By Robert Lockard

An excellent blog post on Practical Ecommerce got me thinking about how paid-search campaigns are handled. The blog post is entitled, “Pay-per-click Advertising: Seven Pointers for Smaller Campaigns.”

I was amazed when I read all of the pointers on how people can improve their PPC efforts because basically all of them are easily handled by Submit Solution. I think it’s a great idea to be educated on the best practices of online promotion, so you should definitely read that blog post and take its advice to heart.

After you come up with a plan and thoroughly research your keywords, you can present your ideas to a Submit Solution PPC expert, and he or she will be able to improve upon your ideas and fully implement them for you. Submit Solution offers a number of pay-per-click solutions, including one-on-one support, easily updatable keywords, up-to-date reports and more.

The seven things you should keep in mind when using PPC in your marketing strategies include learning about negative keywords, long-tail keywords and match types. Negative keywords are phrases that include your selected keywords, but attach unfavorable or irrelevant words to them. I’m sure Nintendo wouldn’t want to pay for people who click on its ads when they type in words like “Nintendo Wii defective,” or something to that effect. Those people are more likely to be looking for information or venting rather than hoping to make a purchase.

Long-tail keywords are great because a relatively small number of people search for them and so they used to be less expensive to advertise on. But now that the secret is out that Internet marketers want those targeted keywords more than the general ones, they’re becoming more expensive. A long-tail keyword is a search term with more than one or two descriptive words in it. Terms like “Internet marketing” have a high amount of competition to be number one on search engine results pages. Terms like “Internet marketing solution Orem Utah” will have fewer searchers, but they will be much more targeted.

Match types help you get even more targeted traffic to your website by adjusting how precisely you want people’s search terms to match your selected keywords and phrases.

I hope you’ve enjoyed my discussion of PPC campaigns. This is a complete version of the eHarbor Blog post: “Submit Solution offers PPC solutions.” The photo of the bad advertisement is from Flickr, and it is the copyright of Unlisted Sightings.

By Robert Lockard

In the Wall Street Journal article, “Why Email No Longer Rules,” I found a fascinating argument against email and for social-media sites, like Twitter and Facebook. Email is on its way out as the primary means of sending online messages.

For a dozen years or so email was the freshest, easiest way to keep in touch with people over long distances without having to pay big phone bills. Now it’s old hat. Basically, the paradigm of online communication has changed and we’re all going to have to change with the times.

What do you think? Is it a good thing that email is being replaced by instant communications? I think it’s great for ecommerce. With the aid of instant messaging, tweets and wall posts, online marketers can serve their customers much better and faster than ever before.

Response times for online communication have shrunk from hours to minutes, to now just seconds. By responding to our customers’ needs at a rapid pace, we can increase our customer-retention rates and make sure the people we do business with feel valued and respected. We can also quickly identify and assist potential customers and other leads who visit our ecommerce websites.

I don’t think email will go away anytime soon, though. It’s still a great tool for holding somewhat private conversations away from the peering eyes of other Internet users. There is definitely something to be said for privacy and discretion online. We don’t want to reveal confidential information in public forums, but we want to have a positive presence on Twitter and Facebook. It’s a fine line we have to walk.

As search engines keep working harder to add social-media sites to their search results, the value of tweets and Facebook updates could increase. Just make sure your social-media communication points people to your website where people can actually make purchases and build your online rankings.

If you would like help getting a great website design, I recommend you contact Submit Solution’s professionals. They are extremely effective at delivering captivating website designs that help increase your conversion rate of visitors into customers.

This blog entry is a complete version of the eHarbor Blog post, “Is email finished?” Keep coming back to the Submit Solution Social Media Blog for more exciting updates like this.

By Alyssa Udall (@udallyss)

Social media’s power has been fueled by an intense growth of users and popularity, which has given free speech extraordinary weight in the online community. What does this mean for your business? Anyone who has come into contact with your company is able to voice their satisfaction, or lack thereof, to millions of readers across the world. Every company with an online presence should create a thorough social media marketing plan to control their online reputation and harness the incredible power of social media.

Here are some of the greatest ways to make sure social media doesn’t drag your online reputation under:

Resolve Complaints

1. Ripoff Report: When customers have a terrible experience, they like to vent their frustrations to anyone who will listen. Ripoff Report allows anyone to file complaints against companies who have “ripped them off” and helps warn other customers of poor business operations. Try searching for your company name and see if any complaints have been filed against you. Resolve these issues by posting your rebuttal and explanation of the problem. These issues are usually misunderstandings of some sort and clearing up the problem, while trying to lobby your interests, will help control negative feedback.

2. Get Satisfaction: In a similar manner to Ripoff Report, Get Satisfaction allows you to create a network around your business. Customers can interact with employees of your company, ask questions and post complaints. This is a great way to provide customer service and resolve issues that would otherwise negatively affect your reputation.

Build a Community

3. Twitter: By creating a Twitter account for your brand that you regularly update, you can conveniently connect with your customers and others in the community. One of the greatest resources that Twitter offers is the ability to connect your blogs and forums to individual Twitter accounts. This way, visitors will be able to “sign in” to your site through their existing Twitter account to post their thoughts, answer and ask questions and become generally connected to your community. This is a great way to create a following for your brand!

4. Facebook: Facebook is another great way to create interest in your brand. Through Facebook Connect, you can also allow visitors to “sign in” to your site with their Facebook credentials. This way, your customers will be able to interact with you through their favorite social networking tools. Your visitors will be able to update their status and publish their comments made on your site, giving your brand instant advertising.

Connect with Professionals

5. Industry-Related Networks: Social media is all about connecting with others who have interests similar to yours. When you join a network as a business entity, this still applies! There are many social networks geared towards specific industries, which allows you to become an active voice in your related field. Here are some examples of the industry-specific social networks: Active Rain (for real estate agents) and Sphinn (for marketing and advertising professionals.)

6. Linked In: Linked In is a social network for professionals in all fields. With a Linked In account, you can connect with business contacts, department chairs, professionals in your industry and customers. This account will help build your corporate rapport among professionals just as social media helps build brand awareness among your customer base.

While this is a great overview for beginning social media marketers, the real key to success here is in management. Once your company profiles are created in these networks, they need to be constantly nurtured with frequent updates, interacting with your peers and quick response times to inquiries and issues. This will tell your followers, fans or other readers that your company is well-managed and thorough.

By Alyssa Udall (@udallyss)

September 8th, 2009

The extraordinary boom of Twitter’s users, popularity and publicity sparks many interesting questions.  How many now frequent Tweeters knew about Twitter six months ago?  I know I didn’t.  Is there anyone on the Internet now that has not heard about Twitter?  It seems impossible that a moderate Internet user would have been able to avoid the insane amount of conversation going on about the micro-blogging service.  No one is immune to that amount of advertising.  If there are some select individuals who in their daily Internet use have not at least heard the name Twitter in passing, I would like to congratulate them on having an incredibly impermeable personality… and I may even suggest using this gift to fight crime… somehow.

Having said this, I would now like to bring up an interesting corollary: MySpace. MySpace also experienced this crazy popularity surge a few years back. What has become of MySpace now? It has become a network devoid of adults and full of half-famous music groups.  Can you imagine your mother on MySpace? Didn’t think so. MySpace is not a place for mothers.  Why not?  Sadly, MySpace now resembles an Internet dating site: it lacks substance and class.

What does the MySpace case tell us about the future of Twitter? Just like any fad, it will eventually fade away. Just like my favorite orange sandals I wore in elementary school, made of a jelly-like substance and aptly named “Jellies,” Twitter will eventually go out of style.  How ridiculous would I look if I wore Jellies into the office tomorrow?  My coworkers would most likely see my footwear, do a double-take, then whisper conspiratorially behind their hands to each other, “Jellies? Are your serious?! I bet she uses MySpace too.”

How soon will Twitter become a thing of the past?  It’s too soon to tell.  In order to prepare for this post-apocalyptic world of social media, TwiTip suggests making memorable connections with those you meet on Twitter, exchanging information and establishing relationships.  See more tips in their article, “5 Steps To Take To Prepare For A Post Twitter World.”

Stay tuned for more Social Media news, tips and tricks from Submit Solution.

By Alyssa Udall (@udallyss)

September 8th, 2009

It’s finally here! Microsoft and Yahoo have reached a new deal which will allow Bing to power all Yahoo searches, while Yahoo focuses on producing content and other products. Now that Microsoft and Yahoo have finally reached a merger agreement, it would be helpful to explore the changes this partnership will make on SEO and Pay-Per-Click advertising.

With the new deal in place, Yahoo search will now be powered by Microsoft’s new Bing search technology. This situation changes the game for PPC in a few ways.

Here are some aspects of paid search you can expect to see change:

Even out the market share. For years, Google has accounted for over sixty percent of all search-engine queries. Now that one of Google’s competitors, Yahoo, has been eliminated, Bing has the opportunity to finally be competitive with them. While most PPC ads will be focused toward Google for the next few years, Bing has the chance to gain many new clients in the future.

Double the fun. For loyal Yahoo users who will continue to use their search engine, Bing will receive double the traffic. PPC ads in Bing will also be highly successful, as their content will now be displayed in the results for two prominent search engines. To sweeten the deal, these ads will also be shown in relative MSN content, boosting the overall exposure of all Bing’s PPC clients. However, the conglomerate Google will still rule this field for awhile to come.

Let the games begin. As Bing continues to grow, bids for PPC ads will become increasingly competitive. As Bing tends to have less strict regulations than Google on quality scores and other measures, it can be expected that PPC on Bing will definitely see a boom at the beginning of the merger deal. However, as Bing becomes more competitive with Google, they will most likely raise these regulations to become more like their rival and increase the quality of their results.

As we advance further into this development, it will be interesting to see how Bing grows and how Google reacts to the competition. As history has frequently shown us, competition tends to breed better products, services and customer satisfaction. There should be no exception with this search-engine duel!

By Robert Lockard

With the release of its Magellan Merchant service on August 31, Magellan Commerce has become the first one-stop shop for businesses looking for website, branding and online payment solutions. No company has ever offered both an ecommerce platform and merchant services until recently.

There is a huge demand among online businesses for a simple, low-cost merchant service. That’s why Magellan Commerce combined its expertise at Web design with this new merchant service. Now businesses won’t have to work with several different companies to build their website and then allow customers to pay with credit cards online. It can all be handled by Magellan Commerce for an amazingly low price.

Here are some of Magellan Merchant’s great features:

- No setup fees

- Low transaction rates

- Low, 5-cent monthly fee

- No contracts

- No minimum monthly transactions

- PCI-compliant security protocols to protect against identity theft

Magellan Merchant services are only available to Magellan Commerce customers. Magellan Commerce is an innovative ecommerce platform that specializes in designing websites and logos for small businesses. eHarbor, Inc. is the parent company of both Magellan Commerce and Submit Solution.

To find out more about Magellan Commerce and Magellan Merchant, go to www.magellancommerce.com or call 1-800-925-1647.

By Britnee Nguyen

Here’s the new marketing technique: Companies using top bloggers to write, blog, and talk all about their product. How do they convince bloggers to willingly do this for free? They give them goodies.

Ford Motor created a new model “Fiesta” that is set to launch next year. Instead of spending money on expensive advertising, they got 100 top bloggers to talk about the product for six months. Bloggers were enticed to do this because they received the “Fiesta for the entire six months.

Not just large corporations are taking advantage of the power bloggers have, but local companies have taken advantage of this also. For example, a small jewelry shop in Utah was giving away free pearl necklaces for a few weeks. How did they get the word out? They invited the top Utah women bloggers to the shop and gave them free stuff then asked them to talk about their experience and post the free coupon on their blog. Their turnout was more than expected through this campaign.

Next time you read on someone’s blog about a product, think twice. They might have been given the actual product or other freebies to get them to talk about it, so it might not be a completely true opinion about it. Nonetheless, companies have found a great way to tap into the on-line community to get the word out about their products in a cheap way.