Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is about improving the volume and quality of traffic to your website.

It can take months to get indexed for a competitive term.

Do you want visits to your website or people ready to buy calling you

? Why wait?  An effective Internet Marketing campaign can find ready buyers rather than people just doing research on a product or service.

In spite of this fact, the marketing budgets of most firms are 80 percent or more focused on finding new customers, as opposed to retaining customers.

Customer Retention

Customer retention is a serious issue and it can serious affect the bottom line. In order to solve the quandary as to why customers go elsewhere, you have to start by asking yourself a few fundamental questions:

-       Why did they come to you in the first place?

-       Did you deliver on that concept?

-       Did they go to a less costly competitor, one with better service, or one with better products/services (e.g. more features, specific features)?

The fact is that almost 70 percent of customers leave because they are unhappy with the service they receive. Their complaints, while they may include something such as may clarity of rules (e.g. certain items/services excluded from  a sale), communication (e.g. received no response to an email or phone call, no notice of a delay in delivery) is a far bigger issue.

Communication Tools

To this end, a variety of services, many of which are free or of very low cost, have emerged. They allow you a framework for communication with your clients: complete with a calendar of milestones and expected completion dates, a place to upload files (including the very large ones difficult to email), a message board to ensure communication between all parties, a common information board (e.g. contact information, project outline), and an overview of what has been uploaded, posted, or added most recently. There are three main players: SharePoint, Basecamp, and Google Wave. Each is very different from the other.

SharePoint

SharePoint is a creation of Microsoft. Its primary function is to facilitate communication within a team; the primary focus is on content management. SharePoint is the best in situations where there is a volume of documents integral to the project, as SharePoint has great sorting features. It also allows for customized workflows and certain automation of processes. It works well in situations that include a large number of players, a large number of documents, and a high need for customization. It is commonly used at an organizational level and is common in larger companies.

Basecamp

Basecamp is a simple program. It is allows its users to share documents, post messages, upload files, record milestones, and have an overview as to what has happened with regard to the project most recently. It is best used in environments where a company has a variety of projects ongoing, each with varying timeframes, and in scenarios where there is a different level of involvement for each player, such as one suppliers may be involved in two projects while another may supply necessary components to all but one project.

The Concept of “Team”

Whatever method you choose, success in business is all about the team. When you start a business, the focus is on building your internal team. As that business grows, the concept of “team” is expanded to include suppliers, distributors, customers, and complementary product producers. Keeping your standard of communication and team integration high can help ensure that you retain a greater percentage of

Putting social marketing to work for you is one of the best investments of your time.  Dollar for dollar and hour for hour, money and time invested into your Facebook fan page will do so much more than simply establish your business’ online presence; social media marketing can increase sales and introduce your product or service to the millions of people around the world who log on daily to social networking sites.

Increasing your commitment to social media marketing can yield measurable results:
•    Watch your fan base grow as friends tell friends about your business and the great things happening on your fan page.
•    Increase profits by implementing shopping features on Facebook that allow customers to conduct transactions right on your page.
•    Enjoy all of the benefits of a traditional website right on Facebook by turning your fan page into a shopping gallery where customers can view and read all about your products or services.

Make social media work for you with simple, low-cost tips:
•    Starting a fan page is one thing; maintaining it is another!  Commit time each week to social media networking by replying to fan page posts and engaging with your fans.  Doing so lets them know how much you value their loyalty and referrals to friends.
•    Link your website to your fan page, and vice versa.  Make it easy for people to navigate between the two.

•    Create a customized landing page for new visitors to your Facebook fan page.  Requiring them to click the “Like” button before they can access your full page is a powerful marketing strategy that doesn’t cost a dime!
•    Keep your fan page fresh with quick posts and status updates now and then that make your page seem timely and current.  Your posts will appear in your fans’ newsfeeds, which will get your business name out there and generate brand name recognition.

Starting a social media marketing campaign is only half the battle.  Keeping that campaign alive and exciting for your online fans is what will make or break your goal of putting social media to work for you.  Thankfully, once your initial social media campaign is launched and established, it is virtually cost-free to enhance and pump life into it.  A little time dedicated to maintaining social media marketing will pay off in big ways!

For the newest innovations in online marketing, business owners trust the social media professionals at Denver Internet Marketers for creative and affordable social marketing solutions that get results.