{!date dayname+0}, {!date long+0} Dear {!firstname_fix} Nice to email you, to email you nice....yes we awake in the UK this morning to the news that TV personality Bruce Forsyth has been Knighted by The Queen in her Birthday Honours List. Didn't he do well? Of course, if you are outside of the UK, none of this makes sense. Sir Bruce is largely unknown in much of the rest of the world and his catchphrases such as "nice to see you, to see you nice" and "didn't she do well" are only really familiar to watchers of British TV game shows. But after 50 years of entertaining millions of Britons he has been given this accolade by Her Majesty - what a Brucie Bonus (another catchphrase..!). But his success is a lesson to all of us. He didn't really seek international fame or fortune - he picked his "niche", British TV Saturday night game shows. And then once in his niche, he created a catchphrase by which he was always recognised. So it begs the question, which specific niche do you have a catchphrase, or tagline, for which everyone in that "world" knows you by? Or are you just one of many businesses, competing generally without any specific notoriety?
YOUR QUESTIONS ANSWERED: How important is a domain name? Google.com is probably the best known domain name in the
world, yet it is a mis-spelling; the correct spelling of this word is "googol"
which is a mathematical term for the number Domain names do matter - but not in the ways we expect them to. Google's own example shows us that even if the domain name is incorrect it has no impact on your business if you are well-branded and have plenty of word-of-mouth, viral, recommendation. Branding is more important than the domain name itself. After all, who would have thought that the domain name "CompareTheMeerkat.com" would end up being popular? Or Flickr? Or Twitter? Whatever your domain name is, branding - particularly offline - will help you get the traffic you want. Many businesses choose domain names which are their "official" titles. But others give us an easier to remember - and pass on - name. Amazon is easy to pass on via word of mouth, but originally it as run by Cadabra Inc before the company name was changed (as cadabra got mistaken for cadaver!). Using your company name as your domain name can be a problem. After all, the pen retailer "Pen Island" does have the rather unfortunate web address of "penisland.net" (read it carefully..!). If your company is called "Childrens Wear" why use the domain name "childrenswear.co.uk"? And the operators of "Choose Spain" might have thought for a second or two before getting "choosespain.com"...ouch! Remember - much of your website traffic will arrive via word of mouth. So make it easy for people to recall and to say to their friends. Marks and Spencer, for instance, uses both marksandspencer.com and mands.com (the form of their name which most people say). Also, your domain name should do "what it says on the tin". If your website is selling downloadable self-hypnosis audio files, then calling yourself hypnosisdownloads.com is a good idea. Equally if you offer a grading service to analyse press releases than calling your domain name pressreleasegrader.com seems appropriate, even though the company name is called HubSpot Inc. Not only does this help with "word of mouth" it also gives you "Google Juice". If your domain name reflects your content, then Google gives you an extra lift up the search engine ranking. Avoid hyphens in domain names because they are difficult for people to type. In the past they were necessary to help search engines see the breaks between words. But nowadays Google is more capable of seeing the words within a combined-word domain name such as usingflipcharts.co.uk (using flip charts). Also, avoid numbers in domain names as people will often type the word. So, if you type 4networking.biz you end up at a business networking site. But if you type fournetworking.biz you end up nowhere. You should also buy domain names even if you don't use
them. For instance, say your business is called one thing, but you want to use
an easier to remember and type name which you will use publicly. Buy both names
- one that you use and one that you prevent anyone else from using. Also, buy
domain names to help you divert people to specific content. For instance, one of
my popular blog posts is about the best blogging software to use. So I have
bought bestbloggingsoftware.co.uk
which is much easier for people to remember than: Domain names are cheap to buy, so it is worthwhile getting all the ones you need. I buy all my domain names from DomainMonster at http://www.domainmonster.com.
WHAT I LEARNED THIS WEEK: Preparation for all eventualities is key to success This week I got an "out of the blue" contact from someone who follows me on Twitter and gets this newsletter (you know who you are...!). The problem was she wasn't well and was due to speak at a conference the next morning. Was I free? Could I help as her replacement for this event at this last minute? Thankfully the conference was only 45-minutes away in Oxford and I was able to change my diary to help. All I knew was that I had to talk about social media. The problem was I couldn't get hold of the conference organisers because they were busy getting the venue ready and we were just unable to connect during the few hours of the day left. So, I turned up not knowing exactly what was required. I had been told the session was an hour, but the programme on the website said 30 minutes. I also thought it was more workshop style, but the programme implied it was keynote. What should I do..? So I took my presentation on "social success" which is available in 10 minute, 30 minute, 45 minute, 1 hour, 2 hour and full day versions...! When I got there I thought I was doing the half-hour slot, but I was told it was an hour and that the website programme "must be wrong". Also, it was keynote style, not workshop. Luckily having taken with me every available option of my talk I was able to simply slot in to the requirements of the conference organiser. Otherwise if I had taken an hour long presentation and it was only half an hour - I'd be stumped. Preparation for every possible eventuality is how I was able to satisfy the client and help out "last minute".
THIS WEEK'S "MUST BUY": New Rules of Marketing  If you run any kind of online business you need this book. Written by marketing expert David Meerman Scott this book is simply superior in its analysis and "how to" advice on using the online world to market your business - and make more sales! It covers everything from using press releases and online video to how blogs or social media can help you market your company. It is down to earth, practical and easy to follow. It is on my shelf by my side and often gets referred to when I need an idea or reminding of something. Whatever business you are in, this book will help you make more of the internet. To find out more about this book, please visit: http://uklik.me/newrulesbook
AND FINALLY: Boost your speaking career and ability... Speak more and speak better Speaking "live" is one of the most significant business activities; indeed according to one study 60% of a Chief Executive's time is spent making presentations. So how can you be sure to speak better and get more opportunities to speak? In the UK, the Professional Speaking Association (of which I am proudly the current President) aims to help people speak more and speak better. And this year our Annual Convention will help you do just that. It takes place on 7th - 9th October in Coventry and already over half the 120 places available have been booked. To make sure you get your place at this amazing meeting - book now before tickets are sold out..! Read More About the Professional Speaking Association Convention: http://ow.ly/5fm2d
To get my blog delivered to you each week in PDF, Kindle or ePub format simply visit: http://uklik.me/gjweekly
Kind Regards
Graham Jones Web:
grahamjones.co.uk Tel: +44 118 336 9710 If you no longer wish to receive this newsletter than you can delete your name from the mailing list by clicking this link: {!remove_web} Affiliate Links: Some of the links in this newsletter are affiliate links providing me with a small commission when you purchase the item. However, I only use affiliate links for products which I personally value. |
