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Your Most Important Post

Tuesday, March 2nd, 2010

Many times when we come up with great inspiration for a blog post or twitter status update, we take it straight to the web and start typing.  Since numbers and analytics data are what drive many of us, (perhaps we should call it egolytics), we’re always on the lookout for that one great post that drives a huge amount of traffic.Most Important

…and to you it seems like the most important post of your career.  This is the one.  You’ve got some great info and you’re ready to bust on the scene with a groundbreaking update.

It may be good info, it may bring you a ton of traffic, and get lots of inbound links, but it’s not your most important post.
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Posted in reputation, small business, social media | 3 Responses »

Interview: Greg Bussmann of Exec Business Products

Wednesday, December 30th, 2009

Exec Business Products is an independent, business to business office supplies company. We provide St. Louis businesses with everything from custom printing to hardware, and all the supplies in between. The company has been around for 30 years, me for half of that time. Exec has thrived in a competitive market by offering great service, prices as good or better than the chains, and free local delivery.

1. What first spurred you to get involved with social media for your business?

Well, the office supplies business is one that is rooted in old school methodology…from top to bottom, and as a result, I thought the sales process was a bit primitive…cold calling or canvassing door to door, trying to get your giant catalog in the hands of buyers, it works if you put enough numbers into the funnel, but it is also very hard to differentiate yourself from your competition…so I thought social media might present an opportunity to better leverage my sales efforts, since I am a small company, and get my message to more people than I could otherwise, in a way that the competition maybe had not caught on to yet.
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Posted in interviews, social media | 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 Marketing, Saint Louis, conferences, free stuff, local marketing, small business, social media | 4 Responses »
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How NOT to Use Social Media for Your Pizza Business

Thursday, December 3rd, 2009

About two months ago I read an incredible book by Chris Brogan titled “Trust Agents“.  I loved the book so much that I purchased additional copies and mailed them to all of my clients.

In short, the book goes over how businesses (or individuals that want to brand themselves) can use social media in ways that work to their advantage.  Things such as gaining trust with your followers, providing them with value, etc.  It’s an awesome read and one of the very few books I’m passionate about recommending to others.

There’s an etiquette (and strategy) in promoting your business on sites like Twitter, Facebook, etc. You don’t want to come across as a spammer, pushing out sale after self-serving sale and think that your followers will hang around.  Everyone loves to buy, but no one likes to be sold to.

Today’s perfect example of this is a conversation I had with Ferraro’s Pizza, a Saint Louis joint that uses Twitter to promote themselves.  Before this week, their Twitter account was abandoned, unused and dormant since mid-October.  Then today, the account suddenly pipes back into action – promoting their great lunch sales over and over again.  In a matter of 9 minutes, Feraro’s sent out 5 tweets about their specials. That’s. Excessive. Click to continue »

Posted in Marketing, books, competition, social media | 19 Responses »
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