Posts Tagged ‘google’

Business Blog Benefits

One very easy way to begin your offline consulting business is to offer a service to your local businesses that will have you creating blogs for them. We who are already familiar with the SEO (search engine optimization) and SEM (search engine marketing) value that blogs hold. Blogs are very easy and quick to create. In fact, if you create these small business blogs on Blogger.com (which is a Google property), they’ll get almost immediate attention paid to them.

If you’re already using ANY of Google’s accounts (Gmail, AdWords, AdSense, etc…) you can sign into Blogger with that same ID. You always have the option of starting a new account distinctly for the purpose of this business tactic. After all, Google accounts are free.

Choose the name of your client’s blog carefully. It will reflect the name of their business and be formatted something like this:

http://mainstreethardware.blogspot.com   or   http://sallysbeautysalon.blogspot.com

There are a few reasons why a blog is good for your client/customer:

• Even if they have an existing website, a blog is inherently equipped with more technically beneficial features.
• It gives them a high value backlink from an historically high site. (Thank you Google)
• Blogs equal targeted traffic.
• Targeted traffic equals leads.
• Leads equal customers.
• Customers equal a better bottom line
• Blogs do a better job at keeping them in touch with their customers.
• Blogs are dynamic and easily edited or changed to keep up with special offers and sales.

A great way to begin the conversation with your potential client, that small business owner down the road, is to ask him how he keeps in touch with his existing clients right now. If they stammer or stutter for an answer, you’re in the right place.

• Explain to them how they can stay in touch with their customers very easily and cheaply.
• Tell them about all of  the money getting benefits of a business blog.
• Educate them on auto-responders and how they can send out an e-mail blast right in the midst of a slow week or month in order to bring in more business.
• Describe how they can put advertisements on their site with a cooperative and complementary ad program with another business.

These ideas alongside your imagination and entrepreneurial spirit should give you enough to go out and start knocking on some doors or pick up the phone. There are dozens to hundreds of prospects for you to contact, depending on the population where you live; and don’t let that diminish your drive either.

You’re likely reading this on your computer, and you can therefore use that same computer to begin your search for the businesses that will ultimately make up the foundation and future of your business. The secret is to take action.

You’ve just been handed a simple, step by step method of getting a start in the offline consulting business. Pick an area to specialize in, pick a direction to take that specialty and PROVE to yourself that it’s as simple as making a choice. You CAN do this. Start today.

Developing A Local Business Directory Into A Thriving Web Portal

Creating local business directory that you can on sell for a lucrative profit or as the foundation to a successful Online – Offline Consultation Business requires you take a completely different angle.  The goal is to have it bringing profits on a regular basis while servicing your local community.  It must grow above the more generic type of local web directory.  These are portal type websites that flood the search engines with as many local long tail keywords to be found in the search engines.

Most local business directories are no more than link farms.  They offer little value outside of listing local businesses in their appropriate categories. Your local directory needs to be different.  It must be made attractive to entice local businesses to list with your directory at premium prices as opposed to the cheaper or free local directories.

How can you, as the local online – offline consultant provide that winning edge? You need a concept that will have local businesses seek you out opposed to a Yellow Pages(TM) utility type portal.  A first step is to create a full page description of the local business on the website. That is, from a generic A-Z category reference page – your links page – you redirect the surfer to a separate full page description which still resides within the website.

The enhanced page could well include a video interview with the local business owner to create a more personal feel.  This immediately starts to build trust and familiarity that that a casual local surfer will better identify with.

Also include a well placed link (or banner) on the page to make contact easy and intuitive. Include a strong call to action message directing the surfer to click the link (or banner) to instantly jump to the local business’ website. If the local business has not yet got an online presence, full address and operating hours details must be clearly shown.

The sky is the limit here.  Use your creativity and imagination to create a page that you would be proud to have on your own corporate website.  That way you know the owner of the local business will be profiting by displaying it.

The benefits of such a page to your local directory in the eyes of Google(TM) and the other search engines is greater exposure and higher rankings all around. Because you are providing relevant local content search returns will organically rank highly in any of the search engines.

With some basic search engine optimization for multiple appropriate keywords and phrases, as well as meta tags and some other tricks, the results for the business can be quite astounding.  This, in turn gives the local business exposure and positive results that they will be more than willing to pay a premium for the service.  It is demonstrably targeting responsive local shoppers that walk through the door from successful directory portal searches.

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