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- The Website Legal Regulation Tsunami Continues – Are You Above Water?
- Google’s New +1 Button is a Cool Way to Make Recommendations – A SPN Exclusive Article
- Mobile Revolution Commanding Attention – A SPN Exclusive Article
- The Beginner’s Guide to Selling Online – A SPN Exclusive Article
- Local Search Marketing with Google Places: 7 Ways to Get More Clicks & More Business Guaranteed
Posted: 24 Aug 2011 02:00 AM PDT   Surfers know that the waves come in periodic sets which are separated by relative lulls. Beginning in 2009, there’s been a tsunami of new and complex legal regulations for websites that also seems to be coming in sets.We’re now in a temporary lull, but the next set is on the horizon, and rapidly heading our way. If you’re an Internet marketer or operate a SaaS business, now is a good time to quickly review the following checklist of the set just passed, as well as the set that’s fast approaching. The objective should be to gain an understanding sufficient to comply with the new laws and regulations – and to stay above water, so to speak. The Set Just Passed These new laws and regulations are having a significant impact on online businesses. * HIPAA HITECH - passed as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (also known as the “Stimulus”), HIPAA HITECH extended the Privacy and Security Provisions of HIPAA to Business Associates of Covered Entities. The effect is that now service providers which provide SaaS, software, or data processing or consulting services to healthcare organizations will be treated as Covered Entities for purposes of privacy and security, with the corresponding increase in liability exposure. * Red Flags Rule – requires covered businesses to implement a written Identity Theft Prevention Program designed to detect the warning signs of identity theft (the so-called “red flags”). The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) extended several deadlines for compliance in 2009 and 2010 due to difficulties in defining “creditor” for purposes of covered businesses. The final ruling effective December 18, 2010 amended the definition of “creditor” by excluding businesses that advance funds for expenses incidental to a service provided by the creditor to that person. So, businesses that provide online services (SaaS) are exempt, but businesses that advance funds for the purchase of products appear to be covered. * FTC Guides Governing Endorsements and Testimonials – effective December 1, 2009, the Guides stated the FTC’s enforcement policy affecting marketers and bloggers that post testimonials of others or provide testimonials for the products or services of others. The Guides require disclosure of “material connections with advertisers such as the receipt of compensation or freebies, or face fines of up to $11,000. * FTC Preliminary Staff Report - issued in December, 2010, the FTC stated its criticism of “long, incomprehensible privacy policies that consumers typically do not read, let alone understand”. The FTC stated its policy that “although privacy policies may not be a good tool for communicating with most consumers, they still could play an important role in promoting transparency, accountability, and competition among companies on privacy issues – but only if the policies are clear, concise, and easy-to-read.” In its Staff Report, the FTC (i) also added a new category of information that’s now subject to privacy regulation which includes location data, and (ii) announced its future requirements for “Privacy By Design.” * Restore Online Shopper’s Confidence Act (ROSCA) – effective December 29, 2010, ROSCA regulates online Data Pass Transactions and Negative Option Billing Plans. Data Pass Transactions include the passing of billing information from one online merchant to another for purposes of upsells. A Negative Option Billing Plan includes recurring billing arrangements that are found in many membership websites. * FTC Policy on Behavioral Advertising – on March 14, 2011, the FTC announced a settlement regarding behavioral advertising, and along with it, the FTC’s policy requiring prior notice and an opt out mechanism for the collection of data online for behavioral advertising purposes. Behavioral ads are based on anonymous data collected on how a user’s computer browses the Internet, including websites visited, searches made, and content read. This data is used to create a behavioral profile that is linked to a specific demographic. The Set That’s Fast Approaching The following proposed laws and regulations, if passed, will have a huge impact on online businesses. * The Commercial Privacy Bill of Rights – announced on April On April 12, 2011 by Senators John Kerry (D-Mass) and John McCain (R-Ariz). The proposed legislation could become the first federal privacy and data security law. If passed into law, The Commercial Privacy Bill of Rights will have a huge impact on how personal information is collected, used, and shared online. * The Do-Not-Track Online Act of 2011 – announced on May 9, 2011 by Senator Jay Rockefeller (D-WV). The proposed legislation would allow consumers to opt out from having their personal information tracked by online advertisers. This legislation is consistent with the FTC’s policy on behavioral advertising listed above. * The Data Security and Breach Notification Act - announced on June 15, 2011 by Senators Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) and Senator Mark Pryor (D-Ark). The proposed legislation would mandate that online collectors of personal information implement certain baseline data security standards. The proposed legislation would also pre-empt the confusing patchwork quilt of data breach notification laws passed by forty six states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. Territories. * The Location Privacy Protection Act – announced on June 15, 2011 by Senators Al Franken (D-Minn) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Ct). The proposed legislation would require that companies obtain user’s consent prior to collecting or sharing location data. This legislation is consistent with the FTC’s policy on location data announced in the FTC Preliminary Staff Report listed above. Conclusion It’s abundantly clear that beginning in 2009, we’re now in a new era of legal regulations for websites. The old “wild, wild, west” days prior to 2009 are long gone. And it’s not too much of a stretch to view these laws and regulations, both existing and proposed, in terms of a tsunami. After such a long period where legal regulations for websites were few and far between, it’s now difficult for many online businesses to comply and to stay above water with the increased pace of regulation. The price for failure to comply in terms of liability exposure can be very high. Leading SaaS attorney Chip Cooper has automated the process of drafting Website Legal Documents with his Website Legal Forms Generator. Use his free online tool — Website Documents Determinator — to determine which legal documents your website really needs. Discover how quick, easy, and cost-effective it is to draft your website legal forms at http://www.digicontracts.com/whichdocs/. Post from: SiteProNews: Webmaster News & Resources The Website Legal Regulation Tsunami Continues – Are You Above Water? |
Posted: 24 Aug 2011 01:45 AM PDT   A great new tool that has been introduced by Google is the +1 Button that makes it extremely easy to make recommendations about a new restaurant or the best choice for a dog groomer in the neighborhood. This excellent little referral tool can be used on your website or on your Google Account so that friends, clients, and folks who visit your website can essentially give your website or even a particular page on your site the “thumbs up”.For companies who depend heavily on their exposure on the Internet, the +1 system is simply another way to get site visitors to engage and involve themselves with your website. Do you routinely post new articles in a company or personal blog? If so, you should consider integrating the +1 feature onto individual posts/articles so that readers can visually share their agreement with everyone simply by clicking the Google Plus One button. The way a +1 button works is this: you first have to have a public profile with Google and your +1’s are all kept in a tab on your Google profile. It can be kept private or made public – all depending on how you want to manage it. An individual might like to just have his or her +1’s sent to friends and contacts while someone who is looking to expand his business would want it kept public. So – the next time you want to give a rave review about your dog Cocoa’s new groomer or relate the best place to go fishing, you can use a +1 button to let everyone know you were impressed and highly recommend these places. While the positive “bump” that a Plus One vote gives your site, page, or article may be minimal for search engine results, the visual results for visitors and readers is greater. When folks see that you have obviously made an impression with your article, they are more likely to read your post and vote themselves. So, it’s my opinion that Google Plus One is worth looking into and integrating into various places on your own site. Are you already using it? If so, please feel free to comment and let us know your thoughts and opinions on this new referral/recommendation system. Color Card Administrator is the parent company of PrintBusinessCards.com and several other innovative Real Estate Business Cards websites. We’re eager to share with you what it is we do. Give us a call today at 858-522-9335 or email at Author@CardAdmin.com for Business Cards. We look forward to discussing your comments, suggestions, or hearing any ideas for future article topics you may be interested in regarding online business cards design or business card management. Post from: SiteProNews: Webmaster News & Resources Google’s New +1 Button is a Cool Way to Make Recommendations – A SPN Exclusive Article |
Posted: 24 Aug 2011 01:30 AM PDT  The number of smartphones has been doubling every year, and by the end of this year will exceed 125 million in the U.S. alone, about half of all mobile phones on the market in this country. In addition, Apple’s iPads have approached almost 20 million units sold to date. And they seem to have altered the way we perceive and interact with mobile commerce.Consumers have quickly made the transition and are learning to love mobile commerce apps and web sites. This year, they’ll buy over $6 billion worth of goods and services on web-enabled phones and tablets, doubling last year’s number, and next year that number is expected to double again. Online merchants are already cleaning up on this second e-commerce revolution. About 25% of the largest e-retailers already have a mobile site or app, most of those launched in just the last year or two. Another 25% are preparing to implement mobile commerce soon. But fully half are not ready to make the move, and virtually all second-tier e-retailers have no mobile program whatsoever. They all need one – and fast. Estimates are that 15% to 20% of all visitors to e-commerce web sites NOT equipped for mobile are coming from consumers shopping from smart phones and tablets. If you don’t have a mobile initiative in place you had better adopt one fast or you risk losing business to your competition, perhaps forever. Once they see your site isn’t optimized for mobile phones, they just leave and they may never come back. To avoid this crippling blow to your e-retailing business, you simply must make your move toward mobile commerce. Brick & mortar retailers that have initiated mobile POS payment abilities in their retail operations, such as Apple and Nordstrom, have started a wave of momentum that has IT departments across the nation rushing to develop mobile payment initiatives. Mobile in retail has received a spectacular reception because it produces a much more pleasing customer experience for one reason. It enables a purchase to be made anywhere on site while capitalizing on the impulse buying decision. For instance, a customer in a dressing room with a number of different items or sizes now instantaneously checks out right when the impulse develops. No gathering up of packages and trudging over to a waiting line of bustling customers at the point-of-sale, where by the time the clerk gets to them, an impulse decision may evaporate and a sale can be lost. The customer now simply hands the attending sales clerk the desired item(s), the clerk scans the product barcode with a mobile infrared scanning and payment card-swiping device (which encases an iPod), then swipes the payment card, hands the device to the customer, the signature is captured (and photo if desired) on the device and is automatically embedded on the printed and/ or emailed receipt. Whether you’re a ‘brick & mortar’ merchant or an e-commerce online merchant, retail or wholesale, if you’re trying to sell in today’s marketplace you’d better have a mobile payment application or system in place or you risk missing sales and perhaps more. The mobile revolution is marching to the insistent drumbeat of progress and convenience is its heralding call. When consumers use technology and become accustomed to it they begin to anticipate and expect it. If the mobile revolution has caught your attention but you aren’t quite sure how to implement it, or capitalize on it, then you may want to Google ‘mobile POS payments’. Find out how to take advantage of and utilize mobile before it marches right on by and you miss out completely on the mobile revolution. Rick Berry is president/CEO of ABC Mobile Pay, a registered ISO/MSP, and merchant service provider based in Valencia, CA. ABC Mobile Pay – rick@abcmobilepay.com – 877-258-5223 Follow Rick on Twitter @abcmobilepay Post from: SiteProNews: Webmaster News & Resources Mobile Revolution Commanding Attention – A SPN Exclusive Article |
Posted: 24 Aug 2011 01:15 AM PDT  Unfortunately, the majority of commercial websites found on the Internet today will never make any money. There are a number of reasons for that, but the main reason is that most webmasters do not understand how to sell stuff on the Internet.Some people argue that they don’t need to learn how to sell from their websites, because their websites are information-centric and rely only on advertising. I am going to go out on a limb and suggest that the reason people say things like this is because they don’t have a clue how to sell, and it is easier to say that they are not in the sales business, than to admit that they don’t know what to do. Putting The Cart Before The Horse While it is important to have traffic in place to test your sales materials on-site, the majority of webmasters put too much focus on traffic and too little focus on improving sales conversions. But consider this, if a webmaster can increase his/her sales conversion rate from 0.2% to 2%, that will result in ten times the sales from the same amount of traffic!! A tool that professional Internet Marketers use is something called “A/B Split Testing” and “Multivariable Testing.” The purpose of this testing is to make minor changes to your website sales copy and presentation, to test the different versions in real-time with real traffic to see which version produces the best results. For many years, I did not do split testing, because it was difficult to set up the software. But that changed a few years back when Google introduced a free split testing tool, available at: http://www.google.com/websiteoptimizer It is easy-to-use, and it is an essential tool for making your sales copy and presentation more effective, increasing conversion rates. For those who fear the idea of Google collecting too much information about their business, another really good free split testing tool can be found at: http://www.splittesting.com To Sell More Stuff, Stop Trying To Sell This is advice that confuses many people who hear it, but if you can understand the nuance of what I am telling you here, you will absolutely, positively sell more stuff!! A lot of people, even people who make a living in sales, misunderstand the role of the sales person in the sales transaction. Pay close attention to what I am getting ready to tell you… The sales person’s job IS NOT to convince someone to buy something that they do not want or need. Instead, the sales person’s job IS to answer the questions that consumers have, in the process of helping people make an educated-decision about those products or services that they do want or need. When you are trying too hard to “convince” the customer to buy your stuff, the customer gets the sense that you are more concerned about what is best for you, rather than what is in their best interests. However, when you are clearly interested in “answering a person’s questions and concerns” about a product or service, the customer will see you as someone who is more trustworthy, because you are helping them, more than helping yourself. When you take the time to help a consumer make a “good buying decision”, you greatly improve the “buying experience” for the customer and people will be more willing to recommend you to others. Only Talk To Your Target Audience It is extremely important for you to understand that not all of the people who land on your sales page will want to buy what you are selling. Let’s say for the sake of example that you are selling advertising. There are generally four types of prospects for your advertising services. Those who: 1. Don’t believe that they should buy advertising; 2. Have purchased advertising previously, but lost money with it; 3. Always buy advertising from advertisers if the numbers look good; 4. Buy all advertising presented to them. With the first and second groups, you need to convince prospects to spend money on advertising before you can present your advertising proposal. You will waste a lot of time trying to sell to these folks. With the third and fourth groups, you only need to provide advertising metrics to the prospect, to let them weigh the possibilities of using your advertising service, and then you will need to help them decide the details of the advertising package they are going to buy. When you write sales copy for your website, focus on talking directly to those people most likely to buy what you are selling. Don’t write your copy to try to convince people who don’t believe in advertising that they need advertising. Instead, write your copy for the 3rd and 4th groups – those who need to see your advertising metrics and those who need to know your advertising options. Confidently Ask For The Sale No matter the advertising format or sales presentation, there will come a time in the process where one must ask the consumer to take a specific action. Believe it or not, many readers can sense your level of confidence when you ask them to take action. The words you choose when asking for the sale will either betray your insecurity or prove your confidence in your offer. If you are uncomfortable asking people to take a specific action, people will sense it, and that may cause them to hesitate on taking the action you want them to take. Easy To Buy As marketers, we have to make a choice. We can get all of the information we want from prospects or clients, OR we can get people to take the actions we want them to take!! The more information we request from a prospect, the more likely it will be that the prospect will abandon the shopping cart. Think about PayPal for a minute. In order to set up a PayPal account, one only needs an email address, password, legal name and address. PayPal does not ask for your credit card or banking information on sign-up. Instead, they wait until you want to add more capabilities to your account, then they ask the additional information to give you access to their advanced features. In order to increase your sales, you must fight the urge to ask for too much information. Only ask for the information that you need to ask to actually complete the transaction. If you are selling physical products or services, you will likely need an address and a phone number. However, if you are selling digital downloads, you only need an email address and the payment information. Final Thoughts People often make the selling process harder than it needs to be because they worry too much that they do not know what to do. You simply need to present your offers to prospective clients in a clear and simple way. Find out what questions people have about your offer, and then answer those questions. Once you have answered all of the questions in your prospect’s mind, confidently ask for the sale. Don’t be afraid to make changes in your copy, after using split testing tools to decide what changes to make. Lastly, you will want to keep the buying process easy. Only ask for the information you truly need to complete the transaction. When you are ready to dial-up the traffic to your sales page, article marketing with article syndication is one of the most-effective methods to drive consistent and targeted traffic to your sales pages. If you would like to learn how to make your article marketing more effective, sign up for Bill Platt’s live article marketing training. Bill has owned and operated http://thephantomwriters.com since 2001. Post from: SiteProNews: Webmaster News & Resources The Beginner’s Guide to Selling Online – A SPN Exclusive Article |
Posted: 23 Aug 2011 10:00 PM PDT   If you want better search engine results (and more clicks, and more business), and you haven’t paid attention to “Google Places,” you need to do so right away.Why You Need to Claim Your Spot on Google Places
Now, that you know why you need to be on Google Places – how can you claim your spot so you can experience improved search engine results and more website traffic? Claiming Your Google Places Page If you haven’t already claimed your places page, simply go to Google.com/places and work your way through the process, after reading the 7 tips below. If you don’t have a Google account, you’ll have to create one, but it’s easy, and free. For a detailed, step-by-step video guide to the proper set up of your Places page, you can go to: Honest Website Marketing 7 Tips to Help You Get Your Google Places & Other Local Search Directories’ Listing Found – Plus Get More Clicks 1. Get Consistent in How You List Your Address and Phone Number When Google crawls the web, and your website, it can read “123 Main Street” as something different than “123 Main St.” It will even see “123 Main St.” as something different than “123 Main St.” Same thing with phone numbers. “(714) 555-5555″ will be seen as being different than “714-555-5555,” which is different than “(714) 555 5555.” 2. Use a Local Phone Number If you have an 800 number, or other toll-free number, show your local number as your primary phone, and show the toll-free number as an additional one. 3. Get Consistent in How You List Your Company Name If your company name is “Honest Website Marketing” (which we hope it isn’t since that’s our name) don’t show “Honest Website Marketing” in one place, then in another place put “Honest Website Marketing, LLC.” Just like with addresses and phone numbers, the search engines may think those are two different companies. So, look at your website, and be sure you’re consistent throughout your site. Then, do it the same way on your “Places” page, and your “YELP” page, and your Chamber of Commerce listing, and on Yellowpages.com and the other hundred local directories you can get yourself listed in. 4. Fill in Your Website’s URL This may seem obvious, but people miss it all the time. And if your site shows as www.yoursite.com/, don’t list it in your Places page as www.yoursite.com. That tiny difference can be a problem. 5. Post Reviews Posting reviews from happy customers is one of the most powerful things you can do to get your “Places” page ranked well. Encourage your customers to find your Places page and then write a review. Reviews on your Places page are particularly important in pushing it to the top of the search results, which gets you more clicks. Plus, it helps you build credibility so you get more clicks to your website. 6. Get Citations I do not mean the ones you get from the Highway Patrol. But, I do mean the ones you get by getting listed in other places and directories, such as Superpages.com, Yelp, Citysearch, your Chamber of Commerce listing, and the other fifty or a hundred directory-type places you ought to get yourself listed in. Every time you get listed some place and get a citation, you beef up your importance in Google’s eyes, which helps you gain higher search engine rankings 7. Post Photographs, or Better Yet, Videos, or Even Better, Both Pictures and videos are appealing to your visitors and Google loves them. So take full advantage of the ability to post them on your Places page. It’s just as important there as it is on your website itself. These are only a few of the things you can to enhance the effectiveness of your Places page. These 7 can be done by anyone, even people without a lot of technical knowledge. Of course, you can outsource the task to a website marketing pro who specializes in local search marketing as the expert will save you time. Feel free to contact us with any questions, or if you would like to discuss having us help you. Local Search Marketing Expert Scott Harvey works with small-to-medium size local brick-and-mortar business owners who want to improve their search engine results so they can get more local website traffic and sales. Now, because he wants you to capture more clicks, he is offering a 69-page, step-by-step guide to better website performance and he’s giving it to you for free. Grab his “Make The Phone Ring” ebook now at: www.honestwebsitemarketing.com Post from: SiteProNews: Webmaster News & Resources Local Search Marketing with Google Places: 7 Ways to Get More Clicks & More Business Guaranteed |
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