How does Yodle work?
Yodle advertises our clients across a network of search engines, directories, and other sites in order to generate qualified leads for that client. We are a “full-service” company in the sense that we have the capabilities to handle all of the online advertising needs of a local business including website design (about half of our clients don’t even have a website), campaign setup, ongoing campaign management, and tracking.

Say that we are working with a dentist. We want to make sure that when consumers in that dentist’s area are looking online for the dental services that client offers, that they not only find our client, but more importantly, that after they find our client, they are sufficiently compelled by our client’s website to actually pick up the phone and call.

What makes it different from online Yellow Pages websites?
For one, we distribute across an entire network of sites that reaches over 90% of search traffic. This is a far greater reach than any individual online Yellow Pages website has. In fact, it’s a far greater reach than all online Yellow Pages combined. Further to that point, Yodle is what we call “site agnostic.” We are not in the business of placing our clients “high up” on a particular site or directory. We are in the business of advertising our clients across our network in order to generate them the maximum number of qualified leads to their business. If a particular site isn’t driving qualified leads for a particular client, we adjust their campaign to focus their budget elsewhere.

In a time where cost is a concern, how does Yodle help small business owners?
One of the primary advantages of online advertising – especially with Yodle – is that it is so transparent and accountable. When a small business owner used to place an ad in, say the newspaper, sure they might know that they got some customers from that ad, but what was their real ROI for their advertising investment? They really had no way of knowing. With Yodle, we not only track how much a client is spending and how much traffic they are getting to their website, but more importantly we track and record the phone calls that our clients’ ads are generating, so they can easily measure their true ROI. This measurability is so crucial – especially during tough economic times – in that it really allows the small business owner to make the tough decisions about what advertising expenses are “fat” that need to be trimmed and what aspects of advertising are really driving revenue and profits.

Spending on advertising has traditionally been painful for local businesses; however, when you know with 100% certainty that every dollar you spend on advertising generates seven dollars in return (this is the average for Yodle customers), then continuing to spend on advertising during a recession is a no brainer.

How much traffic does the average site on Yodle get? Are you taking market share away from big players like Bellsouth?
The traffic of a particular client’s website varies greatly depending on a number of factors including geography, industry, and budget size. Moreover – and I think this gets to the core of what our business model is all about and how it’s different than many other players in the industry – I would contend that traffic, in and of itself, is not really that important to the success of a local business online. True, a site has to be seen in order to generate leads, but a particular business could have a third of the traffic of another business and still be more successful because they are getting the right kind of traffic and delivering the right kind of message to that traffic. That is what Yodle is in the business of doing. Identifying how to reach that right kind of traffic and then sending it to our clients so that they generate revenue, not just page views.

As for taking market share away from players like Bellsouth, I think all one has to do is look at the performance of many of the traditional publishers to tell that there has been a fundamental shift as to where consumers are looking for local businesses and that ad dollars have started to follow suit. There’s no doubt that our own 700% year over year growth last year is largely attributable to this market shift. That being said, the majority of our customers aren’t coming directly from those publishers, rather the majority are local businesses that recognized the value of online advertising, have tried it themselves, and then have found that managing their own campaigns is too complicated or too time-consuming, so they look for help.

For more information, visit Yodle.com.

Watch the video and start thinking about how your customers think of you. Is it “them and me” or “we?”

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wq-pwxe9RYs[/youtube]

Marketing Eggspert: Why do you think some people send spam emails, ruining it for everyone else?

Winton Churchill: The vast majority of all spammers do it for financial reasons.  Unfortunately they’re able to convince people from companies who are not completely clued in to or subject to the various anti-Spam laws.  Furthermore most of these operators are able to cloak themselves and hide their identities from enforcement organizations.  Many spammers operate in or through countries where it is not a crime to send unsolicited e-mail in the volumes they send them.

There are some initiatives both in the United States and worldwide that should over time substantially reduce the volume of spam we all get.  Unfortunately, until a combination of new legislation and new technology fall into place and we’re all going to have to wrestle with the spam monster. It won’t change quickly…but is improving.

Fortunately many good solutions exist for filtering, rejecting, and otherwise dealing with spam.  I know in my own Outlook inbox I’ve managed to pull my spam documents down from about a hundred a day to about four.  Yes it’s aggravating, but I get so much benefit from the efficiency of e-mail communication that I’m willing to tolerate it at that level.  And it should only get better from here.

Marketing Eggspert: Can you summarize for our audience the special needs of complex sales cycles and why they’re important?

Winton Churchill: Well essentially my definition is a complex sale is one that occurs over time and requires that you form a relationship with your prospect or educate them to a certain level about an issue before they buy. Many years ago it made sense to send salespeople out into the field and have them knock on the doors of their complex sale prospects. Today that’s too expensive.  The biggest challenge that we face today with a complex sales cycle is getting the attention of our best prospects and then developing a relationship with them that builds the trust and respect required to close a complex sale. The special needs boil down to the ability to communicate en masse to your target audience in a way that they embrace and enjoy.  If you can’t do that, your sales process will become less and less effective.

Marketing Eggspert: Is email marketing changing with the ever evolving nature of internet marketing? How so?

Winton Churchill: When you have permission and communicate effectively, email is extremely powerful and reliable.  Getting that email address means you have a level of trust.

Not a week goes by that some email firm doesn’t offer a new tool, gadget or statistics capability.  I find that it takes a while to sort through these “improvements” to understand which ones can work to your advantage.  Many of these new improvements require an unacceptable level of “bloat” meaning that they can make your message difficult to display in the recipients inbox…so before you use a new tool or capability you must check for unanticipated consequences.

Marketing Eggspert: What are the top 3 mistakes people make with email marketing?

Winton Churchill: Mistake #1–Not targeting your message to your audience — we are all happy to read advertisements and promotional messages related to our fields of interest…the less related, the lower our interest level.  The most common mistake I see with companies today is sending messages to people because they can.  They don’t care if the message is relevant or welcome.  This is the old-style push selling and always unwelcome.

Mistake #2–Thinking that writing an e-mail designed to elicit a response and eventually a sale, is like writing an e-mail about a company vacation policy.  It’s not.  Writing copy is both a science and an art.  There is a very significant amount of science and if you don’t understand that you probably are going to waste all the money you spend on your list or irritate your prospects so severely that they ask you to stop sending them information.

Mistake #3 — Not thinking about the specific small step you want your prospect to take when they finish reading your e-mail. If you sell a $10,000 product  (or even a $20 product or service) it is very unlikely that your prospect will buy right away on the strength of a single in e-mail.  But they could begin an investigation process that could lead them to that conclusion.  Your job with each e-mail is to get them one notch closer to that decision to buy.

Too many e-mail solicitations today end with “…and visit our website for more information.”  The research is very clear on this…this kind of call to action is extremely ineffective.  You must be very specific about the next step you want your prospect to take. And that one step can’t make them feel like they’ve just been sucked into a sales process that unleashes a machine gun of emails on them.

Marketing Eggspert: What are your top 3 recommendations for people new to email marketing?

Winton Churchill: Recommendation #1-Focus on building trust with your first email campaign. The basis for all sales activity is trust.  The biggest mistake I see both new and “experienced” marketers make is trying to ram a sales pitch down the throat of a prospect before they have built trust.

Recommendation #2-Use a professional copy writer to prepare your first email campaign.  Writing for persuasion is very different than business writing. You have to do many things write and only 1 or 2 things wrong will doom your campaign to failure. If you haven’t studied copywriting in depth you will probably make one of those campaign killing mistakes.

Recommendations #3-Test, Test, Test: Start small with your campaign and test variations of your copy, subject line and call to action. Let your prospect base tell you what they like, you’ll be rewarded for your attention. Be sure you keep an accurate count of your client preferences.

Marketing Eggspert: Do you recommend entrepreneurs do their own email marketing or outsource it?

Winton Churchill: This is more a question of entrepreneurial style.  If you are “hands-on” you might want to try it on your own…some have the “knack” for writing copy, creating educational content, selecting lists, etc. But, if you don’t see good results right away, I recommend talking to a professional.

In the end it is all about how you want to spend your time and grow your business.  There are occasionally entrepreneurs that have a big success right out of the box.  They are a tiny minority. As a consultant I feel compelled to tell you the odds of getting it right before you blow a lot of money are pretty small.

As an example, I recently had a prospect come to me because they were frustrated that their email efforts weren’t producing good results. They has spent almost $4,000 putting together a campaign and had nothing to show for it.

We were able to suggest a different subject line strategy, change the email originator from a company to a person, slightly modify their call to action and their program began to work.

What is the most frequent mistake people reading your book are likely to make when they try to apply it on their own email marketing program?

They don’t quite understand what they don’t know and send out and email campaign that doesn’t do well. Each year we look at hundreds, maybe thousands of campaigns.  When you do that you develop a really good experience base for what works and what doesn’t. It is similar to finding a real good doctor.

In fact, we developed a service for our clients where they get a campaign all ready to launch, then they have us “score it” using a model we have developed.

We usually identify a few things that would severely limit the effectiveness of their campaign.  We typically make 3-6 recommendations on how to improve their campaign’s effectiveness.

We sell that service for $347 and offer it with a money back guarantee… if they use the recommendations and don’t see a satisfactory increase in their response we cheerfully refund their money.

This service takes everything we know about email and puts it at the point of greatest impact… so clients like it.

If readers would like to buy the book they can go here:

http://snipurl.com/emailbook

If they would like to see a table of contents and sample chapter they can go here:

http://www.churchillmethod.com/chapter

For more information, visit www.churchillmethod.com. Visit www.virtualblogtour.blogspot.com for the most up to date information. His full tour schedule is posted at http://virtualblogtour.blogspot.com/2008/06/winton-churchill-email-marketing-for.html. Winton Churchill is offering a wealth of free gifts for every person that purchases his book Email Marketing. Visit www.churchillmethod.com/bookbonus for full details about how to download all of these free gifts.

What are 3 tips you have for helping people overcome discomfort in a networking situation?

1.  Be pleasant, friendly, and fun – most importantly be yourself.  Just go out and be who you uniquely are – don’t put pressure on yourself.

2.  You can start slow – chose a goal that is most comfortable for you…. even if it is just to attend one networking event a quarter or to just make one new connection a month.

3.   Ask for help until you are comfortable approaching people yourself.  Go to networking events with a friend and ask him or her to introduce you to the people they know.  Connecting is addicting so once you get your feet wet, you’ll be on your way.

What’s the best method you’ve found for getting future clients to notice you?

I combine many different methods, but one of my favorite is just getting out there and making that old fashioned personal connection whether it be at a networking event or at one of my speaking engagements.

You talk a lot about forming networks in your book. How much of your business comes from networks you’ve joined?

It is really important to diversify and use many different methods for optimum results.  But many of the groups I am a member of I have been with for so long that when someone comes to them looking for publicity or speaking referrals they immediately think of me.  It is important in these networks to be very clear with the other members about what types of referrals you are looking for and don’t forget to ask them how you can help them as well.

I personally find it difficult to have enough time to network AND run my business. What’s your advice?

Networking can be done anywhere.  I have honestly made some great business connections in the ladies room.  There are places you are at every week like the grocery store, the dry cleaner, etc – open yourself up to the possibilities.  I always say public relations starts the minute you get up in the morning.

When you talk about referrals, is it always necessary to compensate someone for referring business to you?

If your business is going to involve referrals, clarify whether money or other compensation will be exchanged. Few things can destroy a relationship faster than misunderstandings and bruised feelings relating to referral fees. Specifically ask your referral partners if they are willing to give and expect to receive referral fees. If referral fees will be paid, clarify the amounts and how and when they will be paid.  It isn’t always necessary to compensate someone for referring business to you, but you should clarify the arrangement up front.

What’s your favorite myth or misconception you cover in Chapter 4?

MYTH    I can run my entire business.

Business is extremely complex. A physician may be a medical expert, but know little about business management, patient retention, advertising, scheduling appointments, insurance claims, or even keeping books. Yet he or she may try to take on these tasks until they are forced to get help.

REALITY

We all can’t do everything; business has become entirely too involved. Keeping most accounts and filing taxes usually is best left to specialists and it may not be where your time and effort should be spent. Even if you know how to run your business, you probably will not be as efficient as a business management specialist. Hire the best people you can afford; they will lighten your load and usually do a better job. They also could be a source of referrals, which could more than pay their costs. Build team and remember that you don’t have to build it all at once.

For more information about Jill Lublin Author of Get Noticed… Get Referrals: Build Your Client Base and Your Business by Making a Name for Yourself (Touring July 7 – August 1) visit http://virtualblogtour.blogspot.com/2008/06/jill-lublin-author-of-get-noticed-get.html. We invite you to visit various blog tour stops throughout the month to learn much more about Get Noticed… Get Referrals.

I recently came across David Meerman Scott’s Book, The New Rules of Marketing & PR , and was ecstatic to find someone in line with what I talk about here. Sometimes I feel like I’m beating my head against the wall trying to tell clients and readers the advantages of moving away from “old school” marketing and into Marketing 2.0. I devoured the book (and recommend you read it too) and then took a shot in the dark by emailing David for an interview. He replied within an hour. What a guy.

Here’s what he had to say about marketing in a Web 2.0 world.

EM: Do you find it difficult to convince people that the rules of marketing and PR have changed (I sure do!)?

DMS: It used to be really difficult to convince people. Now it is easy. I just ask, “when was the last time you looked for a product or service or the answer to a question via TV, radio, newspaper or magazine?”

Then “How about on Google?” Then I say, “OK, that’s the same as everyone these days.”
Old rules “buy your way in with advertising or beg your way in with the media.” New rules “publish your way in with content.”
Here’s another: “Your brand is what Google says it is.”

Very nice comment. Google is kind of like Wal-Mart. It’s a super-power whether we want to admit it or not. We can play with it or not play at all!

EM: Why do you think people are reluctant to adopt the newer and cheaper methods of marketing?

People are reluctant because they hate to change. They like the comfort of playing by the old rules.

EM: You talk a lot about press releases. This is something I suggest each and every one of my clients use to their benefits. Do you think the purpose of a release has changed (from being reporter fodder to becoming SEO boosters and inspiration for bloggers)?

Press releases such at reaching the media (except when the media is searching). The media no longer care about news releases. Most PR people are spammers.

Press releases are a great way to reach your BUYERS: http://www.davidmeermanscott.com/documents/New_Rules_of_PR.pdf

EM: What are your top 4 marketing and PR tool picks for newbies to what I call Marketing 2.0?

Thanks to David for the interview! To learn more about David, visit his site or his blog, Web Ink Now.
-Susan
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Last week I wrote about viral marketing. It’s everywhere. Then I read an article on Problogger about John Gerard, a man who is determined to become famous in 31 days. His ultimate goal is to get on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. He’s trekking across the country, from New York to L.A., telling everyone he meets about his mission. It’s a little a la “My Date with Drew.” That, I thought, is viral marketing at its finest. So I had to interview him to get his take on his viral campaign.

EM: How are you marketing yourself on this project?
JG: Every way possible. The web. E-mail blasts. Business Cards. Promotional T-shirts. Car Advertising. Word of mouth. Media.

EM: Did you create a marketing plan or are you winging it?
JG: Winging it. Just like my itinerary.

EM: You’ve gotten a lot of media coverage already. Is that something you put effort into, or is it more the effect of viral marketing?
JG: Yes! Both! I’m putting enormous effort in to this! And viral is amazing too! You can’t do without it!

EM: Viral marketing interests me in the fact that the public decides what is worthy of attention (who gets to be famous). What do you think about the probability of a normal guy with a crazy idea becoming a celebrity?

JG: People seem to love this idea. I think it’s because everyone fantasizes about leaving stability behind to go on some crazy adventure. And this way they get to do it vicariously from the comfort of their own living room sofa.

EM: What’s your day job?
JG: Television producer – On air guy.

If this guy can get on Leno’s show (and I have no doubt in my mind that he will), why can’t you create a viral campaign around your product or service? John’s proving that it doesn’t take a lot of money or even being well-known in advance to have a successful viral marketing campaign.

Model your viral marketing campaign after John:

1. Get the word out in every possible venue. Online. Email. Networking. Advertising. Press. Overlook nothing.
2. While John doesn’t have a plan (maybe that IS his plan), you should have one. Figure out what results you want to see and when.
3. Never turn down free press. John’s busy getting famous, but he took time to be interviewed by me, and as a result, he’ll have the billions of readers from Egg’s blog visiting his site (ha. ha).
4. Don’t be afraid to get crazy. The more unusual the idea the better. Make the idea “stick.”

Visit John’s website for more inspiration: famousin31days.com

-Susan
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I’ll end the week with all the tips our Blogging & Your Business Panel gave me. Enjoy them!

Finding Your Voice

Know What You’re Doing

Practice (and Patience) Makes Perfect

Technical Details

Marketing Your Blog

Meet a Panelist
Liz Strauss has worked over 20 years in print, software, and online publishing, and strategized with publishers in Europe, Australia, the UK, and Ireland. She has worked with entrepreneurs, small businesses, companies in crisis, and corporate giants. Liz led the vision behind last year’s SOBCon07 — THE Relationship Bloggers’ Conference that gained the attention of BusinessWeek, the Chicago Sun-Times, and the Innovation Initiative of the Kellogg School of Business.

Her blog – Liz Strauss at Successful Blog — has been called both a destination and an event. Open Comment Nights, a Blog-to-Blog Conversation, a Blogger’s Cafe, single questions, and on-the-blog strategy sessions keep readers returning to conversations that often last for days. Her blog has tens of thousands of comments.

Professionally, Dawud Miracle is a blog and marketing consultant, business coach, teacher and web developer. His main passion is helping business owners – at any level – learn how to use the internet to grow their business. His ideal client is one who’s eager to learn the fine art of using social media to engage an audience in conversations that lead to mutually beneficial relationships. These relationships often branch out into all sorts of business opportunities.

Personally, Dawud is a devoted husband and father to two, soon to be three, children. To meet Dawud, you can visit his blog. Or, if you’d like to talk about how Dawud could help you with your business, contact him to schedule a free 25-minute phone consultation.

A special thanks to my panel for all their hard work!
Tammy Munson
Liz Strauss
Beth Agnew
Kevin Eikenberry
Vikram Rajan
Dawud Miracle

-Susan
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Give Us Some Great Blog Advice.

Tammy Munson: Remember that having a blog is just another tool in your marketing toolkit you also need to use a variety to really make an impact. Don’t just depend on your blog to do it all for you!

Liz Strauss: If you’re not blogging, you’re missing a major opportunity. However, it easy to get caught up in blogging for other bloggers so stop each morning and remember the people you want to reach.

Vikram Rajan: Nobody cares what you know, until they know how much you care.

Dawud Miracle: Write about what you love. Forget monetizing and money making initially and just write about what you love. Don’t put the pressure on yourself to build a business or increase your income through your blog. Just write about what you love. I’ve said it three times on purpose. When you put your knowledge of a topic together with your passion, amazing things can happen in the blogosphere.

Of course, if you have a business, you want to be writing about what you do and what you know. But if you’re not passionate about that, you may need to take a long, hard look at what you’re doing for a living. Other bloggers, and blog readers, will respond to your love and your passion – as well as your knowledge. Look at all the successful blogs out there and you’ll find this.
And don’t think that blogging is a fix-all for your business troubles. I’ve had plenty of consulting and coaching clients start with me thinking all they need to do is drive massive traffic to their blogs and the clients will just poor through the phone. But it’s not that simple. Traffic to your site isn’t everything. If you have a business, you need to look at every part of it. You need to know, for instance, why it is you’re not ‘closing’ deals on the phone when prospects do call or why no one is responding to the offers you put on your websites. Having a viable, successful long-term business centered around your blog means looking at all the places your business could be doing better and making it work better. Not all at once, mind you, so don’t get overwhelmed. But certainly, with a consistent, clear approach to getting from where you are to where you want to be.

Beth Agnew: Be very clear on what your blog is supposed to accomplish. Vanity blogs are not for business use, a business blog should focus readers on the core competencies of the business and the people involved with the business to build credibility and get revenue.

Kevin Eikenberry: Read blogs, follow links, and read more blogs both before you start and as you are blogging. This activity will make you a better blogger.
Keep a focus for your blog – and make that focus match the needs and interests of your Customers/Clients.
Susan Payton: Never stop learning. Blogging (and technology in general) changes every single day. The day you decide not to read a blog or read about blogs could be the day your business’ competitors do read something valuable and get that edge on you. It may not seem like blogs are everywhere, but they will be before you know it. Do you want to adopt the technology after the fact??

Meet a Panelist
Beth Agnew is a writer, educator, laughter leader, and business consultant. She solves business problems by improving communication, marketing, and people. She also helps businesses and people grow so they can achieve their potential and enjoy life. Check out the Beth Buzz!

Susan Payton runs Egg Marketing & Public Relations, in addition to this blog. She specializes in working with small businesses to come up with a marketing strategy that fits their needs and budget. She is passionate about Marketing 2.0 and shoestring marketing techniques.

-Susan

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Dawud Miracle: I am a solopreneur, so I own my business and I do the work of my business. I do outsource mundane tasks, but mostly I do all the work. If you phone me for a consultation, for instance, I’ll be the one who answers the phone and you calls you back. If you send me an email, I’ll be the one receiving, reading and replying. I’m very hands-on with my clients and really like it that way. I have plan to include guest bloggers in the future, but I’m the one behind my blog.

Tammy Munson: Sometimes it’s me, sometimes it’s my VA.

Kevin Eikenberry: I am both. We have talked about other members of my team blogging, and we may do that in the future, but for now, it is just me, on both Kevin’s Blog and the Remarkable Leadership Book Blog. WE do produce some other content in a blog format (like the component of or weekly newsletter for example) and I don’t post those – someone else on my team posts them in a blog/RSS feed-friendly page.

Vikram Rajan: No, I write all my posts. Some clients want to work with employees and interns to post for them… which is not necessarily bad. But I feel our personality also shines through our blogging… it is a wonderful tool to grow and showcase our personal brand expertise. I suggest people blog personally, and perhaps ALSO empower others to do so.

Liz Strauss: I have three contributing writers, but I am the force behind what appears on my blog.

Beth Agnew: I write the blog myself.

Susan Payton: I write my posts and my husband (blog expert extraordinaire) does all the technical, crosslinking, seo, and posting.

Meet a Panelist

Vikram Rajan runs PersonalBrandMarketing.com, which offers personal brand marketing tips for lawyers, accountants, financial planners, real estate, and health experts. Additionally, his consulting firm provides 1-on-1 marketing advice and materials for self-employed lawyers, accountants, financial planners, real estate, and health experts. His business columns are published in over 15 off-line periodicals, and he gives seminars for Bar associations, CPA societies, and other relevant professional groups. Vikram’s 6 audio-books are also available through the PersonalBrandMarketing.com podBlog.

-Susan
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Kevin Eikenberry
1. Our business has continued to grow and the number of qualified leads we receive from our entire online effort continues to grow. I can’t attribute all of that to blogging, but I know that the blog has played a significant part in our search engine rankings on some key terms for us.
2. It definitely has not happened that way for me. The balance is easy in that regard, from a revenue standpoint, since there is no real comparison. As far as time for blogging though, I go through spurts – when my travel schedule is hectic and at some other times, my blog posting frequency drops.

Tammy Munson :
1. Well since I’m a New Media VA, it is a major part of that specific business. (blogging is part of New Media) It was a part of the business from the very first day. As for some of my other businesses, it has helped with traffic, getting new clients, etc.
2. My blog is just another marketing tool to my business it helps keep the flow of traffic and clients steady.

Dawud Miracle:
1. I can’t quantify it so much, but I’ve certainly seen a large increase in inquiries and opportunities. Some of those opportunities have come by collaborating with other bloggers who do design work. I can say, I’m busier since blogging – especially as a consultant and coach.
2. No. For me, there’s no difference. Short of a few, small affiliate links buried near the bottom of my site, I don’t monetize my blog at all. All my business is based on website projects and consulting/coaching. I’ve been using a website exclusively to market my business for years. So the blog just became an extension of the website marketing I already do.

Liz Strauss:
1. My current business was started after my blog. So the growth cannot be separated. I can’t imagine how I would even have had a business without the reach my blog affords.
2. My blog is not about making money. I’m in the interesting place where my reader base and my client base overlap but are not exactly the same. All of my readers tend to be clients’ customers. My blog contributes in a small way financially, but in a very big way in the intangible sense.

Vikram Rajan:
1. Blogging is full of what I call “currency.” Its current, its hot, it flows the conversation my way! More and more self-employed professionals have heard of the word ‘blog,’ and I am now the “token” blogger my circle of influence knows. Because of that I am the default Expert 2.0 around Long Island, NY. I have turned many leads into curious prospects since I launched the podBlog.
2. Not yet. My blog is not a direct revenue generator, but will be by December 2008. Many people want to access my readers who are self-employed lawyers, accountants, financial planners, real estate, and health professionals. My podBlog is a platform to reach them.

Beth Agnew:
1. We have had slow but regular growth & I have not been as aggressive at promoting the blog using Web 2.0 mechanisms as I intend to be in the near future.
2. The business is still more lucrative in the blog. I use the blog to funnel customers to the business, so that the blog is more of a marketing tool.

Susan Payton:
1. My blog has served well as proof of my knowledge. When I have a potential client, I direct them to my blog to learn more about what I do and what I know. It’s almost a portfolio of my work.
2. My blog has not exceeded the income Egg provides. I don’t plan for that, but it would be nice!

Meet a Panelist
Kevin Eikenberry is the Chief Potential Officer of The Kevin Eikenberry Group, a learning consulting company that provides a wide range of services, including training delivery and design, facilitation, performance coaching, organizational consulting, and speaking services. He has maintained an online presence since 1995 and been an active blogger since 2004. His websites include http://KevinEikenberry.com, http://PowerquotesPlus.net, http://BeingARemarkableLeader.com and the site for his new book, http://RemarkableLeadershipBook.com

-Susan
Need more resources?
Blogging after 7 months
What is business blogging?
Blogging is Crucial to Your Business
Is Blogging Dead

So it begins! The purpose of this week long forum is to answer questions readers might have about why blogs are an important tool for businesses today. They’re inexpensive to start, and just take a little love and cultivation, much like a garden. Today, there are over 15.5 million blogs, and many people deliberately seek out a business’s blog. If you don’t have one, you might be missing valuable customers.

Let’s get started. Each day I’ll post a few questions, and the answers from the Blogging & Your Business panel. At the end of each post, you can learn about one of the panel members (you’ll meet them all throughout the week). PLEASE add to the conversation, ask questions, and comment!

How do you promote your business through your blog?

This is something I don’t do too aggressively, so I was eager to see what the panel had to say.

Tammy Munson: Thru posts that reflect my expertise, tips, suggestions, etc.

Liz Strauss: I talk about business and I talk about how business works on my blog. When those are the topics of conversation, I follow my signature with a link to the page that outlines what I do. In my sidebar is a button to that same page. The button says “Work with Liz!”

Beth Agnew: I talk about topics of interest to my customers, and expand on any innovations or new concepts we are working on. Since I am always looking to solve customer problems, I provide solutions in the blog as well.

Kevin Eikenberry: I focus on giving good content related to our areas of expertise and our Clients (and prospective Client’s) needs. I blogged for a couple of years before I ever posted something even marginally promotional. I do that more now, but far from exclusively, especially on the blog for my new book Remarkable Leadership. In the end I believe content is king.

Vikram Rajan: My readers are just getting started in the blogosphere. So my number 1 way is still through my e-newsletter. But of course, being active on other people’s blogs (commenting, exchanging links, etc.) also helps. I use Google Adwords to promote some of my audio-books which also links back to my blog. I have also noticed that I score high in natural context search results when my topics are relevant.

Dawud Miracle: The primary way I promote my business is by writing posts on the topics that I can really help clients in my niche market with. With each of my posts, I’m interested in creating a conversation. In the conversation, I take the opportunity to share my expertise. Ultimately, I’m looking to have the conversation build to a relationship that can go in many different directions – including readers becoming clients.

I do take advantage of social networking, link sharing and social bookmarking to increase my reach. But primary, I focus on writing quality, helpful posts that create conversation and relationship and I let the relationships build my business.

Susan Payton: I tie in examples from my marketing & PR firm to illustrate my points in my blog. I’m working on adding more promotion, like my company logo. I also have a link to my book on the blog, and have written blogs on it. So far, I’m not getting a lot of traffic from my blog to my business, but am working on it.

Meet a Panelist

Tammy Munson is currently the owner of New Media VA, which specializes in blogging, audio/video production, new media marketing, web and graphic design. In 2006, Tammy launched Business and Learning, a business education community for those that work from home, and host of the wildly popular and successful Work At Home Expo, with her business partner, Wendy Cooper. Tammy currently lives in Washington DC Metro with her husband SPC Munson and their two beautiful daughters, Kiersten and Rebecca. They also have 2 dogs, Ranger (Lab/husky) and Jack (Border Collie).

-Susan

Need More Resources?
Your Business Needs a Blog
10 Ways to a Killer Blog
What is Business Blogging?
Turn Your Blog into a Big Success
10 tips to better business blogging
How to determine a name for your business blog

Gordon told me she’s been in marketing for 30 years. She spent 10 years working for agencies, then moved into the client side. She started marketing consultation in the 1980s, and in 1991, founded National Marketing Federation, Inc. Additionally, she writes the marketing column for Entrepreneur Magazine! Very impressive accolades!

I asked Gordon what her top three picks were for interactive marketing techniques. Here are her favorites.

1. Email. Gordon says email is the “lowest cost, highest ROI” tool out there. She says that it’s important to create your own database from people who are open to receiving emails from you, rather than buying lists.

2. Webinars. She cautions against charging for webinars, and instead suggests securing sponsorship for the event and then giving it free. “I’ve tested it both ways,” says Gordon.

3. Teleseminars. She explained that hosting conferences on topics that help people learn can give you and your business great exposure. This is especially good for service-based companies.

Gordon stresses that since people are so time strapped today, it’s important to reach people in ways that are effective. Since we all multitask, advertisers should strive to “claim top of mind” and reach consumers in the media they are giving the most attention to. She says it is important to “have the message in the right context.”

She also notes the shift away from old-fashioned image advertising. Anything that lives in a vacuum, she explains, isn’t an integrative, effective marketing campaign. “You have to have a well rounded group of tactics.”

Spoken like an expert! Gordon has a wealth of articles on marketing available on her website. She’s definitely my source for marketing information!

-Susan