Orange County SEO Consultants & Expert Web Designers Search Blog by Cal Coast Web Design

Orange County Social Media Summit

2012-05-31T08:29:00.000-07:00

Orange County Social Media Summit

Are you using social media for your business? If not you are missing out! Social media has the potential to increase your presence in the online world substantially. All it takes is time and knowledge.

Saddleback Church recently hosted a Social Media Summit to help anyone who was interested in learning from the best and brightest local Orange County social media experts. This event covered topics that range from Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, and various other social media applications.

Cal Coast Web Design attended the Social Media Summit. The knowledge that we obtained has already helped us and we have decided to share this vast amount of information with you! Over the next couple of weeks we will be posting what we learned from the various speakers.

This event was live streamed online and was attended by more than 700 people eager to learn tips and tricks on social media.

Did you know:

64% of people are more likely to buy a product they follow on twitter
61% will be using primarily video by 2015
Average email user receives 147 messages every day and spends more than 2.5 hours on email a day.

how do you make your business stand out from the already crowded sea of online advertising?

3 billion searches in Google done each day. Google answers 34,000 questions per second. Are people finding your website through search engines? If not...that's not ok!

Remember to visit Cal Coast Web Design blog for updates on how to get the most out of social media.

Social Media Content Strategy for Realtors

2012-05-23T14:28:00.000-07:00

Do you log on to Twitter and Facebook, and struggle with things to share and write? If so, you're not alone! As we know, content is king, and your social media profiles are an extension of that content ;)

Today at the Inman Agent Reboot session Katie Lance, Inman's Social Media director offered Orange County Realtors a simple social media content strategy.

Create killer, consistent, captivating social media content

Katie suggested that Realtors create a content grid, or spreadsheet, in Google Docs or Excel to get your next 30 days of content planned and prepared. You can also take it one step further and schedule your posts or tweets by using Hootsuite :)

Your spreadsheets should have the following categories:

Local Real Estate - Talk about your favorite feature of a listing, don't just post boring listings! Tell the story of a past client. Talk about your farm neighborhood #1. Talk about your farm neighborhood #2. Discuss a first time buyer challenge. Talk about the best dog parks, restaurants, etc.
National Real Estate - Compare home prices. Post Foreclosure Radar embeds. Share Inman, NAR, or CAR articles. This helps you and your sphere stay up to date with the important milestones in the Real Estate industry.
Community - Post Instagram photos of your community, and make friends with locals. Talk about the upcoming concerts or fairs. Upload pretty scenery, parks, monuments. Talk about local elections or events. Post a video of someone's relocation story.
Personal Interests - What do you love to do? People do business with other people they LIKE. When you share an interest, people are more likely to do business with you. Have you posted anything personal about dancing, dining, workout, arts, travel, family, friends?! Being 'all business' is boring; don't be afraid to show who you really are!

Remember....Have a plan!! It will help ensure your social media profiles remain consistent and balanced. These content grids are great for assistants and team members to keep them on track...aren't they?!

If you'd like help enhancing your content grid, blog content, or website content, call Cal Coast at 888-281-7665 x 2 today!

Need Images For Your Site? - Selecting Royalty Free Images

2012-05-08T15:14:00.000-07:00

Looking to replace or dd an image to your website or other marketing materials?

Just don't have the time or talent to take them yourself?

Don't have it in your budget to hire a professional photographer?

You may have been asked by a team member at Cal Coast to...

"Please be sure to review your images included in your mockup closely. If you want to replace or add any images, you may choose to send them over from your personal collection or you may search for royalty free images at www.istockphoto.com or other royalty free site of your choice. Just make note of image numbers and short descriptions if such images are included in your contract so that we may purchase and download them for you to add to your site. If such images were not included in your contract, simply download the x-small version and email it over to Support@CalCoastWebDesign.com."

If you don't have quality, professional photos to use for your online or print marketing, consider using Royalty free images as a solution. Often times these can be expensive, but there are some affordable solutions out there...

Microsoft Clip Art - Once a home to cheesy illustrations best used for high school projects, not a professional website, Microsoft Clip Art now offers real images or photos in their collection.
How To Download: These images can be downloaded immediately at no cost.
iStockphoto - Royalty Free Stock Photography, Vector Art Images, Music & Video Stock Footage
How To Download: These images can be purchased by the "credit." Each size and each image is a different credit amount. Credits are about $1.70/credit (the more you buy, the more you save.)
Should you need an image to take up the entire width of the average computer screen, consider the size that affords over 1200px wide. Otherwise, you will have to place multiple images together to take up the width of a header, etc.
Stock Exchange - Some free, some at a cost. Each individually priced.

If you need help pricing photos for your unique project, simply take note of the image name, unique ID, and URL and email for a quote.

Please feel free to comment and recommend your preferred site below. there are literally hundreds out there!

An Outline to Creating Content For your Website

2012-04-25T01:35:00.002-07:00

Content is King.

There are probably more articles focusing on this very skill in the search engine optimization and marketing world.

Trying to understand why content is so important?
Looking for tips to improve your content?
Not sure where to start? Looking for a simple guide to content writing for SEO?

We suggest you read about why and generally how by reviewing some of the links before.

There are zen masters in our industry that create custom content regularly that Cal Coast can stand by.
Start your content creation journey with a little background and general info by reading one of the Content Writing article below...

Why Content Marketing Is King on Entrepreneur.com
Why Content Is King for SEO by Joe Brockmeier on ReadWriteWeb
12 Things That Will Kill Your Blog Post Every Time by Neil Patel on SEOmoz
The Definitive Guide to Awesome Web Content on SEOmoz

Are you now convinced why content is important?
Do you have a better idea as to how to write it, but not sure how to get organized and started?

Feel free to use the general layout before as a guideline. Don forget though, you should really customize each page to match the needs of the user.
Make sure you supply the demand.
Ease the fears.
Get them to trust you.
Make it easy.
Make it accessible.

For starters, a few pointers while creating the content from the outline below...

Format
No one like a sea of black. Break up your text with sub titles, different font alignments, bolding, italicizing, indenting, BULLET POINTING, numbering, etc. Even use color to make something stand out, but keep it consistent and professional.
Images
Text or images? Which would you prefer to look at? A picture can tell 1000 words. Let it evoke emotion, break up your text and keep the user reading.
Keywords
Keep your keywords in mind when writing your content. If you can fit one of your terms in naturally, you should. Make sure it still reads organically. Over stuffing or improper use of a keyword can actually hurt you. And, quite frankly, it doesn't make you look any more professional.
Sub Titles
Be sure to better organize your content (and easily integrate a keyword in without making it fit in a sentence) for sub categories of the page. Keep it organized. Think "Services" "Options" "Programs" "Who We Help" "Why Choose Us" " FAQs" etc.

A Guide: Use this to help outline your next content page. Simply copy & paste!

***START OUTLINE***

Title: (Keyword) Feel free to use a colon or dash to emphasize a point, call someone to action, or integrate a keyword.

Intro paragraph: Grab their attention. Get me to keep reading. Relate. Call to action in case they don't want to keep reading.

Options: Give options to other sections on the page if there are a lot and could use further organizing.

MAIN CONCEPT TO WRITE ABOUT

Who

Do you service?
Let them know they are in the right place, they have the same need, problem, etc.
Will benefit?

What:

Are you offering?
Is it?
Are people calling it?
Types are there?
Are the components of this product, service, solution?
Are there different kinds/variations?
Are the top 5 questions you get?

Where:

Can I get it?
Do you service (areas)?

When:

Do I need it?
Do you offer it?
Is the best time?

Why:

Do I need it?
Do I need you?
Should I choose you?

Locations, articles, magazine, and other Featured In type media.

Awards

Credentials

Education

Certifications

Licensing

Associations

How:

Will it help me?
Do I get started?
Do I Buy?
Much does it cost?

Closing Statement: Wrap up. Give trust factor(s).

Call-To-Action:

What should I do next? - Share, buy, call, click, follow, sign up, connect, etc.
What should I read next?
Promo or incentive

***Often times there are more than 1 of these. Even up to 6.

Would you like help with content creation from keyword research to outlines and inerviews and landing page design & development?

Let us help you with any aspect of the process. We train, organize, implement & create custom search focused content for your website.

If a Cal Coast representative has directed you here, they are looking for content to help develop your site for your marketing package. Please reference the email sent for more information.

Orange County Realtors Invited! Realtors Success Series on Social Media April 2 2012

2012-03-30T12:17:00.003-07:00

Both new and seasoned realtors will benefit from the topics taught in this team instructed class on social media for Realtors.

Join Cal Coast founder, Angie Weeks, this Monday and learn about social media tools and tips.

Where: Orange County Association of Realtors: Laguna Hills Auditorium

When: Monday April 2, 2012 from 12:30 pm to 4:30 pm

Why: Orange County Realtors looking to increase realtors marketing awareness will benefit. This class will provide guidance on how market yourself, build your business, and promote listings.

How: Register online at Orange County Association of Realtors. *Small fee required to register.

Join the Orange County Association of Realtors to learn some valuable insights that will help your business grow through the strengths of social media marketing and properly communicating with your buyers and sellers.

For more information visit Orange County Association of Realtors.

Protecting your Domain Name: Reasons for Using Privacy

2012-03-27T15:16:00.000-07:00

Why You Should Care About Protecting Your Domain Name

Are you a new web site developer or business owner looking to register a domain? If you are, then you may not be aware of some of the privacy concerns that you should be aware of when creating a new domain name.

While you are mostly secure using a normal domain, there are a few issues you should consider when setting up a domain. There is spam prevention, guarding against identity theft, renewal spam prevention and preventing domain hijacking just to name a few.

Examples of Some of the Most Frequent Domain Name Privacy Issues

Spam Prevention: When you register a new domain name your email may be used to send mountains of spam mail. To prevent this choose a quality privacy protection service to prevent this extremely irritating problem.
Guarding Against Identity Theft: When setting a new domain name some of your information may be easily accessible to identity thieves. Choose a good security service to prevent this.
Domain Renewal Scams: Internet thieves can possibly obtain your mailing address information by doing a WHOIS search. With this information they can send an email that looks legitimate requesting your domain name renewal.

For more information, visit Longhorn Leads and read their article on Reasons to Privacy Protect your Domain.

OK, OK... I made a QR code. Now what do I do with it?

2012-03-13T16:17:00.000-07:00

You see them on mail, business cards, websites, banners, cups, t-shirts... there's no escaping.

And you've scanned one or 2 on your smartphone because you saw others doing it too.

So you made your own QR code or had someone create some for you too.

NOW WHAT?!

Once you have your QR codes sitting around, there are a number of ways to utilize them as a marketing tool to expand your brand.

Whether it's a link to a review site, a website landing page, form, your contact info, etc. Implement!

Here are some ideas for where to place your QR codes to get some action...

Business card
Your office or store front (what will I do while I'm waiting!?)
Email signature
Print marketing (banners, brochures, pamphlets, ebooks, mini disc labels, etc.)
Other Mailers (circulars, promos, coupons, etc.)
Promotional products (t-shirts, water bottles, mouse pads, screen cleaners, etc.)
Product tags
Invoices, Receipts, etc.
And Other Call-To-Action: buy now, sign up, even calendar, contact, social profiles, review & other landing pages, URL, etc.)

CLICK HERE to read "QR Codes - 21 Ways To Use Them To Build Your Business" by DonGrowther.com - Go ahead, click. You'll be inspired.

Reviews are such an important part of getting indexed well in local and organize search. Not to mention, they can certainly help with the decision making or conversion process. Make sure that you are using your QR code to inspire reviews (perhaps even add a little incentive.)

Need help making your QR code?
Want a fancy design including your logo in your QR code?
Need help brainstorming or consulting on how to use your QR codes?
Need help implementing them into your marketing campaigns?

Cal Coast has the team to help you get creative and attract conversions.

Understanding Yelps Perplexing Review Process: Why Can't I See My Yelp Review?

2012-03-09T16:00:00.000-08:00

Yelp is known as a great way for both shoppers and business owners to get the honest truth about a business and the service or products they offer through it (sometimes for business owners) rigorous review process. We hear it nearly every day... so many have with Yelp the review process.

Actually, our Orange County photographer friend, Mark Jordan, just spoke of his recent run in with yelp on his blog, "Yelp - Ethical or Corrupt?"

Trying to understand how certain reviews are selected and others are not, will give anyone a headache. What we can do is try and break down some ways to improve the chances in getting reviews to show up on a business page and help you understand the review process.

Understanding Yelp's Review Process

Yelp's review process is designed to be unable "to be cheated." There are ways to try and have reviews show up more frequently, but none of them are fool proof and Yelp is constantly changing the way it decides which reviews to have appear on a business profile page. Sigh!

Yelp makes the way they choose what reviews are posted intricate (or confusing) by design to keep their reviews genuine.

A review is always kept in Yelp database and if it is not live on your yelp business page right now there is a chance it can come back.

This exert is from Yelp Support Page and specifically explains Yelps review process.

"The filter continually reevaluates its decisions based on the information at hand. As a result, it's fairly common to see reviews come and go as the filter picks up new information. Either way, business owners should probably focus less on any one review and more on their entire body of reviews. Reviewers, in turn, should contribute to the site and give the filter a chance to get to know them over the long-term."

Improving Your chances of More Reviews

If you or someone you know posted a review on Yelp and it was removed, you probably have questions on how to make it stick next time.

The best way to get your review to stick is to have regular Yelpers post them. Meaning people who are trusted sources on Yelp, not just going in for the first time to help you out.
There is a small social aspect to Yelp reviews. It helps to be friends with members of Yelp. The more active a Yelper, the better chance a review by them will stick.

Engage the reviewer, send them a message saying thank you for your review and vote on it being either cool, useful, or funny depending on the specific review. Remember to add them as a friend.

I also found that there is a small social part involved in the Yelp reviews. Such as if you are friends.
Less volume of reviews over longer periods of time will also help reviews stick. Natural is key!
Another way is to encourage QR codes. Simply print a piece of paper with the Yelp icon and the QR code going to your Yelp review site, and post it in your business. This is easy but there is a small drawback; if it creates a huge spike in traffic on your business profile page there is a chance Yelp may block some reviews because of the spontaneous increase.

Never used a QR code? Check out Cal Coast Web Design blog on QR codes for some help.

Still having trouble with understanding Yelp? Cal Coast Web Design has numerous packages available specifically tailored towards online business marketing. Contact us today!

New Facebook Timeline Brands: Mandatory Update - What does this mean for your business?

2012-03-09T08:00:00.000-08:00

Facebook Timeline Brand Pages Change...

Why does my Facebook page look "funny" you ask?

Facebook brand pages are about to make the jump to the new timeline format that is used for regular Facebook members. As of March 30, all brand changes will be automatically switched over. Be prepared and make the jump now to have the best brand page for your followers! The change is mandatory.

The timeline changes present some interesting opportunities but also challenges to brands with Facebook presences. We think the gurus at Social Media Explorer explain it best. Don't miss out. Read "The New Facebook Brand Timeline Mistake You'll Likely Make" by clicking HERE.

This is a good example of what you can do for your brand page and how you can utilize Facebook's new timeline update to make engage your audience!

We specialize in Social Networking! Contact us today... we offer various packages that will boost your social media presence and can help you get the most out of Facebook, and design your new Facebook timeline brand page today!

5 Tips for Improving your Google+ Optimization

2012-03-08T19:35:00.000-08:00

Strengthening Search Engine Optimization with Google+

Promoting your business online or thinking about using social media's such as Google+?

Here are a few pointers that will lead you on your way to achieving a better presence online in the search rankings by just using Google+.

5 Tips To Improve Google+ Search Engine Optimization

Get More Followers

Most Social networking sites want you to be selective on who and how many people you add, this is not the case with Google+. By adding more followers to your account you are increasing the chances of more people viewing your content (blog posts, websites, etc..).

Also make sure to link the content you are creating to your Google+ account. If someone is following you and they happen to search for something that you created content about, your post will go towards the top of the search results! For an example click the link.

Set Up Authorship With Your Personal Profile

Are you a blogger? Take credit for the content you create though the search results in Google. When you set up Authorship with Google+ it will use your profile picture in the search results and give viewers the option to directly add you to their account. Remember the more followers you have the better!

Directly Connect Your Page

By directly connecting all of your online content to Google+. This will directly help you get followers. When your directly connected the search results will show some of your recent posts within Google+ right on the results page after a search.

Encourage +'s

The + button is useful because it will show the number of +1 in the search results. So make sure to include the +1 icon on your website. Be sure to add the icon to your website.

Fill Out Your Information

You'd be surprised how often filling out all of the information on your account is neglected on social networking sites. Google+ will actually use some of the sections when displaying information on the search results. For example the introduction and occupation sections are used frequently.

Click the link to see a more in depth explanation on the 5 ways to use Google+ to improve your search engine optimization.

Was this post about how to improve your search engine optimization using Google+ an eye opener for you? If it was and you want professional help call Cal Coast Web Design today for all of your social media needs!

Click here to read more about social media strategies!

Cal Coast Web Design on BlogTalkRadio FULL AUDIO | Orange County SEO

2012-02-01T20:49:00.000-08:00

Were you unable to listen to us live on BlogTalkRadio on Tuesday morning? No problem, listen to the full audio of the show right here; just hit play on the video below or click here to listen at YouTube!

Orange County SEO Expert, Angie Weeks from Cal Coast Web Design, goes over several SEO topics:

What's the point of SEO?
Casting your net to get more customers to "jump in" and how to target the RIGHT customers.
Keyword research is crucial - you can never guess what people are actually searching for.
Site architecture and its importance for SEO
Getting conversions (sales, bookings, more business) - how SEO is involved
Social media
Internet Marketing as a whole
What is Google looking for? How do they determine the results I see?

Also covered are common SEO Traps to avoid:

Wanting to rank for the wrong keyword - always need research
People thinking lead generation sites are better than what they can do themselves for leads - save money and optimize your own site, don't feed someone else's.
People paying for what they think is an optimized site, but they don't even own the site or the content, etc.

As many of you know people count on Cal Coast for all of this and so much more! Press play on the video in this post to listen to the audio from our appearance on BlogTalkRadio and get the latest info on SEO.

SEO Tips for Business TOMORROW on BlogTalkRadio.com

2012-01-30T13:59:00.000-08:00

Do you dream of higher Google rankings, but think its just a farfetched fantasy for your business? After all, you have work and clients to attend to...who has time for that internet stuff?? Sure, your competitor is doing well in Google, but they have a much bigger budget than you do... Or do they? *Maybe* they just know the right optimization tricks.

Does your business need SEO tips?

Join Angie Weeks, Cal Coast Web Design's founder, tomorrow at 9am on BlogTalkRadio.com as she unveils some easy to implement SEO and social media success tips. Whether you're just starting a business, or you're established but looking for new ideas, this will be a great show to tune in to!

In addition to demystifying SEO myths, you'll learn why SEO and Social Media is a must for effective marketing. Have you had a bad internet marketing experience or hesitate because someone you know has? We'll also go over the traps to avoid, and why not all SEO experts are the same.

Angie is honored to be interviewed by Mike Brenhaug, one of the best in Orange County when it comes to a Business & Focus Coach. Mike recently authored a best selling Amazon book about transforming a negative into a positive - we highly recommend to pick it up - it's called WTF. The sooner you read the book, the less WTF moments you'll have ;)

Here's that link again - hope you'll tune in tomorrow at 9am! Angie will also be answering your questions if you'd like a some FREE internet marketing advice.

Future of NFC Mobile Device

2012-01-20T11:52:00.000-08:00

Yesterday we had the opportunity to attend a conference talking about Near Field Communications (NFC) presented by Nick Testanero and what technology has in store for our county will blow your mind! What if we never had to carry a wallet, and a payment process was as easy as hovering your phone over the store product? Our smart phones today have taken the place of our calendars, contact books, and camera's but soon it will be the only item in our pockets. NFC enabled phones have Antennas built into the phone that pick up radio frequency signals which transmits the process or Near Field Communication.

NFC devices today even allow consumers to pay for plane tickets and bagging all with just a tap of the phone. Japan and a few large countries throughout the world are already taking advantage of these services, the United States is just behind. In Japan the public bus system uses NFC technology to enable citizen to use their mobile device to pay the toll fee without having a credit card or money in their pocket. In the U.S. however we are still slowing using this technology, but San Francisco is one of the elite city's who is using this system. How they incorporated this though is throughout the parking meters across the city. So with the tap of your phone you can pay for your meter, and even reimburse the meter from anywere in the city. In addition to those features this high tech device also lets you know where every meter in the city with no money in it making it easier to find parking.

Not only is this device helpful on the consumer side, but it also is expanding the business owner to completely new method of marketing. Near Future Communication devices can be placed in anything from a t-shirt to even a business card, Grocery stores to pharmacitcal companies are using this technology to increase their revenue.

Nick shared a few industry's as an example of how this device is being used.

Grocery Stores: Placing talking ads on the food shelves, so with a tap of the phone the consumer gets a description of the food read to them on their mobile device.
Pharmaceutical Companies: using NFC to read bar codes and test tubes.
Wine Companies: To prevent fraud of rare wine bottles, vineyards are placing NFC ships on the top of the corks to prove its authenticity.

IF You Want Shoppers, Avoid Using Words With Trending Topics in Your Posts

2011-12-20T17:38:00.000-08:00

Avoiding the "See More Posts" Section

Are you a marketer or running your own business and use Facebook? If so there are a few things you should know about Facebooks new redesign.

With the constant change of technology there are always going to be new redesigns. The most recent Facebook redesign will change how posts show up on your news feed. If you mention the any topic that's trending on Facebook, or among several people within a person's feed, that person will see all posts on that topic lumped together with tons of other posts. A perfect example of this in action has been over the last several weeks as more and more people talked about Christmas, Holidays, and the New Year. The problem is that your post wont appear unless the user hits the see more posts button under the one or two posts about the trending topic in Facebook's news feed.

So if you're a marketer and are trying to get a promotion out or just advertising, avoid the common words that are associated with holidays or other trending topics. Instead get creative use words that aren't used by every Facebook user.

Also keep in mind that if your message avoids the use of the words for a popular topic there might still be a chance that the post could get combined with other similar posts. Facebook also takes into account the links you post as well. So either avoid links with popular words or use a URL shortner. URL shortners are a great way to change a link that might include the words about the trending topic. Cal Coast recommends using bitly or owly . These are great free tools every marketer should use to avoid Facebook lumping.

If you or your business needs any help extra help in promoting your business through social media contact Cal Coast Web Design today!

Getting Healthy for the New Year with Alternative Health Care and Nutritional Consulting

2011-12-15T22:12:00.000-08:00

Q & A with Healthy Food Talk / Michelle Bond

Anna Bourland: Hi Michelle, I’m so happy to be speaking with you today about Healthy Food Talk and your expertise in the areas of alternative health care and nutritional consulting! Let’s jump right in!

So, let’s face it, it’s the end of another year. I think it’s safe to say the New Year’s Resolutions will soon be flying around and getting healthy has got to be at the top of most of our lists. While healthy living should be a year-round focus, do you think these New Year’s reflections are a good opportunity for people to get motivated and change their lifestyle?

Michelle Bond: Yes I do. A New Year's resolution can just be the motivation to get the program kick-started and into full gear. Once people realize how much better they feel eating and living in a healthy manor, then they become more motivated to make it a lifestyle choice. They see the results and realize it's not as difficult as they thought it would be. They begin to realize they don't have to sacrifice flavor and a lot of convenience to live healthy. In other words, they realize they don't have to eat "twigs and berries" or bland food just to be healthy.

AB: When you talk about healthy living, what exactly is involved? Do you just mean food? Is it working out? What makes someone “healthy” in your eyes?

MB: Healthy living is all about keeping the body in balance. When it is in balance then healthcare challenges hardly have a chance to occur. You have to look at the whole picture of nutrition, exercise, stress levels, relaxation, the toxins a person is exposed to, lifestyle choices and genetic dispositions. Every individual is unique so there is no such thing as one program fitting all. Health programs should take this into consideration and seldom do. Its best to work with a consultant to help you find out what program is the best one for you. There is truth to the saying that one man's remedy could be another man's poison.

AB: Your initial consultation is 90 minutes – what exactly is covered during that consultation?

MB: During the initial 90 minutes I review the customized nutritional program and educate the client on why I have recommended this custom protocol. I teach them what nutrients were lacking in their current diet, the toxins they were getting and probably didn't even realize and teach them how to become more aware of what is going on with the food choices they are making. There is also time to answer any questions the client might have.

AB: Are your clients on their own after your initial consultation? Can they have you hold their hand through grocery trips, cleaning out unhealthy items from their homes, and other lifestyle changes?

MB: No, the client is not alone after the initial consultation. This is why I have scheduled follow up sessions to help keep the client on track, monitor progress and make the necessary changes as needed. These sessions are also educational because we discuss a nutritional supplement protocol, detox program and lifestyle choices that would be best for the client We can also talk on the phone or by email if any questions arise or if a client needs a little pick me up. I also offer sessions where I can help the client clean out their pantry, freezer and fridge. I can teach them how to shop as well as cook. I can consult with them about how to eat healthy when eating out and traveling. I can even help them determine if their home is a non -toxic home and how to clean it up.

AB: How important are the follow up sessions?

MB: Very important. There is just too much information to do it all at once. If I try to cram it all into one session, the client usually feels overwhelmed and loses sight of what we want to accomplish. Therefore, they usually end up doing nothing. This obviously is counter - productive. It can take anywhere between 4-6 weeks for us to develop new habits. While we are trying to do that, we need to take things slowly and have support. That's where I come in; to give you the education and support you need to make this program a success. I also help take a lot of the stress out of it. Once the client has conquered one step, then we can move onto the next. We want to alleviate stress, not create more of it.

AB: What is the significance of the mind-body connection with practices such as meditation and Vedic astrology?

MB: It is very important. We are all a product of what we feed our body and our mind. Feed your body processed and fast foods and your body will reward you with healthcare challenges like cancer, diabetes, heart disease, etc. Feed your mind a steady diet of negative information and you find yourself unable to fulfill your dreams, stressed out and depressed. These negative emotions will then wreak havoc on your body, manifesting into healthcare challenges as well. The mind and the body are not separate. One affects the other. When they are working together in harmony then your body can stay balanced and have very few healthcare challenges.

Meditation helps to rid our body of stresses that are locked deep within. It gives us better rest than sleep (although we still need sleep). While resting the body works to balance itself, meditation helps to quiet the mind so we can discover who we truly are. Once we know this, then we can live fully in the present moment, recognizing and living to our full potential. We can see what is true and what matters most to us. We can then make a full contribution to whatever we focus on.

“A physician without a knowledge of Astrology has no right to call himself a physician.” - Hippocrates

Vedic Astrology allows us to see where the rough patches (as well as good) are in a person's life. It is like a road map of one's life. If we don't like the road we are on, many times we can do remedial measures to change it or to make it more bearable.

Hippocrates realized that the planetary energies and how they affected the individual would indicate health issues in a person's life. The planets are the macrocosm and we are the microcosm. Through astrology we can see what areas need work. This can bring peace of mind and a since of being more in control of our destiny and lives.

AB: Wow Michelle! It sounds like you are offering a lifeline with your services! What would you say to someone who feels like they have tried everything to get healthy and might be discouraged? Can you help?

MB: Yes I can. Conventional healing methods currently focus on just one thing: treating the disease. There are other factors that need to be considered. Nutrition is vitally important. If you aren't giving the body what it needs for nourishment, then there is no way it will have the strength to re-balance itself. The typical diet (even what we consider healthy) contains too many toxins and anti-nutrients. Since our bodies aren't designed to digest these elements, they build up in our bodies causing weight gain and healthcare challenges. If we want to feel great, we need to look at how we are eating.

Another factor that isn't considered is the energy of our bodies. All healthcare challenges start in our energy bodies before they manifest into our physical body. There is a whole branch of medicine called Energy Medicine that deals with this area of healing. When you want to rebalance the body, you need to find out where there are energy blockages and deal with them. This concept is not new. It has been around for thousands of years with Ayurveda and Traditional Chinese Medicine. Some healthcare professionals are now rediscovering the techniques.

I help by developing a customized nutritional program for the individual to address their specific healthcare challenges. Then, I can help with different energy balancing techniques. If for some reason I can't help a person, then I can refer them to a healthcare professional who probably can help.

AB: Thank you so much for your time today Michelle!

Well, I’m a believer, how about you?! Everyone at Cal Coast Web Design has learned so much from the materials on the Healthy Food Talk website. There are several resources on the site ranging from alternative health care to nutritional consulting, meditation, Vedic astrology, and more! Please check it out, and if you’re on the fence about making a real health and life change this year, talk to Michelle!

Online Grief Support During the Holidays

2011-12-11T23:17:00.001-08:00

The holidays are a wonderful time of year to connect with loved ones and be surrounded with the warmth of friends and family.

However, we know that for many the holidays are hard to get through because of the loss of a close family member or dear friend. Whether your loss is recent or you have been coping with the grieving process for some time now, our friends at Grief Hope Network have provided a safe place with online grief support to connect with others who are suffering the same feelings of loss from the death of a loved one.

The Grief Hope Network wants to help you as you mourn the loss of your closest loved ones and immediate family members, such as a spouse, child, sibling, or parent. Their online grief support network was founded by someone who lost their spouse and desired to turn that pain into something to help others.

If you're having a hard time with grief this holiday season, we recommend you reach out to the Grief Hope Network community. Their site has tools, resources, inspirational materials, and messages of hope to begin coping with your grief. Connect with them today to feel hope for tomorrow.

Cal Coast owner, Angie Weeks, speaks on social media panel at OCAR today

2011-11-18T13:19:00.001-08:00

This morning, Cal Coast founder, Angie Weeks, was a featured panelist member at OCAR in Laguna Hills. Their social media panel featured Realtors and social media experts alike.

The overall focus of the event was relationship building and using social media as a tool. It was a discussion on where to start, how to grow, and just plain WHY to do it!

For more information, click here to visit the tweetup stream on Twitter and see what people were sharing live about the event today...

Special thanks to the panel members...

Angie Weeks
Websites: http://www.askangie.com & http://www.calcoastwebdesign.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/Askangie & http://www.facebook.com/calcoastwebdesign
Twitter: @askangie & @calcoast
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/angieweeks

Robin Milonakis
Website: http://www.robinmilonakis.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/RobinMilonakis & https://www.facebook.com/RobinMilonakisGroup
Twitter: @RobinMilonakis
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/pub/robin-milonakis/7/814/577

Bob Watson
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/bobwatson
Twitter: @TopBrokerOC
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/topbrokeroc

Linsey Planeta
Website: http://ocrealestatevoice.com/
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/linseyplaneta
Twitter: @linsey
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/linseyplaneta

Josh Sharfman
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/josh.sharfman
Twitter: @JSharfman
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/pub/josh-sharfman/0/188/500

Greg Herder - Moderator
Website: http://hobbsherder.com/
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/greg.herder
Twitter: @GregHerder & @hobbsherder
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/gregherder

Orange County Association of Realtors - Event Host
Website: http://www.ocar.org/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OCARinfo
Twitter: @OCARinfo

If you haven't done so already, go connect with these experts. Follow their example. Ask for help. Be fearless!

Want a little more info on where to get start with his social media thing?
RSVP to join us the first Friday of every month for FREE social media seminars & training.

Social Media Panel at Orange County Association of Realtors. Join Us This Friday!

2011-11-15T14:13:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone!

We're pleased and honored to announce our own Angie Weeks was asked to speak on the panel of Social Media specialists at Orange County Association of Realtors on Friday, 11/18!

Anyone is welcome, and the panel is FREE to OCAR members. Non members pay a small $10 fee. Want to join us to learn more social media tips and tricks?

Orange County Association of Realtors
25552 La Paz Road
Laguna Hills, ca 92653

9am - noon on 11/18/11

Embracing social media and learning tactics to generate business should be at the top of any Realtor's goal list, so be sure to share this info and tell a friend!

Panelists include CAR Chief Technology Officer, Josh Sharfman, socially famous Robin Milonakis , and more! We hope to see you there!!

Looking for Power Partner Tenant for RSM Teen Volunteer Office Space $500 Month to Month

2011-11-14T13:24:00.001-08:00

Our friends and volunteer advocates at Lions Heart offer Volunteer Opportunities for Teens in Orange County.

They are currently looking for power partners to share their Rancho Santa Margarita office space with.

Each private office is $500 per month and includes utilities and wireless internet, and includes use of the conference table and chairs and kitchen/break facilities.
Lease is month to month.
Tenant could have their company and individual name on the digital lobby directory but not on the suite signage.

Below is a copy of the floor plan. It shows a sample furniture layout and doesn't reflect the furniture we have. Where it says "conference room" there is really the large private office. The whole suite is about 1,700 s.f. on the ground level.

PHOTO GALLERY:

For more information, please contact Terry Corwin with Lions Heart...

Founder, Executive DirectorTerry Corwin
Terry.Corwin@lionsheartservice.org
949 351-4400 direct
949 715-7076 fax

Orange County Social Experiment: Will you join us??!?

2011-11-10T10:06:00.000-08:00

We all know how powerful Google is, but often times we forget how powerful WE are. This year, Cal Coast is using our social push to do an experiment to see how many families we can get adopted for the holidays. Would you like to be a part?

It all started last year when our founder, Angie Weeks, and her husband Mike adopted a family in need. It was an amazing experience for everyone involved...the kids got items they desperately needed and mom actually got a little something for herself too. Of course, this lead to a new yearly 'family tradition' for the Weeks' household :)

But....Angie's an overachiever and wants to do more. One family every year is good, but its not good enough :( We figured we'd take our adoption idea to the streets (aka our social networks) and see if more people were interested in adopting a family!

How to Adopt an Orange County Family for the Holidays

Have you ever wanted to do something nice for the holidays but weren't sure what you could do? This is it!! Anyone can help, you can 'adopt' by simply sending a gift card, or by actually getting a list and playing Santa. Businesses or individuals or entire families can adopt...it would be an amazing experience if you involved your kids, too!

We're not trying to endorse any one charity here, the idea is to see how many families can get adopted this holiday through all avenues. Here are a few we know of:

Lois - PCAA - 714-393-3685 - contactpcaa@aol.com
Johanna Parra - Jump Start 4 Kids - 714-517-7107 ext. 1517 - johanna.parra@wysoc.org
Sharon Wie - Interval House - (562) 594-9492 x231 - sharon@intervalhouse.org

Whether you share this post, tell a friend, or actually adopt, we thank you for going above and beyond for your community!

If you know of another organization who has families in need, please comment here or on our We Are Orange County discussion on LinkedIn. If you adopt or help in any way, please let us know so we can track the number of families helped! You can comment here, tweet @CalCoast, or post it on our Facebook wall.

Orange County Video Production: Creating & Optimizing Your Online Video Presence - Tips & Tools

2011-11-09T15:02:00.000-08:00

Cal Coast Web Design is always reaching out with new ways to help you and your business with video marketing for your websites, blogs, and other online profiles. Use the links below as a collective resource to fuel your online reach through video.

Cal Coast owner, Angie Weeks, talks about getting your video SEEN after you've spent marketing dollars on your video production. - WATCH NOW!

WHY?

7 Reasons to Use Online Video to Promote Your Business

HOW?

MORE...

Can I Embed Someone Else's YouTube Video On My Site?
Video Blogging (Vlogging) tips for Realtors - Just for REALTORS.

If you need help either designing and filming your custom commercial with a professional in Orange County video production, need help with video optimization for exposure, or just consulting as you do it yourself, please don't hesitate to contact us for a custom quote.

Together, Cal Coast Web Design & Miller Farm Media will help you get the exposure & conversions you're looking for!

Starting a Facebook Marketing Campaign: Week 1 Checklist by Facebook Marketing Bootcamp

2011-11-08T14:26:00.000-08:00

Facebook Marketing Bootcamp

Social Media is such an important part of online marketing! Its where your customers ARE! Facebook Marketing is offering a free three week seminar to introduce you to the benefits of how to Facebook Marketing can help out your business. Sign up for the remaining bootcamp series or click here to watch previous webinars.

Facebook webinar's will introduce you to the ideas of how to connect your business to people using Pages, and how to build essential connections for your business. Also Facebook will help you to reach friends of fans with facebook Ads, and Leverage Facebook's scale and targeting. Lastly Facebook will teach you how to help your business thrive through Facebook and the Social Media scene is how to make your campaigns work harder, and how to build social technology into your business.

Week 1 Checklist

This checklist is a quick guide that will help you get started on the basics of Facebook Marketing from week one.

Facebook Marketing BootcampWeek 1 Checklist provided by Facebook Marketing

If your looking to integrate your business with Facebook marketing visit Cal Coast Web Design. We offer various packages for social media endeavours.

Internet Marketing Guide: SOP on Managing Social Media Tasks

2011-11-04T16:49:00.001-07:00

You may have previously read our blog post on Internet Marketing Strategies TODO List: Allocating time in your schedule to be a part of your online presence or even our SMO Closing Flow Checklist: An Internet Marketing SOP You MUST Incorporate Now.

But times, they are a changing, and we wanted to give you a newer and improved version of this checklist...

Whether you're trying to master the art of website marketing and social media marketing on your own, or trying to supplement with the guidance of an Internet marketing specialist, you SHOULD be allocating time to your website nearly every day (or at least making it look that way.)

YOU are the zen master of your own industry and business.
YOU know best the industry updates, company news & specials and promos.
YOU know best the tips, tricks & tools of the trade.
YOU should be a part of getting this info to the world, to your target market. - We no longer look for the news, the news finds us! Be a part of getting your news out!

So, just what should you be doing?

As You Get a New Professional Contact (Power Partner) or Client:

(For businesses just staring on their social media, this would include past clients as well. Referrals and upsells are easier than converting new leads!)

Send a welcome email including links & options to/for the following:
(Note: If you draft up the welcome email, I can add in the custom icons, etc if needed.)
- Follow you on Twitter
- Like your business page on Facebook (or friend your personal page
- Connect with you on LinkedIn (especially for professional connections!)
- Subscribe to your newsletter or blog
- Friend us on Youtube
- Review us Yelp, Google, Yahoo, Facebook, BBB, etc.
- Add VALUE. Be sure to offer a promo for this work.
  
  This small gesture will keep people engaged in actively serving as your salesman. By constantly getting updates about what you offer, your followers may become regular customers or be able to refer their friends and followers as well…if they see value in it. We cant take action with that we don't know of.
  
  And unless it's in front of us, we cant take action. Offer incentive to get it in front of them. Have them do the work of adding you and subscribing to your updates!
Add Professional To Database

You may use an existing or preferred CMS like Constant Contact or Campaigner, but if you are looking to save costs right now, you may keep them organized in your email contacts or an excel file like "Professional Members" at https://docs.google.com

You will want to save all those recommended variables on file so you know who to market to according to their categories.

This will also make for easy import into a database in the future if done through an excel file like the one referenced above.
Follow to be Followed:
- Look them up and connect with them on
  - Twitter
  - Facebook
  - LinkedIn
  - Yelp
  - Youtube
Also engage with them on these platforms:
- Tweet them directly or retweet something of theirs
- Comment on or share something from their Facebook wall.
- Connect (and even recommend) on LinkedIn
- Leave a review or Friend on Yelp
- Friend, Subscribe, or add video to playlist on Youtube

Daily:

Include Social Candy In Your Signature
Every email you send out should have links to your social profile sin your signature.
Use an automatic tool like WiseStamp to do this automatically for you if you're using webmail. Or just use your template for offline options like Outlook.
15 Min on Facebook & Twitter
For one, you may have some questions or conversations waiting for you to reply.
You also want to see whats happened in your stream or wall since the lst time. Who can you help, who can you share info for & with? If you don't have new info of your own to share, retweet or repost something of value someone else posted.
Blog Posts
Each of your categories should be getting weekly updates, so you need to be blogging to keep up.
Use your keywords in your title, categories, tags, and more.
Calendar Updates
Add events and keep content fresh.

Weekly:

Get Some Friends
Use Twitter's Advanced Search to find people who are talking about keywords that may reflect a need for your help. Look for your target market and then connect with them!
You may also find industry experts here who can help you see what they are doing so you can get some ideas for your own campaign. They are also giving you great content that you can retweet giving you relevant content and contributing to the community. Having these experts updating you so you can update your followers means you look more and more like the expert, the specialist, the trustworthy advisor they go to!
- Follow to be followed.
  If you follow a potential client on Twitter, they get an email that you are following them. Then they can look at your profile with the link and decide if they want to follow you back. How else were you going to get in front of them so easily?
  
  Be sure you have some valuable content on your page before you do this or else you wont be followed back.
  - Be sure to follow your leads and existing clients as well. This is just more opportunity to close the deal faster or get referrals!
  - Friend on Facebook.
  - Suggest friends like your Facebook Business page.
  - Find new friends that are your leads and existing clients.
- Engage In The Community
  Once you have friends, engage with them! Talk to people. Answer their questions. Share their information (scratch my back, ill scratch yours.) Help be the expert so that they come to you when ready to buy or refer you when a friend is looking!
  - Join a LinkedIn group and start a discussion or contribute to another.
  - Search for and Answer some questions on Yahoo Answers.

Monthly:

Review your Analytics.
Login with Google account.
See where people are coming from.
What are they typing in? Can you maximize on that?
Where are they coming from? Which referring sites do you need to spend more time on? Or which do you need to cancel advertising on?
Send Blog Post Concepts to Copywriter
If you're not doing you own blogging, you should be providing news, opinions, potential promos & deals and more to your copywriter or marketing coordinator to help facilitate. (Yes, that means to Cal Coast.)
- Industry News - Find anything online? In a newspaper? Link out to this news with your opinion so that you appear to be the leading expert and trusted adviser.
- Company News / Branding - New employee? New department? New brochure you want feedback on? New location?
- Promotions, Coupons, Discounts - Holiday deals? Weekend promos? Seasonal options? Don't have a fully booked weekend? Start a sales for just this weekend! Offer a promo for reviewing your company on Google, Yahoo or Yelp!
- Product / Service Update - New treatment? New upgrade? New anything? This should be added to your site AND featured in a blog post, Twitter, Facebook and more!
- Events - Grand Opening? Sale? Seminar? Open House?
- Photos - Events, New Arrivals, Etc.
- Contests & Drawings - Give people a reason to interact with you. Make them connect. Keep them coming back. Offer a free session or promotional item to the 1st 10 people who post on your Facebook. Or random drawing if you follow us on twitter, like us on Facebook, post a comment on our blog, or retweet this call to action. LET them serve as free salespeople getting you referrals by sharing your info through a contest worth sharing!
  
  You don't have to be a beautiful writer. Just include some topics and some notes with opinions when applicable.
Schedule Tweets
Using an application like Hootsuite, you can schedule your tweets for the month at once! Know you're going to be an event, have the details? Schedule a post to meet you there on the day before (and of) that the event is held. That's right, you don't have to go on Twitter EVERY day. But we still encourage it. :)
Video
If you aren't doing it weekly, you should be creating and posting a video to YouTube monthly. (Ok. ok, even quarterly is better than NOTHING.)
Why? - CLICK HERE for "7 Reasons to Use Online Video to Promote Your Business."
This doesn't have to be anything fancy. A web cam is acceptable in today's professional world. How about a "Saturday Coffee With InsertNameHere" where you talk about anything and everything form the above list.

As soon as you upload a video to YouTube, be sure to use the YouTube Bulletin feature to let all your subscribers know you have a new video ready for them to view! A Bulletin is similar to a status update on other social networks, such as Facebook.

Posting a Bulletin after uploading your video will help increase the visibility of your new video to subscribers who have opted out of notification emails alerting them when a new video is posted.
Add SMO Candy to Your Offline Marketing
Be sure your twitter, facebook, linkedin & other profiles are easily accessible on any new marketing materials like banners, business cards, brochures, INVOICES and more.
Local - Site, Google, Yahoo, Yelp, Facebook
How to add your company review options & social media connections to your daily operating procedures...
Get Testimonials
Whether its for your website itself, or a review in Google, Yahoo or Yelp, it will HELP!

A review on an outside site will help you rank better in the local results.

A positive review or testimonial will help users make a decision about trusting you and choosing you!

If a client has not offered one on their own, ask them about their experience. Transcribe as they talk and ask them if you can type that up to get approved and add it to your site.
Get Referrals
While you have them on the site getting feedback about their experience, be sure to see if there is anyone else who would benefit from your help! Offering an incentive for closed referrals can also help!
Share Examples on Site & Other Online Profiles like FB, twitter, etc.

These simple tasks can easily be integrated into your closing flow.
Heck, even train an intern to do it!

Coordinating Your Orange County Concrete and Demo for Underground Utility Work

2011-11-04T13:17:00.000-07:00

Rick Farino of Team R. Farino recently spoke with us about the process of laying new underground utilities. We were surprised at how much goes into this process and how much time and money can be spent on a project like adding lighting to a parking lot.

Rick shared this example with us:

"Let's say you're a property management company and you want to add lighting in the parking lot. You would call a contractor and get an estimate for Orange County concrete and demolition services.

In order to accomplish the addition of lighting in the parking lot, you will need saw cutting and trenching. You have to hire a separate company to start the process and another to actually do the trenching, then you need to hire and pay for the electrician, and then hire someone else to put the asphalt back and repave.”

Rick mentioned that this is the simplified version of the process, but for many projects like this, you can end up hiring up to 8 different companies!

Rick continued:

“We have created R. Farino to be different. We are a rarity in the industry, but we have both A and B classifications (General Engineering and General Building Contractor) which enables us to do the demo and the concrete construction. We take care of it all, and we have a fantastic list of recommended utility specialists (electricians, plumbers, etc.) we can easily coordinate with on your job.

Being a full service Orange County concrete and demolition company, we have helped many businesses and residents reduce stress, save time, and save money on their Orange County concrete and demo projects because trying to coordinate all the different schedules is ridiculous! The truth is there’s no one else in our industry in Southern California who offers this!”

Wow, impressive! Whether it’s commercial or residential, R. Farino can take care of it all for you. When you get into underground utilities you need saw cutting and trenching from R. Farino, then they coordinate with the electrician, plumber, etc., and then they fill everything back in to get your project completed!

Do you need an Orange County concrete and demo company for your next underground utilities project? Visit http://rfarino.com for more information today!

Grow Your Orange County Business Through Location-Based Social Networking

2011-10-31T16:05:00.000-07:00

Why You Should Be Interested in Location-Based Social Networking

This article by Sheri Vandermause with CMIT Solutions explains the importance of why location-based social networking is influential in spreading your business. Location-based social networking provides many advantages in spreading your business to potentially hundreds if not thousands of people. If your business needs a marketing boost look no farther than Cal Coast Web Design. We can get your set up with the basics of Social Networking and help grow your business.

Location-based Social Networking and Your Business

"If you use Facebook with any sort of regularity (and, as a small business owner, you definitely should), then you’ve most likely noticed people “checking in” from various locations. Though Facebook rather recently rolled out its own “check in” feature, services like Gowalla, Foursquare, BrightKite, and a handful of other companies have been announcing the location of users via status updates for some time.

Essentially, location-based applications like these work by alerting you when friends or acquaintances from your social network check in at the same location (or nearby) as you. It’s useful when attending large events like conferences or concerts, as you may not even be aware that someone you know is also attending.

While the concept of broadcasting one’s exact location to the anonymous eyes of the Internet might raise all kinds of alarm bells, you may actually be in a position to capitalize on people’s willingness to share that information without compromising your own security.

If your business has an open-to-the-public location, your customers can check in each time they visit. Not only do these apps announce your customer’s location to his or her friends, but the app will also tally how many times that customer visits each place. With Foursquare, in particular, the person who checks in at a particular place the most becomes the “mayor” of that location.

Consider incentivizing your customers to vie for “mayor” status (or the equivalent) by offering, say, a 15% discount to whomever holds the mayorship.

By encouraging your customers to check in each time they visit your business, you are effectively advertising your business to each customer’s social networking contacts. Not only that, but each check-in essentially serves as a word-of-mouth recommendation (which is the best kind of advertising) to a new pool of potential customers."

Written by Sheri Vandermause with CMIT Solutions.

Contact your Orange County SEO specialists with Cal Coast Web Design today to get your business started using Location-based social networking today!

Purchasing a Professional Notebook for Business: An Interview with Orange County Computer

2011-10-31T14:59:00.000-07:00

What To Think About when Buying a New Computer

As an Internet marketer, most people assume I, Angela Collins (co-owner here at CCWD), know everything about computers, email, software, etc. Sure, I can usually figure stuff out. The same way you could, via Google searches and Youtube video tutorials. But professional help and expertise are always beneficial.

With all the questions lately about the best kind of computer to get for small business purposes (and my own need for a new laptop) I decided to consult with the experts and swung over to ask some questions about computer selection to Alex Pinedo of Orange County Computer.

Below is just a recap of the questions I asked. I am not quoting Alex here. I'm not a reporter and even though my clients are usually shocked at how fast I type, I still cant keep up with transcribing speech. With that, here's what I got out of my conversation with Orange County Computer repair and networking center owner, Alex Pinedo.

Q: What do all these different processor sizes and speeds even mean? I keep seeing "i" everywhere.

A: The "i" indicates Intel. The dual core is on its way out. Faster is better and the quad core processor has replaced the dual core. All the "i" processors are quad core with the exception to the i3. The i5 i7 and quad core processors.

Resources: Wikipedia micro processors

Q: Are there any processors I should stay away from?

A: Processors are built to work. And at decent speeds. If they didn't work, they wouldn't be on the market. That said, OCC sees a lot of Semprons and Celerons at their Tech Repair Center in Lake Forest.

Q: For the average business owner, what would be the minimum memory you recommend?

A: Generally speaking, 4GB. Most operating systems are 32 bit and hold 4GB only. The more RAM, the faster your click speed.

Consumers who want more RAM can go with more RAM should use a 64bit version of windows which allows you to actually utilize the additional memory which is capable of accepting 8GB-16GB. Anything more then that would be not necessary unless a system was being used as a file or application server.
(Note: because of this click speed statement, I went with 8GB for my own.)

Q: Do I need to worry about my video card?

A: As a business person, not generally. Unless you’re a Gamer, Engineer, Auto CAD or Graphics Designer. Do note though, that often times you can switch out or upgrade your video card in a laptop unless it has onboard video on the motherboard.

Q: Are there any brand or manufactures to stay away from? Or any "culprits" you see a lot of in your repair center?

A: We recommend staying away from companies that are struggling like Toshiba. We also see a lot of the less expensive brands in here too. Like Acer, EMachine, MSI, ASUS etc. You get what you pay for.

Also note that there are newer brands that we don't have a lot of history on like Samsung. While they have a good reputation for other electronics and deserve a chance, we don't know much about their computers yet.
We find that Sony Vaios, HPs & Dells are pretty reliable.

Unless you are specific about your needs, most new notebooks & laptops that are mid-grade/price or higher (Lets say $600 to 800 for a desktop and $800 to 1000 for a laptop) are going to be suitable for the average business person's needs.

If you need gaming or CAD resources, perhaps an upgrade is in order.

OCC also gave me a quick tip about upgrading your hardrives. They all fail eventually. Any usually faster than you would expect. They see it every day at Orange County Computer. The average Desktop hard drive typically last about 2-4 years and laptop drives last roughly 1-3 years before performance starts to deteriorate. For $200-$300, the Tech Team can help you upgrade to a Western Digital Black HD to last you much longer and run more efficiently, Western Digital has a 5 year warranty on their high performance black hard drives while most drives have a 1 year warranty.

There has been a lot of hype about Sold State Drives. They have been out just a few years now. We are still apprehensive about recommending solid-state drives due to compatibility issues with other hardware components and formatting issues. We do not recommend moving to the latest and greatest hardware until it has been out a few years – this gives the manufacturer ample time to resolve operational issues and alleviate consumer headaches.

Whether your hard drive is black, blue or remanufactured, it is generally not mentioned to the consumer in the system specs. A member of the Tech Team at Orange County Computer can help insure your system is running at it’s optimal performance level. Protect your hard work with a reliable hard drive!

For more information about what computer would be good for your needs or if you have a computer that needs maintenance visit Orange County Computer.

Setting Up an Orange County Business on Google Maps and Yahoo Local

2011-10-21T14:49:00.000-07:00

Google Maps and Yahoo Local

The importance of using Google maps and Yahoo local are significant. Google maps and Yahoo local are free products that your Orange County business can utilize for marketing. If your business is listed it makes it easier for potential customers to see where your business is located, and even provide driving directions.

For an example of what Google maps will look like for your business check out Cal Coast Web Design on Google Maps.

Here are a few reasons why your business should be listed on Google Maps or Yahoo Local.

People search online before they go into a brick and motar store for products and services. Chances are if you have your business listed on Google maps or Yahoo local your business will be found in the search engines more frequently by potential customers.
More people use Google and Yahoo than other search engines. Chances are if you use these two local searches your business will increase.
Google Maps and Yahoo Local provide directions to your business from on a computer or a smartphone.
Google maps allows reviews of your business and also photos.
The biggest key with these 2 online platforms is that your past clients can review your companies services. Potential clients can easily find out how your services are and if you have a reputable company, which comes down to increasing the chances of getting that business.

If you want to have your local Orange County business to appear first through Google or Yahoo you have to add keywords into your Google Maps or Yahoo Local page. Cal Coast Web Design can do this for you. If you are interested in having Google Maps or Yahoo Local set up for your business check out our CCWD page on what we can do for your company today!

We can get your business up on Google Maps or Yahoo Local in less than a week for a flat rate of $199! Call us today at (888)-281-7665.

Thinking About Redesigning Your Site While Marketing It? A Designers List For a Smooth SEO Transition

2011-10-20T14:46:00.000-07:00

Thinking of a Redesign?

If You've Been Optimizing your site and would like to change the look and feel, it's important that you don't compromise the old sites content that may have been getting ranked in the search engines.

Ensure you don't waste time and money by starting your SEO all over. Simply send this post over to your designers to ensure they have the 411.

Designers and marketers are separate skills. Please don't assume your designer will understand how to recognize an Internet marketing campaign and maintain its integrity.

A Marketing Friendly Website Redesign Checklist:

Ensure all content including text and videos are carried over to new design.

We work hard (and you spend money) to develop search engine friendly content. While a designer can certainly change the look of this text, its still important to keep it all.

Keep "H tags"

Sometimes designers will create their own names for formatting a style sheet. To the search engines, the H1-H6 tags are WAY MORE RELEVANT than your own. they look for these tags first. Please keep them.

Page names should remain the same or search engine friendly redirects should be created.

When redesigning a site that is optimized, you run the risk of changing the page name or file extension during the redesign. Maintain the same names id crucial so that they aren't dead links in the SERPs and you don't have to work on re optimizing a new page name you already spent time and money working for.

If exact page names are not possible (including extensions like html, asp, etc.) you will need 301 redirect all old pages to the new versions of the page.

Custom 4o4 page

Just in case any pages are missed above, it is important to have a custom 404 in place in case someone lands on the dead link. While this will still hurt you in the search engines, it means if someone finds a dead link somewhere, they still have options. Custom 404 pages should have a search feature, link to homepage, sitemap, contact us and other important calls-to-action.

Ensure new site has meta tag editing capabilities for all individual pages.
Make sure all meta tags are carried over and or in one SEO plugin installed.
Ensure new site has capabilities to install script code into the template for tracking purposes.

Ensure existing scripts are carried over.

If you are working with a company like Cal Coast, you will often times have Google Analytics java, tracking number scripts and other code that is not visible to the naked eye but will effect items in place if not carried over to the new design.

Ensure the website has browser capability with Safari 4+, FF 3.5+, Internet Explorer 7+, Opera 10+, and Google Chrome.
Ensure Google Analytics tracking is carried over to see how many viewer are on your page each month and where they are coming from. This could be the scripts above, or a plugin, or, or, or... so many options. Just make sure its there!
One consolidated CSS file.

Additional Options For A Website Resign with SEO Foundation:

We also recommend having the following items to lay the foundation for online marketing. You wouldn't necessarily be carrying these items over each time, but very well could be. AND, we recommend you have these features on your new site.

If you are working with CCWD on a marketing campaign, we can help you implement many of these updates along the way. But remember, the more you have implemented now, the more we can work on other items to help bring you online success!

At the bottom of blog posts have it auto populated so that it is easy to add you on your social media profiles. We recommend using Sharaholic.
Layout width flexible by resolution**

This will change the layout based on the screen resolution the user is using.

Post Footer Script helm section for auto populating CTA (call to action) in blog posts.

Can also be a plugin located on webpage template, that will carry over through all web pages.

Share this "floating" side - saves room in your content area for other CTAs.

Add connection icons to social sites

Add an additional share option at anywhere on the post. Sharaholic is a good tool.
Related posts auto plugin to crosslink to other relevant posts.
We like having the option to select, but if none are selected, they are pulled in by relevance like keyword, etc.
Custom Menus with top quick links, navigation, and footer editing options for WordPress pages and external links.
Set up permalinks including categories and titles.
Ensure on page titles not meta titles are H1 tags.
Make sure you have a spam plugin or widget installed.

There are a lot of other smaller factors to look out for, but this one translates across the board with all sites. If you are a CCWD client considering a redesign, please pass this along to your designers and be certain to get them our contact info to be a part of the process.

We know a good design means a personal and professional reflection on you which translates into conversions. We just want to make sure we don't lose any of the traffic already getting there from the search engine optimization work.

Guides On How to Change Your WordPress Domain Name and Fixing A Broken WordPress Installation with Go Daddy Hosting

2011-10-17T15:25:00.000-07:00

Changing your WordPress Domain Name

The following instructions are for GoDaddy and Wild West Domains only.

If you want to change your domain name click on the following link to follow a step by step walk through on how to change your WordPress domain name. This guide is extremely useful if you changed the name of your company and you need to change your domain name (domain name is how your website will look in the address bar through a web browser).

Changing Your WordPress Domain Name

Fixing A Broken WordPress Installation

This guide is important because if you do something that changes the URL of your WordPress site, you have to double check with an online tool to make sure your site works properly. This link will provide you with a step by step guide on how to fix a broken WordPress URL.

Fixing A Broken WordPress Installation

If you need more help in changing your domain name or fixing a broken WordPress site visit our website at Cal Coast Web Design .

Google Analytics Email Updates

2011-10-12T10:46:00.000-07:00

How to Set Up Google Analytics Email Updates

The following steps will walk you through the process of setting up a google analytics email update and also how to remove an email update.

First check to see which version of Google analytics you have running. This is a quick guide to the current version
The following screen shot is what you will see right after you log onto google analytics.

The first step is to select which account you want to change. For this demonstration I will be selecting blog.calcoastwebdesign.com.
After you have selected the account the next thing you want to select is view report.

On the following screen you will want to select the small email icon towards the top of the screen. Follow the red arrow.

This screen is how you will manage your emails.
There are a few options available to you. The one to manage your emails is at the top called send to others

This box gives you the ability to send your google analytics to multiple recipients. This is useful if you have multiple administrators running your site.

There is also an option to chose how frequently an email will be sent out to the recipients, this can be viewed by selecting the schedule button in the middle of the screen.

How to Remove a Google Analytics Email Update

The process to remove a google analytics email is the same as how you create one. The only difference is when you get to the last step you delete the email you no longer want to be updated with any google analytics information.

For a walk through on how to remove an email from google analytics please follow these steps.

First check to see which version of Google analytics you have running. This is a quick guide to the current version
The following screen shot is what you will see right after you log onto google analytics.

The first step is to select which account you want to change. For this demonstration I will be selecting blog.calcoastwebdesign.com.
After you have selected the account the next thing you want to select is view report.

On the following screen you will want to select the small email icon towards the top of the screen. Follow the red arrow.

Once you have selected the small email icon on the top of the page you will be redirected to the this page.

To remove an email from receiving google analytics updates select the email next to the red arrow and delete it and hit save on the bottom of the page.

You have now deleted an email from your google analytics account.

Creating Videos That Get Ranked in The Search Engines: Components That Capture an Audience & The SERPs

2011-09-28T13:06:00.000-07:00

Website Video Tips

Why should you use video on your website when it is easier to just write and share your message that way? The number one reason is more people are likely to watch a short video than to have to read though a bunch of text. Also a video is much more personal. The viewer is able to see who they will be interacting with and already have a sense of who and what your about. Videos are a more direct way to promote your products or ideas over the Internet.

If you have not seen our 7 reasons to use online videos for promoting your website check out our blog post.

What to Include in your online Video

When creating a video for your website there are a few basic items that we recommend being included:

Make sure to include your video on your homepage and local sites. This is important because your potential customers will already know who you are if they are interested in your services or knowledge.
Make sure to address what services you offer in your video. This is important you are running a business!
What makes your business unique? Why should the customer that you are trying to reach choose you over the competition. Include some key ideas or points your business offers that the competition doesn't.
Include Trust Factors into your video. What credentials, awards, etc you or your company has. The more the better.
Include call to actions in your video. Something such as here is what you can do on our site or what special offers you can acquire from visiting our site. Some examples include coupons, free lunch, enter to win promotions, newsletters, contests, review us for incentives etc.
Be sure to include how they can stay connected to your business such as follow us on Facbook, Twitter, Linkedin, etc.

These procedures should be addressed if its a home made video or a professional video.

Here is a good example of a intro video that is used on our website Cal Coast Web Design.

Cal Coast Web Design can consult you on your video needs. Or Orange County Video Specialists such as Miller Farm Media can help you with video production.

Reagan Sakai - A Professional Profile

2011-09-23T22:18:00.000-07:00

Reagan Sakai is an experienced financial expert with over 10 years of CFO experience at 4 different companies.

Reagan has been working with Cal Coast Web Design to develop a professional SEO campaign to manage his online presence and obtain a new CFO position.

Reagan was born and raised in gorgeous Hawaii. He attended the prestigious Punahou School from kindergarten through 12th grade. Reagan Sakai is part of a distinguished group of alumni including President Barack Obama, Steve Case (founder of AOL), Pierre Omidyar (founder of eBay), Richard Johnson (founder of HotJobs), Jeff Hakman (co-founder of Quicksilver in the US), Michelle Wie, Kelly Preston (actress & wife of John Travolta), and Hiram Bingham (explorer who discovered Macchu Picchu).

Reagan Sakai loved growing up in Hawaii, but eventually decided to travel to the mainland to pursue his career. He lived in Boulder, Colorado for 17 years, and lived in Austin, Texas for 7 years before moving to a new shore in Orange County, California.

Reagan has many passions, among them are seeing his children succeed in their various activities. His daughter, Malia loves dance, and his son, Stratton, plays lacrosse. When Reagan isn’t on the sidelines cheering on his children, he loves to read, bodysurf, fish, watch college football, and travel. His favorite cities to visit are New York, San Francisco, Paris, Prague, London, and Hong Kong.

Reagan Sakai is looking for a new CFO position in Orange County, California where he can join a late stage private or small-cap public company, be a strategic partner to the CEO, and help take the company to the next level with his skills as a seasoned CFO.

We have been so pleased to have Reagan Sakai as a client, and can hardly wait for his upcoming YouTube video release!

Do you know someone looking to boost their business with a talented CFO? Visit http://ReaganSakai.com to review Reagan's LinkedIn profile and learn more about the Orange County, CA CFO!

How to Create, Edit and Update your Google Calendar for Online Profiles

2011-09-21T11:23:00.000-07:00

Google Calendar Editing and Updating

The Google Calendar is a free and effective tool at your disposal. It can be used on websites, blogs, and many other online profiles. Google Calendar is also a free solution that can be used to keep users up to date on important events.

To edit your calendar simply visit http://google.com/calendar (make sure you are logged in with your Google account.)

From there, you may start by adding events to your calendar. It is a straight forward process all you have to do is select a day on the calendar (easier if you view the calendar in month view, you can do this by the selection bar towards the top of the screen) and click it. A box will appear with a many options. Select the ones that are appropriate for your use.

For a more in depth guide on how to set up a Google calendar, and add events please watch this video.

Embed a Google Calendar into your website

Another useful tool provided in Google calendar is the ability to embed your Google calendar in your website. This allows the users of your website to view important updates and allow for some limited interactivity.

Watch this how to video to embed a Google calendar into your website.

Don't want to do it your self? Feel free to contact us. We can have your basic Google calendar up and running in under an hour and we can train you how to create and manage your own calendar in an hour as well.

Video Blogging (Vlogging) tips for Realtors

2011-08-30T09:48:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone! I was in on a great webinar this morning with Herman Chan of Habitat for Hermanity up in San Francisco. Herman gave the Young Professional's Network some excellent tips for Realtors who want to start vlogging:

Easy Video Blogging Tips

Short and sweet (1-3 minutes)
SMILE :)
Sell, sell, sell...NOT
Don't be a tour guide
Have a point of view! (don't be afraid to give your opinion!)
Baby steps (your own cell phone is just fine to start)
Look presentable

People love "How To" videos. Once these people find out 'how to' on your video channel, you are able to build a relationship with them BEFORE you meet them...isn't that priceless?

Another great way to maximize your video is interviews. Interview your stager, your inspector, your mentor. This gives you credibility AND it usually gets uploaded on both of your websites for double exposure.

Of course, these videos need to get found in order to maximize your ROI. Do you know how to get a YouTube video found? Do you know the best video aggregation sites out there? We do! Cal Coast has lots of experience doing video SEO, especially real estate video SEO. Are you a vlogger? We'd love to hear your success stories - comment below or tweet @CalCoast!

Website Tracking At Your Fingertips - Google Analytics

2011-08-02T11:50:00.001-07:00

Have you ever wondered who's checking out your website?

Of course you have! Could you believe that there is a way to get rich insights to the views your website gets on a daily basis?

Google has developed a powerful, easy-to-use solution that lets you do exactly this. It's called Google Analytics. Originally developed from the growing industry of Web Analytics, this product allows you to not only track your views, but to help you build better online marketing strategies.

Google Analytics now tracks your Facebook likes and tweets that are developed through your website!

So what is Web Analytics?

* A simple online tool for tracking website views
* An information source that helps gauge traffic and popularity trends
* A 24 hour tool for marketing and business research
* An overview of specific pages and the number of viewers per page
* A geographical map displaying your website's popularity in specific locations
* A percentage of new and old views
* A breakdown of time spent on your site daily
* Your best ally for business strategies and tracking analysis

Check out these analytics from Dr. Rafa at Gateway Rehab and Wellness Center

There are over two billion searches done online every day. How are you tracking your searches?

Your website is your best marketing ally and deserves your constant attention. Web Analytics is a great way to let your business reach its full potential online with its perfect ability to track your target market.

Cal Coast Web Design is current and up to date with Google Analytics. If you need help or have any questions please call (888) 281-7665 x2 or retweet us @calcoast.

We look forward to bringing you much success online!

Social Sharing: Email & Subscribe Buttons, and Sharing Widgets & Plugins

2011-07-29T01:03:00.000-07:00

Share, Discover & Connect. Or at least allow your site visitors and potential clients to do so.

If your content is worth sharing, make it easy to do so.

Want clients, associates, site visitors, & friends to share your products, services and site pages with their contacts too?

Use a social bookmarking platform to easily allow users to share, email, or subscribe with the click of a button!

There are so many options to choose from. Just go to Google and search for any variation of "bookmarking button, sharing, widget, plugin." Or do the same in a Plugin search in Wordpress. Click and test, tune & improve!

This platform is great for sites that do not have much room or "above the scroll" real estate for another item.

This Share This sharing widget will display vertically down the side of your web page. (See screenshot.)

It also has vertical & horizontal counters (see screenshot) multi channel options, classic buttons, and more.

To get started, select "Get the Button" and follow the onscreen directions to customize.

First choose platform like HTML site, Wordpress, Blogger, etc.
This will generate script & code that you must add to each page of your site or your include or template.
It is also available as a plugin or widget in Wordpress.

Add to Any Sharing Platform

Use with the following platforms:

HTML
Email
Wordpress
Blogger
and more!

For blog plugins, just search for plugin/widget or just generate html code and add as html widget.

It's best to add it into an include or template part of the site so it is automatically on each page.

To get started, just visit Add to Any and click "Get the Share Button" on the homepage and then follow the onscreen direction.

You may customize it with all or select bookmarking features, order, formatting of colors, and more!

Sharaholic SexyBookmarks

This "sexy" sharing widget, or sharing plugin, "adds an attractive social bookmarking menu to mark you posts, pages, index, or any combination.

A recommended plugin for the Wordpress blog & website platform.

Simply download the widget from or login to your Wordpress account and select "Add New" under "Plugins" and then "Install Now." Then "Activate Plugin" and then visit "Settings" on the dashboard and select "Sharaholic" to enable specific sharing networks.

Now hurry up and start testing, tuning & improving. Or ask us for help. We like to test this stuff. And sharing is caring!

Real Estate Widgets - 10 Online Tools for Realtors

2011-07-28T18:21:00.000-07:00

Good job!! Your Real Estate blog is finally done! .... or is it??

Hopefully you've built your blog with your potential buyers and community in mind, all about them, instead of all about you ;)

After years of doing SEO for Realtors, we wanted to offer you a list of free widgets you can implement to make your real estate blog even more fun and interactive. We're assuming, of course, that you've already remembered to include the feedburner post subscription widget, your social widgets, and a sharing widget such as "Add to Any", Share This, or Sharaholic. These things are pretty much standard now. But what if you want to go above and beyond?

10 Real Estate Widgets

Trulia Mortgage Calculator - this quick and easy calculator even tells total interest paid
Your listings through Zillow - display your featured listings quickly and easily
Wordpress Local Market Explorer - this plugin offers schools, walkscore, and Yelp reviews
Home Staging Ideas - this widget helps you train sellers ;)
Text Me Now - you know your buyers love to text. Your leads probably do, too!
Eppraisal - offers visitors an estimate on the value of their home
News - pulls in news from a variety of different sources
Feedjit "Who's Here" - great feature shows the posts people read, and their location
HGTV Tips - grab a first time buyer guide, cool home tours, or seller video tips

...and...drumroll for the MOST IMPORTANT...
IDX Search - depending on your IDX provider the code for this one will vary. If you don't have a LEAD CAPTURE IDX, stop, do not pass go, you will not collect $100. You MUUUST have this. And you'll probably have to pay for it. But its worth it. We HIGHLY recommend Diverse Solutions.

Please, if you're an overachiever, all 10 of these on one blog is NOT a good thing. #10 is MISSION CRITICAL, though. Pick and choose what's best for your target market and area outside of that. Always add value, not clutter. After all, you know what clutter does for home sales ;)

Need help implementing these widgets? Or maybe you need our 'Set & Forget IDX' blog! Call 888-281-7665 x2 for real estate SEO and blogging help!

Small Businesses, Why not use Google Voice to consolidate phone calls or even track calls?

2011-07-28T17:47:00.000-07:00

Google Voice takes multiple numbers and calls them all from just 1 number you select ahead of time!

Use Google Voice as a business to track locations. If you have a number that is different for your website only, you know that someone calling that number came from your website. And its working for you!

If you want to track where online through separate profiles (like Twitter, Facebook, advertising on another site, etc.) you will need separate numbers, or possibly even a script that will dynamically change the phone number each time a user comes from a different location.

A product like Marchex can help you with this but is often times out of the small business budget starting at

$250/mo.

Google Voice is a pretty good solution for $FREE.00

Just use your Google Account (set up with the email you check regularly, of course) to set up a Google Voice
account.

Its simple.
Just follow the onscreen directions and fill out EVERY SINGLE tab.
Watch the videos. Listen to your first voicemail.
There will be times you can set it up to receive calls, how you want your voicemail sent, and more. Just test,

tune and improve!

If one has already been set up for you, we still encourage you to login at Google Voice with your Google account email and password and review the settings.

What You'll See Once You're Logged In:

Your inbox.
This is where your new voicemails will remain. You can organize them in here.
Your first voicemail is you welcome voicemail from Google Voice. Listen to it.

History.
Under the history section you can find and file your voicemails, receive & missed calls, etc.

Your Number.
In the top right corner. Click on it.
This takes you to several tabs at the top...

Phones:
You can add and change phones in here. And select certain ones to ring you at certain times. Maybe home during the day but cell phone at night? Select "Edit" to change the advanced settings for your hour windows and more.

Voicemail and Text:
Use this to call yourself to edit your greetings and other options.

Calls:
More important settings. Please review.

Groups:
Can be used to organize contacts if you so please.

Call Widgets:
Use to integrate into your site. But if they don't have Google Voice, it doesn't always work. I don't recommend this.

Billing:
Don't use it to make calls from your computer and you wont need any credits to route the calls to your phone.

Account:
Basic Info.

Use Google Voice to customize your experience!

Contact CCWD to help you track your campaign through Google Voice.

Note: Only 1 custom Google number per Google Account allowed.*

Watch this video to get started...

CLICK HERE FOR MORE GOOGLE VOICE TRAINING VIDEOS

How to add your company review options & social media connections to your daily operating procedures...

2011-07-26T18:37:00.000-07:00

Yes. Reviews are helpful. Very helpful.

They can help your organic search results.
They can help you get found on mobile devices.
They help you come up in local results - which by the way appear ABOVE the organic rankings.
They are simply trust factors. People want to hear about other people's experiences with you.
"90% of consumers trust peer recommendations. Only 14% trust advertisements." - Erik Qualman's #1 Best Seller Socialnomics

There are several places to post all with different purposes & results....

Your Own Site - Like on the testimonials page. (Perhaps also scattered throughout the site as trust factors.)
Posting reviews and testimonials on your site simply puts more content on your site that you didnt write. Often times this content contains the very words people are using to refer to our service or product. This only helps us in the SERPs since it is our goal to use our keywords in our content so that Google and other engines recognize that we are actually about those keywords people are looking for.

Google Maps
This is only possible if you have an actual physical location.
You should have an actual store front, but I've seen some listings rank without them, just with a home address.
Just because other listings rank for a faux location, doesnt mean yours will too. They are the rules.
PO Boxes are not allowed either.
Google Maps will allow you to come up for a city specific keyword in your location.
The local results appear ABOVE the organic results. These are the first main results of the page.
The more rankings you have, the higher you appear on this list.

Yahoo Local
All the same principles as Google apply here.
You have a few more restriction on the content you can post yourself, but the reviews are your highest priority anyway!

Yelp
This is simply a review location.
It does not rank in a particular search engine like Yahoo local and Google maps.
However it will get indexed in ALL engines as a standard organic listing if well reviewed.
Its also very common to be searched on a mobile device.

Facebook
Nearly everyone spends some part of their week on Facebook.
Lets put some reviews on a platform their already spending time in!
If you have a Facebook fan page, you can allow for reviews there as well for credibility.

Other Review Sites
Each industry often times have their own unique review sites as well like Urban Spoon for restaurants or Customer Lobby & Service Magic for professional services.
While it may be important to add you listing to an industry specific review site, its more important to just allow the reviewer quality & concise options.
Too many options and the user is overwhelmed.
Not enough, and they may not want to create a profile.
We recommend Yahoo, Google & Yelp to start.

Oh, and beware of paid sites too. While some may be a good idea, it's important to get the facts first. Just what are you paying for!? Who is looking? How many? Where will you be found? Where do they display their results? Ask us for help if you are considering one of these paid routes.

From there, lets find a way to incorporate it into your SOP. If not, your review location may remain empty.

So, maybe each time you finish a booking/job, you send them an invoice (or if prepaid) a thank you follow up email. Will that work?

In it you can leave a personal message, a thank you, maybe a referral code or discount for their next booking. And then a template section with a request to review you on one of the platforms.

Why not throw in your social profiles too! Its just another way for them to connect with you!

Perhaps something like this...

Hi Client,

Thanks so much for letting us be apart of your special day! What a great event!

If you have a moment sometime soon, we woudl be honored if you would review us on one of your preferred platforms.

We have profiles available at Google, Yahoo, Facebook & Yelp.
Anything helps.

As a token of our appreciation, we are offering (insert incentive to fill out here.)

We also encourage you to connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube or LinkedIn or even subscribe to our blog here.

Thanks again! We look forward to being a part of your future events.

(Insert special closing message and signature).

*********

After you have your social media and local listings set up, be sure to add them to business cards, email signature, yard signs, invoices, quotes and more!

Also visit or blog about internet marketing SOP for more information on a closing flow you can incorporate into your business checklists!

Feel free to call us if you have any question or need help with this process of creating social media accounts or adding your local listing Google, Yahoo, or Yelp.

Irvine SEO Case Study - Special T's Promotional Product Success

2011-07-15T16:40:00.001-07:00

Bravo to Brent Komorous with Special T's a promotional company from Orange County who is getting found throughout the internet. In this last month Special T's has generated over 60 calls from their website alone! With his phenomenal promotional product he has had no problem selling to his increase number of viewers because of his website.

Here is a quick view of were his rankings are at!

With all of the exposure Special T's is receiving they stopped attending their Letip networking group. They have almost 30 page one rankings in search engines giving them a respectable online presence.

We met with Brent the owner of Special T's to discuss how having a website on page 1 of major search engines increase his business.
1. What did having a website on Page 1 of search engines do for your company?
"It gave me the online presence so that people outside of a 2 mile radius of my store knew of my store and would shop with me. Before most of my customers were near by me and drove by my store everyday and that's how I received my business. I received jobs with Oakley and professional football player Chad Ochocinco, printing logos on shirts.

2. How were you adverting before your search engine optimization campaign?
"Mostly by fliers or word of mouth but it only reached out to my local area and didn't give me the amount of business I was looking for. Most people today rarely pick-up their print advertising left on their doorstep."
3. Did having a SEO campaign give you more of a break from working?
" I wouldn't say it gave me more free time because I'm constanly having to work hard and keep customers happy, but it gave me more of the client base I was looking for."

Comparison between local print marketing and SEO.

Local printing ads in the money mailer or penny saver cost roughly $300/month and will only reach out to 10,000 home depending on the area
With an SEO campaign clients receive twice the exposure for the same price.
There are over 2 billions searches done on the internet each DAY! Do you think having a website on page 1 would give you the exposure needed to succeed in your industry?
How many people do you actually know that look through the local ads to find a service they need?

At Cal Coast Web Design we off a wide variety of Search Engine Optimization packages supporting the local hair cutter to giving exposure for large corporation
We are a unique SEO company thought because of almost 10 years of experience we are able to guarantee our clients 50 page 1 rankings on the major search engines. Call today for a free quote or tweet us at @calcoast.

(888) 281-7665

The QR code. Your 24 hour show off.

2011-07-14T09:43:00.000-07:00

Your Business Card Made-Over

Are you soaking up a big spotlight, or are you struggling beneath a dim one?

Your business was developed to bring people to you in one way or another. How are you drawing them in?

The world’s biggest stage in this day in age is none other than the Internet. Online marketing is no longer just an option. It is essential. Facebook, Twitter and Linkedin have pulled the globe in by the fingers and thus changed the way we market and present ourselves to potential clients and customers.

Do you have a website or Social Media profile?

In what ways is that website and/or profile drawing us in and inviting us to connect with you?

There are countless ways to make your business shine online. Among the most popular: Social Media, Search Engine Optimization, blogging and a dotted square on your business cards…Any guesses?

QR codes! Or the long term: Quick Response code is just that. Smartphones recognize the pattern and take us online to the page on your website you want us to see.

Orange County Businesses are using QR codes

Take a look at Cal Coast Web Design's QR code :

These little transporters take your potential clients exactly where you want them to be. You can put them on cards, brochures, posters, fliers and take people to the right place them to be just by handing them out.

What about your business do you want to show off to your biggest target market?

The QR codes make it possible to throw the best part of your business into a spotlight of its own. All you need to do is stick it on your business cards or brochures and let the smartphones do the rest :)

You can have your own QR code for less than $100. Check out Cal Coast's QR code package made just for you!

Could you imagine an easier way to market your business?

Give us a call : 888-281-7665 x. 2
Or Tweet us if you've got questions about how Cal Coast Web Design can work with your business to bring you that well deserved spotlight on the biggest stage in the world : @CalCoast

Review Us And Enter To Win A Free Custom Facebook Landing Design

2011-07-06T12:45:00.000-07:00

Do you have a Facebook landing page?

For a limited time only Cal Coast is having a contest on Facebook and the winner receives a Custom Facebook landing page created by one of our professional designers. It is extremely easy to be a part of this. All you have to do is write Cal Coast Web Design a review on their Facebook business page. To start now and be part of this contest go to Facebook and start you review.

4 Ways business landing pages are useful.

Stay connected on a personal level with current clients.
Interact with potential clients in a non formal way.
Find out what competitors are doing in your industry.
Gain exposure for your website.

If you have used our services please give us a review on Facebook, it will only take a few minutes and you are automatically entered to win a great prize. The winner will be notified via email.

SMO Closing Flow Checklist: An Internet Marketing SOP You MUST Incorporate Now!

2011-06-20T15:40:00.000-07:00

Your social media profiles should be part of your SOP, from start to finish. Most importantly though, upon closing of a project.

Once your finished with a sale sand project, it can be difficult to maintain contact until they contact you again.

Below is a list of procedures we feel are important to improving your referral rates and upselling of existing clients.

Of course, this doesn't include all your own standard procedures, so please be sure to update your own manuals or contact us to help you create an official flow for your Closing SOP.

Once a client project is complete, be sure to handle the following...

Send a thank you email including links & options to/for the following:
- Follow you on Twitter
- Like your business page on Facebook (or friend your personal page)
- Connect with you on LinkedIn
- Subscribe to your newsletter or blog (We recommend using Feedburner - CCWD can set this up for you in less than an hour!)
- Friend us on Youtube
- Review us on Google, Yahoo, Yelp, Etc
- Add VALUE. Be sure to offer a promo for this work.
  
  This small gesture will keep people engaged in actively serving as your salesman. By constantly getting updates about what you offer, your followers may become regular customers or be able to refer their friends and followers as well…if they see value in it. We cant take action with that we don't know of.
  
  And unless it's in front of us, we cant take action. Offer incentive to get it in front of them. Have them do the work of adding you and subscribing to your updates!
Find & Follow on Twitter
Find & Friend (personal account) on Facebook
Suggest Business account on Facebook
Connect on LinkedIn
Set up on a drip email campaign

If you're using Campaigner, Constant Contact or other email marketing system, set your client up on a follow up campaign that adds value without more effort. We can help you customize and build this campaign!
Get a Testimonials

Whether its for your website itself, or a review in Google, Yahoo or Yelp, it will HELP!

A review on an outside site will help you rank better in the local results.

A positive review or testimonial will help users make a decision about trusting you and choosing you!

If a client has not offered one on their own, ask them about their experience. Transcribe as they talk and ask them if you can type that up to get approved and add it to your site.
Get Referrals

While you have them on the site getting feedback about their experience, be sure to see if there is anyone else who would benefit from your help! Offering an incentive for closed referrals can also help!
Share Example on Site

Be sure to get a description of their project, an example (before & after shot maybe) through image or video and post this on your site so other can see your work!

These simple tasks can easily be integrated into your closing flow.
Heck, even train an intern to do it!

It just takes 1 tweet shared by a previous client to close that million dollar deal!

Internet Marketing Strategies TODO List: Allocating time in your schedule to be a part of your online presence.

2011-06-20T15:12:00.000-07:00

Whether you're trying to master the art of website marketing and social media marketing on your own, or trying to supplement with the guidance of an Internet marketing specialist, you SHOULD be allocating time to your website nearly every day (or at least making it look that way.)

YOU are the zen master of your own industry and business.
YOU know best the industry updates, company news & specials and promos.
YOU know best the tips, tricks & tools of the trade.
YOU should be a part of getting this info to the world, to your target market. - We no longer look for the news, the news finds us! Be a part of getting your news out!

So, just what should you be doing?

Monthly:

Review your Analytics.
See where people are coming from.
What are they typing in? Can you maximize on that?
Where are they coming from? Which referring sites do you need to spend more time on? Or which do you need to cancel advertising on?
Send Blog Post Concepts to Copywriter
If you're not doing you own blogging, you should be providing news, opinions, potential promos & deals and more to your copywriter or marketing coordinator to help facilitate. (Yes, that means to Cal Coast.)

Industry News - Find anything online? In a newspaper? Link out to this news with your opinion so that you appear to be the leading expert and trusted adviser.

Company News / Branding - New employee? New department? New brochure you want feedback on? New location?

Promotions, Coupons, Discounts - Holiday deals? Weekend promos? Seasonal options? Don't have a fully booked weekend? Start a sales for just this weekend! Offer a promo for reviewing your company on Google, Yahoo or Yelp!

Product / Service Update - New treatment? New upgrade? New anything? This should be added to your site AND featured in a blog post, Twitter, Facebook and more!

Events - Grand Opening? Sale? Seminar? Open House?

Photos - Events, New Arrivals, Etc.

Contests & Drawings - Give people a reason to interact with you. Make them connect. Keep them coming back. Offer a free session or promotional item to the 1st 10 people who post on your Facebook. Or random drawing if you follow us on twitter, like us on Facebook, post a comment on our blog, or retweet this call to action. LET them serve as free salespeople getting you referrals by sharing your info through a contest worth sharing!

You don't have to be a beautiful writer. Just include some topics and some notes with opinions when applicable.

Schedule Tweets
Using an application like Hootsuite, you can schedule your tweets for the month at once! Know you're going to be an event, have the details? Schedule a post to meet you there on the day before (and of) that the event is held. That's right, you don't have to go on Twitter EVERY day. But we still encourage it. :)
Video
If you aren't doing it weekly, you should be creating and posting a video to YouTube monthly.
Why? - CLICK HERE for "7 Reasons to Use Online Video to Promote Your Business."
This doesn't have to be anything fancy. A web cam is acceptable in today's professional world. How about a "Saturday Coffee With InsertNameHere" where you talk about anything and everything form the above list.

As soon as you upload a video to YouTube, be sure to use the YouTube Bulletin feature to let all your subscribers know you have a new video ready for them to view! A Bulletin is similar to a status update on other social networks, such as Facebook.

Posting a Bulletin after uploading your video will help increase the visibility of your new video to subscribers who have opted out of notification emails alerting them when a new video is posted.
Add SMO Candy to Your Offline Marketing
Be sure your twitter, facebook, linkedin & other profiles are easily accessible on any new marketing materials like banners, business cards, brochures, INVOICES and more.

Weekly:

Blog Posts
If you aren't working with a company like Cal Coast to help you create posts, you should be blogging regularly on your own. Use your keywords in your title, categories & labels, and more.
VideoIn between video postings, be sure to use the Bulletins feature on YouTube. This is similar to a status update on other social networks, such as Facebook. This means that even if you haven't uploaded a new video, you can still get the word out to your subscribers about your latest promotions and updates!
Get Some Friends
Use Twitter's Advanced Search to find people who are talking about keywords that may reflect a need for your help. Look for your target market and then connect with them!
You may also find industry experts here who can help you see what they are doing so you can get some ideas for your own campaign. They are also giving you great content that you can retweet giving you relevant content and contributing to the community. Having these experts updating you so you can update your followers means you look more and more like the expert, the specialist, the trustworthy advisor they go to!

Follow to be followed.
If you follow a potential client on Twitter, they get an email that you are following them. Then they can look at your profile with the link and decide if they want to follow you back. How else were you going to get in front of them so easily?
Be sure you have some valuable content on your page before you do this or else you wont be followed back.

Be sure to follow your leads and existing clients as well. This is just more opportunity to close the deal faster or get referrals!

Friend on Facebook.
Suggest friends like your Facebook Business page.
Find new friends that are your leads and existing clients.
Engage In The Community
Once you have friends, engage with them! Talk to people. Answer their questions. Share their information (scratch my back, ill scratch yours.) Help be the expert so that they come to you when ready to buy or refer you when a friend is looking!

Join a LinkedIn group and start a discussion or contribute to another.

Answer some questions on Yahoo Answers.

Daily:

Include Social Candy In Your Signature
Every email you send out should have links to your social profile sin your signature.
Use an automatic tool like WiseStamp to do this automatically for you if you're using webmail. Or just use your template for offline options like Outlook.
15 Min on Facebook & Twitter
For one, you may have some questions or conversations waiting for you to reply.
You also want to see whats happened in your stream or wall since the lst time. Who can you help, who can you share info for & with?

There is plenty more you can do each and every day to help improve your online marketing campaign and experience for your users. Please don't hesitate to contact us for a free consultation on how to get you and your team organized.

Save time and money with an intern! A How To Guide...

2011-06-17T17:07:00.000-07:00

Don't want to pay your social media company $50-$100/hr to tweet & update Facebook?
Need to lessen your own workload?
Just cant fully wrap your head around what a tweet is?

Getting an intern is the perfect opportunity to get help and save your own valuable time and money!

Let's face it, an intern is probably going to be better trained in social media platforms like Twitter & Facebook anyway. College students usually have their mobile device with them updating at all times.

Maximize that resource!

Before You Get Started:

An intern is not just "free help." You need to make sure you have the time to train and educate them. Otherwise, what else is in it for them?

Experience on their resume, you say? - Not enough... at least according to the law. They are there to learn.

CLICK HERE for the 6 criteria to determine whether an “intern” or “trainee” is exempt.
CLICK HERE for more information on the legalities behind payments.

Prepare what you will have them training with you on. Which areas do you need assistance in?

Getting An Intern

Prepare your "job or intern" position.
What will they be assisting with?
More importantly, what will they be LEARNING?
Is it paid? Unpaid?
How long is it?
Any requirements in education or experience?
Prepare a contract. Nothing fancy, just this is how long you will be here, here are your responsibilities, and we don't have to give you a job when this is done, but one may be available to you. Or something to that extent.
Visit your local college websites.
On here there should be a Career Center or other link available with more information on their unique steps for posting your internship opportunity.
Visit your local colleges.
Ask the students where the Career Center is.
When arriving, speak with the admin assistant there. Butter them up, they are your key to getting in front of all the other opportunities. They can also help you with the process of adding your position online, on their bulletin boards and tell you more about intern workshops or fairs they may have coming up.
This may mean a personal letter to the schools teachers in your field of expertise to announce to their student who may not have found you otherwise.
Post your internship online. (If you haven't done so already form the above.)
Once you receive emails, start interviewing your interns. Perhaps have them come in for a "trial run" day. Make sure they are interested in both your industry and, if you're working with Cal Coast, that they have an itch to learn about marketing. Especially social media!

It's a good idea to have your interview questions ready as a checklist to see what they know about Twitter, Facebook, blogging, emails, etc.
Select your intern.
Paid interns need to be reported. Check with your payroll company.
Unpaid interns need to sign that contract!
Decide on intern hours. Often times they have school schedules.
Start training!
Use them to help you with your daily needs. show them the ropes. What does it take to run a business like yours?!
And of course, schedule them to meet with a Cal Coast rep to train on how to best optimize the use of Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn & blogs to keep your social media campaign getting you referrals!
Let US show them how to maximize the resources while YOU tell them about the opportunities to post about. You are the Zen master of your industry, no?
Complete Internship
Once the internship is complete, make sure you follow any instructions the college gave you for completing paperwork or forms for the student to receive college credit.
If pleased with their work, offer them a paid position at your company to continue working on what they've been trained.
If not, offering a referral letter is also helpful to the student in the future.
And be sure to ask them if they have friends with the same focus who would be interested in the next internship.

All in all, just take the leap, and ask for help along the way!

Be sure to contact Cal Coast to see how we can help provide some of your intern training to help you maximize your blog and Facebook, Twitter & LinkedIn profiles!

We Love Hootsuite! Save time, Schedule tweets, Add Media...Multiple Birds, 1 stone.

2011-06-09T14:28:00.000-07:00

Don't have time to update your Twitter & Facebook everyday, but still want to offer valuable content in your social media stream?

Like the value that images & video add to your social media campaign, but are tired of using 3rd party applications for generating links to your video & images?

Save the time. Share the value.

Hootsuite is a Social Media dashboard for company teams to manage Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and other social profiles for multiple users and accounts.

HootSuite offers tracking, security, reporting, mobile options, team membership and other AMAZING features.

Get Started now by visiting Hootsuite and clicking "Sign Up Now" and follow the on screen directions.

Add your accounts like Twitter & Facebook so you can easily update at once.

Once you are set up, simply use the "Compose message" section to enter your social media call to action and see your character count.

Be sure to choose which accounts you want to post your message to.

Then, just use the integrated tools in the attachment section for adding video, images, documents and more.

AND, if you like, choose the "Schedule" or "calendar icon" to schedule your tweet or Facebook post to post at a later time. That's right! Schedule your daily tweets ahead of time!

Share your account with additional users and even schedule tasks for team members.

Get started quickly and easily RIGHT NOW with the tutorial videos below...

Hootsuite's Own Video Tour

Hootsuite Beginner Tutorial

Hootsuite For Android & Iphone

Internships, a possible way to save capitol for business?

2011-05-24T14:17:00.000-07:00

In today's economy all businesses are looking for ways to cut their expenses. Could this be by hiring an intern or is this the wrong route for you? Interns for the most part are known to just be given the bare minimum of work, the things an owner is to busy for. For them to learn though, give them a responsibility and hold them accountable, so the intern can get the feeling what it would be like to hold a position at the company.

The HR experts at Personnel Policy Service recently published the article, "Paying Summer Interns Less Than (or No) Minimum Wage" where they discuss the 4 four circumstances when you do not owe nonexempt employees the minimum wage.

CLICK HERE to read the article, or see our quick summary below...

Four Occasions when Minimum wage is not owed.

1. The opportunity Wage: If your recently hired employee is under the age of 20 you may give them a substantial decrease in salary for the first 90 days.

2. Students and Disabled Employees: When being a student and working at the same time your employer is allowed to pay you at least 75% of the minimum wage. Then depending on the severity of your employees disability is determined how much is payed out.

3. Trainees and Interns: To actually qualify a worker as an intern the employer must follow a list of regulations stating things like; employer cant benefit from interns work and how they can't replace an employees current position. These rules were created to prevent the Trainees from just filing paper instead of actually learning.

4. Volunteers: Most places that have volunteers are non-profit organizations like a food bank. Another factor the department of labor will look at to qualify the worker is a volunteer is by seeing if it is a full time occupation and how much the organization benefits from it.

Read more on "Paying Summer Interns less than (or no) minimum wage" by HR Matter E-tips.

Have an intern who needs to learn the common knowledge of social media and other internet marketing?

At Cal Coast we have the expertise to train your interns how to interact and generate leads through social media and other internet marketing. Help save your company money by sending your intern to train at Cal Coast. If you are interested in this program please send us an email at support@calcoastwebdesign.com

We like to race to the top of the search engines. And, the front of the track... with Werks2 motorsports racing equipment!

2011-05-24T13:26:00.000-07:00

Most of the time, we're racing to the top of the search engines. But on our "days off" over here, we like to race around the track.

The men in our lives like a
sexy car as well. Werks2 Motorsport racing equipment has been kind to us and make shopping for the boys (and ourselves) simple.

Werks II Motorsports supplies racing gear and equipment to professional teams, club racers, hobbyists, and go kart enthusiasts around the world. Many second and third party vendors also use Werks II to supply products to retailers and end-users. We proudly support the Werks II team and would recommend them to any customer in need of high performance race gear or automotive service.

PRODUCTS FROM WERKS II
Whether you order online or at their Burbank, CA Showroom, Werks II only carries top name brands in motorsports equipment. Browse the many categories of durable race gear, or sort by top manufacturers to experience the superior selection of:

Racing Suits
Go Kart Accessories
Auto Racing Helmets
Racing Steering Wheel & Quick Release Hubs
Racing Seats including Aftermarket, Competition, Full Containment & Tuning Seats
Head and Neck Restraint including Hans Device
Racing Pedals & Shift Knobs
Auto Racing Gloves & Racing Driving Shoes
Racing Gear including Balaclava, shirts, etc.
...and more Racing & Karting Accessories

SERVICE BY WERKS II
Werks II takes pleasure in offering customers high quality reliable products, and exceptional selection. Outstanding personal service and product knowledge comes naturally to the staff at Werks II, because most employees are enthusiasts themselves!

We trust that the specially trained technicians at Werks II Workshop will install, tune, or service nearly any area of automotive concern. From prepping an early-model Porsche for track-racing to upgrading the suspension on a BMW, we believe the Werks mechanical team in Burbank will meet and exceed your high standards and expectations as they exceeded our own.

We recommend Werks II for performance upgrades, engine and transmission rebuilds, race & track preparation and other services.

Find them online at Werks2.com to order now or schedule an appointment.

WERKS II Motorsports
918 Chestnut Street,
Burbank, CA 91506-1621
Phone: (800) 4-WERKS2

Orange County TEDx - Innovation at its finest!

2011-05-19T19:18:00.000-07:00

So honored to listen to TEDx Orange Coast today and hear all the wonderful speakers! The theory was 'innovation', and the day was jam packed with amazing creators and innovators.

Rick Warren, bestselling author & philanthropist, was one of the speakers. He discussed 8 questions of innovation. Pastor Warren talked about these 8 inno'Nations' as being a part of every major movement Saddleback Church has been involved with. Since Saddleback has done such amazing things I wanted to share. They are questions you need to ask at pivotal moments to ensure your course and strategy is correct.

1. What do I first need to stop? You need to make room. Stop something before you start. Determi'nation'.

2. How do I do it faster, better or smarter with a team? Innovate farther than yourself with collaboration. Coordi'nation'.

3. What could we mix together to create something new? What can we bring a union or synthesis of? Combi'nation'.

4. What part could we take out in order to make it simpler? What barrier can we remove to make it more accessible? *ahem, programmers* Elimi'nation'.

5. What has died that we can bring back to life in a new form? What old idea needs to be or could be reformatted? Reincar'nation'.

6. How can we change the purpose or motivation for what we're doing? Rejuve'nation'.

7. How can we look at this with new eyes? What are we 'used to' that needs to change? You may need to ask outside your organization, from clients or competitors. Illumi'nation'.

8. How could we make it more interesting? Appealing? Mesmerizing? Fasci'nation'.

Growing organizations require growing leaders - ask yourself these questions to constantly stay on course! Rick reminded everyone he was simply reiterating what all the other innovators today were saying - always be learning and stay educated. If you're done learning, you're done leading!

Hope these questions help you & your business stay on course. Which one resonates the most? Comment below or tweet @CalCoast or @AngieWeeks.

Jeffrey Gitomer teaches from experience about the Art of sales

2011-05-10T12:38:00.000-07:00

Zac and I attended a social seminar hosted by none other than Jeffrey Gitomer. A laugh out loud, get down to business kind of guy put sales in a fresh spotlight for us and taught from experience.

For example, given the choice between two restaurants, he not only based his choice on the quality of his meal, but the SERVICE. While one waiter tells him “I’ll get to you in a moment”, the other says “Right Away.”

Which one would you choose? First and maybe most obvious rule if you want to make that sale: You get to that client RIGHT AWAY.

Second most obvious rule: Be friendly. “People want to do business with their friends” says Gitomer.

Jeffrey gave us 10 more rules to follow as sales guidelines to success with your customers and long-term relationships that bring in your “regulars”:

1.) Your attitude must be positive. We’re not just talking the salespeople, ALL of your employees. If you have a bad attitude, You Lose.

2.) Maintain pricing. Don’t battle price pressures. Instead hold your prices and let your quality and service shine.

3.) Tell your customers what you CAN do. Never start a sentence with “We can’t…”

4.) Train everyone to answer every question from a customer. Send them to voicemail, and they’ll just find someone else. “The new world is immediate.” says Jeffrey, assigning our new hours: “24-7-265 is the new 9-5.”

5.) Be Service ready, not just sales ready.

6.) Use the words “Thank You.” When an order is received and after an order is delivered. Deliver your orders with Sincerity.

7.) Be active and in-depth. Attract, engage and connect WITH VALUE.

*Give your customers a chance to talk to you on Facebook.

*Connect and link on Linkedin

*Social Media for business is no longer an option.

8.) Create you weekly e-mail magazine that has more value messages and proactively

send them to your customers.

9.) Make sure that upper management communicates.

10.) Employment technology should be implemented in everything, especially sales.

* Create mobile apps and faster and easier ways for people to buy from you.

He says there’s a surge coming, and we all need to be on board when it comes. This not only means have the best technology at your fingertips, but use that technology to show your value. Engage and Connect with your clients using Social Media.

Remember, Social Media is not an option for business anymore, but an essential. Jeffrey states this in his book “Social Boom”, one of ten books he’s written on the subject of sales.

And here at Cal Coast, that’s the name of our game :) We know you can’t do it all alone. Let us help you get started with a free Social Media consultation.

You can reach us at 888-281-7665 x 2 or Tweet @CalCoast .