http://www.entrepreneur.com/ebusiness/webmetricscolumnist/article204100.html

How to use Google Alerts as a method of knowing who is talking about you, and what they are saying.

Google Alerts Screen

First off, go here: http://www.google.com/alerts

You will need a Google account, but you should have one to use Gmail anyway, and it only takes a minute.  If you already use Google Docs or Gmail, or Google Analytics, you already have one.

Your Screen should look a bit like this now:

The Key box is “Search Terms:- You want to put, at the very least- the following terms into your search box.

Your Name (in Parenthesis) “John Doe”

If you don’t use the parenthesis, you will get all mentions of John and all mentions of Doe.  And this great tool will loose a lot of it’s value very quickly.

Your Business Name “Peace & Love Inc”

And perhaps your employees

But that’s the basics-

What about:

Following your clients?

Following your prospects?

Following specific keywords in your industry?

Do you have a creative use for Google Alerts? Share it in the comments section!

So the first obvious question is: How do you possibly find time for all of the social networking sites?  The answer brings up cheating, and why I highly encourage you to do so, and a great way to “Cheat” I’ve found is:

1)      Ping.FM- (www.Ping.FM)  is a brilliant (and FREE) site to use that will update your status on most of your social networks at once, saving you the time, effort and energy of posting the same link/photo/video/whatever at once.  I spent about 20 minutes setting it up (helping it login to Facebook, MySpace, Twitter and a few others) and from now on, when I have something to share with any one, any way they care to follow me I just need to go to one site and put it down in 120* characters or less (If I’m tweeting) and a minute or so later, ALL of my social networks have been updated.

One of the biggest frustrations I have is with Linked-In.  It SHOULD be a good professional networking site, and it SHOULD be a great tool for anyone to spend lots of time updating and maintaining.  But, let’s be honest.

It’s NOT.

Why?

Linked-in is designed by and primarily for corporate headhunters to have discreet conversations with higher level staff to see how they can ‘bag’ them for another corporation.  If you understand this, it suddenly makes sense why it is harder than it should be to post an event, show off your expertise and connect usefully with others; but it’s quite easy to post a virtual resume online.

So you’ve heard read my rant about Linked-In.  So what do I suggest as an alternative?

2)       www.Biznik.com – Biznik.com is designed from the bottom up by and for people looking to grow their business through networking.  While it isn’t highly used in the Hudson Valley yet, I think that will change once more people realize this site might be going somewhere soon. This site is highly search engine optimized (meaning that time you spend here will go a long way in sending people to your web site, which is a VERY good thing).

Looking for an invite? E-mail Randy@AimOneMarketing.com and in the subject line put in: Biznik.

Only (partial) down side- they don’t allow any pitching of MLM.

http://www.marketingtwins.com/2009/marketing-coaching/4-business-guidelines-to-using-social-media/

He uses the Acronym “H.E.L.P.”  to help you decide how to best use twitter, Facebook, linked-in and all 1000 other social media sites.

And that is why many advertisements fail.

What often gets lost in the ‘branding’ process is that your brand is much more than a cute logo, or your face, or how you write your company’s name. I work with many businesses that thought that if they displayed their expensive logo as large as possible people will walk/call/E-mail them and hand them thousands of dollars and say “Wow- you’ve got a very impressive logo- I couldn’t wait to give you my money! Thank you for taking it from me!”

So I ask you- how often have YOU had that conversation with someone you decided to do business with? Heck, when is the last time you paid more than a 20% premium on the “Brand Name” with no other clear differences? My guess is, as the savvy shopper I bet you are… is a long, long time ago.

So what is a brand really- and what builds up real, bankable brand equity?

A true “Talking Logo” is what your customers think when they think about your company. Hopefully, it is what you tell them your brand means- but many brands are simply what customers perceive you as. I know many people who pay a premium to the Sony name- Not because they spent an absurd amount of money on the font they write their logo with- but because the Sony name has a reputation for “Quality, innovative electronics.” So if I have a bit more money to spend on a TV/Computer/Game Console- I might choose to have a couple more features and slightly better quality that I expect from Sony as opposed to the other choices.

A graphical logo we have to be trained to understand, and associate with your brand. This takes countless repetitions and is very expensive to pull off… but for what purpose? If your graphical logo just means you need a size larger Yellow Page ad, billboard or newspaper ad- but the larger size isn’t getting you a single extra client- is it worth it?

Instead of spending time working with a graphical logo, try this instead:

Duct Tape Mad-Libs:

I think we all remember Mad-Libs from our childhood car rides- You just need to fill in the blanks for YOUR company:
I/We ___(Action)____ to/for ______(Target Market)___________ _______(Key Benefit)__________.

So your Duct Tape Mad Lib- if you are a Florist-
We create for homes and brides, delightful scents and images.

How do you know if you’ve come up with a successful Duct Tape Mad Lib?

After you answer the question of “What do you do?” with your Mad Lib, the next question you are asked is:
“How do you do that?”

Professor Aimone,

Charlie North says the email addresses in the DCRCC directory are implicit acceptances of email. That is why they give them. GSDCC takes a tighter course: you must ask. My emails are going to be all about knowledge. Is the more appropriate answer to send an intro email with, say future topics (enticement) and a request to send future emails; or send one with ‘unsubscribe’ option (Constant Contact type)?

While Mr. North is right to some extent that a published E-mail address can be an invitation to send E-mail; proper E-mail etiquette strongly recommends that you send an introductory E-mail asking permission, or that you receive verbal permission before adding someone to your list. Remember, in this current trust-based marketing environment the last way you want to start off a lasting relationship is by being a pain in the ass. Sending unwanted, unsolicited spam= Being a pain in the ass. You might as well be cold calling.

Sending mass E-mails without a functioning unsubscribe option is very dangerous legally, and can get you in a LOT of trouble from the 2003 CAN-SPAM laws. Ergo, I see that as an absolute minimum.

The other topic I suggest careful consideration of is E-mail frequency.

At most I suggest a weekly E-mail, and at least 6 contacts a year.

How should you decide?

I’ve been playing with a rough rule of thumb that you should send no more than 4 E-mails per ‘buying cycle’. If you are a Deli with a regular clientele, you should be doing weekly E-mails as your clients may purchase from you twice a week.

On the other hand, if you are a car dealership, 6 E-mails a year is likely to be the most you should send before you run the risk of being considered Spam.

I tend to suggest to lean to the side of fewer E-mails than too many for 3 key reasons, among them being:

1) It takes less time to write fewer E-mail articles, unless you are outsourcing this (not a bad idea by the way, unless you know you are a good writer), that should be a consideration.

2) Too many E-mails can easily result in your being ignored, if not regulated to the trash, than certainly rarely opened.

3) I feel it is much better publicity for you to have your clients & prospects look forward to your messages, and it’s easier to look forward to a rare event.

SCORE is sponsoring this free event.

Relationships are the key to long-term business success. As you connect with prospects and customers through networking, marketing and sales, are you establishing long-term relationships that build relationships and drive your clients to repeat sales and referrals? E-mail marketing is one of the most cost effective ways to build these relationships. It has become a pervasive building tool for companies large and small, across all industries.

In this workshop, we will explore:
1) Who you can effectively reach via E-mail
2) Why and how you should develop an E-mail marketing mailing list.
3) How NOT to use E-mail marketing (AKA: how NOT to become known as a Spammer and lose E-mail as a tool to reach your clients- or worse to get fined by the government)
4) E-Mail Programs that will help you to both maintain an E-mail list & keep your sanity- Specifically: Constant Contact, SwiftPage and MailChimp
5) How to create great E-mail content so your list that actually reads your E-mails