Here are eight essential marketing tools:

HootSuite

If you’re looking for a marketing tool to track your Social Media efforts, HootSuite is a very feature rich dashboard for managing your brand on Social Media channels (I.E. Facebook) with excellent reporting capabilities. You can immediately publish and schedule content for release on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, WordPress and many more. HootSuite is a free tool but if you’re tracking more than five Social Media channels you will have to pay a small monthly fee. HootSuite is based in Vancouver, B.C.  www.hootsuite.com

WordPress.com

WordPress.com is a great way to start your first blog and/or get a website live in seconds that has loads of functionality but very cost effective, nada!  They have great themes for the look of your site, plenty of widgets (add-on pieces) and lots of viewer stats and you can track blog comments. Blogging is a great way to express thought leadership on a topic specific to your industry or business. Search engines love blog content.  www.wordpress.com

Google Analytics

A lot of people are familiar with Google Analytics but may or may not be using it. Google Analytics is a free service by Google that generates detailed statistics of the traffic (viewers) of your website and presents this information in the form of an easy to read dashboard. Google Analytics can track website visitors from all search engines,  AdWords campaign traffic, pay-per-click referrers etc. All it takes is for you website guru to drop a bit of computer code on your website and you’re ready to go in a few steps. Use it; it’s a powerful marketing tool! www.google.com/analytics

Google Keyword Tool

Keyword research is a very important part of your internet marketing strategy. Keywords are the search terms that people enter into the search engines when there trying to find your business (I.E. Hair Salon Milton). It’s really important that your website or blog have these keywords in locations like the title of your website so that search engines can rank your site accordingly. Take a few minutes to check out the Google Keyword Tool to determine the actual search terms people enter into the search engines when conducting a search for your business. https://adwords.google.com/select/KeywordToolExternal

YouTube

I’m pretty sure by now most everyone knows the video sharing website YouTube. YouTube was purchase by Google in 2006. Billions of videos are watched on YouTube every single day. It can be a very effect marketing tool for any small business trying to market their product and services to a global or local customer. Businesses can have their own dedicated YouTube page or Channel on which you can post product videos, company profiles or just a walk through showcase of your business. The Milton Chamber of Commerce has a YouTube channel for member videos and event coverage. Again search engines love video, use it effectively as a differentiator in your business. www.youtube.com

Open Site Explorer

This marketing tool is probably not familiar to you. One important part of winning the search engine ranking game with your business is to have what are called backlinks or incoming/inbound links to your website from quality external sources or other websites (I.E. Partners/Friends/Customers). The more legitimate backlinks you have the higher your website is ranked against your competition. At Open Search Explorer you can input your website address and see how many websites link to yours. Don’t forget to try it for your competition as well to see where you stand. Try it! www.opensiteexplorer.org

GoToMeeting

GoToMeeting is an internet hosted service for remote meetings and sharing your desktop that enables users of GoToMeeting to meet with other computer users, customers, clients on the internet in real time. This tool has really help me in marketing my business through hosting webinars with prospects to review products, give presentations or help someone resolve a problem by viewing their computer desktop. Hosting a weekly webinar is a fun way of spreading the message of your products and services to a global audience. GoToMeeting does have a price to it costing me approximately $50 per monthly. Considering how much it saves me in travel and fuel costs its well worth it. www.GoToMeeting.com

Market Samurai

Market Samurai is another one of those more obscure marketing tools that you may not have heard of but it does have some great features when it comes to search engine keyword analysis and research. I use it with quite a few of my clients. Market Samurai is like Google Keyword Tool on steroids. It can not only preform keyword research but it will also compare your rankings to that of your competition, very powerful. Use it as a key differentiator. The price of Market Samurai is a little more than the other tools I have offered here but it is definitely worth it, expect to spend somewhere between $100 and $150.  Try the free trial for 12 days and get a discount. www.marketsamurai.com

I hope you have a chance to try some of these internet marketing tools and they help you in growing your business.

Richard Bolton – Centricity360 Consulting

A few years ago I read an interesting article in the Globe and Mail that left a lasting impression on me. The article explains how presidents and business owners in this fast pace economic climate consume information; in short snippets of written text and online videos. The article detailed that preference is given to watching online videos. Video engages more senses than written text which only uses one medium.

The fact that there is somewhat of a video revolution going on is not new. You Tube has now become the second largest search engine on the internet; it has become so popular that it receives more visitors every day than the company that owns it, Google. There are literally billions of daily views of videos online and there not just videos of furry puppies chasing their tails. Businesses are leveraging the power of this tool to educate their audience.

In fact, this summer was a perfect personal example of the power of this media. We were at the cottage for the Canada Day Long Weekend, on beautiful Lake Temagami. My sister bought a tent for my nephew. On the day of the camping trip the instructions did not do justice to the task of assembling this monster in the 3 easy steps that were recommended. She surfed over to You Tube and there was a step by step video from the manufacturer on how to assemble the tent. 1-2-3 Done!

The Milton Chamber of Commerce recently launched a Video Profile Program in partnership with Creative Bube Tube offering a web commercial for member only businesses. This unique way of marketing not only provides a visual experience of your business to other Chamber members and local online customers but it also opens your business to a national and international marketplace. Take advantage of this program by calling the Chamber for details today!

Here are a few of the many benefits of online video marketing for your business today:

• People Like Viewing Videos: As I mentioned above, people are watching billions of videos every day, it’s today’s preferred method of communication. Businesses are now using this media for; providing helpful advice and product demonstrations, client video testimonials, sale and event promotion, how-to -videos and product reviews, store front walk- through and online commercials etc. Remember, online audiences are more excited about watching than they are about reading content. Video offers a better quality experience to your prospective customer.
• Search Engine Optimization Benefits and Website Stickiness: When posting a video on You Tube, a website or blog and properly tagging (keyword labelling) it increases your internet search ranking. Videos now appear in Google search results or SERP’s (Search Engine Results Page).  Video can also cause prospective online customers to spend more time on your website or sticking to your site longer reducing your bounce rate (The more compelling your website the more visitors will stay on your site and convert to customers or clients).
• Increase Branding and Credibility:  By uniquely branding your videos you can increase your business visibility and reach by displaying your logo and website on the video. Videos can also position you and your company as thought leaders or experts in your field giving you more online credibility.
• Global Audience Reach: If you’re looking for a way to expand your business outside of Milton to an international marketplace a video on YouTube can open your business to the world. Imagine the possibilities if your video went viral across the internet!

These are but a few of the many reasons to look into posting video for your business. Grab your digital video cameras or call the Chamber today and take advantage of the Video Profile Program.

See you online!

Richard Bolton

Centricity360 Consulting

VP Milton Chamber of Commerce