Reputation Management Tips - Use Other’s Bad Ideas to Build Yours

As participation in online marketing continues to grow, and as more people declare themselves “experts” to their audience, bad ideas, misconceptions, and just plain stinkin’ thinkin’ proliferate. While such ill-conceived thinking can be problematic for consumers, these poorly conceived and misunderstood areas can be a great opportunity for you to enhance your reputation management techniques – as long as those bad ideas are not yours!

When you realize that the majority of self-proclaimed “experts” online deal in little more than clichés, platitudes, and simplistic solutions, the potential for making a real difference in the lives of your audience will easily double or triple.

In other words, by debunking popular misconceptions, errors in judgment, and poorly explained answers to common questions, you will build your reputation as an expert in your field. And, as your reputation grows, so will your audience, your subscriber list, your list of leads, and your conversions!

Build and Protect Your Online Reputation

In many ways, your online reputation is your greatest asset. In fact, it represents the unified mental construct everyone who “meets” you online shares about you; a mental image of who you are and what you have to offer.

Of course, the clearer that image is, the stronger their perception of you and the more valuable you become to them.

This makes building, protecting, and managing your online reputation of paramount importance for both the short- and long-term success of your business.

According to an article at Entrepreneur.com, there are threes areas of focus for creating a positive online presence – and keeping it intact:

• Create great content – The paradoxical nature of content creation as it relates to online marketing is that, while you’re creating content with the hope that it will eventually help convert, the best content is rarely created with that in mind. Keep in mind that consumers today are pretty savvy and expect a certain level of effort to be put into any content they consume, especially if it’s designed to turn them into paying customers.

• Social media presence – It’s hard, if not impossible, for your audience to care about your social media accounts if you’re not using them. So, if you want to turn your business into an online authority, you’ll need to be ahead of your competition when it comes to social. That means having a consistent posting schedule, using a variety of different social media platforms and, most importantly, actually engaging with your audience.

• Testimonials, reviews, and perceptions – Known as “social proof”, what others think of you will make a huge impression on your audience and potential clients. Digital word of mouth is one of the most persuasive forms of marketing to the modern consumer, and it tends to be a massive aspect of the decision-making process for the average person because people trust other people. And, if an unbiased third party tells someone your business is not to be trusted, then you’d better believe people are going to have some reservations. Then again, a few positive reviews can lead to increased engagement (at worst) and inspire more conversions (at best).

Ultimately, the key is understanding how to be successful in leveraging the tools and techniques of reputation management to effectively build your online reputation, enabling you to meet your business goals.

With more than 25 years of experience in the trade, Ted can offer you valuable reputation management tips as your business consultant. Simply… Contact TD Fall today.

Massaging Your Message – Get Your Content Write

When it comes to your marketing message, getting it right is as important as any other area of your business. In fact, massaging your message properly may be the MOST important. (Certainly, getting it wrong will have lasting consequences.)

Since we’ve addressed the issue of messaging before, we thought it might be a good idea to also look at the how of it, not just the why. For us, it begins with content marketing, which is the process of identifying your target market’s pain points and creating content that helps your target audience address them. It’s not a sales pitch. It’s high-value information that benefits them!

Messaging and Content Marketing

It was more than a century ago – well before internet marketing (or even the use of computers) became a thing – that the concept of content marketing was developed and implemented.

That’s right. As early as 1895 John Deere published a lifestyle magazine for farmers called “The Furrow”. What was it about? The one thing it was NOT about was Deere company products. “It did, though, increase brand loyalty. Increased sales were just one happy byproduct (of many) from the valuable content John Deere provided for its customers.” (SearchEngineJournal.com)

Fast forward to 1900 when the tire company Michelin published its first “Micheline Guide”. Again, the Guide was not published to sell tires. Although, “While it included tips on changing your tires and where to refuel your car, it also featured a list of places that hungry travelers could eat. And it was a massive success. It’s a great example of a business targeting their audience with content that they would find helpful without overselling their products.” (DreamHost.com)

As a slightly more contemporary example, and one which some of us may actually remember, Betty Crocker became the “feminine” face of the food company that would eventually become General Mills. The cookbook that bears “her” name has sold more than 75 million copies since it was introduced in 1950. And, while the book known as “Big Red” frequently suggested the use of the company’s products, it has always been the recipes that most consumers have valued. (Wikipedia)

Appealing to Human Nature

Are you beginning to get a sense of how content marketing works, and how it can also benefit you? Even though it’s not all about you and your business, and it’s not solely about your products. No, it’s about helping your current or potential clients.

• This is how you build a following.

• It’s how you inspire trust and loyalty.

• It enables you to engage with prospects and build relationships.

• This generates leads and leads can become conversions.

Yes, it’s a process but that is how effective marketing is done in the internet age. For example, our blog. It’s not always about the product – or even how cool we are! It’s about helping you become the best interior designer or furnishing retailer you can be.

When it comes to massaging your message, getting it right can be challenging. That’s why getting in touch with Ted for business consulting to the trade can be so valuable. To find out more… Contact TD Fall today.

Without Purpose, Your Mission and Vision Will Go Unrealized

Not to get all deep here but, a business without purpose is like a rudderless ship, pushed in directions beyond the Captain’s control. So, even if Ole Cap understands his mission is to get the ship from Point A to Point B, and he has the vision to make it happen if at all possible – if he lacks purpose he’ll likely fail.

Vision and mission come from purpose; that is, the reason for which something is done or created or for which something exists. (Lexico.com)

While purpose is the natural foundation of the two most commonly accepted business branding steps, your Vision and your Mission will have little value if not based on a purpose.

As in life, purpose in business offers direction; it motivates; it is the very reason your business exists. It also helps when making decisions, both minor and major.

Define Your Business Purpose

Your purpose for starting a business does not have to be based on some grand universal design for saving the world, or even humanity. (Most of those are self-indulgent and impossible anyway.)

However, it should be about something that does reflect your values; those things that matter most in your life. It can even be something as simple as, “My purpose is to create wealth for future generations of my family”.

Since we don’t have the space to examine every possible purpose each of you might outline for your business, we’ll simply offer this little exercise in purpose building to help you articulate it for yourself.

As an exercise to help define your business purpose: Write about how you feel – and think – of and about your business. Try journaling with a pen and paper, or grab your laptop, open a doc, and just start writing. Write about how you truly feel and what you want out of life. Then, imagine how you might be able to Captain the ship of your business in the direction that will get you there.

Remember that no one is going to read this but you, so don’t be afraid to express your thoughts and feelings. Then, reduce it to a single sentence or two and create a Purpose Statement for your business that reflects your conviction to make it happen.

And there is the secret to this exercise, and to discovering your business purpose. Unlike a Mission Statement or Vision Statement which should be published on your website, your Purpose Statement belongs to you alone.

It’s a way to clarify both your mission and your vision, with a solid foundation for future growth.

Doing this will also help to provide clarity about exactly what you and your business are capable of providing, within the framework of what you have to offer.

Finally, your Mission and Vision Statements must reflect your business purpose, but without a published “Statement”. That is a private guide for you as a business owner and/or your team.

If you're searching for help articulating your business purpose, Ted remains available with real-world experience as a business consultant to the trade. To find out more… Contact TD Fall today.

Getting People to Buy Once They’re Ready

Once you get the answer to the  question “Why do people buy?”, you still have to ask yourself, “How do I get people to buy from me once they’re ready?” To get that done, you must help your target audience learn about the products or services you have to offer in a way they can relate to as the answer to the age-old question, “What’s in it for me?”

In other words, regardless of the features (or the number of them), what they care about more than anything else is what they will gain from doing business with you; the benefits your products or services offer them. These are the only things your marketing message should be about.

Saying this is one thing but how it works in the real world takes some explaining.

Real-World Sales Tips

• Sales Example #1: Auto sales is a great real-world example because the product can be loaded (even overloaded) with features, yet most consumers will take those things for granted. The technology of the engines, transmissions, and electronics used in modern vehicles has become so reliable that buyers rarely ask about them these days.

What contemporary car buyers tend to care about most are comfort and price. They usually want every luxury item available while paying the basic price. Of course, wanting both of these things makes little sense so the question becomes, how can the sale be made when the potential buyer wants all the extras but is only willing to pay the minimum price?

The answer to that one is impossibly simple yet seemingly impossible. Building value in the features the customer wants is the only way to defeat this type of thinking because value overcomes objections about price. In fact, it’s the only thing that will. And that is the key to making a sale – when the value is greater than the price, the sale is made.

• Sales Example #2: Personal and business coaching have become incredibly popular in the age of internet marketing and virtual services. From life coaching to nutrition coaching; from personal training to health and wellness coaching; and from career coaching to business start-up coaching as well as many others, the number of online coaching services has grown exponentially over the past couple of decades.

The best online coaches can offer services packed with features yet, if the benefits of these features are not clearly defined, few prospects will be willing to buy. Again, if the value of the benefits exceeds the price, your prospect becomes a buyer.

Creating a Marketing Message

Back in the day, when pretty much all selling was done face-to-face, the message was far easier to convey (at least in theory). It was easier to build trust when looking someone directly in the eye, just as it was easier to show one’s expertise. By contrast, and with something like 2 billion websites worldwide, today’s virtual world is impersonal and detached.

This is easy to forget for those of us who work virtually on a daily basis, so it’s important to remember that such an environment requires extremely personal messaging if you hope to build trust and value. And, if you want to get people to buy, that message must be heavily benefits-based.

How can you put the ideas in these two sales examples to use for your benefit, as an interior designer or furnishings dealer?

If you're searching for help with answering that question for yourself, Ted remains available with real-world experience as a business consultant to the trade. To find out more… Contact TD Fall today.

Your Strategic Marketing Foundation Bears Quite a Load

Everyone says you need a strategic marketing plan, right? In fact, you may feel like you're getting hammered with that little bit of advice (including from us). Then you find out you need a marketing foundation to build it on. That’s not so bad; until you discover the foundation has parts that need to be included.

Wait, wut?

Since when does a foundation have PARTS? It’s like, a simple slab of concrete with a few load-bearing walls. There are no parts to a foundation! Are there? Argh!

Turns out, as long as we don’t take it too literally, there kind of are parts to a foundation. Plus, and more importantly, we have to remember the purpose of a foundation: To distribute the load of the structure – your marketing strategy – over a large bearing area to bring the intensity of loading within the safe bearing capacity.

In other words, as a metaphor, your strategic marketing foundation must be able to bear a pretty heavy load or your marketing plan may collapse. Then where are you?

With a metaphoric roof and four walls crushing your hopes and dreams of success! (Youch!)

Identify the Parts of Your Marketing Strategy

Now that we understand how the foundation of your strategy supports your marketing plan, supporting and keeping it functioning properly, let's take a look at some of the component parts you need to put in place.

All of the preceding begs the question of exactly what that foundation you’ve worked so hard to build will be supporting:

• Identify your ideal client – Who do you want to work with and whom do you think will want to work with you? Have you answered these questions? You need a profile of precisely whom you will be targeting in your marketing plan. Without it, you're going to be all over the place with your messaging.

• Create your unique customer avatar – Success is in the details. An avatar helps you take that profile to the next level and makes the ideal client real to you. Instead of trying to appeal to some kind of vague “them”, the focus of your marketing message will be on individuals with an identity, the real human beings who will benefit from doing business with you.

• Hone and build your individual brand identity – Who are you? What do you have to offer? How do clients relate to you? All of these questions (and more) must be answered as part of establishing yourself as an expert in your niche. That is where brand identity comes from.

• Narrow your target market to engage them more effectively – You simply can't be all things to all people (and you must stop trying). While it might be nice if every person on the planet wanted what you're offering, that is simply not realistic. You need to fully commit to the ideal client profile you’ve created and accept that your client avatar includes your entire audience.

• Build your initial market strategy on these foundational steps – Wow. That looks like a lot of market research and planning, doesn’t it? It sure does. And, once you complete it, you'll have a concise, straightforward approach to basic marketing concepts and the foundation of your strategy. Yay, you!

Truly, nothing that lasts can be built without a solid foundation. Plus, considering the stress and confusion of the past couple of years, overcoming uncertainty and even fear of failure moving forward could be really tough. The solution then is to take bold action that will enhance your online reputation, build brand awareness, and engage with your target audience in ways that lead to conversions!

If you’d like to learn which sorts of strategic marketing foundation and strategies will work in the interior design and luxury furnishings industry, Ted remains available with practical, industry-focused strategic marketing tips. With more than 25 years of experience, he could be an invaluable resource on whom you might rely to grow your business.

For business consulting to the trade… Contact TD Fall today.

Strategic Marketing Tips – Some proven things you can do for yourself

In a recent article from the online marketing gurus at HubSpot, they shared their 20 Best Marketing Tips. When it comes to strategic marketing tips, we tend to offer our thoughts based on industry-specific needs. The data and expert opinions shared in their blog however are focused on a broader, longer-term view of online marketing success.

Both approaches are valid, so long as one applies the tips to their specific marketing strategy and industry.

Now, because we are us, we’ve decided not to share all 20 tips but have chosen our favorites instead. FYI… We may also pick a few of our least favorite tips to share. Why? Well, again, we’re us! (Opinionated, much?)

What is an Inbound Marketing Strategy?

Outbound marketing is all about promoting your products and services to a targeted, or broad-based, audience. Your website, blog, email subscription list, and social media platforms are all examples of an outbound marketing strategy.

“Inbound marketing, on the other hand, “centers around meeting consumers on the channels they’re already on. Employing the strategy follows the ‘attract, delight, engage’ model, helping you create content tailored to your different audience segments at their respective place in the buyer's journey. 80% of marketers plan to keep the same or increase their inbound marketing budget, and 11% of marketers say it will be their biggest investment in the next year.”

This approach requires that you do a little more research to find out where your targeted audience hangs out, whether online or at your local Starbucks, and tailor your marketing message specifically to them. In other words, if you love Twitter but they’re all hangin’ on Facebook, well… Time to de-Tweet yourself.

Brief Videos Generate More Interest

There is no denying the power of video marketing. The question though is, what form should your videos take?

“Short-form video is the second most effective media format … Marketers also say that it’s a worthwhile investment for lead generation (86%). This trend shift aligns with the attention spans of audiences that are much more fast-paced, so shorter forms of content get right to the point and allow audiences to consume and then move on. Hence, TikTok’s popularity, as it relies heavily on short-form video.”

Stated simply, consumers tend to have the attention span of a hamster, so… Give ‘em what they want: brief answers to frequently asked questions and explanations of who you are and what you can do for them.

Audio Can Be as Powerful as Video

We believe the increase in audio consumption such as podcasts by consumers may have less to do with a short attention span than it does with the trend toward multi-tasking. Again, this is a way to meet your audience where they are. That is, many folks are reading, typing, scrolling, or even chatting while also listening to something online. It’s tough to watch a video AND multi-task so they use their ears instead of their eyes.

“Whether it be a podcast featuring your business founders, or different Twitter Spaces discussions about business-related topics, consumers in 2022 will hear audio from businesses more than they ever have before. HubSpot found that 80% of marketers plan to invest the same amount or increase their budget in audio content and podcasts in 2022.”

This is a perfect strategy for the shy online marketer, the person who hates seeing themselves in videos, and so, refuses to use them despite their power as a marketing tool. (See, we gotcha’ here.)

Respect Your Audience

The “information age” in which we find ourselves has informed not only business owners and marketers; it’s done the same for consumers. (Well, a good portion of them anyway.

“David Ogilvy is famously quoted as saying: ‘The consumer isn’t a moron; she is your wife’ … Ogilvy built his advertising empire upon deeply understanding his target audiences. Although his comment may be dated, the core principle holds -- your customers are smarter than you think. It will only serve you to do extensive market research under the assumption that your customers are doing their research, too.”

To presume your clients and prospects are completely ignorant of the interior design process or the value of luxury furnishings is to disrespect them – and lose them as a client. And yet, with the pace of change we’re seeing in various technologies, along with innovations in materials and manufacturing processes, you must also realize that consumers often “don’t know what they don’t know.”

Our Least Favorite Marketing Tip

While we absolutely agree with the HubSpot experts that, “Now, more than ever, consumers lean on trust as a leading factor when deciding whether to do business with a company.”

Where we disagree with them is their suggested approach to building trust. The appeal of  “brands that champion social responsibility and take a stand on important issues” is, in our opinion, limited. It can also be downright dangerous.

What do we mean by this? The phrase “social responsibility” has become greatly politicized over the past decade, to the point that it has lost all semblance of ethical value to some half of the country’s population. Because of this, business owners should take care not to be seen as pandering and/or “virtue signaling” to an audience who may resent it.

Just our two cents. (Or, did we overpay?)

Where to Learn What Works

Remember, there’s plenty more where these ideas came from at HubSpot.com.

But, if you’d like to know what actually works in the interior design and luxury furnishings industry, Ted remains available with practical, industry-focused strategic marketing tips. With more than 25 years of experience, he could be an invaluable resource on whom you might rely to grow your business.

To learn more about the lines we represent or for business consulting to the trade… Contact TD Fall today.

Being an Expert Can Be Dangerous to Your Messaging

While it’s not particularly flattering to admit, we all tend to seek approval from others. Being an expert in a particular niche, that sort of confirmation will most commonly come from others in your field. OK, so?

It should come as no surprise then that those with similar interests find comfort and support by associating with each other. Educators tend to associate with educators; online coaches tend to hang together; website designers and marketers are often most comfortable with others of a like mind. Whole industries can become exclusive and the subjects of discussion among experts climb to higher and higher levels.

In fact, this is the very reason industry-related associations exist.

The danger with such insular relationships is two-fold: first, that our view of the world can become dangerously narrow, and second, that we may forget who butters our bread – those with less knowledge.

Why Messaging is So Critical to Online Marketing Success

Receiving support from other experts is rewarding but, what happens when you're thrown together with a group of laypeople – or just one, a potential client?

Both clients and prospects will commonly voice a desire but, because they lack the base of knowledge to make it happen, they search for an expert. In the “information age,” they’ll jump online to search for solutions but will surely need more.

That is where you come in. And, that is where your experience, your respect for them, and their efforts to learn, will enable you to deliver a message that will resonate with them – and help you close more clients.

While you obviously can’t “know too much” about your area of expertise, you must always be mindful that most of your clients and prospects will know far less. It’s your job to help them learn what they need to make an informed buying decision.

When you're able to use being an expert to help them, the fact that you're the one who did so should take care of the rest. (That is, closing the sale.)

Need Help with Your Messaging?

If you need help transitioning from being an expert designer to being someone who can clearly articulate your marketing message, Ted may be able to help as an expert in business consulting to the trade. To find out more… Contact TD Fall today.

Designer Business Tip – Check Out Homeowner Design Tips

While this blog is focused on the interior design and luxury furnishings industry, we believe it’s important to occasionally take a look at what the so-called “experts” are telling consumers. After all, they are the end-user and ultimate target market for most of you so it behooves you to have a sense of the influences that shape your thinking.

Plus, can’t hurt, right?

Good Housekeeping Interior Design Tips

For example, as recently as the end of last year, GoodHousekeeping.com was promoting cool grays and monochromatic colors in their featured living room design suggestions. In addition, they were promoting multi-use spaces, versatility, flow, and comfort. (Among quite a few others.)

Certainly not the most innovative of ideas yet, as an influencer since well before the term was invented (they’ve been around for nearly a century-and-a-half), GH continues to be a trusted source for American homeowners. Designers who ignore them do so at their peril.

HGTV Living Room Design Tips

A relative newcomer to the scene, at least compared to Good Housekeeping, HGTV has moved smoothly from television to online influencer. Their website, HGTV.com also tends to be at the top of the Google search results for homeowner design tips. And, not long ago, they too were enamored with contemporary looks and shades of gray.

Beyond these basics, they presented everything from Art Deco settings to rustic, southwest, or coastal feels for living rooms. Whether eclectic or traditional, however, a few things were consistent: comfort, high quality, outdoor exposure, and lighting to fit the mood of every room.

House Beautiful Design & Decorating Tips

More recently, the folks at HouseBeautiful.com jumped on the bandwagon with some decidedly trendy (if not downright “out there”) design and decorating ideas for homeowners. Perhaps the most insightful of their suggestions though is the use of texture, whether furniture, rugs, or wallcoverings to “transform a generic space” and turn it into something special. (No arguments here!)

They do not ignore the power of paint when it comes to changing a space, be it on walls or ceilings (which so many homeowners ignore). They also strongly suggest the use of colors the homeowner likes, while taking a few chances on something new here and there. Lighting is important to them, as is simplicity and adding one’s identity to the space.

Versatility and function have become hugely important for homeowners in our post-pandemic world. As have comfort and a sense of “being home.” These qualities are all reflected in the various homeowner design tips we found in our online search. Ultimately, the best designer business tip we can offer is to pay attention to what consumers are being told they should do.

If you're struggling to keep up with all of these sources, or just feel like you could use some guidance from an industry veteran, Ted brings more than 25 years of experience to business consulting for the trade. To learn more… Get in touch with TD Fall today.

Online Marketing is the Art of Knowing What’s Possible And Doing It

There are so many “tips” available from online marketing experts these days that it’s easy to get overwhelmed. When that happens, when there are simply too many choices, most people simply give up and choose to do nothing. For us, the real key to successfully marketing a business online is – knowing what’s possible, doing that, and doing only that.

In other words, as an entrepreneur, you need to know what you're capable of and limit yourself to those things alone. Granted, it’s tempting to try to be all things to all people but that rarely works. It also leads to stress, exhaustion, and sleepless nights!

The Art of the Possible

This brings to mind the classic quotation that is normally attributed to Abraham Lincoln about whether you can “please all of the people all of the time.” In fact, the Lincoln quote was quite different (and quite a bit more cynical):

“You can fool some of the people all of the time, and all of the people some of the time, but you cannot fool all of the people all of the time.” – Abraham Lincoln (emphasis added)

For cynical marketers (and far too many politicians), this is a truism that often has them crying themselves to sleep at night. For the rest of us, the gentler interpretation of poet John Lydgate has more appeal:

“You can please some of the people all of the time, you can please all of the people some of the time, but you can’t please all of the people all of the time.” – John Lydgate (emphasis added)

Perhaps we can simplify that even further with this famous (or infamous) movie line:

“A man’s got to know his limitations.” – Clint Eastwood as Dirty Harry

Knowing Your Limitations Has Value

What’s the point of all this quoting and deep thinking? Simply this… That when you consider an online marketing strategy, you have to start from this basic premise… YOU know what's possible – your prospects don't.

This is especially true today, when people’s values, needs, and priorities may have changed dramatically.

Consider for a moment these shifting attitudes from the business and personal worlds, in response to the health crisis which all of us desperately hope has peaked.

According to Fortune.com, the top concerns of business leaders will be:

• 48% say their top concerns over returning to business as usual are health and safety

• 38% cited financial management and cash flow

• 27% cited concerns about new laws and regulations

• 25% of business leaders say the biggest challenge to working remotely is productivity and motivation

• 24% said connectivity with coworkers

• 19% home-office setup needs

• 48% of business leaders think technology spending at their company will increase [in our new reality]

Whether your business is focused on professionals or consumers, these changing behaviors and priorities could have a direct effect on your target audience, which will affect you and your design or furnishings business.

Where Can You Be Supportive?

For many, it’s a new world out there. For some, the changes are practical while, for others, they are driven by fear. Understanding which of these you are dealing with will go a long way to determining how you can offer the support and services prospective clients may need. And, since they often do not know what they do not know, it’s your responsibility to educate and illuminate what’s possible for them.

That is what online marketing has always been, and always will be about, the art of knowing and sharing what’s possible!

If you're still unsure of how to share your expert knowledge of the possible through online marketing, Ted offers business consulting to the trade that can help you figure it out. Simply… Contact TD Fall today.

Yoast SEO Plugin for Your WordPress Business Website

First, let’s all calm down. Just because we put the acronym “SEO” in the title of this blog post about the Yoast SEO Plugin for WordPress, screaming and crying will help no one! (Not even us!) No, today we’re going to keep it short and simple, as well as clear and concise. (Hey, isn’t that the same thing as “short”?)

So, SEO is something that many fear for a number of reasons, none of them grounded in reality. For these folks, they also love to hear that “SEO is dead” from a bunch of so-called “experts.” Nothing could be further from the truth.

After all, SEO simply stands for “Search Engine Optimization” which is simply about making your business website more attractive to those very same search engines. And YES, there are more than one SE that people use besides Google. (Huh, who knew?)

To simplify things even further for you, there is a fantastic FREE WordPress plugin available that tells you how to best optimize your content, from your pages to your posts! The tagline for this wonderful product is, “Yoast, SEO for everyone.” And that means YOU!

Yoast and WordPress are Made for Each Other

Now, this only works if you’re using WordPress as your content management system (and who isn’t, right?) plus, there are two versions of the plugin available. “Yoast SEO Free contains everything that you need to manage your SEO, and the Yoast SEO Premium plugin and its extensions unlock even more tools and functionality.”

The premium version is just $99 a year but the free version is usually more than adequate for most website owners. It’s also pretty easy to install and start using it. As Yoast explains the installation and activation process for the free plugin:

Yoast SEO Plugin Installation

Starting with Yoast SEO consists of just two steps: installing and setting up the plugin. Yoast SEO is designed to work with your site’s specific needs, so don’t forget to go through the Yoast SEO configuration workout as explained in the ‘after activation’ step!

INSTALL YOAST SEO FROM WITHIN WORDPRESS

1. Visit the plugins page within your dashboard and select ‘Add New.’

2. Search for ‘Yoast SEO.’

3. Activate Yoast SEO from your Plugins page.

4. Go to ‘after activation’ below.

INSTALL YOAST SEO MANUALLY

1. Upload the ‘wordpress-seo’ folder to the /wp-content/plugins/ directory.

2. Activate the Yoast SEO plugin through the ‘Plugins’ menu in WordPress.

3. Go to ‘after activation’ below.

AFTER ACTIVATION

1. You should see (a notice to start) the Yoast SEO configuration workout.

2. Go through the configuration workout and set up the plugin for your site.

3. You’re done!

And that’s it! You’re now ready to optimize every piece of content on your website, which only takes about 10-15 minutes once you get rolling.

Using Yoast SEO is Easy

How easy is it to use the plugin? Really easy, because Yoast places a small window in your editing dashboard with simple instructions on how to improve the optimization of your content.it will look something like this:

As you can see, Yoast is giving you clues to improve the SEO of your blog post.

1. Yoast recommends a minimum of three hundred words for any copy, to better catch the attention of the search engines. The thinking seems to be, that if you can’t say three hundred words about something, it will have less value to Google.

2. The meta description is that bit you see just below the URL in the search results. It’s best to craft a description that contains your focus keyword, as well as a fully expressed concept but fits within a 156-character limit.

3. The focus keyword should also be in the title, preferably the opening of the title, e.g., “Customer Service – 5 Tips to Do It Better”.

4. It should also be in the first fifty words of the post, as well as the last one hundred words. (You can use a variation of the focus keyword throughout, to prevent Google from thinking you are “keyword stuffing” your post.)

5. Try to use a heading or two in the copy, as section separators, and designate them H2 and H3. (WordPress will use the title as an H1 automatically.)

These five steps should get you the green light from Yoast, no problem. (Instead of the bright red sad face!) The Yoast tutorials will tell you where all of the Metadata can be entered. If you drag your cursor over the items at the top of the Yoast SEO box in the dashboard, you’ll see the little pencil to the right, which indicates you can edit the text in each of those areas.

We hope this helps reduce the fear of SEO and that, installing and using the free Yoast SEO Plugin, will enable you to improve your website for the search engines. (Without hiring some expensive “expert”!)

As always, of course, Ted is available for business consulting to the industry and as a guide for improving your online marketing efforts. For more… Contact TD Fall today.