Rembrandt’s Blog

Ahhh. Summer. You sit back in your lawn chair with a cold beverage in one hand, and your favorite book in another.

Enticing barbeque aromas waft past your nose, and your stomach grumbles with anticipation.

You catch the sweet scent of roses in the garden and the fresh cut grass from next door.

But wait a minute… something is not right. There seem to be more flies gathering, and you just can’t seem to relax. What did you forget to do at work earlier?

Reluctantly, you pick up your Blackberry and start searching through your e-mails, your extensive, “To Do List” and the Internet.

And then, it hits you…. Now, something really stinks.

No, it’s not your barbeque overcooking on the open flame.

It’s not the kids playing a prank on you.

It’s not a skunk passing by.

No. It has been right under your nose all along, and you just realized what it is.

It’s your Web site!

Sure. You’ve got lots of cool graphics, and your logo shows up really well with a big picture of you in the “About” section.

But who cares… especially if no one can find you online!

Content is king, queen, and all the other subjects!

As Dan Kennedy, “The Millionaire Maker” and author of the “No B.S. Book” series just highlighted in our recent phone conversation (Yes, I’m name dropping to get my point across!), while it’s great to have a professional-looking Web site, what does your copy say?

Are you providing value to your target customers and new site visitors? Is it the right length?

Your site should:

• Let visitors know they are in the right place within seconds;
• Provide answers to their questions;
• Offer a solution, resources and current information;
• Capture e-mail addresses with a free report, newsletter, etc.; and
• Include easy, contact information among other things.

 And once all of this is in place, you really need to:

 Optimize your site for the search engines.

 If your site is not optimized for the search engines, you are missing out on a LOT of site traffic.

And the days of packing keywords into a site to get noticed by the search engines is over. Now, it’s more important than ever to provide valuable information that includes keywords, links, headers, sub-heads, and more.

You need copy that sells.

How to Get Rid of The Stench.

Well, now that you’ve figured out where the smell is coming from, how do you fix it? Well, you have two choices:

1. You can throw the whole thing out and start over, or
2. You can eliminate the smell with fresh, new SEO copy.

Either one of these solutions will work. And you can do it yourself. But unless you are trained to take care of it, the smell will just increase.

Current customers will leave, and new customers will stay so far away, they won’t even know what you have to offer … so with this in mind…

Use A Professional Exterminator!

I highly suggest you spend the money to hire a good, SEO copywriter and exterminate the cause of the odor as soon as possible!

Not only can good, SEO copywriters help you get noticed by the search engines and bring in new customers, but they can also offer new marketing ideas to keep customers engaged and coming back for more. These new activities may include social media, SEO press releases, e-mail auto-responders, newsletters, eReports, and more.

And the best part is that SEO copywriting can be monitored. You can see what’s working and change what’s not… immediately. This makes it very cost-effective, and you get the best results possible.

…so what are you waiting for? Take action!

After all, when your Web site provides valuable information and copy that sells, things will stop stinking. And all you’ll notice is the sweet smell of success!

Now, if you have questions about SEO copywriting, or need help with your copy, please let me know here or at www.rembrandtwrites.com. Plus, I’ve started a new program to help entrepreneurs increase sales and awareness for less than a cup of coffee each month!

Check it out at www.rembrandtwrites.com/newsletter and let me know what you think. Thanks!

You smell the freshly cut grass and the tangy barbeque sizzling on the grill. You sip a nice, cool beverage by the pool and start to fall asleep.

Ah…summer. It’s time for rest, relaxation and fun. But wait a minute…Wake up!

It’s also a time to be aware of your business. Why?

Well, while you’re napping, your competitors may be doing something you’re not…something that can significantly squash your future sales… and even put you out of business.

What is this secret weapon?

Planning future promotions.

That’s right. Even though the sun is blazing (and you’d rather not work), it’s time to think about snowflakes and holiday sales. Before you know it, the holiday season will be here, and if you don’t act now, you will miss out on some great publicity and marketing opportunities… so what’s a business owner to do?

Here are three, quick tips to fight the holiday battle now:

1.      Figure out what your target market will want.

Start thinking about how you can fulfill the needs of your customers in the months ahead and get them to buy your products and services.

Will an updated product, discount coupon, layaway process, gift-with-purchase, or other special discount bring in more sales? What do you want to accomplish this holiday season?

Be creative and think of ways you can promote your unique benefits while exceeding customer expectations.

And even if you can’t afford a big sale, you can always provide extra customer-service, work with a charity on a special, holiday event, have a theme day, hold a contest, or create other, free activities that will bring customers in your door.

2.      Make plans now.

Got your big, promotional ideas for the holidays? Great!

Write down all of the activities, responsibilities, budgets, deadline dates, and specifics necessary for you to make your plans a reality. And don’t forget to include all of the marketing and public-relations tactics that go with each activity.

This way, you’ll know what needs to be done when, and who is responsible for accomplishing each task. Not only will this help you meet your goals, but it will help you avoid last-minute surprises and missed deadlines.

3.      Start promoting.

Once you have your plan in place, start your promotion activities. After all, many media venues are already working on their holiday issues, and you don’t want to miss out on interviews, articles and advertising placements.

Be sure to get your Web site ready too. You’ll probably need new, holiday copy for search engine optimization, landing pages, newsletters, brochures, blogs, social media, and other, promotional materials.

Got it all together?

Fantastic! Now, you can go back to the hammock and that tall glass of lemonade. You are in control and ready to take on the competition in the cooler months ahead… And if not, give me a call, and I’ll help you get it done!

Need help increasing sales with good copy and publicity? Please write to me here or at www.rembrandtwrites.com. And please keep a look out for my brand new book, “Simple Publicity,” coming soon!

As a new business owner, it’s easy to rush through publicity efforts in order to concentrate or core business activities and priorities. But before you contact the media or post a press release, ask yourself if the information you’re about to send is really newsworthy.

Will a reporter really care about what you have to say?

If you can’t answer this question accordingly, you need to conduct additional research, rework your story angle or rewrite your announcement. Focus on a specific benefit, current industry trend or unique idea.

Once you rewrite your announcement, have a regular customer, or someone in your target market, read it. At the very least, have co-workers, friends or family members review the information. Do they think it’s boring?

This work takes extra time and effort, but it can mean the difference between front-page news and the trash bin.

And if you are having trouble finding newsworthy items to share with the press, here are some tips to help.

Five Ideas for Creating Your Own News:

1. Take part in a community event, or create your own.

Give something back and encourage others to do the same. You’ll help others in need while creating a newsworthy event.

2. Create a brief report or “Top 10 List.”

Relate this document to a big trend in your industry that will help others solve a problem. Provide your expertise without asking for anything in return.

 3. Submit an opinion piece.

Write to your local newspaper, and provide your opinion about a published story or current news item. This can help build credibility and awareness for your business when written in a postive manner.

4. Give a presentation.

Speak at a local community college, business group or other organization where your target audience attends.

Provide valuable information without giving a sales pitch, and invite pertinent reporters. You’ll establish yourself as an expert and meet potential new customers while increasing your chances of obtaining media coverage.

5. Find success stories and promote them.

Talk to your customers, and ask them how your products and services have helped them save time and money, increase productivity, meet deadlines, etc.

Media members like unique, “before-and-after” stories, and you can always use these case studies to build credibility and market new customers.

Got News?

Now, please note that some announcements are just that – announcements about winning awards, events, fresh partnerships, new hires, etc. These may not be the most exciting news-items, but they are still important to share with the press. These announcements will help project a fresh, current and credible image for your business.

But before you share this information, be sure to create a list of appropriate press members, event-listing media venues and customers. Not everyone will be interested in this kind of news. And you want to send it to the right people so you don’t waste your time.

These are just a few, key ideas to consider when announcing your news. Hopefully these tips will help you provide valuable information to the press and build positive, company awareness.

And if you need help increasing sales, awareness and credibility with SEO copywriting and PR, please let me know here or at www.rembrandtwrites.com.