10 Tips on How to Improve Your Search Engine Rankings

by | Jul 11, 2012 | Business Success, Social Media

Improving your Search Engine rankings is key for your business to be found. Search Engine Optimization (SEO) refers to the process of getting free traffic from search engines. Major search engines such as Google and Yahoo have search results where contents on web pages are shown and ranked based on what the search engine considers most relevant to users. SEO is a prevailing part of your company’s marketing plan. It refers to how easily consumers can find your products and services through major search engines.

Here are 10 tips on how to improve your Search Engine rankings:

1. Submitting URLs to Search Engines

Submitting the URLs of your web pages is a relatively easy process. You could simply click on “submit URL” or “suggest a site” which can be found on the main page of the more popular Search Engines. URL should be submitted whenever a new webpage is created. Most importantly, it is necessary to resubmit the URL to Search Engines when a web page is updated or revised.

search engine rankings

2. Enticing Page Titles
Enticement to click is often based on an attractive page title. A page title is displayed on browser’s title bar and the user’s list of query results on Search Engines. Enticement to click can be achieved by having good page titles accompanied good descriptions, which come from the Meta description tags.

3. Paid Submission
Paid submission allows companies to rank higher in a competitive environment. For example, having your company listed as a sponsored search result will make your products and services more visible.

4. Keywords
If your website contains the word “advertising” 50 times and your competitor’s page contains the word “advertising” only 20 times, and you have the word “advertising” in the Meta tags and in a page title, your page would rank higher in major Search Engines.

5. Relevant Page Content
The amount of words on a page, their arrangement and relevance to the title can improve Search Engine ranking. Frequency of particular words on the page indicates the likelihood that the Search Engine will pick up on your keywords and indicate to a search result that you have the content people are looking for.

6. Consistent Image Naming
Having many images on a page does not improve your ranking, however, if you name your images correctly, it is likely that Search Engines such as Google Images will find your image. Therefore, name your images carefully and always create alt attributes for your images.

7. Including Meta Tags
Meta Keyword tags describe what a page contains to the Search Engine. Using as many keywords as possible will help to increase the chance that users can find your site based on that word.

8. Adding  Links and Cross-links
Make sure you include links on your website. Link out to other websites and other pages within your website. This will cause the site to be considered more valuable by Search Engines since it allows browsers to turn links into information on other pages.

9. Frequency of Updates
You should regularly update your site. Search Engines usually rank sites that are current and provide valuable information that has been recently updated. Making frequent changes to your pages and content will give you a higher ranking in Search Engines.

10. Mobile Optimization
People now often use their smart phones to view webpage, therefore it is necessary for your company to create pages that are optimized for mobile phones. Google has created capabilities to allow cell phone users to search listings that were mobile device enabled.

What SEO tactics do you employ? Have you found them to be successful?

Brand Voice: How to Create It. Build It. Maintain It.

by | Jul 3, 2012 | Advertising, Branding, Business Success, Social Media

Brand, like fine wine, is described as having character, essence, personality or persona. Well there’s a new adjective in Marketing Vocabulary in terms of describing a Brand. It’s called Brand Voice. With the explosion of Social Media, Engagement Brand not only has to have a “personality” it must also  have a Voice. In the frenzy of not being left out and joining the social conversation, many Brands have quite literally “jumped” in the social arena. So is any voice better than no voice at all?

Brand voice

Marketers Beware! Pioneering the great frontier of social media does not mean leaving brand principles behind. Au contraire… Brand Voice does not negate Brand Position (PDF). No not at all. Brand Position: what sets Brand apart from the myriad of all the other “me toos” out there, has never been more important and more relevant in establishing Brand Voice and setting course to top of mind awareness and market consideration.

There are true and tried methods in establishing Brand Voice, regardless of its “newness”. Make sure that before you embark on this exciting social media journey, you’re equipped to handle the good, the bad and the phenomenal!

Here’s a quick checklist in achieving that.

1) Your Brand’s Position: Yes, it’s a motherhood statement, however, nothing replaces a solid positioning, even on Facebook or Twitter. Regardless of the ever-changing communications dynamic, suffice to say, without a clear positioning, there is little point in proceeding to obtain a brand voice.

2) Single Focused Mindedness: Let’s not be all things to all people. Have a clear understanding of the Brand’s Position; Brand’s Vision and Brand Culture is key in maintaining a voice that speaks in the same way, all the time. No matter if you tweet 5 times a day, write status reports, guest blog or engage in discussions, what you say needs to be different and the same.

3) Determine your Objectives and Strategy: Really, what Marketing initiative can be called marketing without them? A Brand needs to have a Social Media Strategy.  Before you start, define what is your vision of success? Who do you want to have follow you? How are you going to achieve that? What are the timeline measurement points?

4) Guidelines for Speaking to Your Target… consistently:  Marketers have always been clear in evaluating Character and Style against print ads, TV or Radio ads and their packaging. Social Engagement and Brand Voice are no different. The need for a consistent voice with a consistent approach style and message is key.  And lets not forget Tone. It’s important to set the tone for all Brand communications. Like everything else that makes a good Brand into a great Brand… Consistency is King.

5) Establish an Editorial Calendar: Brand Voice is about engagement and even entertainment.  It’s much more complex in doing so than a 30 second commercial. Brand now has to make friends and have people follow. It has to resonate with its core following and contribute to the conversation with meaningful content. It must allow for a loss of control in order to gain it.  It’s a dynamic approach to Brand Marketing. It is fantastic, exhilarating and the best thing for brand since broadcast ads hit the airway. Brand who dialogue with their followers (no, not customers) are in a place where they can play the role of influencing behaviour like never before. Brands need to understand how to engage without selling. It has to deliver in less than 150 characters its positioning, its reason and its promise.

6) Be Authentic: Deliver on Brand Promise. Deliver on Brand Character. Deliver on Brand Experience. Listen and respond. Speak and engage. Needless to say a Brand that is not authentic has really no hope in achieving excellence in any Marketing channel. Brand must always deliver.

Brand Voice is an increasingly important element of the total Brand Experience. As such, the Social Media channel has taken its rightful place along side print, broadcast and digital media in the strategy to market Brand holistically, effectively… and successfully. How vocal is your brand?

Grand Brand Identity Theft: It Could Happen to you

by | Jun 13, 2012 | Branding, Business Success, Interactive, Social Media

How much of your brand identity do you own? If  you really want to find out, run an online search of your brand and see what comes up. Do all pages that represent your brand belong to your brand? When you run a social media search, what comes up?  Do all pages, accounts, profiles that represent your brand belong to you?

With the advent of social media, its become increasingly easy for “brand impostors” to steal the spotlight, especially on Facebook and Twitter – and it doesn’t stop at simple tweets and status updates.  Some brand impostors go as far as creating campaigns and strategies, robbing your brand of its authenticity and control. Be aware that there is a big difference between accounts and pages that pay homage to your brand and impostors who act and speak on behalf of your brand. It boils down to owning your name, your voice and your customers and avoiding confusion and even legal issues.

A few examples of brand identity theft have been made quite public. For example, during the 2010 BP oil spill, fake Twitter accounts pretending to be BP PR appeared. Yahoo, Facebook, Aston Martin and AT&T have all been targets as well. Brand mascots haven’t been spared either, Mr.Clean, Chef Boyardee and the Pillsbury Doughboy have all been subjects of fake Twitter accounts.

Facebook is notorious for brand identity theft. Just recently I ran a search for 7-Eleven on Facebook and I found two brand pages: one for 7-Eleven, an official page, with 2.2 million likes and one for 711 with 21,000+ likes.  It seems only natural in today’s short cut text messaging vocabulary that some 7-Eleven fans would and could  search  7-Eleven by typing in 711 on Facebook. Since the Facebook page also looked like an official page, it has garnered significant likes. So will the real 7-Eleven stand up? Is it fair to assume  that this page is an impostor… or was it started by an official brand ambassador and abandoned? Regardless of the story behind the two  7-Eleven Pages, or how and why they both exist, a brand needs to take action and ownership to help avoid confusion and reach their consumers and fans in an official way.

brand identity theft

So how does a brand protect itself? Here are a few tips:

  1. Think ahead: Brands must have a strategy and a plan in place to prevent and quickly respond to a brand impostor. Will you make an official announcement about it? Will you go into attack mode? Will you do nothing? Making a strategic action plan to deal with impostors is imperative. Don’t be blindsided.
  2. Secure your name: A good rule of thumb is to secure all URLs, Twitter handles, Facebook pages and Facebook URLs that are associated with your brand. Even if you’re not using a specific page or account, it’s good to claim it to help protect your brand. Also, make sure it’s clear that you’re pages are official and verify your account on Twitter, if you can.
  3. Know what’s out there: As I mentioned earlier, keep searching for your brand online on a regular basis. Look for keywords related to your brand or brand name misspellings. If an impostor account exists on a social media site, make sure you report it.
  4. Take control: Some social media sites allow you to take over impostor brand accounts or pages, merging them and their “Likes” with your official page if you consider it important. Maybe fans or followers were not aware they were following an impostor.

Do you take a proactive role in protecting your brand online and on social media from identity theft? Also, go and Google your brand right now. What did you find?

We want your opinions so feel free to join the conversation on this and other marketing, branding and design topics… you can subscribe to 3H hoopla! here.

App-ealing Marketing Tips to Market Your Mobile App

by | Jun 11, 2012 | Branding, Business Success, Interactive, Social Media

Are you going app-crazy? How many apps do you have downloaded on your iPhone, iPad, Blackberry or Android? Surely you’ve contributed to the latest stats that I’ve been hearing… to date, Apple has surpassed 25 billion (BILLION) apps downloaded, and 60,000 more added every month! I probably don’t need to tell you that mobile apps create interactive experiences. It goes without saying that they improve your business’ visibility. Today it’s all about 24/7 access to instant information and location sensitive content. In the not so distant future, mobile devices will replace traditional computers completely.

Being in business (B2B) or having a brand (B2C) there is ultimately one question to answer and deliver on: How do you break through the app clutter?

Well, just because it’s a new channel doesn’t mean you need to throw away traditional techniques. In fact, they are even more important to adhere to. To effectively market your  app you must use a consistent, measured approach to best guarantee long-term success. Taking the time to ensure adequate support of the product, considering your market and designing a marketing strategy is vital. Understanding the value of the channel and the media properties you employ is key so that you don’t spend your entire marketing budget in the first few weeks.

Tips to successfully market your mobile app:
1) Build your website: I know it may sound crazy, but make sure your foundation is sound. You may have a great app, but eventually you’ll want to turn that app subscriber to a customer and client, and that takes a solid website ready and positioned to handle incoming traffic and lead generation.
2) Blog and update regularly, connect with like-minded blogs to promote your app. Your profile or company profile for each blog should always speak to your app, with a link to download it now.
3) Be the first! Be unique! It’s tough to be the first to come out with your type of app in an already saturated market , but you can offer an existing concept in a different way or be innovative taking an existing app and making it better.
4) Develop and Implement a Strategy: I won’t belabour this point. Let’s just say Marketing 101.
5) Shout it out! Being first or being unique doesn’t get you anywhere if people don’t know about it. Don’t wink in the dark! Consider a pay-per-success campaign where you are only required to part with money if the advert leads to a direct download. Don’t do it yourself… if you can’t. Enlist the services of a promotional tool to toot your horn to targeted audiences.
6) Build up hype about your app launch: A combined approach incorporating word-of-mouth, viral marketing and advertising is the best way to keep your downloads high and think long-term sustained success by staggering your message.

No shoemakers children here at 3H: Following our own advice, we have a just launched our new marketing app : Hoopla…. download it now! Just click here.

What is your favourite business app?

Brand Product Placement: The Video Star

by | Jun 8, 2012 | Advertising, Branding, Business Success, Creative, Social Media

Watch any big name music video today and it’s pretty much a guarantee that you’ll see a few product shots incorporated into the storyline and with good reason. Now more than ever  brands are becoming more and more integrated in the entertainment industry with the emerging brand product placement industry. Nowhere is this relationship more prevalent than in music videos. For the artist, a brand product placement can help add to the budget of their music video and for the viewer. A brand product placement can influence a purchase, which in turn is a benefit for the brand.

The Benefits of Brand Product Placement

If the strategy meets the objective, brand and product placement in music videos can be a very effective way to reach a specific demographic and a target market between 18-35, or even younger.

If it’s well done, a music video successfully incorporates a brand into the plot of the video, adding to the scene and the overall image and lifestyle portrayed. This creates a seamless relationship between the brand and artist who often embodies a certain persona that their fans aspire and look up to. It’s about the psychographics. Therefore, there’s no question that music videos can be influential, and the availability of advertising space in them can be a good opportunity for brands, and here’s why:

  • Consumer influence
  • Brand exposure
  • Celebrity endorsement
  • Brand awareness
  • Increased sales (celebrity influence=$)
  • Consumer identification
  • Brand championship

Blurring The Lines
Some music videos seem to be commercials, and vice versa, blurring the lines between the two worlds. Although not new, the following two videos are great examples of the merging of both worlds:

Jennifer Lopez’s “Papi” video seems like a 5 minute Fiat commercial and was actually even edited down to a 30 second commercial spot. Lady Gaga’s “Telephone” video features a plethora of brands and at certain times, the scenes and shots seem to revolve around the incorporation of the brand. The blurring of the lines leads us to one question: what came first, the concept or the brand placement? Jennifer Lopez’s video seems to be a part of a brand/celebrity relationship, but the product is a part of the concept of the video or rather the concept seems to have been created around the brand. Well integrated, albeit blatant. Lady Gaga’s video concept seems to be apart from the product placement – the products do little to add to the story, placed in for obvious promotional purposes. Which approach do you think is more effective in terms of a brand ROI?

brand product placement

* screen shot from Lady Gaga’s “Telephone” video 

The Debate
As effective as music video brand placement can be, the concept is always at the center of some sort of debate. Some feel that the music video is an art form and should be free of corporate presence. Others see it as not adding anything valuable to the video’s plotline. Some are indifferent and some are all for it.  I feel that as long as it’s done well, and the brands are well integrated into the plot of the video, adding value to the story, it can lead to a better return for the brand. Strict product shots that are there just to be there and do little for the video’s plot can irritate a viewer, leading to a lower ROI although it may not take away from brand awareness…

Then there is the emergence of social media that has changed the way consumers think. They demand authenticity and abhor being sold to.

I want to know your thoughts: what do you think about product placement in music videos? Are videos crossing the line into commercial advertising and does this or will this backfire or help the brand…the celebrity or both?

P.S.  We want your opinions so feel free to join the conversation on this and other marketing, branding and design topics… you can subscribe to  3H hoopla! here.