Blog 2

What Can Online Marketing Do For Business?

Does Online Marketing Really Work for Business? I believe it does. When you get it going and are doing it right, there is no better way of reaching a large market of consumers than online marketing. Any method of marketing done well can be successful but finding something that is able to reach so many people yet be so cost effective is going to be a near impossible task. The problem is finding the best ways to do it.

So, what can online marketing do for you and your business?

Done correctly, it can help you get you more exposure, get you more credibility, get you more customers and, ultimately, increase sales.

Online marketing is more than just putting up a website and hoping for people to come and look at it. If you build it, you have to tell people about it so driving some traffic to your site is going to be key to your success.

But wait, there’s more…

Search Engines:

You also have to figure where your market goes for information about your product or service. Then, get yourself there in front of them. One of the primary ways of getting traffic to your website is going to be traffic from search engines. You have to figure out what search engines like and try to do things that will get you ranked well. Ranking just means you show up higher in results because what you offer is exactly what people search for.

HOW? You do this by writing articles on a blog or writing articles for article directories that point people to your site. It can be through YouTube videos, Facebook and Instagram posts, replies on forums, etc. There are a variety of ways to get exposure and traffic, it just takes time and come creativity.

Affiliate Marketing:

Another strategy to increase traffic to your business is by using affiliate marketing. This can be done in many ways but essentially, you find people willing to market your products or services for you. Obviously, this is going to depend on what you offer.

Typically, these people( affiliate marketers) have a good bit of knowledge about online marketing, have experience, and can be very effective to helping get more eyes on what you offer. You will have to pay these online marketing people commission on each sale. Or, even pay for leads that they provide you by promoting your products and or services. What they do is go find the people who want what you have and they let them know about what you are offering and provide a way to get them to you (a link). They are basically a doorway to your business.

Content Marketing

Online marketing for business with content can help you gain credibility as well. By writing articles, creating blog posts, and even making videos that you post on your website and social channels, you will be setting yourself up as an authority. The key here is to provide your audience with top quality content that shows them you know what you are talking about.

Through the blogs, articles, and YouTube videos you create, you have the opportunity to truly connect with people and you really can get that connection. The more credible you are in the eyes of your audience, the more traffic you will have to your website. The more people going to your website, and clicking causes your website to climb the search engine rankings which means even more potential customers. Basically, when search engines see more people coming to see what you offer, it realizes what you offer needs to be seen by people searching for it and you begin to show up even more.

There is more to it than just this aspect, but it is a GREAT start!

Online marketing for business done correctly can set things in motion for your business. If you have a product or service that you have created and/or want to offer to the public, taking advantage of online marketing can bring huge success.

There are many different aspects to marketing online.

1. You can get started with a good quality website.
2. Set up some free social media pages.
3. Be consistent with your posting on social media.
4. Know your audience
5. Provide content that is of value to them.
6. Stay engaged by being social on social platforms.

If you’d like to chat about anything mentioned here, need some help with your marketing, contact us today for a free consultation. We have several services designed to customize your marketing needs to fit your business

To Your Success

Regina L Floyd
Local Growth Consultant
808 400 1460
Regina@SimpleOBD.com

Running Successful Social Media Marketing Campaigns

Social Media Marketing has become the new public square and the internet has become a primary source of advertisement for many people, especially business owners. The internet offers low-cost and sometimes free methods to promote products and services for businesses and social media marketing has become one of the most commonly used methods. The following article contains information on social media marketing and how to use it to promote you and your business.

Why Social Media Marketing?

Social media has become a great tool to build trust and relationships with your target audience and customers. It allows you to get in front of millions of people and showcase who you are and what you do.

KEY: When using social media marketing to promote your business, product, or service, you have to be honest and actually communicate with your customers. Listen to what they are saying and learn from it. You are not giving up control of your business to them, but you can learn from what they are saying and adjust your business to be more consumer friendly.

Too many businesses simply show up on Facebook for example, and just throw up information. They don’t take the time to actually engage with customers.

What’s the point of social media platforms?

Before you get started promoting anything on social media platforms, you must map out your objectives and goals for participation before starting a social media marketing campaign. What is it you want to accomplish? What end result do you want? Where are your prospective customers spending their time? If your audience isn’t on Facebook, but rather living on SnapChat, is Facebook your best social media platform.

Once you’ve created a strategic plan, make it available throughout your business so that everyone within the organization is on the same page. If you happen to be a business of one, this isn’t an issue, but as you grow, you want to have all involved be on the same page. Results from social media marketing will be more productive and better focused when all activities are aligned and working towards the same goals.

Keeping a fresh objective with Social Media

When using social media marketing, you may have to adjust and refresh your objective and goals on a regular basis, so that you can stay on target. The conversations may take your marketing down unexpected paths, so it is best to re-evaluate the direction it is going on a regular basis and adjust accordingly. Again, this may have a lot to do with who your target audience is, where they spend their time, and if they are wanting what you have to offer.

What to post on your various social platforms

Whenever you post something on your blog or update your website, write a Facebook post right away. You could even plan ahead and write your post in advance so that you are not rushed to do it. There are ways to create your posts and schedule them for later. There are even plugins you can use that automatically share your new blog post to your social channel of choice.

This is a great way to keep new content coming to your website, even if you don’t have time to create a post each day. Remember that people subscribed to your Facebook page & posts get updated about what you are doing when you share your blog post.

Who’s your audience?

Have you ever launched a campaign, boosted a post, or even created an ad on Facebook and felt like it did nothing? You likely did NOT consider your audience. Always remember who your audience is in your social media marketing campaigns and what matters the most to them. You need to post content that is applicable to them and focus your efforts in ways that keep their attention. Your posts should be relevant and of high quality that your followers and fans do not just skip them over because they are not interested.

This is where an 80/20 rule applies very well. 80% quality content and things that help your audience, 20% sales and promotion. If all you do on your Facebook page is sell and pitch, your audience will soon ignore most of what you post.

Two (or More) Social Media Channels At Once.

Did you know that you can have your Instagram posts appear on your Facebook wall as well. If you have a Facebook Business page, you can even create posts that go to both Facebook and Instagram in one step. You do need to consider if writing different posts might be best since your audience on Instagram might be different from your Facebook friends, and Instagram is more about images, videos, and stories. The Good news, this allows you to update both platforms very easily.

Employing social media marketing strategies can be a great way to keep in contact with your customer base, and develop relationships. Customers that friend you on Facebook, or follow you on Instagram do so willingly. They want to hear from you. You can therefore notify them of new upcoming products, sales and discounts, or even just information concerning your business and industry without the fear of being too intrusive.

In conclusion, many people use the internet for advertisement. The internet has become a primary advertising platform due to its low-cost advertising solutions. There are many ways to advertise over the internet, including with social media I hope the information provided in this article has been helpful in how to use social media marketing to promote you and/or your business.

If you have questions about Social Media Marketing, contact us. We’d love to help you create a strategy that works. We also have customized services to help you get the most out of your Social Media Channels. Be sure to come follow us on Faceboo

To Your Success,

Regina Floyd
Digital Marketing Consultant
808 400 1460
Regina@Simpleobd.com
Facebook @SimpleOBD

Will Internet Marketing Work For Your Business?

This post may be sponsored or contain affiliate links, which means we may receive a small commission, at no cost to you, if you make a purchase through a link.

The information, including but not limited to, text, graphics, images and other material contained on this website are for informational purposes only. No material on this site is intended to guarantee results or success in your business. Read the full disclosure.

Will internet marketing work for your business is an extremely difficult question to answer because there are so many variables and complex factors involved in anyone’s business. No two businesses are alike, even if similar.

For example, there may be specific strategies you use in your Internet marketing campaigns as well as a variety ways you might execute these strategies. These two things alone can determine whether or not Internet marketing will work for your business.

Additionally, you have to factor in the likelihood of your particular target audience using the Internet and responding to your specific marketing efforts. This article will outline the potential you might have in an Internet marketing campaign and hopefully answer the question: “Will Internet Marketing Work For Your Business?“

Internet Marketing & Your Target Audience:

Before you decide to embark on an Internet marketing campaign for your specific business, you must consider your target audience. Not everyone on the the internet is looking for the product and/or service you provide.

Internet use is global but there is no guarantee that the members of your target audience use the Internet to research or purchase the products or services you sell. This is a significant factor in your success online because why invest a great deal of time, effort and money into Internet marketing when your target audience is not likely to respond to these efforts because they aren’t even online.

Internet Marketing & Market Research

Conducting some market research before launching a marketing campaign can do a great deal to help you determine whether or not you should invest in an Internet marketing campaign for your business. This step is crucial because it will give you an idea of whether or not you should even begin marketing your business on the Internet.

Market research will help you to discover who your ideal customers are, where they hang out online or in-person and how and why they make purchasing decisions. Armed with this information, you can get in front of your ideal audience in the right place at the right time, thus grabbing their attention and motivating buying behavior. (source)

You can do much of this research yourself. It may be time consuming, but it can be done. You can also consider hiring a firm specializing in market research because they can conduct this research quickly and efficiently and will likely gain a great deal of valuable information as a result of their research efforts.

If they determine your business can benefit from an Internet marketing campaign, it is time to start thinking about how you want to advertise your business online.

Internet Marketing Strategies

When it comes to marketing your business online, seeking the help of professionals can be an extremely worthwhile investment when it comes to deciding what marketing strategies to use. If you do not have a lot of experience in the industry of Internet marketing, hiring a firm with a great deal of experience can be very helpful. You can do this yourself, but a marketing agency can consult with you to determine which marketing strategies will be most effective, designing advertisements for your campaign, helping you to orchestrate your Internet marketing campaign and evaluating the results of marketing efforts to determine which strategies are working and which are not.

You may be asking yourself what’s so complicated about marketing online? One answer that comes to my mind right away, is demographics of your target market and where they hang out. For example, If you are marketing to millennial generation, then posting on Facebook as a marketing strategy likely won’t work. Do you know where this demographic spends most of their time?

Internet Marketing: The Sky Is The Limit

The potential for business success with an effective Internet marketing campaign is virtually limitless. The success you enjoy is only limited by your ability to promote your products and services and execute effective marketing strategies. Some of the marketing strategies you might want to use may include optimizing your website for relevant search terms, placing links to your website strategically on the Internet, writing and publishing e-newsletters and utilizing affiliates to promote your website. There are so many ways to get in front or you specific audience.

Search engine optimization (SEO) is one important aspect of an Internet marketing campaign. SEO is so important because it dictates the ranking of your website on popular search engines. Internet users are highly valued by Search Engines and ranking results are important because when was the last time you went to page 2 or 3 in Google to find what you were looking for?

Users are not likely to seek out websites which do not rank well with search engines. High ranking websites can enjoy a great deal of increased website traffic as a result of ranking well with search engines. Although Search Engine is important, don’t let anyone tell you your business wont succeed without spending $1000’s of dollars on SEO. This is NOT true. The key is to provide quality content that is applicable to your audience.

Inbound links to your website are also important in Internet marketing. Inbound links are links on other websites which direct users to your website. Many search engines factor inbound links into their ranking algorithms which means inbound links can result in higher search engines rankings. Also, these links can be used directly by website users to access your website. This means you can gain traffic directly from these links. Did you know that social media platforms you use can count as inbound links if you are sending people back to your business hub: your website.

Affiliate Marketing:

Another successful Internet marketing campaign is utilized affiliate marketing. Affiliates are essentially website owners who place a banner ad on their website to direct traffic to your website. Typically, affiliates are only compensated when the advertisement on their website produces gets the users to click through the advertisement, resulting in a sale or resulting in another action such as filling out a survey or registering with your website. Affiliate marketing can not only be highly effective but it is also cost effective because you only pay the affiliates when they produce results.

Something as simple as mentioning an Amazon product can be a very effective way to use affiliate marketing in your internet marketing strategies.

In concluding, your business can benefit in many ways with an internet marketing campaign targeted specifically at the people who want what you offer. When you know where to find them, how to reach them, and how to engage with them providing value, Internet marketing will work for your business.

The following is a book you might consider if you want to tackle this strategy yourself

Effectively select, align and manage digital channels and operations using this second edition of the bestselling guide, Digital Marketing Strategy. This accessible, step-by-step framework enables the planning, integration and measurement of each digital platform and technique, all tailored to achieve overarching business objectives.

Ranging from social media, SEO, content marketing and user experience, to customer loyalty, automation and personalization, this edition features cutting edge updates on marketing automation, messaging and email, online and offline integration, the power of technologies such as AI, plus new data protection and privacy strategies.

Accompanied by downloadable templates and resources, Digital Marketing Strategy is an ideal road map for any marketer to streamline a digital marketing strategy for measurable, optimized results. Online resources include practical implementation guides spanning SEO, paid-search, email, lead-generation and more, as well as group activities, which will be regularly updated to equip readers as digital marketing continues to evolve.

If you aren’t sure where to start, or how to begin, Contact Us. We’d be happy to offer a free consultation to help you get clarity before you end up spending $1000’s for nothing.

To Your Success,

Regina Floyd
Regina@Simpleobd.com
808 400 -1460

Facebook @SimpleOBD

Advice To Help You Meet Your Social Media Marketing Goals

Social media marketing is not rocket science, but there is a science to it. When businesses decide to take on the social media marketing goals they’ve created for themselves, they might run into problems. This article offers some useful advice when it comes to social media marketing for your business.

Typically, it’s the cost of most advertising plans that becomes the biggest problem for business owners wanting to extend their reach, but social media marketing has become a great alternative, and easy fix to all that worry.

For one, there are no costs involved in creating captivating social media posts on all the social-networking platforms. This means that just about anyone can take advantage of the opportunity to use social media marketing to grow a business. The trick, however, is that the focus shifts to quality over quantity. We believe the advice offered in this article, you can learn to supply both.

Tip #1 Choose your name carefully: For example, when on Twitter, do your best to pick a Twitter handle that is very close to your business name or brand name. We strongly recommend you avoid handles like Jane7592 because nobody will remember you and it’s highly likely, no one is searching for Jane7592. Ideally, you want your name, and your brand, to be remembered so that consumers will remember it, and search for it when they are shopping online or browsing various social media marketing sites.

Remember: If you are looking to use Twitter as a social media marketing method, make sure that you choose a username that displays well and is easy to remember. This username should get the point of your company across, but should also be easy to remember. Don’t choose usernames like TommyXo1009. No one will remember it and it is likely irrelevant to your company’s name.

Tips #2 Connect your social media accounts to each other and attempt to secure the same name for all of them. By doing this simple step, you end up developing a greater presence on the internet as people search for you. It helps to create that idea that you are everywhere, and people see you everywhere like they do more commonly known business names.

BONUS: Connecting the accounts allows people that have discovered you in one place to quickly connect to your business on all the other social media platforms.

Tip #3 If you don’t use it already, consider using Twitter. Twitter is a great way to market your business, product, or service on the internet. One thing to keep in mind, however. Avoid just throwing up and out information without considering the value it brings to your customers. What value do you provide to your followers by tweeting anything.

Tip #4 Blogging is a great way to create content for your social media marketing pages and accounts. Nothing worse than having nothing else to post, and just sharing the posts of others all the time. Make sure that you take advantage of owning a blog to market your products and services to consumers. (We can help you with that if you don’t already have one)

Do your best to post regularly on your blog so you can get helpful information out to the world, but also to remind people that you exist and use it as a way of showing how you can add value to your prospective customer.

People tend to forget about you and your business if you don’t stay front and center as often as possible. Another key thing to know, the more fresh content you post on your website, the more the search engine spiders come back to see what’s new. If done well, this can help you rank higher in searches for the thing you offer.

Tip #5. Be sure to use video in your social media marketing. YouTube is a very popular option for social media marketing strategies for business. It offers you the opportunity of making videos relating to your company and putting in your company’s website link or contact information. It also gives people an easier way to get to know and like you, especially if you are actually seen and heard talking in the vide. Make sure you tag each video properly and write a description that is informative as well as inviting to consumers.

Tip #6. Use Proper Grammar. Whatever your choice in the social media marketing efforts to grow your business, make sure that you use correct grammar. We do know how tempting it is to use abbreviations such as LOL or LMAO in your posts, but remember you are trying to come across as a professional who knows a lot about his or her business, service and/or product. Do your best to spell everything correctly and use punctuation where it is needed.

Whether you’ve been in business for years, or just launched your first one, Social media marketing will create a new world of opportunities and potential sales profits and it simply requires time and focus.

Last tip: Be sure to stay as updated as possible with the newest advancements in the online world and always stay ahead of the competition. Social Media Marketing is always changing. If you need help in this area, just contact us. We can offer social media marketing packages to meet all levels of business.

To Your Success,

Regina

Do you have some great social media marketing strategies that work for your business? Leave a comment below and share with others.

Questions, please feel free to contact me.

Freedom Is At Stake

BANNED on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube! [NOAH]

This video is being blocked on major social(ist) media channels.

I am of the belief that this needs to be shared.

Bellagio Fountain Las Vegas

This is an older video but as I was cleaning up and updating my Youtube Channel, I thought I’d share here too.

If you were to try to visit this location now, you won’t see fountains going off due to COVID 19

The day I was out at the Bellagio, my daughter and I were enjoying a play day on a Tuesday. One of the best freedoms I enjoy as a self employed business owner working from home.

I no longer live in Las Vegas but I enjoy seeing these old videos I shot back then.

Enjoy this video

Freedom and Money: What’s The Relationship?

What does Freedom have to do with Money?

Does Freedom really have anything to do with money and vice versa? I am writing this post as I reflect on my life as summer comes to an end and fall is about to begin.

As I reflect on the summer, I am aware of my failings in many areas. One of those areas is money, and how it has affected my freedom in many ways.

I’ve taken my Freedom for granted and I’ve not improved my money situation as much as I had hoped. It’s no ones fault but my own, I take ownership.

So from now on, I’ll be honest with myself and I thought I’d share here too.

You have landed on this post, on this website, and this website is about my business. I believe I am a huge factor in the success (or lack of it) in my business. I created a category called “Freedom ” where I am sharing personal things about myself, my life and my business.

After all, if you are going to do business with a business owner, isn’t it nice to really get to know the person you are doing business with? I think so. It’s about relationship after all.

so, here’s what I posted in my Facebook profile when deciding to enter a days of summer contest. It’s a bit vulnerable, but I’ll share anyways

Facebook Post About Money

“You Must Gain Control Over Your Money, or the Lack Of It Will Forever Control You” – Dave Ramsey

I’ve been lazy and slacking when it comes to being in control of my finances. NOTHING emphasizes that more than choosing to live in a place where everything costs more. #justsaying
As I continue to work on myself, and improve in various areas of my life, my finances are big one.

One of my biggest challenges up until now, has been creating a budget and sticking to it. Just never could seem to get in the habit of just doing it.

I honestly had NO clue where my money was going and that didn’t feel good. It feels uncomfortable to just hope that you’ll make ends meet, not really knowing the bottom line. Never mind the unforeseen things that pop up, and you know they do!

After getting started with 101 Financial, under the guidance of my friend and leaders, Kevin and Jessica Carvalho, I understand the importance of getting my finances in order.

I Have BIG Dreams… and no, I don’t mean the fancy car, the big mansion(I do want to buy a home), nice clothes… Honestly, I want to be able to do more for my family, and those around me, but I can’t give what I don’t have.

Not going to lie… I still don’t have it perfected, I’ve been slacking, but I’m getting better every day at actually creating a budget, cutting out non essential costs, creating a savings plan and actually saving a little bit of money, and keeping my goals in mind when I’m tempted to splurge.

#Truth be told, I was skeptical about joining yet another financial guidance course, but 101 took me back to basics I should have known by now. I now have the tools to do what I need to do…the rest is up to me.

I’ve not been moving at this as quickly as I could, but I’m excited about finally gaining some control over my money so it doesn’t have control over me.

I’ve gained a lot of clarity in what my priorities must be in my business, my life, and honestly, I feel I cant do much for others until I get my house in order.
#101Financial

What Does Freedom Mean?

For me, Freedom is about doing the things I want to do, when I want to do them without worry or concern over being able to afford it.

I own and operate my own business as a digital marketing agency for local business owners. At the moment, I’m a one woman operation. I plan to grow. Growing means making more money to be able to hire and train others and support their economy while I support my own economy.

By being of value to other business owners, I grow my business, and I also help others support their families etc. Everyone involved basically gets to enjoy the Freedom of life they desire.

Win Win, Right?!?!

What are your thoughts about Money and Freedom?

I’d love to hear what you think about this topic. Please share your thoughts in the comments below and if you need any help marketing your business online, be sure to contact me using the contact page of the form below.

To Your Success,

Regina

What Do 3 Local Search Marketing Discoveries Mean For Your Business?

Could 3 local marketing stats really have a significant meaning for your business? Read on

Have you been thinking about focusing more of your time marketing efforts on local search but not sure if it’s worth the time and effort? Many consumers have been searching for information using the internet for well over a decade and search engines have revolutionized the way we handle just about every aspect of our life. Over the years, location-based searching has been steadily growing as well.

What is Location-Based Search in Local Marketing?

Location-based searching is the practice of searching for a product, service, or business based on location. Together with the fact that mobile usage has grown exponentially in recent years, you can only imagine how local searches by consumers has increased.

Local and mobile consumer buying habits have made significant impacts on the marketing world and as time goes on, they are becoming more popular. The following are statistics you must know about when it comes to the success of your business.

1. Most Local Consumers Prefer Ads With Local Information

Google actually put out a survey about local search behavior and the results showed over 60% of consumers want ads to be customized based upon their location. Another 61% prefer ads that are customized to their exact location, while 67% want them to be customized to include at least their zip code and city.

So what does this mean for you and your business? It means you must ensure that the ads you place are extremely targeted and using location extensions.

2. Almost 70% Of Consumers Will Use “Call” Or “Get Directions”

So how important is it to list your business phone number and address? We are about to clear this up. With the increasing amount of smartphone users using the “call” and “get directions” feature on Google, your business is seriously missing out if your Google My Business business details are not included. Be sure to double check your listings to make sure your address and phone number are correct. You also want to be sure to claim and optimize your listing for even better results.

3. Mobile Searches Lead to Action FAST

Did you know that 70% of searches on mobile devices are actually followed up with an action within one hour. Even more significant, 50% of consumers who perform a local business search on their smartphone or tablet, visit the company’s store within one day of that search.

Bottom line: not only are potential customers carrying out more local searches, they’re also following up on their search and going to the store they find in search.

You know what this means don’t you? If your business wants to connect with SERIOUS potential buyers, your local listing has to be complete and optimized, and ready to give these consumers the information they are searching for. In other words, make it easy for them to buy from you.

Conclusion

As you can see from the information shared above, in the last few years, local search has become extremely popular. Local search is bringing in a lot more local consumers, not only to your business website, but to local business stores and locations. If you’re looking to attract more new customers, increase website traffic, and boost profits and revenue, then your first order of business for your business is making sure you are optimized in local search.

If you have questions about what you ‘ve read here, be sure to reach out to us and Contact Us.

We offer a variety of services to help you not only maximize your Local Search, we can help you get more new customers and reach out to existing customers too!