This is going to be short and sweet, if you have questions please leave them in the comments box below or find us on Facebook.

This is a Gold Nugget for those of you who are starting a Google pay-per-click advertising campaign or have been experimenting with little or no results.

There are two different networks that your business can use on the Google PPC platform. Those are the Search Network and the Display Network (formally know as the content network). Advertisers do not get an explanation of the differences between the two nor how they work. It is simply recommended that you advertise across the entire system.

Networks?

The Search Network is designed to attract customers who are more likely to be in the buying phase of there shopping process. It is intended to reach buyers at the precise moment they are looking for your product or service.

The Display Network is designed to brand your business and advertise to shoppers through out their shopping process. You have the ability to advertise to a broader market and push your message out on the internet

The network that fits your business goals may include one or the other or both. You can decide and run your campaign accordingly. For a more in depth explanation,visit Google Help.

The Gold Nugget

Run your advertising in the search network and/or in the content network but separate them out into different campaigns. For best results you do not want to run one campaign that is set up to run advertising on both networks at the same time. You can select which network(s) you want to advertise with under the “settings tab” of your campaign.

Separating strategies, data and conversions will allow you to manage your different types of PPC advertising more effectively, optimize them for better performance and improve return on investment.

Told you it was going to be short. If you have questions or a comment  leave it and we will respoond.

Customers Are Looking For You 'Online'

Every local business needs a website; that is if you want to attract customers. Every lawyer, doctor, dentist, construction company, car dealership, restaurant, supply company, service provider etc. should have a website.

You do not need to actually do business on the internet to have a website. If your business is listed in the Yellow Pages then you will also want to be available to your customers on the internet – after all, they are expecting to find your there.

A simple website is very effective and more affordable than you may think.

How a Website Will Benefit Your Business

Even a simple website will help connect your advertising offline and online to your customers and to your front door. Would you not agree that it is easier to get prospective clients to visit your website than it is to stop what they are doing and come to your store front? The majority of the population is simply too busy to come to your store and commit to several minutes if not hours working with you to decide what best fits their needs.

Your website can act as a detailed business listing with contact & location information, be a relationship builder, a sales person or even a cashier depending on how your business is setup.

• Detailed Business Listing

This may not seem important but realize that customers look for your contact information and location exactly when they are ready for what you have to offer. In today’s world that isn’t from a phonebook! Rather it is from their computer, and more times than not, directly from there mobile phone.

• Build Relationships

People will do research looking for a reputable company to spend their money with. Allow you website to educate possible clients about your business’s strong suits and inform then why they can buy from you with confidence.

• Improve Sales

Giving detailed information to clients about your products and services from your website allows them to shop with you no matter where they are and no matter what time of the day it is. How much more effective would your advertising be if customers could visit your store front 24 hours a day 7 days a week verses only during your operating hours. How many more sales would your team close when interacting with customers who have already informed themselves about your company, researched the products or services you offer and are initially ready to do business. Customers strongly prefer to know what they’re coming to buy before they walk in your door.

• Make Money While You Sleep

If your business sells products, an e-commerce website offers huge advantages. Sale your products any time of day from anywhere in the world, while you sleep. Though an extensive website increases initial investment, imagine the possibilities.

How Much Will it Cost

With the vast number of website designers available today a website is probably one of the least expensive ways available to market and promote your business.

A basic informational website will provide a way for customers to contact you, learn about your company history and values, and research your products /services. Starter website like this will range from $500 – $1000. Larger websites for businesses with a broader range of commodities could range from $1000 – $20,000. E-commerce will add more depending on the mass of products you sell. The best an only way to find out for sure is to decide what all you want to promote and talk to a designer or consultant. Most websites are custom priced per individual need.

A Business Website Is a No Brainer

• Builds customer relations & describe products /services 24/7
• Allows customers to find & contact you effortlessly
• Helps improve your sales process by connecting your advertising
• Brings qualified buyers through the door
• Affordable & Effective

Contact us for more information and to learn how a website may help your business. See a list of all the Turnkey Business Solutions offered by Carbon Copy Consulting offers for your business needs. We are always happy to help you make the right choice in growing your business.

Don’t think for a moment that your customers aren’t already online.

So, I get this request last week from a new business owner that wanted me to be-friend them on Facebook. Hey, I am all about new business so went straight to his page to learn more. I like to know who I am dealing with, same as you! What I found was not only amusing, but some what disturbing.

This guys business profile had no contact name, one lame picture and the best part is his business page said he was most interested in looking for women, dating and a relationship.

I tell my daughter this everyday “You have to pay attention!”  If you are going to promote your business on the internet then I suggest you not only pay attention when you set up your social media profiles the first time but if you haven’t done it in a while, go back and check to make sure it is up to date with what your business is about now! I got to thinking about this after seeing how a simple mistake can cost you. I looked at all of my social media profiles yesterday to make sure I wasn’t embarrassing myself or my business. I spent 2 hours updating them after seeing how outdated they were.

Point is this: Have a look at your profiles and make sure you are sending out not only the right message, but that you are branding your business for what it is. If you profile says one thing about you and your business and the website or search engine rankings say something different, I am a whole lot less inclined to do business with you!

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Some argue that such a thing as ‘Effective Advertising’ doesn’t even exist. Small business owners across middle Tennessee are struggling and seeking to find new ways to drive more customers into their business with out spending more money.  It is time to open up to the future, do more with your advertising budget and get advertising results you can track, optimize and improve.

Traditional Advertising Method Downfalls

Advertising such as phone books, newspapers and magazines aren’t working well anymore and are outdated to the point of extinction. How many times have you looked in the phone book lately? TV, radio and billboard advertising have always been expensive; however they do produce exposure to a very large market close to home.

Problem with these forms of local advertising is you have no idea how effective they are. All you get are “statistics” provided by the companies that do the advertising. They can not tell you how many people found your business much less who spent money with you.

Business owners need advertising that gives the ability to control who sees ads, when they see them and allows them to precisely track how many customers are received from the advertising budget. There is a solution right at your finger tips for more effective advertising!

Google Search Engine Marketing

Often time’s companies overlook the internet for an advertising means because they do not understand how the marketing process works. Some simply find it to complicated or lack the knowledge to attempt it. Implementing a targeted pay-per-click (PPC) campaign on the Google Adwords Platform is by far one of the most affordable means of advertising.

You control ad placement, click price, advertising budget, demographic, geography, age range, and times of day to run your ads. The list goes on and on but the point is this; your business could be advertising to only people who need your help and doing it at the exact moment they need it, while tracking results and improving your advertising every month.

Not convinced?

People who use the internet to find local business is growing at a staggering rate; Thirty-Four percent last year alone. Reports also show that local search on mobile devices grew over Fifty percent from 2008-2009. Now that’s pretty good and all but here is the Jackpot. The Google Search Engine reaches 80% of the world’s population of internet users Every Day! You can no longer ignore the fact that when people want something they choose to find it online from their computer or phone.

Using Internet Advertising is an effective way to promote your local business

to targeted customers, exactly when they are looking for your business,

from anywhere in the world at any time of the day!

For more information about starting your first website or for help increasing your exposure with Google Pay-Per-Click advertising contact us now for details.

In today’s rate race of life, online exposure is your highest priced real estate! The number of people who search out businesses on the internet is growing at a staggering rate everyday. People want to locate you, contact you and Buy from you. Are potential customers finding your business Online?

Quick & Free:

The quickest way to the top of search engines for branding your business and providing customers with contact information is a Face Book page. Simple to create, easy to update, and allows customers to react with you and your business on a personal level. Using the leverage of the largest web sites in the world you can have first page rankings in no time!

What to do in a Nutshell:

• Create a Face Book account
• Create a Page specifically for your business
• Fill in all profile information in detail
• Use a clean picture or company logo
• List your website, email and phone
• Use keywords relating to your business (business name)
• Publish page & update at least 3 times a week
• Rank in the search engines

It is that easy and can be an extremely effective form of online advertising and company branding.

Already Have a FB Page?

Optimize it to rank better in search results. Use keywords, images and text relevant to your business and brand. Update status, post, links, photos, etc. a minimum of 3 times a week.

If you have a blog, post your articles to your FB page to add additional rankings.

Many people are using Social media website like Face Book, Twitter and Linked in to harness the power of free rankings. Use it to promote your business on the search engines and produce more traffic by simply showing up when people are interested in your business services.

Does it Work?

I use it and have a 3^rd and 4^th place ranking from FB as of today 6-30-10, when some one searches for my company name directly.  Type “Carbon Copy Consulting” into your search bar and take a peek!

We all know that billboard advertising works where you have large amounts of traffic. Where do you find an Ton of traffic? Strong consistent traffic is found on highways, interstates and the internet. Yes, the internet. Welcome to the world of Banner Advertising.

Harness The Power of the “Internet Super Highway”

Outdoor advertising and banner advertising both consist of placing a strategic marketing message in front of a massive amount of potential clients. We advertise our message to this “Traffic” hoping to attract some of the “people passing by” to come into our store or contact us for more information. Traffic on the road verses on a webpage is essentially the same. The more people whom travel a road or the more people that visit a webpage obviously determines how mush exposure we get for our ad.

So, how are they different?

Our first obvious difference is where our ad’s or billboards are located. We all know billboards are on the side of a particular road or highway. Banner advertisements consequently are located on the side, top or bottom of a webpage(s). You have seen them and have probably clicked on a few searching the internet  for your hearts desire.

Now let’s get into the BIG differences that you need to understand before investing your advertising budget into one or the other.

Read this  and you will know which billboard advertising method will work best for your business!

Market Exposure:

Billboards:

• Predefined locations on certain streets or highways. Depending on the location you choose, or can get, will dictate how much traffic you receive. You can obviously target more locations for increased exposure should you be comfortable with the expense of multiple billboards.

Banners:

• Full control to place an ad or multiple ads on any relevant webpage in a single city, state, country or All of the above! You can have ads showing up on an unlimited number relevant websites increasing your exposure to unlimited prospects and spreading your business reach.

Customer Targeting & Tracking:

Billboards:

• Considered minimal targeting. You have no control over the needs or desires of the people driving past your billboard. None the less, billboard advertising is great for branding your business in your hometown or the cities you obtain locations in. Tracking results can only come from asking every customer that comes to your business or website “How did you find us?”

Banners:

• You target your customers by advertising to them on webpage’s closely knit to your industry. If you sell automotive accessories you can place your advertising in front of only people who would have a need or want for floor mats or trailer hitches. Now you have a steady stream of “Targeted” Traffic. Tracking is set up to run automatically and accurately so you can eliminate wasteful spending and put your money where the sales are.

Cost:

Billboards:

• Average minimum for Cookeville, Tennessee is around $400 Bucks a month and does not include set up. Nashville, TN will run you significantly more averaging around $800 Plus dollars a month. Additional charges occur when you want to change your message. Higher monthly charges apply for upgraded digital billboards, however, your message and marketing can change repeatedly.

Banners:

• Average minimum for set up is under one thousand dollars. You choose how much $$$ you want to invest per month in ad spend, run as many ad’s as you like and choose from; Image Ad’s, Text Ad’s or even Video Ad’s. Only pay for the customer traffic that decides to click on your ad and visit your website.

How does banner advertising work?

Banner advertising consists of placing banner ads (boxed image ads) on relevant web pages across the internet. The major search engines such as Google, Bing and Yahoo offer advertising on what they call the “content network.” Once you have set up an advertising account with your search engine of choice you would upload your image ad and tell the search engine to place your ad(s) beside content that is similar to what you are promoting.

For example purposes lets say you own a flower shop and want to promote your fabulous wedding bouquets. You set up and design a catchy image that tells customers that you are the florist of choice for wedding bouquets. When someone visits a popular wedding website, or any website where wedding bouquets are relevant, your ad will display somewhere on their page. This potential customer did not intentionally do a search for flowers but it is a given that any bride will insist on a gorgeous bouquet for her wedding. Therefore, when the searcher lands on this popular site there attention is taken from the site to your ad. They click it and visit ‘Your’ website to discuss buying their wedding bouquet from you.

Outdoor Billboard Advertising vs. Online Banner Advertising

Outdoor Billboard Advertising is…

• Great for localized branding by keeping your name out in the public eye.
• Good for consistent local exposure to customers who may need your services.

Banner advertising is…

• Capable of exposing your business across the globe.
• Targeted to reach your precise customer no matter where they live.
• Less expensive long term.

Outdoor Billboard Advertising has great results for many types of businesses and will always be a great means of advertising as long as people have cars. Banner advertising is pretty darn close to the same thing – well, except for the differences!

You know your business better than anyone and hopefully with this information you can decide what advertising method is best for your bottom line. The internet is changing the way people shop for products and services. Could you see increased business and revenue by expanding your reach on the “Internet Super Highway?”

P.S. - For more information on the cost comparison of search engine marketing vs. billboard advertising click here.

P.P.S. – If you enjoyed this information about billboard advertising on the internet with banners then why not share this with your business associates on Facebook or Twitter. Simply click the icon of your social site of choice below and thank you Much!

Isn’t that what we all want… to increase the revenue of our business? Most business owners are hungry for results from there business marketing and advertising.

If you haven’t realized already that the internet is the place to be, then now is the time to do your homework. Hiring an experienced online marketing consultant is a very smart first step to learning how to implement your business marketing online.

Most Business Owners Have These Dilemmas

1. Stuck in a rut with traditional and often outdated marketing and advertising methods and are unsure on what direction they must take to transition their marketing onto the internet.

2. Understands that the time for internet marketing in now if they are to continue growing. Giving it a go on their own has left them lost, not producing results and watching their advertising budget disappear with little or nor return. They want professional assistance on how to approach it or how to implement strategic business marketing online.

3. Have learned by now that there online advertising and marketing is working well but they are ready to take it to the next level. They are committed to an online marketing strategy and looking for professional help to manage and grow their business revenue online.

So How Can An Online Marketing Consultant Help Your Business?

That seems to be the burning question considering that experienced online marketing consultants can charge upward to 1000 dollars a day for their services depending on how complex and spread out your business is. Small Businesses looking for local traffic more often than not will get quality service and expert advice for much less.

An experienced online marketing consultant will provide a conclusive Marketing Diagnostic of your business, allowing you to better understand what actions and processes are needed to increase revenue and profits.

Strategic marketing plans come down to looking at what your company offers in relation to when and how the market wants it presented. In order to set the foundation of a strategic business marketing plan in place, you need a marketing diagnostic.

It summarizes what your company’s marketing is trying to accomplish and the methods of doing so, but not the specific actions to get there. The online consultant has given you direction, and now it is up to you to put a tactical plan in place.

So no matter how big or how small of a company you own, we all understand that with out proper marketing and advertising our businesses will not retain the customers we need to say in business. You are spending money each and every month promoting your business. Wouldn’t it be nice to spend that money more wisely by understanding the overall scope of things?

The Point is this…

Before you grab the internet marketing bull by the horns and start spending money all over the map attempting to find something that works, hire an online consultant to point you in the right direction. This one time investment will save you valuable time and money.

• Get a Marketing Diagnostic to learn where your business stands and learn how you can improve your marketing by harnessing the power of the internet.

• Take your new found knowledge and build a strategic marking plan that lays out in detail how to implement these avenues of online marketing.

• Judge the complexity of the job at hand and decide whether to go it alone or hire a professional consultant to manage your businesses marketing.

Most cases prove that online marketing consultation is likely a better investment than going at it alone in the jungles of the internet super highway. With out a decisive plan of attach and some sound advice, you will more than likely fall prey and run the risk of putting your company in jeopardy.

Get started with online marketing as soon as possible and gain ground on your competitors. Get a marketing diagnostic review quote today and you will be well on your way to capturing the potential and power of the internet for increasing business revenue.

Know someone who owns a business? Share this with them on Facebook or Twitter. They and I will appreciate you taking a moment to help. Much Appreciated!

Introducing GT Air Duct Cleaning Services of Middle TN to the Online world has been a pleasure.

Garry knows his stuff and through my competitive research, I have found GT to have the best vent cleaning equipment in the industry.

If your allergies are flaring up and going indoors makes it worse, then it may be time for you to inquire about the services GT Air Duct Cleaning has to offer.

Take a look…

Every do much rabbit hunting? No worries, this is not and long winded story about one of my adventures and no one gets shot.

People hop around the internet bouncing off websites all day long. Ever wonder how you get them to stop hopping once they land on your page? An opt-in form is one way. Here is how it works…

So, you have traffic coming to your site through pay per click, social media, or article directories and so on. Now what do you do with these visitors and more importantly how do you make money from them.

One Way is Through an Email Opt-In Form.

This type of marketing is tricky and takes some hard work on your part; however it provides you will a means to keep people in front of your information, products or services. In essence, it builds a client base that you can communicate to!

Why…?

When a person visits your website they are looking for information on how to solve a problem in there life. And, they are looking for someone that is ‘going’ to help them solve that problem.

Some visitors will like what you have to offer but may not be ready to buy your product or service. People that are not ready to buy simply wont contact you. At most they are going to loose your site in the thousands of bookmarks they never use. If you get them to “opt-in” to your email list then you have permission to contact them by email.

The more customers you keep in your sales funnel, the more people you are marketing to with latest sales specials, once in a lifetime opportunities, or recommended affiliates?

“It is how you stay in front of your customers and build a relationship with them over the internet”

How does it work…?

An opt-in list allows you to provide newsletters, free tips, helpful information or even a free product to your subscribers with their consent. When people sign up, they know that they will be receiving updates and news from your site and the industry your represent via an e-mail.

Not all opt-ins will read your emails, some will just want the free goods, and then they send you to the trash or simply delete the account.

However, your true customers, the ones who are serious about what you have to offer will be tickled to receive your email updates. Get them to read your emails with catchy headlines, then give them short, concise sales copy and interest them enough to visit your website again and purchase from you.

Have a lot of people to market to every week and your percentages of making sales goes through the roof.

How to make it happen?

• Have an offer

An offer is something useful and valuable to your customer that they are willing to trade there name and email address for. Monthly newsletter, free sales tips, latest techniques or free e-book.

If you do not create valuable content to distribute you can simply make a product or purchase a product to give away if the person opts-in to your email list.

• Sign For For an Autoresponder Service

Your next step is to sign up for an autoresponder service to manage your email marketing. Good email marketing service providers will teach you what email marketing is, how it works and give you step by step tutorials to get you up and started quickly.

Hands down Aweber Communications is by far the easiest to use, with the most training and they offer awesome pre-designed opt-in forms. Cost you Less than 20 bucks a month.

Once you have signed up, simply follow the steps provided to set up your preferences. Once you have this finished it is time to design your opt-in form with layout, title, content, and disclaimer information. Copy the html code and embed it on your website.

You now have a great offer and are gathering customers to market your products and services to when ever you want.

So here it is again:

• Offer Valuable content in return for customers name and email
• Stay in front of  customers using e-mail giving them reasons to return to your site
• Update everyone on your list with this month’s sales special or latest product launch all from one place, Automatically!
• Set up your autoresponder emails and market to your customers everyday and never lift a finger.

That’s simply enough, right? Ask questions below in the comments box or share this with a friend. Until next time!

Brian McDaniel | Carbon Copy Consulting

“Trusted Resource for Free Online Marketing Education”

P.S. Aweber Communications will explain things more in depth for those of you who are ready to monetize more website traffic. Visit their site now and learn more on how email marketing can work for your business.

P.P.S. Want to learn more? Never miss any of the tips, training or strategies we share with you about marketing your business on the internet. Put your first name and primary email in the boxes below and click submit. It’s that easy.

It’s been crazy here at Carbon Copy Consulting for the past few weeks. One of my highest priorities as been helping people create better landing pages for there online marketing and PPC campaigns. Below are 3 suggestions for creating an optimized landing page on your website.

So you have a website, you are sending traffic (customers) to that site but you are not seeing any response. Chances are, your landing page is the problem. Change your landing page (page a person “lands” on when they come to your site) and increase your response rate overnight.

It took me a long time to figure this out but once I did my business took off. Perry Marshall (great Google Adwords guru) once said, “People do not want to buy a drill; they want to make a hole.” It is all about giving the customer a solution to there problem.

Here are 3 suggestions for designing a landing page that will convert visitors into sales.

• Give customers what they searched for:

This is by far the biggest mistake I see business make on their website. When a customer decides to visit your website for more information, you need to provide them with the “right” information.

What do I mean by this? Let’s say for instance you sell backpacking equipment. When someone lands on your website they are expecting to find information about backpacking equipment. You should have a list of backpacks you sell and possible a selection of navigational buttons linking them to the specific item(s) they are looking to buy.

Most businesses send all traffic to their home page with an explanation of who they are, what they sell or a brief history of there company. Searchers simply Do Not Care about you or your business. What they care about is finding a solution to their problem or desire.

If you think about it, you are the exact same way. When you visit a website looking for information about a specific item or desire and you do not find it immediately; you hit the back button and continue to the next competitor hoping someone will provide you with a solution.

• Eliminate Distractions

Keep your landing page short, sweet and to the point. This is not the place to bombard customers with additional information or links. Do not overload it with tons of pictures, long videos or extensive explanations.

Tell customers that you have precisely what they are looking for, give a brief description of product or service offered, why it is the right solution for them and then give them a call to action. If you dump visitors into a barrage of information forcing them to hunt for information they will poke around briefly then leave.

You obviously want people to know who you are, what you do and why your business is the best choice for them. However this should not be the main focus. Once you have shown a visitor that you can solve their problem, they will search around your site to see exactly who they are dealing with.

• Have a Call to Action

Once your customer has been given the valuable information they were seeking you then present them a way to learn more, make a purchase or speak to a sales representative. This could be a phone number to call for more information, an opt-in form for email follow up, or a simply click to purchase button. Either way you need to convert the customer into a sale by giving them an opportunity to take action.

Here is an example of how it should flow:

• Opening Statement: Backpacking Equipment For All Applications
• Products Provided: Columbia, JanSport and Northface Equipment Available
• Why you: We Have the Largest Selection in Nashville
• Call to Action: Order now / Contact us / Request more information

Hopefully this helps you understand how and why an optimized landing page is imperative to your website’s success. Keep in mind that you may have one main landing page with links to other landing pages explaining individual products or services.

Brian McDaniel | Carbon Copy Consulting

“Trusted Resource for Free Online Marketing Education”

Here is an example of a Landing Page Design working well for one Nashville business.

Are you ready to take action and start converting more website visitors into sales? If so,  Click Here for more information about having a professionally designed landing page built for your website.