It has been almost a year since we had a story on Frank’s Tire and Automotive in Bethel Park, Pa and a lot has happened in the last year.  When I met Frank, he was in the middle of a nasty PR dispute with a gentleman that was unhappy with the cost of service that was provided by Frank’s Auto Service Company.   The person that was unhappy wrote letters, contacted the BBB, and wrote negative reviews online wherever he could find them.   I’m not here to take sides or say one party was wrong or one party was right, that is completely between them.  This interests me because so many people these days are flocking to the internet to provide reviews and share their experiences.  What are the ethics behind posting negative reviews online and the ethics behind all of the positive ones out there as well?

Reputation management in Pittsburgh is such a hot issue right now because of the number of people that are now online.  All of your businesses history and information is now online for all the world to see.  There are even sites such as Rip-Off-Report and Pissed-Off-Consumer that collect negative reviews and allow business owners to respond to them.  In my opinion, the best way to carry that on would be to allow both sides to present their side and allow the people reading the reviews to make their own decision.

So far Frank has been pretty mellow about the whole situation.  He showed me a book with hundreds of letters from satisfied customers that he has collected over the years that he proudly displays in the lobby of his auto repair store in Bethel Park.  The person that wrote negative reviews about Frank’s Tire has gone as far as building a website and naming it (FrankstireandAutomotive.com)  The laws of the internet allow this and right now there is nothing that Frank can do to get that website removed or pulled down.  It’s quite a shame that it has had to go to this point, but when people aren’t happy these days, they take it out online instead of in-person.

A few key points to remember if someone has written a negative review about your company is that they cannot mention one of your employees by name, If they do, you can ask whatever service they left a negative review on to delete it and more than likely they will.

Chris Reidenbaugh Sales & Marketing Manager

How do I know what to do?

I have heard this question so many times, you would think my answer would be the same for every occasion right?  If you answered yes, you would undoubtedly be incorrect.  The majority of people that I see using Facebook and Social Media as a business tool are not doing a good job.  I worked with a client for six months to help them achieve close to 9800 new fans only using social media and not any type of paid search to generate those results.  Our six month agreement is over and now I see that they are dropping fans every week.  The posts they make are not engaging and EVERY single mention is about a coupon or an offer.  How about some useful information instead of  ”mention this and get 15% off”   Don’t get me wrong, they are really nice clients and they do a great job with all of their other types of media and advertising.  They just don’t know how to step away and decrease the salesman and increase the information.  Facebook Marketing makes so much sense to most advertisers because they can get solid and truthful feedback on their brand.

Most business owners are obviously fiercely loyal to their product, service, or brand and they let it show on a daily basis.  Social Media allows someone to post a comment, give praise, advice, or criticism without actually having to e in front of that particular business.  If you have a great product and great service- then you are in pretty good shape from the beginning.  If you do not however, you will need to step back and allow yourself to understand that sometimes, you have to make sure you talk and converse WITH an unhappy customer and not AT an unhappy customer.  One of the best things that a potential customer/client/patient can see is that you made a mistake, AND made it right.

A while back I wrote about a furniture store that actually complained and grilled a customer that said they felt the value of their sofa was not what was advertised.  The person handling the business social media for this company told them to “save up and buy a better sofa next time” You should have seen the number of people that commented on that post. It was like throwing gasoline on a fire…  You could imagine that customer probably made a status update that would have been characterized as incendiary.    Here is a short list of common sense tips that  I use when either teaching business social media or handling it for one of my clients…  It’s my “short list of gold tips” but then again… It may not be everyones.

1. Keep it real- honesty is the ONLY policy online.  Remember that when you are posting something online, the person viewing it probably has some sort of screen capture program.
2. Have a conversation- Don’t be pitchy or pushy with people who value your information.  If they are a fan, follower, or friend…  they already see value in what you offer.  If someone asked you to buy 293 times in one week, wouldn’t you get tired of it?
3. Give and ye’ shall receive-  Give advice on what you do.  If you are a carpet store, give stain treatment tips, if you are a restaurant- give away a free drink for a promotion.  You will get a lot more for giving something away when it is something that people like.
4. Frequency-   If I am selling mattresses, it is not likely that I will have a repeat buyer every six months.  Most people keep them longer so consider giving tips on how to get a better nights rest, or allergy free bedding materials.   If you are only giving away coupons, what value is it if someone wont use it for another five years.
5. Make It Fun- Use a scavenger hunt, a giveaway, a promotional video, or anything that you can think of to be creative.  Don’t just copy your competition.  People see right through it.

My quick five points aren’t the most important things that you will need to know about social media.  They are just what I practice and preach with my particular clients.  IF you have any questions, tips, remarks, or just plain disagree… leave a reply. After all, isn’t social media all about interaction anyway?

Almost every business these days has a domain name, however the problem is that very few of them really understands the domain process or even understands the difference between their domain/hosting/email.  If you are among those folks that really don’t understand, I would highly encourage you to visit Wikipedia and read a little about domains here.

Everyday, I get snail mail asking if I want to renew my .ch, .tw, .au domain.    I don’t own any domains in that contain those ccTLD’s (country code top-level domains).    They are scams attempting to get me to buy domains that I don’t need and don’t want.  The wording on the letters that I get is very vague and unless you read really closely, most people might think it has to do with their .Com, .Net or other valid address.  The truth is it’s a scam.  I’ve been getting letters like this for years now, and I’m sure that many people have fallen victim to those companies, which is why they continue to push the envelope of how far they can go.

I was really surprised today when I received an email from “support@onlinereminder.biz”  reminding me to renew one of my many domains.  All of my domains are paid via credit card they will not accidentally expire EVER(remember: I have literally hundreds of domains. I’m not gonna forget about something as simple as keeping a current credit card on file).  So out of curiosity, I clicked through the email to a group called DomainRenewalOnline.org.  They wanted $79.95 to “renew my domain”.  In the email they do state that “You may also contact your current domain provider in order to perform the extension.” <This is the second to last sentence in the email, and it is buried inside an unformatted block of text(almost like a terms and conditions statement).   They state they are performing a service to business to keep their domains from expiring.  That is 100% False, they are not renewing your domain for you they are transferring it to a different registrar(where you might still have to pay more money to “renew the domain”).   They are trying to take advantage of people who don’t understand how domains work.

The internet really is the wild west when it comes to domains/hosting/email.  If you are a business owner who has received one of these emails, please contact your Domain provider to renew your domain.   If you don’t know who your domain provider is, find out!  Its important that you keep track of your assets like cars, laptops, and cell phones, your domain is no different.  Your domain is an asset to your company, don’t let yourself fall victim to one of these scams.  If you are a Higher Images customer, please feel free to contact your sales rep if you would like additional information about your domain and what you can do to protect it.

And again I will re-iterate: “DomainRenewalOnline.org IS A SCAM”

From ComputerWorld:

With Google and Microsoft Bing taking slightly bigger bites out of the search market, rival Yahoo is hitting a bit of a slump.

Market analysis firm comScore Inc. is set to announce this afternoon that between September and October, both Google and Bing inched ahead. The increases were far from dramatic but at least they saw increases.

According to comScore, Bing’s share rose from from 9.4% to 9.9%. At the same time, Google saw a share bump, moving from 64.9% to 65.4%. While comScore hasn’t yet made all the figures available, analysts did confirm that Google in October saw a 17.4% year-over-year increase.

Yahoo, which remains in second place between market leader Google and third-place Bing, didn’t have such a strong month. Yahoo saw its share slip, slipping from 18.8% in September to 18% last month, according to comScore.

Ezra Gottheil, an analyst with Technology Business Research, Inc., said Google, with steady control of more than 60% of market share, is such a force to be reckoned with that Bing is doing well to make even modest headway.

“Bing has established a position that is, for now, stable,” said Gottheil. “If Bing innovates effectively, it can move forward. It’s in a not bad position, considering Google’s momentum, but there’s nothing happening now to show that it can take share from Google. With Google, it’s not so much about growth any more, but the large number of people for whom Google is the search engine. Google is an ocean liner. It’s going to take a lot of effort and a lot time to slow it down.”

When it comes to Yahoo, Gottheil said the company’s search presence is on a downhill slide that could become hard to control.

“Yahoo’s search engine now is a lame duck,” he added. “Yahoo has been on a long-term decline. The battle between Bing and Google raises awareness about search engine capabilities, and may drive some users to try other products, but basically, Yahoo has not given its search engine users a good reason to stay.”

In September, comScore reported that Bing increased its share of the competitive market by 4.5% between July and August. The new search engine held a 9.3% share of the market at the end of August.

Also that month, comScore noted that Google had slipped 0.1% to hold 64.6% of the market at the end of August.

Making the Internet work for you!

Search Magnet Local, The Complete Business Internet Marketing Solution!

The Internet can be a complex place to do business. There’s search engine optimization, technology, website updates… not to mention how to find out what’s working and what’s not.  Who can you trust to handle your local internet marketing? We’d like to simplify it for you. We’ve taken the mystery out of doing business on the Internet though a unique service that does it all, and delivers on the one objective most business owners have… bringing new prospects and customers to you day in and day out.

You’ll no longer need to jump through hoops when you’re producing a geographically-targeted marketing program… your website, statistics, and the results are all here in one place.

It doesn’t stop there.

We’ll get you placed high in the search results for the most common search terms that people use when seeking a solution to their needs. Search terms that cry out for your products or services.

It’s the way business should be done online.So go to Search Magnet Local and see why you CAN’T afford to go with anything different than SML.  With results that you can track, local SEO built in, and a customizable website that makes you money,  you can’t turn this down.

Not only will someone win a free website, but some great advice from a prominent marketing firm! Talk about ultimate free advertising for the winner.

To enter the contest follow the instructions below and I’m looking forward to announcing the winner!

Rules of the Higher Images Free Website Contest

1) The Higher Images Free Website contest runs from Monday July 20th, 2009 to Friday Aug 21st, 2009. All entries must be submitted before Midnight EST on Friday Aug 21st, 2009.

2) To enter the contest:

You must write a short paragraph to answer the question, Why would having Higher Images build a website for your business…help your business? Make sure to leave your name & email address!

Post your paragraph in the comments section below. 3) We will select the best entry on Monday, Aug 24nd, 2009, at 9:00 AM Central.  The selection will be at our sole discretion, and you must comply with all steps above to be eligible to win.  The  winner will be notified on Aug 24th via email, and must reply within 24 hours with additional contact information in order to receive prize. The grand prize winner must have some content ready to put on website by the deadline of September 15th.

4) Prize is as follows:

1st Place Grand Prize- Free Website on www.searchmagnetlocal.com

We are looking forward to reading your entries and picking the winner!

A funny thing happened to me last night while watching the Pittsburgh Penguins game at a local restaurant/cigar bar.  The owner and I were standing outside while he proceeded to show me all of the additions and ideas he had to help the restaurant expand in size and draw in more people.  We talked for a few minutes about his remodeling ideas when I asked him about his marketing and how he was positioning himself to get in front of all these new people who had never been there for a great dinner out or a relaxing place to watch a Pittsburgh Sporting event while having a cocktail. 

The conversation led to many different areas about marketing and his viewpoint was that he wasn’t being too aggressive now because he didn’t feel the restaurant was quite where he wanted it in order to handle an additional 80-100 people per night.  His idea was that before he stepped on the throttle and drove more people to his website, he wanted to make sure that the restaurant looked great and he had enough room to accommodate an influx of new diners.  His thoughts brought up a good point in regards to successfully marketing a website in the Pittsburgh Area. 

A lot of marketers in Pittsburgh talk about getting more traffic to your website and landing a ton of people on the home page and then the idea is that they will see something they like and either stop in to eat, print out a coupon, or call to ask a few questions.  Well I pose these questions, what if your website is poorly built?  What if the website does a horrible job of showing the atmosphere and you get the wrong type of patrons?  What if the website isn’t built in the way it should be and no one calls you or has any interaction with you?  My opinion is that if first impressions are everything, then why would you want someone who has never used your services in the past to see a website that did not do a great job of turning that internet visitor into a cash paying customer?  If you haven’t thought about building smart websites that can make you money, then you are basically paying for people to go to your site and you are giving them a bad impression.

We have prided ourselves here at Higher Images in the regards that we not only drive quality traffic to a website, but we also drive them to a website that is conversion friendly. We use a combination of paid search, local search engine optimization, online videos and directory optimization.  Getting potential customers to your website is only half of the battle.  The other half is taking those customers and giving them things that they not only want to see on the website, but things that will make them pick up the phone and call you or better yet, travel to your business and become a paying customer.

 If you want a website and marketing program that can actually make you money, call Higher Images at 412.203.1996 and make sure you mention this article.

Chris Reidenbaugh Sales & Marketing Manager

Things that worked like a charm for many people in the early years of SEO may actually hurt rather than help now. The first thing is to find an internet/online unbiased partner such as Higher Images that can assist you in all your online marketing and advertising. When you hire this professional marketing team you will notice countless key advantages, especially as far as SEO goes.

When done right, an everyday user should not have any idea that a page has been optimized. A trained online marketing company is able to spot what your keyword phrases are, but it shouldn’t be glaringly obvious. Last, but not least, a marketing group like Higher Images will include a professional copywriter to work on the important pages of your site. This is the best investment you can make for your site and your business. You need someone who truly understands target audiences and how to speak to them about the benefits of what you offer. Ask yourself if your online marketing is working for you, and if you stopped to read this…the answer is probably no.

Often the pitch is the same: You have a limited time to get top placement or the highest rank on their site , We will get you over XXXXXX impressions per month (I hear it often from my customers),  and although what they telling you is true: You do have a limited time to get top placement (limited until they sell the top spot to your competitor), and Although getting impressions of your Business is good for branding purposes; What they don’t explain is that neither of the above statements means anything about getting new business or new customers.

So I must ask all of you business owners, if the results are so great, why are so many businesses so frustrated by those traditional on-line marketing services? The answer is they have no interest in helping you get more business. Once that sales rep leaves your office you won’t see him again until your contract is up.  They just cannot provide anywhere close to the same return that an effective SEO or SEM campaign can bring you. Traditional online marketing services fall short because they have invested all of their time and efforts into creating huge marketing platforms that inundate users with garbage ads and pop ups. They have not spent the time to keep up with the ever changing online trends like SEO and SEM. All they talk about is Pay Per Click marketing and how they can get you higher on their own online directories (or over the last guy they sold).

To succeed online, you need a company that takes the time to understand the way you run your business is going to give you the necessary suggestions and lead you down the right path. The company that you hire to market your business on-line should be an expert and not someone that has thirty different mediums to advertise you in. A company that specializes in on-line marketing is better than a company that specializes in all types of marketing.

I leave you last with a small case study: one particular on-line yellow pages company touts that its program will give you guaranteed clicks.  Although guarantees are always good, do not be tricked by the wolf in sheep’s clothing. What good are guaranteed clicks if the clicks are coming from people that either have no intention of calling or contacting you. If you are a plumber, would you want all of your clicks to go to someone looking for plumbing fixtures or plumbing parts?  The click program we are talking about also charges a flat rate for each click. If a click actually costs around .30 cents, why would someone charge you three dollars? A good on-line marketing company must take the time to understand your business in order to market you effectively. A good web marketing company also cares about the design and layout of your website and cares about how to turn on-line searchers into offline customers. If all someone talks about is clicks to your site,  you should run in the opposite direction.

By: Chris Reidenbaugh the Sales & Marketing Manager of Higher Images Inc.