Search engine optimization (SEO) is a sticky wicket, especially for me – basically a “marketing/branding guy.”  I’m still very green, but I’ve learned quite a bit from the HUGE brains of local developers (and friends), as well as those I follow through blogs and other sites.

One of the things that always confused me about achieving a good web ranking (see WebsiteGrader.com) is the number of inbound links you have to your Web site or blog.  One of the items that they score for “marketing effectiveness” are the inbound links to your Web site. I realized the importance of this after checking my own site’s ranking (right now it’s 96.9/100 with 205 inbound links). Inbound links are a big part of Google’s criteria for ranking your site.

How do you get inbound links? According to Website Grader (and most of the HUGE brains), there are a lot of different ways.  For a great overview of the levels of inbound linking available, Website Grader has a post on “Graduating from Inbound Marketing High school.”

One of the easiest ways to create inbound links is to…  do it yourself.  How? Here are five simple steps to start increasing your web site’s effectiveness:

1. Find other thought leaders in your preferred field (marketing, branding, cooking, whatever…).  This is easy to do if you search your preferred topic through Google Blogs or social media bookmarking tools like StumbleUpon.
2. Review and evaluate, looking for high-ranking, relevant blogs and Web sites.  Many sites will be basic aggregation of content.  Be very perspicacious and find the blogs/sites that provide the most optimal content and ranking to follow.
3. Bookmark and/or subscribe to the RSS feeds for these blogs.
4. Track and act upon blog posts that you can add value to by posting a comment. Make sure your comment is succinct and intelligent, using key words and phrases pertaining to your field of expertise.
   
5. DO NOT SPAM! Most (aware) blog administrators will blacklist you if you start posting comments irrelevant to their blog or have an ungodly amount of links within your comment. If you’re transparent and add value with your comments, and don’t overtly push links to your site; the click-through rate will start jumping.

And there you have it.  You have an inbound link to your site! Rinse and repeat… Simple.

Here’s a bonus.

That blog comment will also be indexed when Google crawls that Web site. So, when someone searches on your name, your Web site, or blog, they will see your comment as part of their Google return.  Brilliant!

Leaving comments on other blogs is a daily ritual for me.  At first it was simply to be social (it IS social media, you know), but as I discovered it’s value as a SEO/marketing strategy, I made sure to comment on other blogs, adding value (and backlinks) as often as possible.

I learn the most from other blogs and friends throughout the “interweb.” As I continue to post, comment, track and act, my foundation as a marketing and branding thought leader is building. It takes time, but trust me, being social pays off.

Food for thought…

Keep Cooking (strategic reciprocal value)!
Andrew B. Clark
The Brand Chef

Now that you have a Twitter account, what do you do to make it work for you?

Jump In and Start Tweeting:
Social media is not exactly social in the beginning.  It’s a lot of people, alone, standing at the edge of the chasm yelling trivial facts about themselves and their industry.  And that’s why statistics say that up to 60% of Twitter users quit after a short time.

A conversation starts with “Hello.” It’s a simple concept, but even communication-savvy professionals seem to forget this fact when they first sign into their Twitter account.

Take a strategic approach to positioning your brand.  Start talking about what you do.  Start referencing your skills, your accomplishments and your vision for a better personal or professional brand dialogue.

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Find Some Friends:
Nothing is more gut-wrenching than the idea going to a party alone.  Twitter has MILLIONS of people at the party, so there has to be someone to talk to, ya’ think?  But how do you find them and how do they find you?

Here are some tactics I’ve used to find like individuals and thought leaders in my industry:

The first and easiest step is to follow those who your friends follow.  Find a person with similar interests to yours and look at who they are following.  Often times, if you work in the same industry, you’ll find people that you know (or want to know).  Engage them.

Another good way to start building your network is to start with a basic Twitter search at “http://search.twitter.com“.  Search terms related to your personal and professional interests (e.g. -  marketing, cooking, photography, Des Moines, Iowa, etc.)

NOTE: For those that think keeping the security setting ON their Twitter account is a good idea.  It’s not. Twitter is the pinnacle of social media dialogue, so why lock people out of the conversation?  As soon as you set up your account, unprotect your tweets, go to Account and deselect “Protect my tweets” now!

If you’re looking to use Twitter as a micro-social venue (corporate connection hub), you may find it limiting at 140 characters per post. Also, anyone you “friend” will most certainly be a little confused when they arrive to your party and the front door is locked.

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Schedule It and Tweet It:
I’ll be the first to admit that social media, especially Twitter, can be a HUGE time investment.  To keep from sitting, watching… waiting, and wondering when to jump into the conversation is to simply schedule it and tweet it.

Set aside some time, every day, to get into your twitter stream.  Schedule ideas to talk about based on your current projects or post questions about conversations you see in your stream.  I like to schedule one hour a day to be 100% active on Social Media (that may vary based on the number of accounts you have to manage).

In that hour, start out monitoring conversations within your stream.  The best way to have an engaging brand is to be a resource of knowledge for others.  If you see a question or comment that you can add value to, then jump in and start tweeting.

If you’re not seeing active conversations that you can (or want to) join, have a back-up subject to start a discussion.  Post a question or a comment and try to tag someone to get their attention and join the conversation.  (e.g. – “@TheBrandChef — what did you think of MadMen last night?”). If that person is on line and monitoring their stream, they should reply.  Often times, others monitoring specific terms “Mad Men” will find you and jump into the conversation as well.  There are a lot of ways to start a conversation, but simply saying “Hello…” is always the best.

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Now that you’re in the conversation, let’s look at some more other important solutions to make Twitter a TRUE brand extension for you.

Make Your Brand Unique:
Yep…  the BIG “U” of TRUE Branding.  If someone lands on your Twitter page and it looks like the base template (blue sky/clouds background and the dreaded “o_O” avatar), there’s nothing within that critical first second to entice them into engaging with you or your brand (Engaging is the BIG “E” of TRUE Branding, by-the-way).

Immediately after unlocking your tweets, go to Settings/Picture and upload an image that uniquely defines you/your brand.  Your avatar is your online identity, so make sure you chose wisely.  The photo of you and your boyfriend slamming tequila poppers at Jake’s party may not be indicative of your brand or your mission on Twitter.

If you’re tweeting as an individual, I encourage you to have a portrait taken to give your friends a little eye contact.  If your tweeting on behalf of a company or a group/association, have a professional graphic designer create a fitting icon to use as the avatar that reflects the appropriate brand standards.

Although Twitter does offer you a nice collection of background themes to chose from, customizing one to your own design would help to extend your brand image to a much more unique (and professional) level. Try matching your Web site design.  With that, it  would be wise to have a professional designer work up a good background design for you.  And then, simply by going to Settings/Design, you can customize the theme to your brand standards as well as customize the color pallet to match.

Here are some samples of migrating your visual brand to the Twitter platform: Boesen The Florist and The Meyvn Group.

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That’s Just The Appetizer Course:
Before all of those social media experts get their aviators all fogged up, I do want to admit that we’re still only scratching the surface.  There’s tracking, feeds, third-party applications and even mobile discussions we can have to get you even further on Twitter.  But I think I gave you enough to chew on for now.

If you have questions, please feel free to contact me.

Keep Cooking (unique, engaging conversations)!
Andrew B. Clark
The Brand Chef

T.G.I. Fridays …  what can you say but “ubiquitous?” They’re everywhere. From every other street corner of any slightly metropolitan city to parodies in cult films, they’ve become the Walgreens of the “casual dining” industry. If there’s a cross section of people and commerce, they’ll be there, with silly stripes, suspenders, and buttons-a-blinking to welcome you. And as expected, T.G.I. Fridays is now on Facebook. But they’ve taken a little different approach to their Facebook efforts than others I’ve seen.

Have you met “Woody?” No? Well until earlier this month, no one else had either.

Woody is an “average guy” looking to pick up 500,000 fans before the end of September, and if he’s successful, those fans will receive a free Jack Daniels burger!

Now who doesn’t want a free burger?

To round out the social media-focused campaign, Woody has a few television spots running regionally, as well as posted in the Videos tab on the Fan page. So far, the page has a over 100,000 Fans, and is expected to reach their half million goal by the end of the month.

Now, McDonald’s, Chick-fil-A and Pizza Hut have all hit the 1 Million mark simply extending their current campaigns to the social media platform.  And from a social media marketing standpoint, this isn’t a groundbreaking approach.  But the fact that T.G.I. Fridays has created a character and campaign solely for Facebook is quite unique.

But that’s where my compliments take a turn to skepticism…

If you look at the entry form on the Woody fan page, they’re requesting email  addresses to send the free burger coupons to when the 500,000 has been reached.  Can anyone say marketing database? Sure, I’m okay with that… But then, there’s the next click.

When you submit your email address, the application asks for access to your Facebook profile information, photos, as well as all of your friends’ information!

For a free burger? No thank you.

Marketing database gathering? Phishing?  I don’t know, but that last step seemed to cross the line for me

Social media is about building community. Social media MARKETING is about building a community around your brand and it’s offerings.

I ask T.G.I. Fridays how will offering up all of my Facebook information help me feel closer to your brand? Sure, I get a free burger out of the deal (maybe), then what? (Enter your own spammy nightmare scenario here.)

Social media has made how people share personal information pretty liberal, but the line needs to be drawn somewhere. If companies want to use social media marketing to have me join in the conversation, they need to show authenticity, engagement and trustworthiness, not just dangle a free burger in my face…book.

Keep Cooking – TRUE Branding communities!
Andrew B. Clark
- The Brand Chef

What is your brand doing to maintain relevance to its audience?  If your / your company’s brand is dependent on continued exposure in a specific market, what are the steps you’re taking to maintain that contact and staying “top-of-mind?”

Back in “the day” it was a combination of marketing, advertising, public relations and good ol’ fortitude and gumption.  But today, that model has been twisted a bit.

The average consumer doesn’t have a lot of faith in “traditional” advertising (check out this Nielsen study).  Even online advertising has fallen to the wayside as far as credibility or trust is concerned.  And social media has pulled attention from traditional outlets with a force that was completely underestimated just two years ago.  Today, it’s more about connections, referrals, networking (online and off-line), and building credibility and trust through your brand relationships.

So, how do you maintain the “top-of-mind” awareness that your brand so desperately needs to survive?

Here are seven simple steps to staying socially top-of-mind:

1. Always Learn – Explore the latest trends and study the practitioners within your market.  Use that information to stay mentally sharp and abreast of how changes in your industry will be affecting you / your company and your customers.

2. Educate & Share – Pass what you’ve learned on to those that need it.  Whether it’s a small tip on social media techniques (re-tweet and comment often), or an article on market trends that would be relevant to a client; if you become a resource for knowledge, you’ll position yourself/company as a trusted leader in the marketplace.  And eventually they will come to you for more.

3. Engage – This is where the first two points come in handy.  The marketing world has turned into a giant conversation.  If you’re busy telling and not talking, you’ll quickly be shut out of the discussion.  “Engaging” is one of the four base criteria for TRUE Branding, and in this social media marketing world, Engagement is more necessary that ever.

4. Set Goals – This sounds like an obvious point, but I’ve seen too may stand at the edge of the chasm yelling and yelling just to hear the whisper of their own echo floating back at them.  Set a goal, a target with specific results in mind.  You can’t just set out telling your story unless you have a plot line to follow and a great ending for the audience to anticipate.

5. Build Measurable Tactics – Every goal you have will require tactics to execute.  To know the success or failure of those tactics, you need a mechanism for measuring.  Whether that’s web site traffic, office calls, client leads, or bodies through the showroom door; make sure you measure.

6. Compare, Refine  & Redo – With measurable results, you’ll better be able to find flaws in trend predictions.  You’ll have the ability to compare the results of one campaign to another.  If you’ve built success with one tactic, take that approach and modify it’s properties to suit another less-successful one and try it again.  When you’re reaching the right people and building a conversation with truly measured intentions, you’ll discover amazing results.

7. Keep Pushing – While trends are showing that social media and other tools are becoming bigger influences on many markets over traditional marketing channels (advertising, radio, print, TV, etc.); make sure that your market is truly being affected by the change.  If you pull your efforts from proven channels, your market could lose contact with your brand message. Then how top-of-mind would you be?

There are many, many more, but if you keep in mind these basic tips, you’ll be well on your way to maintaining great brand awareness.

Please…  Tell us what YOU do to to maintain top-of-mind awareness for your brand.  Is it community networking, cause marketing, something else?  We’d LOVE to hear from you.

Keep Cooking!
Andrew B. Clark
The Brand Chef

Before you delete that “junk mail,” you may want to reconsider…  And here’s why…

I’ll be the first to admit that I don’t get a lot of email through my Studio 24 site. I rarely look at it and it’s grossly out-of-date. When I do get email from there, it’s usually SPAM.  So, out of habit, I hit “delete” – without even reading!

REALLY BAD IDEA…

Recently, I almost messed up a HUGE opportunity for the Brand Chef blog to be included in some pretty heavy company.  It was a simple oversight, but looking back on it, I realize what a monstrous gaffe it would have been.

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On a quiet Sunday morning, over a bowl of Grape Nuts and a cup of coffee, I decided to weed out my in-box – after over a MONTH of negligence…

You know how it goes…  Facebook notice…  delete… delete…  Twitter…  delete…delete…delete…  SEO Guarantee…  delete…delete… I was in a pretty good groove!  “Special” offer…  delete… delete… “Need a Date?”…delete… delete…

and then…  BrandManagement.com… de-HUH?… I had to pause.

I read it again. “A Message from BrandManagement.com”

Edward Mance, Co-founder and CEO of BrandManagement.com sent me an email.  Odd. But odd because of the long path his message took…

Edward found me through my old blogspot blog, and subsequently through the form on the Studio 24 web site.  This simple fact shows that he made a concerted effort to contact me.

With the push of a button, the story could have ended there. But it didn’t.

As I opened the email and read, my jaw about hit the counter (thank God it didn’t, my mouth was full of partially chewed Grape Nuts)…  Brandmanagement.com was being launched in late May, and according to Mr. Mance,

” …a significant element of the site will be comprised of leading thought writers’ most current, daily/weekly works.“

And he continued on to say,

“In short, we love the blog entries on your site, and we would love to republish those entries on the BrandManagement.com site as they become available on your site…”

Wait a minute… Me? I had to read it two more times and once to my wife, just to clarify who it was really addressed to…  Not only was I honored, but I was astounded that someone else (besides me) thought I had something of value to say.

As I reviewed the site, I realized that Mr. Mance was including The Brand Chef in a pretty darn respectable group of branding consultants, professionals from advertising agencies, the marketing communications field and respected commentators and branding advocates – people that I’ve read and respected for years – Oliver Blanchard, Anna Farmery, Tom Fishburne,  Katie Konrath, Laura Ries,  Dan Schawbel, and Chris Wilson just to name a few!  Go here to see a full list.

I immediately gave Edward my contact information, my RSS feed and anything else he asked for (could have asked for my first-born son, I would have considered it).  And, low-and-behold, the site was launched, on schedule, and there I was, right next to some of the biggest names in branding commentary and blogging.

What’s my return?  Self respect.  And click-through traffic has jumped a bit, but the sheer fact that I was included is return enough for me (honestly).

So, as a direct message to Edward Mance, Thank you!

My lesson learned from this?  Be careful what you delete from your inbox, because opportunity may be knocking – albeit quietly.

Keep Cooking!
Andrew B. Clark
The Brand Chef