Ask yourself these questions: 

• Are you satisfied with your current website? 
  
• Is your website user-friendly and easy to navigate? 
  
• Do you have control over updating and editing your site?
• Are your visitors turning into customers?
  
• Does your website comply to current web standards? 

If you answered No to ANY of these questions, Let us give you a FREE Quote on getting your website updated.

The nuts and bolts of SEO marketing are keywords. They are important for one reason and one reason only. They allow businesses who seek search engine rankings to target their rankings by using the correct language. 

If you think about it, this is what good marketing has always done. Marketers deploy language for the purpose of persuasion. They hope to get their target audience to think about things by using the correct language and getting them to think and take action. SEOs do this using a specific type of language that is intended for two audiences.

The first audience is the human audience. You want your online content to speak to your human target audience in a way that your human audience takes action. That action, you hope, is to do business with you.

Your second audience is the search engines. Or their spiders. Search engine spiders are computer programs that crawl the Web through links and analyze the content on the pages. Today's search engine spiders are very sophisticated compared to the spiders of fifteen or twenty years ago. They analyze keywords, links, images, and a host of other on-page and off-page factors to determine the rankings of web pages for specific key phrases.

Because search engines have a ranking system, search engine optimizers try to target their content to the spiders in order to influence them on that ranking system. The goal is to increase their chances at getting good rankings.

Keywords are the nuts and bolts, the basic building fundamentals, of good SEO. If you want to rank well, start with good keyword research.

If you have a small business and you're wondering where to start in terms of marketing your business online, I've uncovered at least 15 places online you can start marketing your business. Here are the 15 best online marketing channels for small businesses. Try them all and see which ones work best for you.

1. Your Website - This should be the first place to start.
2. Your Company Blog - For many businesses, your blog will be on your website's domain so they could be viewed as one entity, but you could also put them on separate domains and have two websites - a static website and a blog.
3. Twitter - Post valuable news and insights in 140 characters or less.
4. Facebook - Start a business page and use your personal profile. That's two channels in one!
5. LinkedIn - Great for personal networking.
6. YouTube - Create videos and market them online. Drive traffic to your website.
7. Article Directories - There are a ton of them out there. Pick a handful and publish your articles for others to use on their websites, blogs, and newsletters.
8. Google Knol - Create your own knowledge base of articles and link them to anywhere you want.
9. HubPages - The cool thing about HubPages is you can have your own subdomain. Write and publish articles and even monetize them.
10. Squidoo - Squidoo is similar to Google Knol and HubPages, but a little bit snazzier.
11. PPC Ads - Stands for pay per click, those little ads you see at the top and the side of search engine results pages.
12. Google Places - Claim your local business listing at Google Places.
13. Bing Local - Just like Google Places, but owned by Bing.
14. Forums - Find a forum related to your niche and jump in, communicate with others with the same passion.
15. Groupon - Own a retail store? You can offer coupons at Groupon.

These are not all the online marketing channels you have, but they are some of the best ones for new businesses. I encourage you to check 'em out.

Talk to some online marketers and SEO is everything. Talk to others and they know nothing about it. My philosophy is somewhere in the middle.

I think SEO is important. It isn't everything, but it is important.

Let's look at domain names, for instance. Many successful online companies have built solid brands without keyword-based domain names. Google, Yahoo!, Amazon, Bing, eBay, Facebook ... just to name a few. Have you noticed that all of these companies are in the top 10 most trafficked websites online? Facebook is No. 1 and Google is No. 2.

That's not to say that these websites aren't SEOd. They have certainly considered SEO in their overall marketing plan online, but they don't put SEO as the point to emphasize against all other points. There is something to be said for branding as well.

When you build your online presence, think about SEO, but don't think about just SEO. Think about your overall marketing goals and how SEO can fit into that.

Here in Adams County, there are still small business owners who think that Internet marketing doesn't apply to them. But there are a growing number of small business owners who are taking an interest in online marketing. And they're starting to ask questions.

Which is more important - blogs, e-mail marketing, or social media?

That's a good question, but the answer isn't so simple. All three have their places and to what degree you engage through each channel depends on your own marketing goals, the type of business you own, and where your audience is. In many cases, a good mix of all three is the best approach.

E-mail marketing is a mainstay of online marketing. It was an early channel and is still strong. I highly recommend an e-mail strategy for most businesses - especially retail businesses.

Blogs are good marketing tools for a number of reasons. First, the search engine optimization benefits are incredible. Secondly, there are the huge branding opportunities available for serious business bloggers. Then there are the social benefits involved in having a blog that is highly trafficked and elicits a lot of direct reader feedback. 

Finally, social media is good for building relationships and driving traffic back to your own Web properties.

Which of these tools is right for you? Maybe we should talk about it. Give me a call and I'll consult with you on a strategy that makes sense for your business.

For all that we hear about online marketing - and I agree that it is becoming more and more essential every day - there is still a place for traditional marketing and high class print design.

Print design - what is it?

If you've ever used or have seen brochures, flyers, business cards, billboards, newsprint ads, etc., then you've seen print design in action. Someone had to design those marketing materials. Logos, which you use for your print marketing collateral as well as your online marketing materials, are usually created by a graphic design expert. Most graphic designers built their skills on print design projects and then later applied them to online marketing strategies.

The best marketing today is an effective integrated strategy involving online marketing tactics alongside print design and traditional marketing methods. That includes, but is not limited to, having a website, a set of business cards, brochures, letterhead and envelopes, online display ads and pay-per-click advertising, a newsletter (maybe a print edition as well as an e-mail edition), and more. When you incorporate print design into your overall marketing strategy, you are saying to the world, "I still operate in the real world; I'm as brick and mortar as you are."

When planning your next marketing strategy, don't leave out print design.

With so many businesses interested in Internet marketing, is traditional marketing still effective? With so many consumers looking online for the services and products they are interested in, is traditional marketing still worth pursuing? 

I wouldn't abandon traditional marketing just yet. There are some very good reasons to continue using the methods of reaching customers that you have always used. But in today's business climate, you must use some wisdom in determining which mix of traditional marketing tactics and Internet marketing tactics for your overall marketing strategy.

Yellow Pages - I'd say they're out. People use their cell phones and online sources to find phone numbers and addresses these days. Even in Adams County, Pa.

How about brochures and business cards? If you meet people face to face, then I'd say these are still useful. 

Traditional marketing has not gone by the wayside. Just because you are now using a website doesn't mean that you should abandon every form of traditional marketing you have used. Radio and TV still have their places. In fact, if you have a traditional marketing method that is still effective for your business, then you should use it. But don't be afraid to replace the older methods that no longer work with more viable online strategies.

When it comes to promoting a website online, and that includes a blog, there are more than one way to skin a cat. In fact, there are more than a dozen ways.

For starters, you can add an RSS link to your blog, which encourages blog readers who know what that means to subscribe to your blog in their news reader. You can also add an e-mail subscription link, which does the same thing except that readers will receive updates by e-mail. You can promote your blog through various social media websites. Search engine optimization techniques are always nice. And the list goes on.

One of my favorite ways to promote a blog, however, is with a newsletter. If you start a new blog and post to your blog three days a week, you can promote your new blog to your existing clients through your newsletter. This works especially well if you have a loyal list of clients and a good list of their e-mail addresses. There is no substitute for a responsive list!

Blogging has become the 21st century promotional tool. E-mail marketing has become the new century's direct mail marketing. You can combine these two marketing tactics into one very powerful marketing strategy that not only drives traffic to your blog, but encourages interaction and closes sales. I highly recommend a blog promotion newsletter.

Facebook has turned out to be a phenomenon of sorts. With an incredible size of 300+ million active users, Facebook is one of the epicentres of social networking. You probably know that and already have a Facebook profile to keep in touch with friends and family. What about your business, then? Have you tried your hand at Facebook yet to boost up your business? If you own a small business or are planning to start one soon, a Facebook Page is the perfect springboard to make your business known to the abounding millions. How to go about it? Keep reading!

A Facebook Page is fundamentally different from your Facebook Profile. Your business needs a fan page that tells the audience about the company, its latest ventures, web and contact info, blog posts, Twitter updates, press releases, and much more. The major advantage of such a page is that you already have a huge audience base ready; you just have to post something that attracts them. Additionally, it’s possible for even a novice to maintain their Facebook page, whereas a personal webpage requires a bit of expertise. Crawford Designs can establish your facebook business page, and show you how to easily update it.

Remember that Google Search gives a lot of respect to Facebook profiles and business pages; so the more details that are entered for your business, the better. We won’t forget to include company logos, RSS blog feeds and relevant multimedia.

Promote your page. Create a list of profiles or business connections that might benefit from your company and send them invites to join you. Remember that they are looking for benefits from the association; so tell them what exactly is in there for them. We also spread the word about your Facebook Page (with the link) on Twitter, your blogs, through email notifications, business cards, and so on.

Make it interesting. None likes business all the time; post crazy stuff and lure the Facebook audience into reaching out to you. Post polls such as “How can we improve?” or “What’s your favorite?” Let them know that you want to keep it fresh and exciting.

Keep evolving. Your Facebook fans need their dose of the new and the amazing from you every now and then to retain their interest in you. Dedicate a few hours of your busy schedule in updating your page. Trust us; it’ll pay you rich dividends. Contact us today and we'll show you how to get your business page started!

Think Again Before Deciding to Build Your Own Website...

Many existing businesses have started offering free web-building tools. Sounds great, right? Such tools enable you to build your website and go online within a short time. Although you might think this is a brilliant service, it isn’t.

You will find that the tools offered by such sites are simple enough to understand and use. However, most of them are not as useful as they promise to be. Some of the tools exclude most of the important aspects related to good website design, such as an artistic approach, sense of aesthetics, and use of SEO keywords and metatags.

Most websites that offer such services are full of ambiguity and lack any focal point or strong message. As you must have observed, colors and fonts are crucial to the fate of a website. A proper combination of colors and artistically selected typestyles and design convey subconscious messages to visitors and prompt them to remain on the site till they have seen it all and more significantly, to return. Some color schemes when used in combination with certain fonts convey the messages of reliability and trust.

Most tools that such sites offer are very generic and part of basic templates, which say nothing about your business. Some sites even put default advertising on your website, which is similar to wearing a tattoo you know nothing about. Another important aspect is the layout. The manner in which all elements within a webpage are put together and function evokes a subconscious response from the visitor. We have all landed upon websites that don’t ‘seem right’, and have therefore abandoned the idea of doing business with them.

Web marketing and conveyance of messages are considered carefully by professional web designers. To-the-point yet unambiguous content and well-coordinated elements on a page attract visitor’s attention. Search Engine Optimization is a crucial factor in turning your web business into a success. This professional touch, that differentiates your website from other sites in terms of search rankings, is a field of expertise for professional website designers.

Let the professionals construct your website. Such designers are generally quite affordable and the product they generate is worth every cent spent on it in terms of value addition to business.

The first impression is always the last impression, and you need to make sure that your client returns to your site after the first visit. A really good impression may even prompt social sharing, and your visitors will tell a friend or two about you. If you are looking for a few personal pages, choose a free blog rather than a website. Unlike blogs, websites require rigorous HTML formatting, which is entirely the professional web designer’s field of expertise. So, think again before you decide and choose a professional designer to build your site, just as you would prefer hiring a contractor rather than taking on the task of building your own home.