Rising to the top since their debut online in October 2008, HobNobCharleston.com is the perfect online portal for locals and visitors alike to meet all their Charleston, SC, needs. This includes videos, pictures, blogs, news stories, directories, and an extensive calendar of events. 

In a nutshell, HobNobCharleston.com is a community website that provides viewers with an extensive business directory, an all-embracing calendar of community events, a wide spectrum of community blogs, videos, and so much more. With sister websites in 800 other cities nationwide, HobNobCharleston.com offers its online visitors a plethora of information to choose from.

Referred to as the “virtual Mayor of Charleston,” owner of HobNobCharleston.com, Becky Smith, serves the overall community, business community, and nonprofit community.

“We love to highlight events and businesses that are special and that are making a splash in the city,” says Smith. “We have a great business directory that we offer to all the businesses where they can list their business for free.”
HobNobCharleston.com also offers great deals on ad space for those businesses looking to get front row and center on this premier Charleston, SC, community portal. HobNobCharleston.com also has a page for real estate agents to post their listings at no charge. The great benefit to real estate agents: Their listings don’t just show up on the

HobNobCharleston.com site; they show up on all 800 HobNobCharleston.com sister sites. Smith also encourages HobNobCharleston.com visitors to upload important community events on the HobNobCharleston.com calendar.

“We want it to be the biggest community calendar in Charleston, so everyone knows where to go,” says Smith. “It’s a one-stop shop for them.”

In this exclusive interview, Smith breaks down HobNobCharleston.com’s role in the community:

What makes HobNob unique compared to other community sites?

Well, what we like to focus on is interacting with the community. We don’t like to just spit information out there and let it sit. We like to update it—keep you informed. We want you to interact with us by communicating anything going on in the Charleston area. Also, we are always running contests that not only highlight our businesses but are also a lot of fun for the community to get involved with. We do trivia, giveaways, and raffles.

Can you provide us with an example of one of your contests?

We started our first contest with the Women of Business. We had hundreds of women sign up for a Pamper Yourself in Charleston package of almost $1000 worth of prizes—all donated from local businesses. The winner was Tiffany O’Neil, and she was very excited to get her huge package! She received a free teeth whitening, free wine tasting for five people at Wine Awhile in Mount Pleasant, beauty control products, $50 spa giveaway, and more.

If I were going to visit Charleston, how would I benefit from visiting HobNobCharleston.com?

You can definitely visit our local business directory and find local restaurants, local music events, shopping centers, hotel listings, art galleries, sporting events, real estate, transportation companies, and so much more. All the things you would need in Charleston are on our business directory, and you don’t have to filter through all the other things on the Internet. You can go straight to HobNobCharleston.com, and the site will tell you exactly where to go. Also, our events calendar lets visitors know all the exciting things that are happening around town. We have a lot of people uploading events, including local businesses, HobNobCharleston.com, and community members—so it’s a very extensive list of events.

Mostly, visitors can get a real feel for what Charleston is all about by visiting HobNobCharleston.com because we highlight much of our local events and businesses with video and pictures. Basically, visitors can see what the community does and how this is a small town and a big town.

We’re extremely excited to announce that our client, Hills of Africa Travel, is featured in an article in JustLuxe. JustLuxe is a luxury web publication that provides prosperous consumers with information on luxury travel, goods, and services.  

The feature focuses on the unique and customized services Hills of Africa Travel provides for each client. It also focuses on Hills of Africa Travel’s new, soul safari with internationally acclaimed author and psychic, Ainslie MacLeod.

Planning a trip to Africa can be just as overwhelming as it is exciting. Thoughts of fierce felines and sun-drenched safaris can quickly turn to questions and concerns regarding one’s travel plans and safety. When planning a trip to Africa, one’s best bet is to rely on the experience and expertise of a seasoned travel professional. That’s where Hills of Africa Travel comes in. -JustLuxe

To view the entire article, visit  The Magic of Hills of Africa Travel.

Watch the above video for a funny take on Facebook etiquette

YouTube can easily be considered King of the online-video scene. No force has dethroned YouTube from its number one online-video platform—but it looks as though there may be a challenger. Hulu.

According to comScore, in March 2009, Google sites ranked as the top U.S.-video platform with 5.9 billion videos viewed. YouTube accounted for 99% of views on this video platform.

Rising quickly and steadily, Hulu has reached the number three spot on top online-video properties among U.S. internet users and is beginning to take a step into the international realm of online-video.

According to WebProNews, the UK is already beginning to provide full television episodes to viewers, and Bollywood is in negotiations with Hulu, as well.

According to eMarketer.com, comScore reported that Hulu’s total video streams grew 14.3% in March, and the number of unique viewers was up 19.7% in the same period. Although Hulu hasn’t yet reached YouTube’s video-guru status, it’s definitely on the rise and is something YouTube needs to consider as a major competitor. With video spending expected to rise past the $1 billion line by 2011, according to eMarketer.com, competition between the two video platforms could get fierce.

According to eMarketer.com, MAGNA Global stated that approximately $530 million was spent on online videos last year and this number is expected to rise 32%.  

Since there is a significant growth in professional video production, many advertisers are taking the online-video route for their marketing campaigns’, and it’s only a matter of time before online-video properties are advertisers’ main vehicle for advertising.

Are you concerned about how customers perceive your brand image online? Perhaps your website currently isn’t a strong branding tool for you. If not, it should be.

Many businesses find that their message isn’t clear, effective, and targeted to their correct market. It can be extremely difficult for businesses to project an accurate message, encompassing a combination of their company’s products, beliefs, mission, and goals. The message is a mixture of several key elements, including effectively placing keywords to increase SEO, which makes the task of projecting company image quite precise and complicated.

Crafting your brand image online is an extremely important client attraction tool. With a result-driven business message, your targeted website visitors will understand the language and tone of the web copy, and the client will feel a stronger connection to your brand. Once this bond is established, the customers will be more inclined to take action and purchase from you.

The customer wants to feel compatible with all your company stands for. For example, if your brand image is high-end, a high-end client will be attracted and comfortable with this image and, in turn, will want to buy from you.

Since fashioning a company message online is both complex and important, it would be highly beneficial for your company to hire a professional copywriter.

A professional copywriter:
· Interviews the company to pull out key elements vital to the business message.
· Recognizes the company image and puts this image into the written word—the message.
· Creates well-crafted copy that speaks the language of the target market.
· Strategically places keywords to increase SEO.
· Facilitates a connection between the brand image and the client through the use of a creative tone in the copy.

If you’re uncomfortable with the message you’re sending potential customers online, it’s time to change this message and solidify a strong brand image.

Designing a company website requires some compromising. It involves the perfect balance between visually appealing and functional elements. It’s important that one element doesn’t dominate the other. This is where many companies go wrong.

Many times company websites are polluted with too much flash, pointless graphics, and unnecessary copy. The combination of these elements is a major risk factor for decreasing website SEO.

In order to ensure your website ranks #1 in search engines, you must adhere to some kind of compromise. Make sure your entire website isn’t in flash. Many people might think flash is more appealing—and it is at times—but it greatly reduces your SEO if overused. Flash limits the amount of copy you can have on your page. Great copy is your best chance at ranking #1 in search engines and should never be substituted for unnecessary elements.

Result-driven copy . . .
· Increases SEO with effective keywords placed throughout. It’s important that these keywords add to the message and mission of your company.
· Converts leads into sales and motivates visitors to take action on your website.
· Increases site traffic.
· Targets your company’s specific market and keeps them on your website.
· Works to reinforce your brand image. Compressed, informative, and concise web copy is easy to read, gets to the point, and expresses your brand image in merely a few sentences without compromising important details.

It’s important to hire a web designer and web copywriter who work toward expressing your brand image online. An excellent web designer will ensure your site is attractive and functional, while an effective web copywriter will guarantee your company message comes across accurately and thoroughly.

The functionality and visual elements of your website may require a slight compromise, but you shouldn’t compromise on a web copywriter and web designer who don’t understand your needs and message. Grow your business. Grow to success. Hire the right copywriter and web designer.

Step 4 and 5 in attracting clients is to write your marketing copy and edit it. (Click here to read step 1 through 3)

Now that you have the necessary information in front of you, it’s time to sit down and write your marketing copy.

As you write, keep in mind that you must focus on your target audience and speak your target market’s language. You must grab their attention, spark interest as quickly as possible– this is where the benefits come in handy. The content must speak to how your services will benefit your clients’ wants and desires. You must be clear on what it is that you offer and how you will solve the customers’ problems.

The copy must also be engaging and positive. Remember, if you aren’t excited about your business, potential clients will move on to another site. By using descriptive text and compelling words to convey necessary information, you can easily create desire. But, remember, the message must be clear. You don’t want people to have to decipher what it is you do. Your objective is to draw them in deeper, persuade them to take action, so stay away from using industry jargon that might confuse or turn off a potential client.
 
Step 5: Have Your Copy Critiqued

After you have a completed marketing piece—whether it’s your homepage web copy or a sales letter, it’s important to let it sit for a day or two. Step away from it, and then come back to it with a fresh perspective. Review it again, make necessary changes, and then send it out for critique.

Ask friends and colleagues to read your marketing copy. Ask them to see where you can improve your message, if you are conveying a positive message, and ask them to check for grammatical mistakes. It’s important to ask people who are supportive and those who can offer constructive feedback. Take it a step further, and ask a current client to review it for you. I’ve done this before, and the feedback I’ve received from current clients has been immensely helpful.

Step 3 in atracting all the clients you want is…Understaing What Makes Your Company Unique. (Click here to read step 1 and step 2)

With so many companies offering similar services or products as you do, how do you stand out from the crowd? Once you identify your target market and know the benefit your company brings to them, then you need to show why potential clients should buy from you.

In order to do this, you need a Unique Selling Proposition (USP), a short statement explaining how your company or product differs from those of your competitors. Your USP informs prospective and current clients why your product or service is the best option.

Many businesses fail to establish a USP, just as they fail to pinpoint their target market. You must communicate a specific, compelling reason for customers to buy from you. Show them ways your company is different. Do you do something that goes over and beyond what your competitors do? Do you do things differently? Now, sit down and make a list of what makes your company unique.

While you’re making your list, brainstorm ways you can add more value to the product or service. For example, if you are a web designer, perhaps you could offer a free, 30-minute follow-up call to answer any questions customers have or to help brainstorm ways they can draw more site traffic. Offer this a month after the completion of the project. If you own a real estate firm, perhaps you could drive your clients around in a comfortable vehicle and offer snacks and drinks along the way.

Don’t forget to research the competition. Unless you know what else is out there, you cannot properly evaluate or showcase a USP.

Study the competition’s website and marketing materials, noting each company’s history and mission, product features and benefits, and target market. Why do customers buy from them and what does the market want that they do not or cannot provide? Note gaps in their product or service offerings. If you have difficulty clarifying benefits, list the features and why a prospect requires or desires them. Those reasons are benefits.

• Have you considered reworking your marketing message to better reach and speak to your target audience?
• When was the last time you updated your website copy?
• Revised your services brochure?
• Revisited the email sales letters you regularly send?

If the answer is “It’s been a while” or “I don’t know,” then it’s time to give your marketing copy a makeover.

With the economic downturn, it’s important—now more than ever—to take a look at how you can improve your marketing message.

Why?

Your marketing copy has the power to bring you new customers and retain current ones. It connects you with your clients. Entices them to buy. Drives them to call you. Copy makes or breaks the sale.

Many companies are unaware their marketing message is driving customers away—both new and repeat business. If your current website copy or marketing materials aren’t bringing you the profits or the clients you want, the good news is that a change in your copy can drastically increase sales.

Step 1: Know Your Target Market

Before you write a word of marketing copy, you need to understand who will be buying from you. Knowing and understanding your target market is crucial for any company—from the one-person shop to the large corporation. Why? It’s simple. You can’t market effectively if you don’t know whom you are speaking to.

The key is to narrow down your target and get as specific as you can. There’s a big difference between the following:
a) My target audience is new mothers who want a career change; and
b) My target audience is new mothers in their late 30s who are interested in leaving their corporate jobs and starting their own businesses. They are married, most have master-level degrees, enjoy an active lifestyle, and are members of a gym.

Take this a step further and make a list of where your target market likes to shop and dine, what they do to relax, where they go for their information, what magazines they read on a regular basis. The more specific you get, the easier it will be to write marketing copy that will speak to and attract your target market. 

Stay tuned for Step #2 in the next blog post. If you can’t wait, check out www.webcopywritingqueen.com

Reaching your target market online ensures a steady flow of clients from different online sources. Making your business visible in numerous areas on the web increases the number of potential clients who will look at your site. This can eventually increase sales, skyrocket site traffic, and boost your conversion rates.  

Here are some ways to bring in targeted traffic to your website:

·       Posting online articles on directories, forums, and social bookmarking sites is a great way to present your business to your specific targeted market. These sites have categories where articles can be posted, allowing viewers to immediately click on categories related to their specific interests. For example, if you offer skin care services and write an article on revolutionized products, you would place it under its associated category and viewers interested in this category would be viewing your article. Right there, you’ve reached your target market.

·       Research the richest keywords for your website. For example, if you own a high-end day spa, it’s important to anticipate the most popular words your target market is using on search engines. This will allow you to increase your SEO (search engine optimization) and reach out to clients with a specific interest in your company and its offerings.

·       Comment on blogs and forums that relate to your industry. These comments can be chock-full of tips and information about your industry, while expressing your opinion in the blog or forum conversation. Know what kinds of blogs and forums would interest your target market and make frequent appearances on them to show you are interested in comments, news, and updates related to your area of work.