Dear {FIRST_NAME|Valued Customer},

Twas the night before January 1st, when all through NSD
The team was cheering on its client’s accounts, urging them to victory.
For 2009 was closing upon them and goals were their’s to be caught
Data was pouring in and coffee was brewing, the team worked ‘round the clock.

The year had proved successful; the agency had weathered great change.
Search engine marketing was robust, social media proved fame.
NSD had many great blessings to count, this much was true.
And as the last hours dwindled, a line formed among the crew.

Standing shoulder-to-shoulder they were, proud of their work to date.
Each member recounted a memory or obstacle, and marveled at their fate.
For the economy had not been kind to businesses, but truth still shone ‘round.
The NetSearch Direct team reflected on their clients, barely making a sound.

This newsletter is for you, brave business owner.
And we hope you realize the moral.
Through uncertain times you’ve come
and we are grateful you’ve remained loyal.

The NSD team then prepared to go home, as it was now dawn.
But they paused outside in the cold, welcoming 2010; bidding 2009 so long.
Together they looked ahead to all the hope and promise a New Year begets,
Successful marketing and lasting relationships are born at NetSearch Direct.

Eleventh Hour:
Last-Minute Quick Fixes for Holiday Ads

Whether you’re an online retailer, a small business using the Internet to promote your business, or a company combing website sales with a brick-and-mortar store- it’s crunch time. The final weeks of the quarter, and this decade, are among you: how will your advertising pay off? If you’re anxiously watching the days of December count down while your PPC campaigns are struggling to turn good leads or ROI, consider these last minute quick fixes for your December PPC campaigns.

Keyword Research
With time running out, it’s critical to the success of your PPC campaigns that they include all possible keywords that prospective customers are using. Think of their search for your product in stages: initial research, specific product research, and time to buy. Then consider the keyword phrases that searchers may be using along these steps and add any missing keywords to your campaign. Keyword reports, available through your PPC management console, and research tools online will help you fill in any gaps.

While you’re in research mode, check out the keywords that your competition is using to drive traffic. There are plenty of free online keyword “spy” tools that will give you an edge up in your competition’s best performing keywords. Knowing this critical information, and adding any missing phrases to your campaign, will put your ads in front of consumers where the opportunity may have been previously missed.

In a rush to dig up some quick tips for fast fixes to your SEO campaign before 2009 ends? While we have a few to offer, the best advice that we can give is to not make any changes to your existing campaign. Confused yet? Search engine optimization works best when consistent changes take place and holiday SEO campaigns needed to be solidified long before the weather turned cold. Confusing search engines by turning your geo-targeting on a dime, or stripping your site of its biggest keywords only to replace them with new ones will cause serious injury to your rankings. Better not try any SEO overhauls at home. Your best bet is to set up solid SEO strategies at the beginning that yield consistent climbing results and lead to top placement.

Search engine love the predictable because it goes along with their algorithms, which they change unexpectedly and repeatedly. How’s a SEO campaign to cope? No other way but with experienced strategists at the helm to guide the ship through ever-changing waters. That said, if you’re looking to pull out a few last-minute stops for this year that won’t hurt your hard earned rankings (read: in subtle ways); we’ve got a few tips for you.

Content, Content, Content
Content is king. Those keywords you painstakingly chose to be your campaign’s targeted words probably taught you that lesson way back in the formulation stage. Now, however, you can build on the holiday gift giving trends by incorporating buzz words around your keyword phrases. Consider phrases like “gift”, “cheap”, “Christmas”, “holiday”, or “seasonal” to name a few. And if you have special holiday offers, be sure to include those where ever possible around your SEO content to build on the momentum of fleeting deals lasting only for as long as the month is long. Consider this tip as decorating for your website’s content and enjoy the maximum holiday trend exposure.

National Statistics

Your 2010 WTF Strategy

Recently we came across an article while got a lot of snickers from the production team at NetSearch Direct: Click here to read it. The article (definitely worthy of your click-through) is all about developing your “WTF Strategy”; or Website, Twitter, Facebook Strategy. Funny acronym for a very serious branding/marketing question: Have you thought about your 2010 WTF Strategy?

2009 has been all about social media trends in advertising. More than just setting up a profile on Facebook or LinkedIn, this year has been about how to utilize that profile to drive home your brand to an entirely new set of eyes. Social media marketing focuses advertisers and business owners to think outside of traditional marketing means in order to come up with innovative solutions in lands where men have previously not traveled. Suddenly, Facebook Fan pages were popping up overnight, and many of us were delighted to see, and rep, our favorite brands online. Customer service was taken to a whole new level as companies jumped on board the Twitter train and answered queries, apologized for mix-ups, and offered special incentives to loyal social media followers. And those who got it right enjoyed sweet profits from a relatively low-cost, if any cost at all, marketing investment. Now that’s a win-win.