Make Blogs Work for Your Small Business

A recent Fast Company magazine article noted that the significant return from social media marketing like blogs does so much more than just get your company’s name out on to the Internet landscape and potentially in front of your target audience.

Social media tactics like blogs offers small business a competitive advantage that can even tackle the big box brands that dominate the brick-and-mortar environment. It evens the playing field by giving small businesses a voice and way to help their customers get information and engage them in a two-way dialogue.   

The Proof is in the Pudding…Err, I Mean, in the Results

Our firm’s clients, such as Carithers Flowers, Pete’s Plumbing, and TAB all based in and around the Atlanta, Georgia area, have been using their blog to accomplish these objectives with incredible results. Each client is a small business that had previously only used traditional and local channels for their marketing efforts.

With the blogs and other social media marketing tactics, each has noted a strong uptick in new clients and booked business. Many new customers and returning clientele have mentioned how much they like the blogs and believed the information provided them with helpful advice. In their mind, the blogs also established a stronger sense of credibility and reputation about the companies behind the blog in terms of what they would get in the way of service.

Blogging Tips for Success: Generating Social Media Buzz

In looking at these three blogs as examples of what a small business can do, there are some top tips that are easy to employ:

• Write about what you know: Each of the three blogs focus on their core business and what they are good at. Numerous small businesses can gain a real advantage with blog visitors by offering them tips on making their life easier around the house, saving money, and other value-oriented content.
• Focus on quality and unique content: This doesn’t mean that the content of another plumber or florist is simply repurposed or even copied. All content must be fresh and unique to the firm. Very often, a search engine will quickly reveal when a company has simply copied content from another site. This is the fastest way to diminish a firm in the mind of a customer because they will not be able to see them as honest.
• Don’t forget that quantity helps too: Usually, quantity is not as good as quality but, in the case of blogging, posting weekly or even more frequently garners more attention than what becomes a hit and miss strategy when done once a month or what may end up being months. The more often you do it, the more likely you’ll get some attention.
• Use pictures, videos, and illustrations: Visual images reinforce the messages and offer another way to entertain and engage the blog visitor. They also help add more information to what you are trying to convey or help show a reader how to complete a task like flower arranging or plumbing repair.
• Create links: Connecting your post through hyperlinks to articles that reinforce the topics or provide additional information let readers know you have researched your topic. However, it also is a way to get more attention from search engines to drive traffic.
• Make it readable and easy to digest: Don’t try to be the Moby Dick of blog writers. Keep the content within reason and break it up visually with bullets, numbering, and lists.
• Invite participation: Blogs are a social media tool and all thrive on interaction and dialogue. Always be sure to include a space for comments and invite feedback or questions.

Your Take

How has a blog worked for your small business or how has it helped you as a consumer or business be able to learn something new from a preferred company? Do you have questions about how to get started with a blog? Flyline Search Marketing can provide assistance to you. We offer a turn-key blogging solution that our clients find extremely beneficial to their Internet Marketing efforts. Call us at 1-866-258-5511.

Internet Marketing Partnerships Fuel Small Business Growth

Internet marketing strategies and success just isn’t for global companies or national brands; if anything, it has opened up growth opportunities for many small business owners who can take advantage of some of the same marketing tools as larger companies without needing the powerhouse marketing budget to go with it.

Case Study: Carithers Flowers

Take Carithers Flowers, for example, an award-winning, 37-year old family-owned business with retail headquarters at Powers Ferry in Georgia. They are a full-service florist offering same-day delivery to Acworth, Alpharetta, Buckhead, Canton, Decatur, Duluth, Kennesaw, Marietta, Sandy Springs, Smyrna, Tucker and Woodstock. Not only does Carithers Flowers offer a beautiful selection of floral arrangements and gifts both online and at retail locations, but the company also works with environmentally sustainable farms and gives extensively to charity and community programs.

 Being voted the Number One Florist in Atlanta did not just happen by chance for Carithers Flowers. The local florist has been working for years to nurture its relationships with customers and offers a friendly and knowledgeable place to shop for flowers. Although a lot of great word-of-mouth marketing has helped grow the company, Carithers realized that the Internet could become an excellent way to fertilize its business for long-term growth.

The comprehensive marketing approach employed by Flyline Search Marketing is an invaluable asset, allowing Carithers Flowers to reach the broadest possible audience and, as a result, give back even more to the community. The Internet Marketing program for Carithers consists of a turn-key solution that has helped deliver a number of benefits for a minimal marketing investment, including blogging, social media, online advertising, search engine optimization, and more. The results have achieved the program’s main goals:

·        Generate more sales revenue;

·        Increase the flow of customer leads;

·        Improve organic placement opportunities on the major search engines;

·        Create natural in-bound links to their website; and

·        Enhance their brand image online and offline.

Lessons Learned

A small business owner like Carithers Flowers has learned the advantages of forming an alliance with an Internet Marketing specialist like Flyline, which can provide good lessons for other small business owners out there who are currently considering if they should try an Internet Marketing program:

• Develop an approach that addresses both short-term objectives and long-term results.
• Focus on Internet marketing objectives that are targeted to each customer segment. 
• Combine numerous Internet marketing channels, including social media, online advertising, fresh content, and ongoing press releases and publicity for online and offline audiences.
• Evolve strategies as customers change their interests to keep them interested and loyal. 

Finally, look for a partner who wants to establish lasting, mutually beneficial relationships versus one that just wants to offer a quick campaign that doesn’t build marketing or brand momentum. Having an expert who understands Internet Marketing and who can combine the best strategies is worth their weight in gold. Before you know it, you’ll have more customers in bloom just like Carithers Flowers.

Send us your questions on how your small business might use Internet Marketing or share your success stories with our readers by providing your comments below.

Atlanta’s Own Home Depot Making Great Strides in Social Media Marketing

One of Atlanta’s highest profile corporations, Home Depot, is showing that they’re not only leaders when it comes to home improvement, but they are also taking the lead when it comes to leveraging the true power of social media marketing. But, the most interesting part of this story is Home Depot’s unique approach, which is essentially rewriting the roles of some in-store sales representatives and creating a uniquely new job.

Understanding the importance that social media plays in keeping Home Depot as the premiere resource for home improvement, the company is turning to its best possible assets – its store employees – to power its social media efforts.

To accomplish this, Home Depot has created a small handful of unique positions named the “social media store associate.” These associates divide their duties by working three days per week, performing their regular warehouse jobs and spending the other two days contributing to the company’s online “How-To Community” by posting video tutorials, answering forum questions, and updating the website blog.

The results have been very positive. Customers appreciate access to information and to the experts at Home Depot whilst the company has found a way to interact with its customers and give them a voice that they want and expect from their retailers of choice. Home Depot has found that social media marketing has enhanced their brand equity and strengthened their foothold in the DIY market.

This story is just one example of how social media continues to inform the actions of some of the most successful companies on the planet. And, if watching megaliths like Home Depot maneuver the ever changing landscape of the Internet with the kind of ease and agility that’s usually reserved for smaller companies isn’t inspiration enough for you to do the same, perhaps you should explore your options in the social media marketing channel.

The reality is that companies like Home Depot have a lot more resources than small companies do because of their size. And, those resources allow them to take greater chances at experimentation, but that doesn’t mean that social media marketing doesn’t work on a small scale to deliver similar results.

If your small business is ready to take advantage of the social media market but you can’t spare the resources, consider hiring third party experts like Flyline Search Marketing to design your strategy and help you achieve big-scale results on a small-scale budget.

                   

Follow the Leader: Taking the Coca-Cola Approach to Social Media Marketing

Residents of Atlanta may find it hard to ignore Coca-Cola’s colossal success. Not only is the city famous for having been the birthplace of the iconic drink, but it also remains home to the company’s world headquarters. It also houses the frequently visited tourist World of Coca-Cola Museum, one of the city’s biggest tourist draws. This year, Atlanta will be at the heart of an ongoing celebration to ring in the 125^th anniversary of Coke’s debut.

So, what does Coca-Cola have to do with social media marketing? Quite a bit, in fact. Although it is a company whose rise to worldwide prominence was accomplished without the assistance of social media marketing, the fact that Coca-Cola has embraced social media in its continuing efforts to grow and remain relevant says a lot. It’s an endorsement that’s a bit like watching the circus strong man, dining on fresh spinach after every single gravity-defying performance. Once you catch sight of that, it sort of makes you want to rush out and buy a pallet of the stuff yourself.

Coca-Cola’s move to adapt its marketing to encompass an able handling of social media sites like Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter is a similar lesson that shouldn’t be lost on businesses that have yet to carve out a presence on the World Wide Web. You might wonder what you can do to follow the example of social media marketing adoption similar to that of Coca-Cola. Here are a few ideas, for starters:

• Have a company website built. You don’t have to hire a million dollar per year advertising group to create a website that’s effective. If marketing design isn’t your strong point, keep it basic with a few simple themes: information on your goods or services, a section of testimonials from satisfied customers, contact information, and a blog.

• Create a Facebook page that links to your website, and vice versa. Use your presence on Facebook to drive visitors to your website, but avoid using misleading claims or bothersome tactics to accomplish that.

• If you’ve had a commercial made in the past or have the resources to make more, create a YouTube profile and upload all relevant video files here. This is a free method of getting your brand message out there and it can be linked to your website and to your Facebook page

• Get on the Twitter bandwagon and build your list of followers organically as opposed to simply spamming the known universe and hoping that some of your message gets through. Use Twitter to send focused, targeted messages to your audience, always directing them to your website.

If you’re thinking that you could use a bit of help with any of the above suggestions but don’t want to have to approach four different professionals to get them all done, you’re in luck.  

Flyline Search Marketing offers services that range from basic web design to implementing complex social media marketing campaigns. You may not achieve the numbers that Coca-Cola has done, but at least you’ll know you’re on the right track and in capable hands.

                 

Your Social Media Marketing Lifeguard

If there’s one thing that all businesses – small, medium, and large – should know about social marketing, it’s the fact that it’s nothing new. Social marketing has been around far longer than many people realize. It’s just changed its stripes a bit.

Take a look at the history of marketing and you’ll know this to be true. From print advertisement to word of mouth, all marketing relies on some level of the “social” aspect in order to be successful. Simply because it’s latest trend is taking to the Internet and blogging or Tweeting about your products and services doesn’t change a thing.

 

For that very reason, it’s imperative for businesses that haven’t yet jumped on board the social media marketing bandwagon to get busy jumping. If you’re a small business owner who’s been mulling over launching some sort of social media marketing campaign but you haven’t done so because the notion is just outright intimidating, there are several avenues you can take to ensure you bring your business up to speed with the 21^st century with minimal wasted effort and the shortest possible learning curve.

Learn everything you can about social media. There are plenty of resources out there that can help with this -- from books to blogs to online tutorials. But, more than simply reading about how social media marketing works, it’s important to begin participating in the various platforms that are available: Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and LinkedIn are the most preeminent at this time. If you want to get the lay of the land before throwing your full energy into using social media to promote your company, consider creating personal profiles on each of these major social media sites so that you can first familiarize yourself with how they operate.

Immerse yourself. Don’t just get your feet wet – that’s what someone does in order to test the waters because they’re not sure they want to take the leap. But, if you’ve come this far, it’s likely you’re already well aware that the waters are just fine. Social media is not a fad, and it’s not something that will fall of its own weight given time. It is proving to be a long lasting and financially rewarding avenue for pursuing customers, and the sooner you take the leap, the better off you will be.

Hire an expert. Similar to taking your first dip, you may want to do so with the help of a fully capable “lifeguard” at the ready. In this case, the kind of lifeguard you’ll want nearby is someone with a wealth of experience in social media marketing who can either coach you from the sidelines, show you how it’s done, or get in there and do the swimming for you. There will come a point in time when, regardless of how much you’ve taught yourself about the ins and outs of social media marketing, you’ll need an expert with a wealth of experience who can manage your campaign to maximize its effectiveness. Otherwise, you could risk putting too much time into your social media campaign and not enough time to doing what you should be doing, which is operating your business.

Flyline Search Marketing is a company that not only knows the landscape of the internet but one that is also familiar with your local economy – caring for two elements that are intrinsically important to turning cyber success into real world, brick and mortar success. To find out more about the various services Atlanta Social Media Marketing offers, contact us today.

                 

The Benefits of Working with a Google AdWords Certified Partner

Getting yourself set up with an account and coming up with an eye-catching advertisement that you’re convinced will reel in the website visitors hand over fist is just the beginning of using Google AdWords.

In fact, there are so many variables to consider that many companies have sought out the help of third party Google AdWords Certified Partners to handle their campaigns and ensure that their money is being spent in all the right places.

 

If you’re thinking that it’s not in your budget to go the third-party route, consider the following and think again. By working with a Google AdWords Certified Partner, you’ll be freeing up valuable resources (like time, effort, and manpower) that should be going into operating your business. Ad campaigns are frequently best left to the experts, especially when it comes to something as intensive as AdWords, which requires the ability to quantify your results and make necessary changes to ensure you’re getting the maximum effectiveness of this useful tool.

Internet marketing companies that have the necessary expertise to become Google AdWords Certified Partners have an intrinsic understanding of how pay-per-click advertising operates, and can actually be cheaper to hire in the long run than trying to become an expert on your own. They’re also able to modify their approach to reach previously untapped markets that you might otherwise not even know existed.

A third party company that is able to efficiently manage your Google AdWords campaign will typically offer far more than that. Internet marketing companies can redesign your website for search engine optimization and manage your social media campaign, among other things. Companies like these generally offer their services in packages, so that in the end you’re not paying an exorbitant fee just to have someone operate your Google AdWords account – although doing so isn’t something that you should ever rule out completely, especially considering the increased web traffic and sales that can come your way as a result.

As in every other aspect of your business, it’s important to keep up with what the competition is up to. But, if you’re not already well versed in the language of internet marketing, this can be hard to do. This leads to yet another critical factor in hiring a third party company to handle your Google AdWords campaign. Simply put, they know how to see what your competition is doing, and what to do about it. Without a professional on your side, you could be dooming yourself to constant second (or third) place.

Flyline Search Marketing is a company of experts that can care for all of the above requirements at rates that are highly competitive with other national and local companies. To find out how you can maximize your results in online marketing and Google AdWords placement, contact us today.

                 

“Hitching Up to the Web” for Greater Marketing Success

 

When it comes to online marketing, people rarely expect anyone but power players and mail order retailers with customer bases scattered across the far reaches of the globe to take to the field. The last type of company you’d expect to find positioning themselves to create an online presence is one like the Hitch House of Atlanta.

After all, how could a locally owned and operated business whose primary service is installing hitches on vehicles possibly benefit in cyberspace? They don’t exactly fit the mold of the legions of tech savvy startups and online shops that you’d expect to come across during an afternoon of web surfing.

But, that’s the beauty of it. The Hitch House is just one of hundreds of locally owned and operated businesses that are taking to the web to expand their existing customer base through the help of Atlanta Social Media Marketing.

How Can Brick and Mortar Companies Leverage an Online Presence?

One of the ways that brick and mortar businesses are using the Internet to grow their customer base is through the simple use of email. Far beyond simply offering an alternative method for your customers to get a hold of you during after-hours and weekends, the use of email newsletters can serve multiple purposes:

·        Promote forthcoming sales and specials. Getting the word out to your customer base through traditional channels like mail and expensive advertisements can be costly and puts you in jeopardy of spending more money than you actually stand to gain. Through the use of well-timed email campaigns, all that’s required is to send a single email message to your entire mailing list, and you’ve already achieved net-zero expenses.

·        Offer your customers an incentive to pay you a visit. Coupons have always encouraged business, but they cost money to print and you can never be certain if they’ll get read or “round filed” with the rest of the junk mail in the mailbox.

·        Remind your customers to shop with you. As long as your email marketing tactics aren’t too heavy handed and don’t border on repetitious, the occasional e-newsletter is a good way of simply saying, “Hi there, we’re still here.” You’d be surprised at how well that works.

All of this begs the question: How do I get my customers’ email addresses? By far the best method of doing this is to let them come to you. Having a website with frequently updated information about your services is the perfect place to insert an unobtrusive, but tastefully, prominent data field where visitors can opt-in to your e-newsletter.

Naturally, building a website and maintaining a mailing list on your own can be time consuming and complicated. If you’re not sure how to start, look for a company that specializes in helping you do just that. If you’re not keen on putting your business in the hands of a marketing company 3000 miles away, there are companies nearby that offer these services as well. Atlanta Social Media Marketing is a locally operated business that can you up and running with a website, an email mailing list, and a social media profile in no time. For more information, check out our other entries about how we work with clients at Flyline Search Marketing.