Archive for February, 2008

I’m still learning when it comes to Search Engine Optimization. I’m smart enough to know it’s an important function for sales and marketing but not so smart that I know the difference between backlinks and cufflinks. Give me time.

Anyway, I’m searching the web the other day and I came across SEONoobs.com. I thought it said Boobs, which sounded perfect for me, so I clicked on it. No, I wasn’t searching for porn.

Ryan, the site’s founder, has built a tremendous following in just a month. He has more than 360 RSS subscribers and more than 40,000 unique visitors in his FIRST MONTH! The secret seems to be his ability to explain dense, complex topics in easy-to-understand concepts.

Take his piece on getting better rankings in Google: 5 Ways To Get a New Site Indexed In Google In 48 Hours Or Less. Four of his suggestions were pretty technical, so for now I’ll leave them for my SEO guru son to figure out. For me, the important idea was this: to get a higher ranking in Google searches, post good comments (emphasis on good) on popular blogs and include your website in the URL box. Concentrate on “DoFollow” blogs for maximum link popularity benefit.

Yeah, even a guy who thinks SERP is something you put on pancakes can do that!

Popularity: 40% [?]

As he prepares to testitfy before Congress, it seems the public has already convicted pitcher Roger Clemens of using performance enhancing drugs to prolong his Hall of Fame career. Although there has been no concrete evidence to prove he used steroids of human growth hormone, most people believe that he must have been doing something illegal to perform at such at high level at such an advanced age.

Clemens and his handlers have done a lousy job at waging the PR war for public opinion. Although I guess it says something about our society that we are quick to to believe an accuser, not the accused, when it fits our preconceived notions (see the Duke lacrosse scandal), they have done nothing to turn the tide. Their lame attempt at a statistical analysis of Clemens’ career backfired when it was refuted by professors at the University of Pennsylania’s Wharton School. And Rusty Hardin’s ill-chosen words about Clemens eating the lunch of a federal prosecutor smacked of bullying. So did his combative press conferences when the news first broke.

Admittedly, they have a tough fight. People seem eager to tear down icons these days. For one thing, Clemens’ image-makers could have done a better job preparing him for facing the media spotlight, perhaps having him project a hurt, humbled persona rather than an aggrieved one. That would have helped shape the public’s perception very early on. He should have cried when he talked about how the accusations might keep him out of the Hall of Fame, rather than abruptly walking out on reporters. Of course, that would have been out of character for the bull-headed, hard-nosed former Texas Longhorn. But that’s exactly the kind of reaction that might have created some sympathy and encouraged people to give him the benefit of the doubt.

Popularity: 44% [?]

For those of us who still use direct mail as a means of getting the word out, it’s time for Postal Rates 101.

As you probably know, a lot changed last year in the world of direct mail. By switching to a system based on shape rather than weight, the United States Postal Service threw a lot of people for a loop.

Case in point: two of my clients are Realtors who send out quarterly newsletters. Until last year, they were the standard 8½×11 publications. One mails pre-sorted first class, the other pre-sorted standard. Both were looking at nearly 40 percent increases in postage if they kept their format.

One chose to fold his newsletter in half, making it a 5½×8½ finished size. The other chose to downsize his format to 6×10. It took a little work, but we didn’t have to sacrifice content in either newsletter. Not only did they not have to pay an extra 40 percent for postage, both Realtors actually saved money compared to their previous mailing. Continued

Popularity: 56% [?]

Earlier this week, my buddy Mark “Froggy” Carfagno and I had a meeting with a book agent. For those of you not familiar with the Frog, he was a groundskeeper for the Philadelphia Phillies for 33 years. His career came to an ugly end, which included an age discriminaiton suit, a couple of courtroom battles and an eventual settlement. Along the way, Frog suffered from some serious mental and physical problems related to his termination.

Anyway, Frog and I ran into each other about a year ago at a funeral. He told me he wanted to write a book but didn’t know where to start. He said he had started putting some thoughts down on paper and asked if I would take a look at it.

Turns out “Frog’s Bio” was about 10,000 words. It was all over the place, but it seemed like he had an interesting story to tell.

Since then, we’ve met about every two weeks. He would hand-write another chapter each time, and I would sit there while he translated his chicken scratch into something I could undertand. I figure he’s up to about 50,000 words by now. Continued

Popularity: 56% [?]

Not too long ago, I wrote a press release for one of my clients, Fernando Paredes, a personal trainer in the Doylestown area. Because it featured a special event targeted to local print media, I hesitated to send it to my electronic media list. For whatever reason, I sent it to them anyway.

A few days later, my client received a phone call from a local television station in Allentown that serves a primarily Hispanic market. The producer said he had been looking for a fitness expert who could speak Spanish and wondered if Fernando could accommodate. Of course, he could, and was featured in two news segments. There’s also talk of him appearing on a regular basis, possibly to host a show on fitness aimed at Latinos. It could turn into a lucrative niche in the market for him.

The lesson? When in doubt, send your press far and wide. You never know who is going to read it and what they might do with it.

Popularity: 31% [?]