It seems that we are all hooked on being the best! From David Letterman’s ‘Top Ten’ list to the ‘Best of the Web’ to the ‘Top Five Best Selling Light Fixtures this Year’, consumers are drawn to Web sites and blog posts that advise them of the best or top tips for what to do, what to buy and where to go.

Did you know that in recent keyword tests, Google Analytics reported that (on certain sites) nearly 20% of Google traffic to the test sites in the last 30 days was from searches that included the word “best” in it?

If you want to draw some targeted traffic to your site, give it a try. Here are our ‘top’ reasons why BEST and TOP blog posts work to bring in customers to your Web site:

1. People look for experts when they want to buy – they don’t want just another Web site trying to sell them something
2. People typically like to share “best” or “top” lists, increasing your visibility
3. You’ll find that other sites may link  to your BEST or TOP web page
4. Your BEST or TOP blog is a great opportunity for you to Tweet and post on Facebook
5. TOP and BEST articles help people make purchasing decisions

Once you’ve decided you would like to write your own BEST blog post or article, here are the things you should avoid:

1. One of your goals is to be seen as a trusted advisor  – so don’t push products; be honest and present a neutral viewpoint
2. Don’t exclude products or services you don’t sell – this builds credibility and trust
3. Don’t assume your “best” blog post or web page will get high search engine rankings by itself, build on your keyword strength by asking people to post comments and to share on Facebook and Twitter
4. Don’t post photos of people or products without permission
5. Don’t forget feedback – be sure to ask for Ask for feedback from people/customers who used your best recommendations

BEST and TOP lists are a great way to enhance your Web site with easy to write blog posts. These types of blog articles draw traffic, build credibility and are easy to share. Look to the Web, your clients and your competitors for ideas, write your lists and then post – it’s easy and effective!

You understand the importance of your Web site, and you’ve made a significant investment in the design and hosting – you are off to a great start. Like many other investments, you can’t neglect your Web site once it’s up and running. To get the most of your site and to keep customers coming back for more, it is important for you to maintain it and keep the look, content and data current and in touch with your customers’ needs. Here are five great reasons to update your Web site now:

1. Trends and expectations change. Do you know what your customers use the Web for? Do you understand your demographics and the kinds of Web marketing techniques that appeal to them the most? The addition of new colors, interactive tools, video or social media can enhance your Web site and make you look dynamic, current and authoritative.




2. Outdated content depreciates your clients’ confidence in your company and your relevance compared to the competition. If your last news story or newsletter is more than six months to a year old, then your content is dated. Every single day, the Web is filled with new stories, blogs, opinions and emerging trends. Become a thought leader and your site can become a destination for the best information as well as products and pricing.




3. Fresh content helps you get ranked higher with the search engines. While keywords are important to SEO, they are just one element for a much bigger landscape. Today’s search engines look for new, fresh content that is appropriate and relevant to your primary goods or services.
    
4. Details matter. Simple things like the copyright info at the bottom, correct phone numbers, email addresses and calendars all contribute to your success in both the eyes of your customer and with the search engines.
    
5. Appearances are important. Did you know that today’s high-resolution and wide-screen monitors demand a wider content area than they did three years ago? Make sure your site is optimized for today’s latest devices – including mobile, high-res and Internet TV.

Your Web site is one of the most important reflections of your brand. Like your other business investments, your site needs maintenance and attention to stay successful and provide a good return on the time and money you have put into it.

It seems like only yesterday that we were welcoming the much-heralded Windows 7 – aren’t they still running those “It’s my idea” commercials? While the latest version of Windows OS won’t be available for purchase until 2012, the company unveiled the developer version of Windows 8 at its Microsoft Build conference the week of September 12th.

CEO Steve Ballmer tells us that more than 500,000 people downloaded Windows 8 within hours of the public preview. The biggest update? Touch. As promised, the revamped version has been designed to work with touch screens – from tablets to laptops and desktops.

Have you seen or heard of the Metro interface? If you have used a Windows Phone 7, you may be familiar with this capability to switch back and forth between touch, full-screen apps, gesture controls and your traditional desktop.

What can we love about Windows 8? It takes up less memory than Windows 7 – in a demo, Windows 8 ran seamlessly with more than 100 MB less RAM than Windows 7.

You’ll also see more sharing capabilities, with source apps in the new version that include news, magazines, media, games, social networking and cloud computing. Microsoft is hoping that developers will add a new focus on entertainment to the standard business fare they are so well known for.

A couple of new terms to embrace – ‘charms’ and ‘contracts’. Charms are the main icons of the OS – the five charms are Devices, Settings, Share, Search and Start. Contracts have to do with the sharing features and exchange of data  – the current explanations are still unfolding at this point, but think in terms of traditional data ‘clipboards’ for a general idea of what MS means by a data exchange ‘contract.’ Also look for interactive processes and data exchange with the upcoming IE 10.

The look and feel of Windows 8 is one of the big differences that the average user will see right away. It’s not icon driven, like Apple but uses “live tiles” instead. The tiles are more than just big square icons – they actually give you the info you need on the app or program without having to open the program represented by the tile. In addition, tiles represent more than apps – they can also represent a particular Web site, a specific social networking contact or site, a location on the map and many others.

Will Windows 8 revolutionize Microsoft or go the way of Vista? Stay tuned for the actual release and judge for yourself.

Creating a mobile marketing strategy for your company may be an important part of your company’s Web presence and overall marketing objectives, but make sure you have a clear understanding of how your customers engage with the mobile Web and how they use their mobile devices. Here are four key steps to making the most of mobile marketing:

Step 1: Know your target audience
Before you create a mobile Web site or mobile strategy ask these questions about your target market:

• Are your customers tech-savvy, using the latest applications and smartphones or are they basic users who haven’t yet embraced iPhones, iPads and other mobile devices?
• Do they text? You’ve probably heard of SMS, or short message service  – which is the technical term for texting. If your customers use their mobile devices to send and receive short messages via text, it can be a great way to reach them.
• Is your target narrow or do you need to communicate with (and market to) a wide audience with a variety of needs?
• What kind of shopping or service experiences do your customers enjoy and require?

Step 2: Understand the channel
People use mobile devices for a lot of services – not just the Internet. When they are on the go is when they rely most heavily on their smartphone or other mobile device – to get directions, use online coupons, communicate with friends and family – all quickly and easily. Make sure you don’t waste their time and battery life on making them click through excess pages of media to get to your message or offer. Make sure your content is brief and highly targeted.

Step 3: Be considerate
Don’t bombard your customers with unnecessary marketing and content – research how they like to be contacted and the kind of messages they are most likely to respond to. Some people take numerous touches in stride and appreciate all the opportunities to communicate with you – others may resent a barrage of coupons or sales messages.

Step 4: Give them a reason to come back for more
Did you know that less than 20% of people return to a free app after the initial download? They are also not likely to hold on to coupons or marketing info for more than 24 hours after receipt. Your applications and content should be crisp, current and valuable. Consider including some of these features:

• Useful data or access-  such as mapping information, access to services, or community interaction
• Entertainment like games, contests and social functions
• Incentives like coupons, special offers, and loyalty points

If your mobile Web or mobile marketing messages fit the needs of your customers and align with how they use their mobile devices, the results can be astounding. Make sure your mobile investment gives you a great return by understanding your audience before you engage them.

1. No plan. Can you imagine going to your bank for a small business loan without a business plan? Or convincing your investors to fund your next advertising campaign without giving them a marketing plan? Social media may be easy and affordable to set up, but you must create a workable plan if you expect to get (and sustain) measurable results. As with any business or marketing plan, outline objectives, time and money investments, staff requirements and methodology.
2. Overkill. Even with a plan in place, many small business owners try to do way too much too soon. Don’t set up a profile for every social media site you can Google up. As with any marketing endeavor, look at your target market first. Which sites or platforms do your customers use and how? Some sites may not make sense for your business at all. Pick a couple of targeted platforms that work for your demographics and start from there.
3. No measurement. Don’t let the casual nature of social media fool you into thinking you can’t, or don’t need to, measure results. What are your objectives? Brand awareness via a number of ‘fans’ or ‘followers’? A product launch? Actual sales? Set goals and milestones and measure how well you are doing against those targets. Many social sites have analytics available, or you can get some help in to determine your levels of social success.
4.  Incomplete profiles. An incomplete business profile means that you are wasting valuable Web space that can identify and strengthen your brand. Don’t leave any profile fields or questions blank – establish who you are with blog content, profile photos, logos and as much information as each platform will allow. Complete social profiles will also help your business rank higher in search results.
5. Excessive promotion. Social media is about interaction and engagement – not tireless brand or product promotion. Be clever in promoting your brand, not obvious. Use fun, engaging tools like surveys and contests to gather info, build awareness and create a fan base. When your customers post comments or ask questions, reply promptly and to every post.
6. Ignoring complaints or bad reviews. Social media success depends on your ability to be authentic and to take criticism standing up. If you get a bad review, you don’t have to go into great detail defending your actions – but you should reply immediately. Ask the reviewer to contact you directly in order to resolve his or her problem and make it right. You’ll gain the respect of everyone who sees the complaint – and savvy social media users will expect you to respond.
7. Not claiming your business listings. Sites like Google Places list your business – even if you have not claimed the profile as your own and personally updated it. Go ahead and claim each listing you can find and make sure your company data is current and accurate.
8. Ignoring your pages. You have to be willing to invest a little time each day to your social sites – even 10-15 minutes a day keeps your presence active and engaged. If you ignore your sites, your customers will ignore you and eventually drop off your radar completely. As with traditional marketing, once you lose a customer or a ‘fan’, it’s difficult – and expensive – to get them back.
9. Lack of commitment and excitement. The people who use social media are enthusiastic about it and about the topics, products and brands important to them. If you can match their excitement and show some commitment to social marketing, it will show. If you just can’t get into it, let one of your employees handle social media activities for you or hire an intern to manage it.
   
10. Sticking with it when social media isn’t right for you. Your business may just not find a fit with social media – and if it doesn’t feel right for your business; or if you try it and don’t see measurable results, then don’t waste your time and resources. Be sure to claim your business listings, keep your Web site updated with great content and keywords and keep an open mind should your business model or customer base change.

Your brand is online – whether you participate in the process or not. Using your Web site as the foundation for your Internet presence, you may find that social media marketing can help your brand stay current and engaging with the people who rely on social media for their information – your customers. Avoid these common mistakes and give social media marketing a try!

Within just a few short weeks, Google Plus (Google +) has grown to include more than 20 million users – and that’s just for what it calls its ‘field test’ of invitation-only users. After many starts and stumbles, it looks like Google has finally created a platform that will appeal to a mass audience, as well as integrate seamlessly with all of Google’s Web products.

Starting with a redesign of the navigation bar, Google is following a path of creating and updating Web tools that will support Google+, offering users several new options for accessing the Google+ profile, viewing notifications and instantly sharing content. The notification system shadows the Facebook notification process, giving users a sense of familiar social territory.

Perhaps the best-known and most used tool in Google’s Web toolkit is Google Analytics. Easy to install and easy to read, this free Web site tool competes handily with many paid software packages. Now that Google seems serious abut getting social, Google Analytics and Google Webmaster Tools have added new tools for tracking tweets, likes, +1s (the Google Plus version of ‘like’) and other social attributes on your Web site.

For example, Google Webmaster Tools now offers a “+1 Metrics” section, which lets you see data results for the +1 Button on user searches. New analytics features offer a number of tracking points, including how +1s affect your Web site’s click through rate (CTR) and the amount of +1s on a given page.

You can also look at your CTR with +1 annotations and without +1 annotations. The new tool also graphs out the amount of annotated impressions and annotated clicks on your Web site over time.
Be sure to check out Google’s social Activity report and Audience report in Webmaster Tools. The Audience report displays geographic and demographic data about users that have +1′d your Web site’s content.

A truly unique feature is the new Social Plugin Tracking tool for Google Analytics. This tool looks at the  impact of many different types of social activity on your Web site. The plugin tracks Google +1s, but it also tracks and reports Tweets, Facebook Likes, Facebook Sends and other social media activity.

Social Plugin Tracking generates three reports: Social Engagement, Social Actions and Social Pages. Social Engagement looks at actual behavior (time on site, page views, bounce rates, and other standard behaviors) based on visits from social plugins. Social Actions tracks the number of social actions on the site, and Social Pages analyzes and compares social activity page by page.

Google’s new analytics tools offer Web site owners and managers a more in depth view of their Web sites from a social networking standpoint. These tools are a great way to understand more about how social media works and how to leverage it with other marketing activities and messages. The ability to track social media activity lets you make sense of the traffic driven to your site from social platforms and helps you develop more meaningful content and navigation for your visitors and customers.

It’s been a long time coming, and the product is still in test mode; but Google has finally unveiled Google+, the highly anticipated social networking site that promises to stand toe to toe with Facebook.

Designed to turn all of Google and its many applications into one huge social site, Google+ will offer new options for accessing your profile, getting notifications and sharing content. You’ll find many similarities to Facebook, including the notifications process and the ‘Stream’ – which serves like the Facebook ‘News Feed’ feature, giving users the ability to share photos, videos, links or their location with friends.

Google+ never loses sight of its core application – social networking, and it does offer a unique slant on targeted sharing with social groups – Google uses a system for this called ‘Circles.’ The difference from Facebook’s mass groups of friends? Google attempts to integrate Circles at every level, using a drag-and-drop function to bring friends into different social circles for friends, family, classmates, co-workers and other custom groups. Users can drag groups of friends in and out of these circles.

Google+ developers also have a sense of humor  – a puff of smoke and a -1 animation appears when you remove a friend, and when you remove a social circle, it rolls away off the screen.

Additionally, Google has designed a section just for viewing, managing and editing multimedia. The photo tab takes a user to all of the photos he or she has shared, as well as the ones he or she is tagged in. It’s not just photo tagging, though: Google+ includes an image editor (complete with instant photo effects), privacy options and sharing.

‘Hangouts,’ is  Google’s new group chat feature. Users click “start a hangout” and they’re instantly in a video chat room alone. Then a message goes out to all of the user’s social circles, letting friends know that their friend is “hanging out.” Maximum users in any video Hangout is 10, but it offers a waiting list as others come and go.

Google+ takes on content with ‘Sparks,’ a collection of articles, videos, photos and other content sorted by interest – like movies or books.  The system integrates with other Google products like Search and Google+ sharing buttons.

While the Google team avoids direct comparisons to Facebook, the two media giants will directly compete for users, content and advertisers. So far, the ability to sign up for Google+ is limited to invitation only – first by Google directly, and now by the users themselves, which should widen the social ‘circle’ quickly. Google+ has been criticized for privacy concerns – but really, all savvy Web users understand that information on the Internet in any forum should be considered public knowledge.

Stay tuned for more developments – even after flops like Google Buzz, it looks like Google has finally got it right. Additional features and applications should start growing exponentially, as should the fan base.

We recently reviewed the ‘Top Five’ browsers, with the ranking derived from the number of global users. Most of us are comfortable with our same old browser of choice, finding the features and options that work best for us on an ongoing basis. If you’d like to explore, or you are ready to make a change and are curious about some of the lesser-known browsers, here’s a brief rundown of what’s available and how they work.

One of the top five (and rising in popularity), Google Chrome, comes from the Open Source project Chromium.

Chromium also offers a browser like Chrome, named Chromium, but the the browsers are not identical. For those of you frustrated with the limitations of Chrome, you may want to look at both. Chromium and Google Chrome both offer Search Suggest, but Chromium does not offer PDF Viewer and Adobe Flash Player. To make up for the differences you can access extensions in Chrome’s Web Store in Chromium.

If you like the idea of open development but are looking for speed and performance, you may like SRWare’s Iron Web browser. Iron Web is also based on Chromium Open Source, and is similar to Chrome, but reportedly a lot faster. Also known as Iron, one of this browser’s features includes the elimination of usage tracking and other privacy compromising functionality.

RockMelt is one of the truly new browsers available, and is still in beta version. RockMelt is designed for social media mavens on Facebook, Twitter and email, integrating notifications from social media sites like Facebook and Twitter. Test it out – you may like its ability to synch your updates and posted items through Facebook. RockMelt doesn’t support Google Sync, but you can sync your RockMelt browsers across PCs and Macs with your Facebook account.

Mozilla-based Wyzo has been around for awhile, but keeps reinventing itself. Wyzo offers FireDownload, a download accelerator, and FireTorrent. One of its new features (Wyzo 3) is SkipScreen, the extension that allows you to skip waiting screens.

Maxthon has also been around for several years, starting as an extension of Internet Explorer and using the same rendering engine. It also gives you Webkit, which powers Google Chrome and Safari and helps load pages almost instantly. Other great Maxthon features include mouse gestures, bookmark sync, Passport, speed dial, popup blocker, online notepad, RSS reader, instant translator, screen capturing tools and resource sniffer.

Browser functionality may be something you take for granted – but it pays to look at different options. It’s definitely beneficial to take a little time to understand the pros and cons of new versions and of new browsers as well. If you’ve stuck with the same old browser for a long time, give one of these latest versions or new browsers a try – each has something cool to offer and you may be tempted to switch!

You may not have given much thought to your Web browser lately, but it might be worth a little time to check out the most current versions of the top browsers and understand the great features and tools available to give you a great Web experience.

We’re all on the Web every day – for shopping, communication, information and entertainment. Your Web browser is your window to the Web, and it can dramatically change the way you interact with the Internet. Why not chose one that gives you a custom experience matching your personal and business style?

New versions of common Web browsers are equipped with the latest features and technology that include tabbed browsing, RSS feeds and voice interaction. Each of the top browsers has something unique to offer, so let’s take a look at the five most popular Web browsers and the high level pros and cons of each.

Here are the top five Web browsers according to W3Counter’s latest Web analysis (5/31/2011). W3Counter looks at the past 15,000 page views of more than 47,000 global Web sites. You can see additional statistics at http://www.w3counter.com/globalstats.php.

Internet Explorer (IE) – 37.7%
Firefox – 28.3%
Chrome – 16.8%
Safari – 6.4%
Opera –  2.2%

 IE, Firefox and Safari have all been around for a while, but continue to come out with new versions that address previous shortcomings and add new features. Here’s the rundown on the top five and what they have to offer:

 IE 9. Many of us are still using Windows IE 8, but version nine is gaining ground as more people convert and upgrade. Because IE is the most common, it is also the most susceptible to malicious attacks, so security is definitely an issue with all versions of IE. However, IE 9 offers improved security, extensive parental control settings and private browsing. IE 9 is fast, robust and gives you toolbar consolidation for cleaner browsing. It also gives you integrated search windows, RSS feeds, a synchronization tool and a password manager. IE offers the best technical and user support of any browser in use.

 Firefox. Mozilla’s Firefox consistently rates as the ‘best’ browser, although it has not been able to unseat IE as the top browser. You’ll find a lot to love about Firefox – great speed, a simple interface and unique tools that let you manage tab groups when you work on multiple projects are all features making for a great user experience that is very customizable. Firefox really has no drawbacks – no thumbnail preview is just about the only negative of this user-friendly browser.

 Chrome. Google Chrome is the upstart of the bunch and converting more and more users each month. Why? Chrome uses a lot of complex feature sets – but makes them very easy to use. Highly innovative, Chrome is an Open Source project, meaning that some of the Web’s best minds contribute to its development for free. Chrome offers a simple, uncluttered user interface, eliminating unnecessary buttons and making excellent use of tabs and drag and drop capabilities. It also gives you an ‘incognito mode’, letting you browse privately without affecting Web history and deleting cookies and passwords after the incognito window closes. Negatives? Chrome is consistently slow in refreshing idle tabs.

 Safari. The great news about Apple’s Safari browser is that it’s no longer an Apple exclusive – Safari is available for PCs and is gaining ground with PC users who enjoy the MAC look and feel in their Web experience. Safari is known best for lightning speed in both start up time and navigation. It’s also lightweight and unobtrusive, but not very customizable. A lack of private browsing and anti-phishing features are options Apple needs to improve in the next version.

 Opera. Opera is supposed to make your browsing experience sing – and this product is fun. Opera is rich with entertainment features and offers a great interactive voice function. Quickfind searching, thumbnail programs and mouse gestures add to the ‘cool’ factor of Opera, as do impressive speeds. However, frequent conflicts with Web sites and compatibility issues hold Opera back from making a serious run at market share – as it gains ground, some of these issues may fade away.

 If you’ve been using the same old browser for a while, check out one of these top five – you may just see something you didn’t even know you were missing!