Don’t Ignore Your Business E-mail Etiquette

One top overlooked things new online business owners disregard the importance of is to address their Business E-mail Etiquette Skills — or lack thereof.

Many are used to only communicating with family and friends and in their incorrect belief that e-mail is an informal communication tool, proceed to communicate on behalf of their business in a way that does not lend to being perceived as an educated, credible professional.

Just because you may be typing in your jammies on the couch does not mean you relay that level of casualness in your business e-mails.

Online, perception is the only reality. Type like a sixth grader and that is how you will be perceived. Send e-mails with little courtesy, filled with types and incomplete sentences and how can you expect new customers to trust their hard earned dollars with you?

For an investment of under fifteen bucks you can have all these bases covered and take the risk that you will be perceived negatively right off the table by reading, absorbing and then putting into practice the information in the following eBook:

Business E-mail Etiquette eBook

Then, while you are at that site, sign up to get updates and you’ll get the author’s weekly posts delivered right into your inbox. This is a competitive issue folks and one you cannot risk being outperformed on!

Why Just Build A Site When You Could Build A Business?

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Major schools like The Citadel Military College offer SBI!. Why?

SBI! owners do not just “put up Web sites.” They build genuine, profitable, evergrowing businesses. And that, in turn, delivers life-changing freedom (the “It!” in Site Build It!).

You can do the same, build Web sites that work, with SBI!.

“Business on the Web” seems like one big, unbeatable mystery. SBI! owners often start from that point, and often with zero-knowledge. They venture forth, though. Step-by-step, they build business and freedom. View testimonials below and then go check SBI out!

Why Not to Blog Checklist

I am always encouraging folks to Blog. Whether for business or pleasure, Blogs are a great way to share your expertise, opinions and life experiences. And they are a great marketing tool when done correctly. From my point of view there is no down-side to having a Blog.

All but one… time. To write good stuff, interesting stuff, stuff that is desired and read; takes allot of time. I have 3 Blogs now and they are simply taking up too much of my time — time I really need to spend on other aspects of my growing business.

So I went into my “wayback” machine to a post I found interesting from last year and reviewed it as it related to my current activities…

Should I Stop Blogging? 20 Questions to Ask Yourself

What I like about this post is that in asking if you should stop blogging, the author has actually given you an excellent list of reasons to Blog — and to help you create a valuable Blog that you enjoy posting to and that will have visitors want to come back for more.

So if you are Blogging and not getting the results that you would like or just starting a Blog — maybe follow the link above, read the article and the comments (some great stuff there too) and maybe you can get your Blog cooking!

At the end of the day, good Blogs have authors who take the time to create info packed posts written with a passion for you to read. They share their resources and knowledge freely without any expectation of payback and that my friends, does takes time.

In the case of my time dilemma, I will now only be posting on Tuesdays and Thursdays on all three of my Blogs. Hopefully cutting back on a day or two, from my usual 3-4 times each week, can help me make ends meet when it comes to my time budget.

The Saturated Web

Over the weekend, due the cold weather I found myself stuck inside; pondering. First, I apologize for the length of this post. Some topics just do not fit in 2-3 short little paragraphs and this is one of them. Secondly, I wanted to find a way of relaying the reality of what of the current online environment entails so that you have your head tightly screwed on for the year ahead.

Since the start of the “Webolution” I have been extremely serious about the issues that ensure clients are aware of all the business variables that succeeding online would require from both sides. Back in the day it was relatively easy to get a your site found if you worked with a developer who knew the basics in regard to clean code and search engine algorithms.

From the start my goal has always been to translate to my clients the necessary information, skills and knowledge acquisition that they needed so that their online business could thrive. This was never a passive gig. The information I supplied back then included the details about how to get found through search engines and ongoing marketing strategies that had to be employed. Providing this information was naturally a part of my programs then and still is to this day.

Fast forward to the closing of 2008. Every day as I consult businesses on the reality of what it takes to get network exposure in the current environment — most seem stuck in the mid to late nineties. I hear in their voice that they don’t like the reality of what I advise will be required.

I don’t blame them for wanting to believe that what was, still is. Or to think the latest spam has some validity. Yes, back then a bit of effort and a few submissions fees and you did get found. It was relatively inexpensive and required minimal effort. You also probably only had a handful of competitors who had a presence worth worrying about.

The past was a piece of cake compared to current times. Still I pushed clients to create content rich sites, to update their presentation to look better than their perceived competitors and to brush up on their technology skills so they would be taken seriously. Funny how some things never change. Now these issues are no longer a consideration, they are a must as you have to be the best you can be to stand a chance of succeeding online.

Everyone I’ve talked to about spam hates it – except when it is lands in their inbox preaching easy money, top ten rankings guaranteed, no effort online success! I get spam every day purporting to be able to get me new business, new customers, hundreds of orders each day if I followed their program or bought their eBook.

Let’s just get it out on the table – there is no magic wand! Getting found is black and white as we come to the end of 2008. There are no stealth doorway pages, continual fiddling with the keyword tag, tricks or code snippets you can add that will “fool” the search engines into giving a crummy, outdated, commonplace or otherwise uninteresting site a top page listing. Only those content rich valuable and popular sites that I am constantly talking about are the ones that garner good “organic” (free) listings. And, P.S: If you think you will survive by relying on free search engine listings alone — you won’t.

For almost every search your potential customers may make, you will find tens of thousands if not hundreds of thousands (in some cases millions) of competing sites pulling for the very same search terms. This means you need to do your due diligence, have a strategy, a niche, something unique that is tweaked and tested continually to find the right mix that produces for your specific market. No strategy? No traffic.

I can hear you on the other side of the screen… “So what’s the point of having a Web site if you can’t get found?” Good question. You certainly can get found but don’t kid yourself – you have to work at it — almost every day for perpetuity.

The Web still offers abundant advantages for any business that is serious about leveraging the benefits of technology for commercial gain. It’s just that now, you have no choice but to be rabidly involved or the results are non-existent. If your competitor’s sites are more current than yours, are engaged in social media and networking, have more valuable information and functionality, you can count on the fact your site visitors are using their Back button when they hit your site.

If you don’t look like you’re in the “now”; you don’t have credibility.

Search engines are an automated process run by computers that don’t think — you are listed based on an ever changing algorithm. You need to be know how that works (or work with someone who does) so you can use it to your advantage. Then you add to the mix that PPCs are not only a “science fair project” to setup and manage, but the fact that the costs are way beyond what most small businesses can entertain and I understand this very quickly becomes a frustrating marketing dilemma. But it is what it is…

The saturated Web requires time, skills, knowledge and cost factors to participate if you want to rise above the noise. Knowing what they are, embracing them and how to best use them to your advantage is the only way you will get found and experience any sort of ROI moving into the new year.

I’m not being glum; I’m being realistic. I am still as excited, challenged and engaged with a sparkle of wonder in my eyes each and every day I go into my office and start working this keyboard. When you know what you are up against and embrace it with passion and commitment the sky is still the limit.

‘The pessimist complains about the wind;
The optimist expects it to change;
And the realist adjusts the sails.”

~William Arthur Ward

Do You Mean Business?

You mean business if you:

• Have well-written content that is grammatically correct and spelled properly. Your Web site is chock full of information that talks to your customer’s desires and needs.
• Have excellent photos and graphics that will represent the quality of your products and services — no clip art for you!
• You understand your profit margins and what you can sell your wares for to make money while remaining competitive.
• You have a marketing plan and budget to ensure you get the network visibility necessary to get found and produce orders/inquiries.
• You make sure your Web site’s design and layout is conducive to your company being perceived as a credible, legitimate and professional enterprise.
• You keep up with technology to ensure you can take advantage of new trends, tools and functionality that will give your business the edge over your perceived competitors.
• You budget the time to be involved and participate online by using networking sites and social media tools necessary to rising above the noise.

These are just a few of the details that I see are minimized or disregarded on a daily basis. Do you mean business?

If you want to succeed, you’d better look as if you mean business.
~ Jeanne Holm

Attn: Human — Are You Evolving?

With business online there is never a dull moment. Each day brings new opportunities, applications, scripts and ideas that you can integrate into your program. Sometimes it can be overwhelming when you look at all you can do, the potential, the opportunity!

Unfortunately, all too often onliners become complacent. They just want things to work and in one fell swoop! They don’t want to have to upgrade, modify, tweak or change. And things should remain the same — for years. Certainly not an effective approach when doing business online. The prize online goes to the leaders — not the lemmings!

It is pretty well-known that humans are resistant to change. But when it comes to online you have to be proportionately the opposite. Those who don’t change risk loosing credibility, customers and the advantage over their perceived competitors. While those who stay on the edge have ability to exploit the moment and gain market share. Yes, moment — more times than not that is all you’ll have to convert new visitors who land on your site.

In that case, it may be best to rethink why you are online. This is interactive technology after all and you need to be involved. This includes you being flexible and open to new concepts and different ways of doing things — things that could change and evolve again next week, next month, next year! Not to mention new applications and Web site features you can always be adding or upgrading for you to capitalize on. No Web program is ever complete — something can always be improved upon. You need to look at your online program as a perpetual work in progress!

Business as we know it has changed forever. Those who ride the wave and embrace the change will reap the benefits. Only those willing to be involved and go with the ups and downs, the rights the lefts of what works today but could be old news tomorrow, will succeed in a rabidly competitive environment. For those who are complacent — they will not be found, not be taken seriously and will not succeed.

So, get to it! Try something new! Learn some new things. Who cares if it is frustrating? That’s part of how you learn. It doesn’t hurt; really! Visit competitors sites and look at what features and functionality you can add to your site to enhance user experience and make their visit one that will convert. Upgrade where necessary, apply new methodologies — and if they don’t work — try some more.

No one person is the epitome of an expert with this gig. Each and every one of us is learning every day; and that won’t change for the foreseeable future! That is simply part and parcel of doing business online!

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