SEO Content Solutions

Media Most Publications makes a resonating point in its article “Moms Say Advertisers Don’t Get Them”

This group represents 44 percent of the women’s market, but accounts for 55 percent of spending on consumer electronics; 51 percent of spending on food; 49 percent of spending on health & beauty aids; 48 percent of spending on home furnishings, and 47 percent of spending on clothing.

Further, the article points out that only 20% of moms feel like advertisers connect with them. Wow!

I spent the weekend talking with other mom and women that I know, asking them what kind of things they buy online. When I called one of my friends, she was actually at the Macys.com site at that moment, looking at some “cute tops” that she had just recommended to a friend who shops online on a regular basis.

Some things these moms bought online were:

• Clothes (for kids and for themselves)
• Books (for kids and for themselves)
• Kid’s educational software
• Kid’s party supplies (matching plates, cups, decorations)
• Halloween costumes
• Toys
• Groceries
• Holiday and birthday gifts

It makes sense. Women are responsible for a majority of the household shopping and buying online is the ideal way to get the most selection and the best value and best value. When I lived in an area that supported it, I spent $200 at Albertson’s grocery store every 2 weeks like clockwork.

Another thing I always buy online, are gifts. This year, I’ve purchased a bonsai tree, a Build-a-Bear, a Nintendo DS, microwavable slippers, a CD player, magazines, and lots of books online for gifts because it’s so much easier for the company to gift wrap them and send them out than for me to have to do this.

Most people who aren’t responsible for the household shopping and gift-giving don’t realize just how time consuming this process is. If you’re thinking “waaa-get over it,” then you’re one of those marketers/retailers that DON’T GET IT.

The article also states that “most moms–67%–would rather get information from a peer than a celebrity mom.”

The more I thought about it, the more I realized how important this was.

I think everyone is more likely to make purchases based on a recommendation verses and ad; it’s just that women tend to talk on the phone and in person about things that they purchased more often.

The effect of this word of mouth is staggering. I recommended the Leap Frog Phonics videos to a friend I hadn’t spoken with in months within 10 minutes of our conversation. The next time I talked to her, she told me that she had purchased the videos. The reason I knew about and own the 3 phonic videos is because another friend recommended to me. There is also a math video in that series that I don’t have because my friend said that it wasn’t as good as the others were and that her daughter was bored.

Great! Now I can spend my money on kids educational CDs that my other friend recommended when I was picking up my daughter from a slumber party the other day. Thinking back other products/companies we recommended to each other during that pickup were Scholastic (we both had recently purchased books and I told her about their great-value encyclopedias) and Oriental Trading Company (kid’s crafts). Now I have the Oriental Trading Company catalog coming to my home and am getting ready to place an order.

Social media is the future of this kind of success online. Building communities around products can be a huge influence on sales.

In the beginning, many companies used the guise of a newsletter to send those on their mailing list blatantly one-sided advertisements. But companies quickly learned that this type of correspondence only enraged people and definitely didn’t create quality customers.

The widely accepted purpose of a newsletter today is to build/nurture customer loyalty as well as convert subscribers to buyersBelow are some of the newsletter I receive along with reasons why I find them useful and effective.

In Bubble Wrap - This is my absolute favorite - and look how simple it is! I loved this one when it was just a text email. This one is delivered every week day and every day I open it and read it and click the link to the site. Why? For the same reason any newsletter works. There is something in it for me.

When I click on the link, I can enter to win the advertised business book of the day. Authors pay to have their book promoted to In Bubble Wrap’s newsletter subscribers. In Bubble Wrap Guy, InBubbleGuy a he calls himself, gives an synopsis of the book in a very conversational tone that I enjoy reading. If I don’t win the book, I may buy it.

The fact that I like InBubbleGuy’s conversational tone is big part of the reason why I look forward to receiving this email every day. The way he connects on a more personal, yet still professional level, makes me feel compelled to buy books from www.ceoread.com rather than from somewhere else. I think that in the past, small businesses made every effort possible to look like big businesses. The result was a sterile business landscape. From what I have observed, the majority of people like seeing the humanity behind a business.

On that note, this site also has a comments section under every post. Check it out and you’ll see how many people love InBubbleGuy and are excited about what he’s got going on. It’s nice for me, the reader, to connect with other readers who enjoy the same thing as I do. The readers themselves are a type of community brought together by the topic of this newsletter.

Site Pro News comes out once or twice a week. The thing I like about this one is that it offers useful information and it is scannable. Like everyone, I don’t have a lot of time. I need to get important information as fast as possible and move on. The fact that the article is always grouped into managable chunks helps to make this possible.

The other thing that makes quick reading possible is that the newsletter is always laid out the same way. Continuity is a similar element in all of these newsletters. I want to know exactly where to look every time to find what I need. The downside to this is that I never look at the advertisements on this site. Because my eye is conditioned to go straight to the content, I know where not to look to avoid the advertisements.

Jeffery Gitomer’s Sales Caffeine is another fav. Like the others, this one is always laid out the same way. Products to buy are usually down the right side and though they are advertisements, I do look at them and I do consider them. Perhaps this is because they are “Jeffrey’s” recommendations and I feel as if Jeffery and I are pals, although I’ve never met him.

This newsletter is a little long. Quite often I don’t read it right away because I feel like I will have to invest a lot of time into it. I end up saving it in my Gitomer Outlook file for later viewing, but you know how that goes… However, I usually scroll down to “Quote of the Week” and read it before filing. This particular week’s quote starts off “Kick your own ass. No one else will do it for you.”

One of the best parts of the newsletter worth pointing out is the “Shot in the Wallet” section where Jeffery answers real questions. Involving real people with real questions and real stories makes any copy more compelling. The people you are “speaking” to are real–treat them that way.

Start Up Nation: The approach with this newsletter is to give the titles and sometimes a brief intro paragraph and encourage readers to click back to the site. It’s not as effective for me as when the entire story is in the newsletter. I think this is because I don’t have enough vested interest in the story yet to click through.

To get someone to click is asking them to part with their valuable time. If I click and open up a new Firefox tab with one of those links, I’m making more of a commitment than reading something in my email. I scan the newsletter and if I see a headline that looks interesting, I click. Otherwise I delete. I’m sure there’s a lot of good info there, but if I can’t get involved with it, I just don’t have the time to take a chance.

Product Focused Newsletters: It’s important to note that all of the above newsletters focused more on the sales of information transfer verses a product. Products don’t necessarily need tons of informational copy and word articles. In fact, someone who subscribes to a newsletter from a product site doesn’t necessarily want to read a bunch of text–especially text that has been formulated for the sole purpose of filling space. I subscribe to several product only newsletters.

Put together a few featured items every month. The copy here should be designed for the sole purpose of sparking buyer interest and then making them salivate to own the featured products.

Master Replicas does a great job of conversational style sales copy. The caption under this image begins: “Boba Fett is undoubtedly the baddest bounty hunter in the galaxy…but Master Replicas has got his number.” Every time I get one of these emails I find myself day dreaming by the end of the newsletter about building an entire room full of light sabers, swords, and Elvin battle helmets.

In order to be effective, the products showcased must be targeted and tagged with copy that creates an emotional need and then fills it. This may mean that your newsletter signup form asks questions about preferences and that you create 2-3 different versions of the newsletter intended for different subgroups.

Recap:

• Your audience wants to know what’s in it for them - tell them
• Don’t be afraid to have a personality
• Share the questions/opinions of other real readers
• Get to the point quickly
• Make information scannable
• Give people a good reason to click a link
• Use consistent formatting
• Choose TARGETED products to showcase

Who doesn’t want to achieve rockstar celebrity status? Just because you’re in the morgage industry or the title insurance business doesn’t mean that you can’t be a celebrity in your industry. After all, popularity and success go hand in hand. To become really successful means being well-known in your circle.Becoming the industry expert is something that’s taken, not given. With persistence and confidence you can claim your spot as the expert in your industry. Your goal should be to get people to contact you when they have a question in your area of expertise. In order to do that, you need to get your name out there, define your niche, and establish your worth.

Radio Interviews
Hundreds of radio shows seek knowledgeable and interesting guests to satisfy their listening audiences. With the onset of satellite radio, internet radio and podcasting, the number of hosts seeking guests grows daily. You need not be a celebrity to secure a radio interview. Plenty of opportunities exist for individuals with knowledge in specialized areas.

Pitching yourself for radio is simple when you have a plan. Before you pick up the phone, make a list of all of examples that qualify you as an expert in your industry. Reference titles of articles and books that you’ve authored, names of awards that you have won, and testimonials from satisfied clients and reputable associations. Design a short pitch for yourself using some of the things you listed.

When you call the radio show, start by introducing yourself immediately. A fter your introduction, present a solid reason why the person at the other end of the phone should continue to listen by speaking in terms of how your knowledge can benefit their show.

Consider the goal of your first phone call to a radio station to introduce yourself and gain the producer’s contact information. You may not book a show with your first phone call, but you can now send your press kit to the show’s producer and place yourself on their radar for the next time they cover a topic in your arena.

Resources:
Podcasting News.com: A directory of Podcasts
Live 365.com: A directory of internet radio station
Radio-Locator.com: A directory of every radio station on the planet.

Press Releases
A press release is an informative document written to alert the media of a timely event about your company. Your event doesn’t need to be a showstopper – thousands of press releases are written every day on topics such as a company name change or the introduction of a new product.

A press release, however, does need to be written to appeal to a general audience. The more unique the topic, the more likely your release is to get noticed. Newspaper and magazine editors depend on content for the success of their publications and often simply repackage well-written press releases as articles or blurbs.

Try adding a unique spin to the topic and devising a way to involve the public. For example, if your restaurant has introduced a new sandwich, develop a contest for the community to name the sandwich. While you’ve managed to alert the public of the sandwich’s peppery corned beef, savory mushroom sauce, and plump focaccia bread, the public gets a chance to win a free meal, and have their name credited on the menu.

Build your own list of newspaper and television contact names and fax numbers or hire a professional public relations company to distribute your article to the a large number of media outlets. Don’t gloss over small local papers as a recipient for your press releases. These are often a great place to begin building your publication portfolio.

Resources:
PRWeb Free Press release distribution with lots of exposure
PR Zoom Another high quality, free PR distribution site

Distribute Free Content
Tens of thousands of website owners face the daunting challenge of stocking their websites with the fresh, informational content their visitors seek. To meet this growing need, numerous free content sites have emerged, offering publishing rights to thousands of articles on a variety of topics. In exchange for the article’s publishing rights, the author has a chance to promote themselves with a short bio and link to their website at the conclusion of the article.

Resources:
eZine Articles - Serving 110,229 Quality eZine Articles Written By 16,687 Expert Authors
Find Articles.com - Search millions of articles from leading academic, industry and general interest publications.

Be sure to include mentions and links to all of your articles, radio interviews, and press releases on your website and in the literature you use to attract new clients. This type of credibility goes a long, long way in terms of building trust and customer confidence. Before long, you won’t just be establishing yourself as an industry expert, you’ll be the expert!