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Successful digital marketing means more than sending emails to customers and posting on Facebook. Successful jewelers need to employ a wide range of Internet marketing tools. But when every week seems to launch a new “must see” site—and technology changes faster than jewelry turns—it’s hard to know what’s worth doing and what’s not. This is the first of an exclusive new Centurion series covering easy, inexpensive, and relevant ways for prestige jewelers to increase their Internet presence, stay current with new technologies, and get the most from their digital marketing.

Las Vegas, NV—SEM, SEO, flash, HTML5, meta tags, keywords, analytics, and so on: what does it all mean?  Should I be on Facebook, Twitter, StumbleUpon, (what’s StumbleUpon?) or LinkedIn? Or should I forget them altogether and try something else? 

The world of Internet marketing is moving at breakneck speed, making it nearly impossible for the average person to keep up with changes in technology.  Many small business owners, including jewelers, have difficulty keeping track of their daily inventory, let alone trying to understand and use the new types of Internet and social media marketing that are now mainstream.

Social media is not a fad. Facebook was recently noted as driving more traffic to other websites than Google—and according to comScore’s May 2011 data, Google was providing over 11 billion referrals per month in the United States. So one can only imagine what Facebook refers. But don’t stop there, because according to this report, StumbleUpon just usurped Facebook as the top web driver! Global analytics service StatCounter says the revitalized StumbleUpon now sends more traffic to U.S. websites than Facebook.

These are just two of many social networks that can help you interact with your current and potential customers. However, social media is not Facebook alone. If you chose industry leader MySpace a few years ago as your sole source of social media, you would be in trouble today as it is now a minor entity compared to other services.  You need to diversify your exposure via multiple sites. This series will help you in that quest.

Our series will cover the following topics:

• SEO vs SEM– Search Engine Optimization versus Search Engine Marketing. What are these terms, and how are they intertwined?
• Website Design and Coding– No, I won’t expect you to go out and code your own site (although I will tell you how you can easily do it), but I will cover some basics of web design that you, as a business owner, need to be aware of.  I have seen some jewelry sites that are beautiful, but completely ineffective.
• Google Tools– Everybody knows Google for their search engine, but did you know that it can help you track the visitors to your site, identify issues with your site’s coding, help target potential customers, and even keep track of your social reputation?
• Blogging– Why blogging is so popular and why every business should have a blog.
• Facebook– Why you need to have a presence and how to use Facebook’s tools effectively.
• Twitter– How to help build your Internet presence 140 characters at a time.  You’ll also learn what a SocialOomph and a Hootsuite are—and no, they aren’t funky new dances.
• Paid Versus Organic Advertising– What is an “organic” search result?  Should I use a paid advertising campaign, and if so, how can I make it successful?
• Article & Press Release Marketing– What it is and why it’s important to your overall marketing plan.
• Videos, Podcasts, and Pictures– You are in a visual business.  Learn how, why, and where to invest your time in building your visual and audio presence.
• Internet Reputation – Comments on your business, whether requested or not, that reside on the Internet can be a huge benefit or horrible disaster for your company. I’ll provide you with some tools that will help you monitor your ‘Net rep and ensure that you are aware of what’s being said about your company.

The purpose of the series will be to give you an overview of the technology available, why it is important, and how to begin implementing it in your business immediately.  Best of all, just about everything that will be covered is extremely low cost or, in many cases, free!

Jeffrey Arnold is a business consultant for Focus Business Management Institute, an industry leader in retail jewelry consulting. Arnold has helped increase the profitability of numerous companies, ranging from start-ups to multi-billion-dollar entitites. He now leads the marketing initiatives for Focus.  For more information on Focus and how they help increase profitability for independent jewelers, visit their website: www.FocusBMI.com