I’d like to start this post by saying that in the last several years I have met some of the most amazing people of my life.  Below are just a few of the many people who have touched my life.  These are the ones that really stand out when I sit down to think about it.  I realize that there are some that will get missed, but know that it is not personal and you are greatly appreciated.

So that this list doesn’t go on forever, I’d like to first say I’m thankful for all the small business marketing coaches I have had the pleasure to meet and work with over the last three years.  And for your friendship and referrals, thanks to Randy Vaughn,  Adrianne Machina and Fiona Friesen.  You are all awesome. (The links go to their Twitter profiles.  You’d be smart to follow them too.)

I’m thankful for Charlie Griffith, my first true mentor and someone, besides my mother, who recognized and encouraged my potential.

I’m thankful to T. Harv Eker of Peak Potentials for helping me to grasp the concepts that will ultimately lead to financial independence.

I’m thankful to Rugger Burke, a Dallas Attorney for helping get my business set up properly.

I’m thankful to Kevin Eikenberry for reaching out to me when I first started putting out a newsletter online.  He was, and still is, a great example to me of an effective leader.

I’m thankful to Rosa Say for her openness and including me in her Ho’Ohana Community and for being an example of how to build an online community and be able to communicate love and respect through online interaction.

I’m thankful to Steve Pavlina for his brilliant insight and ideas about self-growth and improvement.

I’m thankful to John Jantsch of Duct Tape Marketing for helping me get started helping other small businesses.

And thanks to Matthew Ray Scott of Strategic Incubator for being a friend and example, and for just being one helluva smart guy.

Everybody have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

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Today I’ll begin with our most recent client and work my way back in time. Without each and every company listed here, we wouldn’t be where we are today.

Thanks to Pickens, Snodgrass, Koch, LLP, an Arlington, TX Accounting Firm.  By the way, they have an opening for a Senior Tax Position if you know anyone in the area that is looking.

Thanks to Jade Electrolysis, a Vancouver Hair Removal company.  Jade Electrolysis is run by Jennifer Desloges and is currently offering training and Electrolysis Franchise Opportunities throughout Canada.

Thanks to Management 2000, a franchise consulting firm.  Management 2000 offers consulting, training and planning for companies considering franchising to grow their business.

Thanks to West Direct Express Courier, a Calgary courier and delivery company.  If you are in the Calgary area area and need a document or package delivered, across town or across the country, check them out.  They are the best in Calgary.

Thanks to Marketing Consultants of Nevada, a consulting company that can help you open your own independent dollar store.  In this economy owning a dollar store can be a very smart move.

Thanks to Number Junkies, a Calgary small business bookkeeping company.  A Quickbooks Pro Advisor, Donna Folden can help your small business get your books up to date and keep them that way.

Thanks to Greenbaum Marketing, a franchise marketing and website development company.  Martin Greenbaum really knows how to market your franchise, whether big or small.  He is very active in the International Franchise Association and speaks throughout the country.

Thanks to Light It Up Electric, a local electrician serving Frisco, Plano, McKinney and all of North Dallas.  This is one of the companies I have actually used personally and Todd Guernsey, the owner, is excellent at diagnosing and fixing electrical problems.

Thanks to Glenhill, Inc., a Chicago graphics and website design company.  Al Snyder, the owner, is also an Authorized Duct Tape Marketing Coach.

Thanks to the Lucid Group of Companies, a Calgary real estate investment and development company.  This is a company that seems to be doing everything right when it comes to real estate throughout Canada and the U.S.

Thanks to Glue Solutions, a Calgary graphics and website design company and Authorized Duct Tape Marketing Coaching company.  These guys do great work on designing and building websites and then helping small business owners market themselves more effectively.  They build websites that are graphically pleasing and coded very well which makes it much easier to optimize for top search results.

Thanks to Better Optics, LLC, a provider of quality binoculars, rifle scopes, spotting scopes, range finders and other accessories.

Thanks to NexTec Group, an accounting software consulting company with offices in Los Angeles, Seattle, Houston, Cleveland, New York and New Jersey.

Thanks to Clean-Co Systems, a Houston hydroblasting and specialty cleaning company.  Clean-Co Systems offers chemical cleaning, Vacuum Truck service, Hydro Excavation, Dry Ice Blasting and Tank Cleaning.

Thanks to Line-X of Arlington, Texas, the leading spray-on bedliner company in the Dallas – Ft. Worth Metroplex.

Thanks to Collin County Sprinkler and Lighting, offering sprinkler repair and installation throughout Collin County and the surrounding area.

And last, but certainly not least, is Country Place Living, a rural senior living franchise company.  Country Place Living offers franchises of small, quality senior living centers in rural areas, which are typically underserved by larger senior living centers.

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

As I said at the beginning, we would not be where we are today if it weren’t for you.  I look forward to serving you for many more years.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

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Yesterday I answered his question, Do Traffic Exchanges Really Work?

Today’s question is:

Can you really expect good marketing results from Twitter? It would seem that you are only marketing to those who follow you.

The short answer is yes, you can expect good marketing results from Twitter, but you need to learn how to use it properly.

You see, Twitter is just a tool and there are hundreds, maybe thousands, of different tools available to you in order to market yourself and your business more effectively.

The great thing about Twitter is that it is a giant online conversation.  I’ve heard it compared to a cocktail party or happy hour at the bar.  There are different conversations going on around you, and based on your interests, you can step up and get involved in any of them.  If you’re shy, this might seem a bit akward in person, but it’s totally expected on Twitter.

You can find conversations you are interested in by using the Twitter Search tool.  Just type in the topic you are interested in and you’ll find people who are talking about it.  Then, all you need to do is follow them to keep up with what they are saying.

I think where people go wrong with Twitter is that they try to use it as a direct marketing tool by always promoting their own stuff.

Well, nobody is going to follow you for long if all you talk about is you and your business.

Treat it like a real conversation and listen to what others say and then help promote them to your followers, which addresses the second part of your question.

When you tweet about something, you’re not just talking to your own followers, you’re potentially talking to their followers and their followers and so on.  In essence you have a global audience.  If you are sharing quality content and information it’s going to get passed around.

People like doing business with people they know, like and trust.  Use Twitter to build relationships and the money will flow.

For more information about using Twitter for business, check out this handy guide created by Twitter called Twitter 101 for Business.  Be sure to read the Case Studies and look through the Other Resources for additional ideas about using Twitter for Business.

Tomorrow I’ll answer Mark’s third question, “Is Google Adwords still the top marketing tool?”

To your success!

Follow Me on Twitter

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Here are your answers Carisse.

What is the quickest and easiest way to generate targeted traffic to your web site?

First, let me say that the easiest and quickest way is not usually the best way.  Having said that, pay-per-click (ppc) advertising is probably the quickest and easiest way to get targeted traffic to your web site.  Within just a few minutes you can have an Adwords account set up with Google and have an ad created for your most important keywords.

The most effective way to get targeted traffic is to optimize your web site for natural search.  That way, you have a very good chance of ranking well in all the major search engines, not just the one you are advertising in.  Visitors from natural search also convert better than visitors from paid search.  In my opinion, that’s because people trust the natural search results more than the ads.  They feel like, if the search engine ranks it highly, it must be more relevant to their search.

There’s a great article today over at Search Engine Land titled Selling SEO Projects against PPC Campaigns, that gives a little more information on the comparison.

What do you do with the traffic you generate?

Provide them with lots of content about what you do and how you can help solve their problems and ease their pain.

You can also begin building a relationship with your visitors by offering a free newsletter, free download, free audio or video, etc.  Then build a sales funnel with higher priced products and services and continue to build trust with them and offer them more expensive products and services.

How do you target pre-qualified searchers that are intereste in your niche?

The best way to do this is by conducting keyword research.  Find out how people are searching for your niche, then find out where they hang out online.  Is it in Google groups?  Is it on Twitter? Is in on Ning? Is it a forum created around your niche?

Find out those things, then get involved where your target market is hanging out.  Provide them with good information without being sales-y and start to build your reputation as an expert within that group.

To you success,

Ken Partain

Follow me on Twitter!

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I deal with literally hundreds of sites online and have all kinds of services running and this is the first time I have received any communication of this kind.  Most companies I deal with haven’t even sent an email thanking me for my patronage, much less take the time to hand write a note, stick it in an envelope that is hand-addressed and stamped and get it in the mail.

I signed up with Wufoo a couple of years ago but haven’t done much with them until recently.  I have been very impressed with how easy it is to create custom forms and add them to my website.  There is so much you can customize that you really need to check out their site and see just how many ways you can use their service.

We make marketing easy, and Wufoo makes online forms easy.

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