Google's Top SEO Tips for Start-ups: If you want your startup website to rank well on Google, why not start with Google's own advice?

As SEO credibility goes, it doesn't get much better than Google's Developer Programs Tech Lead Maile Ohye. In a 10-minute video, she adopts the role of a consultant to deliver all the advice she'd give to a startup whose website has no more than 50 pages of primary content, and a desire to rank for a handful of keywords.

Here are a few highlights of Ohye's tutorial. If your startup business seeks to quickly rank, consider taking these steps:

• Decide if you want visitors to see the www or non-www version of your domain. Major companies like Google and Facebook tend to use the former, but it's up to you.
• Verify ownership of your site in Webmaster Tools. Also sign up for email forwarding, so Google can alert you to potential problems.
• Perform a background check on your domain. If spammers previously owned your domain, it won't rank well.
• Include analytics code. Whether you use Google Analytics or another provider, it's good to start collecting data, even if you're not ready to use it.
• Use strategy in your site design. You'll get different types of visitors—customers, investors, press. Your site should offer an excellent experience to each persona.
• Define your conversion. Make a relevant conversion possible on every page; don't force users to make extra clicks.
• Be smart about your copy. Use keywords in your text that people normally use to find information about your product or service.
• Check on your ranking. Ideally, you'll rank number one for your company name. But also examine how you rank for other terms.
• Play to authentic strengths. If your CEO likes to tweet, if an engineer is on Google+, or if a salesperson enjoys Facebook—encourage their ongoing activity.

Source: Marketing Profs & Google

7 Elements of a Great Lead Gen Landing Page

What's the key to crafting a B2B landing page that grabs attention—and loads of leads? It needs to be well-written, and offer real value to visitors. It needs to be eye-catching, to grab attention in those first critical seconds. But we all know these basics, right?

So which specific elements work best to draw prospects in?

According to Oli Gardner at Unbounce, there are seven elements that a lead gen landing page needs to have to get the job done.

Let's start with the top three:

1.     A concise headline. The headline is the most important element of the seven, Gardner notes. "Your headline is your hook," he reminds us. Take time polishing it.

2.     An image or video. To effectively showcase a product, you'll need to show "context of use," Gardner says. Either demonstrate the product in a video, or take a photo of someone using it. To effectively showcase a service, find a way to demonstrate how it will bring value to viewers. To showcase a whitepaper or book, offer a preview.

3.     A core benefit statement. These are the sentences that "reel them in," says Gardner. Make them easy to read and quickly persuasive.

The next four elements: Your request for data; a strong call to action; trust elements (i.e., testimonials); and social sharing devices (best placed on a secondary page, like the link page for your call to action.)

 

 

Source: MarketingProfs

Open Source vs. Closed Source Software

We are often asked why we use a Closed Source CMS in designing and developing websites for our clients.  Let us start by first providing a brief explanation of the differences.

Open Source means there are a lot of people working on the software.  Documentation is usually easy to find and there are plenty of people out there offering their support input, which may make development a little easier, depending on your skill level.  Regular updates may be provided that are on-going attempts to improve and secure the product.  Open Source systems let you see all the internal components of the software, and, if you have the skills, you can often change it to suit your needs.

However, because many people have access to Open Source code, this access creates a higher risk for hacking.  If you choose to design in an Open Source system, your development team is going to need to put continual time and work into preventing third-party tampering.  This difficulty of this effort is dependent on many factors such as how many people need to have access to sensitive areas of the site, how frequently are security patches updated, and where is your website hosted.

Closed Source software usually equates to better security and support.  For an e-commerce site, it isn’t necessarily more secure to go with a closed source system, but unlike open source systems, developers don’t have to spend as much time securing code.  If a developer runs into any issues using a Closed Source software, providers are readily available to offer you support.  This is a true convenience, because it cuts down on the development time and cost.

With Closed Source, the barrier to entry may at times be higher.  Although this is not always the case, you may have to pay for the software or service.  On the other hand, using a Closed Source CMS quite often eliminates the need for on-going support or website maintenance.

Bottom line, it all boils down to the abilities of your in-house tech staff, if you have one, and your budget.  Some enterprise companies design with open source because they have qualified developers.  If you don’t feel that your team is ready to take on extra challenges of working with an Open Source software, then Closed Source (and its built-in support) typically is the best route.

Reference: Mashable

Terradon CommunicationsGroup selected to work with the Kentico CMS because of its reputation for security, ease of use, quicker development time, and lower development costs.  In addition, TCG has licensed the Kentico CMS source code and can provide our clients with any custom programming requirements.  TCG does not charge our clients a licensing fee for the use of the closed source Kentico CMS and offers our clients exceptional website design, development, and on-going support services. 

Source: Brent Pauley

Facebook Promotions: Know the Rules

To help promoters facing the Facebook challenge, Social Media Today's Genevieve Lachance has given us a list of things you MUST do, CAN do, and CAN'T do when conducting a fun diversion at the site.

Running contests on Facebook is a major source of confusion amongst Facebook Page owners. Facebook terms are a little unclear and many Businesses have no clue at all about the rules they need to follow.

By breaking Facebook Terms, you run the risk of having Facebook shut down your Business Page. Make sure you’re familiar with all the rules.

Done right, running promotions and contests on Facebook can be a great way to gain fans and increase visibility for your business.

Nearly 40% of Facebook users who become fans do so to receive discounts and promotions (http://www.exacttarget.com).

Here’s what you need to know about Facebook Promotions and Contests:

YOU MUST

·         You MUST administer ALL contests, promotions, and sweepstakes on Facebook using a third-party application and never use the Facebook platform such as your Page wall, the Events app, Groups or any other Facebook functionality to run your promotion. Note that a third-party application also includes any applications you create yourself.

·         You MUST include a complete release of Facebook and acknowledgment that the promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook.

·         You MUST have clear contest rules that are visible directly on your application Page.

YOU CAN’T

·         You CAN’T use Facebook’s like, share, comment button, use the photos/videos tab as a voting mechanism/registration for a promotion.

·         You CAN’T contact winners inside Facebook (via direct messaging, chat, posting on the winner’s wall or posting on your own Page wall).

·         You CAN’T choose a fan for a random draw since this means that you would use Facebook to collect entries unless you do it somehow through a third-party application.

YOU CAN

·         You CAN upload photos or videos for a contest but it has to be done via a third-party application and not through the default Facebook photo/video tab on your Page.

·         You CAN have users like your Page, check into a Place, or connect to your app before entering your promotion as long as the promotion is administered through a third-party application and is not used as a voting mechanism or a registration for your promotion.

·         You CAN collect names and emails from the contestants. This is actually recommended especially for the purpose of contacting the winner(s). This doesn’t give you the right to add email addresses to your mailing list unless you specifically include it in your terms and allow for opting out.

·         According to Social media Examiner: You CAN promote a contest on your Facebook page…”as long as there’s no requirement to do anything on Facebook; e.g., like your page, comment, upload content, etc. You can simply post a link on your page to the contest. And, to be fully safe, I would also include this disclosure, This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook.”

·         Mari Smith said the same to me, “…provided you comply with the rule to use an app to run the contest, you CAN use all the Facebook features to promote the contest, whether ads, wall posts, adding milestones, pinning to the top etc”.

In addition to Facebook’s own terms, your promotion also needs to follow local laws. Read: Social Media Promotions and the Law: What You Need to Know.

 

Here are some interesting apps to help you run Facebook Promotions and Contests:

·         Wildfire. Starting Price :$5 per promotion plus $0.99 per day

·         NorthSocial. Starting Price: $19.99/mth

·         Votigo. Starting Price: $30/week

·         Strutta. Starting Price: $99/mth for their Social Suite

·         Appbistro. Starting Price: Free

·         Faceitpages. Starting Price: Free

·         FanPageEngine. Contest App Coming soon.

·         Tabsite. Starting Price: Free

·         Woobox. Starting Price: $29/mth for promotions

·         Shortstack. Starting Price: Free for Pages under 2000 Likes

Note that these are my own interpretations of Facebook promotional terms. You should make yourself familiar with the Facebook official guidelines before running any promotions or contests on Facebook.

 

Sources:

Genevieve Lachance: socialmediatoday

https://www.facebook.com/page_guidelines.php#promotionsguidelines

https://developers.facebook.com/docs/guides/policy/policy_checklist/english/

http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/

Four Tips for Turning a Website Design Into a Brand Experience

Small businesses can learn lots from design firm Method's socially appealing philosophy.  Method's Interaction Design Director Ben Fullerton recently wrote an article for Fast Company about turning website design pixels into a brand experience for users.

Here are four solid bits of advice from the article:

·         Embody what you want people to feel. Brands "stand for something; they have both value and a set of values," Fullerton notes. What associations do users make when they hear your brand name (versus Nike, Facebook, Oxfam)?

·         Learn the difference between consistency and coherency. Consistency is ensuring your design shares common elements and behaviors across all modes of interaction, online and off. Coherency marries consistency "with a system of meaning that people can believe in and choose to be a part of: the brand," says Fullerton. "Tying the two together—interaction and brand—in a coherent system will facilitate experiences that are richer and lasting."

·         Design for interaction. Brands are no longer broadcasters; they're part of conversations on multiple channels. "Designers must become comfortable with designing for a world in which these interactions spread across time and modality," says Fullerton. "It is how all of these are perceived together that creates the voice, tone, and personality of a brand, and that helps to create meaning."

·         Design around your voice. A brand team's job is about shaping the brand's voice, building narrative around your product by identifying traits to which people will respond. And a designer's job is to subtly express that voice in the site design.

So remember, you only get one shot at a good, first user impression.  Website design isn't just about choosing site colors; it's about constructing the identity you'll portray to the world.

Source: MarketingProfs

Will Mobile Commerce Overtake E-Commerce?

How vital is mobile commerce becoming? Worldwide, mobile commerce is set to hit $119 billion by 2015. The projected amount of retail purchases made online by 2014 is 54%.

To better grasp mobile's incredible growth and its implications, Big Commerce, an e-commerce software company, recently studied analyst and trend-watching data from various sources, then created the infographic below. 

Source: MarketingProfs

Make a Picture Worth a Thousand Conversions

Websites are great ways to relay lots of information—and that's a blessing and a curse, as business sites pack in as much about themselves, their products, their customers, their services, as they possibly can.

Against that daily data barrage, the use of imagery can pay off big, KISSmetrics tells us in a recent post at its site.

Here are some of its tips for using images to meet website conversion goals.

• Remember That Emotions Rule. Making a user feel a certain way compels action. Make customers feel happy, proud, or wanted by depicting gestures as simple as a smile or a knowing glance. Human Touch, a massage and wellness vendor, uses images on its site to give users a sense of the feelings they'll have upon receiving their products: joy, relaxation.

• Try a Mascot. Mascots are memorable and emotional marketing tools. Email marketing service MailChimp personifies itself with a perky chimp in a mailman’s hat, adding personality and relatability to its services; Nestlé appeals to mothers and kids by using its blue bear Bo to market baby food.

• Add a Human Touch. Few things are more relatable than a human face. Medalia Art discovered in A/B testing that photos of artists converted better than simply showing the art: Conversions increased 95%!

• Think Outside the Box. Leverage our diversity of technology. Due Maternity used images that spin 360° for certain products on its site. Conversions for these products rose 27% versus those marketed with two-dimensional shots. They are currently adding video to their fashion spreads.

• Validate With Validation. People like getting a sense of how others feel about a product or service; it reassures them. Infusionsoft puts customers' testimonials and photos front-and-center.

• Cut Your Reliance on Bad Stock Imagery. Stock photograpy can be cheesy—and easy for users to identify—which makes them feel less valued. Choose photos that are emotionally and aesthetically right for your brand persona. McAfee showcases one well-chosen image to relay its message of security.

• Test Your Changes! Never stop learning about what works and what doesn't; often, what works evolves. Effective testing software includes KISSmetrics and Google Website Optimizer.
  Source: MarketingProfs