The Click Depot Blog

Archive for July, 2009

Okay, so you’re spending a lot of time searching for various keywords, but the SEO just isn’t coming out the way you hoped. It happens all the time and no matter how you put it, the truth of the matter is you just aren’t using the right keyword research tool. Most people don’t want to spend the money on an expensive software tool, so they’re left with the free versions.

We decided to take a little time out of our day and tell you about the top 5 keyword research tools out there. Obviously you’re going to have to put up a little money, but you should expect to, considering everything you’ve done up to this point hasn’t made you hardly any money at all. Plus, all the time you’ve had to spend for basically nothing.

Google Adwords Keyword Tool

If you’ve tried to take on the pay per click arena, you came across this keyword tool a time or two. It doesn’t cost you anything to use it, but just remember that you have to spend the time doing it yourself. Finding the right keywords can take hours, even days depending on the criteria you’ve put in place.

Word Tracker

You’ll find that most people turn to the Word Tracker when they don’t want to spend money on a true keyword research tool. The only problem with Word Tracker is it isn’t entirely accurate. In fact, if you compare it to Google Adwords, there are several contrasts between the two of them. Plus, it only gives you the searches, and they’re on a daily basis instead of monthly.

Utilizing Others

When we first started to give out the top 5 keyword research tools, we planned on listing all of them. Unfortunately, the more we thought about it, there isn’t #1-#5 and all of them have pretty much the same benefits and downfalls. Well, all except one. The only difference is it’s not your average keyword research tool. It’s a place where you can find all the best ones in the same place.

What they do is offer you everything from Google Adwords Keyword Tool, Word Tracker, SEODigger, and all kinds of other tools for your marketing pleasure. Sometimes it’s just a lot easier to look in one place for all the answers, then try searching all over the place. When you get to this point, we highly recommend looking into the Click Depot. It should help you get what you need from the top keyword research tools.

Image Courtesy : http://www.kortia.com/keyword-analysis.html

RSS stands for Really Simple Syndication, but did you know that it is entirely possible to get it wrong? Lots of people love the idea of RSS feeds and of getting their information right to the interested people on a daily basis, but if you do it in a way that other people consider inappropriate, you will lose more people than you stand to gain! When you are thinking about doing RSS the right way, take some time and really consider how you are going to get the effect that you need. Appropriately enough, it is simple, but you need to pay attention to certain things.

For instance, if you are just getting started with RSS feeds, remember to choose a web based aggregator. Especially when you are a beginner, you will find that this interface is going to be the most straightforward for you to use. There are many other options open to you as well, but keep in mind the fact that you are going to need to think about maintaining it. At the beginning, simple is much better, and there is less that can go wrong. Fancy can come later.

The second thing that you need to consider is whether RSS feeds are really for you. It is true that more and more people are getting involved with RSS feeds, and that is definitely important to get your foot in the door, but is your target demographic really going to be what you need? What are your options when you are thinking about getting the results that you are after, and what can you do to make sure that you are not shouting out into the darkness?

Finally, remember that unless you have strong copy, you are just wasting your time. Unless you are putting something out there of value and unless you are making it worth their while to continue looking up your information, you are going to get forgotten. At the end of the day, content is still king and if you are lacking in this place, you are going to find that there are some real problems that you can run in to. Take some time and really consider how you are going to get good content out there.

If you are ready to take on the world of RSS, you are not alone, so remember to stay sharp and to stay competitive. There is a lot going on, but if you just remember these basic thoughts and guidelines, you should be fine. It’s all the content; after that, you can worry about how to present it and what needs to be done.

Image Courtesy : http://comingupforair.net/2008/01/rss-icons/

Whether you are just getting on your feet as a small business or you simply believe that your business could be better, it’s time for you to consider what you need to know about closed loop marketing. Closed loop marketing is getting a lot of attention right now, but unless you take a moment to consider what you can do to get the most out of it, it is one more marketing trend that might go right over your head. The more you learn about this concept however, the more that you will realize that it is perfect for the state of industry and economy that we are currently in. What is closed loop marketing and what can you do to make sure that you are using it well?

The first thing that you need to be aware of is of the idea that closed loop marketing is going to be very much a product of your customer’s responses and behavior. You are going to be taking the answers provided by the customers who have spent money on you in the past and you are going to be tailoring your business to them. Take a moment to consider what you can do when you are looking to move forward in this vein. You may feel as though it has suddenly restricted you, but the truth of the matter is that you are looking at making sure that you can keep the customers that you have and to attract more like them.

One of the biggest advantages that you have to work with when you are looking at closed loop marketing is that it is simple, straightforward and most of all, inexpensive to put up. All you need to do is to create a list of questions that you want answered about your product and to send it out among your customers. Remember that you should also consider how to reward your customers for responding to you, whether it is with a personally worded email or even a discount for further goods that they might be interested in. There is a lot of good information that you can pull from this crowd; remember that it is not about getting new, radically different clients, but getting a bigger client base that is very much like the one that you have now.

The big thing that you have to remember when you are looking at closed loop marketing is that there are many different ways to do it. Email is one major tool but it is far from the only one. Also remember that you should monitor your traffic on your sites. This is a general method to get information, but it can be a good one as well. Also remember that you should look into making sure that your customers have many ways to respond to you as you can. The more information that you get the better.

There are many ways to look into improving your business, but you cannot go wrong with pleasing the customers that you already have. This is a great way to get the results that you are after, so make sure that you look into more information about closed loop marketing and what it can mean for you.

Image Courtesy : http://www.patrickfetterman.com/2007_07_10_archive.html

Social networking has increasingly become an accepted form of marketing for businesses. While it isn’t the same type of marketing as putting out a radio or television ad, it can net great results. It is usually done in a more subtle manner than traditional manner, but it is still effective nevertheless. How exactly do you break your way onto the social networking scene? Let’s look at 10 easy ways to get your foot in the door.

1. Sign up for all of the major services- There are a lot of options out there for social networking, but you might want to limit your efforts to the big players in the industry. Sign up for Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Myspace, and maybe even YouTube. These sites are going to cover the vast majority of action that goes on with social networking. Staying involved in these sites will occupy most of your free time as well.

2. Nudge your way into the conversation- Don’t just explode onto the scene with a lot of annoying posts that make others think you’re trying to sell them something. This is the fastest way to turn people off. Just join the conversation slowly but surely. Try to contribute in a way that will help everyone. As you get more conversation going, you can add more and more.

3. Start your own blog- This is a great way to get involved in social media. Others will begin to read your blog and comment on your blog posts. As a result, they will link to your blog if they like what you have to say. This tends to make you look like an expert in your field.

4. Use Facebook to your advantage- Getting involved in Facebook is a fantastic way to relate to others. You can show people what type of person you are and what things you enjoy. Become a fan of a product or service and let others know what you recommend. You can join groups and conversations with others and get to know them.

5. Network with others through LinkedIn- LinkedIn is a great way to meet other professionals in your field or a related field. You can set up your profile which is basically like a resume that lets others know your accomplishments. You’ll be able to interact with them and help them with any questions they might have.

6. Return the favor on Twitter- When you use Twitter effectively acknowledge others by following new followers. They will appreciate the gesture and begin to feel that you care. When someone says something good, give them credit by re-Tweeting their post. This will go a long way towards building report with your followers.

7. Try your hand with multimedia- While it might not be for everyone, you could try making video or audio for others to enjoy. If you know how to make a video, post it up on YouTube. This is a great way to help others with an instructional video or with new information.

8. Share useful documents- This is a great way to get more followers and friends in the blogosphere.

9. Meet contacts in real life- There are many real life events for fellow Tweeters to meet in person. When you can, go for a visit.

10. Adhere to the normal rules of life- Don’t ever treat anyone differently just because they’re online. You never know when you’ll run into them in real life.

Image courtesy : http://www.digitaldesignadvice.com/2009/design-news/social-network-design/