1.  Always Use Keywords in Titles. Keyword use in titles are easy for search engines to crawl. If possible, use them within the first three words of the title.

2.  Add Sharing Buttons. Sharing tools, such as Facebook, Twitter and StumbleUpon, gives readers the opportunity to quickly and effortlessly promote your story to their audience, which gives you links and traffic back to your site.

3.  Use Search Phrases – Not Words.  Search phrases are usually more specific than words and are better liked by search engines. Instead of using individual words like “hardware”, opt for “hardware store in denver”. This will increase your rank in local searches.

4.  Add Internal Links. Spend a few minutes each day linking your content to other valuable websites and blogs that have good reputations. Linking out will encourage more people to link back to you, and that will skyrocket your SEO efforts.

5.  Update content weekly.  Search engines like fresh material, so if you don’t have a website that needs to be updated frequently, add a blog. The constant flow of information will keep search spiders coming back to your website and indexing pages.

6.  Utilize Social. Add links to company blogs and website pages on social media outlets. Social media links are an important component of SEO ranking too, so having your content there will help boost organic SEO.

7.  Use ATL tags for photos. Make sure to tag your photos when you upload them to your content. Adding in a quick phrase comprised of the main keyword plus “photo” or “image” will help your content be found by searchers.

While these changes don’t affect the ratings that businesses acquired from Google’s rating algorithm, it does have a few downfalls for businesses that had racked up numerous written reviews – especially since people are much more likely to trust other patrons’ experiences over a star rating.

For instance, businesses that had built up an extensive online reputation on sites like Yelp might have seen the number of their reviews on Google Places drop from 1,000 to100. That’s a big dip for companies – especially restaurants – that gain many customers from word of mouth marketing. Losing these reviews onsite from the Places page might give customers the idea that a business is less appealing since it may look like it doesn’t have a lot of customers.

However, while businesses may have fewer reviews on their Google Places page, Google is still linking to outside review sites like Yelp and Citysearch. Its reasoning is that they want users to get “a comprehensive view of locations across the globe”. Although, these review links are placed in smaller, less noticeable areas on the Places page and means that going forward it’s going to be more important than ever to get users to review businesses on Google Places, rather than on third party sites.

In the meantime, businesses can keep increasing their Google Places reviews by encouraging customers to review and rate them through social media platforms and even via email campaigns and on their websites. The good business ratings are still there – all that’s needed now are just more visible reviews to back them up.

Google Places is a valuable marketing tool for many small businesses, so when Google makes a change to their layout or algorithm, business owners listen.  The latest change came a few months ago when Google was the recipient of a lawsuit from a number of third party review sites such as Yelp and Citysearch. The lawsuit, to make a long story short, kept Google from listing these business reviews since they saw Google as a competitor and having their reviews listed on Google Places would discourage users from visiting their own websites, reducing their pageview and traffic numbers.

These changes don’t affect page rankings for businesses, nor does it change the algorithm on Google’s backend, which rates businesses by the number and quality of reviews. It was a strictly cosmetic change that removed third party reviews onsite, and left only reviews left from Google users on a business’s Place page.

So how do you figure out how to take your current friends/fans/connections and get the highest ROI out of them? You start viewing your social media plan as a road map, instead of as a fun little tool that takes up a few hours of your day.

1.  Use services like Referral Key

LinkedIn is a great service, but it can hard to know where to start when prowling for sales leads on a site that has such varied focuses.  That’s where a smaller site that’s integrated with LinkedIn can help you do the job that much easier.  Referral Key is a B2B social media tool that let’s you create a quick profile and then draw “colleagues” in from sites like LinkedIn. From there, you zoom in on a target that you want as a client lead, and you search for those people. You can also send out “briefs” to people in your network who you think might be a good candidate for a referral.

Who is it for? B2B companies

Why does it work?  It takes the guesswork out of the process because the site has one goal: to refer and be referred.

2.  Contribute Expert Advice through LinkedIn Answers and Quora

Especially with B2B sales, content and expert advice is key. Information is crucial for converting online sales. That’s why larger companies invest so much in content – writing white papers, research, conducting studies and surveys. Doling out expert advice pays off, and with the Internet there to provide a foundation, you don’t need a research team and a marketing department to get your expertise out there.

Who is it for?  B2B companies

Why does it work? It’s a minimal investment, and it gives business owners and managers a chance to make an impression on other industry professionals with their field knowledge.

3.  Setup and Use Location Based Apps

Ever notice how almost everyone is using a smartphone these days? That’s great news for B2C companies who rely heavily on foot traffic to generate sales. Businesses like restaurants and apparel companies can benefit hugely from using location based apps like Foursquare and Facebook Places to entice people into their stores and offering incentives to shop, such as coupons for checking in 5 times in a month.

Who is it for? B2C

Why does it work?  It’s a passive way of attracting foot traffic to your store, restaurant, or other business.

4.  Use Consumer Review Sites such as www.buzzconstructor.com

With the shift away from product endorsements from celebrities and athletes, more and more studies are showing that people have a much higher rate of purchasing products if a friend and family suggests or recommends it. This is party due to the fact that it lowers company transparency and lets consumers decide which products they deem worthy.

Who is it for?  B2C and B2B

Why does it work? People trust recommendations from other people, and tend to be long-term customers if they are recommended by online friends and acquaintances.

Facebook is one of the most well-known free platforms for businesses promoting their brand online.  And while there’s been buzz around whether or not Facebook is going to turn some of their company Fan page features into paid attributes, they keep rolling out great platforms and applications for companies and their marketers.

What’s the newest of those applications, you ask?

It’s the ability for brands on Facebook to be promoted by being tagged within photos.  For instance, if a woman in a photo is holding a Pepsi can, she could tag the photo and link back to Pepsi’s fan page. While this may not seem huge, it’s giving brands a much higher potential to go viral, depending on how many fans tag their products and how engaged a fan’s Facebook friends are. Since product recommendations from friends and family members online is a growing trend, this only strengthens the ties between promoting brands by tagging in photos and status updates and the ability to turn those friends of fans into loyal customers.

So how do companies start to take advantage of this feature?

The easiest way for brands to start promoting being tagged in fans’ photos is to encourage participation with an incentive.  In short, a contest or promotion.  Smaller brands can jump on this trend by having fans’ tag their products in photos and then having the same fans vote on which photo is the best, encouraging their own Facebook friends to join a page to be able to vote.  While this route will work well for B2C companies, B2B companies will need to be extra creative when figuring out how to promote their services, especially if they aren’t selling tangible products.

Either way, this new Facebook feature is once again allowing brands online to promote themselves more easily (and still for free), so there’s no compelling reason why companies – especially small businesses – shouldn’t take advantage of them.

Don’t get social media? You’re not alone. Just a quick browse through the social media pages of local businesses will reveal the dirty truth that most businesses understand the concept of marketing online, yet lack the serious know-how of implementing those ideas and strategies into a workable plan that gets results.  But not every business has the ability to pony up money for an outside marketing company – and we get that.

So if you’re trying to become a social media maven yourself, a good place to start researching are on some of the most popular social and digital media how-to blogs.  And don’t worry if you don’t know where to start – we’ve picked 4 great websites that will get any digital illiterate up to speed in no time.

1.  SEOmoz

http://www.seomoz.org/blog

No one understands SEO and web analytics better than SEOmoz. A company that started out as a digital media firm, but then quickly realized that it’s strength in numbers and analytics more helped social media firms analyze their own client’s traffic and online presence, they quickly switched focus and started making software that tracks brand performance online.  Their blog – visited by millions of SEO veterans and newbies each month – is a mashup of helpful information on how to understand and analyze metrics, how to achieve a better online community and how to use the boundless supply of tools out there to manage your digital presence.

2.  Radian 6 Blog

http://www.radian6.com/blog/

Radian 6 is also an analytics and metrics software company.  They provide helpful (and pricey) solutions for digital agencies and corporations to manage their web footprint.  But their blog is a fun and easy read that takes real case studies (and some theoretical made up ones) and turns them into easily digested lessons from the digital marketing industry.

3.  Mashable

http://www.mashable.com

Mashable has long been a front runner of the social media news and how-to resources. While their content offerings might be less specific than SEOmoz and Radian 6, they are typically the first to break news on internet company buyouts and industry news.  Plus, they have easy-to-follow guidelines for different web applications and how-to’s designed for smaller companies and people just getting their feet wet in social media.

4.  Social Media Today

http://socialmediatoday.com/

Social Media Today is a akin to Mashable, only a lot less cluttered on the homepage and less overwhelming (who needs to spend 10 minutes browsing headlines on a homepage?).  SMT does a lot of reporting within the social media sphere, but also gets a host of qualified experts to chime in on social media strategies, policies and ideas for business integration.

Taco Bell recently underwent a class action lawsuit regarding their choice of meat and quality food standards, resulting in the lawsuit being withdrawn and the claims deemed “false”.  The lawsuit, while still being thrown out, led to a good heaping of bad press for the popular fast food chain, but instead of letting that negative PR draw them down, they went all out promoting a campaign to restore their brand image.  Their main weapon of choice?  The web.

Taco Bell used the bad attention as momentum to retaliate against the law firm with a massive national web and print campaign targeted to the lawyers at Beasley Allen Law Firm who led the class action suit and to advise consumers that they still used the same quality products and food procedures that they always have.  The campaign isn’t beating around the bush, either.  Titled “Would It Kill You to Say You’re Sorry?”, the company’s campaign is a bold move, and one that’s getting an instant positive response from consumers.

So what can we learn from Taco Bell’s Marketing Comeback?  A few things, actually.

1.  PR is much more effective when it can be done instantly.

Putting out fires is a typical public relations duty for companies, and when you have the ability to respond to your customers immediately via social channels like Youtube, Facebook and Twitter, you can make immediate broad statements and minimize the initial damage to your brand.  Taco Bell quickly released a Youtube video featuring their CEO, Greg Creed, explaining the suit and why it was thrown out.  The video has been shared numerous times and reposted on Youtube, gaining hundreds of thousands of views, and this effort has likely saved them hundreds of thousands – if not millions – on continued revenue by confirming their quality food standards.

2.  Be Direct.  Be Blunt.

Taco Bell wasted no time in stating what they wanted out of their ad campaign:  an apology from the law firm that brought on the false allegations.  That type of stance lets customers know that you’re serious about your business procedures and serious about your business integrity – both things that are extremely important to most consumers.  In addition, a direct stance lets customers know that you take your business seriously, and that builds customer confidence in your product.

3.  Take Every Opportunity to Address Bad Press

The worst thing a company can do in the throes of receiving bad reviews or negative press is to remain silent.  A company confident in their products and services doesn’t keep quiet when their activities are questioned.  Instead, they face accusations and bad PR head on, spin it around and use it to their advantage.  A negative customer review on a website can seem like a bad strike, but addressing the issue publicly and in a calm and respectful manner can not only turn an unsatisfied customer into a happy one, but it also shows that you offer excellent customer service and can convert more customers in the process.

Bad press is not the be-all-end-all for companies.  By taking a smart approach and using online tools and monitoring services, you can stomp out the flames of a PR firestorm before they become overwhelming.  And with a little creativity and a bit of know-how, you can use that negative momentum as an opportunity to spin bad press into good.

So since there’s no use in crying over spilled milk – or in this case, a defunct Fan Page, here’s a brief rundown of the new Page updates to everyone’s favorite new media marketing tool.

Let’s start with the GOOD

One of the most prominent and distinguishing features of the new Fan pages is the smattering of photos along the top of the page.  This is identical to the new profile page updates and, provided that the Fan page has striking images in its galleries, is an eye-catching design aesthetic.

Another plus are the enhanced metrics, like notifications when fans interact or comment on your page, activity of other pages show up in the feed, and the ability to make comments as a page – all of which were previously not options.

Moving along to the BAD

One possible major negative of the new page updates is that fans now have the ability to sort your Fan Page’s wall posts according to popularity. While this may not seem like bad news at first, it can draw attention away from content and news that you want your fans to read first.

Let’s get down to the UGLY

The main gripe from both individual fans and companies is the loss of the tabs at the top of the Fan pages. This is in similar format to the new layout of the profile pages that were recently updated. The navigation tabs are now much smaller and located on the left sidebar of the page, making them more difficult to see and possibly resulting in a minimized page stickiness (less time spent on pages).

Though the changes to the Fan Pages weren’t hugely game changing or all too intrusive, they still took companies for a loop since change is the nemesis of many a person and corporation. But however unappealing or ill devised the pages are deemed, there will always be a way to take advantage of the updates for the benefit of social marketing. And hey, if worse comes to worse, it’s still free right?

With that said however, email marketing still has a definitive place in online marketing, it’s just not a complete solution in and of itself.  But since email marketing is not yet dead and continues to aid in the digital marketing strategies of many companies, it’s imperative for companies employing this type of marketing to make sure that their efforts don’t bottom out because of some ill informed choices with timing, layout and objective.

The bottom line? If you’re going to go all out email marketing style, make sure you do it with class and panache and avoid these common email newsletter faux pas.

1.  Missing the Mark on Branding

Most marketers will agree that the purpose of email marketing is two-fold. If you’re focusing on a specific campaign, you are attempting to reach your campaign goals, whether they be ticket or product sales, website pageviews, or having readers fill out a market survey.  But there’s also another not-so-blatant goal of email marketing, and that’s branding.  The more times consumers are flashed with your company’s brand, tagline, color scheme and visuals, the more familiar it will become to them and the more often your company and product will be in the forefront of their minds when making purchasing decisions.

2.  Embedding Dead Links

The quickest way to get shunned by your audience is to whip up a peppy little email message and then have links that don’t work or go to the wrong landing pages on your website.  It’s not only unprofessional, but it precisely defeats the entire goal of email marketing.  Making sure to test email links before they go out is not only good procedure, it could mean the difference between a successful campaign and a waste of email space.

3.  A Consistent Inconsistency of Publishing

Want to publish a regular newsletter or email marketing campaign and get a visible ROI from customers? As cliche as it sounds, consistency is key.  Consumers want to know that they can count on your brand – both in the value of your product and in the timeliness of your marketing.  If you promise a weekly newsletter, deliver it.  Preferably on the same day and at the same time each week. This will show consumers that your brand is reliable.

4.  A Lousy Use of Graphics and Visuals

Email messages are just as much about the quality of the content as they are about the quality and visual aesthetic of the photos and images that are used within them. Granted, not everyone is going to be up-to-date on the latest design principles of the graphic arts, but there are a few standard rules of thumb that every company could stand to memorize. One major tip to keep in mind is that less is more. Attempting to cram ten photos into one message and using seizure inducing bright colors is going to look busy and draw too much attention away from the actual content. Make sure the visuals are balanced with the content so that you keep readers’ attention and achieve your directive for the email.

5.  Failing to Accept Defiance Gracefully

Let’s face it:  not everyone is going to want to receive your email marketing. Even people who are hardcore fans of a company may want to refrain from adding considerable girth to their inbox. Adding a very visible and easily accessible “Unsubscribe” link in email marketing campaigns is not only thoughtful, it’s a good marketing practice. Aside from being good practice, it also has a practical aspect since most people will mark an email as “spam” if they can’t unsubscribe from an email list. This can inadvertently put your company email on a spam list from Google, Yahoo, and AOL if enough people report you.

Facebook

Facebook is a great place to have your customers congregate because they provide a perfect interface for allowing a brand and its followers to interact.  But to get the most out of your Facebook Fan page, try drumming up some in-house research.  Adding polls to fan pages is a quick and easy way to get instantaneous feedback about your small business.  Even better is the possibility of trying out potential new products and getting feedback on whether or not they’d be a hit with your consumer base.

Facebook is also a fantastic way to promote giveaways and contests.  And by running promotions like these, you help spread your brand across the internet because your fan page shows up on other user’s home streams.  Thus, allowing for more users to “like” your page and buy your products.

Twitter

Twitter is one of those social media platforms that’s easy to get caught up in without seeing actual tangible results.  While Twitter is fantastic for doing damage control and keeping an ear to the ground about your brand, it’s biggest asset for many small businesses is customer service.  Being able to quickly and succinctly reach out to customers to answer questions and fix problems is far quicker than shooting out emails because you are forced to keep it short and to the point.

The other valuable quality that Twitter provides is the ability to shoot out information about sales, new blog posts, interesting company news in a few seconds and to a huge group of people.  By utilizing hashtags, you can ensure that not only your direct followers will see your information.  The possibility for news to go viral on Twitter is astronomically high because it makes sharing information so seamless.

WordPress

WordPress is the most frequently used blogging platform.  So where do you start when you’re a small business looking to blog to connect with your customers?  Start small.  Blog about company policies that have gotten a lot of heat over the years and explain the reasoning behind them.  Blog about your most popular products, or use blogging as a way to introduce potential new products for feedback.

But a company blog doesn’t serve much of a purpose if no one is reading it.  Make sure your consumers know that the blog exists by sending out a weekly email newsletter with a lead in to your company blog.  Or have your blog be the landing page that people end up on when they search for your company website on Google.

Whether you’re a small business owner, a one man entity or a medium sized corporation, social media can provide a host of benefits to boost profits and increase online visibility.  But social media isn’t a one size fits all solution – it needs to be stripped down and tailored for each individual business so that it can provide the maximum return possible.  But learn how to harness the collective power of social media sphere, and you’ve got a world of tools in the palm of your hand.

Company blogging is a great platform for bridging the gap between consumer and company, and it offers the opportunity for employees or business owners to personalize their business – something that can go a long way in customer loyalty.  But while many companies use their blogs to continue to pitch products or pump out staunch, generic content, Michael Arrington, Founder of Tech Crunch, used his to detail the acquisition of his publication to a massive media conglomerate.  And his honesty and forthrightness has solidified his ability to grow and retain a huge base of readership.  Whether people love him or hate him, they stick around and that’s because they feel a personal connection to him.

There are a few key points to take away from this method of communicating with your customers:

• Customers feel like they are part of the decision making process.  They feel “in the know”.
• Customers associate your company and brand with a real, live person, resulting in increased customer loyalty.
• Customer comments on blogs will give you insight into what they like and don’t like.

Arrington’s brute honesty about the Tech Crunch/ AOL deal had the possibility to alienate some of his readers, as Tech Crunch has frequently criticized AOL and their business strategies. But rather than keep readers in the dark about why he was selling his company, he published a series of blog posts about the acquisition – from both himself and employees – where they detailed their feelings and thoughts and even re-posted emails from AOL staff.

“The truth is I was tired. But I wasn’t tired of writing, or speaking at events. I was tired of our endless tech problems, our inability to find enough talented engineers who wanted to work, ultimately, on blog and CrunchBase software. And when we did find those engineers, as we so often did, how to keep them happy. Unlike most startups in Silicon Valley, the center of attention at TechCrunch is squarely on the writers. It’s certainly not an engineering driven company.”  - Michael Arrington

Few CEOs would be brave enough to publicly critique their own companies online and detail their flaws and the problems within.  But the silver lining is that being honest and forthcoming with your consumers builds trust.  And trust builds relationships, which turns into repeat customers.