You might have heard of Dan Kennedy, who many people call the greatest marketer living. I don’t know about that, but I do know that since I started listening to him several years ago my business at Improved Results has grown. And I believe that most of the growth has come from my changing my thinking, much of which has resulted from reading from and listening to Dan. If you’ve read any of Dan’s books, you know he is irreverant about many things and definitely is not what one would call “p.c.”

I’ve just posted on my site a complete transcript of an “interview” with Dan in which I was able to participate titled, “How To Bite Back At The ‘Recession’.” I agree with almost all of what Dan espouses and I encourage you to read and assimilate what he said. Having read his two newest books, I’m on board with his ending comment that to succeed in business for the long haul you can’t be a “sissie.” It takes hard work, smart marketing, and a continued emphasis on underpromising and overdelivering.

Understanding that the U.S. public is easily swayed, is not generally well read, and actually believes what they see and hear on the network news, can get one a little down. At the same time, many times these people are your competition. That’s a comforting feeling.

I hope you’re as excited as I am about the endless opportunities that are out there today.Technorati Tags: dan kennedy, marketing, recession

As you may have heard, Google announced on Tuesday, June 26th, its Beta version of Ad Planner. I first picked up on it in yesterday’s Wall Street Journal but only got “interested” after clicking through to and reading about it at the Ad Planner page at Google. Right now you can sign up and request to be part of the Beta version, although it appears that they’ll be testing it with a limited number of agencies and advertisers; my suspicion is that you’ve got to be somewhat of a major player, but we’ll see.

What looks cool about this is that you’ll be able to gather information on which web sites your prospects are visiting and incorporate this into your Google Adwords campaign. One of the limitations with the Content Network option within Adwords for almost all of our clients is that the conversion just isn’t there.

It may be with Ad Planner that you’ll be able to, with a little research, focus your Content Network option and have your ads appear on the web sites you know your prospects are visiting. If this is the case, good move by Google.

Of course, that means more revenue for them. But who cares if by using this tool you can convert Content Network click throughs to more customers or clients for you.Technorati Tags: pay per click, ppc, google adwords, google ad planner, conversion, web site traffic

I spoke at an event this past weekend about using the Internet more effectively for your business.  The attendees were small business owners who mostly focus locally and regionally.  The event was hosted by Ed Lyon and Keith VandeStadt of TaxCoachSoftware, clients of mine who have built a very cool business over the past 3 years.

While my talk focused on basics (web site conversion, driving traffic with pay-per-click and organic search engines, and getting your visitors to return to your site), during the weekend several of the attendees asked me about social media…and how and if they should be using it to promote their businesses.  I answered with an enthusiastic “yes,” although that’s only part of the answer.  In other words, knowing what you should do and then knowing how to do it are two separate issues.

I’m just finishing a phenomenal book, “Groundswell“, written by Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff of Forrester Research.  Suffice it to say the book is probably the best I’ve seen in terms of what your business can and should be doing regarding social media.  It’s more of a why and what book.

There are no quick answers in terms of “how.”  At the recent Peak Performers meeting, about which I talked last week, several of the attendees were attempting to get a handle on their social media efforts.  They were spending time and money…they just weren’t sure about the return on investment they were achieving.

My friend Charles Heflin of SEO2020 and I will be announcing a business oriented approach to the problem of how to use social media in the near future.  In the meantime, I encourage all with whom I come into contact to become familiar with the opportunity of how it can postively affect their businesses.  You should to.

Missed my self-imposed deadline of posting every Monday as I was in Baltimore the first 3 days of this week at the Glazer-Kennedy Peak Performers meeting.  I just joined this group in April and this was the first “event” since then.

Wow!  Being in a room for that long with a group of proven entrepreneurs, many of whom have very successful businesses, makes one realize just how differently successful entrepreneurs think from the many wannabees and from those who want to work for someone else.  It’s not that the latter is bad…no way, but I’ve found over the years that it’s our thinking that separates us.

I won’t get into all the content that was delivered from the likes of Bill Glazer and Lee Milteer, among others, but the part I really enjoy is the interaction with other people at the tables, at breaks, and then at meals.  None of us has all the answers (reminds me of the definition I once heard of a fool – a legal defendant who hires himself as his own counsel); I have gleaned much insight in the past several years from various mastermind groups, but interacting at this level is a little different.

Bottom line: I’ve recommitted to investing in myself… my professional education, participation in high level mastermind groups, and then just doing the hard work it takes.  And to encourage those with whom I come into contact to do the same.  I don’t want to be in the same place next year because my thinking hasn’t changed and grown.  How about you?

Ughhhh!  I’ve been really remiss in posting with all that’s been going on.

Had the opportunity over Memorial Day weekend to get with Jerry West, David Bullock, and a small group of others at Jerry’s and David’s SEO Rainmaker conference; definitely not for the faint at heart.  Picked up a lot of good, new information and was able to confirm a number of things on which we’ve been working.

Jerry, if you don’t know him, is one of the brightest and smartest people around when it comes to SEO…and what he talks about is all based upon testing.  Not what he thinks is working, but what he’s actually proven to work.  David, “Mr. Conversion,” brings a lot more than his knowledge of web site conversion to the table.

A lot of the two days conversation was about measurement…you have to have the mindset that you’re going to measure what’s going on with your business.  I’ve said many times in my public talks that if you’re not serious about measurement, don’t waste your time and money with the particular business activity you’re considering.  Professionals measure, amateurs don’t.

In the online world measurement is so easy.  It starts at a most basic level with Google Analytics; I’m still amazed at the prospective clients that call me that don’t have it in place.  It’s free.  “Get ‘er done.”

At the conference both David and Jerry talked about Crazy Egg.  I had heard about it but had never used it, but since then have implemented it with several years.  With it’s heat mapping feature, you can actually see where people are clicking on the various pages of your site.  Way too cool.

Bottom line: commit to measurement if you haven’t done so and begin to find out the key numbers relative to your web site that you need to monitor.