Be Neutral
A Publication of the Georgia Office of Dispute Resolution

 
 


This is one in a series of marketing articles that will explain e-marketing in layman’s terms.  This information is provided to help you modify your online presence to get your practice noticed.

Marketing Tip: T Minus 30 and Counting ... Is Your Practice Ready for Fall ?

It’s hard to believe, but Labor Day is just a month away.  It seems like just yesterday that we were all making plans to scale back our schedules for the summer and planning vacations to the beach, mountains or exotic places.  Have you put that much effort into planning the marketing efforts for practice to make sure it is as successful as your vacation was ?  Let’s review what we’ve learned in the last year and make sure we’re doing it !

Website checkup 
In order for your website to get to the top of the search engine rankings you’ve got to make sure that it is optimized for the search engines.           

Are you using the right keywords ?

Are the right words bolded and in the right places on your site ?

Are you using words instead of images masquerading as words ?

Check out all the guidelines we gave you months ago and if you still have questions about your site contact me, and we’ll analyze your site.
 

  Making Search Engines Work for You
 

Remember Content Counts !
Write it and they will come ?  What can you do to make your website interesting enough that people keep coming back and encouraging their friends to visit your site ?  Take a moment to see why content counts and how to draw traffic to your site:
 

  Why Content Counts for Website Success
 

Who Links to You ?
Fully 60% of your search engine ranking is based on the number of links to your website from other trusted resources on the web.  Even if you follow the ideas above and get all of them right, they only account for 40% of your search engine rankings.  Therefore, if you want your website to appear in the top 10 in a Google search you need to understand backlinks and implement them effectively.
 

  The More Friends (and links) The Better
 

Are You in Front of Everyone’s Mind ?           
What are you doing to remind people on a regular basis that you’re out there and waiting for their business ?  One of the best ways to remind people that your practice exists (without being a pest) is to include them on your mailing list for an informative newsletter that you send out 1-2 times monthly.  Read our tips about making that newsletter effective:
 

  eNewsletter 101 - Keeping Your Practice in Front of Everyone's Mind
 

Have You Become “Social” ?    
Social media is the 800 pound gorilla and it’s getting bigger every day.  Facebook alone has grown by over 150 million members in just the last year ! 

Have you established a personal presence on LinkedIn and Facebook ?

Have you established a business presence on LinkedIn if your market is professionals ?

If your market is individuals, do you have a business presence on Facebook ?

Are you posting once daily before 9 am ?

Remember, we have free content available for you daily at:  

www.Facebook.com/GeorgiaMediators (you do not need to be a Facebook member to access this content)

“Like” us and use this content – you can even post your own items out there to share with other mediators.  Take a moment to read our social media tips:
 

  Social Media - The 800-Pound Gorilla
 

Are You “Mobile” ?           
There are over 100 million smart phones in use in the U.S. today – how has that impacted your digital marketing plans ?  Tablet devices such as the iPad are fast replacing laptop computers as the portable device of choice.  How have these changes impacted your digital message and, more importantly, have you taken the time to address this ?  Remember our tips:
 

  Mobile Media 101
 

No More Typos !    
You’ve spent thousands of dollars and hundreds of hours crafting your digital message.  Why spoil it by relying on people to type you into their contact directory ?  Get your GR code free and use it wherever possible to avoid those silly typos.
 

  QR Codes - Your 1" Marketing Opportunity
 
 

Fall will be here before we know it – don’t procrastinate any longer.  Get your digital marketing ready !  Every mediation that goes to another neutral is a piece of business that you could have attracted to your practice.

   

Coming next month:  How to write an article that will go “viral” and expand your marketing reach













 

Michele Gibson is a Georgia-registered neutral and a certified emerging media consultant.  She is the president of Digital Smart Tool, LLC – an e-marketing firm offering website design, SEO, electronic newsletters, social media coaching, and marketing training seminars.

 

Phone: 404-592-3367  E-mail: mgibson@digitalsmarttools.com