How Twitter Can Help Your SEO

Twitter is a useful tool for assisting with SEO efforts. Considered a micro blogging platform, Twitter is one of the most popular social media sites. With such a large network of Twitter members it is the perfect place to concentrate on SEO. Here are some ways that Twitter helps.


Social Signals

Twitter sends out social signals that become visible in the search algorithm for Google. The social signs can help a website rank higher than it may have otherwise. A greater number of social signs place a greater level of importance on a website, which sends it shooting to the top of Google search results. This goes a long way in helping a website's SEO efforts.

Tweeting in order to build up SEO involves doing a few specific things.


Memorable and Impressive Account Name

Every Twitter user has a profile on the website. If a company is trying to step up their SEO efforts they will want to make sure that the account name they choose is one that people will remember. A good rule of thumb is to choose some kind of variation of the company's name. This variation should be related to what people are most likely to type into a search engine bar when looking for a company.


Insert Backlinks Strategically

While not every tweet a company sends out should include a link back to their website, some of the tweets should. It is crucial to make sure a company is not including their link in their tweets either too often or not often enough. The tweets that do include a link to the company's website will almost always drive an increased amount of traffic to the website.


Include Useful Keywords

When a company sends out a tweet they should make every effort to include a relevant keyword or key phrase into the beginning of the tweet. Since tweets are limited to a maximum of 140 characters, users must choose their words carefully. The shorter a tweet, the more effective it is likely to be. Shorter tweets are also easier for others to respond to or to re-tweet. In many cases when someone re-tweets they want to include words of their own in the re-tweet. This means that the original tweet needs to leave enough room for characters for people to be able to add their own thoughts.


Interaction with Consumers

For companies to be successful it is helpful to interact with their followers on Twitter. Commenting on and re-tweeting the tweets a company's followers post makes them feel like the company cares about them. The more friendly and approachable a company appears to be, the more people will want to give the company their business. Tweeting new website content to a company's followers encourages them to keep visiting the website, which helps greatly with SEO efforts.

These are just some of the ways that Twitter can help companies with their SEO efforts. Twitter is a valuable tool to use.


About The Author: Simon Brisk is the head of manual outreach at Click Intelligence, a search marketing agency based in London, Bristol and Cheltenham. Simon writes about search marketing tips, step by step guides and his experience in the field of online marketing.

Did you find this article helpful? Please let me know by leaving me your valued comments in the comments section below.

For a full list of helpful articles on SEO, use the following links:
http://www.derekjones.co/search/label/SEO
http://www.derekjones.co/search/label/SEO%20Tips


If you found this or any of my other posts helpful, don't forget to share the posts to your favourite networks using the toolbar below or by using the "+1" and "Share" buttons located at the bottom of each post.

As ever, if you want to stay up to date with the latest blog posts, don't forget to follow via Google Friend Connect (button on sidebar), on NetworkedBlogs, via Email (maximum of one email per day), on Facebook and Google+ or by subscribing to our blog feed at:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/DereksHomeAndBusinessBlog

You can also follow me on Twitter @djones1509, Google+ and on Facebook at:
http://www.facebook.com/djones1509
https://plus.google.com/104849975941505117776

Until my next post on Friday with the essential guide to small business insurance, enjoy the rest of the week! See you back here on Friday!

© 2013. This article is DMCA protected. Republication is prohibited.

It's A Dog Eat Dog World: Five Pieces Of Advice They Don't Teach You In Business School

Going to college to get a degree in business can help you tremendously in the future. Potential employers may look at your educational history and place importance on the school that you attended. However, business school isn't the only place that you'll learn valuable life lessons. Whether you are in the boardroom or on the sales floor, here are five pieces of advice that they don't teach you in business school, but that you'll probably end up using in the professional world.


Promise The World, and Do Your Best to Come Through

When you are in college, it can seem a bit scary to go out on a limb and over extend yourself and your promises. However, in the real world, it is important to make sure that people know you are confident in yourself and that you have lofty expectations. If you make plans for yourself that are over the top, other people will see your desire and commitment to be successful. And when you complete your task, people will be amazed by all of your work and effort.


Step Up to the Plate

With every profession in life, the people that succeed are those that are willing to step up and lead. In college, you may feel expected to play fair and give an equal amount of work to other students. But in the business world, it's important to put yourself ahead of others and be confident in yourself to get things done. If you want to set yourself apart, you need to do the things that others will not.


If You Can't Find the Problem, It May Be You

Have you ever been in a group project in college where you keep pointing fingers at someone who isn't pulling their weight, but they seem to be oblivious to their lack of contribution? Well, the same happens in the business world. If you keep finding issues or problems with something that you are doing, but you can't pinpoint the root of the problem, it may be time to evaluate yourself. Once you realize that you may be the reason for the problem, it's much easier to begin working towards a solution.


Be Clear

In business school, you will probably learn a lot of jargon that may sound good on paper, but that does not work when used in the business world. When working with a new group of people or advertising to the masses, make sure that everyone understands your message and that there is no confusion. Just remember, the real world isn't a thesis statement that is graded by your professor, it's a message that is being understood by your peers. For example, a dentist should not be using technical terms when describing their procedures, but they should use simple ideas and words that can be understood by everyone. This can be a difficult task; however, a dental advertising service can help with this process.


Always Come Through

In the real world, no matter what your profession is, your word is your reputation. In business school, you can get away with saying you are sick and need an extra day to complete a paper. In the real world, this simply will not work, since others will be relying on your work. If you promise something, or are simply expected to do something, be sure that you do it.

You are sure to learn a lot of great lessons in business school, but there are some things that you simply will need to discover on your own.


Did you like this article? Please let me know by leaving me your valued comments in the comments section below.

For more business tips, use this link:
http://www.derekjones.co/search/label/Business%20Tips


If you found this or any of my other posts helpful, don't forget to share the posts to your favourite networks using the toolbar below or by using the "+1" and "Share" buttons located at the bottom of each post.

As ever, if you want to stay up to date with the latest blog posts, don't forget to follow via Google Friend Connect (button on sidebar), on NetworkedBlogs, via Email (maximum of one email per day), on Facebook and Google+ or by subscribing to our blog feed at:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/DereksHomeAndBusinessBlog

You can also follow me on Twitter @djones1509, Google+ and on Facebook at:
http://www.facebook.com/djones1509
https://plus.google.com/104849975941505117776

Until my next post on Wednesday on how Twitter can help your SEO, have a great and productive week ahead! See you back here on Wednesday!

© 2013. This article is DMCA protected. Republication is prohibited.

How Pinterest Can Help Your Small Business

Pinterest being a relatively new social media platform, many small businesses are unaware of how they can make good use of it. One main reason people seem reluctant to try this social network is because it is quite different from some of the other major social media sites like Facebook and Twitter. In order to understand how you can make use of this tool, you must first understand how other small companies are using Pinterest in their business.

Pinterest can help you build your online presence. Develop a marketing plan that is well-thought out to make Pinterest work for you. You can make use of the following ideas to use Pinterest effectively in your business.


Conduct Market research

When you are well versed with how to use Pinterest you can even benefit by understanding the market trends and knowing the preferences of users on Pinterest. After you pin something, you can check if people actually like your pin and repining it. Also, make note whether you are getting any new followers for your pin. When you do, observe their profiles to know the kind of people interested in your product so that you can add more tailored content keeping them in mind.


Promote what you sell

For those businesses selling products, Pinterest can be a very good way to showcase products to users through pictures. Share images of your best products but a better approach would be to include pictures of customers using your products. You can also add pictures giving customers step-by-step instructions on how to use your product. You can assign a pin as a product by adding the price of the product in the product description. The price must be accompanied by the dollar sign or whichever currency you plan to use. By doing so, the product will also be added to the gifts section on Pinterest.


Share videos

You can share videos on Pinterest by embedding them into Pinterest itself. Small businesses can greatly benefit from sharing videos and so this feature should definitely be used to promote your business.


Feature blog posts

Pinterest is increasingly being used by bloggers in order to give emphasis to their blog posts and also to create visual representations of their content. To make this happen, you must add graphics like photos to your blog post so that when your post is pinned Pinterest will be able to pull the right image.


Share space with others

Pinterest is more effective when used as a group activity. You can involve your employees, customers and other Pinterest users. You can assign boards to your employees or loyal customers where they can share their ideas and have discussions. This can help you learn what your customers feel and help you learn from each other too.

You can also create boards that highlight useful information from sources other than yours. You can include images from your customers and clients that your target audience might find appealing. Also, include interesting images on your company website so that Pinterest users might be encouraged to pin those pictures on their boards.


About The Author: Jessica is a content strategy specialist with Godot Media. She has years of experience helping businesses with their content marketing strategy. Her other interests besides content marketing are finance, lifestyle and even, fashion.

Did you find this article helpful? Please let Jessica and myself know by leaving us your valued comments in the comments section below.

Would you like to guest post on the blog? Please use the Contact tab above to get in touch if you write business-related articles or articles on the topics of Internet Marketing, Affiliate Marketing, Social Media Marketing/Optimisation (SMO), Blogging, Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) or Search Engine Marketing (SEM).

Related articles:
3 Interesting Ways Brands Can Use Pinterest Board Covers
Bloggers And Pinterest

For more business tips plus helpful articles on marketing your business on social media, use the following links:
http://www.derekjones.co/search/label/Business%20Tips
http://www.derekjones.co/search/label/Social%20Media%20Marketing


If you found this or any of my other posts helpful, don't forget to share the posts to your favourite networks using the toolbar below or by using the "+1" and "Share" buttons located at the bottom of each post.

As ever, if you want to stay up to date with the latest blog posts, don't forget to follow via Google Friend Connect (button on sidebar), on NetworkedBlogs, via Email (maximum of one email per day), on Facebook and Google+ or by subscribing to our blog feed at:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/DereksHomeAndBusinessBlog

You can also follow me on Twitter @djones1509, Google+ and on Facebook at:
http://www.facebook.com/djones1509
https://plus.google.com/104849975941505117776

Until my next post on Monday with five pieces of advice they don't teach you in business school, have a wonderful and relaxing weekend! See you back here on Monday!

© 2013. This article is DMCA protected. Republication is prohibited.

How To Survive Your First Two Years As A Start-Up

The Great Recession and subsequent recovery has been rough for just about everyone, unless you are fortunate enough to be one of the 1%. But for a lot of people, it provided the opportunity and the determination to begin their own businesses.

However, the recovery hasn't been all that kind to new business start-ups. While the failure rate for new businesses has always been quite high, the failure rate rose by 40% between 2007 and 2010.

On the bright side, there are a number of successful people who are more than willing to share their stories with newbies, and much can be learned from both their mistakes and their triumphs.


Don't Be Afraid to Fail

Sara Blakely, the founder and inventor of Spanx slimming shapewear, had this to say about advice her father gave her when she was growing up: "My dad encouraged us to fail. Growing up, he would ask us what we failed at that week. If we didn't have something, he would be disappointed. It changed my mindset at an early age that failure is not the outcome, failure is not trying."


A Handshake is Great, But Get it In Writing

Marcia Kilgore, the serial entrepreneur and creator of lifestyle and beauty brands, says a friendship in business can only take you so far. "Get everything in writing, especially with business partners. When you're starting out, things can be quite friendly and exciting, but people's memory can change due to money."


Let Your Customers Be Your Best Marketers

You might have the snazziest marketing campaign in the world, but it's a lot cheaper and frankly more convincing if you can get your customers to market for you. When you have a great product and you treat your customers well, they will tell other people about your company. Provide a good forum for feedback, do care about what your customers think, and they will not only come back for more, but they will bring others with them.


Better than the Competition

If you are not either better or cheaper, then you really have no reason to exist. Take it from Jim Koch of Sam Adams fame: "You have a viable business only if your product is either better or cheaper than the alternatives. If it's not one or the other, you might make some money at first, but it's not a sustainable business."

On a more concrete level, here are some specific things you can do to cut costs and make sure your business has a decent chance to grow:


Control Inventory

If you carry inventory, make sure you are not carrying far more than you need. Not only do you have to pay your suppliers for goods that are sitting around, you also have to shell out money for storage. Keep only enough on-hand to suffice until the next supplier delivery date.


Shorten Receivables

Make sure that your customers are paying as quickly as they should be. If your terms have been overly generous in the past, send a note to your clients that terms are changing, and be sure to BOLD the due date on invoices. Start collection efforts as soon as the payment is late.


Consult your tax accountant for any overlooked breaks

Deduct all equipment purchases as quickly as you can. If you are going to lose money this year, investigate carrying it back to a previous year. Make sure you are deducting health premiums and self-employment tax. And if you have not yet started up your new business venture, be sure to look into the tax atmosphere of the state where you plan to locate. Some states are friendlier than others.


Don't Spend Money Until You Have Money

And finally, from the founder of DailyCandy, Dana Vely: "When we used to put candy in our media kits, I would go to the Duane Reade store the day after Easter because the candy was on sale. Of course, it's important to spend on certain things in the beginning. You need good servers but you don't need Aeron desk chairs."


About The Author: The article was written by Audrey, who is working for Wallace & Associates, a Sherman Oaks CPA serving the Los Angeles area.

Did you find this article helpful? Please let Audrey and myself know by leaving us your valued comments in the comments section below.

Would you like to guest post on the blog? Please use the Contact tab above to get in touch if you write business-related articles or articles on the topics of Internet Marketing, Affiliate Marketing, Social Media Marketing/Optimisation (SMO), Blogging, Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) or Search Engine Marketing (SEM).

For more business tips, use this link:
http://www.derekjones.co/search/label/Business%20Tips


If you found this or any of my other posts helpful, don't forget to share the posts to your favourite networks using the toolbar below or by using the "+1" and "Share" buttons located at the bottom of each post.

As ever, if you want to stay up to date with the latest blog posts, don't forget to follow via Google Friend Connect (button on sidebar), on NetworkedBlogs, via Email (maximum of one email per day), on Facebook and Google+ or by subscribing to our blog feed at:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/DereksHomeAndBusinessBlog

You can also follow me on Twitter @djones1509, Google+ and on Facebook at:
http://www.facebook.com/djones1509
https://plus.google.com/104849975941505117776

Until my next post on Friday on how Pinterest can help your small business, enjoy the rest of the week! See you back here on Friday!

© 2013. This article is DMCA protected. Republication is prohibited.

7 Tips On How To Make Guest Blogging Work For You

Guest blogging, while it normally doesn't pay cash, gives you great returns in terms of SEO benefits and reputation as an author. You get a larger audience than you would from your own blog alone, and you get backlinks from high authority blogs (where you posted) to boost your own ranking. As with most everything else, you've got to know the tricks of the trade to make guest blogging work for you.

Here are 7 tips that you could begin with:


1. The Google gossip

Word is, Google is going to devalue links in the author bio. Since you can't argue with the Big G, it makes sense to somehow insert your link in the article body instead. This is easier said than done because blogs that accept guest posts have their own rules. Create a good portfolio (even if you have never published before) and write a great pitch. Comment on other posts on the blog and, in short, make yourself a known figure. Then, and only then, ask for favors like link in the article body, and you could be pleasantly surprised.


2. Where does the link lead to?

This is weird: very few guest bloggers think of leading visitors to a landing page let alone one that is specialized to suit visitors from the parent site where the guest article was posted. Linking to your home page may guarantee a certain percentage of visitors, but it normally does nothing to convert them to subscribers as well.

Consider this: you are writing Article A on Site B. Create a landing page that says something like "Hi there! You just read A on B, didn't ya? Well, welcome to my site..." and put in the subscription form along with a freebie to "thank" your visitors for reading your article. Regarding the freebie (gift, actually), say something like "Tell us where to send it" and you'll have quite a few emails already.


3. How do you link?

Anchor texts are fine; ones with keywords are great; catchy ones with keywords that entice visitors to follow the link to your site are even better. However, there is something called "co-occurrence". This would be the keywords found around, not in, your anchor text. This is something like LSI (latent semantic indexing) keywords; only the keywords that you use here are going to be top-class main keyword types and are best utilized when you can use them to tell the search engines what your site is all about.


4. Focus on the page, not the site

Reputation of the site is not immaterial, but you gain as much authority as the page you are going to be on. Make yourself familiar with the site and its audience, and the kind of post that gets most comments and write accordingly to figure on a high authority/PR page.

Check out also the site owner's social media profiles. See if they have enough followers or subscribers. You want to reach a wider audience; unless the person is well connected, that may not happen.


5. Cross linking

Create profiles on different social media sites (several of the same, real profile, not creepy ones that change your mugshot or distort your name). Link your guest article to other guest posts of yours and your profiles and vice versa - leave no stone unturned to create a mesh of links around your web-presence. Since you are not creating the mesh with dime a dozen autoblogs or article directories, your links will count.


6. Sometimes, promote your guest posts, not your site

This is not missing the point at all. What you are aiming at here is author reputation. Google +1, Facebook likes, etc, actually lead to social endorsement that Google values. So, what actually happens is that when you are promoting your post, the parent site being high authority (why else would you guest post there?) lends credence to your reputation as an author. And when people try to find out more about you, voila! - they get to know of your site! This is actually as simple as it sounds. When it begins to work for you, remember we told you first.


7. Get organized

You will be able to make use of the earlier points only when you know where you guest-posted, what your subjects were, if you are going to post again, if you got a better idea over one you had last year on a given topic and so on. Have all the data regarding your activities in a spread sheet so that you don't end up sending duplicate posts to a number of blog owners. It will also put things in perspective for you; show you your progress or the lack of it.

Apart from these 7 tips, it helps to find a niche along your own to guest post. However, this is not absolutely necessary, since you can be naturally interested in and expert in several different topics and since the reputation factor is viewed separately by Google even though it is ultimately going to give you SEO benefits.


About The Author: Jason Smith is an online consultant for ABWE. Jason likes blogging about online strategies that are related to SEO, Content, PPC and Lead generation. In his free time he likes to study about web designing and practice Jiu Jitsu.

Did you find this article helpful? Please let Jason and myself know by leaving us your valued comments in the comments section below.

Would you like to guest post on the blog? Please use the Contact tab above to get in touch if you write business-related articles or articles on the topics of Internet Marketing, Affiliate Marketing, Social Media Marketing/Optimisation (SMO), Blogging, Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) or Search Engine Marketing (SEM).

Related articles:
How To Use Guest Blogging To Build Your Online Reputation
Strategies For Finding Guest Posting Opportunities
How You Can Get Started With Accepting Guest Posts On Your Website
A Guide To Guest Blogging For SEO In 2012


If you found this or any of my other posts helpful, don't forget to share the posts to your favourite networks using the toolbar below or by using the "+1" and "Share" buttons located at the bottom of each post.

As ever, if you want to stay up to date with the latest blog posts, don't forget to follow via Google Friend Connect (button on sidebar), on NetworkedBlogs, via Email (maximum of one email per day), on Facebook and Google+ or by subscribing to our blog feed at:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/DereksHomeAndBusinessBlog

You can also follow me on Twitter @djones1509, Google+ and on Facebook at:
http://www.facebook.com/djones1509
https://plus.google.com/104849975941505117776

Until my next post on Wednesday on how to survive your first two years as a start-up, have a great and productive week ahead! See you back here on Wednesday!

© 2013. This article is DMCA protected. Republication is prohibited.

FAQ Pages: A Handy Form Of Content Creation

No matter how well you structure your website and how much detailed information you provide within the content of your pages, you will soon find that you are repeatedly asked exactly the same questions about your product or service. Sometimes a little more frequently than you would like.

Including a FAQ page on your website serves several purposes, but perhaps most importantly it will help you to minimise that "Groundhog Day" feeling and stop you rolling your eyes and praying to whoever is listening that this will be the last time you will ever have to repeat the same information again. Before of course you politely answer the question!


FRANTIC SEARCHING

Another way of looking at it is to think how frustrating it can be when you are looking for the answer to a fairly simple question but you cannot find the information anywhere. You don't have time to send them an email so what do you do. Do you push on regardless or find another site with a more helpful approach?

So, what other advantages are there to be had from having an FAQ page and how should you go about setting one up? Read on to find out...


FAQ Pages - The Benefits

• Save time - repeating the same information time and time again is not just frustrating; it wastes your valuable time too. Time you could be using far more constructively elsewhere.
  
  
• Keep your site visitors happy - Being able to find the answer to their questions or concerns quickly and easily ensures that visitors have a positive experience whilst using your site and will ultimately give them a positive impression of your site and your business.
  
  
• Add Informative, fresh content for your website - adding new, relevant content on a regular basis will help you to improve your search engine ranking and outrank your competitors.
  
  
• Hook more customers - if a person cannot find the information they require immediately and they are too busy or too shy to make contact with their enquiry, you run the risk of them taking their custom elsewhere.
  
  Providing site visitors with the information they are looking for however will encourage them to take the next step and helps you to convert more visitors to leads.

Compiling Your FAQ's - some handy tips

START WITH THE OBVIOUS

The obvious place to start is with the questions you are usually asked by your customers and site visitors. New businesses that do not yet have the benefit of this experience will have to "wing it" slightly and compile a list based on the questions they think they are most likely to be asked.

UPDATE OVER TIME

Over time, new questions can be added to the original list based on prompts from your site visitors, allowing you to develop your list with yet more, relevant, fresh content.

STUCK FOR IDEAS?

If you are stuck for ideas, you could always "borrow" some great ideas from another site of a similar nature. I am not suggesting you copy anyone, just get the inspiration you need and re-write them in your own words. Don't plagiarise.

PUT YOURSELF IN THE VISITORS SHOES

Consider the process your visitors will go through when navigating around your site, from beginning to end, will help you to come up with potential questions they would want answers to.

ASK AROUND

Ask your colleagues, friends and family for their suggestions too, different people will have different perspectives and this will help you to compile a more useful list.

LEAVE NO STONE UNTURNED

Make your FAQ page as in depth and useful as you possibly can and your site visitors will love you for it!

WHAT WOULD YOU LOVE TO ASK?

Last but not least, why not try to include questions that people might be too embarrassed to ask but would really want to know the answer to nonetheless!

What you would want to know.


Organising Your FAQ's

The quantity of questions on your FAQ list will be dictated to some extent by the nature of your business.

As a general guide, I would suggest that if you have a fairly small number of questions, let's say up to fifteen, it would be fine to group them in one list, for people to scroll through.

To prevent people from having to scroll through an endless list looking for the information they need, it is advisable to break down and organise larger numbers of FAQ's into categories e.g. Delivery Information or Return of Goods.


How Many FAQ's?

Providing your FAQ page is full of questions and answers that are genuinely useful and relevant and the page is easy for users to navigate, the more FAQ's the merrier.

But never be tempted to fill the page with questions for the sake of it. If it is not a genuinely useful question/answer, don't bother including it. It will just be dead weight and distract visitors from the useful information.


Final thoughts...

So, there you have it. I hope that you now can see that an FAQ page is more than just about helping your site visitors find out what they need to know. It performs all sorts of roles.

However, without an FAQ page, your site visitors may be left frustrated as they look for answers to their questions, even if you have already included that information elsewhere on your site!

FAQ pages are not difficult to set up and if you have been running your site for a little while the chances are that you will have a list of FAQs in your head to get you started!

Get writing.


About The Author: Felix Marsh is member of the team at Teapot Creative, a design agency based in Somerset offering web design, graphic design and SEO services. They work closely with all of their clients - getting to understand their business, building relationships that last, delivering professional design at affordable prices with a personal touch.

Did you find this article helpful? Please let Felix and myself know by leaving us your valued comments in the comments section below.

Would you like to guest post on the blog? Please use the Contact tab above to get in touch if you write business-related articles or articles on the topics of Internet Marketing, Affiliate Marketing, Social Media Marketing/Optimisation (SMO), Blogging, Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) or Search Engine Marketing (SEM).


If you found this or any of my other posts helpful, don't forget to share the posts to your favourite networks using the toolbar below or by using the "+1" and "Share" buttons located at the bottom of each post.

As ever, if you want to stay up to date with the latest blog posts, don't forget to follow via Google Friend Connect (button on sidebar), on NetworkedBlogs, via Email (maximum of one email per day), on Facebook and Google+ or by subscribing to our blog feed at:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/DereksHomeAndBusinessBlog

You can also follow me on Twitter @djones1509, Google+ and on Facebook at:
http://www.facebook.com/djones1509
https://plus.google.com/104849975941505117776

Until my next post on Monday 21st October with tips on how to make guest blogging work for you, enjoy the rest of the week and have a fabulous weekend! See you back here on the 21st October!

© 2013. This article is DMCA protected. Republication is prohibited.

Online Security For The Small Business: What's The Score?

Any small business will already understand the importance of online security - if not for their employees and themselves, but for the business itself. Imagine being on the receiving end of a hack which results in personal details being released, or a virus that knocks your computer network for six. The problem with some small business owners is they are a little too complacent, with the mind-set of:

"Oh, I'll sort that later, it's an expense I could do without and it won't happen to me anyway."

While it's natural for any business to analyse their spending and cut back on unnecessary investments, online security isn't one of those commodities that can be forgotten about. Even with the economic climate the way it is, there are some things that are worth investing in and protecting your assets is one of them.

Recent research by the internet security giant, Symantec, has found that there has been a significant shift in website threats for small businesses to be a little more concerned than usual. While in previous years, chances of being targeted over larger, more lucrative businesses has been circumstantial but Part 1 of a new Symantec Infographic has shown that this is no longer the case. Nowadays, there have been more and more targeted attacks aimed at small and medium businesses rather than larger enterprises, highlighting the importance of online security, regardless of how many employees you have.

This infographic also mentioned the alarming statistic regarding security breaches - 12% were found to come from within a company's network, implying that you need to protect against third parties from outside and inside your network. The infographic also informed us that there has been a 13% increase in SME attacks in 2012, compared with 2011.

Part 2 of the infographic includes snippets of information about the current phishing trends, including a phenomenal increase in social media phishing. This highlights the importance for online security and diligence within small business setting, especially one which utilises social media networks to their advantage. It's also important to ensure your employees stay at the top of their game and are careful about what they click on when browsing the internet and social media sites during any downtime.

Owners of small businesses shouldn't ignore the importance of online security, investing in anti-virus software and network protection wherever possible. In an age where almost every business has an online presence, we will only see malicious activity rise - don't fall victim to it.


Did you like this article? Please let me know by leaving me your valued comments in the comments section below.

Related articles:
Must-Remember Tips In Securing Your Corporate Social Media Accounts
Spear-Phishing On Twitter: How Not To Become The Catch Of The Day


If you found this or any of my other posts helpful, don't forget to share the posts to your favourite networks using the toolbar below or by using the "+1" and "Share" buttons located at the bottom of each post.

As ever, if you want to stay up to date with the latest blog posts, don't forget to follow via Google Friend Connect (button on sidebar), on NetworkedBlogs, via Email (maximum of one email per day), on Facebook and Google+ or by subscribing to our blog feed at:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/DereksHomeAndBusinessBlog

You can also follow me on Twitter @djones1509, Google+ and on Facebook at:
http://www.facebook.com/djones1509
https://plus.google.com/104849975941505117776

Until my next post on Wednesday on using FAQ pages for content creation, have a great and productive week ahead! See you back here on Wednesday!

© 2013. This article is DMCA protected. Republication is prohibited.

Use The Latest Social Media Marketing Techniques In 2013

A few years ago, social media sites emerged as mediums for sharing special events with friends and family and helped people to stay in touch with each other. In those days, these sites were more like personal sites. But now, the social media sites have undergone a transformation and they have established themselves as the most powerful strategy online business.

The social media sites are constantly expanding with already 850 million users of Facebook per month and 500 million users of Google+. We have reached the last quarter of 2013 now and saw several significant changes in the social media marketing strategies. In the process of trying to keep up with these changes, we have learnt a number of effective social media marketing techniques.

Here are enlisted some of the most effective techniques for social media marketing which should be used in 2013.

• Visual Marketing: Marketing as a whole is heading towards becoming visual increasingly, and you need to incorporate visual elements in your social media marketing techniques. While posting relevant pictures and graphics, make sure that you embed the text as well as your business information. The most widely used way of posting in social sites like Facebook, is pictures. Facebook has around 350 million picture uploads each day. When others are sharing your pictures, you have an opportunity to show them your link of website and other relevant information.
  
  
• Usage of Your Analytics: Your analytics need to be reviewed regularly to check out whether something is working or not. You can also find out if the followers are visiting a particular site greater than the others. You can discover the exact time when your pages get maximum visitors. Observe the results carefully and try to find the reasons behind such phenomena. Utilize the knowledge you gain to get the desired results.
  
  
• Usage of Slideshare: Slideshare is a social site that has been predicted as the fastest growing site in 2013. This site allows you the sharing of your professional presentations with huge number of people irrespective of their industry or location. You can even share videos, PDFs and documents. If you have a hunger for knowledge, visit this site and get inspired from the works of people around the world.
  
  
• Usage of Google+: This year, businesses should be present in Google+. In 2013, Google+ rose above Twitter and became the second largest social network having 343 million users. In spite of the fact that the site lacks a few powers of some other social sites, Google+ is Google's central part and from the perspective of SEO, you should become a part of this site.
  
  
• Usage of Fewer Social Sites: Using more social sites does not always bring the desired results in case of social media marketing. Take some time to research and find out which particular social sites are proper for your company, business or brand. It is always better to focus your efforts of marketing to a few numbers of good social sites. This would result in your message being spread more effectively as compared to when you use too many social sites. Take time to prepare yourself well and then participate successfully in those few social sites. It is vital to create a strong presence on those specific sites that deliver, instead of wasting time while trying to dominate all the sites.

Conclusion

Social media marketing grows with each year. You need to cope with the changing trends to keep up your business with the changes. The year 2013 has seen the above mentioned trends in social media marketing strategies. Following these techniques would help your business to be ahead of your competitors.

Summary: Social media marketing strategies are subjected to many changes with the changing time. It is important for businesses to follow the updated techniques to stand out of the crowd.


About The Author: Myke Thomas is a proficient writer. His articles are highly informative and useful for the readers.

Did you find this article helpful? Please let Myke and myself know by leaving us your valued comments in the comments section below.

Would you like to guest post on the blog? Please use the Contact tab above to get in touch if you write business-related articles or articles on the topics of Internet Marketing, Affiliate Marketing, Social Media Marketing/Optimisation (SMO), Blogging, Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) or Search Engine Marketing (SEM).

Related articles:
How Facebook And Twitter Can Help Reach Your Target Audience
Traditional Marketing vs. Social Media Marketing For Beginners
5 Tips On Reaching Out To More Social Media Users
How To Expose Your Business With Social Media
Social Media Marketing: Are You Effective Or Obnoxious?
Engaging Consumers Through Social Media
Social Media Day Meet-ups: How Can They Work For You
5 Do's And 5 Don'ts In Social Media
Building Your Business With Social Media
The 10 Basic Rules Of Social Media Marketing
Top 14 Benefits Of Social Media Marketing
How To Use Facebook For Your Small Business
9 Tips For More Effective Facebook Marketing

For more business tips plus helpful articles on marketing your business on social media, use the following links:
http://www.derekjones.co/search/label/Business%20Tips
http://www.derekjones.co/search/label/Social%20Media%20Marketing


If you found this or any of my other posts helpful, don't forget to share the posts to your favourite networks using the toolbar below or by using the "+1" and "Share" buttons located at the bottom of each post.

As ever, if you want to stay up to date with the latest blog posts, don't forget to follow via Google Friend Connect (button on sidebar), on NetworkedBlogs, via Email (maximum of one email per day), on Facebook and Google+ or by subscribing to our blog feed at:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/DereksHomeAndBusinessBlog

You can also follow me on Twitter @djones1509, Google+ and on Facebook at:
http://www.facebook.com/djones1509
https://plus.google.com/104849975941505117776

Until my next post on Monday on online security for the small business, have a fabulous weekend! See you back here on Monday!

© 2013. This article is DMCA protected. Republication is prohibited.

Commerce Journalism AKA Affiliate Marketing

As a marketing concept, affiliate links have always had a slightly disreputable feel to them. Adding an affiliate link to content always suggests, at some level, the publisher is more interested in getting paid than providing quality content. At the same time, trusted and authoritative content can move significant traffic through affiliate links, so plenty of marketing strategies focus around affiliate sales.

What's a marketing tactic to do when it falls under a cloud? Well, it falls back on another time honored marketing trick - it changes its name. What was once affiliate marketing is now known as commerce journalism, a name which spawns its own controversies.


Defining Affiliate Marketing

Affiliate marketing is a subsection of native advertising, although the strategy has a history much longer than the native advertising name. Native advertising describes any marketing which blends with the surrounding content.

Affiliate marketing specifically describes links to sponsors or products within content. An image of a Mustang and a link to Ford parts are both native advertising, but only the link is considered affiliate marketing.


Can Journalism Advertize and Still be Journalism?

Commerce journalism works well enough as a replacement term for affiliate marketing, but the expression puts many people's noses out of joint. At its core, pure journalism is both trustworthy and credible.

Yeah, I know a quick flick through the newsstand or cable news networks reveals how rarely we see pure journalism, but in an ideal world, you should be able to trust the people who provide you with information.

Of course, it's more difficult to trust content containing sponsored links, or when a company pays a writer to produce articles about them. That's not journalism, detractors cried - that's marketing, and calling it anything else is misleading.


Google News and Commerce Journalism

It would be easy enough to dismiss the commerce journalism debate as mere semantics. After all, most commerce journalism doesn't pretend to be real news stories. A gulf of intentions separates a news story from content on a commercial page.

Expect, of course, sometimes the gulf narrows, especially when a canny marketer sees an opportunity. Marketing masquerading as news became so common, the practice goes against Google News' quality guidelines. Affiliate links in Google News articles will attract the unwanted gaze of Google's penalties, which no one wants.


Commerce Journalism or Commerce Content?

Given concerns about journalistic content and the nature of affiliate links, the term commerce content might have raised fewer eyebrows. Most readers expect some monetization in their online content. Readers aren't stupid; they understand bloggers and website owners need to eat. Still, "commerce journalism" was the term coined, so marketers are just going to have to live with it (at least until the concept receives another name change).


Succeeding in Commerce Journalism

Ultimately, your readers probably won't mind commerce journalism, as long as you strive to provide them with trustworthy and accurate information. Building trust takes time. Readers need time to assimilate, test and verify your content, although they may not be aware they're doing it.

As you build trust and authority in your field, you start building a social community based around your content. Once you have a large enough community, you'll start to see traffic through affiliate links.

Honesty is important in commerce journalism. If a company sponsors content, be upfront with your readers. You may not need to give them a heads up about affiliate links within content, but when money changes hands for an entire article, a disclaimer helps build your readers trust (and makes them more likely to click on links, as you've proven you're not hiding anything.

Most importantly, commerce journalism provides content and information first, and market opportunities second. Obvious advertising copy drives off readers. Give them useful information so they keep coming back, and eventually they'll check out your affiliate links.


If you found this or any of my other posts helpful, don't forget to share the posts to your favourite networks using the toolbar below or by using the "+1" and "Share" buttons located at the bottom of each post.

As ever, if you want to stay up to date with the latest blog posts, don't forget to follow via Google Friend Connect (button on sidebar), on NetworkedBlogs, via Email (maximum of one email per day), on Facebook and Google+ or by subscribing to our blog feed at:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/DereksHomeAndBusinessBlog

You can also follow me on Twitter @djones1509, Google+ and on Facebook at:
http://www.facebook.com/djones1509
https://plus.google.com/104849975941505117776

Until my next post on Friday on using the latest social media marketing techniques in 2013, enjoy the rest of the week! See you back here on Friday!

© 2013. This article is DMCA protected. Republication is prohibited.

Thank You For Your Support!

I want to take this opportunity before my next blog post to thank all my followers, visitors, guest authors and contributors, sponsors plus everyone at the Bloggers Network Group and Bloggers Network Community for making Derek's Home and Business Blog what it is today! You make all the hard work that goes into the blog all worthwhile.

Thank you for your support!

© 2013. This article is DMCA protected. Republication is prohibited.

Q & A: What To Consider When Setting Up A Home Business

Many people dream of working from home to enjoy a greater work/life balance, avoid the daily commute and experience a more relaxed business setting. If you're about to embark on a home-based venture, read our helpful question and answer guide for inspiration.


Q - How much does it cost?

A - The cost of setting up a home business varies greatly depending on your industry. If your work will be computer-based, you might need to pay for a professional website to be set up, invest in a special desk and an ergonomic chair and pay for things like a business phone line, broadband, virus protection and promotional goods like business cards.

If you're planning to make things, you might need extra space, a workbench, special lighting and equipment. You'll also need to pay to register your company name and might need to pay for business banking services if you want to set up a dedicated account. Other costs to take into account include utility bills, subscriptions to unions and potential insurance costs.


Q - How much room will I need?

A - Again, the amount of space you'll need will depend on what it is you want to do. You might have a spare bedroom or a box room you could convert into a home office, or a shed or garage where you could set up a workbench and store any equipment. You could find setting up only requires a corner of your home with a small laptop table and chair squeezed in, and some stylish metal shelving for storing your paperwork. Take a look at storage supplies for your business at BigDug.co.uk.


Q - Will I need insurance?

A - If customers will be visiting your home or if you'll be travelling to them, you might need to make sure you have insurance to cover accidents or claims that arise from your dealing with clients directly. You'll need to make sure your property is safe and check for any hazards or risks. Public liability insurance can give you financial protection in these situations.

You may also need to amend your contents insurance to cover your equipment, and also take out buildings insurance depending on the type of business you'll run. An alternative is to invest in a specialist policy for home businesses.


Q - Do I need permission?

A - If you want to start your own business, you might need permission from a number of people first. If you already work for a company but want to set up your business on the side, you may need to check your contract or speak to your boss to ensure you can do so. Some contracts have clauses that specify that you can't set up in competition while you're working for the company, or enter into additional employment. However, it's worth asking someone directly as the firm may be happy for you to run your own business and give you written permission to do so.

Another person you may need to check with is your landlord if you live in rented accommodation or your mortgage provider if you're paying back a home loan. If your business doesn't require changes to the property or visits from clients, you may find your plans can go ahead without any problems. However, if you want to alter the building or start taking visits you may have some negotiating to do.


Did you find this article helpful? Please let me know by leaving me your valued comments in the comments section below.

Related articles:
Get A Head Start On The Holidays With A Home-Based eBay Business
The Business Of Pleasure: Profiting From Your Hobbies

For more business tips, use this link:
http://www.derekjones.co/search/label/Business%20Tips


If you found this or any of my other posts helpful, don't forget to share the posts to your favourite networks using the toolbar below or by using the "+1" and "Share" buttons located at the bottom of each post.

As ever, if you want to stay up to date with the latest blog posts, don't forget to follow via Google Friend Connect (button on sidebar), on NetworkedBlogs, via Email (maximum of one email per day), on Facebook and Google+ or by subscribing to our blog feed at:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/DereksHomeAndBusinessBlog

You can also follow me on Twitter @djones1509, Google+ and on Facebook at:
http://www.facebook.com/djones1509
https://plus.google.com/104849975941505117776

Until my next post tomorrow on the topic of commerce journalism aka affiliate marketing, enjoy the rest of your day! See you back here tomorrow!

© 2013. This article is DMCA protected. Republication is prohibited.