Protect and Build Your Online Reputation
Every day millions of consumers flock to the Web to read and share reviews about businesses. RatePoint helps you take a common sense approach to your online reputation. We give you all the tools you need to encourage customers to speak up, and then promote that feedback. If there’s a problem, RatePoint gives you an opportunity to fix it before it can impact your online reputation.

Boost Sales and Consumer Confidence
Research indicates that more than two-thirds of consumers today refer to online reviews and ratings before making purchase decisions from on or offline businesses. RatePoint helps you capitalize on that phenomenon and word-of-mouth marketing – by enabling you to share real, honest opinions and comments from your customers, and turn shoppers into buyers.

Improve Customer Service and Satisfaction
Studies have shown that most unhappy customers don’t complain, they just look for another company to give them what they need. This means you could be losing customers without even knowing why. With RatePoint, your customers are given an interactive method to provide insightful, honest feedback (good or bad), ultimately creating a more satisfying customer experience.

Stay Connected with Customers
Staying connected and communicating with customers can help you build loyal lasting relationships. Our email marketing and survey tools make it easy for you to keep in constant contact with customers, and drive them to do more business with you.

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Sigma Web Technologies today announced it has joined RatePoint’s Business Partner Program. Sigma Web Technologies (www.SigmaWebTechnologies.com) is now able to provide its clients with easy to use email marketing and customer feedback tools to help small-business clients improve customer satisfaction, build credibility and increase profitability. RatePoint, Inc., (www.RatePoint.com), is the leading provider of customer feedback and online reputation management services for small-and-medium sized businesses.

Using RatePoint, Sigma Web Technologies can easily help its clients proactively manage their online reputation through every customer interaction by capturing customer feedback and testimonials and displaying them in multiple areas, including Web sites, emails and marketing materials. Additionally, Sigma Web Technologies can now provide its clients with customer feedback, product reviews, email marketing and survey tools, and dispute resolution capabilities.

“Our customers are always looking for cost-effective ways to grow their businesses,” said Larry Levenson, founder of Sigma Web Technologies.”RatePoint’s tools help us provide our clients with multiple ways to connect with their customers and leverage their reputation as a sales tool. RatePoint’s business partner program is a valuable addition to our core services, helping boost loyalty and build stronger and more profitable relationships with our customers.”

Sigma Web Technologies’ clients will receive a 30-day promotional trial of RatePoint’s Web-based reputation management solution, which includes feedback tools, email marketing, survey and dispute resolution capabilities.

Going to their website, I saw only what is pictured at the left. Then I called their web hosting service and asked them to look at their server logs.  It seems someone with the username and password to the website (a disgruntled employee?) logged in and deleted the entire website.

A website backup isn’t a backup unless you can restore it

Fortunately, this web hosting service backs up the entire site every 24 hours

Unfortunately, each backup overwrites the previous backup, and this site was deleted more than 7 days ago! So we have 7 backup files, each with no data in it.   Should I tell you how BAD this is??

Ask your web hosting service how often they backup your website

So how can you learn from this experience? Call you web host and ask them how often they backup.Most good web  hosts backup daily, but don’t count on it. Ask.

Full or incremental website backups?

Then ask your host if these backups are full or incremental. A full website backup is just what it sounds like, a complete backup of your website pages (but probably not your database, see below). This means all current pages are packaged nicely in a single compressed file, and can be readily restored in minutes.

An incremental website backup consists a full backup, and then daily backups of the CHANGES on your web site (again, not including database changes).  Restoring from an incremental backup is a little more work. . . the full backup gets restored, and then every incremental backup since then gets restored.

How long is your backup retained?

This is the crux of the problem with the client I mentioned above. The web hosting service only retains backups for 6 days. Every Sunday, they overwrite last Sunday’s backup, and so on, every day of the week. This works great if you accidentally delete a file and then find out that you made a mistake. It’s quick and easy to restore the file. But if you discover that your website has been hacked more than 7 days ago, you’re out of luck!! 

Ask your web hosting service how long they retain a backup. If their schedule works for your situation, no problem. If it doesn’t, ask what other backup options they have.

Where is your backup stored?

Most web hosts store the backup on the same server that your website is hosted on.

Convenient? Yes.

Safe? No!!

When the server fails, and it WILL fail eventually, everything is lost if your backup is on that server, too. I learned this lesson the hard way. Make sure that your backups are stored on a different server.

What about my database(s)?

If you website stores its data in a database (ask your webmaster), you’ll need to make provision to backup the database, too. This is actually the easiest part, ans there are lots of programs available to quickly backup even a very large database into a manageable package. If your website uses a database (and most do these days), backing up that data is even more important that backing up the files on your server. Your webmaster probably has a copy of the original files (check with him/her to be sure), but the most current data is in your database. Be sure you back it up regularly!

Is there an easy way to do this?

Yes. . . in fact there are several easy ways to do this. First, talk with you web host and see what they are willing to do for you. If they want to keep you as a custiomer, they can get pretty creative. Be sure to TEST whatever solution they provide, to make sure you get a complete and reliable backups for both your web pages and database.

If you have access to your CPanel, you can generate a full backup of your website AND its databases in just a few clicks (use the Backup Wizard). Then you can save this backup on you computer at your desk. Where it’s safe and sound. If you use this method, be sure to do it regularly.

You could hire a programmer to create a script that uses the CPanel  backup wizard and that then stores the backups on another server. This is a very good solution. If you go this direction, be sure to thoroughly TEST the integrity of the backups, both the website AND the database(s).

For most small business websites, you could have your programmer create a script that compresses all the web pages and the database, and emails the whole package to you. This could run on a daily or weekly basis, depending on your needs.

There are also several online solutions, although I haven’t tested any of these. This could be a good way to go for some businesses.

One size does not fit all

Your backup needs are different from mine. Think through what you need to accomplish with your backups. How often? Where should they be stored? Who should have access to them? What’s your website worth to you (yes, in dollars and cents)? Would it be worth it to hire someone to custom-build a backup solution for you?

Please don’t end up like my past client, calling me about a website that mysteriously disappeared. . . without a good backup!

Why Should I Write Articles?

You can post articles at many different sites on the Internet for free to gain exposure to 1,000’s of online and offline publishers. People can request to reprint your article and when you agree to let them, your name, bio and a link to your site will be included. Additionally, your articles will provide incoming links to your website, and this helps increase link popularity to your site.

Many article sites receive several million page views per month and are regularly spidered by Google, MSN and others. This means prominently placed articles are indexed in the search engines quickly and links on them are followed.

Writing articles is a great way to establish yourself as an expert in your field by writing about your area of expertise and getting free publicity back to your Web site.

Use Original Content in Your Articles

If you put in time and research to produce or to synthesize original content, think hard about what niches to target. My advice is not to start with an article about shoes/pills/casinos/mortgages/real estate – it’s better to start with a smaller niche. If you become known as an expert on (say) Arizona investment real estate or bootstrapping a home-based business, you could build that out with things like forums to create even more useful content. Look for a progression of niches so that you start out small or very specific, but you can build your way up to a big, important area over time.

10 Creative Ideas for Article Topics

1. What to Ask Your [Business Type] Before Hiring Them.
2. 10 Ways To Save Money by Using a [Business Type].
3. How to Choose a Good [Business Type].
4. 5 Totally New Ways of Sprucing up Your [Business Services].
5. How to Get 50% Off Your Next [Business Service].
6. The Latest and Greatest in [Business Service].
7. 10 DIY [Business Service] Tips You Can Use Today.
8. 15 Factors That Affect Your [Business Service] Quote.
9. How to Become a Certified [Business Service] in 6 Months.
10. Ten Mistakes to Avoid When Hiring a [Business Type].

Real-Life Example of These Topics

1. What to Ask Your Car Mechanic Before Hiring Him.
2. 10 Ways To Save Money by Using a Chartered Accountant.
3. How to Choose a Good Mover.
4. 5 Totally New Ways of Sprucing up Your Interior Design.
5. How to Get 50% Off Your Next Oil Change.
6. The Latest and Greatest in Aromatic Massage Oils.
7. 10 DIY Carpentry Tips You Can Use Today.
8. 15 Factors That Affect Your Car Insurance Quote.
9. How to Become a Certified Hair Stylist in 6 Months.
10. Ten Mistakes to Avoid When Hiring a Plumber.

Where Should I Post My Articles?

You can post the same article on many different websites. Be sure to select the proper category to post in, and be aware of the terms of service for each site. Also, be aware that some sites may be more appropriate for your content than others. You can Google “article directory” and find thousands of listings. Article directories are a dime a dozen, so I suggest you focus your efforts on submitting your articles top these sites.

General websites to post on:

• EzineArticles
• GoArticles
• ArticleDashboard
• SearchWarp
• PubsACS
• ArticleBase
• Isnare
• Buzzle
• ArticleCity
• IdeaMarketers
• Any geographically-specific sites, like the ones below

Prescott Arizona – Additional Places to Post:

• PrescotteNews
• StoneRidgeBusiness

How Often Should I Post My Articles?

As often as you want! The more the merrier. . . HOWEVER, you should strive for ongoing posting, not a flash in the pan.

Maybe you get ambitious and want to post several articles now, to start your article marketing efforts. Then come back each week and post one or two more. Post each article all of the article sites that you selected.

I use a secure network to access the Internet from my home office, but often take my laptop with me to public locations to work or meet with clients.

Make a quick change to Gmail’s settings and you’ll be connecting securely no matter where you are.

1. Access your Gmail account.

2. Click Settings at the top right side of your Gmail page.

3. At the General Tab, go down to the Browser connection: and choose Always use https.

4. Then Click Save Changes and you’re done.

Now , when you read your emails, your browser address will start with https and not the usual http. That’s all you need to do!

The question becomes why does most marketing fail and, more importantly, what can you do to avoid failure?

I’ve been engaged in marketing for small businesses for many years. After talking with hundreds of small business owners, in a wide variety of industries, a handful of elements keep coming up as essential. That is, when we ignore one, we paid the price.

Here’s what I’ve learned:

7. Your message isn’t customer-driven

What you’re saying about your product is important to you, is understandable to you. But not to your customer. It doesn’t matter what’s important to you. What’s important is what’s important to your customer. They buy for their reasons, not yours. Make sure your message is important to them. How? Ask them.

6. Your marketing methods aren’t customer-driven

You keep going to trade shows, but the decision-makers inside your customers’ companies stopped going two years ago. You keep advertising in that trade magazine because it’s the best and biggest in the industry, but the decision-makers inside your customers’ companies stopped paying much attention to it two years ago. Hmmm. How do your customers expect to learn about new vendors like your company? How do they prefer being contacted? Ask them! Align your methods with your customers’ expectations and preferences.

5. Incomplete marketing support (not a campaign)

I see it all the time. A company sends one mailing, not much happens and they go about the task of figuring out why their marketing isn’t working. Or they place one ad or go to one trade show. No follow up.

Things change. A prospect may not be open to your message this month, but might be next month. Think marketing campaign: multiple contacts executed a variety of ways (ads, direct mail, Internet, trade show, etc.). One ad or one mailing or one trade show does not a campaign make.

4. Too much “me-too”

Great food, fast, friendly service and reasonable prices. Wonderful, but why should I eat in your restaurant? Knowledgeable, experienced staff, made in America quality and fast shipping. Great, but why should I buy from you?

Are all those wonderful things you’re saying about your product really differentiating you, or do they sound like everybody else? My best antidote to too much “me too” is two things:

1. Make sure you’re giving people reasons to buy that are their reasons, not yours (a previous topic).
2. Be specific. Quality, service and price are so overused they have no impact. What does quality mean? “Our superior manufacturing techniques allow us to warranty our gizmo for 10 years, DOUBLE the industry standard.” “We have two owners and two superintendents in the field checking every job. No other contractor our size can say that. No other contractor cares more about quality than we do.”

3. You don’t contact enough people

At its most basic, marketing is still a game of odds. The more people you contact, the higher the odds your message gets to people who want your product at that time.

2. You don’t contact people often enough

Same as above. Get the odds in your favor. I may not need or want your product today, but I may next month.

The #1 Reason most Marketing Fails

1. No testing/quit before you succeed

We tried direct mail but it didn’t work.” Tried it one time, did ya, and it didn’t work—well then, forget direct mail! Sounds silly, but too many owners give up on a marketing method before they give it a chance to succeed. Make small affordable tests. If customers tell you newspaper is how they learn about firms like yours, test in a newspaper where a quarter page ad is $400, not $4,000.  Learn, change the headline. Change the offer. Change the price. Add a picture. Test. Rarely is something that “fails” 100% wrong. Testing helps you eliminate the bad and keep the good. Don’t quit before you give yourself a chance to succeed!

You want your website to be “findable” in the search engines, but don’t have the budget to engage a high-powered SEO firm. Here’s a simple and effective way to select keywords and keyphrases yourself, with a little time spent on basic research.

Determine who you’re after. . .

• Think of the ONE person most likely to need what your web page or service is about.

• Erase from your mind all inside knowledge about your business, product, service, etc.

• Forget all the specialized terms known only to industry insiders.

Jump into the mind of the person. . .

• You are not a former customer, so you have no history or relationship.

• You have a definite need, challenge, desire, question or interest (that’s why you’re searching).

• You are about to type words into a Google search box in the hopes that it will guide you to a quick answer.

Ask yourself. . .

• What words or phrases would you type to get the results you want?

• Sometimes thinking about the “who, what, when, where, why or how” behind the searcher’s motivation will spark additional useful keywords and phrases.

Ask others. . .

• You’re not done! Ask your spouse, your Ex, your delivery man, you kids, your mailman, your pet-sitter, the merchant whose store you are in, people on the subway, past customers, etc. Ask everyone!

• Don’t prep them with background info, just tell them your basic goals. The less you say, the better results you will get.

• Remember, people are not always good spellers. Misspelled words can be a gold mine!

Explore your competition. . .

The Fix for PDF Downloads in Firefox

There is an addon (of course!) designed to solve this problem. Download and install PDF Download 2.2.0.2 or more recent.

Use PDF Download to do whatever you like with PDF files on the Web. Regain control of them and eliminate browser problems, view PDFs directly in Firefox as HTML, and use the all-new Web-to-PDF toolbar to save and share Web pages as high-quality PDF files.

Configuring PDF Downloads

You need to set a couple thing in the Option dialogue for this addon to work properly. Go to Tools |  Addons and select the Download PDF addon. On the Genral tab, select Open PDF. Then on the Opening PDF tab, select “Use OS default viewer”. Now your PDFs will download and open in your default PDF viewer. In my case, this is Foxit Reader.

This addon works great! And no more freezing!

Most of of us either use one username/password for everything or have a variety passwords on Post-It notes around our monitor. Neither of these is a very secure solution. Best practices for computer security require a strong password, but one that you can remember.

It’s pretty easy for hackers to break a password when it’s only a few characters long or it uses a dictionary word (even if it is suffixed with a couple of digits, a hybrid dictionary attack breaks it pretty fast).

The Components of a Secure Password

The basics of creating a secure password:

• Include punctuation marks (,.;), special characters (!#$%^) and numbers.
• Mix capital (uppercase) and lowercase characters.
• Create a unique acronym.
• Short passwords should be 8 chars at least.

Some potential weaknesses to avoid:

• Don’t use a password that is listed as an example or public.
• Don’t use the same password you have been using for years.
• Don’t use a password someone else has seen you type.
• Don’t use a password that contains personal information (names, birthdays or dates that are easily related to you)
• Don’t use words or acronyms that can be found in a dictionary.
• Don’t use keyboard patterns (qwerty) or sequential numbers (12345).

Keeping Your Password Secure

Once you have a good password it’s equally important to keep your password secure:

• Never tell anyone your password or use it where someone can observe it.
• Never send your password by email or say it where others may hear.
• Occasionally verify your current password and change it to a new one.
• Avoid writing your password down. (Keep it with you in a purse or wallet if you have to write down the password until you remember it.)

And never label that scrap of paper in any way. Write it down on an the back of an old business card or something that doesn’t indicate it’s a password. Don’t give anyone who finds (or gains access to) your purse/wallet any clue of what the password means or what it is related to.

Security vs. Usability

128 bit entropy in a password requires a long randomized passphrase, which wouldn’t be very usable, there has to be a trade somewhere between security and usability.

You can also use online password generators such as http://makemeapassword.com/, the problem with these however, is that they do create strong passwords but they aren’t easy to remember, which kind of defeats the purpose.

Another thing you can do is use something like a password safe to keep all the hard to remember passwords in one place, the one I would recommend is from Bruce Schneier and is actually called “Password Safe”.

Password Safe is an Open Source (free) tool that allows you to have a different password for all the different programs and websites that you deal with, without actually having to remember all those usernames and passwords. Password Safe runs on PCs under and version of Windows.

You can find it here: http://passwordsafe.sourceforge.net/

Local News and Local Advertising

Besides reporting the local news, Prescott eNews represents a unique opportunity for local marketers. . . their website had over 270,000 PAGE VIEWS in July 2009!! This is HUGE for a small town!

You can advertise with them for well under $100/month. . . and that includes the opportunity to post a full articles about your business on their site. Of course, be sure to have a good bio box at the bottom of the article so search engines and people will know where to find you.

Advertise for People and the Search Engines!

Always keep in  mind that your internet ad will be viewed by two audiences: People & Search Engines. . . and they each have very distinct perspectives.

When a person sees a website, they notice graphics and color. They skim the page looking for relevant information. By associating images with words, people will remember your ad better.

But search engines – they’re different. Search engines can’t see like people can, so that image ad you perfected means nothing to sites such as Google, Yahoo or MSN. Search engines can read, however, and to achieve higher rankings, your words must be chosen with care.

That’s why advertising with Prescott eNews is unique. They make sure your ads appeal to both people and search engines. And with the traffic they get, you have a big leg up on your competition!