Web Tips for Your Business

Your web site is an intregal part of your small business. There are many things you can do to increase the number of people that visit your site. One key strategy is optimizing your site so that it will appear on the first few pages of a search engine, such as Google or Yahoo!. This is known as search engine optimization (SEO). Below are a few SEO do’s and don’ts. Click on the articles below to view more information on each topic.

Search Engine Optimization Do’s

From, ”Marketing Your Business on Search Engines.”

• Use the right keywords: Knowing the terms customers use when
  they search is the starting point for any SEO effort.
• Put keywords in the right places: Your site is full of hotspots that
  search engines check regularly for keywords. Make sure they
  show up in context in headlines, subheads and the body text of
  your pages.
• Keep keywords in context: Integrate keywords as naturally as possible into your copy. A simple list of keywords won’t work–they have to be in context.
• Keep your content fresh: Frequently updated, relevant content
  can have a positive impact on your site ranking.
• Build links: Reputable, relevant sites.
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Search Engine Optimization Don’ts

From, “SEO Tricks: What Not to Do.“

• Cloaking: This refers to code changes that indicate one thing to search engines, but provide totally different content to users. Even if your business is legitimate, this can get you banned.
• Keyword stuffing and hiding copy: Don’t stuff your site full of irrelevant keywords–the search engines catch on fast if copy isn’t written in natural language or if totally unrelated keywords are used.
• Using a competitor’s name:
  Don’t overload your site with the names of major companies or competitors in order to divert some of their traffic to your site.
• Snaking content: It’s never a good idea to “borrow” text or copy from another site. Not only does this often violate copyright laws, it will also get you kicked out of search engine rankings.
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What SEO tips have you found that work well for your business?

SCORE Association, SCORE
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Two Points of View

Recently, I was talking with a male entrepreneur whose company markets to women business owners. He had some insights about how women entrepreneurs operate that had me nodding in recognition.

First, women take time to build relationships. Second, we love to gather tons of information before making a decision. And third, we rarely buy without getting input from other women first. All these ways of operating made sense to me, but as we talked, I also began to see their downsides.

Relying on recommendations can lead you to buy something that’s great for your friend, but not so good for you. Gathering data is smart, but it’s easy to gather so much that you get overwhelmed. And building relationships is important, but sometimes you can’t afford to “take it slow.”

I left our meeting with a new appreciation of how important a male perspective can be. Next time you’re pondering a decision or stuck in a situation, consider getting some input from men. Whether it’s your significant other, a business colleague or a key employee, most likely, a man will have a completely different perspective on the issue–and you’ll gain a new insight that can get you over your hurdle.

Rieva Lesonsky, Guest Blogger
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5 Ways to Improve Your Daily Life

As we spend more time at work and continue to feel the pressures of how to cope with daily stresses consider these tips that can improve your life.

1. Do something for someone else.  It can be rewarding and nurturing others can reduce stress.
2. Meditate: it only takes 10 minutes, sit comfortably, relax and focus on your breath with your eyes closed and your hands facing up on your lap
3. Spend quality time with others
4. Move more…exercise has been shown to elevate moods
5. Change your way of thinking…”how we think affects how we feel” Interrupt negative thoughts and replace them with constructive positive thoughts.

Please share things you have done to enhance your daily life.

Julie Brander, New Haven SCORE
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Stay Current & Win!

The first 100 subscribers in November for eNews and ExpertANSWERS will win a complimentary SCORE Great Ideas notebook. Subscribe here.

SCORE eNews
Monthly tips, trends, articles and small business news.
111,000 subscribers and growing.
Read sample issue.

SCORE Expert Answers
Monthly Q&A interviews with key insights from a leading expert.
100,000 subscribers and growing.
Read sample issue with one of Oprah’s favorite financial gurus, Jean Chatzky.

Note: Winners must live in the continental United States. When subscribing, you must include your full name and mailing address in order to receive the notebook.

Christine Banning, SCORE
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Marketing Self-Assessment

Tips on A Napkin

Who would have thought that the basics are still viable today, as it was years ago? Do a self-assessment and see where you stand in these back to basics tips.

A. Create An Informal Business & Marketing Plan, 1-3 Pages Each, As A Blue Print For Your Company

B. Marketing Business Basics:
1. Exercise A Professional Phone & Email Presence
- Let Your Smile Radiate Through The Phone
- Return Calls & Emails Within 24 Hours
- Develop A Brief Company Identity On Your Voicemail
- Use Proper Grammar, Especially On Emails

2. Exercise Professional Work Ethics
- Be The Employer, Not The Employee

3. Customer Service
- Service Your Customer: Internally & Externally
- Not Only Listen, But Hear Your Customers’ Needs

4. Networking
- Build Relationships
- Create Partnerships

5. Word of Mouth Travels Fast And Far

6. Create Your Unique Brand
- Collateral Materials
- Online Presence
-  External Presence: You

7. Grassroots Mix Media
- Article Write Ups
- Interviews
- Get Adequate Attention For Your Company
- Courtesy Efforts:  Thank you, Birthday and Sympathy Cards; Emails and Friendly Phone Calls

C. Suggested Reading To Help Further You, Your Business, Your Relationships And Your Marketing Efforts:
- Who Moved My Cheese? Spencer Johnson, M.D.
- The Starbucks Experience (Principles For Turning Ordinary Into Extraordinary) Joseph A. Michelli
- Reposition Yourself (Living Life Without Limits) T.D. Jakes

How did you rate? These Back 2 Basic Business & Marketing Tips are helpful despite your overall goals and objectives.

YOUR IMAGE SPEAKS VOLUMES FOR YOU!

Vernita Naylor, Ft. Worth SCORE
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Tap the Power of Twitter to Search for Business Intelligence and Prospects

Learn to tap the power of Twitter search around your brand or business to gain insights on your market and to identify prospects.

This is the first of a three-part Twitter research tutorial, in pictures. I’ve created screen shots that relate to my nonprofit, SCORE Chicago, to use as examples.  SCORE, “Counselors to America’s Small Business,” offers free business counseling and inexpensive business workshops to entrepreneurs and small business owners. One of our most important keyword phases is “business plan Chicago.”

Twitter Search

To learn who it talking about business plans near Chicago, I can run a search. I might use the Advanced Search Form or search query terms Twitter specifies. Here’s my search for tweets with our main keyword in the Chicago area:

Using advanced Twitter search features like the one above, you can find relevant tweets by date range, keyword, location, even mile radius of a zip code.

Business Intelligence on Twitter

What can you learn from these searches?  You have the Twitter names of specific people in your area or niche — potential prospects — should you choose to engage them in conversation.

And they are talking using your keyword phrases.  The questions they have, the frustrations they express, the needs they describe are useful business intelligence that should inform your product offerings, your marketing messages and your business strategy.

SCORE Chicago could monitor these tweets and politely offer advice and help in response.  If our organization were to download the free Tweetdeck tool, we could also save and rerun this search daily.

Keyword Caveat

You might have noticed that I did not use “SCORE Chicago” as an example.  Well, our business name is problematic for simple Twitter searches.  It picks up sports scores (Chicago 8: Altanta:2), the Chicago radio station “670″ the SCORE, and even a certain gentleman’s club out by O’Hare.  Fancier social media monitoring tools, like SM2, are capable of more sophisticated filtering.

But for basic, ear-to-the-ground monitoring, Twitter is happening now, and growing fast.  Are you and your business listening?

Related Posts

Twitter Research Part 2: Twitter Hashtags for Business Intelligence and Prospects

Twitter Research Part 3: Twitter Emotions and Questions for Business Intelligence and Prospects

How To: Use Twitter’s Advanced Search Features Mashable blog

Viral Tweets: Rand Fishkin on How To Get Re-Tweeted

52 Links on Twitter for Business, with Brief Descriptions

Who’s On Twitter?  What Happens When You Shake Hands With Your Followers?

Peg Corwin, SCORE Chicago
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Outstanding Minority-owned Business Award Haas Media LLC

The first-ever SCORE Awards honors the success of America’s small businesses in a time of economic recovery.

SCORE honored Kim Haas, owner of Haas Media LLC, with the Outstanding Minority-owned Business Award. Haas Media is a communications company providing media consulting, community outreach, educational initiatives, training and editing services. Her firm provides English, Spanish, Portuguese and Italian translation for corporations, government agencies, small businesses, nonprofits and community organizations.

Haas combined her love of languages and cultures with communications and started her Milwaukee-based business in 2003. After relocating to New York City in 2006, one of the first things she did was contact SCORE’s Manhattan office. “I’d learned about SCORE while living in Milwaukee,” Haas says. “Anyone even thinking about starting a business should check out SCORE. They give you great insights on things to think about. And, it’s always nice to have someone in your corner who’s always there for you.”

Check out all the SCORE award winners.

SCORE Association
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The Female Advantage

Today’s tough economy calls for using every tool in our toolbox to keep our businesses growing. Personally, I think women entrepreneurs have a couple of advantages here.

First, we tend to be more intuitive—more willing to go with our gut to come up with creative solutions for doing things differently. Second, we’re more willing to share advice and ideas with others—and to learn from others, whether that means our colleagues, employees or customers. So take advantage of this fact and start gathering ideas from every source you can think of. That could mean using an online survey tool, holding a focus group, brainstorming with your staff, picking your best customers’ brains over lunch or talking to other business owners in an online or offline community. Find out what your customers want, what your employees think and how other entrepreneurs are handling tough times. Then, use your creativity to make this knowledge work for you.

Rieva Lesonsky, Guest Blogger
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2 Women Entrepreneurs to Follow on Twitter — Who Else Would You Nominate?

The Mashable Blog just had a post about 10 Essential Entrepreneurs to Follow on Twitter.  Two women made the list. I’d like to introduce them to you and get your nominations for more women entrepreneurs with useful tweets on Twitter.

Leila Janah

Leila C. Janah on Twitter

Leila is founder of Samasource, which provides digital work for Kenyan refugees.

Caterina Fake on Twitter

Caterina is a female entrepreneur with a major success under her belt — co-founder of the photo-sharing website Flickr – and a new and exciting project — Hunch – underway.

Who else would you nominate?

Please leave me a comment, a one sentence bio, and their Twitter name.  The voting booth is open.

And come connect with me on Twitter:  @pcorwin

Peg Corwin, SCORE Chicago
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Get Inspired

Business today is more challenging than ever before. Inspiration is what we need to be better at what we do. I just attended a business expo in NYC and was able to listen to some inspiring business authors.

Frances Cole Jones was a dynamic speaker who wrote “The Wow Factor.” Her focus is on developing effective communication skills. The things that she spoke about may also be helpful to you.

An audience will assess you when you speak: verbally, vocally and visually. We all know this when we hear any speaker, we judge them and have our first impressions. Here are a few interesting facts that Frances mentions:

• 7% is verbal, what you say and how you say it.
• 38% is vocal, tone, quality and enthusiasm.
• 55% is visual, what your body is doing.
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Three Tips

1. Never use a podium as your body is much more interesting and memorable for an audience. Keep your hands open and visible, never fold your arms or fold your hands. Studies have shown that people trust you more when they can see your hands.
2. Include stories when speaking as stories are more compelling and memorable when a point is being made.
3. Remember the rule of three. People can only remember three things, so when making a point use only three examples.

I would recommend this book as it has so many more things that will help you in today’s business world, www.thewowfactor-thebook.com.

Julie Brander, New Haven SCORE
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