Here’s a fun update about the power of podcasting.  Thanks to a current colleague of mine for his tutorials and guidance on podcasting.  Look at the numbers - up to 75 downloads in one day for a MollerMarketing Podcast.

I’ve had one reader contact me about sponsoring the podcast.  Let me know if you’re interested in getting mentioned on the next Moller Marketing Podcast, including a keyword link within the content.

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Why do online marketers take the time to do live and archived podcasts?
Are they simply wasting their time or is there value?

Stay tuned for an exclusive interview with a business friend of mine that will be posted within the next week or so that sheds more light on these questions about podcasts. However, to help you “see” the effects of podcasts, here are some recent stats:

Now granted, these are not HUGE numbers. I had 11 listeners the first day, then 12 a couple weeks later, then 5, 1, 0, 2, 4, 6, 4, 9, 6, 6, 6, 11, 10, 2 and then WHAM - 22! My best day yet. That’s a total of 117 downloads in less than a month of doing podcasts at MollerMarketing.com.

These people find me through links on other sites, social media efforts, and through iTunes where I post the podcast for free to the general public. (If you go to iTunes and type in Moller Marketing in the search or How to Start an Online Business, you’ll see my podcast show up.)

To get you all more involved in the Moller Marketing Podcast, the first reader to make a valid comment on this post will be the first “sponsor” on the next podcast. This will be a FREE offer so act now!

Moller Marketing will also be offering a special introductory advertising rate of only $10 for podcast sponsorship. Starting in July, there will be 3 sponsorship spots on the Moller Marketing Podcast - one mentioned at the beginning, one in the middle, and one at the end of each recorded conversation. I will be presenting one podcast per week . The $10 introductory fee will include ad placement for the entire month of July 2008 - this means your business will be promoted at least 4 times in the month of July, plus a content link in the text of each podcast.

Each sponsor will be required to provide the following:

• Complete Payment made prior to launch (email mollermarketing (at) gmail (dot) com for further details.)
• 3-4 sentences of text that explain what your site is about, what you are offering and a special promotion that we can track.

The friend who taught me about podcasts has helped one of his sponsors sell $2,000 worth of product in a month because of the mention of the sponsors product, site, and promotion. Stay tuned for more fun to come!

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Janet Meiners, professional blogger at MarketingPilgrim.com and online press release extraordinaire shares tips on making your online PR strategy effective.

Why is online PR so important to the effective marketing of an eCommerce business?

If you have any business you want to get the word out.  You need to think of ways to publicize what you’re doing. Online PR is all about the distribution.  Use a distribution service online like PRWEb and other sites for amplification of what you’re doing.

Who are some of the clients you’ve helped with online PR?

ShoeMoney - Jeremy Schoemaker - Janet volunteered to write a professional press release for ShoeMoney and succeeded with an editorial score of 5 out of 5! Because of this press release Jeremy was interviewed by newspapers and radio stations all over the place.  Janet has also received many responses and leads because of this service she provided.

Who else does Janet write for?

Andy Beal at MarketingPilgrim.com
5 Tips for Effective Online Press Releases

1. Find a good newsworth story: one of the biggest mistakes clients make is that they don’t have a story - they try to manufacture something.  Press releases like this get less response and less exposure.  In order to be effective with online press releases you need a compelling story.  Find something new in your business that is helping your target audience, maybe a trend, or something interesting.
2. Tie your story in to a larger story
3. Use keyword phrases strategically: Don’t just use www.YourWebsiteName.com.  Instead use keyword phrases within the content that link to specific pages on your site.  Don’t be afraid to source other websites too - it adds credibility.  Use keywords in the title of your press release - this will help readers know what the content is about. Using keyword phrases in the first sentence can be very helpul too.
4. Attend the PRWeb.com seminar: ask questions, test, and re-test, watch statistics and “do more of what makes you more”.
5. Warning - Don’t overdo it: writing a press release every 10 days is probably too much. Shoot for 1 press release per month and provide good quality content.

Any other recommendations?

Just because you write a press release doesn’t mean you’re going to get a great response right away.  Reach out to others in your industry. Ask others in the industry to write about what you are sharing.  Submit to social media sites, put your information on forums, and use keywords to get people to your sites.

Are there any sites besides PRweb that you recommend?

PRLeap.com, ClickPress.com - Janet likes PRWeb because they allow users to add logos, pictures, images, social media pieces, etc.  There are lots of PR sites for just links too.  The $200 PRWeb option is better for distribution and linking.  Users can add a direct link in every 100 words of content.  In Janet’s testing it’s paid off a lot more to do the $200 option.

Other fun facts

Per Press Release Janet Meiners averages 60,000 impressions, 1,000 readers, and her professional press release is is online forever!

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Mat Siltala of 97thFloor.com tells Moller Marketing all about keyword research and why its vital when starting an online business.

Mat Siltala has been in the industry of search engine optimization and online marketing for about 10 years. He started his career online working for a radio station and saw the little things he did for that company pay off. He owns several internet businesses online, including a memory foam mattress company and a search engine optimization consulting firm.

Why is keyword research so important when it comes to marketing online?

How do you determine which keywords are the quality ones?

Research your competition. Which keywords are they going after? Look at their title tags, content, links, etc. to see what they are using. Find variations of those words. Spend time on keywords that are targeted (niche), not the general phrases that everyone is going after. Targeted keywords tend to convert better too.

How do you use keywords to market your website online?

Keyword research is a key part of my marketing campaign. There are many different tools out there to use. Aaron Wall has a great keyword research too. Keyword Discovery has one. SEOMoz is pretty good. Wordtracker too. Using your competition can help you so much - you can develop more of a targeted niche, something to build the content around.

Once clients have done the keyword research, where do they put those keyword phrases?

Why is keyword research an ongoing process?

You never want to stop figuring out what are the best converting keywords. Just because you’re being found for one word doesn’t mean its the best one.
What analytics software do you recommend?

What are your websites?

RockyMountainMattress.com sells memory foam mattresses and custom mattresses.

Any other recommendations?

Understand that you’re competing with people that have been doing this for years. It won’t happen overnight. Take it slow, build quality content and links, figure out the right keywords and build trust and credibility.

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