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How Google Glass Marketing Could Help Contractors Get More Business

July 29, 2013 by Carmen Rane Hudson

Within the next year or so, Google Glass should be released to the general public. And if you’re a contractor, you might want to consider investing in one of these headsets.

Why? Because this device could be the time saver that your marketing really needs.

Remember when I talked about how important pictures are to a contractor’s marketing mix? I’ll bet that you had no trouble understanding how valuable those photographs could be to selling your business to homeowners.

However, I’ll also bet that the idea of spending extra time taking photographs only to have to take them back to the office to upload them to your social media accounts just wasn’t terribly exciting to you.

That’s what makes Glass such a game changer. It’s hands-free, so you don’t have to stop your work to take a great shot (or lots of great shots) of what you’re doing.

You also don’t have to wait until you get back to your office to deal with your pictures. After all, there are a dozen other issues competing for your attention by the time you get back to your desk.

Instead, you can use Google glass to share the photo on Google+, and get on with your day. You’ve now significantly reduced the amount of time that you’re spending on marketing.

You might want to have the homeowner’s permission before you snap a picture of their yard or fence or whatever you’ve finished doing for them, even though you did the work. This is especially true when using Glass. People are especially sensitive to privacy where Glass is concerned.

If you have the permission, however, you can go to town.

For many people, Glass will just be a gimmick or a gizmo. But not for contractors.

Will you get yourself a Google Glass when it comes out?

Blog Round-Up For the Week of July 22, 2013

July 26, 2013 by Carmen Rane Hudson

I am really having fun doing these round-ups. For one thing, they remind me to lift my head and look around at what might be going on elsewhere.

For another, they just contribute to my education. There is always more to learn about content marketing, social media, web pages, local marketing…all of it!

This week I’ve got 7 posts to share.

The first is from James Agate on The Moz Blog: Link Building Survey 2013: The Results.

This survey covered different companies and how they are building links. It covers which tactics they think are ineffective and which they feel are effective. As I’ve mentioned here before, building links is an important part of getting found on the Internet. It’s just not the easiest exercise in all the world.

The second is “Use Twitter Cards for Branding and Local SEO” by Chris Silver Smith over on Search Engine Land.

This post taught me something new. I’d seen these little cards but had given them exactly zero thought. Chris’ post shows you exactly how to get this tool working for your local business.

Next: New Ways to Approach Contractor Marketing. Darren Slaughter reminds us that it’s not a bad idea to get off the computer every now and then.

Internet marketing is awesome, but it’s still just one of many tools in a larger toolbox.

Fourth up is a post from Bryan Eisenberg: Google’s Search Magic Revealed.

The big takeaways for this post were a) that you need to make your customer the center of your universe and b) that “satisfaction” is actually a ranking factor for Google. His argument is that a lot of the mystery of the search engine thing can be solved simply by following those tenants.

Now obviously, if you put up one great blog post and never go back you’re probably not going to rank. But if you do that, you’re not putting your customer at the center of your universe anyway. You’re depriving that customer of content he might really love because you’re frustrated that your results aren’t over the top yet.

So make your customer the center of your universe and do so consistently. A magic formula indeed.

Next there’s Heart to Heart About Link Building — Whiteboard Friday. Another Moz post from a different contributor.

There were lots of really cool ideas for link building that reached beyond guest posting,so if this is something you’ve been struggling with you should definitely check it out.

Finally, there’s Sean McVey’s “How to Create Engaging Content for Any Industry, Even the Boring Ones.”

So you think your business is still just kind of “blah,” “dull,” and boring? Then you definitely need to read this post.

It will give you insight into how to create an outstanding blog for any business or industry. Think about it: you wouldn’t have customers at all if you didn’t solve real problems. Those problems are interesting to people, right? Well, if that’s the case then you can create great content.

And that’s all! See you next week!

How to Curate Content the Right Way

July 25, 2013 by Carmen Rane Hudson

Content curation is getting a lot of attention lately. It’s not new – people have been doing it for a long time. I just feel like it’s getting way more attention lately.

Perhaps this is because “content marketing” seems to be the phrase of the year. Even organizations that were not too impressed with the idea in the past really seem to be taking the concept far more seriously.

So the pressing need to stay on the content treadmill is definitely there. But as I can attest, it’s just not easy to come up with post after post. Or at least, it’s not easy to do so in a vacuum.

The need to unselfishly reach out to others is also becoming more than apparent to anyone who is paying attention. It’s getting all but impossible to “game Google.”

It’s not that SEO is no longer a factor. It still is.

It’s more that you now have to earn relevance before you earn rankings. Sharing is an effective way to do that – as long as you are effective about the way that you share.

Don’t Just Curate: Annotate!

I actually had this “lightbulb” moment pretty recently. It was the moment that I realized that I could actually start a conversation with other bloggers.

Not just sort of mention a post in passing. But actually taking the time to think about it, analyze it, and share my own take on it.

The results, the first time I did that, were pretty amazing. I didn’t just get some engagement and comments on the post (I did) and I didn’t just form a new relationship (I did). I also got a request to connect on LinkedIn and a gracious invitation to become a regular guest contributor. I was blown away, because I’d had no idea how much power was truly locked up in that one little technique.

Deep in my mind I had this notion that I was a Writer. We all know that Writers sit alone in dark rooms, pulling words out of their own mind.

But content marketing isn’t about being a Writer. It’s about being a Blogger, and that means diving right in and actually participating. It was a major mindset shift, let me tell you.

This annotation thing is important on social media too, though for different reasons. On a social media post your own commentary will necessarily be shorter, but it’s just not always effective to mindlessly hit the Share button.

You build a lot more value when you provide some context for the share. Why did you feel your followers needed to see what you were sharing? Why is this content particularly relevant to them?

This tip about providing context is also important when you’re doing a blog round-up. Take the time to discuss why you’re including each link and what you liked about them. It makes a more interesting post and it helps your readers decide whether they will like those blog posts as much as you did.

What About Content Curation Platforms?

There’s plenty of buzz about Scoop.it and Paper.li. I have not used them myself, but I have watched Paper.li used to great effect on Twitter.

Here’s what happens. People create their newspaper and then get on Twitter with a link, mentioning each person whose content appeared in the paper.

I know that I feel pretty pleased when someone adds some of my content to their “top stories.” I know it’s passing me some traffic. I always thank those who have included me – which means they get a mention from me just as I got a mention from them.

So I think as a social media tool these platforms are pretty awesome. And the sensation of creating your own newspaper looks like a lot of fun.

However, I do not think that these sites should become the sum total of your content marketing strategy. Somewhere around all of this curation you’ve got to produce your own content in your own voice. Otherwise, there’s just nothing for your customers to connect with, and you’re not really building your own expertise.

Curate With Your Readers in Mind

It’s absolutely awesome to get some love from a thought leader in your field or industry. But you can’t keep your eyes on these superstars when you curate content.

Because ultimately, courting superbloggers isn’t the point of the exercise. Courting customers is.

So you should only curate content after asking yourself two questions:

Would my readers want to know about this stuff?
Why would my readers want to know about this stuff?

If you don’t have a good answer to those questions, don’t curate the content. Comment on the superstar’s blog if you loved the post, but then come back to your own website and create something that your customers will like.

With millions of pieces of content hitting the web every day, it’s a sure bet that there will be something awesome for you to curate another day.

4 Reasons why Google Plus is a Winner for Small Business

July 24, 2013 by Carmen Rane Hudson

Last week I talked about all of the reasons why I do not believe Facebook is a good bet for most small business owners. Today I want to direct your attention to Google+, which is a good bet for your business.

After all, I wouldn’t tell you to add yet another social network to your already full-to-bursting schedule if I didn’t see some good reasons for you to be there.

1. Google+ Offers the Best of Both Worlds

Google+ gives you the length to add a lot of detail to your content the way that Facebook does, and a highly visual interface. However, it gives you the ability to reach out to people that you don’t know the way that Twitter does.

This means it gathers up all of Facebook’s strengths while ditching what I consider to be Facebook’s most pressing weakness: namely, that it’s nearly impossible to reach out to anyone who you do not personally know. You rarely want to market to your family and friends, so Facebook offers you a dead end where Google+ offers access.

2. Google+ Has Tons of Users

There are still people who believe that Google+ is a “ghost town.” Business Insider ran a May 2013 article which belies that statement:

The reasons behind Google Plus’s growth — it now can boast 359 million active users, up 33 percent from 269 million users at the end of June 2012, according to GlobalWebIndex — are complex and tied to Google’s effort to build a connecting layer across all its services, including search, YouTube, maps and other products. Log into one, and you’ve logged into the lot.

359 million active users is an awful lot of people. Sure, you’re probably only trying to tap into the local people within that 359 million, but millions of users tells you that you can probably find your target market there.

3. Communities Offer Awesome Opportunities

Google+ has a “communities” feature. You can start a community or you can participate in them, and I recommend doing either.

For example, right now I’ve been running a “Contractor Marketing Community” on Google+. We’ve had some nice conversations, and it’s a great way to share the content that is absolutely specific to contractors without blasting it to the rest of the list.

Commenting on community content is a nice, fun way to get engaged that’s a little less confusing and a lot more straightforward than engagement on Twitter because, once again, it functions like Facebook without being prone to Facebook’s flaws.

4. Circles Make Content More Relevant

I share a lot of content on “Public.” But you could, if you wish, segment it down a lot more, sharing one type of content with customers and one type of content with people in your industry.

This is nice, because it means that you’re not blasting a bunch of people with content who do not care about said content. Sometimes the content you share will be relevant to everyone (so, public) but sometimes you will want that kind of focused, uber-targeting.

Getting Started: Choose the Right Method

If you’re a service area provider you have to get on Google+ as yourself. Start your own profile and run things that way, because Google doesn’t want you upgrading your Google+ Local page to the Google+ Business page, which has full social capability. If you serve customers at your own location then you can upgrade and get started as your business.

Setting up a profile is a little more extensive than on Twitter, but if you followed my advice on Authorship you should already have one in place. If not, now’s as good a time as any to get that detail taken care of.

Pinterest Marketing for Contractors

July 23, 2013 by Carmen Rane Hudson

If your business produces something that is both tangible and beautiful then Pinterest can be an excellent social media marketing outlet for you. While I’d never suggest Pinterest to a plumber, I would suggest it to:

Painters
Landscapers
Fence contractors
Remodeling pros
Flooring pros
Window contractors

Each of these business types regularly produces the things that people on Pinterest love to see.

How do I know? First, “Home” is the most popular category on Pinterest at 17.2%, and “For the Home” is the most popular board name. See this infographic.

Tech Crunch reports that the typical user is an 18 to 34 year old upper income woman from the American Heartland. There are 10 million users, however, and they aren’t all in the heartland. You can still use Pinterest if you, say, work on the coast.

The takeaway here is that these women are likely to have money, and many are either homeowners or are actively pursuing that goal.

So what kinds of things should you pin to appeal to this market?

Pictures of your own work are extremely valuable here. They not only provide a visual testimonial to the quality of your business but they also represent a rarity on Pinterest: a new pin, rather than a recycled “repin.”

You can, and should, feature other people’s work and ideas. If you’re in Minneapolis nobody in Tampa is taking away your business unless it’s a national company, so go right ahead and share. People will love you for it, and they will follow your boards and seek to reward you by sharing your own content.

I’ve also found that an “Advice and Information” board performs extremely well on Pinterest. Use this board to pin your blog posts (and other people’s advice). These pins drive traffic to your blog and often circulate through many, many repins.

How much time should you spend on Pinterest? Like any social media site I don’t advocate that you spend too much time there. If you give Pinterest thirty minutes to an hour each week you should be able to post all the material you need to stay visible.

Is Twitter Right for Your Local Business?

July 22, 2013 by Carmen Rane Hudson

Recently I came across a post by Firegang Marketing called Why a Local Business Should Not Use Twitter. This was not a post I could agree with!

First, I’ll show you the video.

Now let’s discuss what Jacob had to say.

First of all, yes, absolutely yes, spend the majority of your time improving your own website. You should be especially focused on getting a steady stream of great content on your blog.

However, that does not not preclude using Twitter, or any other social media site.

Jacob mentions that he does not believe that the family of 5 is on Twitter. I think he’s wrong. There are billions of people on Twitter and on the other social networks.

Now that doesn’t mean every social network is right for your business. Facebook is a bad bet because it’s so hard to reach out to people who you don’t personally know (among other reasons).

But Twitter allows you to reach out to people you don’t know very quickly, and is in my opinion an absolutely perfect forum for sharing your own content simply because one of the reasons why people enjoy Twitter is the ability to find and follow people who put out the kind of content that they want to read.

The question is not whether you should be on Twitter. The question is how you’re going to reach that hypothetical family of 5 on Twitter. You’re not going to reach them if you’re not intentional about doing so.

Choose the Right Focus

You’re a painter. Do people have a burning urge to read painting content on Twitter? All painting, all the time?

Probably not. However there are a lot of customers who do have a burning urge to hear about home improvement.

In fact, according to Hashtags.org, the tag #Home gets between 300 and 700 searches every hour.

Now, this does not require you to stop tweeting your tips for touch-up paint or the link to your blog post about getting crayon off the walls. Do so, by all means. That content pertains to the “#home” after all. It just means you should use #home when you’re done.

You can also use this #home focus to choose content that you will share or re-tweet. Everything home related that is not about painting becomes a great choice for shares, so make sure you follow some contractors from other industries. That way, you have a direct line to content that you might want to share.

Make Your Bio Work for You

Pop quiz.

Who are you more likely o follow?

A. Minneapolis painter.

B. Minneapolis painter. Tips and tricks for your walls.

C. Minneapolis painter. I tweet the latest home improvement news and tips.

As they used to say on the radio, just pick C. The third bio tells anyone who is passionate about home improvement that you are going to entertain them with content they care about.

You can use a similar bio strategy on just about any social network you care to be a part of.

Follow the Right People

I talked about who you should follow in this post. So I won’t go into it too much here, other than to give you some hints on how to find your customers.

They’re not going to say, ever, “I own a home, and it hasn’t been painted in awhile.”

No, you need to look for local, professional people who are advanced enough in solid careers to either own a home, know homeowners, or be on the path to buying a home. You also want real estate agents.

And if you’re sure you’re targeting families that’s not too hard either. I can’t tell you how many people put, “Mom,” “Proud Dad,” “Mom of Three,” or whatever in their Twitter bios.

Use Time Wisely

It’s safe to say that Twitter should not be your focus as a local small business owner. However, I have never advocated making Twitter your focus, nor have I ever advocated spending more than 1-2 hours a week on the site.

In fact, I’ve mentioned that you can use tools like Hoot Suite to reduce your time commitment on Twitter.

But let’s not throw out the baby with the bath water. Get on Twitter. Participate. Be relevant. It will help your business in time.

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