It’s official: you’ve had it with your dinosaur clam-shell phone and can’t tolerate not being able to play Words With Friends while waiting for the subway. You’re buying a smartphone.

Fortunately the capitalism that fostered the development of such devices has also led to a proliferation of choices. Blackberry, iPhone or Android? Galaxy, HTC or Storm? AT&T, Verizon or T-Mobile?

Even if you have taken the plunge and are considering changing your phone or service, the range of choices can be daunting. Some are even arguing for less models and greater simplicity.

But simplicity isn’t the total answer. People have different needs and selection can be a good thing. Arguably this can be geographically determined, but it’s more likely a function of your own lifestyle, consumption and personal preferences.

To make the choice a bit easier, we’ve outlined some key things to consider.

Five Tips For Buying a Smartphone

1: How important are apps to you? 
This should be your top consideration: why else buy a smartphone if you don’t care about the apps? Unfortunately there isn’t an easy answer to which platform provides the best offering, as this isn’t always a (pardon the pun) apples-to-apples comparison. For example, while we know that Nokia’s Ovi Store has over 50K apps and the Android Market has over 200K apps, we only know that RIM’s BlackBerry App World boasts roughly 3M downloads per day. And sadly, HP’s Palm App Catalog only provides 4K apps running on the webOS and not the PalmOS, as one might expect. Rivaling Palm in the version snafu category, Microsoft launched its Windows Marketplace for Mobile in October 2009 and then proceeded to launch a separate store, Windows Phone Marketplace, for all Windows Mobile 7 versions and newer. 

Takeaway: if app selection is of primary importance to you, iPhone or Android is likely your best bet.

2: How tied are you to a given network provider? 

One of the most critical elements is your service provider. Are you locked into a contract? Devoted to one device-maker? iPhone ties you to Verizon or AT&T, so if you are a die-hard Apple user, that’s your choice. Also be sure to check out what geographies the network providers cover – most offer this right on their own websites, or you can go cross-carrier with nifty little tools like this.

Takeaway: Make sure you have coverage for both your device and your physical location before pulling the trigger.

3: What do your friends use? 

Sometimes you can get deals on “friend to friend” calls within the same network – so if your family uses AT&T and you plan on calling them the most, that may swing your choice.  Also, if you’re a mobile gamer, note that some apps aren’t multi-platform: we were shocked to learn that the ridiculously popular Farmville offers a mobile version only for the Apple OS, for example – so you won’t get any help harvesting from your Droid friends, for example

4: What is your phone lifetime attention span? 

 As The Next Web piece outlines, you’ll get less variety with the iPhone, which releases a new model roughly every 1-2 years, but the benefit is control: Apple can issue ongoing fixes to the OS and invest more time in development to ensure its models get things right. The downside is waiting a while until you can upgrade to a newer model.

Takeaway: If you are a loyalist, go for the iPhone. If you have smartphone ADD, go with an Android or Blackberry.

5: How much of an idealist are you? There are basically two different paths for you to choose from: a curated eco-system like Apple (iPhone), RIM (Blackberry) or a more open-minded approach, in the form of Android – any app gets published and a huge variety of manufacturers/devices to pick from.

Takeaway: Decide how much your ideals influence your lifestyle.

I’m not a mind reader, but I’ll bet you’d like to know a quick way to get more leads and sales using the Internet. I regularly consult entrepreneurs who want to improve their online content marketing strategies. The following 10 tips will instantly improve your online business. They’re listed from the easiest quick fixes to activities that will take a bit more time.
 

Quick Fixes

1. Link to your site from your social media pages
 Make it easy for people to learn more about your business by sending them to your website. Even if they want to learn more, people won’t search way down your Facebook page for a link to your site. So put it front and center. Fill out the biography or “about” section on each of your social media profiles. Always include a link back to your website in the topmost section. Make sure the link isn’t cut off from view once you hit publish.

2. You’re so clever, but don’t be
 People who are looking for your “About” page won’t click on your “Familiarize” navigation link. Clever is usually not clear, and clarity is the first rule of writing for your business. Less confusion = more conversion. Go change any navigation links on your website that aren’t clearly specific to the page topic.

3. Always end with a call to action
 Ask your readers to take the action you want, and you’ll see more results. This is the logic behind the CTA, or call to action. Example CTAs are “Join our list,” and “Email me to inquire.” But don’t stop at the CTA. It’s important to also include a reason why your reader should act, also known as a value proposition. An example value proposition combined with a CTA is “Join our list to enjoy exclusive members only savings.” (Refer to No. 6 for more on this.)

4. Make it easy to contact you
 Have a “contact” link in your top navigation. List your phone number and business hours. If you use a contact form, test it once in a while to be sure it’s still working properly. You might also include your mailing address and a map to your office if you do in-house consultations.

5. Get more traffic to your website by building backlinks
 There are many ways to build backlinks, but one of the simplest techniques is to submit your articles to blog directories. When your website is approved by the directory, you’ll be listed under the category you blog about. Your profile will include links and titles to your most recent blog posts.  A few blog directories to submit to include Technorati, Blog Catalog and Alltop, to name a few.

Invest Some Time

6. Get business clarity
 Know who you serve, what value you offer and how. This is the first step to successfully selling your offerings. If you’re not clear, your potential customer won’t be either. A confused lead is a lost lead. When you know what you’re marketing, you’ll offer leads the information they need to make an informed decision.
7. Know your value proposition
 Simply put, a value proposition answers the reason “why” for your leads. Why would they want to hire you? Why should they join your email list? Why should they take you up on your complimentary consultation? An example value proposition is as follows: I (do X) for (target market) so that they (accomplish Y). Always include a value proposition when writing about your services or when asking readers to take a specific action.

8. Prioritize building your list
 Ideally, the goal of most of your web pages will be to entice leads to join your newsletter list. Most people will join your list because they’re interested in your services and want to learn more about your business. In some cases, your new lead to conversion time could be as little as 7 business days, or it could take months. Either way, email marketing does work. Fifty-nine percent of B2B marketers say email is their most effective channel in generating revenue. Learn more about newsletter marketing in my blog post, “Newsletter Content to Cash.”

9. Publish YouTube videos to drive traffic to your website
 Introduce yourself and what you do. Address a problem your prospects likely have. Present a solution to the problem. Then, direct viewers back to your website to get more information. Ideally, you’ll send them to a landing page where they’ll opt in to your leads list. Here’s an example of a landing page.

10. Make your content scannableReaders can decide to leave your web page in 3 seconds flat. Entice them to stay by organizing your content into scannable segments. Use headers, subheaders and bold text. Also, use columns if your website theme allows. If you’re not sure how to make your website more appealing, hire a graphic designer to consult you and/or to design graphic elements that will streamline the look of your site. Contact me for a list of recommended designers.

By Monica Crowe