Scrappy Marketing Solutions Blog

Scrapbooking.com's Blog of the Week: Terri Conrad Designs

Did you happen to see Scrapbooking.com's latest newsletter?  Apparently it isn't archived online yet, so you'll just have to trust me when I say that their Blog of the Week belongs to Terri Conrad Designs, one of my blog consulting clients!  I'm so happy for her! 

Scrapbooking.com wrote:

Terri Conrad is an amazing artist and designer. She's definitely an up-and-comer in the world of scrapbooking. Remember her name and check out her chic blog by clicking here.

Terri is so passionate about her beliefs, and what she does - it's just infectious.  And that passion shines through in her blog.   That's blog marketing at its best, my friends - when your interests and expertise merge together to make great blog content.

Kudos to Terri!  :)

Blog Consulting Project: Scrapbook Village

I recently worked with a local scrapbooking store in Kentucky, Scrapbook Village, to help get their store blog set up, with newsletter and blog subscription options, and some search engine optimization. They had already created their blog at Blogger - I just helped with some "tweaking".  Here's a basic outline of what I did:

1. Added the "Stay Up to Date" section to the sidebar template
2. Added links to the "Stay Up to Date" section: newsletter signup, blog RSS feed, and blog updates by email
3. Set up a FeedBurner account to allow blog updates by email via FeedBurner
4. Did a little photo editing, and added the photos to sidebar
5. Added META keywords and description to their template HTML
6. Added the blog feed to Google and Yahoo blog search indexes
7. "Pinged" various blog directories
8. Revised the Scrapbook Village Store links in the sidebar to include scrapbooking keywords, to make them more descriptive
9. Added "in Kentucky & Tennessee" to the blog's tagline to help with local search engine results

During our consultation call, we also discussed potential topics to blog about to promote store news and events, and how to make blog subject lines more effective.

I love doing blog consulting.  I have been drinking the "Blog Kool-Aid" for about four years now, and am a true convert.  I love helping people get more out of their blogs - whether for business or personal use.  I love walking them through the steps to learn how to do something, and showing them where to find the tools they need to become better bloggers. It's so much easier when someone is there to show you the way.

Blog Marketing: Search Engine Optimization for Blogs - SEO

One of the points I addressed in my Blogging 201 class at MemoryTrends was on keyword research - basically I advised people to do it and use it (as in...DO the keyword research, then USE the research when writing your posts).

I recently stumbled upon an-oldie-but-a-goodie post (from 2005!) on this topic at ProBlogger: Search Engine Optimization for Blogs.  Darren covers much the same territory that I did in my class.  I really like how he outlined the questions you should ask yourself when writing content (posts) for your blog:

Keyword Rich Content - identify a few keywords for your article that you’re hoping will get indexed highly by Google. Don’t pick too many but consider the questions

• How do I want people to find this post in Search Engines?
• What will they type into Google if they want information on the topic you’re writing?
• How would I find information on this topic in the Search Engines?
• What results come up when I do plug these keywords into Google?
• What other keywords are other sites using?

The answer to these questions will give you a hint as to what words you’ll want to see repeated throughout your article a number of times.

He also goes on to describe where in each post you should include these targeted keywords.  To give credit where credit is due - and send some search engine juice his way - I'll just link back to his post on Search Engine Optimization for Blogs, where you can read more about it.

There's one key point to keep in mind when judging results of search engine optimization efforts, a point I continually reinforce to my blog consulting clients -  if you aren't writing about a topic (or keyword), don't expect the search engines to find you for it.  In the same vein, if you want to be included in search engine results for a specific keyword - WRITE ABOUT IT!

Remember - showing up on search engines (or rather, in search engine results) depends heavily on what terms or phrases people use to search.  If you want your blog or website to show up in searches for the keyword phrase, "Kansas City scrapbooking", you MUST use that phrase repeatedly in your text - in page titles, in subject lines, and in blog posts.  But only optimize for that phrase if you have a store in Kansas City, or offer product related to scrapbooking about Kansas City.  Otherwise you might draw people to your site/blog, and have nothing that relates to their current needs.

To attract search engines for specific keywords, highlight those keywords in the text on your site, and hyperlink them to a relevant page on your site.  For instance, if I want to be found by people searching for "craft press releases", I will write a post including
tips on writing or submitting press releases, and I'll use the phrase "Craft press releases".  I'll highlight that phrase, and link it to the Page on my site that details my press release writing services.

That tells Google that information on "craft press releases" can be found at *this* URL (the underlying URL, hyperlinked to that "anchor text").

Be watching upcoming issues of Craftrends magazine for an article on just this subject - and let me know what questions you have about search engine optimization, so I can address them in the article.  Feel free to leave a comment on this post, or just email me.

Holiday Marketing: Offer a Gift Guide

Found this great marketing tip on B. Line with Beth Mauro (editor of Scrapbook Retailer magazine):

...There's nothing like the power of suggestion to influence a sale. That is why merchandising, advertisements and project samples are so vital to scrapbook store sales. So this holiday season, why not create your own holiday gift guide?

Select hot items that are especially gifty. Choose things in different price ranges and advertise them as such "Under $5, "Under $25, Under $100 (go for it! there is always a husband who needs something with WOW!) Get employees involved- maybe you want to have "Sandy's Picks" or "Beth's Pick's" to add a personal spin.

Take digital photos or request some from the manufacturers (if you can do it yourself you can probably do it faster- busy time).

She goes on to offer five ideas for using your own Gift Guide, no matter your market or audience. 

Are you planning any special holiday promotions?  How are you rolling them out to your customers/clients?  Please leave a comment and share!

Online Retailers - Will You Offer 'Cyber Monday' Specials?

Via a news story posted by KCTV Kansas City, some information on a trend among online retailers this time of year... Have you heard of "Cyber Monday"?

We've all heard about "Black Friday," the day after Thanksgiving when the malls are packed and some stores open early with big bargains to lure people in.      

A growing number of retailers are using the Monday after Thanksgiving, so-called "Cyber Monday," to promote online sales.

The National Retail Federation said it found that nearly three-quarters of online retailers are planning special promotions that day.

According to Shop.org, an online retailer association, "Cyber Monday is a term coined by Shop.org that represents the Monday after Thanksgiving (November 27), the unofficial kick-off to the online holiday shopping season."

And in the "brilliant marketing idea" corner, the website CyberMonday.com acts as a hub, pointing out to promotions from 550 retailers.  Gathering links to special promotions & great deals, all in one place, is an excellent tactic for driving traffic to your website.

And Shop.org takes it even further.  Study how they did this.

First, they coin the term "Cyber Monday" - based on their knowledge and experience in their own niche, and their recognition of a verifiable trend.

Second, they register the domain CyberMonday.com, and establish it as the hub for the term/phenomenon: "a one-stop shop for consumers looking for the best Cyber Monday promotions."

Then, they register as affiliates of many of the retailers offering said deals.

Then they commit to using those affiliate sales to benefit a charity inspired by one of their association members.

THEN they distribute targeted, informative press releases throughout the holiday season, offering tips and statistics that the media will eat up faster than the Christmas ham.

The really cool thing about this promotion is that it not only brings attention to Shop.org as an association, and their scholarship fund, but it also allows all these online retailers to share in the traffic CyberMonday.com brings in.  Because there is now an "official" name for the day, online retailers can capitalize on it by announcing their "official" Cyber Monday deals.  (They may have offered promotions on the Monday after Thanksgiving anyway, but now there's a NAME for the promotion.  More marketing juice.)

(Hmmm, these steps to publicizing an niche-industry event make me think of another holiday recently celebrated... ;)  )

So now that you know about it, any of you online retailers out there planning any special promotions for a week from today?  A popular promotion for online retailers, and fairly easy to configure in online shopping carts, is free shipping.  Or do you have something more elaborate planned?  Here are some other options being offered, according to a recent press release (emphasis mine):

According to the eHoliday Survey, conducted this fall by BizRate Research, the majority of online retailers will feature special promotions for Cyber Monday this year. Promotions will range from special email campaigns (32.0%) to specific deals (29.9%) to one-day sales (28.9%). Additionally, one-fourth of retailers (24.7%) will offer free shipping on all purchases.

If you're offering any promotions, sales, or deals specifically for Cyber Monday, feel free to leave a comment with a link.

I'd also love to hear from any online retailers to see if the "Cyber Monday" trend applies in the scrapbooking/digital scrapbooking community as well.  Have you seen, or do you expect to see a spike in sales on the Monday after Thanksgiving?  How do you plan to encourage sales that day/weekend?

Holiday Gift Ideas: The Gift of Knowledge

Some examples from my personal wish list for the upcoming holiday season:

What about you?  Have you given any thought to what the new year may hold for you and your business?  What the new year might hold if you built upon your existing skills or learned some new ones?

You should be able to get an idea of my personal/business goals from the scrolling book list above. I plan to learn more about search engine optimization to better help my blog marketing clients.  I want to hone my copywriting skills to bring in a few more clients, and better serve the ones I have.  I also want to see what I may be missing about producing "information products" (aka ebooks).

What business development/marketing/productivity books are on your wish list this year?

Newsletter Marketing: Reward Your Ambassadors

I subscribe to lots of e-newsletters, to keep up with industry buzz and happenings, as well as to get promotional ideas.  I noticed a cool promotional technique in the recent e-newsletter from ScrapWords.com.

In her newsletter, owner Leslie Ackman offered incentives to helping her build buzz about her site:

Scrapwords is a very new community on the Web...With that being said, it is TOUGH to get our name out there! So far you can find me in all the major scrap mags and websites but that's not enough!! I need YOU!

Please tell your friends about us and send them our way. For every person that you send to Scrapwords that creates a Blog, posts on the forums, etc. I'll give you $2.00 credit in the Store. Send me 5 people that become active on the site and you'll get $10 bucks to spend...send me 10 people that become active you'll get $20 bucks!!  If you are interested in participating in this program e-mail me.

**An active member create a Blog, posts at least 5 times in that Blog and posts in our Forums at least 25 times.

I like these points about this promotion:

• Leslie recognizes that she needs to build traffic for her site, so she asks her loyal customers for help.
• To encourage her customers to help her, she offers an enticement.
• That enticement comes from her own inventory, minimizing the cost of the promotion, plus there's no initial investment while hoping the promotion produces results.  It's almost like promotion on consignment - you don't pay until you get the results you want.
• She provided tangible measurement of what she is looking for - how many posts a new site member must make to make their "ambassador" eligible for the reward.
• AND she used her e-newsletter to spread the word about the promotion.

A couple of suggestions if you're considering a similar "Be My Ambassador" promotion - definitely announce it in your e-newsletter, as Leslie did, but also post about it on your blog, on your message board (if applicable), and on the homepage of your website.  If you're going to spread the word about something, spread it as far as you can with all the tools that you have!

A Scrappy Marketer's Hat Tip to Leslie!  Way to be an Ambassador-Maker!

Marketing Tip: Speak Up!

There's nothing wrong with speaking up for yourself -- take the hint from my marketing client/friend, Susan White of Triscape.

Earlier this week, popular photo blog/newsletter Photojojo posted about one of their new "discoveries" - the circle cutter.  I admit, when I read this post, I scoffed a bit - scrapbookers have known about, and used, circle cutters since waaaaay back in the day.  (Though I must also admit I still remember the sheer joy I felt upon receiving my first circle cutter as a birthday gift back in 1998...oh, the ladybug pages and ice cream cones I did make!  But I digress...)

Well, Susan apparently didn't sit scoffing silently, as I did.  Apparently she contacted them to scoff to their faces.  (well, probably not quite so in-your-face as that - those New Englanders have such nice manners.)  She posted on her blog that circle cutters have indeed been around for a while and are a staple in many scrapbookers' tool shed.  Then she sent Photojojo a link to her blog post. Photojojo's response?  They blogged about it, and shared some linky love with her.  So now her name and her blog have been shared with the hundreds of people who read their blog.  And her appearance there is like an implied endorsement by Photojojo - sort of like, "this lady knows her stuff; you should check her out."

That's powerful marketing juju - Susan shared her knowledge and now comes off as an expert in her field.  (Now that term, she'll scoff at.)  But we all know positioning is very valuable when it comes to your brand - if people believe you are an expert, that you know what you're talking about, and that you're in tune with your industry, they're more likely to do business with you.

So when you see or hear something that doesn't sound quite right - or even sounds exactly right - speak up!  Email, leave a comment, or call in - agree or disagree and share your expertise.  It's an easy way to put yourself and your business in the spotlight.

A Scrappy Marketer's hat tip to Susan!  You go, girl!

Targeted Press Releases Work

As mentioned in my previous post, Press Releases: Pitch the Right People, sending your press release to the right media contacts works. 

Case in point: my client MyCreativeClassroom.com.  I sent a targeted press release to the editors of Craftrends, and there it is on page 14 of the October 2007 issue!

Congrats to Jeri for her media coverage!  May it bring you many new instructors and students!

Press Releases: Pitch the Right People

A fairly significant kerfuffle on some PR blogs recently, related to Chris Anderson's post on his blog: The Long Tail: Sorry PR people: you're blocked.

I've had it. I get more than 300 emails a day and my problem isn't spam...it's PR people. Lazy flacks send press releases to the Editor in Chief of Wired because they can't be bothered to find out who on my staff, if anyone, might actually be interested in what they're pitching.

Just so you know...I am no "lazy flack".  When I send out press releases, I send them ONLY to people to whom it makes sense to send them.  As editor of Scrapbooking Industry News, I know what it's like to get information about a product or an event, and to wonder, "Why on EARTH did they send me this??"  And I immediately make the judgment that this person doesn't do their homework.

I use those experiences when I write and distribute press releases.  For Digital Scrapbooking Day, for instance, I didn't send releases to the editors of Cards magazine, because I knew they wouldn't really be interested in covering it.  If I were sending a press release about World Cardmaking Day, that would be different - their audience would be interested in that news. 

For DSD, I sent the releases to the editors of Digital Scrapbooking and Memory Makers, as well as the trade mags like Scrapbook Retailer and Craftrends, because I knew their audiences would be interested in the event.  And because the pitch was well-targeted, Digital Scrapbooking mentioned the event on their blog, and Memory Makers mentioned it in their print magazine (Oct/Nov 2007 issue), as well as on their blog.  Just goes to show...it pays to know your audience, and to pay attention to what they are interested in knowing.