Category: Blog

Be More Visible – Your Information…Can Visitors Find It?
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I recently visited a website looking for a particular article. I looked throughout the landing (home) page for a “Search Box.” I looked in the header, footer, body, sidebars…nothing!

The site didn’t offer a way to search the website! A search box is extremely important if your website is content-heavy. If new content is added regularly, it’s very important to have a way for visitors to search for information not found on the landing page. Don’t depend on navigation for visitors to locate information. Unfortunately, I didn’t find what I was looking for and I probably won’t go back to that site to look for anything else.

If you blog or provide news, an “Archive Page” is a must.  The archived information is sorted by month and year. A good example would be someone who may remember an article from June. They may not remember an exact date, but by clicking June in the archive, they can quickly browse to find what they need. The archives can be added to the navigation or a jump box (drop down box) on one of the sidebars can provide easy access.

Another great feature is the Site Index or Site Map. A site index (or more commonly called a site map) is an outline of the structure of the content on your website. It’s laid out in a hierarchical form and offers branches from one level to the next. The site map serves three purposes:

  1. To help search engines crawl your website for new or updated content.
  2. To provide an “at-a-glance” view of the website.
  3. To allow visitors to use as a website navigation tool.

There are two types of site maps – one which is seen by the user on the website (HTML format) and one hidden behind the scenes, which is used by the search engines (XML is one popular format). I recommend using both as it also can assist with Search Engine Optimization (SEO).

One more great resource, which serves two purposes, is an RSS Feed. Really Simple Syndication is a way to publish updated content such as blogs, news, and headlines in a standardized format. Many web browsers and email programs offer RSS feed capabilities. You will see an orange feed icon when visiting a website. Upon clicking, a browser window will open up a page and ask if you would like to subscribe to this news feed. Once selected, whenever new content is added to the website, it will be sent to your news reader.

Another way to use RSS feeds is as a news aggregation service. For example, you have a favorite blog or news site you follow and would like to share it with your visitors. Some blogging systems offer an RSS widget to use to feed information into your site. By having an RSS feed available to your visitors, they too can feed your information into their websites.

The main purpose of your website is to have visitors see what you have to offer. Your information doesn’t stop at the home page. You have useful information on the inside too.

Your visitors should be able to find it.

16 Ways To Be More Visible
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Tip: Always stay top of mind. Never let them forget you.

  1. Send a card. Any appropriate card.
    • Say ‘thank you.’ This should go without saying. One way to be more visible is to send a thank you card. Send a note to your employees, your boss, your co-workers. Yes, you can send an email, but since people are receiving more emails than snail mail these days, your note will definitely be more visible.
    • Sympathy. Let them know you care. At this time in their lives, all it takes is a brief moment of your time.
    • Happy Birthday! Most people enjoy and appreciate a birthday card or email that reminds them you are thinking of them and you care.
    • Congratulations! They are always appreciated.
  2. Give a compliment. People love to hear how their products or services are benefiting others. Let them know how your experience has made an impact on you or your business.
  3. Bar/Bat Mitzvah. Your friends and co-workers appreciate you taking an interest in their personal/family lives. However, know your boundaries.
  4. Send a post card. For any reason. If you have a new product or service, new or changing employees, helpful hints and tips. Send them regularly. You can begin with every month, every two weeks or every quarter.
  5. Send a newsletter. Let them know what you’re doing – on a regular basis. Tell them about your new products or services, new clients, tips and professional advice.
  6. Send an eNewsletter. Same content as above. With an eNewsletter, you’ve saved on the printing costs.
  7. Enter a contest. You become visible when you enter and even more visible when you win. It’s an opportunity to get your name, business and organization out there as a company whose work is worth recognizing.
  8. Have a contest. You create the rules. Some ideas: Ask for creative ways your clients have used your product, best photos using your product, the most referrals, the best essay on any subject. Again, let everyone know about the contest and the winners.
  9. Win something. And let everyone know about it – on your website, blog, Facebook™, LinkedIn, Twitter and anywhere else…letterhead, emails, envelopes, resume. There are many places to let others know you are an award-winning enterprise.
  10. Have a blood drive. Advertise in the newspaper and electronically. Post signs at your business.
  11. Stick it. Buy stickers to place on envelopes and folders. Yours can proclaim your awards, anniversary, new products or service. You choose.
  12. Plan an event. There are many reasons to host a networking event or celebration. Do you have a new product? Did your company/organization win a contest? Did you receive an award or a new contract? Consider the 100th customer or company milestone. Invite clients, potential clients and community members. Inform the media, your Facebook friends and Twitter followers.

There are many more ways that your company can be more visible. What are you doing to stay top of mind with your clients or future clients? Why don’t you share them on our Facebook page at http://facebook.com/VisibilityMarketingInc

The Celebrity Endorser: Can It Work For You?
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“I’m not a doctor, but I play one on TV,” is one of my favorite, most memorable line from a celebrity endorser. It was the mid-‘80s and Vicks 44 used Peter Bergman, who played Dr. Cliff Warner from my beloved soap opera, All My Children to endorse Vicks 44.

Celebrity faces have  represented products and services for over 100 years.  In the early years, one celebrity would characterize one product. From print material to billboards to television commercials – that one celebrity was the “face” of that brand.

Back in 2002, Oprah Winfrey aired her first “Favorite Things” show where she shared products that she felt were noteworthy to her audience . Plus, they would make great gift items. The show typically aired around the beginning of the holiday season in early November. The best part for the audience was that they were given some of those products to take home. Product categories included food favorites, beauty and body care, books, music and home and high-tech discoveries.

Several years later, the segment began to spotlight specific groups. For example, the 2004 audience members were teachers. In 2005, the audience was volunteers from Hurricane Katrina. In 2008, the show aired in May instead of November due to the nation’s economic hardships. In 2009, instead of a massive audience giveaway, Oprah held a sweepstakes where there was only one favorite things grand prize winner.

Oprah Winfrey’s product endorsement can take a business with virtually no website traffic to crashing its hosting services. It means that those businesses can count on making lots of money – just by her mentioning it – and, especially if that product is listed on her Favorite Things.

Not everyone is fortunate enough to have access to Oprah, but if you look closely around you, in your circle of influence, you are bound to find someone Oprah-like that has a certain amount of clout.

Do your research. Ask family, friends and even other business associates if they know the “who’s who” in your area. As a matter of fact, see if there’s a “Who’s Who” local directory in your business community. These people could be corporate big wigs or they could be well-known bloggers who write product reviews. Find those people and get your product to them. For starters, ask if they would not mind reviewing your product and writing a testimonial. If you are creating an ad or commercial, ask if they would endorse your product or service.

Check out some of the products that made it to Oprah’s 2012 Favorite Things List. Who knows, one day you may be one of them (wink wink).

October was National Cyber Security Awareness Month
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The Department of Homeland Security established October as National Cyber Security Awareness Month to educate the public and businesses about cyber security.

Stephen Morris, Community Moderator for the Small Business Association’s (SBA) blog recently wrote a blog about this initiative. Below are some of the highlights.

Mr. Morris notes nine (9) steps your business can take to improve your cyber security. He provided great detail for each of the steps which you can read in their entirety by clicking here.

  1. Use the FCC’s Small Biz Cyber Planner to create a cyber security plan and establish cyber-security rules for your employees
  2. Protect against viruses, spyware, and other malicious code
  3. Educate employees about safe social media practices
  4. Manage and assess risk
  5. Download and install software updates when they are available
  6. Make backup copies of important business data and information
  7. Control physical access to computers and network components
  8. Secure Wi-Fi networks

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As we constantly use our computers and the various mobile devices, as well as Wi-Fi connections – we all need to be aware of the risks and how we can protect our identities, our businesses and ourselves.

The SBA provides a lot of useful information for starting and managing your business. The information is free – so there’s no excuse not to visit the site to get the information you need to protect your business investment.

Be More Visible – Create a Video
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Video sharing is becoming increasingly more popular. They’re not just for family sharing anymore, but businesses are using video to sell their products and services. Video can help you introduce yourself and your business to potential customers online via your website, YouTube, Vimeo or even in your email.

Using a video, you can include your staff, provide a walk-through of your offices, show employees working and interacting, share information to potential employees, and much more. You can also show your customers how your product or service is manufactured and/or how it works.

Are you a nonprofit organization? Do you have a story to tell? Be creative. Use video to show potential donors why their money is needed and how the funds will be used.

If you have funds to put towards developing your video, research video production companies in your area. Get links to review videos they have completed before making your decision. Ask for references to contact.

On a tight budget? Think about producing the video yourself. You are not producing a full-fledged movie – but a three to five minute video. Put together a strategy and a script and then figure out who will be the “on-air” person to present your concept. Also, keep your audience in mind and develop your strategy around that.

Need a few ideas? Go to YouTube and do a keyword search to see if others have developed a video similar to what you have in mind. This will help you create yours.

Once you have your video completed, you can use a video editing program to insert text, overlays, even music.  A free program on most PCs is Windows Movie Maker.

When your video is finally ready, you can upload it to Youtube, Vimeo or another video storage website. Most, if not all – come with additional editing functionality such as annotations (text bubbles that are overlaid on the video while it’s playing) and embed codes for embedding the videos on your website.

To take advantage of search engine optimization (SEO), be sure to complete as many fields as possible in the video information such as title, subtitle and/or captions, description, keywords, and category.

Use “share buttons” to share your video to Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and  other social networks to which you belong.

Creating a video should be a fun project. Don’t make it too complicated. Do put together your strategy first so you can keep on track. Just don’t forget to have fun with it.

Be More Visible – Be Ever So Helpful
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We covered seven tips on how you can be helpful and gain visibility at the same time. Below are six more “helpful” tips:

  1. Participate. When the question arises, “Who wants to be part of our new initiative to …” make sure your name is on the list. It’s another opportunity to connect and be more visible.
  2. Respond. When you receive a complaint about your product or service, respond to all inquiries. Work hard to correct any insufficiencies or deficiencies.
    • Answer all questions or inquiries when someone calls or writes about your product or service. Don’t ignore it. They will appreciate your responsiveness.
    • Return the phone call or email preferably in less than 24 hours. Even if it’s to leave a voice mail. If you have to call at 3 a.m. to leave a message, do it. Your attention to the matter is what’s important.
  3. Offer your professional advice/assistance. Sign up to be a resource for other small businesses in your area of expertise. Organizations like the Small Business Administration’s SCORE (Service Corps of Retired Executives) and professional associations are always on the lookout for professional assistance.
  4. Do what no one else wants to do. When you hear, “We can’t find anyone else to do it…” find out why (there may be a barrier that’s difficult to overcome). If you can help…do it. It may take work, but you can definitely position yourself as the person who came in and turned a situation around.
  5. Befriend a journalist in your area of expertise. As you read your local or national publication, notice who writes the articles about your industry. Call or email them. Give tips and article suggestions. Writers are always looking for leads and people to interview. Why can’t you be the expert they contact to substantiate their work?
  6. Perform an RAK – Random Act of Kindness. Though most of these tips encourage you to toot your own horn, take time to do something without notice or fanfare. You will still be more visible, trust me.

Be More Visible – Be Informative
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Whether it’s a blog, Facebook message, tweet on Twitter or an update on LinkedIn, always be truthful and avoid overkill.

  1. Write a blog or an article. Start with a trade magazine. Send a tweet. Inform your clients and potential clients about what your company is doing, the latest advancements in your industry and general information. Comment on blogs. Search your industry or area of expertise and read what others are saying. Post your comments and links to your blog site.
  2. Post it. Always put the information in your blog and on your business Facebook page. Remember to tweet your followers and let your connections on LinkedIn know about it.
  3. Conduct a seminar or demonstration. If you know, what you know, what you know… then share it. It’s one of the best ways to boost your credibility. Not sure of where to begin? Start with your local community. Many offer a variety of classes to residents and non-residents, such as computer literacy, tax tips, retirement strategies, cooking, health and fitness and, “how to start a business.”
  4. Produce a video. Make it short and to the point. Post it on your website, YouTube or make a DVD to sell or give away.
  5. Send a press release to the media. Are you offering a new product or service? Are you proud of an accomplishment? Is a special event planned? Do you have a great human-interest story that involves your product or service? Let the media know. They are always looking for positive stories.
  6. Write a book(let). Pass along your knowledge and pay it forward. Speak about your book. Mention that you are an author on your email page, business card or website. When you meet someone, tell them about your book. Now is not the time to be shy. Have a book signing. These can be held at coffee shops, in bookstores (obvious), out of your car (not so obvious). Always carry books with you and always be ready to talk about it. People are thirsty for knowledge and will be happy to take a drink from you.
  7. Write a white paper (or whitepaper). These are authoritative reports or guided that often addresses issues and how to solve them. White papers are not as costly as books (many are downloadable from websites), yet they can be very useful to the end user.
  8. Pick up the phone. Call a former client. Call a potential client. Just call. Remind them that you are still around and available for business.

Be More Visible – Be Helpful – Part I
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If the Beatles can, “get by with a little help from my friends,” so can strangers.

  1. Volunteer. You can begin at your child’s or neighborhood school. Do more than attend a neighborhood event.
    • Help. Many companies have service days where they choose a charity to help for the day. Volunteer your business. Your company is now more visible to the community since the event is often written in community papers and newsletters. It’s a win-win.
    • Community organizations and non-profits can use your assistance. Choose your favorite charity(ies) and offer to help with a fundraising campaign, event or daily task. Help from caring friends is always welcome.
  2. Be a mentor. Offer to help someone new to your field. You cannot be at the top of your game forever. Everyone needs someone to help get him or her to the next level. Think about the people who helped you.  Take a new college graduate or business owner under your wings. Contact them on a regular basis. Take them to lunch or dinner as time permits. We are never too far ahead in our careers to help along someone else.
  3. Serve on a non-profit or professional organization’s board. Many non-profit organizations can use your help. Boards are the people who set the policies for these organizations. Many non-profits cannot operate without board members. Volunteer your expertise to an organization for which you have passion. Many large non-profits (like hospitals) and for-profit businesses pay board members for their time and expertise.
    • Become the president. When asked to assume leadership of an organization, accept the challenge. It always looks good on your resume and shows your leadership initiative.
    • Not yet ready for the presidency? Serve in other leadership capacities such as vice-president, secretary or treasurer. Your service is always needed.
  4. Speak. Professional organizations are always searching for speakers to present at their monthly or weekly meetings. Search your industry for local opportunities with colleges and universities, Kiwanis Clubs, and business and human services organizations.
  5. Teach. Those who know, teach. With many junior and community colleges, you may need a bachelors or masters degree to teach a class in your field. It’s a great way to be more visible, and an opportunity for you to continue to stay current        in your industry.
  6. Give something away. Everyone likes a sale. However, they love that four-letter word “free” even better. Give away items that have your company logo, website and phone number. Be creative. Step beyond the cup and pen. Can you think of other items?
    • Offer to give items as “bag stuffers” at events. Call your local visitors and convention bureau and find out what convention is scheduled.
    • Mail them to potential customers.
  7. Criticize. Constructively. When you have an opportunity to help someone (instead of tearing them down), your comments or suggestions are often appreciated.

Customer Satisfaction and Negative Social Media Don’t Mix
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One bad customer experience + One Tweet = Disaster

Immediately after contact, many companies offer customer satisfaction surveys to their customers both online and by phone. For example, some surveys may ask, how well the representative handled the call or if the problem was resolved. Or, you may visit a website and within a few seconds a “pop up” window asks you to participate in an online survey. It asks you to rate the website, if navigation was easy, if the information was easy to locate and how quickly the information was found. Hospitals and healthcare facilities are offering patient surveys that inquire about patient wait times, how patients were greeted, how the doctors performed and the overall satisfaction of health care.

Before social media, most people called or wrote a company to share their frustration and dissatisfaction with a product or service. The chances that someone at the company called or wrote back were slim to none. Now, we have Facebook and Twitter – two powerful resources for immediately venting frustrations out to the universe. One tweet on Twitter could end up as a “Retweet” or be “Retweeted” five times or 100 times. It could then be “Liked” and “Shared” on Facebook. Before you know it, the information has gone viral and everyone is sharing how awful the company’s product or customer experience was.

The 2012 American Express® Global Customer Service Barometer was conducted in the U.S. and ten other countries, exploring consumer attitudes and preferences toward customer service.  The results found that the greatest amount of influence came from customers who have used social media for customer service.  They also indicated that those customers will tell approximately 53 people about a bad customer experience.  Forty-six percent were found to vent their frustration about a poor service experience.

In the 2012 survey, eight in ten (79%) Americans cited the following Big Four Service Gripes as their reason for switching brands:

1)      Rudeness:  An insensitive or unresponsive customer service representative – 33%

2)      Passing the Buck:  Being shuffled around with no resolution of the issue – 26%

3)      The Waiting Game:  Waiting too long to have an issue resolved – 10%

4)      Being Boomeranged:  Forced to continually follow up on an issue – 10%

In addition to having a well-trained customer service staff, someone should monitor customer satisfaction from a social media perspective. This person can watch satisfaction keywords on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn, as they are associated with the company name, product and brand.  If your company does not have a way to survey customers, this is a definite plus to consider for strategic planning, as surveys are a key ingredient to maintaining a positive brand.

To read more on the results of The 2012 American Express® Global Customer Service – visit this article on American Express – “Social Media Raises the Stakes for Customer Service”