Sending press releases to various news websites, community business websites and online PR websites not only helps you drive traffic to your site but also is a great way to build more links to your website. In addition, Google is now showing press releases as part of their organic search results and if it is well optimized, your article may appear for several days after it’s release and add to any front page rankings that you currently have.

Here are some tips for writing and optimizing your press release online:

1: Keep It Interesting: When writing your press releases, try to consider if the copy is truly “newsworthy”. Many bloggers will subscribe to multiple PR websites, looking for topics to include in their own blog. If your release is compelling, they may blog about your article and include a link back to the copy. In addition, you have the chance to have a journalist find your business’s press release and cover the topic in their blog, website,  magazine or newspaper for added exposure.

2. Optimize the Copy: If you have an internal copywriter or have a company that writes your press releases, be sure to get the article to someone who specializes in writing search engine friendly copy. It is important that the message is not compromised when it is optimized, but be sure to target your business’s most important key phrases and utilize best practices for your links.

3. Include All Press Releases On Your Website: When distributing your press releases to the various online mediums, you will find that the size of the copy will be limited. For that reason, include a full, detailed version of the press release on your company website, complete with a  name, email and phone for your media contact. Link to this page on your website on every press release that you release online.

4. Track Your Results: Monitor your referral traffic in your website analytics programs to see what online PR sites are sending you the most traffic. In addition, sign up for online alerts, such as Google Alerts, to know when websites and blogs are picking up and distributing your press release.

Press releases can be a great way to boost your search engine optimization efforts, in addition to increasing your online traffic and exposure. There is no set rule as to how often you should be releasing a press release,  but it is important to announce any accomplishments, awards or buzz-worthy news about your business or organization. Be sure to optimize the release and when it’s time to release the article, explore the online options methods of distributions to decide whether the free or paid route is best for your budget and marketing goals.

For more information on writing press releases or how to distribute them to increase your search engine exposure, contact a&g Digital Consulting at 317–417-7070.

One Less Login is an online web and marketing tool that will let the user:

• Manage your web site

• Sell products or services on your website through our PCI compliant e-commerce platform

• Track your website statistics, such as visitors, keywords searched, and location of the visitor

• Run detailed reports including website sales, email opt-ins, customer behavior and more

• Utilize blogging and email marketing campaigns (up to 10,000 emails per month included)

• Use our built in customer management tool to store visitors and online leads in your database, track phone calls and appointments.

One Less Login is great for business that either sell products online, or need a user-friendly way to track activity on your website.  It’s very easy to use, and you’ll no longer have to import and export information and designs from one system to another.  This is an affordable web site that you can build in under an hour and maintain, with one login.  If you choose, our team of professional designers, located in Indianapolis, Indiana, can design your site for you at an additional charge.

To see learn more or to sign up for a 30 day free trial, visit www.onelesslogin.com today, or call 317-417-7070.

a&g offers an affordable all-in-one online business solution, with prices ranging from $59-$99 a month

Any time I hear about a pup that needs rescued, I will post it in this category. If I can help even one animal find a great family for the rest of their life, I will be happy.

Katy (Keady for all of you Purdue fans) – UPDATE – KATY WAS ADOPTED ON 6-28-2010!

Katy and her new Dad, Sam

Katy enjoying the Spring flowers

Female – spayed

Approx. 1 Year old

43 pounds

Vaccines are up to date

Crate trained, good on a leash, house trained, rides great in a car, loves her belly rubbed

Hi! My name is Katy. I was recently rescued from a shelter where it is overcrowded. I got out just in the nick of time! I am now living in a foster home and my foster mom and dad are in love with me and would love to see me go to a home that can send them updates on how great I am doing. I am a very sweet girl. The vet said that I am about 1 year old. I was found wandering the streets but everyone knows that I have had a home at some point because I know how to go outside to potty and I even know how to sit. My foster mom is working to teach me a few other commands. Sometimes I jump up to get your attention but my favorite thing to do is to flop on my back and get my belly rubbed. I should probably be in a house with older kids because if I get really excited, I might knock down a smaller kid. My foster mom is also crate training me so that I have a nice bed to sleep on during the day.

I walk very well on a leash and love to go for a walk. I am living with a few other dogs right now. I like to play with them but if they get too close to my food or my toys, I might growl. I am not used to having good stuff and I want to keep what’s mine! I have also been known to chase a cat or two, so I might do better in a home without cats. Do you want to meet me? Call 317-417-7070.

This was taken on Katy's first night at our house.

Male -neutered

Approx. 4 Years old

Vaccines are up to date

Crate trained, good on a leash, house trained, plays well with kids, knows how to fetch, loves car rides

Buddy is a very friendly, intelligent and outgoing 4 year old lab/chow mix named Buddy. He has been at the shelter since Valentine’s Day of 2009 and is really starting to show the effects of the stress and tension. If you come to meet him do not be surprised if he is spinning in his cage as unfortunately that is how dogs cope with the stress. Don’t let that sway you from meeting him because it will be a wonderful surprise to learn all Buddy has to offer a family.

This guy loves meeting new people, gets along well with kids, walks wonderfully on a leash, and plays fetch. He knows the commands sit, down and shake. He is very treat motivated so the possibilities are endless on all the other tricks he can learn for you. Buddy does have separation anxiety, but this IS easily correctable if you have the time and patience. Buddy comes with a crate and a blanket when you adopt him and it is recommended that he be crate trained following adoption. He will learn that his family always comes back and it won’t be so hard for him when the family does leave. Or you can just bring him along: he loves to travel in the car. With his high sociability, why would you want to leave him home anyway? Buddy is a real charmer and a ladies’ man as he prefers female dogs in the home with him.

Come by and spend some time with Buddy, he is neutered, house trained and ready to jump in that car with a tennis ball in his mouth and go home with you today.

1. DON’T think that adding keyword mega tags to the pages in your website will make a huge different in Google’s eyes.  Google has actually stated on their blog that adding keyword meta tags to your site will not affect your ranking in their engine.

DO created a targeted and description title and description for your website. This information is used to determine how your particular listing is displayed and while it might not help your rankings, it will help the user get a better idea of the contents of your website. Also, just because Google doesn’t use the keyword tag, doesn’t mean that other engines won’t. Try to keep your tag to around 15 keywords to less, with copy targeted to that particular page.

2. DON’T stuff your pages full of keywords from top to bottom. This creates a bad user experience and even if it helps your site move up in the rankings, you may lose the customer because the page is cluttered and unfriendly to use.

DO choose 4 or 5 keywords that pertain to each individual page and work them in to the prominent areas including header and sub header tags and title tags.  Try to look at the page like a consumer and ask yourself, “Would I want to stay on this page or move on to a cleaner site?”

3. DON’T fall for link building scams. Have you ever received any of those random emails which ask you to swap links with a website that little or nothing to do with your website? These emails are typically sent from those who are building links in an intentional attempt to increase their rankings and Google frowns upon that technique.

DO build quality relationships with other websites that may be of use to your website visitors.  For example, we are currently working on some websites for a group of real estate agents. A great way to build a linking relationship is for them to contact some of their partners in the industry, such as mortgage companies, home repair businesses or moving companies, and ask them if they would like to add each other’s websites to their own as a preferred vendor. Not only will your customers appreciate the resources, but you will also show Google that your website is being promoted by another website.

4. DON’T create a blog just because you think you need to have one. Blogs can be a great way to add relevant content to your site but you need to be aware of the purpose of each post.

DO post information that will be useful for customers who could potentially be looking for your company or business type and utilize the post tags function for each entry. Post tags are great way to tell the searches engines about the content of your particular entry so keep your top search phrases in mind as you are writing your copy.

If you live in the Cass County area or just want to help to support a great cause, plan on attending “Raise the Woof” at the Memorial Home in Logansport, Indiana.  a&g Digital Consulting will be donating a small business web design package to the fundraiser’s auction.

Date: Saturday, April 3, 2010 from 7:00pm-9:00pm
Location: Cass County Memorial Home | 706 E. Market | Logansport, IN 46947

• Silent and Live Auction
• Appetizers will be served and a cash bar will be provided by Amelio’s
• Entertainment by “Interplay” Featuring Ned Boyd

Monetary Donations welcome at the door and the proceeds will be used for the construction of the new Cass County Humane Society

UPDATE
Here is a list of the silent and live auction items available at the Raise the Woof event. Support the Cass County Humane Society and walk away with some great items:

~Silent Auction Items~
Soft touch Car Wash~certificate
Imperial Travel~bus trip
Springcreek Landscaping~certificate
Danely Stump eaters~certificate
Pharos-Tribune~certificate
Leffert Stone Company~Mulch or Stone certificate
IRT-Play Tickets
Dykeman Park Golf Course~ rounds of golf & cart
Engineering Aggregates certificate
Logan Roller Rink~skating party
Warners – Rozzi’s Greenhouse~certificate
YMCA~month membership
Maxx Tan~month of tanning
Kreuzberger Jewelers~purdue checkbook
Leffert Stone~certificate for mulch or stone
Logansport Golf Club~2 rounds of golf & cart
Dog and Cat Vase painted By Karen Smith
House of Beauty~haircut,wax,tanning
Hand painted birdhouse By Amber Michaels
Village Peddler~purse
Date Night-B&K West-Char-Betts-Family Video-McClure’s
Dale Hardy’s~Carhart sweatshirt
Fernbaughs Jewelers~mens watch
Cass County Animal Hospital~boarding,spay or neuter
Tammy’s Grooming~bath & groom
Angi Turnpaugh~Photo Package
Oakridge Farms~dog & cat food
Kent Feeds~Dog & Cat Food
Michael’s Pizza certificate
Sycamore~certificate
Logan Tire~car alignment
Tom Maggert~car clean
Partridge~floor care basket
Sesame Street(Elmo) Play Tickets
Myers Sport Bowl~gift certificate
The Look By Lynsey~haircut
Handcrafted Bird house By Larry Allread
Handcrafted Cornhole game By Larry Allread
Stolte Pools & Spas~mineral system
Adidas Wear
Indiana University~ Coaching shirts
Handcrafted Lamp~By Bob Brown
Dye Lumber
Top Hat Chimney
Peatie Bait & Tackle~rod & real
DDC Photo~photo package
Tye Dye Sheets-By Berkley
Graymill- gift certificate

~Live Auction Items~
The Gallery Home Furnishings~Ashley Rocker Recliner
Arnold’s Fine Jewelry & Gifts~Diamond Earrings
A&G Digital Consulting~Web Design Package

The future site for the new Cass County Humane Society

INDIANAPOLIS, IN (March 11, 2010) – Tomato Fish Marketing, a marketing and design firm and a&g Digital Consulting, LLC, a web design and online marketing firm, announced their strategic partnership to collectively offer their clients a complete online business solution.  TFM and a&g will be able to help their clients improve their overall branding and increase sales conversions through quality leads through a combination of strategic online marketing planning and implementation.

About Tomato Fish Marketing
Tomato Fish Marketing is an Indianapolis-based WBE certified marketing and design consulting firm delivering a holistic approach to online marketing communications since 2005.  The goal of Tomato Fish Marketing is to positively impact the quality of marketing and design for non-profit and for-profit organizations through their TOMI System™ (Targeted Online Marketing & Implementation). This system provides a comprehensive approach to marketing with a focus on creating strong marketing foundations and qualified leads.  What the heck, you may ask, is a “tomato fish”?  Go to www.tomatofishmktg.com to hear their story and learn about their services.

About a&g Digital Consulting
a&g Digital Consulting is a marketing firm, specializing in web design and online marketing. Working with businesses throughout Indiana, they are able to bring over 12 years of experience in designing, developing and marketing websites.  The goal of a&g is to become the full service solution for the web and marketing needs for B2C businesses.  While offering a complete list of website design and development services, a&g focuses on the post-launch marketing, maintenance and tracking of their client’s websites. For more information visit a&g online at www.consultagc.com.

Contacts

While the numbers show that many consumers are using social media to shop online, another report shows that the consumers are loyal to just a handful of brands. 61% of shoppers focus their attention on 1-5 retailers or brands, while only 21% focus on 6-10 brands.

To find out how you can create a social network marketing plan for your business, contact a&g Digital Consulting.

Your business will want to present a clear path to the visitor which will direct them to whatever you consider your conversion point. This can be anything you wish, but you want to focus on something that is measurable. Some examples include driving a visitor to fill out a lead generation form, make an online purchase or even call a specific phone number on the page.

Here are a few tips to create better converting landing pages:

1. Keep it targeted – Keep the copy on your landing page targeted to the source of the lead. For example, if you are using pay per click advertising, and a customer clicks on your ad for the keyword “Geist Web Design”, the resulting landing page should reflect your web design services that you offer to Geist businesses. Another example would be if you were to send out a mail piece, driving the recipient to a specific landing page with a 25% off discount. For the best conversion possible, reflect that same 25% offer on the landing page and offer a conversion point, such as a lead gen form or online ordering option.

2. Keep it simple – The last thing that you want on a landing page is for the visitor to be distracted. Your goal is to make the page clean and to the point and make it very clear as to what you would like them to do. This would include excluding any loud backgrounds, visual embellishments, online video or animations that could distract them from the conversion point.

3. Track your results – If you are an active follower of your website analytics, you will quickly be able to spot the traffic that is being directed to your landing page. This is typically monitored through the entry page portion of your analytic program. This will help you gauge the number of visitors that coming in to your page, but from there, it is important to monitor your conversions. Again, this can be an online order, an online inquiry or a phone call. If you are using a phone number, try to use a unique number, if at all possible. If you are using a lead generation form, be sure to customize the form so that you know where it came from.

For more information about creating effective landing pages for your online and offline marketing campaigns, contact Angie Commorato at 317-417-7070.

If you are not familiar with the Twitter Counter website, it is a great resource.  Use this website to find out all kinds of great information including individual twitter account stats, most popular accounts and lists and now and twitter account comparisons.  Recently, a new tool was released to allow you to be notified if your twitter username becomes available. There has been recent talk about an upcoming release of a number of old and unused Twitter usernames. When then is going to happen is not exactly known, but if you have been waiting for a particular name, now is the time to visit TwitterCounter.com.

Here is how it works:

Step 1: Visit www.TwitterCounter.com and enter the username in the box at the top.

Step 2:  Click on “Claim this username” on the resulting page.

Step 3:  Enter your email address and click “Notify me”.

That’s all there is to it.  They will now notify you if and when your username is released.

1. WPtouch iPhone theme plugin: Are you unhappy with the way that your Wordpress blog looks on your iPhone, Droid or Blackberry? This plugin allows you to view your site on your mobile device using an alternate iPhone style theme. This theme also allows the user to switch to your regular theme if they choose.

Download it at: http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/wptouch/

2. Sexy comments plugin: According to the description, this plugin allows you to “sexify your comments” section of your blog, including optional avatars, an Ajax comment preview and CSS override. There are lots of customization options and this plugin will save some coding time.

Download it at: http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/sexy-comments/

3. My Page Order plugin: If you are not a PHP coder or don’t want to mess with the actual theme code, use this plugin to set the display order of your pages with a drag and drop interface. It’s easy to use and again, saves some coding time.

Download it at: http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/my-page-order/

4. Google Analyticator plugin: This plugin allows you to easily implement your Google Analytics code to your blog, adding the necessary Javascript to the pages. It also allows you to pull basic stats through your Wordpress admin.

Download it at: http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/google-analyticator/

5. Broken Link Checker plugin: If you are not regularly checking your blog analytics, be sure to download this plugin. It will alert you to any broken pages or images on your blog. No one enjoys the dreaded 404 error.

Download it at: http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/broken-link-checker/

These are just a few of the nearly 8,000 plugins available. To shop the full list, visit the Wordpress plugin directory.