Viral video marketing and Will It Blend

Thank you, thank you! I *really* appreciate all of the comments on my last post: Freelance Writer Needs a Break. Um, I can’t believe it has taken me two months to write my final blog entry—I obviously need a break from writing for a while. :-)

What’s “a while?” I’m not sure yet; I’ll see what Q1 2008 brings…But before I go, here are a few more Internet marketing resources that may help you:

Tag, You're It! Tagging content on social sites is serious business.
(My October 2007 column for Entrepreneur magazine)

Listen Up! Want to be heard? Here are 5 simple ways to promote your podcast.
(My November 2007 column for Entrepreneur magazine)

Search Engine Visibility
(Book by Shari Thurow; second edition now available)

Mastering Panama (Yahoo!)
(Special report by Mona Elesseily)

Radically Transparent: Monitoring and Managing Reputations Online
(Book by Andy Beal & Judy Strauss—due out in March 2008)

Entrepreneur’s “Women in Charge” conference, January 29, 2008 in Miami
(Pitch your business to the magazine editors, attend educational sessions and network with other women entrepreneurs. I’ll be teaching “Online Marketing” and hope to see you there!)

It’s a beautiful evening here in California. No hot, dry winds. Instead, storm clouds blanket the sky, bringing a refreshing coolness to the air. I’m drinking a hot latte topped with chocolate raspberry creamer and I’m listening to holiday music. I know it’s early! But I can’t help it. It’s that kind of day.

Thank you again for reading my articles, books, newsletter and/or blog. I wish you a very Happy Holiday and a BRILLIANT New Year!

Cat

Okay, onto my final Q&A…

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QUESTION: In a recent seminar, you mentioned NOT to do hard sales pitches in online videos. You made reference to Dove, which is obviously using their foundation to get the PR, but I seem to see blatant abuse of the non-commercial use and just want to help my coaching clients when it comes to this issue.

~ John Hollner, Hollner Promotions


CAT’S ANSWER: Whoops—thanks for giving me the chance to clarify, John. Your clients can use video to grow their business. But I don’t recommend creating an in-your-face, “BUY NOW!” ad. Viewers want information, entertainment, maybe both. For video to go viral, think infotainment.

Here’s a fun commercial example: Will It Blend? by Blendtec. Watch the company’s CEO, Tom Dickson, blend golf balls, marbles, or a Chuck Norris action figure (that’s my favorite). Several months ago, when Tom blended an iPhone, publications like Engadget, PC World and InfoWorld talked about it. So did thousands of bloggers.

I just interviewed George Wright (Marketing Director for Blendtec), about the success of this campaign. Here’s what he said I can share with you:

* Since the launch of the Will It Blend? marketing campaign in November 2006, Blendtec’s Total Blender online sales have increased by 500% -- the Will It Blend? campaign is the single biggest factor in the increase.

* Interestingly, the Will It Blend? campaign started as a brand awareness campaign.

* Video views from YouTube and WillItBlend.com total nearly 70 million views.

* Now, you can buy the video series for $9.93. This DVD offers the first 50 videos, out-takes, un-released video footage and additional information about the marketing campaign. This product was released in July and has already sold a few hundred copies.

* Blendtec is working with other companies to create co-branded video clips.

Hmm…I wonder what they’ll blend next?

Thanks, John, for your question. Thank you, George, for sharing information on Blendtec’s viral video marketing success. And thank you again to everyone who has stopped by to read my blog.
To Your Online Success!
Catherine (“Cat”) Seda

Freelance Writer Needs a Break

It’s true...I’m retiring.

Well, sort of. I need a break from writing. I’ve had “writer’s burnout” since I finished my second book How to Win Sales & Influence Spiders (which has already helped thousands of readers—YAY).

It’s also time for me to create better work/life balance. I want my weekends back! If you’re a hard-working entrepreneur, you can probably relate. That said, with a full consulting schedule and a little wiggle room to speak at conferences, I’m cutting back on writing to reclaim my weekends. Ahhh…

I’ll write just one more Q&A newsletter/blog post after this (you can visit Entrepreneur.com to read my “Net Sales” column through December. Yup, I’m even taking a break from my Entrepreneur column—I’ve enjoyed five fabulous years with the magazine).

Can I ask you for a favor?

Have my articles, books or newsletter been helpful? If so, could you share a comment on my blog? I’d love to hear from you! It really makes my day to know my tips are helping my fellow entrepreneurs.

P.S. Want my 3 favorite money-saving tips for pay-per-click? Visit my blog to watch my 5-minute video interview with Dr. Ralph Wilson. Don’t miss it. :-)

To Your Online Success!

Catherine (“Cat”) Seda
12-Year Internet & Search Marketing Strategist
Entrepreneur Columnist

Paid Reviews on Blogs

Want a guaranteed review of your product or service? Why not pay for it? My September 2007 "Net Sales" column for Entrepreneur magazine explores this opportunity. If you've used one of these services (or others), can you share a tip or two? Did it work for you?

September 2007

Pay the Piper?

Paying bloggers to review your product could lead to fame--or shame.

A good review is gold. Unfortunately, getting a journalist to write about your product or service is not guaranteed. Wish it could be? Well, you can pay for reviews--not by journalists, but by bloggers. Proceed with caution, though: This emerging tactic has some tricky implications.

The first step is to find bloggers who write reviews. You can contact the top bloggers in your industry who do this and offer them cash. You can also use sites like Blogsvertise, PayPerPost.com, ReviewMe and SponsoredReviews.com. These sites specialize in connecting advertisers with bloggers who are paid to write reviews and link to your site.

Here's how they work: After creating an account, you write a request describing what you want reviewed. You can usually specify the bloggers' qualifications, such as a minimum Google PageRank, Alexa score and/or Technorati ranking.

Today's pay range is anywhere from $5 to $1,000 per review. The paid review sites also charge a service fee, typically a percentage or dollar amount per post.

Does paying for a review undermine its credibility? Some bloggers have blasted other bloggers for accepting money to write reviews. Some bloggers have blasted the advertisers. These bloggers believe paid reviews are automatically slanted in the advertiser's favor. To minimize potential backfire, follow these guidelines:

* Choose blogs that are relevant to your product or service.

* Choose a paid review site that requires disclosure from bloggers.

* Don't choose bloggers or paid review sites that provide only positive feedback.

* Set a reasonable review fee; too little could get you a generic-sounding review, whereas too much could get you one that is overly promotional.

This emerging tactic blurs the line between editorial and advertising. To play it safe, be sure you're paying to get the review but not to control the content. Even with a risk factor, the potential pay-offs are powerful: feedback, buzz, traffic, link love--and most important, the opinion of an influential audience.

© Entrepreneur

Podcast and New Media Expo

Have you tried podcast advertising? If so, please share a tip or two with my blog readers. We'd love to hear from you!

Want to learn about podcasting and videocasting? Then attend the upcoming Podcast and New Media Expo show in California next month. The conference is only $299 for three days! I already registered (I heard the show sold out last year). Hope to see you there…

Podcast Ads

You don’t need to publish podcasts to profit from them. Try podcasts ads! In my article this month for Entrepreneur magazine, I share the surprisingly low costs of podcasting advertising and several companies that can help you reach a tuned-in audience.


Cast Your Line
Fishing for some customers? Podcast a line and make a sales catch.

Advertising on audio or video podcasts is a great way to deliver your message to an audience that's tuned in. An ad can appear preroll (before content) or postroll (after content). Or you can opt for a midroll (also called interstitial) ad, which is inserted within the content. Generally speaking, you need an MP3 file for audio and a QuickTime or Windows Media Player file for video.

Podcasting companies such as Kiptronic, Podtrac and RadioTail may give you demographic and geographic targeting options. And you might get to choose particular podcasts, too. Make sure to get post-campaign reports, which often include details like the number of podcast downloads, download origins and post-download activity, such as the number of clicks or purchases.

What's the cost? Expect to pay anywhere from $10 to $70 CPM (cost per thousand impressions, which in this case refers to the cost per thousand podcast downloads). The campaign minimum could start as low as $1,000. However, one podcast company executive we talked to said $10,000 is a recommended test campaign budget.

© Entrepreneur

Want More Business? Answer a Question.

In your business, do prospects ask you questions?

I bet they do! And I bet that you often turn those prospects into clients. So, why not answer questions on the web to attract more business?

Do you know about Yahoo! Answers? It’s an online community that lets you answer visitors’ questions. What a helpful way to showcase your expertise! And if visitors vote for your answer, you earn points to boost your reputation even more.

I’ll confess…I don’t know Yahoo! Answers. But Manny Hernandez does! He’s an Internet marketer who uses it to raise awareness for www.TuDiabetes.com, his global community for people touched by diabetes. Manny shares these proven tips:

* Find Your Niche
Use the site’s search engine to find highly-targeted topics. It’s easier to show your expertise as a specialist rather than a generalist.

* Answer Questions Often
If you want points, log in every day to answer one question—you’ll get one point a day by doing this. If you can’t do this, try to answer at least one question once a week. Obviously, the more questions you answer, the more you shine. For more info on the point system, visit: http://answers.yahoo.com/info/scoring_system

* Avoid “YES/NO” Answers
Almost any answer at least one paragraph long is an excellent candidate for a “Best Answer” vote (worth 10 points). Because “Yes/No” answers aren’t usually helpful, you won’t likely get “big” points (or business) for giving this kind of answer.

* Vote on Others’ Answers
It’s always a good idea to recognize the good work of others. Yahoo! rewards you for it. By voting for someone else’s answer, you’ll get one point.

* Only Link When Appropriate
Yes, you can link to other resources on the web, including yours, from within your answer. But don’t lace every answer with a link to your site because that’s spam. Never blatantly advertise your products or services—EVER.

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Thanks Manny!

LinkedIn also has a similar service called “LinkedIn Answers.” Check out Manny Hernandez' Internet marketing blog about this topic.

Several of my family members have diabetes. Once while in a store with my dad a few months after his stroke, I mistook his low sugar attack for fatigue. Had an ambulance not been called, I would have driven him home to take a nap; he would have slipped into a diabetic coma and died. After that scary experience, I learned from other diabetics that while in a low or high sugar state diabetics might not remember if or when they last ate or took insulin. I hope communities like TuDiabetes.com can help get life-saving information like this out to the world. Congratulations on reaching almost 600 members!

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The 10% Lunch Video Contest

How's this for a contest: create the winning 30-60 second video inspired by BizzFlip's blog The 10% Lunch, and you'll own 10%, in private stock, of BizzFlip.

Whadda think?

Internet Legend Dr Ralph Wilson

WOW. Today, my book was given a "thumbs up" by Internet legend Dr. Ralph Wilson. Thank you, thank you!

SEO Your Blog

Want to know a simple SEO technique for blogs? Learn about “permalinks” in my July 2007 “Net Sales” column for Entrepreneur magazine (below). Has this technique worked for you? Please share your results!

Site Unseen?

To attract customers near and far, optimize your blog for search engines.

Search engines send out spiders to crawl the web looking for web pages to add to their databases. Blogs are spider magnets, especially if they have freshly updated content and links pointing to them--two delicious ingredients, according to spiders. But with more than 100,000 blogs being born every day, content and links aren't all you need to catapult your blog to the top of search results. Your blog must also be optimized.

Start by putting relevant keywords in the titles of your blog posts. For example, let's say you publish a blog about interior design. An effective title for one of your posts could be "Designer Home Accessories." This way, these keywords will become associated with that blog entry.

The blog publishing tool you use should create a unique web page for each post you write. That means the post title you choose usually becomes that post's permanent URL, called a permalink. For example, the permalink for a post titled "Designer Home Accessories" could look something like blogname.com/designer-home-accessories. See why it's so important to use good keywords?

Wait, it gets better: When someone looks up a keyword in a search engine or blog engine, your post can appear as a top search result. The title of your post becomes the title of the listing shown. And your permalink appears as the URL of that web page. Not only will humans see what your post is about before they read it, but so will those all-important search engine spiders.

But be careful! Don't repeat your core keywords in every post you write. That's considered spam. When optimizing your blog (or website) for search engines, think humans before spiders. If what you write is illogical or annoying for people to read because of your repetitive use of keywords, it's definitely spam--and is not a good way to win customers.

© Entrepreneur