In today’s world websites are required to be more “socially available” and let people share information with a click of a button. With the invention of social networks the universe of web browsing has been changed forever and the way we evaluate and share information has changed since the awe of cool animated sites and intensely styled drop down menus.

Simply being usable is not enough. The information presented for the audience should spark an interest and captivate user’s attention from page to page, from post to post, evoking that “gotta share this” feeling of a reader. It is a good practice to make sites accessible for everyone without coming out too provocative or too timid. No funky gradients or Photoshop effects can enhance the site that lacks social interest. Just like expensive pair of sunglasses won’t alter one’s personality and make person a better human being.

The digital world gets faster and more innovative but majority of designers resist the changes forcing the web to stay more grounded and human-oriented. More and more websites became more conversational forcing readers to exchange comments, share information with friends, actively participate in discussions and re-post, re-twitt, re-direct.

According to Andrea Lunsford, a professor of writing and rhetoric at Stanford University, young people today write far more than any generation before them. That’s because so much socializing takes place online, and it almost always involves text. Before the Internet came along, most Americans never wrote anything, ever, that wasn’t a school assignment. Unless they got a job that required producing text (like in law, advertising, or media), they’d leave school and virtually never construct a paragraph again.

For the first 5 years of what I’d call the mainstream web (2000-2005), most sites lacked social skills. Plenty tried to be deliberately mysterious, and succeeded at that, even as they failed as websites. The narrative seems to finally be getting better.

I’ve come to think of it this way: when you’re out at a bar with a group of strangers, there will inevitably be one person in the room who tells the best stories. If you’re lucky, the person is also polite, they exhibit good taste and understand the dynamics of a conversation. People are attracted to that person magnetically for the rest of the evening. Our websites should be that person. So let’s go grab a drink and discuss something in a positive and captivating manner.

I now need a new roof for my home. How am I going to find the best company? A company with a strong reputation that I can trust, someone who has replaced a roof for a friend? I am now online more then I am on the phone, I will post on my Facebook page, “Does anyone know a good roofer? I have a flat roof and need a tear off replacement.” http://www.facebook.com/john.sostak

Think about how much more efficient this is. Word of web is way faster and more effective then word of mouth ever was. Consider how before Facebook, I communicated with a couple dozen co-workers, a half a dozen friends, and few neighbors, and my sister. Now I have 300 people in my small Facebook group of friends, some I haven’t seen in person in 30 years. I will get a referral, then I can check the roofer out online before I have him come and measure my roof and give me a quote. This kills water cooler conversation and the yellow pages.

Hooray for me, and thank you Facebook.  Congratulations to the entrepreneur, and in this case, the roofing company that understands the power of word of web. This roofer is repairing and replacing more roofs then his competitors. Every day we share information faster and are watching great products, companies and services grow, and it is because they are using the Internet to improve their business. This is not magic, and a lot of companies that have been slow to show up to this dance may not be doing as well, so now is the time to get up to speed.

Facebook is only one, albeit very important part, of word of web marketing, and online success. An online recommendation is a start, then the company must make sure that the rest of it’s ducks are lined up, so that valuable referral becomes a deal. Regardless of your business, make sure you have the following:

• Customers that appreciate your work. If you are not great at what you do, get great. Word of web giveth, and it can also taketh away. Do not let bad reviews kill your dream before you have a chance to succeed. Protect your reputation.

• A well made website that is optimized for your product and area. Optimization is just a matter of writing quality copy, like a blog, and having links in and out of your site, to sites that compliment your message.

• Use social media, and do it consistently. Make sure that you have attractive banners, images, and messages that can be shared on Twitter and Facebook. Use www.ping.fm when you want to update multiple sites at the same time. Consider when you post an update to your blog, or you are running a special. A quick note, with a link to your site, and traffic will come.

• Have any of your customers Yelped you? City Search, Angie’s List, Google reviews? If you have been reviewed, update your profile, make sure the contact info is accurate. If you have been reviewed poorly, and are the owner or rep of the business, do not run from the review, address the customer. Try and find out what happened. Usually it may be as easy as communicating with them, and you may turn a foe, into a friend.

Today we have seen thousands of sites pop up, seemingly over night, that serve as portals. Some a big and broad, like Twitter. Some are review or Internet marketing portals are small, and niche, like Doggie Loot. Use the appropriate ones for your company, and the returns can be measured in bottom line revenue. The most important element in a successful word of web campaign, is consistency. Marketing comes down to elbow grease, so stick to it, and tweak it as you go along, and you will discover exactly what works for you.

P.S. Be prepared to change. What works perfectly can deprecate, not unlike an old billboard or the combover. Once you have it working, keep it fresh, and Internet marketing will continue to deliver results.

Virtually everyone has a Facebook account, even if they don’t use it. EVERYONE knows someone that uses Facebook, a lot. Facebook is sticky. Many Facebook members spend more time on Facebook then they do watching television. Facebook is in your pocket. My Facebook mobile app is used more often then my calculator. Facebook is a must use tool for building your business, broadcasting your message, and developing your brand. That may sound bold, but it is that important. Facebook cannot be ignored by anyone.

What is less clear, are which of the thousands of other social networking sites and blogs are relevant to my business? Which sites can help broadcast my brand, my image, my company? There are countless options, but without careful consideration and analysis, you may waste time and energy on marketing that cannot help your business.

If you are a musician, you will want a MySpace page, a YouTube channel, a Reverb Nation account, and a blog. If you own a dry cleaner or barber shop, you not need any of these social media resources.

If you own a dry cleaner or barber shop, you will still want a Facebook page, as well as a twitter account, and positive reviews on Yelp and Google can deliver the positive word of web (much like word of mouth) that would encourage new customers to use your services. You want the correct social media resources broadcasting your message on the Internet. You want them linked to your website, which delivers
your unique message perfectly. This proactive approach will improve your business.

If you carefully plan an Internet marketing campaign, and have a professional website as a hub, you will be able to improve the amount of business you do. The Yellow Pages are as dead as the dinosaurs. As the the Yeloow Pages and www.yellowbook.com may be attempting to reinvent themselves online, that ship has sailed, and it’s captain is Google.

There is no more important advertising channel today then the World Wide Web. Make sure you carefully understand what elements and outlets online will benefit your business, and you will see and increase in year over year revenue.

How do I reach more customers – fans – prospects – voters, without a big advertising budget?

How do I get Google to recognize my company – product – message – self?

The only silver bullet is money, and a lot of the time, it is wasted. If you spend, spend, spend, you can buy traffic, and broadcast. If you prefer to be more careful with your budget, rather then broadcast, NARROWCAST. You can still be heard loud and clear if you practice a couple of well documented Internet marketing methods. Let’s start with Blogging.

Blogging. Very easy, and very inexpensive. Carefully populate a blog with messages and notes that are relevant to your space, and audience. Do not make a practical blog into a personal diary. Use www.wordpress.com for that.

Build your blog into your site. Make sure you have share options that encourage your audience to share you posts with others that are interested in your product – service – message – whatever.

Be consistent. Do not neglect a blog that is meant to be seen by your audience, and Google. If you must, write multiple posts. Relevant, but not time sensitive blog posts. save them for days in which you are to busy to create something fresh.

Insure that you have your blog in your XML sitemap. Tie it into your social network so that when you update, they know. Have your blog on an RSS feed. Collect blog topics weekly and distribute in an email newsletter.

It is our opinion that WordPress 3.0 is the best blogging software and platform. BlogSpot is also popular, and a Google service. For a professional blog with loads of functionality, begin writing posts, and contact Arcade. We can implement it into your site properly, so that Google discovers you and your message is heard, Loud and clear.

Next we will discuss Social Networking. The hottest term on the world wide web. Why?