HTTP error? “404 Not found”? Unreachable URLs? It’s critical for website owners and marketers to know how their sites are performing out there in the great WWW. Can people find you? More importantly, can Google ‘see’ you and list out your web pages accurately?

Since its launch more than a year ago, Google Webmaster Tools have quickly become a favorite set of resources (free) to diagnose errors, improve a site’s visibility, and even gain more control over Google’s interaction with content. Aplus.net customers now have direct access to these tools via the Control Panel. There, you can even set the crawl rate at which the Googlebot indexes your sites(s), target specific geographic locations, check out subscriber stats, and more. Read our new press release on Google Webmaster Tools for even more details. And then start peering ‘behind the curtain’ to ensure that you maximize your site’s search results in Google.

The widget. It’s that useful, colorful, interactive and usually free scrap of code that’s appearing on more and more web sites, blogs and Facebook pages everywhere. Sometimes also known as a badge, an applet or a module, the widget is designed to provide visitors to your site with useful information or even a little entertainment. It may take the form of a profile, photo slideshow, or on-screen tool such as clocks, calendars or local weather. It may also be used for ecommerce, for news feeds, or even to promote your blog or website or someone else’s. (more…)

Format is critical to a good SMR. It all starts with a good headline and intro paragraph, of course: clear, concise and full of keywords (to make it SEO friendly). And another way they differ from the traditional news release? Bullet points. That’s right, SMRs emphasize just the facts of your story using a series of bullet points. A second section should offer a convenient list of bulleted quotes from pre-approved sources (execs, experts inside or outside your company). Let editors choose what they want to use – and make it easy for them. (more…)

Some call it a Social Media Release, or a New Media Release. It’s not brand new (first introduced three or four years ago), but with the exponential rise in social networking tools, online video and audio capabilities, etc. – it is perhaps an idea whose time has come. Ready for prime time. The dawn of PR 2.0.

The social media release (SMR) is mostly the standard press release – evolved. That is, it complements traditional releases by taking full advantage of online social and multimedia tools: embeddable photos, video and audio (mp3s or podcasts), as well as links to blogging platforms, microblogging (Twitter, Tumblr), RSS feeds/news aggregators, tags (Technorati), bookmarks (del. icio .us), and communities (Digg, Reddit). Social and professional networking is another huge plus with SMRs that make it easy to post in Facebook, Bebo, MySpace, LinkedIn or discussion forums such as Google Groups and elsewhere. (more…)

SEO, advertising banners, email blasts: of course, there’s no guarantee you’ll always catch the attention of your target audience and attract them to your Web site or blog. But good PR can be the secret weapon in your arsenal of marketing tools to nudge your customers along. Increasingly, there are more and more resources available on the Web at places like PRWeb. And with the exponential rise in online media outlets, getting your publicity distributed widely on the Web is easier than ever.

It all starts with a good press release – a release that is concise, focused and follows a standard, time-tested format to convey your message quickly to the media. Here are a few tips to get you started: (more…)