It's impossible to draw up a web marketing plan that works for every type of business...and yet I've done it! Below you'll find Part II of the ideas to drive qualified leads to your website over the next year. If you missed part one go back to December of 2009 in the article archives. It is best to start with the first two for January and February if you missed. Then you can go on to use the others in any order you see fit.
July: Get Ready For Your Close Up
Most Web marketers agree: video is the killer app. Videos engage people in ways that words often fail to do. Search engines such as Google and Ask are returning video results alongside traditional Web pages. If you already have videos on your site consider setting up a free account at YouTube, starting your own channel and uploading your videos there. A single video might bring you thousands of visitors. You can video a class, performance, interview and testimonials. This is the biggest addition to any dance school’s website—a must have!
August: Spread The Word With Article Marketing
Article marketing is an underutilized method of reaching thousands of prospects who would never have heard of you otherwise. By sending out short, targeted articles through an article distribution service such as iSnare or The Phantom Writers, you can drive links and traffic back to your website or blog. Use your completed keyword research to help you write compelling, click-worthy articles that can't be ignored.
September: Dust Off Your Email Newsletter
Email may be getting a bad rap these days due to low delivery rates, but it's still a cost-effective way of reaching a wide swath of Internet users. Remember: no one's ever coming back to your website. Ever. Not even your Mom. So get over it. Have a box on your website to capture names and e-mail addresses of your potential prospects.
Put your efforts into providing a compelling reason for them to subscribe to your email newsletter so that you can stay in contact with them and retain front-of-mind real estate for when they're ready to make a dance school decision. For more on how to craft compelling hooks check out "Email Marketing: What's Your Email Bait?"
October: Publish Your eBook
Remember when I told you to set up Google Analytics? Well, now it's time to review your stats and find out which keyword phrases are driving the most traffic to your site. Maybe it's "dance lessons for all ages." Or "learn to dance quickly." Or "how to find a dance school who specializes in preschool dance classes." Whatever's driving traffic to your site is an opportunity for an eBook topic. It's an itch that needs scratching. Now, start writing.
November: Give an Ear (Or Voice) To Podcasts
You don't have to host your own podcast to realize and leverage the power of podcasting. You can find podcasts in your niche or industry by browsing the podcast directory in the Apple iTunes store. (Don't worry: they're almost invariably free, and no, you don't need an iPod to listen to a podcast, just a computer.) Listening may give you the impetus to start your own or to at least contact some podcasters in your industry and see if they want to interview you. This is a great way to get free publicity!
December: Put On A Webinar
The cost of putting on Webinars has come down; I'm looking at Yugma as a way of broadcasting my upcoming Webinars on the cheap. You can do one on the different styles of dance, important facts that parents should know when choosing a dance school or how to get the most out of dance training. Once you do it then you can record it and load it on your website for prospective clients to watch.
This is going to be your best year ever...if you start planning now. Don't try and do everything at once, but budget time every month to accomplish your goals for that month.
