Concerned by the recent Google Penguin update? No need for SEO crisis management if you're informed...

Is the "A" in SONAR (article marketing) still a viable tactic with search engines and the Farmer/PANDA and the recent, Penguin, updates?

Lately I've been hearing a lot of people saying things such as: 'Google doesn't like content or article marketing since they changed their algorithms' and 'article directories are not useful for search engine marketing and link-building efforts anymore.' I like to remind people of a few fundamental rules of online marketing, specifically involving content, that virtually never changes and is extremely helpful to know (and do!) ...

-- 'Mix' it up. It's always a smart thing to have a diversified online marketing mix. I suggest to clients to look at their online marketing plan like a pie, and each slice is a tactical allocation -- organic and paid for strategies. As with your financial planning ventures (such as with your retirement account), it's always safer to diversify than put all your eggs in one basket. The same holds true for your online marketing plan. Mix it up and keep it diversified. Some allocations may be smaller than others, based on budget, objective, and other variables. But it's good to spread it out across many tactics and online marketing channels such as organic search, paid search, social media, online PR, content marketing, etc. Then if one tactic is a laggard and others are leaders, it all balances out in the end. This also helps compensate for algorithmic `bumps in the road' that may temporarily affect your search engine optimization (SEO) and search engine marketing (SEM) efforts.

--Doing It 'Right' Can't Be Wrong. Google and other search engines often change their algorithms to as keep search results relevant and fresh to related queries as well as impact unscrupulous 'black hat' practicing marketers who use no-no tactics such as gateway pages, keyword stuffing, link baiting, link farming, content farming and more. These are the folks that link to irrelevant sites with irrelevant content to the equivalent of content spamming. For compliant content marketers or those using the SONAR Content Distribution Model -- the core strategy is to leverage high quality, useful, content through synchronized, synergistic and relevant online distribution. SONAR and content marketing, when implemented correctly, include 'white hat' SEO principles. And if you're using quality, original content with either of those marketing tactics and distributing your content to targeted, relevant sites, you really can't go wrong.

--Quality And Relevance Are Key! According to Webpronews.com, when Google released their official statement about the algorithm change in 2011, the Farmer/Panda update was aimed to help more quality websites be higher in the search results versus content farms with irrelevant, unbeneficial content based on the keywords being searched. Article directories may have initially been stuck in the cross-hairs losing some initial value, but again, if you are putting out `UVA' (useful, valuable, actionable) content into numerous organic online channels, the diversity and balance will offset any temporary side affects which may occur versus doing article directory marketing by itself. Based on my experience, if you push out quality, original content in several places including article directories, your articles should appear in pages 1-5 of Google search results. And with Google's latest `freshness' update, the most timely and relevant content should appear in descending order by date from the top of the search results. Quality and relevance are key.

--Targeted Link-Building. Links, whether it's one way back link or a reciprocal back link, are still links. Quality links help SEO, and that is undisputable. But again, there's some ground rules to do it right within best practices ... and do it wrong. Links should be quality links, and by that I mean on sites that have relevant content and a synergistic audience as to your own. It should also be a site with a good traffic rank. I prefer to do link building manually and do it strategically. I research sites that are synergistic in all ways to the site I'm working with (albeit one-way or reciprocal links). Doing it manually allows more targeted selection and control over where you want your links to go. Manual selection and distribution can also lead to other opportunities down the road with those sites you're building relationships with including cross-marketing or editorial efforts such as editorial contributions, revenue shares and more. In my view, this approach is both link building and relationship building.

--Location, Location, Location. Where you link to is important. When doing SONAR or content marketing, I always tell clients to deep link, that is, not just link to their home page -- which to me, doesn't make any sense anyway, as there's too many distractions on a home page. Readers need a simple, direct call to action. Keep them focused. It's always smarter to link to your source article, which should be on one of your subpages, such as the newsletter archive page or press release page. Now you have a connection -- the article/content excerpt you pushed out and is appearing in the SERPs (search engine result pages) and its redirect links to the full version on your archive or press page. You've satisfied the searches expectations by not doing a `bait and switch'. There's relevance and continuity. And to help monetize that traffic, that newsletter archive or press webpage (which you're driving the traffic to), the background should contain fixed elements to 'harness' the traffic it will be getting for list growth and cross-selling such as fixed lead gen boxes, text ads, banner ads, editorial notes, and more. These elements should blend with your overall format, not being to obnoxious, but being easily seen.

--Catalyst Content. It's always important to make sure you publish the content on your website first ... I call this your 'catalyst content'. This is the driving source which all other inbound marketing will occur and be focused around. Your website articles should be dated and be formatted similar to a news feed or blog. Also, posting timely press releases will work favorable as they will be viewed by Google and human readers as the latest news (again favorable to Google's latest `freshness' update). At the same time, send your content out via email (i.e. ezine) to your in-house list before external marketing channels see it. This helps from an SEO standpoint, but also helps with credibility and bonding with your subscribers and regular website visitors as they should get your information before the masses. There you go. My best practices for marketing with content. I don't practice nor condone 'black hat' marketing tactics. I've always been lucky enough to work for top publishers and clients that put out great, original content. It really does all boil down to the quality of the content when you talk about any form of article and search engine marketing. Content is king, and when you have strong editorial, along with being a `creatively strategic' thinker, you don't need to engage in 'black hat' or questionable SEO/SEM. Algorithms are always changing. It's good to be aware of the latest news, trends and techniques, but also not to put you're your eggs in one basket and build your entire online marketing strategy based on the `current' algorithms. Using solid content, analyzing your websites visitor and usage patterns and keeping general best practices in mind are staple components that will always play an important role in content marketing.


Google, SEO and Content Syndication: Debunking The Duplicate Content Myth

Oftentimes, real-life experiences with my clients influence my blog posts.For instance, recently a consulting client of mine asked me if I agreed with a colleague of his about Google disliking duplicate content and to reduce or refrain the amount of content he syndicates (distributes) on the Web.I think there’s a huge misunderstanding out there about how to distribute your content without hurting your website in the eyes of search engines.If you publish content, you should have the first, original content on your website. No doubt.

However, you can "repurpose" it and strategically distribute it on the Web, and this will not hurt your search engine/Google SEO efforts.This is something I refer to in my SONAR Content Distribution Model TM and has helped my clients’ quantifiably increase traffic rank, traffic visits, leads and sales.SONAR is a cost effective, yet powerful, method of repurposing and synchronizing content (albeit text, audio, video) distribution into various, targeted channels. And it allows companies, publishers, entrepreneurs … basically anyone with content on their website … the ability to ultimately turn traffic into sales.

SONAR represents the following online distribution platforms:

S Syndicate partners, content syndication networks, and user generate content sites

O Online press releases

N Network (social) communities

A Article directories

R Relevant posts to blogs, forums, and bulletin boards

SONAR Case study: My synchronized content distribution technique helped increase traffic ranking and visits to a alternative health website by 3,160% and 81.5% respectively in only three months. And in four months, traffic visits increased to an investment website by nearly 80% as well as an increase its traffic ranking by nearly 150 percent. Plus, the traffic to this investment site was monetized for an ROI of 221%.So not only was the website’s SEO/SEM efforts NOT hut by content syndication, it actually improved exponentially with rank, visits and sales.

The key is to repurpose the content. To tweek an original article on your website with minor changes (for example to headline, intro paragraph, closing, etc.) and then syndicate on other different websites.Google tries to look for the best version…where the content originated...the first, primary source (usually your website) and typically that site that gets the "search engine credit" so to speak via the higher ranking in the organic results listing.

In Google's view, duplicate content is more hurtful for a site if it's posted in more then one place on that SAME DOMAIN (not via syndication on other websites such as through online press releases, article directories, etc.) .

For example, if you may have two pages on your site with virtually the same content, in most cases, Google notices this and ignores one of those webpages. You will not get both of those listings in the search engine organic results…just one of them.Keep in mind, Google will decide your pages are duplicate if ONLY your (page titles and meta descriptions) are the same. So make sure each webpage on your site has unique, relevant tags with targeted keywords.Now if you’re concerned about webpages on your website and it’s text "printer friendly version" hurting your website’s SEO… simply block the search engines from spidering the print friendly version.When you think about it...syndicating content is the SEO model of social sites (like Digg, Drop Jack, StumpleUpon, etc.) and article directories.

So make sure you understand the power of your content and how to syndicate it the right way before you hit the breaks on any SEO/SEM efforts.

Because that’s what will actually hurt your site … doing nothing and not leveraging your content.

We're like the iPad - so lets learn from Apple

 The iPad is an amazing tool!  You can:

• Put video in your newspaper or audio in your magazine
• Watch movies
• Incorporate video into a phone call
• Join a classroom from anywhere
• Have access to countless books
• Learn about anything 

How do you communicate everything that this miracle of technology does in a 30 second spot?  Focus on the benefits:

• Enhance your reading experience and be more interactive
• Hold a movie theater in your lap
• Get closer to those you love
• Make learning easy
• Hold an entire bookstore in your hands
• Interact with your environment

See how Apple introduced the iPad 2 and accomplished all of this in 30 seconds here. 

If you think about it, we are the iPad of the service industry.  We can do anything ... We help manage peoples money!  If it’s at all important to a customer, we are the gatekeeper!

• Save for the future
• Buy whatever you want now and pay over time
• Access your money any time from anywhere
• Manage your money and balance your budget
• Keep your assets safe

(Note: I do not mention price anywhere here - neither did Apple.)

Your challenge for today … say all of this without saying any of this!  Take these features and talk to your target in terms that effect their lives.

Let us know how you do by replying to this blog.

Have fun.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Want to learn more?  Enroll in the MarketMatch eCollege!  Smart learning online sessions delivered five consecutive Tuesdays with CFMP credits, tactical advice and a game plan for success!

MarketMatch is a full-service marketing firm, dedicated to the credit union and community banking community.  We utilize knowledge-based strategies to help you FOCUS on the efforts that will generate the greatest  MOMENTUM for your organization and demonstrate RESULTS with our written ROI Guarantee.

Learn more here. (click here)

Chat with me LIVE! (click here)

Or email me directly (click here)

937-426-9848

What is the Right Mix of Inbound and Outbound Marketing?

Marketing pundits have been debating the merits of inbound vs. outbound marketing for the past few years. Advocates of inbound marketing contend that traditional outbound marketing tactics have become ineffective because of changes in buyer behavior. Some argue that companies should completely abandon outbound marketing and rely exclusively on inbound techniques. More traditional marketers acknowledge that inbound marketing is important, but they contend that most companies still need outbound marketing, and that it can still be effective, if it's done right.

There are persuasive arguments and convincing evidence on both sides of this debate. My focus is B2B marketing, and in my opinion, most B2B companies need both inbound and outbound marketing. The important question is not which type of marketing to use, but rather what mix of inbound and outbound marketing will produce the best results.

Marketing has four major functions in most B2B companies.

• Customer acquisition
• Customer retention
• Expanding customer relationships (cross-selling, etc.)
• Reactivating relationships with dormant or "lost" customers

The real issue for B2B marketers is how to combine the use of inbound and outbound marketing tactics to achieve the maximum results in all of these functions. The diagram below illustrates the relative importance of inbound and outbound marketing in performing each marketing function. (Note:  In B2B companies with long, complex sales cycles, customer acquisition marketing consists of two distinct components - lead acquisition and lead nurturing. Therefore, the diagram shows five functions rather than four.)

In today's B2B buying environment, the importance of inbound marketing can't be denied. Business buyers (whether prospects or customers) now expect companies to provide valuable information on a consistent basis in a variety of venues, including blogs and other inbound marketing channels. Therefore, inbound marketing is now playing an important role in all marketing functions.

What may raise a few eyebrows is my take on the relative importance of inbound and outbound marketing for lead acquisition. Outbound marketing and sales prospecting have traditionally been the dominant tactics for acquiring new leads in many B2B companies. The landscape, however, has changed. Today's business buyers have easy access to a wealth of information, and they've become convinced they can find whatever information they need, whenever they need it. So, they are far less likely to respond to outbound marketing and sales efforts from companies they don't know. The result is that outbound lead acquisition programs aren't nearly as effective as they once were.

These circumstances are driving a shift to inbound marketing for lead acquisition, and the shift will continue to grow. Research firm SiriusDecisions has said that 80% of new leads will come from inbound marketing by 2015.

The bottom line? Both inbound and outbound marketing are necessary components of an effective B2B marketing effort. Inbound marketing should be the primary tactic used for lead acquisition, if not immediately, then in the very near future. Outbound marketing (primarily in the form of behavior-driven e-mail content offers) should play the leading role in lead nurturing. For customer retention, customer expansion, and customer reactivation, inbound and outbound should be given nearly equal emphasis.

Do you agree? How are you balancing the use of inbound and outbound marketing?

B2B brand architecture

Millad
NX8000 is not exactly the kind of brand name that rolls off the tongue, nor
does it have the easy brand recognition of a Nike Air, Apple iPad, or Diet
Coke. Yet Millad NX8000, a chemical additive from Milliken Chemical, a division
of privately held Milliken & Company, refers to a product that is present
in more households than any of these better known consumer brands: it is the

How to Be the Pink Zebra in a Black & White Crowd

Do you want to stand out from your competitors – to be the pink zebra in a black & white crowd? How about providing a customer experience your competition can’t match?  From products designed for what your customers need to the customer contact that builds the relationship.

First – you need to look at what really matters to your target customers? Step back and look at what you have to offer from the customer’s viewpoint.

Second - don’t try to mold your customers to your product, but mold the product to your customer’s needs.

Third - look at what your customer’s experience in the delivery and follow up. Use this perspective to make improvements and manage the experience.

Whether it’s your product offering, the customer touch points, or your brand, learn which part of the customer experience is important to each segment of your target market and differentiate your products and delivery accordingly.

Our upcoming Brown Bag webinar this Friday highlights a Midwestern bank that has done just that. They have framed their products, delivery and customer experience to the customer. Register to join our free session at 1:00 EST on Friday, March 16, 2012 and see what one financial institution has done to stand out from the crowd.

Until next time,
Melissa

• Learn More Here
• Chat with me LIVE!
• Or contact me directly

There are three types of people in this world: those who make things happen, those who watch things happen and those who wonder what happened. ~ Mary Kay Ash

MarketMatch is a full-service marketing consulting firm, dedicated to the credit union and community banking community.  We utilize knowledge-based strategies to help you FOCUS on the efforts that will generate MOMENTUM and yield the greatest RESULTS for your bottom line.

Selling Great Creative is a Joke

A Marketer, a CEO and a Board member walk into a bar…

Have you ever presented a campaign in a meeting and heard,

“It just doesn’t speak to me.”

After 18 years as an ad agency AE, Credit Union Marketing VP and now Consultant, I’ve pitched a million ideas and I can testify that selling a creative idea is like telling a masterful joke.

Set Them Up

Every memorable joke spends more time on the set up than on the punch line.

• Define the problem to be solved
• Detail the target (what they look like, what they do, how they use our products)
• What differentiates us to the target
• Outline the objectives
• How is this worth the investment 

Tell a Great Story … Briefly

A good joke tells a short story and evokes emotion.  It is meaningful enough to make you care and quick enough to not lose interest. 

As you plan your presentation, think about the last great standup routine that you’ve seen.  Terrific comedy is equal parts delivery, timing and material.  Keep your delivery tight, don’t rush through your delivery and save the creative material for the end.

Save the Punch Line for Last

“To get to the other slide.”

“I rang the doorbell, didn’t I?!?”

A punch line without the set up and background isn’t too funny. So how can you expect everyone to go crazy about your campaign if you just jump right into the ads? 

Unfortunately, too many marketers step up to the mic and start spouting off punch lines alone and wonder why no one’s laughing.

A great punch line is also impactful and a bit edgy ... your creative should be too.

Game changing campaigns that will set your institution apart are no joke!  But selling the idea internally needs to be thought of that way.  

*** This blog is for you right-brained marketers.  For the left-brain 

take on this topic check out our video blog: 1+1+1=100 ROI. ***

Shameless plug: We bring this level of detail to every project and you'll have fun as if you're in a comedy club.  Call us today to help out your marketing department and ask about our ROI Guarantee.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Want to learn more?  Enroll in the MarketMatch eCollege!  Smart learning online sessions delivered five consecutive Tuesdays with CFMP credits, tactical advice and a game plan for success!

MarketMatch is a full-service marketing firm, dedicated to the credit union and community banking community.  We utilize knowledge-based strategies to help you FOCUS on the efforts that will generate the greatest  MOMENTUM for your organization and demonstrate RESULTS with our written ROI Guarantee.

Learn more here. (click here)

Chat with me LIVE! (click here)

Or email me directly (click here)

937-426-9848

Should All Marketing Become "Distributed" Marketing?

Distributed marketing refers to a marketing model in which both a corporate marketing department and local business units or channel partners make marketing decisions and perform marketing activities. A distributed marketing model will often exist when a company sells its products or services through a network of regional or local outlets. Distributed marketing models can exist in virtually all kinds of companies, they almost always exist in franchised businesses, and they are frequently found in industries like insurance, financial services and manufacturing.

The defining characteristic of a distributed marketing model is that the local business units or channel partners have some degree of autonomy from the corporate marketing department when performing marketing functions.

Companies with a distributed marketing model have traditionally faced challenges that organizations with centralized marketing don't typically encounter.

• Corporate and local marketers have different priorities. Corporate marketers focus on maintaining consistent brand messaging and presentation, while local marketers want marketing programs that will drive sales for their location or business.
• Local marketing partners often lack the resources to run effective marketing programs on a consistent, frequent basis.
• Companies often lack the ability to measure the performance of local marketing programs.

The good news is that technologies now exist that will enable companies to address these challenges and improve the effectiveness and efficiency of distributed marketing operations. Most significantly, these technologies enable corporate marketers to maintain control of brand messaging and brand presentation, while making it easy for local marketers to create and use marketing messages and materials that are customized for their specific needs and markets. (Note:  If you'd like to learn more about distributed marketing automation, contact me via e-mail at ddodd(at)pointbalance(dot)com to request a copy of our new white paper, How the Right Technology Will Supercharge Distributed Marketing.)

Not only will these technologies optimize distributed marketing operations, they can also create new possibilities for companies that don't currently use a distributed marketing model.

Marketers now recognize that "localizing" marketing content has become critical for marketing success. In a recent survey by the CMO Council, 86% of marketers said they intend to look for ways to better localize marketing content. When asked to identify the major obstacles to effective localization, 30% of survey respondents said understanding local market dynamics and variables, 23% cited measuring campaign effectiveness on a local level, and 22% said finding knowledgeable local market resources and experts.

The reality is, it's difficult for marketers in a central marketing department to truly understand what's needed to make marketing effective in diverse local markets. One solution is to decentralize marketing, to implement something closer to a distributed marketing model. Many companies have not taken this approach because corporate marketers fear losing control of brand messaging and brand presentation and because of the other challenges traditionally associated with distributed marketing. Now, the right technology tools can effectively address these concerns.

A more collaborative relationship between corporate and local marketers will enable companies to leverage both corporate marketing expertise and local market knowledge and insights. Distributed marketing technologies can make this kind of decentralized and collaborative marketing model a realistic and practical alternative for many companies.