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XSite Marketing Knowledge Base
Are some domain names more effective?
Certainly. A lot of people use vanity domains - something left over from the tradition of "making a name for oneself" or "putting one's name on one's work", both admirable qualities. But this is an age of search engines, of Google, and what matters is search terms. Sure, you might be found under your company name in a search engine, and even take top listing. Of course. How many Frank Halligan Appraisal Services LLC are there? You'll be found by those people who already know your company name and are just using the search engine like a phone book. But if you want new business, I'd get a domain name made up of the kind of search terms you think your prospects are using to find a professional - like
How important is a logo or brand?
Well, there's more to a brand than just the logo, but the logo sums up and represents your brand, and becomes the heart of it. The real brand is a combination of your style and business attitude. That said, a logo is pretty darned important. It's how you “brand” your presence on the web – it's the visible symbol of your difference from every other professional on the web in the same industry.
Can you match my site colors to my logo?
Certainly! We can match the colors exactly, and even use complimentary colors to enhance the effect.
What kind of written content do I need in my site?
You're in luck – the same kind of content appeals to both human visitors and to search engines that send you human visitors, so this is easily answered. You need content that's original or unique (never paste in other people's content – search engines penalize for it, and your visitors will find it boring). You need content that's relevant (to your industry or your locale). You need content that changes frequently (e.g. blogging).
Do I really need to blog?
Well, there's been a real change over the past 2-3 years in how web sites are treated by search engines, and that translates into a change in whether or not your site will ever get found in the first place. Like it or not, static sites (the old-fashioned business web site that rarely changes, however unique it may be) are getting almost completely marginalized by dynamic sites (sites with constantly updated content, like blogs). In short, anyone with 5min a day to update their site or blog can out-market nearly anyone else with a static web site that rarely changes. Do you really need to blog? You do something like it, if you want your site to become and stay popular and draw significant business traffic. Most corporations, though they usually can't seriously outblog a private individual, have realized this:
How exactly does social networking work?
Well, there are a couple of kinds of social networking environments. One type is for directly linking to other people – whether clients or colleagues or potential future clients and colleagues. The benefits of this type of social networking are well known. Used in conjunction with your web site and other marketing tools, the value can be enhanced exponentially. The other type of social networking is the social bookmarking kind, which depends, in large part on your web site content being dynamic (see “Do I really need to blog?” above). It is perhaps one of the most powerful forms of social networking, and can result in your marketing efforts going “viral”, if you're willing to do the work to achieve it.
Is video useful for marketing?
In and of itself, it can have some minor marketing value but, combined with social networking, it can be immensely valuable.Youtube is perhaps the best example of this. Take a 2-3 minute video of your neighborhoods with some commentary, discuss the market, the industry, the area (same as you do on your blog), and upload your creation to Youtube with a title, a link, and an invitation to comment. Then you include the Youtube video on your own site. If you can get a discussion going on Youtube about the piece, you'll usually draw traffic. Make a video a month, and you've got a marketing method.
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