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What is Your SEO Strategy in 2016 and Beyond?

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Internet of Things, Business conceptTaking your brand to the next level requires myriad of time and effort, along with making the right decisions along the way.

With that being the case, where do you see your brand headed this year and down the road?

Many companies are saddled with a fixed budget on how much marketing and advertising they can do, therefore tying their hands at putting 100 percent behind their brands. Others, meantime, have the means to promote it, but go about it in the wrong manner.

One way you can get your brand’s face out there without bankrupting the company is by properly using search engine optimization (SEO) as part of a broader strategy involving content marketing and social networking.

First Step is Having a Strategy

In order to give your brand the attention it needs and deserves, having a comprehensive strategy to promote it should always be at the top of your marketing list.

Having a strategy of combining SEO, content marketing and social media allows you the best of all worlds, especially if your budget is on the tight side.

Start with the SEO component and go from there.

First, do you know the advantages of using SEO to give your brand a push?

Among the benefits:

  • Authority – When your brand stands out from others in the respective industry as an authority, you are more likely to ring-up sales. Consumers are more likely to buy from those they trust, so use SEO to set yourself up as knowledgeable and trustworthy in your niche;
  • Professionalism – Brands that have their act together will certainly better position themselves than those who look like a fish out of water. While money might be tight at times, spending some of it on bringing in a professional SEO consultant can be some of the best funds you will ever invest. He or she can make your brand look more professional in a number of ways, including what your content says about your business and industry in general, selecting the right keywords (especially long-tail keywords) inside your blog posts to better rank on search engines, and moving you forward on mobile SEO if you have not already incorporated it into your plans;
  • Ranking – With a sound SEO strategy, your brand rises to the top of search engine rankings. Being on page one of Google or other search engine rankings in your respective industry as opposed to pages three or four can make the difference between getting and not getting a sale. This is yet another reason why you need to be consulting on SEO strategy for your business;
  • Socializing – Part of your SEO strategy needs to incorporate social media. How your brand’s social profiles rank of course helps or hurts your ability to land new business. If your company’s Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Instagram and other such profiles are noteworthy; your brand will show up higher in search listings as they relate to brand names. This is yet another reason while social interaction (providing details about your products and/or services, answering consumer questions, solving consumer issues as they relate to your brand or industry etc.) is something that should be looked at as a necessity and not a choice.

Defining your SEO strategy in 2016 and beyond should be one of the most important decisions you do for your brand.

Are you ready to take the challenge?

Photo credit: BigStockPhoto.com

About the Author: Dave Thomas covers business and marketing topics on the web.

Do Your Employees Have Enough Schooling?

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Employee Motivation Concept And Business Man.Whether you have a handful of employees or hundreds of them, making sure they have as much education as necessary to handle their respective job duties is something that should never be taken for granted.

Think about when you started working and before you created your business or purchased it from someone else. How much schooling did you have at either time?

In today’s technologically-driven work world, having workers up to the tasks that you throw at them is more critical than ever.

As a result, there are a number of things you can do as an employer to beef up your employees’ educational portfolios, all the while enjoying the benefits down the road of having more educated workers on your team.

They include:

  • Needs – First and foremost, look to see what your current and likely pending needs are for your industry and your company in general. Have you looked at a projected growth for your business and market overall? What current economic factors are harbingers for things to come over the next 12 months? Are you forecasting any notable job increases or layoffs in the next year? These should all be areas of interest to you as a business man or woman, having the finger on the pulse of your industry;
  • Strengths and weaknesses – It should not come as a major surprise that just about all employees have their strengths and weaknesses. Your job as an employer is to bring out the best in your workers and improve their skills where possible. When it comes to the latter, there are educational opportunities that your employees can benefit from. If you have one or more employees working in H.R., sending them to school for additional education in areas of workplace rules and regulations, liabilities that employers can be exposed to, handling the complex world of health insurance etc. are all opportunities where a little more schooling can make a world of difference. As for employee strengths, it never hurts to have the occasional refresher course or two (something that some additional classwork can provide) so that your staff will be as up to speed on possible;
  • New opportunities – One of the many advantages of the Internet is having access to countless online opportunities, including additional education. If your employees who are yearning for more education can’t attend classes in person due to work schedules, family commitments, long traveling distances, they likely have the option of online studies. Whether it is in accounting and finances, human resources, electrical and computer engineering, marketing or myriad of other subjects, letting employees take online courses to improve their standing with your company is a great idea;
  • Long-term financial benefits – Yes, contributing towards or even paying the entire bill to have employees get more education now is a costly matter, but the benefits down the road are oftentimes all so worth it. Employees with more educational and job skills are more apt to stay with an employer, especially those companies who treat them well and offer advancement opportunities (see more below). Better educated employees also are better equipped to handle the questions, concerns and even occasional anger of customers. With additional educational and workplace skills, such workers can oftentimes diffuse a situation with a consumer before it gets out of hand;
  • Higher standing – Last but not least, your company offering additional educational opportunities to its employees will stand out in the crowd. When many people are fighting just to get their hands on low-paying or even minimum wage jobs in today’s challenged economy, the opportunity proves appealing to work at companies where moving up the ladder and the pay scale for that matter is very attractive. Tout the educational opportunities your business offers when marketing your company to prospective employees. This can be done in brochures, email ads, on social media, even in videos. The more the word gets around, the better opportunities your company has to attract the best.

As an employer, all you can do to attain and retain the best employees benefits you, your employees, and your customers, so everyone involved wins.

Use the educational bonus to bring in quality staff who one day have the ability to be even better employees with some additional schooling.

Photo credit: BigStockPhoto.com

About the Author: Dave Thomas covers business and educational topics on the web.

A Commitment To The Commitment

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It’s the season of crashing and burning on new year’s resolutions. Left and right people are falling off the wagon and going back to whatever they vowed against.

Sometimes what we need is a commitment to the commitment. Instead of committing to eating better, maybe we need to commit to the commitment of eating better. That way, when we fail once, we don’t fall off the wagon and end our resolution in January, we instead try to eat better again at the next meal. We all mess up, but those who don’t quit on their commitment are the ones who create sustainable change.

It’s like marriage, you make a commitment to your spouse for life. When things get weird or hard or you have a fight, you don’t peace out. You’re committed. And so it should be with all the things you’re trying to improve.

But there’s something bigger amiss here. We know we can stay committed to something and do it half-way for a while. But why can’t we create sustainable momentum on what we resolve to do? It’s because we can’t create sustainable change by trying to change a behavior. We can create sustainable change only when we deal with the beliefs that drive our behaviors.

Do we fear that there won’t be enough? Do we stress about the future of our businesses? Do we worry about all the things? We need to ask ourselves why we do what we do.

Here are some questions to consider:

  • What drives my stress/fear/behavior?
  • Are my worries/beliefs founded?
  • What can I do to change things?
  • Does the worry help?

Our well-intentioned resolutions aren’t just for us, right? Maybe you want to be healthy to ensure you get to walk your daughter down the aisle someday. Maybe you want to restrain your spending so you’re able to give more to others. Or maybe you want to streamline your workflow so that you can better serve your clients. We should seek to do the hard work of dealing with what drives us, not just for us, but so that others’ lives are better as well.

Imagine if we committed to learning about and dealing with what drives us. Then, instead of making a bunch of small commitments (like eating better, stressing less, etc.), we would consistently be improving due to our singular commitment to dealing with all the worries and beliefs that drive us.

We all long to create sustainable change in our lives, our relationships and our businesses. Committing to the process and dealing with what drives us can make a huge difference in our lives and the lives of those around us.

 

Cover image info: Original, royalty-free image by Roman Pohorecki.

About the author: Lindsey Tolino comes alongside artisans, craftsman and people monetizing their passions to help them create healthy businesses. She shares her heart at ToBusinessOwners.com. Follow her on Twitter @LindseyTolino.

7 Principles For Building Your Resiliency in Life and Business

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By Zaheen Nanji

Resiliency means the ability to bounce back from misfortunes, challenges or setbacks. What does bounce back really mean? It’s not about forgetting all that happened and continuing in misery. Bouncing back is the ability to get unstuck from a problem by finding a solution and continuing to function. Bouncing back is the ability to feel the fear and do it anyway because you will come through with new learnings. In my research on resiliency, these seven principles are important to bouncing back.

1. Approach challenges with flexibility

When something doesn’t work, do you tend to give up after the first try and think you’ve failed? View a challenge like a chess game where you have to not only think ahead but come up with several different strategies. This demonstrates flexibility. Finding different methods to overcome a challenge keeps a person more in control of the situation. Having only one strategy is inadequate preparation.

2. Excellent communication skills

Think of a leader or manager whom you admire and notice how he or she interacts with you or with others at all levels in the company or when networking. You will notice that she’s listening to your words and your communication style and communicates back in your style. She’s looking for the underlying reason behind your communication so she can relate to you. Finally, she’s subconsciously picking up on your body language and tone of voice and mirrors it. These communication skills come naturally to resilient individuals because they want to create rapport with you.

3. Live life with positive attitude

When resilient individuals approach a difficult situation, they have an attitude of being curious, but a positive attitude also encompasses the following three traits:

Realistic Optimism – All the research on optimism says that people who are optimistic are happier, have great relationships and are good at problem solving. However, what makes a person happier? It’s when they maximize their strengths and accomplish what they want knowing there are risks involved.

Embrace Change – research has shown that change becomes easier when we have the resources we need or seek out the resources we lack. Most people hate change because they fear the unknown. If you seek out the resources that can help you, managing change becomes easier.

Sense of Humor – laughter is the best medicine and being able to laugh at life’s frustrations is a great way to bounce back and strategize your next move.

4. Have a mentor

When a resilient individual feels stuck and finds herself in a worrisome state, the first thing she’ll do is contact a mentor or pretend to be her mentor. Imagine you’re faced with an obstacle right now. Think of a mentor who’d be able to overcome that obstacle. Now pretend you are your mentor and step into your mentor. Ask, as your mentor, “What would I do to overcome this problem?” Make sure you are seeing life through his/her eyes and listening through his/her ears. You’ll notice that you’ll have solutions right away.

5. Turn a challenge into an advantage

When you focus on your failures, you dwell on the past and the problems you experienced, which in turn, drives the fear of failure even deeper. Resilient individuals don’t view failure as failure; instead they view it as learned outcomes. Why? They look for insights that can be used as great learning opportunities. They then use that learning to their advantage which leads to the creation of new possibilities and outcome.

6. Create an outcome mindset

Most of us get stuck in the “blame mindset” when we are faced with challenges. In this mindset, you may catch yourself saying things, such as:

• Why do I have this problem?

• How long will I have this problem?

• Whose fault is it that I have this problem?

When you use this type of questioning method, you’ll feel oppressed and you’ll lack choices. However, it’s possible to re-program yourself to an “outcome mindset” by asking alternative questions, such as:

• What do I want and when do I want it?

• When I get what I want, what else in my life will improve?

• What resources do I have available to help me with this challenge?

• Can I use these resources to the best of my ability or do I require extra help?

• What can I do now to improve this situation and get what I want?

Having an outcome mindset propels a person to start thinking of solutions right away.

7. Park negative emotions and live for fulfillment

Resilient individuals accept hardship and work through it instead of dwelling in negative emotions and thoughts. They have the ability to park these emotions by using positive language while simultaneously focusing on the current challenge and finding solutions. This principle of dominating their negative emotions allows them to shift their focus from feeling anxious to feeling hopeful.

Zaheen Nanji is a resilience champion and a business owner in Alberta, Canada.  Embracing change and fear is Zaheen’s trademark because she overcame her speech impediment, her struggles with weight and learned to live in a new country, at the age of 15, without her parents. Her book, The Resilience Reflex – 8 Keys to Transforming Barriers into Success in Life and Business, became an International Best-Seller on Amazon Kindle. Zaheen teaches people how to make resilience their first reflex using her 3-step system: Release, Re-program and Resolve. She can be reached at http://www.zaheennanji.com

How Local Businesses Can Run Their Blogs Like Online Pros

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By Jessy Troy

Local businesses have a bit of a reputation for having awful blogs. It isn’t surprising; local companies tend to be brick and mortar, and the ever changing world of online marketing can be difficult to keep up with, even for experts. Local businesses are used to promoting on a more traditional level.

But blogging offers a cost efficient, simple and effective means of reaching your target audience. Having a good content strategy in place means getting more for less, and competing with those local companies that have managed to figure out a good social angle.

Here are some ways that local businesses can run their company like pros.

Remember That SEO Counts, But Has To Be Modified For Location

Search engine optimization has moved leaps and bounds since the days of keyword stuffing and page spamming. Google’s shifting algorithm has made the rules a lot harder to follow, but thankfully taken some of the power from shady practices that rewarded bad, or even stolen, content.

When scaling for local content, you have to remember that location is going to be your best friend. Your industry is probably vast, so you can’t compete based on those keywords alone. But add your city and you have a much smaller pool.

For example, “Thai restaurant” is going to generate way too many leads, and Google will narrow it for the user, but maybe not narrowed enough. But “Thai restaurant San Francisco” is much better. “Thai restaurant San Francisco Hyde Street” is another one you could use, or your area code.

Not only will this narrow results, but it is what people are more likely to search for.

Make sure you submit your blog to high-quality local directories like this one. This helps you get found!

Being hosted locally increases search visibility dramatically. Here’s the list of hosting providers where you can use country filters to search. Handy!

Integrate With Social, Then Target Based On Geolocation Stats

You can integrate your blog with social networking, and start taking advantage of ads. Then use those pages to target people as they come into your area. It is one of the many benefits of mobile social use, such as through Facebook apps.

In fact, Facebook has a whole host of ways to market as a local business. Check out their page on Local Awareness Ads for more information.

Write About What People In Your Area Care About

Most of your blog’s success is going to come down to the content. While you can offer general information about your industry, including helpful how-to’s, people can get these anywhere on the web. You should be trying to exploit the fact that you are local, and so have a local touch to your business.

Write about things you know your community cares about. Follow a tone that is appropriate for the customers you know you will be looking to speak to. Are these people with large families. Young professional couples? Singles?

Advertise Your Blog On Local Media

You can make people aware of your blog by talking about it on local media. Many local news shows, radio stations, newsletters and newspapers will do features of local businesses. You can casually mention during one of these spots that you have a blog people can go to for whatever information you provide.

Of course, this should not be the primary message behind a media spot. But it is a nice aside that could help create a loyal reader base.

Find Other Blogs With A Following Locally, Then Guest Post

Are there other blogs that are locally based and get a decent amount of visitors? They might be a good place to go to look for a guest spot! Contact the blog owners and pitch a post that you think would be valuable to their readers. Tell the who you are and offer to put a link to their blog on your website.

Connections like this can be very helpful for both parties. Not to mention a good chance to begin networking offline with others in your area.

Ask Local Experts For Interviews, Advice, and Quotes

There is a local blog in my city that has an attorney on every two weeks to write a blog post answering people’s questions about accident claims and issues. The company in question is an auto shop that specializes in fixing accident damage.

Notice how they managed to expand out of their direct industry topic, while remaining relevant, and in a way that is much more helpful to their customers. After all, people are going to them to fix their car, so blog posts teaching how to do anything more than basic maintenance would be pointless. But they know their customers would be facing legal claims, and so offer help that way.

It is an ingenious idea we can all take note of.

Blog About Local Events

What local events are coming to your area? Find out, build hype, attend, and then blog about it. Write a big post showing pictures taken, telling stories, and thanking people for attending. Run a contest in the lead up to get customer participations. Set up a booth with gifts, or interactive party activities.

You can even microblog live, using the event hashtag on Twitter. This is a great way to piggy back off the popularity of, say, a festival.

Tell Local Stories

You have an entire community of people who you can introduce on your blog! Tell the stories of those around you. Do interviews, and find out the interesting details about people’s lives. Do spotlights, and show your appreciation for the people in your area that make your city a great place to live.

Small, local businesses can really get away with this tactic in a way corporations can’t. Imagine for a second that Walmart releases a campaign talking about an old woman who has saved money and lives off of her small pension shopping at Walmart. Seems exploitive, and possibly a fake story by an actor, right?

Now imagine that same situation, but on the blog of a small, local shop. The impact is much greater there, more genuine.

Take Your Local Business Blogging Level To ‘Expert’

Blogging is a great way for local businesses to get into the online marketing game. Do you have any tips? Let us know in the comments!

Author’s Bio: Jessy Troy is a creative writer and editor at Social Media Sun. She Tweets as @JessyTroy.

Engineer a Better Career Approach Moving Forward

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How to Get Ahead words on a board game advance your career
How to Get Ahead words on a board game advance your careerWhat is your career approach?

Whether you want to be an engineer or a CEO, a nurse or a big data scientist, the right approach to your career will give you a valuable boost.

What are some things you can do to keep a positive attitude and make sure you have the best approach to your career?

Make Your Career Your Business

It is all too easy to drift along, even in a career you’re successful at. That’s why you need to make your career your business.

Make time for a career review; ask yourself where you would like to be in five or 10 years. What would you like to achieve before you retire? Once you know where you want to be, map out a plan of how to get there, and regularly review where you are.

Think about your talents, motivations and likes.

If your career is the right one for you, how can you use your skills to make it even more rewarding? If it’s not, ask yourself what you would like to do instead, and how you can use your existing skills in a new way.

Keep Learning

One of the keys to engineering a better career for yourself, is learning. Keep abreast of what’s hot in your industry from new technology to new ideas.

Be willing to invest in your education (sometimes employers will be able to help you with this). Continuous learning will keep your skills up to date, making you more valuable to an employer, and helping you get more satisfaction from what you do.

If you want to move in a different direction, learn as much as you can about your intended career so you can figure out if it’s right for you.

Make the Most of Mornings

Making the most of mornings can help you advance your career.

The morning provides prime quiet time, before the rush of work, family commitments and deadlines. As the article “Boost Your Engineering Career” says, you can use that time for making plans, motivating yourself, and starting your day with a goal in mind.

Time spent in the morning planning your day is a good career booster.

Start every morning with a clear plan of what you want to achieve, and which tasks are most important to that end. You’ll be taking charge of every day and making sure you use your time in the best way possible.

Look For Opportunities

If you want to forge the best career path for you, keep your eye out for opportunities. Having a positive attitude and being willing to seize opportunity will help you move forward.

Be proactive in looking for chances to boost your career.

That might mean taking a new course, attending an event, or simply connecting with the right person. Don’t be afraid to ask questions, make suggestions and start conversations. You never know what might come of it.

If you want to go in a new direction, look for chances to learn and grow on your new path.

Don’t wait for the perfect training course, for example. Read books, talk to other people in your desired industry, or even look for ways you can volunteer to find out what it’s all about.

Being in a career that you love is fulfilling and rewarding.

Make sure that’s the case for you with a positive attitude, great time management, and a nose for opportunities.

Photo credit: BigStockPhoto.com

About the Author: Tristan Anwyn writes on a variety of topics including social media, how to build customer relationships, content marketing and how to move forward in your career.