As a small business owner, you may find yourself going crazy over the number of things you have to do for work. But don’t worry: if you own an Apple iPhone, you’ll at least have some apps at your disposal – apps which can truly help you stay connected to your business and hang on to a little bit of sanity. While the iPhone is a fun device, it can also make for a great business tool – especially if you’re always on the go. Here are several Apple iPhone apps with which you, as a small business owner, cannot go wrong. Money matters A number of apps let you keep track of your expenses and finances. These include BalanceDo, a productivity app through which you can send customer invoices, track receivables or billings, and manage payments through PayPal. If you want to perform credit card transactions with your iPhone, check out MerchantWare Mobile. (You’ll need a Merchant Warehouse account.) – Read the full article
The Internet continues to grow, and more and more organizations are leveraging its power to support not just their own business objectives, but also their causes, advocacies, and social responsibilities. Charities have taken to using websites as their main communication vehicle, while an increasing number of groups and individuals are utilizing the Web to get volunteers, spread information, raise awareness, and raise funds through online donations. A creative and properly implemented fundraising campaign to a broad online community can indeed get more results and raise more money than an offline campaign, and without as much overhead expenses. Do you represent a group looking to get more results from your online fundraising campaign? Here are some essential tips to help you do that more effectively and make your campaign a success. Get legal First things first – make sure you have registered with the right officials and met the requirements for launching your fundraising campaign. Just because it’s being done online – Read the full article
The recent release of the Apple iPad tablet computer has set the world abuzz – and not just the technology world. Industry experts say that the iPad is a game-changing device that can revolutionize the way we live, play, consume media content, and use the Internet. In other words, it’s not just for tech lovers and Apple fans; it’s also for regular people who aren’t exactly savvy in gadgets. Furthermore, many marketers are already pointing out the iPad’s potential impact on the eCommerce industry. The eCommerce industry is already pretty big right now, but it’s about to get bigger: online sales are projected to reach $335 billion by the year 2012 – and that’s in the U.S. alone. With the arrival of the Apple iPad, it’s safe to assume that new trends, technologies, and platforms supporting the online retail industry will continue to emerge. Here’s why. Same Channels, Richer Experience The Apple iPad is a state-of-the-art media consumption device that – Read the full article
As we’ve mentioned in an earlier post, keyword selection is one of the most important factors in creating a successful PPC campaign. In the world of pay-per-click advertising where you simply have to get the most of your advertising dollars, it pays to be choosy – and to be smart and savvy, instead of reckless, in making decisions about keywords. Of course, this doesn’t mean choosing the most popular – and therefore most expensive – keywords. You have to take the time to research which ones are fit for your needs and budget, and which, when taken as a group, will still bring you high-volume traffic. Keyword research will require a set of tools that you can use to bring in the data, which can make you spend even more than you ought to. That’s why we’ve come up with this list of free keyword research tools that can potentially help you drive more traffic to your site and increase – Read the full article
Online advertising has evolved – and continues to evolve – so rapidly that secrets, tips, advice are coming from all corners. Just Google “PPC tips” and you’ll see what we mean. Businesses and marketers are keen on increasing their pay-per-click conversion rates and ROI, and they wouldn’t hesitate to try out this new piece of software, that new eBook, this new complex paid-for PPC management tool that should serve as current Shiny Object in the world of Internet marketing. We’re talking, in other words, about a lot of effort, time, and money. Sometimes, though, you can get the job done with something as simple as a Shiny Button. What are we talking about? Well, we’ve written in the past about “call to action” being one of the tips for a successful PPC campaign. Call to action: encouraging your visitors to make a decision about your product, your service, your brand. Writing persuasive ad copy that makes it hard for your – Read the full article
A PPC – pay-per-click – campaign is not for everyone, but when it works for you, then you’ll find out how it can stretch your advertising dollars and realize your sales potential. We wouldn’t go so far as to say it’s hugely underrated, but PPC can work in a way that helps your local business – hugely. In achieving local SEO and PPC success, however, you do have to keep some of these things in mind. Go for balance. Getting the right keyword or set of keywords is important. Choose too popular a keyword, and you may take years or never before you can reach the first page of the search engines results page. Choose keywords that are too uncompetitive, and you risk generating no traffic and lower conversion to ROI. Do all the necessary research. There are four main factors that come into why prospects will buy from you – or why they will not buy from you. These – Read the full article
An Internet marketing summit featuring the best talent from the Chicago and Milwaukee areas, and which focuses particularly on search marketing and social media, is poised to become one of the most talked-about events in Wisconsin this February. Dubbed “Think Tank Live!”, the summit brings together several of the most dynamic and talented Internet marketers this side of America, as well as C-level executives, small and medium-size business owners, top branding and communications professionals, and IT and web design experts. “Think Tank Live” will be held February 23 at Country Springs Hotel, Waukesha, WI. Sponsored by Biz Times Media and Mashable and organized by I.M. Think Tank (a collective group of integrated marketing professionals in Chicago and Milwaukee areas), the summit will focus on educating people on utilizing today’s best Internet marketing and social media practices to strategically drive business results, increase profits, and lower costs. “Think Tank Live!” will have a track on Internet marketing strategies that align businesses – Read the full article
Traditional radio, TV and print advertising simply don’t deliver the bang it once did. More and more, people are getting their news, entertainment and business needs from the Internet. Are your marketing dollars helping you find the people who really need your products and services? It’s not by magic or accident that a website ranks #1 on search engines. There are many factors that influence your websites organic search engine rankings. Our team of internet marketing specialists give your website the time and attention required each month to win in the website rankings. We work with dozens of small to medium size businesses to help them increase sales by using search engine optimization, social media, online advertising and e-mail marketing. Contact us today to learn how we can help you take your business to the next level. Give us a call today at (312) 229-0038 or complete the request form below. Lakeshore Branding Internet Marketing Services Search Engine Optimization (SEO) – Read the full article
