BOOTSTRAPPING 2.0

Sure, your website is up and running; you have accounts set up on the major social networks such as Facebook and Twitter, among others. But in the age of increased mobile searching, greater emphasis on Google ranking and social media, merely being present is not enough. “If people can’t find you, you don’t exist,” says Mario Armstrong, a Baltimore-based tech advocate and founder of SmallBizGoMobile.com.

Optimizing your digital strategy to drive functionality, underscore business objectives, and ultimately produce sales or brand awareness is crucial in an online space filled with noise.
Google is the No. 1 place U.S. consumers look online for information about local businesses, according to a study by Harris Interactive Inc., a New York City-based custom market research firm. With more consumers turning toward the online space to find local companies, your strategy is imperative. But it can also become costly. On the next few pages, Black Enterprise compiles a list of low- fee and no-fee tools to help small business owners strengthen online visibility.

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WordPress
Website:

WordPress is not new to the scene; however, the content management system (CMS) is a favorite among small and large businesses alike. If you’re looking for better Google indexing or to develop a more complex website, consider switching to www.wordpress.org–which does not include free hosting, unlike www.wordpress.com. Aside from easy theme customization, the open software CMS is popular among developers, which means a growing availability of plug-ins that can increase your site’s functionality. With numerous hosting providers available, getting set up on WordPress.org should cost no more than $100.

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Google
SEO: While Google Analytics is one of the most popular search engine optimization (SEO) tools, as you grow your business, it should not be your only tool. Empower your SEO strategy by linking your Google Analytics page to Google Webmaster Tools. The service allows users to submit sitemaps, provides analysis about how your website is crawled by Google, and displays searches that are related to your website.

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Mailchimp
E-mail Marketing: If you’re looking to give your e-mail marketing strategy a boost, MailChimp may be just the kick. Customize e-mails and integrate social media tracking and Google Analytics, all within your MailChimp account. Perhaps one of the most useful features for small

business owners may be its interactive graphs that displays bounce rate; deliveries; and the number of e-mails actually opened, forwarded, and clicked on. Combine this feature with its “A/B testing” which allows users to categorize, subscribe, and customize e-mails based on the subscriber group.

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Postrank
Social Media: Social media metrics and analytics are a growing concern among many businesses as they try to gauge its return on investment. PostRank is one of a number of tools that help businesses monitor mentions across dozens of social media platforms including forums, blogs, and YouTube. The tool allows entrepreneurs to measure and track social media deliverables and collect consumer engagement data. Easily create dashboard views that show profiles, influencer ranking, and buzz volume in real time. For $15 a month, small business owners can begin to dive deeper into their social media presence.

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Mobify
Mobile: With mobile becoming a leading means by which consumers access the Web, a dedicated mobile site is imperative. Among the tools to help business owners establish a mobile strategy is Mobify, a free service that makes WordPress, Drupal, and other websites mobile-friendly. Mobify allows users to customize their mobile site and adapts to more than 5,000 devices. SmallBizGoMobile.com’s Armstrong also recommends AppMakr for a free and fairly seamless way to create your own iPhone app. “The program walks you through turning your site into a mobile app,” he adds. The downside is the built-in advertising and lack of customization.