Preparing for a business transaction

If you’re selling your business, having an accurate valuation is essential. It helps to establish a common understanding of the worth of the business being sold. It can prevent overpricing or underpricing, which can be significant barriers to closing a deal. According to a survey by BizBuySell, over 90% of businesses that were accurately valued sold within three months of listing, compared to just 75% of businesses that were undervalued.

Securing financing

Business valuation is also vital for financing purposes. Banks and investors often use business valuation to determine the loan or investment they are willing to provide. A study by the Small Business Administration found that accurately valued businesses were 2.5 times more likely to secure financing than those undervalued ones.

Tax purposes

In addition, business valuation is essential for tax purposes. The tax authorities use business valuation to determine the amount of tax a business should pay based on its value. A study by the National Bureau of Economic Research found that accurately valued businesses spent an average of 30% less in taxes than undervalued ones.

Estate and succession planning

Business valuation is also crucial for estate planning and succession planning. In these cases, it helps to determine the value of the business for inheritance or estate tax purposes, which is essential for the family or shareholders taking over the business. A study by the Family Business Institute found that 70% of family businesses failed to pass to the next generation because of inadequate estate planning and valuation.

Business growth

Business valuation can also help you identify areas of the business that are over- or underperforming. It will help you better understand your current operations by calculating and measuring the performance of key value drivers. KPI’s (Key Performing Indicators) are useful measures of overall financial health and operational health of the business. KPI’s should be checked regularly to measure business growth, meaningful trends, and/or red flags.

Shareholder/employee quitting or being fired

Another triggering event that often leads to business valuation is when a shareholder or an employee quits or is fired. In these cases, business valuation is used to determine the value of their share of the business, which is essential for the fair distribution of assets. According to a survey by the National Association of Stock Plan Professionals, 65% of businesses that conducted fair and accurate business valuations experienced a significant increase in employee morale and satisfaction.

Shareholder retirement, wish to sell a stock or become disabled

When a shareholder retires, wishes to sell their stock, or becomes disabled, business valuation can help to determine the value of their share of the business and ensure a fair distribution of assets. According to a survey by the Society of Financial Service Professionals, 85% of businesses that conducted accurate business valuations in these scenarios experienced a smooth and conflict-free transfer of ownership.

Shareholder death

In the event of a shareholder’s death, business valuation is used to determine the value of their share of the business for estate planning and distribution of assets. According to a study by the American Society of Appraisers, businesses that conducted accurate business valuations in these scenarios experienced a 50% reduction in estate tax liability.

Shareholder divorce

When a shareholder gets divorced, business valuation can help to determine the value of their share of the business and ensure a fair distribution of assets in the event of a property settlement. According to a study by the International Academy of Family Lawyers, businesses that conducted accurate business valuations in these scenarios experienced a 60% reduction in legal fees and a 50% reduction in the time it took to resolve the property settlement.

In conclusion, business valuation is a critical aspect of any business and is essential for several reasons. Whether for financing, business growth, tax purposes, estate planning, or a business transaction, an accurate business valuation helps set a realistic price, secure financing, and help you pay the correct taxes.

Let’s also not forget that a business valuation can also help you plan for the future. So, if you’re running a business, be sure to understand the importance of a business valuation and how it can impact your company’s success.

What gets measured, gets improved!

Make an appointment with Annie Damato & Associates.

At Annie Damato & Associates , we understand this is about you, your family, and your business! Over the years, we have been able to help many other families mitigate risks. I’ve learned that we cannot eliminate these risks, but we can help you put strategies in place to help you get through the financial burden that comes along with these challenges.

The post Business Valuation: Why It Matters appeared first on East Brunswick Regional Chamber of Commerce.

What is SEO?

Search engine optimization (SEO) is the process of optimizing web content and websites to increase visibility on search engine result pages (SERPs). SEO involves a variety of techniques and tactics aimed at helping websites rank higher in search engine results, such as keyword research, link building, and content optimization. SEO also helps with brand awareness and organic traffic and is a long-term game that will help drive down marketing costs.

The Benefits of SEO

SEO is an incredibly important tool, and downright essential to have in your arsenal when it comes to optimizing your website. SEO can help you get more organic search engine traffic and ultimately more customers by optimizing your website’s content and structure to improve its visibility in search engine results pages (SERPs). This can be achieved by implementing a variety of strategies, such as increasing the number of quality backlinks to your website, optimizing for relevant keywords, and creating quality content that is well-written and informative.

There are numerous benefits to having a well-optimized website. It can improve your brand visibility and recognition, increase website traffic and leads, boost conversions, and establish you as an authority in your industry. Additionally, SEO helps to make sure that your website is properly indexed by search engines so that users can find what they’re looking for.

SEO should be your primary focus if you want to achieve long-term success with dominance in your specialty.

The Difference between SEO and SEM:

Most people get confused about which is which and how it works. To touch on the topic quickly, search engine marketing (SEM) is different from SEO in that it encompasses more than just optimizing for higher rankings on search engine results pages (SERPs). SEM also includes paid search ads, such as pay-per-click (PPC), cost-per-click (CPC) and other paid search activities. While SEO focuses on improving organic or natural results, SEM is more focused on purchasing ads to increase visibility.

SEO and SEM are two different strategies, but they can work together to help you maximize your visibility and reach your target audience. SEO focuses on optimizing your website for organic search engine results, while SEM focuses on advertising on search engine platforms such as Google Adwords. By taking advantage of both SEO and SEM, you can increase your brand recognition, website traffic, and leads while boosting your conversions. Both strategies should be part of any effective digital marketing strategy.

The Different Types of SEO

Search engine optimization (SEO) is a complex process and there are many different types of strategies that can be employed to help improve your website’s search engine rankings. The most common types include on-page optimization, off-page optimization, technical SEO, and content marketing.

• On-page optimization involves optimizing individual web pages by focusing on factors such as page titles, meta tags, headings, and content.
• Off-page optimization involves building external links from other websites, creating high quality content, and engaging in social media marketing.
• Technical SEO focuses on the technical aspects of website design such as speed, crawlability, and code structure.
• Lastly, content marketing is a type of SEO that involves creating content such as blog posts, videos, or infographics to promote your website.

How to Optimize Your Site for SEO

As mentioned above, there are several techniques and strategies you can use to optimize your site for SEO. These include creating unique, keyword-rich content; using appropriate keywords in page titles, meta descriptions, and image alt tags; optimizing HTML tags, including the header and title tags; making sure your website is mobile-friendly; improving page load speed; creating and submitting a sitemap; promoting content on social media; building high-quality backlinks; and creating an XML sitemap.

Additionally, monitoring the performance of your website through an analytics tool such as Google Analytics is essential in order to track progress and measure success.

By taking the time to optimize your site for SEO, you can reap the benefits of higher rankings and increased visibility in SERPs. Implementing the right SEO strategies can have a significant impact on your online presence and business success.

Tools to Help You with SEO

When it comes to optimizing your website for search engines, there are different tools available to help you and depending on your budget and goals, you may find a variety of helpful options. From keyword research to content optimization, there are many tools available to assist you in the process of SEO.

SEO refers to techniques used to improve a website’s organic rankings in search engine results pages (SERPs). This includes things like on-page and off-page optimization, content optimization, keyword research, and link building and different tools, sometimes even one tool, can help with all of these.

Some of the most popular tools that can help with SEO include Moz Pro, Yoast SEO, SEMrush, and Ahrefs. These tools can provide a range of features to help with everything from keyword research to website audits and competitor analysis. Additionally, there are other helpful resources such as Moz Local and BrightLocal, which help with local search engine optimization and citation building.

No matter what tools you choose to use, it is important to ensure that they meet your specific needs and objectives. With the right combination of SEO tools, you can increase your website’s visibility and rankings, drive more traffic to your site, and improve your overall online presence.

Contact Jessica Deviln.

Jessica Devlin is a marketing and sales professional with over 20 years’ of experience. Her experience is both complex and diverse; she has worked with both large corporate entities such as Ford, & Nissan as well as small businesses. No matter what type of account she works on, she is able to deliver results and is dedicated to helping businesses get leads and convert them into actual clients.

The post Everything You Need to Know About SEO appeared first on East Brunswick Regional Chamber of Commerce.

What can business owners possibly learn from the craft of Acting?

As a film, voice over, and theater actor with 15 years of experience in the performing arts industry, I’ve learned valuable lessons that have helped me succeed not only in my acting career but as a small business owner.

Whether you are an actor, a small business owner or simply someone looking to improve your personal and professional skills, I believe that there is something to be gained from the lessons I will be sharing below.

It’s all about your scene partner!

During that moment before I enter the scene as any character, I think about the immediate things affecting my senses — the temperature of the environment the character is in, the smell that might permeate the imagined space; and, how my character thinks and reacts to those senses.

Then — on to the stage I go. In front of the audience, I remember the wise words of my acting coach,  Brad Fleischer, “Make it all about your scene partner!”

One cliché in the theater world that I find to be generally true is that you look good when your scene partner looks good. People come to the theater to see that emotional connection between actors, which is only possible by the actors listening and responding to one another and “making it about each other.”

In a business setting, it’s important to remember that our customers or clients are the lifeblood of our company. Without them, we wouldn’t have a business to run. Therefore, it’s crucial to focus our attention on them, being mindful of their needs, providing value, and meeting their expectations. By putting their needs first and being fully present with them, small businesses can create meaningful and rewarding experiences for the people they are serving while also growing their own business.

Goals, Tactics, & Obstacles

Imagine you were cast to play a role in a local theatrical production — how would you go about preparing? Yes — you would need to memorize the line, but then what next? Just continue to recite it, until it just feels right?

Professional actors need to have a craft — a process they rely on to create their characters and prepare their scenes.

When working on a new audition piece, I will often ask myself what does my character want (objectives)? How are they going to go about getting what they want that appropriately matches their character and the relationships which are showcased (tactics)? What is going to get in the way and how will my characters realistically react to those story beats (obstacles)?

This acting craft translates perfectly to entrepreneurship.  To run a business, you need to identify your goals in relation to your audience. You need to identify the best way of achieving those goals — by evaluating your programs or products and how they relate to your audience.

And, it would only be prudent if you identify any challenges that can get in the way of your business thriving — by identifying any real obstacles and strategies for dealing with them should they come.

Rehearse, Rehearse, Rehearse

Practice is essential for improvement and success.

For actors, rehearsing is an integral part of the process of bringing a character or production to life. By rehearsing, actors have the opportunity to try out different choices, explore different nuances of their character, and fine-tune their performance.

Rehearsing is also a way for actors to build muscle memory and develop the skills and habits that will help them succeed on stage or on camera. By putting in the time and effort to rehearse, actors can become more confident and proficient in their craft, leading to better performances and more successful careers.

As a business owner, it’s important to constantly be learning and growing in order to stay ahead in a competitive marketplace. This may involve rehearsing your pitch, practicing your public speaking skills, or simply putting in the time to become an expert in your field.

By rehearsing and practicing, entrepreneurs can build the skills and knowledge they need to succeed, as well as gain confidence in their abilities.

The You, the You, and the You

Spoiler alert — I am villainous in many of the roles I’ve played, including Kyle in the horror-slasher, The Canyonlands, or Magnus in the hit family podcast, Six Minutes…

Trust me — I am an angel in real life! In the entertainment world, there are the roles I can believably play; in real life, there’s the person that I believe myself to be; and then, there’s the objective version of me.

This is the concept of “The You, the You, and the You” which is particularly useful for actors, as it helps to understand the different layers of our own identity. There is the person others perceive us to be, the person that we believe ourselves to be, and then the person that we are objectively.

The concept of “The You, the You, and the You” is also relevant for small business owners. As a business owner, it’s important to be aware of how you are perceived by your customers, employees, and the general public. This can help you to make informed decisions about your branding, marketing, and overall business strategy.

For example, if you are trying to position your business as a leader in a particular industry, it’s important to be aware of the perceptions that others have of you and to make sure that your actions and messaging align with the image you want to project. By understanding the different layers of your identity and how you are perceived by others, you can create a more cohesive and successful business.

Schedule a commitment free consultation with Dennis Connors.

NextGen Acting is a Performing Arts School in Central NJ for people of all ages, backgrounds, and performing arts experience levels, founded on the belief that no matter what you do, performing arts classes will equip you with transferable skills to be even better. Looking to implement these acting skills into your business workflow, how to utilize actors to better your small business, or enroll your children into our acting day camps and after school programs for kids and teens, schedule a commitment free consultation with Dennis Connors at NextGen Acting here.

The post From Acting Class to Business Strategy appeared first on East Brunswick Regional Chamber of Commerce.

Mobile SEO is the optimization of a website for mobile devices to improve its ranking in search engine results pages. This is important because more and more people are using their mobile devices to access the internet, and businesses need to make sure their websites are easily accessible on these devices.

Why is Mobile SEO becoming vital?

1. Mobile vs. Desktop: The trend for mobile devices has rapidly increased in the past few years and now exceeds desktop. That only highlights where your target customers are and improving the SEO on the devices is futuristic.

2. Contents: Your website must be designed and written for mobile devices. When indexing the content for searching, Google prefers if websites with mobile devices users in mind. The approach is mobile-first, meaning your site contents and design needs to be mobile-friendly and device independent, or you will be ranked poorly in search results.

3. Customer Base: Mobile has an excellent customer base and reaches out. It is great for people who are on the go.

4. Location: Targeting based on customers’ location is a better utilization of advertisements spent.

5. Customer Engagement: Higher customer engagement when you have a mobile site and a desktop, e.g., scheduling appointments and reminders with auto dealers, restaurant reservations, etc.

Here are a few tips for improving mobile SEO:

Please ensure your website works on all mobile devices: A responsive website automatically adjusts to fit the size of the device it’s being viewed on. This is important because it provides users with a good experience on your website, regardless of their device.

1. Use a mobile-friendly design: Mobile users have different needs and preferences than desktop users, so it’s crucial to design your website with mobile users in mind. This includes using larger font sizes, more straightforward layouts, and larger buttons to make it easier for users to navigate your site on a small screen.

2. Optimize your page load times: Mobile users are more likely to leave a website if it takes more time, so optimizing your website for speed is essential. This can be done by optimizing images and other media, writing less code, and using straightforward static content.

3. Use mobile-specific keywords: Keywords are the terms you will use to describe your business, product, service, and mission. Mobile keywords are different from desktop’s, so research is essential. Research on keywords will help you identify the most effective keywords in your mobile SEO strategy.

4. SEO prefers structured data: Google needs to understand what your pages, products, and website are about to show the relevant details in the search results. Structure data markup your website content and make it easier for search engines and users to find your website in search results which can help improve your rankings.

5. Use relevant and unique titles and meta descriptions: Titles and meta descriptions help search engines understand the content of a page and can influence how the page appears in search results. Search results show the page title tag and meta description. You must ensure the title tag and meta description are unique and relevant.

6. Ensure the website is responsive: A responsive website adjusts its layout to fit the screen size of the device used. This ensures that the website is easy to use and navigate on a mobile device.

7. Use header tags properly: Header tags improve the readability and SEO of a webpage. They are used to separate headings and subheadings on a webpage and are numbered in order. The order of tags is based on importance and helps organize the webpage. You must use header tags properly and include relevant keywords in them.

8. Use shorter sentences and paragraphs: Mobile users generally scan content rather than read it thoroughly, so simple and short sentences and paragraphs are essential to make your content more scannable.

9. Optimize images and videos for mobile: Make sure your website’s pictures and videos are optimized for mobile by using the correct file size and format. High-resolution photos or high-quality videos take a longer time to load and will impact user experience.

10. Use mobile-friendly call-to-action buttons: Make sure your website’s call-to-action buttons are easy to see and tap on a small mobile screen.

Conclusion

Mobile is the future of online search, and the amount of time we spend using them is increasing exponentially.

These tips can improve your mobile SEO, make it easier for mobile users to find and use your website, and eventually build a sustainable digital marketing foundation.

Arrange a 30 minute appointment with Marketing Markers, LLC.

We at Marketing Markers, LLC are committed to helping small businesses succeed. Don’t have a website? Are your customers struggling to find your business on Google? Don’t know which type of advertisement is best for your business? Want to run campaigns? Learn more about our services at: marketingmarkers.com

The post Why do I need SEO for Mobile? appeared first on East Brunswick Regional Chamber of Commerce.

However, if you ask for their feedback and they give it, you will have the social proof that you need to take with you when it comes time to dazzle and impress new clientele. The client’s experiential summary is a chapter to your company’s success story. The more of these that you gather from satisfied customers the more evidence of the valuable services you provide to others that will amass. That evidence becomes your best seller–it is the client testimonial.

Although most are aware of the value in seeking customers’ feedback, some may not be cognizant of the fact that all feedback is not created equal. Many might think of a review and testimony as being synonymous but they are not. A review is simply a review; a comment or a rating. That is all! Although both are a form of feedback, a testimony goes above and beyond.
That is not to say that a review isn’t valid. Comments and ratings are definitely better than none at all. However, a testimony stakes a claim of value. It is a testament of experience that conveys a lasting impression.

A testimony cannot induce a lasting impression, however, unless it is effective. So, what makes an effective testimony? Let’s look at its attributes:

● Authenticity: The individual giving the testimony must have had a personal experience with your products and services. Additionally, that person should be fully familiar with your business and trust you as a professional. It is also a feather in your cap if that person has made positive comments before. This creates the perfect opportunity for you to ask if that person would be willing to put their comments in writing.

● Emotional Appeal: An effective testimony is one that describes a unique customer experience and conveys a personal satisfaction by speaking in one’s own words. Language should denote a feeling of gratitude, joy or relief.

● Brief but Informative: In addition to being an honest and positively charged account of their experience, your customer’s testimony is most affective when a factual account is given as to how your business successfully met that individual’s needs. An ideal exposition would be for your client to provide a before and after experience. If they can describe the details of their pain points and how your product or services changed, influenced or remedied those pain points, these provide strong points of evidence that attest to your company’s value. Make sure the client is giving enough details but without being too wordy. It should be direct and to the point. If you feel a client’s testimonial needs some editing down, you can always ask them politely if you can make some minor adjustments without changing the meaning of the message. See the following two examples. One is a review yet the other gives a detailed experience.

“Great web designers! I’d recommend them in a heartbeat!” ****

Verses

“It used to take me an hour or more to update a page and there was never anyone to help me.
I’m glad I decided to work with Ben and his team. Their talented design, no nonsense solutions and excellent customer service have helped me update a page in no time at all.”

● Strategic Placement: The location of your testimonials on your website is another crucial factor in determining their effectiveness. Don’t place your prized success stories on a separate page of your site that may get ignored or overlooked. Engagers and potential clients will more likely read those testimonials that are placed on a product/service page that they are already on to get more information. Their chances of purchasing from your company are greater if there is a neighboring testimonial that endorses the product or service they are investigating. If you don’t have dedicated product pages, do consider placing them on a page of your site that gets the most traffic such as a landing or home page.

It is also wise to position your testimonials next to other content that has similar key phrasing. For instance, a massage therapy store owner receives a testimony from one of her regular customers who uses the term, “aromatherapy” to rave about his experience receiving an aromatherapy massage from this company. Let’s say this owner has posted some informative content about the benefits of this kind of massage therapy. It is best for her to place this testimonial in close proximity to that content. This benefits her website’s SEO by increasing the opportunity that users will be driven to that content and see her customer’s testimonial if they have used that term in their search query.

Getting the Testimonial

Now that you know the criteria for an effective testimonial, it’s time to gather them. Most likely your clients won’t be beating down your door to write about their experiences, no matter how good they are. You will have to ask for them. Here are some pointers for approaching your customers to write a testimonial:

It’s always best to strike when the iron is hot: Ask for the testimonial as soon as the job is complete and the transaction is fresh in your client’s mind. You can call them or send an email with a convenient link to leave a brief summary about their personal experience.

Ask for permission to share positive comments: If a client hasn’t recently done business with you but you have heard them praise you to others, ask them if you could use some of those comments in writing.

Be thoughtful and friendly, not boastful and pushy: Use a polite and friendly approach when asking for a testimonial whether in a note or conversation. Don’t expect that your clients’ feedback will be a given. If they don’t respond, thank them for their business and move on.

For editorial review or third party writing, the client needs to approve the final draft:
If the client asks you to write the testimony tell them it must be authentic and come from them. However in that case, you may contract a writer to interview the client and ghost write the testimonial. However, make sure that the writer has received final draft approval from your customer before it is published. That goes the same for any edits that need to be made of the customer’s own writing.

What should the testimony include?

The most basic information to be sure to include is the person’s full name, title and name of company. It is highly recommended to obtain a headshot of your customer. When people can put a face to a name it is more credible and relatable. If their company is large and well-known it’s a good idea to ask them if you can display their logo. It’s advertisement for both your company and theirs.

Additionally, if your customer wants to get fancy and help you increase your website engagement, you can suggest they create a compelling headline that encapsulates the subject of the testimonial, especially if the customer wants to convey growth figures. For example:

“30% increase in sales due to this company’s App”

The following is a testimony sample using a fictitious company. I’ve highlighted the recommended information in yellow, while bonus information is highlighted in blue.
This is a suggested format but you may arrange your testimonial as you see fit.

As always, get permission before publishing any of your customer’s information that they did not volunteer on their own.

Arrange a 30 minute appointment with Andrea Harrison.

The Prolific Word provides Digital content generation and editorial writing services. Now that you have learned what constitutes quality content, what do you have to share of value that your readers can benefit by? Do you need help communicating that message of value? Let me help. For a no-cost consultation please email Andrea Harrison to arrange a 30 minute appointment or you may reserve a time slot. Learn more about our services at: www.theprolificword.com

The post Client testimonials are your business’s success stories appeared first on East Brunswick Regional Chamber of Commerce.

Over 70% of US small businesses shut down in March 2020 when the US became the new epicenter of the virus. More than 60% of these small businesses that closed were due to government or health authority orders, as large parts of the country went into lockdown in a bid to curb the spread of the virus.

The small businesses which survived were the ones that adapted to the new reality by increasing their online activities. In fact, more than half (51%) say that they have increased the interactions they have with their clients over the internet. Additionally, 36% of personal businesses who use online tools are now also doing all their sales online.

• 97% of people learn more about a local small business online than anywhere else (Source: SEO Tribunal). People are searching for your business (or products/services you sell), and your website is the place where they will look first. That’s why it’s important to show up on the terms they use.
• 75% of searchers never go past the first page of search results (Source: HubSpot)
• Pages ranking 1 through 3 on search engine results pages (SERPs) generate a clickthrough rate of 36% (Source: Searchmetrics)
• 46% of all searches on Google are for a local business or local service (Source: Search Engine Roundtable)
• “Near me” type searches grew by more than 900% over two years (Source: Chat Meter). This is another important reason to optimize your local search efforts. People are looking for small businesses in the area.
• After searching on a smartphone for something nearby, 76% of people end up visiting the business within 1 day (Source: Google)

There are still a lot of small business owners who believe that SEO is an unnecessary expense. You may even believe it is not worth your time and effort because SEO is dying anyway — but this could not be further from the truth. SEO is constantly growing in importance and expanding into new areas. Before, it played a major role for large and midsize businesses. Now it is just as crucial for small businesses.

What Is SEO?

Just by knowing the keywords, most people think that they know SEO.  Keywords, tags, contents, titles etc. play a big part of SEO. But there are many other factors involved.  SEO can be sliced and diced in few ways

• On-Page SEO: Primarily focuses on optimizing a website contents and structure which will help rank higher on search engine result page (SERP). The optimization generally includes header and title tags, images, meta description, formatting, URLs, navigation, load speed, on-site blogging and responsive design.
• Off-Page SEO: This is majorly building the backlinks. Backlinks are links form your site to other websites and vice a versa. This category also encompasses social media, business profiles and articles.
• Technical SEO: This is another area which most people ignore mentioning but is a critical part to get better ranking and more traffic. It includes performance of your website, mobile friendliness, visibility etc. You should make sure you’re using HTTPS, a known ranking factor in search engines. This offers encryption that keeps data passed through your site secure, including potentially sensitive customer data.

Another way to view SEO is by geography

• Local SEO: You target your SEO for a specific geography and for small businesses, you need to be top of your SERP for your area. Existence of your Google business profile will get better visibility on maps and searches.
• Enterprise SEO: Small businesses generally target local, but you can expand your reach to one state or multiple depending on the product and services you offer. The optimization strategies are different in this case which covers large transactions and volumes.

How To Get Started With SEO

Now we know that SEO is a valuable marketing tool that drives organic traffic. You can surely start with getting the basics done by yourself and bring in an SEO professional to take it to next level.

Baseline Setup: Set up your analytics account. Set up reporting view in your property (website). Add the small code snippet provided by analytics to your website. This allows Google to collect the data and you are ready to get the baseline details. You can set up similar thing for Bing.

Keyword Research: This is the heart and soul of any SEO. Identifying target keywords that align with your website content and match your target audience’s search intent is an important step. You should conduct a thorough keyword research to create an exhaustive list. Chose the best ones; quality is more important than quantity when it comes to keyword performance.

Building Links: This is critical part of your off-page optimization as search engines prioritize content that is valuable to end user. Don’t use the black hat techniques these are nothing but low-quality methods and spam. Instead, follow Google’s EAT principle: expertise, authority, and trustworthiness.

Keywords Optimization: Once the keywords are identified, you can start adding keywords naturally and strategically to the entire website (in the code and the content). Just follow some basics when you do that

• Include Primary keyword in H1 Tags
• Include Primary keywords in title tags and meta description
• Include Long tail keyword in the contents
• Add secondary keyword along with primary for wider coverage
• Include Rich content, images, and video
• Make sure to remove old and duplicate contents

Social Media Presence and Posting: social media is an ideal place to share content from your website or blog to drive traffic to your site. You need to post regularly and interact with users. Apart from Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, consider TikTok as it is upcoming platform for businesses.

Check the Progress: Continue to monitor keywords performance and traffic to your website.

Repeat the Process: This is not a onetime process. Make sure to revisit every month to review and adapt to the market conditions, competitors, trends, user behaviors and pattern, new products/technology etc.

How do I know if my SEO is working?

Google Analytics is your best friend, and it will provide most of the information for you. Apart from that you can search your business on Google and check your ranking periodically.

Takeaway

In today’s world when we have moved a decade in technology in the last few years and online presence of any business is the most critical thing, you need SEO. No matter what type of business you are in, if your consumers cannot search you, you don’t exist. SEO creates that visibility and findability. If you’re thinking about giving up on your SEO strategy, you can guarantee your competitors aren’t. SEO is not one time it is an ongoing process, Google is constantly changing and evolving its algorithm.

Arrange a 30 minute appointment with Marketing Markers, LLC.

We at Marketing Markers, LLC are committed to helping small businesses succeed. Small business owners have a deep understanding of economics, dedication, and passion for what they do. Helping small businesses succeed is like helping our communities grow. We know what it’s like to start small. Don’t have a website? Are your customers struggling to find your business on Google? Don’t know which type of advertisement is best for your business? Want to run campaigns? Learn more about our services at: marketingmarkers.com

The post Do I need SEO for my Small Business? appeared first on East Brunswick Regional Chamber of Commerce.

First, let’s face it – local is different! Most marketing experts and resources cater to big brands and e-commerce companies. Their strategies often don’t apply to businesses with customer base that is limited by geography. Also, local businesses’ budgets are often stretched thin, therefore being effective and efficient is crucial.

One fundamental thing to remember is: you need to know who your ideal customers are. Once identified, you need to understand their behaviors when it comes to online usage for your marketing to be effective and efficient.

Question 1: Does online marketing work with your ideal customers?
The answer to this question is the deciding factor whether your business should incorporate online marketing strategy at all. Just because the world is evolving into a more digital presence, it doesn’t mean that your ideal customers prefer receiving their information online. Therefore, it is crucial to know the answer to this first question.

The next step is to strategically allocate your online marketing budget by going through this questioning exercise:

Question 2: What time of the day are most of them online?
You should schedule your posts and emails around that time.

Question 3: Which communication tool of choice they prefer the most?
The most commonly used ones are, not in any particular order, Facebook messenger, phone call, email, Whatsapp, Instagram DM, Snapchat, and text. It is also a good practice to set up auto responses in these communication tools that support such feature.

Question 4: What type of device they use most often for online activities?
Make it a priority to optimize your marketing for that device whether it is user interface and/or features and functionalities.

Question 5: What kind of smartphone do they use the most?
Make sure your contents, at the minimum, work well with that operating system.

Now let us take a deep dive into social media marketing:

Question 6: What is the most popular social media platform among your ideal customers?
Is it TikTok, Nextdoor, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat, YouTube…just to name some?

Question 7: How often do they use them?
Engagement matters the most. For example, if study shows majority of your ideal customers use Pinterest, but Facebook as the runner up have more frequent visitors, then you should gear your social media effort toward Facebook instead of Pinterest.

Question 8: What kind of social media features your ideal customer use the most?
Your marketing contents should be designed to utilize those features. For example, if most of your ideal customers like to engage in Facebook group activities, you should consider having a group and push marketing contents through that feature.

Question 9: Which platform’s Ads do your ideal customers usually click on?
If your marketing strategy includes pay-per-click Ads, you need to know which platform to place your Ads, so they get the most exposure to your ideal customers.

It is a basic marketing principle that it takes on average seven “touches” before a potential customer will internalize and/or act upon your call to action. The last set of questions will help you gain insights on how your ideal customers research local businesses and maximize your return in your online marketing investment:

Question 10: What method do they use for research?
For example, do they Google, use social media for recommendations, visit rating & review sites/apps, ask a friend for referral, read community blogs, or search local directories, etc.?

Question 11: What factors do they put into considerations when evaluating a business?
Is it pricing, location, reputation, quality, availability, or other factors you didn’t even think about yet?

Question 12: What information are they looking for or expect to see the most from local businesses?
Do they want to receive promotions and offers, get the latest update, learn something new, or something else?

Question 13: What is their preferred method of frequent communication from local businesses?
Do they prefer email, text, direct message through Facebook/Instagram, or other?

Question 14: Do they value reviews and how they react to reviews?
Understand which platform they use most to read reviews, whether their purchasing decisions are influenced by 3rd party reviews, will they leave a review for local businesses, and how they react to negative reviews and owners’ response to negative reviews.

Question 15: What types of incentives will most likely make them buy?
This is particularly important for your first-time customers. Do they respond better to % or $ off total price, free trial, sibling discounts, bundling offers, or charity contributions, etc.?

Asking these 15 questions will help you to understand your ideal customers at a much deeper level, so that you can implement online marketing strategies that lead to more customer conversion and at the time reduce waste and costs.

Reach out to Karen Kwong, Managing Editor at Hulafrog the Brunswicks, NJ.

Hulafrog is a hyper local digital marketing site focusing on helping local businesses that cater to kids & families. If you would like more information on how Hulafrog can help your business please reach out to me, Karen Kwong, Managing Editor at Hulafrog the Brunswicks, NJ.

The post 15 Questions Every Local Business Should Ask Before Your Next Online Marketing Campaign appeared first on East Brunswick Regional Chamber of Commerce.

Quality content is content that is attractive, readable, and valuable to its audience. The more an audience is attracted to, engaged in, and finds value with content from a particular source, the more likely they will return to that source to satisfy their needs and wants. To understand more fully the importance of these attributes let’s look at three guidelines that can assist you in enhancing the quality of your content.

It begins with attractiveness. You must be able to entice your readers to start reading. Consider the verbiage you are using in your titles and subject lines. Certain words and phrases such as what, how, where, and why are more apt to grab someone’s attention. Another suggestion is to provide numbers when providing tips or guidelines. For example, five things no one will tell you about, seven ways to, ten mistakes to avoid when, or master these eight essential elements. Also, include images or videos as these are pleasing to the eye and can draw the reader to want to find out more.

Readability is critical when beginning the body of your content because this is where real connection can truly begin. You have invited your readers in with your engaging introduction and now you must deliver by offering them the information that they are expecting to receive. If your readers are not responding, reconsider your wording, format, and tone. The following suggestions can help improve readability:

1. Write in an active voice. Don’t use passive phrasing. For instance, all had a great time is preferred versus a great time was had by all.
2. Write shorter sentences. It’s important to be brief and to the point as most people have a short attention span.
3. Use simple terminology that an average reader can grasp or provide a clear definition. Spell out ACRONYMS. (i.e., Blue Cross Blue Shield vs. BCBS)
4. Break up your text for easy reading. Use sub-headings, bullet points, hyperlinks, or white space that’s easier on the eyes.
5. Write in the second person. When you address your audience as “you” it promotes a sense of friendliness and understanding which can help build a trusting relationship.
6. Edit and proofread. Please make certain to check and correct any typos. You don’t get a second chance to make a first impression!

Value is the key. Unless you can provide relevancy, authenticity, and freshness to your readers, it is a waste of time for both you and them. If you can help someone solve a problem or give them useful advice rather than bombard them with a sales pitch, they will remember and appreciate that over the long haul. In addition, your content should provide a unique perspective. You’re more likely to gain and maintain loyal followers if you have something to offer them that they cannot find elsewhere.

If you want to get more people to read your content, show them that you care about what you write and that you care about what they read. Make it attractive, readable, and valuable. Then once you start seeing a draw in audience engagement you know you have put forth quality content!

Arrange a 30 minute appointment with Andrea Harrison.

The Prolific Word provides Digital content generation and editorial writing services. Now that you have learned what constitutes quality content, what do you have to share of value that your readers can benefit by? Do you need help communicating that message of value? Let me help. For a no-cost consultation please email Andrea Harrison to arrange a 30 minute appointment or you may reserve a time slot. Learn more about our services at: www.theprolificword.com

The post How to Know if You Are Providing Quality Content appeared first on East Brunswick Regional Chamber of Commerce.

If you have used business improvement strategies, or coached businesspeople this way, then you know that the outcomes are as varied as the individuals performing them. Why do different people get different results when doing the same thing? It can be so frustrating. “How come they are raking it in and I’m struggling?  We are both doing the same thing.” Or are they? Is one person better than the other?  No, not better – different.

The difference that makes the difference is BELIEFS and ENERGY. Beliefs underpin values and actions. If a person believes that they are not worthy of more, and all the things that having more means to them, then it does not matter what strategies they do to grow their business. The most successful businesspeople have values and action steps that are in proper alignment with their beliefs. They understand that success does not come to you, it comes from you. Believe that you are worthy of more, attracting the people, places, things, and events that resonate with the thoughts that water the seeds of your success. Believe that people who know you are better off than those who may not. Believe that the purpose of your business is to help those you serve – not the other way around. Believe that you deserve more.

What is the fuel that makes this success engine go? It is ENERGY. Energy is behind the actions you take and the outcomes you make. How is yours? Are you getting proper rest, eating well, working out, thinking the thoughts that serve you best, fostering healthier social and emotional connections, and having regular chiropractic checkups to identify and remove the interferences to your body’s ability to function better? Doesn’t your car run better after a proper tune-up? So does your body, since it is the vehicle that transports your life through your business, physical and social interactions!

ENERGY is the currency of success. To get the most out of the things you are doing to have a better life, check your beliefs first. Be sure they are congruent with your values and actions. Then put great energy behind all your efforts through benevolent service. That is the difference that makes the difference in your ability to manifest the business and lifestyle of your dreams.

Dr. Ken Freedman is the owner and director of Freedman Chiropractic. Since 1979, he has dedicated his life to identifying and removing the interferences to healing, proper function and optimum well-being. An experienced business coach, Dr. Freedman has worked with thousands of business owners to develop and implement the identity and strategies necessary to achieve meaningful personal growth and professional success. In addition to chiropractic services, he offers programs on weight loss and purification, as well as a variety of presentations for progressive business owners interested in improving productivity, reducing work-related injuries and their associated costs, and stress reduction. Contact him at Freedman Chiropractic, 732-254-6011 or Ken@FreedmanChiropractic.com

The post The Difference that Makes the Difference appeared first on East Brunswick Regional Chamber of Commerce.

Print Marketing is so much more than glossy magazines and brochures and can be very effective in helping grow your business. It can also be used in tandem with social media and be a powerful part of your marketing mix.

Here are a few statistics that show the importance of print marketing.

1. 70% of households with an income above $100,000 are newspaper readers (Mansi Media, n.d.)
2. 95% of people under 25 years old read magazines (Top Media Advertising)
3. Ad recall for print news brands has increased by 67% between 2009/2010 and 2019/2020 (Newsworks, 2020)
4. There is an increase in website visits for consumers who see print ads up 27% in 2020 from 12% in 2009 (Newsworks, 2020)
5. Print readers usually spend 20 minutes or more with their publication while typical visitor to a digital ad site only stays for less than 5 minutes (Heitman)

What is one of the first things professionals ask for at a networking event? Can I have your business card, please? That is the most popular form of print marketing in its simplest form.

Print Marketing includes anything that can promote your business, brand, and message on any tangible item. This includes business cards, labels, posters, billboards, menus, window clings, yard signs, tee shirts, pens, mugs, ….literally, almost anything! Unlike digital marketing, print marketing gives the consumer a lasting message because of the physicality of the item.

The most popular type of print marketing is direct mail or advertising in targeted vehicles that reach consumers’ homes. This includes delivering items via specific postal zones, demographics, etc. These pieces tend to have longer shelf lives than digital ads/messages. With the right message, your business can really impact the consumer!

With more consumers working from home, printed materials received have even more staying power. Many companies tie in their print campaigns with their digital ones to reach consumers everywhere they possibly can!

As Millenials are now becoming the largest generation in the US, engaging them with print marketing should be done on a personal level. Understanding this group is extremely important when developing any print marketing strategies aimed at them.

If you would like more information on how print marketing can help your business please reach out to me, Amy Levine, Business Development Executive at Lifestyles Publications/King Kong Printing.

The post Is Print Marketing Dead? NO!! It’s more Alive than Ever and has been Transformed!! appeared first on East Brunswick Regional Chamber of Commerce.