Great article, i've been working on focusing on 'client benefits' for some time now and the difference has been HUGE!

Love your articles, Shannon!

Well done, Jason -I get asked the same short list of questions on a daily basis...another: "how can i get to #1 in Google without having to pay for it?".

Couldn't agree with you more -having a flexible business plan in place allowed us to branch out into different directions as the economy fizzled without having to start from scratch.

Love the article -I've also found that free press release services are handy in getting your word out as far as search engines go (some press release companies charge a fortune, others aren't as well known but can still get your press release out to "up to 1400 sources").

Try the following to get started, as long as you have an optimized page on your website you can point to you should see some great traffic and conversions with your first press release:

http://www.prlog.org/submit-free-press-release.html

As usual, great article Brandi! I have image envy, how did you manage the 12" tall profile image?

well put, Erin -I LOVE your note on deciding what you want your website to do for your business. That is the number one question we ask in our initial business consultation and it's surprising how many companies simply don't know (other than, "every one else has a website"). Not only important, but key to a successful project.

Great post John!

If anyone falls off I'll take their spot -sounds like a great event!

Great article, Alyssa!

Fritz, I agree that this field can be spendy, but as Alyssa pointed out there are several companies out there that can help small businesses with smaller budgets.

To find companies that cater to the smaller business, maybe try a targeted google search for "small business Website Search Engine Optimization SEO seattle" to narrow down your results. We usually include base SEO services in our website design and development packages, starting around $179/month and EVERY ONE of our clients are in the top 10 for their keywords in local search.

I would say the #1 most important thing you can do to ensure you're working with a pro is ask for references.

Fred

I love Biznik like I love pants -count me and a guest IN!

Great article Kate! We run into potential clients all the time that haven't even developed the most basic of marketing plans...it's amazing how just a few of your suggestions will help business grow!

Chris you always amaze me with your articles; we've been pushing our clients to demand customer testimonials as a part of our webdev/design process for YEARS, going so far as recommending bribes (for one client, free lemon bars during next visit). The best thing about the testimonials is their power in other search engines (linkedin, google local business, yahoo business, judy's book, etc., etc., etc.

We've also created a specific module in our website content management system (CMS) to manage testimonials, a sample of which can see at the top/left of our own website [which aren't as in-your-face as Chris' choice teste's, but we're dealing with a different target audience here].

Again, great advice from the bald headed marketing god!

I agree with the author and Ken, above, in terms of marketing: Althought I'm obviously biassed, we have proven time and time again that by utilizing affordable marketing (i.e. proper organic website seo & newsletter marketing) a business can actually GROW in this environment...we've been able to cut our client' $500-$1500/month yellow page ads and minimize their AdWord expenses by generating organic SEO and specific calls-to-action that work, delivering targeted leads in some cases on a daily basis!

EVERYONE should take a look at their most affordable (and, when done right, their most effective) marketing tool: their business website.

You can make a few changes to start seeing great ROI and VERY important in this economic downturn.

Great read, thanks!

IF you want great advice THEN be sure to read Chris Haddad's articles!

Great article -it's always amazing to me how many times someone comes in to sell me something only to have trouble telling me exactly why i should buy.

well it filled up again pretty quickly...if anyone drops out please let me know and i'll fill in. thanks!

if anyone drops out please let me know -i'll be there!

welcome!

just curious, what are you doing for office space? my partner and i are thinking of finding some small businesses of complimentary skillsets (PR, graphic design, software, internet marketing, seo) to crete a co-op and rent out a larger, nicer office. interested in more info?