NY Jets En Route To Super Bowl, Lead Generation Strategies For Your Business: A few Internet marketing tips to help you get started in 2011

Posted by Salem Global on Jan 18, 2011

Ok ok sports fans. If you are a New York Jets fan, you are totally psyched about the Jets chances for making it to the Super Bowl this year. If you are a NY Giants fan, do you root for the Jets, any other team but the Jets or is your season over? And of course if you are outside of New York, who ARE you rooting for? A former SalemGlobal employee is a major fanatical Pittsburgh Steeler fan but he lives in California and just got married so who knows what he is doing…

As for other sports, what else is there besides football?

And that is this weeks point as well for Internet marketing. Focus. There is only one thing you want for your business. And that is clients or sales.

So now that I have your attention, let’s talk about what kind of business you are in… Are you a business to business (b2b) business or business to consumer? (b2c)

It’s the beginning of the new year and people are just coming back from vacation and holiday fever. Though the economy and Obamanomics are on everyone’s mind, the real question is what is YOUR business? What do you do? How do you do it? How do you differ from your competition?

And of course this all SHOULD be known from your website. So the basics of Internet marketing are having a clear website according to the Google webmaster tools. But what you don’t learn from Google’s standard instructions is marketing 101. I am still amazed that in the year 2011 some companies don’t have a phone number at the top of their website. I am not referring to sites that DON’T want you to call. I am talking about your standard mom and pop shop that rely on phone calls to keep them in business. Ordering products, supplies and everything related.

And then there are companies who have their local phone number when they are trying to get leads in more than one city state and region. Either get multiple phone numbers or get a toll-free number. A great example of this is http://www.aceits.net/ who service both New York and New Jersey (for IT management and consulting).

Another thing to do for lead generation is make sure you have a quick form to fill out. Forms can be annoying to some and helpful to others. Think about the business person who is so busy that they only get to surf the web at night. They don’t want to use the phone, they just want to fill out a form and have someone call them whenever… On the other hand, expect a lot of spam in your forms. We get spam filled out all the time but the important thing is to try to weed out the spam from the good calls.

Finally for today, why not jump start your lead generation by offering something new for the year, that you have never done before and/or that your competition has never done before. Here at SalemGlobal Internet we are actually offering a money back guarantee on all of our directory services. As an example, go to http://newyorkcitydentist.net/. For only $500/yr., your website & name can be listed there and viewed by hundreds of potential patients in your area. For only $1000 you can be the exclusive sponsor of the website. All with a money back guarantee!

As for our networking groups, we have changed the rules. Everything is free, free,  free. We just want people to show up. How’s that for a lead generator.

More exciting lead generation and internet marketing stuff is on its way in 2011. Want to know more? Call Raphi Salem at 212-993-5828 or just email info@salemglobal.com and we can talk about the different ways to improve your sales and bottom line this year within a few weeks.

NY Jets En Route To Super Bowl, Has Your Phone Started To Ring Off The Hook Yet? Is your organization already implementing 2011 planning?

Posted by Salem Global on Jan 11, 2011

First things first. I am a skier and a winter birthday before I am a Jets fan. So that being said, yes I do indeed care about all of the snow days we are getting here in New York. I just got new tires on my car before the snow started six weeks ago so I haven’t gotten caught yet. Last year I couldn’t make it out of my driveway some days. But this year I got much smarter. And to tie it all together, I did some advanced planning so that I could come out ahead.

Of course I am talking about snow and travel but I am also talking about internet marketing and lead generation. All last year I tried to prepare you for 2011. I said over and over again how NEXT year (meaning this year 2011. and by the way did anything exciting happen in your office at 11:11:11 today on 1/11/11? Of course my son pointed out that you get an extra 1 in November… smart kid. I wasn’t even thinking about that.) But back to the conversation at hand. Every year I give you the updated things your business and organization should know and do on the Internet to grow and become more profitable. Of course you already know the 21 things that I have been preaching for the past 2 years (http://websitestrategymarketing.com/exclusive-networking-this-thursday-at-axa-advisors-21-things-you-need-to-know-about-internet-marketing-in-2011-cliff-lee-joins-sg-for-120-million ), but this year my clients are tired of practice makes perfect and preparation. They want leads. They want referrals. They want the phone to ring. They want the business. They want the donations. They want the conversions. They want to make more money. They are fed up with the bad economy and they are doing something about it.

So today lets talk about the New York Jets and compare them to your internet marketing campaign. Lets analyze what the Jets did to get to the playoffs…

Starting in the Spring and continuing into the summer, football and baseball start their training. And thanks to my reading of Michael Lewis’ Money ball, I even understand a little bit more about how teams deal with the draft and scouting and the money involved in hiring, coaxing and ultimately getting a player into your organization. Then of course you train them. And then of course you let them loose in the real world. Friday night lights? Monday night football? Playoffs. Divisionals. All star games. World Series. And of course, the most watched television event in America (not in the world since you all know from my last years blogging that soccer or futbol is the most watched sport globally – http://websitestrategymarketing.com/internet-marketing-new-york-city-golf-masters-tiger-vs-mickelson-what-organizations-can-learn-from-world-sports-winners-and-hype). The Super Bowl. Millions of dollars for a few seconds of someones precious little time in their marketing mind. The Super Bowl is the climax of all advertising and promotion. And of course you know the Internet has only added to that. Used to be you had to actually watch the football game in order to see the commercials. But oh no. Not anymore. Thanks to YouTube and all of the other video sharing resources and websites on the Internet today, you can view all ninety (yes 90!) commercials right now as you read this blog piece. http://www.salemglobal.com/internet-marketing-poker-and-the-super-bowl.php

Well guess what? The same thing goes on in business every single day. You have your own planning to worry about. Your own budget. Your own training. Your own implementation. And of course your own Super Bowls or highlights of the year to promote the heck out of your business. Be it a trade show or a conference or a seasonal thing for your year, maybe a holiday like Christmas or Halloween or Easter. Regardless, its the second week of January in a new year and what do you have to show for yourself? Has the phone started to ring yet? (Mine has – thanks!) Has all of your planning been implemented yet? Are you still securing your budget. Thinking the time isn’t right yet?

Well I am here to tell you that there is no time like the present. Google is relying on two main things right now. Your local address (physical address of your business) and content. We here at SalemGlobal are committed to helping our clients become the authorities in their field on the Internet. Whether they are hair transplant surgeons (http://www.HairClinicUSA.com), commercial cleaning services or office cleaning companies in New York (http://www.4StarCleaning.com), Hyundai Dealerships ( http:/www.GaryRomeHyundai.com ) or Arthur Murray Dance Studios (http://www.LearnToDanceNJ.com), we are writing content for their websites, blogging, writing articles, press releases and much much more. We are also optimizing their Google maps and Google local listings.

If you would like to get on the SalemGlobal Internet Website Marketing and Lead Generation gravy train, call Raphi Salem at 212-993-5828 or just email info@salemglobal.com and we can talk about various ways to get your phone ringing and get more customers. Enjoy the snow!

New Years Resolutions, Mila Kunis, Macaulay Culkin, NY Giants, Jets, Enough With The SEO BS, Lead Generation Is What You Really Want: What Your Internet Marketing Company Never Told You

Posted by Salem Global on Jan 4, 2011

Well there. I said it. SEO is for the birds. It took Google a while to figure it out as well. While everyone in my Internet and Website Marketing industry were beating each other up, telling themselves how great they were, trying to figure out the Google algorithm and clamoring for the top spots in the search engines, Google simply made 1 little itsy bitsy change in the SERP (search engine results page) and leveled the whole playing field. Again. Basically, with Google changes its as if a little kid is sticking his tongue out at you and singing nyah nyah nyha nyah nyah! <insert childish and immature raspberry here>

In the words of the Ojays (funky version: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Ex1_ExOORE&feature=fvw) or the Kinks (rock and roll version: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Ex1_ExOORE&feature=fvw) You’ve Got To Give The People What They Want!

Meaning, Google, while of course not changing the standard three advertisements at the top of the SERP or the eight on the side, they now have really focused on giving searchers the top google map and local listings. Sometimes one result or three results but sometimes even up to ten!

So what that means to large and small business is what I have been saying all along. You can’t simply rely on SEO or placing your keywords strategically in your meta data blah blah blah. You need to have a holistic approach to your internet marketing… all with the goal in mind of increase LEAD GENERATION and CLOSED SALES.

So starting in 2011, I mean, right now, as for my new years resolution, SalemGlobal is upping the bar on its competitors. Now we feature a money back guarantee together with our $500 and $1000 directory sponsorship packages. (See http://ctdermatologist.com/ as an example) This is a separate package from our standard website marketing package that includes content writing for websites, blogs, interactive press releases, social media upkeep, article writing and link building. Sure we do all the same stuff that we used to, but now we are focused more than ever on getting our clients more business… After all, if your marketing company can’t deliver increased exposure and sales, you should go with one that can…

As for what’s happening in the news for the New Year and the new decade, the saddest stories to strike me are that the Giants will not be going to the Super Bowl (or the playoffs), Mila Kunis and Macaulay Culkin will no longer be dating… I guess he will be HOME ALONE in 2011 LOL!!! But just to end off today on a good note, at least the New York Jets have a shot at the title… Oh – and the Mega Millions is up to $355 million. I am psyched! Its going to be a great year!!!

Ok – so maybe you and I won’t be winning the mega million lottery considering getting struck by lightning is more likely (http://www.sky-fire.tv/index.cgi/lightning.html). But with Internet marketing and lead generation you actually have a GREAT chance of improving your business this year. Want to know more about lead generation for your business? Call Raphi Salem at 212-993-5828 or just email info@salemglobal.com and we can have a great brief to the point chat about how you can benefit from our Internet marketing and lead generation strategies.

Lead Generation & Internet Marketing: How to grow your business in 2011

Posted by Salem Global on Dec 28, 2010

Happy New Year Everyone! What are you doing now? Are you on vacation or are you working? Or as my father used to ask, “are you working hard or hardly working?”

(As you can see according to my pictures I am hardly working as the snow has shut down New York City: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=254976&id=655317826&l=85b7897080)

My conversations with friends, colleagues, business partners, family, fellow networkers and anyone on the street these days usually turns into a reflection of how the year went and how next year looks. Sort of like a State of the Union address. So I guess, while I got my ice skating in Bryant Park NYC out of the way today and while my computer uploads my snow blizzard pictures of Dec 2010 to my facebook account, here is my 2 cents about how things went this year and what’s in store for 2011…

2010 started out on a positive upswing. After 2 miserable years of hemorrhaging business, (2008 and 2009 were particularly terrible years due to the economy) and the fact that organizations usually cut their marketing budgets in bad times… (usually a short term save but long term loss since any competition that continues to market throughout unfavorable market conditions usually recovers faster since they show consistency and continue the momentum of branding while others get left behind in the dust…) 2010 was relatively a decent year. It wasn’t as great as 2007, when the economy was rocking and the Internet marketing industry was hot, but we picked up a few accounts and that added to our bottom line.

So starting out with a positive attitude is always necessary but realistically speaking, companies were still afraid to bite the full marketing bullet and invest in their websites, online marketing and general marketing.

At SalemGlobal, we always learn from our mistakes as well as from the good things we have done. Just like Brian Tracy and Ken Blanchard teach, reward your employees or “catch them doing something RIGHT” (as opposed to something wrong.) You will find that their self-esteem and confidence will rise and so will their productivity which will have a positive effect on your work environment as a whole.

For us, this was the year of “lead generation” as opposed to your plain old SEO-search-engine-optimization-we-can-get-you-to-the-top-of-Google strategy. SO WHAT if someone can get you to the top of Google. And as a matter of fact, in 2010 Google made some design changes to its SERP (search engine results page) so that they can sell more ad space. Now, in addition to the top 3 sponsored ads (now just called “Ads”), they have elevated the local listings so that the organic listings are way way down on the page. Sometimes they don’t just show the top 3 local listings, sometimes depending on the keyword they will show ten!

So where does THAT leave your SEO company? Who cares right? What you really want are leads. And more than that, you really want QUALIFIED leads and even better CLOSED BUSINESS!!!! I started out in the web design business in 1997 and have built hundreds of websites. But did the doctors get more patients from their websites? Did my real estate clients sell more houses and condos? Did my car dealerships sell more cars, parts, and accessories? Did the non-profits get more donations? The truth is that some years they did and some years they didn’t. The Internet has made many twists and turns on the roller coaster of an industry. Now everyone wants to be on twitter. Yesterday everyone wanted to be on linkedin. Before that you NEEDED to be on facebook. And everyone needs a mobile app. Oh and of course you HAD to be on Google. And of course don’t forget Yahoo, AOL, Lycos, Alta vista, excite, Ask, prodigy and CompuServe. What does it all mean? (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OQSNhk5ICTI)

I will tell you what it all means. Like I said earlier. All businesses need to CLOSE business. Not seek out the latest and greatest trend. What works for one organization might not necessarily work for another. We have changed our business plan a few times over the past 14 years and each time we get closer to getting it right. As the refrigerator magnet says: “It’s all good in the end. And if it’s not all good, it’s not the end…” Business and making money is a journey. It should be fun and frustrating along the way but ultimately you need to live your life. So my message as we close out 2010 is to seek out and find that balance. Figure out what is your best marketing strategy. Keep on monitoring your Google analytics and keep on looking at the numbers. As the economy gets better, we will all benefit. This week however, enjoy the snow

Want to know more about lead generation for your business. Call Raphi Salem at 212-993-5828 or just email info@salemglobal.com and we can have a great brief to the point chat about how you can benefit from our Internet marketing and lead generation strategies.

Happy New Year!

Raphi Salem

Desperate Pleas For Last Minute Online Shoppers, Reputation Management & Internet Marketing Discounts: What Your Business Should Be Doing Before Christmas and New Years

Posted by Salem Global on Dec 21, 2010

Last week I gave you the updated 21 things your business should be doing online for 2011. But what about RIGHT NOW you ask? Well, lets take a look at Toys R Us, Staples, Priceline, Party City, Kayak and Spirit Airlines…

Get All You Want for Christmas with Fares from $9* Each Way!

$50 Coupon* for Last Minute Holiday Travel!

Last Minute Hotel Deals from $45/night!

Four coupons inside for holiday procrastinators!

Our Lowest Prices Ever! 50% Off!

20% Off Coupon! Save In Stores & Online

Save up to 50% – Last Minute Gift event!

Buy One Get One 50% Off

For the First Time EVER! Stores Open 24 Hours Now Thru Christmas Eve!

There you have it. Huge multi-million dollar companies and corporations are sending out messages like this. So don’t you think its a good idea? Ok, lets face it. I am 40 years old and have been in the advertising and marketing field for 20 years. Online for 14 of them. Don’t you think that the corporate giants who spend millions and millions of dollars on advertising know what they are doing yet? I do. Learn from the best. They have the biggest budgets around. Spend more money on an ad than you make in a lifetime and you should be doing EXACTLY what they are doing.

People want to hear from you. They want to know there is a sale going on. They want to know they can save 50%. They want to know if they buy one they can get one free. They want to know about the last minute deals. They want to know. And you should be telling them in 6 ways:

1) On your website

2) In your blog

3) In a newsletter email

4) In an article

5) In a press release

6) On all of your social media including twitter, facebook and linked in

And if you haven’t noticed, those are the six places where SalemGlobal Internet would be placing your content for up to half off! Seriously SG is running a discount throughout the holiday season into the new year. NOW is the time to talk to Raphi Salem about promoting your business online. That’s right. You too! Hey – I am talking to you.

Let me give you two examples of conversations I had in the past week:

1st – http://www.AngelaCosmai.com – located in Stamford, CT. Local beauty shop, hair and color salon, wants local customers to travel all the way to Greenwich CT. They need to fix their google places, maps and listings and give a 10% off next visit to those that give them a positive review online. And by the way – positive reviews combat negatives and help with reputation management.

2nd – http://www.WorldHyundaiMatteson.com – located in Matteson, IL. Google “World Hyundai” and you will see that they dominate the first search engine results page with their main site, their blog, their marketing sites, review sites, Facebook etc. So that means that they are almost completely in control of their reputation online. Other companies struggle with this but you don’t have to if you go about it correctly.

So in conclusion this week, let me first wish you a Happy and Healthy New Year! Next year is going to be so much better than 2010. I am money back guaranteeing it. (Oh did I mention that SalemGlobal lead generation strategies come with a money back guarantee?) So get out the Hanukkah Christmas and Kwanzaa messages… the discounts, the incentives, the buy one get one free ads. Get them to sign up for your newsletter and enjoy the holiday season. Yes it’s freezing outside and will continue to get colder. (But that’s ok if you like to ski like me.) And if you want any help setting up a campaign for 2011 and getting your business ready for 1st quarter, give me (Raphi Salem) a call at 212-993-5828 or email info@salemglobal.com.