Archive for November, 2008

If we are always paying attention, we can learn from most of life’s experiences. As I was laying down to sleep after writing a late night proposal, I started thinking about how Barack Obama ran his campaign and how he made an impact on such a large group of people, then I saw some clear parallels that could be used by business owners and marketers. Please note, this is not meant to be in any way politically slanted.

Here are three takeaways for every business owner or marketer from the winning political campaign:

1. Listen to your prospects and find what their real needs are. Obama listened to what the American people were saying and then addressed their most pressing issues such as joblessness and health care.

2. Speak your prospects language. Obama did not engage people in political jargon, or big words to impress people. He spoke like he was actually trying to communicate a clear message to his audience – and in the end, he did just that,

3. Communicate with your prospects often & effectively. The Obama team did a great job of communicating with their constituents via email. Very early on, I decided to follow some of what the politicians where doing in terms of online marketing, and ended up subscribing to his email list. Not only did he communicate often, but made great use of videos, and in particular viral video marketing (I received some of the messages multiple times from other people). My one complaint is that they did not respond to my direct request for an interview on the topics of how they were using the Internet in their outreach.

Whether you voted for him or not, I hope you can choose to learn a little something from how he ran his campaign. And for our nation, I do pray that he provides only change for the better.

As my wife and I were looking for the lovely mailer that we all get to tell us where to vote, I figured I would let my fingers do the walking. To my delight, I found a helpful Google Resource to help me find where to vote. Per the website, it was developed with state and local election officials and the Voting Information Project in conjunction with the League of Women Voters. All you need to do is enter your home address and your local voting center will be displayed.

As far as how to vote? Don’t ask Google. Both parties have put out so much garbage that the decision is not so simple. I say, let your conscience be your guide. Most of all, be responsible and VOTE!

Once again, I had to take a blogging sabbatical to complete my book and I am glad I did, although I am also I was very excited to get back to blogging once again. I have lots of topics to blog about which I can now discuss without giving away any of the info from the book prior to it’s release.

My goal in writing this book was to serve those small businesses that simply do not have the finances to hire a professional search engine marketing firm. For quite some time I tried to figure out how to serve small businesses while remaining profitable, and my solution was to provide a guide that spells out the A to Z’s, then also offer affordable coaching services to help them implement their Internet Marketing strategy.

Here is what is included in the guide:

- Internet Marketing Basics
- Keyword Research
- Website Optimization & Coding
- Getting Web Traffic from Search Engines & Directories
- Creating Online Community Through Blogging
- The A to Z Guide to Blogging With WordPress
- Using Social Media to Build Your Online Presence
- Article Marketing
- Viral Marketing
- Press & Media Relations
- Local Search Marketing
- Email Marketing
- Online Advertising
- Affiliate Marketing
- Gaining Expert Status
- Website Usability
- Reputation Management
- Developing Your Internet Marketing Plan (includes Internet Marketing checklist)
- Marketing Your Website Without a Budget
- Offline Marketing for Your Website
- Setting Goals
- Understanding Website Analytics
- Internet Marketing Educational Resources

Over 100 pages of detailed “how to’s” including several screen shots. All of this for just $19!

Visit our website and pick up your copy of The Internet Marketing Guide for Small Business TODAY and get on the road to dominating your market!