Marketing in a Web 2.0 World - Using Social Media, Webinars, Blogs, and More to Boost Your Small Business on a Budget »

Small businesses have been fighting an uphill battle for decades when it comes to marketing. Big corporations have more resources, more brand recognition, and most importantly, more money. This has allowed them to control the conversation. Web 2.0 technologies have leveled the playing field by giving small business an equal voice. Tools like blogs, interactive Web sites, and social networks have become some of the most powerful marketing tools for many small business owners. As of late 2009, more than 55.6 million adults, about 1/3 of the population, access social networks at least once a month — an 18 percent increase from 2008, according to Forrester Research. Social networks like Facebook, LinkedIn, Myspace, and Twitter provide marketers direct access to their customers in a way never before possible. Businesses of all sizes can reach their target audience quickly and effectively through these tools but only when used correctly.

Marketing in a Web 2.0 World shows you how to take advantage of the latest technologies to market your business. The best part is that many of the tools require little or no money to implement. You will learn how the social Web, and the various social networks that make it up, has fundamentally altered how the Internet is used as a marketing tool, allowing businesses to reach out and touch their target demographics like never before. You will be able to recognize and start optimizing your site to reach those demographics, and you will understand how your customers use the social web. You will learn how to establish your Web site as your marketing hub, drawing in visitors through the best search engine optimization (SEO) practices, Webinars, and blogs. You will find that Web 2.0 and social media marketing is not a fad but a fundamental shift in how business is being done today.

Dozens of individuals have been interviewed for this book, from small business owners to marketing directors at national brands, providing their expert opinions and insights in to how the Web has evolved and what it will mean for the future of business marketing and promotion. You will learn how the perspective of marketing firms in major companies across the world has changed and how a small business’s message can reach a global audience. You will learn how to use videos and podcasts alongside topnotch Web copywriting to reach your target while establishing yourself as a leader in your industry. If you are a small business owner, or just someone itching to make a big impact in Web 2.0, and has lost sleep worrying about your marketing budget, Marketing in a Web 2.0 World shows you how to take advantage of the most important resources available to any businesses willing to invest their time.

Foreword 13

Introduction: The Game has not Changed, Just the Venue 17

Chapter 1 Evolving Traditional Marketing for the Web 21

Start Slow with Web 2.0 and Social Media 21

Which Principles to Apply to Web 2.0 Marketing 22

Five P's of marketing 22

Marketing Myopia 31

Relationship Marketing 36

Chapter 2 The Difference Between Push and Pull Marketing 47

What is Push (Outbound) Marketing? 47

One-sided conversations 48

What is Pull (Inbound) Marketing? 51

The Only Way to Market on a Budget 53

Do not pay for exposure: Produce it 56

Comparing the Costs of the Two Approaches 58

Chapter 3 Making Your Website Truly Interactive 61

Using Interactive Elements 62

Content management systems 63

Forums 67

Newsletters and e-mail promotions 68

Polls/surveys 73

Contact forms 75

Low-cost Ways to Implement and Maintain These Elements 76

Targeted landing pages 77

Creating a compelling call to action 80

Chapter 4 Getting Search Engines to Notice Your Site 83

Pay Per Click Versus Organic 85

Long-term savings versus initial cost 85

Determining Your Best Keywords 86

Where and how often to use keywords 89

Implementing OtherOrganic, Free Search Methods 91

Metadata and how to modify it 91

Fresh content 93

Inbound Link Strategy 93

The Role of Website Features in Search Results 95

Dynamic, fresh text 95

When to Expect Results 99

The spidering process 100

Analytics to monitor goals 103

How to stay on top 106

Avoiding the Dreaded Google "Sandbox" 108

Chapter 5 The Benefits of a Business Blog 113

Determining the Goal of Your Business Blog 114

Build a community 115

Search engine optimization 116

Balancing the two 117

Setting up a Blog 117

SEO benefits of your blog on your domain 118

Pushing fresh content to your site 119

What to Write for Your Blog 121

Keyword-rich titles 123

Have a personality 125

Links, images, and videos 126

Frequency of posts 127

Getting the Most Out of Your Blog 128

Blog roll 128

RSS feeds 130

Comment to build relationships 130

Promote your posts on other mediums 132

Chapter 6 Stop Talking, Start Listening - Social Networks as Focus Groups 135

An Overview of Social Networks 135

How did they start? 136

Where are they today? 137

People Want to Interact with Other People 143

Dipping Your Toes in the Water: Listening versus Talking 145

Choosing which networks to join 145

Locking in your name 146

Creating your personal profiles 148

Wading Through the Noise 156

The surveillance tools 160

Chapter 7 Joining - Not Controlling - The Conversation 165

Deciding on Your Approach 165

What is your incentive? 166

The importance of transparency and the backlash of deceit 172

Populating and Propagating 176

Customizing your business' profiles 176

Leverage your existing content 177

Creating content relevant to the medium 179

Promoting the Positive 180

Dealing with the Negative 182

Set a schedule 184

Chapter 8 Building Your Network 189

Twitter: Interact With Customers, Prospects, and Peers 190

Software might not bring you the right followers 190

Reciprocate requests 193

Consider the cost to follow someone 194

Reach out to existing contacts 196

Search for people talking about your industry 197

Follow people attending events you are attending 199

Locate leaders in your industry 199

Keep your tweets relevant 200

Facebook: Focus on Customers and Prospects 201

Pages versus profiles, fans versus friends 202

Filtering out the noise 203

Take advantage of the events feature 205

"Like" and comment on company info 206

Facebook "connect" and custom apps 207

Join groups and get involved 211

Advertise your page through PPC ads 212

LinkedIn: Professional Networking at its Best 216

Join all relevant networks to be found 216

Import your contacts 216

Join industry groups 217

Get involved in Q&A 217

The power of recommendations 218

Take advantage of the apps 218

Get Everyone Involved: Defining Roles Within Your Company 219

Chapter 9 Establish Yourself as an Expert Online 223

The Benefits of Expert Status 224

The Power of Video 225

You cannot force viral 225

Selecting the right video tools 227

Webinars: Advertising in Disguise 230

Before the presentation 230

Practice makes perfect 233

Getting the most out of your time 234

Chapter 10 PR 2.0: Moving Past the Press Release 237

The Paradigm Shift 237

Press releases can still drive traffic 239

A HARO Subscription: The Best Free Tool for Marketers Today 241

Using HARO as a publisher 243

When to reply 244

Other ways to connect with reporters 245

The Role of Blogs in PR 2.0 246

Chapter 11 The New Metrics for Measuring Success 249

Metrics Everyone Should Follow 250

Basic social media metrics 252

Evaluating sentiment 254

Metrics to Follow to Get Promoted 256

Determining what constitutes a financial impact 258

Establishing a starting point 259

Conclusion 263

Appendix: Resources 265

Glossary 275

Bibliography 281

Biography 283

Index 285