Online Marketing Trends for 2009

2009 is likely to be a challenging year for many businesses as the global economic slowdown takes hold. Digital marketing, however, looks set to continue its rapid growth, as its many solutions and advantages become even more apparent when marketing budgets are subjected to even greater constraints.

Here are 16 important online marketing trends for 2009 as we see them, along with our view on the best strategies.

You can get more details on each of the trends below at StrangeCorp.com

- Keyword inflation will continue

- Conversion optimism will be key

- Consumer thrift will shape online behavior

- Great creative will be required

- Internet Explorer 8 will affect online advertising

- CPA (cost per action/ acquisition) will become more widely negotiated

- Data privacy and security will stay in the headlines

- Qualitative analysis will have greater emphasis

- Mobile advertising will flourish

- Local search localised services will grow

- RSS newsfeed will go mainstream

- More user behavior metrics will be applied to the Google algorithm

- Netbooks will impact web design

- User generated content (UGC) will be king

- Social media opportunities will expand

- APIs and mashups could be the next big thing

Create ONE Remarkable Marketing Message for Consistency, Clarity and Results

What’s the first thing that pops into your mind with the mention of the word marketing? Do you get excited about all of the possibilities…or do you freeze at the thought of developing strategies and tactics?
90 percent of small business owners do not have a marketing plan, yet most know that it takes seven to 10 impressions to make an impact and inspire a prospect to take action. Repetition is critical, but what is the best way to proceed?
The surefire way to ensure success is to pre-determine your marketing and the action required to reach seven to 10 impressions. Here are 7 strategies to focus your efforts:

1) Be Remarkable. Identify your goals, your strengths, and your target audience.

2) Maximize word of mouth. When you have a business identity that inspires, fascinates, engages and rewards customers and employees, you are going to be talked about.

3) Free Media. There's a great big world of media available online and off, and a lot of it is free. If you provide newsworthy information, your news releases will be published or aired.

4) Knock your socks off service. Be sure you are delivering unbelievably great service under every circumstance.

5) Get in the Limelight. One of the best ways to spread your ONE marketing message is to speak to organizations, associations, clubs, and radio audiences.

6) Collaborate. Research shows that working with others increases productivity, motivation and results.

7) Hire a marketing coach. If you are stuck, it may be that you are overwhelmed, at "a fork in the road" and unsure of your next step. Enlist support.

While there are many more ways to guarantee you will make an impact, these seven strategies will get you started with a solid foundation for strengthening your ONE marketing message. Be sure to put it all on paper so you have a map guiding your efforts and ensuring that you focus on the ONE quality that sets you apart from your competition and makes you truly remarkable in the eyes of your customers and prospects.

Be consistent. Be clear. Be ready to skyrocket results.

Article by Leslie Hamp, Certified Marketing Spitfire
For more information on article visit http://www.gmarketingblog.com/

Top Search Engines...Latest News!

It's hard to keep up with all of the changes that are constantly going on with the internet, but Sage Island Inc. shared some updates about the top search engines that I thought I would pass on.

Representatives from the top search engines attended PubCon this month, where they unveiled an exciting list of new features, products and updates. Here's a rundown of some of the most interesting updates:

Google
- Google launched Google Flu Trends, which tracks the number of flu-related searches being performed in order to accurately predict the spread of influenza. This is just one of many uses for Google Trends.

- Gmail now offers voice and video chat.

- For iPhone users, Google announced a new application for hands-free voice search.

- Google Ad Planner is now available to all Google account holders with a number of new features.

- Google also announced the publication of their Search Engine Optimization Starter Guide with tips and tricks for basic SEO, as well as an upgrade to their Site Search tool, which allows custom search within a specific site.

Yahoo
- Yahoo discontinued its site search tool, Yahoo Search Builder.

- Yahoo also announced upgrades to its open developer platform, SearchMonkey, including a gallery of new applications that are being tested. Local search applications Citysearch and Zagat are now available for developers.

- Yahoo’s search suggestion tool, Search Assist, is now available on for use with Firefox, Internet Explorer, and mobile devices.

Microsoft Live Search
- Microsoft Live Search announced a new API as part of what they’re calling Project Silk Road. These new tools and services will allow publishers and Web developers to “generate traffic, increase engagement … drive insight, and boost productivity and agility” on their sites.

- Live Search Video’s browsing capabilities were updated to include filtering by category, popularity, duration, aspect ratio, resolution, and more.

- Microsoft also announced a deal with Sun Microsystems that will expand the reach oxf Live Search through distribution of the MSN Toolbar with Sun’s Java Runtime Environment.

Need help updating your Online Social Networks?

If you have multiple social networking sites you are trying to keep up with, it does not have to take a lot of time. If you go to this site, http://ping.fm/ it is a free service that will help you keep all of your social networks up to date. All you need to do is log in to Ping.fm and enter in your updates and it will submit them automatically to the social networks you ask it to such as, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, etc...

Remember, social networking keeps you linked in with your real estate peers and helps you stay on top of the latest trends in your industry, so it's important to keep your information fresh.

Get Online....It's Time!

Twitter, Digg, FaceBook, LinkedIn and YouTube are quickly becoming the new sites to be on in real estate marketing. If you aren't familiar with these sites then it's time to get online and do some research. Social Networking online is a great opportunity for you to learn about real estate trends as well as get more exposure for your business.

I gathered some very basic tips from Straight Talk's E-Newsletter that will help you get on your way when starting out online:

Blog - A blog is simply a web-based journal. It's where you can post information about your firm, position yourself as an expert, and drive traffic to your web site.Go to www.blogger.com to get started.

Jump In - Learn as you go by signing up at Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. Each site has easy-to-follow directions. Google "social media" and identify sites that cater to your customers and industry groups.

Listen - Social media allows you to connect directly to your customer to learn their likes and dislikes and discover what they think about your company. It's the best and cheapest market research available.

Be subtle - The best way to alienate a social media user is to blatantly market your company. Remember that social media is about relationship building and social norms apply.

Be Active - Give your customers a reason to return to your blog or Facebook profile. Post regularly. Be creative. Research topics and educate your readers. It takes time and effort, but the payback is tremendous.

Now let's get out there and start networking!

Enhance Listings on Realtor.com

Have you enhanced your listings and your profile on Realtor.com?

Take advantage of the fact that Realtor.com is the #1 consumer destination for any real estate related information with more than 6 million monthly unique users and you have the ability to enhance your listings because you are a part of CENTURY 21 Sweyer & Associates.

Based on data gathered, visits to Century21Sweyer.com have increased in October & November after the listings on Realtor.com were enhanced by the agents.

Visits September = 29

Visits October = 310

Visits November YTD = 265

What that tells us is that having enhanced listings on Realtor.com truly does drive traffic. If you have not enhanced your listings yet, you need to do so ASAP. More traffic, means more leads, which means more business for you!

Your future clients

Generation Y, the largest U.S. age group since the baby boom will make an unmistakable mark on the housing market. It is comprised of people born between 1977 and the mid 1990s.

To get a better feel for Generation Y, here are some quick facts:

• They’re big. Experts say Gen Y ranges in size from 72 million to 78 million people nationwide and 2 billion worldwide. Factor in the young immigrant population, and the group grows even larger.
• They’re diverse. According to a 2005 study by RMG Connect, an international specialist in relationship marketing, one in three echo boomers is non-Caucasian, one in four is from a single-parent home, and three in four have working mothers.
• The Web is their playground. They track down their friends on MySpace, they download their songs from iTunes, and they send e-mails from their phones while waiting in line at Starbucks. And you had better pay attention to their e-mails, because they expect a fast response.
• They buy young. On average, Gen Yers buy homes at age 26, three years earlier than most Generation Xers, according to a Century 21 Real Estate study in 2006. “Gen Y is not just some kid out of college,” says Adam Lee, 28, a salesperson for Abe Lee Realty LLC in Honolulu. “He’s a kid with parents who want to see him get off to the right start and is willing to put 10 percent down on a house and have the kid pay the mortgage every month.”
• They have hectic schedules. “Their lives are a lot busier than their parents were at their age,” says boomer Elaine VonCannon, ABR®, SRES, a RE/MAX real estate agent in Williamsburg, Va., who has been tracking and writing about Gen Y for the past decade. “They’re always moving. They need an all-inclusive agent. So if they’re going to invest, for example, they want someone who can help them manage the property after the sale.”
• They do their research. Don’t try to pull one over on an echo boomer. “You’d better know what you’re talking about, because they will have done the research,” VonCannon says.

To read the full article go to Realtor.org a great resource for real estate professionals.