The Net Impact Roadmap

Can Social Media Help Build Meaningful Business Relationships?

If you think online social networking is solely for the younger demographic, think again. Thanks to new social networking sites that enable professionals in a wide variety of industries, such as marketing, finance and even medicine, to build meaningful business relationships, social media is now flourishing in the business world.

The Institute for Corporate Productivity recently held a survey and found 65% of business professionals are connecting to social networking websites. Business executives also have turned to online forums, email lists and message boards to sound off on information related to their industries. Of those respondents who do not currently utilize social networks, the top reason (37%) is simply that they don’t know what networks to use. The majority of respondents (59%) said they would likely use social networks if they knew that such use would assist their professional development (31% say they already do), and a full 77% would welcome using them if they though the networks could aid organizational efficiency.

Millions of professionals already turn to broad-based networking sites like LinkedIn to swap job details and contact information, often for job seeking purposes. Recently, LinkedIn reached 43 million active users, with the average age of its members being 41 years. With the growing use of social networking by business professionals, there is a growing number of social networking sites popping up that focus on business users and meeting their needs, that go beyond the broad-based networks such as Facebook and LinkedIn. There are also many niche social networking sites for specific industries, such as legal and medical.

For example: When radiation oncologist Michael Tomblyn recently saw a 21-year-old patient whose eye was protruding from its socket, he turned to his fellow physicians for help. Dozens of doctors offered suggestions, HIV-associated lymphoma or a cocaine-associated sinus problem, eventually steering him toward the correct answer: rhabdomyosarcoma, a fast-growing cancer most often observed in young children. Surprisingly, this diagnosis didn’t take place in a doctor’s lounge. It happened on Sermo.com, the largest online physician community in the US, where practicing US physicians collaborate on difficult cases and exchange observations about drugs, devices and clinical issues., which Dr. Tomblyn and 25,000 doctors like him visit regularly to consult with colleagues specializing in areas from dermatology to psychiatry.

Sermo.com is just one of many targeted social networking sites for professionals. Another example is, Nexly.com, a web-based community designed for the B2B marketplace that provides access to tools and information businesses need in order to better connect. While community tools, like LinkedIn are useful for recruiting purposes, Tom Carlock, CEO of Nexly saw the need for a community created specifically for finding service providers. Nexly.com was created to simplify the process in finding qualified outsourcing services that will results in better buying results.

Nexly is currently in the Beta testing process, and on February 16, 2010, they held a focus group at The Net Impact’s office, in order to validate assumptions and biases in the Beta phase.Check out TNI’s Interview with CEO of Nexly.com, Tim Carlock, on TNI’s YouTube Channel!

Even in the midst of the social media revolution, the behaviors and networking needs of business professionals have not changed, the media simply has. In other words, business professionals are meeting age-old networking needs in new ways. Given the new functions, features and real-time access of social media, social networks have transformed the way  professionals establish and maintain their business relationships.

As more and more business professionals turn to social networks to meet their business objectives, we can only expect to see more targeted social networking sites for professionals continue to pop up on the web. While nothing replaces the quality of face-to-face meetings, social media is a new way to initiate and build relationships and thus, continue to grow one’s professional network.

Do you have any other social networking sites for business that you use?

Which one has worked the best for your business?

Touchdown Google!

If you watched the Super Bowl Sunday night, you saw at least two ground-breaking events: Of course, the New Orleans Saints took home their first Superbowl Trophy, and the Search Engine Giant, Google, stepped into the world of traditional advertising.  Over the past decade, more often than not, the Super Bowl commercials have generated more buzz than the teams competing. Even when the football isn’t especially great – the commercials usually are, and this year Google took full advantage of the advertising world’s most anticipated event, with one of the most surprising commercials of the night.

Perhaps Saturday’s tweet by Google CEO Eric Schmidt put it best –“Hell has indeed frozen over”. Google ran its first major television ad, and during the Super Bowl, none the less. It was an unexpected move by the search engine leader, who retains a search market share exceeding 70 percent, to spend an estimated $5 million to have a 1 minute advertisement aired during the third quarter.  Google brings in billions from online ads but has steered clear of having a traditional marketing strategy for its own brand, even as industry competitors, such as Microsoft and Yahoo, continue to spent millions on tv and print advertising to compete with them. Google’s sheer size is in disproportion with their advertising budget. The world-known search engine has been mainly promoting itself on the web, via company blogs, and of course by being a constant subject of media reports and countless blog posts.

Google’s heartfelt ad, “Parisian Love”, consists of a series of 11 searches, which come together to tell a compelling story through search phrases. The commercial tells the story of a romance helped along by a series of Google searches conducted by a young man. The subtle, yet powerful marketing message resonated with viewers, and in some cases (myself included) left them a bit teary eyed. The commercial illustrates the story of a young man who finds love after a simple plan to study abroad in Paris turns into love, marriage and a need to know how to assemble a crib.

The buzz-worthy ad has left many viewers comparing it to competitor commercials and many are left confused as to why Google felt it needed to make such a dramatic move to promote its best known product, a product with no real marketing problems. Of course, not everyone thought it was a wise investment for the brand who’s name is almost a verb in the world of search. In the words of YouTube commenter, ShadyHady, “Google commercials? Isn’t that rather like, say, oxygen commercials or knife and fork commercials?” But with Google’s approach to internal marketing, one Super Bowl slot may be efficient when it comes to coverage vs. expenditure.

While the commercial probably did not introduce the Google brand to anyone for the first time, here are a few reasons Google may have made the dive into television advertising:
 

The buzz. People are talking about the ad right?  While the majority of the media coverage has not been about the actual ad content, but rather the fact that there was an ad, it is still coverage. And while it may be short lived, Google is the most talked about search engine at the moment.

Make a statement. Amid the over the top million dollar mini-sagas that make up the line-up of Super Bowl commercials, Google’s ad simply explained what the search engine does and showed just how well it works. This message mirrors the search engines’ simple, yet highly effective performance, which is the very basis of the Google brand.
 

Appeal to advertisers. Some businesses still view online advertising with suspicion. No matter how big Google already is, a Super Bowl slot reminds people that it’s a major mainstream player in the advertising world.

Reinforce their brand. Many commercials serve simply to remind people who the market leader is, rather than inform them about a new product or promotion. World-known brands find it helpful to remind the public about themselves in a positive light — especially on the Super Bowl.

Keep up with the competition. Google may be feeling some heat from Bing and Yahoo’s new campaigns, as well as Apple’s successful advertising. Especially with the growing number of Microsoft Bing search engine “attack ads”, Google may have decided to make their mark in the advertising world. Marty Orzio, partner and chief creative office of ad agency Gotham in New York, called the ad:

 “A classic little love story told beautifully” that highlighted why Google was different from the competition. If you think about Bing or any of their competition, nobody else can say they are playing an important role in people’s lives,” he said. “They have not have been around long enough to have an impact like that. Google is claiming territory that only they can claim, which is why I thought it was absolutely brilliant.”

In conclusion, what Google’s memorable and somewhat controversial Super Bowl presence may signal is that after relying heavily on word of mouth marketing alone, the company is finally learning how to market itself via traditional paths, something that will take a great deal of stategic planning, and  will be crucial as its business diversifies and competitors continue to gain a foothold in the search industry. Using only its own outlets for promotion, such as YouTube, isn’t enough for a company looking to reach a broad mix of consumers. Google is clearly skilled at selling online ads, but formulating a marketing strategy for itself, well it remains a work in progress.

Missed Google’s Super Bowl commerical? Watch it Here.

The decision to take on a project like a new website is daunting enough.  Often coupled with that decision is another that is make-or-break for an organization, do we build the new site in-house or hire it out?  There are a lot of great reasons for each extreme of this decision.  There are also some real dangers for each.  I have to admit, in our years of working with clients and prospects, seldom do we see an internally developed site that comes in on time, on budget and supporting industry best practices.  This is not to say it can’t happen, and great if it does.  I’ts just not that common.  Why is that?

First a quck case study.  An Internet marketing client of ours, very progressive and intelligent group, leaders in their industry and well recognized nationally were operating a 6 year old ecommerce site that had just become ungainly.  Too many add-ons to the database, too many demands that were unanticipated at time of build and too many new generations of marketing people and IT had taken it’s toll. So, the right decision? Build a new site.  Off the shelf?  No way, too many special needs.  Custom but reusing exisitng platforms, yeah, that’s an option.  Bids for the new site from our team and competitors came in between $30k to $60k.  Expensive?  Maybe.. but for a web content management system that is customized for the exact business needs of a mission critical element, probably worth it. 

For several reasons, the “build it here” syndrome, paying for services when you have staff etc… the decision was made to go internal.  Result? 

• If this had been an outsourced project with a  forecast at the high side at $60k to the high bidder,  timelined to take six months to complete and consume approximately 200 hours of the client’s staff time (say at $100k with full load).  You have six months of disruption and $160k out of pocket for internal and external. 
• As an  internal project it took 2 years to build, consumed a full-time developer and a great deal of IT, web design and marketing team assistance and still didn’t result in the responsiveness that marketing needed.  That calculates into well over $350k of internal costs and a delay of an extra 18 months in getting to market.  I’d like to say that this is an exception but it is not.  This kind of experience seems to be more common than you would think.

Does that mean that it is not possible for a firm to build their website internally as well or better than using an agency?  No, absolutely not.  Plenty of horror stories exist for the alternative path.  Planning, resource selection and scope definition are needed on every project.  With that in mind, either way, inside or out,  there are few things you need to consider if you are planning to replace your site.  Let me share.

1. The first issue is to determine, “Who is this site meant to serve?”  in other words, “Who is the customer?”  In too many organizations there is still a turf struggle between IT and web marketingstaffs.  If your website is a mission critical piece of your marketing, then I am sorry to point out that the marketing department must be the customer. (IT staffers please insert “groan” here.)  The needs for content updates, product promotion, advertising and line extension has got to be where it starts. Your firm will be at a tactical disadvantage if every change, especially content changes and image changes, has to go through IT.  Truth is, most IT staffs really do not want to make the changes. They just don’t want to clean up marketing’s errors. What they tell me is that: “We would rather do it than fix it.”  Can the non-techy marketing team mess up a website?  Absolutely, but with the right platform and training, this won’t disrupt the server side of the equation.  In most enterprise focused WCMS platforms you can build in the proper level of authorities with enough containment to be certain that your content is fresh while the site maintains it’s integrity.  Most also have a life preserver allowing you to roll back to a recent correct instance and just do the changes again.
2. Second thought is, “What technology choice do we make?”  In some cases there is no choice.  Your infrastructure is in place and you will select an approach that fits.  In a cloud environment or SaaS though your choices are wide open.  How about, static or CMS?  It has been a long time since anyone argued the value of a static site over a CMS.  I think that debate is settled for any major player. 
3. Who will maintain the site once it’s built?  That  issue is sometimes, “Which CMS to use?”  I personally have no issue with open source IF a firm has the in-house expertise to maintain a Joomla or .NetNuke site with redundant developers or IF you sign a maintenance contract with the agency that developed your site initially.  Your call.  I will remind you though that there is not a corporate body with open source that is obliged to keep your personalized code and customization in step with new releases and or required web-wide advances.  Once you pull a version off the shelf then it is an obligation of your team or your development partner to keep things running through all of the changes that move the web forward.  Is there a fee for that?  Sure but you are either paying that fee as a service expense or payroll expense anyway.  Your new site will need fixed, debugged and modernized.  That’s how it is.  Plan on it.  If up time is critical then you need a resource.  24/7 support? Inside or outside is up to you.
4. Hardest point of all, “Do we build it here or partner?”  The build-it-here approach is admiarable but usually not a great argument for ROI.  The other questions linger about skill sets, priorities and redundancy.  The solution very well could be to perform all functions in-house if that effort does not challenge other customer centric or high priority projects.  Without redundant and comparable skill sets then you have to ask, “Who gets the B team?” - your clients, your other internal projects or your new website.  Part two of this question is to make certain that the bench strength will be in place in case your ace developer, artist… gets hit by the proverbial bus or a superior job offer.  A sudden change in business fortune can also change your priorities.  If that dreamy project for your top customer finally gets signed you may have a new dilemma, pull your web development team or hire into the new project.  It happens.  Who carries the ball if any of these events come to light? 
5. Often overlooked as well is, “Who manages the project?”  someone has to hold numerous feet to the fire or deadlines fall onto a to-do list next to ‘turn in my expense report’.  I have seen several projects falter because it is not the high priority of a critical task holder. 
6. Is partial partnering an option?  Could your creative team hand off designs to an outside web development team working in an environment that your IT team has proposed?  We do it all the time, and I’m sure other firms do as well.  Your look, feel, branding and functionality requirements built to your specs don’t necessarily require a 100% custom back-end to still give you the responsive machine you want developed in a stable platform that IT will approve and maybe even later support.  How about content and page population?  Often we will build out a sample set of pages and train the client’s marketing team how to populate the rest.  This combines some real hands on training with just in time creativity and also transfers the project ownership to your team pre-launch.
7. Finally, remember that you are building the site for a purpose.  It needs to bring traffic, develop leads, generate sales and build you brand.  All of your post-launch requirements have to be in place.  Can you do the SEO?  Can your team determine and your developer build testing oriented calls to action?  Will your analytics be built in?  Site map prepared for the search engines?  Having a great looking site that no one sees , or even worse, no one converts on, is not the reward for a long project like this.  Who makes sure that the new site is built for driving trafffic, improving conversion and testing for improvement? 

So, I’m already over 1400 words and haven’t explored all the possibilities. Just remember that as you embark on a new site, there should be a set of KPIs you hold the project members accountable for, whether internal or external.  Speed to market, usability, platform stability, ease of support and marketing effectiveness cannot be written off because it was an internal job. Hold your project to a higher standard.  Then decide who to hire.

New Year – New Look!

Like waistlines, websites can get rather soft if you do not keep working on them…  

So here are a few tips on how to whip your website into shape for the new year! (No scale involved) 

1) Blog. Having a blog marketing campaign is a great way to offer your Internet audience a more intimate view into your business. You can share your ideas almost as fast as you can think them up. And, unlike your website, your blog can be a two-way conversation with your visitors! 

2) Add new, relevant content. A stale website is about as inviting as stale bread. Adding fresh content not only gives users a reason to visit your site more frequently but can increase your search engine rankings too. If your site isn’t easy to update, talk to us about installing a content management system, like Auctori.

3) Reach out to your users. This year consider sending an email newsletter. This is a simple way to position yourself as an expert in your field and stay in touch with clients. Email Marketing less expensive than most traditional marketing campaigns.

4) Become a social butterfly. Today it is simply not enough to just have your website optimized; you also need to ensure your company has a strong presence on social media networks. By incorporating social media features into a marketing campaign, companies can create their own brand-focused community that allows for user-generated content.

5) Pump up that SEO! Make sure your keywords and descriptions for all your pages are optimized to their fullest so that search engines and, most importantly, potential clients will be able to find your site.

Why wait any longer to start working on your website’s image?

Contact The Net Impact to learn how we can get your website in the best shape it can be to hit the ground running in 2010!

Wandering what The Net Impact team has been up to? Check out our January Newsletter to find out!

Defining Features for Your Website

We are all followers of the “coolest new thing” to a certain degree.  I am as guilty as anyone out there. I see the face wall created for Repower America and start surfing the web for modules and show it to our development team. In retrospect, if I had found a decent module or fired up the developers to create such a piece, what would I do with it?  Which of our customers could use it?  Our nonprofits like Users First Alliance might like this.  But, even if a client loved the idea, would they see enough value to be willing to pay for it?

 Truth is, pieces of web candy like this are being created daily by a universe of talent, and they are great for their purpose.  They are perfect for their mission.  But do I need or do you need this same illustration of cool for our purposes?  Most often the answer is “No.”

Most of the time just because we can create something is not a good reason to create something.  That’s very true for web development.  Whenever a new client for web marketing shows us a beautiful, well-constructed, large and expensive flash splash intro page for their website, we can almost guarantee before even looking at their analytics that many customers bounce right from that page. Also, repeat visitors will often direct link into an interior page to avoid the long intro.  And finally, usually the flash page does not lead to a higher conversion.  Why is that? 

Well, especially in B to B, most visitors do not come to your site to be entertained.  They are on a mission.  If they know you already, they visit your site for a purpose.  If they do not know you, then your flash may be impressive, but it slows them down.  Unless you are YouTube, inform and do not entertain.  Now I am not against flash or custom applications.  I am constantly in awe of some development work I’ve seen.  That’s not the point.  What do you need your website to do?  What do your visitors want?  Could you build the site with a quality carpenter’s hammer, or do you need one that is hydrogen powered?

In our web strategy sessions, we have advised some clients that their web strategy may not even require a website.  Working with social media, if you are an entrepreneur with a start up, your business is event driven or you are a sole practitioner, you could create a large web footprint by stepping into Facebook and LinkedIn.  You can support those web “places of business” with Flickr, YouTube and the increasingly popular Twitter.  Of course what this requires is time.  Consistent posting, commenting and responding is critical and required.  But what it does not require is a web site. 

Something to think about?  What do we need as our online footprint?  What tools do I require to get my story across?  Can I get where I want to go with a regular toolset, or do I need a hydrogen powered hammer?

Homebuyer education site enhances design and implements web marketing strategy

On November 9, 2009, Gohomebuyer.com, a comprehensive website dedicated to educating homebuyers to make an informed decision when buying a home, launched their newly redesigned website, which was designed and searched engine optimized by The Net Impact.  

“We hired The Net Impact to help launch our new product, Go Homebuyer!. The Net Impact redesigned our website, Facebook page, and assisted in developing a plan to help drive hits to our website. Their level of knowledge about design and optimization was tremendous. Thank you for putting us on the right course for web success!,” said Amanda Pozzo, Real Estate Educate, GoHomebuyer.com.

Go Homebuyer! Originally contacted The Net Impact to help implement a search engine optimization strategy. To create an effective approach, our team reviewed Go Homebuyer! ‘s current web analytics. After conducting a thorough internal site traffic analysis, we developed a plan of action to increase the site’s visibility in search engines and to improve visitor navigation. Go Homebuyer! also utilized our press release optimization service to boost the visibility of their press release, add additional links to their website and  to increase target traffic flow to their website.

When working on the SEO strategy for Go Homebuyer!,  Go Home Buyer! came to the realization that  their website would benefit from a site redesign in order to improve visitor navigation and conversion . In addition to search engine optimization services, Go Homebuyer! also looked to our web design services to boost their online prescence. Our design team created a new website and new landing page structure for the online company, which was then handed over Go Homebuyer!’s in-house developers who  applied the design. To reflect the look and feel of the newly designed website, we also designed a custom Facebook  and launched the Go Homebuyer!’s Facebook Advertising Campaign.

Gohomebuyer.com  offers a variety of online resources covering the most interesting and relevant information in real estate today. This includes a comprehensive suite of online courses which includes video, audio, graphics, activities and much more. Since Go Homebuyer!’s resources are all accessible online, the need for a user-friendly and attractive website is an important aspect to the success of their business.  Our search engine optimization team and web design team were a perfect match to meet Go Homebuyer!’s  online objectives to increase search engine visibility and to enhance the look and feel of their new website.

“We enjoy working with out-of-the-box thinkers like the Go Home Buyer! team.  Their innovate approach to bringing information and education to new home buyers and their  openness to new marketing ideas made this a great project for all parties.  We will follow up with a web analytics review in about 30 days to confirm and challenge aspects of our original strategy.   Any changes as well as additional testing is already in our thought process,” said Steve Thomas, President, The Net Impact.

Getting in the mind of your website visitor

In the last decade, tracking website analytics has rapidly evolved from simply data crunching to a very powerful decision making platform. Web analytics is an important tool for Internet marketers and web designers alike to make choices about how to improve traffic flow, design calls to action, update search engine optimization and enhance the overall strategy of a website.

Paying close attention to visitor behavior on a website through analytics, is very similar to paying attention to the consumer behavior for a store, brand or product.  Think of it this way… a store manager arranges their shop with the most marketable items in places that grab the shopper’s attention and are easily accessible and highly visible. Just as the store manager is looking to make the shopper’s experience more satisfying by arranging their store based on the habits of his consumers, so that it is easy and enjoyable to navigate through, a website creator should take into account what information is most sought after on their website and the habits and pathways visitors are taking to get there.

Without web analytics it is next to impossible to measure and analyze website visitor behavior. Analyzing visitor behavior allows you to determine activity as it affects profit, sales and areas (pages) of interest. Page views, navigation, entry and exit pages, time spent, languages, geographic locations, visits, and keywords used in searches are a few of the features that are able to be determined using web analytics. By simply tracking items that are most often viewed you can learn what items or products on your site, receive the most attention. In this way you can adapt your offerings to attract more traffic and while doing so monitor what sparks and keeps visitor’s attention.

The Net Impact team places special emphasis on the importance of clickstream tracking, or the following of a visitor’s clickstream as they move throughout a website, down to every microscopic detail. This analysis offered by Google under the name Event Tracking Tool,  allows you to track every movement your visitor makes as a unique event. Analyzing every small movement, or micro-conversion, your visitor makes provides you with useful feedback used to make changes to your website to improve your visitor’s experience, which will in turn enhance the overall value of your website. Every micro-conversion a visitor makes is important because, no matter how small the movement is, it is still conversion, you are still getting the visitor to do what you want them to dig deeper and deeper into your website.

An excellent example of this is The Net Impact’s findings with the website www.vangoghgallery.com. VanGoghGallery.com is an online collection of Van Gogh’s works. The website received thousands of visitors each day. The Net Impact helped Van Gogh gallery setup Event Tracking Methods to gain greater insight into the navigation patterns of its main landing pages.  Through event tracking, Van Gogh Gallery was able to determine that the large image links on the page received 98.5% of the click-throughs compared 1.5%  for the side navigation links, going to the same page. This was helpful for determining the elements necessary on each page to get visitors to take the next step.

In conclusion, if you ever wondered how to analyze website user behavior, determine which search terms they come from, which pages are most visited, which pages are of least interest  and how to maximize your ROI, look into implementing  a Web Analytics solution. Analytics will help you conduct a behavioral analysis of your website visitors, and with that information you can make the required changes to your website that will improve your overall conversation rate and make your visitor’s website experience one that is enjoyable.

To find out how The Net Impact can help you with your Google Analytics needs, contact us today for a free assessment and consultation!

Online public relations increases search engine visibility

Until recently,  companies and PR Firms wrote press releases in a very uniform fashion designed for the eyes of the traditional journalist. But the evolution of online public relations has created an entirely new approach to the writing and distributing process of press releases.

The purpose behind most online public relations efforts is to increase overall online exposure, which will in turn direct more people to visit your targeted website.  Increased online exposure can lead to greater brand development, a stronger relationship with your public, increased interest from the media, more connections with potential partners and increased lead generation causing greater revenue.

Any topic that will be of interest to prospects, the media and potential partners (such as a new product launch, industry news, events, community activities, etc…) can be used to construct a press release that is search engine optimized and distributed online. Then, distributing optimized press release via newswires has the power to directly reach millions of Internet users, generate inbound links to your website and raise search engine visibility of your website. The Net Impact’s most often used press release distributor is PRWeb, an excellent proven third party partner for publication of your online press releases, with an average charge of $200 per release.

Most newswire services offer you an exact report on how many people accessed your optimized release. This is an essential tool in gauging your reads and impressions.  In addition, through other analytical tools, such as Google Analytics, you can determine when someone follows a link to your targeted website through your optimized press release.

Now that online news sites such as Yahoo News and Google News contain such an abundance of press release content and RSS feeds, it is easy to syndicate news. An optimized press release can get you a page one SERP result for your relevant keywords in the search engines, news engines and news websites. So we see that press releases are not only an effective tool for distributing content to the media and consumers, they are easily syndicated creating an excellent opportunity to attract organic traffic and incoming links.

 A well written online press release has the ability to:

1.) Capture the attention of editors, journalists and bloggers looking for compelling topics for news stories

2.) Live on the web indefinitely. Press Releases are  published to various websites and blogs, giving your content a long shelf life as the content is never deleted creating enduring links.

3.) Create conversation on social networks.The press release link will be shared indefinitely through social media marketing, such as Twitter and Facebook

4.) Be viewed by new prospects – your target audience.

*As a result of all of these activities, hyperlinks will generate that will point back to the release creator’s targeted web site.

How to re-purpose a press release.

Once the press release has been released, there are still opportunities for increased exposure. The Net Impact Recommends:

-Writing a company blog post with the press release content

-Sharing the announcement using Twitter                                                                                        

-Posting an update on the press release on your Facebook                                   

-Adding the press release to the news page on your company website

-Posting any media collateral on other social sites

-Sharing the press release on your company newsletter

-Distributing the press release internally so associates can share it with their friends and business partners

Lastly, creating a calendar for PR that plans a regular expectation for your potential publishers is important.  Frequent and consistent news will generate more interest in your pieces as publishers begin to rely upon them. 

 Don’t forget, the best public relations strategy is to find a worthwhile angle to a story and create excellent content that is visible to your target audience. Combining creative ability and optimization skills to create compelling, keyword relevant press releases will only prove to be a rewarding public relations effort for your company.

 If online press releases sound like something your company should be doing but you do not know the right approach,  have the time or the resources, Contact The Net Impact to help you begin your online public relations effort in an organized manner. The Net Impact’s public relations services include press release copy-writing and press release submission through third party online platforms.. We can help you implement a successful public relations strategy into your overall marketing plan.

Luxury Online Marketplace Meets Website Objectives with Auctori

The GoldenPortal.com mission is to create a unique marketplace offering the best quality, highest-value, merchandise available at large discounts. Golden Portal’s Members and families have high expectations and understand quality, making the need for a well-designed and user-friendly website an important part of the success formula for this shopping site. The unique, member-only club joined forces with The Net Impact to satisfy this discriminating clientele.

Golden Portal reached out to the Net Impact in search of a flexible and dynamic way to create new pages, support ever evolving vendor relationships and make changes to their website with the sense of urgency today’s online retail environment demands.  The Net Impact used their partner solution, Auctori – a Web Content Management System (CMS) built for SEO.  The Net Impact was able to  take Golden Portal’s existing site and place their custom design into the Auctori CMS. This gave the Golden Portal marketing team the ability to manage their website, change offers and update their vendor pages at anytime, from anywhere, –  they would simply need an internet connection.

GoldenPortal.com

“It is exciting when The Net Impact has the opportunity to work with a fresh and entrepreneurial idea. Working with Jim O’Brien and the original GoldenPortal.com Design, created by Tom Zimmerman, has allowed us to take on unique challenges by using innovative and special components in Auctori™, our Web Content Management System,” said Steve Thomas, President of The Net Impact.

The Net Impact Team and the Auctori Team worked together to meet the client-oriented company’s objectives.   Golden Portal employees were trained onsite by The Net Impact team on all of the different capabilities and numerous modules that make up the Auctori system including a new Affiliate Management Administration tool developed to the exact specifications of Golden Portal.

Click this link for more information on Golden Portal.

Click this link for more information on Auctori.

Check out the Press Release on TNI’s work with GoldenPortal.com

A Website can Function as a Credible Marketing Tool for Law Firms

 The Internet is overflowing with law firm websites that all present a very similar message. For this reason, it is extremely important that your law firm has a creative, yet professionally designed website that captures the interest of visitors and holds their attention long enough to convince them that you are the firm that can meet their specific needs. Simply building a website for your law firm is not enough. The website has to be built in a fashion that is user-friendly, professionally designed, visually appealing, informative and also search engine optimized. A poor overall appearance combined with confusing navigation and outdated content will leave your potential clients clicking away to your competitors.

From an internal management perspective, too often a legal website is static, meaning even the simplest changes to the website can get bogged down in an IT to-do list or create added expense from outside technical services. An excellent solution to this problem is using a content management system to build your law firm’s website to have a professionally designed site that can be updated at anytime, from any location by the lawyers and other staff themselves. Content management systems are expediting communications on the company web  among law firm personnel.

How will using a CMS benefit my Firm?

-Content management systems are customizable software solutions. Designed specifically in accordance with the discerning needs of the corporate infrastructure, CMS is all about ease, convenience and the utmost productivity.

-It’s secure. The CMS assures that the right departments and people are authorized to review and add content.

-CMSs deliver efficiency. Partners who are out of the office or working from home can receive and respond to time sensitive information.

With a CMS, you are not only  simplifying interdepartmental productivity. In the marketing sphere, content management systems multitask as a viable marketing tool.

3 ways content management systems can function as an effective marketing tool:

Establish a firm’s credibility in a specific area of law.
A website serves as a firm’s online portfolio. It is a place to announce new laws, litigation scores and other unclassified client-case information. Having the  access to keep this information fresh and updated will send the message out to potential clients that your firm is up-to-date, well-organized and a step above a competitor.

Expose a law firm to media visibility.
Content management systems are developed to syndicate news and events to search engines, ultimately disseminating information among media outlets. Whether it’s a high profile case or a law firm’s achievements, a CMS makes it easy to publish and firm updates and legal victories.

It will be easier for potential clients to seek you out on the web.
Most people refer to the Internet to research legal services. Many web content management systems are built specifically for Search Engine Optimization purposes. This will increase that a potential client will come across your website in search of legal services.

Not all new software integrations are a nightmare. The transition to a content management system is non-intrusive. It does not impose any network outages or require daily operations. Content management systems are customized to accommodate a law firm’s unique communication requirements, making the adjustment and simple and worthwhile process. As for the learning curve, CMS training is minimal. Once the functionality and design decisions have been determined, it is easy to start inserting content and images.

In the end,  using a CMS to market your firm’s area of specialty is an economical and user-friendly marketing tool – well worth the return on investment.

A law firm’s website should attract new clients, communicate with existing ones and aid in the sharing of information among the lawyers of the firm. If an attorney website is skillfully constructed and has regularly updated content, it can prove to be an effective tool for marketing your firm and presenting your business in a professional manner. Law firms should view their website as a living, ever-changing and interactive space for their communities, as opposed to a place to simply lump articles, biographies and press releases. A content management solution may just be the simple solution your law firm needs to meet all of it’s online needs.

The Net Impact’s CMS solution of choice  for law firms is Auctori:Law founded upon the Content Management System Auctori. Unified Development, Inc. (Unidev®) designed the CMS in association with several law firms to give attorneys and legal professionals an easy to use, but powerful system to update and maintain their professionally designed website. To see two excellent examples of Auctori:law™ in action, please visit The Stolar Partnership, LLP www.stolarlaw.com and Paul J. Passanante, PC & Associates at www.passanantelaw.com.

The value and significance of the legal industry demands a certain website environment that The Net Impact has been able to perfect. The Net Impact Team fosters an understanding of your profession and the aggressive marketplace that you are competing within. Contact The Net Impact today to learn more about how we can help your law firm enhance their online prescense!