Why should we care what the “European sales chief” says?  Well, considering the fact that Europe (and Asia) are 3 years ahead of the United States in mobile technology, we can safely assume that this “European sales chief” knows what he is talking about.  He’s already seen the amazing usage and expansion of mobile and tablet pc’s – he sees it every day.

The United States is just starting to get into that market but yet, I’m sure that even if you don’t use a mobile phone or tablet PC, that you know at least ONE person who does.  So, even though we are just beginning to see the impact of mobile Internet, as someone once said, “You ain’t seen nothing yet.”

So, as a small business owner, as a website owner, how are you going to leverage your company to take advantage of this trend?  After all, if Google thinks it’s the wave of the future, the chances are it most likely will be.  So, what are you going to do?  How can you take advantage of it?  How can you use it?

Here are some thoughts…

1) Don’t wait any longer to go mobile.  If you haven’t yet made sure that your website is easily accessible by mobile users, don’t wait anymore.  Get your designer on the task immediately.

2) Think Global.  In many rural areas across the globe, mobile is cheaper and easier to get.  This means the number of people going online is increasing much faster with mobile usage.  If your product or service reaches a global audience, make sure you’re addressing the needs of each culture so that you can take advantage of global sales.

3) Think Local.  The benefits of mobile and local businesses is tremendous.  In order to take advantage of this you must position yourself in all the local maps and directories.  I’m talking about Google Maps, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps.  I’m talking about Yelp and Foursquare.  If you want to be found my local customers, make sure they can find you from their mobile phones.  Again put your designer or seo firm on this task.

4) Go Social.  Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn are just some of the social media program you must take advantage of.  This is how you “go viral”.  One person talks about you and passes it on to their friends, etc.  The great surge of usage of social media programs is from mobile units.  Take advantage of this by putting yourself in front of all those people.

Mobile and tablet technologies are not going away, they’re coming and they’re coming fast.  Be pro-active and begin the process of getting your business ready for this technology.  You’ll be better off for it.

Websites do not optimize themselves, but knowing what to expect is instrumental prior to embarking on the journey of targeting competitive keyword verticals.

1. It takes time: Like anything worthwhile, good things come to those who wait? Of course while you’re waiting, you could always spend money on PPC if you are impatient. Cost for cost (SEO pricing vs. PPC) is all about cost to value received, SEO is an investment while PPC is just like paying rent. Sure, they both drive traffic, but one is far more sustainable than the other (providing less risk and greater reward).
2. You may have to change a few things: There is a reason why sites that are optimized and ones that are not rank differently. It’s all about the continuity of purpose that unifies each page in a site for a particular purpose with optimization and the best sites only have minor differences on the outside. It is what occurs on the level of site architecture, naming conventions, meta tags and internal links that can rank of tank a site, so don’t be surprised if some pages don’t make the SEO grade and need a slight makeover to change things up.
3. Monitor the baseline: You need to know where you’re at, to understand where you’re going. What metrics matter most? The answer is simple, traffic and conversion, but more importantly more relevant traffic and using a diversity of related semantic content to target a market and not just a few keywords.
4. There is no such thing as too much Keyword Research: Keep in mind that what is relevant and hot today, may be yesterday’s news tomorrow. There is no such thing as too much keyword research, so dig deep into trends while improving traction for your markets root phrases and lucrative two and three word keyword combinations.
5. Understand the value of perpetual momentum: Once a site gains a significant foothold in a niche or market, the barrier to entry lessens. Specifically the more related and overlapping keywords surrounding a contextual array of phrases you optimize for, the better. Each page optimized for 3 distinct keywords can translate into dozens of keywords if a website has authority. The more authority a website has, then the less you have to concern yourself with optimizing for keywords, just the mere fact that someone searched for a related phrase or keyword that happens to exist on some page in your website, if you have more authority then your site can outrank your competitors based on the degree of trust it has acquired.

Just the other day a friend of mine told me that the restaurants in that area are closed.  During this “snow bird season” the Riverwalk is normally filled with people, music and entertainers.  But, as she walked there last Saturday, there were just a handful of people walking around.  Many shops were closed, almost all the restaurants were shut down.

Of course that news saddened me and it also surprised me a bit because I didn’t realize the impact the recession has had on that economy.  Now that I live in Atlanta, I just don’t see the impact of the recession here as much.  Hmm – maybe John Edwards is right about one thing, there really are 2 Americas.

But that story also got me thinking about the new economy.  What are the new customers of tomorrow going to look like?  What will they do?  And more important, what can businesses do today to get ready for those new customers?  After all, no one wants to end up on a quiet street with a “closed” sign on their door!

Jeffrey Gitomer Had An Answer

So, some of you know I’ve recently begun working with a business mentor, John Miller and he’s truly been wonderful.  After 10 years of doing SEO, I’m finally learning some things about actually running a business!  Anyway, John introduced me to Jeffrey Gitomer and an article that he wrote about the “new customer”.  Hmm – guess I’m thinking in the right direction!

But basically, Gitomer goes on in his article talking about what the “new customer” of tomorrow looks like and here are his bullets…

* He’s going to decide somewhat slower. He’s been hesitating for more than a year.
* He’s angry about the value of his home, and the value of his investments.
* He will not be doing business the same way it’s been done before.
* He will not be banking the same way he banked before.
* He will not be advertising the same way he advertised before.
* He will not be buying a car the same way he did before.
* He will not be buying a home the same way he did before.
* He will not be investing the same way he did before.
* He’s online. Checking out your website – and your competitor’s website.
* He’s socializing. Telling everyone what’s happening in his world and the world.
* He’s Tweeting, Facebooking, and Linked-In-ing. Social media is still a firestorm.
* He’s blogging about his experiences with you, for the world to read.
* He’s YouTubing about his experiences with you for the world to watch – by the millions (any questions United Airlines?).
* He’s Googling, not yellow-paging.
* He’s texting. A lot.
* He’s using his mobile device to do damn near everything.
* He’s WiFi-ing in his hotel room, on the plane, in Starbucks, and at home.
* IF he’s reading a paper, or getting the news, it’s online.
* He’s as likely to watch The Daily Show, The Colbert Report, or listen to Howard Stern for news as he is to watch a network “news” person read a tele-prompter.
* He’s purchasing after midnight. By the billions.
* He’s looking for ease of doing business with you.
* He is value oriented, but will look to price as part of the decision.
* He wants a relationship.
* He wants, needs, and expects GREAT service after the sale.
* He does not want to wait for anything or anyone.
* He needs help and expert advice.
* He’s looking for ideas and answers.
* He can check your price and your facts in two seconds or less on Google.
* He knows as much about your product as you do.
* He knows MORE about your competitor’s product than you do.
* He can pay right now IF you can take a credit card online.
* He expects someone to answer the phone when he calls that can actually HELP.
* He is SICK of off-shore call centers, erroneously called “help desks.”
* He is SICK of you telling him how important his call is while he stands on hold.
* He is SICK of your recorded hold message.
* He demands the truth. All the time.
* He no longer trusts the institutions he used to hold sacred.
* He expects you to be as computer literate as he is.
* He needs to be understood and feel your sincere concern.
* While you are qualifying him, he is qualifying you.
* If he needs a referral or recommendation, he’ll go to Craig’s list or Angie’s list or Google or his next door neighbor, or anyone else but you…UNLESS you have video testimonials online.

You can read his entire article here on his facebook.  And it’s an interesting read.

So, go through this list a few times, take it to your next staff meeting (even if it’s at the kitchen table) and make a list.  What is your business doing to meet this “new customer” on his terms?  More importantly, what can your business do to meet this “new customer” on his terms?  Create your to-do list and start right away.  Because in my opinion, that new customer is already here.

What Cisco is trying to tell you with their “borderless business” concept is that growing your business in the future means integrating technology into your business today.  And integrating technology in such a way that the possibilities are seemingly endless.

It’s really all about bringing people and ideas together.  No matter where you are on the planet, technology can bring you two together.  So, it doesn’t matter what you do or sell, if you can establish yourself as an expert in your field, you will be sought out.  By everyone searching for your expertise.

Your customers are changing because they’re getting smarter.  They’re learning everyday more and more about how to conduct searches on the Internet.  How to use social media for reviews and background checks, (well, sort of background checks).  They’re doing what their parents did at business chamber meetings, they’re listening to what others are saying about you only this generation is doing the majority of the listening online.  Via emails, blogs and other social media venues, they’re listening.

So, as a small business owner, your job to keep up with all of this is to establish yourself as an expert in your field AND make yourself available via multiple venues.  Here’s how you can accomplish this and build your business.

1) Showcase what you know via a blog.  Use that blog to “talk” to your customers.  Tell them what you’re up to, what the company is up to, what the industry is up to.  Give them facts and details but keep the information as informal and “laymen” as possible.  The idea isn’t to dazzle them with fancy words, the idea is to dazzle them with what you can do for them.

2) Make yourself known through social media.  Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and now Google’s Buzz are all the rage.  Why?  Because they’re easy to use.  Quick, fast and filled with tons of information about individuals, companies and much more.  Your customers will get to know you and your company.

3) Invite others to follow you, join you, listen to you, etc.  If you’re taking the time to use social media then flaunt it.  Place your social media icons everywhere.  On your email signature, in your website, everywhere!  Get folks to follow you, listen to you.  They are your greatest assets.

You see, long tail keyword phrases are usually the most profitable phrases because they are most often being typed in by Internet users who are ready to make the purchase.

Think about it. When you begin a search you begin (usually) with a general phrase and the more information you learn about what you want or need, the more specific phrases you type in. The long tail phrase is that specific phrase.

I took a look at the statistics for several websites that our SEO Firm is marketing and here are the results…

The 6 keyword phrases that converted 100% for Atlantis Plumbing were…
1) ga underground leak detection
2) plumbers in douglasville
3) plumbing leak detection marietta ga
4) polybutylene piping lawsuits
5) water main pinhole leak
6) water pipe excavation

The 5 keyword phrases that converted 100% for Certified Windows and Doors were…
1) hurricane proof sliding glass windows
2) hurricane window contractors broward county florida
3) manufactures in pompano bch fl
4) pgt approved south florida contractors
5) windows and doors miami

The 5 keyword phrases that converted 100% for Florida Divorce Law Online were…
1) divorce papers lee county fl
2) file for divorce in cape coral florida
3) florida divorce papers
4) limited representation agreement florida divorce
5) divorce lawyer online

This tells me (and it should tell you too) that the kind of people who type in long tail keyword phrases are the kind that are ready to make the purchase.   So, take a look at the keyword phrases your website is marketing.  Are they long tail phrases?

What is Buzz?  Think of it as Google’s very own Twitter.  The benefit is that it’s right there on Gmail.  So, no need to open a separate screen of have a separate account or window open.  Your email, your chats and now your Tweets can all be performed, viewed, responded to right from the Gmail control panel.  Pretty slick.

Will it take over Twitter?  Who knows, it’s anybody’s guess as to what programs will still be in use months from now but one thing is for sure.  The ease of using this new gadget can’t be beat.

If you’ve already been buzzed, feel free to follow me at eckweb@gmail.com.  I’ll post my daily tips, notes and comments about this crazy SEO / Internet Marketing industry and hopefully you’ll find them useful for your own marketing.

Happy Buzzing.

Usually, when you post an image online it’s something to a local file.  But if you post it directly from the website it came from, like this…

http://www.mauslawfirm.com/images/ad-home.jpg

Then you are stealing bandwidth.

So, as a responsible website owner, webmaster, designer, whatever – what do you do?  Easy.  You enter the following code into your .htaccess file.

RewriteEngine On
RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} !^http://(.+\.)?domain\.com/ [NC]
RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} !^$
RewriteRule .*\.(jpe?g|gif|bmp|png)$ /images/stop_stealing_bandwidth.jpe [L]

Create an image and name it stop_stealing_bandwidth.jpe

So, that’s the story on saving bandwidth!

Anyway, he mentioned that I “challenge my readers” – in not a very nice way.  Hmmm – at first I didn’t really understand but after he pointed out some examples to me I got the idea.   I guess that’s the Sicilian in me coming out – I’ll have to watch that.  So, if I sound a bit “rough” in my blogs, I apologize, it’s truly not intended.  But feel free to let me know when you notice it in my writings.

I know I try to get my clients to write as much as possible and many of them tell me it’s not easy but I remind them that if they can talk, they can write.  Blogs are so perfect for that.  Just say what’s on your mind and say it as if you were talking to someone over lunch.  Sure, everyone could have “better” writing, but, we could also all be better drivers.  That doesn’t seem to be stopping us from driving!

They give us the world with Google Earth (and beyond I must say) and they give us our neighborhoods with Google Street View but soon, it seems, we may have the inside of our shops and who knows what else?

An article on SearchEngineLand.com gives us an insight into what Google may be planning!  Oh boy, pretty soon, we’ll be able to just go to Google and “shop” the store right from our screens!

Hmm – brings up alot of interesting different scenarios.

So, if you’re a brick and mortar business imagine what it would be like to be “on screen” in Google.  Would you spify up your shop?  Build new displays?  I wonder if you could “invite Google” back for more updated photos?  Well, there will be lots of questions, I’m sure.  And who knows if this idea will even take off but it’s certainly interesting.  Don’t you think?