Creating a Strong Online Presence for Marketing Success

According to Google, 97% of consumers use the web to search for local businesses  and if the vast majority of your potential customers are online, you should be, too. Having a strong online presence is a crucial component of your marketing strategy, no matter what size your business is or what industry it belongs to.

An online presence is important for outbound marketing because it reinforces your brand and what you offer to your target market. Once you've communicated with your audience, you'll need to have a web presence that helps portray why your product or service is so great  because that's the next stop for the majority of your potential customers.
It's also vital for inbound marketing, because quality online content will help attract customers even if they haven't heard of your brand.
So here are three of the first things you need to look at when building your online marketing efforts.

1. Your website
All businesses, no matter how small, should have a website. It can be extremely basic, but it should contain the fundamental information customers  both existing and potential  need.
A basic website is pretty easy to set up using an application like WordPress. WordPress is a free blogging tool and content management system that gives users the option to pay a little more for the premium version.
If you're starting from scratch and not sure what your website should include, survey your existing customers. Whether you send out an email asking for their input, or mention it casually while making their coffee, it's the best way to get the insight you need  people love to be involved and share their opinions.

2. Search engine optimization
Once you have a website, it's vital that it can actually be found by search engines. After all, 89 percent of consumers use search engines to research a product, service or business before making a decision. To take advantage of this, you need to make sure to look at search engine optimization (SEO) for your website.
In case you're not completely sure what SEO means, how it works, or why it's important, here's a quick rundown:
- What: The purpose of SEO is to make it easy for search engines to find your website and list it in their 'organic' (as opposed to 'paid') results.
- Why: People tend to trust search engines, so websites that appear high in results pages are more likely to receive traffic.
- How: Using search-engine friendly methods to improve your website.
- Who: Everyone  anyone who has information that people want to find on the internet should be using SEO techniques.
- When: All the time  SEO is an ongoing process. It's important to monitor the information on your website and make sure it's current and correct. Search engines also love new content, which is why starting a blog can do wonders for your SEO.
- Where: Major search engines include Google, Yahoo and Bing. They connect people all over the world to the content they desire, from products to services to information.

3. Social media
Social media is an important part of your online presence that improves your chances of generating additional revenue and building customer loyalty. It allows customers, potential customers and other interested parties to engage easily via a channel that plays an important role in their everyday lives.
Although not every social media channel will be relevant to each business, it's definitely worth looking into your options. For example, Facebook and Twitter will serve a purpose for almost any business  it's a great place to post news, tips, photos and videos and ask and answer questions.
Once you've decided which social media channels to use, get a clear idea of the kind of content you can share. The more compelling and engaging your material is, the more likely your followers will like, comment and share your posts. Engagement is key to promoting your brand  not only will it make you more appealing to existing customers, the more positive social activity that goes on, the higher the chance is that their friends will be exposed to your brand and intrigued by what you have to offer.
When they do this, they're engaging with your brand and their networks (friends, family, colleagues) are seeing that engagement and may be prompted to check you out for their own needs.

Try Out Windows 8.1 Today

 

 

(Money Watch) Microsoft has revealed the details of what's under the hood in Windows 8.1, and there's a surprising wealth of new and improved features to be had. Indeed, Windows 8.1 might well be the Windows that Windows 8 should have been. If it's not too late for Redmond to undo the damage that the company inflicted on itself with its new operating system last year, that is.
First, the best news: If you are a Windows 8 user, you can install the preview version of Windows 8.1 right now. It's quite easy to do; just visit the Windows 8.1 Preview site and follow the installation instructions.

• Turn off Windows 8 with one click
• Windows 8: Revolution or disaster?
• Windows 8: Tips and shortcuts

If you do choose to install Windows 8.1, be advised: It is, of course, a beta, so you should be sure to back up your PC before proceeding. And when you eventually install the final version of Windows 8.1, you will need to reinstall all of your apps (both desktop and modern). If you don't install the preview edition of 8.1, you can avoid reinstalling stuff later.
So what can you expect in Windows 8.1? Here's a quick summary of the most compelling features in the update:
The Start button is back. In a sense. Yes, Microsoft has put back the Start button on the desktop, but it opens the new modern Start Screen, not the traditional start menu. It's as if someone wasn't specific enough when making a wish to a genie.
Faster shutdown. The new Windows 8 shutdown process is a cumbersome five-gestures-and-clicks affair. Microsoft has now put a shutdown option in the menu that appears when you right-click on the Start button. Not easily found, but great once you know about it.
Improved personalization. There are a host of ways Microsoft now makes Windows 8 feel more customizable. Chief among them: The desktop and modern interfaces can now share a common background, which makes them seem less like two different operating systems clumsily thrown together and more like two faces of the same system.
Boot direct to desktop. If you've heard anything about Windows 8.1, you probably know this. You can configure Windows to boot directly to the desktop. That said, finding this option is akin to locating a dropped contact lens on a shiny tile floor.
Better Snap. The old Widows 8 modern Snap -- where one app would occupy a quarter of the screen and the other took the remaining three quarters -- has been blown up. Now you have a lot more flexibility for making modern apps appear side by side on the screen, much like desktop apps.
Hypercustomization. There's a new Navigation settings option (get to it by right-clicking the taskbar and choosing Options) that lets you specify how the new Windows 8 conventions (like the Charms Bar) behave.
Better cloud integration. Microsoft has taken the opportunity to make SkyDrive a more cohesive part of the operating system. Now you can tell Windows to automatically back up your documents to SkyDrive, for example.
3D printer support. While you're probably not on the verge of making 3D printers an integral part of your life quite yet, it's great to see that Microsoft has gotten well out in front and introduced support for 3D printers in Windows 8.1. When 3D printers do go mainstream, Windows will already be there with native plug-and-play integration

7 Tips to Protect Your Email from Hackers

1. Always check the URL before logging in: Fake login pages are a problem with any site that hosts sensitive information. Even Craigslist was having this problem just last month. Tread carefully before you log in.

2. Avoid checking emails at public places: You never do know what sort of spyware has been installed on someone else’s machine.

3. Create a secondary email account: If you absolutely must login to your email account on a machine other than your own, create a secondary email account (with different login credentials, of course) and forward a copy of all emails from your original account to the secondary. This way, if you get hacked, your original account should remain uncompromised.

4. If you are able, regularly check the IP of the last login: This is a nice Gmail feature, and is offered by some other webmail email providers as well. If you don’t recognize the IP that last logged in to your account – especially if it comes up often – you may have been hacked.

5. Check for bad filters: If your email service allows custom filters, there is always the possibility that one of them could be forwarding your messages to someone else. Regularly check your filters to see if there are any that you don’t recognize.

6. Don’t click on suspicious links            

7. Choose a strong alphanumeric password: Some services don’t allow capitals or special characters in your password – avoid these services if you can. Use of funky characters is a great way to increase password strength.