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Posts Tagged / business success

  • Jul 22 / 2013
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Websites

The Importance of a Professional Website For Your Business

website-poor-navigationTop o’ the mornin’ to ya NSquared readers.

 

Last week we talked about how using Twitter can be beneficial for your business. This week, we will be covering why it is important to have a professional, high-quality website for your business. If your existing website makes potential customers and clients feel like the photo to the left, then you have some thinking (and reading) to do.

 

Check out, Why is a Quality Business Website So Important?, below:

 

 

 

“Why is a Quality Business Website So Important?

 

 

 

When you own a business, your website is one of your most important mediums that can be used to reach new customers and generate more sales.

 

 

Whether you have an established website that is not currently working for you, or you are a complete novice to the online marketing world, improving your website so that it generates traffic and increases sales is the right thing for your business.

 

 

Without a high quality website that attracts visitors and provides you with a way to capture information, you are not using the Internet’s power to its full potential. The information below can provide you with an idea of why a good website is so important for your businesses’ bottom line.

 

 

 

 

Why is a Quality Business Website So Important?

 

 

A high-quality business website provides you with a way to capture the enormous amount of traffic that is on the Internet.

 

 

 

It also makes your business more accessible to your customers. It does this, by giving website users a way to contact you or find out valuable information about your products or services without having to get on the phone, and during non-business hours. There are literally millions of people searching the Internet for various reasons on any given day. If you are not trying to capture some of those visitors, then you are losing out on many potential sales each month. Just as your store gives you a physical presence a high-quality website provides you with an online Internet presence.

 

 

 

 

Benefits of Having a Good Website

 

 

As a business owner, there are many benefits to having a quality website that is able to not only generate traffic but also increase sales for your company. The first benefit that a business website can provide you with is it enables you to have access to customers that you otherwise might not have contact with. Without a website, you are only able to reach your potential market through traditional means, and not those potential customers that primarily use the internet for their purchase research.

 

 

By enlisting the help of an internet marketing service company, you can create a highly effective direct response website that enables you to reach out to Internet traffic.

 

 

By adding an opt-in form to a quality website, you can increase your earning potential each year by at least 20%. An opt-in form provides a means of capturing visitors’ contact information. This is very valuable as it will allow you to send current and potential customers information about promotions, important updates, and special sales events throughout the year.

 

 

The visitors on your list will be people that you know are already interested in the services that you are offering, and by sending out a sales message to them your rate of return will be much higher than with an untargeted ad in the newspaper.”

 

 

 

 

 

As you can see, a high-quality website is extremely important when it comes to the success of your business. Contact us if you’d like a website, or your website needs a facelift. Have a happy Monday!

  • Jun 03 / 2013
  • 0
Articles, Social Media

Social Networking Sites-Grow Your Network

funny-frog1Bonjour readers!

 

Do you use social media websites? If so, chances are you use them to connect with friends and family. However, you may also use them for your business (if you’re not, you should be)…

 

If you are using them for your business then ,This Simple Action Will Dramatically Grow Your LinkedIn Network, will be beneficial for you. Check it out below:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“This Simple Action Will Dramatically Grow Your LinkedIn Network

 

 

If you’re on LinkedIn, you want to grow your network. You want to connect with as many people as you can, because there’s some serious career-boosting power in those connections.

 

 

But there’s something you’re probably not doing, at least not on a regular basis — and it’s a move that will give you a far better bang for your networking buck.

 

 

Write a Personal Message

 

 

Most people don’t do this. Think about how many requests land in your inbox without a note — the majority of them, right?

 

 

And what about you? Do you add a personal note every single time you request to connect with someone on the network? Or do you hope that potential connection will recognize your name or connect on faith alone?

 

 

Since so few people write a personal note, that means opportunity for you. Because when youdo something differently, it helps you stand out.

 

 

But this tip is about more than being unique. It’s about making it as easy as possible for the person you’d like to connect with to say yes.

 

 

Make Yourself Memorable

 

 

A lot of the people you want to connect with have huge networks. That means they often meet new people, either online or in person, and they get a lot of LinkedIn requests. And inevitably, they won’t recognize many of the names of the people who want to connect.

 

 

Yes, even if you had what felt like a life-changing conversation with that person a week ago, she might not remember your name.

 

 

Or perhaps you never met the person at all, and simply read his blog, follow him on Twitter or are a big fan of his work. If that person has never heard of you, what’s the incentive to press “accept?”

 

 

While some LinkedIn users do accept any requests that come their way, most people prefer to establish quality connections. They want to know who they’re saying yes to.

 

 

That’s where the personalized note comes in. No matter how sure you are that the people you’re hoping to connect with should remember you, write a brief message reminding them how you know each other — or why you’d like to know them — and they’ll be far more likely to accept.

 

 

And yes, this works even if you’ve never met or interacted with that person. If you go the extra mile to let him know how you found him, why you love his work or simply make yourself look interesting, the person on the other end of that request will want to say yes.

 

 

Be Succinct, but Personal

 

 

So what should you write in your invite?

 

 

It doesn’t have to be anything fancy. In fact, it can’t be fancy because LinkedIn only gives you a few characters to get your point across. It just has to be more appealing than LinkedIn’s default “I’d like to add you to my professional network.”

 

 

Here are a few examples that could work.

 

 

“Hi Danny! It was great talking to you at Johnny’s party last Saturday. Hoping we can connect here! Thanks, Jane.”

 

“Hello Barb! We haven’t met, but I’m a follower of your blog and really admire your work. Would love to become part of your network. Thanks, Ron.”

 

“Hey Sam! I heard about you and your work through a friend, and I have a few ideas for how we might be able to work together. Hope to learn more about you here. Thanks, Susan.”

 

 

Get the idea?

 

 

This might sound simple, but letting potential connections know why they should bother connecting with you will make all the difference.

 

 

 

 

Take the Time

 

 

The best part? Implementing this networking tip takes a total of 30 seconds. LinkedIn makes it easy for you with the option to “Add a personal message” — you just have to put in the effort to do it.

 

 

If you’re smart enough to take 30 seconds to replace that canned message with your own personalized one, you’ll stand out from the crowd, increase your acceptance rate and grow your network far faster.”

 

 

 

 

 

Personally, we recommend getting personal.

 

Contact us if you want to start getting the most bang for your networking buck. Stay tuned folks!

  • May 22 / 2013
  • 0
Analytics, Articles

Tips for Online Marketing Analysis, Part I

tips-graphicGreetings readers! Our last post introduced what online marketing analysis was and explained some of the basics and the tools you can use. For the rest of this week we are going to have a 2 part “tip” session. Trust us here at NSquared, you don’t want to miss these tips.

 

 

 

“Tips for Online Marketing Analysis

 

 

How well are you analyzing your Web site’s efforts? Analysis is important in order to gauge current efforts and to modify for future success. Read the following article for suggestions in measuring search engine optimization and pay per click campaigns.

 

How much work do you devote towards your Web site? Online marketing is a continuous process. It is not enough to build the site, create content, and hope for conversions; but, you must also analyze your data.

 

 

What are you doing to garner more conversions? You have to study your current conversions to incur more of them. It is necessary to analyze your site’s data. Online marketing is contingent on analysis.

 

 

The following article is structured to help you get a better sense of structuring your methods of analysis. Consider the following information.

 

Know what it is and what it is not

Online marketing is associated with search engine optimization and pay per click advertising. These two methods are not mutually exclusive, yet are not one in the same. It is important for an online marketer to make a distinction between the two.

Workers heading the PPC campaigns are interested in analyzing keywords, behaviors of visitors coming from affiliate sites, search engines hosting their ads, etc. Those interested in SEO attempt to leverage organic rankings. These workers are concerned primarily with content, building links, and other methods associated with achieving high, organic rankings on search engines.

 

 

Look for as much as possible

As aforementioned, a worker analyzing pay per click is interested in visitor behavior. What behaviors should you track? You need to track as many behaviors as possible. Look at the search engine, the particular campaign, the ad, keywords searched, how long visitors were on the page, if a visitor is a unique or returning browser, etc. Collecting all this information will make it much easier to make decisions later.

 

 

Make it more specific

Online marketing is interested in general and specific behaviors of browsers. It is just as important to track individual users as it is to track the general behaviors listed above.

Use cookies or other means to trail the activity of individual browsers on your site. This will be easier to do with your own site rather than an affiliate site.”

 

…to be continued…

 

 

 

Stay tuned for Tips for Online Marketing Analysis, Part II. Give us an email or holler if you’re interested in inbound marketing for your business. We’ll make it happen, seriously…

 

 

 

  • May 17 / 2013
  • 0
Articles, Social Media

12 Tips for Social Media Success

thumbdupUse Social Media Like a Boss

 

 

Hey there folks! This week we have been covering social media, what it is, and how it can do wonders for your business.

 

Not only is it important to know how social media can help your business, but you need to be able to utilize it properly.

 

 

Check out this nifty article by Emily A. Hay, 12 Social Media Quick Tips for Your Business, for a fast, easy read that will keep your social media skills up to par!

 

 

 

“12 Social Media Quick Tips for Your Business

 

 

Facebook – Are you a page admin? While the insights reports can be confusing and the weekly page update emails can make you see red, a metric to explore is “reach.” Per Facebook, “Reach measures the number of people who received impressions of a page post.”

 

Twitter – stumped on what to tweet but want to be sure your business is interacting on twitter? Get some “R&R!” Retweet and be sure to reply to people’s tweets.

 

Pinterest – No product? No problem! Service based businesses can also leverage Pinterest with some out-of-the-box thinking. Push your creativity when naming pinboards, think about how you can tell a story visually and remember, it shouldn’t only be about your business.

 

YouTube – A vlog (video blog) for your small business can be as easy to create as writing a blog post. Grab your handheld video camera or iPhone and say “action!”

 

LinkedIn – your company page is as important as your personal profile. Update your followers with helpful information by sharing content for your business on this professional social network.

 

Google+ – Since this network is by…well, Google, it certainly plays a role in search engine optimization. Be sure all elements of your page are leveraged to help your search. Quick tip: the “About” page allows you to embed hyperlinks back to your company website.

 

Yelp – Does your business have a brick and mortar location? Have you claimed your page? Be sure to…this is the first step towards learning when reviews are posted.

 

Instagram – don’t think a social media campaign stops with Facebook posts and tweets. Engage your audience via fun filtered photos! PS Don’t fret if your instagram photos no longer appear in actual tweets; you must now click the instagram photo link to view (as of 12/10/12).

 

Email Marketing – Let’s face it, we all experience inbox overload. Limit your Mailchimp/GetResponse/Constant Contact emails and make them worthwhile!

 

Blog – Think of your business’ blog as a powerful platform to share your expertise. You can give away really valuable info without compromising your potential to gain paying clients…we promise!

 

Website – simplify and declutter! Make your site easy on the eyes and quick to navigate to the info people need.

 

Myspace – keep an eye out for this one…they are revamping their image!

 

 

There you have it, our social media week. Hopefully you learned a bit more about how social media can seriously help your business!

 

Contact us if you’d like to start using social media to the max and seeing awesome results.

 

  • May 15 / 2013
  • 0
Articles, Social Media

How to Use Social Media for Your Business

engagingTap Into Your Online Marketing Resources

 

 

Hello there NSquared readers! Our last post, What the Heck is Social Media?, explained the basics of social media. Today we are going to talk about how you can use social media to boost your business!

 

If you look up social media marketing on the internet, it’s very clear that it isn’t really just another marketing option out there…it’s a necessity. Most people are on the computer at some point in the day, and many are on social media sites throughout the day. Having an understanding of social media and how to use it for inbound marketing is an extremely valuable tool to business success.

 

WordStream’s article, Guide to Using Social Media for Marketing, has many great tips to get you started.

 

 

 

“Guide to Using Social Media for Marketing

 

 

Using social media for marketing can enable small business looking to further their reach to more customers. Your customers are interacting with brands through social media, therefore, having a strong social media presence on the web is the key to tap into their interest. If implemented correctly, marketing with social media can bring remarkable success to your business.

 

 

What Is Social Media Marketing?

 

Social media marketing, or SMM, is a form of internet marketing that implements various social media networks in order to achieve marketing communication and branding goals. Social media marketing primarily covers activities involving social sharing of content, videos, and images for marketing purposes.

 

…Best Social Media Marketing Tips: Learn Marketing With Social Media

 

Here are some social media marketing tips to keep you on the right track across all your social media campaigns.

 

  • Planning – As discussed previously, building a social media marketing plan is essential. Consider keyword research and brainstorm content ideas that will interest your target audience.
  • Content is King — Consistent with other areas of online marketing, content reigns king when it comes to social media marketing. Make sure you are offering valuable information that your ideal customers will find interesting. Create a variety of content by implementing images, videos, and infographics in addition to classic text-based content.
  • Consistent Brand Image — Using social media for marketing enables your business to project your brand image across a variety of different social media platforms. While each platform has its own unique environment and voice, your business’ core identity should stay consistent.
  • Blog — Blogging is a great social media marketing tool that lets you share a wide array of information and content with readers. Your company blog can also serve as your social media marketing blog, in which you blog about your recent social media efforts, contests, and events.
  • Links — While using social media for marketing relies primarily on your business sharing its own unique, original content to gain followers, fans, and devotees, it’s also great to link to outside articles as well. If other sources provide great, valuable information you think your target audience will enjoy, don’t be shy about linking to them. Linking to outside sources improves trust and reliability, and you may even get some links in return.
  • Track Competitors — It’s always important to keep an eye on competitors—they can provide valuable data for keyword research, where to get industry-related links, and other social media marketing insight. If your competitors are using a certain social media marketing technique that seems to be working for them, do the same thing, but do it better!
  • Measure Success with Analytics —You can’t determine the success of your social media marketing strategies without tracking data. Google Analytics can be used as a great social media marketing tool that will help you measure your triumphant social media marketing techniques, as well as determine which strategies are better off abandoned.  Attach tracking tags to your social media marketing campaigns so that you can properly monitor them.”

 

 

 

 

As you can see, social media marketing is extremely useful, but it is time consuming. Contact us if you’d like to start saving time and reaping benefits!

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