Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/frankblacknoir/

Once you determine goals for your Web site and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to drive and measure that goal’s success, the next step is to create goals and KPIs for your supporting Internet marketing efforts including content.

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Social Media and Content Fundamentals with Laurie Dunlop

A press release is a great way to present newsworthy content for your readers. However, the cost can be prohibitive for a small business or association to subscribe to the big press release distribution sites. Before you shell out $350 or more to get your news noticed, you might consider registering for a few of the free directory websites. While the free sites do not normally contain links, video embeds, or graphic images, they do receive notice via Twitter, blogs, and search engines.
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Learn Social Media with Laurie Dunlop

Everything is measurable in Internet marketing. That’s the mantra my company NetStrategies stands by! Analytics is the tool by which we measure. In following the data, a smart content writer can determine what a target audience does and does not respond to. The data helps you understand who your visitors are, where they come from, and where they exit during the buy-in process.
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Learn Web Content with Laurie Dunlop and Video Steve Reali

As you add online video to your Internet marketing mix, finding the right hosting sites or directories is important. YouTube is a good choice, especially if you hope your video goes viral, but there are many more. Remember, YouTube browsers might not look for business videos. Find the sites that are right for your content. Also consider the limits of the Web site: the file size, time duration, etc. Keep in mind many hosting sites do not allow content that specifically advertises a company, person, or product. If the host finds your content inappropropriate, your profile is deleted.
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Learn Social Media with Laurie Dunlop

Army leadership began drumming operational security (OPSEC) into my head 20 years ago when my husband was a “butter bar” lieutenant. The recent explosion in social media caused me to wonder what the Army’s official take on this craze is, especially when it comes to OPSEC.
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Learn Social Media with Laurie Dunlop

I recently read Adam Ostrow’s Mashable blog entitled, “Is Social Media Making Corporate Websites Irrelevant” and wondered how my Northern Virginia team at NetStrategies would react to that headline. Keep in mind, our area of expertise is helping businesses optimize their Web sites! So I asked my team for a rebuttal and here is their take:

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Learn Social Media with Laurie Dunlop

Everyone agrees that you must define your customer profiles before you can market your product or service. Those profiles can include a wide range of detail from basic demographics to spending habits and hobbies. Watch a great instructional video that describes creating marketing personas at the SEOmoz Web site.

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Learn Social Media with Laurie Dunlop

The shear number of Twitter tools to make Tweeting “easier” is somewhat overwhelming! You can discover thousands of programs that do this and do that. How can you stay on top of it all?
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Learn New Public Relations with Laurie Dunlop

If you read blogs, you know that any blogger worth her salt (his too!) includes an occasional Top 10 list. There are Web sites like Toptenz dedicated to Top 10 lists and even solicit for your ideas on what lists they can compile. David Letterman capitalizes on the public’s fascination with all things Top 10. You can watch those segments dating back to August 1993 on the CBS Late Night Web site.
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Learn new Public Relations with Laurie Dunlop

Notice my headline reads “solid writing” and not perfect, fancy, or academic writing. Most public relations efforts involve the written word. Whether you compose a blog, Web page, news release, or video script, pay close attention to the words you choose and how you use them.
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