#CyberpreneurPH Community

You’ve probably noticed how SEO is getting more attention from the media. Some even say that SEO is dead, and that investing in it is like flogging a dead horse. But these statements are wrong because SEO is more alive than ever. However, people are ignoring this rich advertising possibility because of these rumors. Many statistics are saying otherwise. The truth is that SEO can help you to expand your business, improve your marketing strategy, and make a bunch of money. Here are some of the most important reasons why you should develop a proper SEO strategy. Marketing benefits If you are not interested in SEO, you’re missing a great marketing opportunity. Google algorithms are based on its principles. Surely, you want your website to rank as high as possible. People browsing the Net are not checking only one term on one website – they try different websites and modify their search terms. So, what can you do? You can offer your customers a great variety of material. This way, if they modify the term, your page will appear, again and again. Google will notice this and you will be one step closer to appearing on the first page. The rise of online customers It […]

To get your cyber business found online, you need likeable content. The challenge is that there’s really no formula that can guarantee if your content will ever reach its ideal users or deliver on its purpose. If you need inspiration on how to start, we’ve expounded on popular statements from some of the most prominent brand gurus, bloggers, and content marketers: We’re not in the Mad Men era anymore. Expensive campaigns from advertising agencies are routinely trumped by amateur content for most impact. Seasonal campaigns won’t cut it for today’s generation. Your customers are connected 24/7, and are from all over the world. To be convincing, you have to address their unique interests, pain points, and felt needs. Going viral (the good kind) with your content is more a matter of chance than careful execution. Pulling PR stunts won’t work. People can detect what’s contrived, and they may even hijack your message. Start with a good reason for creating content. If you care enough about your message, the right people will eventually find and appreciate your content. They’re the ones who will contribute to your bottom line. When have you ever actively searched for an ad? If you’re like most […]

The rise of the Internet age has given us far more than just the capability to connect with friends or upload selfies online. It has also given modern entrepreneurs capabilities not possible several decades ago. As an online marketing consultant, one of the perks of my work is that it gives me a front row seat on the evolving landscape of business, and how the Internet is helping businesses who take the initiative of incorporating online elements in their operations. It also makes those that don’t obsolete in a matter of years and even months. Whether you have a primarily online or offline business, chances are Internet tools, widgets, plugins, apps and features play an important role in ensuring the success for your business. The following are some concrete examples: 1. Cheaper start-up cost The Internet has made starting a business simple and cheap. With just a website or even a fan page, you can already start a multitude of businesses – such as a bakeshop, an apparel store, or a bookstore – without the need for a brick and mortar office or shop. This also makes it very easy for you to test the validity of your business idea.  […]

The website for your online business is not just about selling. It’s also for finding the right customers, influential people, and other websites that can promote you. Your marketing team should be spot on in finding online opportunities for maximizing exposure of your products or services. But how can they do this? Here are some actionable steps from the speakers of PeepCon 2016, the Philippines’ premiere search engine optimization conference organized by GDI Online Marketing. The event featured internationally acclaimed SEO experts such as Mike King, Dan Petrovic, Jon Cooper, and Jason Acidre. UX signals search engine about the quality of your content. User experience (UX) is a big indicator for search engines if you have a high quality website that they should rank higher for related keywords to your business. If you have your own e-commerce site, build your customer journey in the most convenient way. Do you have all the information that customers need in one page, or do they have to jump to different pages just to find relevant content? They may also leave your website because it takes too long to load, which is a big consideration due to the internet speed in the Philippines. Stop […]

The first thing your potential customer will probably do is visit your website. From that single visit, your customer will form opinions about your brand, product, or service. According to a Stanford Persuasive Tech Lab study, nearly half of all consumers (46%) said that a site’s design is the number one criteria when people are deciding whether a business is credible or not. If there is too much scrolling and clicking, or if the site is not well organized, the average consumer will navigate away after 60 seconds tops. Anyone can build a website these days, but it takes a skilled specialist to build a site that looks polished and professional. One glance could turn someone into a loyal customer, or force a person to click away. If your company is looking into the possibility of designing a new site, here are some of the ways it will help your business grow. Digital presence is everything A survey from Visible Logic found that almost 90% of respondents take a look at the website of every new product they purchase. People will turn to the Internet to research your brand and formulate their opinions – sometimes even long before they make a direct contact […]

Whether you’re posting on your social media accounts once a day or a few times each month, planning and plotting your activities in a social media calendar is a life-saver. A social media calendar gives a snapshot of when and what kind of content gets into which channel. It not only helps in publishing and tracking content, but serves to remind as well of business goals, target audiences, and expected outcomes. For the actual posting, you can easily automate the process using tools such as Hootsuite. Some businesses maintain a weekly social media calendar with details prepared in advance. They identify themes and organize posts around it. For others, a monthly social media calendar—with periodic and flexible updates—can be enough. Here are some basic rules when putting up your calendar. Post at the right time Any upcoming event (or trending topic) that your post could piggyback on? For ordinary days, what’s the best day of the week to engage your audience with the type of content you’re posting? “Monday” and “Friday” spell a huge difference in people’s psyche. People check Facebook 14 times on average and spend 30 minutes on it each day with peak times at bed time and […]

Hailed as a game changer, FinTech (otherwise known as “financial technology”) is seen to transform financial services in infinite possibilities. It has been many decades ago since there has been a real shake-up in the realm of the financial world. New and young players alike will experience its sweeping changes on how we manage finance and run businesses professionally. What is FinTech and Why It Matters to You FinTech can be best defined as technology that imparts disruptive elements (in a good way) to areas such as money transfers, mobile payments, fundraising, loans, asset management and even investment. In layman’s term, it is the thing that enables you to have access to various financial services from your own smartphone, tablet, laptop and other electronic devices. Furthermore, FinTech is one of the hottest areas that receive massive investment from around the world. This accelerates its exponential growth. Whether you like it or not, FinTech is about to drop a bomb on everyone. It’s very important to know how it can change money practices that we think we already know. FinTech: Threat or Opportunity for Business Owners? While one may argue that FinTech is just a change of paces and phases, the […]

A cog, no matter how small, is necessary for a machine to function. Similarly, in an online business, although each person’s degree of involvement may vary, everyone in your virtual team contributes to making sure that goals are reached. An online business, just like any sort of business, is dependent on people. A team is necessary for a business to take off and scale. Employing the right kind of people is half of the puzzle. Setting expectations and keeping them engaged are equally important. Here are some tips to create and sustain a dream team for your online business. Make sure they’re trustworthy Anyone can hide in the anonymity of the Internet. The concept of “stranger-danger” especially rings true when you’re not physically meeting the people you hire. How do you know if these faceless people can really be trusted? Background checks and screening can go a long way. A simple look at their accounts on various social media platforms can serve as your first impression on your potential virtual teammate. Professionally speaking, you can browse their LinkedIn profile. To ensure that you can trust their abilities as well, ask them to take a web-based test, depending on the tasks […]

There have been substantial changes in the global marketplace over the past decade. It has undergone a major shift, and businesses today are not limited by geographical location or borders. The only things that count are the amount of willingness and creativity in adapting to new technologies, and finding new ways for using them to your own advantage. Business owners and entrepreneurs who want to launch an eCommerce business should know something about the eCommerce industry and what it takes to achieve and maintain success in it. The eCommerce Industry There appears to be no essential limit to strong and steady business growth in the eCommerce industry. In the past decade, all vital metrics in the eCommerce field have increased, and with a broader reach and lower startup costs, more and more entrepreneurs are switching to online retail. According to facts presented by BusinessInsider, people aged 18 to 34 remain to spend more money online than any other age group, and the majority of online shoppers tend to have incomes higher than typical (above $75,000). If you have an idea for starting an online eCommerce business or launching an eCommerce branch of an existing brick-and-mortar store, the time to do it […]

Already secured a domain name for your business? After using it for your website, the next thing you’d want to do is to set up your custom email. This means receiving and sending mail as juan.delacruz@customdomain.com rather than from a generic Gmail or third-party account provider. Having this ability sets you apart as a serious business, however limited your initial offerings or small your initial market is. The great Zoho option If you’re looking for a free service to customize your email from your domain name, Zoho is your best option. You can create up to 25 free accounts for your domain in Zoho. At no cost, there’s really no better deal since it also gives you POP/IMAP, Active Sync and configuration settings. To link your domain with Zoho and set up as an administrator, follow the detailed steps provided by Zoho. Forwarding emails to Gmail If you’re one of the many people that depend on Gmail, you can automatically forward emails you receive from your custom email account in Zoho to your existing Gmail account. Follow these steps to configure your account. 1. From your Zoho inbox, click the settings icon, and then click Settings. 2. Under Mail settings, […]

There’s constant competition between brands for market domination. When companies are small, this can be done with quality improvements and price adjustments. But as businesses grow, there grows the competition too. The market battle becomes tougher. This requires taking extra moves in order to maintain and keep the customers interested. Brand awareness comes into play due to customers’ most important requirement that they’re usually not aware of (at least not always) – the emotional need. How to define brand awareness? Put simply, in the words of Jeff Bezos (the founder of Amazon): “Your brand is what people say about you when you’re not in the room.” One of the key steps in promoting a product is creating brand awareness – or the likelihood that consumers recognize the availability of a certain service or product. It is a rudimentary form of brand recognition. It’s important to distinguish it from brand recognition, although the difference between them is subtle. If the purpose of brand awareness is having customers keep coming back to you and having your products as their products of choice, then increasing it is extremely important. Here is what you can do to increase brand awareness. 1. Engage in social […]

Where would you get the money to make your cyber business happen? The answer will depend on the nature of your project, your business model, and your tolerance for risk. For a quick review of possible options, here are 5 models that you can use to fund your startup. Bootstrapping This means you’re using your own money for your business. This could also imply asking for investments from family and friends. A great majority of startups are created using this model, including eBay and Facebook. The challenge is, can you (or your immediate network) afford to use hard-earned personal funds in putting up your project? And support it for any number of months without guarantee that the business will break-even? It’s advantage is that you get maximum leeway with your vision without others getting involved or interfering with your direction. The challenge is, can you (or your immediate network) afford to use hard-earned personal funds in putting up your project? And support it for any number of months without guarantee that the business will break-even? Crowdfunding You pitch an idea, and then wait and see if a community will back it up. With online platforms like Kickstarter, it’s easy to make your case […]