How One Client Lost 50% of their Traffic (And How You Can Avoid the Same Fate)

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How the Google Penguin Update is affecting small businesses.

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In the last three weeks, a new client lost 50% of their traffic.

They made some questionable decisions (before working with me), and now they’re being penalized.

Some of you may have seen traffic drop (or rise) significantly in the past three weeks as well.

Losing 50% of your traffic overnight can be devastating in a competitive industry. In my client’s case, that translates to losing thousands of dollars.

Here’s why they lost so much traffic, and how you can learn from their mistakes.

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Why Most Small Businesses Shouldn’t Waste their Time with Pinterest

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Should small businesses use Pinterest for business?

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“Journalists” drive me nuts.

If you want to understand someone’s motivation, then look at how they’re compensated.

Journalists are in the business of getting more pageviews. That’s how they get paid by advertisers.

The only metric traditional publishers care about online is pageviews. I’ve experienced this first-hand by working directly with a multi-million dollar media company.

So journalists specifically choose topics that will drive more visits and increase pageviews. And when a topic becomes “trendy” or “hot”, other journalists jump on and ride the wave.

You’ve probably seen this the past few months with Pinterest. It seems like you can’t go a day without reading another article on “how important it is” or “how you should be using it”.

But here’s the deal.

I don’t care about driving pageviews to make advertisers happy. That’s not how I make money.

I make money by providing advice, and services based on that advice, to help businesses grow. And if my advice isn’t good, then I don’t get paid.

So here’s some advice when it comes to Pinterest:

Don’t waste your time.

Here’s why.

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How to Create Attention-Grabbing Content for a “Boring” Industry

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How to create blog content ideas for a boring industry

Is your industry more boring than a hardware and appliance store?

Content marketing is the backbone of improving your marketing ROI.

And a blog writer can get more traffic, leads and customers than advertising.

But what if you’re in a “boring” industry. You know, the type where no one reads or shares anything.

Is content marketing still important?

And if so, how do you create content that will actually bring in business?

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The Oprah Guide to Using Social Media to Build Her Business

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Oprah social media

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Oprah has one of the biggest audiences of any TV personality.

And it’s not by accident.

She’s worked tirelessly for years on building a platform for her engaged followers. Some of her methods have been analyzed through a marketing lens in Chris Brogan and Julien Smith’s Trust Agents.

But on her new show, Lifeclass, she’s taken her social media use to the next level.

And her lessons can provide brands and businesses of all shapes and sizes, new insights into using social media to build their businesses.

Here’s how Oprah is taking advantage, and how you can do the same.

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How to Launch a New Website and Start Getting Traffic Immediately

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New website launch and immediate traffic.

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Website traffic doesn’t just fall from the sky.

That makes getting a new website off the ground extremely difficult.

You’re desperate for traffic, so you start picking up the latest tactics you keep reading about like Pinterest.

But here’s the thing most people miss.

Not all traffic is created equal.

So who cares if you did actually get 10,000 visitors one day from StumbleUpon or Pinterest. Because this type of traffic bounces immediately and never returns.

Instead you need to build consistent, loyal traffic if you want people to join your mailing list and actually buy something.

So forget about magic potions and secret formulas to flood your site with traffic. Here’s how you can build consistent, high quality traffic by taking proactive steps each day.

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3 Things American Express Can Teach You About Social Media

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American Express Social Media

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Traditional newspapers and magazines only serve one purpose: to grab and hold your attention.

That’s exactly how content marketing and social media work. Your goal when using these techniques is to get people’s attention and gain their trust.

American Express understands this perfectly.

For years, they’ve been at the leading edge of making digitally savvy moves. And a recent Mashable article has highlighted some specific strategies that drive their success.

Here are 3 things American Express can teach you about social media.

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How to Improve Your Marketing ROI with Inbound Marketing

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Marketing ROI

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Internet marketing is all the rage today.

People love to hail that “Content is King”, and social media is the Second Coming.

But what does it mean in dollars and cents?

Why is it really important? And how does it work?

It turns out, there is some truth in the hype. Inbound marketing creates a marketing asset that appreciates in value over time, and scales more effectively than paid channels or outbound marketing.

But it’s not that easy. There’s an important caveat that you need to beware of for it to work correctly.

Let’s take a look, and see how blogging really pays off.

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Why Your Next Hire Needs to Be a Blog Writer

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Blog Writer

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You’ve heard that “content is king”.

And you’ve also heard that it’s the backbone of online marketing.

But you still don’t blog. There are usually three reasons:

  1. You don’t have time.
  2. Your industry is “boring”
  3. Your customers won’t read or don’t care

Bull. Shit.

All of these are just excuses. And they’re all incorrect. (As in, not true or valid statements).

I’m going to prove it to you in this post.

And I’m going to show you why your next hire should be a blog writer.

Here goes.

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Are You in Control of Your Company’s Future? 22 Ways to Get Started and Take Action Today

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Sales Channel Strategy

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Most businesses have a weak web presence.

That means their website doesn’t sell, you can’t find them in search results, and they have no social footprint.

Why?

The most common answer is because they sell through “traditional channels”. So they don’t need (or want) a web presence.

They rely on word-of-mouth referrals, a brick-and-mortar retail store, or other online sales channels like Expedia for all of their business.

That’s a huge mistake.

Here’s why, and 22 ways you can start taking action today.

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