Business Record - Iowa Biz

What does success look like in a social media campaign?

I'm frequently asked about how to best track ROI on social media marketing efforts. My answer is that social media ROI is next to impossible to figure. That may sound like a cop-out, but it's the truth.

The benefits of reaching out and connecting with your customers via social mediums are intangible. How do you extrapolate the ROI from participating in a conversation on a message board or blog, where you cleared up some negative misinformation about your brand or product in an honest, transparent and meaningful way? You can't measure that.

Sure, there are basic metrics that you can track on your website or blog, like clickthroughs, referrals, bounce rates and user sessions, but there is no metric for being part of an online conversation with your customers.

There are other ways to gauge success. Maybe it's increased visitor engagement and participation, which could take the form of more user comments on your blog posts, or more consumer-generated content (photos, videos, etc.) uploaded to your brand's Facebook Page.

Embarking on a social media campaign can force you to re-think how you visualize success.

It's a very back-to-basics approach, similar to the intangible fundamentals of really good customer service: going out of your way to listen to your customer's needs, and being able to respond to those needs quickly.

Your return on investment: Loyal, life-long customers.

When to edit a Wikipedia page about your company: NEVER!

It's tempting to want to create and/or edit a Wikipedia entry about your company or even yourself, and the collaborative nature of the site makes it easy for you to generate your own content. However, the best advice is to never write/edit your own entry, and never pay someone to do it for you.

When clients ask if I can help them craft their Wikipedia page, I refer them to Wikipedia's conflicts of interest page, which states: "Wikipedia is an encyclopedia, not a forum for advertising or self-promotion."

There are lots of benefits to being on Wikipedia: Links back to your website or blog, an increase in traffic and a bump in search engine points. But if you don't let your Wikipedia presence happen via true grassroots efforts, you will get caught. The Wikipedia community is incredibly active and passionate about self-policing the online encyclopedia - they can typically detect self-serving additions and edits within a matter a minutes.

There are also tools available such as WikiScanner, which can cross-reference page edits with IP addresses to find out exactly who is behind a specific edit. In the past, employees from Yahoo! and The Pentagon have both been caught tweaking their own organization's pages.

Look, this all comes down to basic best practices within the social media landscape. Eventually, fake grassroots efforts (AKA "Astroturfing") will inevitably be discovered, and your organization wouldn't want any part of such a public relations mess. Businesses should focus on what really matters: Keeping their customers so happy that they take it upon themselves to write a Wikipedia entry about the company.

Nathan T. Wright

Have you added video to your website yet?

There's a common perception that integrating video content into your website can be expensive. However, this isn't the case any more — video-to-web is fast, easy and affordable.

Showcasing your product with video creates a much more intimate connection with your website visitor than just a photograph, diagram or list of services. Probably the best example of this is BlendTec's "Will it Blend" video campaign, which illustrates the blending power of their products on objects such as iPhones and marbles.

Additionally, if you use a video-sharing application to host your content such as YouTube or Blip.tv, your video is instantly shareable in a peer-to-peer fashion. These services allow you to cast a wider audience net outside of your own website.

So how do you get started?

1. Equipment. Depending on the final quality you'll need, you can hire a freelance videographer to shoot it, or simply create your own content with affordable digital video equipment such as the Flip cam.
2. Get it on the Web! This is much easier than it sounds. There are many video-sharing websites out there to choose from — I mentioned YouTube and Blip.tv earlier, but there's also Viddler, Veoh, Revver and many more. It's a snap to upload your video file to any of these websites and they will take care of file hosting and bandwidth for you, usually for free.
3. Integrate it. All video-sharing applications allow you to easily embed your video content into your website, blog, or social network profile. Typically this is as simple as copying and pasting a snippet of code.

In summary, there's no reason to drop $10,000 on an expensive video shoot for your website. With the right tools and a little curiosity, you'll be on your way to integrating video in no time.

Nathan T. Wright

Using Twitter to network yourself and your business

The concepts of networking and being connected have been critical components of doing business for ages. Technologies like LinkedIn and Facebook have allowed us to expand our professional networks online.

However, the one social network that I've derived the most professional value out of thus far has been Twitter, hands down. For those that aren't familiar with Twitter, it's a growing social network of about one million users, built upon short, 140-character status updates (or "tweets") between participants.

Twitter is virtually spam-free and has connected me to dozens of like-minded people working in similar industries here in Des Moines, and beyond. Eventually I've ended up meeting most of these connections in real life, either through Des Moines Twitter Meetups (we call them "TweetUps") or at industry conferences.

So, if you're a freelancer, a small business owner, an entrepreneur, or in a sales role, I would absolutely recommend adding Twitter to your social networking toolbox. (I'm assuming you already have a presence on LinkedIn - but if not, you should do so.)

One thing to note about using Twitter: Unlike LinkedIn, you're expected to not just have a presence there, but participate in all the conversation going on. Twitter's value comes from the quality of conversation you engage in and the quality of connections - not the quantity.

Happy tweeting!

Nathan T. Wright

Digitial back channels rawk SXSW Interactive festival

Recently I attended the South by Southwest Interactive festival, and have come away with one over-arching theme:

Digital back channels can be extremely disruptive to any organization. Even a conference that celebrates disruptive technology.

I saw this happen in person at the Facebook Founder Mark Zuckerberg keynote interview on Sunday. During the discussion, the crowd became increasingly unruly, feeling that the right questions weren't being asked of Zuckerberg, while criticizing the moderator's particular interview style.

This was all occurring via digital back channels like Twitter (an SMS-based social network) and Meebo (collective online chat), accessed via mobile devices and laptops. The frustration spilled over when Mark Zuckerberg finally told the interviewer, Sarah Lacy, to actually "ask questions."

It was at this moment that the crowd's dissatisfaction exploded into a vocal revolt, resulting in wild, enthusiastic cheers. The group then turned on Lacy, drowning her out and shouting random questions that they wanted answered, immediately. It was digitally-driven mob rule!

While this was a relatively small example of disruptive technology, I feel it's a microcosm of what is happening all over the web: The peer-to-peer crowds have wrestled away control from large, traditional organizations in business, media and politics. This can take many forms: becoming famous via YouTube without any Hollywood agents or studios. Music downloads. Companies freaking out because somebody is posting negative comments about their product on a blog.

Technological disruption has been going on since the invention of the printing press. It's up to organizations to prepare for this, and learn how to respond.

Meanwhile, conference organizers must learn from this incident, and adjust their expectations for what attendees require out of a panel or keynote.

Is your intranet a desolate graveyard? Try a wiki.

Good communication between employees is vital to all businesses, large or small. E-mail, unfortunately, often falls into the "bad communication" category. Tone is misinterpreted, context is lost and messages go missing.

That's why today many companies are experimenting with internal wikis and private social networks to improve communication among their team members. Think of this as just an evolution of the corporate intranet.

By adopting the social features that have made online destinations like Wikipedia and Facebook successful, businesses can transform their stagnant, one-way intranet into a bustling expressway of shared thoughts, insights and collaboration.

Here are a few quick pointers for initiating a wiki project within your business:

• Start small. Choose a team within your organization to start using the wiki - not everyone at once.
• Develop a strategy to roll it out internally. (Hint: Don't announce it via e-mail.)
• Give the wiki time to evolve. If users aren't taken by it immediately, keeping pushing ahead, keep the faith and keep training.
• Determine what success is. Reduction of e-mail volume? Better communication? Knowing your goals ahead of time will allow you to justify the project later on.

If you're ready to get started, there are multiple resources available, ranging from free, hosted services such as PBwiki, all the way to enterprise-level apps. Good luck on starting up your wiki!

Omgili & Google partnership combines objective and subjective search results

When developing social media strategy for clients, I often talk about listening before talking. As with any marketing effort, it helps to know the general wants and needs of the customer first, before jumping in.

Traditionally this would take the form of consumer research, surveys or focus groups. Today, with all sorts of social mediums inviting peer-to-peer conversation (such as blogs, wikis, message boards and social networks) companies can listen to what's being said about them in real-time.

There are many listening / buzz trending tools online, ranging from the free (Google BlogSearch and Twitter) to the high-end (Radian6). One application that has emerged as particularly useful for me recently is the search partnership between Omgili and Google.

Omgili, to put it simply, is a search engine that tracks opinions, discussions and conversations, as opposed to individual websites and pages. At google.omgili.com, you can see how they've paired subjective search results (perception, arguments, opinion, sarcasm) with Google's objective results (facts, raw information).

It's a nice blend, especially for marketing and PR folk. Just type in your company's name and click "search both" to see what customers are saying, right now.

Consumer insight like this is invaluable, and it gives your organization an advantage in the long run. The best part: Omgili is a free application that you can start using today.

Link: Subjective + objective search results: google.omgili.com

Nathan T. Wright

Why you should pay attention to the OpenSocial movement

Last fall, Google announced the OpenSocial standard. Let me spend a few moments explaining what exactly that is, and why it will be important to your business in the future.

The OpenSocial movement is based on the belief that users should be able to distribute content across the Web's many manifestions (blogs, social networks, mobile phones, etc.), as opposed to accessing it only via one central website.

Lots of other companies have joined the movement along with Google: MySpace, LinkedIn, Plaxo and SixApart, to name a few.

We've always thought of the corporate website as THE one-stop destination for all of our prospects and existing customers. With the onset of embeddable YouTube videos and RSS feeds, we saw that if the content is good enough, others will distribute it. OpenSocial is simply the next step of this evolution.

Let's say you've created a little interactive Flash game on your website. It's branded with your identity, it's engaging, and you want your visitors to play around with it. Three years ago this was called "sticky" content, thinking that users should be given incentive to "stick around" and come back to websites. Today, OpenSocial allows you to offer that game for anyone to grab and post inside their blog or their personal Myspace/Facebook page. Remember, your customer can also be your distributor.

Another great thing about the OpenSocial movement: If you want your content to easily "snap in" to all of these various spaces, why should your developers have to learn programming languages that are specific to each platform? They could spend hours learning how to develop something inside Facebook, then duplicate that time by re-creating the same initiative for MySpace. That's a lot of wasted time. OpenSocial gives us a common set of tools - learn it once, apply it everywhere.

Don't feel like you need to go out and learn everything about the OpenSocial movement today. Just keep it in your web strategy toolbox as your company's web content evolves. In fact, if you've ever read a blog's RSS feed, embedded a YouTube video, or sent a link to your friend, you're already a pioneer in this movement!

Graphic credit: Google

A new kid at the plate

One of the remarkable things about Des Moines that we take for granted is how many incredibly talented and diverse professionals surround us every day. 

When we first launched IowaBiz.com we had the good fortune of putting together an All-Star roster of business experts to serve as our daily guides to all things small business.

When he first heard about the project, Mike Sansone quickly volunteered to join the team.  For the past 8 months, he's shared his expertise and passion for using technology to connect to our customers, prospects and peers.  Without a doubt, anyone who has read a Sansone post has learned a little something.

Mike's business model is evolving and he needs to turn his attention to those changes.  So, today we thank him for his generosity.  No doubt we'll see him in the comments section on a regular basis. 

It was really a no brainer when we knew Mike needed to move on, to extend an invitation and tap the talents of Nathan Wright of LavaRow.  Nathan's a many year veteran of the digital frontier and he brings impressive credentials to the IowaBiz.com team.

So while you never like to see a player leave the game, it's always exciting to see who comes off the bench.  Enjoy the new player!

Your Company Blog: A Tool or an Employee?

Is your company blog simply a tool - or should you treat it like an employee?

I started working when I was 14 years old. A dishwasher in a French-style restaurant. I think I made like $2.00 per hour and shared tips from the nicer waitresses.

My grandfather said I was overpaid. I didn't understand that - so I worked harder. After a few short weeks, I got my first raise (four bits) and proudly told my grandpa about it.

He told me that everyone begins a job overvalued and underworked. It's part of the learning process. In time, things even out. Eventually, the great workers are undervalued and overworked - and sometimes overlooked.

When you begin working with your company blog, think about it as training a new employee. You'll be investing a good amount of time in:

• Finding your writing voice
• Commenting on other sites
• Searching for like-minded blogs
• Learning some of the tools of the blogosphere

Eventually, your blog will be running smooth and returning value in readership. It will help extend your company's reach and voice. It will help you become findable in places you hadn't expected.

But don't neglect this employee (or any of them for that matter). Periodically, have a review. What kind of perks can you give your blog to assist them in doing their job?

• A new design
• Some widgets or navigation
• A mention in your collateral materials
• A company car (okay - maybe a bit much there)

Loving your employees will compel them to be better, loyal, contagious, enthusiastic... They will become an advocate for you and your company. Showing your blog a similar love will generate better returns as well.

How about your blog? Tool or employee?

Elsewhere:
- 5 Ways to Treat Your Website Like an Employee and Reap the Rewards

Is your company blog simply a tool - or should you treat it like an employee?

I started working when I was 14 years old. A dishwasher in a French-style restaurant. I think I made like $2.00 per hour and shared tips from the nicer waitresses.

My grandfather said I was overpaid. I didn't understand that - so I worked harder. After a few short weeks, I got my first raise (four bits) and proudly told my grandpa about it.

He told me that everyone begins a job overvalued and underworked. It's part of the learning process. In time, things even out. Eventually, the great workers are undervalued and overworked - and sometimes overlooked.

When you begin working with your company blog, think about it as training a new employee. You'll be investing a good amount of time in:

• Finding your writing voice
• Commenting on other sites
• Searching for like-minded blogs
• Learning some of the tools of the blogosphere

Eventually, your blog will be running smooth and returning value in readership. It will help extend your company's reach and voice. It will help you become findable in places you hadn't expected.

But don't neglect this employee (or any of them for that matter). Periodically, have a review. What kind of perks can you give your blog to assist them in doing their job?

• A new design
• Some widgets or navigation
• A mention in your collateral materials
• A company car (okay - maybe a bit much there)

Loving your employees will compel them to be better, loyal, contagious, enthusiastic... They will become an advocate for you and your company. Showing your blog a similar love will generate better returns as well.

How about your blog? Tool or employee?

Elsewhere:
- 5 Ways to Treat Your Website Like an Employee and Reap the Rewards

Is Your Business Too Small for a Website?

Is your business too small to have a web presence?

In times past, if you weren't in the Yellow Pages (remember those?), you didn't exist. In this generation, if you're not findable on the Internet, you don't exist.

Several months ago, I wrote about a study showing 30% of small businesses still don't have a web presence. While I'd like to think that's changed -- it probably hasn't. Just check out your Chamber of Commerce directory.

Do you know a small business without a web site?  Maybe it's because of cost or because of hi-tech fear.  Blogs are one way to clear both of those hurdles.

Here are a few samples of Business Blogs doing it simple, but findable:

Aldo Coffee Company
Conference Calls Unlimited
Lightning Labels
Maine Stay Inn
Three Angels Gourmet
Two Maids and a Mop

Isn't it time you become findable?

New Shoes for Your Site - Social Bookmarks

A few months ago, I encouraged readers to have some Social Bookmark Intelligence. How did you do?

Here's a quick and simple video focusing on using Delicious as an example (RSS readers can also see the CommonCraft Social Bookmarking video:

At Social Bookmarking Script, you can generate code so that a series of buttons appears at the bottom of your pages

Social Bookmarking

If that's too colorful for your site, at IceTag Generator, you can create text-based social bookmarks:

Add to: | Technorati |  Digg |  del.icio.us |  Yahoo |  BlinkList |  Spurl |  reddit |   Furl |

Don't wait. As the Internet is growing, your site's toes are showing. Time for some new shoes.
 

Related Articles:
- Don't Ignore Delicious and StumbleUpon at Web Strategy by Jeremiah

Web Strategies for 2008

Time to create or modify some of your web presence habits in 2008:

• Social Media: Time to get engaged in the blogosphere. Comment or publish a blog; Start reading RSS Feeds; Publish content on YouTube or Scribd.
• Social Networking: Get connected with LinkedIN, Facebook, or an industry-specific network.
• Traffic Analysis: It's amazing how many business owners don't know how much traffic they get, where users comes from, what page they exit from, etc. Google Analytics is free and comprehensive.
• e-Learning: Develop an e-learning strategy like the one Doug Mitchell recently wrote about. A great resource on this can be found at Rapid eLearning
• Dump Flash: I still see sites being launched with all Flash - all the time. Of course, some have been saying this for years.
• Study Up: Read Jeremiah Owyang, Lee Odden, and John Jantsch on a regular basis.

Want to brainstorm with others about these strategies?  Come to the monthly Central Iowa Blogger business breakfast on the First Friday of each month. 

Smart Surfing Stocking Stuffers for Your Browser

A lot of folks ask me how they can start paying attention to what's being said about them in blogs, if anything is being said, and how users are sharing information that is important to their company.

While Search Once and Subscribe tells us the "when" something is said, There are three buttons I use often to give me a glimpse to "what" is being said, and "who" is saying it.

When a blog that mentions us, I have these three "surf smarter" buttons right in my browser:

• Google Blog Search This
• Technorati This
• del.icio.us History

As an example, let's look at KitchenAid (random choice)

• Google Blog Search This shows us 25 blogs linking to the KitchenAid site.
• Technorati This shows 111 links (and we can sort by freshness or 'authority')
• del.icio.us History shows 84 users have bookmarked the site, using tags ranging from Kitchen to Cooking (what - no dishwashers?)

I have these buttons on both my Explorer 6.0 and Firefox browsers. The links below are the scripts that create the buttons mentioned here.

• For Firefox users, simply click and drag the link into your Bookmarks toolbar (or bookmark in your Bookmark Toolbar).
• For IE 6.0 users, right click and Add to Favorites in the LINKS folder.
  

• Google Blog Search This
• Technorati This
• del.icio.us History

Think of these quick and easy tools as extendable ears. People might be talking about you or your company on the web. And if they aren't, you should be reading more of this section.

Here's to smarter surfing. Remember to Search Once and Subscribe. You never know when you might say, "We Wuz Blogged!"

 

Practicing the P's of Social Media

If you're looking at the Social Media terrain like a lost country boy in downtown Manhattan, SusanGetgood at Marketing Roadmaps offers concise direction in engaging the Social Media landscape with The 4 P's of Social Media Engagement.

1. Prepare - find out what your customers are saying and what they care about by listening. I'll add a 1.5 here and say that after careful attention is paid, define your Purpose.
2. Participate - engage in the conversation. Be it by commenting on blogs or having a Twitter presence, get out from behind the counter and be part of the community.
3. Publish - Blogging, Podcasting, Slideshare, Instructables...something.
4. Pitch - As Susan says, preparation should always come before promotion.

Passion would probably be good additive here to fuel your trip. Being bland (aka trying to please everyone) will leave you on the side of the road flat.

Another great resource for beginning (or continuing) your Social Media journey is Chris Brogan's Social Media Starter Pack

Did You Hear What They Said About You?

Do you know when bloggers talk about your company or offering?  You should. And it's as simple as Search Once and Subscribe.

Now before you show your...blind spot, know that bloggers can be a strong ally in spreading your good word (or its opposite). Whether you call it viral marketing or word-of-mouth (and there's a difference), it's foolish to ignore something so simple to track.

Let's say the folks at Beaverdale Books do a Google Blog Search on their store. Do they reward the compliments? Do they reach out to the complaints?

You don't have to be adept at using a Feed Aggregator. Simply do the search and subscribe to a Google Alert via email. If nobody blogs about you (another problem altogether), then you won't get anything in your email. But if they do blog about you, you'll know about it!

Our own Tom Vander Well writes how Understanding RSS/Feeds Might Change Your Life & Business.

Planning Your Website: Every Page is Important

Earlier this year, we posed the question How Important is Your Website's Home Page? While the home page is very important, it's not always the entry point for your readers. Therefore, every page is important - and you should have a plan for each page.

If you Google the phrase "planning a website" - not a single result of the first 30 results points to a home page. Each result points to a sub page in a site.

When we begin planning for a site, most of us look at the plan in a family tree type of hierarchy. This is fine for organizing a site, but it's not search engines normally see your site. Think more of a mind map, with each page being indexed.

Knowing that every page could be an entry point, it becomes important to know how and where you want the reader to go next...and then make it easy for them to get there.

Do a quick check of your stats to see what entry points you get readers, then go visit that page to see if your reader has a great first impression....or a quick exit.

Photo on Flickr by netan

HEO is Better Than SEO: Write for Human Eyeballs

I get questioned a lot about Search Engine Optimization (SEO). I always recommend Human Eyeball Optimization (HEO) over SEO.

Think about this: Who is the customer of a search site?  A user (almost always a human being).  If Google doesn't consistently provide relevant results, the user goes to another search site.

That said, help Google help you by helping their user. Write your content and design/develop your site for human consumption. If people hate your writing, Google hates your site.

Some small businesses still think there are tricks to ranking higher in search results due to placement of hidden keywords, lots of meta tags, or having your site submitted to 80 search directories.

Better practice is to think of who and how people search for content. Then write towards that end. If you know what your customers and prospects value and are searching for, provide that content on your site. You'll be found.

If you're paying lots of money for SEO service rich in "robot" and geek-speak, you've probably thrown away hundreds of dollars.

Ever wonder what a conversation with a Google spider, would be like?

Making the Web Better by Making it Social

"How much happier we would be if instead of crippling each other with fear, we competed to empower each others' creativity." - Dave Winer, ca 1996

Maybe you've hesitated engaging with social media because of the flood of choices. Some might call it widget hell. That's about to end.

With HTML and JavaScript, your developers and/or talent can get started...right now. What this could mean is that the developer in Manchester, Iowa doesn't have to live in Silicon Valley to succeed.

Among those involved: LinkedIn, Salesforce, Ning, Plaxo, Oracle, Friendster, Hi5, Slide...and many others.

Others on Open Social:

Marc Andreessen
Michael Arrington
Marianne Richmond
Chris Carfi
Richard McManus
Phil Wolff

Take a Drive Along Web 2.0

Many businesses are in a state of confusion over Web 2.0. Is it easy? Is it complicated? What's the ROI? What if we get negative feedback? Do we have to hire more IT people?

I'm not a big fan of the term 'Web 2.0' My new Corolla is the fourth I've owned (and one of two in my garage). I don't call the new one Corolla 4.0. It's simply a newer version of a tool I use often.

The primary focus of Web 2.0 is people.  Connecting people sharing thoughts, experiences and expertise through social interaction. 

If you think MySpace, YouTube, Delicious, Flickr and Facebook are for the lunatics -- think again. There are looneys out there, just as there are lunatics on the road.  But that doesn't stop me from hopping in my Corolla 3.0 (my wife drives 4.0)

A few thoughts on how to keep your Web 2.0 running smooth:

Think Simple, not easy:  Most applications and networks are very simple to use. However, it's not easy. Web 2.0 strategies take time and effort. Strategy is more important than tactics, so make sure you have a plan going in (and be open to an organic plan).

Think dialogue, not monologue: Web 2.0 is a conversational space. Give and take.  If you're doing all the talking...you probably won't have much of an audience. Engage with your audience, nay...become part of the audience - then engage.

Think authentic, not glass-house: Transperancy is a buzz word amongst social media gurus, but it seems many are scared off by that word.  Rather than thinking you must wear the emporer's new clothes, just be real. Who you are offline, should be who you are online.

Web 2.0 is still in its early stages, so don't think you've missed the boat. Have a presence in all the tools, choose a few to be active in. But get out there. Consumers are already out there (as is usually the case). Be part of the conversation.

And if you're one of those that doesn't like the term "blog," get over it. It's short for "web log"  I don't like the term "car" but I drive one. And car is short for...it came from...how'd we come up with car from automobile?

Hire a Blog Today.

Is your company blog site simply a tool - or do you treat it like an employee?

I started working when I was 14 years old. A dishwasher in a French restaurant. I think I made like $2.00 per hour and shared tips from the nicer waitresses.

My grandfather said I was overpaid. I didn't understand that - so I worked harder. After a few short weeks, I got my first raise (four bits) and proudly told my grandpa about it.

He told me that everyone begins a job overvalued and underworked. It's part of the learning process. In time, things even out. Eventually, the great workers are undervalued and overworked - and sometimes overlooked.

When you begin working with your company blog, it will be like training a new employee. You'll be investing a good amount of time in:

• Finding your writing voice
• Commenting on other sites
• Searching for like-minded blogs
• Learning some of the tools of the blogosphere

Eventually, your blog will be running smooth and returning value in readership. It will help extend your company's reach and voice. It will help you become findable in places you hadn't expected.

But don't neglect this employee (or any of them for that matter). Periodically, have a review. What kind of perks can you give your blog site to assist it in doing its job?

• A new design
• Some widgets or navigation. Maybe some social bookmark tools in the footer.
• A spotlight in your collateral material
• A company car (okay - maybe a bit much there)

Loving your employees will compel them to be better, loyal, contagious, enthusiastic... They will become an advocate for you and your company.

How about your blog? Tool or employee? How about your company's web site?

Elsewhere:
- 5 Ways to Treat Your Website Like an Employee and Reap the Rewards

Is your company blog site simply a tool - or do you treat it like an employee?

I started working when I was 14 years old. A dishwasher in a French restaurant. I think I made like $2.00 per hour and shared tips from the nicer waitresses.

My grandfather said I was overpaid. I didn't understand that - so I worked harder. After a few short weeks, I got my first raise (four bits) and proudly told my grandpa about it.

He told me that everyone begins a job overvalued and underworked. It's part of the learning process. In time, things even out. Eventually, the great workers are undervalued and overworked - and sometimes overlooked.

When you begin working with your company blog, it will be like training a new employee. You'll be investing a good amount of time in:

• Finding your writing voice
• Commenting on other sites
• Searching for like-minded blogs
• Learning some of the tools of the blogosphere

Eventually, your blog will be running smooth and returning value in readership. It will help extend your company's reach and voice. It will help you become findable in places you hadn't expected.

But don't neglect this employee (or any of them for that matter). Periodically, have a review. What kind of perks can you give your blog site to assist it in doing its job?

• A new design
• Some widgets or navigation. Maybe some social bookmark tools in the footer.
• A spotlight in your collateral material
• A company car (okay - maybe a bit much there)

Loving your employees will compel them to be better, loyal, contagious, enthusiastic... They will become an advocate for you and your company.

How about your blog? Tool or employee? How about your company's web site?

Elsewhere:
- 5 Ways to Treat Your Website Like an Employee and Reap the Rewards

Social Bookmark Intelligence

In Do it Wrong Quickly: How the Web Changes Old Marketing Rules, author Mike Moran says:

If you have a story to tell and make it easy to pass on, more people will provide that recommendation you crave.

Social Bookmarks allow your readers to provide, share and spread your message in many ways.

I've answered the question about whether social bookmarks are marketing tools elsewhere. Recently, one customer had been averaging just over 100 page views per day. One of their articles got "stumbled" and received a 300% spike in traffic. The spike lasted for two days and the post still gets activity from the StumbleUpon recommendation.

At The Simple Dollar, author Trent Hamm uses Feedburner's FeedFlare to equip his readers to share his content. Is it working?  With 1,698 Delicious Links and over 6,400 Blog Reactions pointing to the site...I'd say so.

One way to tap into social bookmarking is by using a service such as AddThis or SocialMarker (as found at Jason Falls SocialMediaExplorer site...can you find the bookmark button)

An example of AddThis comes from fellow Iowans CyberNetNews. As you mouse over a bookmark button, a tooltip-type pop-up appears:

Rather than just pass this (opportunity) up as a passing fancy, get intelligent about social bookmarking and employ it on every page of your site.

Related Posts:

- Video: Social Bookmarking in Plain English
- The Social Bookmarking Faceoff Reloaded
- A Complete Guide to What is Social Bookmarking Part I | Part II

Blogging is More Than Lunacy

Blogging isn’t the lunacy many proclaim. There is some lunacy, but there's more to blogging than lunacy.

Many use blogging to journal thoughts, photos or sound bytes. But that's just a few ways to use blog sites. There's more.

Smart business people are beginning to use blogging to increase their findability, position themselves as an expert in their field and to engage in conversations with their customers.

While those that are using blogging for business are finding success, some professions still have their defenses up on the subject. Maybe it's fear.

Hearken back to yesteryear, when the complaint against television was that it would kill radio. It didn’t. But radio did find different – if not better – ways to be used. The outcry against blogging is similar in some professions.

The archive, architecture and frequency of a blogging is changing the professional worlds of web development, marketing, copywriting, and public relations.

Web Development
Here are the distinct differences between a static web site and a blog site:
1.    Timestamped, Archived Content
3.    Ability for the Reader to Engage
4.    Syndicated Content (or RSS Feeds)

Search Engines have a responsibility to deliver fresh, relevant content to their user or face losing them to competitors. Because blogs are updated frequently, provide depth with archived pages, and are have a categorized architecture – search engines are attracted to blogs.

RSS feeds is another reason web development is changing. Because users can receive content without the ads and design – web development is changing.

Marketing and Copywriting
Today’s customer craves a meaningful relationship. While they may switch loyalties and practice diversity – it’s in search of a business that practices meaningful outreach and treats the customer like royalty.

Since blogs allow the reader to receive the content however they choose – and since blogs allow for a form of open dialogue – the company that blogs will be talking with their customers, rather than at them.

Don’t Just Publish – Participate
Blogging isn‘t just about publishing your message, but also about participating in a larger discussion with other bloggers – namely your customers and prospects.

Like any other conversation, blogging has two roles: Listening and Talking. There are tools such as Google’s Blog Search and Technorati that allow you to search the blogosphere by keyword or web address. By subscribing to the RSS feeds of these results, you begin practicing “Search Once and Subscribe.”

Blogging is more than just quilts and cats, pictures and poetry. They are that and more. While some say it's lunacy - there are lunatics driving cars on our roads...but I'll bet you still drive a car.

Photo on Flickr by Sue Richards

Quick Attention Span - Your Next Generation of Consumers

There's a loser's limp in some business circles. You've probably heard it (said it?).

"The next generation of consumer has a short attention span."

I'd argue that we may be hearing a negative, when in reality - it's a challenge to us as business owners. Instead of "short" attention span, I'll offer a new label: Quick Attention Span.

As Lisa Johnson puts it in Mind Your X's and Y's:

"There's a rumbling hunger for what's new, better, faster, and more efficient. When something clicks - such as buying only your favorite singles from a full album on iTunes - the new way will rule. Some might chalk up this phenomenon to a short attention span or lack of loyalty, but there's a deeper truth. The market is now a place of constant change. Thriving brands, people and organizations understand how to handle this lightning pace and learn to evolve with each new shift."

It's your responsibility to listen to the marketplace and evolve...or become extinct.

Find ways to connect with your consumer and allow them to connect with each other: be it with a blog, an engaging presence on Facebook, or using social bookmark buttons on each web page.

Blogologist's Warning: A social media presence that is self-serving will backfire. Have a purpose that benefits your audience, and you too will benefit. Having a presence because it's "hot" may be harmful to your business health.

Is Podcasting Part of Your Strategy?

A few years ago, the term multi-media referred to having a presence in print, radio, TV and the Internet. Now, it's almost necessary to have multi-media in your web presence.

Text, Images, Video and Audio.  While video is getting a lot of play (and should be considered for your business), it may be more affordable to begin podcasting.

The National Pork Board offers its PorkPod podcast with an embedded player. This way your audience can download the podcast or listen from within the browser.

While this isn't a podcast, take a listen to Brian's radio spot - right here in the browser:

Play in Browser:

Audacity is a free, easy-to-use software available (MAC and Windows) for recording and editing sounds.

Easier still is BlogTalkRadio. Just pick up the phone and record. Within minutes after recording, BTR turns your recording into a sound file you can embed in your browser. Our own Rush Nigut does this at RushonBusiness. Sherry Borzo at dsmBuzz also uses this method.

Similar to blogging, one of the best ways to get started podcasting is listening first. Anita Campbell compiled a great resource 100 Small Business Audio Podcasts along with a backstory behind the list.

Related Articles:

- How to Start Your Own Podcast at WkiiHow
- Creating and Publishing Audio at HipCast

A Dose of Social Media Reality

Are you among the thought-followers thinking that Social Media and Social Networking is a fad?  Fad or not, there are some thing you may not know:

• There are over 500 groups specific to Des Moines at Facebook? Several are either for or against local businesses. Is this a tool you can use to build a community of customers?
• That even though folks like Todd Mundt are sharing several pages from the Des Moines Register, The Juice and Des Moines Business Record - these publications don't maintain archives -- which means they kill the sharing capabilities of users.
• Speaking of Todd Mundt - Dig the way he shares top stories from his Google Feeds
• Surprisingly, there's only 184 Twitter-ers who claim Iowa as home.
• A Google Blog Search for the phrase "Business in Iowa" brings up over 4,500 results.
• Over 17,000 videos have been tagged "iowa" at YouTube.
• With all the blogs listed at IowaBlogs.Net - I'll bet some of them are customers (prospects?)

Here's the thing: If you don't pay attention now - you may pay the price later. Even if it is a fad - why not tap into the power and people now?

Wells Fargo Small Business Webcast

My friend and fellow Blog Coach, Denise Wakeman will be part of the expert panel during tomorrow's Wells Fargo Small Business Webcast: Technology and Your Business at 1:00 PM Central.

Find out more and register for this free webcast to hear success stories from small business owners.

Web Strategy Must Reads

I always tell people I work with, Be the Resource. If you find something your readers will value, share it with them (and tell them how they can get it on their own).

In that spirit, here are a few pieces that you should read (and then subscribe to their RSS feeds - here's A Beginner's Guide to RSS):

• Social Media: From the Drawing Board to the Board Room by Jeremiah Owyang Jeremiah tells how one company go started measuring their involvement in new media. After reading the story, do a search on web strategy - yep, same guy.
  Money quote: "While some of the measurement concepts remain the same as
• When Blogging is not Your Full-Time Job by Mario Sundar
  5 tips and some great links from LinkedIn's Community Evangelist
• Corporate Blogging Profiles:Are You a Sleeper or a Host? by Mark White
  Mark lists several different roles/perspectives. Which one are you? Notice that 'The Ignoramus' is not listed as a choice.

Can You Blog Without a Business Blog?

Everyone has heard the term "blogging", though many still don't understand what blogging really is - or can be.

On a blog site, a person (or persons) share an opinion. The blog might be personal, or political, or professional. Sometimes a bit of each.

A blog post may be the beginning or continuation of a topic or opinion.  For the sake of this article, let's say the blog post author is talking.

But the author isn't the only one involved in the discussion. There are others.

These are the readers of the blog. Some are regular readers. Some find the blog post by a search engine result. For now, let's say the readers are listeners.

So now we have a picture in our minds of one person talking, and others listening. Each is an active participant in the conversation.

But what of the business that doesn't blog? Because they don't publish a blog, does that mean they can't be an active participant in the conversation?

With tools such as Technorati, BlogPulse and Google's Blog Search engine, combined with feed aggregators such as GreatNews or Bloglines, every business person should be an active listener.

Get Started Reading Feeds. Understand that Blogging Has Two Roles. If you're not at least listening to what's being said about you, your clients, your competition, your industry - I wonder if you're serious about your business.

Business Blogging is like a conversation. Some talk. Some listen. Talkers and Listeners.

Of course, there are some who ignore. What would we call them?

Taking an active role in business blogging doesn't mean you have to write a blog. But at least scoot up to the table and take a listen.

Photo on Flickr by greekadman

Do You Own YourName.com?

Look at your business card (you do have one with you, right?). Except for your logo, what's the largest item on the card. Your name, right?

Your name is an important part of your business. Hopefully, folks remember it. Scott Ginsberg practically wears his name on his sleeve. I've never talked with Scott in person, but I'll always remember his name.

I don't have Scott's blog address memorized, but I simply typed in www.scottginsberg.com and got there. You can find Tom Peters or Steve Farber the same way.

Now, type this in your web browser:

www.<Insert Your Name>.com

Find anything?  Do you own your domain name?  You should.

Let's try a few others:

• Drew McLellan at www.drewmclellan.com. Check.
• Art Dinkin at www.artdinkin.com? Now you're talking.
• Adam Steen at www.adamsteen.com. It's a GoDaddy parking page, but at least Adam owns it.  And hopefully - it's our Adam.

The last example is important. Even if you don't publish anything right away, you should secure yourname.com (and your kid's names, and your those of your grandkids).

Simply scoot on over to GoDaddy.com, secure your name for $10 and park it.  Don't think too many people have your name?  That's what I thought, too.  Thankfully - I'm the owner for the domain of my name.

Who owns your (domain) name?

Add RSS Feeds to Your Web Strategy Toolbox

Is email marketing dead?  Not entirely, but it's changing. And RSS might be taking its place in the batting order.

Raise your hand if you've ever deleted an email newsletter that you subscribed to. Everyone (that's honest) has their hand raised.  Sometimes we delete pieces we still want to subscribe to, we just don't have time this issue, right?

Raise your hand if you've ever tried to unsubscribe to an email newsletter (how frustrating is that process?), and after unsuccessful attempts, just decided it would be easier to keep deleting the darned thing.

You in the back, you can put your hand down. How's that? You have email accounts just for email lists you join? I notice a lot of heads nodding (is yours?).

One company I work with shared these numbers with me:

Subscriber List: 3,348
Open-Rate: 326 (9.7%)

Subscriber List: 620
Reach: 198 (22.3%)

The top numbers are from their email list. They confessed the list isn't 100% opt-in, they've added roughly half the addresses from various other sources (shame on them).  I'm sure the numbers would be higher had they not dilluted the process.

The bottom numbers are from their blog's RSS feed. 100% opt-in. (Note: Open-Rate and Reach are pretty much the same thing. How many users actually opened the item)

Here's one thing not told above. They send an email blast once or twice each month (total of 652 opened email each month). They update their blog an average of 3 times each week (total of 594 opened feed items each week).

The email service charges a small monthly fee. The RSS feed service is free.

An email newsletter can still be effective. However, RSS is proving to be at least as effective - maybe more so. With the recent addition of Feedburner to the Google family of tools, the measurement of RSS will become an integral part of your company's web strategy.

Related Articles Elsewhere:
- What the Heck is RSS? by Brian Clark
- Email Open Rates Guide by Mark Brownlow
- And There Was Much Rejoicing... by FeedBurner

Related Books
- Web Analytics by Avinash Kaushik
- Email Marketing by the Numbers by Chris Baggott

How Healthy is Your Web Presence?

Does your web site need a check-up?  A new exercise regimen? A complete physical?

Let's be honest. Some of us need to diet and won't admit it. Some of us are nutrition freaks - and it could be ruining our health.

In our diets, some fats promote our health; some fats increase the risk to our health.

They say that commercially packaged products are often loaded with trans fatty acids (a bad fat). Too many saturated fats can lead to health risks.

Web sites , especially those designed from a template, are often commercially packaged (Is that design actually a template purchased for $50? And they resold it to you for how much?). They come saturated with keywords which look great in a density cloud ("Your keyword appears 14% on each page"), but it's not friendly reading to the human eye.

Blogs are more organic, they grow naturally - in voice, in readership, and in search rankings. What? Search Rankings aren't important?

Let's be honest. You want to be findable, right? No? What's with that half-page Yellow Book ad? Ah, yes...so people can...yep, thought so....find you.

Blogs are Good FAT, because they promote:

• Findability: Customers find you, you find them. Because of the nature of blog sites, they become easier to find.
• Affordability: It's laughable when you compare - and yes, blogware can produce everything your dreamweaver-golive-frontpage-whatever-wysiwyg thing can.
• Trustability: Truth always bubbles to the top over time. And with consistent updates to your site, your audience will recognize your voice - online and offline.

Enough of the condensed, processed, trans-fatty web sites. And take your website for a walk once in awhile - get it some exercise (update it now and again).

How Healthy is your Web Presence?

They say that commercially packaged products are often loaded with trans fatty acids (a bad fat). Too many saturated fats can lead to health risks.

Web sites , especially those designed from a template, are often commercially packaged (Is that design actually a template purchased for $50? And they resold it to you for how much?). They come saturated with keywords which look great in a density cloud ("Your keyword appears 14% on each page"), but it's not friendly reading to the human eye.

Blogs are more organic, they grow naturally - in voice, in readership, and in search rankings. What? Search Rankings aren't important?

Let's be honest. You want to be findable, right? No? What's with that half-page Yellow Book ad? Ah, yes...so people can...yep, thought so....find you.

Blogs are Good FAT, because they promote:

• Findability: Customers find you, you find them. Because of the nature of blog sites, they become easier to find.
• Affordability: It's laughable when you compare - and yes, blogware can produce everything your dreamweaver-golive-frontpage-whatever-wysiwyg thing can.
• Trustability: Truth always bubbles to the top over time. And with consistent updates to your site, your audience will recognize your voice - online and offline.

Grade Your Website - Without Emotion or Bias

I encounter many business owners who are in love with their websites.

• Owners who love the cool flash intro every time they see it, though it annoys their users by their third visit
• Owners who dig the simplicity of the frames that surround the content, though search engines record only one page out of 75 pages in the site.
• Owners who wonder why they don't rank higher in Google for any of the 54 keywords they've put in their code.
• Owners who have no idea what I'm talking about...so let's get to the point...

Friend and Iowa small business owner Kyle Eslick was the first of many trusted voices pointing out a free tool called Website Grader.

Simply key in your web address, a few related keywords and if you choose, a competitors site. Within a minute or two, you'll have a web grade on a scale of 100 -- with suggested improvements.

Kyle was able to take his grade from 85/100 to 95/100 with a few minor changes. We took IowaBiz from a 45/100 to 78/100 - and we're just getting started.

Two things to think about as you head on over to WebsiteGrader

• Website Grader brings no emotion into the grading process. During this test, neither should you.
• Website Grader bases part of its grading on social media sites such as Technorati and Delicious - these are important pieces in today's Internet. Don't ignore them. (remember - no emotion on this test).

If you want to learn more about how to use the web for your business or more about the social media landscape, check out Kyle's Cove - one of the most popular tech sites around (the globe) and a site that sometimes gets more web traffic than the Des Moines Register site.

Rural Iowa Business? No Web Site? Hello Merchant Circle

I've long been a fan of Merchant Circle and their tools, allowing any business to increase their web presence. No matter the size of either the business or the region, I believe every company can benefit from these tools.

One local company, Sims Plumbing in Des Moines uses their Merchant Circle page to supplement their company site. Interactive tools they're putting to use:

• Sims Plumbing Company Blog
• Newsletter with Coupon
• Message Center (where customers can leave a message online)

Before you think this piece is simply an advert for Merchant Circle, let's talk about their Reputation Management tool.

Among the many tools you see to the right, the Reputation Score may be the most important. Tracking customer reviews about your business from sites such as Yahoo Local and Citysearch, you're able to see what's being said about you online (you should be doing this already with Search  Once and Subscribe, but that's another matter).

As you can see from the dashboard, there are other reasons to get started with Merchant Circle (and most of the tools are free!)

Don't Just Show the Video - Share the Video

A lot of companies are looking at the rising power of video and jumping on...something. Hardly the bandwagon, but more Iowa businesses are starting to produce video content.

Last month, I shared a video on understanding RSS feeds by CommonCraft. The numbers tell the success story. Over 80,000 views; 9 translations; close to 700 links.

This month, they've shared a video on understanding Wikis. Notice what they do here:

• Produce a short video
• Upload it to thrid-party video sites (Blip.tv, YouTube, dotSub)
• Encourage  content producers (mainstream media, bloggers, everyone who has a connection) to share the video on their own site

That third step is where a lot of small businesses fall short.  The mentality of  "come to my site"  for the content is limited thinking. Don't just show the video - share the video. That's how things go viral.

Becky McCray at SmallBiz Survival has a great DIY on video publishing on the web (and here's a recent SmallBiz Video sample).

Other Resources:
- Why UStream will Change Mainstream
- Video Communities: YouTube | Google Video | BlipTV | Revver | dotSub

I Want More Web Traffic

A hypothetical conversation between a small business owner and a web developer:

Small Business Owner: More traffic, please. 
Web Developer: What will more traffic accomplish?
Small Business Owner: (deep sigh, wondering if he hired the right person) Everything!  More sales, more contacts, more...everything.

Web Developer: What kind of conversion are you getting now? What page are people exiting your site from?
Small Business Owner: I have no idea.

Web Developer: What web page do they enter from? How many pages per visit?
Small Business Owner: Umm...I dunno.
Web Developer: While more traffic is always a plus, let's first take a look at your stats and see what we can find out about your current traffic.

Sounds like the Small Business Owner may have the right person after all. If you're not converting your current traffic, going after more traffic is putting the cart before the horse.

You should check your website statistics regularly and with purpose.

• How do visitors enter your site? Yes, your home page is probably the most popular (it's printed on your collateral), but take note of which sub pages are in the top tier of visits.
• Number of visits and unique visits. It's possible that half of your traffic comes from your own office. There are ways to eliminate inclusion of your own IPs in the measurements.
• How many "page views" per user? This shows how long or deep users are going into your site. If it's an average of less than two pages per user, you should probably ask why people aren't staying longer.
  • Are they finding what they came for?
  • Is your content holding their attention?
  • Is the site easy to use?
• "Hits" are overrated. Pages that have 40 little pieces of art, an email form and a couple of widgets are going to result in 43 hits - but just one page view.
• Where are your visitors coming from? If it's a search engine, what search term are they using?
• What page are they exiting from? If visitors are leaving from your store or contact page - better look at what's happening on that page that's causing people to leave from there.

You may already have an analytics program in place (such as AWStats or SiteMeter) - and if you don't, Google Analytics is free, in-depth and very useful. Check with your web developer. Ask for help in understanding the traffic pattern.

By doing so, you may start increasing sales and traffic without a complete overhaul or a higher advertising budget.

WSJ Small Business Link: IT Outsourcing

The Wall Street Journal has launched Small Business Link, a special section serving small business leaders combining the best features from their online and print offerings.

Each month, the Small Business Link will focus on one particular issue facing small business owners. From there, readers can participate in a conversation with others - including the people featured in the articles.

The first topic, focusing on Employee Benefits, was quietly launched on April 9. This month, the talk centers around the Technology Outsourcing and includes these helpful articles:

• Which IT projects should be outsourced
• The importance of IT security
• Do's and Don'ts of Outsourcing

Also available are videos and podcasts on these important issues. There are plenty of high-quality, high-touch IT companies in Iowa that not only offer expertise in their field, but understand how small business work - because many of them are small businesses.

Next month's Small Business Link will focus on Recruiting, a timely topic with the Iowa-ABI Workforce '07 Convention just around the calendar.

Does Your Web Strategy Include Listening?

Hear that? It's the voice or your customer, the sounds of pleading from prospects, the scratch of your competitor in the news...but can you hear it with all the surrounding noise? Are you even listening?

The mindset around web publishing seems to have always been 'push' - all about getting your message out. Though the landscape isn't really changing (it's always been about others more than ourselves) - we're becoming more aware that other voices exist. And sometimes, they're talking about us.

How do we keep track of it all? RSS or Syndicated Content. Content coming to you rather then you going to get it.

Here's a simple video that explains it (from the folks at CommonCraft):

Click To Play

There are two types of Internet users, those that use RSS and those that don't. This video is for the people who could save time using RSS, but don't know where to start.

Related Posts:
- A Simple Business Case for RSS Feeds
- Search Once and Subscribe
- How To Subscribe to Feeds

How Important is Your Web Site's Home Page?

Let me start by saying your home page is the most important page of you web site. However, it may not be as important as you think. Many times, a small business puts almost all of their energy and thought into a fantastic home page, and ends up ignoring sub pages.

Most search engines index web pages individually. This means the homepage is not the only entry point for a user. That said, what can you do to help your first-time visitors navigate their way around your site?

• Navigation: Have a link to your home page on every page in your web site. If a user lands on one of your sub pages and likes what they see – they will be looking for the top level next. Can they find it?
• Clickable Banner: Lately, there is a trend to have the banner or logo of web pages clickable, sending users directly to the home page. It’s becoming intuitive to users. Even if you have a link to the home page, make your banner/logo clickable to the home page.
• Contact Info: Have a contact link - and better yet, complete contact information -on every page.
• Frame-less: Aargh!  As a user, I can’t stand a site designed in frames for several reasons. First, if I want to bookmark or share a sub page of your site, I can’t because you’ve used frames. Same said for sites designed completely in Flash. One thing to remember when using frames and flash: Looks great, Less traffic.

Your home page is the web address on your business cards, brochures, adverts and email signatures (though that’s another strategy to discuss later). It is important. Just don’t neglect the importance of your other web pages.

So…aside from your home page, which page on your web site is the one you want visitors to see most?

Additional Reading:
- Biggest Mistakes in Web Design, 1999-2015 by Vincent Flanders
- Web Analysis, Behavioral Targeting and Advertising by Anil Batra

Photo on Flickr by yoppy

Shake the Cobwebs - Launch a Business Blog

We used to think it was so easy. Publish some text and images on your website, put the address on every piece of marketing and wait for them to come visit. The old "if you build it, they will come" idea behind web strategy.

Frankly, that idea was never good - except on the big screen. There is a term for static web pages that never change.  Cobweb. And if your content never changes, even the search engines get bored with your site - and stop coming by as often.

One way to shake off the cobweb blues is to launch a business blog. A blog is a collection of web pages that builds depth in a site while keeping the the freshest content at the top.

Before you sneeze at the idea, rid yourself of the notion that your blogs are only political rants or some controversial conversation between anonymous users. There are many ways to use a blog for your business:

• Positioning: Launch a blog that gives your audience a glimpse into your thoughts and practices. Link out to industry news and add your thoughts.
• FAQ: Use a blog to answer frequently asked questions about your product, industry or service. Not only will this help your customers, it will save you time from answering the same questions repeatedly.
• Photo or Video: Use photo progressions of your work, or put samplings of a video tutorial in each post.
• Tour Guide: Give your customers a glimpse into your back room, introduce your team with pictures and bios, show some of your process.

Of course, there are still many more ways to use blogs. By building web page depth and keeping your content fresh, you'll get repeat visits from your audience and the search engines. And your cobweb site can remain as your online brochure, while your blog can be the conversation.

Remember, blogs are web pages. While your customers/prospects may not realize they're reading blogs - blog pages are among the most findable on the web. Think your folks aren't reading blogs? Better shake off the cobwebs.