Today marks my 3 years of getting drenched in the Rain. What an experience. Before AR I didn't even know what SEO meant and I would only get an occasional call from someone finding my website, and those calls were pretty useless (e.g. can we rent a sander? No. Do you have an extra bucket of adhesive on hand? No. I need a few more tiles, do you have any that match? No!
Fast forward 3 years later, and now the combo of my website and presence on AR (and google places), our phone has been ringing off the hook. This is now the largest source of my business and it is now causing me to hire another yet another person. It has given me freedom to stop using paid lead sources for low quality leads such as Service Magic (I stopped using them 2.5 yrs ago). June was another fabulous month, and I just can't believe how much my business has picked up these last 3 years.
Aside from all the SEO/internet presence, this place has also given me so many other marketing ideas. It's incredible. You've helped me develop my positioning as The Flooring Girl, helped me learn social media better, helped me develop a more robust Thank You program (inspired by Beth Witt's Twelve Suggestions for "Thank You Notes" Guaranteed To Generate Leads). Oh yes, and how could I forget. Active Rain has also helped me better understand real estate and working with real estate agents - a key referral partner for me.
I have made so many lifelong friends and business partners here. It is simply incredible. There are so many here that I've met or called on the phone or vice versa. Many are on speed dial. There is always an instant connection, and we are all here to help. I feel like I have this huge network of business advisors. It's so difficult to explain this to outsiders, but once you've been here a while, you understand what I mean.
I was just looking back at my 2 year anniversary post. I realized that since then, I've achieved the following milestones:
- Made it to the most subscribed blog page.
- I've now surpassed my goal of 1,000 called shots - (1031 to be exact)
- I have twice as many features vs. a year ago (i.e. slightly more than my 1st 2 yrs combined)
- I'm now #2 in the state of NY.
But more importantly, the learning I've gotten here (and the education) has taught me how to generate customer traffic to my website. I even have 3 runaway hits, each with over 20,000 clicks (written a year and half ago): They each get around 2,500-3,500 clicks per month and keep growing. That is the power of blogging - your posts are there forever.
- How long does it take to refinish hardwood floors?
- Oil vs water based polyurethane - which is better for hardwood floors?
- Red Oak vs. White Oak Flooring - what's the difference?
Notice how these are all questions? These are key questions my customers ask and they type them into google, too.
For all the newbies to Active Rain, you can do this, too! I knew nothing about anything when I started!
It's been a blast getting to know all of you. You are a daily habit for me and I love having my cofee with you, regardless of whether that is in bed or at Starbucks.
