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LIFT – Discover How Your Local Business Will Profit From Google in 2011 by Travis Smith

Guest post by: Nikki Leigh

Article Overview: Most entrepreneurs understand that they can get basically unlimited exposure for their business on the internet -- but what if you want to reach your local customer? That is where Google Places is a key. This book and course help you learn to use Google places, SEO, directories and other reasonably priced and/or free tools to build a local presence on your business on the internet.

LIFT – Discover How Your Local Business Will Profit From Google in 2011 by Travis Smith

I am in the process of launching a new relationship coaching business and currently own a social media publicity business. So, I know the value of the internet to promote and build a business. After 18 years in promotional work - I know the major differences in the cost and results from using the internet instead of or in addition to offline and traditional marketing efforts. Over the last couple of years, I've heard more and more people talking about using the internet to promote to a local market. In my work, we work to reach a national and international audience - but I hadn't really taken the time to learn how to specifically create and optimize my online presence.

As an author and publicist - I'm really picky about how information is presented and I can't stand content that "talks down to the reader". We've all read things that give the impression that the author is so much better than the reader. As an author, I understand that my books don't mean much if no one reads them and gives something from them.

The reason I mention this is because I really enjoyed the tone (the voice) of this course. The information is presented in a way that walks you through the process, step by step. There are glossaries - because online marketing really seem to have its own language, but I insist with my clients that it's just a new dialogue. Understanding the basic terms makes it much easier to get a foothold online.

The Beginner' Quick Start Guide is a great overview to show you the parts of the plan and then the full workbook walks you through the process step by step. I also like a review at the end of each chapter and the workbook includes a checklist of the things that need to be done to complete each phase of the plan.

There are very key elements of online marketing that are critical and they are included here. They include: Google, keywords and SEO - search engine optimization. Many of the "gurus" make it seem that SEO is a huge mystery and its really not. If you don't believe me - see the section in Chapter 1 titled "SEO is Not Magic".

I often tell people that whether you love or hate Google, you want to be friends with Google and you want to attract Google's attention for your online presence. There are great tips in this course to get the attention of Google and one of the many comments I really liked is that you cannot obsess about your Google rank on a daily basis. Ranks fluctuate --- so look at it over time, update your keyword spreadsheet on a regular basis, but understand there are ups and downs that are all part of the process.

I have an extensive online presence for my books and promotional business, but now I'm building a presence for my new business and have set up my Google Places page for that business and one for my brother's business. Now its time to flesh out the plan to expand my "local footprint" - as directed in this course.

You can use the internet to reach a national or international audience, but you can also use it to reach the people in your local area. When you want to reach your local target audience, you need to utilize the tips, techniques and information in this course. Whether you need to add to existing internet knowledge or if you are just starting to promote your business online, you can find a wealth of information in this course. I also appreciated the way the information is laid out to get experienced people organized to get the best results. If you have a business, an organization or other venture that needs local exposure, you should follow the directions in this plan.

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Article Tags: free tools, google, local business promotion, local customer, online marketingtravis smith, online presence, promote business locally



Related Forum Posts
Re: How can I promote my site? - I recently added my details to Google Places. Is that the same as a Google Local Business Listing?
Re: How can I promote my site? - [quote="smartcompanysoftware":1buq8jkk]I recently added my details to Google Places. Is that the same as a Google Local Business Listing?[/quote:1buq8jkk] Yes, they're the same. You add your business information so that you can be found on the web. You can engage with customers and much more. You just reminded me to add my business there as well. Thanks!
Re: Google Local Tutorial - Free Online Advertising - You have done a good job on the tutorial and thanks a million for the information, I have never known about Google Local before. I will implement it immedaitely
A ton of Great Women - You might want to profile Teresa Cascioli of LakePort Brewery. She has an amazing story! I met her at at the celebratory luncheon for the Profit/Chatelaine Top 100 Women Business Owners. The Top 100 list is also a great resource for inspirational stories of Women Entrepreneurs.
Re: Google Local Tutorial - Free Online Advertising - Hi GT, Thanks a lot for the referral. I have started signing up all my clients for Google Local. People are amazed that in two weeks they can have #1 listings for competitive local kewords. Tip: Don't stop by adding just one ad. As long as each page of your website is different and optimized for different keywords you should create multiple ad words for each page. Example: Type in "Minneapolis web development" in Google. You will notice we have two listings. One for our home page & one for our mission page. They are both optimized for "Minneapolis web development" so Google will approve both listings / ads. Jeff


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