1)      Over promotion through link building can get you sandboxed or black listed on search engines and social media sites. Social media sites don’t mind if you gradually promote your website’s pages. But, if you over do it, you may get blacklisted or sandboxed, which is not a position you want your site to be in. Hire a professional in social media to avoid getting in these positions by promoting your own site through link building.

2)      Use link attributes. Link attributes are being cognizant of your keywords and linking the mention of those keywords to a contact page. Many times you will find websites use the “contact us here” and “here” is not one of their keywords. Be cognizant of your keywords and try to use them as often as possible in your links.

3)      Lack of call to action on EVERY page of your site. Your website is a selling tool. Every page, especially your blog, needs to have a call to action. A tool that says “if you like what you see, contact me”… in a roundabout way, of course.

4)      You think social networking sites take care of your social media efforts. I get it all the time. “Social media? So you set up Facebook fan sites?” Honestly, if I could make a living doing that, I would! But, I can’t. People think social media is Facebook and Twitter. There’s so much more than that, including link building, blogging, forums and channels of engaging your customers.

5)      You send customers off your website for your blog. The biggest mistake people make. Think of your contact page on your website as the treasure chest filled with gold. You are trying to get visitors to find the treasure chest. By sending them to your brand on another site is taking them further from where you want them. You need to avoid that!

Jason M. Rodriguez is the founder of www.JayRodChicago.com, a social media, public relations and freelance writing company based in Chicago. He publishes a new blog every Monday at http://www.JayRodChicago.com/blog

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I’m among the biggest fans of blogs and I love the Top of Mind Awareness benefits that a Facebook fan page brings a business. BUT, they have their pitfalls, too. 

Picture your website like a flat dartboard, only people and search engines walk the dartboard instead of throw darts at it! There are many pages (the numbers) that can lure your customers to your website or that can distract them from what they came to your site for in the first place. Your goal is to get them to the bull’s eye – your contact page. That is your core – the central reason to have a website (spur more sales) and among the top reasons you are in business (to make money). 

So why in the world would you send someone off your site for your key giveaway – your blog? When writing a blog properly, you are giving away some great advice and information that customers and potential customers can use. Why send them somewhere else to read about it? You go them to the gold (your website) and they are so close to the treasure! 

Now please don’t get me wrong – WordPress, Blogger and most of the other blogging sites are great. They are set up properly for RSS and more. But to promote your business off of an off-site blog instead of your own site? You’d have to be a bit crazy! 

Same goes for Facebook fan pages. I’m a fan of the fan pages, but I also realize its purpose. The fan pages were designed for interaction and to help create Top of Mind Awareness. They serve a great purpose, but NOT to host your blog. I have had several clients wish that they could just place their blog on their Facebook fan page for convenience. I highly discourage it. Here are reasons why:

+ The blog on your site keeps customers close to your treasure – your call to action or contact page!

+ You want traffic drawn to your page and NOT to Blogger, WordPress or Facebook.

+ More traffic to your site through your blog means more credibility in the eyes of search engines.

+ By having your blog on your site, you’ve lured customers and potential customers to your site. That’s a challenge in itself. Maybe they’ll explore your site after reading what you have to say on your blog? 

There are many perks to having a blog and understanding its benefit. Same goes for other social media efforts. But, social media misused can be disastrous for your valiant efforts. 

Jason M. Rodriguez is the founder of www.JayRodChicago.com, a social media, public relations and freelance writing company based in Chicago. He publishes a new blog every Monday at http://www.JayRodChicago.com/blog

Are you convinced that you need a writer or social media professional? If so, click here. If not, click here to get even more convinced. Please use the “Share” button below to post this story on various social media sites!

Many, if not all, of us have heard the word “blog.” If you don’t know what it means, think of a diary. But instead of telling your diary what you did today, tell your customers different aspects of the knowledge you have about your business or industry.

People blog for fun (for instance, about TV shows) and others have created a rather lucrative living blogging (do a Google search for Perez Hilton). But did you know that a blog for your site can mean more business in more ways than one?

A recent WAVE3 report, a leading web company, states that 34 percent of active web users blog about their opinions on products and brands and 36 percent think more positively about companies that have blogs.

So here is a list of ways a blog can mean more business for you: 

1)      First off, blog for advice and not promotion. You have a wealth of knowledge. Share it with your customers and potential customers. For those of you who read this blog every Monday [plug], you may remember I talked about this here.

2)      Your blogging can lead to better search engine results. Keyword-rich blogs will help customers who search on search engines find you better. For instance, if you own a plant nursery in Michigan, you may offer tips on what to plant and during what season. You’re not selling your product directly to the reader, but you are offering advice that has brought the reader who searched “when to plant in Michigan” to your site.

3)      New material = More to promote = Happy search engine. It all goes back to content is king. Bring in new material on a consistent basis, promote it on sites like digg, reddit, StumbleUpon and more, and get people of like minds to read your material and promote it to their friends. When a search engine comes across your site, it looks to see if there is new material and it looks to see if your material has been linked to social media sites.

4)      Blogging leads to engagement. You engage your readers and encourage feedback or their thoughts by blogging. Interaction and engagement are two large pieces associated with social media.

5)      Blogging lends well to a Call to Action. Oh great, blogging is fun. But it sure doesn’t pay the bills because I’m not Perez Hilton or Mike Drudge! Blogs lead to business if done properly. At the end of each blog, as you’ll see shortly : ), have a call to action. Something that will tell the reader: “I’ve given you this information. Are you convinced you need my services or product?” This is where the direct sales comes in!

As promised, we have a call to action here. In fact, we’re offering a Ghost Blogging special (we interview you, we write, you approve, you post and we promote) from now until the end of October. There’s more information here.

For all of your social media, public relations, marketing and writing needs, look no further than JayRodChicago. We serve companies across the globe. Call us today at 312-515-9459.

Those who have been working with social media for a while know that blogs can be lucrative business. No, I’m not talking about “Write five blogs a day and we’ll pay you $1 for each.” I’m talking about blogging for your business.

A select few (ie. investors, mom, dad and that annoying guy from high school who always wants to know what you’re doing) really want to hear how business was as the office today. In short, don’t blog about that. Promoting your business is taking a new route and it’s called inbound marketing. We’ve done a video about that, so we won’t get into it here.

Blogs are more of a cool tool in the pool of information you can offer your clients or potential customers.

Keep these five things in mind when creating your blog. These are just some of the reasons people will visit your blog:

1 ) How Can YOU Help ME? Yep, it’s the old “What do I get out of this?” You’ve enticed me to come here, I’m here, now your information better help me. If it does, I’ll be a regular to your blog. Hey, I might even tell my friends about it!

2 ) What do you know that I have to pay for elsewhere? You are a pro at what you do (usually). What kind of info is rattling around in that brain of yours that you can offer to me for free? For example, let’s say you’re in the insurance business that only serves the local area. A family member or friend calls from out of state (because all of the local ones do business with you, right?) and says, “What kind of fine print should I watch out for when going to get insurance?” BINGO! What a great blog idea! I know many people who would read that as opposed to “Why Bill Smith should be your insurance agent.”

3 ) Can you break that into steps for me? You’ve been in the home construction business for 20 years. You probably could re-wire a home in your sleep. Guess what? I can’t. If you can break that into steps for me, that would help. That way, about after three steps, I’ll put the tools aside and give you a call. After all, you tried to help me. People love lists and steps. Give it to them!

4) Can you offer me some motivation? You love what you do. Share that passion and transform it into motivation. Run a gym? Give me four things to think of each morning to get me started and I’ll swing by your place after work. Are you into investments? Think too many people are investing improperly? Tell me how I should take a Sunday, tell me what I should look for and (if I’m not satisfied) tell me to call you Monday for a no pressure, no obligation meeting. I may just follow that last step.

5) Whatcha got that’s going to keep me coming back? I love visiting new sites, especially if it’s a one-time obligation. The ones that get me are the ones I can’t resist visiting again. Their information is so darn useful, I need to check in with them daily and some weekly. I challenge you to be that one I visit daily or weekly.

Jason M. Rodriguez is the founder of www.JayRodChicago.com, a social media, public relations and freelance writing company based in Chicago. He publishes a new blog every Monday at http://www.JayRodChicago.com/blog

Are you convinced that you need a writer or social media professional? If so, click here. If not, click here to get even more convinced. Please use the “Share” button below to post this story on various social media sites!