Define The Termsis a series of educational articles I am writing, geared towards helping those interested in enterprise social media (also known as corporate social media) have an easier time in cyberspace. The only reason someone can’t apply information for any topic or areas is because the basic terms are not understood. I go out of my way to explain these terms in easy to understand language. While the definitions of these words won’t explain how to use social media, not understanding them might actually make implementation of social media harder to do.

Two of those terms are “The Internet” and “Web,” extremely common terms we all throw around, but what do they really mean?

Nets and Webs: Is There a Difference?

Usually when I bring up The Internet and the Web in my weekly classes, a very common response is, “don’t they mean the same thing?”

Yes and no. Originally The Internet and the Web had completely different meanings, but more recently they have been used with the same meaning in mind.

A similar example might be the word cola. Most of the time we mean the “Coca Cola” brand, but cola could be used for any brand’s similarly flavored soda pop.

World Wide Web = WWW

Just in case the dots didn’t connect already, “web” comes from World Wide Web, which is also seen everywhere as WWW. In simple terms, behind the scenes is a language computers use to locate “resources” on the web. Like any language, it had to be uniform in structure so that all computers could talk to each other and achieve results with consistency.

There are three important words in what I just said, leading up to the next, and final, concept of this article:

1. Uniform,
2. Resource
3. Locate

To find documents on the Web, we need a Uniform Resource Locator.  Another way to say that is, a universally recognizable location for a website so we can find it when we want to see it. We’ve all been using Uniform Resource Locators for awhile. Every time you go to a website by typing in “www.website.com,” or any variation thereof, that’s a URL.

Now you can dazzle others with your increased understanding.

Understanding these words brings you one step closer to utilizing corporate social media and other online resources to your advantage. There are so many opportunities available to promote and create online lead generation, both free and otherwise, it’s worth learning the basics and getting involved in whatever way you can.

You Just Had to be There

Not that long ago, neglecting to put a business listing in the Yellow Pages phone book was tantamount to business suicide. You just HAD to be there.  Today, the fingers still “do the walking,” but they are not alone. They have the company of a mouse.

You know, the mouse that’s plugged into the computer.

Of Mice and Men

Aside from the fact that there are more people on this planet than there were 20 years ago, before this whole Internet thing happened, we certainly seem to have more problems. Health issues are rampant, education, politics, the list goes on. There are a lot of problems that need solving.

How do you solve your problems? I’m willing to bet it’s the same way most people do, they reach for that mouse and do a quick search online. I’m not teaching anything new here, just pointing out it’s a habit most people with access to the Internet have. They use it to solve problems.

I remember once my wife spilled hot candle wax on our carpet. Or maybe I spilled it.  Either way, there it was, bright red wax on a beige carpet. My first instinct was to pick at the wax until I got it out of the carpet. Realizing that would probably take the better part of an hour (with dubious results), I opted to spend 5 minutes online first.

So, would you like to know the secret to getting out candle wax from a carpet in a few minutes with just about zero effort? A paper bag and an iron. Yep. Just place the paper bag over the stained area, pass the hot iron over the paper bag, and the paper soaks up the hot wax. Done.

Gotta love it. And your customers will love you too if you can solve a question like that without jumping down their throat to sell them 5 things before they can say boo. But that’s really a topic for another day. Today’s post is about using this penchant for internet problem solving to your advantage by listing your business on this new “Yellow Pages.”

Google Places: The New Yellow Pages

Technically, the Yellow Pages is also online. Their site, at the time of this writing, gets over 240K unique visitors per month. Not bad. However, it doesn’t hold a candle to the number of unique vistors Google gets per month. Here’s a graph showing the big search engine gorillas at this party, courtesy of Compete.com, based on the number of unique visitors to each site per month:

When it comes to unique visitors per month, Google is top dog compared to The Yellow Pages.

Nothing wrong with being in two places at once on The Internet. By all means, create a business profile on as many sites as you can.  But today we are going to focus on Google Places. Here’s a short video with some case studies of actual application:

When I first came across Google Places, I tested it by listing the Burbank Inbound Marketing Club, a weekly class where I teach local business owners to implement enterprise social media. Within a few months the site had thousands of impressions. An impression is where the Places page showed up on search requests.

Not only am I able to track the number of impressions, but I am able to see the search terms used to reach my Places page, the number of people who actually clicked on the listing (called an Action), and the locations they clicked from when asking for driving directions.

This data can be useful for a local business as it’s a type of consumer analysis. If a high number of requests came from one area for a restaurant, for example, the owner might consider opening a 2nd location where the requests are coming from already.

To create a business listing on Google Places is pretty easy, if you are already familiar with the internet and have already done your search engine optimization (so you have your keywords worked out already). There are some pitfalls to be aware of, which I will cover in another post.

If Google Places seems complicated, best to hire someone who knows how to optimize websites for search, and who can tie your Google Places listing together with your website or any other online presence you might have. Otherwise you might inadvertently put yourself at a disadvantage, or at the very least, not take advantage of all the features that are available on the site.

Happy listing!

“Google” is a Typo

Google is one of those words that just flies off our tongues these days. But what does “Google” mean? I ask the business owners I work with all the time, and most haven’t a clue, so I thought I’d clear it up.

Google is actually a typo. Or a misspelling. Either way.

The original word is “googol.”  Oddly enough, the word was coined in 1938 by the 9 year old nephew of a mathematician, Edward Kasner. There are probably several versions of this story floating around, but the word is, the new phew (Milton) advised that a number so large should be called something silly, and offered the name “googol.”

How large a number is a googol? Bigger than you can imagine. It’s so big, it’s larger than the number of elementary particles in the universe. Last time I checked, that was pretty big. A googol is the number 1 followed by 100 zeros.

So when the founders of Google were registering the domain name on GoDaddy or whatever they were using, they typed “Google” and it was available. They liked it so they took it. Works for me.

Google: An Essential Part of Off Page SEO

What does the name of Google have to do with Off Page SEO? Not much. But Google itself is essential. Because Google indexes content, and serves that content up based on a user’s provided search terms, one may leverage Google to showcase their web presence. It also is a type of consumer analysis in that one can observe trends and identify words and phrases having a high volume of search requests.

Sites like Facebook and Twitter are indexed very often by Google because of the enormous amounts of new information these sites add daily. For more reasons than one, Facebook and similar social networks quickly make it to the first page of a Google search for relevant terms. If you have 20 social media profiles, and you list your website address on them, a trail is being laid right to your website’s “front door.”

Incorporating Google for an Effective Marketing Plan Online

Content. The most important way to get on the first page of Google (and other search engines) is to provide well-written content.  All web content should utilize keywords (words Google uses to link a request to a specific website or resource on the web.  If you know what keywords your potential customers are searching for already, these words should be incorporated into written articles, blog posts, status updates, etc., whenever possible (but within reason).

A great feature of the web is that content stays up for a long time. Beats that flyer tacked up on a telephone pole that withered into a soggy mess in the last rain! Even better is that there are plenty of free places on the web to post content.

Long Tail Keywords

A long tail keyword is simply a more specific keyword that a well-educated potential customer would be using in their search efforts.  When I say “well-educated” I don’t mean a college graduate. I mean they have done their homework online, and they know what they are looking for. Here’s some examples:

The picture above is a screen shot from Google’s Adwords Tool. Someone searching for the phrase “dark chocolate gift basket” is probably searching for something they are ready (or very soon will be) to buy.  So while there are less people searching, they are also hotter prospects. The other two words listed are also long tail keywords.

Long Tail Keyword Research and Social Media for Business

Social media for business boils down to one thing. Being visible on the 1st page of Google for a relevant search term. Another way to say that is, be one of the 10 vendors actually in the room with the prospect who’s ready to buy.

If you aren’t showing up on the first page of Google for something you sell, you just aren’t in the same room as the prospect. Again, we come to the subject of content. By ensuring the keywords in your articles, status updates and tags contain long-tail keywords that are relevant to your customers, you have a better chance of showing up in the “sales” room. Of course, before you are able to put together appropriate content, the long tail keyword research needs to be done by an experienced marketer. Otherwise a lot of work might go into creating content that is hiding you, not helping you, on Google Searches.

Don’t have a website or a blog? Here’s a few places to start your online presence that show up well on Google searches:

• Facebook Business Page
• Google Places Listing
• Yelp
• Biznik

The reason I suggest all of the above sites is because they work insanely well with Google in terms of showing up on search results. Obviously Google Places is part of Google, but the other sites are either geared to be optimized or have a special deal with Google or both.

Of course, there are many other sites, but the sites above are good places to start. Having optimized content is an important factor in an overall campaign, which can and should include traditional media to build awareness, especially if your online presence is new. Try to do both, but at least leverage the free tools at your disposal.

How many business owners wake up in the morning, and the first thing they think of is what keywords they should be using on their website or blog? Probably not too many. I have to admit, it’s not a very exciting topic. But it is part of an effective marketing plan.

What if I told you that keywords = new clients? That’s right! Skip this morning’s latte at Fourbucks and hunker down for a good read, because, that’s exactly what keywords mean. New Clients.  Why? Because right now, at this very minute, millions of potential customers are searching for products online. For example, here’s a breakdown of some of the most-searched-for insurance keywords according to Google:

The “Global Monthly Searches” number represents the number of people searching per month for each keyword. The numbers above are for online searches in English, in the United States, averaged over 12 months.

Lack of keywords (or ineffective keywords) = hiding you from new clients.  Another way to say that is “your site isn’t on the 1st page of a Google Search.” The first step in wrestling this topic to the ground and gaining the upper hand is understanding exactly what keywords are. 99% of the business owners I talk to have only a vague idea what keywords are, usually don’t know if they have any keywords on their websites, and don’t know if they are effective.

“Keyword” is an appropriate name because keywords really are “key” to online lead generation.  Using Google (or similar sites) to search for answers to questions develops keywords.  In other words, the potential client or customer typing into Google’s search service are where keywords come from. They do NOT come from the IT Department, a co-worker, or a brainstorming session. They already exist – they just need to be located. It’s not hard to locate them if you know how to do what’s called “long tail keyword research.”

In the same way that an insurance agent would strive to provide a client with a plan that meets the client’s needs, every website’s written content should strive to match the words and phrases your customers are searching for. In a practical sense, if no one is searching for a particular phrase or term, it’s not a keyword.

It’s similar to getting married.  In this case, the potential prospect is the Groom. He’s got a problem to solve, finding a Bride (i.e., your online presence, such as your website).  Google plays the role of Matchmaker.

When the “Groom” types in a description of what he’s looking for, Google “matches” his description with websites that contain the same words.  There are at least 3 places on a website that Google indexes (kind of like a library indexes books so it knows exactly what it has on the shelves). Each location is an opportunity to place appropriate keywords to help Google do a better, more accurate job of it’s Matchmaker role:

Out of these 3, which one is the most important for your site?

They all are!  Originally, websites had a list of keywords to define the site’s features, but Google had to stop relying on the keywords list – too many “brides” were listing “qualities” they didn’t really have, creating a bait and switch scenario on searches.  A potential client searching for “life insurance with cash value” might get a website showcasing “Belgium chocolate with almonds” instead. While stuffing a site with irrelevant keywords might work briefly, Google eventually figured it out and now relies on the actual written content of a site.  Other search tools might utilize keywords for search, but Google does not. If it’s written well, Google might also use the Title and Description of the website in it’s search results.

Right about now is when my clients ask me about their website’s title and description. Do they have any? Where are they located in a website?  Actually the title and description have been in plain view on Google search results all along.  Type in “Life Insurance” on Google Search, and you’ll get 10 search results back. Each search result is usually made of 3 pieces of data, 2 of which are the Title and Description (very important to have filled out properly).  Here’s an example:

Hold on! That’s just a Google search result.  How do you look at the Title and description on your own website to check for effective keywords?  Ah, that’s a whole other ball of wax.

Let’s do what Google does, and go to the place in cyberspace where a website’s keywords are stored. It’s easy to get there.  You don’t have click your heels 3 times and say, “there’s no place like home” to get there, but there is sort of a man behind the curtain effect. Kind of like the movie “The Matrix,” there is the visual result of the website’s programming that you can see, and then there is the programming code “behind the scenes” that in-the-know people can access for the real scoop.

Let’s check out what Farmer’s Life Insurance is using for keywords.

These instructions are for PC users*:

1. Go to the site you want to check. In this case, Farmer’s Life Insurance.

1. Using your mouse, right click anywhere on the site except the pictures or images. Alternately, you can use the Shift key while pressing the F10 key at the same time.

1. A little box will open up with a short menu. Click on “View Page Source” (or press Ctrl V).

1. A page will open up showing the programming code that makes up the content of the website. You don’t have to understand the code to find what we are looking for, fortunately.

1. On this new page, right click again (or Shift F10) and click on the “Find Again” option.

1. Locate the Search box that appears at the bottom of the page (on the left) and type in the word “Title.”  As you type, it will start to highlight any matching word on the page.

1. Observe the title in quotes following the highlighted word. Are there any keywords in the title? How about the Description?

1. Try searching for the list of keywords by typing in “keywords” in the search box. Note the keywords Farmers uses.

Just because a big company has listed their keywords on their website doesn’t mean they are good keywords.

Keywords: Helping You or Hiding You?

Earlier we discovered that the word “insurance” is searched for over 55 million times per month. So, obviously, that keyword should be listed EVERYWHERE, and we should include in every sentence on an insurance website, right?

Nope.

The fact is, unless you are prepared to pay a lot of money advertising on Google for ads that show up when the word “insurance” is searched for, it’s too late to show up on the first page of Google for a word as general as “insurance.” There’s just too many other companies already using insurance as a keyword. In other words, the competition for the 1st page is too great.

The way around this is to be more relevant and focus on niche keywords and phrases instead of one-word keywords. Think about how you search for solutions on Google yourself. How many words do you have to type in to refine your search to find something useful?

When fishing for leads and interested customers (and ready to buy), do you want to be in the Olympic-sized swimming pool with 400 screaming kids, their parents, grandparents, a group of bikers, etc? Actually, for the word “insurance,” it’s an ocean, not a swimming pool, of people searching for that term.

Or do you want to appear in the 10-person hot tub with the hot models (I mean prospects) that have already taken off their advertising deflector shields? That’s what using more specific, or more relevant, keywords can do for your website, blog or other web presence: get your site front and center and visible to interested prospects who have already educated themselves through the internet.

Two Kinds of Keywords

There are two kinds of keywords to focus on. The keywords used in the meta data of a website, and the keywords in the content of the site that potential customers actually see. The meta data is within the programming language of the site (remember the keyword search we did earlier?), and the content is all the pages of written words on a site (the pages the consumer sees when they visit). Both are important.

Meta data is data about data. “Meta” as a prefix means “a higher level of description.” A meta-newspaper would be a newspaper describing other newspapers.  Meta data is data about the data on a website. It can also mean “behind,” which is rather apt because the meta data is sort of on a hidden web page “behind” what a prospect sees when they type in a web address.

Each page of a website can have it’s own list of keywords specific to the content of that page in it’s title, description and list of keywords. Being more specific helps your page be more relevant to what a potential customer is looking for. At the same time, the content of the page itself should contain keywords and phrases currently being searched for on Google. Which words to use requires savvy, experience and skill, and some way to measure the results on a regular basis.

Just because keywords are added to a site doesn’t mean Google knows about it instantly. It may take 3-4 months for Google to catch up with your changes. It’s worth hiring someone to research keywords and track a website’s progress, so you can focus on servicing and retaining your client base.

Social Media Keywords

If people can comment on your site and carry on a conversation, or share the site’s content using email or Facebook, etc., you are already using social media. Usually social media refers to sites that specialize in conversations and sharing, like Facebook and Twitter.  Because these sites regularly add fresh content and are so active, they show up well on Google searches. The same with blogs. Similar to a website, Google indexes social media site content and serves them up as search results for user queries.

Researching keywords for social media is similar to, but not the same as researching keywords for a website. Social media sites are so dynamic, so active. Most websites sit around and wait for someone to show up. The two are not the same beasts at all, although a potential customer may not care or notice the difference as long as their question gets answered.

Similarly, researching and using keywords for a regular website is different than researching and implementing keywords for blogs or other corporate social media.

Hopefully this article has empowered you to at least verify your website has keywords listed in the site’s meta data. If you’d like to take it a step further, request a free evaluation of your keywords for either your website, social media content or both. You’ll get a report back showing how the words on your site rank and which ones would be the best to use for your enterprise social media efforts. Personally I feel the most effective is our Topic Optimized Marketing service, which is an enterprise level social media service.

Get started today and optimize your web presence for tomorrow’s searches.

* Attempting to use this instructions on a website that is created using pictures and videos (also known as “Flash”) won’t work as there isn’t any place for the keywords to be listed.

The Association delves into several facets of marketing and promotion. One of our most effective marketing plans include direct response TV ads. That’s exactly what we did for Norman Taylor and Associates.

At our film production studio we used our green screen stage to help produce the spot for Norm. The green screen allows you to save both time and money by eliminating the repositioning of equipment and costly location expenses. And, if you have a good lighting director, gaffers and grips who work fast, you’ve got more time to get the best performances from your actors. That’s why we decided to use this for Norm’s Lemon Law TV spot.

“Our video shoots not only produce a great product for the client, we manage to have some fun along the way.”- Fletch Murray, Director

Click the video below and see some of the behind the scenes at our recent shoot for Norm’s new Lemon Law TV spots.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4RD769Modmw

In 1970, The Association’s Director of Photography, Tom Myrdahl, was a graduate film student at Loyola-Marymount, where he became involved in the “Chicano Movement” and began custom video production in documenting their demonstrations. On August 29th, 1970, Tom and his associate Nick Sherbin stood their ground while filming the LA County Sheriff’s police action against the demonstrators attending the “Chicano Moratorium,” a protest against the Vietnam War held at Laguna Park in East L.A.

This documentary, “Chicano Moratorium: A Question of Freedom” was seen by many audiences in Los Angeles in the latter part of 1970, but the film has not been distributed or viewed since then for over 40 years, until now.

Now, in an effort to share his work with the public, Tom is releasing the production for general viewing.  What better place than The Internet?  Tom also recently presented a copy of this work to Professor Mario Garcia, head of the Chicano Studies program at UC Santa Barbara. Dr. Garcia was elated to have this short and accurate depiction of the tragic events of the Aug. 29th police riot. Bert Corona did the original “voice over” for Tom’s documentary and Dr. Garcia recently published his biography of Bert Corona, LA’s legendary Chicano leader.

 Tom also gave a copy of the documentary to Rosalio Munoz, who was one of the original organizers and speakers at the historic Moratorium Event. Rosalio was also pleased to have a copy of Tom’s film. You can also view the film below:

It’s common knowledge in Hollywood that you don’t want to work with kids or dogs. Video production crews find them to be too unpredictable and therefore too much of a handful. That’s why we continue to have such a good relationship with Little Tikes, the iconic brand name for kiddie toys.

In December The Association shot two spots simultaneously, both to be shown in Toys R’ Us stores. One was for the Little Tikes Outdoor Grill and the other was for the Little Tikes Mudpie Maker. We had a ball watching the kids run around making plastic hamburgers and real mud pies. The Director Theresa Soulliere did a wonderful job in keeping everything calm and organized and at the end of the day everyone was very pleased.

The Association has several areas that he love to work in, such as corporate social media and working with Canon DSLR 5D cameras. However, we also love doing commercial productions and this time around we got to shoot another spot to be shown in Toys R’ Us stores. This shoot was for the Little Tikes Spray & Rescue Fire Truck, a fire truck that pumps real water! Imagine watching kids riding around, spraying water everywhere as they put out pretend fires. It was awesome!

And once again, Director Theresa Soulliere kept everything under control as we shot some very creative spots out of the mayhem. It was great fun for all!

Jim Killeen’s 90-minute documentary, “Google Me,” was recently featured on the Oprah Winfrey Show. The Association is proud of Jim’s stunning achievement in a genre which usually focuses on what’s wrong with the world.

The Association was lucky enough to be involved in Jim’s documentary as he contacted our corporate video production services.  This documentary shows a different view of the world….a world which is not a dangerous place. A world where people will extend the hand of trust and friendship and invite a stranger into their home just because they have the same last name.

The Story Behind the Film:
Jim Googled his name and found six people with the name “Jim Killeen,” including an Irish priest, an Aussie CEO, a wife-swapping swinger and a New York cop. Jim took a video production crew with him as he visited Google headquarters to see the powerful search technology in action, as well as visiting his namesakes in four countries to learn how these very different people are actually quite similar.

If you’d like to restore your faith in mankind, or you’d like to cheer up a friend who’s down in the dumps, check out “Google Me.” It’s about the world we believed in as kids. It’s a world that’s still there, it’s just covered up by lots and lots of bad news we’re deluged with every day. After you watch “Google Me” you’ll see things in a whole different light. It’s available on Amazon. Also check out the trailer on Youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=INz4I7-lhSA

We would like to introduce a new member of our Video Production Crew at The Association, Tom Murray. Tom has spent most of his life working with art and technology. As a child he used to draw spaceships and dinosaurs. He even created flip books using Post-it pads, much to the chagrin of whatever office staff happened to be around at the time. After several years and quite a few career path changes, Tom is motivated and ready to create and take over the animated world.

In what little free time he has, Tom works on a number of personal projects, including painting, game design, and graphic novels. Though his particular forte is design and digital painting, Tom is highly proficient in a number of tool sets, including 3D, post-production, sound editing, web design, and advanced scripting, which makes him a new and unique addition to our direct response advertising agency. Tom’s style shows a handy blend of artistic skills and technological savvy which allows him to navigate the rocky waters of today’s creative market and shows his value in custom video productions.

One of Tom’s many accomplishments is that he was the recipient of DigiPen’s BFA in Production Animation. Check out “The Weed”, a short he completed for a senior project.

Tom adds, “It’s not enough for something to ‘just work.’ Today’s end-users demand something that’s aesthetically pleasing and intuitive to use, and also works flawlessly and smoothly. I love using the tools at hand to create something that is all of those. I insist on working with the client and getting a solution that they can easily handle themselves. I want everyone to be happy with what’s there – quality is the savior of our economy.”

Recently I’ve used the RedRock DSLR Field Cinema Deluxe Bundle for a lot of my work, and it into my demonstrations for the Canon DSLR 5D & 7D Boot Camp. This particular rig is a shoulder-mount which allows you capture a steady video. This is designed to be able to be used with an external monitor, and with this rig, a follow focus is included.

Why I would recommend this rig:

-This particular Canon DSLR 5D rig is extremely well balanced and is quite comfortable. Not only is it easily put together but it can be mounted very quickly as well.

-This rig is extremely durable! It is made out of machined aluminum and is very strong. So far I haven’t encountered any problems with any of the parts breaking off. I would highly recommend it for a video production crew because of how sturdy it is.

-Another great feature this particular rig has is that it is extremely adaptable. Not only does the rod system work with various manufacturers’ products, but you don’t have to worry about buying a new follow focus. The one that is on-board works perfectly fine.

-Jerry rigging and customization is also another awesome aspect that this rig provides. For example we swapped out counterweights on the rig and mounted an Anton Bauer.  A Marshall 7 inch screen is hooked up to this battery pack, which allows for long lasting life and gets rid of the necessity for a battery pack on the back of the monitor.

If you’d like to get practical experience using this rig with the Canon DSLR 5D or 7D, be sure to sign up for the next Canon Camera Class.