Attract More Visitors

In my last post How to Improve Your Memory During Your Workout at the Gym and YouTube video I showed how you can use the free software program Evernote to jot down notes so you can remember anything anywhere at anytime.  As I mentioned this works on any platform/ computer (PC, Mac, iPhone, Mobile Phone).

Turn Photos of Notes into Recognizable/Findable Text

One thing I didn't mention about Evernote is that theoretically you can also take photos of your handwritten notes with your mobile/iPhone and Evernote will recognize your handwriting so you can search/find your notes later.

Turn Lost/Misplaced Notes Into Information Bonanza

How many times have you taken notes at a live lecture, webinar, conference call, and filed the notes somewhere (in that giant uncategorized file)...where they're totally lost to you, since you can't locate them when you need them?

Think of all of the conferences, seminars, etc. with tons of great info that would be excellent to tap into...if you just could find it and view it.  This should be great for students, conference/seminar/webinar-attendees, knowledge-lovers, and internet marketers (who are always studying and learning).

Now there's a solution, or at least a potential solution...

Not Quite In-Focus Yet

I haven't quite gotten the note recognition functionality to work yet with my T-Mobile Wing phone but this most likely has to do with the resolution (size: number of pixels), quality (fineness), brightness (of light), and/or the distance from the orginal handwritten note (due to the focal length of the camera).  Evernote addressed this in their Help/Support: Why can't Evernote find some of the words in my pictures?

How to Turn Handwritten Notes into Retrievable Information

1. Install Evernote on your Mobile Phone or iPhone.
2. Start the Evernote program (on your phone).
3. Select "Snapshot" (Note: This takes you to your phone's camera).
4. View the handwritten note through your viewfinder and when it's the clearest, take the photo.
5. Press the curved arrow button.
6. Enter a title.
7. Press "Done" (Note: Then your picture will upload to your Evernote page on the Internet).
8. Go to your Evernote page on the Internet.
9. Refresh the page (by hitting <Ctrl> + F5 on a PC, or Command/Apple + F5 on a Mac).
10. View the photo of your handwritten note.
11. Note: It may take awhile for Evernote to recognize/index the photo of your note.
12. As I understand it, your note will be processed quicker if you opt for the fee-version of Evernote (which also increases your monthly storage allowance).
13. Search for a word in your note and Evernote should find your handwritten note so you can read it.

Note: If this doesn't work, then play with the resolution and quality settings on your phone's camera and/or the brightness of the light as well as the distance of the camera from your note.

That's it! (once I figure the last part out, that is).

FYI: It looks like Griffin has a solution for improving the clarity for iPhone photos of text/notes called "Clarifi": A protective case with built-in close-up lens for iPhone 3G.

--> If anyone knows of a clarity-improving solution like this for the T-Mobile Wing or other non-iPhone mobile phones please let me know with a comment below...

Attraction and Internet Marketing

Question: What does all of this have to do with attracting visitors and Internet Marketing?

Answer: People are attracted to:

• How to articles.
• Solutions to problems.
• Tools and gadgets.
• Tips and Reviews.
• Keywords of interest (e.g., "treasure")
• YouTube videos.

Writing blog posts or making YouTube videos addressing what attracts people can increase the traffic to your blog/YouTube site and to your website from there (if they find information of value to them), e.g., IncreaseOnlineProfits.com.

Last word: Always provide valuable content which helps people since "Content is King".

Comments, Questions, Better Solutions?

• Have something to say about this?  Let me know...
• Have a better solution.  Chime in...
• Have you gotten this to work with your T-Mobile Wing or your mobile phone?
• Were there any additional/crucial tips to getting this to work.  If so, please let  me and the AttractMoreVisitorsblog readers know by leaving a comment below...

Know anyone who might find this blog post interesting/helpful?  Then please use "Tell A Friend" below...

Are you Clean with that? - Part II

In Part I of "Why Internet Marketing is Like a Disney Cruise - Are you Clean with that?" I mentioned the hand sanitizers used on Disney Cruises in all of their places to eat. Since we went on our cruise a number of supermarkets have also placed moist hand wipes at their front entrances. Now every time you go to the store you have an opportunity to think about your internet marketing techniques / methods / practices and think "Are you clean with that?".

8 Tests for Clean Marketing

1. Can you sleep at night? - "Sleep like a baby"? (soundly, peacefully).
2. Or are you kept up at night worrying?
3. Would you be OK with your marketing methods if your Mother read about them in an exposé on the front page of the New York Times?
4. Do you get a little queasy feeling in the pit of your stomach when you think about your marketing techniques?
5. Do your Friends ask you questions like, "What happened to you, you always used to be so (insert any nice wholesome word/concept here)?
6. Could words like bill of goods, cheat, con, deceit, deception, delusion, dishonest, double-dealing, evasion, exaggeration (huge), falsehood, fraud, hype, illusion, lie, misleading, misrepresentation, overstatement (gross), pretense, scam, scheme, shell game, snake oil, snow job, subterfuge, etc. be associated with your internet marketing techniques?
7. Would you use the same marketing methods on your friends or family. (The ones you like, that is).
8. If someone used the same marketing method on you, would you feel tricked or played for a sucker. Again, the "Golden Rule".

Solutions: "Faith, Trust, And Pixie Dust"

1. Clarity and transparency - it's as simple (and clean) as that.
2. If you can explain your internet marketing methods to a child or to the hero of a child (e.g., Mickey Mouse, Tinker Bell, Sleeping Beauty, Lilo [not Stitch!]) and they're ok with them, then you're probably OK.
3. Being open and honest with your visitors and customers will give them a reason to believe in you, and your methods, and your site - a reason to have faith in you and trust you, your business, and your website/blog/podcast.
4. Building trust through the words you use and living up to them with follow-through.
5. Building trust by using trust badges/symbols, etc. where a visitor would want them to be.  E.g., Better Business Bureau, Association logos, Visa/MasterCard badges (when purchasing), etc.
6. Building trust through real Testimonials/Reviews.  People can spot bogus testimonials. Remember what your Mom said, "If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is."
7. Using persuasion instead of delusion or confusion. Be conscious of when you begin using internet marketing hype instead of a persuasive argument.
8. Pixie dust: It's ok to have add a little magic - some zing. SEO (Search Engine Optimization) seems like magic, but it works. So a little "white hat" SEO (the good SEO) is fine. Especially since these techniques are no more than what Google recommends so it can serve-up more targeted search results to its customers (searchers). You're just helping Google's customers find what they're truly looking for better.

Bottom Line: Add content and value - true value - and market them as straightforwardly as possible.

Morality Screed versus "What Just Makes Sense" and the Law

You might be thinking that this is just a heavy-handed moral screed, but really it's a plea to consider how your marketing efforts are viewed by those who encounter them, your potential customers.  Then turn it around and think (deep down), "Do I want to be marketed to that way?" and that should be your answer.

But if that's not enough, "It's the Law" as outlined by the United States Federal Trade Commission (FTC): Advertising and Marketing on the Internet: Rules of the Road:

"The Federal Trade Commission Act allows the FTC to act in the interest of all consumers to prevent deceptive and unfair acts or practices. In interpreting Section 5 of the Act, the Commission has determined that a representation, omission or practice is deceptive if it is likely to:

• mislead consumers and
• affect consumers' behavior or decisions about the product or service."

Also there's a special section on "Testimonials and Endorsements".
See FTC Guides Concerning Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

Hope this helps!

Take care & hope you're internet marketing is a great success,

Karl

Comments?

Got one?   Think I'm off-track...or not - just let me know below.

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