Beyond Social Media: Your Business' Online Marketing Resolution

Social Media: One Piece of the Puzzle

While it is important for you to choose 1-3 of the social media sites on which to be active, (e.g. Facebook, Google+, Youtube, Twitter, Pinterest, etc.) for local online advertising, all the social media in the world won't make up for a weak website or poor SEO (search engine optimization). 

Online Marketing New Year's Resolutions

There is no need to completely recreate your online marketing plan for the new year, but you will want to check to make sure that all of your efforts meet the new Google guidelines and that you are utilizing best practices for web marketing:

• Check and make adjustments to your website - Your website should be able to adjust to the size of the user's screen (responsive design) and every page should be written to attract the attention of the three major search engines, Google, Yahoo, and Bing. You should have links to your Google business listing and any social media websites on which you are active.

• Data-driven decisions - Know where you rank in the search engines compared to your competitors, where your website visitors are spending the most time on your website, and take steps to get them to your most important information. Also be aware of and respond to the feedback your customers are leaving on your online review websites (Google My Business, Yelp, Foursquare, and many others).

• Consider writing a blog - Blogging helps others to see that you are an expert in your field and it creates new content for your website which helps to attract the attention of the search engines and broaden your marketing reach. Of course it also gives you a place to share information that can be of great benefit to your current and potential clients!  

Don't neglect your social media presence, but remember that it is just one piece of your marketing on the web and it should not be your only online presence. 

Remember, Impressions Review Managing is here to help with all of your internet marketing needs - contact our friendly team  or visit our website for more information.

Social Media and Your Online Reputation

Which Social Media Site Should You Use to Market Your Business Online?

Social media is a great way to locally market your business online. You can interact with your current and potential clients over things of mutual interest, promote upcoming deals, offer special online savings, or even highlight your role in the community. 

There are MANY social media websites to choose from, but you do not have to be on all of them. Plan on choosing one or two that on which you feel you can remain active and focus on those. 

Different businesses will do better on different social media platforms - to help you choose, let's look at the characteristics of some of the major sites:

• Facebook - Using a Facebook page allows you to post comments or pictures, share articles of interest, promotional deals, and to show upcoming events or activities of your business or staff. If you choose to use a Facebook business page, plan on posting an average of twice each week and to read and respond to any comments you get from others viewing your page. You can expand your Facebook marketing by offering deals or having contests to get the most "likes" on a page or post. 
• Google+ - Similar to Facebook, Google+ is a place to connect with current clients, but it is also directly linked to your Google My Business listing which displays in search results anytime a potential client is looking for products or services related to what you offer. Having your Google My Business listing up to date is important whether or not you choose to be active on your Google+ page. People visiting your Google+ page will be able to see your posts and pictures, read reviews of your business, and even write a review of their own. 
• Twitter - Unlike Facebook and Google, Twitter is a faster paced social media site. Posts are required to be short (no more than 140 characters in length) and are meant to convey something currently taking place. People active on Twitter often post multiple times each day. If you decide to have both a Facebook and Twitter page, you can link your Facebook to automatically post on Twitter, but it is not recommended to have your Twitter feed post automatically to Facebook as there are usually too many Tweets which Facebook users tend to find annoying. 
• Pinterest - This social media website operates on a more visual level. Pinners post pictures they have found across the web with a link for more information. Your business can use a Pinterest account to post a picture from your website that may give tips or interesting information for people. The link to your website will drive traffic your direction while promoting your business' offerings. 

Obviously, there are many more social media websites to consider and you will want to find the ones that work best for you.

Remember, Impressions Review Managing is here to help!  Check more of our blog articles, our website, or contact our friendly team today!

Fake Reviews: Fooling Only Yourself

Writing fake reviews is not only unethical and illegal, it also hurts your reputation even worse than simply ignoring your online reviews.

Writing Fake Reviews

I just had an interaction with one of the nastiest business owners with whom I have had the misfortune to meet. He has numerous negative reviews on the web and refuses to accept what is being said by his clients on social media sites which really are not that bad of comments and could give him the tools he needs to make business improvements and significantly impact his influx of new customers. He is rude to those he deems beneath him and it shows in the interactions I have experienced and it is echoed in his online reviews.

Instead of making changes and using the feedback he is receiving, it appears he is writing and having others write fake reviews for him. The more I work with reviews, the easier it becomes to spot the fakes and his simply scream FAKE.

Obviously it's unethical. It's also been the subject of court cases by Yelp - cases they have won and that have resulted in hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines.

Recognizing Fake Reviews

How can you tell if a review is fake? Sometimes you can't, but when you see multiple reviews using language that's not common to everyone, it's a pretty good sign that the reviews are being written by someone or a few people who have insider knowledge about the industry for which they are writing. 

For example, when you see several reviews all posted in close time frame of each other and every one of them mentions a specific service or product being offered by that business, you could be seeing fake reviews:

• I love that this place has flexible hours.
• Isn't it great that the hours are so flexible?
• Their hours are way more flexible than ABC Business.
• Their flexible hours make it easy for me to visit them!

Handling Fake Reviews

So, if you think a series of reviews are fake, what should you do? 

Several of the review websites like Google+ and Yelp allow you to "flag" a review. You can click a button that looks like a flag and then you will be given some options on why you are flagging the review. It doesn't necessarily mean that the reviews will be removed, but the website is more likely to take a look and investigate further. They are also pretty good about letting you know if they agree with you and will remove the reviews or if they think there is not enough evidence to warrant removal. 

What's a Small Business To Do?

It IS frustrating when negative reviews are posted on websites and social media about your business. You pour your life into this business and oftentimes the review is not entirely based in fact. Negative reviews have a huge impact on sales and the temptation is to cheat a bit. 

Just like your offline reputation though, your online reputation will be in jeopardy if you choose to try to cheat your way to the top. Instead, you can take control of your online reputation and build it ethically into a solid representation of your quality products and services. 

Don't sell yourself short. Take control and use online reviews to advertise your excellence. No amount of fake reviews will overcome a true strong online presence. 

Social Media Marketing Conference - Last Week to Register!

This is the last week to register for the 6th Annual Social Media Marketing Conference in Eau Claire, Wisconsin where I will be presenting, "Word of Mouth Gone Viral." The conference offers several excellent learning opportunities to maximize your online marketing efforts - hope to see you there!

www.impressionsrm.com 

Eau Claire Social Media Marketing Conference

Will you be in Eau Claire for the Social Media Marketing Conference? Be sure to attend our "Word of Mouth Gone Viral" workshop!

www.impressionsrm.com

Social Media & Marketing Conference

Online marketing can be confusing for businesses to grasp, so I try to do informational, hands-on workshops whenever possible.

I am pleased to say that I will be presenting at the 6th Annual Eau Claire Chamber of Commerce Social Media and Marketing Conference this fall! Attendees will choose three different breakout sessions to attend - mine will be from 11a.m. to noon and I will present on how to use online review websites to increase traffic to your website and attract new clients. Hope to see you there!

www.impressionsrm.com 

Reviews Promote Your Business Online

People are turning to online reviews in droves both to share their favorites and concerns as well as to research what others are saying about products and services. Promoting your business online begins with an excellent, web-friendly website for your business, but people won't get to your website and eventually to your business if your reviews and star-ratings are less than impressive.

Let's look at the statistics:

• Depending on the study, anywhere from 79% to 97% of people are turning to the internet to look up information on products and services before they make a purchase. 
• About 80% of consumers trust online reviews as much or more than personal recommendations. 
• Having reviews (as opposed to having none) can increase sales 40%.
• In a study on assisted-living facilities, inquiries went up 550% for sites with reviews compared to those without!
• An increase of one star rating on Yelp can lead to a 5% increase in revenue.
• 89% of consumers are willing to pay more for products or services in order to have better customer service. 

Why wait any longer? Take control of your online reputation by claiming your business' online review website pages, monitoring what is being said about your business, interacting with reviewers, and generating new client feedback. 

www.impressionsrm.com 

Negative Reviews: Issues of Customer No-Service

Unfortunately, there are many examples of how to get your customers to write bad reviews for you and Comcast just hit on one of them - arguing with a customer who wants to end service.




There surely will be employee training for this individual and Comcast is planning a formal apology for their behavior, but it actually hits on many different issues we as business owners have to be constantly considering.

How to Handle Negative Reviews

• Listening to the customer - Sometimes the business is simply not a good fit for the customer and the business needs to gracefully end service. If you want to amplify your reputation, help the customer find what he or she needs.
• Set the tone - As the leaders in our businesses, we have to set the tone for our employees. Yes, we need to make sales. Yes, we need to be mindful of upselling and retaining customers. Yes, we need feedback when a customer intends to leave us, but NO, we do not argue with customers. Service is the key word in customer service.
• Staff development training - All employees need to be aware of the serious power of online reviews. Consumers have a loud voice in social media and on online review websites. When poor customer service is captured and goes viral, business owners need to know how to respond and do so quickly, but far better to not get into that mess in the first place. 
• Long-term impact - Online reviews impact revenue and changes in review ratings can increase or decrease your ROI.

Building a solid online reputation takes time and focused effort. Don't wait for a crisis to address yours. 

Local Online Advertising - Reviews and ROI

If you've read much of my blogging, you know I advocate for local online advertising through online reviews. But does it give you a return on your investment?

Reviews and Return on Investment (ROI)

In this Business to Community article, Martin Misiowiec explains that it's important to remain diversified in your internet marketing and he expounds on the very positive impact reviews have on your ROI - according to a recent study, they have the potential to increase your revenue by 40%!!

Yes, you definitely need a quality website, but to get prospective customers to your website, you need to have:

• strong star-ratings on the search engines and review websites
• quality reviews providing information about your services, products, and customer relations
• a presence on social media sites
• optional email advertising campaigns

In addition to a strong impact on your revenue, monitoring what is being said about your business online, responding to reviews, and generating new reviews keeps the online conversation about your business alive and gives you the feedback you need to make data-driven decisions for your business.

Get started on those review websites today!

www.impressionsrm.com

Internet Marketing - Are You Missing Something?

Internet marketing is still relatively new and many businesses are only partially taking advantage of the full power of the internet. There are four main pieces of online marketing that you want to make sure you have in place for your business: your website, search engine optimization (SEO), social media, and online reputation management (ORM).

All four components overlap and affect whether people are finding you when they run a search for your products or services.

Your Website:

• Web-friendly content - Your content should be written at about an 8th grade reading level, should be pertinent to what your clients are looking for, and should contain key search words as well as links to related outside websites. 
• Photos - Any photos should be your own or should be free from copyright issues.
• Navigation - Your site should be easy to locate information and it should be of a responsive design meaning it will re-size depending on the viewer's device and viewing screen size. 

Search Engine Optimization (SEO):

• The coveted spot in search engine results is at or near the top of the list of businesses. 
• Your business website should come up when people search for the type of product or service you provide.
• Your business website should come up at the top of the list when a person conducts a search for your brand name.

Social Media Marketing:

• Your business should have a page on the social media sites common for your customers to use.
• You should be posting news and public interest posts regularly.
• You should be monitoring your social media sites for interaction and/or reviews from your clients.

Online Reputation Management (ORM):

• Your business should have reviews on all of the major review websites including Google+, Yahoo, Yelp, Foursquare, Citysearch, Merchant Circle, Super Pages, Insider Pages, and Angie's List as well as any industry specific review sites such as Wellness or Trip Advisor. 
• You should claim and update each of your pages on the review websites.
• You should monitor for new review postings and respond to each review.
• Your business should implement strategies to generate new customer reviews - keep that word-of-mouth advertising going strong!

Online marketing obviously has a huge impact on generating new business - use the power of the internet, marketing your products and services so everyone will know your business is awesome!

www.impressionsrm.com

Online Marketing - Social Media Blow Ups

Small incidents can become online marketing boons or busts with the relatively new power consumers have through social media and review websites. Take the example below.

A friend who is passionate about breast-feeding shared this story on her Facebook page as did many others and no doubt this particular Starbucks is enjoying an increase in business and the online word-of-mouth advertising is priceless!

Photo Credit: Julia Wykes

Starbucks customer complains about breastfeeding, gets owned by teen barista

We've all seen examples of poor customer service situations that get posted on social media or review sites and then it goes viral and severely damages the business. 

Paying attention to what your customers have to say can not only keep your business safe from one of these negative blasts, it can also give you the feedback you need to meet the needs of your clients and promote your business to new consumers!

#onlinemarketing #impressionsreviewmanaging

www.impressionsrm.com