The internet is now part of McDonald's. In over 11,500 restaurants, McD's has decided that WI-FI is an important decision in where people dine. The companies website explains it this way...

"With free Wi-Fi at more than 11,500 participating restaurants, customers can access the Internet using their laptops or PDAs at no charge. So grab a McCafé Latte and log on...it’s on us! Just one more thing to love about McDonald's."

To see if your local McDonalds is ready for you to drop by with lap top in hand...CLICK HERE.

Social Media, Facebook and Twitter, Today's Third Party Endorsements

Third Party Endorsement
Solicited or unsolicited recommendation or testimonial from an entity (usually a customer or user) other than the manufacturer and seller of a product or service.


Many of us today are shocked over the growth of social media---Facebook, twitter and the like.  Facebook, for example, has over 500 million users or more than the entire population of the US.  How did something grow this big, this valuable, essentially overnight?


I think one of the main reasons at least from a marketing perspective is this idea of the "third party endorsement."  Let's face it.  We no longer live in a geographic community.  We shop on Ebay and Amazon.  We go online and buy things from literally continents away; its shipped in on UPS and we have it in our den all without leaving our house.  That is our modern world.  


So, from a business perspective and a customer perspective, the social media sites now fulfill the "old reputation void" that used to be present in small town life.  Every businessman knows that a disparaging remark on your Facebook page or a negative response on Ebay can literally kill your business.  So, we as clients now demand this "accountability loop" or third party endorsement to insure accountability from the businesses we deal with.  


Is your business engaged in social media for its marketing efforts?  If so, let me know how its working for you and whether is helping you build a better business.  If you want more information, contact me, Todd Hunnicutt, at todd@realinternetsales.com.

Blackberry OS 7...The Apple of RIMS eye?

Blackberry 7 operating system out today.  Keep in mind that Blackberry (Research In Motion; $59.13) has 15million corporate subscribers whereas Apple runs about 1-1.2 million corporate accounts.  The early reviews are extremely positive on the operating system.  With recent hiccups on the I-Phone 4, could this spell problems for Apple ($261.80)?  Yep, I think so!

New Blackberry 7...The Apple of RIMs Eye?

Blackberry 7 operating system out today.  Keep in mind that Blackberry (Research In Motion; $59.13) has 15million corporate subscribers whereas Apple runs about 1-1.2 million corporate accounts.

The early reviews are extremely positive on the operating system.  With recent hiccups on the I-Phone 4, could this spell problems for Apple ($261.80)?  Yep, I think so!

Internet Thought of the Day....THE 80% RULE

Search is probably the single most important factor of your website.  As a custom internet marketing firm, we see clients jump the track on trying to get the latest mapping or one more custom data return than their competitor; but as a practical matter, most of the time, it simply comes to being found first.  

Realtors, an industry we work with a great deal, ought to have this sign posted somewhere in their office, over their refrigerator, on their bedpost.  According to a recent survey, over 80% of the potential customers who use the internet to find a home (which by the way according to National Association of Realtors is OVER 90%) WILL STICK WITH THE FIRST SITE THEY GO TO (read that again).  And out of this number, about 80% again will use the first agent they contact off of the web.  So, the upshot is pretty simple.  You had better be the FIRST WEBSITE someone sees...its the easy way to win.  

Contact me, Todd Hunnicutt, at todd@realinternetsales.com to find out how.

YOUR BRAND

Todays marketing tips centers on the Search Engine and URLS. BP recently purchased many domain names, and consequently caught a great deal of heat on the popular media, having to do with "GULF," "OIL SPILL", etc... Regardless of what you think of BPs other corporate communications (or lack thereof) during this period, the buying of URLs that "tell your message" (or almost as important, keep your competitors or adversaries from telling theirs) works, plain and simple.

Take the time today. Explore your business terms that are important to your brand and market perceptions---do you control these? Do you control the search terms if people head to GOOGLE or Bing and do a search?

If you need help in doing this, we can help. Define and dominate your search terms!

Todd Hunnicutt

REAL INTERNET SALES

THE SEO EXPERTS

Times have changed...

As I watch CNBC and like programs, the "D" word is starting to be mentioned. I think in many ways it is at least a healthy sign that people are at least starting to see the scope of the issue. I think a great many more people will realize this over the coming weeks with the likely nationalization of Citicorp and Bank of America. I think the proverbial "writting is on the way." Regardless of the administrations statements about 'prefering a private banking system,' over the next few weeks, I think the scope of the problem will make it evident that the banks are flat broke. In addition, the moral hazard issues of people not paying their loans to get government deals will provide the final blows. I hope the resolution will come quickly as I think the biggest potential problem could be the 1930s type "run on the bank." I pray for calm and for good governmental leadership in this perilous time of our history. We are at a real cross road in our country's history.