The Web Solutions Blog
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Wednesday, July 28, 2010
by WebSolutions
To put it simply, public relations is a tool you can use to build, manage and maintain a public image for yourself, your company or your organization. When all things are equal, what makes us choose one company or product over another is how we relate to that product or brand.
With so much on your plate, managing your company’s PR efforts may look like a daunting task and one that often falls by the wayside or becomes too sporadic to make an impact. But, with a clear actionable strategy in place, minutes a day or a few hours a week can pay huge dividends.
And yes, public relations efforts can be far-reaching and very costly (ask British Petroleum), but with proper planning there are low or no-cost strategies that you can execute in just minutes a day to help build and grow your brand.
Setting the Stage
Speed and efficiency are born of planning. You can get to work in 15 minutes a day but that’s only because someone took the time to build a highway. So, before we start racing down the track with tips and timing, let’s kick the tires on your PR plan.
- Goals: Make sure your plan has clear goals and that each of your strategies is designed to reach them.
- Messaging: A key component of any PR strategy is to deliver your message clearly and consistently. Develop a script that everyone from receptionists to CEOs should follow when discussing the company and reinforce that script through action at every touch point.
- Audience: Be clear on who your target is. Sure, you want everyone to know about your business or organization but by targeting a demographic “sweet spot” (i.e. a niche market, repeat customers, decision makers, etc.) you can often gain more by doing less.
- Delivery: Understand your target’s interests, what are they reading, what web sites they’re visiting, what events they are attending and then position yourself where they’ll see you.
Smoothing it out
Promotional events, product launches and crisis communications aside, once the groundwork has been completed, you can dissect your PR plan into manageable portions that can help keep your brand top of mind with consumers with a small daily investment of time.
- Connect: Take some time to introduce yourself to newspaper and industry publication editors and offer yourself as a resource for information in your field or industry. Ask them about the kind of story they would be interested in. Taking a few minutes of your day to make that connection can open doors for press releases, editorials and advertorial opportunities. Remember to be persistent, follow up and maintain the connection.
- Automate: Take a few minutes to set up news alerts on search engines and news sites related to your industry and your company or organization. With so many conversations taking place online, tracking can be time consuming, but not tracking can be costlier. Automating that process, can save you time while keeping you informed of what’s being said about your brand.
- Engage: Take a few minutes each day to engage your social networks by posting new information and responding to questions. It will keep your fans/followers connected and reinforce brand loyalty.
- Inform: Engaged consumers want to hear from you and you can build their trust in you by providing accurate and useful information. Take 20 minutes a couple of times a week to find interesting industry articles or tips that they would be interested in. Compile that in a monthly enewsletter along with information related to your company and you’ve got a brand building sales tool.
- Think: It sounds easy enough but making time to just sit and think can be difficult. Public Relations plans and strategies should be working documents, adjusted for what’s working and what’s not, so take some time to analyze and evaluate your efforts. The time you spend thinking of new strategies is worth more than time spent spinning your wheels on futile efforts.
Push Through
PR is a long-term tool that should be part of your overall marketing communications strategy, so don’t give up if you don’t see immediate results. Stick with it.
Strong brands are built over time, so keep communicating and if you find yourself frustrated or short on ideas, give us a call to learn more about creating an effective PR plan or finding time saving strategies in your existing plan.
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Tuesday, June 29, 2010
by WebSolutions
Mobile internet is rapidly gaining market share and the launches of Apple’s iPhone and Google’s Android are revolutionizing the way the world gathers and uses information by putting the full power of the web in the palm of the user’s hand, like no previous device could.
Making your current site mobile friendly doesn’t have to be a time consuming or costly process. With the right technology, a few design changes and some proper optimization, you’ll open your door to the more than 1.3 billion people with mobile Internet access.
Getting Started
As with any communications endeavor, it’s important to understand your audience and its needs. Studies show that mobile searchers use the web much differently than PC users. A short-term mobile traffic analysis of your current site can paint a good picture of how many mobile users are visiting your site, how they’re searching for and reaching you, and what information they’re looking for. This information will guide the design of your mobile site.
Design for Mobile
Aside from reinforcing your overall brand, the graphic elements of a mobile site play a secondary role to the information being delivered. Keep in mind that mobile screens are small and scrolling through a conventional site to find information can be a somewhat clumsy process.
This can easily be rectified by employing code that simplifies the layout of your traditional site. When a mobile device is detected, this code renders a version of the site that offers clear, up-front access to the information they’re most likely to want and reduces large graphic elements that could impact download speeds. As an example, traditionally secondary links like the “Contact” link and the search box, could be great top-line header items on a mobile site, because many users come looking for a phone number or address, and would rather type in the search box than scroll for information.
However, you shouldn’t think of a mobile site as a watered-down version of your web site but rather a vehicle to better deliver information to a rapidly expanding audience. In fact, users should always be given the option to connect to the full site for more information.
Employ Mobile Identification
Google searches, twitter streams and email drive the majority of mobile traffic, so automatic device detection is an invaluable tool. Once a mobile site structure and layout have been designed, it is important that your site automatically identify and render it for mobile users. This simple technology will make a big impact with your mobile audience.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Because most mobile traffic is driven by search engines like Google, optimizing your site so that it ranks near the top of the search results is an important step to capitalizing on the mobile market. Given the size of mobile devises, screens are likely to show just a few search results per screen and making an effort to top those results will pay huge dividends with mobile users looking for quick information from the first site that pops up.
Go Mobile
Creating a mobile presence is easier than you think. If you’re ready to take your show on the road, let our experience be your guide. Call today and let us show you what a partner with expertise in mobile traffic analysis, site design, technology and SEO can do for you.
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Tuesday, May 18, 2010
by WebSolutions
Thanks to the continuous improvements in how search results are organized and displayed, SEO has leveled the online marketing playing field, giving small to medium-sized businesses the ability to compete for and capture audiences that were previously the sole domain of large corporations.
Strategy and Planning
SEO requires a mix of services that work to make your site not only rank high in search results, but also to keep visitors on your site so they don’t go "back" to the search engine for an alternate solution.
Before taking action to optimize a site, gaining an understanding of the organization’s marketing objectives is imperative in order to get a clear picture of what the goals are and which products /services will play the biggest role in achieving them. With that knowledge, a clearly defined action plan is developed that takes into account opportunities for improvements to the site’s content, keywords, structure and usability.
Research
What people are searching for is a critical step to improving search rankings. Researching which words have the ability to become keyword assets for an organization can take multiple directions.
Reviewing site statistical logs and / or previous paid campaigns can provide insight into what past visitors were searching for when they came to the site. There are also a variety of tools that support the SEO specialist’s ability to analyze the competitiveness of keywords and rankings.
This multifaceted research supports the creation of a catalog of appropriate terminology that helps bolster targeted rankings, identify geographic opportunities (regional/national) in the market and ferret out the most desirable keywords that can be turned into true assets for the organization.
Execution
Once strategy and research are complete, work can begin on the action plan site wide. This action plan can include improvements to the site architecture, navigation, branding, intersite links, alternative text, title text and inbound links that are the cornerstone of successful search engine optimization. These improvements may take the form of enhanced technology, graphic redesign and copy writing. The goals and the keyword assets identified for the site are woven into each site enhancement made, to ensure that the execution of the SEO action plan is comprehensive and reflective of the organization’s overarching goals for visibility.
In addition to the steps of the action plan that focus on site redevelopment, comprehensive optimization will include measures that create or foster public relations for the organization via the web, bringing positive exposure through alternate channels online.
Analytics & Benchmarking
SEO requires a watchful eye to ensure that rankings are consistently maintained and improved. As an action plan is executed, continuous monitoring allows for the accurate analysis of traffic patterns and movement in rankings. This monitoring provides a better understanding of visitor experience: where people enter and exit the site; duration of time on the site; if any actions were taken that can be tracked; and if any "friction points" with the site can be identified.
Analysis of this critical SEO data and visitor experience helps identify areas for subsequent improvement—mitigating friction points and maintaining an emphasis on the keyword assets that are of the most value to the organization. A truly successful action plan continues to grow and change as a result of this analysis and benchmarking.
Are you ready to get noticed?
When you’re ready to get your best assets working for you, give us a call and we’ll show you how SEO can be a powerful compliment to your overall marketing strategy.
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Tuesday, March 30, 2010
by WebSolutions
Online video can be an impactful way to demonstrate products, tell your company’s story, and recruit new employees. If you decide to take it on, you must commit to its proper execution, keeping in mind that it is just another communications vehicle and should support your overall marketing strategy.
Fail to do so, and at best you confuse your customer base about what your company’s message is or, at worst, you go way off script and find more infamy than fame on the web.
Setting the Stage
Tell a story
Whether for marketing or recruiting purposes, it's important to keep the viewer engaged.
Keep it real
The online community values honesty and companies who have been caught pretending to be independent voices to push their own message have paid a heavy toll. Be honest about who you are, flaws and all, and you'll gain more respect online.
Make it quick
The web is all about getting information quickly and videos should run from 30 seconds to a few minutes at most. If you have a long story to tell, break it up into a series of videos.
Be secure
Regardless of the strength of your brand, not everyone is going to love your video. Accept it as a challenge and remember that they should not be standalone pieces but rather part of a bigger marketing strategy.
Know your audience
Not every video is a viral hit but if you understand what your audience wants you can create something that they'll enjoy and recommend to others.
Measure the impact
Having a lot of people see your video means nothing if it doesn't translate to your bottom line. Make sure the audience you're reaching is the right one.
Roll Tape...Action!
If you think you’re ready to tackle web video, give us a call and we’ll help ensure the marketing lens is pointed in the right direction before you press "record."
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Wednesday, February 17, 2010
by WebSolutions
Clearly, web sites are more than a collection of logos, colors, and pictures. Your web site is likely to be the public's first experience with your brand so it is important that you seize the opportunity to deliver on your brand promise--making sure that what they see, what they read, and what they feel is consistent with your overall brand.
When designing a web site, the following elements will ensure appreciation for both its form and its function.
Setting the Stage
Guide the User
Through effective use of position, color, contrast, size and design elements, you can actually lead the user around each page and get them to read exactly what you want them to.
Space
Filling every inch of your site with images or content only creates clutter and confusion. By making effective use of white space in design, you can create a sense of sophistication, while line spacing and padding (the space between text and images) make the content easier to read and follow.
Be Clear
Site visitors shouldn’t need a compass to navigate the site. Make sure the menu system is clear and simple. Organize the pages into easy to understand categories/menu items. Make sure the visitor knows where he or she is on the site at all times through design elements like visual feedback and breadcrumb trails.
Typography
You may not realize it, but your font choice greatly affects the visitor’s ability to read a site and what they deem to be important. For content within graphics, choose fonts that compliment the graphic subject. For site text, utilize web fonts that everyone can see so that the content is easy to read.
Alignment
When it comes to alignment, be consistent. Don’t center a title under left-justified text or you de-emphasize the title. Keep in mind that full-justified text creates gaps that can make it harder to read.
White Space
Though it is clearly empty space, white space is not wasted space. It is used to give focus to something else on the page. If every inch of the page has something on it, the reader doesn’t know where to look.
Work It
The last and most important thing to remember is that your site should work for you. Yes, it’s wonderful to have a beautiful site with cool graphics, but if you are not using the site as a tool to drive business, capture information, provide value to your customers, and generate revenue for your organization, all the pretty pictures in the world won’t make it worth your while.
Take Action
Stop wondering if your site is doing all it can. Give us a call and we will help you evaluate your site from every perspective, showing you ways to improve your appearance and your bottom line.
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