Today’s consumers are “eager to use mobile devices to inform in-store decisions,” says Target’s Kris Roberts in a recent article that quotes experts on the subject at Knowledge@Wharton. Digital innovations, the article argues, are transforming how people shop.

As mobile networks improve, it’s becoming easier for retailers to target customers based on where they live or shop, and to communicate with them in real time. And location-based social networks (think Foursquare), which essentially ask users to share their retail patterns with friends, are offering vital new ways for brands to link to communities, the article notes.

But retailers aren’t adapting so well to the new reality, Roberts warns: “They continue to view online shoppers and customers at retail stores as two separate entities.”

So, to help sellers better meet the demands of today’s wired buyers, the experts quoted in the article offer a few must-do action tips. Among them:

• Update your organizational systems to better integrate in-store operations with Internet retailing. This is a daunting task, Roberts admits, and could require “a generation or two of management changeover.” But it’s vital to achieving the next point.
• Break down your silos, and get your teams working across channels—from stores to online to mobile and social media—to maintain branding and service at each customer touchpoint.
• Get shoppers more involved in decision-making. While the “primal” experience of in-store shopping is unmatched, so is the Internet’s ability to provide shoppers with information, Roberts notes. As consumers move between the two, they are playing a more active role in shaping their own shopping experiences. Find new ways to engage with them.

The Po!nt: Integrate your teams—in-house, online and in-store. The 21st-century marketing team works in real time across all channels—and in partnership with wired and savvy consumers.

Source: Knowledge@Wharton. Read the full post (registration required).

There was a time when the internet was just a huge dictionary but then it transformed slowly into a large market place. In fact, in the last decade, the internet became a war ground for competitors who were trying to woo potential customers. This is when search engine optimization or SEO was introduced and since then it has been a huge success. One of the important elements of SEO is Organic SEO. What is Organic SEO?

Organic SEO is basically a type of search engine optimization for websites that has the ability to provide natural results from some of the top search engines like Yahoo!, Google, MSN, ask.com, cuil.com, and many more. What really happens is that when a visitor is on a search engine page, they will type a specific work or a keyword to search for a product, service, or something else. When they type the keyword, there are two types of results that will be displayed. One of them is known as a sponsored listing while the other is organic SEO. For example: If you type “Finland travel guide” which is your keyword phrase then it will open the search listing page. On your right side will be two listings, which are known as sponsored listings or Pay-per-click ads. On the main page there will be top 10 listings of websites with information on Finland travel. These are a part of Organic SEO.

Organic SEO can be referred to as a process with the help of which your website can achieve higher natural placements within a search engine result page (SERP). You are probably thinking why it is always search engine specific. This is because search engine whether Yahoo or Google expect website pages to be configured in such a manner that it is easier for the search engine bots or web spiders to crawl through these pages and index them properly. This will definitely help in bettering your website page ranking.

Now the question is how can organic SEO be enhanced? SEO or search engine optimization can be enhanced using different methods but the most common and effective method is focusing on your website page content, keyword density, and effective link building. Content as we all know is an integral part of any website because graphics never talk as loud as content do. So when you are introducing content on your website, it should be relevant, informative, and keyword driven. When using keywords, you need to be cautious regarding the type of keywords you choose. If your website is selling camping gear then the keywords will include: camping gear, winter camping gear, cheap camping gear, discount camping gear, camping gear outlet, camping gear store, and camping hiking gear. You can find the right keyword for your business or website from https://adwords.google.com/select/KeywordToolExternal.

Once you have the keywords, the next important aspect is keyword density, which basically relates to the number of times you use that particular keyword. This is an important aspect of organic SEO because you can’t use it less than required or more than required. Last but not the least is link building. Link building can be in two forms: you can link from your blogs, forums, article directory to your website or you can build reciprocal linking with other sites.