Great Ways to Use Twitter for Small Business

Here are some links to some great ways to use Twitter for your small business....

Google’s Place Pages

Here’s yet another opportunity to use Google’s Local Listings to promote your business. “…Post to your Place Page is nothing more than a Twitter-like status update box with a 160-character limit that updates your business listing with whatever current information you want to expose to the Google  audience.   You can access it from your Local Business Center dashboard...

Creating a Social Media Contest

Here’s a great article on how to effectively promote your brand through Social Media channels. 5 Tips for Creating a Successful Social Media Contest by Clay...

How to Build Facebooks Fans

John Haydon had a great idea on his blog for building Facebook Fans by offering Fan-Only content.    Check out his article link below to learn how to do it… How To Create An Incentive For Visitors To Fan Your Facebook...

GoMyLocal.com

Here’s another local directory/social media site that you can add your business to for free.  GoMyLocal.com directory listings are a free and easy way to get more exposure online for your business or store front.  Visit the site and see if your business is listed, if not click on “Add a Listing” and fill out a short form with details about your business.  Even if you have a...

Hospitality Industry Reviews

The following is an article by Miriam Ellis one of my favorite authors on Search Engine Guide.  I thought you might be interested in knowing what sources Google uses for its Local Maps listings. 34 Google Local Maps Sources For Hospitality Industry Reviews Who does Google trust? Who do they love to get data from about your local hospitality business? With the new, expanded, 10-listing One Box...

Encourage Reviews on TripAdvisor

TripAdvisor is a free travel guide website that allows users to post opinions and reviews of travel related issues.  TripAdvisor-branded sites alone make up the most popular and largest travel community in the world, with more than 25 million unique monthly visitors, 15 million+ members, and more than 30 million reviews and opinions. Featuring real advice from real travelers, TripAdvisor-branded...

Has Your Business Been Yelped?

Read Jennifer Laycock’s article on Yelp and find out if your business has been “Yelped” and learn how to set up your Free business profile on this popular social media site. Can Yelp Help Your Small...

Claim Your Google Maps Listing

Here’s a free way to get some great local exposure for your small business on Google – claim your Google Maps listing. Watch the video on how to Claim Your Google Maps Listing. To determine which categories to use for your Google Maps listing, go...

Promoting Your Facebook Page

I’ve posted a bunch of posts on the topic of Facebook and how to create a page for your small business.  Now here’s some resources for promoting your Facebook page outside of Facebook, like on your blog or website or other social media sites.  Click on the link below to see Facebooks’ guidelines for promoting your FB page and to find FB images and  a FB badge to be used on...

Building a Business Presence on Facebook

If you have a business or a store front and haven’t taken advantage of Facebook yet, you might want to add that to your list of things to do before the year is out.  To read my earlier post on building a Facebook profile and business page, click here. You’ll need a personal Facebook profile to be able to build a Facebook business/store page.  Once your Facebook page is created you...

Can’t Afford a Website?

So you can’t afford a professional website?  Don’t worry, there’s still plenty that you can do to spread the word online about your business.  The following suggestions are for free online services designed to help you promote your business whether you have a website or not....

Flippin’ Easy – Flip Video

I recently purchased a Flip Video camera from Costco for about $200.  The High Definition video camera fits in the palm of my hand and comes with a small tripod.  It has a built-in USB port that flips open to connect to my laptop for downloading and editting video clips.  The video editting software that comes with the camera is super easy to use and it offers the ability to add multiple clips...

More On-line Invitation Options…

Awhile back I wrote about an online invitation service from Evite.com.  I wanted to share another on-line invitation and event management company called Pingg.  They have a large showcase of artists and a wider variety of stylish invites to choose from.  Pingg is also free and you can post your announcements directly to Facebook and Twitter,...

Spiffy Up Your Craig’s List Posting

A client asked me recently how some postings on  Craig’s List look so much better than others.  He had noticed brochure-type postings and wanted the same format for his listings. So I did a little research and here’s what I found….   Postlets.com offers a free service to create attractive brochure-type listings for real estate and vacation rental properties.  The listings...

Marketing Ideas for Tough Times

Times are tough and your message to potential customers should reflect what consumers are concerned with – and at present it is the economy.  Remember to think like a consumer when you are designing your Pay Per Click ads, website copy, or any advertising for that matter.  Figure out why buying from you is an excellent value (especially in these tough economic times) and be sure to use...

Creating a Facebook Profile & Building a Business Page

Facebook is a widely used social media site that has over 120 million users, is growing by 250,000 users daily and is the 4th most trafficked website on the internet.  Chances are many of your business partners and potential clients are using it, so it’s a great place to establish a presence for yourself and your business for more exposure on the web....

Some of the Best Free Downloads for Small Businesses

Here are some of my favorite Free downloads for small business marketing, link building, social media and more… Zero Dollars, a Little Talent and 30 days by Jennifer Laycock This is a great place to start if you’re new to marketing yourself or your small business online.  Zero Dollars follows entrepreneur and writer Jennifer Laycock as she tries to start a successful online business...

Ways to Promote Flattering Content

Don’t forget to promote client testimonials and reviews on your website and blog.  If someone endorses your service, product or property, make sure you share it with the world by including it on your website, blog and on your list of testimonials that you mail to prospective clients....

Make Your Own Commerical on YouTube.com

Here’s a great article about a Chiropractor who did a short video of one of his treatments on YouTube.com.  Creating a short video of your tour, vacation rental, treatment, service or product isn’t that hard to do if you own a digital video camera.   Uploading the video to YouTube.com is free and easy and you’ll want to make sure you embed your video into your website or blog...

Promoting Your Blog…

If you’ve started a blog recently, here’s a list of sites you’ll want to submit to so more people can find and be exposed to your blog content. Feedburner Technorati (claim your blog at the bottom of the page) Blog TopSites Reddit (submit a link) Digg (Provide social media icons on every blog post, encourage readers to submit your posts) Delicious (Create an account and...

Getting Started with Social Media…

You’re probably wondering what all the buzz is about over “social media”. Here’s a great short video (3 1/2 minutes) that will help you to understand what social media is and how it can benefit your small business or organization. Social Media in Plain English A simple story that illustrates the forces shaping social media. ...

What’s a Gravatar anyway?

If you’ve started to use any of the social media sites online, you’ll notice that you can upload an image for your “avatar” so others can see a thumbnail of you anytime you post a review, a blog article, comment, tweet or favorite. With the increasing popularity of Social Media, including LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, etc.,  I’ve found myself creating individual...

Embed Flickr Image Browser into your blog or website

Here’s a neat tool called PictoBrowser which anyone can use for free to embed your Flickr images into a website or blog.  Just follow the simple set up instructions, choose your configuration settings, copy and paste the code into your website or blog and you’ve got a dynamic image viewer! Here’s a sample of one I just did for a client of mine… ...

Make it easy for others to spread the buzz about your business…

Some friends of mine recently launched a new business and website called Por Favor Favors.   They sent out an email blast to their mailing list – friends, family, clients and allies announcing their new venture, inviting everyone to visit the new site and have a look.  ...

Take Your Group Online with Ning.com

I have had the pleasure to work with many of Kauai’s organizations – ranging from leadership, economic development, Hawaiian culture and community associations.  Now more than ever, organizations are feeling the economic pinch as donations and funding are harder to secure.  Ning.com provides a free online social network product that most organizations will find very valuable....

How to Install Google’s Blog Reader

There’s a ton of blogs on the internet these days and chances are you’ve happened upon at least a few of them you would like to keep “tabs” on.  Here’s a free and simple Blog Reader you can download from Google. The Reader will let you know when new blog posts have been posted and enable you to have one central area to keep your favorite blogs organized. Watch a...

Use Craig’s List to Promote Your Vacation Rental

Craig’s List is a great place to advertise your vacation rental deals or last minute vacancies for free.  It’s easy to set up an account and create a listing, including a description of your property, links to your website, multiple photos and contact information.  More and more people use Craigslist.com everyday to locate services, rentals, real estate, products, used items for...

Share Your Presentations – Promote Yourself…

If you’ve gone to the trouble of building a Power Point presentation (on any topic) then why not share it on the web on Slideshare.com where you can gain valuable online exposure for yourself through your presentation(s)....

Are You LinkedIn? Check out these new Applications…

LinkedIn.com is a great social networking tool where you can post your business profile, resume and links to your website, blog and current projects as well as connect with people you do business with.  LinkedIn.com has just added some new applications that make customizing your LinkedIn profile easy while enhancing its functionality....

Social Media: Now More Than Ever…

Current economic challenges are causing all of us to be more diligent about researching and shopping for the best deal when choosing to buy products/services online.  More and more of us will be searching the web for product reviews and recommends (know as social  media) to help us make our important buying decisions.   Here’s a great article on why now is the perfect time for small...

Green Traveler Guide to Hawaii

As was discussed at the recent HTA Tourism Conference in August, more travelers are eco-conscious and are interested in visiting destinations and supporting businesses who make real efforts to decreasing our carbon footprint.  Today in the “Hawaii Insider” blog by Jeanne Cooper (SFGate.com) she posted an article about a new Green Traveler Guide to Hawaii.   ...

Online Reviews

Many local and social media sites offer the ability for your customers/visitors to write a review about your business.  If you are “watching” the web for your business name with Google Alerts then you will know when someone takes the time write a review about your businessl.  It is good policy to acknowledge anyone who is helping to spread the word about your business. ...

Small Business Blogging

Blogging can be a very effective way for businesses to reach out and connect with their customers when the goal is to create personal and purposeful interactions and to share relevant information.  I’ve recently entered the world of blogging and I am already seeing its value in many ways.  ...

Get your business listed in Yahoo! Local & Google Maps

Did you know you can add your business to Google Maps and Yahoo! Local for free?  By mapping your business or vacation rental location in Google Maps and Yahoo! Local you gain valuable added exposure in these search engines. The free listings offer a link back to your website, plus you can link to your Google Maps and Yahoo! Local listings right from your website, making it easier for your...

How To Use Google Alerts

With the popularity of Social Media where customers and patrons share reviews of your service and/or product(s) online, it is important for businesses to keep up with what is being said about them online. Google Alerts allows you to do just that – easily....

Hawaii Tourism Conference

Hawaii Tourism Conference, August 2008 Last week I attended the Hawaii Tourism Conference in Honolulu themed “So Much More Hawaii”. As many of my clients are in the visitor industry I wanted to hear what the experts forecast for the State’s tourism industry. The following are my notes of the various presentations that I attended and some reminders of things we can all do to...

Creative Image Sharing on Flickr.com

Flickr.com isn’t just for photo hobbyists – it’s also a useful online tool for small businesses and organizations to share and organize photos. The following link is to an awesome article/overview written by Charlottesville Media on how Flickr works and how it can best be used by organizations (and small businesses). How NonProfits Can Get the Most Out of Flickr ...