This newsletter update has been proofed and edited by Dean Frymoyer Communications. Sign up for an email version of our newsletters by following this link.

Smart Marketing with Email Signatures

Our latest article covers email signatures and how they play an important role in marketing. Looking for a low cost way to market your business using email?
 
Find out more by reading the entire article.

New Web Sites by BMull Consulting

• www.barczcoaching.com – Life and business coaching.
• www.berkshomeimprovement.com – Home improvement services.
• www.summitsteelinc.com – Custom steel fabricator.
• www.tonyasglutenfree.com – Gluten-free bakery.

New Services Available – Audio Recording for Podcasts and Internet Radio Shows

BMull Consulting is now offering audio recording services for business owners looking to produce podcasts and internet radio shows.
 
We are producing professional voice-overs, music intros (and outros), as well as voice recording sessions. You can host your conference at our Reading, PA-based recording facility and our team will handle all aspects of audio recording and editing.
 
Our facility can host live conferences with up to six people and we offer telephone conference calling and recording.
 
Contact me today for more information.

Featured Networking Videos

My new Kodak Zi8 HD camcorder makes networking events a lot more fun. Check out the BMull Consulting YouTube channel for video clips from various networking events from around town.

- Stokesay Ribbon Cutting Video
- Mirra Lee Moffit Networking Event
- Chamber Leads Video Recording Sessions

Subscribe to our YouTube channel and receive email updates every time we add new networking videos.

Bryans Must Read Link List

Twitter Offering Paid Tweets
 
Facebook Community Pages Coming Soon
 
How to Spot a Snake Oil SEO Firm

Intro to Google Wave (Video)

Upcoming Reading, Pennsylvania Area Networking Events

Berks Chamber – Networking at Noon
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Time: 12:00 PM to 1:30 PM

Villa at Morlatton
1180 Ben Franklin Hwy E
Douglassville, PA 19518
   
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Mary Beth Mayford – Networking Over Coffee
Friday April 23rd, 2010
Time: 8:30 to 10:00am

Landis Logistics
1002 Patriot Parkway
Reading, PA 19605

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Berks Chamber – Networking at Noon
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Time: 11:00 PM to 1:30 PM

United Artists Salon & Spa
299 Penn Ave
West Reading, PA 19611

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Berks Chamber – Networking at Night / Chamber Open House
Ellen Horan, President and CEO, invites you to attend an open house at the Berks Chamber of Commerce new location.
 
Thursday, May 6th, 2010
Time: 5:00 – 7:00 PM

GRCCI Gateway Building
201 Penn Street, Suite 501
Reading PA 19601

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Berks Chamber – Networking at Night
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Time 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM

Courtyard by Marriott Reading/Wyomissing
150 North Park Road,
Reading, PA 19610

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Berks Chamber – Power Networking Lunch
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Time: 11:30 AM to 1:00 PM

Outback Steakhouse
1101 Woodland Rd
Wyomissing, PA 19610

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BNI – Wyomissing Chapter
Every Wednesday afternoon
Time: 11:30am – 1:00pm

Wyomissing Family Restaurant
1245 Penn Avenue
Wyomissing, PA 19610-2129

Email jared@homeartisangroup.com for more information

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Berks Chamber Leads Group
Every Tuesday morning
Time: 7:45am – 9:00am

GRCCI Center for Business Excellence
49 Commerce Drive
Wyomissing, PA 19610

Email merralee@moffitt.com for more information

Free Consultation Offer

Looking for ideas on your web site design or internet marketing project? Feel free to contact us at any time. We would be glad to review your project and discuss how we could help.
 
BMull Consulting works directly with clients and partners with advertising agencies, marketing firms, and IT companies. 
 
Contact Bryan today at 610-717-3971  or bryan@bmullconsulting.com to setup an appointment.

In Conclusion

Next month is the official second anniversary of BMull Consulting! I hope to do something special for our next newsletter.
 
Thanks for reading and as usual, please don’t hesitate to contact us with questions, concerns or ideas for our next issue.
 
Lastly, we are offering a 15% project discount for existing customers of BMull Consulting. This offer ends May 15, 2010. If you’re a client of BMull Consulting and teetering on the edge of starting a new project, now is the time to take advantage of this offer!
 
Sincerely,
 
 
Bryan Mull
BMull Consulting
Website Design | Internet Marketing Consulting

Smart marketers in Berks County are using e-mail signatures. It’s a simple and low cost way to market your business. An e-mail signature is a small paragraph of text placed at the end of outgoing e-mails.Most e-mail signatures include contact information. E-mail programs such as Microsoft Outlook allow you to attach a signature to outgoing e-mails so that you don’t have to manually insert the information every time. Below is an example of my e-mail signature:

E-mail signatures can be a simple line of text or can include HTML code that displays images and links. A properly constructed e-mail signature can be a powerful tool in your marketing arsenal. Let’s take a look at the math. If your company has 20 employees and each employee sends 20 e-mails a day, that equates to 400 e-mails being sent in one day. Multiply that by the number of business days annually (typically 250) and you have over 100,000 impressions a year. And that doesn’t include the number of times others forward your message to someone else.

E-mail signatures take your everyday e-mails and turn them into an important element in your marketing mix. Every time you send an e-mail, you have the opportunity for someone to view your contact information and marketing message. As such, it’s wise to use e-mail signatures and include information that can help people connect with your business.

What should your e-mail signature include? I’d suggest including the following information when creating a basic e-mail signature:

• Name
• Company Name
• Address
• Web URL
• Phone Number

If your business has employees, it’s also wise to consider a “standard” e-mail signature that all employees use when sending e-mails. Having your staff use a consistent e-mail signature will help brand consistency and provide recipients with a quick way to distinguish your e-mail from other messages.

Some business owners are taking e-mail signatures to the next level by adding marketing messages, graphics, and links to company web sites – including social media outlets. Most internet marketers suggest keeping your signature to six to eight lines in length. However, you can go longer if you feel the need. My current e-mail signature has 14 lines of text and no one has complained that it is too long.

Another tip I have for Reading, PA web site designers and internet marketers is to use your e-mail signature when writing blog posts, articles, or when posting in discussion forums or LinkedIn. If you write something that is interesting, people will want to learn more about you and what you do and in turn, visit your web site.

Advice for using email signatures? Here are a few tips.

Be sure to verify that your e-mail program (Outlook, Gmail, etc.) includes your signature when replying to e-mail. This will ensure that your signature appears when both sending and replying to mail.

Keep a copy of your e-mail signature in a text or MS Word file for use in discussion forums and blog posting. You may want to consider shorterning the length of your signature depending on the style of the forum or blog.

Include a marketing message or free offer in your e-mail signature.

Avoid embedding images into your signature. If using images, upload the image to your web server and link to the image. Be sure to include alt tags for users that have images turned off. I personally avoid embedding images (such as logos) into my e-mail signatures because of spam filtering reasons. I would love to hear how others feel about this (lets hear it IT guys)!

Lastly, if you include links in your signature, I’d suggest implementing a way of tracking how many people click on them. This will provide a quantifiable way of monitoring the success of adding links to your e-mail signature.

BMull Consulting offers e-mail signature creation and setup for business owners in the Greater Reading PA area. If you need help creating, installing or tracking your e-mail signatures, be sure to contact me for an appointment.

Thank you for reading and this concludes my internet marketing tip for April 2010. This article was edited and proofed by Dean Frymoyer Communications.

Bryan Mull
Website Design | Internet Marketing Consulting
Email: bryan@bmullconsulting.com
Phone: (610) 717-3971 ext. 1

Goggle Works Center for Arts
201 Washington St., Studio 545
Reading, PA 19601 (directions)

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Looking to take your Web Site or Internet Marketing project to the next level? Contact us today for a free consultation. (610) 717-3971 or by email at bryan@bmullconsulting.com.

Our first suggestion is to update your web site on a regular basis. Search engines love new content. This is why many Internet marketers suggest creating a blog and posting articles of interest on a  regular basis.

So is a blog the all in one answer? Not by a long shot. First and foremost, you want to make sure that all your web site product information is as complete and updated. This includes text, photos, video, testimonials or anything else that is related to your product or service. Video is a great way to keep visitors on your site. Posting videos on YouTube not only attracts a new set of users but also doubles as means of free storage for your online video.

FAQ pages are another opportunity to showcase quality content. Most FAQ pages are full of related keywords which will help with overall SEO efforts of your business web site.

Are you a web site owner in the Reading, PA area that needs to update your business website? Feel free to contact Bryan Mull today at 610-717-3971 or by email at bryan@bmullconsulting.com to schedule a free consultation.

Did you miss the first two Internet Marketing 101 articles? Here is a link to the first article which covers getting listed in local search engine directories. The second article discusses the importance of having proper call-to-actions on your business website.

Bryan Mull
Website Design | Internet Marketing Consulting
Email: bryan@bmullconsulting.com
Phone: (610) 717-3971 ext. 1

Goggle Works Center for Arts
201 Washington St., Studio 545
Reading, PA 19601 (directions)

Email Newsletter: Sign-Up Today | View Archive
BMull Facebook Page: Become a Fan | Like
View My Linked In Profile: Bryan Mull
Follow Me on Twitter: @bmullconsulting

GRYP has grown tremendously in the past couple of years and it shows in both attendance and the effort members are putting forth to grow the organization. This particular event showcased the various committees that make up the Greater Reading Young Professionals. Each committee had an area where they explained what the committee does and how members can help.

Interested in attending a GRYP event? A complete schedule of events can be found on their website.

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Call to actions are important because it prompts the user to do something. Take a look at your website. Does you home page direct the user? Do your product pages encourage someone to order or contact you for more information? Having the right call to actions can often make the difference between someone viewing your page and someone contacting you to do business.

Proper website design planning includes call to actions and where they will be placed within the website. It’s encouraged to place call to actions above the fold. You don’t want your call to actions buried at the bottom of the page. Another word of advice is to concentrate on one primary call to action per page.

There is no need to go over board. Moving images or blinking text is not the way to encourage viewers to move forward. Pop-up boxes are another tactic to avoid.

Use call to actions throughout your website and make sure the message is clear and consistent. Be sure to include a call to action at the end of your blogs or articles. It’s yet another chance to encourage a viewer to become a lead.

Mini contact forms are a great way to compliment a call to action. Small contact forms (shown here) are a great way for web viewers to ask questions about their specific needs.

Not sure if you website has the right call to actions? Contact metoday for a free consultation. I would be glad to take a look at your website to see how it could be improved. Feel free to email me at bryan@bmullconsulting.com or call me at 800-918-4828. That’s my call to action!

Bryan Mull
Website Design | Internet Marketing Consulting
Email: bryan@bmullconsulting.com
Phone: (610) 717-3971 ext. 1

Goggle Works Center for Arts
201 Washington St., Studio 545
Reading, PA 19601 (directions)

Email Newsletter: Sign-Up Today | View Archive
BMull Facebook Page: Become a Fan | Like
View My Linked In Profile: Bryan Mull
Follow Me on Twitter: @bmullconsulting

Goggle Works administration is looking for opinions on the top 5 ideas in the list of 50. Which ideas do you feel would work best for promoting and raising awareness of the Goggle Works? Feel free to post ideas in the comments box or email them to bryan@bmullconsulting.com.

50 Ways to Help the Goggle Works - Alan Shirk, Shirk Communications

1. Art Happy Hour. Perhaps with wine-tasting, dance music.

2. Install caboose on section of railroad tracks behind glass studio. Paint it bright colors (ala glassworks). Reading Technical society, which has a new museum in Hamburg, would probably help since it is great visibility for them and our railroad heritage. Plus-take a Ride on the Reading.

3. Paint This Neighborhood. Have summer camp kids, Lauer’s Park students, Olivets, YMCA, Boy Scouts, Girls Scouts, etc. join in helping neighbors to spruce up the GoggleWorks neighborhood.

4. Join with Community School of Music and the Arts-our major tenant-to offer dance classes at the GoggleWorks-ballroom, C&W, oldies, etc.

5. Create a Wall of Contributors and/or Wall of Members somewhere in the building. People could autograph it, put up and sign their own handprint. Or we could do a photo montage of portraits.

6. Put lights between the two buildings (Thorn street). Put lights in the crosswalk windows.

7. Replace the temporary sign on the roof with neon. Perhaps a co-op deal with a local sign company. Perhaps the sign company could start a neon school at the GoggleWorks.

8. Pre-1960 cartoon festival. Looney Tunes, Merrie Melodies, etc. We all need to laugh.

9. Finally place permanent signs at the elevators on the first floors. “Through this door, please explore, our second, third, fourth and fifth floors.”

10. Pa. Dutch Art Tour staring at the GoggleWorks-visitors would pay to see memories of Updike, Stevens, Bertoia, John Phillip Sousa, Michael Constantine, other sites and attractions, museum, Hopewell, Pagoda.

11. Consider joining all the other arts councils in Pennsylvania for cross-promotion, good will and other advantages. Why not host a PA arts council or state councils meeting?

12. Create annual 2 or 3-day Arts Expo at the GoggleWorks featuring arts suppliers, unique/unusual arts, aspiring musicians, celebrities and events also designed to encourage the public to attend.

13. Start a Berks and/or regional weekend workshop for art teachers. This could also offer art teachers a chance to show parents what their children are being taught and how we can help our children learn.

14. College Arts Career Fair-Berks and regional institutions.

15. Sponsor an Art Attack program similar to what David Guest ran at the Berks County Arts Council’s Gallery 20 in West Reading. Let him do it.

16. Do some coop exhibits with other local galleries, etc. Perhaps a single exhibit could include works at the GoggleWorks, Freedman, the Museum, etc. That way people would be encouraged to go to different places and allow us to greatly expand the scope of our exhibits. That might allow us to bring in bigger pieces.

17. Bring in experts in their fields with a connection to art, graphics, etc. For example, how do they detect counterfeit money, how easy is it to copy an undetectable version of a Van Gogh, what does it take to restore paintings, etc. Sort of like “How Do They Do It?” on TV.

18. Start a local academic talk series bringing in expert professors from our own local colleges whose skills and talents may go largely unrecognized. Perhaps panel discussions. This could be a lunch, or a Saturday morning, or a Sunday afternoon series.

19. Set up a special campaign to collect money to fix the elevator in the western corner. Instead of asking for general contributions at the front desk, perhaps we could target the elevator. Create a large wooden animal (in our woodshop), the GoggleWorks Gator with a large plastic stomach where children and parents could drop in money. I think giving kids the opportunity to think they are contributing directly would be good. Or make it some less expensive and more reachable item.

20. Prominently display our wish list where people can see it as they enter or leave. Spread the word among tenants, etc. about special things we need.

21. Blockbuster events. How about a Tony Curtis art exhibit with a Tony Curtis film festival? The goal of course to break even or make money. Why not shoot for the moon.

22. Show free cartoons, Westerns, serials etc. for on Saturday mornings. I think we could ask for donations.

23. Hold a conference for art/movie critics (newspapers, TV, radio). Pack it with good content, charge accordingly. One thing this will do, of course, is exposing the GoggleWorks to the media. Perhaps we could bring in people the caliber of Robert Osborne from TCM.

24. Create a small non-paid arts advisory board-educator, working artist, art institution, volunteer.

25. Encourage art teachers to spend some of their sabbaticals volunteering or working here.

26. Offer periodic lectures by locals or out-of-towners about famous Berks people in the arts and entertainment.

27. Try to land a major high-end film symposium.

28. Obtain a liquor license.

29. Establish a Friday or Saturday night World Café, perhaps tie in with WXPN.

30. See if we could partner with WFMZ, which is right across the street, to create an additional TV show, perhaps a half-hour and hosted by Gene Burkhart. This would expand our reach into the Lehigh Valley. WFMZ has been good to our community and us.

31. If it becomes available, consider broadcasting BCTV annual fund raiser from the GoggleWorks.

32. Possible Events-coin/currency shows, antique shows, collectibles events, stamp shows, comics, etc. provided our rental rates are competitive and we don’t compete with Expo Center.

33. PBS appraisal show here or imitation thereof. Bring in a high-caliber appraise like Noel Barrett. Perhaps we could use our WHYY connection.

34. Start a Berks art Hall of Fame.

35. Greatly expand our list of media for news releases. (Only about 50 as of 2/11/09)

36. Contact all NEA high school art teachers in Pennsylvania. A list like this is available, roughly half of names have e-mails. So it would cost next to nothing. Encourage them to visit, offer free 6-month membership.

37. Conference on the state of funding of the arts-local, state and national. Bring in someone like Jane Alexander?

38. Boy Scouts have art, graphic arts and music merit badges. The Girl Scouts and Brownies have several art and music. We could help them win them. A GoggleWorks chapter?

39. Let’s make our annual September gala more public. Have music on all 5 floors, bring in food vendors and let them take full responsibility, have working artists, other party activities/games, Reading police (in a positive way), etc. etc. Sort of like Holly Go-Lightly’s party in Breakfast at Tiffany’s. We could charge admission, do silent auctions, etc.

40. Produce an ongoing “An Art Moment” in cooperation with WEEU. This could talk about specific GoggleWorks, events, other important county art events, art in general. I’m sure we could do a trade off.

41. Arts sleepovers for kids. Or rent out space for art sleepovers-birthday parties, graduations, sweet 16, etc. Overnight Art Camp.

42. Set up an arts incubator fund with local businesses. Use contributions to buy supplies for schools, etc. This would not have to be expensive things, but basic items-even pencils and papers.

43. Add a countywide arts calendar to the GoggleWorks website. This has been a frustrating problem for so many years. The goal would be to give everyone a central place where they could find out what events might be taking place on a day they want to schedule one. Somewhat similar to Visit PA but much simpler. Say-Sunday, November 16. Reading Symphony Concert. Call 610-trumpet. Have it so that people could list their own events pending approval.

44. Build an art library-donated books-for art students K-12. Work with the Berks Libraries.

45. Convert the front part of the large room on the second floor to a “reading area” with comfortable furniture (donated) warm lighting. Could also rent this out for small, intimate meetings, other special events. Name it after a major contributor, famous Berks arts person, etc.

46. Have energy conservation with teeth.

47. Communicate much more strongly the need for everyone who works or visits the GoggleWorks to do everything they can as individuals to reduce costs. Offer a free class/free gift shop item to the best cost-saving idea of the month.

48. Think alternative energy. (A Paoli, PA consultant has promised to put together a basic proposal on the feasibility of solar power for the GoggleWorks. I will deliver that to all board members as soon as I receive it. Tim Lash has been extremely helpful with this.)

49. Create an annual wacky event that could involve students from the Berks colleges, other art organizations, the public etc. Something like a bed race with the beds decorated in the style of major artists-Van Gogh, Rembrandt, Warhol, etc. Could limit this to the parking lot or our neighborhood.

50. A suggestion box. People can sign or remain anonymous. Those visitors with the best suggestion (month?) who have signed their name can be given an award.

Step one for internet marketing is to get your business listed in the local directories of search engines. Most major search engines have business directories that are similar to white pages in a phone book. As more people use search engines to find new product and services, local business listings become increasingly important because they provide a direct means of connecting your business to local buyers.

So how do you get your business listed? You first need to identify the top players in online search. Most SEO professionals (including myself) focus on the top three search engines which are Google, Yahoo, and Bing (formerly MSN Live Search). Each of these search engines has local business listings and a means of submitting a new listing.

To make it easy, I have provided direct links for setting up local business listings for Google, Yahoo, and Bing. All you have to do is follow the links and fill out the forms. Each search engine has a method of verifying your business information. Some will send you a postcard in the mail with a confirmation number. Others will have you verify through email or other means.

Google – If you have a Google account, you can sign up for a local listing using your existing a log in and password. Google will send a postcard to verify your address.
https://www.google.com/accounts/ServiceLogin?continue=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2Flocal%2Fadd%2Fanalytics%3Fstoreid%3D7941842%26hl%3Den-US%26gl%3DUS&service=lbc&hl=en-US&gl=US

Yahoo – Yahoo has upgraded (paid) business listings but you can still sign up for a free listing.
http://searchmarketing.yahoo.com/local/lbl.php

MSN Live Search (now Bing) – Formerly MSN Live Search, Bing is the newest of the search engines. Bing will send a letter confirming your address.
https://ssl.bing.com/listings/ListingCenter.aspx

Two other popular online directories are Switchboard.com and Yelp. Switchboard.com was one of the first online phone books and Yelp allows people to write reviews of your business.

Switchboard.com – Online phone book that has been around for a number of years.
http://advertising.superpages.com/spportal/landingpages.do?splash=50&campaignId=swbd_addedit&SRC=switchboard&tsrc=SWBD

Yelp – People can write reviews on businesses.
https://www.yelp.com/login?return_url=%2Fwriteareview%2Fnewbiz%3Fsearch_loc%3DPhiladelphia%2C%2520PA

This video provides a great explanation of business listings along with tips on improving your pages and visibility.

If you have questions or concerns about setting up your local business listings, feel free to contact us at (800) 918-4828 or by email at bryan@bmullconsulting.com.

Bryan Mull
Website Design | Internet Marketing Consulting
Email: bryan@bmullconsulting.com
Phone: (610) 717-3971 ext. 1

Goggle Works Center for Arts
201 Washington St., Studio 545
Reading, PA 19601 (directions)

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BMull Facebook Page: Become a Fan | Like
View My Linked In Profile: Bryan Mull
Follow Me on Twitter: @bmullconsulting

Small videos can show your customers (or potential customers) how to do something. For example, I am working with an online shelving retailer to create a “how to hang a shelf” video series explaining the basics of properly hanging a shelf in various applications. These videos will help educate customers and draw new customers looking for help hanging a shelf. In the past this could have been accomplished using photos and text, but why not show a video? If a picture is worth a thousand words, imagine the value of a video clip.

Another great use of online video is to show production capabilities. BMull Consulting is working with a steel company to produce several short videos showing their in-house production capabilities. These videos will be used on their website. Online capability videos have been around for years, but it’s yet another way that businesses are using video to enhance their online presence.

Video business cards are an increasingly popular form of online video marketing. These videos are 15-30 seconds in length and have a short dialogue featuring a spokesperson from the company. Video business cards are typically shot using a green screen to allow video editors to remove the background. The end result is an “interactive” business card. Here is a example video business card for BMull Consulting.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vR4hhqE1lBs

If used properly, you can get a lot of mileage out of one video business card. One short video could be used on:

• Facebook & MySpace pages
• Embedded video on your website pages
• YouTube, Flickr, or Vimeo
• Email signatures – include a link to your video business card
• TV commercials

A great idea would be for the Reading Berks Chamber to create an online directory of video business cards for Reading Chamber members. Members could view videos of other members to get a feel for their company. Sure enough, I heard something similar is in the works.

Production costs for video business cards start at $695 with many features and upgrades available. Contact Bryan Mull today for more information or to schedule your video business card shoot at our studio in downtown Reading, PA.

By email at bryan@bmullconsulting.com or by phone at (800) 918-4828.

T-Bone and Al Jax Ween Poster

Tony and Allen are an extremely talented graphic design/illustration duo that has assisted me with numerous projects over the years. They currently own a video production studio located in Reading, PA where they write and produce their own sketch comedy show.

Congratulations Tony and Allen! See more examples of T-Bone and Aljaxx poster designs.

The first website release for this month was for TLJ Sales. As a business to business consultant, their previous website did not have the right content and the company owners did not like design. Since the website was created over 5 years ago, TLJ Sales was ready for a  fresh layout and graphics. The new website has complete information on their services and has a list of current manufacturers and retailers that TLJ Sales works with on a regular basis. View the new website at http://www.tljsales.com

The second website launch this month from BMull Consulting was for Xcellerated Speed Training. This project was a complete redesign. The previous Xcellerated Speed Training website was very basic and only had limited information on the services and trainers. The new website has extensive information on speed and agility training, personal fitness, and nutrition. In addition, the new website sports complete testimonials from clients, an event calendar, blog, and more. Take a look for yourself at http://www.xspeedtraining.com.

If your at the Goggle Works, be sure to check me out on the 5th floor at suite 545. I just signed the lease so I don’t have my furniture moved in yet, but as soon as I do, I plan on hosting a networking event where I will be inviting everyone I know.