Twitter Updates for 2009-08-18
- Looking forward to the twitter chat tonight with @karmacom and @SternalPR 8-9PM EDT tonight. #smbiz in reply to karmacom #
- Glad to be here with you all tonight. #smbiz #
- I run e-commerce and online marketing for a luxury hotel company and work with other businesses to grow using the web. #smbiz #
- Q1: There's no such thing as "channel conflict". That's something we worry about. Our customers just want to shop/buy. #smbiz #
- Q1: "If you build it…" hah! #smbiz #
- Q1: Myth #3 It's all about conversion rate. It isn't. You don't deposit conversion. You deposit profits. #smbiz #
- Q1: Conversion is sales divided by traffic. Lowering traffic will "grow" conversion, but is that what you want to do? #
- Q2: Do wrong? Fail to set appropriate goals. Do you want to grow your brand, your sales, something else? #smbiz #
- Q1: Conversion is sales divided by traffic. Lowering traffic will "grow" conversion, but is that what you want to do? #smbiz #
- Q2: Too many businesses put too much effort into too few things (I'm looking at you, AdWords). Don't put all eggs in 1 basket. #smbiz #
- @SternalPR I think that's often the case. Also, focusing on CPC is (usually) the wrong metric for most businesses. #smbiz in reply to SternalPR #
- @birdonawire55 True, but define "remarkable" for smbiz when compared with Zappo's or Red Envelope. #smbiz in reply to BirdOnAWire55 #
- Q2: Do wrong? Setting a budget for PPC advertising. If you do it right, it should self-fund. #smbiz #
- @jaredstauffer Great point. Comparing CPC to CPA can be the kiss of death for many small businesses. #smbiz in reply to jaredstauffer #
- Amen! RT @karmacom: Q2 Once is never enough: Test everything! Test prices, copy, offers, until you get winning combo. #smbiz #
- Q3 Start with your customer. You're looking to sell. They're looking to buy. Guess who's right? #smbiz #
- @karmacom Re: "info design, emot’l design & content" If you're going to favor one, favor content. #smbiz in reply to karmacom #
- Q3 Yes it's cliche. Who cares? But content is (still) king. Give your customer what they need to make their choice. #smbiz #
- Back to Q1 for a second: Myth: You have a home page. No, you don't. Your customer enters (and exits) where they want. #smbiz #
- @karmacom No argument here. But too many small business sites ignore the obvious in favor of "wow" and (God help me) flash intros. #smbiz in reply to karmacom #
- @Ishkahbibel Again, start with the customer. Who are you talking to? What is she looking for? Answer her questions. That's content. #smbiz in reply to Ishkahbibel #
- Q4 It's more about guiding/persuading than "promotional." Don't think "SELL! SELL! SELL!" Think "Help, guide, answer." Then sell. #smbiz #
- @karmacom LOL. #smbiz in reply to karmacom #
- RT @birdonawire55 @tcpeter and small biz doesn't compare to zappos or red envelope except they were once remarkable start ups #smbiz #
- Q5 Most businesses should look at having both an e-commerce site and a blog. Customers don't go to blogs to buy. Meet needs w/ each #smbiz #
- RT @TargetStars: RT @helpbusinesses RT @merylevans: Q4 Pareto principle: 80% content of value and 20% of promotional. #smbiz #
- Once again, Amen. RT @karmacom: Q5: Blogs that are all/only about selling something = fail #smbiz #
- Q5 Blog because you have something to say and because it adds value. But keep your main site, too. #smbiz #
- Q6 Bounce rate, bounce rate, bounce rate. Look at entries and why people don't stick. #smbiz #
- Q6 You can't convert a visitor that doesn't hang around. If your bounce rate is high, fix that first. #smbiz #
- Q6 How high is "high"? Varies, but anything over 30% on an e-commerce site (not a blog) is worth looking at. #smbiz #
- Q6 Shameless plug: blog post about fixing bounce rate: http://bit.ly/GROrR #smbiz #
- @jaredstauffer Re: Q6 Yes on keywords, but look at all segments. Is search your biggest source of traffic? If not, look at others too #smbiz in reply to jaredstauffer #
- @Ishkahbibel Most common cause of bounce rate? Failing to pass "scent test." Did you continue thought that brought them in? #smbiz in reply to Ishkahbibel #
- @Ishkahbibel See GrokDotCom for info about "scent test." http://bit.ly/jBoyB #smbiz in reply to Ishkahbibel #
- RT @karmacom: Q6: bounce rate: landing page that does not follow thru on email, ad, text offer & visual = FAIL #smbiz #
- @Ishkahbibel No doubt, but if the headline doesn't grab them, they'll never read the rest of the story. #smbiz in reply to Ishkahbibel #
- Q7 SEO is huge. So is landing page optimization. Get 'em in, get 'em to stay. After that getting 'em to buy is, well, less hard ;) #smbiz #
- RT @karmacom: Q7 I am prejudiced but to me SEO is everything. Clients have seen sales up over 400% with organic search alone. #smbiz #
- RT @karmacom: Q7: Hint: Good title tags can change your life! #smbiz #
- @karmacom Title tags and page title (i.e., H1 for engines, title for customers) are possibly most important thing on page. #smbiz in reply to karmacom #
- Q7 Also look at your images. Do they continue the story your customer is telling himself? #smbiz #
- Q8 Probably yes. Look for items that complement, not compete, with your offerings. If it's good for your customer, it'll be good 4 U. #smbiz #
- No maybe about it. RT @Ishkahbibel add get em' 2 believe that UR brand is 2 B trusted. If U R yr own brand a personal pic cn help. #smbiz #
- @designleap There's a Q1 myth for you. SEO is rarely "free" (at least not free as in beer). But it's usually worth every penny. #smbiz in reply to DesignLeap #
- Q8 Don't think of it as affiliate marketing so much as enhancing your customer's experience. If it "plays well with others," try it. #smbiz #
- Q9 Work with complementary services. Do you get IRL referrals? That's a great place to start online. #smbiz #
- @designleap Exactly my point. SEO is far from free. But it's some of the best time you can spend. #smbiz in reply to DesignLeap #
- @karmacom Agreed. If you're looking for a fortune from affiliate marketing, well, don't. Focus on your business. Complement w/ affil. #smbiz in reply to karmacom #
- Great tip! RT @karmacom: Q9: Good press online is the fastest way to increase inbound links. It’s organic, too #smbiz #
- Q9 Build relationships, then referrals. It's difficult (not impossible) to get one without the other. And be generous w/ outbound. #smbiz #
- @jaredstauffer Give press something to write about. They're trying to reach their customers. Why do you matter for them? WIIFM? #smbiz in reply to jaredstauffer #
- Q10 Key to great titles and (quick and dirty) personas from CopyBlogger: http://bit.ly/syFMf #smbiz #
- Q10 Think "personas" instead of "personalization." #smbiz #
- Q10 Good tool for quick personas at BTBuckets: http://bit.ly/8xac3 #smbiz #
- Q10 Read GrokDotCom and @Roxyyo http://bit.ly/TNgtJ #smbiz #
- Q10 I'm also a fan of this guy (OK, it's me ;) https://timpeter.com/blog/ #smbiz #
- @smbiz Thanks so much for having me. This has been a great time! Thank you for the excellent questions and thoughts. #smbiz in reply to smbiz #
- @TargetStars Thank you for the questions and dialogue. This was really enjoyable. #smbiz in reply to TargetStars #
- @Ishkahbibel And you're a Mets fan? This IS a great night! ;) #smbiz in reply to Ishkahbibel #
- Thanks to @karmacom and @smbiz. Keep up the great work, guys! #smbiz in reply to karmacom #
- Enjoyed the chat. Please feel free to contact me via https://timpeter.com/ any time. #smbiz #
- @karmacom What's wrong with the #Mets? ;) in reply to karmacom #
- @karmacom DOH! in reply to karmacom #
- @karmacom ;) in reply to karmacom #
- Alrighty, folks, I've gotta go put some covers on the patio furniture before the big storm strikes. #
- @metsgrrl They're through the 5th. A rainout now is a victory! ;) in reply to metsgrrl #
- @stevenwright lives! RT @umarnasir: Have you ever imagined a world without hypothetical situations? #
- There are times I wish my mouth limited me to 140 characters. #
- @BrentDPayne I vote for changing the spelling of "knowledgeable" to spelling it "the right way." ;) in reply to BrentDPayne #
- @BrentDPayne I'm not such a big fan of "judgment," either. ;) #
- @orchid8 Do you like VMWare? I have Parallels and have to say, I'm not much of a fan. in reply to orchid8 #
[…] if these tips aren’t enough, check out my responses to the “Turning Traffic into Sales” chat I participated in on Twitter the other night for more good stuff. John Sternal, Karma Martell and the whole participating group […]