85% of customers expect businesses to be available on social media.  When you’re marketing your business in Austin it can be an overwhelming prospect.  Every day there are new opportunities competing for your attention.  Social media marketing should be one part of your marketing plan, without it you’ll be missing opportunities to connect with your customers which will impact your bottom line. Why is social media marketing important for my business? As a business owner you want your business to be exposed to as many people as possible.  An active social media presence will provide opportunities to engage with your target …more

Did you know that Facebook has over 1 billion active monthly users?  Yes, that’s billion.  With a ‘b’.  If your business isn’t leveraging social media marketing, you’re pushing customers right to your competitor’s door. Most business owners understand that social media is an important part of digital marketing, but many are overwhelmed by the idea. The good news is that social media marketing isn’t as hard as you think.  By answering three basic questions, you’ll have a good idea where to start. “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” – Lau Tzu (Click to Tweet) 3 …more

Austin, Texas marketing directors know that if you’re not analyzing your competition, you’re at a disadvantage.  Chances are they’re watching you.  To level the playing field you have to return the favor by performing a competitor analysis. Why Do I Need to Perform a Competitor Analysis? Many businesses are content to settle for second place, copying ideas from their competitors because it’s easier than doing the legwork required to be on top.  Since you’re here, that’s obviously not you! “While most are dreaming of success, winners wake-up and work hard to achieve it.” – Unknown Click to Tweet To be …more

If you spied on your business, what would you see? Do all the parts of your business work together to enhance your brand image? Being clear about the market niche you fill and why you do it better than anyone else is the first step on the fast-track to success. When Walt Disney created Disneyland, there wasn’t a doubt what to expect if you went to his park. Whether you heard about a friend’s experience, saw a commercial or received a promotion from a travel agent the message was the same: fun and fantasy. After almost 60 years the business …more

Social Media Marketing is pushing out marketing messages or promotions through social media connections, profiles, and ads. This is frequently interpreted by your customers as spam, and the response rate suffers considerably. Social media optimization is a promotional tactic that focuses on growing brand visibility, brand affinity, and consumer engagement through the use of interactive media channels, profiles, and tools, such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Blogs, YouTube, Flickr, Pinterest and more. SMO should be thought of as a combination of word-of-mouth advertising, customer relations, relationship networking, and public relations. Notice the heavy emphasis on disciplines related to relationships. This space …more

Outsourcing your social media efforts might not make sense to some people- you could be thinking to yourself, “Social networks are free, so why would I pay someone to do something that I can do myself at no charge.” Well there are lots of reasons to seriously consider social media outsourcing. Here are the top 3 reasons why it’s important to outsource your social media campaign: 1. You aren’t an expert – just like any other business related activity, you can’t be an expert in everything. Social media experts however are just that, the expert. They know the most crucial …more

A blog is a great way to get more traffic to your website and a powerful strategy for increasing your search engine rank especially on Google. If done correctly and consistently, you can improve your blog’s readership, increase traffic, and build trust and engagement with your customers. Make your blog more effective by following these tips: Write Consistent Posts If you write well thought out, useful posts you will create a following of readers that bookmark, share, and continue coming back to your blog. By posting consistently you build authority and increase your chances of other blogs linking back to …more

The main purpose of search engine marketing is to attract people into visiting your website by providing them with information about your products or services that might interest them. The Search Engine Marketing business is beneficial for both the business and the customer. It’s helps customers find what they are looking for, and it helps businesses connect with customers that need their product or service. Just like it sounds, search engine marketing uses search engines like Google, Yahoo and Bing to connect customers with potential merchants. Since the process is complicated, especially if you aren’t internet savvy, then you should …more

Did you know that 77% of the US population is on the internet now?  And web-enabled mobile phone use grew by 400% in 2011. Searching the internet for whatever we need or want has become the norm (phone books are going the way of the dinosaurs), so naturally businesses need to advertise and promote themselves online to capture those potential customers. Marketing through the internet is the best way to help grow almost any business, whether or not you actually conduct your business online. With such a large and broad audience of potential customers on the internet, every business should be …more

Today’s small business owners understand the awesome power of social media. They no longer deal with the question of whether or not they should use it for their Internet marketing efforts. Instead, they search for ways to leverage this type of marketing to increase sales. You’ll find plenty of advice these days on how to use Social Media Marketing, but one of the key elements that business owners may forget is that social media allows you a golden opportunity to connect and engage in conversations with your customers in a unique way. Your social media campaign should be intended to …more