The Social Robot

How to Create a Website Content Development Plan

Kelsey — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 14:00:00 +0000

Guest Post by Sara Lancaster

You’re a web developer, not a website content writer. Sure, you could probably hammer out a few lines of text or pages of content if you had to, but you don’t want to. It’s not your expertise.

You get that, but getting your clients to understand that is a whole other story. As a web designer and/or web developer you have a few ways to overcome this obstacle.

Suck it up and write the content yourself.
Ask the client to write the content.
Create a website content development plan with your client at the get-go and outsource the writing to a content writer you trust.

We’ve already touched on number one. Content writing is not your expertise and probably not a good use of your time.

As for number two, this can sometimes work out great, but the majority of the time it won’t. You could wait for your client to produce the copy for a very long time and when you get it, it might not be on par. Website content writing is marketing and too many businesses don’t get online marketing language.

I think you know where I’m going here. Number three really is the best option. By developing a content development plan you get to weigh in on what pages of content the client needs and what the goal for each page should be. Top all that with the fact that the website content writing will be produced on time and at a higher quality.

Putting the Content Development Plan into Action

Making a website content development plan is simple. But before you start planning, you must first find a few website content writers that fit your work ethic and style. Once you’ve got a partner you can outsource writing to, take the following steps with your client.

Create a content questionnaire. The questionnaire should address many different areas, but these items are essential:
- Description of ideal lead
- Unique selling proposition (What makes their business better than the rest?)
- Ultimate goal of website (increased website traffic, more phone calls, etc.)
Find examples of website content (outside and inside same industry) with a tone and style the client likes. This helps to set expectations for the copy.
Create a detailed sitemap that outlines the goal of each page. Keywords should be assigned to each page and an internal linking strategy should be incorporated.
Start writing!
Keep writing! Remember, search engines and engaged users NEED new and Tweet-worthy content. Encourage your client to expand on the content development plan by adding new content regularly. This could come in the form of a blog, media center, additional web pages, videos, etc.

It goes without saying that a content development plan can get much more complicated than what I’ve described here. You’ll have to follow your instinct and modify your process to keep your client engaged. Too many details and too many content plans could overwhelm and disarm the company you’re trying to help through content.

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Sara Lancaster is a marketing consultant and the chief communicator at No. 2 Pen, a Denver-based marketing agency that offers extensive web copy writing services.

Finding Unique Items Through the Internet

bethaney — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 18:52:39 +0000

by Bethaney Wallace

A few weeks ago I was in need of a very specific type of charger. My MP3 player had gone dead, and quite frankly, I wasn’t willing to spend more cash on a replacement cord than the actual player was worth. Nor did I feel good about backtracking my steps for the past week to find where it’d ended up – somewhere the charger cord, all my loner socks, four pairs of sunglasses, and Lady Gaga’s collection of cardigans are all happily misplaced. I like to think it’s the same place old keys and couch change gather as well.

But rather than the aforementioned cord selections, I decided to choose secret option number three: buying one on the net. Three days and $4 later, I was once again holding a fully charged music-playing device.

“Oh I’ve got that,” says the Internet

Just years ago, the preferred method for finding out-of-the-ordinary items was either in-person, or through the newspaper’s ad space. Pawnshops and secondhand stores brought in all sorts of weird crap, and purchasing it meant being the first to see and pay for said item.

Even harder was proving one’s point during a disagreement. Facts had to be looked up in encyclopedias, arrest reports were archived in libraries, and “check this out” was merely “you’ll never guess what I saw.”

But now unique shopping and random fact searching is at a whole new level. For example, this one-of-a-kind Hot Wheel could only be found online. Custom made from an old Charlie Brown-themed model, it was hand painted, skillfully put into place by a Hot Wheels aficionado, and now contains something the original covered wagons never would have dreamed of – a souped-up engine.

Aggregators at Their Best

Ever since the invention of the aggregator – a website or piece of software that brings like subjects together – life has been much easier. If I want to read blogs or news posts, I head to Reddit or StumbleUpon. If I want to compile Twitter accounts, I use TweetDeck. And if I want to purchase hard-to-find items, Amazon, Craigslist, eBay, etc., are all just waiting for my bids. Thanks to aggregators, non-standard ports are no longer a Mac user’s kryptonite.

So the next time you’re in need of something, like a power cord or a covered wagon Hot Wheel, remember that unlike that department store with limited shelving and category space, the Internet has everything in stock.

Thanks to Terry Siegle of Ace Dent Removal for sharing his creation.

How to Find (And Advertise) Valentine’s Day Ideas Online

Kelsey — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 17:57:55 +0000

By Kelsey Jones

The annual holiday of love is fast approaching, and for many people, finding the right Valentine’s Day gift for their family members or significant other to express their affection is fast becoming more crucial. For marketer and advertisers, the Valentine’s Day gift, floral, and greeting card traditions make it worthwhile to offer special discounts and products.

Because they are looking for one another, whether someone is a consumer looking for the perfect gift ideas, or a marketer, wanting to promote their company’s products and services, finding the best place to find and advertise Valentine’s Day gifts can usually be found in the same places.

Search Engines

This is usually a good place that consumers are going to look first. Current top Valentine’s Day searches include:

Valentine ideas / ideas for Valentines – 450,000 monthly searches each in the United States
Ideas for Valentine’s Day / Valentine’s Day ideas – 368,000 monthly searches each in the United States
Valentine’s Day gift – 246,000 monthly searches in the United States
Valentine’s Day gift ideas – 201,000 monthly searches in the United States

Monopolizing on this traffic by making Valentine’s Day sales and products available by companies will both help the search user find a gift that’s perfect for their intended recipient, and can help drive and increase online Valentine’s Day e-commerce sales. Besides running paid search advertising campaigns (PPC), retailers could also publish blog posts advertising their Valentine’s Day products and gift ideas, which is fresh content that can help the site get picked up by the search engines.

Blogs

Because blogs have regularly relevant and updated content, they also appear high in search results. Companies can reach out to popular bloggers to hold giveaways, custom coupon codes, and product reviews for the products and services that they want to promote during Valentine’s Day. Bloggers and their readers will appreciate the free products and the information on a product they may have not otherwise been exposed to.

Social Media

Social media sites can also be a good way to advertise Valentine’s Day gift ideas, either through wall posts or custom tabs on a company’s Facebook page. A custom tab could offer an exclusive coupon code (which can also be advertised through the company’s Twitter account). A good way to combine product promotion and social media is to get customers involved. Ask them to post a video of their favorite Valentine’s Day memory or the story of how they met their significant other. The best video (as chosen by other social media users) could get an all-expense paid vacation for two. Hosting giveaways give people the initiative to check out a brand’s online community and possibly use their products if that is a requirement of the contest entry (e.g. “Tell us which Valentine’s Day treat you made with one of our baking products to win an All-Expense Paid Trip to Paris”).

The bottom line is, customers are looking for ideas, not necessarily specific products. Companies can help customers fulfill this request by offering ideas that may include their products (e.g. Dove Soap could say “Create a custom gift basket with spa products like Dove soap, facial masks, and body scrubs”).

To learn more about Valentine’s Day internet marketing, check out these resources:

This post was sponsored by Auction-Hunters.com, an online educational site about bidding at self storage auctions.

Gang Members Keep in Touch With Social Media

bethaney — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 21:50:19 +0000

by Bethaney Wallace

Growing up as a white girl in rural Kansas, my knowledge of gangs was very limited. Yes, I’m part Italian, but it’s not like we’re born with a copy of “Mobbing 101.” Somewhere down the line, I probably have a distant relative that slung handguns or laundered cash, a respectable living in the eyes of the mob. But seeing as they don’t like talking about their highly illegal professions, I got all of my drug trafficking facts from the media; rap songs and Hollywood literally taught me everything I knew about gangs.

From the section of Goodfellas I didn’t sleep through, I learned three distinct features about mob members: they had nervous habits, no qualms about cheating on their wives, and they are super organized. Extensive measures were taken to ensure fluidity and well-executed plans. There were calling trees (this was before email) to keep everyone informed, code words for security, driving routes. And most everyone had a specific job, like it was a union. If these men had been looking for a business front to exploit, they would have been great professional organizers.

Gangs Update with the Times

But as the years passed and rotary dial phones were no longer the preferred way of communication, the gangs improved their contact methods. Email is now ready in virtually any place with an Internet connection, and social media can be accessed by anyone who has the ability to lie about their age – an act of fraud that I’m betting is no cause for concern within a mob.

According to a book based on organized crime, gangs have been taking notice to all the available technology. Street gangs, especially in Chicago, use social media accounts to make plans, recruit new members, and bully others. The text, The Gang Book, by The Chicago Crime Commission – an organization dedicated to exposing preventing Chicago-area crimes – tells how elaborate and sophisticated the methods have become. (You didn’t think it’d be obvious, right? Like invites to an event labeled “Weekly Mob Mixer” or tweets saying “Meet me at the bank at 1 a.m. don’t forget your Glock, silencer, and ski mask.” Ok, good.)

Because law enforcement has a hard time keeping track of the constant updates to social media and electronic equipment, it’s relatively easy for gang members to communicate online. For example, users can have multiple profiles and aliases, making it virtually impossible to track whose linked to which accounts. Throw in a series of code words and plausible-sounding life facts, and police may never be the wiser to these fake profiles. Unfortunately, there’s not a section that deciphers law-abiding Facebook users from chin-deep mob bosses.

Preventative Measures

The Gang Book, according to the commission’s president, Jody Weis, was created to help prevent the spread of gangs and its crimes. Investigators can use the book as a reference point in investigations. While parents can use the book to teach their children about the dangers and warning signs of gang activity.

To find out more, head to CBSnews.com. And The Gang Book can be found on Amazon, or at select libraries.

Screen shot taken 1-20-12.

Finding Blog Ideas Through Google Analytics Keywords

kelsey — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 21:17:29 +0000

By Kelsey Jones

It’s easy to run out of ideas when it comes to blogging, especially if you are blogging more than once per week. While some people prefer to use Google Alerts or write down ideas in a notepad as they come, there is another way to get blog post ideas from the exact people that the posts are catered to- the readers and visitors of the website.

Utilizing the keywords that search engine users typed in to get to your website is a great way to quickly see the type of content that visitors are looking for. To access the Keyword Report from Google Analytics, go into the website profile of the blog URL, then go to Traffic Sources, and then click on the Keywords tab:

Then sort the report by the Visits column. This shows how many times someone searched for a certain phrase to get to your website or blog. Looking at The Social Robot’s keyword report, it’s obvious that people are looking for how to increase the like count on your Facebook page, which I did an article on a few years ago.

And because Facebook has changed so much, it might be helpful to my audience to write another post about growing Facebook likes with more updated information.

So, even though I have already written a blog post about the most-searched keyword phrase, I can still write other posts concerning this same topic, such as getting more followers on Twitter, designing a well-trafficked Facebook page, etcetera.

To stay on top of the Keyword report on Google Analytics, schedule it to run monthly (or weekly, again, depending on how often blog posts are being published) and have it sent automatically via email.

Predict the Stock Market with Social Media

bethaney — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 21:04:57 +0000

by Bethaney Wallace

From someone who knows nothing about the stock market, I’m able to give little advice as to how one should or shouldn’t go about buying stocks. If investing, I’d probably choose stocks the same way that I choose sports teams, by factors that have nothing to do with their abilities, such as mascots and colors. No one respects a team with a lame mascot, like a rainbow or a tree. And anyone with baby blue uniforms obviously sucks; that’s just logic. These are the same methods I’d consult when choosing my stock preferences. “Hmm, Apple is named after a food that I like, while Spam is a food I do not like,” and so on. Money making abilities wouldn’t so much matter as much as how I felt about each company personally.

So, to sum up, you should not trust me for stock advice. But, even me, the person who would pick chapter 11 over the wrong color of blue, knew to stay away from Netflix last fall. Thanks to the hundreds of negative comments, blogs, news reports, and any other form of online media, I knew the company wasn’t exactly bringing in its top market numbers … to put it lightly.

Turns out, I wasn’t the only one following Netflix’s online demise. Topsy Labs, Inc., a company that researches microblogging (blogging with a character limit) data, did a study comparing tweets about Netflix’s dropping stock prices. The results? By tracking action tweets such as “Just cancelled my Netflix subscription,” etc., Topsy Labs was able to predict Netflix’s stock market drop before it happened. But, what’s perhaps the most significant part of the study, is Topsy Labs is now using these skills on the stock market. With social media followings, searches, and data tracking, the company is now helping buyers predict their next stock market moves.

While this advancement in trading probably won’t help the market challenged like myself, thanks to the fast-paced movement of social media, investors can now have an inside edge on stock market trading.

Photo courtesy of stock-markettoday.com.

Customers Have to Like You Offline to “Like” You Online

kelsey — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 14:00:00 +0000

By Kelsey Jones

The title pretty much says it all. If a customer has no use for your business or services offline in the “real world”, why would they ever be compelled to “like” your business’ page on Facebook or follow your Twitter stream? Sure, a friend or family member can occasionally be compelled to “like” a friend’s business or Uncle Joe’s plumbing supply warehouse, but these likes and follows are usually meaningless in the fact that they don’t generate real sales and offline conversions.

In order to get current and potential customers the incentive to find a business on Facebook or Twitter, make it easy for them to like your business, its employees, and the products or services that are being offered.

For instance, there have been several times where a business or individual has had a blurb that says, “Like Us on Facebook!”, whether in banner form, on a receipt, or even though an email signature. And if I like a business, I will usually track them down on social media and connect with them.

Sometimes all it takes is them asking me to do so. They have earned my trust and business through:

Good customer service
High quality products and/or services
Unique business features, such as free shipping, regular coupons/rewards, or no-hassle returns

and even when they haven’t quite yet done any or all of the above, I will still reach out to them via social media because they promised me an offline incentive for doing so. This may include exclusive deals for Facebook fans; temporary coupon codes only released via Twitter; or even entry into a contest that requires connection via Facebook.

However, no matter how good the offline incentive is, if a business has bad customer service and I have been unhappy with their products or services, I will go out of my way to disconnect from them. Unfollowing, unliking, and unsubscribing from all emails are just the tip of the iceberg.

Customers now have the power online to choose who they connect with online. And many customers see who they connect with as a reflection of themselves. Therefore, if they are unhappy about a business, disconnecting and also talking about it will most likely shortly ensue. I’ve left negative reviews on Yelp; I’ve even tweeted my discontent.

And those businesses who attempt to fix the problem? I respect. But the businesses who didn’t seem to even notice the negative feedback or who constantly ignore the online complaints and posts of their customers, well that is just the same as locking the door to your retail business when there was a crowd just outside waiting to buy out your inventory.

This post is sponsored by Brosix Instant Messaging for work.

Wedding Crashing: There’s an App for That

bethaney — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 15:57:33 +0000

by Bethaney Wallace

For those who enjoy watching comedies – or those who are occasionally roped into watching a flick they didn’t choose – you’ve undoubtedly seen Wedding Crashers, a 2005 film starring Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson. The two characters, friends since childhood, are skilled wedding “crashers,” meaning they attend post-nuptial parties – sans invitation – for the sole intention of meeting women. And it works. But, chances are the rest of us don’t have the same smooth-talking skills (and when I say “smooth talking” I mean “ability to lie”), or the same access to wedding schedules that the magic that Hollywood scripts can provide. Well, fret no more. Thanks to the ever-growing creativity of app writers, there is now a way to find pre-crashed weddings via technology.

How it Works

Known as “Crash Corsage,” this heavily valued tool (depending on your priorities) is still in beta. (Interested parties can sign up for newsletters and the upcoming release date here.) The app includes all necessary information for future crashers within a single screen shot, including dates, venue addresses, and any activities that may be available at the post-wedding parties. And if there’s any other useful information about the weddings, you can be sure that Crash Corsage will let you know. There are even ways to earn points, such as “checking in,” participating in games, and, in the sense of eliminating the app’s credibility, hooking up with guest(s).

If you’re wondering how the service gets its info, look no further than the tens of free wedding announcement sites. The app shares how engaged couples met, proposal stories, as well as any other personal details they may share. (If you’re using one of these wedding announcement sites, beware what you share.)

In Real Life

No word from future brides how this may affect their weddings (or quite frankly, if it’s even legal), but ever since the announcement, the Internet has been buzzing with anticipation … both good and bad.

Crash Corsage will be out in full swing within the next few month, just in time for this year’s upcoming wedding season. Once released, users will only be a download away from lying their way into love – all that’s missing is a regular dry cleaning schedule for those party pants.

Photo courtesy of Flickr.

CrashCorsage.com screen shot taken 1-17-12.

How to Add Plugin-Free Twitter, Sphinn, and Facebook Buttons to Your WordPress Blog

Have You Tried Fusion Marketing Yet?

kelsey — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 14:00:00 +0000

By Kelsey Jones

Fusion marketing isn’t a new idea— Entrepreneur magazine published an article about it in 2006 and countless businesses do it without realizing its proper name. Fusion marketing is the act of referring your customers to other local (or national works too, especially online) businesses. They, in turn, do the same for you.

There are countless examples of these types of business partnerships in the real world. For instance, a person drops off their dog at the groomers and picks up a coupon on the counter for $10 off their next visit to the salon next door. This can also happen online—after a customer checks out on an e-commerce site of a banner printing company, they are taken to an offer page for 50% new business cards from a business card printing company.

In order for most fusion marketing partnerships to be successful, they usually must be one of two things–

Be local businesses that are nearby one another, or;
Be businesses that have related or overlapping services

While fusion marketing business partnerships that don’t follow either of these guidelines can occasionally be successful, making sure that one business already has something in common with the other will create a higher chance of successful referrals, since the customer will most likely have an interest in both.

Besides the obvious chance that an existing customer of one business would have an interest in another related (or nearby) business, the fact that fusion marketing can increase exposure for both businesses to audiences who may have not found or patronized both businesses on their own is the key concept.

This post was sponsored by Brosix, a business instant messaging program that offers private instant messaging networks to businesses.

Image found via stock.xchng.

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Traveling Dress Inspires Blog Posts

bethaney — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 23:51:28 +0000

by Bethaney Wallace

A few years back, the phenomenon of traveling clothes became popular – at least in theory of not in practice. While I didn’t make a habit out of mailing my favorite clothes to share with proportionally compatible friends, there was plenty of hype about the Traveling Pants, the magical Sisterhood ones that never seemed to wear out or need a washing.

But soon it wasn’t just jeans getting the cross-country mail treatment; in 2010, a fancy red dress joined the club. Inaugurated by Jenny Lawson (“the Bloggess”), this infamous red dress began taking social media to the next level: in-person. Lawson first received the dress from her friend, Sunny, an artist/dressmaker combo, and then began mailing it to women across the world, so that they can feel the dress’s “empowerment” as well.

In her own blog-words, Lawson expressed her love for the dress – how she found in captivating. “I want to be shocking, and vivid and wear a dress as intensely amazing as the person I so want to be. And the more I thought about it the more I realized how often we deny ourselves that red dress and all the other capacious, ridiculous, overindulgent and silly things that we desperately want but never let ourselves have because they are simply ‘not sensible.’”

But, instead of blogging about some distant dream or idea she’d never go through with, Lawson did it. She got the dress, she wore the dress, and then she turned it into a social media symbol. She mailed it on, as the next and the next receiver did, so that each woman could wear and then blog about the dress. Who knows, they could have even blogged in it!

Yes, this beautiful dress is probably in need of a trip to the cleaners, but then again, so are most of our clothes. (Let’s face it, blogging doesn’t exactly require you to look your best on a daily basis…) But, in a world where the Internet and virtual communication are rapidly growing, it’s nice to see a movement where IRL and via-computer are brought together.

To see what the dress has been up to ever since, read about it on Lawson’s summary blog.

Screen shot taken 1-9-12.