This morning table59 answered this question for brand new tour guides starting off in the sector. The Northern Ireland Tourist Guide Association (NITGA) invited table59 to share some practical tips with the attendees.

Stuart McLean from table59 first of all highlighted why online marketing was really important for tour guides before picking out three practical and straight forward steps they should take.

Step One: Register with Google Places

Check out an earlier table59 bblog on how to register for Google Places.

Step Two: Set up a Website Blog

Given that most customers will not already know you, Google Search becomes really important. It is therefore necessary to have a presence on the Internet which should contain a blog, some information about your background, testimonials and qualifications and of course a really easy way for visitors to contact you!

Step Three: Set up a Facebook Page

Facebook is a referral mechanism and should be linked with your blog, whuch means that a new Facebook post is created every time you publish a new Blog entry. This makes it easier to manage.

This was a fantastic bunch of attendees – thanks to everyone who attended!!

The post I’m a Tourist Guide. Why should I bother to Market Online? appeared first on table59.

The first piece of good news was that almost everyone who had attended the previous week’s session had returned for the final week. The attrition rate over a two week session is probably the best way of measuring the effectiveness of a trainer and I’m pleased to report that this particular trainer did quite well!!!

Last week’s session was all about how to set up an online store covering the bit boring but necessary topics of Payment Gateways, Structuring a Catalogue and understanding the terribly complicated jargon that experts use to baffle small businesses with the objective of charging them more money. We did also ponder the question, “Why?” which pops up on some psychology exams and is equally appropriate in the world of online marketing – i.e. why are we constructing an online store? We took time to remind ourselves of the obvious, yet oft overlooked answer to this question, which is to make money (not to create a beautiful website without phone number, email address or other means of transacting with the proprietor).

This week’s session moved on to the more interesting topic of promotion. The conventional PowerPoint presentation was soon abandoned in favour of the more practical but risky online demonstration. We agreed that failure to promote your online store equates to building a shop on the side of the mournes (mountain range in the middle of nowhere for anyone who hasn’t heard of the mournes).

Firstly we took time to explain the basics of Google and why it is important to rank on the first page of this and other search engines for chosen keywords. We then used Google’s Keyword Tool to show how to choose keywords using the mantra that if people don’t search for it, why appear on the first page of Google for it? We then took the step of building a blog entry the Google way, showing how to deploy keywords into the various important places of the web page.

Then we discussed linking and spent some time on probably the most important business directory of them all, which is Google Places. A step by step guide was outlined and this trainer sincerely hopes that all attendees have now done the necessary and are eagerly awaiting their postcard from California.

Social Media was next under the microscope with a practical review of managing a Facebook Page and recommendations on how to keep your SM up to date. This was followed by a review of email marketing and a practical demonstration of MailChimp, my top tip for effective email marketing. I should add at this point that I’m not receiving a commission payment from MailChimp, or any other recommended services, although if they are reading I am of courses open to offers.

And finally we discussed measurement, using Google Analytics as our measurement tool. Without measurement how do we know if our online marketing efforts are working? Analytics will tell us a wide range of useful things including number of visitors, where they are coming from and what they are looking at. I have built a Google Analytics dashboard, which extracts the most pertinent information from your website performance, which is called Website Manager and can be researched on my site at www.table59.co.uk.

I would like to extend my thanks to all who attended and remind them that I am happy to provide advice….

The post table59 helps Small Businesses to Promote their Online Stores appeared first on table59.

The session was part of a two-session course designed to provide practical guidance to businesses on how to set up an online store.  It covered the following areas:

• What is the Opportunity for businesses to sell online?
• What is the Risk in running an Online Business – is it really for me?
• What are the Resources required to set up an Online Store?
• A beginner’s guide to the baffling Internet jargon
• Making sure your Online Store has clear Objectives and Calls to Action

The session then focussed on the practicalities of setting up two Online Stores – the first being a straight-forward store based on a simple form system, and the second a more complex store.

Evaluations from the session were extremely positive and we look forward to the second session on Friday.

Thank-you to everyone who attended!

A copy of the presentation is available here:

May 2013, E-Commerce Programme - Session One - SETTING UP YOUR STORE
May 2013, e-Commerce Programme - Session One - SETTING UP YOUR STORE.ppt

1.2 MiB
3 Downloads
Details

First part of a two session course for small businesses on how to build an online business.

Author:	Stuart McLean
Category:	CIDO e-Commerce Course - May 2013
Date:	May 17, 2013

The post CIDO Small Businesses Learn how to set up an Online Store appeared first on table59.

The session evaluations were extremely positive with attendees taking away a number of practical online marketing tips and tricks.

The session was designed to show “non-Internet-experts” how to promote their business using the web.   Almost 10,000 people search for “solicitors in Belfast” via Google?, which means that no solicitor can afford to ignore the Internet as a source of new business.

Its focus was on taking practical steps to increase interest in your business, leading to new sales leads.

The session was presented using non-technical language to be understood by any level of Internet user.

The session covered the following topics:

• Why use the Internet to promote your business?
• A beginners guide to Internet jargon
• The basics of setting up and managing a website
• How can Google help me reach more customers?
• Is Facebook just for my kids?
• Using e-Mail as a marketing tool
• Measuring the outcomes

A big thanks to the Law Society to inviting Stuart McLean to present at the event!

The post The Law Society helps their Members to understand Online Marketing appeared first on table59.

Marketing online means Google. Sure there are many other Search Engines, but most people use Google, so let’s focus on that.

Of course acceptance that Google may be a source of new business for you is one thing; actually making that happen is another. This article explains the basic steps to understanding how Google can be made to work for your business.

Google works on the basis of keywords, that’s to say the words that people type into the search box on Google.co.uk. The trick is to know which keywords your prospective clients type in to find businesses in your sector and then to make sure you appear on the first page of the respective search results. Easy right? Well, sort of…

Finding out which keywords they type in is not difficult. Simply use the Google Keyword Tool to try out some keywords. The tool will tell you how many people are searching for these keywords in your territory every month and how much competition there is for those keywords.

It might be best to steer off the high competition keywords from this tool as it will be quite difficult to rank on Page One of Google for these. Best to target the medium or preferably low competition keywords, which will likely require some lateral thinking on your behalf!

Armed with your keywords (have one main keyword and a few related keywords) then it’s a matter of deploying them on your site and elsewhere. This is a topic which could stretch to many many blog posts so I’ll write another to detail the process.

For now, conduct your keyword research and build your list. Then watch this space for the next steps.

The post The Keyword Challenge appeared first on table59.

Your Logo and Website are incredibly important as they represent your new brand – the public face of your business. The difficulty is that most start-up businesses don’t have much money to spare in the early stages, so achieving value for money is crucial. Follow these 5 steps to make sure you get the best value for money on a unique and attractive logo and website:

• Simple is Best: You might be tempted to spend hours and days in a dark room thinking about your logo design – don’t! Pull together a list of logos that you like (and don’t) and use these as a guide for how yours should look. Sometimes a simple logo with your business name is best.
• Think about how your Logo will be used: Remember that the logo will set the colour scheme for your website and business stationery. It also needs to fit snugly into your website and probably into loads of other business directories.
• Keep your Website clean and straight-forward: Your website is a tool to generate leads for your business, period. That means that its only objective is to encourage visitors to it to make contact by phone, email or through a Contact Form. These are your website’s “Calls to Action”.
• Pick a Web Company that you can trust: You have enough to focus on without having to understand technical jargon – let your Web Company look after all that for you. Check to make sure they have a good portfolio of clients and have been around for a while.
• Don’t spend your entire budget on your Logo and Website: You need a brand and Internet presence for your start-up business. It will grow as you business grows, so there’s no need to invest too much money at the outset.

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The post Expert tips on Logo and Website Design appeared first on table59.

Here is our list of top “Dos and Don’ts” for the sector based on years of experience:

• Simple is Best:  Your website is a tool to generate leads for your business, period.  That means that its only objective is to encourage visitors to it to make contact by phone, email or through a Contact Form.  These are your website’s “Calls to Action”.  We also recommend Facebook, but I’ll come to that in a moment.
• Make your Calls to Action easy to find:  Make sure your phone number, email address, physical address and Contact Form are easily visible on every page.   Don’t hide them away somewhere making them hard to find.
• Split your services into separate web pages:  This is important as Google ranks each web page differently based on the content of that page.
• Sign up for Google Places:  A free and very powerful marketing service provided by Google to reach out to local customers.
• Write a Blog:  Blogs on a relevant topic provide a reason for visitors to come back to your website.
• Create a Facebook Page:  Put simply, Facebook is a referral mechanism for businesses and therefore cannot be ignored.
• Mobile is the Future:  By this time next year more people will browse the Internet on their mobile phone than using a desktop computer.   Make sure your website can be viewed on a mobile device.

We would like to help you to implement the “Dos” and avoid the “Don’ts” so contact us for a free consultation.

The post We Lead the Way in Solicitor Web Design appeared first on table59.

Let me try to explain in simple terms what a mobile website is and why every small business needs one.

It’s hard to believe but by this time next year more people will be surfing the Internet using a mobile device than a desktop computer. This makes sense when we think about the number of smart phones on the market right now and the fact that mobile operators want to sell as much data as they can. People are on the go more often now and they are using their phones as an information source.

So what does all this mean for the small business? Well, put simply it means that they need to make sure that their website loads quickly ona mobile device and that it contains information needed by customers who are on the move. This includes things like Contact Details, including a map; menus for cafes and restaurants; opening hours and most importantly an easy to find phone number.

All of our websites are now built to be mobile-ready, or “responsive” as the techies like to call it. But you don’t care what the techies call it, you just care that it works for you in driving more customers to your business.

To find out more about this story, or any story that we host, please contact us on info@chooboo.com.

The post So why do you need a Mobile Website? appeared first on table59.

Depending on your business model, you might use Twitter to conduct customer service, see what your competitors are up to, or promote your brand.

But more and more of our clients are asking us: “How do I actually make money from Twitter?”.

Create a Strategy

Before you can think about making money on Twitter, make sure you have a strategy or plan for using Twitter.

Some tips would be:

- Use a desktop application such as TweetDeck to manage your accounts.
- Setup different Twitter accounts for your personal and business sites.
- Establish yourself an THE definitive authority in your particular area.
- Follow lists that relate to your area and then create lists.
- Retweet others, especially influencers, to get on their radars.
- Work on Twitter (not play!) for at least 30 minutes every day.

Once you’ve got this discipline in place, start looking at how the most successful businesses use Twitter.

For example, some share quality information, others generate buzz, others inspire, and some are deliberately controversial. They use different styles to attract readers, engage, and increase their sphere of influence.

So, before you start selling on Twitter, monitor how others do it, adapt their tactics, and then see what works for you. The key fact here is:  if your audience trusts you as a person, they’ll be more likely to buy from you in the end!

Let’s Make Some Money On Twitter

Now that you have the tools, made observations, and seen mistakes others make, how can you start to make money on Twitter?

Sell your Product

Start by developing a Twitter following around the benefits your product offers – not the actual product itself.

An example? Instead of selling websites, share tweets about the benefits of having a website, how to use websites more effectively, tips and tricks for website marketing, and other useful information that encourages others to share your tweets.

Then, once you have a critical mass of interested followers, drop in a subtle tweet selling your product and ask your followers to retweet it.

Find leads via Search

You can use the search function on Twitter.com (or, even better, use a social media management platform like TweetDeck) to find leads and generate sales on Twitter.

Enter, for example, ‘web design?’ (note the question mark). This returns tweets with questions about web design.

Answer the question and direct people back to your site. In other words, use the search to find problems others are having and then position yourself as an expert in this area. This is a very simple and effective way to interact with potential clients.

This will take some trial and error, but once you’ve got up to ten good keywords, you have a great source of potential leads.

Tip: in order to reach out to potential leads, you will have to send unsolicited messages via Twitter. You should send an @mention to possible leads using a very soft sell, and letting them know that you found them via Twitter.

Interact with Followers

Social media isn’t like any other type of communication. It offers businesses new ways to connect to potential customers in two-way conversations.

You can make money on Twitter by getting your followers involved in your business. Run a campaign asking for creative input from your customers, like getting them to design a logo or write a product description/ review for you. This may not initially lead directly to sales, but it will increase your visibility on Twitter as well as the brand loyalty of your followers.

Sponsor Tweets

Once you have a critical mass of followers in a specific area, for example, developing web sites for the Financial Sector, contact companies in this sector and offer sponsored tweets.

Some final tips and tricks to making money on Twitter

- Avoid hard-sells: Twitter users are looking for real connections and valuable information, not hard sales pitches.
- Don’t use Twitter solely for making money: build a community, a brand presence, and engage with your followers.
- It’s not all about the followers: quality matters much more than quantity, so if you have a low follower count, you can still make money by achieving a high conversion rate or by generating leads using search.

Conclusion

Twitter is a numbers game depending on your following (and quality of followers), but it works once you get followers who share, retweet, and spread the word about your business. And the key word here is Share. Having followers is fine, but actually connecting with those who spread the message – that’s how you’ll make money on Twitter!

The post Do Businesses Really Make Money On Twitter? appeared first on table59.

Over 15 years and 8,000 websites later, I feel like I have a reasonably strong understanding of what makes a good website.   Sometimes however it is easier to explain the “Don’ts” rather than the “Dos”, so here are my top 5 common mistakes that businesses make when it comes to their website.

Why oh why do you need a Website?

I apologise for seeming glib, but it’s important to ask yourself that question.   You would be amazed at the number of businesses who build their website without understanding what it is there to achieve.  Is it there to generate sales leads?  If not it is likely a complete waste of money.  So, before your geeky website developer lays their pimply hand on a keyboard, write down how you see the website generating sales leads and make sure everything stems from there.  These are your website objectives.

I can’t find your phone number

Tell me this.  Have you ever wanted to reserve a table at a restaurant but can’t find their phone number on their website?   Me too, and it’s very frustrating.  Surely the point of the website is to encourage reservations?  Certainly the website visitor may like to peruse the menu and marvel at the gallery of photographs, but there comes a point when they will want to act and that means picking up the phone (or going to a competitor’s website).  So, based on your website objectives, make sure your Calls to Action are clear and accessible.  These Calls to Action may be your phone number, your e-Mail address and your Contact Form.

Too much information

People seem to have become incredibly impatient these days.  The Internet facilitates abundant choice, allowing your prospective clients to flit between competing websites in an instant.   The information you put on your website has therefore got to be just right.

I have just completed the website for a major Financial Services company, where their intention was to publish large amounts of information about mortgage products, insurance policies and so forth – probably enough information to confound the hardiest of visitors and send them to slumber.    Most businesses love to go into incredible detail about their product or service on their website but trust me, the average visitor won’t take the time to read it.

The fact of the matter is that visitors to your website only need a taste of what the company can provide – only just enough for them to pick up the phone or fill in a Contact Form.    It is fundamentally important not to lose the sale on the website by providing too much information.

So, with your website objectives in mind ask yourself, “What is the minimum I need to say about my business on the website to encourage the visitor to perform a Call to Action?”  Write your website content accordingly and ask someone else to review it – you are far too close to be objective!

No Free Offering?

Imagine you received 1,000 visitors to your website last month but only 10 people contacted you to enquire about your services.  It’s agonising to think that 990 people walked away from your website without doing a thing.  What if you could begin a conversation with these people, with a view to selling them something at some future point?

This is why I recommend a Free Offering – a no-obligation, free, no strings attached, free, complimentary offering.  Your Free Offering could be a Free Publication or better, an offer of a Free Consultation or Health Check to review some aspect of the visitors’ legal position in this world.   People love things for free.  And of course, you and I know that a Free Consultation will build trust and a sale may be on the horizon.   But, I hear you say, I can’t afford to offer such things for free, because they cost time and money.  I say to you, how much is an average client worth to you in gross margin over their lifetime?  If it’s less than the cost of your Free Offering I would be very much surprised.

There’s no point in having a Website if people can’t find it

Many businesses spend thousands building a website that is a work of art.  The contact details are clearly accessible, the information is just right and the Free Offering is in plain view.   The problem is that no one can find it on the Internet.

The common mistake is that when the website is built and live on the Internet it then needs to be promoted.  It is important to register with Search Engines like Google and with appropriate online Business Directories, including Google Places.   If you have built up a list of your client’s e-Mail addresses, now is the time to send them regular e-Newsletters encouraging them to visit your website.

Everything that is covered in this article is explored in a series of Free Online Marketing courses available (at no cost) from www.Chooboo.com

If you would like to register for this free course simply fill in the following form:

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