Robot Creative - Design and Marketing Weblog

How To Get the Most Out of Your Student Intern (Updated)

Students look for internships to gain work experience, and you look for interns to help get your projects done. How can you make sure that you are both getting the most out of the experience? Start with these guidelines that ROBOT has developed over several semesters of student interns.

 

Before

1) Plan a specific activity or possible list of activities.
Your intern is going to have a limited schedule for a finite time period and you are going to have limited time to direct them. Set some initial goals for what you would like to have them accomplish, and plan some activities that they can complete during their stay with your company. It's best if the project has a clear beginning and end. Some ideas include:

• Research (on audience, messaging, opportunities, etc.)
• Competitive research
• Mystery shopping
• Social media
• Content creation
• Data organization

2) Be realistic.
Most interns, however brilliant they may be, have limited experience. They may do something outstanding, or they might not do anything worthwhile at all. Maybe the next one will be better. They are in it to learn after all.

3) Familiarize them with your business.
Put a day in the calendar when you can have the intern rotate through every department of the business and learn what everyone does.


During

1) Protect your business interests.
Don't let interns work directly on anything customer facing or mission critical. Have them prepare examples and mock ups and then critique those and have them make changes before changing any of your real life initiatives. For example, want them to prepare an email? Don't let them set it up in your current system. It's too risky if they accidentally send it while learning to use the system. Have them set up a completely new test account and do a test project so that you can gauge their capabilities first. You may get some ideas, but decide to never give them access to the real account!

2) Provide feedback.
Make sure you check in and provide specific, critical feedback. They are there to learn and gain valuable work experience.

3) Require reports.
Have them summarize each project they work on with a presentation, no matter what it is you have them work on. This is good practice for them, a good record of their activities for you, and will help set the bar higher for the next student coming in if you show it to them day one!

4) Keep them involved.
If interns feel like outsiders, they can get bored and disengage very easily. Involve them in as many activities around the company as possible, and help them feel like they are a part of the team.


After

1) Give them credit for the work they do.
No matter how your interns do, write at least a general letter of recommendation. Give them all kinds of credit, and save it as a template for future letters.

2) Offer to provide future recommendations.
If they really did something great, offer to write specific letters when they need them in the future.

3) Help them find a job.
If you like your intern, offer to help him or her find a job after graduation. Nothing builds goodwill like helping terrified kiddos get their first real job. All you probably need to do is email their resumes to a few friends.

 

Update:  Paid or unpaid internship?
Robot Creative cannot offer legal advice. Check out this document from the U.S. Department of Labor and consult a labor law attorney. 

 

6 Tech Advancements That Can Be Brand Pitfalls

There used to be a huge distinction between do-it-yourself and professionally designed marketing materials. It cost money and took a significant effort to produce a high-quality brochure, website or email campaign.

The last decade, however, has introduced technology that makes it cheaper, easier and quicker for small businesses to produce marketing materials. When used effectively, these tools can help a business look more professional and compete with companies that have more resources. The flip-side is that they also add to an ever-growing sea of mid-quality materials and brands.

Stock Art and Digital Photography
With the introduction of digital cameras, everyone has become a photographer and stock art has become more accessible and abundant than ever. Stock art sources are over-crowded with amateur images that lack the composition, lighting and other elements of good photography. While there are still high-quality images available, they are lost among thousands of average ones. It can be very time consuming to weed through them, and if you are not a trained photographer, it can be difficult to tell the good from the bad.

All that said, stock art can be an inexpensive way to get great images for your marketing materials. Start by setting guidelines to focus your search on images that are right for your brand (i.e. certain lighting conditions or a specific color palette). You might even consider hiring a photographer to help in the search or the final selection.

Software as a Service (SaaS)
Sometimes known as "on-demand software", SaaS is internet-based software that businesses can subscribe to for a low monthly fee. SaaS is available for everything from email marketing to project management to customer relationship management.

SaaS options can be highly customizable. When they are integrated well with other marketing, they can help execute otherwise expensive and technically difficult marketing tasks. However, many companies use SaaS to get initiatives up and running quickly, and they don't go the extra mile to truly apply their brands to templates and integrate them with other materials. As a result, their marketing pieces look like everyone else's and don't reinforce their brands. If you truly want to get the most out of SaaS, invest the time and resources to apply your brand appropriately.

Crowdsourcing
Looking for a low-cost logo, website, tagline or other marketing asset? Internet-enabled crowd-sourcing makes it possible for businesses to outsource creative services to a large community of providers around the world. For example, if a business owner wants a logo designed, he/she can post a project description with a value attached that will go to the winning design. Freelancers compete for the project by submitting designs with the hope of winning and getting paid.

This can be great for business owners who know how to manage the process and give meaningful direction and feedback on the submissions. They get to see lots of options and directions the logo can take at a very low cost. It's not so great if the business owner doesn't have any background in managing the design process because they can end up with mediocre products that don't effectively communicate their differentiators, culture or business values. If you don't have the background, hire someone who does to help manage the process.

On-Demand Printing
With the introduction of order-online, quick-printing options, businesses simply upload a digital file and can get anything from brochures to direct mail pieces to business cards printed and delivered by companies across the country at very low prices. As a result, full-color printing has become a very inexpensive commodity, where it once was precious.

On-demand printing can be a valid option when you need to keep the cost per piece down on materials you hand out like water. However, for pieces that need to make an impression, like your brochure, differentiate your brand by investing in the higher quality paper, specialty techniques and professional design that will really make it special.

Social Media
From facebook to twitter to LinkedIn, social media provides various outlets for businesses to easily publish content, and if done well, to create a 2-way dialogue with contacts. On the other hand, if ever there was a marketing medium that could take on a life of its own, it's social media.

The very nature of social media requires an informal, personal approach with the audience - which may or may not be appropriate for all businesses. Voice is an important distinguishing brand element that should be consistent throughout all marketing materials. If a company's voice is more corporate, it can take real strategy to marry it with the informality of social media. In these cases, it may make sense to use the personal brand of someone within the business for social media. Consider your business's brand voice and how it would fit with a social media strategy. In addition, make sure social media doesn't just become a distraction. Social media requires a significant time investment to do well and actually further your brand, so focus on a holistic approach that integrates social media with the rest of your marketing initiatives.

Content Management Systems (CMS)
Content management systems (CMS), including sitebuilders like WordPress, Joomla and Drupal, have made it possible for companies to build and update content on their websites without the need for technical programming knowledge. This can considerably reduce website development costs, ongoing maintenance costs and the time it takes to make updates.

The main caution of self-managed, CMS-built websites is that design and content development often don't get enough attention. Design and imagery selection for a business's website do a lot to establish or reinforce the brand, and the content should reflect a specific voice and writing style appropriate for the business and its audience. If you are going to use a CMS to build your site, don't sacrifice on these things just to get something live. Take the time to develop and enforce strict controls for styling/formatting, voice, imagery and other elements of your brand.


So what is the result of all this ground-breaking technology?
You can take the $12 image, place it into the $30 template and email it for $30 a month or print it online for $0.05 a sheet, and congratulations - you've gotten yourself out there. Or have you?

To cut through all of the mediocrity and stand out, a brand will need more thought and consideration than ever. Once you have found your edge and developed the imagery, messaging and voice to set you apart, a style guide with usage guidelines for everything from your logo and colors to your imagery, voice, messaging and fonts will help you set the brand in stone. If you have a unique brand offering and you enforce the guidelines as the brand manager, these tools will prove to be valuable assets instead of brand pitfalls.

Top 5 Google AdWords Mistakes

Anyone can be up and running with Google AdWords in just a few minutes. Let's face it though - what makes it super cool, also makes it dangerous! After reviewing dozens of accounts, we've identified 5 common mistakes that businesses make when setting up their AdWords campaigns. These mistakes can cost hundreds or thousands of dollars a month and/or result in lost click opportunities.

Not Taking Advantage of Targeting Options
Google very cleverly provides a system of account organization that makes it possible for businesses to create targeted campaigns and allocate budgets. More than half of the accounts we've reviewed, however, have only one campaign with one ad group and one ad variation that shows up for all keywords and links to the company's homepage. Businesses are using a blanket approach instead of considering how an ad will specifically address what a user is searching for. Users are more likely to click on an ad if it contains their search phrase, so you should create ad groups that group similar search phrases and link to specific pages on your site related to those search phrases - not to your homepage.

Arbitrary Budgeting
With no more strategy than, "This is what I think we can afford," a business will arbitrarily set a daily budget, not taking into account what the campaign requires to be successful. With this approach, campaigns may shut off after just a couple of clicks a day and will quickly be deemed unsuccessful. A more strategic approach involves understanding the search popularity of keywords along with the expected cost per click for a geographic area and setting click goals based on your conversion rate. You should also look at AdWords as a part of your overall media budget and make adjustments based on the ROI of each initiative. You may find that AdWords gets a much better return than other media and deserves a much higher percentage of your budget.

Falling for the Default
Google wants you to get clicks - that's how they make money. Most of the default settings in AdWords are designed to be broad reaching, such as Display Network and broad match keyword matching. If you aren't careful, your budget can max out quickly on irrelevant clicks that just result in a high cost per conversion. Because most small businesses work with a limited budget, the concern should be quality over quantity of clicks. We usually recommend a conservative approach in the beginning with very targeted settings that you can open up as you evaluate the success of the campaign.

Lack of Tracking
While many businesses that try Google AdWords have Google Analytics installed on their websites, they often don't have the two accounts linked. This is a simple step - as long as both are set up under the same Google account. The importance of this step shouldn't be overlooked because it allows distinction between paid and unpaid Google search traffic. Analytics show detailed traffic information (including average time on site, bounce rates and average page views) on a campaign level, an ad variation level and a keyword level, so the performance of AdWords ads should never be in question! More importantly than site analytics, you should also have a method for tracking your sales and customer contact from AdWords ads - even if it's just tick-marks on a notepad when you ask, "How did you hear about us?". Set a baseline before you start, and review results on a regular basis, so you can measure the return on your AdWords investment.

Set It and Forget It
This is probably the single most critical mistake a business can make with any advertising initiative, but especially one that is so easy to review and adjust. The keywords you select, the ads you write, the settings you apply, the cost-per-click bids you set, the competition and countless other factors are all subject to regular evaluation and changes. Because every one of these factors is easily trackable, you should review your account on a regular basis, at least monthly in the beginning. Look at it as a fine-tuning process that has the potential to get big results.


Google AdWords is a powerful small business marketing tool that can be deceptively simple to set up right "out of the box". If you really want to harness its power, approach your campaigns strategically and take the time to get to know the system. It will pay off with highly effective advertising that gets results.

What's the Deal with Daily Deals?

It's the latest craze in social media-based marketing. Through "daily deal" sites like Groupon and Living Social, businesses low-ball their prices by offering limited time promotions of 50% off or more.

You're probably wondering how your business could possibly make money on these deals - especially when the site usually takes a cut of up to 50% off the already low sale price. The truth is that you likely wouldn't make money - at least not on the promotion itself. But you can still get a lot out of these promotions with the proper planning and follow up.

Consider the Goal
If your goal is a quick revenue boost, daily deals can provide it, but it will be at the expense of a profit. A better goal is to boost your customer list for future marketing. It's the age-old concept of loss-leader pricing. A business offers a product or service at an insanely low price with a single purpose - to get customers. Revenue from sales of the deal itself may not even cover the cost of goods sold, but every person who purchases the deal becomes a new customer to market to in the future. Everyone knows that it's less expensive to market to existing customers than to prospect for new ones.

Another valid goal is education. Thousands of people may be subscribing to your local Groupon or Living Social site and see daily deals each day. If you offer unique products or services that many people may not have heard about, daily deals can be a great way to get the word out to a large group of potential customers.

Consider the Promotion
When you are planning your promotion, of course you have to think about what is going to entice your target audience to purchase your product or service now. A potentially less obvious consideration is: what offer might lead to increased average ticket sales through commonly bundled items? If you sell tennis shoes, for example, you could increase the average sale by getting customers to purchase socks or other work-out accessories at full price. Think about what you should offer for a discount that will provide room for upselling at the point of transaction or for ongoing customer retention opportunities.

Have a Follow-Up Plan
The key to getting the most out of your promotion is to have a plan - to collect customer information when offers are redeemed and to reach out to your new customers later. Before you send out your promotion, put processes or strategies in place to ask for customer email and mailing addresses.  Then, plan out your promotions for the rest of the year to directly market to your newly expanded list.

Think about When to Send
With the growing popularity of daily deals, businesses are lined up to participate, so know that it can take several weeks to get rolling. Other than that, you should consider when to send out your promotion so that it is most beneficial for your business. Want a revenue boost during a tough season or want to get rid of some of that extra inventory at the end of the year? Make sure you consider whether you have the staff and inventory to handle a big boost in demand!


Could daily deals help your business boom? Plan it right and follow through, and you just might see what the hype is all about.

Find Your Way to Improved Customer Retention

Navigate Customer Retention Efforts with a Lifecycle Map

How would your customer retention look if your customers had someone to personally guide them through the process of doing business with you? The guide would be the first person to make contact, hold the customer's hand through sales and the first transaction, make recommendations, answer questions, ensure customer satisfaction, and wave goodbye as the person left. The guide would follow up, remember the customer's name and any information that was shared during their interactions and be the first person to greet the customer at the door when they return.

While this scenario is unrealistic for most business transactions, thinking through the possibilities while drawing out a lifecyle map will help identify realistic opportunities to improve customer satisfaction and retention.

A customer lifecycle map illustrates touchpoint opportunities you have with your customers by identifying each "experience" they have with your business (whether it's an email, an in-person meeting or a phone call) and the marketing opportunities the experience can present.

Each point on the lifecyle map provides an opportunity to:

1. Test and ensure customer satisfaction
2. Create another sale
3. Decrease the time between purchases
4. Create the sale of additional products or services
5. Generate a referral
6. Gather information that will help with all of the above

To illustrate the process, check out the customer lifecycle example below for a hair and nail salon. (see chart and details below)

Each interaction the customer has with your business is a marketing opportunity. Learn to take advantage of these opportunities by identifying these experiences and mapping them to your customer's lifecyle.

Learn how you can develop a lifecycle map for your business. Come to our Customer Retention workshop on March 18th. More information >>

 

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Example: Customer Lifecycle Map for a Hair and Nail Salon

Download a printable PDF of the chart >>

 
Experience 1 - Schedule First Cut and Style Appointment (phone interaction with the receptionist)
Beyond setting a date and time for the hair appointment, the receptionist should be trained to take advantage of additional opportunities with this initial interaction.

• Upselling: Offer color or deep conditioning treatment
• Cross-Selling: Offer pedicure and manicure before or after the hair appointment (arm the receptionist with a bundling package!)
• Collect Contact Information: Offer to email special discounts and appointment reminders

Experience 2 - Arrival at the Location (personal interaction with the receptionist)
One opportunity here would be:

• "Wow" the Customer: Offer something to drink

Experience 3 - First Cut and Style Appointment (interaction with the stylist)
Opportunities during this experience include:

• Cross-Selling: Use and offer hair products for sale
• Collect Customer Interests: Chat with the customer to get small details that could be useful for touchpoints later and jot them down at the end of the appointment (example: does the customer have children?)

Experience 4 - Pay for the Appointment (interaction with the receptionist)
Opportunities include:

• Decrease Time Between Appointments: Schedule the customer's next appointment on the spot
• Increase Loyalty: Offer participation in loyalty program (punchcard, etc)
• Collect Contact Information: Offer to email special discounts and appointment reminders
• Cross-Selling: Point of Sale Display at the register to sell additional products
• "Wow" the Customer: Give the new customer a gift of product samples and coupons for future services

Experience 5 - Time Between Appointments
A hair salon customer will typically wait a month before the next appointment. There are even opportunities during this time period:

• Customer Satisfaction Survey: Send an email, call or mail the customer to find out how the appointment went
• Email Marketing:
  • Cross-Selling: Provide coupons for manicure and pedicure services or for products
  • Drive Traffic to the Website: Link to content on the salon's website 
  • Educate Customers: Link to articles about the latest style trends or product reviews

And the cycle continues from there!

How To Get the Most Out of Your Student Intern

Note: This article has been updated. Read the updated version >>

 

Students look for internships to gain work experience, and you look for interns to help complete smaller projects that you may not have time to finish. How can you make sure that you are both getting the most out of the experience? Start with these guidelines that ROBOT has developed over several semesters of student interns.

 

Before

1) Plan a specific activity or possible list of activities.
Your intern is going to have a limited schedule for a finite time period and you are going to have limited time to direct them. Set some initial goals for what you would like to have them accomplish, and plan some activities that they can complete during their stay with your company. It's best if the project has a clear beginning and end. Some ideas include:

• Research (on audience, messaging, opportunities, etc.)
• Competitive research
• Mystery shopping
• Social media
• Content creation
• Data organization

2) Be realistic.
Most interns, however brilliant they may be, have limited experience. They may do something outstanding, or they might not do anything worthwhile at all. Maybe the next one will be better. They are in it to learn after all.

3) Familiarize them with your business.
Put a day in the calendar when you can have the intern rotate through every department of the business and learn what everyone does.


During

1) Protect your business interests.
Don't let interns work directly on anything customer facing or mission critical. Have them prepare examples and mock ups and then critique those and have them make changes before changing any of your real life initiatives. For example, want them to prepare an email? Don't let them set it up in your current system. It's too risky if they accidentally send it while learning to use the system. Have them set up a completely new test account and do a test project so that you can gauge their capabilities first. You may get some ideas, but decide to never give them access to the real account!

2) Provide feedback.
Make sure you check in and provide specific, critical feedback. They are there to learn and gain valuable work experience.

3) Require reports.
Have them summarize each project they work on with a presentation, no matter what it is you have them work on. This is good practice for them, a good record of their activities for you, and will help set the bar higher for the next student coming in if you show it to them day one!

4) Keep them involved.
If interns feel like outsiders, they can get bored and disengage very easily. Involve them in as many activities around the company as possible, and help them feel like they are a part of the team.


After

1) Give them credit for the work they do.
No matter how your interns do, write at least a general letter of recommendation. Give them all kinds of credit. They did just work for free after all. Save it as a template for future letters.

2) Offer to provide future recommendations.
If they really did something great, offer to write specific letters when they need them in the future.

3) Help them find a job.
If you like your intern, offer to help him or her find a job after graduation. Nothing builds goodwill like helping terrified kiddos get their first real job. All you probably need to do is email their resumes to a few friends.

Master's Manual for Search Engine Marketing

This is Part II of "Search Engine Folklore: Two Tales of Fact and Fiction". Myths, legends and lies abound in the Land of Search Engine Marketing. Some of these stories are true (FACTs), but many are false (FICTION). We've compiled the most common tales to help set the record straight.

With thrilling tales that will test your skills and knowledge, Master's Manual addresses the advanced topics of Search Engine Marketing, from programming considerations to social media. For more basic topics, read "Beginner's Verse".

Using social media outlets (such as YouTube for videos and Flickr for photos) will improve your rankings.
From a link networking perspective, videos or photos that are linked back to your website from high-ranking sites like YouTube and Flickr can benefit your rankings on search engines. However, unless your video or photo is really popular on these sites and ranks high for your keywords within the site search directories, your search engine rankings likely don't get more benefit than the link itself provides. Focus on developing excellent content on your website and securing incoming links from relevant, high-ranking websites. If YouTube and Flickr help you develop and publish your content, that's great. Don't just use them for ranking in search engines, though!

Your web host can affect your ranking results.
If your site loads very slowly, doesn't load at all or experiences down time, search engines will catch on and will not be likely to recommend your site to searchers. Consider this before hosting your site yourself, and look for a quality hosting solution that meets your technical requirements, including bandwidth, traffic, multimedia, server requests, etc.

Other websites' bad practices can affect your site ranking.
Hosting companies often host many websites on the same IP address - known as shared hosting package. If you share an IP address with a website that has been blacklisted by search engines, your site ranking could also be negatively affected. If you would like to keep control in your hands, consider asking your hosting company for a dedicated IP address.

How your site is programmed can affect your ranking results.
Different programming languages may or may not be search engine-friendly. For example, Flash content is generally heavy on images, and search engines rely heavily on text to understand the content on a web page. An alternative way to achieve movement and interest on a site is to use jQuery, which is a much more search engine-friendly language. This is just one example of how programming can affect how search engines view your site. Consider the goals of your site, and then look for alternative ways you can achieve those goals with the features and functionality.

Your content management system can affect your ranking.
Content management systems (CMS) come in many forms and levels of sophistication. They usually make it very easy for anyone to edit copy and change photos, but they may not provide the necessary accessibility to the code of your site to apply metatags (title, description and keywords) or they may not organize pages in your site so that search engines can easily understand the overall site structure. Page generators often create URLS that aren't search engine-friendly (see below). Consider whether you really need CMS, and if you do, choose one that has been recognized in the industry as SEO-friendly.

Your site will rank the same in San Antonio, Texas as it does in San Francisco, California.
Over the last couple of years, search engines have adjusted their ranking methods to account for the geographic location of the person searching (based on IP address) relative to the companies listed in the results. After all, it doesn't make sense for someone living in Seattle to search for a plumber and get results that include companies from Chicago. This helps local businesses, but can be a challenge to those doing business nationally and internationally. Your SEO company should consider different strategies to help your rankings depending on whether you are trying to rank locally, regionally, nationally or internationally. And keep an eye on your statistics to see where your traffic is coming from!

A new website or updated website can only improve your rankings.
If you are modifying your website, moving it to a new domain or building a new one, don't just forget about the old URLs. Search engines don't like things to move or change without explanation. If a search engine crawls a page and can't find it, this reflects poorly on the rest of the website because it tells the search engine that the site is poorly maintained and that other pages might likely be broken as well. If pages are removed or moved, use server-side 301 redirects to ensure that users and search engines are redirected to the right page.

Your site URL matters.
A site or page URL provides a short summary of the content on that page, so the more descriptive (and intelligible) it is, the better. So URLs such as www.sanantoniodrycleaning.com will naturally rank better than www.mcgibbinscleaning.com.

Submitting a sitemap to search engines can help your interior/secondary pages get indexed faster.
Search engines find your site by crawling the web, following links to your site from other websites and looking at site submissions that are sent in. Most Incoming links will be directed at the homepage of the site and don't provide a detailed picture of all the other pages on it. To index interior pages of a website, and to understand the hierarchy of information on a website, search engines rely on the navigation and/or other links within your site to point them there. To speed up the process, you can create and submit search-engine friendly sitemaps.

Creating duplicate versions of your site increases your odds of being found by search engines.
Search engines consider it to be shady or dishonest behavior to have duplicate content, known as "mirrored" or "cloned" content, in several places. Such behavior, intentional or not, can lead to your site being blacklisted by search engines. If you use several different domain names to promote your site, make sure you designate one as the primary and redirect the others to it using server-side 301 redirects, or create unique content on each site.


Seeking more basic information on search engine optimization (SEO) and pay per click advertising? See the "Beginner's Verse for Search Engine Marketing" for a collection of stories that will enlighten you with answers to frequently asked questions.

Beginner's Verse for Search Engine Marketing

This is Part I of ROBOT's "Search Engine Folklore: Two Tales of Fact and Fiction". Myths, legends and lies abound in the Land of Search Engine Marketing. Some of these stories are true (FACTs), but many are false (FICTION). We've compiled the most common tales to help set the record straight.

Designed for the apprentice seeking basic information on search engine optimization (SEO) and pay per click advertising, "Beginner's Verse" is a collection of short stories will enlighten readers with answers to frequently asked questions. Read "Master's Manual" for more advanced topics.

 

There is a formula to getting ranked on search engines.
There is no set formula to SEO that everyone knows about. Every search engine competes to be the best search engine for users, so each has a unique method for ranking - and they don't publish it. Just remember that if a method was published everyone would do it. Marketing companies are always trying to figure out what search engines are up to, and there are some widely accepted best practices. But don't buy into any tales involving the ONE RIGHT WAY unless it's published by search engines directly.

Hiring an SEO company will guarantee a #1 ranking.
For organic searches, no legitimate company is going to guarantee placement for a competitive keyword. If your name or product name is unique, you can probably expect to rank for those. For general and competitive search terms, however, you are going to be up against a lot of competitors who are making many of the same efforts. Make sure the company you work with has the right keyword goals in mind. Shooting to rank for slightly less competitive keywords can be a great way to get results. For paid search results, it's an open market, so if you are willing to pay for it, you can get in the top position for any keyword.

SEO is all about putting the right keywords in your site.
While you should certainly consider the keywords and search phrases for which you would like to be found, search engines don't put much trust in keywords alone anymore. They want to see that you are providing the information for which users are searching. Your site's navigation, headlines, internal links and other factors help search engines determine the hierarchy of the information on your site and to understand what your site is about. If your information is clear, addressing what users are looking for, keywords will naturally be included in prominent places.

Website changes are necessary to improve your rankings.
Search Engine Optimization is, at its core, "optimizing" your website to make it search engine-friendly. While there are a number of off-site factors that can affect your search engine rankings (such as incoming links and competition), most websites require changes. These can be as simple as increasing keyword concentration in content or as extensive as restructuring navigation and rewriting content.

Results are immediate.
While this statement is true for pay per click campaigns (once you setup your account, your ad will show up almost immediately), the statement is NOT true for organic search engine results. Search engines regularly crawl through the web, indexing sites as they go. It may take as long as 30-60 days before search engines find and update your rankings, and your positions may fluctuate drastically for a few more months before they level off.

Search Engine Marketing requires regular, ongoing maintenance.
Organic search engine optimization and pay per click search advertising campaigns both require ongoing attention in order to get continued results. On the organic side, search engines are finding new sites everyday, and they are also regularly improving their methods for ranking websites. With sponsored search or pay per click campaigns, your competitors are constantly adjusting their bids to improve their ad positions. A sustained effort by someone who follows the latest trends, monitors your progress and makes necessary recommendations and adjustments can keep you ahead of the curve.

You will need to hand off access to your accounts if you work with an outside marketing company.
Every search engine marketing company works differently. Some are setup to give you full access and full transparency, charging you separately for their services. Others use their own proprietary systems and/or mark up the cost of the clicks, and these companies generally provide less transparency. Each is a valid way of doing business, but make sure you know what you are getting into and whether you will retain any setup or access if you decide to end your contract.

Submitting your site to search engines will help you get ranked.
In the early days of SEO, submitting your site with your primary keywords to search engines was a critical step in the process. Search engines are now less inclined to believe the information you provide in your submission. They crawl the Internet and rank websites based on their own methods. They look closely at your content and what sites are linking to you to decide how your site will be ranked. While it still isn't a bad idea to let search engines know you are there, you should focus on submitting your sitemap (see "Master's Manual").

Paying to be ranked high in directories will help you rank better in search engines.
Links to your website from relevant directories can be beneficial for your site because they confirm for search engines that your content is valuable for the item or service in that directory. However, your position on the page in that directory likely has no impact on your position in organic search results. Rather than spending your entire budget on one directory listing, your best bet is to develop an overall link strategy (see "Getting links to my site..." below)

Getting links to your site from other sites will help your ranking.
Links to your site from a website related to your business work as referrals and legitimize the content on your website to search engines. Not just any link will do! Develop a link strategy that includes paid and free directory listings, links from partner or affiliate websites and any other relevant incoming links you can arrange. Look for links from websites that rank high in search results themselves, and beware of link farms that contain hundreds of links to irrelevant websites. These sites are often blacklisted by search engines, and links from these sites can actually hurt your rankings! Also, the text in the link (known as anchor text) should contain keywords if possible, rather than just your website URL.



Looking for more thrilling tales that will test your skills as a master of SEO? See the "Master's Manual for Search Engine Marketing", which addresses more advanced topics, from programming considerations to social media.

20 Do's and 10 Don'ts for 2010

It's the beginning of a new decade and a great time to catch up with the latest marketing trends. We've taken a close look at the industry, from social media to search engine marketing, and compiled our list of 20 Do's and 10 Don'ts for 2010.

DON'T: Post your hours of play at Mafia Wars or Farmville on your Facebook page.
DO: Decide once and for all if you are using Facebook professionally or personally.
DO: Evaluate the ROI for social media as you would any other form of marketing, considering the TIME you spend on it as a real cost.

DO: Generate links in your emails to track effectiveness. Clicks are a great way to measure interest in your content.
DO: Spend as much time growing your list as you do getting the email out each month.
DON'T: Base the success of your email campaigns on open rates - they can be VERY inaccurate due to how they are measured and changes in Microsoft Outlook.

DON'T: Think you are getting a "great deal" by using freelancers and unemployed individuals for critical marketing initiatives.
DO: Think long term about the consistency of your marketing, messaging and brand, and look for vendors who can provide it.
DO: Put a style guide and formal plan in place, and determine who will ensure continuity as the freelancers get back to work.

DO: Use research to understand your customers and their habits so you can communicate with them in creative ways.
DO: Look beyond search engines to other ways that customers might find your services, such as forums with participants from your target market.
DON'T: Spend a ton of money PUSHING advertising out to the masses, when you can PULL in customers who are already searching at a fraction of the price.

DON'T: Underestimate your competitors.
DO: Continue to look for innovative ways to use new technologies and get ahead of the curve. For example, will mobile devices affect the way you do business?
DO: Use free clipping services such as Google Alerts to follow industry news and keep an eye on your competition.

DO: Make time to evaluate the comparative ROI of your marketing initiatives.
DON'T: Allow budget cuts to affect marketing programs that demonstrate a clear ROI.
DO: Cut way back on programs that do NOT show effective ROI...How's the phone book treating you?

DO: Look at each of your online needs separately to see if there are hosted solutions available with better functionality at a lower price.
DO: Compare apples to apples when evaluating internet vendors, being sure to prioritize and separate your WANTS from your NEEDS.
DON'T: Get roped into a "fully integrated solution". That's so 2005.

DON'T: Think your search engine optimization is ever "done". Search engines are continually changing.
DO: Target your SEO geographically. One of the biggest changes search engines have made in the past year is to focus searches geographically. Don't miss out on valuable local or national search results.
DO: Think beyond Google AdWords. Examine your customer base to see if there are other NEW online advertising avenues might be good for your business (ex: Bing).

DON'T: Carry forward the "do-it-yourself to save money" attitude from 2009.
DO: Focus on your core business instead of trying to learn new programs and technologies with your business serving as the guinea pig.
DO: Look for experts who can help manage your campaigns with experience and accountability.

DON'T: Change your existing website without understanding the ramifications it might have to your existing traffic.
DO: Understand how online marketing companies work. Many of them "mirror" websites and use other practices that can actually hurt your rankings.
DO: Review your website statistics, and set some baselines and goals before making any changes.

Amazing Left Brain/Right Brain Video

A brain scientist describes the experience of suffering a stroke one morning and how she went in and out of left and right brain functionalities.  I wonder if she was very "spiritual" before this happened. This presentation is about 15 min, but well worth it.

Watch the video and read an article about the presentation