For those companies that may have cut back on their internet marketing efforts during the recession, they have a decision to make. When to re-engage.
The rationale we heard from some clients when the wheels started to come off was “no matter what promotion we do now it’s no going to matter.” And they may have been correct, at least in the short term. Although some businesses could have effectively argued that investment in organic SEO during a soft economic period would better position them for the presumed inevitable recovery. The organic SEO climb up can be slow, depending on the business category, but the decay rate for organic search engine positioning can also be slow.
Economists tell us that the recession ended earlier this year. Third quarter GDP shows some growth. Economic activity is pushing the dial forward, albeit slowly. Whether to invest now in some form of internet marketing may depend on the type of business, consumer or B2B, but perhaps as much also on the business philosophy of the company’s management. But from where we stand it’s hard to argue against at least beginning to invest more resources in some form of internet marketing. And now. What’s done now will affect whether your business tracks with the recovery, or trails it.
In the old days, the days before the internet that is, the marginal cost of setting up a new business was comparatively much more significant. Today a new line of business or branding identity can be created online for a few hundred dollars.
With the barrier to entry so low it’s arguably not worth excessive agonizing over how or whether to set up a new business. A new business can often be set up online for as little as $500. So there’s the school of thought that if the new pursuit passes the first line of consideration then just move forward, do the “right things,” and see what happens. Or there’s the option of spending the next 12 months to write a business plan. Then there’s the ever-popular “paralysis by analysis” approach.
Internet promotion is highly scalable. Budgets from a few hundred to a few thousands dollars a month are possible. Effective management of the resources available for online promotion can extend the impact of whatever’s available to invest. So either study up yourself as the business owner, or delegate it to a professional.
In the words of American entrepreneur and entertainment icon Walt Disney: “The way to get started is to stop talking and start doing.”
Today’s announcement marks a potentially significant change in the competitive landscape of search. The 10-year deal announced today gives Microsoft access to Yahoo’s second-largest internet search engine audience, beefing up its search presence as it tries to catch Google, by far the leader in online search and advertising.
The deal will no doubt be reviewed by the government for anti-trust concerns. According to the Associated Press, a key lawmaker on antitrust issues said the Yahoo-Microsoft plan “warrants our careful scrutiny.” Sen. Herb Kohl, a Wisconsin Democrat, said the Senate antitrust subcommittee he chairs will review the deal “because of the potentially far-reaching consequences for consumers and advertisers and our concern about dampening the innovation we have come to expect from a competitive high-tech industry.”
In our opinion this move could actually create more competition. And what innovation have we seen lately from Yahoo anyway? Google vs. MicroHoo, it could get interesting. And if you’re not ranking that well organically in Yahoo … you may not need to worry about it.
Affinity Track Internet Promotion | Denver-Boulder SEO
357 S. McCaslin Blvd.
Louisville, CO 80027
(303) 404-8699
Is it a good investment to devote the resources necessary to promote your website? It’s a reasonable question. Internet marketing doesn’t happen spontaneously without effort or without cost.
If you’re in the business of selling “kitchen tables” (for example) we can consult the Google Adwords Keyword Tool, one of several keyword resources available plus its free. The results say there were around 450,000 Google searches on the word kitchen table in June of this year. It’s a significant number. That traffic’s going somewhere, and chances are that your kitchen table sales business would benefit if some of it was coming to you.
Targeting the word combination of kitchen tables may be too big a goal for your site, especially if it doesn’t carry a lot of weight in the search engines. Markets have a tendency to sub-divide over time. Effective marketing is almost always a result of intelligently segmenting markets, then determining the most appropriate target, and then implementing a plan to penetrate it.
The market for kitchen tables can be segmented in numerous ways. It could be segmented geographically (e.g., Denver kitchen tables), by table style and material (e.g., wooden kitchen tables), or even size (e.g., large kitchen tables). If your site cannot yet compete for the overall market leader position in the largest categories, adding qualifiers to attract segments of traffic from the overall traffic pool available will often be essential to compete. The marketing principles that applied pre-internet marketing, still apply. In our experience it’s the rare website that cannot benefit from and justify promotion.
There. Another blog in and my daughter’s still watching Sponge Bob. Ahh success!
Affinity Track Internet Promotion | Denver-Boulder SEO
357 S. McCaslin Blvd.
Louisville, CO 80027
(303) 404-8699
As an internet marketing company we thought it would be great if small to medium sized businesses could add professional yet inexpensive promotional videos on their websites. Online video in general has become more and more popular in recent years. YouTube in fact recently surpassed Yahoo in terms of search traffic.
Our video services offerings are still evolving, we’re testing various styles and formats, though we’ve produced more than a dozen to date for clients ranging from automobile dealers to real estate companies.
Initial pricing is set at:
$199 – 30 minutes onsite HD video acquisition and 2 minute finished/edited video
$299 – 1 hour onsite HD video acquisition and 5 minute finished/edited video
You can view our website video portfolio at www.youtube.com/AffinityTrackVideo. If your internet connection allows it, we suggest selecting the HD or HQ viewing options for highest quality.
Affinity Track Internet Promotion | Denver-Boulder SEO
357 S. McCaslin Blvd.
Louisville, CO 80027
(303) 404-8699
Wherever you are in the state of Colorado, we invite you to contact our company to discuss your interests in SEO and internet promotional services. Promoting your organization during economically soft periods helps both in terms of weathering the current storm, and also to more favorably position your organization for the inevitable recovery.
Internet marketing is in our opinion one of the most cost effective methods of promotion there is. Whatever your budget, we’ll ensure you get the maximum promotional bang for your buck. And with fewer bucks around right now, that’s as important as ever.
Affinity Track Internet Promotion | Denver-Boulder SEO
357 S. McCaslin Blvd.
Louisville, CO 80027
(303) 404-8699
One of the reasons we’ve been emphasizing web videos recently is because the number of YouTube searches recently surpassed those of Yahoo. This milestone makes YouTube the second most popular internet search environment, second only to Google.
Producing web videos for posting on YouTube or your own site requires a bit more capability than just adding a standard web page. So we look for ways to differentiate our services. Website videos, optimized for search engines, are one such service offering.
Introductory pricing is:
$199 – 30 minutes onsite HD video acquisition and 2 minute finished/edited video
$299 – 1 hour onsite HD video acquisition and 5 minute finished/edited video
Affinity Track specializes in producing low-cost website videos for companies and professional organizations. Services include onsite HD video acquisition, video and still-image editing, basic soundtrack and captioning. One proof is included in the price. Finalized videos are posted to YouTube (at client’s option) and provided in a specified format (e.g., Flash).
Introductory pricing for an up to 5 minute video is $299 all inclusive. View website video portfolio at www.youtube.com/AffinityTrackVideo.
For additional information please contact us at:
Affinity Track Internet Promotion
357 S. McCaslin Blvd.
Louisville, CO 80027
(303) 404-8699
Real estate professional may want to consider creating a video to promote new listings, reinforce their personal brand, or to create rich online video brochures. Services include high definition video acquisition, editing, and uploading to YouTube. Videos are made available for posting on your own site as well.
More than just a sequence of still images, video allows real estate professional to talk interested parties through a listing or other property. Videos even function as an initial personal introduction for the real estate professional, allowing prospective clients to see and hear you.
A sequence of still images with text and a soundtrack can be a simple but appealing addition to your website. Finished videos can be uploaded to third party sites such as YouTube or posted directly on your website. YouTube has recently begun streaming high definition video and the quality is dramatically better, although the source video must be uploaded in HD. Affinity Track web videos are produced in high definition.
