What does your website say to your ideal prospect?
Is your marketing website attracting and converting visitors to prospects?

Your business website is one of the first pieces of your marketing a potential client will use to judge your business.  Does it create a WOW factor?  Next to your business card, your website is a critical part in your overall marketing message.  What is it saying?

Does your website convey professionalism or could a potential client jump to a conclusion that your business can not handle their needs simply because of your website.  We all strive for professional however for many our websites don’t share this message with those who visit.

After poor design, confusion is another challenge facing business websites today.  Websites that struggle to pass along the exact message of what your business is about can result in a high bounce rate because they are just confused and scratching their heads wondering what your business is about and how you can help them.

You only have 3 seconds to grab and make a great first impression of each visitor through your website is critical to the success of your website.

Your marketing website is one of the most important parts of your overall marketing strategy online and your traditional marketing strategies.  All roads lead home and your business website must welcome visitors and it must convert visitors to prospects.

Here are SIX basic tips to enable business to get the most from your marketing website:

1. Your team are the stars.  Dump the stock photography and get real pictures from your team put on your site.  This tells your visitors that you are a real company with real people.  A professional photographer can capture the culture of your business allowing your business to share your culture through your website.  It is great when we show up at a new client meeting and someone says “Hey, it is the guys from their website”.
2. Keep your content fresh.  Having fresh content on your website demonstrates to your prospect how much you care about your business and that you are up on the times.  Nothing says “I don’t care” or “I am too busy” like a stale blog or website that still has updates listed for Windows 95.
3. Content, Content, Content. Content is king in having a website that attracts visitors through search and has the potential to convert visitors to potential clients.  Balancing exceptional content with good design will attract and potential convert those who are just snooping to those who may invest in your services.  David West, Senior Advisor at Ulistic says “it is the information highway, not the good-looking website highway”.  People go online to get information, become a source of information for them.
4. Template Web Designs.  There are some great web designs out there and some wonderful services that offer business a fixed-cost monthly for their websites, newsletters and other services.  Consult with a web marketing professional before signing a long-term contract with any firm because there maybe some pros and cons between services that may help your business.
5. No Secret Sauce.  Marketing takes work and online marketing takes even more work.  I haven’t found one silver bullet other than commitment, hard work and execution.  You will never get this from an application; it takes knowledge and systems to make all levels of your marketing work.
6. Video. Use video and use video wisely.  Video can grab each visitor’s attention immediately.  Using client testimonials, walk-on video or talking head video will create connections with all your website visitors.  Video will also become part of your search engine optimization strategy.

There are many things your business must consider when executing a web marketing strategy.  Your main marketing website is the most important parts to your overall marketing strategy.  Long before figuring out blogs, social media and other strategies.  Focus efforts on creating a website that educates, informs and the most important factor – converts.  Your website must convert visitors to prospects today.

Need a hand figuring out the right website for your business.  Call Stuart at 403.775.2205 today.

Canadian Search Engine Optimization Specialist David A. West shares some basic strategies on search engine optimization for your Canadian Small Business.

David brings a wealth of knowledge on leading technologies designed to place your business higher in the search rankings.  David’s fresh approach to SEO is focused on using relevant search terms and positioning your business as the “go to” firm in your area of specialization.

To speak with David directly, give him a call at 403.775.2205.

A few weeks ago, members of the Ulistic team attended the CompTIA Breakaway conference in San Antonio, Texas. CompTIA Breakaway is a special event for those in the information technology community. Hundreds of computer consultants come together for a few days of education and to discuss the overall direction of the technology industry.

During a recent discussion with one of the industry’s most influential leaders, I shared a concept with Joe Panettieri on how small business computer firms can benefit in maintaining a competitive advantage in their business communities and how the best of breed leverage their online marketing strategies to blend both online and traditional marketing activities. Some simple strategies can help your Canadian business increase your overall exposure and potentially add more opportunities to your sales funnel.

Joe and I discussed – Frequency + Visibility = Credibility.

This concept is really nothing new and came from a brief chat one afternoon at my local gym. We were discussing how one major player in the industry seems to have this automatic credibility in the public eye but they lack credibility in the peers in the industry because the industry has the “Inside Scoop”

Interesting… he simply told me to look around and note how many times this firm is mentioned in the community. Name on a building, sports facilities, little signs in rural Alberta – they are everywhere. They are “Frequently Visible”

…the concept of Frequency + Visibility = Creditability was born.

How does this translate for business owners looking to attract new opportunities into their business?

Businesses who are looking at effective ways to market their business online the basic concept of being seen often is crucial. We don’t likely have the marketing budget of a DELL, Coke or Microsoft and we need to look at new ways to getting involved in the local community or the niche market you have chosen to target.

After all, isn’t marketing about creating demand and ultimately getting potential clients to call you?

Here are some basic steps to help increase your business creditability in the market you serve.

• Be seen – You need to get out and be seen and heard. Are you speaking at local events, getting involved with your Chamber of Commerce and what does your online presence look like? Are you participating in local forums, leaving comments and getting involved in the discussions online. The truth is that those who get involved and participate, will normally get a higher percentage of the opportunities.
• Be Frequent – Just like face-to-face business networking, you just can’t go once. You need to go over and over and over in order for people to get to know, like and trust you. The same applies online. You can’t write one blog post every three months and expect potential client to find your business.
• Be Credible – Offer real advice and suggestions. Online marketing is not always about promoting you and your business, however having a call to action is important. You still need to provide quality information that people will value. Offer advice on LinkedIn, answer technology questions in the business forums and much more.

Best of breed Canadian businesses understand how important it is to balance online with traditional marketing and face-to-face interaction. After all, social media and online marketing is simply extending how businesses are visible.

Five Innovative and Essential Online Applications For Your Small Business
Join Ulistic for an in-depth review of the five critical online applications your small business can’t live without.

The Internet is reshaping the way small business uses technology and it is moving a lightning fast speed. Once just thought of as a tool for research and email, the Internet now allows business to collaborate across town and borders, exchanges thoughts and strategies, communicate with ease and drive awareness about their business.

Cut expensive IT costs and increase your profits.

During this 40 minute webinar, the team from Ulistic will share the top five web applications and how your small business can use these to increase efficiencies, maintain healthy cash flow and brainstorm.

Webinar Date: August 24, 2010
Webinar Time: 12 Noon Eastern/9 AM Pacific
Register online today at https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/541161128

Small Business across Canada are starting to take a long hard look at Internet (cloud) software solutions instead of investing their hard capital dollars into technology that loses its value quicker than that North American car you bought in the last week.

The Internet allows Canadian business to stay current on the latest and most innovative business software solutions.  More and more software companies are bringing new solutions to market here in Canada and globally.  Web delivery of business applications is nothing new, many industries have offered web versions for many years.  The insurance and real estate industries were one of the first however many are now jumping on board.

Here are five great Internet solutions for your Canadian small business:

• Microsoft Live Web Apps – Get all the applications that your business has used for years now delivered over the Internet.  Stores thousands of Word documents, Excel Spreadsheets and PowerPoint presentations with Microsoft Office Web Apps.  Microsoft’s Web Apps is easy for your Canadian small business to use without the added price of your local technology guru.  More information is available at http://technet.microsoft.com/en-ca/office/ee815687.aspx.
• MindMeister – This amazing free online service is the one stop tool for small business teams to collaborate, brainstorm and manage projects.  All you need is a computer browser and your creativity to get your team sharing concepts no matter if they are down the hall or across the country.  Learn more at http://www.mindmeister.com.
• Picnik – Throw away those costly image editing solutions to touch up your photos for your website or brochures with Picnik.  Picnik is a simple to use photo editing solution online.  Great for your Canadian small business. Learn more at http://www.picnik.com.
• Shockey Monkey - New player in the Professional Services Automation world.  Shockey Monkey is ideal for your small business who need to track clients, service tickets and other basic CRM-like services.  The team at OwnWebNow are behind this masterpiece.  More information is at http://www.shockeymonkey.com.
• Evernote – This web-based note, photo and audio synchronization service takes your notes from your laptop, iPhone or iPad and syncs them across the web to all devices and their web service.  Capture notes in audio or typed in format, take photos and much more.  Learn more about http://www.evernote.com.

Many of these great small business solutions are free or have upgrades for a small investment per year/month to unlock more features.  Many of the no-cost versions are great for your Canadian small business to start out with.

Honourable mention goes out to Dropbox.  Dropbox is also a must have solution for those small business teams looking to share files with team members or joint venture partners.  Dropbox also works with Windows, Mac and popular mobile phones.  Check them out at http://www.dropbox.com.

The Internet is changing the way Canadian business uses software. Check out what is available online before you soak a tonne of cash into a technology solution that you may have to replace in 3 to 5 years.

Join us for a no cost Canadian marketing business Webinar on August 17.

Ulistic, a leading Canadian search engine optimization, social media and online marketing firm invites you to take part in their upcoming webinar on August 17th at 1 PM Eastern/10 AM Pacific.

This 40 minute session internet marketing webinar we cover the fine line between Social Media, Social Circles and the impact these user contributed websites have on search engine optimization.

David West, Senior Advisor and Partner at Calgary, Alberta based Ulsitic will discuss the state of social and search as it is today and theorize the future when social influences will potentially impact search results. Every business owner needs to have some understanding of social media and search engine and how social search results will influence your potential customers.

About David West

David began working with Internet technologies initially as a freelance website programmer. He later formed a full service website design and development company in Calgary, Alberta. David has employed Internet Marketers, Designers, Programmers and Project Managers to work together to create dynamic and effective websites. He firmly believes that quality traffic to a website is better than quantity and uses a “coaching” approach to collaborative development of an online strategy for all Ulistic business clients. David positions his clients for success online.
Title: Where the Roads Cross Between Social Media and Search Engine Optimization
Date: Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Time: 11:00 AM – 12:00 PM MDT
Register: https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/426743328

Minglejet Inc. is pleased to announce the beta launch of Minglejet.com, the newest global social networking experience.

Minglejet.com is the only website that seamlessly combines travel with social networking. Mingle and connect with friends as well as plan, organize and share upcoming events/trips with an advanced calendar system complete with drag-to-select events and a robust invite system. Users can book cheap flights, hotels, car rentals, buy concert/event tickets and so much more.

More Information

Minglejet.com features easy to set up user profiles. Users can upload photos to their profile page and add or invite friends by using the “Find a Friend” tab. Minglejet.com users can send friends messages, write on their profile page wall or make comments on the community chat. By using the “update your status” feature at the top of the user’s profile page, users can let their friends know how they are feeling or what they are doing. Users can view the status updates and profiles of their friends on the home page or by clicking on “My Network” while logged in.

Minglejet.com has many features to ease travel and entertainment. The “My Calendar” allows users to add vacation, concert and event details into their Calendar. Users can easily invite friends to trips/events using an invite feature or simply tell them of an upcoming trip/event. Users can make upcoming events public on their profile page and share these dates and details with friends. Other features include finding and booking flights, rental cars and hotels/resorts, which are accompanied by hotel reviews from Trip Advisor, making it easier to find the best hotels.

Minglejet.com also features a full concert and event database through Ticketmaster.

Minglejet.com’s home page features a forum with Community Posts, Travel Stories, Travel News & Reviews and Upcoming World Events. Users also have access to an extensive Restaurant database to find restaurants and share reviews of restaurants they have visited. Minglejet.com also provides users with current weather forecasts to help plan for the weather at your designated travel destination.

Minglejet.com is the next global social networking experience connecting friends, family and business colleagues worldwide.

About Minglejet:

Minglejet.com is the only website that seamlessly combines travel with social networking. Mingle and connect with friends as well as plan, organize and share upcoming events/trips with an advanced calendar system complete with drag-to-select events and a robust invite system. Users can book cheap flights, book hotels online, car rentals, buy concert tickets and so much more.

- – source

Look now farther than GoForth Institute.

Lead by Calgary Entrepreneur Dr. Leslie Roberts, GoForth specializes in training Canadian entrepreneurs and small business owners to do great things.

Check out their Canadian Entrepreneur Training blog today.

About GoForth Institute

Do you want to know how to start a new business? Maybe you’re looking for advice and training to grow a business you already have. GoForth Institute offers Canada’s first and only national entrepreneurship education. It’s for people thinking about starting a new business, ready to start their business, in the early stage of entrepreneurship or wanting to grow a small business.

If that sounds like you, welcome! We know you want business training that covers all the bases. GoForth’s innovative business training programs are delivered just the way you want them: fast, comprehensive, affordable, effective, and with ongoing support.

Visit GoForth online today at http://www.goforthinstitute.com.

In our world of constant advertising and marketing, more and more businesses are looking for new ways of attracting ideal clients. Electing to attract the right type of business versus spraying the market place with message after message that in some instances maybe falling on deaf ears.

One of the mechanisms gaining in popularity among business owners is search engine optimization and the art of creating relevant inbound links to your business marketing website.  This is a very important goal for most business owners looking at increasing their rankings with the search engines and this activity is one on the key focus points with any Google Search Engine Optimization campaign.

However, before you run out and drop some of your hard-earned dollars on a professional search engine optimization campaign here are some basic things you can do to help with your inbound links to your main website.

A word of warning first, stay clear of any search engine optimization guru’s who promise overnight success, quick results or guaranteed rankings. The search engine world is a blood-red battlefield in some industries and it takes efforts, persistence and the right professional to help meet results not overnight guarantees or fancy software applications.

Before you jump into any link building campaign you first must understand what keywords or terms your target market is using for to find your business. It is crucial that you make no assumptions and the right research happens, let me repeat, do not make any assumptions. There are a number of services available online today to aid in this task. The Google Keyword Research Tool provides an excellent representation of what terms the average online searcher uses to find your products and services.

Once you have determined the search terms you wish to use, pick your top three terms and get to work on these first. There will be plenty of opportunity to revisit any other search terms in future campaigns.

Here are some areas you can immediately make an impact with:

Your LinkedIn Public Profile provides the ability to create custom keyword rich links to your marketing website, blog and other online services. LinkedIn Public Profiles get Google’s attention and like any other websites they receive ranking within the search engines. Do you have “My Company” or “My Blog” listed for your websites, if you do then changing your website references to “other” and then adding your search terms will help with inbound links. Have your entire team do this within their LinkedIn profiles.

Next, your company blog offers a “link rich” strategy. Blogs are an essential part of any corporate marketing strategy. A well optimized, keyword rich blog are natural traffic magnets and with the correct focus can create a wealth of new followers and potential fans for your business. The biggest challenge for those businesses looking at generating natural “Google Juice” to their business blog revolves around attracting human readers and optimizing the blog for the best search results. For your business blog achieve maximum results is straight forward. Where you host your business blog is critical, having your business blog on an independent domain and hosted away from your main corporate website will aid in your overall linking strategy.

In addition to your business blog visiting other relevant industry blogs and posting relevant comments can also help generate inbound links to your business website. The key to a successful blog commenting strategy is to find relevant and high performing blogs that you can engage with. Blog commenting when done correctly serves two key purposes within marketing strategy. The first is to engage in conversations with the blogger you are commenting on and for you to offer your insights with the community and the second is to give a source for links.

Building an effective inbound linking strategy for your business takes work and it must include all members of your team. Link building starts with your business and marketing plan and works back from there. Determining your target audience and the message you are looking to share with aid in a successful link building strategy.

If you need help you local search engine specialist can offer advice and recommendations to make sure your activities are successful.

Stuart Crawford specializes in Calgary SEO.  As a strategic online communications and IT marketing professional with Ulistic his focus is on helping Canadian business maximize their search efforts and balancing marketing across all parts of a business marketing strategy.  With Ulistic, Stuart focuses on empowering small business owners globally through education and training.  Stuart and his business partner David West teach business owners how to maximize their online marketing and helping them do it right the first time. Stuart has worked in the managed computer services arena for over 15 years as a service professional. Recently changing gears to focus on coaching and mentoring his peers on the strategies he employed as a technology professional. You can learn more about Ulistic at http://www.ulistic.com or through Stuart’s blog at http://www.stuartcrawford.com.

Looking for new ways to grow your real estate agent business?

Curious to understand how social media can help increase the exposure of your listings?

Have you thought about new ways to interact with buyers and sellers?

More and more potential home buyers and sellers are turning to the Internet to find the perfect home or get the latest information on the Real Estate market. Are these potential buyers and sellers finding you?

Join Internet Marketing Consultants Stuart Crawford and David West on Tuesday, August 3rd at Noon Eastern/9 AM Pacific for an information packed webinar on how you can use the Internet to grow your real estate business. Learn from David and Stuart what works and more importantly what doesn’t. Stop spinning your wheels and start moving forward. Start connecting with those looking to buy or even sell their homes.

The Real Estate market across North America is in a state of flux but they are still opportunities out there if you know and understand how to find them and also how you can have these opportunities find you.

• Title: Five Easy Ways To Market Your Real Estate Practice Online
• Date: Tuesday, August 3, 2010
• Time: 10:00 AM – 11:00 AM MDT

After registering you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the Webinar.

Reserve your Webinar seat now at:  Real Estate Marketing Webinar