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Wht an ugly couple of weeks it`s been for internet users, yukk! Remember the Worm_Bagel.K and the Worm_Netsky.C viruses I mentioned last time? They`ve been slowing the net down something rotten. Thankfully it now seems to be getting better. That`s also the reason I didn`t do an issue last week. The viruses had so many peoples email addresses totally clogged up that I thought it best to wait until it had all calmed down a bit.
Also, if you`ve had a hard time getting to NJAE the past few weeks, it`s because my webhost was having problems with her servers. That all seems to be fixed now, and she moved our site onto a different server, so there shouldn`t be any more problems lke that.
I`ve also had a few people tell me that they couldn`t get directly to the newsletter page after bookmarking it. Guess what? You can`t. It`s set up so that you HAVE to go through the login process to be able to get to the newest issue. Since we decided that the ezine was to be for subscribers only, we`ve found that having to login each time is the best way to do it.
Do you wonder if having frames might affect your earch engine ranking? Our first article this week has some study results that may just surprise you. Not everybody concentrates on marketing solely online, and I`ve had a few questions about offline promotion. Our second article covers one of the many ways of getting your message through, and grabbing customers attention :~)
As I haven`t had any new interviews yet, I`ve left the one in from last time. As I said, the author is offering to answer tech questions (in the ezine) that you may have. I`ve known the guy for a long time now, and he`s pretty good at spoonfeeding "geekspeak" to techie pseudo-blondes like me ;~) We still need a title for that bit. If you have any great ideas for a title then please send them in, and of course, please send in your questions too.
Enjoy Reading!
May you be happy and prosperous in everything you do!
Anna-Marie Stewart Venton
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This weeks download/ebook is The Little Book Of Ezine Advertising: The how, why and when to place your ezine ads, both free and paid.
Visit the Members Lounge for the download link, and don`t forget to get your votes in for next weeks e-book while you`re there.
Not Just Another Interview #40 is re-posted this week.
I really do STILL need more interviews from you guys though, so please do keep them coming. Don`t be shy, we really appreciate getting to know you better. (Remember, it`s a whole weeks worth of free advertising for you.) If you`re unsure of how to send one in, the form is in the Members Lounge, along with all the other forms and stuff ;~) Don`t forget, the link to the Members Lounge can be found at the bottom of this page EVERY week.
Want to swap links with us? Check it out here: www.annamarketing.com/ezine/links It can work wonders for your Search Engine rankings. Suggest your site, we`ll check it out, and so long as it fits our categories and conforms to our stipulations, we`ll swap with ya :-) Of course, this means you have to be able to control the content of your site, so you can actually ADD our link on it ;-)
ALERT!
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Featured Article: Do Frames Affect Ranking?
By Jon Ricerca
Almost all SEO's agree that using frames will have
devasting results on your search engine rankings. Is it
true? We decided to answer this extremely simple question
for the two leading search engines using a simple
statistical analysis.
The methodology: I gathered the results of the queries
that were naturally performed last month by myself and
three associates using the two leading search engines and
analyzed them. I had to visit each page and check the HTML
source code to see if frames were in use. I counted the
number of pages found that utilized frames for the first 8
rankings. The results for each of the two leading search
engines were kept separate so that we could discover any
differences between the two leading search engines for
this factor.
The resulting graphs show the number of pages utilizing
frames for each ranking. The Y-axis shows the number of
pages found utilizing frames, while the X-axis shows
rankings 1 through 8. Here are the graphs for each of the
two leading search engines:
(Note to webmasters: You have permission to hotlink, text
link or even copy the above images to your own site. And
you have permission to remove this note. :)
The result is very conclusive and very surprising. Frames
had no effect on ranking with both of the leading search
engines! The SEO gurus are wrong again!
Notes:
1. There was no exercise to attempt to isolate different
keywords. I merely took a random sampling of the queries
performed by myself and three associates during the month.
Conclusion:
Pages which utilize frames rank no higher nor lower than
pages that do not utilize frames on both of the leading
search engines.
This is merely a correlation study, so it cannot be
determined from this study whether the leading search
engines purposefully entertain this factor or not. The
actual factors used may be far distant from the factor we
studied, but the end result is that these search engines
do, in fact, rank pages with frames the same as pages
without frames in the study.
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Jon Ricerca is one of the leading researchers and authors
of the Search Engine Ranking Factor (SERF) reports at
SearchEngineGeek.com. For access to the other SERF
reports, please visit:
http://www.SearchEngineGeek.com
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This article is available for reprint in your opt-in ezine,
web site or ebook. You MUST agree not to make any changes
to the article and the RESOURCE BOX MUST be included.
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When it comes to your gravy, lumps are bad. When it comes
to getting your marketing message through the mail room,
past the gate keepers, and onto your buyer's desk, lumps
are just the ticket. I love direct mail for small business
marketing and I'm particularly fond of something I call
"lumpy mail." Lumpy mail is a direct mail piece or package
with some dimension to it. A box is lumpy mail. A balloon
arrangement, a kitten, a hoola hoop. You name it. The point
is you just can't ignore a piece of lumpy mail.
It's getting harder and harder to get your message through
all of the advertising clutter so sometimes you need to up
the ante and make a real statement. A lumpy mail package
screams notice me, open me.
A lumpy mail campaign can give your marketing message
center stage attention. Of course, you've still got to
deliver the performance. But half the battle is finding an
audience.
How to run a lumpy mail campaign
Go to your core marketing messages. You core point of
difference or benefit. The primary things you promote when
you want to tell your prospects why they should hire you.
Now think of some unique items, trinkets, or packaging that
you can use to help communicate your point. We'll jump
through hoops to get your business - the hoola hoop. We're
the key to your success - a box of keys. We provide total
solutions - a box of Total brand cereal. We've got the
tools to help you get the job done - a box of play tools.
It's very important that you can create a very strong image
and metaphor for the message you are trying to communicate.
Repetition
Like any good direct mail campaign, repetition will improve
your results. I usually suggest looking at three
installments in your campaign. If done correctly this will
usually leave the recipient eager to perform whatever call
to action you request at the end of the campaign.
A building series
A very powerful way to construct your campaign,
particularly if your audience is not too familiar with you,
is to create your three pieces in a story fashion. Each
piece builds on the last and delivers an integrated
message. You can use this method to build intrigue. Many
times I will send the first piece in a lumpy campaign
without a company name, logo, or return address. Generally,
I will imply that there is more to come. The impact of this
technique can be pretty strong. In some cases your
prospects will actually look forward to getting the next
piece. People love a good mystery.
The Call to Action
Like any marketing campaign, decide what you want the final
outcome or call to action to be and deliver it in the last
piece. If you want them to call your office, take your
call, visit a website, attend a workshop, make it painfully
clear what the price of the game has been.
I've actually had clients tell me that prospects who
wouldn't even return their phone calls, eagerly made
appointments and sometime still displayed the items they
were sent throughout the campaign in their office. People
don't get this kind of attention from much in their lives
and they want it. More than ever your prospects crave two
things - content and contact. A lumpy mail campaign had the
potential to deliver both with a bang. (careful with too
much auditory impact)
How Much For Those Lumps
A lumpy mail campaign can get relatively expensive when
compared to, say, a postcard mailing so its important for
you to consider two things when you are designing yours.
How many clients you can serve and what the lifetime value
a new client has to your business.
Most small businesses only need a handful of new clients at
any given time to thrive. Lumpy mail is perfect for that
kind of growth. Carefully target 10 new businesses at a
time, throw the kitchen sink at them and watch your
appointment rate soar to about 70%.
If you are in a business that sells a one time $19 product
then you can't really spend to much to acquire a new client
but if your business can generate thousands of dollars from
a long term, loyal client then perhaps spending even
$100/new client running a creative lumpy mail program makes
a ton of sense.
So get to your local toy store to get the creative gravy
flowing and pass the mashed potatoes already.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-Resource Box-=-=-=--=-=-=-=-
John Jantsch is a marketing consultant and creator of Duct
Tape Marketing, a small business marketing system. You can
reach him at John@DuctTapeMarketing.com
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This article is available for reprint in your opt-in ezine,
web site or ebook. You MUST agree not to make any changes
to the article and the RESOURCE BOX MUST be included.
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