogging, podcasting, and other New Media marketing methods are the key to success. This paper clearly shows why Google has degraded reciprocal links and old school optimization, and embraced New Media and “live” content such as business blogs deliver. It was no mistake.
If you’re serious about optimizing your business blog and getting the most out of your New Media Marketing — read the Hilltop paper. You’ll get a thorough understanding of what Google sees as requirements for top ranking.
The rules of ranking have changed significantly and now favor authority sites. Now’s the time to shift your approach to achieving top search engine rankings and the targeted traffic that brings.
Happy business blog optimization! I’m off to pack for our speaking tour in Australia… (More on that in my next post. If I take any more time tonight I’ll be looking for a new business partner tomorrow AM when I leave for the airport. )
Enjoy!
New Media Marketing Reference Links For This Article:
John-Paul Micek is the premier Click-and-Mortar Business Coach. He’s been described as the “Communication Commando” and “Profit Matrix Master” by peers and coaching club members. With four multi-million dollar businesses under his belt and over 8,500 hours of experience coaching business owners and marketers to success from the inside out, J.P. is ready to help you get the profits, performance, and lifestyle you want from your business online and off-line. His latest book Secrets Of Online Persuasion is the definitive guide on marketing with New Media. J.P. is a weekly columnist for the Honolulu Star Bulletin, and professional speaker. You can reach J.P. directly via [communicationcommando@gmail.com].
Yes it’s true! New Media isn’t just for the under 25 crowd. And ignoring that fact is costing you a lot of free new business. Early in the New Media Revolution, the most efficient way to use New Media to reach a more “mature” audience was by blogging for business. But as this new online world of interactivity and communication matures — so is the demographic mix.
More than half the visitors to MySpace are now 35 or over–up from less than 40 percent last year
A study by comScore Media Metrix released on 10/5/06 shows that more than half the visitors to MySpace are now 35 or over–up from less than 40 percent last year. The comScore research compared audience demographics among top social sites, aiming to dispel the notion that they are the exclusive domain of teens. It’s something we and members of our coaching programs have known (and quietly profiting from) for quite a while.
Members of our coaching programs have been placing their business blog at the center of a complete New Media Marketing system for more than a year now. That system which is part of the new BLOG interactive 360 program, includes a proven matrix of business blogs, podcasts, RSS, social bookmarking, and other tools combined with online persuasion strategies. And now with the comScore and other studies begin released — expanding your New Media Marketing beyond business blogs is something that you need to seriously consider taking action on if you don’t want your competitors to get a leg up on you.
The social network landscape — where’s a business owner to start?
MySpace and Friendster skew older with people 25 and older accounting for roughly 70 percent of their user bases, while (more…)
Is your business blogging and New Media Marketing ready for the next big move of the New Media Marketplace? After checking some of our standard sites against the new .MOBI mobile compatibility, I know we’re not. But we’ve taken the first steps to be road ready with our key marketing and membership sites, and I’ll share the first simple steps you can take too.
With 4x as many mobile phones on the planet than computers, it’s clear that the mobile device is the next frontier of practical connection and marketing
The third screen (cell phones and other mobile devices) is the next door of opportunity swinging open for business owners and marketers looking to market with business blogs and other New Media. A weekend with my nephews, a couple of new college graduates, and my wife’s new Blackberry Pearl convinced me that the bleeding edge New Media marketers and developers have got it right. The mobile device is the next frontier of practical connection and marketing. I’ve never felt as free, mobile, and connected as that weekend made me feel.
The fact is that there are four times as many mobile phones on the planet as there are computers. And the new generation of mobile devices are making mobile Web access simple and painless. Any savvy business owner or marketer will quickly see the huge opportunity looming on the horizon.
Breaking free from the PC
People want to escape being chained to their desktop or laptops. And they want their content to be accessible at the same time. Yes — we all want our cake and be able to eat it too! And with today’s new mobile devices there’s no reason why people shouldn’t get what they want.
The only challenge with accessing business blogs, New Media, or any other type of web content is the way it appears on mobile devices. Cumbersome at best. Illegible, unusable, and utterly frustrating at it’s worst.
Enter the .MOBI top level domain and new mobile standards
The new suffix was approved by ICANN in July 06′, and open registration started on September 26th. The idea behind the new suffix is that consumers will be able to recognize Web sites and business blogs that are specially designed for use by mobile phones by the new “.MOBI” suffix.
Why a new top level domain suffix?
Where other suffixes (.tv, .biz, .us, and others) where nothing more than marketing ploys to get new registrants, this suffix is a practical one.
It’s about simplicity, discover ability, and predictability. When you see the .MOBI extension you know the content is meant for mobile devices. It just makes sense.
Looking for a raw one-stop list of resources for marketing with business blogs and New Media? Well the guys over at eConsultant.com have put together a comprehensive listing of 1200+ web sites in 50 categories to open your eyes to all the possible channel for effective marketing with New Media.
Take some time to surf the list and orient yourself to the New Media Marketplace. You can access the New Media resource guide here. Then share your comments, questions, and ideas — here as a comment to this post at Advanced Business Blogging. Or, if you’re an elite member, in the next LIVE! BLOG interactive 360 class.
Remember marketing with New Media is much more than just blogging for business. But an optimized business blog is the hub of your New Media Marketing Matrix. That’s your first step in buidling a massive list of raving fans that you can market with!
When you’re looking to optimize your business blog for both search engines and humans alike — sharing valuable content that adds value to your target audience is what matters most. And that makes becoming a power searcher (high performance user of search engines) a top back-end priority for blog optimization.
Now while we don’t advocate the parroting of news, tips, or other goings-on across the web for maximum influence — the better your skills as a power searcher are — the better the quality of content you’ll have to build your business blogs posts, business podcasts, videos, etc.
Search Engine Optimization expert Stephan Spencer put together a terrific free ebook that will help you become a Google power user. It’s a completely updated version and contains some of the best tips and techniques for digging deep with Google that I’ve ever seen.
One note on the Google services reviewed, Stephan created this ebook prior to Google Trends service coming out. Google Trends is one more terrific service to use in analyzing the entire marketplace, New Media included. We’ve used that tool for lots of great analysis and in gaining significant competitive advantages in innovative marketing strategies.
Enjoy!
New Media Marketing Reference Links For This Article:
John-Paul Micek is a Business Acceleration Coach with four multi-million dollar businesses under his belt and over 8000 hours of experience helping entrepreneurs like you get the profits, performance, and lifestyle you want from your business. He’s a published author (Secrets Of Online Persuasion,) a weekly columnist for the Honolulu Star Bulletin, and professional speaker. You can reach J.P. directly via [communicationcommando@gmail.com].
Discover the fastest, easiest way to unleash the full promotional power of your business on any budget. Get your free preview of the proven New Media system that puts all your marketing on multimedia steroids –BLOG Interactive 360™.
Alright, in Part one of this series you saw how New Media Marketing was used correctly by the design/build firm of Rosenlof/Lucas. And in Part two you learned three simple ways that the company could have substantially increased the marketing impact of that one video invitation. And now it’s time to learn from the mistakes of another landscape company that’s been left green with envy.
If you haven’t followed this series from the beginning, you definitely want to return to part one and start there to learn the most from this New Media Marketing case study. If you have been following along, here’s the Rosenlof/Lucas video again as a quick reminder to make the comparison really stand out. Just click the small play button under the video image.
Now, to save the second company the pain of humiliation and shame with deep analysis let’s just take a look at the video and make a quick summary. Watch this one minute video and be prepared for a BIG difference.
Click the image below to open the video in a new window
Obviously this is not much different than some mass media style commercial you’d see on your local cable station. And actually, that’s probably where this video came from. It looks like a recycled cable commercial for this landscape company.
From a New Media Marketing standpoint — why would anyone pass this video along and share it with family or friends? There’s no online persuasion here. Heck, there’s not even any clear call to action at the end of the video other than “Stop by today…” so even by direct response marketing standards, it’s useless.
Use this shocking contrast with the little you learned about New Media Marketing in part one and two of this series to drive a big point home…
If a landscape company can use New Media to market their business so can you!
Once again you see how there’s no excuse for missing out on the impact and effectiveness of marketing with blogs, podcasts, social networks, and all New Media. If one of the lowest tech industries in the world can effectively market with New Media to get new business and new profits — so can you.
If you haven’t already done so, grab the excerpt of our upcoming book Secrets of Online Persuasion. When you do you’ll automatically get a free one-year subscription to the New Media Marketing Journal where you’ll get fresh new ideas and insightful case studies like the one you just read. When it comes to marketing with blogs, podcasts, RSS, and other New Media — it’s only too late if you don’t take action today!
John-Paul Micek is a Business Acceleration Coach with four multi-million dollar businesses under his belt and over 8000 hours of experience helping entrepreneurs like you get the profits, performance, and lifestyle you want from your business. He’s a published author (Secrets Of Online Persuasion,) a weekly columnist for the Honolulu Star Bulletin, and professional speaker. You can reach J.P. directly via [communicationcommando@gmail.com].
In part one of this New Media Marketing case study, you learned how effective stepping beyond marketing with business blogs is. And you saw why this type of marketing with New Media can work in generating buzz, building your prospect list, and boosting profits. Today let’s take a look at three simple things Rosenlof/Lucas could have added to their video foray into New Media Marketing for even greater impact on their bottom line.
#1. Encourage immediate action: Along with the invitation shown at the end of the video there could have been a simple landing page where an “Invite Acceptance” was completed by the viewer. This one added step would do three things very powerful things from a marketing standpoint –
a. The pre-qualified viewers contact info would be captured for later follow-up whether he or she actually shows up at the party or not.
b. By completing the “Invite Acceptance” the viewer will have taken a small action that psychologically motivates them to follow through and actually showing up on October 5th.
c. With full contact info collected, all confirmed attendees could be mailed a post card confirmation or be sent a text-message the day before to remind them of the party.
#2. Reward immediate action: To really create anticipation and excitement Rosenlof/Lucas could have added a contest to the “Invite Acceptance” process. Something as simple as offering all “Confirmed Guests” the chance to win one $3000 design/build certificate would go a long way in getting people jazzed about the event. And a further note that the winner would be announced at 8pm the day of the party, and that the invitee had to either be there live.
#3. Leverage the business blog: OK, so let’s end with the simplest and most effective marketing addition to this entire optimized process — the linkage to Rosenlof/Lucas’s business blog. (Which I was surprised to not find. )
If the two online persuasion strategies highlighted above were used, then after the registration form for the “Invite Acceptance” was completed, the new registrant would be taken to a special post on the company business blog where they are encouraged to share their opinions on the video or what they’d like to see more of.
This interaction and participation builds rapport and trust before the prospect would even talk to Matt or his partner.
Also, I can’t comment on how much (if any) effort Rosenlof/Lucas put into using this video with their existing client list, how they used other New Media channels, or if they took advantage of any off-line PR, publicity, or promotional opportunities. I now that with a solid click-and-mortar marketing approach this New Media Marketing blitz would be the type of HUGE list building event that would keep the business swamped for months.
So if this is the way the oldest profession in the world can market correctly with New Media, what’s the wrong way to do it? We’ll cover what you can learn from the mistakes of others in Part 3.
John-Paul Micek is a Business Acceleration Coach with four multi-million dollar businesses under his belt and over 8000 hours of experience helping entrepreneurs like you get the profits, performance, and lifestyle you want from your business. He’s a published author (Secrets Of Online Persuasion,) a weekly columnist for the Honolulu Star Bulletin, and professional speaker. You can reach J.P. directly via [communicationcommando@gmail.com].
New Media Marketing Case Study: A Tale of Two Landscape Companies Leaves One Green With Envy — Part 1, Done Right
YES! Even the least techie industries in the world can use New Media to market, build their prospect list, and boost profits. It’s true that all business owners and marketers have access to the same technology and tactics of blogs, podcasts, RSS, social networks, etc. But the “secret” to successfully marketing online or offline is the same as to achieving goals in any other area of life. The difference between winners and losers is not in the technology — it’s in strategy, mindset, and the ability to influence.
As some of you know, the way Deb and I got to live our ideal lifestyle in Hawaii is through my starting, growing, and selling two multi-million dollar companies in the horticulture industry. Both were big money makers but my passion always lay with the design/build work we did for affluent clients with private estates. Because of that past life, I still keep my finger on the pulse of the horticultural industry. That includes monitoring how companies in that industry are using New Media to market their business.
Part of that monitoring of the New Media Marketplace includes subscriptions to track new videos at the top viral video sites.
The world’s oldest profession shows how to (and how NOT to) use New Media Marketing
While we were speaking in Baltimore two weeks ago, a video popped up at You Tube that really caught my attention. Not just because it was a landscape design/build firm. But because these members of the world’s oldest profession (yes, gardening is what Adam was told to do in the Garden of Eden) used New Media Marketing to influence, persuade, and connect with new prospects and their existing client base in a memorable way.
As a comparison, the second video is from a company that is using New Media — but their strategy is completely mass media/interruption marketing inspired.
The business that got it right
The landscape design/build firm Rosenlof/Lucas in Minnesota had a project that was the focus of an episode of an HGTV program. But instead of relying on a single episode of a cable show to generate buzz, they created a simple four-minute video that has given the project a very productive life attracting new clients using New Media channels.
Click on the small play button below the video to watch and the read on to learn from what they did right marketing with New Media.
OK, so it may be pretty obvious what they did right at the end of the video, but let’s start at the beginning and go through seven online persuasion strategies they incorporated with this New Media foray.
New Media Marketing done right
1. Use a personal/informal tone: The video starts with an informal and completely “personal” intro to the company. You feel as if you’re riding along with Matt Olsen.
2. Grab your target audiences attention up front: The initial intro to Rosenlof/Lucas is brief and immediately defines what differentiates their design/build firm from the competition. Don’t be afraid of losing people. If you don’t turn off (and turn away) some people, you’re probably not going to really turn anybody on either.
For example; not everyone likes contemporary design. But Rosenlof/Lucas specializes in that styles, so they’d be foolish to not make that clear. Who cares if people who don’t like contemporary design tune out. That’s not their target audience.
3. Tell a story: Matt starts the story feel right in the beginning of the video and that continues throughout the four minute clip. He and the owners of the subject property (owners of Hive Modular Homes) share their personal thoughts, inspirations, and most importantly — their passion for what they do.
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