MicroShare LLC held a seminar on web strategy that covered search engine optimization (SEO), search engine marketing (SEM), and social media marketing (SMM). The seminar provided an overview of different traffic driving methods and tools available, and when each strategy is most appropriate. Attendees learned about SEO best practices like link building and keyword analysis, how Google AdWords works and how to set up campaigns, and the benefits of incorporating social media into a marketing strategy through platforms like Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube. Questions from attendees were taken at the end.

1. MicroShare LLC. Web Series SeminarPrepared forOctober 28th, 2009

2. MicroShare LLC’s mission is to provide our customers with the most functional solution to fulfill their organizational goals. Through client interaction and attention to detail, we ensure that our consulting efforts provide tangible value to our customers by aligning information technology with their business strategies. We strive to exceed our client’s expectations.Mission Statement

3. AgendaIntroductionsSearch Engine Optimization (SEO)Search Engine Marketing (SEM)Social MediaQ & A

4. What you will learn today?An understanding of different methods for driving traffic to your Web-Site.SEO / SEM tools available to you.Which strategy is appropriate for you.How Social Media fits into your Web-Marketing Strategy.

5. What is Search Engine Optimization?SEO is the process of improving organic rankings in search engine results.Organic search results are listings on search engine results pages that appear because of their relevance to the search terms, as opposed to their being adverts.SEO is not based on a pay per visitor or click model.

6. Statistics for Web Strategy42% of search users click the top-ranking link. 8% click second-ranking link62% of search users click a link on the first page77% of search users choose organic over paid listing when searching, 67% choose organic search when purchasing.When the searcher is purchasing, organic click-through generates 25% higher conversion rates than equivalent Pay-Per-Click click-through.40% of SEO campaigns aware of their ROI achieve returns in excess of 500%, while only 22% of PPC campaigns were able to achieve this value.

7. SEO Best Practices Link Exchange CampaignKeyword AnalysisCompetitive AnalysisCreate a “Related Links” pageCreate “Link to us”Best sites to exchange linksUse standard E-Mail templateUse WordTracker to help come up with a list of two to four word phrases. 100 Keywords initially.SearchRankingWho is your competition. What is your competitor doing? Where does he rank? Why?Submit your site to;Open Directory ProjectYahoo, Google, Bing, about.com etc. Plus industry specific. Submit Site to SEInclude Keyword Where?In the titleH1 and H2First paragraphText of linksLink to each page from your Site-Map, and from each page to your home page. Also Crosslink same topics.LinksOptimize every page

8. Monitor your ProgressMonitor your site traffic – It contains a wealth of informationCheck to see that all new pages are indexed in googleCheck your sites ranking on your chosen keywords once a month.Regularly check your incoming links as part of your campaign.

9. SEO ToolsGoogle AlertsGoogle AnalyticsAdwordsWord TrackerSEO Digger – Hijack keywords your competitor uses

10. What is Search Engine Marketing?SEM is the process of promoting websites by increasing their visibility in search engines through the use of paid placement, contextual advertising, and or paid inclusion.Popular SEM Pay Per Click (PPC) Providers;Google AdwordsYahoo Search MarketingBing (Microsoft AD Center)

11. AdwordsIntroduction to AdWordsGoogle’s Ad Distribution NetworkBenefits of AdWordsOnline Advertising Stats and TrendsBasic AdWords Features

12. Introduction to AdwordsTypical search page

13. What can Adwords do my businessGet you found by the largest search engine audience in the world.Deliver low cost lead generation/ customer acquisition.Complement your “Organic” search engine results.Generate near instant results.Help you launch a new site or previously un-marketed site.Opportunistic marketing and product promotions.Deliver an outstanding return on investment.

14. How do I use Adwords?Choose the Keywords or Key phrases to sponsor.Write Ads.Control where and to whom your Ads are delivered.Get almost instant feedback on how your Ads are received.Monitor conversion rates.Adjust and fine tune based upon results.Control budgets.

15. What Google Can do for advertisersAdvertising on Google can help an advertiser meet many objectives Determining, measuring, and tracking metrics helps ensure success

16. Benefits of AdwordsNo minimum spendYou choose your own maximum daily spending limit (daily budget)Choose how much you want to pay per click for every keywordPay Google for users who click on your adMore cost-effective than Yellow Pages, Banner Ads & Direct Mail*Conversion tracking = real-time return-on-investment data

17. How PPC pricing typically worksBid per clickAdvertiser A $1.00 Rank 1Advertiser B $0.75 Rank 2Advertiser C $0.50 Rank 3

18. How Google Adwords refined the process

19. Quality Score“The quality score is determined by the keyword’s click throughrate (CTR), relevance of Ad text, historical keyword performanceand other relevancy factors”Quality score is critical to your ROI.Therefore these 4 key factors are critical to your success.1. CTR2. Relevance of Ad text3. Historical Keyword Performance4. “Other relevancy factors…”Understand Google’s passion for relevancy.A Googlebot will visit your site within 30 seconds of placing an Ad,so it would seem that they are checking landing pages for whatthey deem good Web practice (relevance to keyword, Ad, lack ofpop-ups etc..).

20. Selecting KeywordsBrainstorm Keywords & Phrases – Check your own server logsProduct names, brand names, model numbers, codesUse Google’s Keyword Suggestion ToolThink laterally – misspellings, hyphenated phrases, quirky phrases, even URLS!Think problem and solutionAsk CustomersCheck Competitor sites Meta data

21. Landing PagesShould be designed for Keywords/ Ad groups/ AdsContent should match the promise of the AdShould contain “substantial relevant content”Can you rapidly build and tweak these pages in order to fine-tune results?Should be easily navigableShould conform with Google’s guidelines for site layout in order to maximizeQuality Score

22. Bidding StrategyBeware “Happy clickers”!Ignore your ego.You need a good CTR so bid high enough to achieve it.As your Quality Score rises you can probably reduce your bid.

23. Tracking & Managing CampaignsCTR does not equal ROI.Conversions must be measured (Sales, Leads, Sign-ups, Page Views & “Others”).All conversions can be assigned values.Actual Sales Values can also be tracked.How Google tracks conversions.

24. Online Advertising Stats & Trends

25. 40%SearchSearch Advertising is Far More Cost EffectiveSearch Advertising is cheap and effective vs. other ad methodsSource: Piper Jeffery & Co.

26. Search Now the Largest Share of Online Ads% Online Advertising RevenueGrowth of Search: Marketers are voting with their dollarsOtherRich MediaSponsorshipsSearch now the most dominant form of online advertising

27. Nearly 3x growth in since start of 2003

28. 35 searches per user per month in U.S.

29. 73% search penetrationClassifiedsBannersSearchSource: Interactive Advertising Bureau, PricewaterhouseCoopers

30. Benefits of AdWords: High ROISample BudgetA business may receive substantially more than one thousand clicks, since AdWords discounts the price of each click, but for this example, we’ll assume they get exactly one thousand clicks for their budget.If 10% of these clicks convert into sales, this would produce 100 sales. If the average sale amount is one hundred dollars, the initial one thousand dollar investment will have returned ten thousand dollars in sales.

31. Basic Features of AdWordsCost-per-click pricing Ad impressions & click-through ratesLanguage & location targeting

32. Basic Definition: CPCCPC: cost-per-clickClick:The action a user takes to select your ad and be taken to your website.

33. Google charges the advertiser when a user clicks on your adA sample AdWords adThe Destination Website

34. Basic Definition: CTRClicksImpressions = CTR (expressed as %)CTR: clickthrough rateImpression:The appearance of your ad on Google or one of our partner sites

35. CTR Examples20 clicks1000 impressionsExample Advertiser A:= 0.02 = 2%3 clicks100 impressionsExample Advertiser B:= 0.03 = 3%CTR is how Google measures relevance

36. Benefits of AdWords – Location & Language TargetingTargeting options:you can target ads by location and languageRegional/Local, Country, Global & Customized Targeting

37. Roughly 40 different language targeting options to choose from Region/City Targeting ExamplesWhen should you use regional targeting?Example: you have local flower shops in the San Francisco Bay AreaExample: you run a restaurant in Chicago

38. Country TargetingWhen should you use country targeting? Use if you have national or global customers

39. Example:you ship to the U.S. only. Target your campaign to the U.S. If you have a global business, give your campaigns global exposureExample:If you sell DVDs and have worldwide distribution, you should target your campaign to all countriesGlobal Targeting

40. Customized Targeting Use Customized Targeting to target highly specific areasFor example, to reach customers located in an area that cannot be targeted accurately using region or city targetingExample: pizza delivery service

41. 10 Step Success PlanEvaluate the potential and likely costs, competition and set realistic goals and targetsThink like a customer and come up with a big list of Keywords/Key phrases break down your keywords into small, tightly focused clusters (Ad groups) and match to highly relevant AdsBrainstorm AdsChoose or create landing pages that match keywords/ groups / AdSet up a tracking systemSplit-test Ads, refine constantly – apply lessons learned (not just to the Web)Delete keywords that don’t perform / recreate with new Ad before forgettingKeep brainstorming new keywordsKeep monitoring your conversation rates at every stage – including repeatVisitors – keep improving – have I mentioned ROI yet? (Perrymarshall.com - contains a wealth of PPC information)

42. SMM: Social Media MarketingWhyHowWhereThe 4 Cs

43. HOW can I fit more into my day?With the right tools… your just making notes!Ping.fm: visit 1 website to update social networks of your choice including Twitter, Myspace, Linkedin, etc.Tweetlater: schedule your tweetsSocial Oomph: schedule your tweets & social media monitoring via email.

44. WHY Social Media Marketing?High search engine rankingsConnect with customers & separate yourself from the competition (engagement).Improve your website: Add urgency & “now” with daily specials, upcoming events, etc.Get found by Social Media SearchersEASY! Most of this stuff can be done from your phone.FREE!

45. Social Media StrategyRelevantSearchGoogleSearchLocalSearchWhen was the last time you got out a phone book? New customers are searching for you and don’t know it!Wordpress, Youtube videos & Linkedin get preferred treatment in Google! TwitterFacebookLinkedINYoutubeEtc.Give your regular customers reasons to keep you front of mind!Today’s specials are… CRM“Regulars”Twitter & Youtube are “location based”Improvedwebsite!CRM New CustomersWidgets display your Twitter “tweets” on your website’s homepage! Embed Youtube videos right on your site or blog!Separate your biz from the competition! Tell your story in your words (video)!