Using the “SEO For Firefox” plug in and the Google Toolbar in Firefox, I found out that it’s been around for about 6 months. That will help us get out of the Google sandbox.

by NeilsPhotography

Using the “links:” search term in Google, where you type in “links:www.domainname.com”, you can find out how many other sites out there are linking to you. These are your “incoming links”. This one has 10 at the moment. That’s a cool place to start from.

It’s got a page tank of 0. That means there’s opportunity to improvement here! It’s got a good solid base, with a little history and some links to it, so when we start to optimize it, it should really respond.

This is much better than starting from a brand new domain name and new site, with no incoming links. Google doesn’t like those newbies. They could be spammers or child abusers or some kind of perverts.

Just like in the real world, they want to get to know you a bit before they trust you. It’s all about the reputation. Now that this site has been at the party for a little while, it’s time to make sure our hair looks good, that we don’t have bad breath, and there’s no food spilled on our shirt. Then we can walk over and introduce ourself to the host of the party, Google.com.

You don’t need that. From the article: ” Many people I know are fine with a simple and professional Web page.” That’s what I advocate, a simple, professional web site for FREE!.

Quoting from Small Business – We Don’t Need No Stinkin’ Web Sites By Gene Marks

Many people I know are fine with a simple and professional Web page.

But gee, many of the business owners I know — those incredible, pathetic, dismal, wretched losers who so shock the turtleneck-and-vest-wearing, greasy-haired crowd — don’t necessarily have those needs. They are gas station owners, restaurateurs, insurance agents, shopkeepers. They’re CPAs, architects, landscapers, plumbers, and electricians. They’re not selling books online or running auctions. They’re not distributing software or hosting phone services. They’re not complex. They’re investing elsewhere. They’re O.K. with no Web site.

A Vested Interest in the Debate

When was the last time I visited the site for the corner Exxon guy or the sub shop across from my office? To see the price of gas? To get nutrition info on ham on rye?

If you search the Web you’ll find lots of people writing about how small business owners must have a Web site. Dig a little further and guess what? Many of the people shouting how absolutely critical it is for a small business to have a Web site are — drum roll, please — in the business of helping small businesses create Web sites. Surprise! Despite what all the business experts — including the turtleneck-and-vest-wearing classes — may say, Web sites are not an absolute necessity.

Good business owners invest wisely and for the most return. They’re not in business to run a site just because it’s cool or hip. Many people I know are fine with a simple and professional Web page. Let the turtleneck-and-vest-wearing, greasy-haired geeks suck their fees from someone else.

Read the entire article at:
http://www.cio-today.com/story.xhtml?story_id=013001HJPXZ6&page=3&full_skip=1

The easiest and quickest budget item fora small business to cut back on is marketing. There’s no immediate affect felt, so you think it might be safe to cut, but nothing could be worse for your business. The Harvard Business Review said:

It is well documented that brands that increase (marketing) during a recession, when competitors are cutting back, can improve market share and return on investment at lower cost than during good economic times.

The best time to take advantage of your place in the market is in an economic downturn. Because other people are quick to cut marketing, you will have the perfect opportunity to reach even more prospective customers. In a downturn, aggressive PR and Communications strategy is the solution.

Building or updating your web site is one of the cheapest and easiest ways to reach those prospective customers. Now is the time to put some time into reviewing your web site. Does it say everything it needs to say about your small business? Can you add features that allow more customer involvement or at least feedback? Maybe it’s time to have a professional review your site and give you suggestions on how it can be improved.

Now is the time to spend more on advertising, not less.

SiteProNews: Webmaster News & Resources » Blog Archive » How to Convert More Website Traffic into More Customers & Sales by Inviting Prospects to Take Action

Here Are 3 Easy “Calls to Action” to Convert More Website Traffic into Sales on the About Us, Media and Contact Us Pages

1. On the “About Us” page, after your bio, add a powerful client testimonial praising your expertise and your measurable and specific impact on the client’s bottom line. Then add the line “Ready for these kinds of results in your organization? Click here to get started now!” (This links to the contact page).

This call to action, in fact, can be used for any page that does not have an obvious next step.

2. Your “Media” page should not just be a collage of logos. It should contain short videos of your TV appearances, audio clips of your radio interviews or featured-expert interviews on teleseminars. It should also include links to the articles where you were quoted or links to your articles that got published on the top websites. Let the world see what a sought-after, in-demand expert you really are.

With that being said, a simple, but effective call to action would be, “Sarah B. Marketer looks forward to being the featured expert on your next program. To schedule her appearance right now click here.” (This links to the Contact page.)

3. The Contact page, by definition, is a call to action. It needs to take your visitor by the hand and lead them through the next step.

It should not just be a page that displays your mailing address, phone number, and main corporate e-mail. Rather, it should lead with a paragraph that congratulates the reader for their decision to take action. Then, it should explain the process for getting in touch with you. It should also describe what someone should expect once they contact you.

Next, guide them through a simple web form that asks specific questions. This way you can do your homework and present prospects with a specific response and action plan. Make sure to keep this form as brief as possible, and only ask questions that directly inform how you and your visitor would do business together in the near future.

Having a web form, rather than just a link to your e-mail address, guides your visitor to take a specific action. This raises their level of commitment to you and increases your chances that they will buy from you.

Bottom line: Make sure that every page on your website provides a roadmap for your visitor with a specific call to action. This is the only way your prospects will reach the destination that you prepared for them. And, it’s the only way you will increase your website sales conversions.

Read the entire article at SiteProNews: Webmaster News & Resources » Blog Archive » How to Convert More Website Traffic into More Customers & Sales by Inviting Prospects to Take Action

They haven’t quite released WordPress 2.7 yet, so I’m still rocking the RC1 version of it. They say they will release the final version tomorrow. A few more screenshots today and it should be good to go.

Web Site Starter Kit should be released by the end of the week.

Web Site Starter Kit First Draft is done!

As an example, I created a free site aimed at 3 keywords. Within 3 weeks of creating it, it was number 3 in the search results for those keywords in Google. That shocked even me. This SEO stuff really works.

Of course, now that I’ve written it all out, WordPress is releasing a new version and the admin interface is very different. It’s in production on wordpress.com, but the downloadable version is not available yet. It should be any day now.

When it is available, I’ll go do screenshots and the book will be ready to sell. It will be aimed at small businesses, really small ones, and in addition to background on general good web site ideas, it will have a “free” and a “cheap” method for creating web sites.

It should be all done and ready to go by next week.

You should set up addresses like support@ and sales@ and information@, just to look professional.

Set up your email application to log into that account, then use it to send and receive email.

You should also have a “catch all” account that will probably get filled with spam, but you’ll also get those emails with misspelled email addresses that you might otherwise miss.

You should set up addresses like “support@” and “sales@” and “information@”, just to look professional. You, or someone, should be able to log in and send and receive email at each of your custom addresses.

Also, don’t let any address lay dormant. Make sure that someone is logging into every account, every 10 minutes. “I sent you an email last week. Did you get it?” is not the question you want to hear.

Stores seeking sales on Web :: PostStar.com

Locally, Paul O’Donnell, owner of Celtic Treasures in Saratoga Springs, saw an influx of orders Monday thanks to a free shipping offer.

“UPS came in with a big hand truck to carry it all out,” he said.

Online since 1996, Celtic Treasures has established an online presence and customer database that would make many small businesses drool. O’Donnell’s store appears on the first page of a Google search for “Irish gifts,” which he called “priceless” and chalked up to longevity.

Celtic Treasures in Saratoga Springs

While the Cyber Monday phenomenon is largely absent from Main Street, online stores are becoming a popular way for local merchants to reach out to their existing customer base, and sometimes beyond.

In Glens Falls, SensibiliTeas owner Donnalynn Milford said a Web site has allowed her to send teas, herbs and spices all over the world. And when gas prices exceeded $4 per gallon, she noticed that customers from Chestertown and North Creek were ordering online, too.

“It was cheaper for me to send it to them, than (for them) to drive down and get it,” Milford said.

For most small businesses, a functional Web site is as good as a second storefront, said Todd Shimkus, president and CEO of the Adirondack Regional Chambers of Commerce.

“The primary benefit for a local small business, irregardless of where you are, is it gives you a chance to compete with those larger operations who are trying to draw business away,” Shimkus said.

Merchants with a unique, specialized product often have an easier time attracting an online audience.

Read the entire article at Stores seeking sales on Web :: PostStar.com

The main cost to build a web site is the manpower to build it.

In my experience, even the building of the site is easy. The real time suck is politics. The meetings between marketing and well, marketing, seemed to drag out every decision. They needed to be sure everything was just right before we could move ahead. When you can tell a developer to “do it this way”, they can knock it out quickly. When you ask a marketing person which way they want it, have a seat and wait.

Don’t fall into this same trap. Just get the site up and out the door. When you build custom stuff, it will take a bit to make changes, but using WordPress, it’s easy. Make all of the changes you want.

Make a decision. Make it happen. Bam. You’re done.

Old Media Interview: Aron Pilhofer, interactive guru, editor at The New York Times | Old Media, New Tricks

Everything we use is free and open-source… The cost here isn’t software, or even hardware, which is relatively cheap these days… The price most … organizations (and it’s not just small ones) seem reluctant to pay is for people…

Read the entire article at Old Media Interview: Aron Pilhofer, interactive guru, editor at The New York Times | Old Media, New Tricks

Year-End Tech & Tax Tips for Smart Small Businesses – MarketWatch

Black Friday and Cyber Monday Sales Combined with Historically High IRS Write-offs Make End of 2008 Ideal Time for Small Businesses to Invest in New Digital Technology

LONG BEACH, Calif., Nov 24, 2008 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ — Successful small business owners are constantly balancing the need to invest in new productivity-enhancing technology with the impact on their bottom lines. But between now and the end of the year, with the help of two unrelated economic factors — increased IRS Section 179 deductions and the growing importance of “Black Friday” and “Cyber Monday” — the decision to purchase that new high-speed color printer, multimedia projector, high-speed document scanner or virtually any other tech product, may just be a little easier.

A change in the 2008 Federal Tax Code has resulted in historically high allowable write-offs of tangible property; property that generally includes that much needed printer, scanner or digital projector. Black Friday and Cyber Monday, the Friday and Monday immediately following Thanksgiving (this year November 28 and December 1), signal the kick-off by consumer electronic and office product retailers of their most aggressive marketing programs of the year. The combination of these two factors may result in small businesses being able to purchase new digital products at the very best prices of the year.
“Every small business owner I work with is looking to make every dollar invested payoff,” said Barry Drake, president, Drake Business Services, Inc., a San Jose, Calif.-based accounting firm. “Taking advantage of this year’s IRS Section 179 write-offs is generally a smart move, however, it’s only smart if its being used to purchase products that will help grow the company or help it operate more efficiently.”

Read the entire article at Year-End Tech & Tax Tips for Smart Small Businesses – MarketWatch