A conversion is generally defined as an event that results in a transaction. A “transaction” will be defined differently based on your business model and what your end goal is (ie. information, sign up, subscription, payment, etc.). Regardless of how you define your conversions and transactions, it is important to track where they are coming from.

Maybe you blog on multiple blog platforms such as WordPress. Are you keeping track of leads you get from those platforms and in addition to how many of those leads are converting? Maybe you post videos to different video platforms or syndicate your listings to multiple directories. Maybe you use Twitter or Facebook or focus heavily on your own website. Are you tracking the leads and conversions you receive from all of these sources?

If not, you may be spending valuable time in places that are not giving you a return on your investment. Sure, maybe some of these resources are free but your time is not free; it is an investment. Maybe it’s time to take a closer look at which resources have the highest conversion.

At the bottom of this post is a spreadsheet that can help track your conversions. It includes two sheets; one for keeping track of your daily activity (DailyLog) and the other (MonthlyStats) calculates profit/loss based on your daily log. Feel free to download for your own use. Google spreadsheet is good to use because it allows you to update the spreadsheet on the fly, from the web wherever you are.

Populate this information and you will soon see “how much money” you are actually spending and which platforms have a good return on investment (ROI). If the ROI is negative month after month, you may want to consider dropping that tool and try something else or focusing more on the tools that have a better ROI. I suggest giving a resource at least three months as it is hard to truly evaluate a resource with only a couple weeks of data.

5 Steps to Create An Engaging Online Profile

Creating an online profile that’s engaging is a key component of an essential online marketing strategy. The goal in creating a meaningful profile is to engage your prospects. Online shoppers are likely to review several service providers before making a decision. Your business profile needs to be remarkable in order to capture your prospects’ attention within 3-5 seconds or less.

If you are transparent and thorough, prospects will contact you after reading your profile because you have given them enough information openly and honestly for
them to know, like, and trust you.

Here are five easy steps to create a head-turning profile.

Bedazzle with a great photo

A logo is a standard feature on most business profiles. While logos are essential for branding, a photo will add a humanistic quality to your profile. Online shoppers like to know who they are buying a product from and who the face is behind the services they will be receiving. A head shot or full length photo in a casual setting could be just the right touch. Investing money in a professional head shot could make the difference in zero to hero.

A simple photo could be the reason why a consumer chooses your services over a competitor’s.

Make Your Background Visible

Stand out from the crowd. Don’t let your background take a back seat on your profile.
It should appear front and center. Try to stay away from “mechanical copy” that reads more like a robotic resume than an impressive reflection of your skills and expertise. If you have examples of your past work online don’t hesitate to link to it. Consumers and Business Professionals want the play by play highlights.

Sell Your Services with Style

What is it that you REALLY do? Don’t make online shoppers read between the lines.
Provide a detailed bulleted list of your services. Don’t make assumptions. Your online visitors may never visit your website, so make sure you present every service you represent on your profile. Link out to photos you have of services you have completed or products you sell. If you add services to your business make sure to update your profile.

Oftentimes, people do not list services/products that they don’t perform even though they
can provide a referral to another service provider. Create a small section within your profile that list services your can cover with your own little black book of reputable service providers. The power of referrals can come back to you in spades.

Allow Your Personality to Percolate

Your personality should drip through like our morning coffee brew. Let’s go back to “know, like, and trust”. You can maintain a professional tone and allow your personality to permeate your profile by using a more conversational tone. Consumers and business professionals should be able to read your profile and get a sense of who they will be talking to or buying from, so don’t be shy about including your personal interests and hobbies.

How do you create a conversational profile? Have someone ask you questions and then respond verbally. Record this interview session, then replay and transcribe the words without editing. Once you have laid down this initial track go back and edit for grammar and cohesive writing, but keep the tone of the conversation intact.

Keep Your Contact Points Simple

Don’t confuse consumers. Provide one answer for each point of contact.

You only need to display one phone number, one email address and one website. If you have a blog that is separate from your website and is related to your business
you can include that website address. Also if you micro blog on a platform like Twitter and communicate using @replies and Direct Messages, make sure to include your Twitter Handle (user name).

Use these five steps to create an engaging online profile that makes prospects want to pick up the phone and work with you.

Saving Business Cents Makes Sense

In a sea of competing businesses online marketing gives small businesses branding
opportunities. Solopreuners, small to mid-size business owners and even large
corporations are replacing traditional marketing venues like direct marketing
by use of newspaper advertising, bulletin boards, magazine ads, postcards, and
cold calling, for the newly improved internet methods found in web 2.0 offerings.
It’s no wonder with the number of warm handshakes these businesses receive from
their consumers online that small business owners wouldn’t migrate to online offerings.

Now with all generations active online it makes good use of business cents and
is business common sense to create online marketing strategies. The recent statistics
provided by The Pew Internet and American Life Project Study Survey- December
2008 prove that online advertising is integral to a business’s marketing plan
regardless of the age of your target market.

Here is the breakdown of the generations online noted in the study,

• 93%- 12-17 Year Olds
• 89%- 18-24 Year Olds
• 85%- 25-29 Year Olds
• 87%- 30-34 Year Olds
• 85%- 35-39 Year Olds
• 83%- 40-44 Year Olds
• 80% 45-49 Year Olds
• 78% 50-54 Year Olds
• 71%-55-59 Year Olds
• 62%-60-64 Year Olds

Clearly when it comes to online usage age IS nothing but a number.

Three Effective Methods of Social Media Marketing

Each business should develop an online marketing mix that suits its current goals
and objectives. Small businesses who take internet marketing seriously develop
strategic media marketing strategies that incorporate several facets of interactive
(web 2.0) online marketing or sometimes only a few based on the individual business’s
needs.

Here are three examples of effective Social Media Marketing mediums.

Blogging

You don’t have to be a penned wordsmith to be a good blogger . Blogging comes
in many formats and the key is that blogging is conversational. You can try traditionally
penned blogs. You can record audio tracks which is known as podcasting. A third
method is microblogging and a popular platform for this is twitter. In 140 characters
or less microblogging allows you to engage prospects and carry out easy conversations.

Blogging is a critical component of social media marketing because it allows businesses
to provide information through the use of fresh, relevant content. Incorporating
blogging as par of a company’s internet marketing strategy provides the company
with a good opportunity to be found in the search engines for the company’s desired
markets.

Social Networking

One of the most popular and highly addictive web 2.0 mediums for online consumers
are the social networks. Social networks allow consumers and business professionals
to network among friends, strangers, acquaintances, and professionals all in
one place. If small businesses keep an open mind and keep their networks open
they have the potential to grow their networks exponentially by allowing other
consumers into their fold.

Social networks also allow businesses to update the public on new improvement
in product lines, what an average day is like at xyz company. Social networks
are varied in purpose and the amount of social networks can be mind numbing,
but the most popular platforms determined by marketing research about consumer
online behavior are currently Linked In, Twitter, and Facebook.

Syndication

Social networks and blog platforms are relatively low on cost investment, but
they are far from maintenance free marketing endeavors. To blog and create viable
weekly online content the time commitment involved is a minimum of 5-10 hours
a week. How can you effectively communicate online through providing fresh and
relevant information AND then market that information to all of your contacts
across all of the social networks? The answer is syndication.

Syndicating content allows your message and your information to be reached across
the worldwide web. You can syndicate your content by using an online social service
that will broadcast your updates across the social networks. You can also use
listing syndication for your marketing collateral by using a service that will syndicate
your ads across social networks.

There’s No Time Like the Present Online

The thing most online traveler’s love about the internet is the ability
to peruse stores and services as well as to interact with people online anytime.
More importantly, anytime means on their time in online marketing. If your business
has not yet engaged heavily in online marketing there is no time like the present
to get started. The reach small businesses have online is global and timeless.

When you think of the Web 2.0 phenomenon, what words come to mind? Transparency, engagement, conversation, guru, apps, social networking, social media, social marketing… any of these sound familiar? Web 2.0 lingo has saturated articles, blog posts, tweets, and conversations across the web, but what does it all mean? And more importantly, how does it apply to the health and growth of your business? Thankfully, the Web 2.0 Expo in San Francisco helped to answer these questions in an applicable way, since it was “focused on ideas and solutions that will translate into real value and ultimately sales” (Bub.blicio.us). Here are a few valuable takeaways from the event:

1. Strategy is Paramount.

When running a business, it is smart to continually educate yourself on the latest trends and techniques that are being used in your sphere and beyond. However, this should not be confused with chasing after every new application or fad that comes along. Just because all the popular kids (aka. the “gurus” and “experts”) are playing with it, doesn’t mean that it’s right for your business. Before investing time and effort into this social network or that marketing technique, think for a minute about the old adage that wisely reminds us “time is money”. Research, establish goals, and define a strategy. Follow through with things that makes sense for your business and “eliminate all things that don’t contribute to progress”. See more on this topic at The Lean Startup Blog and here on Twitter.

2. Sales in Web 2.0 is Okay.

With the gospel of transparency and open communication spreading across the social web like wildfire, sales seem to have taken a back seat. Without a doubt, integrity, honesty, and conversation are important in business. But what about actually doing business? In the session, “S Factor: Why Sales Shouldn’t Be a Dirty Word in Web 2.0“, Alastair Mitchell from Huddle.net explains that Web 2.0 has not replaced the need for a sales force, saying, “Web 2.0 can be used to more quickly build your user base, but not to replace a sales presence”. Perhaps this means separating your social networking efforts from your sales efforts, perhaps not. Whichever is the case for your business, sales need not be something you’re ashamed of. See the whole recap on this topic at the Huddle Blog.

3. Metrics are Vital for Success.

With a session title of “Become a Web 2.0 Metrics Jedi” and an opening slide photo of Yoda in pirate gear, it’s a wonder that anyone attended any other track that hour, and it did not disappoint. Do you create targeted landing pages, optimize your website for search engine success, and design your site for optimal attraction and conversion? If so, you’re on the right track… maybe. You can’t know for certain unless you have set goals and are analyzing the data on a regular basis. How many site visitors are clicking the “sign up” button on the main page compared with the one on the FAQ page? How many visitors are converting to paid customers? At which point in the process are they doing that? Is there a page on your website that has a much higher bounce rate than the rest? These questions will help you understand why you may or may not be reaching your goals, and having the systems in place to answer them is vital. Visit the 500 Hats Blog for a detailed slideshow and recap.

4. Online Advertising is Not Dead.

It is no secret that online advertising is becoming increasingly important as more people are searching and shopping online everyday. The argument lies in which type of advertising is most effective to online consumers and profitable to advertisers. With “ad blindness” affecting most online searchers (a term which describes the tendency of internet searchers to instinctively ignore banner and display ads), it was no surprise to hear that search type advertising is trending way up, just as CPM and CPC advertising is trending way down (JP Morgan 2008 Internet Investment Guide). This was music to our ears, since our ClassifiedFlyerAds service provides targeted search ads that are syndicated across the web. The session (titled “From AD-versity Comes Opportunity”) also predicted that a new type of advertising would surface in 2009-10 that would “fill the gap” between dispay ads and search ads. We’ll stay tuned.

5. More is Not Always Better.

With a theme of “The Power of Less”, the Web 2.0 Expo aimed to convince internet users that more apps, more features, more blog posts, more pictures, more video, more anything, is not always better. Don’t launch a new feature just to launch a new feature; make sure it adds value and solves a problem. On that note, the Lean Startup Session suggested that we ask ourselves these two questions before adding “more”: 1) “What problem are we solving for the customer?”, and 2) “How are we solving it?”. If you cannot answer these questions, perhaps it is not time to add that great new thing after all.

With courses covering four days and eight different topics, there was certainly no shortage of valuable information for businesses at the San Francisco Web 2.0 Expo, much more in fact, than we were able to take in on our own. Check out the recap page, twitter stream, and follow-up news coverage for all of the mind dizzying Web 2.0 advice you can handle.

Let me start of by declaring that I once provided full service, custom development and web design for small businesses.  Now that I provide self-serve business solutions through the Go Smart Solutions brands, I can speak confidently from both sides of the table.   Most small businesses do not need a custom developed website.  There are so many self-serve tools online that empower small business owners to create their own online presence (WordPress, ClassifiedFlyerAds, Squidoo, Social Networks, etc.) without paying big bucks for custom work.  All small businesses really need is to be educated on how to use these tools.  Once they learn about the technology and how to “serve themselves”, they will be able to take their business to a whole different (and higher) level.

Here are the three main reasons why I feel small businesses should learn to serve themselves:

Empowerment

Nobody knows your business like you do.  Using self-serve online solutions for your business puts the power in your hands.  You have the control and can make decisions on what is best for your business.

Education

You might be surprised at just how much you can learn when you start using tools that are readily available.  You will learn about online marketing, SEO, advertising, technology and so much more that your competitors don’t know about. It will take a little time and patience, but the payoff will be huge.

Economics

You will save BIG.  And when I say “big”, I mean thousands of dollars or more.

In order to make “self-serve” work for your business, all you need is initiative, a plan, and determination. The effort you put in to learning to effectively “serve yourself” will pay off in more ways than one, and lay the foundation for a lasting change in your business.

Once upon a time, a long long time ago, you could get a decent response just from advertising your business in the local paper, sending out promotional ads via direct mail, or buying a spot in the yellow pages. No more. Today, hundreds of millions of people are searching the internet for information, products, and services. Newspaper circulation is way down, making those ads less powerful, promotional direct mail has become “junk mail”, and advertising in the yellow pages… wait, what’s that? Google is the new yellow pages, and the internet is the new source for gathering information, communicating, and buying stuff. Are you effectively advertising your business online?

A recent study by Nielsen Media Research found that more than 85% of the world’s population has shopped online, up 40% from just two years earlier. Combine this statistic with the fact that 87% of home buyers search for property online, and that 3 out of 4 car buyers also search online, and it’s hard to ignore the fact that people are relying on the internet for more reason than just to surf; they’re also there to buy. If you own or run a business – whether freelance, real estate, automotive sales, product sales, service provider, or anything else – then you need to be marketing online.

So, how do you advertise your business online? The options available to you are many, and if you are just getting your feet wet in this arena then things can be confusing and overwhelming. Do your market research due-diligence, consumers are not going to leave online shopping behind any time soon.  Here are a few options to get you started:

1. Website – An effective website is much more than a static placeholder. Take tips from articles like “10 Steps to Measuring Web Site Success” and the Google Blog.
2. Blog – Blogging can be very effective if done right. Refer to advice from successful bloggers like Chris Brogan, CopyBlogger, the Online Marketing Blog, and others.
3. Post Targeted Ads – These types of ads can create a broader online presence for your business and be targeted to your market.
4. Google AdWords – Create online ads based on a set of keywords and set your own budget.
5. Social Networking – This one can be tricky, and many people use it entirely the wrong way. However, if managed successfully, social networking can be a great way to build your brand and presence online. To start in the social networking arena (see Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn), I suggest you do much more watching and listening in the beginning to get a feel for how it is done successfully in your market. Find and connect with others in your industry who have been successful, and define a strategy with measurable goals.

The most important thing about online advertising for your business is to start. Have questions on any of these advertising methods? Disagree with me? Have another to add? Post your 2 cents in the comment section below.

Photo credit: jaaron