Greatson Media

Looking at the latest search marketing conference agendas, articles, and online news in the SEM space, it certainly appears that social media marketing and networking are the wave of the future.

To a certain extent, they are.

Social media, and social networking in particular, create a back-and-forth conversation with your target audience, so you can virally market your website through the “buzz” that can be created. When something interesting, cool, or unique is being talked about in “all the right places,” it can certainly provide a boost in website traffic.

We search marketers tend to hang out in numerous online and offline communities where it’s easy to promote our own products and services, yet I can’t help wondering if our view of Web marketing is skewed because of this.

Are potential B2B clients and even B2C customers spending time at Digg? Do they attend SEM conferences in order to hire a company, or are they just trying to learn to do it themselves? And what about other industries? Is there a Sphinn equivalent for developers of product lifecycle management software? Are there groups of people online comparing the various brands of auto parts? Are there really people seeking out articles on these topics?

Perhaps.

And if so, we’d be remiss not to promote our clients’ websites in those spaces. But is this search marketing? Or is it simply marketing? Arguably, it becomes search marketing when it increases link popularity, but surely that should be the secondary goal of this type of marketing campaign. True link popularity comes from having something worth linking to, not something you’ve asked your insulated circle of cronies to link to.

Certainly, the boost in direct traffic that a site can gain when it is being discussed in all the right places online is not to be taken lightly – and that alone is reason enough to try to be found in all the right places. Yet how much of that traffic actually converts into anything good, and how much does it help your organic search rankings?

More important – how does it incréase your bottom line? Readmore…

“Build it and they will come” the saying goes.

Not.

You can build a blog or video site and you can still be lacking connections.

Connection is the nuclear core of social media. But you must make an effort in order for that to happen.

Whether you have a social media home busíness, traditional brick and mortar business, or an online business, you must get into the social trenches and connect and converse. It is that simple and that plain.
It is all about connecting and creating an engaging conversation with people that draws them towards you.

But why are people in social media not doing that?

Maybe they do not know this powerful 5 step “Avalanche Process” for getting new customers and keeping them in social media.

Readmore…

Now that just about everybody is a believer in Web video, it’s time to figure out just how to use it effectively as a marketing communication tool. Oh sure, there are a few diehard holdouts filling their sites with thousands of words of densely congealed text in a vain attempt to attract ‘Mr. GoodSearch;’ and let’s all encourage them to continue, especially our competitors, because as they stick to yesterday’s marketing tactics, we can capture market share by communicating, using techniques that actually lead to more audience engagement, more memory retention, and more sales leads.

Even if you’re still a bit unsure of the benefits Web video brings to your marketing efforts, think of the commitment Google has invested in YouTube and then you’ll know where the biggest search opportunities exist. So let’s all agree, video is where it’s at, but hold on just a second, let’s call it compelling content presentation, or more precisely, properly conceived, professionally produced, attention-to-post video that delivers a meaningful memorable message in a manner that is less advertising and more content, less pitch and more experience.

Can you do this yourself? Doubtful, but maybe, so before you run out and blow the petty cash on the latest HD video camera, proper lighting equipment, editing and motion graphic software, how to DVDs like ‘You Can Be The Next Ridley Scott’, a computer and hard drive powerful enough to handle HD file sizes and software processing, custom photography, signature music and sound effects; and before you ask your accounts payable person or spouse to shoot you in your office with a backdrop of photos featuring last year’s office picnic and the broken office chair you’ve been meaning to replace; ask yourself, is this really how to go about marketing my company? I mean maybe your
appearance is camera friendly, maybe you have the right voice that fits your message, maybe you understand body language, maybe you have acting experience, maybe you know how to write a script and maybe… well you get the idea? And we haven’t even talked about content and concept. There is a place for amateurism, it’s just not in business.

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