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Frequently Asked Questions
Why isn’t having a website enough to generate business?
If you think of your website as a destination, the next question is how do you get people to your destination? With 155 million active websites as of January 2008, this is a challenge for all businesses. Through online advertising, you are providing road signs to your destination, so people can find you. So while having a website is necessary, it is not sufficient to grow your business. Marketing 4 U Now solves this problem by using dozens, if not hundreds of online sources, to drive traffic to your website. Marketing 4 U Now offers a complete solution, whether or not you have a website. Our solutions include specially designed landing pages that convert shoppers into buyers. We know that all you want is more business, so we provide everything you need to bring more so we provide everything you need to bring more customers to your door!
Why can’t I place online advertising myself?
Some of the search engines try to convince you that you could place search engine advertising yourself. yourself. However, if you did that, and you wanted visibility in all places your prospects might find you, you would have to place advertising in all of the 5 major search engines (Google, Yahoo, MSN, Ask, and AOL), in addition to dozens of local search engines and portals, depending on your type of business and location. This might include Local.com, SuperPages.com, YellowBook.com, Insider Pages, CitySearch, and more.For each of these search engines, you would have to choose hundreds of keywords (search terms), you would have to bid on each one of those terms, and you would have to design numerous ads associated with those keywords. Finally, once you do this at each of the search engines, you would have to manage across each of them, to allocate your budget where you are getting the greatest response, you would have to continue to tweak your ads, and you would have to modify your bids based on the results you get. You would have to be knowledgeable about how to maintain a high ‘quality’ score on the search engines, since this affects the keyword pricing. After you finish all of that, you would have to design appropriate landing pages to take the traffic to, if you wanted to generate the amount of response you would require to make online advertising cost effective. In a nutshell, if you had a very knowledgeable full-time employee (or more) to do this, yes, you could manage your online advertising yourself. But most local and regional businesses simply do not have the time, the knowledge, the tools, or the money to make the kind of make the kind of investment necessary to manage online advertising themselves.
Where will my online ads be placed through Marketing 4 U Now?
Marketing 4 U Now closely monitors the changing landscape of local online advertising options available to local businesses, to make sure your advertising dollars are always spent where they are most effective. Unlike national search options, the local search space is growing at a breakneck speed and there is no dominating player (as is Google in the national search space). And there are lots and lots of local search engines as well, such as local.com. Therefore, as the landscape changes, Marketing 4 U Now ensures your advertising dollars will continue to be placed in the most effective online locations, covering at least 99% of the locations that local consumers look for information.At this time, Marketing 4 U Now solutions include Google, Yahoo, MSN, AOL and Ask. Business directories submissions are made to 411 Directory Assistance, YellowPages.com, Google Maps, Yahoo Local, Superpages.com, Yellowbook.com, Yelp, Acxiom, Localeze, InfoUSA, TrueLocal, CitySearch, Magic Yellow, RHDi (Dex), YP.com, iBegin, YellowBot, Insider Pages, Merchant Circle and more. Additional search engine, directory, and portal placements may be made based on your
How does Marketing 4 U Now keep my online business listings current?
After your business information has been submitted to business directories, we validate the accuracy and completeness of this information with you on a regular basis. If changes need to be made, we do it for you. We stay on top of this so you don’t have to!
Since I only serve a local community, aren’t I wasting my money to advertise online on the World-Wide-Web?
The world-wide-web has come a long way from the early days. As internet users have become more sophisticated, many now search on keywords that include geographic modifiers, such as their city name or zip code; the search engines have become smarter, too. Now Google, Yahoo and the others can present search results for a geographically limited set of users. So businesses can specify that their ads should only be presented to those within a radius of their location, or within certain zip codes, etc. What once was ‘world-wide’ has now become very local and very targeted, indeed!Marketing 4 U Now works exclusively with businesses that only want to focus on a local audience, and our team has the expertise of having developed thousands of successful local online advertising programs. That is why we say Marketing 4 U Now means local business!
How long does it take to start seeing results from my online advertising?
You’ll start to see an impact very quickly – often the same day a campaign is launched. This is not surprising since more people now go online rather than look in the printed yellow pages. We will tell you the number of people that have seen your ad, and clicked on it. However, most online marketing experts (including many at leading search engines) will tell you that it takes about 9 months to fully ‘optimize‘ your advertising program. This means that even after your initial program is set up, there is a bit of tweaking to make sure you have the proper keywords, your bids are putting you where you want to be, that your ads are attracting the prospects you want to attract, and that your destination landing pages are providing the compelling message necessary to motivate conversion. Many of Marketing 4 U Now clients see sustained and growing results around the 3-month point of their programs.
How is search-based direct advertising different from the printed yellow pages? And…what are keywords?
Printed and online yellow pages are category-based direct advertising media. Search-based advertising is based on keywords. The advantage of keywords is that they more directly reflect what the consumer is looking for or what problem they are trying to solve. With category-based advertising, the consumer has to adhere to the categories the publishers decide are important. The use of categories puts an artificial constraint on the consumer that makes it more difficult to find what they are looking for because they have to think about which category to look in when they use the yellow pages. This is why online search is growing so quickly; it is easier for consumers to use.The downside of keywords is that the marketer has to work harder, and this means coming up with all the keywords and keyword variations a consumer may use. There could be dozens, hundreds and even thousands of keywords that pertain. This is an area of expertise of Marketing 4 U Now: we have the tools and know-how to create a list of a thousand keywords and determine the best keywords for your business.
How does search marketing differ from online banner advertisements?
In the offline world, you could choose either directional or creative advertisements, and the same is true in the online world. Offline, yellow pages is considered directional because that is where people look when they are ready to make a purchase, and newspaper display ads are considered creative because people may or may not be ready to purchase when they see your ad. In the online world, search advertising is considered directional, for the same reasons: people search for products and services through search engines when they are ready to buy. Banner ads on portal or content-sites, on the other hand, are considered creative. When people see those ads, they are not necessarily looking for a product or service. Depending on your business goals, you may elect either search marketing or online creative advertisements. If you want to create brand awareness, you may choose online banners. If you are looking to connect with people who are ready to buy, most of your advertising dollars should go to online directional advertising, such as search marketing. Marketing 4 U Now will work with you to deliver results, whatever your business goal.
Do consumers really use online to find local businesses instead of just buying online?
There have been exciting changes as people have become more accustomed to the internet. One of the major changes is that in any local community, more people now go online to find products and services they intend to buy offline. In fact, in 2007, over 60% of local consumers go online to find local businesses from whom to purchase, whereas just over 30% go to the printed yellow pages.
What is my USP?
What is my USP? And what the heck is it anyway?
Your USP is your Unique Selling Proposition or Offer
What Makes You Unique?
Find Your USP And Use It In All Your Marketing
First - Define your business's unique selling proposition (USP).
Ask yourself these questions...
● What is it you do that's unique?
● What do you do no one else does?
● What is your “purple cow” - something you provide that sets you apart from
every other business.
All great businesses have a well defined USP. Something that makes them different from
their competition.
Something they do no one else does...
“In Business It's Differentiate Or Die...”
If your business is a carbon copy of other businesses you can only compete on price.
And competing on price can be disastrous for business profits.
On the other hand if your product or service is unique you have no competition and you
can charge based on what your customers think your service is worth to them – usually a
very profitable business model.
If you don't have a unique selling proposition - a “purple cow” - I highly
recommend you develop one right now.
As you make the changes to your business necessary to make real profits don't be afraid
of going out on the edge.
Real profits are always on the edge.
Real uniqueness is always on the edge.
Many businessmen copy their competitors because that feels safe. When you're defining exactly what it is your business supplies. There Is Nothing More Dangerous Than Doing What Everyone Else Is Doing.
“Create A Business Concept
So Unique
With Such A Unique Niche...”
“...That You Have No
Real Competition In That Niche -
You Are The Undisputed Market Leader...”
And you can do this very quickly - almost overnight - simply by making a decision on
your niche and your unique selling proposition.
Once you've defined your unique selling proposition, your USP, put it into a sharp, clear
easy to understand, one sentence statement you can use in all your marketing.
Like the classic USP Domino's pizza used so successfully for so many years...
“Hot Fresh Pizza
Delivered In 30 Minutes
Or It's Free!”
As a guideline a great, well articulated USP could literally be used as a headline for your
advertisements or your sales letters.
Like this great USP from Federal Express...
“When It Absolutely
Positively Has To Be There
Overnight!”
Contact Us for more information. One of our advertising consultants will help you determine which package is most appropriate for your business circumstances. You will be happily surprised at how affordable it is to begin your online advertising program today, and then you will be amazed at your return on investment.
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