Well developed designs and valuable content will reach audiences that you wouldn’t without e-marketing. How? It’s simple: if I receive an intelligent, well developed, attractive e-mail addressing a subject that is NOT interesting to me (let’s say “how to check the health of your dog’s teeth”) I might be inclined to forward it to some of my friends that have dogs and want to provide them with proper care. This is not spam, this is not disrespectful sales. This is the nice side of the internet. Position yourself as a trusted source of information, and people will like you.

Email is the most traditional communication of the electronic media. The most conservative public that is not yet utilizing social media and reading blogs, utilize email as part of their personal and business communication. Studies say that only 50% of people in the US read blogs, so the goal with email blasts and e-newsletters is to reach the other, most conservative, 50%.

Some of the clients that are currently showing excellent results with their e-mail blasts. BC Beauty Salon utilizes email blasts and e-newsletters to inform their clients of news, specials and events. It is a way to connect with them and keep their services in mind. IBA Express not only uses this strategy with similar goals, but we also developed an email campaign in Brazil where they can reach an international public without having to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars in print media placement there.

It is important to engage people! Building a relevant database of email addresses from clients, prospects, partners and others that are part of your network is a business tool. When asking from email addresses, tell them the benefits of your communication piece and share the frequency you will be sending these emails, most people will participate if you engage them.

Please stay tuned for the part 4 and last of this blog post series. Next we will be addressing social media and how it changed advertising from a one way street to an interactive and client oriented two-way communication.

Click here to see the previous related posts:

Website vs. Web Presence PT 1: The Role of a Professionally Made Website
Website vs. Web Presence PT 2: Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

People are using the internet to find products and service providers. From last minute lunch plans and shopping for new tires, all the way to finding the perfect gift for a loved one months ahead of time; your preferred search engine can become a helpful friend.

Search Engine Optimization takes advantage of the way search engines rank websites. By understanding what makes a link appear above others, search engines can offer a competitive edge to businesses using SEO. This makes SEO essential if your company can benefit from online exposure. Nowadays, there are many different marketing efforts being put towards positioning a website on Google. A SEO specialist will review your site, make recommendations and put together a campaign where through link building and other tools will make your brand, service or product easier to be found by potential customers.

Before making a decision about starting a SEO campaign, it’s a great idea to become an educated consumer and get familiar with how search engines works. We recommend starting here:
• Google Webmaster Guidelines
• Google 101: How Google crawls, indexes and serves the web

Now, would you use Google to find the best brain doctor if you need some kind of surgical procedure? Would you make your decision based on an internet search? What about a financial advisor? Would you give all your savings to someone you “googled”? If you talk to a SEO Specialist, most will tell you that SEO is important for everybody, but it is our understanding that several businesses can benefit a lot from it, while others should focus on other aspects of their web presence before investing in SEO.

Several of our clients invest in Search Engine Optimization, sometimes being that specific investment the biggest percentage of their entire marketing budget. Does it work? Of course it does! It puts you on the map and opens door otherwise closed. Again, make sure your website is properly designed and easy to be navigated, also that once they find your blog or social media, that the information is current and relevant. Otherwise, the customer will get to you but your chances of converting that potential client into an actual client are slimmer.

If you’re thinking about starting an SEO campaign… the earlier the better. A great time to hire a company is when you’re considering a site redesign, or planning to launch a new website. That way, you and your SEO Specialist can ensure that your site is designed to be search engine friendly from the bottom up. However, a good professional can also help improve an existing site. Don’t hesitate to contact us with any questions.

The objective of this series of posts (4) is to examine the components of a well-established web presence, so you, the reader, can make an informed decision related to your own business. The four topics are: The Role of a Professionally Made Website, SEO, E-Marketing and Social Media in today’s Market. This first post will address the importance of an efficient website.

A professionally made website takes the available information provided by a business and creates a product that is both effective and appealing. A professional website contains content that is original and goal oriented. Each of these qualities is essential for a successful web presence. If there is little to separate your online content from that of a competitor, then the customer will be unable to find what differentiates your value offering from the competition. Second, the agency that creates your website should have a defined goal in mind. The content must be fine-tuned towards getting customers to better understand your value proposition and eventually purchase your product/service.

An agency also has the experience and training to create a truly organized and appealing product. Having a well-made design that engages a customer will keep them on the website longer, which will lead to higher sales. However, a proper design is not only having an aesthetically pleasing website, but one that is designed to influence customer behavior. Agencies understand the results of website analytics and are able to continuously improve designs to influence future results.

Overall, professionally created websites can make the difference between a poor online presence and gaining the exposure your business needs to grow. The expertise that agencies can offer in design and content management cannot be overlooked. This is truly an investment that pays dividends.

Next week we will be discussing the next topic for this blog series.

Please visit a few of our recently created websites:

www.errolestategcc.com
www.5gastronomy.com
www.bcbeautysalonorlando.com
www.ibaexpress.com

“I have learned a lot during my first day with the Different Perspective team. However, the item that left the greatest impact actually occurred outside of the office. During my lunch with Rafael and Hugo, I learned about the history of the firm. It became evident that the market determines the success of the advertising world. For example, when the real estate market burst, it affected the path of Different Perspective. My takeaway was realizing that a firm cannot simply focus on a product; a firm must focus on providing clients something that they need. This can be proven in the real world by looking at a comparison of Kodak and Apple.

In the 1980’s Apple was determined to sell computers and found itself selling iPod two decades later. On the other hand, Kodak was determined to only sell film and found itself only selling film to a generation that no longer needed it. This can explain why Kodak has filed for bankruptcy and Apple continues to strive.

Different Perspective seems to ‘roll with the punches’ of the market. From the initial days of the company to today, the firm has transformed into a complete advertising firm. I believe that the firm’s current focus on digital media will help Different Perspective cope with the future of an evolving market.” – Karl Gocha

We thank Karl for sharing with us his point of view. Next we will be posting a series of articles about web presence for business. We look forward sharing many valuable content on our new blog.