Internet Stats & Social Media
There are currently 1.7 billion Internet users and 50% of those use social media. There are 34,000 searches per second or 88 billion searches per month on Google. Isn’t that astounding? I attended a presentation by Ingrid Elfver, Social Media Expert and she shared some excellent tips. Start with a FaceBook “friends” page and get 2,500 followers before you setup a “Fan” or “Like” page. I did the opposite of this and setup the “business” or “fan” page first and I see now why that didn’t work so well. Her time management tip (to spend 30 min a day) was to automate or streamline your social media activities with TweetDeck and tools at SocialOomph. I really liked her solid facts on conversion and how to actually make money with your business by investing time in social media. To learn more from Ingrid visit Social Media Conversion Secrets

Banner Month for Referrals
Thank you to everyone who has given us referrals. Last month was an all-time high for referrals from YOU – our fabulously, fun clients. One particular week we had so many potential clients from California – I called some of you to find out what was going on out there. Very cool! We continue to work with the most fascinating people and your confidence in us to refer those you know is so appreciated!

Hey I’m Not Getting ANY Business From My Website
My first question when I hear this statement is usually, “What do your statistics look like?” The most common answer, “I don’t know, I don’t look at statistics”. Every website should have Google Analytics – it’s free and will show you exactly how many visitors you are getting, what pages they are going to, where they are coming from, etc. It takes us 15 minutes to install on your website. Statistics are a roadmap for you to use in making adjustments to your website or marketing activities. Statistics not your thing? One of our services is Quarterly Stats Review and Recommendations. Many of you find this to be valuable in planning your marketing and advertising strategies – both on and offline.

My second question is, “What have you been doing to market your website?” The answer is typically, “Well, nothing. I think I need SEO.” For some reason, there is this big misperception out there that by paying someone for “SEO” you will be on the first page of Google and therefore have more clients than you can handle. Sorry to bust another myth, but being on the first page of Google for a particular phrase does not guarantee you will get more clients. If we built your site then your site is already search engine friendly because the titles, meta descriptions and meta tags are different on every page. These can be changed or modified at any time. In your statistics you’ll see what phrases people are typing in to find you. SEO and Statistics go hand-in-hand. If you hire someone to do SEO, how will you know if they are effective unless you check your stats?

Action Steps:

1. Install Google Analytics and check your statistics monthly or quarterly. Adjust your site or advertising methods accordingly.
2. Get more business today with FaceBook and Twitter. Social Media is here to stay! Learn from people who are successful to save yourself some time and money!
3. Is your website interactive and are you gathering emails? So many ways to do this. Give something away for people who enter your contest, sign up for your ezine, download an Ebook or Special Report. Note: New subscribers to the Muse News receive a free checklist “Five Web Mistakes to Avoid”. Email me if you’d like a copy.

Scroll down on this page to the Web Marketing Process and download the pdf for more ideas. Email me your tips for getting business from your website and I’ll publish those in the next Muse News. We can all learn from each other. Most importantly, have fun with whatever you are doing!

Sizzlin’ SEO Deals and Slicer-Dicers
Several times a day I’ll get an email or phone call from a client asking if I have heard of “SEO Company #3,000”. They are guaranteeing top placement in the search engines for only $29 or $229 or some other enticing amount. Isn’t that a smokin’ deal? What do you think I should do? Hmmm, hang with me while I muse about this.

When I was little my grandma and grandpa loved to take us kids to the Nebraska State Fair. Every year my grandma would say, “Now kids, don’t let grandpa buy any more slicer-dicers. We’ve got a basement full of ‘em!”  We would watch the entertaining demonstrations of the latest gizmos and amazingly they all had guarantees. Sure enough my grandpa would buy the knife that never needs sharpening, the apple peeler, the chopper/slicer or the magic stain remover. One time at the end of a pots and pans demonstration the spokesman said, “Light the candles ladies – supper’s ready!” It was as if supper magically made itself with these miracle pans – guaranteed!

After we got home grandma would scold grandpa for buying yet another gadget and we’d all laugh. I don’t think my grandpa cared if the gizmo worked or not. He just did it for the fun of it. It became a running joke every year wondering what grandpa would buy next.

So back to the sizzlin’ deals with those SEO companies. It’s kinda like the slicer-dicers. If you want to do it for the fun of it – go for it! If you really truly believe in those SEO company promises well... would you also like a ginzu knife?

Personally Speaking
Thank you SO much for all your recommendations on what to see and do on my summer vacation. I’m in California right now riding up the coast and enjoying the ocean air. 

My niece’s wedding in Manhattan, KS was simply beautiful and so much fun. They got married in an old opera house and that was really a unique venue.

My sister and I were in charge of cutting the cake. Well, we couldn’t stop laughing – the whole thing just kept falling apart. Then, pretty soon there was a line of people waiting for their slices of cake crumbs. We were like Lucy & Ethel trying our best to serve up the cake. When we were done, we finally got to taste it and well, this picture says it all! Hope you're enjoying summer and having some laughs! ~ Anita