Top 10 Online Marketing Tips For Christmas 2009

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Although most savvy businesses will have already been heavily investing both time and money into their Christmas online marketing campaign this year, there is still time for most businesses to make some quick and effective changes which will result in an increased presence across Google and other search engines; allowing them to tap into their share of the projected £15-20billion to be spent online this year over the Christmas period.

Below we list ten top tips to stay in the running for the Christmas gold rush:

  1. Register for Google Maps
    This is a sure fire way of gaining some 1st page exposure should someone in your area search for products or services related to your business via Google Local Business Center.
  2. Use Google Analytics
    Tailor your website through analysing current traffic trends allowing you to channel visitors to specific pages, such as your most popular products, and increase conversions on your website as a result.
  3. Run a seasonal PPC (Pay-Per-Click) Campaign
    Based around Xmas Gifts/Products it is a very simple and effective way of ‘buying’ traffic to your website over the festive period and with Google AdWords offering free £50 vouchers you can even try for free!
  4. Google Keyword Tool
    Before you embark on any kind of online marketing you should use the Google keyword tool to research your market place and the demand which lies within. This will effectively tell you what your potential customers are searching for when using Google, as well as a numerical value on the number of searches per keyword.
  5. Website ‘On-Page’ optimisation
    Title Tag, Meta Description/keywords, H1 H2 tags, Content optimisation, specific landing page optimisation and unique content are just some of the basic onsite changes you can make to aid Google in referencing your site.
  6. Google Merchant Center
    Formerly ‘Google Base’, submission to Google Merchant Center will allow Google to display your products within it ‘shopping results’ section of its search results. Generally implemented by your web designer but a great quick win for 1st page exposure.
  7. Utilise your long tail!
    FAQ’s, Blogs, News sections, Industry Articles and content rich landing pages all contribute to your ‘long tail’ traffic.
  8. DMOZ and Yahoo directories
    Submitting your site to ‘DMOZ’ and ‘Yahoo Business Directory’, both highly respected sources of information by Google, will invariably add more weight to your website and ‘authority’ from Google when considering its search results.
  9. Structure your site effectively
    Ensure that all important pages can be found and accessed easily from your home page to give them the most weight and authority and best chance of ranking.
  10. Submitting an XML Sitemap
    It is imperative that you create an XML sitemap (lots of free tools online do this for you) and submit this to Google, this is essentially a road map of your website for Google and allow site to access every page ensuring there are no missed opportunities for ranking.

It is also important to understand the consumer demands during the festive period. Utilising the services of your online marketing company or working in-house to discuss which aspects of your business are most profitable AND most highly searched in the run up to Xmas.

Don’t forget the ‘January sales’! While Christmas is your peak trading time, it is just as important to ensure that your website is well equipped to cope with those looking for bargains in the New Year. It is also a good time to promote products which have high stock quantities remaining and can be pushed out via various online marketing resources at a much lower cost than via other retail channels.

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