Happy Thanksgiving, Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Yahoo, Google Algorithm & Display Changes, Parades, Pies and Football: What your business can do to show gratitude and get promotion

Posted by Romain Malaganne on Nov 23, 2011

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Before I begin, let me repeat this comment that has been going around facebook for the past few days: I can’t find the people specifically so I did a search and got this:

 

“If you are reading this, it means you have enough education so that you can read and you have a computer or access to a computer and the internet. Chances are you also have sufficient protection from the elements, you’ve had at least one good meal today and you have enough clothing to keep you warm.”

 

Makes me think of Abe Maslow’s hierarchy of needs… food, shelter, clothing first… then you can move higher up on the intellectual and happiness scale. It’s hard to be happy when you are hungry and cold. You need to get comfort first before you can move on to making your life better. Some people are motivated by this; some people are depressed by it. Hopefully we are all motivated to seek better lives. And hopefully we are blessed by the powers that be and the powers and the universe in which you believe.

 

So on this Thanksgiving, (and every Thanksgiving and every day for that matter), let’s count our blessings instead of complaining about what we don’t have. And by the way, if you don’t have those things, what can you do to move yourself towards having those things?

 

Please visit http://www.successories.com/iquote/keywords/15958c95c2d99b9126ca.  Get a “thankful” quote on a motivational poster for your office!

 

Personally, as a (I would like to think) well-rounded and well-grounded individual living in the USA, I like Wednesday Addams view of Thanksgiving inAmerica:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=ccj2BH25c0I

 

As a vegetarian I am sort of NOT happy about these statistics: http://www.infoplease.com/spot/tgturkeyfacts.html

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, more than 45 million turkeys are cooked and eaten in theU.S.on Thanksgiving. Ewww and Yuck!

 

I much prefer these vegan recipes: http://www.sunset.com/food-wine/kitchen-assistant/vegan-side-dishes-00418000073746/

Thanks to my favorite food writer for pointing these out: http://adeenasussman.com/ (Also check out her pie baking skills to raise money for cancer awareness for http://www.sharsheret.org/blog/768/third-annual-pies-prevention-thanksgiving-bake-sale)

 

Thanks also to my favorite fake turkey food company for existing: http://tofurkey.com/

And if you do eat turkey and I haven’t converted you and you live near a Safeway, you must check out this hilarious video: http://www.youtube.com/user/SafewayInc?v=rZd3Xzr5tgI&feature=pyv&ad=

 

Thanksgiving also means great deals for shopping. In the real world it’s called “Black Friday.” When allof the business world reminds consumers that Christmas is coming soon and you should buy stuff for yourself, your home, your family, your friends and your colleagues.

 

Check out the #1 for “Black Friday”

http://bfads.net – good for you. You just got a link from me I know I need to buy some stuff. Thanks!

 

Online we have “Cyber Monday,” the Monday after Black Friday when anything that wasn’t sold in the store goes online. But the truth is you can start buying things at a discount today. But Cyber-Monday sounds cool anyway.

 

Thanksgiving also means football for you real men and women out there. The #1 search for “thanksgiving football guide” is

http://www.chiff.com/home_life/holiday/thanksgiving/thanksgiving-football.htm.  So enjoy!

 

If you are in NYC, check out the annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. Lots of fun. This year I hear high winds might keep the balloons grounded. I hope not.

 

As you can see, there is a lot to be thankful for. What can your business do to take advantage of this holiday season? Definitely have a Black Friday sale. Also have a Cyber Monday sale. Have an end of year sale. Unfortunately, Google and Yahoo have changed their search algorithms and page displays. They are trying to make more money and you really can’t blame them, can you? For a history of the Yahoo! display, check out: http://www.seomoz.org/blog/yahoo-sunsets-site-explorer-a-eulogy.

 

SalemGlobal can help you with your online marketing. But it takes time and effort. Right now you should be thinking short term regarding the holidays and New Year. But you also need to think about Black Friday and next year one year in advance. Want to meet face to face? Want to know more about internet marketing and strategy? Call Raphi Salem at SalemGlobal Internet Website Marketing and Lead Generation today at 212-222-3292 or email him at info@salemglobal.com. Let’s come up with a Thanksgiving story for you! Just likeAlice’s Restaurant by Arlo Guthrie:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JmyXTOHC3w8&feature=related

Sports vs. Porn, Virgin Sir Richard Branson, Lance Armstrong, Hanukkah Next Week, Christmas In 4 Weeks: Your Business Needs Be Thankful and Open A Calendar!

Posted by Salem Global on Nov 23, 2010

Just kidding about the PETA comment. I have been a vegetarian for the past 20 years so the closest you will find to Turkey in my office is actually toFURKEY…

So what does the man of the house do when his team is on a bye? (A bye is when a sports team, specifically your hometown NFL football team is on break and does not play anyone else that weekend) Well obviously he turns to the Internet instead of the TV. According to one website (we will not be sharing the links here on this blog but you can always Google the story yourself), it turns out that porn traffic increases each weekend that there are no sports being played. How is that relevant to your business during 4th quarter?

Well, there are 33 Days till Christmas. 38 Days to the New Year. Thanksgiving. Black Friday. Cyber Monday. And guess what? Hanukkah starts next week as well. If you are in the business to consumer (B2C) world, you better think of some strategies quickly, otherwise you will be out-marketed. If you are in the business to business world (B2B) then you should be planting your seeds today. It amazes me that people who have been in business for years don’t recognize 4th quarter for what it really is… a wake up call. Either to be selling product to the public now, or setting your company up for the next year. But I guess that is the difference between organizations that recognize good marketing vs. others who just pray for good luck.

Speaking of luck and betting, though I won $14.00 in Atlantic City last week, I then lost $16.00 in another game but then recovered with a win of $95.00 in my last game. So overall, many hours of fun, as well as profitable. Unfortunately, billionaire Sir Richard Branson lost his bet to Tony Fernandes, the owner of Air Asia. They had wagered services in the form of cross dressing and acting as Flight Attendant over whose Formula One racing team would do better this season. So if you fancy Sir Richard serving you tea in high heels, seats are being auctioned off for charity as I write this.

Latest book of the week is Lance Armstrong’s “It’s Not About the Bike: My Journey Back to Life.” It’s one of the most amazing true life stories that will inspire you to take a look at your life, what you have, what you would do if you had cancer, on your deathbed and then rally back to win one of the greatest tests of human strength and endurance that exists. He talks about his parent’s divorce, his father, mother, relationships, being a cocky young kid, cycling when no one in America took it seriously, getting cancer, winning it all, losing it all, winning it back, marriage and fatherhood. Of course this book was written in 2001 when good old Lance was still married before his own divorce and relationships with Hollywood celebs, movie stars, musicians and more.

But my point in bringing this up this week is that I know a lot of businesses have been struggling over the past few years. This has been one of the worst recessions ever. Whether you blame it on the government or the people or Bernie Madoff, fact is that fewer people are spending on frivolous items and sticking to the essentials. So in B2C, essentials are related to food shelter and clothing. During the rest of the year, people wait to spend their hard earned dollars on TV’s, cars and Jewelry. But now that its holiday time, people are opening their wallets and getting on line and online to see what kind of bargains they can grab. If you are a retailer you better have sales galore and the cheapest price in town. You better have coupons and ways for your customers to save a penny. Everyone will be doing research online and on line. They better be able to find you on the Internet, eBay and Amazon and then walk into your store and get it for the same price or cheaper.

As for the B2B sector, now is the time to send out the message that when they are looking for that new service contract, your price will not be beat. Whether you are in commercial or office cleaning services, medical billing or website marketing, let your customers know that lead generation is your priority. Let them know that January 1st will be the dawning of the Age of Aquarius and that 2011 will be the best recovery year ever! Just like Lance Armstrong’s comeback, so too will the economy come back and your business as well. But you can’t stay down. You need to get back on the bike and work harder than anyone else.

Cancer transformed Lance Armstrong’s body and mind. He lost 20lbs. off his frame which helped him to become a lighter mass on the bike riding up the hills. And this terrible economy has also transformed many businesses. Many new business models have come out of it. People cut costs, people and have become much leaner business machines. Now we need to work on strength and endurance. You still need a good business plan and execution strategy.

Today’s Internet marketing machine is not your 1997 website that was built by your nephew. There are now sophisticated tools out there, beautiful search engine friendly optimized templates to help your business on the web. And now there is this thing we call “social media” with Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn, that didn’t exist 10 years ago. Need help getting it all done before the holidays or a strategy for 2011? Call Raphi Salem at 212-993-5828, email info@salemglobal.com or check out www.SalelGlobal.com for more information about us. Be thankful this week that you are still in business. The sun’ll come out TOMORROW!!! (Annie was a huge Thanksgiving and Internet Marketing fan)