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As a small business owner where do you start with online marketing, what is really going to get you the results you’re looking for and the sort of return your business needs. We have touched on previous articles all the different ways you can actually market your business online, so let’s do something a little different.

Let’s look at things a little more general and really get into what the secrets of successful online marketing, really comes down to.There are 5 keys to ensuring your business can grow through the use of online marketing strategies. Let’s take a closer look at each one.

1. You Must Hit The Target

Being relevant is the most critical part of online marketing. You got to remember that in the online world a billion people have the potential to see your site, content and business. Unfortunately depending on what business you have you can’t cater for a billion people and for most businesses they can’t cater for people outside of their geographic location. Your website and the way you promote it, needs to be as relevant as possible to your target market. Otherwise you will be paying for traffic or getting leads from people in which you can’t do business with. Not a smart way to grow. You have to remember that traffic to your site that doesn’t automatically turn into paying customers. Taking the time to research your target market thoroughly and what makes them tick will save you a lot of wasted resources.

2. Always Measure and Test Your Results

Everything you do online in the marketing world you should be testing and measuring its effectiveness. This at the start should be daily and weekly and then could ease off to monthly. The online marketing world changes day to day, new inventions are created, new traffic forms are generated, so you need to ensure you’re watching what is going on. If something isn’t getting the results you want, ask why, do some more research, make simple little changes and see if the results improve. Businesses that succeed at online marketing are those that are willing to test and measure and make changes as required.

3. Take Control

I have said many a time that business owners should be spending 80% of their day on marketing and sales. Doing activities that will create sales that will build the business profile and that will generate leads. As a business owner writing your own blogs, doing articles, video’s, building relationships, being on social media should all be at the for front of the weekly activity list. Not only does this ensure those crucial activities are being done but it can save you a lot of money to spend elsewhere.

4. Set Your Key Performance Indicators

In order to get the most value from your online marketing spend you need to monitor your results on a regular basis. You need to set key performance indicators and you need to be hitting them weekly. The online marketing world is very fragile and you can’t know what is going to happen next. Things can change very quickly, you might be getting great pay per click conversions one month, and the next they are dreadful because your competitors have altered their strategy and effected your results. Set weekly, monthly and quarterly KPI’s

5. Invest In Yourself

Marketing online does not take an abundance of time, it really is a magical myth out there that to be online you need an extra 6hrs in a day. In our business marketing online takes approximately 1hr per day and we complete the following. – Social Media updates for 8 pages – Blog written and posted – Articles sent to over 10,000 article sites – Video shot and sent to over 300 channels – Forums checked and questions answered – Relationships targted or continued to be built

So you can see a lot can be achieved once you systemise things. The most important thing you can do is invest in your own knowledge and education on the topic. This means you can take control of your own business, if you can complete the tasks rather than outscoring them, you can save your business tens of thousands per year. To think a 10k course to save you 50k over a year, knowing you have the knowledge and education for the rest of your business life. To me it’s a no brainer.

What drives Vancouver’s house prices so relentlessly to levels four times higher than Winnipeg’s, and more than half again what Torontonians pay?

It’s simple, says Tsur Somerville of UBC Centre for Urban Economics and Real Estate.

“If you want Winnipeg-level house prices here, all you have to do is tear down the mountains and fill in the ocean.”

Well, that puts slow or stop to the steady influx of people — though the massive loss of amenities if our landscape were to be suddenly levelled might do that automatically.

“Depending where you draw the circle,” Somerville says, “70 per cent of the land isn’t developable. It’s mountains or water or the United States.”

Then, on top of this insurmountable geographic limitation, add the relentless population growth that, in good years and in bad, ranges from 1.3 to 1.5 per cent a year.

“The higher the population of a city, the higher the house prices,” he says. “If we lose 70 per cent of the land, our metropolitan area of two million will have the same house prices as a seven-million metropolitan area. Because people have to commute the same distance.”

The myths

Does this mean there’s no truth to some, or all, of the pervasive myths? You know, the ones that maintain our housing costs are driven by rich immigrants looking to get families and/or mistresses out of Hong Kong or other Asian cities. Or by criminals laundering ill-gotten gains. Or speculators. Or empty nesters who reap big tax incentives to not budge from big houses on the best land. Or all that acreage tied up in parks and the Agricultural Land Reserve. Or the rules and fees imposed on developers. Or the property transfer tax on all home sales, and the HST on new ones. Or the civic amenities for which buyers pay through the nose. Or imprudent young buyers willing to take on massive debt. Or an inherent result of a good economy. Or ….

One reader even suggests it’s the fault of public employees, who are so numerous and so well paid they over-invest in property. And an academic study on my desk argues it’s the high hidden cost of the city’s ubiquitous “free” parking.

This short series will look at several of these myths, which collectively point one finger or another at most Metro residents, no matter which group we fall into. The conclusion is, in short, that many of them are, like all good myths, rooted in a little truth. But none come close to matching the impact of the Law of Supply and Demand.

“That’s why, even if the economy collapses, house prices don’t tank,” says Jock Finlayson of the B.C. Business Council. “You get some drop, but it’s typically modest because there’s a growing population and there just isn’t a lot of land.”

Maintaining demand

What helps maintain this demand, says Cameron Muir of the Real Estate Council of BC, is that much of the population growth stems from international immigration, and it, unlike internal migration, tends not to follow the business cycle.

“When the economy is performing weakly, immigrants still come,” Muir says. “This not only bolsters our population, but also housing demand.”

And: “Our immigrants tend to be the cream of the crop,” Muir says, citing statistics showing 55 per cent of Canada’s investor immigrants come to B.C., mostly to Metro Vancouver.

But for people already here and newcomers who don’t arrive with money, Finlayson notes, “Incomes aren’t that high here. They’re less than in Calgary, Edmonton, Toronto, Ottawa or London, Ontario. But our houses cost a lot more. So people cope by getting less house. They commute farther than they would in another community. Or they get less space than they would settle for in another city.

“They live in condominiums and raise children, which is not common in other parts of the country.”

Or, in the case of a growing number of young people, they’re coping in a far more worrisome way, says Andy Yan, a planner and researcher with Bing Thom Architects.

Yan has looked at what’s happened with housing in a few other high-priced cities.

In Hong Kong, which ironically is seen as a bastion of free enterprise, 60 per cent of the people live in government-subsidized housing, he said.

On the other hand, prices in San Francisco shot so high that demand has flattened or even decreased over the last 20 years, and huge numbers of the city’s workers live somewhere else and commute in daily.

Two-thirds of Metro’s people also live outside the City of Vancouver, though we haven’t yet hit the downward pressure on price seen in San Francisco.

Instead, Yan sees a lot of young Vancouverites, especially those who have an artistic bent and who thrive on the energy of a vibrant city core, packing up to leave for Montreal or Toronto simply because it’s cheaper to live there and pursue creative goals.

“Because Vancouver is going through a very destructive real estate market,” he says.

“High housing costs have a great way of killing innovation and creativity. Can the next Facebook or the next Apple computer really come from Vancouver if you’re too busy trying to pay the rent?”

The upshot, he says, is that Vancouver is increasingly seen by the young as a nice place to hang out for a couple of years, but not a place to settle down.

“That’s serious. You’ve got to think about what’s down the road. They’re not going to be here to support us, to pay for our social infrastructure and all of that.”

Article source: http://www.vancouversun.com/business/There+million+reasons+high+real+estate+prices+Vancouver/3425136/story.html#ixzz0xL7RTmOm

The excitement of winter is just around the corner, especially when the ski season gets underway. Local ski resorts in Scranton offer a very popular holiday ski destination for locals and long-distance visitors alike. If you have never skied at any of the several Scranton skiing resorts then you are in for a special treat. The Scranton ski facilities are of an exceptional industry standard. Drawing skiers from across the state and region, has made Scranton skiing resorts a very popular winter destination for many reasons every year.

Variety of Accommodations to Choose From

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Purchasing Packages Economical and Easy

During winter months, PA is never short of excellent snowfall. So, you can expect the ski slopes to be teaming with skiers and holiday makers. The fun is endless for those who enjoy a winter wonderland holiday break. Skiing facilities in Scranton are easily accessible for those traveling from out of state. The local life means that you will enjoy yourself on and off the ski slope this winter. Take advantage of any holiday skiing packages that allow you to ski to your heart’s content. Scranton, PA skiing accommodations make traveling to and from the ski slope very easy.

This makes the day out on the slopes hassle-free and loads of fun for the entire family. For those traveling with little ones, most Scranton, PA skiing hotels offer wonderful family friendly amenities to make your stay a comfortable one. The local restaurants are a must to try and sample great Pennsylvania cuisine. Pennsylvania is considered one of the best East Coast skiing location to go to for quality ski course and ski resort facilities. Boasting of breathtaking scenery, challenging ski courses and diverse ski terrain, the thrills on this holiday will leave you wanting more every time you hit the slopes.