ACFE n1876204 v1 Learn Local Communications and Marketing Training Manual - FINAL

July 2011
LEARN LOCAL - MARKETING WORKSHOP
MODULE ONE: GETTING READY BRAND IDENTITY ........................................................... 1 YOUR BRAND OR POSITIONING ....................................... 1 LEARN LOCAL ............................................................. 2 YOUR AUDIENCES .......................................................... 3 ADDRESSABLE AND AWARENESS ..................................... 3 RESEARCH ..................................................................... 6 RESEARCH METHODS................................................... 6 RESEARCH ANALYSIS .................................................. 11 MODULE RECAP........................................................... 11 POWERPOINT SLIDES ................................................... 12
MAJOR MEDIA CONTACT DETAILS ................................ 38 POWERPOINT SLIDES ................................................... 48
MODULE FOUR: WEBSITES UNDERSTANDING WEBSITES ........................................ 51 INTRODUCTION ......................................................... 51 MOVEMENT: THE MERGING OF MARKETING DIGITAL PRACTICES ............................................................... 51 WHERE IS DIGITAL AT NOW? ...................................... 52 MAKING SENSE OF THE JARGON .................................... 53 CONTENT MANAGEMENT ............................................ 55 UNDERSTANDING YOUR WEBSITE NEEDS ..................... 56 THE USER JOURNEY...................................................... 57
MODULE TWO: MARKETING 101 GIVING STRENGTH TO YOUR STORY ............................. 16 A PERSONABLE APPROACH CASE STUDIES ...................... 16 CHOOSING AND COMPARING TACTICS......................... 17 WHAT ARE THE OPTIONS FOR MARKETING TACTICS? .......... 17 DEVELOPING PARTNERSHIPS ........................................ 18 EVENTS / OPEN DAYS ................................................ 19 EMAILS .................................................................. 19 PRINTED MATERIALS, BROCHURES, LEAFLETS, FLYERS. ......... 20 WORD-OF-MOUTH ................................................... 20 ADVERTISING ........................................................... 20 COMPETITIONS ........................................................ 21 EXHIBITIONS OR DISPLAYS ........................................... 22 SPONSORSHIP .......................................................... 22 HOW DO WE CHOOSE AND WHAT IS A GOOD MIX OF TACTICS? ..................................................................... 23 CHEAP AND FREE WAYS TO MARKET............................ 23 MARKETING SHORTCUTS ............................................. 24 HOW CAN I GET HELP?................................................. 24 MODULE RECAP........................................................... 24 POWERPOINT SLIDES ................................................... 28
GETTING YOUR WEBSITE WORKING HARDER ................ 58 GETTING YOUR CONTENT WORKING HARDER .................... 59 IMAGES AND COPY ..................................................... 60 WEBSITE TOP TIPS .................................................... 61 E-NEWSLETTER ............................................................ 62 UNDERSTANDING EDMS ............................................ 62 E-NEWSLETTER TOP TIPS ............................................ 63 POWERPOINT SLIDES ................................................... 66
MODULE FIVE: SEO AND GOOGLE SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMISATION ................................... 75 UNDERSTANDING SEO ............................................... 75 WHEN TO IMPLEMENT SEO......................................... 77 HOW TO IMPLEMENT SEO .......................................... 78 SOME MORE ABOUT KEYWORDS ................................... 81 DYNAMIC CONTENT ..................................................... 82 WHAT IS LINK BUILDING? ............................................. 84 GOOGLE....................................................................... 86 WEB ANALYTICS ....................................................... 86 GOOGLE GOES LOCAL ................................................ 89 WHAT IS GOOGLE PLACES? ......................................... 90 POWERPOINT SLIDES ................................................... 92
MODULE THREE: MEDIA ABOUT THE MEDIA ...................................................... 32 HOW THE MEDIA OPERATES ......................................... 32 STORY IDEAS ............................................................ 33 DOS AND DONTS OF WORKING WITH THE MEDIA .............. 34 WRITING MEDIA MATERIALS........................................ 35 MEDIA RELEASE FUNDAMENTALS .................................. 35 THE STRUCTURE OF A MEDIA RELEASE............................. 35 MODULE RECAP........................................................... 37
MODULE SIX: SOCIAL MEDIA SOCIAL MEDIA ............................................................. 98 SOCIAL MEDIA REVOLUTION ........................................ 98 UNDERSTANDING THE SOCIAL MEDIA MOVEMENT ............ 98 HOW SOCIAL MEDIA AFFECTS THE WAY WE DO BUSINESS ..... 99 ARE YOU READY FOR SOCIAL MEDIA? .......................... 101 DEVELOPING A SOCIAL MEDIA PLAN ............................ 101
FACEBOOK................................................................. 105 IS FACEBOOK SUITABLE FOR YOUR NEEDS AND AUDIENCES? 105 HOW DOES FACEBOOK COMPARE AND COEXIST WITH MY WEBSITE? ..............................................................107 TWITTER .................................................................... 108 IS IT SUITABLE? .......................................................108 BUSINESS TIPS FOR TWITTER ..................................... 109 TYING IT ALL TOGETHER............................................. 111 WHERE DO YOU BEGIN? ............................................111 GENERAL TIPS............................................................ 113 POWERPOINT SLIDES ................................................. 117
Purpose
The Learn Local Marketing Workshop 2011 Participants Manual has been developed to provide information, tools and resources to Learn Local organisations to assist them in their marketing efforts. The Manual has been divided into Seven Modules to ensure ease of reference: One: Two: Getting Ready Marketing 101
Three: Media Four: Websites SEO and Google Analytics Social Media
MODULE SEVEN: GETTING STARTED GETTING STARTED: .................................................... 121
Five: Six:
Seven: Closing Each Module is a stand-alone section, and can be referred to indivually or integrated with the full manual as a marketing resource. It was developed by Royce Pty Ltd, marketing and communications advisors, and Loud&Clear, digital experts, on behalf of Adult, Community and Further Information.
Module 1
Brand Identity
There are many definitions of brand. However, we like to think of brand as a perception built over time and based on peoples experiences. Recognised brands speak for themselves. They have built up attributes and a personality that instantly communicate a message when spoken of or seen visually. The contribution that marketing makes to a brand is that it builds on a layering effect, in which every mention or experience of your organisation, adds another layer of visibility and credibility to your brand. First and foremost, the importance of building what we call brand equity, is knowing who you are and what you want to say, and making sure you reinforce this in everything you do.
These qualities can form your brand identity and, with further refinement can become your messages, reinforced by everything you do. Once you have determined your identity, you can activate it in many ways, such as the way you behave as an organisation and communicate. For example, through a logo, a strapline, a positioning statement, key messages, images, as well as proof points which are the actual experiences from your learners. Reinforcement is the key. Whenever you talk to stakeholders, partners, learners, or potential learners, make sure you keep your brand identity in mind and reinforce it wherever possible. This will strengthen and give credibility to your brand.
Message Development Pointers

In developing your attributes into messages Dont get stuck on detail. Instead, encapsulate the most important message takeout for your audience. Use everyday language when constructing your key messages and dont fall into the trap of over qualifying statements. Test your messages on colleagues to receive third party opinion on whether or not what you are saying is understandable. Notes
Your brand or positioning

We would like you to start thinking about your individual brand. In the space below, please write: 1. What do people most enjoy about your training and education programs?
2.
How do you differ from other education providers?
3. 1. 2. 3.
If you wanted to be known for 3 things, what would they be?
LEARN LOCAL - MARKETING WORKSHOP 1
Module 1
Learn Local
As you are aware, the ACE sector has a new brand identity Learn Local. Learn Local was created by ACFE for Providers, to unite and bring recognition to the Adult Community and Further Education sector. It is not entended to replace your own brand but be an umbrella brand, used in conjunction with your own.
It was this combination of attributes that led to the development of Learn Local. The Learn Local WIKI provides examples of how you can co-brand with the Learn Local brand. http://learnlocal.acfe.vic.edu.au/ Learn Local is also accompanied by very strong messages which you can incorporate into your own message development. ACFE has provided you with overall messages and tailored messages to particular audiences. These are also available on the Learn Local WIKI.
Learn Local Key Messages

Learn Local is a network of organisations (not providers) Statewide locations theres a Learn Local organisation near you Flexible delivery for individual needs We are seeing the Learn Local brand in the field more and more, with ACFE about to embark on an extensive media campaign to increase awareness. You can piggyback on this awareness campaign by incorporating the Learn Local brand into your own marketing activities. The Learn Local brand replaces the ACFE brand. We, at Royce, helped develop the Learn Local brand which came from a thorough review of research, as well as a series of focus groups with learners and providers. The distinguishing features of the Learn Local brand were defined as: nearby, community-based, flexible, relevant, convenient, accessible (encapsulated by LOCAL), personal development, empowerment/impact, achievement, opportunity, aspiration and jobs (encapsulated by LEARNING). By confirming your own brand identity and combining this with the Learn Local brand, you will be well on your way to building awareness and understanding of your Learn Local organisation. Nationally recognised qualifications There are 320 Learn Local organisations across Victoria that provide training and education for individuals of all ages with limited previous education For more information please visit the Learn Local website www.acfe.vic.gov.au
Module 1
Your Audiences
As you know, there are many types of audiences. The most obvious are your current learners and potential learners, but there are naturally many more, such as local businesses, community groups, sporting clubs, local council just to name a few. Plus, you can break down your audiences into more specific categories. For example, learners and potential learners can be broken down into early school leavers, CALD learners, learners with a disability or vulnerable low skilled learners. Your marketing activities will be much more successful if you are clear on who you are trying to reach and then use tactics that are relevant to these individuals. We know, for example, that there is an underrepresentation of specific learner groups in each of the regions, as per the following table. MARKET Early school leavers Disengaged youth CALD Learners Learners with a disability Indigenous learners Male learners 45+ Vulnerable low-skilled learners Low socio-economic status Unemployed/underemployed REGION Hume North Western Metropolitan Grampians, Hume, Eastern Metropolitan Grampians, Loddon Mallee Gippsland, Grampians All regions Gippsland All regions All regions
Addressable and Awareness

We like to categorise our audiences by way of addressable and awareness markets. Addressable markets can be reached through a database or direct channel. We can get information directly into our audiences hands. The most obvious database is your current learner database but the key to this strategy is forming partnerships with other organisations and utilising their databases or distribution channels to reach your audience. The Learn Local Awareness Strategy Target Market Analysis provides a number of examples of potential partners and how they can reach your addressable market. We will talk about these methods in the next module when we discuss Tactics. The awareness market is those broadly exposed to your promotional activities through articles in the media, paid advertisements or events. The activities are important for broad awareness but the methods are not as targeted. Again, your Learn Local Awareness Strategy Target Market Analysis provides ways to reach your awareness market which we will talk about in more detail in Tactics. Notes
This is one example of an opportunity to target these people in your marketing activities and increase the numbers.
Module 1
Tool Kit One: Full List of Audiences

MEDIA PUBLICS Mass media Local Print publications Newspapers Magazines TV stations Radio stations National Print publications Broadcast networks (e.g. GTV9) Wire services (e.g.Reuters) Specialised media Local Trade, industry, and association publications Organisational membership publications Ethnic publications Publications of special groups National General business publications National trade, industry, and association publications National organisational membership publications National ethnic publications Publications of national special groups EMPLOYEE PUBLICS Management Upper-level administration Mid-level administration Lower-level administration Non-management (staff) Specialists Clerical personnel Secretarial personnel Uniformed personnel Equipment operators Drivers Security personnel Other uniformed personnel Union representatives Other non-management personnel
MEMBER PUBLICS Organisation employees Headquarters management Headquarters non-management (staff) Other headquarters personnel Organisation officers Elected officers Appointed officers Legislative groups Boards, committees Organisation members Regular members Members in special categories student members Honorary members or groups Prospective organisation members State or local chapters Organisation employees Organisation officers Organisation members Prospective organisation members Related or other allied organisations COMMUNITY PUBLICS Community leaders Public officials Educators Religious leaders Professionals Executives Bankers Union leaders Ethnic leaders Neighbourhood leaders Community organisations Civic Service Social Business Cultural Religious Youth Political Special interest groups Other GOVERNMENT PUBLICS
Module 1
Federal Parliament Prime Minister Prime Ministers Advisors Ministers Ministerial Advisors Leader of the Opposition and Advisors Shadow Ministers and Advisors Members of Parliament Parliamentary Committees Departments Secretary Executives Officers Agencies Executives Officers State Parliament Premier Premiers Advisors Ministers Ministerial Advisors Leader of the Opposition and Advisors Shadow Ministers and Advisors Members of Parliament Parliamentary Committees Departments Secretary Executives Officers Agencies Executives Officers Local Mayor Deputy Mayor Councillors Committees Council Officers
CONSUMER PUBLICS Company employees Customers Professionals Middle class Working class Minorities Other Activist consumer groups Consumer publications Community media, mass and specialised Community leaders and organisations And here you can add your learners.
Module 1
1.
Select your target learner segment
2.
Who can help you reach this learner? What maketing channels will they use? What their relationship with each other (if any)? This mapping template may help.
If you are struggling to fill this out, it may be because you dont know much about this person. So, we need to find more.
2.
Facebook questionnaire
Research
It is important that you understand your audiences before you communicate with them. If you have identified some things about your key audiences that you dont know and need to know, now is the time to find out.
You can use your Facebook page to ask questions of your current or potential learners. You may consider an incentive for this, to encourage people to fill in the survey. The incentive could be a voucher for the local bookshop for example. 3. Online Free Surveys
Research Methods
There are a number of quick and cheap ways to research your target market as well as more thorough methods. To touch quickly on the best cheap and easy options that you could implement at once: 1. An Exit Survey
Online surveys are easy to develop and are freely available on websites such as SurveyMonkey (www.surveymonkey.com.au). They allow organisations to develop their own surveys in a guided format which can then be distributed via a link. Participants can answer anonymously and the data collected is easily collated for analysis 4. Group discussions
Your learners are the best resource for identifying what you do best and what you need to improve. If you dont already do it, you can provide your learners with a survey to fill out once they have completed a course. It is a great way to gain feedback while the experience is still fresh. We would suggest it occurs at the end of the last class so you can receive the completed surveys before they leave.
A gathering of existing learners or key stakeholders over a hosted lunch for example, can be useful in gaining insights. It is important to select individuals who are more outgoing and the facilitator needs to be proficient in drawing out information from the participants.
Module 1
Types of Research
The following table provides a snapshot of the four main types of research methods. Method Focus Groups Requirements Facilitator Catering Incentives Focus Group attendees Mailing list Reply envelope Cover letter (separate) Incentives Follow-up mailings Telephone numbers Interviewers Training and instruction (e.g. manner of speaking, what to say) Advantages Can draw out insights Disadvantages Cost estimate $4,500 $6,000 average
Mail survey Self-administered questionnaires (self-explanatory)
Anonymity Specific mailing lists available Low cost, little time to prepare or conduct Respondent convenience Interviewers can clarify questions Speed, costs Control, probing complex answers High response rates, completeness of questionnaires Interviewers can clarify questions Use of scales and visual materials Inexpensive Respondent convenient Anonymity
Telephone survey
Response rate Slow data collection Only standardised questions Response: only motivated by respondents- not representative Reach of respondents Limited use of scales, visual materials
$100s
$10,000 $15,000
Personal interview (Face-to-Face)
Interviewers and training
No anonymity Expensive Interview bias No control who is contacted Only internet users Not representative Low response rate
$500 - $1,000 per person
Online surveys
Website Email
SurveyMonkey Free
Advantages and disadvantages of Quantitative and Qualitative approaches. Potential advantages Quantitative approaches Generate comparable results Results can be generalised Can be guided by less experienced researchers (e.g. interviewers) High acceptance by clients Provide insights into causes and motivations Explore information that is completely unknown or unpredicted Potential disadvantages Quantitative methods can only find out what is put in through prepared questions or categories Can guide respondents into a rather irrelevant direction Do not allow deeper analysis of reasons Time consuming and demands financial resources Demands qualified researchers Limited generalisation Results are influenced by researcher
Qualitative approaches
Module 1
Tool Two: A Sample Survey

SAMPLE SURVEY This sample survey is designed to be conducted by interview but can easily be revised to suit a written questionnaire. Greeting Good afternoon/evening, my name is______________________. The Main Street Learning Centre is conducting a survey on adult education and training needs in our local community. I would like to speak to a person who is over the age of 18 and at home just now. Thank you for your help. Introduction, repeat the greeting if the person is not the one who answered the phone. Firstly, could I confirm that you are a resident of Ballarat? (If you dont already know that the person is a resident) . The Main Street Learning Centre (LC) is preparing a plan for activities and services. This survey is to find out what your adult learning needs are and to find out what you think about adult learning programs and services in our area. Do you have 5 10 minutes to assist us with our planning? Q. 1 I would like to find out what education or training activities you have participated in over the last twelve months? Of the following activities, could you please indicate if you have participated and where you participated at the Main Street LC or elsewhere? If you wanted to participate but were unable to for any reason, what was the main reason?
Education Activity
Participate
Wanted to but couldnt & Reason 2 & reason
At Main St LC
Elsewhere & Where
Not interested
Structured course which provides formal credentials e.g. Diploma in Farm Management Short course for personal interest e.g. Painting for Pleasure Short course for personal development e.g. Assertiveness Short course for business development e.g. Preparing Your Business Plan Short course for workplace skills e.g. Desktop Publishing Other (please specify)
2 & location
2 & reason
2 & location
2 & reason
2 & location
2 & reason
2 & location
2 & reason
2 & location
2 & reason
2 & location
Module 1
Q. 2 For the following Main Street LC programs and services, I would like to find out if you are aware of each service, whether you have participated, and how important each is to you. Program/Service Community information Arts and Crafts Computer Classes Certificate in Office Admin Literacy and numeracy Planning for Employment and Training Certificate in Farm Management English Conversation Survival skills for rural women Aware y y y y y y Participated y y y y y y Very low 1 1 1 1 1 1 Low 2 2 2 2 2 2 Importance moderate 3 3 3 3 3 3 High 4 4 4 4 4 4 Very High 5 5 5 5 5 5
y y y
y y y
1 1 1
2 2 2
3 3 3
4 4 4
5 5 5
Q. 3 What programs have you participated in at Main Street LC? How satisfied were/are you with each program? Satisfaction with Program Very low 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Low 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 Moderate 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 High 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 Very high 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5
List the programs 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Q. 4 How did you find out about Main Street LCs adult learning program and services? 1 Local newspaper 3 Community radio/TV 5 Friend or relative 7 Other (specify) 2 Flyers and mail outs 4 Community newsletter 6 Shopping Centre display
Module 1
Q. 5 What two adult learning programs or services would you most like to see in the future for you? 1_____________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___ 2_____________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________ ______________________________________________________________ Q.6 What two other adult learning programs and services do you think need to be provided to the community of Ballarat? 1_____________________________________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ __________________ 2_____________________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________ _______________________________________________ Q. 7 If you were telling a friend about the Main Street LC, what would you say are the two best things about the centres programs and services? 1_____________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________ ___________________________________ 2_____________________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________ _________________________________________________________ Q. 8 If you were telling a friend what is most needed to improve the adult learning programs and services at the Main Street LC, what would be the two key things you would say? 1_____________________________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________ _______________________________________________ 2_____________________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________ _________________________________________________________ Q. 9 What adult learning programs and services does Main Street LC offer that other adult education providers dont have? 1_____________________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________ _________________________________________ 2_____________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________ ______________________________ Q. 10 What two main things would make Main Street LC adult learning programs and services useful, or more useful to you? 1_____________________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________ _________________________________________________ 2_____________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________ ___________________________________________________ Could you please provide some details that will help us when we collate the results of the survey?: Were you born in Australia or Overseas? 1. Australia 2. Overseas (Please specify) ____________________________________ What is the Main language spoken at home? 1. English 2. Other (Please specify) _______________________________________ Which of the following best describes your age group? 1. 18-25 2. 26-39 years 3. 40-59 years 4. 60+ years Your assistance has been very much appreciated and I would like to thank you for your time. To be filled in by the interviewer: a) The respondent was 1. Female 2. Male Postcode: _____________________
Module 1
Research Analysis
Analysis is really about finding a pattern. Quantitatively you can categorise the responses and then add them up to get an indication of what most people think. For example.. 40 people out of the 50 surveyed, or 80% found out about Diversitat through the local paper Qualitatively you can pull out specific answers that you find helpful or interesting to contribute to your analysis. For example I discover most of the short courses I attend through browsing the local paper every week.
Module Recap
Fully understand your brand and utilise the Learn Local brand as much as you can. Know your brand identity and develop your top three key points to use in all your communications. Understand your different audiences. Utilise cheap and easy research methods to confirm your knowledge and fill in the gaps of what you dont know.
Notes
Module 1
PowerPoint Slides
Module 1
Module 1
Module 1
Module 2
Giving Strength to Your Story

A personable approach case studies
You should now have an understanding of your brand identity and your top three things you want to be known for. You are also aware of your primary audiences. Now you have to give strength to your story and one way to do this is through case studies that people can relate to. Case studies are a great way to engage people and demonstrate the benefits your organisation is providing. They are also great for the media - but we will talk more about that later. We would recommend you spend a little bit of time thinking about who has come through your organisation and how you have benefited them. If nobody comes to mind, you might consider an email to past learners. You could also provide an incentive to encourage people to come forward with their story. Here are a few examples, which you have probably already seen, of some great case studies. As you will notice, they dont have to be extremely dramatic. They can be fairly simple stories that show a real life example of the benefits your organisation is providing to people every day. Keep your target audience in mind when you develop your case studies and find examples that will relate to them personally. Write down a few dot points on an outstanding learner that you are aware of:
Make it visual
To give life to the case studies it is important to make them visual. Use photography and videos of your case studies to bring them to life and make them engaging.
Writing guidelines
ACFE has provided you with guidelines to assist you in your writing. These are available on the WIKI (http://learnlocal.acfe.vic.edu.au/)
Module 2
The guidelines explain how to transition from ACFE to Learn Local and how to incorporate Learn Local into your language. You have also been provided with spelling guidelines such as -ise rather than -ize. We will not go into detail on these guidelines but encourage you to read them and incorporate them into your writing. The WIKI also has tailored messages for each of your target audiences which can be drawn on when writing for a particular audience.
Cable TV CDs Company histories Community relations Competitions Conferences Corporate identity programs Lobbying Local publications Manuals Media conference Media interviews Media releases Multimedia News conferences Newsletters Noticeboards and posters Open houses Online media Photographs
Face-to-face discussion Fact books Films Group briefings Industry publications Internet Intranet Product demonstrations Promotions Print media Publications Research Seminars Special events Video News release Website Special groups publications Speeches Sponsorships Stunts
Choosing and Comparing Tactics

What are the options for marketing tactics?
Here are a number of tactics that could be considered. Advertising Annual reports Articles and features Audio visual materials Awards Broadcast media Direct mail Documentaries Donations Educational materials Email Exhibitions and displays
Going back to our target audiences, what are some ways that we might be able reach them? For example, male learners 45 years plus..
Module 2
Lets look at a few of these in a bit more detail, focusing first on how you can reach your audience through an addressable market methodology.
What we can offer our partner Put their logo on our website and link to their website Write an article about their support in our newsletter Have their brochure in our foyer Invite them to our events
What they can provide in return Put our logo on their website and link to our website Place an article about us in their employee newsletter Have our brochure in their foyer Organise a lunchtime seminar for us to present to employees Use us as their preferred supplier for relevant training requirements
Developing Partnerships
This is a great way to have local community groups, businesses and sporting organisations etc. help you in marketing your organisation. You can utilise their membership and marketing channels to promote your organisation and it may lead to certain sponsorship arrangements which we have covered in the awareness market section below. Once you have identified the areas that your primary audience might be exposed to, you can then identify the organisations where these audiences might frequent and make arrangements to meet them. Keep in mind what you can offer these businesses. Some ideas are: Community credibility Potential customers Exposure and recognition Potential access to mailing lists
Include them in our media materials Explore opportunities to educate their employees
TOP TIPS FOR DEVELOPING PARTNERSHIPS

1. Research (via the internet or talking to people) the organisation. What do they do? What are their interests? How do they communicate to their members, employees, etc.? Be clear in your mind the sorts of things you can do for the organisation (put their logo on your website with a link to their website, place an article about them in your newsletter, have a flyer about them in your foyer). Be clear on the things you would like them to do for you (your logo on their website with a link to your website, distribute your brochure to all members, put up your posters, include an article about you in their newsletter). Prepare your Proposa/ PowerPoint presentation using the templates provided in the WIKI. Include references to the organisation to demonstrate you know what they do. Proof-read before finalisation. Ask them their objectives and discuss how they align with yours
People and groups to approach for helping you promote and advertise
Community groups Sporting / social clubs Local businesses Parent groups Unions Churches Libraries Kindergartens and childcare centres Banks Local council Government bodies Health and medical services Other educational facilities (high schools) 5. 4. 3. 2.
Module 2
6.
Ensure you have materials that you can take with you including brochures, case studies, and the sorts of programs and courses you offer. Try to confirm at least one or two actions out of the meeting. Even if this is just to send more information or arrange to meet up again a bit further down the track. Follow up the meeting with a thank you email and recap on the actions. Be sure to keep in touch with any latest news about your organisation.
TOP TIPS FOR ANY EVENT OR OPEN DAY

1. 2. Cut costs by getting local Rotary or Lions involved to run a sausage sizzle. Enlist current learners to assist in developing invitations, brochures and displays of their work achievements. Take the opportunity to invite local influencers, partners and potential partners and ensure you deliver a short speech to ensure all your messages are relayed to the audience. Consider a take-home kit for all attendees so they can keep contact details of your organisation on hand (this could include a brochure but also a branded note pad, or even some Learn Local collateral such as the highlight pens)
7.
8.
3.
Events / Open Days

These provide a great opportunity to introduce people to your organisation and could be a 1-2 hour morning tea or a full-day open day. Friends and family of learners could be invited as well as local business people, community groups, council and media.
4.
Notes
TOOL KIT: Event Checklist

Be sure, when organising an event, to consider: A realistic budget Venue Team to help stage the event Time Program / Activities scheduled Promotions Invitations or advertisements VIP guests RSVP Catering Media liaison Running sheet for the day Thank you to key organisers Evaluation
Emails
No doubt you use email a lot. However direct email can be a powerful way to communicate with and maintain positive relationships with key stakeholders and target audiences. We recommend this should be used regularly when establishing relationships with potential partners in particular. A personalised email providing an update since you last spoke, a thank you or an invitation to an event, goes a long way in strengthening relationships.
TOP TIPS FOR USING EMAILS

1. 2. 3. Keep it brief. Keep it personal and tailored to the person you are writing to. Always end with your contact details.
Module 2
Printed materials, brochures, leaflets, flyers.

No doubt you already have printed materials about your organisation. Without dwelling too much on this, our advice would be to keep doing it. Printed materials are a great support to be used in tandem with other channels. For example, leaving them behind when you meet with an industry association or local government body, or sending them out to anyone who makes an enquiry about your organisation.
Word-of-Mouth
Word of mouth and referral are often the strongest forms of promotion. When your organisation is spoken about positively, it adds enormously to the credibility of your brand.
TOP TIPS FOR WOM

1. 2. Use your networks to help spread the message. Make it easy for word-of-mouth to spread, e.g. host morning teas with family and friends, use your social media skills to get the message out there, and encourage your contacts and learners to do the same.
TOP TIPS FOR PRINTED MATERIALS

1. Make sure your visual materials are in line with your brand identity. Best-practice marketing and communications relies on consistency and brand reinforcement. Make sure the Learn Local logo is on your printed material so you can leverage the awareness being created with this brand. Keep your audience in mind when developing your materials. For example, you may want to consider translating them into different languages for your CALD audiences. Add photos and quotes from Learners. Consider how you will distribute and store your materials. This will assist in determining the size and how many you get printed. If mailing, then a DL standard envelope size is best which can be 4, 6 or 8 panels folded out. Make sure your materials are kept up-to-date. Old brochures and flyers can have a negative impact on the credibility of your brand.
Notes
2.
3.
4.
Tactics for reaching the Awareness market
5.
Advertising
While advertising can be expensive, it is also extremely effective. It allows you to put forward all your messages in a persuasive manner and enables you to reach a broad audience. The downside is that audiences are more inclined to switch off when they see an ad - although this could happen with any form of communication tactics. A quick summary of the different forms of advertising: TV generally considered the most powerful but also the most expensive (production and advertising placement). The amount of information you can put forward is limited, average 29 seconds.
Notes
Module 2
Radio can have a strong impact and is mostly suited to messages with an emotional appeal, since the messages are spoken. It also has cheaper production costs than TV and can be released in a much quicker timeframe. Again however, the amount of information contained is limited (10 30 seconds). Print can provide much more detail. Magazines in particular can be useful for targeting specific audiences such as youth, etc. Depending on how advertisements look, they can merge into all the other adverts and not be recognised. Internet good for short sharp messages as part of a broader campaign, linking to the organisation website.
Competitions
Everyone likes to get something for free. Competitions are a good way to gain peoples attention and also have them perform a certain action (filling in a survey, liking your Facebook page or subscribing to your newsletter). Considerations in running a competition include: How are you going to promote the competition? Be sure to promote it broadly to gain the best exposure and generate the most interest. What prize will you offer? Prizes could include discounts on courses, vouchers for local book shops. Your partners may also be able to contribute to a prize. A permit is required in Victoria when the total prize pool is valued at over $5,000 (more details can be found at the Victorian Commission for Gambling Regulation www.vcgr.vic.gov.au).
TOP TIPS FOR ADVERTISING

1. Research how your learners prefer to receive your information and tailor your advertising accordingly. For example, if you are targeting young people, the most effective and cost efficient advertising method is online such as Facebook. Timing is important. Time your advertising spend with additional activities you are undertaking (e.g. an open day) to reinforce your messages via a number of different mediums. Seek editorial opportunities in conjunction with your advertising (e.g. a radio interview or newspaper article) Ask your local newspaper if they have a list of special reports for the year. This is when they run sections on certain topics. Use this list and advertise in a section that is of relevance to your target audience.
TOP TIPS FOR COMPETITIONS

1. Make sure you comply with the regulations found at the Victorian Commission for Gambling Regulation website Promote the competition regularly and via numerous tactics such as your website, social media, emails, newsletter, and posters. Make sure the length of the competition period is short (about two weeks) as people tend to lose interest.
2.
2.
3.
3.
4.
Notes
Notes
Module 2
Exhibitions or Displays
Putting up a display in the local library or taking part in local exhibitions or events can be very worthwhile. If you are manning the display, it enables you to meet prospective learners and other stakeholders face to face. It also provides a good visual promotion of your organisation. It is important however, to make sure that your target audience will be exposed to your display, otherwise its a waste of time. For example, street festivals or local multicultural festivals will be more relevant than, say, a local car club exhibition.
Sponsorship
Sponsorship is a way of marketing, raising funds or offsetting costs, and improving the delivery of programs and services by creating benefits for other organisations in return for their support. Seek sponsorship from external organisations/businesses by way of: Specific sponsorship of a particular individual (enrolment fees, books, etc.) Printing all course materials Sponsoring one of our events We have already spoken about what you can offer the organisations in return for their support.
TOP TIPS FOR EXHIBITIONS OR DISPLAYS

1. 2. 3. A display could be as simple as a banner, poster and brochure stand in the local library or Council foyer. Interaction is more engaging for visitors (e.g. have an activity at your display) If attending an exhibition or event, make sure you understand the requirements set out by the organiser. This will include the amount of space you have, bump-in and bump-out times, plus useful tips and ideas for setting up a display. Make sure you give yourself plenty of time to prepare. Gear your message to attendees of the exhibition or event. Have people who know your organisation to staff the stand. Utilise banners, brochures and posters that can be re-used again elsewhere. Competitions are good crowd-drawers as well as souvenir give-aways.
TOP TIPS FOR SECURING SPONSORSHIP

1. Prepare an initial proposal for the sponsor so they can get an understanding of what is expected. This can then be negotiated. Include when, where, why and how it is going to work. Make sure you list the benefits for the sponsor. Think about whether you believe it is offering them good value for money. Think about what you want to get out of the sponsorship (e.g access to a database) Provide them with relevant information about your organisation.
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Notes
Notes
Module 2
How do we choose and what is a good mix of tactics?

Choosing which tactics to implement ultimately comes down to a few considerations. 1. Look at your target audience. Who are you trying to target and will this tactic reach that audience effectively? Look at your budget. Do you have sufficient funds to successfully undertake the activity? Which tactic will reach your target and can be implemented within your budget? Time and resources. Who will implement the tactic and do they have enough time to do it successfully?
Cheap and Free Ways to Market

The following table provides a list of tactics that you can implement that are either free, or extremely cheap. Digital marketing is a big part of this but Cade and Ben will go into more detail on this later.
2.
Developing partnerships Emails Word-of-mouth Displays
Can be free if material is distributed by email Free Free One off purchase of banners etc. then can be rotated at different locations for free Free Free (if you can update it yourself) Free Free
3.
Ideally, a good mix is to have a couple of tactics focusing on your addressable market and a couple of tactics for your awareness market. This ensures you are doing your best to capture a broad range of audiences. If resources are low, I would recommend one addressable market activity and one awareness market activity. For example: One: set up a meeting with the peak body of the local industry sector in your region. See if you can negotiate for an article in their members newsletter, or for your brochure to be distributed to their members (addressable market). Two: arrange to place posters in the local library, local community centre and local football club to raise awareness (awareness market). What are some tactics that you are not already doing, that would be helpful in your marketing activities?
Sponsorship Website Social Media SEO and Google Analytics
Module 2
Marketing Shortcuts
Here are a number of ideas for marketing shortcuts to help you to develop your activities.
How can I get help?

The next page provides a list of communications and advertising suppliers that are on the Victorian Government Panel. Many of these are quite large and may be too expensive for your needs. We would also therefore recommend Googling suppliers that are located in your area. Key search terms that may assist are: PR agency Public Relations agency Communications agency Local PR in xxx
Get others to do the work for you

As mentioned previously, think outside the box of potential partners that may have members or employees who are also your target audience. Use these partners to distribute information for you and get your message out there.
Get ideas and learn from each other

Go onto the Learn Local WIKI and post questions or comments about what you are currently doing to market your organisation. This is a great way to learn from each other and share experiences and insights so you dont have to go through the process alone.
PR agency in xxx Boutique PR firm xxx PR PRIA IABC Victorian Government PR agencies Business directory public relations My Local Business Guide for PR agencies
Create a Marketing Advisory Committee

Select a group of people that you feel are representative of the audiences you are looking to target. Meet with them every three months to test ideas and brainstorm new ones. It may require a small monetary incentive, plus food and drink.
Approach Universities or TAFEs to develop your marketing plan

The Public Relations or Marketing schools at TAFEs and Universities are often looking to provide real and practical examples for students. They may consider developing a marketing plan for you as part of their curriculum.
Module Recap
1. Strengthen your proposition by developing case studies. Incorporate images and videos to give life to the case studies Select your tactics in line with your budget, resources and target audiences Try and go for at least one addressable and one awareness market activity. Make the most of the assistance you are getting from ACFE. Refer to the Wiki for your templates plus use the discussion board to ask questions, get ideas and learn from each others experiences. .
Make the most of the support provided by ACFE

ACFE has provided you with a number of templates on the Learn Local Wiki to make your lives easier. We recommend you refer to these as much as possible. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Flyer Newsletter PowerPoint
2. 3. 4. 5.
Cover page Letterhead
Module 2
Trading Name ACCELERATOR Adcorp adz@work Agile & Associates AJF Partnership Axiom Communications Alliance Pty Ltd Backspin Pty Ltd BMF Advertising Pty Ltd BoilerRoom Communications Buchan Consulting Burson-Marsteller Catherine Newell Corporate Communications Cheeky Pup Creative Pty Ltd Clemenger BBDO Melbourne Pty. Ltd Clifton Group Communication Strategists Concrete Wednesday Post Production Cultural Perspectives Pty Ltd Currie Communications Cut-Through Communications Pty Ltd DDB Melbourne egg digital Essence Communications Pty Ltd Essential Media Communications Fenton Stephens Fenton Strategic Communications Pty Ltd Futureye Fuzzy Advertising Pty Ltd GenR8 George Patterson Y&R Grey Global Group Pty Ltd Growth Solutions Group Hayes Berry Tehan Haystac Positive Outcomes Kelly Strategic Influence Libby Fordham Pty Ltd Lifelounge Group LOTE Marketing Magnum Opus Advertising
Legal Name Accelerator Communications Pty Ltd Adcorp Australia (Vic) Pty Ltd Woollybull Pty Ltd David Crofts and Natalia Thompson trading as Agile & Associates AJF PARTNERSHIP PTY LTD Axiom Communications Alliance Pty Ltd Backspin Pty Ltd BMF Advertising Pty Ltd BOILER ROOM COMMUNICATIONS PTY. LTD. Buchan Consulting Pty Ltd BURSON-MARSTELLER PTY LTD Catherine Newell Cheeky Pup Creative Pty Ltd Clemenger BBDO Melbourne Pty. Ltd John Ridley trading as Clifton Consulting CONCRETE WEDNESDAY POST PRODUCTION PTY LTD Cultural Perspectives Pty Ltd CURRIE COMMUNICATIONS PTY. LTD. Cut-Through Communications Pty Ltd DDB Melbourne Pty Ltd THE EGG DIGITAL COMMUNICATIONS PTY LTD Essence Communications Pty Ltd ESSENTIAL MEDIA COMMUNICATIONS PTY LTD Fenton Stephens Pty Ltd Fenton Strategic Communications Pty Ltd Futureye Pty Ltd Fuzzy Advertising Pty Ltd Amalgam Enterprises Pty Ltd George Patterson Y&R Pty Ltd Grey Global Group Pty Ltd GROWTH SOLUTIONS GROUP PTY LTD HAYES BERRY TEHAN PTY LTD Haystac Public Affairs Pty Ltd Kelly Strategic Influence Pty Ltd Libby Fordham Pty Ltd LIFELOUNGE PTY LTD LOTE MARKETING PTY LTD Magnum Opus Advertising (AUST) Pty Ltd
Category approved to Supply Services In
Communications Communications
Category approved to Supply Services In Advertising Advertising Advertising
Advertising Communications Advertising Advertising Advertising Communications Communications Communications Advertising Advertising Communications Advertising Advertising
Communications Communications Communications
Advertising Advertising Advertising Advertising Advertising
Communications Communications
Communications Communications Advertising Advertising Advertising Advertising Advertising Advertising Communications Communications Communications Communications Advertising Advertising Advertising
Module 2
Trading Name Marmalade Melbourne Pty Ltd McCann Worldgroup MDG Marketing Design Group Pty Ltd Mindshare NestPR NEWMARQ o2 Media OBM Advertising O'Keefe Communications OMG! Creative Overflow Communications Oxygene Branding and Communications Paoli Smith Pty Ltd PARKYOUNG PLUM Communication Porter Novelli Australia Pty Ltd PR Help Publicis Mojo Red Agency Robert Masters & Associates Royce Samuelson Talbot & Partners Pty Ltd Scaffidi Hugh-Jones Pty Ltd SDA Strategic Shannon's Way Smart Partners Socom String Theory Creative Taylor&Grace Pty Ltd The Agenda Group The C Word The Fuel Agency The Launch Box Pty Ltd The Reputation Group The Starship The Twenty20 communication Group Pty Ltd BADJAR Ogilvy
Legal Name Marmalade Melbourne Pty Ltd (as trustee for Mallet Trust & Roquin Trust Partnership) MCCANN WORLDGROUP PTY LIMITED M.D.G. MARKETING DESIGN GROUP PTY. LTD. M Media Group Pty. Ltd NEST BUILDING AND COMMUNICATIONS PTY LTD Virtual Corp Pty Ltd t/a marketing ideas! Karen Foster, trading as O2 MEDIA OBM ADVERTISING PTY LTD O'KEEFE COMMUNICATIONS PTY. LTD. OKeefe Murphy Gaff Pty Ltd trading as OMG! Creative Justine Rosemary Larkins trading as Overflow Communications OXYGENE BRANDING & COMMUNICATIONS PTY LTD PAOLI SMITH PTY LTD DAVID SUTHERLAND PARK and DOUGLAS YOUNG TREVOR trading as PARKYOUNG PLUM Communication Major Projects Pty Ltd Porter Novelli Australia Pty Ltd PR HELP PTY LTD PUBLICIS MOJO PTY LTD THE RED AGENCY PTY LTD ROBERT MASTERS & ASSOCIATES PTY LTD Royce (Vic) Pty Ltd Samuelson Talbot & Partners Pty Ltd Scaffidi Hugh-Jones Pty Ltd SDA Strategic Pty Ltd Shannons Way Pty Ltd SMART Melbourne Pty Ltd Socom Pty Ltd STRING THEORY CREATIVE PTY LTD Taylor & Grace Pty Ltd The Agenda Group Pty Ltd The C Word Communications Agency Pty Ltd The Fuel Agency Pty Ltd C/O Cummings Flavel McCormack The Launch Box Pty Ltd THE REPUTATION GROUP PTY LTD Starship Pty Ltd Twenty 20 Communications Group Pty Ltd BADJAR OGILVY PTY LTD
Category approved to Supply Services In Advertising Advertising Advertising Advertising
Communications Communications Advertising Advertising Advertising Advertising Advertising Communications Advertising Advertising Communications Communications Communications Communications Advertising Communications Communications Communications Advertising Communications Communications Advertising Advertising Communications Advertising Advertising Communications Communications Advertising Communications Communications Advertising Advertising Advertising
Module 2
Trading Name JWT Evergreen Advertising & Marketing CPR Communications & Public Relations
Legal Name J. WALTER THOMPSON AUSTRALIA PTY. LIMITED Faulkner & Wylam Pty Ltd CPR COMMUNICATIONS & PUBLIC RELATIONS PTY. LTD.
Category approved to Supply Services In Advertising Advertising
Communications
Module 2
PowerPoint Slides
Module 2
Module 2
Module 2
About the Media

How the media operates
In Victoria, we have 17 free-to-air national television networks, 3 regional networks, 14 metro radio stations and 28 regional radio stations, 4 metro newspapers (2 national), 83 suburban newspapers and 81 regional newspapers. There are also many ethnic, trade, specialty and general magazines and newsletters. To get you started, at the end of this module we have provided you with contact details of the major metropolitan daily papers, TV and radio, as well as the key regional media in your area. There are many ways to contact the media, depending on your news story or event. The most common ways are: Written material, usually in the form of a media release which would be emailed to the journalist Verbally, either over the phone or in person (mostly over the phone) Inviting media to an event which may, or may not, be specifically held for the media. The basic rules for whom to contact in the media are:
Medium Newspapers
Event invitation Chief of Staff
Media release Editor
Comment If you develop a relationship with a particular journalist, and/or or know one that covers your area, feel free to send materials directly to them. Rarely come on site for radio interviews. Usually conducted over the phone or in the studio. If you are targeting a specific talkback program, contact the program producer. For metro TV news it would be the Chief of Staff.
Regional Radio
General news contact
General news contact
Regional TV
General news contact or nearest local office
General news contact or nearest local office
TOP TIPS FOR MEDIA FOLLOW-UP

Be sure to call the media once you have sent the release but do not just ask if they received it. Try to add some extra value for them like the opportunity to interview someone, or come and take a photo. Print:
Radio news dont call 10 minutes before or 5 minutes after a news bulletin.
What do they want?

Print will mainly be looking for good words and catchy quotes. That is, information that will interest readers and suit the style of each particular section of a publication. It will be looking for good photo opportunities, although it may not place nearly as much emphasis on photographs as the more glossy magazines.
When to call the media

Generally mid-morning is the best time to call. Always keep in mind when the media might go to air or print the publication. Weekly suburban/regional newspaper call between six and four days prior to the paper being distributed (e.g. for a Tuesday paper, call between Wednesday and Friday).
Television: Television is all about pictures. The better the pictures are, the greater the likelihood of a story.
Like print and radio journalists, a television journalist needs to be supplied with all information about the story, but particularly its likely visual content. In television, good sound and vision is essential. Radio: Radio, on the other hand, depends wholly on what is said. Radio is looking for good sound. As well as information, the radio reporter/interviewer may want additional interviews with people closely involved with the main story.
There are many variations of news angles. These include: Community interest Celebrities/ambassadors Relevance to location (local angle) Milestones/history Innovation Nostalgia Research
Notes
Here is a list of ideas that could be appropriate for a media story: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. Utilise your case studies. Maybe a learner has just landed a new job due to their training. Organisational milestones - your 10/15/20 year anniversary, your 100th - 100,000th learner Events Visits from dignitaries, local MPs, the Lord Mayor The introduction of a new training program Your latest research results (e.g. enrolment figures at XX Learning Centre have doubled in the last 5 yrs.) A nostalgia piece maybe talking about the how the organisation started (i.e. in a small room linked to the local community centre) A new partnership with a local business or industry association Consider what may be in your regular newsletter and if you think its appropriate, send it to your local paper as well.
Story ideas
Generally, media are interested in covering current news and events. Local media love any story that is about the local community. Despite the fact that there is never a guarantee for media coverage, the use of newsworthy hooks can increase the likelihood of interest and coverage from the media, depending on the type of media and their specific interests. Also, consider what you have written in your regular newsletter and if you think its appropriate, send it to your local paper.
8. 9.
Other ideas:
Dos and Donts of working with the media

Here is an extensive list of what to do and what not to do when working with the media. This list is for people who have a lot of dealings with the media but you might find some points useful. TOP THREE: 1. 2. 3. Dont say anything to a journalist you wouldnt want reported. Dont ignore the trade and specialist magazines. Dont use jargon in your materials.
13.
Dont have an interview in an executives office interrupted by phone calls. The executive would have a secretary hold calls if dealing with a customer; the same courtesy should be extended to the media. Dont be afraid to stand up to unethical investigative reporters who are out to embarrass your organisation. You do not have to answer hostile questions or put up with rudeness. Dont be afraid to say I dont know, Ill have to get back to you later with an answer. It is much better to be ignorant than to offer a misleading, or worse, deceitful response. But dont be ignorant too often, and do be sure to honour your intention to provide an answer later. Do get your spokespeople to relax. About 90 percent of media queries are routine and are best dealt with in a friendly atmosphere. Do, however, have them be on guard at the same time. Do make sure the subjects know the media the reporter represents so that theyll also know to whom their remarks should really be addressed. Dont take a friendly journalist for granted. If the facts suggest a negative story, then that is what will appear. All you can hope for is the opportunity to tell your side of the story. Dont expect all stories about your organisation to be 100 percent favourable. There are occasions when warts will appear or when the reporter will emphasise aspects of the story you had hoped would be ignored. Articles and radio and television presentations that are favourable on balance should be regarded as pluses for the organisation. Dont think your refusal to respond will kill a negative story- it wont. Your choice consists of whether the story appears with or without your side of it, not whether the story appears at all. That choice belongs to the editor. Dont lie. Credibility is one of the best things public relations people have going for them. It cant be replaced.
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AND THE FULL LIST: 4. Do update your media lists regularly. Journalists move around a lot and you need to know the right person to contact. Dont count on getting special privileges from editors because you advertise. It may help occasionally but dont rely on it. Dont overwhelm journalists with half a dozen or more people sitting next to an executive during an interview. Dont hold back publicly available information just because you dont like a journalist. Dont blame a reporter for a headline, caption, or editing that detracts from the story. Thats a task done by sub-editors and out of the reporters control. Do emphasise key points in an interview. Reporters may not have heard them the first time. Do keep a photo library of high quality images of key people, learners, and the like. You never know when a publication will request an image. Do have your photographs available in digital format, which can be easily downloaded or emailed. Dont go over an editors head if you disagree with his or her news judgment. But do speak to the editors boss if you feel there has been distortion or unethical journalism. 20. 16.
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Writing Media Materials

Media release fundamentals
What are the fundamentals in a good media release? 1. Media releases should be succinctly written pieces of communication, which comes to the point in the first or second paragraphs. The writing style should incorporate short sentences and quotes from company spokespersons, which are newsworthy and to the point. The lead paragraph must contain your most important message and is crucial to selling your story. Media releases must answer the five Ws and the H: Who, What, When, Where, Why and How? Media releases must be on brand and on message. Observe the KISS Principle (Keep It Simple Stupid!) clich but true. It must not be overly commercial most media are adverse to providing companies with what amounts to free advertising. The lead is the most important part of your media release. You should check that as much as possible your lead covers the five Ws and H Who, What When, Where, Why and How.
2.
TOP TIPS FOR WRITING YOUR MEDIA RELEASE:

Remember to include your organisations name early in the media release. When writing a release, each paragraph should theoretically have less important information than the paragraph preceding it. This is so the story can be trimmed from the bottom up while still keep the most important elements. Each paragraph should therefore be self-contained. Notes
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4. 5. 6. 7.
The structure of a media release

A good media release is written in the style of the newspaper which is also okay for TV and radio. The structure should be as follows: Headline Lead Body (including quotes) End Contact details The most important first step is answering the question, what is the most important thing I want to say. This should go in the lead or first paragraph of the release and also captured in the heading if possible. Lets look at an example:
Points to note:
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. The media release is on appropriate letterhead. The date of the release. The heading tells what the story is about. The first paragraph tells who, what, when and why (the where is covered in the heading). The paragraphs are short with four lines being the longest. Wide margins.
MODULE RECAP
1. 2. 3. Understand the media and the best times to approach them Always keep in mind possible stories for local media (milestones, statistics, case studies etc.) Keep your media release to the provided structure One page (ideally) Who, what, when, where, why, and how up front Relevant and interesting quotes
The content is supported by quotes. The release provides details on where the journalist can get more information. Media contact details are provided at the bottom. One page only in length (ideally). Notes Background details towards the end Contact details at the bottom
Notes
Major Media Contact Details
PowerPoint Slides
The following module Websites is a crash course in all you need to know about websites. At the end of this module you can expect to have a basic understanding of the fundamental elements of your website and a sound grasp of the core concepts around marketing in the digital space.
Movement: The merging of marketing digital practices

In recent years, the digital medium has met, become entwined with and in some markets, eclipsed offline (nondigital) marketing. Having a sound grasp on the core concepts of the digital medium is now, more than ever, a crucial part of a successful marketing activation and the growth of business. One of the key findings of the Marketing Budgets 2011 report, which surveyed over 200 companies, was that on average, digital budgets increased by 35%. Yes, marketing budgets overall are up. However, in digital 72% of companies are investing more versus 26% in offline channels over last year. This is a good indicator of what most markets already know...... Digital marketing is fast becoming the dominant medium for companies marketing budgets. Companies are moving marketing budgets towards digital and loving it because its completely accountable, trackable, and gives them the opportunity to reach huge and very highly targeted audiences. Notes
Understanding Websites
Introduction
For many people, particularly those of us who havent grown up in the digital age, the digital medium moves too fast, seems overly complex and unfamiliar to the point where it seems like another language. What this module attempts to do is break down some of those barriers around digital and help you to create a plan that will allow you to embrace the medium. In order to get you motivated in this medium, its important to understand why digital is so important in todays marketing world. Once we understand the why and youre brought up to speed with whats happening now; well take a crash course that cuts through the jargon of websites, and give some in-depth insights to what you do really need to know. Our aim is that you walk away with the knowledge in this module that might otherwise take months to acquire. Like everything, in digital; knowledge is power.
Where is Digital at Now?

Digital is a fast moving medium. The greatest advancements in the digital marketing space over the past two decades are: search, which is the rise of clever and evolving search engines such as Google, Yahoo and Bing; social media such as Facebook and Twitter; location and real time based search, both of which you will hear about later on in the session; and the latest, which is the movement of users browsing on mobile devices such as iPhones and smart phones. Gartner 2011 says that more people will be browsing the web on smart phones than on PCs by 2013. Nielson 2010 tells us that 43% of Australians now own a smartphone! If youre interested in digital trends, you can read about the top 10 digital trends of 2011 here: http://factoidz.com/top-10-digital-trends-of-2011/
A Web 2.0 site allows users to interact with each other in a social media dialogue as creators (prosumers) of user-generated content in a virtual community, in contrast to websites where users (consumers) are limited to the passive viewing of content that was created for them.
This definition is an attitude towards information and content sharing, that everyone looking to get the most out of the digital medium should adopt. Notes:
So what does all of this mean to Learn Local organisations?

The basic summation is that consumers as a collective, us, are getting used to seeing much higher volumes of small snippets of information. This information or content is relevant to the locations we are in, and/or the people we associate with at a given time. The World Wide Web is becoming localised! and individual! From a basic website point of view, its no wonder that our users have moved away from old clunky, wordy websites and flash based sites which 5 years ago looked impressive but now just frustrate users. We want maximum information, and fast. From a website design point of view, this has led to the web 2.0 movement. In essence this is creating sites that are designed so intuitively that a 4 year old can navigate them. Has anyone ever seen a child with an iPhone or iPad? This is an exemplary design with web 2.0 in mind. Wikipedia defines Web 2.0 as
being associated with web applications that facilitate participatory information sharing, interoperability, user-centered design, and collaboration on the World Wide Web.
Making sense of the jargon

To get the most out of your website as a marketing tool, its important to understand the capabilities of your website, and from a marketing point of view, which elements of your site are important. In order to do this successfully, you need to differentiate between the key principles you should know, and the terms around web development that you dont really need to know. Below is a glossary of terms that are handy to know:
As such its the most potent tool you have at your disposal. When we talk about content in the digital world, we are talking about copy, images and any other information that you can provide to your audience through your digital medium (website). Content Management System (CMS) - In simple website terms, a content management system is the mechanism that allows an administrative user to update their digital content (copy, images, video and multimedia) without understanding code. Digital Digital marketing refers to the promoting of brands using all forms of digital advertising channels to reach consumers. This now includes Television, Radio, Internet, mobile, social media marketing and any other form of digital media. For the purpose of this presentation, your digital medium is your website. "Domain name a domain name is part of the address one would type in to find your website. It is also used for your email addresses. For example, undesign.com.au is this website's domain name. If you want a website, you would purchase a domain name. "Dynamic a dynamic website can interact with the user via forms and generate content from a database. It can also collect information from users and keep it in a database for further use. "E-commerce e-commerce is basically buying and selling online. For example an e-commerce site might have a shopping cart, or buy-now PayPal links. "Flash website a flash website uses Flash technology, developed initially by Macromedia, now by Adobe. Flash is an application that is inserted into a web page. An entire website might be contained in Flash. For example visit http://pouthair.com.au. Lately, Javascript technology has managed to replicate a lot of what Flash can offer. To test if you are looking at a Flash application, try rightclicking on it and you should see a Flash menu popup. "Hyperlink a hyperlink is something you can click on to navigate to another web page or web site. A hyperlink may also be used to open a pop-up window. "Inbound links inbound links means hyperlinks from other websites that are linking to your website. "Key phrases key phrases are groups of words that a user might search for in a search engine.
Web Glossary of Terms

"Access keys Access keys are an alternative method of navigating a website, especially if one cannot use a mouse. Access keys can be developed in your website coding so that menu items can be used via the keyboard. It is one method of helping to provide an accessible website. "Alt text alt text means alternative text. This is recommended for any images you have on your website. Since search engines and some users cannot read images well, you can let them know what it is by defining alt text to represent it. (Sometimes when you hover over an image you will see the alt text pop up near your mouse cursor). "Blog a blog is short for weblog. Or to make it clearer web log. This refers to an area of a website (or an entire website) where periodic articles are published. "Browser address bar the browser address bar is the section in your browser (e.g. Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari) where you can see http:// followed by the website URL. It is located almost always at the very top of the browser window. It is NOT the Google search bar where you might type in some keywords to find a website. For example, if I asked you to go to "http://www.undesign.com.au/contact.php you would type it in your browser address bar. This is very important to understand, especially if your web developer is asking you to go to a URL that Google does not know about yet (e.g. a temporary or staging area for your web page that is not yet live). Content content is the most important facet of your digital marketing strategy. All of the now trends we were talking about, including search engines, mobile devices, social media etc. depend on content to drive them.
"Keywords key words are individual words that a user might search for in a search engine. Live Putting a website 'live' (as in alive) means your website will be able to be navigated to by typing in your web address (URL). "Meta tags Meta tags are defined in the coding of your website and web pages. A developer would define your website title, description and keywords that show up in search engines and in the browser window. "Not in spec you may find a web developer telling you a request is not in spec. In other words as part of the initial agreement on the project and costs, a newly requested function may cost extra because it was not originally specified in the brief. "Outbound links outbound links are hyperlinks from your website, that link to other websites. "Page Rank or "Ranking your website is ranked by search engines according to the reputation your website has. It takes time to acquire a solid page rank. The theory is the more page rank or ranking your website has, the higher your website will appear in search engine results for relevant key phrases or key words. "Scope scoping is the process where the ideas for the website are scoped out or fleshed out in detail. This may include for example, different functions you want to your website to perform. "SEO Search Engine Optimisation The analysis and implementation of techniques that enables your website to perform better in search engine result pages (see SERP). "SERP Search Engine Results Page The results page you get after you make a query using a search engine (such as Google, Yahoo, etc.). "Site Map - A site map can refer to a page on your website that includes hyperlinks to ALL of your web pages, or it can refer to the sitemap one would send to Google (or other search engine) that lets the search engine know of each page you have (sometimes referred to as an xml sitemap). "Static a static website has information only. It does not interact with a database, or website visitors. It cannot perform many of todays functions you see on websites such as user memberships.
"Website Address your website address is the URL (uniform resource locator) of your website. For example http://www.undesign.com.au is a website address (or website URL). You can use this address by typing it into your browser address bar (not in the Google search bar).
Notes
Content Management
Of all the terms in the glossary, content is the most important one to understand. All of the now trends covered earlier, including search engines, mobile devices, social media etc. depend on content to drive them. As such, its the most potent tool you have at your disposal. When we talk about content in the digital world, we are talking about copy, images and any other information that you can provide to your audience or have your users interact with and create themselves, through your digital medium (website). So how do we make the most of our content? How do we get it to work for us? One term that Im sure if you havent heard, you will get to hear as you embark on your digital marketing journey is CMS or Content Management System (see glossary). At its best, a good CMS will allow users to make such changes as easily as updating a word document. This is done using a What You See is What You Get or WYSIWYG editor. A CMS does not always just mean a 'content management system' for websites. Other examples of CMSs include RMS (record management system) DMS (document management system) and of course WCMS, the type used for managing your websites (web content management system) and CRM (customer relationship manager). All of these technically fall under CMS. The reason I raise this is because Web Content Management Systems (WCMS) are fast becoming the hub of all CMS. The reason for this is people are comfortable using browsers to work from. All computers have browsers so people are used to them. This combined with the web or remote access, means that even Learn Local businesses will start seeing business software run from their website CMS as the sharepoint. Other reasons for the increase in WCMS as a sharepoint for software is that users are loving the simplicity of web based applications. Its cheaper and easier to train users, its more enjoyable for employees and people are used to using web browsers. Notes
Understanding your website needs

Its important to put yourself in your customers shoes.
Sometimes when we are close to our business we see what we want our customers to see. Its often great to get third party advice, from real customers. Try to avoid friends and family, as they often say what they think we want to hear. A great way to get customer feedback and do it digitally, is to create an online survey. You can do free online surveys by going to http://www.surveymonkey.com/. You can email these out to clients, to find out whats important to them. There are easy to follow guides when you go to the website. Once you know what your customers want, you can ensure you have the right content for them and use that knowledge to attract new prospective customers. The information flow should be simple. The content you put together should follow a logical and sequential order. Follow our earlier advice of using short content grabs to entice your online viewers.
A template site will cost anywhere between $500 and $2000 dollars. Lets look at some examples so you can see how content can make a template look so much more different.
A user should never be more than 2 - 3 clicks away from what they want to find.
Make the hard decisions for your clients. There is such a thing as too much choice. You want to strike a nice balance between giving your clients the information they want, and leading them through a journey of your site. Its the difference between shopping at a 2 dollar shop where merchandise is crammed into the shelving and there is no order, or shopping at a clean, well organised shop, where aisles are labelled. The same applies to the order of your website. Dont be afraid of template sites. Often people hear the word template and think that it means the site wont be unique. Its the content that makes your site unique - the images, copy and multimedia. The great thing about template sites is that they look great and modern. You know what youre getting before you start. They come with a CMS all ready to go and can be turned around in a fraction of the time of a custom site. Notes
The User Journey

We touched earlier on user interface which is sometimes referred to as UI or UX and its movement towards web 2.0. Firstly, web 2.0 refers to clean, simple and easy to use. So that means keeping your menus simple, and formatted to a top menu is best practice. The most common menus include home, about us, and a call to action like contact us or book an appointment. At a maximum, you dont really want any more than 5 6 menu items and they should reflect exactly what you expect your user to want to do when they arrive at your site. As a general rule, most web developers, especially usability enthusiasts, say it is bad practice to use dropdown menus because they are confusing, annoying and often dysfunctional. From a design standpoint however, drop-down menus are an excellent feature because they help clean up a busy layout. If structured correctly, dropdown menus can be a great navigation tool, while still being a usable and attractive design feature. One of the greatest champions of the web 2.0 movement has been the US company, 37signals. Based in Chicago, these seven guys developed some of the most prolifically used web based applications on the market. No startup capital, no debt, in just 2 years. They have revolutionised the way software programmers look at complex applications like CRMs, project management tools and business communication programs. Basecamp, Campfire, Highrise, Backpack, Writeboard, Tada List are just a few of their sites, and they even give programmers the software they built them on for free (Ruby on Rails). Their book Getting Real is a great read if you are into any sort of project based work. There are many simplistic methodologies that 37signals uses, but their main philosophy is Simple, focused software that does just what you need and nothing that you don't need. Or as we put it, making the hard decisions for your clients. This means looking at your websites for what they are and what they are required to do. No bells and whistles, no sound effects, no flash; just nice, elegant, clean designs
that give our users the small snippets of content relevant to them we talked about earlier. The other important facet to ensuring a great user journey is planning. Even the largest development companies use traditional looking site maps and wire frames to help lock down the users journey before even laying a single line of code. Many of you will either be designing a new website or thinking about how to get the most out of your existing site, or thinking about designing a new website.
Exercise: in thinking like a programmer looking at your

own site and listing 3 changes based on what we have learned. (2 mins) Notes
Getting Your Website Working Harder

Now that we have an understanding of a CMS and what it does, its important to get a grasp on the different types of CMS. For those of you who have not yet purchased a website or CMS on their existing website, it will help you make an informed decision. For those of you who already have a website, it will help you have a better understanding of what you currently have.
All of these CMS have WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) editors.
Open Source vs Custom CMS

An open source CMS is simply a free CMS that has been created, that any developer in the world can use, and that is contributed to by developers all around the world. The advantage to this sort of CMS is that if you are unhappy with your developers, you can take your site to other developers who will have knowledge on how to work with your website. A custom CMS is one that is usually developed by a company. Its their own IP and most would be reluctant to share this IP with other development companies. Because its their own, its usually more expensive to develop and doesnt have the advantage of thousands of developers contributing to the knowledge base that open source does. When it comes to CMS (unless you are talking about incredibly complex software or applications) for your website, we advice you go open source every time. Examples of good open source CMS are: Drupal Wordpress Magento Joomla (to a lesser extent) Notes
Getting your content working harder

We keep coming back to content as the key driver behind getting your website working for you. Whether its choosing the right content, the way the content is displayed, how often its updated... it really is important. This is great news, as it is the one thing you have the most control over. The next obvious question is: Does my site need a CMS? There are a few things to consider here. The first is your resources. A CMS is a great way of keeping costs down and your content current. You dont need a developer to update your site. You do, however, need to ensure that you have the time and resources to update the site yourself. A CMS can add anything from $500 - $2000+ to a custom web build, or to install on an existing site all depending on the sites complexity. Alternatively, a developer will cost anywhere from $50 - $150 per hour to make content changes for you. Adding a paragraph or changing some words may take 5 15 minutes. So if you only plan on updating your site with minor revisions, a CMS may not be the way for you to go. If you are going to embark on the content is king strategy and invest time in taking control of your sites content, then a CMS is probably the way to go. (Remembering there are inexpensive template options available). Either way our advice is open source. That way youre not tied down to one developer. The type of CMS will again depend on the type and complexity of your site, but make sure you get 2 or 3 developers advice so that you can make an informed decision.
Other Features
If you go with an open source CMS, ask your chosen developer to explore what existing plug-ins there are for things like: Online booking forms Blogs Social Media plugins Calendars Third Party Feeds Remembering that using the 37 Signals approach, the features we are adding are things that a majority of our clients have asked for. Finally, ensure your website passes the SEO health check (See Module Five). Notes
Exercise - use the wire frame tool available to create a

web form for online bookings that will go on your site. Remember: 37 Signals make the hard decisions Web 2.0 a 4 year old should be able to use it Keep it simple and easy to navigate
Images and copy

Make sure your content is great! Quality images and well written copy are the lifeblood of a good website. If you are not much of a writer, then find someone who is. If you dont know anyone who writes, go to getafreelancer.com or odesk.com. There are also web developers and creatives on those sites, but I would avoid them unless you are skilled in the digital language (much translation can be lost in what you are after for technical things like website builds and creative design). If you dont have a budget for a photographer, you can get students from Film Victoria to do shoots at a fraction of the cost. Alternatively, you can buy quality stock images which are generic, but look great. You can go to www.istock.com or www.bigstock.com and do a search for just about anything. There is nothing worse than seeing a grainy scanned image or photo from an iPhone spoil an otherwise lovely site. Content should be dynamic! You can achieve this by updating your site via your CMS as often as possible. Many sites now come with a blog or article feature that allows you to add to your library of articles. Write topical pieces about current subjects that your site viewers would be interested in. If time is against you, you can investigate a feed from another news source or website. This keeps the information on your site fresh, and visitors coming back. Search engines also love new updated content, so it helps SEO. Social media plug-ins can help to keep your content dynamic.
Notes
Website Top Tips

Embrace digital, its here to stay. All digital marketing should be accountable and trackable. Survey your clients. Find out what they want, so that you will know what your customers want. Re-assess your website, simplify it so that only the essentials need to be there. Make the hard decisions for your clients. Decisions: A CMS in an old site? A new site? Templates are OK! Content is the key. Make sure your content is great. Structure your great, simplified content so that its logical and easy to follow. Make a decision on how you will take control of your content. Formulate a plan. Try to make it dynamic. Make sure your site passes an SEO health check.
Notes
E-Newsletter
Understanding EDMs
So your website is fantastic. You have members and users logging in and we have built up a database. How do you remind those clients/customers you are here? Whats the best way of digitally marketing to them? An E-Newsletter or EDM (Electronic Direct Mail) is a great way to keep your clients up-to-date on your new products and services, special offers and promotions, and make announcements on events and happenings in your company. This is sending EDM (electronic direct mailers) and email newsletters through a bulk email broadcast engine. The reason we run these through bulk email broadcast engines and not your own email, is that these engines or servers have been specially created so as not to be caught in spam. It also prevents your email domain from being marked as spam over the internet. There are rules behind EDMs that must be adhered to, such as allowing subscribers to un-subscribe, and esuring all recipients have opted into the email in the first place, in order to keep these third party servers spam safe. EDMs can be created as templates, with a CMS, much like your website. As the administrator, you can create/ edit/ send/ publish your email newsletter anytime, using the WYSIWYG editor in our EDM tool. Professional-looking newsletter templates can be specially designed to suit your organisation's corporate image. Visitors who subscribe to your email newsletter on your website will be automatically added to your newsletter mailing list. You can also import or key in your newsletter subscriber list manually and further organise them into groups to receive different types of updates. There are a number of different companies that provide this service and the charges per EDM vary from 2c to 10c per email, a fraction of the cost of print medium. A couple of examples of third party companies include: http://www.vision6.com.au/ and http://mailchimp.com/ ours is http://sendit.loudclear.com.au/
Content
The design rules are similar to the websites rules. Information should be short and punchy, and excite recipients into opening the EDM. When clicking on an item in the EDM, users are then directed to either a landing page with more information or to a website. The great thing about EDMs is that they are trackable and accountable. Not only can the administrator see how many recipients have opened the email, they can see how many have clicked through and where they have clicked through to from there. Click through rates for business to business (B2B) range from 5% to 15% and for business to consumer (B2C) the range is about 2% to 12%. For every 1000 emails sent, there is a cost of $50 where 50 - 150 will click through to your site/offer. Of course this is greatly increased in a closed database i.e. A subscribed to newsletter.
Notes
E-Newsletter Top Tips

Choose the best value third party mail option. Make the content of the EDM short and punchy grab recipients attention. Try to limit the amount of information or communication messages. Make sure you track the activity of recipients to get an insight of whats working and whats not.
. Notes
Tool Kit
Recommended CMS
www.mailchimp.com www.drupal.com
Recommended Template Websites
www.wordpress.com
www.designerwebsites.com.au
Recommended EDM Providers
www.vision6.com.au
www.templatemonster.com
Recommended Content Creation
www.sendit.loudclear.com.au
www.oDesk.com
Wire Framing Tool

www.elance.com
www.surveymonkey.com
www.gomockingbird.com
www.istock.com
www.bigstock.com
Other Resources Philosophy of Web 2.0
www.gettingreal.37signals.com
PowerPoint Slides
Search Engine Optimisation

Understanding SEO
Certainly the buzz phrase, Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) and its resulting processes have emerged from the technological depths and into the mainstream of society. Its very hard to navigate anywhere online without someone claiming to be able to get more customers, or enable you to convert more leads or achieve better rankings in the search engines. It is important to understand the nature of the digital world and why an entire new form of marketing (digital marketing) has emerged. This style of marketing seeks to promote websites by increasing their visibility in search engine results pages (SERPS) through the use of paid placement, contextual advertising and organic website optimisation. But before we delve into the world of search engines, spider bots and meta tags, it is important to understand why it is imperative that all businesses be it large or small, online or offline needs a strong web presence.
As the picture suggests, those areas shaded in red are considered paid listings and those in purple are whats known as organic or natural listings. SEO involves pushing your web listing high up these page results in a natural or organic manner. This is done via a number of internal and external processes that help promote a site for a particular content matter. Why is this important? There are 11 billion searches per year on search engines 90% of people do not go past the first page 85% of people click on the organic results compared to the paid results Almost 65% of people click on the top 3 listings in the search results Question: How often do you go past the first page on Google? When you think about it, ensuring a strong presence in the search engines is not just important its absolutely vital. The job of SEO is to make sure that your website is telling the search engine that it is an authority in its selected field and that it should be prominently displayed in the organic search results. If you are not ranking on the first page of search engines then you are dramatically reducing the potential for finding new and qualified customers. The 3 main reasons for partaking in SEO are:
Internet Usage Statistics 2010

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7XyWTGepCHo
Some pretty amazing stats the most prolific being that 97% of consumers now use online media when researching products and services in their local area. How do you make your business stand out from the rest? SEO is one of the tools in your arsenal. In its simplest form, SEO is the enhancement of a website to make it more visible in the search engine result pages in order to drive more quantified traffic to that site.
Connect: The Internet is the fastest growing sales channel and Internet use is skyrocketing. Average time spent online is now higher than time spent watching television. Convert: Natural search engine results generally mean a much more targeted and qualified customer finding your website and purchasing from you. Cost: In the long run, SEO will be a much more costeffective marketing process than other forms of online marketing.
As per the latest stats on marketing budget spent versus the results: SEO drives 85% of all search traffic, yet less than 15% of marketing budgets is being spent on SEO. PPC receives less than 15% of all search traffic, yet earns 80%+ of SEM campaign budgets. One of the major reasons for quick adoption of PPC strategy is that it is very similar to traditional paid advertising strategy and business owners can manage such campaigns on their own. SEO requires a pre-requisite set of skills to ensure your website reaches the top rankings on search engine result pages through various on-site optimisations and off-site organic search engine optimisation strategies. Another reason why businesses prefer PPC is that they have better control over the entire program and they know exactly how and where their dollar is spent and the results for each dollar spent can be seen through subsequent AdWords reports. They also do not have to change their tactics each time the search engines change their algorithms which can prove a real headache, especially for those who are only interested in quick, short term results. Organic SEO might seem like too much work, with absolutely no guaranteed results for short-term goal seekers. SEO as an Internet marketing strategy requires patience, but the rewards are plentiful. Organic optimisation is not the first choice for many (depending on the brand and business model) but it does have inherent benefits that are unparalleled by sponsored or paid advertising tactics. The benefits and results last for longer periods. While a PPC campaign can deliver leads with relative ease, it can be a big money drain and has no real longevity once you stop shelling out the cash, the website traffic goes away. SEO and link building require a lot more creative effort, but can have more sustainable results. It also allows a business to target a larger base of users, as most studies reveal that 75-85% of searchers click on organic listings as opposed to paid listings.
SEO vs Pay Per Click (PPC)

With increasing use of the Internet as a medium for marketing, business owners are trying to grapple with new strategies to win the online marketing war. For those who are not well versed with Internet marketing tactics, it is difficult to choose the best strategy for their business growth. There are too many articles and forums available that discuss which marketing tool would be most effective online. As a business owner who is working hard to get internet savvy and take advantage of this tool, you need to understand that at present, most of the online website promotional strategies can be divided into 2 types: Organic Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) and Pay Per Click Advertising (PPC). Let us recap the basics of both: Organic or natural SEO consists of optimising web pages to enhance their position in the naturally occurring search results. Organic SEO consists of on-page and off-page optimisation. When you purchase visitors or clicks from a search engine, this is called pay-per-click (PPC) search engine advertising. One of the highest recognised PPC providers is Google AdWords. PPC advertising allows you to quickly leverage search engine traffic by bidding (paying) for high-value keywords related to your product or service. The next question is Which is a better marketing plan SEO or PPC? A very simple answer would be: Depends on the end results you expect from your online marketing strategy. Lets check out each strategy in brief to get a clear picture.
As time goes on, web surfers are less prone to clicking PPC links on the right side of Googles results or in the top sponsored links section. Why? In the past, web surfers didnt understand the difference between sponsored and non-sponsored links. Now web surfers are much more net savvy. The result is that a growing number of web surfers will click on non-sponsored links on the first page of results because they thinkIf that site made it into the top ten without paying for it, they must really be the best sites. The Internet is the fastest growing sales channel. The reason for the huge growth is that the way people make decisions has fundamentally changed and search engines are now an integral part of the research and buying process. A high search engine ranking gives your business access to new customers and markets. This is why search engine markting is becoming increasingly important for businesses all over the world. When one of your potential customers conducts a search via a major search engine, only one of two possible outcomes is possible: 1. 2. They will find your website They will find your competitors website
HOT TIP
If you are new to Google AdWords you may be eligible for a free $75 voucher to kick-start your ad campaign.
Go to this link (https://www.google.com/appserve/fb/forms/auonline/? utm_source=letterbox) and fill out your details.
Which will it be? The answer is dependent upon your websites visibility. If your website is not performing well, every time the customer searches the keyword or phrase relevant to your websites product or service, they will choose a competitor over you. Notes
When to Implement SEO

Building a website is sometimes a long and arduous task. It can take months to design, build, code and write content and get the technical features right. You then spend time testing the website navigation, get independent feedback regarding design and feel, update any concerns, and re-work any content issues all in an endeavor to create an aesthetically pleasing site that will help enhance business revenue. Once you have finished, you can sit back and wait for the customers to roll in but where are they? Now you start thinking about online marketing and SEO practices unfortunately, something that should have been thought about from the start. For many businesses, the decision to start implementing a SEO or an online marketing strategy comes far too late.
How to Implement SEO

There is no one size fits all approach to SEO, with each website in each industry requiring individual treatment. There are however, three cornerstones of SEO that need to be adhered to, to ensure your SEO has the greatest chance of success.
The cornerstones of SEO

The process of SEO can be broken down into three distinct areas: Onsite SEO Link Building Dynamic Content
Could you afford not to have any sales in your first six months? The decision in relation to online marketing should begin at the first meeting in relation to the website build. Who is our market? What is our product? Who are we selling too? Are all questions that should be asked at the first step. A successful SEO campaign will begin with the right recommendations for the internal structure of the website. It will help decide the main theme and help with the internal journey for the users. It will help with the creation of a community, even before the website has been finished. All of these processes will ensure that when the website is ready for launch, the business can hit the ground running rather than launching and stalling for six months whilst the SEO catches up. Establishing a website without thinking about how to steer traffic to it, is like trying to sell your house without providing the address. Synchronising the build and design process with the SEO strategy is crucial in preventing unnecessary costs or blowing out timeframes that could be spent on more efficient revenue building activities. In the online world, dominated by constant innovation and highly dynamic practices, there is nothing more expensive than playing catch-up.
As the image suggests, all three components are interrelated and in some way have an effect on each other. For example, Onsite SEO will impact on the content created, which will impact on the links achieved. Or, garnering links from a specific demographic may require certain content to be created, which would affect some onsite factors. Ultimately, only focusing on one or two of the components will not suffice a holistic approach is needed that encapsulates components from all three cornerstones.
Onsite SEO
Of the three, Onsite SEO probably has the biggest impact on SEO and from our estimates it constitutes about 40% of Googles result algorithm.
These factors are the ones that actually tell the search engines what your site is about, what its main themes are, what each page represents, where the pages are located and how it should navigate through. Although being so important, it is usually the most neglected of all SEO components. Search engines read websites differently to you and I they see websites in code, not pictures. For example:
Onsite SEO is about making sure that search engines when getting to your site actually read and understand everything you are trying to tell them. Here are the top 10 factors relating to onsite SEO: Keyword Research It is vitally important to know which words and phrases your desired customers are searching for in the search engines. Competitor Analysis Knowing who ranks best in your industry and then undertaking an analysis of why this is so, is a very important factor. This process can help you ascertain factors such as keywords, links and content. Great Content Writing high quality and original content is a great way to enhance search engine rankings. URLs, Title Tags and Meta Tags All the URLs, Title and Meta Tags should be optimised and made different for every page of your website. Headings (h1) and Sub-Headings (h2 h6) Headings play an important role in organising information and letting search engines know what words are considered important.
How we see a website
Image Title and ALT Attributes The title attribute is a direct method of telling the search engines and users where a particular link will take them. The ALT attribute is specifically used for describing an image to the search engines, otherwise, they would not see it. By slotting in keywords to these attributes, the search engines will link certain words with certain pages. Anchor Text Ensure that words that link internally and externally are relevant to the page they are linking to. There is no point having a link that says click here as the search engines will associate those words with your site. It is also recommended to have a range of keywords used to link to your site. Submit Static and XML Sitemaps Since every page on a website is linked to the sitemap, it enables the search engine spiders to enter and index your site much faster and easier.
How Google sees a website
Use Checklists and Validators There are several ways to validate the accuracy of your websites source code. Having broken links or images can severely impact on any SEO program, not to mention frustrating customers. Data Analysis What is the point of conducting any campaign without setting in place some kind of analytical investigation into its performance? By knowing customer behaviour and website performance, a better, more direct campaign can be instigated.
Activity: Keyword Research

Keyword research is singularly the most important factor of SEO. Without knowing what words and phrases people are searching for, the entire Onsite SEO process halts. Question: What are the 5 most likely words or phrases people are using to search for your business on Google? 1._____________________________________________ 2._____________________________________________ 3. _____________________________________________ 4. _____________________________________________ 5. _____________________________________________
How to check the value of these keywords

Step 1: Open the Internet Step 2: Type this link (https://adwords.google.com/select/KeywordTo olExternal) into the URL line or just Google Google keyword tool and select the top result. Step 3: Type the 5 words you have chosen into the Word or phrase box Step 4: Click Advanced Options and Filters Step 5: Change location to Australia Step 6: Type in Captcha words Step 7: Change Match Types on left hand side to exact (see explanation about this after steps) Step 8: Check results table (ensuring you are looking at Local Monthly Searches
Notes _______________________________________ _______________________ ________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ ___________ _____ What are the differences between Broad, Exact and Phrase match types in the Keyword Tool?
Google Keyword Tool allows you to search for keywords filtered in three different ways: Broad Match, Phrase Match and Exact Match.
Out of the three, the most useful one when picking a keyword phrase is the Exact Match. Heres why: Broad Match Broad match searches are the default setting in the keyword tool, and unfortunately the least useful because they return a highly inflated number. If you are searching for Adult Education the broad search will return the number of searches containing adult, education, adult education or any other word that Google deems related in any way. Needless to say, this could lead you to believe you have found a phrase that has a lot of searches and huge traffic when in reality it could be the opposite. Phrase Match Though the phrase match is a bit broader than exact match, it is still useful. Once again lets assume your researching the keywords adult education. The phrase match will return the number of searches that include ALL the words in your search, but may have variations. This will, for example, include searches for best adult education, adult education Sydney or adult friendly education. Exact Match This is by far the most useful metric out of the three. This provides you the number of monthly searches for your EXACT keyword: adult education, no variation or additions. Picking keywords for an Exact Match will give you the most unadulterated data.
Brainstorming - Thinking of what your customers/potential visitors would be likely to type into search engines in an attempt to find the information/services your site offers (including alternate spellings, wordings, synonyms, etc.). Surveying Customers - Surveying past or potential customers is a great way to expand your keyword list to include as many terms and phrases as possible. It can also give you a good idea of what's likely to be the biggest traffic drivers and produce the highest conversion rates. Applying Data from Keyword Research Tools Several tools online offer information about the number of times users perform specific searches. Using these tools can offer concrete data about trends in keyword selection. Term Selection - The next step is to create a matrix or chart that analyses the terms you believe are valuable, and compares traffic, relevancy and the likelihood of conversions for each. This will allow you to make the best-informed decisions about which terms to target. Performance Testing and Analytics - After keyword selection and implementation of targeting, analytics programs that measure web traffic, activity and conversions can be used to further refine keyword selection.
Targeting the Right Terms
Some more about Keywords

Keyword Selection
Ask any SEO expert it will always be about keywords. They are literally the key to any SEO campaign. Knowing how to identify and implement the RIGHT keywords is essential. They will dictate a lot of the subsequent points.
Targeting the best possible terms is of critical importance. This encompasses more than merely measuring traffic levels and choosing the highest trafficked terms. An intelligent process for keyword selection will measure each of the following: Conversion Rate - the percentage of users searching with the term/phrase that convert (click an ad, buy a product, complete a transaction, etc.). Predicted Traffic - An estimate of how many users will be searching for the given term/phrase each month. Value per Customer - An average amount of revenue earned per customer using the term or phrase to search - comparing big-ticket search terms vs. smaller ones.
How to Conduct Keyword Research

Keyword research is critical to the process of SEO. Without this component, your efforts to rank well in the major search engines may be misdirected to the wrong terms and phrases, resulting in rankings that no one will ever see. The process of keyword research involves several phases:
Keyword Competition - A rough measurement of the competitive environment and the level of difficulty for the given term/phrase. This is typically measured by metrics that include the number of competitors, the strength of those competitors' links and the financial motivation to be in the sector. Once you've analysed each of these elements, you can make effective decisions about the terms and phrases to target. When starting a new site, it's highly recommended to target only one or possibly two unique phrases on a single page. Although it is possible to optimise for more phrases and terms, it's generally best to keep separate terms on separate pages, as you can provide individualised information for each in this manner. As websites grow and mature, gaining links and legitimacy with the engines, and targeting multiple terms per page becomes more feasible.
Dynamic Content
Why should a search engine rank your site above all the others in its field? If you cannot answer this question clearly and precisely, the task of ranking higher will be exponentially more difficult. Search engines attempt to rank the very best sites with the most relevant content first in their results, and until your site's content is the best in its field, you will always struggle against the engines rather than bringing them to your doorstep.
The Long Tail of Search

The theory of the Long Tail is that our culture and economy is increasingly shifting away from a focus on a relatively small number of "hits" (mainstream products and markets) at the head of the demand curve and toward a huge number of niches in the tail. As the costs of production and distribution fall, especially online, there is now less need to lump products and consumers into one-size-fits-all containers. In an era without the constraints of physical shelf space and other bottlenecks of distribution, narrowly-target goods and services can be as economically attractive as mainstream fare. This concept relates exceptionally well to keyword search terms in the major search engines. Although the largest traffic numbers are typically for broad terms at the "head" of the keyword curve, great value lies in the thousands of unique, rarely used, niche terms in the "tail." These terms can provide higher conversion rates and more interested and valuable visitors to a site, as these specific terms can relate to exactly the topics, products and services your site provides.
It is in content quality that a site's true potential shows through, and although search engines cannot measure the likelihood that users will enjoy a site, the vote via links system operates as a proxy for identifying the best content in a market. With great content, therefore, come great links and, ultimately, high rankings. Deliver the content that users need, and the search engines will reward your site.
Content quality, however, like professional design, is not always dictated by strict rules and guidelines. What passes for "best of class" in one sector may be below average in another market. The competitiveness and interests of your peers and competitors in a space often determine what kind of content is necessary to rank. Despite these variances, however, several guidelines can be almost universally applied to produce content that is worthy of attention: Research Your Field Get out into the forums, blogs and communities where folks in your industry spend their online discussion time. Note the most frequently asked questions, the most up-to-date topics and the posts or headlines that generate the most interest. Apply this knowledge when you create high quality content and directly address your market's needs. Consult and Publish in Partnership with Industry Experts In any industry, there will be high-level, publically prominent experts as well as a second tier of "wellknown in web circles" folks. Targeting either of these groups for collaborative efforts in publishing articles, reviewing your work or contributing (even via a few small quotes) can be immensely valuable. In this manner, you can be assured that your content is both link and visitor-worthy. In addition, when partnering with "experts", exposure methods are built-in, creating natural promotion angles. Create Documents that Can Serve as One-Stop Resources If you can provide a single article or resource that provides every aspect of what a potential visitor or searcher might be seeking, your chances for success in SEO go up. An "all-in-one" resource can provide more opportunities than a single subject resource in many cases. Don't be too broad as you attempt to execute this kind of content creation - it's still important to keep a narrow focus when you create your piece. The best balance can be found by putting yourself in the potential users' shoes - if your piece fits their needs and covers every side of their possible interests, while remaining "on-message," you're ready to proceed.
Provide Unique Information Make sure that when you design your content outline, you include data and information that can be found nowhere else. While collecting and amalgamating information across the web can create good content, it is the unique elements in your work that will be noticed and recommended. Serve Important Content in a Non-Commercial Format Creating a document format that is non-commercial is of exceptional importance for attracting links and attention. The communities of web and content builders are particularly attuned to the commercialisation of the web and will consciously and sub-consciously link to and recommend resources that don't serve prominent or interfering advertising. If you must post ads, do so as subtlety and unobtrusively as possible. One Great Page is Worth a Thousand Good Pages While hundreds or dozens of on-topic pages that cover sections of an industry are valuable to a website's growth, it is actually far better to invest a significant amount of time and energy producing a few articles/resources of truly exceptional quality. To create documents that become "industry standard" on the web and are pointed to time after time as the "source" for further investigations, claims, documents, etc. is to truly succeed in the rankings battle. The value of "owning" this traffic and link source far outweighs a myriad of articles that are rarely read or linked to.
What is Link Building?

One of the most important procedures a website owner can undertake to optimise their website and therefore improve search engine rankings is link building. Link building is the process where you go out to other websites across the Internet and through various methods get them to link to one of the pages on your website. Success on the Internet is contingent not only on good titles and quality content but on links as well. Without a generous number of links, you will not be in the best rankings for the keywords that match your website, regardless of the industry you are in. Links can either be inbound or outbound, with inbound links being considered the currency of the Internet. If you are a website owner, you would aspire for as many inbound links as possible, as these definitely increase your website traffic and capacity for sales from your site. However, not all inbound links are given a high regard by search engines. Those coming from sites with trusted value or those from relevant sites are given higher regard than those from directories and forums. You also would want to confine your outbound links, because with a higher number comes a higher chance of linking to useless directories which are often spam. Linking to these resources can be hurtful to your sites search engine rankings, so make sure that you only build links with reliable and trustworthy ones.
Why are Links so Powerful?

It is human nature to boost your own worth. This is why meta-tags and page copy are nowhere near as powerful as they once were; they have been used and abused. Links from other websites are viewed by search engines as unbiased (or at least less biased) third party votes. While Yahoo! tends to put more weight on page copy than Google does, links are the #1 ranking criteria for competitive phrases in all major search engines. So how do you get links? There are lots of ways for link building, such as submitting your sites link in article directories, web directories, various forums, social bookmarking sites and press releases. You can also do so in Yahoo! Answers, Squidoo, Google Groups, in your own blog, in other peoples blogs and in blog directories. You can also get links from the websites of your customers, suppliers and business associates. Before doing link building, however, make sure that you use the right keywords (or anchor text) in these links. Anchor text is one of the main indicators to Google of what it is your website is about so it is imperative that the words used to link to your site are relevant keywords not phrases like click here. Sadly enough, the most common anchor text on the web is still click here, and some business savvy folk have made quite a bit of money from this exact phrase.
Tips to Build Backlinks

Quality trumps quantity Backlink quality counts more than quantity. It is much more pertinent to have 5 good links than 5,000 crappy ones. In general, a quality backlink is an endorsement in some way of your Web content from a trustworthy and/or authoritative site. A highquality link is often a link in an article pointing to a Web page on your site that's relevant to the article topic. When the content of the article, the anchor text, and the page being linked are to be all on the same topic, Google will view that as a quality link, and that kind of link is what helps in your search engine results position. Relevance and legitimacy matter Obtaining links from relevant sites is of paramount importance.
It is always considered best practice to seek links from non-spam, legitimate sites within the same subject matter as your own. Quality content attracts quality links When you write a blog post that's interesting, useful, controversial, topical, or funny, you've created "linkbait." Linkbait is content that others want to link to and share on their blogs, in their Twitter streams, on their Facebook pages, or in some other online forum. Search engines, which are beginning to experiment with using Twitter and public Facebook data as ranking factors, see such links as endorsements of your content. To get a Quality Link offer something valuable in return One-way to get a backlinks to your small business website is to create original, worthwhile content that contains an anchor text or other link to your site, and to offer that content to another site. For example, offer to write a guest post on a blog relevant to your industry and add a backlink to your site in the post. Do your research first to ensure that you know the site's target audience. To sweeten your offer, propose guest posts on topics you know people are actively searching for at the moment. Get listed in online directories, especially those that are relevant to your industry There are countless Web directories, such as Yellow Pages and True Local, which will list your business by one or more categories and include a backlink to your site. Generally speaking, look for directories that are human-edited, as the search engines tend to give links from those listings a bit more weight than directories that allow you to add a listing yourself. The most valuable listings are from directories particular to your vertical industry. For instance, if you sell products of interest to human resource professionals, a directory listing on a site such as Workforce Management -- even though it requires a fee -- is more valuable than one on a general business directory. In this scenario, you're not just getting a potential SEO lift from the link. You're also posting your listing in a place where your target customers are likely to see it.
Don't be afraid to buy links. Just be smart about it Link building is a time-consuming process. Unsurprisingly, there's no shortage of businesses offering to do the job for you quickly. But paying an SEO firm to get backlinks from dubious, spammy sites can actually cause you to get penalised by the search engines. Even so, paying for links should be a part of an overall link-building strategy. If there's an online trade publication in your industry and they have a vendor area or sponsored content, it would be foolish not to consider that as part of your link marketing strategy. As with an industry-specific directory listing, you're exposing your site to target customers -- which can deliver more business benefits than the potential search engine lift. Scope out the link universe and look for patterns When formulating a link-building campaign, think about where your target audience goes online to get information about the kinds of products or services you offer. Do relevant, topical keyword searches in Google or Bing to see which sites rank highly. Usually, top-ranking sites are those that the search engines trust to be legitimate and that offer quality content on the topic relevant to your keyword. Look for competitors as well as bloggers, informational sites and trade shows. This research will help you define the potential "link universe" to target for your particular industry. The goal is to create a list of the 25-50 sites that represent the competitive landscape as well as the top content sites for your industry. Then, using link analysis tools, look for linking patterns between the sites in your link universe. This will help you identify links your competitors are getting but you aren't. This gives you a starting point for your link-building campaign. Don't just copy your competitors; go after links they don't have If you want to beat your competitors in search engine results, simply copying their link strategies isn't enough. Look for holes in their strategy. Think about high-quality, original content you can create to get backlinks that your competitors lack.
Content & Link Building

Research suggests that content and links both contribute about 30% each to search engines result algorithms thus making them both as important as each other. The main thing to consider here is that quality content does seem to generate natural links, so a bigger focus may be dedicated to this task. The cornerstones of SEO all need to be adhered to in order to rank in the search engines and as you can see are all codependent and dynamic the SEO process is not a simply apply and walk away, but an ongoing and continuous set of tasks that rewards those that make the effort.
Google
In a world full of search engines, Google would be king. It is undoubtedly the number one search engine in the world. In Australia, Google accounts for approximately 95% of all search engine queries, with our other major two search engines (Yahoo & Bing) holding roughly an equal share. This being the case, one would logically conclude then a SEO focus on Google is imperative.
Web Analytics
A website is a necessary modern business tool and accordingly most businesses do have one. But how many businesses actually know how effective their site is? How many thousands of dollars have been spent on flashy websites, with fancy designs without ever knowing if that design is affecting the customer in a positive way? How do you know which one of your online ads is actually sending people to your site? How would you know if the website is engaging people correctly to convert them into a desired outcome? The answer is website analytics. One must remember that getting visitors to your site is only 10% of the game. In reality the website must be able to enable people to perform actions that are at the heart of your sites existence. This could be signing up for a newsletter, providing feedback or convincing them to make a purchase. The visitor who completes this action "converts" into a customer and it is the maximisation of this conversion that is all so important. The majority of business owners wrongly assume that there is not much they can do to increase this conversion rate and thus focus on enlarging the number of hits to the site. The problem arising here is that you may have a lot of onlookers to the site and not necessarily customers. In its most basic form Web Analytics enables you to monitor: The number of visitors you had to the site for a period of time How long these visitors are spending on the site How many pages these visitors navigated through Where the customer came from to reach the site (i.e. was it through an ad, a search engine or directly typed in) Where in the world they originated from If and how a conversion was made based on your pre-requisites
Activity A free website SEO checker

There are numerous free tools out there that can do this for you but we have found this one (WOORANK) to be the best. Go to this link (http://www.woorank.com/) and enter in your website URL. You can then have live results that allow you to click through for more information. Just by fixing the problems outlined in this report will dramatically help your overall SEO performance.
Example: www.dpcd.vic.gov.au
The best element of analytics is that it will help you establish trends and adjust your marketing accordingly. If you are spending hundreds of dollars running 5 banner ads on 5 different sites, but only 2 of them are sending traffic your way, you now can cancel the 3 useless ones and direct the money being spent on them into alternative sources or back into the successful ones. Web analytics gives you the tools to better understand where your marketing budget should be directed. Before employing web analytics into an Internet marketing strategy, the marketing department is reliant on conjecture and presumptions. With web analytics this department can explore with assurance multiple aspects of online marketing, including email marketing, search engine marketing, blogs, social networking, social media, ads on other websites, and more because they know they can establish how useful each facet is after experimenting with it for a relatively short term. A combination of various Internet marketing outlets is also particularly important, as a marketing strategy that leverages several customer contact points enables a capitalisation of potential business. If a customer sees an ad on a web page they frequent, reads an article about your company that you strategically placed online, and also sees that youre offering a deal on your Twitter page, you are much more likely to get the desired conversion out of the prospective customer, compared to if you only used one of the three mediums. Continuous vigilance is also required to make sure your SEO strategy is performing at the level you intend it to. Its very well to execute a keyword campaign in order to drive traffic to your website, but what may have been a successful keyword yesterday is by no means guaranteed to perform well tomorrow. In order to guarantee a highquality campaign that brings only the most qualified visitors to your site, you must frequently update your SEO strategy to reflect changes in web traffic and search trends. One of the best advantages of online marketing is that it is completely quantifiable. The actions of a web user are traceable from the moment they get online until they sign off. The search patterns of each user who visits your site can help determine the greatest way to market your products and the website itself in order to attract new visitors.
If you want your business to be successful, it is imperative to understand exactly how your website works and where the weak points are to be found. Ultimately, by understanding what web analytics has to offer you can achieve the most important aspect of any website functionality maximisation of profits. Finally, web analytics is essential because: It reduces uncertainty It directs resources into the most effective and efficient medium It increases confidence in Internet marketing campaigns It helps quantify conversions
Google Analytics
Google Analytics is a tool which allows you to see where and how traffic comes to your website. It is a free statistics tracking and analysis service that allows web site administrators to analyse traffic flow on a website. Regardless of the purpose of the website, Google Analytics can help make that website better. Here are the essential features of the best analytics software money can buy (its free of course), and how to utilise them to your advantage.
Keyword Source Knowing how customers find you is one of the most important questions in sales and marketing. Google Analytics tells you what search keywords people are using to find your site.
Top Content For each page on your site, Google Analytics will tell you how many times it has been viewed how much time the average visitor stays there, and how many people leave your site after visiting.
Referring Sites Not only can you see the traffic generated, but also goal conversion on the sites sending you traffic. Thus, you can get a read not only on the number of visitors a link partner is sending, but also on the quality of the traffic.
Top Exit Pages Knowing your trouble spots tells you where you need to improve, and Analytics lets you see your top exit points over a specified date range.
Bounce Rate The bounce rate tells you how many people come to your site and leave without going any further.
Site Overlay Allows you to mouse over your links and see how much they are being clicked on and whether they ultimately lead to goal conversion.
Visitor Loyalty How often do your visitors come back? Reducing the percentage of people that only visit once should be one of your constant priorities.
Goal Setting If you dont set goals, Google Analytics isnt going to take you very far. Once you have your business goals setup in Analytics, you are able to unleash vast amounts of data about whats working and whats not.
Deep Geographic Data You can now see how your site is performing in a variety of metrics by city or country.
Google Goes Local

A recent change to the Google search algorithm has had an enormous impact on how search results are displayed. After researching user trends and behaviours, Google decided to put a much bigger focus on all things local. Especially with the creation of a number of local orientated tools, Google switched the search results to prominently display local business listings.
Funnel Visualisation This is a fancy way of saying where do users bail out of the registration process? By knowing this information, you can attempt to fix the parts that seem to be scaring users away.
With Organic listings and Paid listings, a local business 7 pack is usually also displayed. This is to the detriment of Organic SEO, as these 7 packs are now usually in the top 3 positions. This has created a major boom to small and medium business owners who could not afford an ongoing SEO or PPC campaign, as they now have an equal chance of showing on the front page of Google. This move to local results is generated by a number of factors the number one factor being the computers location or IP address (unique browsing code for each computer). Once Google locates you it can then generate the best local business results for you. But how do you get yourself into the 7 pack listings. The answer is Google Places.
Google Places has also added the ability for business owners to post real-time updates to their Place Page. You might want to promote a sale, a special event or anything else that you want customers to know right now, and this feature lets you communicate that directly to your customers. You can also provide extra incentive by adding coupons, including ones specially formatted for mobile phones. One out of five searches on Google are related to location, and Google Places is a great way to make sure that businesses are able to be found and put their best foot forward. And the best thing is its FREE!
Activity Google Places

You might already have a Google Places page (you just didnt realise it). You also may not have known that Google Place pages (just like websites) can also be optimised. So, lets go through the process of claiming or establishing your Google Place page, making sure it is optimised to its full potential.
What is Google Places?
Example: LL Adult Education Centre

Question: Do you have a Google Places page? Millions of people use Google every day to find places in the real world, and the way that local businesses are being found is through Google Places. Place pages help people make more informed decisions about where to go, from restaurants in Fitzroy to dry cleaners in St Kilda, as well as non-business places like museums and parks. Place pages connect people to information from the best sources across the web, displaying photos, reviews and essential facts, as well as real-time updates and offers from business owners. Four million businesses have already claimed their Place Page on Google, which enables them to verify and supplement their business information to include hours of operation, photos, videos, coupons, product offerings and more. It also lets them communicate with customers and get insights that help them make smart business decisions. Heres how to check: Step 1: Go to Google Step 2: Type in your business name (if a map listing appear than you have one) Step 3: If no map listing, click on Maps from the top menu to do one final check. Step 4: Still no results then you dont have one
How to Claim (or create) and Optimise your Places listing

Step 1: Log into Google with your email account (it has to be enabled as a Google Account) Step 2: Go to your map listing on Google Step 3: Click on the Business Owner? link in the top right hand corner Step 4: Click Edit my business information and continue
Step 5: Fill in all the fields Step 6: TIP 1: Use keywords in your description Step 7: TIP 2: Use keywords in your categories you can have up to 5 (1 must be a generic Google category though) Step 8: TIP 3: Add 10 photos (ensure the first photo is your logo) Step 9: TIP 4: Add 5 videos (if you have them) Step 10: TIP 5: Add at least three additional details i.e. Adult Education: Yes, Accredited Courses: Yes, Certificates: Yes Step 11: Click Submit If claiming a listing you should be able to get a phone call from Google to verify the account. Otherwise you can arrange for a letter to be sent. Here is an example of why the categories chosen are so important:
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PowerPoint Slides
Social Media
Never before has a medium had such a dramatic impact on the way we live, learn and share. Social Media has created a fundamental shift in the way we communicate. Social media is here to stay. And, while consumer marketers may have taken the lead in harnessing its power, companies can no longer afford to ignore it. Buyers are spending a lot more time on the web doing independent research, getting information from their peers and experimenting with forums and micro-blogging. Like it or not, social media plays a huge role in the new business decision-making process. As a business marketer, you need to learn to leverage it for building relationships, listening to the market and influencing buyers before theyre even identified as potential leads. This section shows you how to use social media to drive new business and revenue. Whether youre just starting out or have a well-defined social media plan, this will be your go-to guide. First things first, lets get an overview of how Social Media has impacted our lives.
Understanding the Social Media Movement

Social media is the production, consumption and exchange of information through online social interactions and platforms. It is a social instrument of communication; it interacts with you whilst feeding you information. This interaction can be as simple as asking for comments or letting you vote on an article, or it can be as complex as recommending movies to you, based on the ratings of other people with similar interests. Think of regular media as a one-way street where you can read a newspaper or listen to a report on television, but you have very limited ability to give your thoughts on the matter. Social media, on the other hand, is a two-way street that gives you the ability to communicate as well. Social media marketing is the process of promoting your site or business through social media channels and it is a powerful strategy that will get you links, attention and massive amounts of traffic. There is no other low-cost promotional method out there that will easily give you large numbers of visitors, some of whom may come back to your website again and again. If you are selling products/services or just publishing content for user benefit, social media marketing is a potent method that will make your site profitable over time. Before Google, the primary way a prospect could get information about a company was by engaging directly with a sales person. Marketing focused on brand building and awareness, using mass advertising, tradeshows, PR and print media. Direct mail and cold calling made up the majority of targeted interactions, and marketers passed all new leads hot or cold to the sales team for followup. With the arrival of Google in 1998, companies started to focus on search engine optimisation (SEO), pay-per-click (PPC) advertising and e-mail marketing to drive traffic to their website. Then they created content such as whitepapers and webinars to convert traffic into leads. The best marketers realised that their leads were often sent too early to sales, and invested in lead scoring and lead nurturing to find the hot leads and develop the rest.
Social Media Revolution

Go to this link to see an outline of a number of key statistics about the Social Media Revolution. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFZ0z5Fm-Ng
Today, marketing through SEO, PPC and e-mail are still very much a part of the marketing mix, but social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube drive a large portion of the business interactions on the web. Because prospects are more likely to click-through to third-party reviews or blog postings to get word-of-mouth recommendations, search engines rank these sites higher (which in turn makes social content more accessible). If these social media leads do find their way to your company website, they will typically contact your company only when theyre ready to engage with sales. In this way, social media leads present a unique lead nurturing challenge, and a huge opportunity at the same time.
Case Study Audi

Situation Audi was the first Super Bowl commercial to feature a Twitter hashtag (#Progressls). In addition to pushing the hashtag on TV, Audi purchased a Promoted Trend ad from Twitter, and hired Klout, a startup firm that combs through Twitter and Facebook in search of the most influential people online. Audi has a full -time team monitoring its presence on social media sites. They are constantly posting new content, and it has even held special events for the most devoted members of the online Audisphere. Action Klout helped Audi find more than 1,100 people to reach out to about the campaign 200 of them received an Audi travel mug and flashlight. Klouts Audiphiles tweeted more than 12,000 times about the hashtag, creating a viral chain of Audi-related chatter online. The company then chose the best tweets containing #ProgressIs; the winner, @jetsetbrunette, won a trip to California to testdrive some Audis, and she also got to choose a charity to which Audi donated $25,000. Result The company will readily admit they dont know the exact return on investment. Today the equation to measure that doesnt exist, says Doug Clark, Audi Americas General Manager for Social Media and Customer Engagement. However Clark did point to a study by Visibli, a social marketing analytics company, which recently found that Audi has the most engaged fans of any entity on Facebook. Audis more than 3 million fans apparently are devoted to pushing the brand forward. Most savvy marketers know that social media is a longer-term play of building relationships with customers. Just as organic search engine optimisation was a long play ten years ago, the smart companies that do social media well today will see non-trackable returns in the years to come.
How social media affects the way we do business

Social media is fast becoming an essential part of the marketing mix for brands. Companies are increasingly using social tools to monitor conversations about their products, competitors, and industry, and engaging with their customers to build strong relationships. Research shows that almost 70% of small and medium businesses actively use social media sites like Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn to promote themselves. But simply posting what you had for lunch isnt going to help much with your branding efforts its important to strategically use social media tools to increase exposure and reach your target audience.
social media enables your company to reach a huge number of potential customers. Getting your name out there is incredibly important studies suggest that people need to hear a companys name at least seven times before they trust and respect it enough to become a customer. Take your message directly to consumers: Social media tools enable you to directly engage consumers in conversation. Be sure to build trust by adding value to the community consistently over time. Increase your search engine rankings: Social media profiles (especially those on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn) frequently rank highly with major search engines. Creating keyword-rich profiles around your brand name can help generate traffic for both your social-networking sites and your companys Web site. SEO benefits: Many social media bookmarking sites (including Friendfeed, Digg, and Mixx.) provide backlinks to your site, thus giving you an SEO boost. Social media content is now integrated with search results: Search engines are increasingly indexing and ranking posts and other information from social networks. Videos from popular sites like YouTube can also be optimised for indexing by the major search engines. Brand monitoring: Having a social media presence gives you a better understanding of what current and potential customers are saying about your products and services. If you actively monitor social conversations, you have the opportunity to correct false or inaccurate information about your brand and address negative comments before they take on a life of their own. Generate site traffic: You can create additional traffic if you regularly post updates on social networks that link back to your Web site. Social media bookmarking tools like Digg, Reddit, and Stumbleupon can also generate additional traffic to your site if you create frequent articles and blog posts.
Reasons why business needs to engage in social media marketing:

Own your brands social presence: If you dont create official channels online, its only a matter of time before your fans do it for you and create their own profiles and communities around your brand. Its important to claim your brand name across all the major social media platforms. Look like you get it: Your target audience is becoming shrewder about leveraging social media sites as an integral part of their daily lives. If you want to appear relevant and instep with the latest advances in technology, your potential customers will want to see you on these sites as well. If you dont have a presence, you appear as if youre not very savvy. Brand recognition: You need to go where your customers are, and they are increasingly spending a great deal of time on social networking sites. Using
Find new customers through your friends: You shouldnt neglect your personal social media accounts as potential avenues to promote the activities of your business. Posting regular updates relating to your business and activities can remind your friends about what your company does and influence them to use your services or make referrals. Find new customers through your company profile: Your company profile is a great opportunity for you to post regular updates on your activities and about important news and trends in your industry. This will attract the attention of new customers interested in your industry and increase your reputation as an expert in your field. Its important to post regularly if you want to increase your followers or fans and convert them to potential leads. Niche marketing: Social media enables you to reach very specific subsets of people based on their personal preferences and interests. You can create unique social media profiles to target these audiences or create strategies based on addressing individual interests.
You produce enough quality content to sustain social media conversations. Content feeds the social media beast. Audit your existing marketing assets and identify the educational piecesthese perform much better in social media than traditional sales collateral. You know which social media sites are popular with our prospects and customers. Do your research and focus your energy and investments where your audiences are. Your company website is prepared for social media attention. Before you set up multiple social media profiles and pages, make sure your own website is in good enough shape to handle the attention (i.e. youre proud of the way it looks and works), and be sure you have a plan in place to market to the leads generated. You are ready to incorporate social media strategies throughout the buying process. Social media is not just for the top of the demand generation funnel. Its important to monitor and track your prospects and customers throughout the revenue cycle.
Developing a Social Media Plan

Although its tempting to dive right in to the various social media sites out there, you need to develop a social media plan first. Goals and metrics will help ensure that the time and resources your organisation invests in social media is pervasive and easy to participate in, and its important to have guidelines that structure your efforts and prevent any scenarios that might have a negative impact on your company. Developing a social media plan is similar to developing any other strategy. While there is no standard approach, the basic components can be addressed by answering these simple questions: WHO
Are You Ready for Social Media?

One final thing (and probably the most important) is making sure you are ready for what social media entails. Here are a few points to make sure you are actually ready to undertake the next step. Ensure your company has clear goals for social media. Be as specific as you can (e.g. increase lead conversion rates, increase the number of qualified leads, build awareness measured by online traffic, decrease the time needed to resolve customer service issues, etc.) and keep these objectives in mind for every initiative you execute. You have the human resources to commit to social media. Before you start a corporate blog or Twitter account, ask yourself if you can allocate the resources needed. Social media is about real-time response and continuously updated information both of which require commitment and dedication.
Who are you targeting with social media? HOW How can you deploy social media tactics for measurable success? WHAT What goals or objectives do you want to accomplish?
Who are you targeting with Social Media?

This should be the easiest question to answer. Who are you targeting? Prospects? Customers? Media? All of the above? Once youve decided on the targets, flesh out the defining characteristics of each group. Knowing the importance of developing buyer personas (a fictional character that represents a target group) is the first step. Start by listing the characteristics you would have for a typical buyer persona, but add a social media dimension to it.
How can you deploy social media tactics for measurable success?
We need to address a number of different tactics that you can employ to achieve the business results youre seeking through social media. Select a few that you think will have the most impact on your organisation and start with those.
What goals or objectives do you want to accomplish?

Social media requires time, effort and resources. Take the tactics youve just decided on and assign clear goals, objectives and action items for each one.
Facebook
We all know what Facebook is. It is possibly the most remarkable online story ever; so remarkable they made a movie about it. From 0 to 700 million users in just 7 years and now worth an estimated $70 billion, Facebook has well and truly made its mark on the digital world.
Facebook Infographic 2010
Here are some interesting statistics:

650 million users (Australia has over 10 million) if this were a country it would be the 3rd largest! Average user has 180 friends Collectively, people spend over 700 billion minutes per month on Facebook There are over 900 million objects that people interact with (pages, groups and events) Average user is connected to 80 pages and groups Average user creates 90 pieces of content per month More than 30 billion pieces of content (web links, news stories, blog posts etc.) shared each month About 70% of Facebook users are outside the United States Since social plug-ins launched in 2010, an average of 10,000 new websites integrate with Facebook every day There are more than 250 million active users currently accessing Facebook through their mobile device. People that use Facebook on their mobile devices are twice as active on Facebook than non-mobile users
Is Facebook suitable for your needs and audiences?

In a word yes. With 1 in 10 people already on Facebook (actually Facebook has no Chinese users and hardly any African or South American users so the number is more likely 1 in 2 or 1 in 3) Facebook is the best and cheapest way to interact and engage with your audience. We know Australia has about a 1 in 2 ratio of users to population (probably less as 99.9% are in the age range 13 60), with each user spending on average over an hour a day on it. Can you afford not to be where all your potential customers are hanging out? The real question of Facebook is not whether it is relevant to your needs or audience, but how to seek out and engage with those people that are your audience.
Main benefits of Facebook for your business are:

BRANDING: Facebook is great for creating your brand and instilling it into peoples ideas about you. Creating a brand allows you to be more recognisable in the heavily occupied business world, so it is important to be able to stand out.
CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT: Entice, engage and invite customers to your business with a variety of marketing initiativespromotions, contests, events, sales, special offerswhich can all be advertised on your Facebook page. DRIVE WEB TRAFFIC: By including a link to your website on your Facebook page you are encouraging fans, friends or interested parties to visit your website, therefore increasing your web traffic remember the more people to your website the better. REPUTATION MANAGEMENT: Having a Facebook account not only allows you to speak directly to your customers but it also allows you to see what they think of you and your business; they may offer suggestions for improvement. ACQUISITION OF NEW CUSTOMERS: Find consumers who you may never have had contact with previously. Facebook has the ability to open up a new world of customers to you. GENERATION OF BUSINESS LEADS: Not only will Facebook expose you to new customers and clients but also to possible business leads. Review other profiles and find out if theyre the right people to target for future business leads. Open your business world up to the possibilities of Facebook. CLIENT/CUSTOMER RETENTION: Facebook allows you another avenue to connect with your clients and customers. When they feel appreciated they are more likely to stay a client or customer. Increase customer retention rates by listening to what your clients and customers want Facebook is a great interface for conversation. ACCESS TO SOCIAL NETWORKING: In todays world if youre not on-line then youre seriously lacking the cool factor. When most people want information, they head straight for the Internet. With the increasing popularity of Facebook, people now head straight to Facebook if they want to know more about a person or business. You never know who is using Facebook and with the boom in social marketing, your networking possibilities are endless.
VIRAL MARKETING: Viral marketing is word-of-mouth on warp speed. Take advantage of this latest marketing tool and get your name out there fast and to lots of people. Create excitement about your products or services that will result in people not being able to resist wanting to be your Facebook friend. BRAND AWARENESS: Do you know how your customers and clients view your business? Do you know if they have any thoughts for improving your business? Brand awareness is a vital element of marketing and is used to measure your clients knowledge of your business. Facebook is easy to use and people will like reading about your business and your brand and how it came to be. CUSTOMER FEEDBACK: Facebook is a comfortable and user-friendly platform that people are happy to use which is why it is a great way to get customer feedback on elements of your business. Use your wall to ask questions and see what responses you get. It also gives you the opportunity to speak directly to customers and clients about any of their comments. BUSINESS HUMANISATION: Put a face, or many faces, to your business. This will allow your current and future customers to see you and know exactly who theyre talking to when they are dealing with you. Placing photos of company events, employees performing their jobs or happy customer pics will humanise your business to those looking for your goods or services. TARGETTED ADVERTISING OPTION: Facebook also has an option for businesses who want to reach an exact audience and connect with real people. Facebook advertising is a newer element to Facebook and is a paid service which is quick and easy, targeted to your exact demographic and tracked so you can see the results. SOLID USER FOCUSSED COMPANY: Although Facebook has only been around since 2004, its growth in popularity is unlike anything before it. From having 1 million users in 2005 to having over 700 million users today is phenomenal and something that your business should be a part of.
LET YOUR FRIENDS KNOW THEY ARE SPECIAL : Showing your friends that theyre special to you will benefit your business in a multitude of ways. You can do this with regular updates on new products and services; special offers for your Facebook friends; running competitions for your Facebook Friends; and creating a conversation where people feel comfortable to contribute. These will all let them know you are aware of them and appreciate their support.
This feature, which requires a user to allow you to have access to their details, is a great way of garnering more demographic data about your customers. There is a fine line here though, as a lot of people dont like having to give out a lot of personal data. This feature would only be embedded if there was a special section of the site that could reward people for logging in. For example, premium articles or offers. Facebook pages have developed a long way since inception. Now you can customise and funnel potential customers through separate portals, allowing one type of customer to see one thing and actual fans to see another. A great tool that allows you to do this is iFrames for Facebook it is simple to download to your Facebook page but does require some basic HTML knowledge in order to be used correctly. Ultimately, Facebook needs to mirror your website think of it as a micro-site, with the most pertinent and important information held here. It needs to be succinct and to the point, as users time is precious, but it needs to send a strong message that the user needs to join the community.
How does Facebook compare and coexist with my website?

Your Facebook page should be an extension of your website. Some commentators are even going as far as to say that the corporate website is becoming less relevant each day with the development of more in-depth Facebook pages. However there are benefits of maintaining both. There should be a very strong correlation and consistent message sent across both mediums. Facebook still provides a chance for those businesses without websites to create and share messages about products and services. In todays modern business environment, one can use this medium as a successful replacement for the traditional website. Facebook plug-ins should be incorporated throughout every page on your site. This is easily done by adding a linkable icon in the footer. If it is deemed appropriate a connect via Facebook plug-in could also be added.
Notes: _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________ _______________________________________
Twitter
Twitter is a social networking and micro-blogging service that allows you answer the question, "What are you doing?" by sending short text messages 140 characters in length, called "tweets", to your friends, or "followers." The short format of the tweet is a defining characteristic of the service, allowing informal collaboration and quick information sharing that provides relief from rising email and instant messaging fatigue. Twittering is also a less gated method of communication: you can share information with people who you wouldn't normally exchange email or instant messaging messages with, opening up your circle of contacts to an ever-growing community of like-minded people. You dont have to build a web page to surf the web and you dont have to tweet to enjoy Twitter. Whether you tweet 100 times a day or never, you still have access to the voices and information surrounding what interests you. You can contribute, or just listen in and retrieve up-to-the-second information. Some people never tweet, they simply use Twitter as a way to get the latest information on their interests.
Australia is approaching 3 million users 70% of which are aged between 18-49
Twitter Infographic 2010
Is it suitable?
Surveys on using Twitter for business always seem to have very mixed results ranging from business owners who swear by it, to those who think it has some potential, to those who think its a complete waste of time. As time went on and the importance of inbound marketing and building relationships through social media developed, more people have come around to see the value to using Twitter for business. Twitter is not only a great way to share your expertise and to establish yourself as a thought leader in your field, but you can also learn so much from your fellow Twitter users. Its like having a whole research team at your fingertips. The key to using Twitter effectively is to follow the right people and to join in on the right conversations. You dont want to follow someone who tweets about what they ate for breakfast or what they are watching on TV. Likewise, people wont want to follow you if you are not sharing valuable information. You can also follow your competition on Twitter to see what they are up to. (But remember that they are probably following you too, so dont tweet what you dont want your competition to know about!)
Useful Twitter Statistics

There are currently 200 million registered users There are currently 110 million tweets per day from these users This translates to, on average, 1,200 tweets per second, and during peak periods this has risen to 4,000 tweets per second Twitter generates 10TB a day. Thats ten times what the New York Stock Exchange produces. Its all generated from 140 character tweets, which are individually 200 bytes per tweet. A phenomenal amount of text. Top three twitter-users by number of followers @ladygaga (8.3m), @justinbieber (8.1m), @barakobama (7.0m) Twitter is most popular in Western Europe, Japan, the USA and parts of South America. What might be surprising is that it appears to be especially popular in Indonesia.
Valuable information doesnt mean you have to give away your trade secrets, but you could share an interesting blog article (written by you or someone else.) Or you could share a link to a video that you find interesting or an upcoming webinar. You can also use Twitter to find out what people are saying about your company including your customers. Addressing complaints or issues is a great way to improve customer satisfaction. Let your customers know that you are listening to them. After all, listening and relationship building is what social media is all about.
Dont automate it: If youve got a blog thats connected to your business, you can use a service such as TwitterFeed to directly channel your new blog posts into Twitter posts. Sounds nifty, doesnt it? Dont do it. Your businesss primary Twitter feed ought to be hand-fed. If you publish a flood of impersonal links, your Twitter account will just seem like a faceless promotion machine. Thats not any way to engage people on Twitter. Link to the very best stuff on your blog, as well as relevant stuff you see elsewhere on the web, and also post items that dont contain links at all. Be conversational: Your businesss Twitter account should talk like a person, even if its a collective person representing your company or brand. Think of your Twitter account as a character in a little Internet play, its a walking, talking personificati on of your entire company. If you feel like it, take it to the limit: Use the first-person (Theyre putting my stuff on sale again!), or invent a personality. Or just use the royal we and our. Be chatty. Follow people who are relevant: From your Twitter account, follow everyone on your staff that uses Twitter. Follow colleagues in related companies and in your industry. Follow relevant brands and journalists and pundits in your market, even those who compete with you. Its polite to follow people. And by following people you are creating an ecosystem, people will see who you are following and consider those as suggestions for users they should follow as well. Make sure your people are on Twitter, and refer to them: Individuals tweet different things than companies. Its okay for your companys employees to talk about making waffles or going out for drinks, as well as what theyre working on. Not everyone will embrace Twitter, but many of them will and even the most personal stuff that leaks on to Twitter can help make stronger personal connections with colleagues and audience members alike. This being said, you need to be aware of who your employees are and make them aware that everything they write on Twitter (unless theyre using a protected account that limits access) is public.
Business Tips for Twitter

Twitter is so hot right now that it has united Shane Warne and Liz Hurley. Its also so good at attracting buzzwords that its hard to decide whether to call it a micro-blogging service or a social-networking site. But it doesnt really matter what you call it, or whether you prefer to follow Lady Gaga or Barack Obama. What does matter is that users are taking to Twitter in massive numbers and your business should be there too. Twitter can be used to connect with customers, clients, and fans in a way that you couldnt do before. Here are some tips on how to use Twitter effectively and a few cautions, as well.
If theres someone who works for your company whose Tweets are a bit risqu, you should consider whether or not you want to refer to them from your companys account. An alternative is to ask employees to create two Twitter accounts; one for work matters and one for their personal use. The accounts should be kept separate. Answer your mentions: People will refer to your companys account as if it were a person. You should reply to tweets that mention you, when relevant. This will give your account more personality and will make those people feel engaged directly with the brand. For example, a person might ask you a question directly: @acfe Hi. Do you know when Learn Local will be launched? Thanks. @benwild Learn Local is launching this weekend. I will DM you the details. Search for your name: Beyond mentions, which are specific references to your Twitter account, there are probably people using Twitter to talk about your business. Use Twitters powerful search features to find those references, either from the Twitter Web site, a Mac-based Twitter client program such TweetDeck or Tweetie that supports saved searches, or even via your RSS reader by subscribing to the RSS feed linked to/from every Twitter search results page. There are a lot of companies offering great customer service and support on Twitter by watching what people say about them. Consider creating subaccounts for sections of your business or customer base. Use Twitter to ask your customers questions: Twitter is a great way to get answers to questions. Trying to figure out what your customers want to see or are interested in? Use Twitter to ask them. Sure, its not a scientific survey, but it can give you an immediate snapshot of the current mood of the market. This can be both instructive and productive. Create special offers: People are making decisions on what to read, view, purchase, visit, and sample, based on the information that filters through their attention dashboards. At best, even the most qualified information sourced from the most trusted contacts will receive only a
cursory overview. The trick is to concisely introduce the value up front. If the offer is compelling and affiliated with their interests, the consumer will make the connection to personal value and benefits and click-through to redeem the special or coupon when ready, or so inclined. Be a good Twitter citizen: Can you persuade your Twitter followers to promote you to their followers? Sure, but be mindful: he who has the most followers doesnt necessarily win. If you get people to promote you to their friends in order to win a prize or enter a sweepstakes, you may end up creating a harmful backlash. For example: a software-deals site offered a free program to anyone who would tweet about its bundle to his or her friends. The people who tweeted were rewarded, but many of their friends felt like they were receiving spam. Even though the people who tweeted were complicit in the act, it was the company that induced the tweeting that received the bulk of the criticism. The etiquette of Twitter is still evolving, so be wary.
Notes
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Tying It All Together

So you are now ready for the world of social media. And, you have developed a social media plan.
4.
Create Google Places Account
See Module 5, Page 81 for the steps. 5. Register for free listings with 5 prominent Local Directories a. Yellow Pages (http://www.yellowpages.com.au) b. True Local (http://www.truelocal.com.au) c. Start Local (http://www.startlocal.com.au) d. Hot Frog (http://www.hotfrog.com.au) e. Local (http://www.local.com.au) Note: Try to fill in all the details possible as the more information you put in, the more people will get out. Also these directories like businesses that fill in all the relevant fields and rank them accordingly. Note: All business listings need to be consistent especially the name, address and phone number. It is vitally important for rankings that these three fields are the same across all mediums. Note: If you find that a listing already exists try to claim it as your own. If you find that some of the details are wrong, try to find a way to email any incorrect listing information to the directory site. This may take a few hours and can be quite tedious and boring but it only had to be done once. 6. Register your details with the five leading Social Media sites a. b. c. d. e. 7. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn YouTube FourSquare
Where do you begin?

1. Create a generic social media login email address and password. email: sm@yourbusinessname.com.au password: yourbusinessname (at least 8 characters) Note: Some sites may ask you for a username too (this generally has to be different to your password and may be less characters than what you need), but the key here is consistency so perhaps try a shortened version of your business name (busnam) and use this across all mediums that require it. Note: As you may already have logins and password combinations for your social media accounts you are encouraged to document these into a spreadsheet. If possible, you should also change as many as you can to be consistent across the board. 2. Convert that email address into a Google Account
Go to Google.com.au and click sign in from the top right hand corner. From here click the Create an Account now enter in the details of this email address and follow the steps to verification. 3. Gather all necessary data about your business: a. Business Name b. Address c. Phone d. ABN e. email f. Website g. Short Descriptin h. Long Description i. Payment Methods Received j. Opening Hours k. Photos (at least 10 one of which must be the logo) l. Videos (5 if you have them) m. Any other extra important information
Facebook
Facebook requires a personal profile in order to create a Business Page. So if you do not have a personal profile, you will need to create one. Create an Account: http://www.facebook.com/r.php
Once you have an account, go to this link: Create a Page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/create.php Click on Local Business or Place and follow the steps. Make sure you fill out all the business details as comprehensively as you can. The most important one is the description field as this text will be shown (along with the profile picture) every time the page is shared. TIP: Create a profile picture for your page that is 180 pixels wide and 540 pixels long. This is the maximum picture size available and allows you to customise messages that you want to send. TIP: At every point along the way try to share your page to every person in your personal account and in your contact list. Let Facebook find fans for you. TIP: If you have a database of email addresses upload it to Facebook and let them invite these people to like your page. Facebook prompts you for this as you create the account but if you get stuck, go to Facebook Help and follow the prompts. TIP: There is a share button, (bottom left hand corner) for the fan page. Share this with your friends with a message such as hey we just set up our Facebook page it would be great if you could like us and share with your friends TIP: Get EVERY employee in the organisation to share the page as well. TIP: You may want to make certain employees an Administrator of the account also. This means they have access to the account and its workings from their own personal login. This allows for a bigger database of potential fans to be targeted. However, by allowing this option a detailed plan about who does what, says what and posts what, needs to be developed. TIP: Make your first three posts the 9 photos you collected for the directory stage. Do this in batches of three, as it will populate the wall feed and the photos tab on the top of the page. TIP: Images are the most looked at pieces of information on Facebook, followed by videos and then articles. Plain updates are the least looked at. Always when adding information, add an image and/or a link.
8.
Twitter
If you do not have a Twitter account, set one up (https://twitter.com/signup). Once again fill out all the relevant information as much as you can. Select a profile picture (logo) and also customise your background. If you have created a customised Facebook profile, I would use this image as your Twitter background. You will need to get the designer to alter it a little though: Instead of being 180 pixels x 540 pixels it needs to be 1900 pixels wide and 800 pixels long. However, in the main message, the image needs to be 180 pixels wide and 800 pixels long. Go to your account settings, click on design and click change background image. Then upload your resized photo and click save changes. TIP: In the settings tab (under account) Check the Add location and Allow photos from other users tabs. This is a nice touch and allows for people to find you by location. TIP: Twitter, in the setup process, will try to help find you some people for you to follow. Type in your location and keywords when prompted and follow any people who you consider to be relevant (remember you can always unfollow people at any stage). Obviously, follow Learn Local and any other relevant Government bodies and try to find some of your other education providers. It may also help to follow any tourism boards for your area or some local sporting teams or businesses. TIP: As with Facebook, Twitter allows you to search through your contact lists and upload files of email addresses. TIP: Create three tweets that can get your feed rolling. Consider one about having started, one about your website (with a link) and the final one about the Facebook page you just created. 9. LinkedIn
Create a profile on LinkedIn (http://www.linkedin.com). Once again, fill out all the relevant information as much as you can. Upload logos and contact files and ask people to be part of your network. TIP: In the search bar in the top right hand corner, conduct a number of searches for keywords, locations and industry people. Ask as many as you can to become part of your network.
TIP: To get people to connect with you, you must make sure all your professional details are filled out and correct. People will only connect with people who they think are relevant. TIP: Your first post should indicate that you are new to this forum and that you would appreciate any help with connecting. Always add a link to your site, so you can let people know you are legitimate and they can do their research on you. 10. YouTube Create a YouTube account for your business (http://www.youtube.com/create_account) - once again making sure you fill out all the relevant data. You can customise your channel look and feel and use your Twitter background image for this medium. It needs to be adjusted to 1375pixels by 1400 pixels with the first 180 pixels being where the message is again. Click on you account name in the top right hand corner, select channel. Click themes and colours and then click the new them tab. Where it says, Background image upload the image file. TIP: Make sure when uploading videos that you include a link to your website in the main description. TIP: Make sure you include keywords in the video title TIP: Make sure you fill the tags section with as many keywords as you can. TIP: Make sure you attach a location to each video. TIP: Do not allow videos to automatically upload to Facebook and Twitter you want to be able to monitor this and customise your messages. 11. FourSquare (https://foursquare.com) FourSquare is a relatively new location based check in game that has grown exponentially in the last year. Basically, people check in to locations and share it to their social platforms. They earn points and badges for doing this and can get access to discounts and vouchers. The person who checks in the most at your venue becomes the online mayor of this venue (this may entitle them to a special Mayor deal or do nothing).
FourSquare is huge in the USA but not incredibly popular here yet but in time it will be. To create a FourSquare profile here is a great article on best practice (http://aboutfoursquare.com/3-tips-forsetting-up-your-brands-profile-on-foursquare/). There are just three simple steps to follow. A verification letter from FourSquare will be sent to your business to authenticate that you are the owner. Once this arrives, you have access to creating deals and vouchers. The advantages of creating a FourSquare business listing is getting people to check in that they are at your business. This is a great way to easily spread the word about who you are. It is completely user generated and the message gets shared across the Internet. People are doing it now (without you knowing) so you might as well own the space and have some control over the details that are being spread. By providing the correct details for people to check in with you, you are ensuring a consistent message across the platforms. TIP: Consider incentivising the check in process. Is there something you can offer by getting people to check in and sharing this check in online? Maybe by aligning with a local coffee shop you can get the Mayor free coffee or you could perhaps send a discount to people who share their check in via Twitter.
General Tips
Add a customised welcome page to Facebook
When in your personal Facebook page type Static HTML: iframe tabs into the search bar. In the bottom left hand corner click add to my page select your Business Page. Click on the account tab in the top right hand corner. Select Use Facebook as a Page This means that you are now using Facebook as your business profile not your personal one (VERY IMPORTANT TO UNDERSTAND THIS). Click on the Welcome Tab on the left hand side. Here you can customise welcome pages for new fans and existing fans. The problem is, you need to have a basic understanding of HTML code and how to upload images via ftp. Your web designer should be able to do this for you or you may need to pay someone (only once) to show you how it is done.
Add Twitter to your Facebook page

While we have previously suggested in the manual that automating social media is a big no-no, in some circumstances, combining Facebook and Twitter may be the best idea. If you are time restrained this may be for you this application copies anything said on your Facebook feed and sends it to your Twitter feed. Facebook fans and Twitter followers are often quite different so you are not necessarily bombarding the same people with the same messages. When in your personal Facebook page type Twitter into the search bar. In the bottom left hand corner click add to my page select your Business Page. Click on the account tab in the top right hand corner. Select Use Facebook as a Page This means that you are now using Facebook as your business profile not your personal one. Click on the Twitter tab on the left hand side. It will ask you to switch back to your personal profile and attach the business page to a Twitter account. Add the Twitter account details and allow information to be shared. Now every time you post to your business page it will automatically share it to your Twitter feed.
There are two reasons for doing this: 1) Google loves dynamic content (ie. updated information on the homepage) and Twitter facilitates this, and 2) It is a great way to keep visitors to your site informed as to what is the latest news.
Add your Social Bookmarks to your Header or Footer

You have gone to the effort of creating a Facebook, Twitter, Linked In, YouTube and FourSquare accounts so why not let everyone know how to connect with you. By including these bookmarks in your header or footer, you will have every page on your site promoting your social presence. This also adds to your credibility as it shows people you are active in the online community and want to give people as much useful information as possible.
Add a Blog or Twitter feed to your Website

You will need to get your web developer to do this for you, but it is a great way to keep content moving and dynamic on your homepage. By adding a blog, you can keep your community informed of what you are up to and what interesting things you would like to share with them. By adding social plug-ins to the blog, users (or yourself) can share these articles via social media, spreading your message further. Blog posts are also a great way to share information to your Facebook and Twitter followers and keep them abreast of all pertinent information as all blog posts should be shared via these mediums. If you do not have the capacity or time to keep blogging, then add a Twitter feed to your homepage which would contain smaller snippets of information that you have shared online.
If you have a Smart Phone ensure your business accounts are set up on it
Things happen at an instant and the smart phone allows you to take advantage of this. Any photos, videos or interesting things can be shared immediately via simply sharing from your phone. For example, if you take a photo of some learners, you can go into Facebook immediately and upload these images to your Business Page. It allows you to update at an instant and means that the news feed is constantly moving. If you have linked Facebook to Twitter this medium gets updated too. If you take video, there is usually a link that asks if you would like to upload immediately to YouTube always do this (by adding a YouTube bookmark to your phone you will always be logged into your business account).
From here you can go to your YouTube account and share the video to Facebook which then can share it to Twitter.
Instagram (http://instagr.am)
A great new photo-sharing network has emerged called Instagram. It is a smart phone app which garnered more than 1 million downloads in its first weekend. It is like a social network, but for imagery. Basically, it allows you take photos with your phone, add an effect to it and then share it via the social media. You can follow people and see their imagery, make comments and post updates. As it is location based and geo-tagged, businesses can have a library of photos created for it and published online. It is a really fun tool that will take off in the next year.
Google Plus (https://plus.google.com/up/start)

Google has released a new social networking site called Google Plus. This is their attempt to knock Facebook off its domination. At first impression, this new site is fantastic. It is much more socially integrated than Facebook and allows you to segment and target your messages a lot better. The use of video, groups and trends are at the forefront and it has a much better interface for ease of use. With over 10 million users already (its still in its trial!!!) this will seriously challenge Facebook as the number one social network. There is not much in it for businesses as yet it is recommended that you get on board now and start getting used to its functionality. This is a highly integrated social network, search engine and business offering its a great tool.
Tweet Deck (http://www.tweetdeck.com)

Tweet deck is a way of monitoring all your social accounts in one easy to see desktop. Add your Twitter, Facebook, FourSquare and LinkedIn accounts to this platform and you will be able to see everything that is being said to you, and about you. You can also add Twitter keywords that you wish to track, or even track your competitors accounts. It is an invaluable tool that provides an easy way to keep abreast of all that is happening. It allows you to address any issues in a timely manner and keeps you informed and able to respond to any queries or concerns.
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July 2011

LEARN LOCAL - MARKETING WORKSHOP

MAJOR MEDIA CONTACT DETAILS ................................ 38 POWERPOINT SLIDES ................................................... 48

LEARN LOCAL - MARKETING WORKSHOP

MODULE SEVEN: GETTING STARTED GETTING STARTED: .................................................... 121

LEARN LOCAL - MARKETING WORKSHOP

Message Development Pointers

Your brand or positioning

How do you differ from other education providers?

If you wanted to be known for 3 things, what would they be?

LEARN LOCAL - MARKETING WORKSHOP 1

Learn Local Key Messages

LEARN LOCAL - MARKETING WORKSHOP 2

Addressable and Awareness

LEARN LOCAL - MARKETING WORKSHOP 3

Tool Kit One: Full List of Audiences

LEARN LOCAL - MARKETING WORKSHOP 4

LEARN LOCAL - MARKETING WORKSHOP 5

Select your target learner segment

LEARN LOCAL - MARKETING WORKSHOP 6

Mail survey Self-administered questionnaires (self-explanatory)

Personal interview (Face-to-Face)

Interviewers and training

$500 - $1,000 per person

LEARN LOCAL - MARKETING WORKSHOP 7

Tool Two: A Sample Survey

Wanted to but couldnt & Reason 2 & reason

Elsewhere & Where

LEARN LOCAL - MARKETING WORKSHOP 8

List the programs 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

LEARN LOCAL - MARKETING WORKSHOP 9

LEARN LOCAL - MARKETING WORKSHOP 10

LEARN LOCAL - MARKETING WORKSHOP 11

LEARN LOCAL - MARKETING WORKSHOP 12

LEARN LOCAL - MARKETING WORKSHOP 13

LEARN LOCAL - MARKETING WORKSHOP 14

LEARN LOCAL - MARKETING WORKSHOP 15

Giving Strength to Your Story

LEARN LOCAL - MARKETING WORKSHOP 16

Choosing and Comparing Tactics

LEARN LOCAL - MARKETING WORKSHOP 17

TOP TIPS FOR DEVELOPING PARTNERSHIPS

LEARN LOCAL - MARKETING WORKSHOP 18

TOP TIPS FOR ANY EVENT OR OPEN DAY

Events / Open Days

TOOL KIT: Event Checklist

TOP TIPS FOR USING EMAILS

LEARN LOCAL - MARKETING WORKSHOP 19

Printed materials, brochures, leaflets, flyers.

TOP TIPS FOR WOM

TOP TIPS FOR PRINTED MATERIALS

Tactics for reaching the Awareness market

LEARN LOCAL - MARKETING WORKSHOP 20

TOP TIPS FOR ADVERTISING

TOP TIPS FOR COMPETITIONS

LEARN LOCAL - MARKETING WORKSHOP 21

TOP TIPS FOR EXHIBITIONS OR DISPLAYS

TOP TIPS FOR SECURING SPONSORSHIP

LEARN LOCAL - MARKETING WORKSHOP 22

How do we choose and what is a good mix of tactics?

Cheap and Free Ways to Market

Developing partnerships Emails Word-of-mouth Displays

Sponsorship Website Social Media SEO and Google Analytics

LEARN LOCAL - MARKETING WORKSHOP 23