In my experience as a web marketing consultant to small businesses, the most asked question is always this: How the heck do I get visitors to my website without spending a fortune? Stemming from this question, which boggles the mind of every business owner who hears about the internet, there seems to be a lot of questions out there about what the internet can really do for a business. This is the main reason I am writing this article.
Most small to mid-size business owners do not have the resources to launch glitzy media campaigns with banner ads on ESPN, CNN, or AOL. On the contrary, most of them are on tight budgets and look to the internet as a viable alternative to regular print advertising, which gives them no solid results. Unfortunately, they are not aware of many low cost methods and techniques other than banner ads that they can afford with their marketing budget. The internet promises so much, but to many business owners who know little about it, achieving success means either hiring a full time web developer or outsourcing the work to someone else. Ultimately, a business owner is promised no more than what he or she knows. Internet Marketing consists of a series of different options, methods, and trends. The goal for a online marketer is to explore the different types of online marketing that exists so that you can have the tools and knowledge at your disposal that you need in order to either make an informed decision about outsourcing your work, understanding what it can do for you business, and if you can ideally do it yourself. Whether you know HTML, own a website currently, or are planning on developing one, finding the right business model is the key!
The benefits of online marketing are endless. It is a new marketing channel that is quickly becoming a necessity for all types of business. As a consultant, I have worked with niche market clients such as Home Repair, Law, Restoration, Landscaping, and more. Every industry sees an advantage with marketing online, and with good reason. The internet gives you not just the opportunity to sell your product or service to the world, but the ability to track and retain information from every marketing method you implement. It is a revolutionary product that allows you to choose your audience, as precisely as possible, and can increase your Rate of Return (ROI) to a higher rate that TV and Print can never match. This is the reason why so many companies are going online, and why Google, Yahoo, and other web companies have become such a powerful presence in everyday life. The internet has become a medium, and any company looking for longevity and growth needs to utilize the internet in order to gain or match their competitors in every market.
Later on I will give you a background into the most popular and common online marketing techniques. I will also show you how they are used, how they work, and what impact they can have on your business. You can use this blog as a reference point to your everyday business routine and will hopefully serve as a milestone in your quest to creating a more profitable business utilizing the methods you will learn in this book. Please keep in touch! and remember… The more you know about internet marketing, the easier it will be for you to find business online.
Ray Galan
www.rgpacific.com
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Monday, March 17, 2008
The Power of Google Local Business Ad Center
Hello my friends,
Hope business is going well for you all. Now, I do understand that marketing on the internet is both a breathtaking and new experience for many experienced business owners and entrepreneurs. It can only take days for your marketing budget to skyrocket, with no results or ways to generate business on a nearby horizon. Programs like banner advertising, which is really expensive, gives you no real proven success. Google Adwords is a positive tool, but depending on your market, is really expensive. And, ofcourse, there is good ol' SEO. Problem with SEO is it can take months, if not years, for your site to rank high in your market, and thats if your are efficient, and sometimes, even lucky.
Well, there is an answer! Google has had a little secret for smart marketers that gives them first page exposure almost instantly. For businesses in the retail, restaurant, and service sectors, Google Local Business Ad Center can help tremendously. With this feature, you can list your business location and website for free, even multiple locations, and it can instantly place you in the first page of local searches that meet your criteria, in your area! Lets say you own a chinese restaurant in santa monica, ca. With the Google Local Ad Center, web surfers anywhere in the vicinity who search for chinese food can find you on the first page search, under "local results", which are right smack on the top of the search findings index page!
And if you are a smart marketer and take advantage of its other features like "ratings", a higher satisfaction rating by google users means even more exposure to your site listing and a better chance of you staying on the first page, and better business referrals.
The Google Local Business Ad Center is free, and trust me, its efficient. For my line of work, which is Internet Marketing and Web Design, competition is fierce. Especially in Los Angeles. But this tool allows me to help my SEO and search visibility instantly.
There are tricks to get multiple listings using this feature, but a gentleman never tells! Im sure you can figure out its advantages and uses.
Getting the ad approved is easy. When you create a new listing, verification is instant! It calls your business number directly so that you can verify it by phone. Once you verify, its automatically uploaded and usually takes 48 hours, at the most, to appear in the search listings. Remember to add as many categories as possible for your listings to appear, usually 5 is the max so take advantage. The more exposure, the better.
Let me know if this works for you, and trust me, free is always great!! Take advantage of it right away. Yahoo is offering a similar feature, but you have to pay to take advantage of all the widgets that come with it. But trust me, Yahoo is years away from being as effective as this lil' tool Google has.
Go out there and use it, and make your site visible now!!!
Hope business is going well for you all. Now, I do understand that marketing on the internet is both a breathtaking and new experience for many experienced business owners and entrepreneurs. It can only take days for your marketing budget to skyrocket, with no results or ways to generate business on a nearby horizon. Programs like banner advertising, which is really expensive, gives you no real proven success. Google Adwords is a positive tool, but depending on your market, is really expensive. And, ofcourse, there is good ol' SEO. Problem with SEO is it can take months, if not years, for your site to rank high in your market, and thats if your are efficient, and sometimes, even lucky.
Well, there is an answer! Google has had a little secret for smart marketers that gives them first page exposure almost instantly. For businesses in the retail, restaurant, and service sectors, Google Local Business Ad Center can help tremendously. With this feature, you can list your business location and website for free, even multiple locations, and it can instantly place you in the first page of local searches that meet your criteria, in your area! Lets say you own a chinese restaurant in santa monica, ca. With the Google Local Ad Center, web surfers anywhere in the vicinity who search for chinese food can find you on the first page search, under "local results", which are right smack on the top of the search findings index page!
And if you are a smart marketer and take advantage of its other features like "ratings", a higher satisfaction rating by google users means even more exposure to your site listing and a better chance of you staying on the first page, and better business referrals.
The Google Local Business Ad Center is free, and trust me, its efficient. For my line of work, which is Internet Marketing and Web Design, competition is fierce. Especially in Los Angeles. But this tool allows me to help my SEO and search visibility instantly.
There are tricks to get multiple listings using this feature, but a gentleman never tells! Im sure you can figure out its advantages and uses.
Getting the ad approved is easy. When you create a new listing, verification is instant! It calls your business number directly so that you can verify it by phone. Once you verify, its automatically uploaded and usually takes 48 hours, at the most, to appear in the search listings. Remember to add as many categories as possible for your listings to appear, usually 5 is the max so take advantage. The more exposure, the better.
Let me know if this works for you, and trust me, free is always great!! Take advantage of it right away. Yahoo is offering a similar feature, but you have to pay to take advantage of all the widgets that come with it. But trust me, Yahoo is years away from being as effective as this lil' tool Google has.
Go out there and use it, and make your site visible now!!!
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Usefulness of the Title Tag for your Web Pages
Your website is your pride and joy. although the layout and site design may be legit and to your liking, making people find your pages and giving them an identity of their own is the next step. The title tag is the single most important tag on your website. Aside from your site URL, the title tag is the strongest SEO tag you have at your disposal.
Many websites and businesses do not know this, and it hurts. Businesses in very competitive markets and with non-relation business names need to be distinct in the type of viewer they want to attract. Alot of websites I see place their business name on the title tag, which most of the time, is irrelevant and makes them appear no where. For example, a business for sport jackets named "Arnolds" with the business name on the title tag does not work. Therefore, a proper title tag would be: "Sport Jackets for sale by Arnolds".
Some smart businesses that know how to use their title tag use it to market other areas of their services. For example, if Arnold's sells sport jackets and jewelry, they would mention the word "jewelry" in the title tag.
Remember that the same rule goes towards other web pages on your site, or secondary pages. Always use words that best relate to the content on your page for an easy find by your site visitors.
Thursday, February 21, 2008
RG Pacific welcomes you to our SEO and Web Design & Development blog!
Hello my friends! Thanks so much for stopping by to our new blog. My name is Ray Galan and I am the owner of RG Pacific, a web marketing and development company in Los Angeles.
I have extensive knowledge in web development as well as marketing, so feel free to ask questions about any topics I cover or maybe certain questions you have regarding your journey in the World Wide Web business arena. My friends, I feel the internet is so interwined now with new trends such as Viral Marketing, Social Media Marketing, and Web 2.0. So it is my goal to teach you survival methods to keep you ahead of the curve and possible roadblocks that block our path to better business online!
I have extensive knowledge in web development as well as marketing, so feel free to ask questions about any topics I cover or maybe certain questions you have regarding your journey in the World Wide Web business arena. My friends, I feel the internet is so interwined now with new trends such as Viral Marketing, Social Media Marketing, and Web 2.0. So it is my goal to teach you survival methods to keep you ahead of the curve and possible roadblocks that block our path to better business online!
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