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Inbound Marketing Overview and the Central Hub Strategy

August 17, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Inbound Marketing and Social Media:

A Recipe for Success Online

Inbound marketing is successful when you view it in terms of a combination of permission marketing and search driven marketing. In other words, you want to be where your potential clients are….when your potential clients are searching for your services. If you are not, you will be ineffective and your inbound marketing strategy will fail.

Central  Hub: You must view your website in terms of a central hub. The idea is to drive as much traffic as possible to your hub by creating excitement, authority, and, above all, interesting content.

Video: We are in the video generation most online advertising and inbound marketing is driven by video. That is where the lion’s share of your clients will come from. An effective video campaign will send your business soaring, a lackluster video campaign will kill it!

Blogging for Business: Blogging is crucial! In fact, the static website of just a few pages is on its way out…if not dead already! The website that is primarily image-based, particularly when it comes to text, is worthless. You will derive ZERO SEO value from images alone. When a website full of images is crawled, it shows up as blank. A balance of text, images, and video is essential. Blogging also develops interest in your business and provides a line of communication between you and your clients that is invaluable. Blogging is essential for any business trying to grow and relate to their target market long term.

Viral Video and the Rest of the Online Guru Hocus Pocus: Forget about viral! Yes, that’s right…forget about it! If you intentionally set out to create a viral video or make some other sort of online media go viral, it will almost certainly fail! Focus on quality content that will interest your target market and get shared.

Note: I have videos and articles on websites around the world and very few, if any, would be considered viral. But they all get shared and it all translates into backlinks, subscribers, social media connections, clients, and friends.

Yes, friends!

Redirects: Redirects can be useful but if you are hoping to derive any SEO value from a super domain name that you are only using as a redirect to your not-so-great url, you are wasting your time, money…and a quality domain name too boot!

Articles: Articles accomplish several things at once. Articles establish you as an authority in your niche, they deliver backlinks to your main hub (although this is changing), and they drive traffic to your main hub. Even with the new shifts in Google’s algorithm, article marketing is still a crucial component of a solid inbound marketing strategy.

John Jones: Who is your target market? What does he look like? What are his interests? How does he dress? You must be able to SEE John Jones in order to relate to him…or Jane Jones for that matter!

Social Media: Social media is also essential! All of the components of an effective inbound marketing strategy must work together, in concert, if you are going to succeed. This is not an optional strategy, it is imperative if you want to compete in today’s market. Linkedin, Twitter, Facebook (both personal and a fan/business page), YouTube, Dailymotion, Break, Viddler, Foursquare, and others are the key to social media success. Ping.fm is the best way to reach most of the core social media sites in one blast, Hellotxt is another, and XeeSM.com is the third. If you integrate these social media hubs into your overall strategy it will make your job much easier.

Warning: Do not use social media as a vehicle to spam your followers or you will kill any suucess you may have otherwise achieved! Additionally, if you spam, all you will have following you are fellow spammers…and they will eventually unfollow you as well!

Additional Blogs: Google’s Blogger, Squidoo, HubPages, and others are also useful and can be tied directly into your social media hubs for constant updating! These should be included, as they are virtually effortless to maintain and they do end up on page one!

Keyword Research: Most keywords are insignificant. Many businesses beginning to explore inbound marketing focus on keywords that drive ZERO traffic to your website. The key is to know not only what terms are searched for, something Google does well, it is crucial that you know which keywords get the most CLICKS! Click through rate is crucial.

Google Analytics: Metrics are also key! You must know who is visiting your website and where they are coming from if you are to develop and intelligent and effective, long term inbound marketing strategy.

Testing: A/B testing is probably the simplest and most effective, at least when starting out. Long term strategies can be added from there.

Consistency: An inbound marketing strategy must be applied daily if it to work! Social media can be time intensive at first. The longer you do it, the easier it will become. Blogging must be done at least 3 times per week for best results. A video blog with adequate text to introduce and provide a synopsis of the video can make all the difference in terms of SEO value.

SEO: SEO or search engine optimization is a long term strategy! Yes, there are certain tweaks and some people believe Google provides a bit of a nod to new entities on the web…but that is debatable. Google is King Kong on the Internet right now and they are changing their algorithms constantly. The best strategy is one that is keyword rich and delivers superior content.

Video, Article, and Social Media Delivery Software and Memberships: There are several delivery systems in the form of membership sites and software that can be used to make you job easier. It is crucial to use these systems in order to reduce the amount of time you must spend on tedious projects…or get your employees in on it and have them do it. In the long run, your labor costs will kill you. It is best to use the membership sites available to you. We will review many of these as we progress.

Video Creation: There are several video sharing and video creation sites online. Animoto is simple and effective for creating short, interesting videos. Vimeo, Viddler, YouTube, Dailymotion, and several other video sharing sites will allow you to add your own logo and message for a fee. It is well worth it long term. While placing YouTube videos on your blog and website may be cost effective short term, long term you want to create your own identity without relying on YouTube. I have integrated my Flip MinoHD videos through Camtasia to Screencast. Others use Amazon’s video platform and still others Brightcove. Whatever the platform, make sure you learn all the ins and outs, so it remains trouble-free and cost effective!

In the next article I will discuss several sites I recommend you set up profiles on and how to do it for next to nothing and with little effort. Your profile should be keyword rich and your image a professional and/or easily identifiable one. In addition to Google’s Keyword Tool, I sincerely feel that Market Samurai is the class online at this time. Check it out for free & then upgrade if you like it!

I love it!

Discussion: We will discuss any questions or comments you may have and raise here. I hope this helps you as you begin, at once, to create your new and Ultimate Internet Image…or help others to get there!

I look forward to sharing ideas and/or working with you and believe we can position you to do great things in your niche as a brick and mortar business, an online business, or as an Internet, inbound marketing consultancy!

John Zajaros (Jack)
The Ultimate Internet Image
Lakewood, Ohio 44107
440-821-7018 (cell)
johnzajaros@gmail.com

Note: Just assume links are affiliate links and that way there can be no misunderstandings!

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Filed Under: Blogging for Business, Brick and Mortar Business and Inbound Marketing, Business Blogging, Business Blogs, How to Build an Internet Marketing Business, How to Create an Inbound Marketing Strategy Using the New Media, How to Succeed at Inbound Marketing, Inbound and Internet Marketing, Inbound Marketing, Inbound Marketing and SEO, Inbound Marketing and Social Media, Inbound Marketing and the Central Hub Model, Inbound Marketing and Video, Inbound Marketing Consulting, Inbound Marketing Strategies, Internet and Inbound Marketing Success, Internet Marketing and LinkedIn, Internet Marketing and SEO, Internet Marketing and Social Media, Internet Marketing and the Blog, Keyword Research and Video, New Media and Inbound Marketing, New Media Marketing, Relationship Marketing, Social Media and Business, Social Media and Connections, Social Media and New Media Marketing, Social Media and Twitter, Social Media Blogging and Business, Social Media Relationships and Sales, The Central Hub Model, The Ultimate Internet Image, Ultimate Internet Image, Ultimate Internet Image and Inbound Marketing, Ultimate Internet Image and SEO, Ultimate Internet Image Consultation, Ultimate Internet Image Consulting, Understanding Inbound Marketing, Video Marketing and Social Media, Video Marketing and the New Media, Viral Video Marketing, Web 2.0 and Business Blogging, What is Inbound Marketing?

Inbound Marketing: Laying the Groundwork for Page One Dominance

July 29, 2010 By Leave a Comment

The Initial Inbound Marketing Consultation:

Discussing Inbound Marketing Strategies, AdWords,

Social Media, SEO Factors, and a Secret Ingredient

Whenever I meet with a prospective inbound marketing client for the first time the conversation invariably settles upon what the most effective marketing strategies, those required to build a significant Internet presence, what we at UII refer to as The Ultimate Internet image.

The most common advertising and inbound marketing related questions I am asked in the initial consultation have to do with getting to Google’s page one as soon as possible, and staying there.

AdWords: Many prospective clients invariably ask about paid advertising and, in particular, Google AdWords (PPC or pay-per-click) as a means of getting to page one quickly. My response is always the same:

“It depends on what your goals are, short term and long term, how deep your pockets are, and how thick your skin is.”

That is not always a popular answer…but it’s the truth!

There is no faster way to get to page one and stay there, guaranteed, than to pay for it. However, if a prospective client isn’t familiar with PPC advertising, the risks as well as the rewards, it is generally not a great place to start an inbound marketing consulting relationship. That being said, I do work with clients with sizable AdWords budgets from day one and they’ve done quite well.

However, you must have clearly defined parameters going in and there has to be a degree of comfort and confidence that usually takes time to build with a new inbound marketing consulting client.

OK! Back to organic inbound marketing strategies!

Social Media: Once we dispose of the AdWords question, the next question that comes up has to do with social media.

Social media is everywhere!

Social media is on Primetime TV with various NCIS characters checking their Facebook pages while solving crimes and being “friended” by employers and fellow employees. When I say social media is everywhere, I mean it’s everywhere! It is rare for the nightly news to run without some mention of Facebook or Twitter or YouTube. The problem is, many prospective inbound marketing clients have seen and heard the hype, they have been exposed to the sales pitch, but they understand very little about how it works or what it takes to pull off a successful social media management campaign.

Notice I didn’t say social media marketing campaign?

That’s because, if you have read any of my previous posts you already know this, social media marketing is an oxymoron. Why? Because, in every instance, attempting to market anything overtly via social media is not only ineffective…it is indeed moronic.

I probably lost a couple of readers with that statement…but so be it!

Advising a client to market anything other than a solid Internet image, an online presence via social media is playing Russian roulette with your client’s brand. Social media marketing puts your client at risk for Terms of Service (TOS) violations and having your client’s brand name permanently banned from the social media platform in question.

It is an unnecessary risk and it is a disservice to your client.

Enough said!

Finally, after we have gotten through paid advertising and social media, we get around to talking about websites, which we will cover in great detail in an upcoming blog post, and then to the best ways to get to Google’s page one organically.

The best ways to get to page one of any of the search engine results pages or SERPs, and stay there, are:

  • SEO: I am talking about a well designed program from the bottom up and that sometimes means dismantling the existing Internet image and starting over from square one with the proper foundation and the right architecture. This is a radical approach but if your client is nowhere to be found on the SERPs for the keywords necessary and their PR (page rank) is 0/10, what do you have to lose? Better to start fresh and do it right. If you do so, Google, Yahoo, and Bing will reward you, at least in the short term, and certainly long enough to get the ball rolling in the right direction.
  • Links: There are a number of different kinds of links and we will discuss them all in depth later. For now, all your new inbound marketing client needs to know is that links are the way the Internet confers authority on your site, on your Internet image. Links are the Internet’s way of saying: “This webiste offers something of value, it has something to offer!” Links from the right kind of sites, related sites with an equal or higher PR than your own, will enhance your Internet image and your authority online.
  • Pages: Pages alone are not enough. However, pages are generally a reflection of the time and attention paid to the site by the webmaster, owner of the business, inbound marketing consultancy, or whoever is responsible for its upkeep. After all, if a website is getting enough attention to build pages on a consistent basis, chances are also very good that the type of content offered on those pages is good. Usually…not always…but usually. Interestingly, if your site has a lot of pages the new ones will get indexed quickly. There are a number of advantages to developing a big site filled with quality content as quickly as possible and then continuing to build over time.
  • Content: Some say Video is King and others say Content is King. The fact is, both are so incredibly important you simply cannot have an effective inbound marketing campaign without both. Content affects your message and, without the proper message conveyed in just the right way, your blog posts, articles, descriptions, and so on will not be read. If your video does not offer quality content, it will not be watched. Video without great content is useless. Articles without quality content are useless. Blog posts without quality content are useless. Meta descriptions without….Well, you get the picture. Additionally, the more content you add, the more often you add it, and the more related pages it builds, the higher your ranking is going to be.
  • Longevity: Longevity is one of those things you just can’t push. The time your website has been around is pretty much set in stone. That being said, you can tweak it a bit. Interestingly, many webmasters and inbound marketing consultants fail to take advantage of these small adjustments that, cumulatively, make a big difference. One of the best things you can do in this regard is to purchase your domain name for at least two and, optimally, five years…up front. Domain age is a crucial factor and it has been noted by many SEO authorities that investing in your domain reflects well on your site and the search engines reward you for the investment. There are other factors and we will discuss them in our next post.
  • There are reportedly as many as 200 different SEO factors that affect your overall ranking. That’s right, 200! Some of the others include:
    • Keyword in the URL
    • Keyword in the Domain name
    • Keyword in the title tag – close to the beginning (10 to 60 characters)
    • Keywords in Description – It is said Google no longer relies on it but they do in fact still use it on occasion
    • Keyword in the keyword meta tag – be careful with this one of you can be penalized for getting it wrong (see link in resources below)
    • Keyword density in the body text – Careful! 5-20% of all keywords in total but watch for % threshold
    • Keyword density for individual keywords – 1% to 6 %
    • Keywords in Heading tags – H1, H2 & H3
    • And so on! Like I said…200!

There are many more issues covered during the initial inbound marketing consultation, particularly as we begin the process of building an inbound marketing strategy designed to get our client to page one.

The SERP page one ranking for the various keyword phrases determined to be of greatest significance for lead, appointment, and traffic generation, and ultimately converting the leads to sales,  is crucial to our new client’s success.

Every factor must be addressed, all 200 SEO factors as well as the additional inbound marketing components mentioned above and others we have yet to discuss.

Ultimately, your inbound marketing client’s success is based on how well you communicate what you will be doing and how your new client can help. Significantly, there is one final component that is necessary, one characteristic that can make your job easy and your inbound marketing strategy a success.

Without it, your inbound marketing strategy will certainly fail!

And that secret ingredient is:

Patience!

All of the above will come together if patience is part of the overall marketing strategy. With the addition of quality video and articles (which we will discuss next), along with an ongoing blogging strategy, your inbound marketing strategy will surely succeed. However, if your client is not willing to invest the one ingredient that must come from them, you should part friends before you begin.

Without patience in the mix, there is no amount of money that will be worth the aggravation of attempting to deal with an impatient client.

Key Point: If you explain things clearly up front and do not make promises you have absolutely no control over, you will have a great relationship and your new inbound marketing client will allow you the time and the flexibility you need to deliver amazing results.

However, if you make outlandish claims in order to make a quick sale, it will come back to bite you (you know where) every time.

Ultimately, and I am certain this goes without saying for the vast majority of inbound marketing consultants out there: be honest; be realistic; and, do your homework. If you do those three things, you will have a client long term and you will be able to deliver results that will make you look like a super hero; and, you will make your client a lot of money!

How great is that?

Next we will cover video marketing and distribution followed by article marketing and distribution. Then, we will discuss various website options and why I do everything but stand on my head to get new clients off the idea of a static website on into something far more effective. Then, we will cover linking and how to get more sites to link to you.

An aside: Don’t always believe what Alexa tells you about links, or traffic for that matter. Use Google Analytics and Quantcast, as well as one or two others that we will discuss in the coming weeks, for a more accurate picture. Google and Yahoo also seem to keep better track of links and reflect a more accurate number of indexed pages. We will discuss how to use all of these measures, and more, very soon.

If you have questions, contact me anytime. Please leave comments or feedback…I would love to hear from you!

John Zajaros
The Ultimate Internet Image
Lakewood, Ohio 44107
Skype: johnzajaros1
216-712-7004

Resources:

Check out Vaughn’s Summaries for all 200 SEO Factors

Google Analytics

Quantcast

Alexa

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How to Create an Inbound Marketing Strategy Using the New Media

July 6, 2010 By 1 Comment

Inbound Marketing A through Z: Beginning a Marketing Consultancy – Part III

Once you have come to know your prospective client and have agreed to go forward, making sure you will be able to work together for some time to come, it is time to get down to business!

Up until now the discussion has been about strategies and branding, unique selling propositions (unique selling point – USP) and video marketing, the power of the new media to build relationships and how inbound marketing is the best thing since sliced bread. You have no doubt discussed how, with the proper mix of inbound and outbound marketing strategies to include blogging and the use of social media, you will be able to enhance your new client’s Internet image, getting them to page one of the various search engine results pages (SERPs) for the keywords that will reach their target audience.

If you are really sharp, you have also discussed how you will, at the same time, use traditional marketing, now referred to as old media, outbound marketing strategies, to gain additional traction.

Please note: It is crucial to use what works.

Marketing is not an either-or proposition, as in inbound marketing or outbound advertising, it is about converting leads, prospects, and prospective patients into life-long customers, clients, and patients. The proper marketing strategy will yield an ongoing relationship that profits both sides of the equation for years to come.

When viewed as a comprehensive strategy, there is one goal:

To increase traffic to the website and through the door, literally or figuratively, converting traffic into leads, appointments, and sales; thus building a relationship before, during, and after the initial sale and, as stated, gaining a client for life.

How?

Well, whether you are reading this as a marketing consultant beginning to build your own inbound marketing consultancy or as a prospective marketing client, attempting to get an idea of what is in store for you if you take the next step and initiate a formal, inbound marketing consultation and competitive analysis, the process is fairly straightforward.

If you have been through the inbound marketing consultation, whether as the consultant or as a prospective client, you will know many things about your niche and your target market.

The information you need can be derived from the following resources:

  • First, “Google” you’re your client’s business name and personal information, if relevant.
  • Alexa Rank
    • Traffic Stats: Daily Traffic Rank Trend (up or down over 30 and 90 days)
    • Reach (percent of global Internet users who visit your site if your client has one)
    • Pageviews (percent of global pageviews)
    • Pageviews/User (daily pageviews per user)
    • Bounce % (the percentage of visits that consist of a single pageview)
    • Time in Site (daily time of site)
    • Search % (the percentage of visits that come from a search engine)
    • Search Analytics
      • Search Traffic
      • Top Queries from Search Traffic
      • Search Traffic on the Rise and Decline (based on keywords)
      • High Impact Search Queries (popular queries relevant to the client’s site)
    • Audience
      • Audience Demographics
      • Visitors by Country
    • And much more
  • Quantcast
    • Daily, Weekly, Monthly Traffic
      • Per Person
      • Visits
      • Pageviews
      • Pageviews per Person
      • Visits per Person
      • Global Traffic Frequency
    • Geographic Data
      • Countries
      • States
    • Demographics
    • Business
      • Small
      • Medium
      • Large
      • Business Activity
  • Google
    • Keywords (Free Adwords – External Keyword Tool)
      • Wonder Wheel
      • Current Trends
      • Video for Keywords
      • And much more!
    • Analytics
    • Page Rank
    • Ultimate SEO Tool
    • Google Rankings
  • Market Samurai – In my opinion the best overall keyword tool available
    • Keyword Research
    • SEO Competition Research
      • Extremely useful analysis of page one competition, analyzing a myriad of factors
    • Page Rank Research
  • SpyFu – In my opinion the best competitive analysis tool on the Internet
    • In Depth Keyword Research
    • In Depth Competitive Keyword Research
    • In Depth Competitive Comparison and Analysis
      • Includes competitors’ advertising trends, budgets, keywords purchased, and ads run over the past 12 months
        • Incredibly valuable tool
  • KeywordSpy – Competitive research is on par with SpyFu and should be used together with SpyFu when possible
    • Excellent resource for tracking variables over time
    • Easy to use Mozilla plug-in
    • Amazingly powerful window into just what the competition is doing!
  • Google, Yahoo, and Bing
    • Check for number of pages each of the Big 3 acknowledges
    • Check for number of links

If you have used most or all of the above, you are ready to create an inbound marketing strategy what will work. If you haven’t…what are you waiting for?

If I had to pick 3 tools and was contrained by budgetary concerns, the 3 I would choose are:

In that order!

If budget is not a concern, and it shouldn’t be by the time you begin servicing clients, all of the above mentioned resources are vital. Significantly, most are free.

Research completed, the first step is to create a social media profile. The social media profile should be comprehensive and across an array of niches but focusing primarily on social media sites relevant to your client’s audience.

Use the following socioal media hubs as a guide. There is a great deal of overlap but if you cover the four mentioned below your client will have excellent inititial coverage and you will have an easier time getting their message out.

  • Ping.fm
    • Crucial – I use Ping.fm for all of my clients, daily. Use Ping.fm’s list of “networks,” setting up all of the networks available.
  • OnlyWire
    • As important as Ping.fm and as easy to use – Again, set up all the “services” available.
  • HelloTxt
    • Once again, a very useful hub – set up all the sites that link through HelloTxt.
  • XeeSM
    • Like XeeSM a lot! XeeSM has a super array of apps and is very easy to use. The creators are very responsive and it fills out the four hubs I set up for every client.

If you have set up all four of the social media hubs above your client will have approximately 225 social media profiles and you will be able to control the daily message through the four hubs.

Not bad, huh?

The video sharing and article directories are next.

Video marketing is absolutely crucial for a number of reasons.

You have undoubtedly heard the saying:

Video is king!

Consequently, video is essential to new media, inbound marketing success. We live in the video age. Video will reach incredible numbers quickly and the shelf-life of well produced videos is worth the time and expense to do it right.

The best tool available to get you message out quickly and efficiently is TrafficGeyser (or Traffic Geyser). TrafficGeyser is a powerful resource, one you simply cannot do without. TrafficGeyser combined with something as inexpensive as a $200 Flip MinoHD and a decent tripod will get you started creating quality videos in no time.

TrafficGeyser offers a number of advantages when setting up your client’s inbound marketing strategy:

  • TrafficGeyser allows you to set up multiple profiles for clients, thus allowing you to control all your clients’ campaigns from a single platform. At TrafficGeyser’s Platinum level you will have access to approximately 125 additional sites, including:
    • Social media sites
    • Social bookmarking sites
    • Article directories
    • Video sharing and video marketing sites
    • Podcast sites
    • Blogging sites
    • TrafficGeyser will then allow you to upload blog posts to all of the blogs you set up to reach through TG.
    • TrafficGeyser allows you to upload all your videos to the various video sharing sites, thus saving you hundreds of man-hours over the course of a year. Control all of your accounts through a single interface.
    • TrafficGeyser allows you to post articles to the various article directories with a click.
      • That’s right! You can set up your article directory memberships through TrafficGeyser and then upload them to the various directories from a single platform.
      • This feature allows you to set up all of your article directory profiles from one platform and then control them from your TG account. This is a real timesaver!
      • TrafficGeyser allows you to post to the various podcast sites.
      • TrafficGeyser allows you to set up RSS feeds.

By the time you have completed setting up the first four hubs (Ping, OnlyWire, HelloTxt, XeeSM) and your TrafficGeyser profile for your new client they will have approximately 350 new media marketing profiles across the Internet. With this kind of coverage, provided you create quality content, your client will see a significant bump in traffic, leads, prospects, appointments, and sales within 90 days and a huge jump in the first 12 months.

The secret is really no secret at all, it simply takes quality content delivered consistently over time. If your client already has a USP or you help them create one (upcoming blog post) and combine that with the right inbound marketing strategy using all the resources available to you and mentioned above, you will be a hit and your clients will love you!

The formula is simple:

Links + Longevity + Quality Content = Increased Traffic

A well-focused message will reach the proper target audience. If you develop a unique seeling proposition (USP) that captures your target market’s imagination and deliver quality content over time, you will have people linking to your site and it will increase in authority. Couple the above with a well-constructed video marketing, delivering first-rate, well-written articles to the various directories and you will own you niche in less than a year.

Consistent, quality content delivered over time equals inbound marketing success and guaranteed profitability using the new media.

Above, you have everything you need to get the ball rolling!

In the next article we will talk about site construction, blog versus static website, premium WordPress theme versus the freebies, and the various shopping carts available. We will then get into email marketing and the various providers. We will also consider a number of other resources and various factors to consider when building your client’s Ultimate Internet Image.

I will then go into detail concerning the various resources available to streamline submissions even further, how to upgrade your video equipment, including why and why not, and what audio program is the best and when to use it.

For now?

You have enough to get started, beginning to serve your clients well!

If you would like a comprehensive inbound marketing consultation, to include an assessment of your current marketing strategy, as well as a comprehensive competitive analysis, contact me today at The Ultimate Internet Image (see the number below).

Good luck!

John Zajaros
The Ultimate Internet Image
Lakewood, Ohio 44107
216-712-7004
440-821-7018

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Google’s Page 1 in One Hour: The Power of Video and Keyword Research

June 23, 2010 By Leave a Comment
The Power of Keyword Research

Sports Inflatables: Inflatable Football Tunnels Video to Page One in an Hour

Note: The video in question was posted on YouTube and within an hour was in the number 3 spot under an indented listing belonging to the prospective client. Video, combined with focused (targeted) keyword research, is without a doubt the fastest way to be found online and the fastest way to generate quality links to your site.

The Ultimate Internet Image is expert in all aspects of inbound marketing, from keyword research to video production and social media management.

Contact John Zajaros at The Ultimate Internet Image for a free, in depth inbound marketing consultation and competitive analysis.

Professor John P. J. Zajaros, Sr.
The Ultimate Internet Image
Lakewood, Ohio 44107
216-712-7004 (bus)
440-821-7018 (cell)

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Filed Under: Inbound Marketing and Video, Keyword Research and Video, Ultimate Internet Image, Video Marketing and Sports Inflatables, Video Marketing and the New Media, Viral Video Marketing Tagged With: , , , ,

Understanding Inbound Marketing: Video Marketing and the New Media

June 2, 2010 By 1 Comment

How to You Make Video Marketing for Your Brick and Mortar Business?

Videos are one of the best ways to engage customers in today’s expanding Internet market. Video marketing and offline business go hand in hand. Brick and mortar businesses can use video marketing to reach an online audience that might not otherwise know they exist.

Videos can be used via a variety of platforms and then distributed by way of social media. Video has become the King Kong of new media marketing, delivering brief, targeted messages to highly targeted audiences.

Using video to promote your brick and mortar business may seem like a scary proposition; and, to many business owners it is. Interestingly, video can be fun and will do wonders to enhance your Internet image and your brand. If you simply cannot get in front of a camera, or do not have the time, there are a number of inbound marketing firms that will handle the entire process for you; and, at a relatively low cost when viewed against the cost of television.

Marketing videos should be short and sweet, they do not have to be complicated. If you plan to talk and need a script, be sure to write a brief script and practice it. You can also wing it, depending on your comfort level in front of a camera and with the subject material.

Use music in your video or give a quick tour of your business, be upbeat and engaging. The more engaging, the more visual, the better! Make your videos short, sweet, and to the point, you have between 30 seconds nd 3 minutes, after that you will lose your audience! If you find you sound like the teacher from The Wonder Years, get someone to do the videos for you…please!

Video and Inbound Marketing

So how do video and inbound marketing work together? If you really want exposure for your business, you may want your video to go “viral”. This means it will be posted all over the web and will draw traffic to your website. An effective way of promoting your video is to send it to friends, employees, and customers but also make it available to the general public. Post your videos on YouTube, Break, Viddler, and a few of the others and watch it go viral, particularly if it has solid content and is engaging. YouTube and many of the other video sharing sites will automatically announce your new video to the various social media sites, so make sutre you are connected that way.

Video gives customers a way to see behind the scenes at your business and see how you operate. It is not effective to just make a short video piece and upload it to YouTube alone, use oen of the many services available to get your videos out across the Internet. While many people are attracted to TubeMogul because it is free, it is only free for personal use. To get your videos out across the web, use TrafficGeyser or perhaps Senuke, the former is by far the best. New media marketing plays a huge role in successful video marketing and vice versa. Companies should promote their videos via their social media memberships and on their blogs. Get the word out and let people see your video campaign.

Viral Video?

How do you create a viral video? Comedy seems to work well; people enjoy sending funny videos to their friends but be careful. Music is also a popular element – check out a Creative Commons license to use someone else’s music. Don’t worry about utilizing high-quality equipment for filming. Most You Tube videos are made with very basic cameras. I would suggest a Flip MinoHD or Flip Ultra and two tripods, one for the desk and one for biggeer jobs. I would also recommend Googling for free music sites (this is just one), there are a number of them available.

Investigate other video-sharing sites in addition to YouTube, as mentioned above. Again, TrafficGeyser is an excellent resource but you can join TubeMogul and get access to a list of video sharing sites that way. Experiment at first and see what you can do on your own or, you can hire a professional video marketing firm or an inbound marketing consultancy that specializes in video and let them handle it for you.

Contact bloggers in your field and get suggestions, send them a link to your video and ask them for their input. You can also place a link when you comment on other blogs, as long as it is related to the blog content and isn’t spammy. Above all, ask for input and you will get what you need, ask for the order and you will get banned. Spam is an online death sentence, so be open, honest, and do not overtly sell via social media or on other bloggers blogs.

Getting to Page One using Video Marketing

Marketing video can help you get to page one in Google rankings, and fast. The number of videos competing for a spot on page one is far lower than the number of articles and blog posts for the same spot…and search engines love quality video. Videos have less competition; therefore, it is easier to climb to the top. Make your video fun, informative, and short and you will find it on page one for the keywords you target in a few days, often in a few hours.

In addition to posting a great short video on your site, you must caption the video with appropriate keywords in the title, description, and tags. A video with an optimized title and tags has an even better chance of achieving a high search engine ranking (page one status).

Brick and Mortar Business and Video Marketing

An effective video marketing strategy does not mean every video must go viral. Offline (and online) businesses should consider videos part of a comprehensive, new media, inbound marketing strategy. Video adds an element of personality to a business’s message and provides an identity and a connection. Employees and customers enjoy videos and may pass them on to others, a mini-viral effect of sorts.

The rewards of video marketing can be huge; and video marketing can definitely be viewed on the “fun” side of new media marketing.

So, have fun and get found!
John Zajaros
The Ultimate Internet Image
Lakewood, Ohio 44107
216-712-7004
440-821-7018
johnz@ultimateinternetimage.com

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