I am currently working with a client who I know is going to be successful. They have the passion and excitement but more than that, they have done the home work that should be involved with building a strong foundation for their business.
Have you really set up a sound foundation for your business?
It is so much easier to build a business right the first time than to try and save a company that is floundering. The mistakes I see individuals make when starting an online business would surprise 
you. An amazing amount of people really do not take the time to research competitors, find out who their target market is or even figure out what they will need in order to market their business/services once they have website is developed.
In our society, we (me included) want it all right now. We don’t want to have to wait… We want instantaneous wealth, success, fame that is why it is so easy for those unethical few to bilk people/businesses out of billions of dollars a year…
What have I learned being in business for over a decade? There are no short cuts…
To be successful in any endeavor you must first do what it takes to build a strong foundation, this includes:
- Researching
- Learning about your competition
- Who is your target market?
- Putting together a business plan
- Figuring out and setting aside a marketing budget
- Figuring out your Unique Selling Proposition (USP)
- Learning that you don’t cut corners on the important stuff.
- Online image creation. It is no longer an option to have a website and work with social media. If you are going to build a business you need to develop these crucial pieces.
- Develop a traditional marketing package – including business cards, branding you look with logo, tagline and contact information including website, Facebook etc. Other things such as flyers, online brochures etc. depending on your business.
- Develop a following – a data-base of people who are interested in your product or service.
Put together a blueprint for your success – it takes time to be able to hammer these things out. It is so crucial it literally can make a different on whether your company will live or die.
Did you know that 99% of these overnight success stories are simply not.
These “lucky few” have been dreaming, planning, and structuring this “overnight success” for some time in some cases for years…
Don’t be fooled – Success is not an accident, and it is not a fluke… When you plan well and build a strong foundation. Success is up to you.
Pamela Jacob is the owner of Artista Design. Being in business for well over a decade she delights in helping others achieve the success that she has enjoyed. For a free consultation please email her at pamela@artistadesign.com
After talking to a prospective client the other day – a thought came into my head that I hadn’t even though of in years.
“People don’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care.”
This is the bare bones truth… As a young person one of my first jobs was in sales. I was quite shy and really hated the hard sale or the pushy image sales people could give off.
Sales have had a bad reputation – there is still a misconception that sales people are insincere and manipulative (anything for a sale). Don’t get me wrong these people are out there, and they give everyone a bad name.
I am a strong believer in what goes around comes around, this type of person seldom becomes a super star, they quickly fade – and dye out, or go out with a bang/bad reputation and what have they got left??
Being ethical and honest in your business is the only way to truly love what you do – (and we are all in sales don’t kid yourselves).
The 3 secrets to having a successful business, as well as being an amazing sells/marketing person are:
- Believe in your product/service.
- Believe in yourself,
- Believe in what YOU CAN DO FOR OTHERS…
If you cannot say yes to all three of these things then you must find a different career path, or a different product to sell/promote because I promise you will never be successful…
Never
And always remember this simple truth..
“People don’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care!”
For help in all your online needs contact me pamela@artistadesign.com
Visit my website at Artista Design
I have not heard or seen any significant changes in this year’s Google algorithms . Unlike last year where we saw significant changes that dropped a lot of websites PageRank. They were just banished from the front pages.
Let’s recap what did happen last year and how those updates in 2012 really shook up some websites that had enjoyed a prominent spot on Google’s search engine for so long.
Even though Google’s Panda algorithm was originally released in 2011, it went through numerous updates in 2012 kicking many low quality websites out of their dominant positions on Google; tens of thousands of websites were affected. It also took aim at duplicate content and content that seemed to be stolen from other websites/blogs.
What is the Panda Algorithm: Panda aimed to lower the rank of “low-quality” websites and return higher-quality sites near the top of the search results. Google Panda was built through an algorithm update that used artificial intelligence. Human quality testers rated thousands of websites based on measures of quality, including design, trustworthiness, speed and whether or not they would return to the website. For more on this topic click here.
I also found a useful article Google Panda Update Survival guide.
Google released its Penguin Algorithm in 2012. Many more companies that engaged in unfriendly Penguin SEO tactics were dropped from the search entirely and companies that continued to break the rules saw their ranking disappear, often without warning.
What is the Penguin Algorithm; This updates purpose was to catch sites deemed to be spamming its search results, by buying links or obtaining links through networks designed primarily to boost Google Rankings. This does not include legitimate quality links. It also penalizes websites that have too many ads above the fold.
For more information on Google Penguin click here.
So as you can see “Value” is an important factor – one that will dictate how Google perceives websites.
Looking Forward to 2013
This year the most significant factor for 2013 is creating value for the reader. Google has been very explicit this year about good-quality content. What does that mean?
- Great Information and Resource Richness
- Unique Content and Topics
Google’s AuthorRank is a new system Google uses to cut down the spam content that litters the Internet. This system determines the quality content based on the credibility of its author. AuthorRank is not a replacement for PageRank. It is a separate system that instructs Google PageRank to weigh content more appropriately. To learn more about AuthorRank and how to build your online reputation, I have found a wonderful article click here.
Content marketing is the next big thing that is being talked about. Content marketing attracts back links, and adds value for the reader. Because you have to generate higher-quality content, circulate it, and make sure your content get published widely through social media, article marketing, etc. this will generate substantial SEO value.
Social Media now plays a big factor in getting valid ranking. As the year goes on and probably for years to come – shares, mentions, re-tweets and most importantly +1s are trophies all online business needs to cultivate.
Media in general; video and images are becoming very important on the Internet. Websites such as Youtube and Pinterest have really given an important element to getting noticed. It is becoming essential to add relevant non-textual media to text content, this adds value and brings visitors to your websites.
Local website information, has really pumped up my rankings. Applying local SEO enjoys higher rankings and visibility. I have seen it myself when I started using Local Keywords, maps, and reviews on local information sites.
Hopefully, this will help you navigate through 2013 as well as give you a good refresher course on what to do to promote your website. I have also updated my SEO checklist you can download it for free Click Here.
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Pamela Jacob is the owner of Artista Design. If you need a website developed or redesigned, project manager, consultant or graphic designer – you have found one. Pamela’s specialty is taking an idea and making it come to fruition.
If you want to own an online business that thrives, if you have a passion for something you want to share, if you have an idea that you want to come to lifecontact me. My initial consultations are FREE.