Online marketing can sometimes be overwhelming for the novice or busy local business owner. To that end, Yodle recently reviewed the definitions of SEM and SEO. In this post, we’re continuing to look at some often used acronyms related to tracking and analyzing your marketing performance. 

CPM: Cost per Thousand is usually used in relation to ad impressions, which is marketing speak for the number of times your ad is displayed. Why the “M”, you ask? “M” is the Roman numeral for thousand. CPM is an advertising model where payment is based on the number of impressions - per thousand impressions - and is often used with display (banner) advertising. For example, 10,000 impressions at a $10 CPM results in a total price of $100.

CPC: Cost per Click denotes how much an advertiser pays each time their ad is clicked on. Sometimes CPC and PPC are used interchangeably. There a number of different ways in which the cost of each click is determined – depending on the type of media buy – but it’s most associated with paid search on search engines like Google and Bing where the price is driven by a dynamic auction system. It’s imperative to drive quality traffic from paid clicks otherwise you’re spending money on people coming to your website that already have little interest in buying anything from your business.

CTR: Click-through Rate measures what percentage of people clicked on a specific ad to arrive at the desired landing page on a website. A click-through is the most immediate response to an advertisement.  It is important to note that merely getting people to your site isn’t enough. You may have a good click-through rate but that won’t usually lead to a strong conversion rate unless you have created ads that are geared towards qualified clicks and have also developed an impactful landing page.

CPL: Cost per Lead is the cost you have incurred per sales lead generated through advertising. With CPL, the advertiser pays when consumers take action beyond clicking the ad. For example, a “lead” might be defined as someone opting to sign up for your newsletter after being driven to your website or calling your business for a consultation or submitting a question through the FAQ section of your website. To find your cost per lead, divide the total number of leads generated by the total cost of advertising. 

CPA: Cost per Acquisition refers to the total cost of converting a lead into a new customer. To measure CPA, divide the total number of your new customers by the total acquisition expenses, which should include the cost of advertising and all related spend for generating this new business. Measuring your CPA is one of the best metrics to determine if your marketing efforts are paying off and if the cost of a new customer is actually worth your spend. You obviously want to achieve the lowest CPA possible and that may take a bit of experimentation to determine what works best for you.
 
ROI: Return on Investment represents the ratio of advertising money invested relative to money gained or lost. ROI is usually expressed as a percentage and it is calculated by subtracting the cost of investment from the gain from investment and then dividing that number by the cost of investment. Your ROI is important because it lets you know if your online advertising plan is paying off in actual revenue!

By reviewing your online marketing and advertising campaigns based on hard data you will be able to make appropriate changes where necessary and implement intelligent strategies that positively impact your business. Just be sure to document what you paid for, to whom, and where and how you secured leads and customers in order to reliably measure advertising dollars spent.

Over the last few months, we have been detailing step-by-step advice on how to implement online marketing strategies to help improve your credibility, manage your online reputation and drive business leads. However, the world of online marketing is almost like a foreign language to some people and can be difficult to navigate. It is important to have some foundational understanding of online marketing at a time when a growing majority of consumers are looking for local businesses on search engines such as Google or Bing instead of using more traditional resources such as the Yellow Pages.

So, let’s take a step back and review the two acronyms most commonly tossed around. In this post, we’re going to define SEM (Search Engine Marketing) and SEO (Search Engine Optimization), and then explain how they impact your online presence. In the next part of this series we will review the acronyms that are most important to understand in order to measure the success of your online marketing activities.

SEM
SEM is simply an umbrella term that includes the practices associated with researching, positioning, and submitting a website within the search engines to get maximum exposure. Some people see SEM as a term that includes both paid online advertising and SEO but more typically it refers to just the former. As with SEO, which we’ll get to shortly, a common goal for any business owner is to get listed as high as possible on the search engine results pages (SERPs) for appropriate keywords because studies show that most people only look at the first page of search engine results.

Paid search advertising, also often referred to as pay-per-click or sponsored listings, are ads that businesses pay for when someone clicks on the ad. Sponsored listings include specific keywords that trigger the appearance of the ad. Paid search allows you to influence where and how high on the paid areas of the SERPs you want your ad to appear. A key element for success is to have effective advertising copy that includes a call to action and contact information, which when clicked on then goes to a relevant and impactful landing page. 

SEO
SEO is the practice of optimizing a website to have better visibility on the organic part of search engines. Consumers typically have a high regard for organic results because they’re unpaid placements. There are two ways to optimize a website - on-page and off-page. On-page optimization includes using keyword-rich content and geographic information, and inserting HTML code on web pages that enables search engines to identify elements such as website title, paragraph headers, paragraph body copy, images, etc. Search engines read and rely on keywords and content that are on website pages in order to return relevant search results. Off-page optimization includes claiming listings and map placements and finding other ways to increase links to your website, which creates credibility in the eyes of a search engine.

If you don’t have optimized content and accurate web profiles, search engines cannot find your site and you miss out on valuable opportunities provided by search. If done properly, search engine optimization can put you in front of appropriate and relevant consumers who are looking to make purchases. Clearly, there is great value in capturing the attention of users when they are searching online and are open to discovery.

If you have any questions or comments please let us know in the comments below.

This is the third blog post in Yodle’s LinkedIn series where we have been reviewing how to leverage the popular professional networking site to promote your business and position yourself as an industry leader. In our previous two posts we outlined how to establish a personal profile and provided tips for creating and managing a company page. We’ll now discuss how to build engagement, increase your followers and effectively interact with LinkedIn Groups and Answers to establish credibility. 

The easiest way to build engagement is to regularly share Company Status Updates. Updates allow you to keep your followers – including customers and potential customers – informed on special promotions, product launches, events that you are hosting or attending, and other announcements. Posting regular status updates can help generate positive buzz around your company.

Joining relevant Groups on LinkedIn helps to establish credibility. LinkedIn Groups let you connect with like-minded professionals and industry experts. Before you join groups research their relevance – both industry and geography – and the quality and quantity of members.

Find appropriate groups for your company by following these five steps:

1.  Hover over the “Groups” tab on the dashboard at the top of your LinkedIn page and select “Groups Directory” from the dropdown menu.
2.  You will be redirected to a new page where you will see a box in the upper left hand corner – “Search Groups.”
3.  In the top field within “Search Groups” where it says “Keywords” type in any keywords that are relevant to your profession. From the middle field, select the “Category” that defines the kind of group you want to join. We suggest “Professional” or “Corporate” groups. 
4.  Then in the third and final tab select your “Language” and click “Search.”
5.  LinkedIn will return relevant groups that you can elect to “Join.” Once you decide on specific groups, click “Join” and a request will be sent to the groups’ administrators. You will be notified when you have been added to the groups.

Once you have linked up with groups you can start to respond to questions to position yourself as a thought leader and industry expert, simultaneously helping you grow your network. When you join Groups on LinkedIn you can choose to receive updates on your homepage newsfeed that let you know when new questions have been posted or you can get updates sent directly to your email inbox. Before you jump in and answer a question take a step back and think about where your business excels. Make sure that you are only addressing topics where you truly have expertise and that align with your services.  Your answers will appear under the question you answered, on your profile, as a network update on the homepages of your connections, as well as in an email to the person who asked the question.

In your answers, you can consider providing links to helpful sources or appropriate places on your website and blog to potentially drive traffic to your business. Just don’t be too self-promotional because questioners will see right through it and dismiss you as a reliable source.

You can become an “Expert” if you earn good ratings. Whenever the questioner picks your answer as the best, you earn a point in the category under which the question was listed. If you provide insightful answers, group members will welcome your input and you will be increasingly seen as an expert. People may even start to formally recommend you on the site and through word of mouth advertising.

In summary, interacting with LinkedIn Groups in a professional manner and offering valuable insights and solutions to questions puts you in a position where people will view you as an authority. This earns you credibility, helps you expand your network and ideally will bring in new business.

If you have any questions about leveraging LinkedIn Groups and Answers or if you would like to share your experience please post in the comments section below. At Yodle, we not only appreciate feedback from local businesses, we depend on it!

In the first part of Yodle’s eNewsletter series we discussed how to use your eNewsletter to connect with existing and potential customers to position your company as a thought leader and help drive leads and sales. In this follow up post, we will discuss how to manage both positive and negative responses to your eNewsletter and the importance of measuring your results. We will also provide tips on how to leverage other eNewsletters.

To maximize the return you get from your eNewsletter it is important to manage feedback and measure results to see what’s working. Whether you receive positive or negative responses, you can potentially apply these insights toward building on or repositioning existing products or services that you currently offer. Over time you should also have a clearer picture of what content and promotions in your eNewsletter are driving business or building positive awareness and you can adjust them accordingly. Make sure to set up landing pages on your website that are linked to different sections of the eNewsletter to help measure traffic and success.

If you get positive feedback on your eNewsletter – and are driving business as a result – it means that you are sharing relevant information and effective promotions. Consider leveraging this content from your eNewsletter in other ways. For example, share it on your company blog and promote it on your social media pages. Also make sure to continue to add people – new customers, prospects, etc. – to your eNewsletter distribution list to ensure that you’re maximizing your captive audience.

On the other hand, if you receive less than desirable feedback use that as an opportunity to adjust your content. Experiment with different ideas to see what’s more effective and to determine if it even makes sense for you to continue producing an eNewsletter. Of course, if anyone asks to be removed from the eNewsletter distribution list, do so as quickly as possible. It is usually best to have a button at the bottom of the eNewsletter that automatically allows people to “Unsubscribe”.

One of the goals in distributing an eNewsletter is to grow and maintain the customer base but not having the time and resources to develop relevant content on a consistent basis is a barrier to many business owners. Whether you simply don’t have the time to create an eNewsletter or you want to reach a broader audience, also consider advertising in other eNewsletters.

If you decide to go this route, here are three basic steps to follow: 

1.  Research Options - To find eNewsletters that are appropriate for your industry do your due diligence. Subscribe to eNewsletters to help determine what may be a good fit for you and look at what other businesses advertise in them.

2.  Contact Publishers - When you’ve narrowed down your choices, contact the publishers to discuss advertising rates and other terms and conditions. Also get specifics on the type of audience and number of people that receive the eNewsletter.

3.  Buy Multiple Placements - The secret to eNewsletter advertising is to be consistent in getting your name out there. Recurring ad placement is more effective than being seen only once. Additionally, buying a package deal is usually more cost-effective.

Whatever you decide to do, always include a link in your ad that goes back to your website. It’s normally best to set up a specific landing page to measure your success.

If you have any questions or would like to share the success you’ve had with distributing your company eNewsletter or advertising in another eNewsletter please feel free to share your feedback in the comments below.

LinkedIn is undoubtedly the most popular online community for professionals to network and expand career opportunities.  It also provides a great opportunity to promote your business and position yourself as an industry thought leader.  In a previous blog post, Yodle outlined how to create a personal profile on LinkedIn, which you need to have in order to set up your business profile, or Company Page. Having a Company Page on LinkedIn provides the opportunity for you to share your company story, highlight products and services, promote job openings, and generally engage with people who choose to “follow” you - driving word of mouth advertising.

In this post, we’ll walk you through how to set up and manage your Company Page.
The steps for setting up a Company Page are pretty straightforward. For a start, make sure that you’re logged into LinkedIn. You then need to do the following:
• Go to the Add Company page
• Enter your company name and company email address
• Confirm your request through an automatic email LinkedIn will send you
• Fill in your company’s information in detail

There are several specific tabs on Company Pages that you should then consider completing to have a fully effective profile: 
 
- Overview Tab:  Provide a clear introduction to your business by completing the Overview tab. People who see your Company Page on LinkedIn will then be able to get a high-level overview of your business. Make sure to include a link to your website so that people can easily find more information about your company. You can also leverage the Company Status Updates on the overview tab to keep followers and page visitors updated with your company news and announcements.

- Products and Services Tab: This tab is where you can grab the attention of prospective customers by sharing what makes your products and services unique and valuable. Other LinkedIn members can also post recommendations on this tab. These third party endorsements are extremely valuable because they reassure potential customers that you are a trustworthy source and provide a quality product. 

- Careers Tab: The Careers tab allows you to interact with job seekers and post job listings that will automatically appear in this section. Note though that this feature requires a paid subscription.

Beyond the tabs where you control the content, there is also an Analytics tab that is only visible to your page’s administrators.  The tab provides insight into who views your page, who your followers are, and the type of content that interests them. Having this information at your fingertips allows you to gauge your progress on building and engaging a network.

The process for setting up a LinkedIn Company Page is pretty simple but remember to take your time to compile an accurate profile that sends a positive and professional message. What’s more of a challenge is implementing a strategy on LinkedIn beyond building a Company Page that will further help you establish credibility for your business and build new relationships. Our next post on LinkedIn will cover how to do this, including how to increase your number of followers and interact effectively with LinkedIn groups. Be sure to check back soon!