Lorrie Thomas

Phone: (888) 702-8993Email: help@webmarketingtherapy.comwww.webmarketingtherapy.com • 315 Meigs Road Suite A358 • Santa Barbara, CA 93109

Boost Your Local Business with Free Online PR

Lorrie ThomasLorrie Thomas Web MarketingSanta Barbara, CAIf you're a local business owner, you don't have to spend a lot of money to win big with web marketing. You just need to know how to use local online public relations (PR) to boost business, that is, to generate freemessaging or promotion. When local organizations produce their own educational, informative, valuableonline news content, it increases search engine rankings, traffic, and business. Here are three easy ways toget started.

1. Add a News Section to your Website

Every local business needs a news section on its website. News pages are a web-savvy way to managecontent about events, sponsorships, new products or services, and company news. When news content iswritten with keyword-rich titles that link to webpages with more great content, it boosts credibility,communication and -- best of all -- search engine rankings.

2. Write Your Own Press Releases

You may think you can't have a news section because you don't have any news articles written about your business. Wrong. Write your own news to generate buzz! For example, I recently spoke at a local women'sconference in Southern California. I wrote my own press release and added it to my website to share withcurrent clients and potential clients, and to boost my search engine exposure with keyword-rich content. Ialso wrote a short description of the event to clearly communicate what the event was for, how to attend, andwhy. The press release was informative and increased my website's local search visibility. I used a title withstrong local key phrasesto boost local search engine visibility:

female entrepreneurs + business owners + Ventura, CA (location)

The final title was: "Female Entrepreneurs and Business Owners get a Healthy Dose of Web MarketingTherapy at Women's Expo in Ventura, CA, March 14th, 2009".

3. Send Press Releases to Local Online News Sites and Event Calendars

If content is king with web marketing, then outreach is queen. You must submit your press releases to localnewspapers and stations receive this free visibility. Remember, these local news sites need content. Theywant to hear from you! For example, my team sent the press release described above to a local newspaper.As a result we received free exposure on the

Ventura County Star

site, the largest newspaper in the area.They were happy for the content. We were happy for the free exposure.Local online event calendars are another rich resource for you -- usually free. Look for calendars in local