Animoto - Slick Slide Shows for Small Biz

If your small business has some nice visuals (think scenic views, jewelry, art, beautiful people, etc., etc.,) and you've been looking for an interesting way to display it online, you might want to check out Animoto.

I first heard about Animoto in an article I read in Entrepreneur magazine last month and began playing around with it right away. It's addicting to say the least.

What Animoto does is create slick slide shows set to music with great transitions. While there is a free version, it just too limiting to be of any use to a business. By upgrading to a paid account you can have videos of any length, have DVD-quality images, upload your own music, and include a clickable call-to-action. (For example, a resort could end it's slide show with a "Book Your Room Now!" link to the reservations page on their site.)

Once you've established your account you can easily create a slide show by clicking on "create video" near the top of every page. After that it's a three-step process.

Images: You can upload images from your computer or another Web site like Flickr. Once they're on the Animoto site you can rearrange the order, add text, delete or even spotlight certain key photos. Once you're happy with the organization click continue.

Sound: You can choose from Animoto's royalty-free library that includes a number of genres such as hip-hop, classical, independent rock and more. You can also upload your own music, but be aware of any copyrights you might be infringing on. In other words, dropping that Zeppelin track on your slide show may get you a call from an attorney.

Once you've selected the appropriate music it's time to render your video.

Render: If you have the business account you'll be able to add a call-to-action button at the end of your video. You'll also be able to change the image pacing of your video (although just 1/2 speed or 2x speed) and choose a cover screen. Once that's done Animoto gets to work.

A few minutes later (or even a few hours, if there are a lot of photos), you'll get an email that your video is ready for viewing. This is a lower-res version. If you like what you see you can download a DVD-Quality version. If you'd like to have the Animoto engine try again you can "remix" your video.

You can choose one-click remix, which will just give you different transitions, or go back in and tweak the order of photos, text, and choose a different song.

For small businesses looking to break through the clutter and grab a visitor's attention, Animoto might be just what you need.

Below is the video I created for Portland Motor Club based on my trip to an open house they had a few weeks back.

If you can't see the movie here, check it out on YouTube. Keep in mind that the DVD-quality is somewhat diminished when rendered through YouTube's system.

Rich Brooks
One Day I'd Like to Direct

The Two Types of Readers of Your Blog

We work with a wide variety of entrepreneurs who are looking to grow their business on the Web. Because of this, blogs are a regular part of our Internet marketing arsenal. I like blogs because of their immediacy, interactivity, search engine friendliness, and how they can help establish entrepreneurs as the experts they are.

Because these small business owners cover a range of businesses, the strategies for each blog differs. One thing I recommend to all business bloggers is to remember and focus on the purpose of their blog. That brings us back to your blog's audience.

There are two types of readers at your blog: the subscribers and the searchers.

The subscribers are your regular readers, whether through an email subscription, an RSS feed, or just old-fashion tenacity, theyread almost every post you put up. Besides getting the benefit of your knowledge they probably also enjoy your writing style and what you have to say.

The searchers are people who have found a specific post through a search engine. They had a question, and Google or Yahoo has pointed them to one of your posts. They might become a subscriber, they may move on (having quenched their thirst for knowledge), or they may click over to your Web site to engage you in a conversation.

So which reader is better for you? Well, that depends on what you're selling. If you aren't especially a great writer I would probably focus more on the searchers. Write well-constructed, keyword-rich content that helps prospects and engages visitors. The blog doesn't need to be infused constantly with your own personality. Your product may not need that level of intimacy.

Photographers, artists, and other creative types may need to develop subscribers who will become repeat customers. Service professionals may try and attract both types of readers, mixing keyword-rich content with more personal posts.

The important thing to remember is that there are two types of readers at a blog and you need to determine which is best for your business...and go after them.

Rich Brooks
Small Business Blogger

Twelve Months of Web Marketing Articles from Flyte

It's December, that time of the year where we look back and regurgitate our content rather than create fresh content reflect on what we've said and done.

Like in years past, we've published 12 more issues of flyte log, our monthly Web marketing ezine. If you haven't read all of these posts odds are you aren't my mother (aka my editor.) Here's your chance to catch up:

• How Google Analytics Can Make You the Life of the Party 
• How I Increased My Email Signup Rate by 5,000%...and How You Can, Too
• Jumpstart Your Blog: A Business Blogging Workout Regimen
• Does Your Web Site Beat the Competition?
• A Web Marketing Tool with Great ROI
• How to Use Twitter for Business
• Keyword Placement for Maximum Results
• Beginner's Guide to Google Analytics
• Microblogging: The Future of Communications?
• Does Your Small Business Need a Social Media Strategy?
• Six Simple Steps to Generate Business from LinkedIn
• Facebook for Small Business and Entrepreneurs

Looking back on it, social media seems to be the topic of 2008, and I don't expect that to change in 2009. Small businesses will continue to look for low-cost, high-return methods of marketing, and a social media strategy will be the competitive advantage many of them are looking for.

What trends do you expect to see in 2009?

Rich Brooks
Seer

Search Engine Optimization Webinar

Every time I post/email/promote that I'll be putting on a seminar here in Maine I invariably get a few people who ask when I'm coming to Buffalo/Dallas/Sri Lanka because they can't make it to Maine.

Well, thanks to the Interwebs, I think I have that problem licked. I'll be putting on my first public Webinar next week. The subject is Search Engine Optimization: Rank Higher, Sell More! I'll be talking about how to improve your organic search engine rankings through onpage optimization techniques and link building.

If your site isn't getting the visibility you're hoping for, then please join me:

Date: Thursday, 12/18/2008
Time: 1pm - 2pm EST
Place: Your Desktop
Cost: $25

There's only 50 "seats" I'm making available, and about a dozen of them were taken before I posted this.

You'll need a decent Internet connection for the video and a phone line for the audio portion of the program. Hope to see you there!

Do you want to learn more about search engine optimization, but that wicked snow storm outside is keeping you house bound? Then I have the perfect solution for you.

I'll be putting on my first public Webinar next week. The subject is Search Engine Optimization: Rank Higher, Sell More! I'll be talking about how to improve your organic search engine rankings through onpage optimization techniques and link building.

If your site isn't getting the visibility you're hoping for, then please join me:

Date: Thursday, 12/18/2008
Time: 1pm - 2pm EST
Place: Your Desktop
Cost: $25

There's only 50 "seats" I'm making available, and about a dozen of them were taken before I posted this.

You'll need a decent Internet connection for the video and a phone line for the audio portion of the program. Hope to see you there!

Rich Brooks
NakedWebinars.com (Coming Soon)

Six Reasons Why Blogs Are So Good for SEO

I've been trumpeting the benefits of blogging for search engine visibility for a while now, and here's why:

1. Blogs are all about content. Search engines love content. They don't love Flash, and they're still struggling with photos and video, but they absolutely get content.
2. Blogs have text-based navigation. Search engines have an easier time with text based (vs. image based) navigation because it's more transparent. Search engines for a while now have told us that they want sites to serve up the same information/experience to a search engine bot as to a person.
3. Blogs offer lots of links. If search engines feast on words, they travel on links. Blogs are often a good place to find new content on the Web.
4. People are more likely to link to business blogs than business Web sites. At least, this has been my experience, and anecdotally what I've seen out there. I believe this is because of the interactive nature of blogs, and they're traditionally more about communication than selling. And since getting incoming links is half the battle of search engine optimization, this is a key point.
5. Blogs make it easier to create more pages. Search engines don't rank Web sites, they rank Web pages. In other words, every Web page is an opportunity to rank well at the search engines. Every time you put up a new post, you have another opportunity to be found at Google, Yahoo, or any other search engine. You don't need to worry about how this is going to fit in your current Web site navigation, you can just assign it to one or more categories and be done with it.
6. Blogs put you in control. This doesn't directly affect your search engine optimization, but with a blog you can publish when you feel like it. You don't have to worry about how much your Web developer's going to charge you for an update, or when he's going to get to it. That makes it easier for you to target new keywords and go after the long tail of search that can bring ready-to-buy, qualified leads to your site.

If you are interested in better rankings but don't yet have a blog, the good news is there's a great opportunity for you to increase your search engine visibility.

Rich Brooks
Business Blog Consultant

How to Share Your Google Analytics (Without Sharing Your Google Account)

As you may know, here at flyte we're pretty fond of Google Analytics and set our clients up with this great, free traffic reporting software.

If you're working with a contractor who's helping you with search engine marketing, or improving your Web site's effectiveness, they may want/need access to your traffic reports to make better recommendations. However, if you give them full access to your Google account they can also access your Gmail and intercept all of your mushy emails or those cease-and-desist letters from Sarah Palin's lawyers.

Here's how you can give them access to just your reports but keep curious eyes away from anything else.

First, login to your Google Analytics account. Down near the bottom of the page you'll see "User Manager." Click there.

That will take you to a page that will show you any user that already has access to the traffic reports. In the dark gray bar you'll see an Add User link near the right. Click there.

This will take you a page where you can add a new user. You can give this new user just View Reports access or make them an Account Administrator. If you choose to give them Account Administrator access they will be able to edit your account settings such as adding other users, creating filters or having Google Analytics email certain reports to users.

This could be just what you want, but just be aware of what you're choosing.

Your new user will need to have a Google account, but as Google accounts are free this probably isn't much of a problem.

You may be tracking reports for multiple Web sites. If you're just giving View Reports access you'll need to select at least one domain from the Available Website Profiles, click the "Add>>" button, and make sure they end up under Selected Website Profiles. Otherwise, the reports won't transfer.

And as always, save your work.

That's all you need to do. Next time they log into their Google Analytics account they'll see a link to your analytics on their dashboard page.

Rich Brooks
Web Analytics Guy

Half-Assed Book Review: Content Rich by Jon Wuebben

I consume a lot of data. I read a lot of work related books, listen to one or two audiobooks a month (usually business related), subscribe to about 2 or 3 weekly magazines and at least a dozen monthly magazines. I have a subscription to the Wall St. Journal both in print and online.

I also subscribe to a number of blog feeds, a few dozen eziens, listen to a couple different podcasts, follow hundreds of people on Twitter, and follow many of their links to new articles.

I enjoy reading business books, but I often don't follow them. I put them down somewhere in my house and then pick something else up. It's rare that I finish them. Even if I do, I generally don't talk or blog about them.

It's for this purpose that I'm starting a new--pardon the pun--chapter at the flyte blog: the Half-Assed Book Review. Basically, I'm going to start reviewing books (and perhaps audiobooks) as I get to the halfway point of the book. If I ever finish the book, I may come back and add on a comment of how it all turns out.

The first (but hopefully not last) entry to the Half-Assed Book Review is Jon Wuebben's Content Rich: Writing Your Way to Wealth on the Web.

Honestly, the title put me off a bit. I mean, who doesn't like a little alliteration in their subtitle, but the title seemed a bit spammy to me. Luckily, my first name was the biggest word on the cover, so I dove in.

I'm glad I did. Content Rich is an excellent book for any copywriter looking to make the jump to the Web or any business owner looking to drive more qualified traffic to his/her Web site.

I found myself dog-earing pages as I went along, making mental notes to check out some of the sites and tools Jon talks about in his book. I especially liked his "Content Rich Quotient" (CRQ, because we don't have enough TLAs (three letter acronyms,)) where he talks about the importantce of:

• Content Breadth Factor
• Social Media Optimization/Search Engine Optimization Balance
• Content Effectiveness Measurement and
• The Content "Clincher."

There's also good information on how to perform a keyword analysis, where to put your best keywords, where else you should be creating copy (article marketing, press releases and more.)

Jon's writing style is easy to follow (good thing for a copywriter), and by following his advice any small business owner should see an increase in qualified Web traffic and conversions at your site.

I'd strongly recommend this book for any search engine marketer, entrepreneur or copywriter. Heck, I might even go back and read the rest!

Rich Brooks
Half-Assed Book Reviewer

Use TweetDeck to Become a Twitter Power User

As you start getting more involved with Twitter, managing a large number of people whom you follow becomes a major problem. That's because as you follow more people, it becomes more difficult to pay attention to your favorite tweeple. (That's Twitter-speak for people.)

However, there's a great 3rd party application called TweetDeck that allows you to create smaller groups of people. By creating these subgroups of people you can make sure you don't miss the tweets of your favorite tweeple.

For example, I've created one group called "Core" which includes industry leaders, friends, and other people who have continually helpful or clever tweets. I have another group called "Mainers" where I track the tweets of interesting people near our offices in Portland, Maine.

To learn more about how to use TweetDeck check out the video below, or watch TweetDeck & Twitter: Better Manage Your Tweeple at YouTube.

TweetDeck is free to try, but if you like it, please make a donation at TweetDeck.com. Thanks!

Follow Rich Brooks on Twitter!

Rich Brooks
Maine Tweeter

Web Marketing Course for Entrepreneurs and Small Business

I can't believe that we're just one week away from the first class of Web Marketing for Entrepreneurs and Small Business over at the University of Southern Maine.

Well, actually I can, as I spent most of yesterday afternoon updating and revamping the search engine optimization content for the class. And I've blocked out plenty of hours this week to review the rest of my content and build out the social media component. But the "I can't believe" part stresses the fact that it's only a week away, and if you were planning on coming you've got to get a move on.

Who should go? Well, you should be in driving distance of Portland, Maine. (Yes, one of these days I'll create an online version, but not today.) Assuming that you can get to the campus, this course is geared to small business owners, marketers and entrepreneurs who are looking to build a Web presence to grow their business.

Topics will include search engine visibility (how do you out rank your competition,) email marketing, business blogs, social media, e-commerce, and building a Web site that will convert prospects into customers.

The course is held over four Monday nights, 11/10/2008 - 12/1/2008, from 6pm - 8pm at the Abromson Center on the campus of the University of Southern Maine (directions.) The cost is $205, but you need to pre-register for the class, so...

Register Now!

We'll be spending class time reviewing students' current Web sites (when applicable) and making on the spot recommendations to help you rank higher, drive more qualified leads to your site, and convert more prospects into customers. So what are you waiting for?

Register Now!

Rich Brooks
Oh Captain, Your Captain

Email Marketing Wish List: What Email Newsletter Companies Should Offer

I'm a big fan of Constant Contact for email marketing, but that doesn't mean you can't improve on a good thing. Here's my wish list for a perfect email marketing service provider.

• Flexible HTML templates that can be updated without HTML knowledge. Entrepreneurs and small business people should be able to choose a template, make some quick changes (upload a logo, change fonts and colors, etc.)
• Ability to create or enhance standard HTML templates. Those with advanced design and coding skills should be able to go "under the hood" and make additional changes to the templates. This gives Web designers the opportunity to create non-cookie-cutter solutions for their clients. (And a big reason flyte uses Constant Contact.)
• Ability to do A/B split testing. This is email marketing, after all. I should be able to quickly create a split so that I can test the efficacy of competing subject lines or calls-to-action. (This is missing from Constant Contact and probably my biggest pet peeve.)
• Ability to track different signup paths to an ezine and give appropriate confirmation and welcome messages based on those signups. In other words, I want to know if it's my blog or Web site that is generating more signups. Plus, it would be nice to know if people are subscribing to flyte log because of a particular article (10 Questions to Ask Before Setting up a Web Site or The 11 Biggest Mistakes Small Business Bloggers Make) or just signing up through a signup box on our site. These are important marketing questions that will help drive my business thinking down the road.
• Ability to track down people who filed spam reports and beat them about the head and neck. I mean, who are these people? I run a double opt-in mailing list. You can't get on my list without subscribing on our site and then clicking on a confirmation link. That's not spam, that's free choice! If you no longer want to receive the ezine then unsubscribe! Geez....

OK, I'm sure there are other items that belong on the wish list. What do you look for/want out of an email service provider?

Rich Brooks
Email Marketing for Small Business