Google FRESH and what it means for your website presence

Keeping true to it's form, on November 11, 2011, Google released it's newest update to their systems. The new update is being called FRESH due to it's ability to immediately find "Fresh new content on any site across the world wide web". It's new REAL real-time searching and updating, is wonderful for the user searching for information, it's not so great for small businesses with a non-existant marketing budget.  Larger corporations have already started to enterprise on this new system by integrating Blogs and other social media outlets directly into their sites. They have either hired an internal social marketing butterfly or external social media marketing agency to run their plethora of promotions, postings and blog articles for them.  Of course, these larger entities have the budget to take advantage of this scenario, while small companies now have to rely on either doing it themselves, or not keeping up with the times at all.

But it doesn't really have to be so gloom and doom for the mom & pops. There are ways for you to be able to continue to refresh your website's content without actually breaking the bank. They are called RSS Feeds.  Regardless of which social media you are doing your marketing in, they are all offering the ability to import your entire "wall" or "tweet stream" via an XML feed directly into your website!  And the best part of it, is the fact that they are offering it for FREE.  Yes you heard right!  FREE updated content on your website all the time.  Of course there are minimal costs involved in setting it up.  If you have the knowledge on how to properly program your own site and how to integrate simple HTML, then there is no cost at all. Simply log into your site, change around some content in order to fit the feed window and Viola!  Publish your site and it's done.  If you have a web designer that helps you manage your site, thats where the costs come in. Most designers will charge you per hour to set it up, but honestly, it shouldn't take more than an hour, (tops) if they know what they are doing.

Unfortunately, your feeds won't update themselves.  You DO have to have some kind on interaction with your social media groups.  You still have to post blog articles and make comments and add promotions to your twitter and Facebook for it to work. It doesn't happen all by itself.  The best way to take care of this is by setting reminders in your calendar to go in and post info on FB or twitter. Make sure that you are posting SOMETHING RELATED TO YOUR BUSINESS at least 3 times a day.  Make sure that your message gives a call to action or tells people about some new services or products you are offering.  If you are willing to blog, don't tell us about the humdrum every day happenings at your office.  Instead, tell us about upcoming specials, new and exciting services that you are currently offering, or maybe even about something funny that may have happened while interacting with your customers!  This kind of interaction makes you more human, and gives people some insight as to how you run your business.

If you are one of those business owners that haven't taken full advantage of the benefits of interactive marketing or you don't have the time to do it yourself, you can always call us to help you with anything you need. Mojo Media Miami International is a small boutique agency that specializes in interactive digital media. We can do everything from set-up your social media accounts and integrate them into your website, to actively monitoring and posting your specials, promotions and blogs to ensure that you become the hottest social butterfly to hit the web. We have programs to fit all kinds of budgets, so don't hesitate to call us and ask questions on how we can help your business become more interactively successful! 

Surviving the Slump

All of us would love to have a 1.2 million dollar budget to advertise our business. The reality is that no one, not even “BIG” companies have that kind of budget in this economy. Small business owners are finding it hard to retain enough money to pay their current employees, much less PAY for advertising that is not rendering the business it used to before. So what do we all do now? Unfortunately there have been many local businesses that have not been able to answer that question. It’s sad to see them close. But in this economic crisis it IS survival of the fittest. Our killer instincts must come back into play and part of that is being smart about how you spend your money while still making it. What successful business owners will tell you when asked what to do in this economy they will tell you one thing… ADVERTISE. With all of these businesses closing their doors around us, there is much more market for everyone else to gain. Now I’m not saying to pray that your competitors down the street to close so you can hoard all of their business. What I am talking about is staying top of mind. Advertising doesn’t have to be millions of dollars shoveled out your doors. But it is money that is spent in areas that will bring a return on your investment. One of the most profitable ways of promoting your open doors is by becoming a social butterfly. Get on all those social media sites like Twitter, linked-In and Facebook. These sites are not just to chat it up with friends and to tweet every time you take a drink of water. Use these Medias to get your business name out there. And since you are already part of a social network of people, use them as low hanging fruit. Subtle reminders that you are still in business, or that you have introduced a new product or service, are the best way to keep people interested. Instead of Tweeting that you are going to a concert this weekend, tell them that you are having a sale on some of your products or direct them to a web link. Of course all of this is not going to work for EVERY business. Professionals such as attorney’s of Doctor’s that rely on their reputation shouldn’t go around telling people they are having a half off sale on retainer fees for Law Suits or plastic surgery procedures, (wait that might actually bring people in!) In these professions, separate your private life from your work life. Create a “Fan” page and blog about what you have done in science or in law. Give people indirect advice by sharing stories about jobs you have currently worked on. (Please remember your client/patient privacy privileges though.) A word about Blogging: DO IT! People love to read (contrary to popular belief). Especially if something relevant to what is going on today. Talk about being a business owner, give people instructional help on how to do small fix-it jobs around the house if you are a handy man. And if they can’t do, they will go to you! Use Blogging as your own personal plug! Websites like Blogspot.com are abundant on the internet. A small blurb at least once a week about a job you just did or an answer to a question that one of your clients had for you would be enough to get people reading about you and your business. And ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS remember to plug your website. I can’t stress the importance of splattering your website out there as many times a day as you humanly can. The more traffic you get to your site, the higher up you will move in the natural listings on all those search engines out there! This means that more searches will pop up with your information first! Using all of these FREE, (Yes FREE) tools will help to give you back some more of that market share you may have lost in our recent slump. If you have any questions or would like to get some more information on how to survive the slump, please feel free to give us a call. We are more than happy to help! Written By: Melissa Neyor, President of Mojo Media Miami, Inc. www.mojomediamiami.com

Blog It...and they will come (to your web site!)

Did you know that businesses that blog get 55% more traffic to their web site than those that don't blog? We'll how about that.  I am a true believer in the term, "The more you tell, the more you sell." Don't get me wrong, I don't want people running around telling their life stories in their marketing. But tactical information about what you do, what sets you apart, and how you can help your customers, makes a huge difference in your marketing efforts!  Lets say you have an advertising agency, like myself. Yeah, you do all the marketing strategies and analyzing, and place loads of media for your clients everywhere. But did they know that you also have an award winning graphic design department. Or that you build custom web sites for each of your clients at a fraction of what other designers charge! OR how about that you plan corporate events and manage them for your clients with internal marketing. (I can go all day with everything that Mojo does...) If they knew you did all that and then some, you would be their one stop shop for everything they need within your industry.  This makes you more marketable, more accessible, and of course, a whole lot heavier in the pocket book!

If you've never blogged, it's actually fairly easy.  There are loads of FREE blog sites out there, just like this one!  Blogger.com is owned and operated by Google. And since Google uses all of it's own resources first to find viable content for their search engine, this would be the place to blog!  Once you pick a topic you want to write about, do it in the way that makes you feel more comfortable.  (You don't need to have a major in journalism to write.)  Give relevant information about your industry like new trends, new methods and even specials you may be running for a specific product or service, and give detailed information as to how and why it will help the end user.  Once your article has been finished, make sure that you give yourself a big plug at the end and include a link to your web site. (and of course, make sure you put a link on your site back to your blog!)

Now your ready to market your blog.  Tell everyone you know. Using Twitter, Facebook, Linked-In and other social media resources to get the word out is the simplest way to mass distribute your information.  You can also use an existing e-mail database to send an note to your clients letting them know about your newest article and provide them the link to both your blog and your web site.

And there you have it, folks.  Blogging in a nut shell! So now that you know how to do it, do it well, do it often, and (my favorite marketing quote....) JUST DO IT!

If you have any questions about this or other article topics, or just need help marketing your business, Mojo Media Miami International is here to help you!  You can contact us directly at 786-200-9169, through e-mail at clientservices@mojomediamiami.com or visit our web site at www.MojoMediaMiami.com.