Website Redesign? What's Your Strategy?

At some point in time, every business takes a look at his or her website and decides it's the right time for a web site redesign.

"Some want to make it slicker, some more effective. Some have new products and services that are not on their website and it needs to catch up. Some are redesigning their companies and going after new market opportunities and need to optimize their website around an updated business model."

Let's face it, maybe your business has put off redesigning your website because it can be difficult and time-consuming. Well relax, we are Marketing Communications -- we can organize your material for an effective Internet presentation through your company web site. We can incorporate the latest programming techniques, make it search engine friendly and even add online video to really grab your target audience. After all, your website is your company's premier marketing piece.


All of this underscores why it is vital to have a smart strategy in place for your marketing both online and offline. Did you know that Tony Robbins states that "80% of success is having the right strategy" and the 20% is the proper implementation of that strategy.

That is where Promise Productions comes in. We are the strategy people. With offices in Dallas, Houston, Las Vegas and Las Angeles, we cover the Southwest and West Coast. That means we are here for you to optimize, not only your web site, but your business strategy to THRIVE in today's market.

When you think about it, you already know that people are still buying products and services, but JUST the ones that are most compelling to them. Let us make YOU compelling to them -- to their needs and desires, but offering an opportunity that hits them where they live.

Promise Productions is more than design, more than video production, more than business blogging, more than web site design and development, more than web search engine marketing, we are communicators that provide the innovative strategy that makes all your marketing serve your business cash-flow needs. So call us today at 972-822-3587.

Dallas Advertising During a Recession - Top Tips

"He who stops advertising to try to save money, could just as easily stop his clock to try to save time." - Henry Ford

Businesses that advertise regardless of economic times actually have an enormous competitive advantage over businesses that trim their ad budgets. Advertising during a sluggish economy boosts the confidence that potential customers have in your company, delivering a consistent message that you are a strong, viable and stable company. That boost to propsect's confidence and trust is a priceless advantage.

A study conducted by McGraw-Hill during the 1981-1982 recession found that companies that cut advertising increased their sales 19% following the recession while companies that continued to advertise during the recession experienced a 275% increase in sales.

That is why advertising right NOW -- in July & August -- will pay for itself MORE than 12 TIMES OVER -- even in the short-term. There simply is no better investment than to invest in your own success!

As the economy continues to improve, the top-of-mind awareness you've built will result in a sustainable competitive advantage, increasing brand identity and lead generation. You have created your own success momentum -- if you market yourself right, right now. More visibility in the right places right now puts your business on the fast track to right profits.

For strategic marketing, taking advantage of such technologies as Web Development, SEO, Video Production and Social Media Marketing, call the top-rated Dallas Marketing and Branding Firm of Promise Productiosn at 972-822-3587.

SEO Done Right -- Cost-Effective Visibility For Your Business

With so much information - and misinformation - available on the topic of Search Engine Optimization (SEO) it can be tricky trying to separate fact from fiction.

Coupled with the fact that SEO changes only slightly less rapidly than the weather, it can be downright overwhelming for a business to know where to start promoting their website's products and services in search engines like Google and Yahoo. So, if you're an SEO newbie looking for a place to start, or cannot afford to waste advertising dollars on suspect SEO, here's a quick tutprial at good Search Engine Optimization (SEO) basics.

What Is SEO?


Even the most beautifully-designed site won't do you much good if potential customers can't find it. That's where Search Engine Optimization (SEO) comes in: SEO helps ensure your site is more visible in the search engines, drive qualified traffic to your website, and convert that traffic into actual customers.



In short, SEO ups your website's rankings in the search engines by making the pages within your site more attractive to the search engines. The more attractive your site is to Google, the higher its rankings in the search engine results pages. And the higher your rankings, the more likely users will visit your site. Obviously, a site with a result on Page 1 of Google is going to get more traffic than a site buried on Page 3.

 If your site is missing from the top search results, then you essentially dead when it comes to your ability to generate new business and add revenue to your business.

Let's take a look at some stats:


* Over 4.3 billion Internet users

* Over 85% start at a search engine
 and look for their desired products and services using key words
* Less than 20% will go beyond the top 10 search engine results

* Top 10 results get 85% more traffic than all those in the thousands of other pages after them

In addition to obtaining better rankings in the search engines, SEO is effective in several other areas as well:


* Branding/establishment of your business as an authority

* Pre-qualified lead generation

* Easily tracked ROI

* Cost savings compared to other promotion mediums (i.e. glossy brochures, yellow pages ads)

Key Components of Effective SEO
SEO consists of several key elements that work together to generate increases in a website's rankings, traffic and conversions: Keyword Selection, Copywriting, Link Building, HTML Optimization and Analytics.

Let's take a look at each element in more detail:



Keyword Selection

 for SEO
The foundation of any SEO campaign is good keyword research. That's because targeting the right keywords is essential to getting your SEO on the right track. If your sell Rolex ladies watches, then you're going to want to rank in the search engines for the phrase "Rolex ladies watches" and other similar phrases (Rolex Womens Watch, etc.).

You might be hitting the wrong target: If your keyword research is off and you target the wrong keywords, then you may not get visitors who want what your site has to offer. That's why you need to make sure that your site is properly optimized for the most-searched-for keywords related to your business.



Copywriting

 for SEO
Getting potential customers to your site is only half the battle; you've got to convince them to buy. That's where persuasive copywriting comes in. Be sure to tell people why they need your products or services and include conversion points throughout the site. The search engines like content, so you also need to optimize your copy to include your keywords.

This includes things like descriptive product pages, built-out content like biographies, news sections, etc. One important point to remember is to keep your most critical content "above the fold" - that's the area that's visible to your users before they have to scroll down.



Link Building
Link building is like one big online popularity contest, and the search engines like the popular kids. Your success in the search engines depends, in part, on the amount of relevant incoming links to your site.

Of course, having lots of good links also drives customers to your site, which is a good thing, too. Links can come in various sources, including directories, business partners, organizations, social media sites, and much, much more.

HTML Optimization


These are things that the user does not necessarily see, but the search engines do. Title tags, header tags, Alt tags, Meta-descriptions -- the search engines want your site's HTML to be descriptive and clean.

Search engines want to know exactly what your page is about; they don't want to sort through a bunch of extraneous code to figure it out. That's why you'll hear SEO experts talk about the importance of having clean web site code and how to use CSS to make that happen.



Measuring Success


No SEO campaign is complete without analytics. After all, if you aren't measuring things like traffic, link popularity, and conversions, then how do you know if your SEO strategies are working? Programs like ClickTracks and Google Analytics help make the number-crunching a little easier.

Conclusion
SEO is more important than ever because it maximizes your advertising dollars. 

If you want to have an effective SEO campaign, you need to include all of the five SEO elements listed above.

The summaries above just scratch the surface on these topics, and there are certainly other more advanced SEO strategies that can benefit your site as well. These building blocks, however, are the ideal way to get your SEO campaign working for you.

For expert Search Engine Optimization as well as other top strategies to get the most targeted visibility for your marketing dollar, call Promise Productions at 972-822-3587.