| LED Digest 1494: Getting Started with Catalogs |
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================================================== bCentral Daily Digest Moderated Discussion List "Effective Online Advertising" ================================================== List Moderator: Supported by: Adam Audette bCentral This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it http://g.msn.com/0NL48253/564 ................................................. January 9, 2003 Digest #1494 ................................................. .....IN THIS DIGEST..... ==== CONTINUING ================= -=Do's and Don'ts for Catalogs?=- ~ Sandy "Eliminate things that require frequent revision such as prices." ~ Mark Van Patten "...my question is: why bother with the print catalog?" -=Search Engine Optimization (SEO)=- ~ Mike Banks Valentine "The Title tag is ignored by the vast majority of amateur optimizers." ==== BILLBOARD =================== -=Yahoo and MX Records=- ~ Iris Turner ===== CONTINUING ================================= From: Sandy Subject: Catalogs > Many customers have requested a catalog... My > question is: Are there any absolute do's and don'ts > for a catalog? As we are strictly online, this is a > different outlet for us which we don't know much > about. - Yuwanda Black, Daily 1492 We use a catalog with moderately good success. Ours is made from 8-1/2 by 11 folded. It was a headache to set up, but has worked relatively well after a certain amount of tuning. Some lessons: (1) Monitor the weight carefully to keep the package under 1 oz. (or under 2 oz.). (2) Eliminate things that require frequent revision such as prices. Add a separate price list if necessary. If not, then you will get called by customers referring to the old prices at a later date. (3) If you are using a color inkjet to print, be sure to get one that allows cartridge refilling and can print on heavier stock. 100 copies costs a lot in ink. (4) Get a digital camera and a photo editing program. The cheapest alternative we've found to Photoshop is Ulead Photoimpact. (5) Use bright paper. (6) Get a spine stapler from a office supply outfit. (7) Mail catalogs right away while the customer is still interested. (8) You can send catalogs to Sri Lanka if you want, but you probably won't get much business. (9) Revise your online advertising to say " blah, blah, ... (free catalog)" People like free. (10) If your catalog is big enough, you can charge a little for it... this instantly reduces catalog requests, but maybe too much. (11) Consider buying Adobe Acrobat and making your catalog available on-line... postage costs really add up. (12) From the beginning, use your catalog form to gather e-mail addresses and phone numbers, and market to these lists (gently) as people forget about you about 24 hours after the catalog arrives. You will know very quickly whether your catalog is producing sales commensurate with its cost. (13) If you can figure a way, include something with your catalog that is a keeper... a calendar, a sample, a keychain... anything with your address on it that the customer might keep for a while. (14) Respect requests to be removed or excluded from your mailing list. People are psycho about spam. (15) Use a dummy address for catalog requests such as Hotmail as you will get spammed if your catalog form includes an e-mail address. It's better to dump the address from time to time and switch to a fresh one. Sandy sandy[AT]nvnetz[DOT]com ------- new post - same topic ------- From: Mark Van Patten Subject: Catalogs If you're strictly an online store, and your requests for catalogs are coming via your website, my question is: why bother with the print catalog? Take the money you are going to invest in a print catalog and invest it in your website, fulfillment, and customer service. Your return on investment will be much greater, and you'll spending your money where you already have knowledge and apparently some success. Mark Van Patten ------- new post - new topic ------- From: Mike Banks Valentine Subject: SEO > I really cannot comprehend how even a SEO > expert can "guarantee" a placement in the top > ten for any keyword on any of the search > engines. - James Kalassery, Daily 1492 It's not possible to guarantee placement in the top 10. This is simply a marketing ploy used by unethical SEO's to get work. > If there is a proven method for getting into the > first 10, won't it be a matter of time before others > followed suit? Yes and no. THE proven method is simply to provide great content with appropriate page architecture in a category that is not already dominated by cheaters doing keyword stuffing and using other unethical techniques to gain top positions. Take a look at the source code of the following page and judge it for yourself on value to the searcher and then tell me why it ranks number two for Los Angeles Personal Injury Attorney and whether you believe it deserves that position when the page has NO VISIBLE TEXT, only an embedded flash movie and a sliced image! [Hint, place your cursor in the lower right hand corner of the black background at the bottom of the page and drag your mouse upwards to select the invisible text] aa-accidentattorneys.com I recently turned down an attorney client for SEO who wanted to dominate the search engines for the term Los Angeles Attorney and appear within the top ten results for that single search phrase after some basic research where I found several cheating competitors for the terms he should be targeting legitimately. Perhaps Google hasn't discovered them yet? I just couldn't see myself playing ethics cop to firms that offer results when their techniques could get the client banned from many search engines. If you go to Google and search the phrase Los Angeles Attorney, you'll find that the number one and two positions are held by da.co.la.ca.us the LA District Attorney's Office web site. Number 3 position is held by the Los Angeles City Attorney's Office. This is not unusual for any term that could apply to a government web site, as they often properly structure their pages, avoid using stupid techniques like keyword stuffing and provide tons of useful TEXT based content. This is also very likely due to the link popularity of the LA DA site with 954 links pointing to them, followed by proper page architecture of using Los Angeles Attorney in the most important place on the page -- the TITLE TAG. The Title tag is ignored by the vast majority of amateur optimizers. Then, appropriate and intelligent use of the search term in the metatags, use of the targeted search phrase in the body text, and finally, many pages of useful, text-filled content that is RELEVANT to the search phrase! I recommended to that potential attorney client that he more tightly target his search phrase at his specialty, which I won't disclose here. That technique is what I insist on with all clients who want to rank in the top ten, but I still won't guarantee the position, but simply suggest that it would better serve them to have a top position in their specialty rather than using generic search terms and resorting to trickery. > I think the best a SEO can do is to optimize the > pages and leave the rest to God and the search > engines. Exactly! It's nice to see that comment laid openly on the table because it's the truth. Mike Banks Valentine SEO searchengineoptimism.com ==== BILLBOARD ==================================== From: Iris Turner Subject: Yahoo! Site and MX Records- Not Perfect Together! I need your help, I mean I really need constructive feedback on how I can successfully have someone in Yahoo! Technical Support to solve this, and for Yahoo! to stop costing me business and implement the four lines of MX and Cname modifications that will allow me and my company to receive our e-mail. Here is the case of technical staff gone bad: Three months ago, I e-mailed Yahoo! Technical Support of our intention to transfer an existing domain name and create a Yahoo! Site, while still keeping my business class e-mail accounts with the domain registrar (godaddy.com). Yahoo! Technical support said 'no problem'. For over two weeks now, I have been calling and e-mailing Yahoo! technical support with information from the Registrar to do just that, without success. Even the ones who call themselves 'supervisors' or 'experts' are telling me that for a Yahoo! Site, I will not need Cname modifications, even though I have a webmail account. Don't get me wrong -- I have spoken to a few knowledgeable ones. However, whatever these knowledgeable ones did, my MX records are still not set up. According the the domain registrar, Yahoo! Technical Support implemented only one line not four, and without Cname modifications, no one will be able to send me mail. Mind you, I am not some little bird somewhere just trying to create a Website for fun. We are a legitimate business that dared to have such a lofty idea as to upgrade our existing website design a little with a brand new website and domain name! So you see, we are the average American -- so what's the hold up, Yahoo! I have spent hard cash calling, spending over 8 hours total 0- What...!?? Just to get someone to do a 'clickety-click', one minute job? Now I have heard that SEO / SEP companies use mafia-like tactics against each other and within their companies (salon.com), and even circumstances where ISPs were shut down maliciously by competition, however, this issue is not related. However, guess what, being an SEO company you think and prepare for the worst, in order to get ahead in negative situations. I cannot help but wonder what is really going on, since I seem to be butting heads with a non-responsive group of individuals. MX records only take 48 hours to take effect after implementation, right? When I call Yahoo! corporate to complain, I am forwarded to Yahoo! Technical Support. The president of the New Jersey Women Business Association contacted me to find out if I could turn my e-mail on so she could send our newsletters and member events e-mails. How embarrassing! And how many other business contacts from CA to NJ have I lost? The effect of Yahoo!'s actions through their employees, is to effectively put our honest little company 1st TechSolveNet out of business. Anyone remember the story of goliath? In a technical era, here I am crossing my fingers! Good luck to me. Merry Christmas to Yahoo! Iris Turner, CEO Search Engine Positioning 1st-techsolvenet.com ------------------------------------------------------- The bCentral Daily Digest is edited by a third party moderator, Adam Audette. As such, bCentral does not control which postings are accepted into the digest for publication. The contents of the digest do not necessarily reflect the opinions of bCentral, Adam Audette, or his company, Adventive. bCentral, Audette, and Adventive make no warranties, either expressed or implied, about the truth or accuracy of the contents of the bCentral Daily Digest. |
