Its been a while since I've threaded....but we've been really busy building our site and adding new services here at Online Promotions Group. I've received a few emails from some of you so I will answer them here:

Q. What is MAMBO? How can it help my band?

A. MAMBO is a content management software solution. It is an Open Source solution that anyone can download for free. However, most artists and management companies haven't the slightest clue as to how to install it on a webserver. It is a rather complicated install. Through the use of MAMBO, you can control your own content. Therefore, if you want to make a text or image change to your website you can do so without the need to hire an expensive webmaster to help you.

Here's an inside look at the Admin control panel:

It can help you to make fast changes to your website and keep your content current. You can do this from any location...even the road...so long as you have internet access.

And yes, we (Online Promotions Group) can install this for you . Please click here to learn more.

That's a one-time fee and includes training. Any further troubleshooting (unless its a system error) would require separate maintenance fees.

Q: Have you seen any real value in MySpace campaigns?

A. Yes and no. MySpace campaigns are starting to become old hat. They were really cool about 6 months ago as a way to leverage a network of dedicated fans towards a single marketing goal. The problem is that fans have seen just about every gimmick to get them to join a "friends" list. I suggest using MySpace as a PR and brand awareness vehicle. We don't make promises on how many "friends" we can add to your profile but instead we use MySpace to get sales leads through our points rewards program via HollywoodPrize.com. The "leads" data we collect on the sweepstakes contest page is far more valuable then the added friends. And since HollywoodPrize can survey these leads, you can learn key data points such as how much fans are willing to pay for your product, how did they learn about your product, what they would like to see from your product, etc.

If you are interested in running a MySpace campaign that makes sense, please click here.

Q: Is HollywoodPrize the first sweepstakes contest portal to include Refer A Friend?

A. Possibly. But we're certainly one of the first to offer a Refer A Friend email program that allows you to refer up to 10 friends at once! See the latest Country Music Across America contest to check it out.; The value of this program is that each email is coming from a trusted source. Each referral can really mutliply your contestant entries.

Q: Could you explain SEO versuses SEM?

A. Seach Engine Optimization (SEO) is the practice of optimizing webpages in an effort to get your website ranked high in natural / organic search results. In Google, these would be the search results you see on the left side. The main search results. Seach Engine Marketing (SEM) typically refers to paid inclusion campaigns. These are the text link ads you see on the right side and at the top (sometimes in a blue box). Companies pay to get listed in these places based on your keyword search. The company that pays the most gets listed the highest. However, in SEO the website that ranks the highest has little to do with who paid the most.

Q. How can Online Promotions Group help with SEO Entertainment Marketing?

A. First, we take a look at your meta data and see if you are doing anything wrong. Yes, there is in fact a standard for meta tags and they must be followed very closely in order for your website to index properly on tier 1 search engines. Second, we look at your image tags (called alt tags) to see if all your images are labeled properly and if your page title and page content match. Then, we analyze your link density. Do you too many links on your page? If you, Google may be looking at your site as having too many links but not enough content. There needs to be a certain level of content embedded with the links in order to achieve the appropriate link density.

Next, we look at link reprocity. Which sites are linking back to yours? How many are there? Do they drive relevant traffic back to you? Which leads me to the next item....link relevancy. Does your site link with sites that are revelant to your content? If not, you are essentially creating a poor link relationship and mind as well just link with $pam sites. How well is your page defined textually? Meaning, to what degree do you describe your band, value proposition, products, events, etc. clearly and with a high level of keyword density? How high (position-wise) is the description of your page listed? Yep, you got it. Google likes page definition as close to the top as possible. Keywords buried at the bottom of the page literally get lost. The higher those keywords...the better. Does your content makes sense? In order words, don't create a page filled with a ridiculous bombardment of keywords but nothing more. Nobody is going to click or link to your page if its just a word pit of random keywords but doesn't say anything really meaningful. Fans are using search engines to find you...don't waste your chance to sell your brand by creating a nonsense page filled with relevant keywords that is total bull.

Furthermore, keyword PHRASES matter. So if the content doesn't have strong phrases that will mirror an actual search, your page won't get found by relevant traffic. Next, there's the IP address. Don't link all of your webpages from one webserver (i.e. IP address). Yes, Google looks at IP Addresses of the referrer so if the referral server is always the same...that will not help your quality link ratings. Last, the age of your page counts. The older the better. So if you create a website and it doesn't rank high initially despite doing this the right way...your site may be new and may be still sitting in the Google Sandbox.

Q. Have you really consulted with clients and helped their SEO Entertainment Marketing practices?

A. Absolutely. If I gave you a list of my clients, you'd be shocked. These big and small entertainment clients alike realize that SEO is not an instant gratification practice. They have shown patience and invested the appropriate time and money to really build appropriate content, links, and well-written descriptions. Entertainment Interactive Marketing is a new and emerging niche of the online marketing industry. I don't recommend any SEO project for less than 6 months. You'd really be wasting your time and mine with anything less.

Well thats just the tip of the iceberg...i can't give everything away. Thats just a little taste of what we do.

If you're interested in our SEO / SEM services, please click here.