Do You Know How to Choose the Right Wordpress Templates for Your Business Website?

For most businesses, the decision to make a business website is a large and important step. Whether for direct response or pure branding and identity, there’s a lot that can be said with a company website. Sales can be made, an online identity and communications platform can be launched, and a business that was once only an offline venture can take the huge, and in many cases, hugely profitable, step into online business.

However, all too often a great business website can turn into a letdown. Pages of copy built to sell end up producing very little in the way of conversions. Images that were crisp and clean look to be full of compression artifacts and grime. And most often, and most annoyingly, a design that seems amazing offline just fails to translate, resulting in poor site navigation and frustrated users.

There’s a way around this, however. By using WordPress to make a business website, you gain access to a huge range of WordPress designs that are ready to use. This can cut out the otherwise frustrating process of testing a design for your business, working with a professional, or even hiring a team of web designers and developers to produce your website for you.

There are hundreds of WordPress business templates available, many of which are built to cater to a specific type of business. Some are clean and relatively regal in their appearance, built for legal firms and other high-value prestige businesses. Others are action-driven, built to appeal to direct or response-based marketers and businesses in need of instant results from their online marketing.

The type of design isn’t something that can be summed up an a single-sentence adage; instead, it’s a decision that your business will have to make on its own. Depending on your website’s purpose, it’s best to either present a brand with your chosen WordPress business templates, or to inspire action. Think about how an otherwise tiny difference in the two designs could produce a big difference in your business’s sales.

Alongside the WordPress designs and templates that you choose, it’s also important to consider how it may be helped or hindered by your user’s browser type. Corporate websites that deal with a computer-savvy crowd may be able to choose from among the available WordPress business templates that that incorporate HTML5 and other ‘new’ features. In contrast, direct marketers that appeal to all users may with to leave out advanced features in place of compatibility.

While choosing from available WordPress designs and templates can be time-consuming and relatively stressful when having to make a business website, it can result in large improvement for your business when done correctly. Take the time to stress-test your template before making a decision, as a poor choice could hurt your business’s brand or results. For optimum results, it’s worth thinking long and hard before committing to a single design or template.

Andrea is a Wordpress Virtual Assistant based out of the Denver area of Colorado, yet serves the global entrepreneur.

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There are many Internet marketing strategies to promote an online business.  Using popular options like article marketing, pay-per-click advertising, forum marketing and email marketing can increase your success.  The business owner will need to track click-throughs and conversion rates to achieve more success by converting people into paying customers.

Today, social media sites are very popular among Internet users. This has allowed them to become attractive platforms for Internet marketers. A wide variety of potential prospects can be gained by reaching out in this way. Of the most popular platforms are video sharing and social networking sites.

1) Video Sharing

Aspiring artists, and other performers have been using sites like You Tube as a launching pad for some time. As these sites have continued to grow, online businesses have realized the value of using video sharing to improve their success. By producing entertaining yet professional videos businesses are able to reach a broader Internet market. Product demonstrations that highlight benefits to customers have become quite popular, too.

Not only are you capturing a large number of video enthusiasts, but these sites make it easier for videos to be spread virally. They can also be shared through social bookmarking and networking sites as well as via email.

Should a video be relevant to other businesses, they can easily publish them on other websites and blogs, who can then spread your messages virally.  Video marketing has proven to be a crucial element in any internet marketing campaign.

Additionally, if videos are attractive or interesting enough, people can leave comments that assist online business owners in gaining consumer insights on their offerings.

2) Social Networking

Savvy Internet marketers regularly share relevant content to engage users and prompt them to follow their brand or become a part of their network. Some use these sites as an alternative or supplement to their email marketing campaigns.

Everyday use of social networking sites has practically become a way of life for many internet users. However, promoting a business is not as simple as building a network of random people and marketing to them. Treat these sites as a means to build relationships rather than just another advertising medium. Like video sharing sites, social networking sites can prove to be a valuable source for customer feedback.

Encourage comments from users who can help manage an online reputation and give the brand a higher potential to spread virally among people who share the same interests. Consequently, this allows businesses to spend less time, money and energy on brand building and customer acquisition.

This social media popularity allows people to spread the word about a brand and business offerings and increases the number of prospects who see the message. The idea is to get more people to talk about the business and keep the brand top of mind so that internet users will be more likely to patronize it or to share it with other people.

Jeannine Clontz, IVAA CVA, MVA, EthicsChecked™, owner of Accurate Business Services is a Virtual Assistant (VA).  ABS provides ‘as needed’ marketing and social media support, training and consulting to busy entrepreneurs.  Clontz is a writer, author, VA Coach, and speaker on business topics including business ethics. For her FREE 10-Step Guide to Finding the Right VA, or her FREE Report, Social Media Marketing Benefits, visit:  http://www.accbizsvcs.com, or http://www.internetmarketingvirtualassistant.net.

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In recent years, having an Internet presence for your business meant putting up a website. While still an important feature for promoting your business, a website is no longer enough. Web 2.0, or the social web, is an essential feature of a successful marketing plan to reach your clientele.

Facebook is considered one of the leaders of social media. Its growth has continued to increase and Facebook has become an essential and innovative idea for business marketing.

Facebook is a great way to keep up with friends and family, but you don’t necessarily want your clients to see the more personal side of your life. Businesses should take care to present a well defined and controlled image of their products and services. Facebook fan pages are an excellent choice for business.

Business Facebook fan pages have many of the same features as personal pages. You can still share articles, photos, videos, and applications, but all of the fan page content is related to your business.  Here are five strategies for making your Fan page a success:

Make your Fan page a resource

Consider the information your customers need. Post articles and links to useful information on your wall and showcase yourself as an expert and your customers will return again and again.

Connect

Interact with customers by making use of Facebook’s tools. Respond to comments. Discuss the benefits of your product line and lead new customers to your website for more. Target your offers without being spammy to increase customer loyalty.

Be human

Pictures and personal information put a face on a company. As long as you present an image that enhances your business, personalizing your Fan page is a great way to get followers.

Be present

Keep your profile, articles, photos and video content up-to-date and current. It’s not enough to throw up a page and ignore it. Make sure to respond to customers who become fans. Create a group for your business and participate in groups related to your business.

Be Innovative

Facebook moves fast. Don’t be afraid to try the latest thing. Explore webinars, and other interactive media as options to improve business relationships.

Creating a Facebook fan page is great first step toward integrating social media into your marketing plan. Don’t forget to provide links from your website and/or blog to your Fan page. Connect to your Facebook fan page through other social media to continue to grow your network. In no time your Fan page will be the central hub of your successful online marketing campaign.

Jeannine Clontz, IVAA CVA, MVA, EthicsChecked™, provides marketing and social media support, training and consulting to busy entrepreneurs. For information about finding a VA, download her FREE 10-Step Guide to Finding the Right VA, or to learn why Social Media should be an important part of your marketing plan with her FREE Report, Social Media Marketing Benefits, visit: http://www.accbizsvcs.com, or contact her at info@accbizsvsc.com

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‘Free’ has been a mainstay of the marketing world for decades now, with promotional materials offering everything from free consultations to free video content. Online, it is an entirely expanded world. Visit any sales page and you will quickly find a free report, hop on any blog and you will be offered the chance to join a free mailing list, and favorite any membership website and you will see offers for a free trial offer.

Free is popular for a reason: it works. With the online world teeming with competitors, every second spent on your product is a gain for your business. If you want to build your brand without spending a lot on advertising, free content is likely to be the most cost-effective and simple viral marketing tools in your inventory. Sure, it doesn’t fit the standard ‘30 second video’ viral marketing mold, but it still spreads on the same principles and systems.

What makes free viral content different from the old world of free content is the amount of it that is present. Five years ago, the standard divide between free and paid was about 10/90. That means that 90% of content was paid for, or completely off-limits until you handed over your credit card details, and only 10% was available free of charge. Nowadays, it is the opposite spread. Some of the smartest viral marketers around are making a lot of money by offering 90% of their content for free, and only 10% for money.

How could that possibly be profitable? Good question. At first glance it appears to be a completely impossible and unprofitable marketing system, but as you look closer it appears as a remarkably simple and incredibly lucrative system. While the past generation of marketers focused on grabbing the attention of a small few with just 10% of their product, today’s marketers are focusing on grabbing the attention and interest of a large majority with 90% of their content, and charging them for the final, most valuable 10%.

Use this strategy to your advantage. Instead of hiding 90% of your content behind closed doors, away from potential opportunities for promotion and viral marketing, release free content strategically and periodically. If you’re not comfortable with giving 90% of your content away for free, change the percentage up a bit. Make it 75% free/25% paid instead. Play with the numbers to the point where you’re comfortable. While it may seem as if you are losing long-term profits, you are really gaining long-term exposure and short-term attention. Focusing on free can:

* help you generate marketing exposure as your message spreads far and wide,
* increase interest in your paid products and more people notice them,
* boost your search engine rankings through increased links,
* make you a ‘hot topic’ on Twitter and other social networks.

All of these benefits were something that you previously had to pay for, not just through indirect lost earnings but in expensive service charges and tiring workloads. When you focus on free, you sacrifice some short-term earning potential — that is not debated. What follows, however, is a long run of marketing exposure, community interest, and viral coverage. While your priorities may differ, the vast majority of internet businesses would lean towards the second option.

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Social networks have taken the internet by storm, and they aren’t going away any time soon. A CNET report from nearly three years ago suggests that younger people are using private messaging over social media like MySpace and Facebook more than they use email – and this was before anyone even knew what a tweet was!

Many businesses have recognized this technological and social phenomena as an excellent opportunity to promote their businesses and stay in constant contact with their target audience. If you are among those businesses, you should know that combining your social network marketing efforts with your video marketing campaigns can have a potent effect on just how intimate you are with your audience.

With such a powerful tool as the internet at your fingertips, it would be wasteful to limit your business to traditional advertising. Promoting your company on the many social networks that exist is not only the smart thing to do, it’s also often free or very cheap. The more social networks you add your business to, the more you expose yourself to potential customers. Furthermore, you will usually have full control over your “friends, which can lead to some very focused demographic targeting. Try doing that with a commercial on television!

Another thing to keep in mind is that MySpace and Facebook aren’t the only kids on the block. Niche social networks are growing rapidly. Consider Ning, a company that allows its users to create their own social networks. Types of networks range from science to politics to everything in between. Find the network that suits your demographic best and make your presence known.

If you’ve ever started a video marketing campaign only to be disappointed that, after all of your effort, very few people are actually watching your videos, a great solution is to integrate your videos into your social networks. Don’t just repost your videos on your social networking assets. Update your audience about new videos with blog posts, twitter tweets, and bulletin announcements. Not only will the views start to add up quickly, but the viewers are all from an audience that you know is already predisposed to be interested in your business.

Don’t forget that most video sites now act as social networks on their own. When you just upload a video and leave it, your viewers will sense a lack of connectivity. Customize your profile and fill it out with pertinent information about your business. Add friends and accept friend invitations. Take a few minutes every day and comment on a few videos related to your niche. If someone posts a positive comment (or constructive criticism) on one of your videos, take the time to send them a personal message and thank them for their input. These personal touches can go a very long way to show your audience that you’re connected to them and that you care.

Social networks are all about relationship building and keeping in touch. Often, you’ll find that your video marketing campaigns have the same purpose, so it’s only natural that when you combine the two, you’re creating an atmosphere of trust and availability to your target group.

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Amongst marketers, entrepreneurs, and influencers, one question is remarkably common: just how can social media traffic be monetized? From technology blogs to company websites, social media platforms have given marketers the power to direct huge amounts of traffic, yet thousands still complain about the lack of any real income from their social media marketing efforts.

It is a problem that is endemic across multiple platforms, services, and online communities. From Twitter to Facebook, Ning to Reddit, display advertising is sold at record low rates due to the limited user involvement available. Many marketers have written the services off as bust inventory – viewer attention that is so valueless it is not even worth pursuing.

But a small number of innovative marketers are singing a very different tune. They have turned monetizing ‘bust’ inventory into a specialty, buying up spaces on social media platforms at pennies on the dollar and creating dynamic income for themselves. How do they do it? These three tactics appear to be remarkably common, forming the backbone of the social media innovator’s income.

Selling is not the priority, gaining information is.

There is value in social media traffic, even traffic that is largely unfiltered. While thousands of internet marketers chase the short-term sale and instant income, a community of forward thinking marketers have spent their time doing the exact opposite: chasing the eventual sale, and using cheap social media inventory to help themselves get there.

So instead of directing users towards a giant ‘buy now!’ button, these marketers have slowly and carefully guided users through information before requesting their name and email address. The process is the opposite of most direct tactics; it spends little time barraging the customer with tactics, and significantly more time building trust for a sale, be it two weeks or two months down the line.

Social media marketers plan to sell, but not a product.

The smartest social media marketers know that they are only one part of the sales chain, the mark designed to gather information. By removing the sale from the equation, many can generate more valuable output than they would with a shiny, specialized, and specific product at the end of the process.

That is why so many social marketers are no longer attempting to sell products, but to sell information. By gaining an understanding of their audience’s interests and desires, they can generated a powerful resource for other marketers, many of whom will pay for the information. Think in terms of leads and you will quickly monetize social media inventory; treat it as a sales game and you will likely end up with nothing to show for your efforts.

Build an audience first, then monetize.

Far too many marketers jump into the world of social media with products to push, affiliate offers to promote, and businesses to advertise. It is a common mistake, and it is one that tends to backfire early, putting marketers off the format entirely and limiting their future social media efforts.

Instead of going gung-ho right from the start, it might be best to spend your formative social media days developing an audience, and then marketing to them once you have gained a major position. Treat your social media efforts like you would a social media business – gain the numbers, the influence, and the passion first, and introduce the products, services, and offers later.

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If there is one thing every online business wants today, it is a dedicated social media presence. From local businesses to huge multinational companies, the list of enterprising marketers involved in social media is growing by the day, sometimes at an alarmingly fast rate.

But social media marketing is not all about Twitter accounts, Facebook fan pages, and building your own community. A large number of the most successful social media marketers do not even create their own accounts, instead relying on dedicated users to do their marketing for them.

These five methods, tactics, and techniques will help you build a social media presence for your business, all without building a new website or Twitter account. Whether your company maintains a static website or a dynamic blog, incorporating these five techniques will help you gain customers and dedicated social media fans.

Build and Manage a Company Blog

In many ways, blogs are the ultimate social media resource. They are dynamic, they are engaging, and they are something that almost every business should be investing in. Before you add icons to your website or create a company Twitter account, ensure that your business is sharing information on a regular basis that can help your audience stay interested, dedicated, and invested in what you are doing.

Use Social Media Sharing Icons

Social media sharing icons are one of the most common additions to blogging platforms. From Wordpress to Movable Type, almost every blogging back end is accompanied by its own set of Twitter, Facebook, and Ning sharing icons. A quick five minute installation process is all that is required to quickly and easily incorporate sharing icons into your company blog or website.

Encourage Comments

Thanks to commenting platforms like Discus, blog comments are no longer the isolated and unlinked pieces of content that they once were. By encouraging comments, you’ll gain links to new social media presences and help your blog to appear on aggregator websites. Install a dynamic comment tool (Discus) and ensure your anti-spam extension works, then ask readers for their opinions and input.

Use Auto-Tweeting Tools to Gain Twitter Traffic

Marketers constantly bemoan Twitter’s lack of valuable traffic, all the while ignoring its real value: as a huge sharing platform and dedicated community. While Twitter is undeniably ineffective when it comes to selling, it is one of the most important platforms on the internet for helping content go truly viral. If your business has a new blog post or product which is in need of publicity, be sure to configure an auto-tweeting extension to spread the word.

Submit Your Content to Digg, Reddit, and Other Social Bookmarking Websites

Much like Twitter, social bookmarking websites are not renowned for their buy-ready audiences or valuable advertising inventory. However, they are a great tool for creating links to your website, gaining online exposure, and eventually being featured on an influential website. Invest some time into your social bookmarking accounts and you’ll be rewarded, often significantly more so than you would have expected.

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Blogs are often left out of social media service listings. Despite their similar design, communications format and networking potential, the vast majority of self-proclaimed social media ‘experts’ exclude blogs from their social media portfolio.

Of course, blogs share numerous similarities with the top social media websites of today. From communications similarities to self-built communities, bloggers are just as active in social media as anyone else, even if they do not speak outside their blog. After looking carefully at the many similarities between blogs and social media platforms, we have come to one conclusion: they are the same.

Don’t believe it’s true? Check out these four reasons and decide for yourself. Blogs are a powerful social media marketing platform, but by not being incorporated into social media marketing plans, almost all of their value is being left untouched.

1. Blogs let people connect.
The oft-spoken top value of social media is that it lets people ‘connect’. From Twitter to Facebook, Myspace to Ning, the hundreds of social media services out there are designed solely with one goal in mind: bring people together.

Sure, some do it through photos like Flickr; others do it through profiles like Facebook. The shared characteristic is that entire services are based around connections, just like blogs are. Social media marketing is not limited to services — a self-hosted blog can be just as much of a social media asset as a popular Facebook fan page.

2. Blogs integrate with other social media platforms.
A blog post is not just a service; it is a marketing currency. With the right combination of Wordpress plugins, every post can spread like wildfire through the blogging community. Add a ‘Tweet This!’ button to the bottom of your company blog and encourage people to use it. With enough interest, you might just find that your social media marketing ROI shoots up as a result of renewed interest in your blog.

3. Blogs expand on social media micro-services.
Twitter is difficult to describe and define. To some people it is a micro-blogging tool, while to others it is a communications platform similar to an instant messenger. However you see Twitter, the most important point is the same: it is a simplified form of blogging.

While blogging is often too long-form for effective viral marketing, it is unwise to discount and disregard it as a marketing tool altogether. As an expanded social media marketing asset, a great blog is worth its weight in gold.

4. Blogs are the new profiles.
A couple of years ago, a Myspace profile dished out all the information that your audience could possibly want to know. Now, they are as irrelevant as can be — swept up in the next move towards ultra-detailed content.

Instead of allowing profiles, Twitter encourages users to link to their blogs. Blogs are the new profile — they offer an expanded version of what social media can spread. Instead of marketing to visitors in your social media stream, why not lure them in with great social media content and market using your blog?

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Six years ago, if you didn’t have a Friendster account you were an online nobody. Four years ago, if you didn’t have a Myspace account you were an online nobody. Three years ago, if you didn’t have a Facebook account you were an online nobody. Today, you need a Twitter account, or else, well I’m sure you get the idea.

Social media changes rapidly, often to the point where it’s difficult to draw up rules for it, or even plan where it will be next year. Just like Friendster drifted into obscurity and Myspace into the back alleys of the internet, the logical progression of communities would suggest that one day, reasonably soon in fact, Facebook and Twitter will lose their thunder and become remarkably less popular.

So then why are companies investing billions of dollars into using the latest marketing and communications platforms? Facebook has been hundreds of millions of dollars in debt, and has only just begun turning a profit. If it runs through the same lifespan as its predecessors, what’s to say that it doesn’t die out before it even becomes profitable on the whole? Likewise, Twitter has yet to even open revenue streams, yet it’s consistently being touted as the most popular and influential online platform since, well, Myspace.

The key to mastering these social media platforms is to take a light approach to the amount that your business invests in each one. Of course, this isn’t about direct financial investments – all are private companies – but about the way you invest your marketing muscle and resources. A campaign that bets everything on Facebook’s longevity may not prove a success in the long-term, but a marketing campaign that bets on the lifespan of social media very well could be.

An event that’s unfortunately absent in a lot of people’s minds is the crash of the early 2000s. After ballooning in value – both financial and in pure hype – hundreds of the most exciting web startups came crashing to the ground. Like Myspace, and Friendster before it, what’s to say that the same crash won’t happen to today’s giant social media presences? Sure, they’re posting profits, but not all are, and the few that are still have hundreds of millions in funding to move past. While money is flowing in, how long will it keep coming in for?

There’s a lesson that small online businesses can take from this, even if they are external from the whole social media show. Direct advertising on social media, particularly through PPC and PPM methods, will be effective. It doesn’t depend on the dynamics of the network, merely on the size of it. However, marketing that depends on the dynamics of the network, for example community building over Facebook and Twitter, may prove less effective as time goes on. Communities naturally progress, and the progression for Facebook users could be towards a different website altogether.

So if you want to invest in social media marketing, move quickly and fluidly. The most effective companies, the ones that can leverage social media easily and effortlessly, are the ones that have no problem moving from one platform to another. Tie yourself to Twitter and you might find yourself aboard a sinking ship; invest in a strategy that includes Twitter and you’ll find yourself moving forwards, no matter what direction the platform moves.

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Photoshop is one of those extremely versatile programs that can be used by beginners just dabbling, or professionals who create graphics for a living. Whichever group you fit into, one thing is true about Photoshop: It’s a deep program, and there’s a lot to learn. Even the most experienced Photoshop users are regularly learning new ways to do things with the application.

For those just getting started, it’s overwhelming. There’s so much to learn, even if you just want to do the basics. That’s why this post on Photoshop Basics from Vandelay Design blog is so valuable. The post has links to over 100 tutorials focusing on the basic fundamentals of Photoshop, including:

• Getting Started with Photoshop
• Photoshop’s Toolbox
• Using Palettes in Photoshop
• Working with Layers
• The Pen Tool
• Brushes and Other Presets
• The Type Tool
• Selection Tools
• Clone Stamp Tool
• An Explanation of Photoshop Blend Modes
• Filters
• Channels

It’s a perfect collection for beginners, or those looking to sharpen there skills. So set aside a couple hours (days?) and start to explore!

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