What matters more...Time, Quality or Price?

It is one of the laws of the universe that when it comes to producing goods and delivering services somewhere somehow something has to give. Wouldn't you agree that when price and quality matter most it typically takes more time to get what you want? This is where some individuals get confused by the own impossible expectations. Although everyone wants the highest quality for the lowest price in the fastest turnaround time the reality is that one of the three value components that add up to create the final product must inevitably be sacrificed so that the other two higher valued expectations can be met.

Whether building a website yourself or paying a professional to develop your site you need to think seriously about the following. What are the two most important elements to consider when planning and developing a marketing media strategy?

Within every service industry the Cost-Time-Quality matrix can be applied to the people that are providing exceptional service to their clients. When time and price demand the lowest cost delivered in the shortest possible time you can bet that the quality of the final product will suffer.

The fast food industry is a perfect example of this. You are hungry and you want some cheap food you will get what you pay for, just don't expect a fine dining experience when you hit the drive thru window. By the same token a seven course meal in a fancy restaurant may be served up within a reasonable waiting time after ordering, but there is a premium that is paid for the quality of food that is prepared to order.

Simply put if you expect quality at an affordable price then you should expect the project to take some time to complete. If you prefer a fast turn around and want a fair price the quality of work might suffer from where it could be so that a demanding deadline can be met. And finally if you put speed and quality ahead of pricing you can expect to pay a premium for the services you request.

Whether developing a website, building your online reputation, or maximizing your SEO strategy you must to consider what you are willing to sacrifice to get the results that you really want. For most of us the quality of backlinks that are being added to a website are more important than the time it takes to add a massive amount of poor quality links over a short time. Because SEO offers the best ROI of any marketing effort available it is already a high priority for every business and website owner.

So the question is what is more important--building a lot of backlinks in the shortest time possible and hoping they will affect the SERPs (Search Engine Results Page) or adding quality links over the accepted 9 to 18 months that will lead you to the top of the search engine directories for many years to come?

Although social media content requires a certain amount of speed in developing and a video, the quality may be compromised to meet a low budget. This is where the quality of the final edit might lack the visual effects or sound clarity of a professional production, but the cost will be worth the sacrifice. On the other hand a high quality piece of film is worth the added cost if its produced for an audience that appreciates the high end finish of HD picture quality or the audible quality of professional sound mixing.

When considering your optimization efforts and social media campaigns think about the intended audience and what they are expecting as you choose between the quality of your work and the costs involved in developing quality links and posts that will be added to the Internet forever. If you remember that what you end up with comes down to your choice of picking from the three values of Time, Price and Quality your expectations will be met and you can have exactly what you want when dealing with service providers in online marketing or any other industry.

Plan out Web Content to make Optimization Easier

In developing a website I find that the more information I can write on a page that is related to the individual or a business the better that information will be utilized by the search engines. What do I want to share about a business or individual and what will be relevant to the goal of optimizing the website as it is launched are questions that every developer should be asking them self. The development of a website takes a lot of work and can be a lot of fun to build, but for me the most important element of any website is the writing that provides the content for visitors to read. With the goal of having the search engines return my site to the top tier of the Search Engine Results Page (SERP) I think about the information that I am writing and how it will  be linked by the keywords in a logical way throughout the site. 

A review of what the business offers is more important than the look of the website or the different visual effects that are used to draw in unique visitors. Of course the more professional the design of a site is the more appealing it is to an audience, but it is important to remember that a website is a vehicle for sharing information or closing a sale. For this reason I sit down and map out what I want to say before I move into any production work for a website that I am working on. (I should mention here that having a map of the site helps me to create the content for each page ahead of time and reduces the need to add or edit text as the site is coming together.) The content writer should address the questions of who, what , when , where, why and how (a.k.a. the "reporter's rules") before putting pen to paper or fingers to a keyboard. This approach to developing content answers the all important questions that a reader wants answered. When writing content ask yourself is meaningful and relevant. If it is include it, if it is not leave it out. 

Before I create any graphics I make sure that the story of the website (the content) makes sense. Because I can get lost in the creation of the design I make it a point to have each page fleshed out in writing so that I can tell my story with the right words before I add pictures to the text. I also understand that the traffic I receive (or will receive) comes from the search engines that are redirecting the online audience to the published site. Keeping this in mind I write out each page and include the description that I want to add to the Meta tags in the coding before I start to build the individual pages. If I need to tweak the content or add a line that makes more sense to the reader I can do so as I am putting each of the visual elements onto the page. But without a clear direction on what I want to say before I begin to develop the site I can get lost in the codes and images that make up the website. 

By keeping a focus on what I want to relate to the audience and following the "reporter's rules" as I write I can come up with the phrasing that makes sense and has a logical flow from one page to the next. By understanding that the most effective and compelling words will also be read by the search engine robots and indexed for optimization purposes I make sure that what I say makes sense and is relevant to the ongoing marketing media strategy that I am developing to go along with the website. With some well written content the work of optimization supports the website and establishes the relevancy of the keywords that are included sparingly on each page of the site.

Optimize Page links for better SEO Placement

In writing content for different clients I have noticed that certain website have very long and complex links that take the website visitor from one page of the site to the next. Instead of using the common link for the pages home.html; about us.html; and contact.html, the links provide some important information to the search engines and aid in the overall creation of an optimized website.

To the casual visitor that is viewing the page the button that is clicked is a normal looking icon that can be found on every website. Simply noting the different page names that are of interest to someone browsing the site the navigation buttons provide the link to another page appear to be colorful additions to the design of a layout.

Like this one is...

However, when clicked on the navigation bar at the top of the screen reports back an elaborate string of words that are related to the company, the page or a particular service or product being promoted.

When building a web page it is now common practice to identify the page title that appears in the browser above the site content. Adding a small logo and name to the page tab makes it possible for the search directories to store more information related to the website, but what is remarkable is that the same "robot" programs that are gathering and indexing a website's written content are also looking at the links and names that are being used by some designers to aid in the optimization of the entire site. 

Allow me illustrate what I mean. For one company a link from their index or home page might look like this http://www.MarketingMediaStrategy.com/services.html, which is perfectly acceptable and will do the job of site navigation, but with some tweaking the same link is optimized when it is written like this: http://www.MarketingMediaStrategy.com/services-writing-graphics-strategic-planning.html

The difference is that while the same page appears on the screen the indexing of that page is unlike any other website. That means that when someone is searching the Internet and types in writing, graphics or planning there is a greater connection to the site that is offering those services. In addition to adding page descriptions that are unique for each page on the website the descriptive navigation link name may boost the ranking of the website within the individual search parameters of an online inquiry.

Whether you are designing you site yourself or having a professional company develop you domain for you it is a beneficial to have them make the page links more usable for the search engines by choosing the words that describe the page and enhance the relevant terms that are being incorporated to optimize your website. Used as covert yet appropriate marketing media strategy when building the pages of a website the lengthy navigation links allow additional optimization work to be done on the website as it is launched and is first scanned and indexed by the "search robots" and "spider programs" that crawl through a website and index the information for the search engines.

SEO is the Tortoise that beats the Hare in a race of Endurance

In Aesop's fable of the tortoise and the hare the fast paced rabbit is in a hurry to reach the finish line and prove to the world that he is the best athlete. Meanwhile the tortoise slowly moves along and eventually overtakes the cocky hare that stops to rest and falls asleep from exhaustion. Optimization is similar to the tortoise in that it takes a long time to see the results of building links, adding articles to online publications and requires a great deal of patience before a website begins to show the result of making it to the front of the pack at the top of a results page.

Through concerted efforts that demand the attention of a website owner and their SEO specialist the goal of landing on the first page of the directory results can be accomplished. Typically taking anywhere from six months to a year to achieve the slow process of gaining a natural ranking in the search engines can be accomplished by those that are consistent in their efforts and who do not stop to rest when things start to appear to be working.

This week I met with a client who was so concerned about reaching the top spot in his profession that he did not want to take a methodical and somewhat slow approach to his online marketing. Frustrated by the competition he wanted to produce a large quantity of articles in a short three month time period and measure the success of his Internet marketing campaign based on what the search engines would perceive after cranking out as much work as possible before stopping to rest and examining the distance that the massive amount of work would be covering.

Not realizing his mistake that the search engines do see links, but take their time to index the information that is submitted to the various online publishing sites this client (whom I refer to as the hare in our story) became agitated by the fact that I was unwilling to deliver what he wanted knowing full well that his effort would have very little impact on his goal. Requesting that I deliver the hare's pace for a meager fraction of what the work would normally take to be affective [in the long term connections and relevancy that makes up his page ranking (PR) and affects the overall quality score] I had to refuse to work with the man because of his improbable request.

Although I had planned on performing some PPC work to augment the SEO content and directory submissions to help expedite the success of a well planned marketing media strategy I was fully aware that in a three month period of time there would no significant changes to his current page ranking and I would be exhausted by the effort that would have ended in the termination of my services out of sheer frustration on the part of the client.

The expectations of many people is to gain a fast result when it comes to their online marketing work, but the reality is that the search engines are designed to move slowly and increase a website ranking over the long haul. If it were simple to gain a coveted position in the SERP (Search Engine Results Page) there would be a constant turnover of businesses that are holding onto the top spots of the search engine results. But in order to be fair and avoid the unlawful "Black Hat" practices that speed results, the major search directories are designed to follow the methodology of the tortoise in slowing the pace and bringing a website into the winning position on a page after many months of steady work. That is not to say that a concentrated effort of producing a large volume of articles and blogs as well as adding links to other directories cannot be sustained for a full year, but the efforts require a solid commitment on the part of the SEO provider and the client to manage the workload and stick with the marketing media strategy that has been developed to reach the goal of any Internet marketing campaign.

As I realized before signing up the business as a client and committing myself to an impossible agreement, the prospect of adding a client is often more exciting than working for someone that does not appreciate your contribution. Like the tortoise that maintained the same pace and speed throughout the race, SEO delivers the intended result when it is carefully initiated and kept moving forward at a steady rate over a minimum of six months and is best when planned for over an entire year of continuing work.

Optimize search results with Geo Targeting

I was speaking to friend about his website marketing and in particular what he is doing to attract new business when I was surprised to hear that he is not doing anything to develop an ongoing SEO platform. When I asked why he had not been using search engine optimization to gain a natural foothold in the searchable web directories I was told that he had looked into it, but in the past no one had been able to help him narrow the field of competition from a national search inquiry to a local one. Naturally, I was concerned that this man's law practice is suffering because he has no idea how to generate business from the web. So I introduced him to the very specific keyword searches that narrow down the region, the city(s) and even the neighborhoods that he wants to reach through the most effective and inexpensive marketing media strategy available.

Referred to as Geo Targeting the search engines can be allocated to return results to a browser that are intended for a specific audience. Through keyword selection that identifies the city and even the zip code that a business is located in it is possible to build organic results that will lead local consumers to the door of a very specialized individual and their business. Because my friend practices law he is only interested in meeting with clients that he can represent within the same state, county and cities that are close to his office. Concerned about his license to practice this individual has put off establishing any real Internet marketing plan because he was unaware that the search parameters can be set to target the neighborhoods and zip codes that he is interested in serving.

Going beyond the natural results of the search engines that are determined by optimization efforts, Pay-Per-Click (PPC) advertising in the search engines or the ads that appear on social media sites can be highly effective in geo targeting the ideal customer or client. Because unique IP addresses contain a set of numbers that are used to identify a city or even a neighborhood it is possible to set up paid advertising that responds only to the homes and businesses whose Internet connected IP address corresponds to the results of a web search that is targeted by the keywords a person browsing the web is looking for.

The combination of very specific keywords and the selected geo target of an exact location have made online marketing much easier for business owners to use. On a modest budget PPC advertising can produce results for a business that is only paying for the clicks that move a person from the search engine to their website. If the keywords target the business products and services within an identified community only the people with corresponding demographic data will see the PPC ads in the returned search results, thereby eliminating anyone browsing outside of the target audience.

Organic searches can also provide the information that delivers local customers to businesses that are using geographic terms to set up their keyword phrases and meta tag descriptions on their website. By coding a URL with the <meta name="keywords" content="sample city keyword"> and <meta name="description" content="sample city or state content description"> companies that are using a local marketing media strategy can attract people that are in the same location as their business' physical presence without generalizing their online marketing for the entire Internet.

Working with geo targeted keywords, IP addresses and zip codes for paid ad placement or organic search results is an ideal way to reach a specific audience and attract consumers living or working in a small area that is limited to city, county or state boundaries.

For help setting up keyword specific geo targeted marketing email me: info@MarketingMediaStrategy.com

How Landing Pages relate to SEO Links

After building a website it is vital to the marketing that links be set up which connect the site to any electronically published articles and posts. Most people understand the importance of linking their site, but the key point to remember is that content written about in the online marketing must be directly linked to the corresponding page on the website. If you are targeting a keyword for a specific product that you are selling then you want to link the article to the page that displays the item in question. As the search engines look for direct connections and relevancy in the written materials that appear online and how those links relate to the website you do not want to set up the link to bring your site visitors to the home page if you are talking about a product that is featured on a product page. 

If you make the reader work to reach the pages that they want to see, you will lose them before they reach the page that highlights the product your keywords are written about. Using ease of navigation to bring a reader from the blog posting or online article to your site you can directly link a webpage to the subject matter of the article.

For example, today I was working on an article for an SEO client that had an enormous page address connecting the target link. It was filled with back slashes and .aspx?= coding directions that lead to a very specific page on a huge website. With a large inventory to cover, the article singled out one product from among hundreds of others; so the link from that article had to be directed to the exact item that I was writing for. Without the proper link for the target URL a reader would have to search the entire site for the product. Taking a great deal of time and effort that would most likely confuse and frustrate anyone that was interested in the product being promoted, the business would lose the customer and the article would lose credibility with search engines and the intended target audience.

Although linking the appropriate landing page with the corresponding keyword(s) sounds trivial the reality is that the search engines do recognize the relevant link which can increase the quality score of the site. Search engine optimization therefore must always have a purpose to it. With keywords carrying the weight of the marketing strategy, stressing the importance of linking articles and blogs to the exact page of the site (that is being referenced the search engines) will make the right connection and have a positive impact on the marketing efforts of the site.

Something else that I run across in my work which troubles me as an SEO professional is when a client changes their website and deletes their old links as they update the content on their site. This is frustrating because all the materials that have been previously published and linked to the missing pages have nowhere to go. In other words the links that have been established go nowhere and the articles that once had meaning to the Internet marketing strategy are lost. Although I agree that updating the site allows a fresh look at the pages by the search robots, I personally prefer to maintain each page's HTML address; so that all of the work that has been created for the optimization of the site remains intact and searchable from the links that are already established.

 

With landing pages that no longer exist the work of online marketing is stifled and the site which may be gaining ground in the search results will lose credibility. If you are going to update a page (and I do recommend doing that from time to time), please remember to keep the same page address names in the URL so that the search engines can maintain the previously connected links and support the ongoing work of optimization which after all is the goal of any online marketing media strategy.

Does your Social Media Marketing have a goal?

Almost everyone is into social media these days, but without a goal in mind of what you want to accomplish for your business or personal objectives you are just posting information that has little if any meaning. Consider building a reputation management campaign that has a specific goal that you want to reach. It is important to realize that unless you have something that is relevant to your end goal to say in your posts it is not worth saying anything. 

The trouble that most people run into is that they are too busy dumping as much information about their business or them self onto the internet that they do not realize the potential damage they are doing to their own reputation.

With the search engine algorithms recognizing quality in the wording of every scrap of information that is being blogged, tweeted about and posted on the social networks most people do not know that when they are chatting about their cat or how their weekend was with their friends they are effectively reducing their credibility as an expert within their chosen field of business. Not that your hobbies and interests are unimportant, but they carry no weight for anyone that is in business with you.

To circumvent the common mistakes that individuals make in regard to their personal socializing it is best to create two different and accounts for your social standing. If you do want to keep everyone on your friends list informed about what you ate for lunch and what you thought about the last film you watched you can do that, but keep in mind that your clients, vendors and coworkers are more interested in what you can deliver by way of productivity and increased revenue. With separate networking media accounts you can be social with friends and family members while maintaining a professional image for all of your business contacts.

Going back to what I stated before, the best way to plan out a social media strategy is to have an end goal in mind. What are you attempting to do? What is the goal of your work? If you don't have one you will never know if you have reached it. All too often business owners say that they want to increase sales--which is why they are on the web. But that broad statement does not identify their purpose or the function of their social media campaign.

Just as any marketing effort is targeted to an audience and directed at gaining a specified result the work of any and all social media posts, blogs and commentaries has to be aligned with the overall goal of your campaign. So what you say through any social channel should to be relevant to your business, your website and the readers who will be reviewing your dialog.

Before sending out any message it should be filter through your strategy statement and measured to make sure that it is aligned with the goal of your media campaign. Basically a strategy statement is like your mission statement--it is the foundation of what you do, the essence of your business and relates to everything that you are presenting to an audience through your online marketing. A friend of mine and marketing expert, Brian Pope came up with what he calls a Unique Marketing Positioning Statement. Essentially this is what I am calling a strategy Statement. Identifying what you do and why you do it helps to create the vision of your company and is a test for each post and blog you put into cyberspace. If a posting is not in alignment with what you are offering to clients, it does not belong in your social media campaign.

However, if you are posting a blog and then telling others about your work, you can promote a relevant message that you will be happy to link back to your website. The acid test comes down to asking yourself this question. Is the post I am about to send something that I would put on my website to attract new consumers? If the answer is yes then move forward, if it is no then rethink your position and only post what will build you up as an expert in your area of business.

The goal of every marketing media strategy is crucial to the success of your ongoing public relations effort which is building your reputation. Keeping specific goals in mind each time you are tempted to post anything online will help you to decide what to post for the business public and what to send to your network of friends. With a targeted message you can do a greater good for your business than if you just sat down commenting on the things that no one really cares about. 

As you write your posts, ask yourself so what? What do others take away from this message? Is there a call to action if so is it relevant to your work? What is the reader going to do next? If they like the article, blog or post ask them to indicate it by taking action.

So what are you waiting for, click the like button, re-tweet this message to the people that can benefit from it and start following my blog! After all that's one of my social media goals. What are yours?