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Local Internet Marketing Conference Wrapup

Thursday, February 17th, 2011

Yesterday the folks at the Main Street Marketing Community put on a conference for small business owners in Saint Louis that wanted to learn more about building their business through online measures.  The conference was at the Hilton Frontenac, and it seems that all of the feedback was very positive.  Here is a wrap-up of the days events with a few nuggets thrown in.

Session One – Keyword Research

Russ Henneberry and myself presented a quick 30 minute session on keyword research.  We covered the basics of keyword research such as various keyword tools (AdWords, WordTracker, Google Instant, Yahoo Suggest and SEOBook) then went in and showed how to seed the keyword tool and get back a ton of results.  We talked about the Long Tail of search, geographic indicators (such as St Louis, Saint Louis , STL) and then mentioned the keyword tracking tool called AWR.  Russ followed that up with a quick mention of Google Analytics and we were done.

We were hoping to help the attendees understand that keyword research is the foundation of any online campaign, whether you do PPC, SEO or even a mobile campaign. Click to continue »

Posted in conferences, Saint Louis | 7 Responses »

New Websites, Learn More SEO and Webinars for Your Business

Thursday, October 21st, 2010

Way back in 1997 I started a company called Lighthouse Technologies.  The business was basically web design, and soon after launch I added on hosting, which is now the main breadwinner for that business.  In 2007, shortly after I started doing SEO professionally, I bought both WillHanke.com and WhereIsMyBusiness.com with the intent to someday turn them into their own entities.  Well, WillHanke.com has grown into what you now read (all the time, right?) today.  And WIMB, well it just kinda sat there.

But no more.  New things are coming.  Good things. Click to continue »

Posted in meetings, Saint Louis, SEO | No Responses »

Free Internet Marketing Classes

Monday, August 9th, 2010

This Fall I’ll again be teaching a set of Internet Marketing classes at the Jefferson County Library, Arnold MO branch.  There are two topics this fall – Marketing Your Business Website (SEO) and Leveraging Twitter & Facebook for Business.

Registration is required for the free classes, and priority will be given to Jefferson County residents.  These classes always fill up so make sure you get yourself on the list early.

To sign up, call 636-296-5171

Note: Attendees to the September classes will receive a promo code for discounted tickets to Market Saint Louis in October!

Class Dates and Times

Title: Marketing Your Business Website
Summary: Learn how to revive a “dead” website. Topics covered include Search Engine Optimization (SEO), online advertising tips and avenues, along with ways to increase your website traffic and offline marketing ideas.
Dates/Times: Sept 23 at 6PM and Oct 15 at 9:30AM

Title: Leverage Twitter & Facebook for Business
Summary: In this class you’ll learn how to set up a Twitter account and Facebook fan page. You’ll learn about some great tools that will help you grow your fanbase, engage your customers, and how to utilize some ‘behind the scenes’ tricks to get the most out of your new accounts.
Dates/Times: Sept 9 at 9:30AM and Oct 20 at 6PM

Download and Print the Flyer

Posted in free stuff, Marketing, Saint Louis, small business | 2 Responses »

Searching the Lou

Monday, April 19th, 2010

Is St Louis and Saint Louis the same thing in the eyes of search engines? Should you care?

We’ve got a bit of a unique situation here.  Our fair city is one of the few that is searchable in many different ways – saint louis, st louis, stl and so on.  But does it really matter to you how people searching for local merchants?
Click to continue »

Posted in beginner sem, Saint Louis, St Louis | No Responses »
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Interview: David Siteman Garland from The Rise to the Top

Tuesday, January 5th, 2010

David Siteman GarlandToday’s interview is with David Siteman Garland, CEO of The Rise to the Top.  David bills TRTTT as The #1 Non-Boring Resource for Marketing Like an Entreprenuer: Smarter, Faster, Cheaper.  His website is an awesome resource for anyone who is getting started or already in business.  He also hosts a weekly TV show on ABC.

I’ve spoken with David a few times via Twitter (@TheRiseToTheTop) and also met him at the November ‘edition’ of the St Louis Social Media Group.  He’s quite energetic and I enjoyed his presentation.

David, I know your business has been around for several years, what first spurred you to get involved with social media for your business?

Social media for me was a little bit of being in the right place at the right time. I was one of the first 5,000 members on Facebook because I happened to be in college at the time (back when it was called THE Facebook and only for college students) and my school, Washington University in St. Louis, was one of the first schools to be added to Facebook.

For me, it started as a way to communicate with my friends in school and quickly evolved to be encompass forming relationships with other, promoting my businesses and other people’s businesses.
Click to continue »

Posted in interviews, Marketing, Saint Louis, St Louis | 2 Responses »
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Interview with Russ Henneberry from Tiny & Mighty

Tuesday, December 15th, 2009

Russ HenneberryAs part of a new series, I’m going to be doing interviews with local (Saint Louis area) industry leaders that are using social media and other forms of SEM to increase their overall business revenue and objectives.  This week I’m interviewing Russ Henneberry, owner of Tiny Business, Mighty Profits.

Russ Henneberry writes and speaks about Content Marketing Strategy and how tiny businesses can make mighty profits using a personal computer, a little imagination and a few well-placed dollars.

  1. What first spurred you to get involved with social media for your business?
    I started a business in 2004 that was a massive failure. The most critical take-away from that failure was that I needed to be more connected to colleagues, customers, and prospects. I realized that going it alone was not a good strategy and that social media was a great way for me to grow my support network.
  2. Tell us about T&M’s online strategy. What online tools are you using now to grow your customer base?
    I use a WordPress blog as a hub from which to consistently broadcast valuable and timely content that would be beneficial to my market. I use video sharing sites (YouTube, etc), Email Marketing through aWeber, and social media sites like Twitter and Facebook.

    3. Click to continue »

Posted in interviews, local marketing, Marketing, Saint Louis | 4 Responses »
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Just Who’s Thinking About SEO?

Thursday, December 10th, 2009

It’s all over twitter – more and more businesses are looking to SEO, social media and other forms of online “advertising” to get the word out about their services and products.  And I’ve done my share of proposals for these businesses as well.  Some hired me, some didn’t.  But it’s always fun to reflect back and see who contacted me throughout the past year.  Below is a small but interesting list of companies I did SEO proposals for in 2009.
Click to continue »

Posted in Saint Louis, SEO, small business | 2 Responses »
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Saint Louis Sees 16% Rise in Business Bankruptcies

Wednesday, December 9th, 2009

News came out today that business bankruptcies in Saint Louis have increased some 16% this quarter.  This is apparently below the national average, but still a huge chunk of revenue and jobs going out the window.

I’ve spent some time over the last few weeks talking to business owners about their overall financial and economic situation.  As expected, nearly every industry is down for the year.  Overall, I’d put the average drop at right around 30%.

A 30% downturn in revenue can really hurt a business. One business was down over 50%. Ouch.
Click to continue »

Posted in Saint Louis, small business, St Louis | 1 Response »
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Upcoming Business Series Announcement

Tuesday, December 8th, 2009

More and more businesses are getting online every day. Most of these businesses are doing so only because ‘everyone else is’.  This sense of urgency is good, but needs a foundation.  There’s nothing worse than a business that has a website simply because their competition does.  Online strategy should be learned, discussed and acted upon in order to succeed.

As many of you know, I’m the moving force behind Market Saint Louis, a twice-a-year business conference that focuses on teaching local St Louis businesses the ways of online optimization, advertising and more.  Speakers from around the country fly in to share their expertise on various subjects, from SEO to Pay per Click and Analytics.  2010 is going to be even bigger, with the conferences featuring two separate tracks – one for beginners and one for businesses that are already in the game to some level.

The event isn’t cheap (although the pre-agenda tickets aren’t very expensive) and some small businesses may have a hard time shelling out several hundred dollars in this economy just to learn how to spend more time and money on the Internet.  But it’s crucial for every business to be online now.

To help quell the fears of those business owners, I’ve partnered up with the Jefferson County Library to teach a series of free classes (yes, I said free) on Online Marketing, Social Media and more.  This series of classes will run January through March, and will be very limited both in amount as well as seating.

If you’re wondering just how your competition gets their website to the top of Google searches for items you sell, you’ll learn. If you know your business needs to be on Twitter or Facebook, but you don’t know how to use these tools, you’ll learn.  And if you want to grow your online sales, you’ll learn.

Scheduled Dates

Twitter Basics and Tips

Jan 14 – 9:30AM to Noon or March 4 – 6:00PM to 8:30PM
Learn how to set up a Twitter account and how to ‘tweet’.  You’ll learn about some great tools that will help you get more followers, find great information about your interests, and how to utilize some ‘behind the scenes’ tricks to get the most out of your new account.

Marketing Your Business Website

Feb 4 – 9:30 AM to Noon  or Mar 25 – 6:00PM to 8:30PM
Do you wonder why your website isn’t listed on Yahoo! or other search engines? Are you clueless about search marketing techniques that can draw customers to your site? We will cover topics such as Search Engine Optimization (SEO), online advertising tips and avenues, along with ways to increase your website traffic along with other offline marketing ideas.

Social Media for Business – Leverage Community to Build Your Brand

Feb 11 – 6:00PM to 8:30PM
Learn how to leverage blogging, video and social media sites like Twitter and Facebook to grow your business.

Download the flyer / schedule

Sign Up Now

All classes have very limited seating and will be at the Arnold branch of the Jefferson County Library.  To sign up, call 636-296-5171.

These will be the only classes offered this Spring.  For more information on the upcoming Market Saint Louis conference (and to get the cheap ticket price) visit MarketSTL.com

Posted in conferences, free stuff, local marketing, Marketing, Saint Louis, small business, social media | 5 Responses »
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C’mon Social Media, Help Me Create a Radio Spot

Monday, August 10th, 2009

As most of you know, I’m speaking at the upcoming Look at Me seminar in St. Louis on the 27th.  I also happen to be the guy that is (along with a very wonderful and supportive wife) juggling all aspects of the event, including marketing it, setting up the venue, agenda, everything.  It’s stressful, but I believe this event is going to bring some great awareness of the need for SEO to the STL business community.

As part of my promotion effort, I’m going to be doing a radio commercial on a local station that has a great demographic for the event.

Problem is, I’ve been so stressed about getting this all together, that I’m not feeling 100% creative at the moment.  So maybe you can help.

I need some ideas for a :60 second spot on the radio.  What do you suggest would work best, what ‘scenarios’ do you think would best resonate with my target audience (below), and what approach (two people talking/acting, one announcer, etc) do you think would work best?

Unfortunately, with the event coming up quickly, I’ve got to get a decent idea for a spot over to the radio station soon.  That means this post has a short expiration date, as in tomorrow.

Any ideas/suggestions that you have, just post below.  !

Information of Use

Seminar: Look at Me – Getting Your Business in Front of Online Customers
Target: Business owners, execs, maybe a few marketing managers, decision makers
Radio demographic: 76% male, educated, 75k+ yearly salary, ages 25-54
Summary of event: Getting targeted, buying traffic to your website
Longer explanation: Did you spend a bunch of money on a website that isn’t producing the ROI you expected? Or none at all? Are you frustrated with your competitors making so much online, but you don’t know how they’re doing it?  Hear professionals in Internet Marketing tell their secrets.

Let’s see how social media can really help create a fun and informative radio spot!

Posted in conferences, offline advertising, Saint Louis, seminars | 4 Responses »

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