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Tuesday, November 1, 2011
6 Best Practices For Small Business YouTube Marketing
From Todd Wasserman:
Mention YouTube and most people will picture cats playing piano. But among a certain type of small-business person, the name conjures another image: Dollar signs.
Such entrepreneurs can often sound like brainwashed cult members, in a good way. For instance, Scott Imbrie, owner of Original Skateboards, a brand that has been built largely on its YouTube presence, says the platform is better for marketers than even Facebook.
"YouTube is actually the biggest social media site," he says. "It's bigger than Facebook or Twitter."
Another YouTube proselytizer is Jeffrey Harmon, chief marketing officer for Orabrush, a Provo, Utah-based oral care brand that recently parlayed a series of successful YouTube videos into a national distribution deal at Walmart. Original Skateboards, which joined YouTube in 2005 and Orabrush, which dropped its first YouTube video in 2009, were clearly ahead of the curve, but YouTube is still a great place to launch or grow a brand.
Below are some tips from entrepreneurs who have thrived on YouTube, plus some from Lane Shackleton, product manager for YouTube (and, yes, a distant relative of polar explorer Ernest Shackleton).
1. Don't expect your video to go viral
Are you ready to become the next Orabrush? Maybe it's time to reset your expectations. Harmon helpfully points out that 48 hours of video are loaded to YouTube every minute, so you're probably better off playing Powerball than waiting for your clip to take off.
"Anyone who thinks they're going to have a video go crazy on YouTube is dreaming," says Harmon. "Think base hits, not home runs." Raw numbers aren't as important as reaching the right customers, so don't freak out if you're nowhere near a million views.
2. Buy some ads
Since your video's probably not going to go viral on its own (or at all), you should consider buying some ads on YouTube. Fortunately, rates are pretty good compared to AdWords. Harmon says that right now search ads on YouTube are going for 50 cents per click vs. $1.50 per click on AdWords. That said, you don't have to sink a fortune into it. In Orabrush's early days, the company spent $30 a day on YouTube search ads. Though Orabrush got a lot more bang for its buck back then, Harmon says you can still do pretty well today buying "promoted videos," the ads that pop up when you do a YouTube search. However, no matter what you spend on ads, make sure the content is relevant to the search term. Google will base the ad's position on that relevance.
3. Use comments, hot spots and A/B testing as your focus group
If you hire a Madison Avenue ad agency to run a TV spot, they're likely going to want to subject the ad to focus group testing. But if you're a small DIY advertiser, your best approximation of a focus group—aside from your wife and her Rotary Club friends—are the comments below your video. Granted, many will be insipid and/or obscene, but some just may have some insight.
Beyond that, YouTube has some other tools to help you gauge how your video is being received. Chief among these is Hot Spots, a technology that lets you see when people are tuning in and out of your video.
Another option is A/B testing. Big ad firms do this, as well, but you can do it on a smaller scale by running two different versions of your clip as an unlisted video backed by search ads and then watching to see which one gets the better response. Then, you choose the winner.
Finally, there's Google Analytics, which will at least tell you how much referral traffic you're getting from YouTube. Shackleton says on average, people who come to your site from YouTube spend more time there than if they came from somewhere else.
4. Watch a lot of YouTube
If you're serious about using YouTube as a marketing platform, then do your research. Forget about watching TV ads, and spend a few hours discovering what's hot on YouTube. Harmon says he and his staff spend several hours every day doing just that. Harmon says the goal is to begin to "recognize good ideas."
5. Track that ROI
If you're spending money on YouTube ads, you will likely want to know what you have to show for it. The fact that people have clicked through your ads is great, but the novelty will wear off quickly if they're not actually buying anything.
Now here's the surprising part: Despite the fact that Google owns YouTube and marketing on YouTube is, by definition, 21st century digital and cutting edge, you still have to rely on a fairly improvisational, analog form of ROI tracking.
"We count the number of views, of course, the combined total for the videos on our YouTube channel was close to a million last time I added them up, and we track the traffic to our sites from the videos, but that's about all we've got in terms of hard data," says Ed Davis, president of Ceilume, a Graton, Calif.-based company that makes ceiling tiles and has more than one million views on its YouTube channel. "We also rely heavily upon what our customer service people tell us they hear from on the phones every day and what they hear is that customers watch the videos, and the videos help."
6. Find your niche
If you followed step 4 and watched copious amounts of YouTube programming, you should be getting a sense of what will and won't fly on YouTube. Guess what? No one wants to watch an ad unless it's really, really good. But rather than try to crack the code on a spectacular ad (something that the ad industry is generally unable to do with any regularity), Shackleton suggests either positioning yourself as an expert in your particular field (as Ceilume has) or attaching your brand to a particular lifestyle (Original Skateboards's approach).
"Pick an interesting part of your brand and focus on it," Shackleton says.
But what if you sell something really boring, like plumbing supplies? Chances are this is interesting to someone, perhaps someone who has to fix their toilet in a hurry. Get inside their head and make a video directed to their likely concerns. Whatever you do, don't think like a traditional advertiser.
"The key is creating stuff that helps people, that people connect to, and allows them to explore," says Imbrie. "It's not about advertising."
Image credit: Bright Planet, TheGrid-ch
Source: http://www.openforum.com/articles/6-best-practices-for-small-business-youtube-marketing
social media marketing website development web hosting seo experts search engine marketing
23 Reasons Inbound Marketing Trumps Outbound Marketing [Infographic]
As you likely know from reading this blog, we're huge proponents of inbound marketing over here, and we honestly believe that outbound marketing is dead. As consumers change the way they research and shop for products and services, so must we -- eliminating ineffective and expensive traditional marketing tactics like cold calling, direct mail, and print and TV advertising, and instead leveraging tactics that appeal to how the modern consumer shops, such as SEO, social media, and content creation.
So we were thrilled to come across an awesome infographic from Voltier Digital yesterday, which highlights the benefits of inbound compared to outbound marketing. If you're not yet convinced that inbound is the way to go, check out the infographic, and feel free to share some of the tweetable stats from it that we've listed below.
23 Reasons Inbound Marketing Trumps Outbound Marketing
1) 200 million Americans have registered their phone numbers on the FTC’s “Do Not Call” list. (Tweet This Stat!)
2) 91% of email users have unsubscribed from a company email they previously opted into. (Tweet This Stat!)
3) 84% of 25-34-year-olds have left a favorite website because of intrusive or irrelevant advertising. (Tweet This Stat!)
4) 86% of people skip television ads. (Tweet This Stat!)
5) 44% of direct mail is never opened. (Tweet This Stat!)
6) 61% of marketers will invest more in earned media (inbound marketing) in 2011. (Tweet This Stat!)
7) The average budget spent on company blogs and social media has nearly doubled in the last 2 years. (Tweet This Stat!)
8) The number of marketers who say Facebook is “critical” or "important” to their business has increased 83% in the last 2 years. (Tweet This Stat!)
9) 2/3 of marketers say their company blog is “critical” or “important” to their business. (Tweet This Stat!)
10) 67% of B2C companies and 41% of B2B companies have acquired a customer through Facebook. (Tweet This Stat!)
11) 57% of businesses have acquired a customer through their company blog. (Tweet This Stat!)
12) 42% of businesses have acquired a customer through Twitter. (Tweet This Stat!)
13) 57% of companies have acquired a customer through LinkedIn. (Tweet This Stat!)
14) 48% of companies have acquired a customer through Facebook. (Tweet This Stat!)
15) Inbound marketing costs 62% less per lead than traditional outbound marketing. (Tweet This Stat!)
16) 3 out of 4 inbound marketing channels cost less than any outbound channel. (Tweet This Stat!)
17) 55% of companies who blog reported leads from their blog were “below average” in cost. (Tweet This Stat!)
18) 47% of companies who use social media reported leads from social media were “below average” in cost. (Tweet This Stat!)
19) 39% of companies who leverage SEO reported leads from SEO were “below average” in cost. (Tweet This Stat!)
20) 27% of companies who use PPC reported leads from PPC were “below average” in cost. (Tweet This Stat!)
21) Trade shows were reported as being “above average” in cost by 47% of respondents. (Tweet This Stat!)
22) Direct mail was reported as being “above average” in cost by 27% of respondents. (Tweet This Stat!)
23) Telemarketing was reported as being “above average” in cost by 21% of respondents. (Tweet This Stat!)
Are you leveraging the awesome power of inbound marketing for your business?
Connect with HubSpot:
list building article marketing affiliate marketing clickbank experts copywriting experts
Mutated Search Queries
Google has recently began refining search queries far more aggressively. In the past they would refine search queries if they thought there was a misspelling, but new refinements have taken to changing keywords that are spelled correctly to align them with more common (and thus profitable) keywords.
As one example, the search result [weight loss estimator] is now highly influenced by [weight loss calculator]. The below chart compares the old weight loss estimator SERP, the current weight loss estimator SERP & the current weight loss calculator SERP. Click on the image for a larger view.
There are 2 serious issues with this change
- disclosure: in the past refinement disclosures appeared at the top of the search results, but now it often ends up at the bottom
- awful errors: a couple months after I was born my wife was born in Manila. When I was doing some searches about visiting & things like that, sometimes Google would take the word "Manila" out of the search query. (My guess is because the word "Manila" is also a type of envelope?)
Here is an example of an "awful error" in action. Let's say while traveling you find a great gift & want to send it to extended family. Search for [shipping from las vegas to manila] and you get the following
The search results contain irrelevant garbage like an Urban Spoon page for Las Vegas delivery restaurants.
How USELESS is that?
And now, with disclosure of changes at the bottom of the search results, there isn't even a strong & clean signal to let end users tell Google "hey you are screwing this up badly."
In some ways I am inspired by Google's willingness to test and tweak, but in others I wonder if their new model for search is to care less about testing and hope that SEOs will highlight where Google is punting it bad. In that case, they just roped me into offering free advice. ;)
Categories:
Source: http://www.seobook.com/mutated-search-queries
internet marketing online marketing website optimization improve google rankings search engine
Lead Web Developer - Marketing/SEO Experience / Adecco Technical / Whitehouse, NJ
Adecco Technical/Whitehouse, NJ
Adecco Engineering and Technical, a division of the world leader in the recruitment of engineering and information technology professionals, has an immediate opening for a Lead Web Developer on a contract to hire opportunity with a leading company in NJ.
Summary:
Lead Web Developer for a growing boutique digital branding and marketing firm that specializes in brand development, web development, and search marketing. As the Lead Web Developer, you will interface with clients, lead a small team of search marketing specialists and developers, and will be a central figure in devising client web site development and search marketing strategies from a technical standpoint.
This is also a very hands-on technical position and requires technical strength, and diplomacy when dealing with internal and external stakeholders. The position will report directly to the President of the company.
Features:
Unique Role: Responsible for leading and directing the technical strategies of the firm, and its many clients. This position will be an integral part of the company and the front-person from a technical perspective for new and existing clients.
Growth Potential: There is a tremendous amount of growth potential in this role as you will be leading the technical aspects of the firm's digital strategies and report directly to the President.
Excellent Compensation & Benefits: Highly competitive compensation package.
Continuous Learning: Firm encourages and sponsors continuing education opportunities
Client Interaction: This position regularly interfaces directly with clients and potential clients. Compensation:
A very strong compensation package will be offered and will vary depending upon the depth and quality of relevant experience.
Responsibilities:
PRIMARY JOB FUNCTIONS
Website and Digital Communications Development & Deployment
Website Administration & Monitoring
Website Analysis, Reporting & Recommendations
Keyword Analysis, Reporting and Recommendations
Competitive site analysis & recommendations
Conversion optimization strategies
Client Training, when necessary
Launch support, usability and cross-platform testing
E-mail Marketing development, testing, deployment, monitoring and analysis
Mobile site development
App development/oversight (may be a future requirement)
Client interfacing on technical questions, problems, recommendations and guidance SUPPORTIVE JOB FUNCTIONS
Support in the development of or participation in:
Integrated search marketing strategies (SEO, SEM, Social, Paid, Mobile, etc.)
Content Deployment strategies (E-mail, Online PR, Social, Blog, etc.)
Social Media Community Building Strategies
Technical specifications of proposals
New client or prospective client presentations
Public speaking presentations Requirements Desired:
TECHNICAL EXPERTISE
5+ years of relevant technical skills including, but not limited to:
Core Programming skills
HTML 5
CSS 3
JavaScript (jQuery and prototype framework)
PHP 5 (Object Oriented)
MySQL (database administration, query writing)
ASP.NET
CMS installation, modification, administration and maintenance
WordPress
Drupal
Joomla
DotNetNuke
Magento
ZenCart
HTML Email programming (table based and inline CSS)
Cross browser/Cross email client compatibility
Mobile optimized site design
Unix Shell commands
Domain/DNS administration Search Marketing skills
Search Engine Optimization tactics
Competitive intelligence gathering
Link building strategies
Google/Microsoft advertising PPC administration
Social media strategies
Content administration
E-mail Marketing development Business savvy, strong influencing skills, ambition and eagerness to accept new challenges are needed to be successful in this role.
ADDITIONAL DESIRABLE TRAITS
Positive can-do attitude and outlook
Demonstrated ability to oversee and manage others
Demonstrated desire, ability and initiative to learn new or emerging technologies
Take charge, hands-on approach
Work with team to determine best methods to deploy brands through technology
Demonstrated ability to manage time accurately and effectively
Ability to clearly and confidently articulate technical solutions in lay terms
Accuracy of work product
Organizational skills
Ability to prioritize tasks and meet deadlines
Good at building and maintaining positive relationships
If you are interested in this opportunity please apply online or email directly
The Adecco Group is a Fortune Global 500 company and the global leader in HR services. Our group connects over 700,000 associates with our business clients each day through our 6,600 offices in over 70 countries and territories around the world. We offer employment opportunities at any stage in your professional career. Adecco Engineering and Technical offers benefits including Holiday, 401(k), Insurance Benefit Plans and Anniversary Bonus opportunities. Adecco Engineering and Technical is an Equal Opportunity Employer.
Overtime: straight time
Duration: Contract
Note: Applicants must be eligible to work in the specified location. No sponsorship is available unless noted in the description above.
Apply To Job
Adecco Engineering and Technical, a division of the world leader in the recruitment of engineering and information technology professionals, has an immediate opening for a Lead Web Developer on a contract to hire opportunity with a leading company in NJ.
Summary:
Lead Web Developer for a growing boutique digital branding and marketing firm that specializes in brand development, web development, and search marketing. As the Lead Web Developer, you will interface with clients, lead a small team of search marketing specialists and developers, and will be a central figure in devising client web site development and search marketing strategies from a technical standpoint.
This is also a very hands-on technical position and requires technical strength, and diplomacy when dealing with internal and external stakeholders. The position will report directly to the President of the company.
Features:
Unique Role: Responsible for leading and directing the technical strategies of the firm, and its many clients. This position will be an integral part of the company and the front-person from a technical perspective for new and existing clients.
Growth Potential: There is a tremendous amount of growth potential in this role as you will be leading the technical aspects of the firm's digital strategies and report directly to the President.
Excellent Compensation & Benefits: Highly competitive compensation package.
Continuous Learning: Firm encourages and sponsors continuing education opportunities
Client Interaction: This position regularly interfaces directly with clients and potential clients. Compensation:
A very strong compensation package will be offered and will vary depending upon the depth and quality of relevant experience.
Responsibilities:
PRIMARY JOB FUNCTIONS
Website and Digital Communications Development & Deployment
Website Administration & Monitoring
Website Analysis, Reporting & Recommendations
Keyword Analysis, Reporting and Recommendations
Competitive site analysis & recommendations
Conversion optimization strategies
Client Training, when necessary
Launch support, usability and cross-platform testing
E-mail Marketing development, testing, deployment, monitoring and analysis
Mobile site development
App development/oversight (may be a future requirement)
Client interfacing on technical questions, problems, recommendations and guidance SUPPORTIVE JOB FUNCTIONS
Support in the development of or participation in:
Integrated search marketing strategies (SEO, SEM, Social, Paid, Mobile, etc.)
Content Deployment strategies (E-mail, Online PR, Social, Blog, etc.)
Social Media Community Building Strategies
Technical specifications of proposals
New client or prospective client presentations
Public speaking presentations Requirements Desired:
TECHNICAL EXPERTISE
5+ years of relevant technical skills including, but not limited to:
Core Programming skills
HTML 5
CSS 3
JavaScript (jQuery and prototype framework)
PHP 5 (Object Oriented)
MySQL (database administration, query writing)
ASP.NET
CMS installation, modification, administration and maintenance
WordPress
Drupal
Joomla
DotNetNuke
Magento
ZenCart
HTML Email programming (table based and inline CSS)
Cross browser/Cross email client compatibility
Mobile optimized site design
Unix Shell commands
Domain/DNS administration Search Marketing skills
Search Engine Optimization tactics
Competitive intelligence gathering
Link building strategies
Google/Microsoft advertising PPC administration
Social media strategies
Content administration
E-mail Marketing development Business savvy, strong influencing skills, ambition and eagerness to accept new challenges are needed to be successful in this role.
ADDITIONAL DESIRABLE TRAITS
Positive can-do attitude and outlook
Demonstrated ability to oversee and manage others
Demonstrated desire, ability and initiative to learn new or emerging technologies
Take charge, hands-on approach
Work with team to determine best methods to deploy brands through technology
Demonstrated ability to manage time accurately and effectively
Ability to clearly and confidently articulate technical solutions in lay terms
Accuracy of work product
Organizational skills
Ability to prioritize tasks and meet deadlines
Good at building and maintaining positive relationships
If you are interested in this opportunity please apply online or email directly
The Adecco Group is a Fortune Global 500 company and the global leader in HR services. Our group connects over 700,000 associates with our business clients each day through our 6,600 offices in over 70 countries and territories around the world. We offer employment opportunities at any stage in your professional career. Adecco Engineering and Technical offers benefits including Holiday, 401(k), Insurance Benefit Plans and Anniversary Bonus opportunities. Adecco Engineering and Technical is an Equal Opportunity Employer.
Overtime: straight time
Duration: Contract
Note: Applicants must be eligible to work in the specified location. No sponsorship is available unless noted in the description above.
Apply To Job
article marketing affiliate marketing clickbank experts copywriting experts internet business
Mutated Search Queries
Google has recently began refining search queries far more aggressively. In the past they would refine search queries if they thought there was a misspelling, but new refinements have taken to changing keywords that are spelled correctly to align them with more common (and thus profitable) keywords.
As one example, the search result [weight loss estimator] is now highly influenced by [weight loss calculator]. The below chart compares the old weight loss estimator SERP, the current weight loss estimator SERP & the current weight loss calculator SERP. Click on the image for a larger view.
There are 2 serious issues with this change
- disclosure: in the past refinement disclosures appeared at the top of the search results, but now it often ends up at the bottom
- awful errors: a couple months after I was born my wife was born in Manila. When I was doing some searches about visiting & things like that, sometimes Google would take the word "Manila" out of the search query. (My guess is because the word "Manila" is also a type of envelope?)
Here is an example of an "awful error" in action. Let's say while traveling you find a great gift & want to send it to extended family. Search for [shipping from las vegas to manila] and you get the following
The search results contain irrelevant garbage like an Urban Spoon page for Las Vegas delivery restaurants.
How USELESS is that?
And now, with disclosure of changes at the bottom of the search results, there isn't even a strong & clean signal to let end users tell Google "hey you are screwing this up badly."
In some ways I am inspired by Google's willingness to test and tweak, but in others I wonder if their new model for search is to care less about testing and hope that SEOs will highlight where Google is punting it bad. In that case, they just roped me into offering free advice. ;)
Categories:
Source: http://www.seobook.com/mutated-search-queries
link exchange pay per click ppc experts social media social networking
Senior Director, Sales - Social Media (Central US and Canada) Based ou / Tri-S Recruiters, Inc. / Chicago, IL
Tri-S Recruiters, Inc./Chicago, IL
Global state-of-the art software development corporation is in need of
Senior Director, Sales - Social Media (Central US and Canada)
US Midwest (Greater Chicago Area)
Job Description
Sell Social Media software products and services to new and existing clients throughout the Central US (including Texas) and Canada
Identify/properly qualify business opportunities
Present solutions at the executive level
Lead Negotiations
Manage complex sales cycles and multiple engagements simultaneously
Work with sales consultants to discover, identify, and meet customer requirements
Prepare accurate sales forecasts and sales cycle reporting via Salesforce.com
Desired Skills & Experience
Experience selling Social Networking/Social Media software 10+ years experience in technology sales within a SaaS or other high transaction volume sales environment New account development or large account management. Proven prospecting and sales cycle management skills. Bachelor's degree or equivalent business experience. General knowledge of RDBMS, OLAP, Client Server, and Web/Internet technologies
Employment Type: Permanent
Note: Applicants must be eligible to work in the specified location. No sponsorship is available unless noted in the description above.
Apply To Job
Global state-of-the art software development corporation is in need of
Senior Director, Sales - Social Media (Central US and Canada)
US Midwest (Greater Chicago Area)
Job Description
Sell Social Media software products and services to new and existing clients throughout the Central US (including Texas) and Canada
Identify/properly qualify business opportunities
Present solutions at the executive level
Lead Negotiations
Manage complex sales cycles and multiple engagements simultaneously
Work with sales consultants to discover, identify, and meet customer requirements
Prepare accurate sales forecasts and sales cycle reporting via Salesforce.com
Desired Skills & Experience
Experience selling Social Networking/Social Media software 10+ years experience in technology sales within a SaaS or other high transaction volume sales environment New account development or large account management. Proven prospecting and sales cycle management skills. Bachelor's degree or equivalent business experience. General knowledge of RDBMS, OLAP, Client Server, and Web/Internet technologies
Employment Type: Permanent
Note: Applicants must be eligible to work in the specified location. No sponsorship is available unless noted in the description above.
Apply To Job
search engine marketing sem experts search engine optimization internet marketing online marketing
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