Through consulting with many clients in the San Diego and Southern California area, I've seen many situations where business owners have simply not been happy with the past providers they've had for website design or web marketing services.

There are a range of reasons why this occurs, but below are some key things a business owner should understand before hiring a web guy (or girl). These will help you avoid frustrating situations in trying to market your business online.
 
 
With social media blogging, and with many forms of marketing, it's important to develop some sort of attention getting aspect of the marketing campaign so that you get people's "foot in the door". You need people to start reading your blog because of this attention getting tactic: from that point, you're awesome content and tremendous insights should do the rest in terms of keeping people there, right?

Hey Bill Gates, You're WRONG

 
 
I've been following Guy Kawasaki's Twitter and Social Media strategy for his AllTop.com site for quite sometime, and I'm starting to put the pieces of the puzzle together.

Here's how I'm applying these concepts...
 
 
I see many clients begin to venture into social media, but ultimately burn out because "they don't see the point".

But this is a mistake...
 
 
I recently heard about AppMakr.com, where you can easily produce your own iPhone app. I've been hearing about a number of tools you can use to easily make your own app, but AppMakr.com is the main one that I read about this week.

"But My Business Doesn't Need an iPhone App..."

Initially, I thought to myself that most businesses don't need an iPhone app. I figured this type of tool would be more useful to techy or web-based companies.

But I got to thinking...

Use It To Be The Center of Attention

Regardless of what market you are in, there is always new information coming into the industry that your customers would care about. With the simple iPhone apps provided by AppMakr.com, you could create a way to be the source of industry information for your clients.

An Example

Let's say your a small business accountant. There is always new tax news and general business news that your customers may be somewhat interested in. Using an iPhone app, you could provide a quick and easy (and possibly daily way) to keep in touch with your customers by providing this news to them.

They would open the app and be able to see posts that you've placed on your website blog about industry news. I'll spare you the technical mumbo jumbo, but you could easily create an app that simply pulls the articles you place on your website and shows them on your customer's iPhones.

People Remember The Source...Not The Author

This app marketing tactic falls back on something I've been researching lately: it seems that people more often remember who they heard information from, not who actually authored the original information.

The blog post you're reading right now is an example.

I'm willing to bet that if someone asks you at any point in the near future about where to start in wanting to make an iPhone app for their small business, then you're going to think of this blog post you're reading right now. In addition, I'd be willing to bet that you'll remember that it was Jon Tucker (me) that showed you the AppMakr.com tool.

It's a Possible Tool For You

I'm not saying that using this iPhone app strategy is going to make or break your marketing success. However, I always encourage clients to be aware of the possibilities that are out there and to consider everything. This is something that's actually very easy to integrate into your marketing campaigns.

What Are Your Thoughts?

I'm testing this with a client and will keep you posted on progress. For now, I'd love to hear your initial thoughts on this marketing tactic in the comments below.
 
 
I'm sure you've heard of Twitter before…

Without spending too much time on what Twitter is, let's just say that Twitter is a place where people describe what they're doing at any point in their day.

But few business owners have a clear understanding of how they could actually find customers using Twitter.
 
 
With the current Earthquake relief efforts going on in Haiti, it's great to see some innovative efforts being taken to bring help to the region.

I read a blog this morning that showed how the Red Cross charity organization has already raised $3,000,000+ using a "donate $10 to Haiti by texting Haiti to 90999". I'm not sure if they've used this during past crises, but this is the first time I've heard of so much money being mobilized so quickly using text campaigns.

How Can This Strategy Be Used?

The success of this campaign really does amaze me. How could other non-profits in your area use this strategy on a local level to raise funds for their cause?

It may not be $3,000,000 for a worldly disaster like the Haiti earthquake, but this style of campaign could be used to generate donations from local citizens for a local charity.

Looking forward to seeing your thoughts in the comments below.
 
 
I constantly surf the web, sometimes at times when I know I shouldn't. If you're an avid smartphone user, you've probably jumped online once or twice while driving recently.

I had an idea last year that I never moved forward with, but I saw a company that made this idea a reality at the Consumer Electronics Show. It was really cool to see it in action.

The idea is essentially to turn browsing the web while driving into something as un-distracting as listening to a radio station. The app, by Aha Mobile, enables you to create "channels", where you add blogs you like to read and other online content. It then reads blog content aloud to you, enabling you to "read" your blogs and web based content without having to take your eyes off the road.

What Do You Do While Driving?

Do you listen to music or talk radio when driving? Do you read blogs and web content a lot?

Would you use something like this to "read" web content while you're on the road?

Share your thoughts in the comments area.
 
 
At the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, I sat in on a competition of mobile applications. It was really interesting to see the apps that entrepreneurs and large businesses are putting together these days.

One app enabled women to run simple background checks on men they meet to see if this guy is someone they should go on a date with. By just entering someone's name or phone number, the app presents you with quick and comprehensive criminal background info and can even reveal if the guy owns a house or lives with his parents. The app, designed by data warehousing company Intelius, puts tons of personal background data right at your fingertips.

I find it amazing the various things apps are being developed for. This is something I'm sure will continue to grow in coming years, especially considering Google's recent entry into the smartphone market.

Have You Seen Apps?

What are the best apps you've seen? Share them in the comments and we'll start to see which apps all of you are interested in.
 
 
I read an interesting article on CNN about entrepreneurs and professionals that don't work at home but also don't have an office. Instead, they bounce around to various internet cafes and coffee shops..

I personally work like this some weeks, as I find that I get a lot of work done when in crowded places. I also arrange meetings in hourly office spaces in various cities of my clients, as this is a handy way to conduct client meetings in a professional atmosphere while still remaining flexible.

After reading the article, I realized that quite a few people work like this.

Do You Work Like This?

Do you work in public places sometimes? What are some of the better and worse places you've been? How would you compare your productivity between working at home versus working in public cafes?