King Marketing

Online Sales Just keep Growing

admin — Wed, 16 May 2012 06:35:35 +0000

So, how much do you think the average consumer will purchase online this year? $100? That’s so last decade. Try $1042.00. That’s right; Americans who buy online will spend just over a grand this year on e-purchases. That’s millions of dollars here in our own community that local people used to spend here in our local stores that is now being spent on line.

The Question is, how much of this are you getting?

The answer, sadly for most local businesses is, none. At least none directly. People may still go to your site, check out what you have and decide to come to your brick and mortar store rather than buy online. But the online buying trend is rising so rapidly, anyone who owns a retail business has to be concerned. Sure, not every product is suitable for e-commerce. But that’s changing as well. My wife has purchased clothing and shoes on line. Sizing can be a problem with clothing, but companies are working on solving this problem, and delivering a more accurate and predictable sized product, or making it easy to make returns.

Look around. Borders is gone. Best Buy is struggling. And everyone else is seeing customers come in, looking at products, then pulling out their smart phones and getting an internet price and placing the order online.

Revolutions are happening all the time. We are in the middle of one right now. Those who adapt will win. Adapt.

Find out how we can help you on our website here.

Buying stats are an April 2012 report from global investment management firm, GroupM.

Smart Phone Penetration exceeds 50% in US.

admin — Tue, 08 May 2012 19:37:11 +0000

Now it’s official. Over half of the people with mobile phones in America have smart phones. Among 25 to 34 year olds, smart phone penetration is about two thirds. What does this all mean to you? It means that almost half of everybody has the one of the most effective marketing and sales devices with them whenever and whereever they go. Right now, there are people at Target looking at merchandise, and checking their smart phone to see where else they can get the same item for less. At auto dealers, there are people on the lot looking at new and used cars and checking the Kelly Blue Book Value on their phones. There are people driving around town, seeing your store or business, and wondering who you are and what you do, and finding out by checking the smart phone that half of almost everyone has in their pocket or purse. Once they buy from you, they’re on their smart phone sharing that with their friends, giving them an instant review of your store and the way they were treated, or mistreated while there. Data is running rampant. You either control the conversation, or it controls you. That’s what Internet Marketing is all about. learn more on our website. (Source: Nielson March 2012.)

Are You among the Most Searched Businesses?

admin — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 20:51:01 +0000

If you’re a restaurant or an auto repair and service facility, make sure you’re SEO is on tops of it’s game. AT&T interactive analyzed fourth quarter 2011 data and it’s own search pages and found that locally, most people are searching for restaurants and auto repair. Here’s the whole list

The next frontier in search is mobile search, which showed similar results to normal search:

Retail businesses dominted the whole list, which you might expect for fourth quarter of any year. The important thing to remember is that if you are not at the top of any search engine results, you’re likelihood of getting found on line decreases in a hurry. Most people click on the top three results.

By the way, Yellow Pages or yp.com comes up often in any search. Make sure you’ve claimed your yellow page listing and your information is up to date. We do this automatically for our Internet Marketing clients.

If you’re business is in the top ten, make sure you’re SEO is up to date. If you need help, give us a call. You can learn more here.

So, Who doesn’t use the Internet?

admin — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 15:59:12 +0000

I was having a conversation with a client just last week about those people who don’t ever use the internet. For me, and perhaps you, that thought of someone not using the internet at all is hard to grasp. It starts in our home with “What’s the weather today?” and ends with reading articles on a tablet PC while watching TV. It’s hard to imagine a job where people don’t need to send an email or get information from the internet.

So, how many people are still not connected? 5%, 10%?

How about 20%.

One fifth of adult Americans do not use the internet in any form, according to a new report from the Pew Internet & American Life Project.

Interestingly, there are no internet dropouts. The majority of them have never even tried to use the internet, and only 10 percent say they are interested in using it in the future.

OK, as we have discussed, many are senior citizens. But Pew says there are others who are younger and still avoid the web, including Spanish-speaking Hispanics, adults who have less than a high school diploma, and those in households that earn less than $30,000 per year.

“Most have never used the internet before, and don’t have anyone in their household who does,” the report says. “About one in five say that they do know enough about technology to start using the internet on their own.”

In 2000, just 47 percent of American adults were online; today it’s 78 percent.

Of course being online doesn’t just mean having a PC connection these days. Mobile internet use is on the rise, with a large number of adults owning at least one device capable of connecting to the web.

Eighty-eight percent have a cell phone, Pew says, and about half of those are smartphones. Fifty-seven percent have laptops, and 19 percent own an e-book reader. Nineteen percent have a tablet.

These devices have led some traditionally internet-less groups to gain access to the web.

“Groups that have traditionally been on the other side of the digital divide in basic internet access are using wireless connections to go online,” says the report.

“Among smartphone owners, young adults, minorities, those with no college experience, and those with lower household income levels are more likely than other groups to say that their phone is their main source of internet access.”

And remember, about half of all phone sold today are smart phones, so make sure you’re web site it mobile ready.

So, now that we know who isn’t using the internet, let’s review who is:

About four out of every five people. Most of these people are aged 18-65, have a high school diploma, and a household income over $30K annually. And a lot olf these people are accessing your site on their smart phone or tablet PC, often doing his while sitting in your parking lot wondering whether or not to go in.

Today is a great day to check your website and make sure it is up to date.

SEO versus PPC

admin — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 14:20:21 +0000

As a website owner, you see these initials all the time, and probably have people calling you on the phone tyring to sell you SEO or PPC services. Rest assured, it’s not us. We don’t make unsolicited phone calls selling our Internet Marketing program. Still, you are right to be curious about these initials, since both are important for running a successful website. What is SEO and PPC?

SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization. It is simply the process of making sure your website can be easily found when people search your name or product category. Most people will actually search for you by your company name. They’ve heard about you somewhere else, through a referral, sign or other media advertising, and want to learn more. I have searched for sites by name and have been unable to find the company website. It should come up first, and come up several times on page one of the search engine results. For example, Google one of our SEO clients,CrescentAvenueGardens. They come up on every Google result on page one of the search. The only other power equipment dealers are from PPC, which we’ll get to in a minute.

Research shows that web users click the most on the top few results on page one of a search result. Some users continue to hunt through to page two, but it falls off fast after page one. If your business success comes from people visiting your website, you will get more website traffic if you show up closer to the top of a Google, Bing or Yahoo web search, and SEO is the name of the multiples steps needed to make sure you do show up on top.

If you don’t show up well in a Google search, what can you do besides SEO? PPC! Or, Pay Per Click Advertising. Search Google for just about anything and you’ll find paid listing at the very top of the page and along the right side. These are PPC ads. When you set up a PPC campaign, you choose the keywords that will trigger the appearance of your ad. For example, if you are a competitor to Crescent Avenue Gardens, you can use their name as a keword, so that every time someone searches for them, your PPC ad will show up too. You only pay Google if someone actually clicks on the ad, which takes them to your website, or to a landing page specifically designed for maximize results from your PPC ad. Although daunting at first, PPC isn’t difficult to do once you’ve had some experience with it.

You won’t get traffic to your website, unless people see you, and they won’t see you unless you’re on the top of their search engine results. The two ways to get there are SEO and PPC. Neither is a free ride. You either have to pay the cost of PPC advertising, or you need to partner with someone, like King Marketing, to work with you continually on your SEO. If more customers seeing your website translates into more business for you, then either SEO or PPC is worth the investment.

You can learn more about SEO and our Internet Marketing program by clicking here. Or, feel free to call us and ask more about it or PPC. We do both for several Fort Wayne area businesses.

We’re Hiring a Digital Marketing Assistant!

admin — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 14:47:16 +0000

Are you or someone you know looking for a job? King Marketing Fort Wayne is now hiring a full-time Digital Marketing Assistant.

Digital Marketing Assistant

Deadline to submit: May 20, 2012
Location: Fort Wayne, IN

We are seeking a self-motivated, hard-working individual interested in an full-time, entry-level position as a Digital Marketing Assistant to help with website development, updates and Internet Marketing. The Digital Marketing Assistant should have a working knowledge of Adobe Dreamweaver and Photoshop, be very task oriented, comfortable learning new technologies and able to work well alone or as part of a team.
Job Responsibilities include but are not limited to:

Submit, manage and track link building campaigns as part of our Internet Marketing Program
Review websites to ensure proper function
Monitor increased visibility & usage of websites
Develop & update websites
Assist with video shoots
Assist Creative Director as needed

Required Skills:

Highly motivated with strong work ethic & desire to learn
Confidently handle multiple projects simultaneously
Computer savvy
Working knowledge of Adobe Photoshop & Dreamweaver
Familiar with search engines, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and other social media
Knowledge of SEO, Internet Marketing a plus
Knowledge of CSS, PHP a plus

To apply, email your resume and cover letter to info@kingmarketinginc.com or mail it to:
King Marketing
10331 Dawsons Creek Blvd. Suite 8E
Fort Wayne, IN 46825

Deadline to submit: May 20, 2012

No Phone Calls Please!

Business Alert: GM Workers Bonuses Coming in March

admin — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 15:21:44 +0000

In spite of the recession, here is a simple economic fact for anyone living or doing business in Fort Wayne: Almost 4,000 workers at the General Motors Assembly Plant will be receiving $7,000 bonuses in March. That means over $25 million dollars will be added to our local consumer economy during just one month. Of course, GM workers may decide to save their bonus, or pay off credit cards or other debts. Still, a chunk of that will still wind up getting inserted into our local economy starting in just a few short weeks.

In addition, a lot of tax returns should start arriving around the same time, making March potentially the biggest retail month in many years.

Prepare now for success. Make sure your web site is up to date. Plan a March or April sales promotion. Advertise.

Valentine’s Day goes Mobile

admin — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 14:33:27 +0000

Hey, it’s Valentine’s Day, where can I take my Valentine for dinner? Simple, let me check my smart phone.

According to Google, that’s what a large number of people did earlier this week. 62% of total US searches for popular national chain restaurants on Valentine’s Day occurred on high end mobile devices or tablets.

Growth in internet usage in the coming years will come more and more from mobile devices. Is your site mobile ready? Or will you miss out on hext big mobile event? Talk to your web designer or talk with us here at King Marketing about making your site mobile ready.

Buying a Tablet this Year? Take our Poll

admin — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 20:38:59 +0000

For Marketers, Social Media Should be a Habit

admin — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 05:59:31 +0000

Success in using social media starts with remembering to use it. At one time, marketing consisted of meeting with your newspaper rep, giving him or her the info on your upcoming “Dollar Day” sale, and letting them run it in the local paper a couple times. By the middle of the 20th century, you could add radio and TV along with the paper, and that combination stood for nearly 60 years.

Today, it’s not just that newspaper circulation is declining, or that TV and radio audiences are fragmented, the switch to social media is taking place precisely because it works. At least it works if you remember to use it.

First, every time you plan a sales event, think about how you can include social media…Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, Google+, and others.

Second, start thinking of new marketing events you can do only with social media.

It’s a habit you not only should get in; it’s a habit you must get in for the future of your business.

If you need help with social media, it’s out there. Visit our Social Media page on our website (www.kingmarketinginc.com), or Google “internet marketing” to find local agencies that can help.

(We are planning a free Social Media seminar in March or April. Go to our Facebook page and “like” us, or follow us on Twitter. That way you’ll find out the date and times. And, don’t forget our free Search Engine Optimization Seminar on February 7. Sign up here.)