With 2011 almost upon us, I wanted to give you some ideas to add to your Internet Marketing campaign. The following areas should be on the forefront of your future.

• Website – Engagement is the key word for 2011. Not only should you engage with Social Media, but you should engage with visitors directly on your website. Add all the key elements to your site to keep the searcher involved. Are you utilizing videos? Are you giving the user an experience that will result in your end goal? Connect with your searchers on every level directly through your website.

• Facebook – A Facebook is an essential part of any Marketing Campaign. In 2011, take your Page to the next level! Make sure you are utilizing the Custom Tab feature. Make sure that your Tabs are functional and practical. Since there are only a few spots for Tabs, use ones that will benefit your campaign and your fans the most.By using the @ function, you can “tag” other people or companies, therefore posting your post on their wall in addition to your own. This is an easy way to spread your message!

  Make sure your posts are “share worthy”. This is the name of the game and is what truly makes this viral marketing. If you want your news to spread, make it interesting. Your goal for 2011 in regards to Facebook should be: More Likes.

• Mobile – With Tim Mayer predicting that mobile search will occupy 1 in 5 of the searches by 2012, it’s time to get involved! Ask yourself if searchers can find your content from their mobile device. If the answer is no, put this on your list for next year!

Blending all your marketing efforts will get you the best results. We at Mannix Marketing wish you all a very Happy Holiday Season!

Got a WordPress blog? Posting to it from your iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad?

A few weeks ago, WordPress 2.6 for iOS was released to the App Store, and was followed very quickly by some very critical comments and negative reviews. Lots of people were having problems even connecting to their blog, including Jon Katz ,a well-known author, and long time client of Mannix Marketing, Inc. I had the opportunity to work with Jon when he stopped by the office, trying to get the new version of the app to work right. Unfortunately, for Jon, who was getting ready to go on tour for his new book, we were unable to help him, as it was an issue with the app itself, and he opted to wait for another update. Well, that new update has come (WordPress 2.6.1 for iOS)… and while it seemed to solve the connection issues we were seeing before, it has brought an onslaught of new problems, rendering the app basically useless.

At the suggestion of  Senior Web Applications Developer Toby Dawes,  we took to the App Store to see if we could find an alternative solution. Enter BlogPress. For $2.99, one can connect to their WordPress blog (or, several other types of blogs) and post real-time updates. You can work with already live posts, post drafts, and even cross-post to your Facebook and Twitter accounts.

BlogPress is a great solution for those WordPress 2.6 blues! Itʼs definitely a must-buy if youʼre having problems with the new WordPress app, like so many other people are having.

Our Mannix Marketing, Inc. programming team are problem solvers - we love to make things work! Contact us for custom programming applications, content management systems, etc. - we can help!

Please use the following check list to ensure that your listings are set up the way you want:

• LOCATION – Is my business listed properly in all the subcategories where my business belongs? LakeGeorge.com is set up in five main “channels”Lodging |  Dining |  Things to Do |  Real Estate and Home |  Business Services
  • Are you listed under the correct location?
  • Lodging clients, should you be under Budget Accommodations? (rooms under $100 in August)
  • Should you be under Luxury Lodging? (your rooms cost a minimum of $350/night and offer Lake George water views)
  • Should you be listed as On the Lake?
  • Should you be listed as Pet-Friendly?
  • All other services on your lodging property – on-site restaurants, boat rentals, etc – are treated as a separate business. Do you have a listing set up for them in the appropriate channel? (more…)

Ok,  so you don’t have to employ video search engine optimization as part of your SEO arsenal.  But the stark reality  is, you should. 

Video is an incredibly powerful medium online. Let’s face it – you already know that everybody and their brother is posting to YouTube.  From favorite tv clips to hair coloring how-to’s, to music videos made by hopeful teenagers with guitars and a dream in every country across the world…this is definitely the ‘final frontier’ in internet search. Whether you’re just getting started or have a brand new website design under your belt, if your business  isn’t part of the world’s 3^rd largest search engine, you’re missing out on one of the best internet marketing  tools available! (more…)

The Internet is a wonderful place where people can engage and interact and find information like never before. You can take word-of-mouth advice from strangers you have never even seen about all sorts of products and services before you buy or decide on a brand.

But the Internet can seem like a truly awful place when someone has written a negative review about your business. It’s there in black and white for everyone in the world to read and consider — and it rarely goes away.

You may not think it’s fair for ONE customer having a bad experience (or sometimes even just a bad day) to ruin your chances at gaining more potential consumers, but unfortunately that’s their right. Fortunately, however, it’s YOUR right to counteract the damage they have done.

So how do you overcome a negative consumer review? And more importantly how do you get potential consumers to ignore it? (more…)