"The Coolest" from Google

Today I was able to attend a webinar from Google - which I think is cool just to begin with. The pros at Google answered questions that were submitted in advance and went through the highlights of Webmaster Tools, Web Analytics and Web Optimizer. Even if you thought you knew it all, there was plenty more that these tools are able to tell you and that you can accomplish with them.

At the end, each of the three moderators gave their take on the coolest features of each application. Here they are:

1. The external links feature combined with the "what googlebot sees" in the Webmaster Tools. Together these tools not only tell you who's linking to you, they can show you what others are saying about your products or services. They give you an opportunity to comment on blogs that mention your company and manage your corporate reputaion... yep pretty cool.
   
   
2. The "compare to site average" segment by goals report in Web Analytics. This tool helps you really focus on which traffic sources and even keywords are giving you the most sales (or leads). The visual of this report shows you in bold red and green where the best performers are... yep very cool.
   
   
3. The "time on site" testing ability in Web Optimizer. Web Optimizer is usually thought of for the split testing toward definite goals like making a sale or getting a sign up on the site but if you just want to focus on branding your company, time on site is your major indicator that people are paying attention to what you have to say. And for retail or lead generating sites, time on site is a valuable tool when it comes to knowing that you are delivering what your visitors are looking for .. . . . way cool.

If you aren't already using these tools or you need help getting set up email or call me (877.644.3327) - I'll be happy to help!

No One Really Cares

Sad but true, no one really cares how great your company is, how awesome the people are in your service department, the cool tagline. No one really cares about the fluffy text, fancy flash or any of the multitude of things that people tend to put on their websites.

But there is a good side to this rather negative post: When you keep the "no one really cares" in mind, you'll be more likely to write better opening statements, more creative responses to the objections you most frequently encounter, more engaging email messages - the overall reasons people should do business with your company.

The idea is to approach sales and marketing from a less egocentric angle. Be as hard on yourself as your customers are on you. Forget the fluff, the hype, just get to the point and make it a good point. Time and space are always precious commodities in advertising so using these resources wisely will help visitors to your website see the value of your product or service much faster.

Getting and keeping the attention of your site visitors shouldn't be taken for granted, it's a privileged that is afforded only to those websites that do a great job of responding to "no one really cares."