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How does Google make your site a star? That's exactly what Dave sets out to answer in his blog—which just also happens to be rising the charts as the blog of the month. Find out about Google's latest attempt to personalize the search experience, what it means and why it matters to your business. Check out the blog today.

Get Effective Landing Pages

What's the key to designing effective landing pages? Lisa Wehr has the answer in her latest article for Multichannel Merchant,
Tips for Effective Landing Page Design.

A Bright Spot for Oneupweb

We just found out Corp! Magazine has named Oneupweb a 2010 Michigan Economic Bright Spot. We're just as committed to doing business here as we were when our CEO, Lisa Wehr, opened up her first office in Traverse City ten years ago. Thank you, Corp! Magazine, for recognizing that commitment.

Oneupweb's Award-Winning Monthly Newsletter—OneUp Low-Down™

Subscribe now to receive timely, informative articles designed for the busy online marketing executive. Every month you'll receive a summary page of the latest issue with a short introduction to each article. With one click you can access a complete article and read it then or download it for later. Visit the OneUp Low-Down™ archive for past issues.

Introducing The Merge™

We thought it was time for the no-nonsense, fluff-free truth about digital marketing: what you should be doing now and why you need to push digital marketing to the limits to be successful in 2010. And we're dishing it up straight in our new digital marketing magazine, The Merge™. Download your copy today.

Don't Miss Our Digital Road Show

Let's face it, webinars are boring. So to spice things up, we're throwing the idea of a "traditional webinar" out the window! On April 28 we'll be hosting our first Digital Marketing Road Show, which marries two of our most popular outreach initiatives: One for the Road and our LIVE Strategy Sessions. The topic will revolve around advanced strategies and new trends in paid search marketing(PPC). And here lies the twist; the discussion points—well, that's up to you. We're giving the power of the presentation to the people, or in other words, we'll only be answering the questions you want to know the answers to. From Google and Bing to Facebook and YouTube, nothing is off limits! Start submitting your questions today and join us on April 28th at 2pm EST by signing up here.

Hot Off the Desk of Lisa Wehr.

As we usher in the second quarter of 2010, I find myself asking how Easter has already come and gone, and the May garage sales will be soon around the corner (and we're having one on May 8 at Oneupweb, if you're in the area). I don't think I'm the only one to wonder where the time has gone. A lot of conversations I've been having recently revolve around the first quarter—what worked, what didn't. But as everyone knows in online marketing, you need to plan ahead to be successful. So here are a few quick tips on what you should be doing now to have a successful Q2:

• PPC Ad Testing. Please, don't let this slip through the cracks. For the amount of time and resources you allocate to your paid search ads, you should absolutely know, without a doubt, that they are going to work. Test your creative on a scientifically selected sampling of your target market. Compare different creative, offers, keywords and search engines (including Facebook!), and then make adjustments where needed. And if you need a laugh, check out http://www.theorno.com—it will help you determine if your campaigns are great…or no….


• Website Design. Most people look at redesigning their company website at the end and/or very beginning of the year. But why? Your website is the engine that drives sales—and it should be purring all year long. Take a look at your website's copy and graphics. Is everything 100% accurate? If not, update it. Don't wait—because your prospective clients and customers aren't going to. What about the navigation and usability of your site? Don't risk losing your customers to your competitors because of these issues.


• Keywords. Look at your top converting keywords from the first quarter. Specifically, look for keywords with some conversion numbers but low traffic. This may suggest a few different possibilities: a) It may mean that these keywords were getting low placement and may need further natural and paid support in the future; b) visitors may not have been finding what they were looking for when searching those terms and have been leaving the site without converting; and/or c) relevant landing pages may need improvement.


• Social Media. You should be evaluating your social media campaigns on a monthly and quarterly basis. Look at increase in fans, number of positive vs. negative comments, popular links, etc, etc, etc. By logging and reviewing all of this information, you can strengthen your presence in these social networks going forward.

As always, If you need help with any of this or have any questions, just let me know. You can shoot me an email at info@oneupweb.com, request a proposal, give me a call 877.568.7477 or send me a tweet @lisawehr. I look forward to speaking with you about your digital marketing needs.

Hometown Favorites: Staying Ahead of the Curve.

We sat down and spoke with Mike Julian, Sales and Marketing Director of Hometown Favorites, about the unique marketing challenges his business faces as well as some of the exciting successes Hometown Favorites has experienced over the past year, including the way that they're leveraging the power of social media.

Hometown Favorites is a unique business that specializes in selling hard-to-find, nostalgic candy. From Skybars, to Razzles, to Wax Lips and Pixie Stix, Hometown Favorites carries all of your old favorites from your childhood. However, this unique product line also carries with it unique marketing challenges.

"We're selling more than just a product," explains Julian. "We're selling nostalgia. We're selling people memories and that in and of itself is extremely unique."

So how do these bright marketers tackle such a challenge? They ambush it from two angles. The first angle consists of simply reaching the customer and the second, converting those customers into sales. In order to accomplish this, they turn to a well-engineered digital marketing plan.

And the player on the front line? Facebook. With the help of Oneupweb, Hometown Favorites has used social media to stay ahead of the curve. While they initially had to fight to get this approved within their marketing department, their determination paid off—big time.

When Oneupweb first took over Hometown Favorites Facebook page, they had a few hundred Facebook fans. But, as Julian divulged to us, they quickly discovered that they had accidentally created their business page on a personal page. And after Oneupweb tweaked it to perfection, the Hometown Favorites' business page went from having a few hundred fans to having over a thousand, but that's not all Facebook is helping this business to accomplish.

"Facebook not only helps us stay ahead of the curve," says Julian, "But it also allows us to have a much deeper interaction with our customers."

We couldn't agree more.

Additionally, Hometown Favorites is devoting 100 percent of their budget to digital marketing this year. Why? Because it leads to direct ROI.

Hometown Favorites also has some other exciting and challenging plans on the horizon. This year, they plan to integrate this business into a larger website called "Crossroads Market", which specializes in selling hard-to-find groceries. They'll be trying to diversify and market to an extremely vast audience—and in order to successfully accomplish this, they're using social media marketing as their weapon of choice.

"We're going to continue to expand our digital arena," explains Julian. "We're going to continue turning social media into sales, invest more in PPC and employ more targeted ads through Facebook."

Sounds like a plan to us!

Hometown Favorites determination to expand their boundaries paired with their willingness to try new things proves that they understand the power of being relentless. They're bright marketers, driven by a commitment to their customers, their products and the overall success of Hometown Favorites, and we're happy to have the opportunity to help them continue to grow and succeed in 2010.

Thanks for taking the time to speak with us about your marketing challenges, feats and goals. It's been a pleasure!

To learn more about how Oneupweb can help your business establish an efficient, well-integrated digital marketing campaign, give us a call at 877.568.7477 or send us an email and let's get started.

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