Ok… admit it. You’ve done it. We all do it. You’ve probably done it lately.

C’mon… tell me…

“How often do you Google yourself?”

Well it’s fun to see where you rank. But if you own a business, it’s critical today to rank #1 on your own name. If you serve a local market, you should at least rank #1 on your own name in your city.

However, as I’ve pointed out again and again to audiences all over the globe when speaking… ranking on your own name isn’t really marketing. It’s customer service. (Ok… it’s also brand protection, which is a marketing function, but let’s not get nit-picky here.)

What Are Your Customers Searching For?

A far more useful idea, however, is to rank #1 (or at least near the top) in Google and those other search engines on phrases that likely buyers will use when they’re searching for the stuff you sell.

For example, if you happened to be looking for a place to eat out in my city (I live and work in the paradise known as Sarasota, Florida), you might run a search like:

“fondue Sarasota”

or

“buffalo wings Sarasota”

Admittedly, you probably aren’t real likely to run both of those searches on the same day… For a nice evening out, my wife and I really enjoy fondue together. And I personally can’t seem to drag her kicking and screaming to a wings joint (happens maybe once every 2-3 years), so I go there for lunch when possible with friends that enjoy hot wings… since one of the local places is my favorite restaurant in the entire world!

But I digress…let me get to the point.

“Why Haven’t They Contacted Me Yet?”

If you happen to be the owner (or manager) of, say…

• Dylan’s Fondue Fusion
• The Melting Pot
• Wings N Things
• Wings N Weenies

…don’t you think you would contact the marketing firm that owns the website that ranks #1 in Google on the above searches?

For the record, I never really set out to rank #1 on those terms. I just happen to have decided randomly one day to write about those topics. And I happen to know what tools to use to market a local business! And I happen to use those tools myself… so… rankings happen.

You know they’re running those Google searches from time to time, right? I mean seriously… you need to know where your business ranks on those kinds of terms. And you would want (I would think) to do everything in your power to make sure that you had good positioning… so…

In case you’re wondering… yes, we help businesses with search engine rankings. But as I recently pointed out on our small business marketing blog, rankings are only a piece of the puzzle. More importantly, we train small businesses how to be their own best marketers so that they can consistently attract customers in cost-effective ways — both online and offline.

Now… if you’re in a critical situation and need rapid help with the results you’re getting from your website, our website performance assessment is a great place to start.

Otherwise, you can contact us to learn more about how we can help you grow your business!

If you’ll pardon the self-indulgence, Epiphany Digest, our Sarasota business blog turns 2 today! 

It just wouldn’t be right to let the day go by without throwing a little web party.  Have a look at that chocolate cake, will ya?

As for the site itself, we couldn’t have done it without WordPress, BigStockPhoto, and a bunch of great readers like you!

For an amusing trip down memory lane, here’s post #1 from September 9, 2006!

Epiphany Marketing - Early Graphic

One question I get asked a lot is: where did the name (Epiphany Marketing) come from?

What’s somewhat humorous about it is that I broke some of my own rules. Ironically, this consultancy started out as a marketing practice. One of my big pieces of advice for clients that are starting out or are considering a name change: keep it short, easy to spell, and easy to remember.

Who knew that “Epiphany” would be so hard to spell?

So, difficult spelling aside (it wasn’t hard for me to spell!), Epiphany is a name that reflects some of the fundamental, philosophical aspects of why I’m in this business to begin with.

Epiphany – (from definition number 3)

a. A sudden manifestation of the essence or meaning of something.

b. A comprehension or perception of reality by means of a sudden intuitive realization: “I experienced an epiphany, a spiritual flash that would change the way I viewed myself” (Frank Maier).

epiphany. Dictionary.com. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition, Houghton Mifflin Company, 2004. http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=epiphany (accessed: September 11, 2006).

This expresses the heart and soul of what this business is all about. We are interested in creating those situations for our clients where suddenly everything becomes clear — as if the challenges they faced were out of focus and we’re able to help bring them into focus. We live to help others gain perspectives that will facilitate success!

Now that we are focused on strategic work, we see this occurring with our clients even more frequently! The work we enjoy doing most now is something like what a chiropractor does — we focus on alignment. Most functioning businesses already have everything they need to get to the next level, but what they lack is proper alignment. Having a strategic consultant come in will help find the leverage points that need to be adjusted – much like putting a finger or an elbow or a shoulder back in its joint would empower your golf swing.

Do you need an epiphany?

Welcome to EpiphanyDigest – the official blog of Epiphany Consulting, LLC in beautiful Sarasota, FL. Who knows what all we’ll talk about in the days ahead, but most likely, it will fall into one of these subject areas:

• Small Business Strategy
• Technology and Geek-Speak
• Marketing Thoughts
• Random Stuff about Sarasota

We’re glad you stopped by. Please leave us a comment while you’re here!

Oh, and, yes . . . we accept Trackbacks and Pingbacks!