What is Marketplace? River Valley Voice Marketplace connects your business with local consumers where you can control your business information, post store news and events as well as upload photos and videos. Your business profile will help drive users to your existing website or can serve as your primary web presence, providing you with a lower cost alternative that is fast and easy to update.
Is Marketplace free? Marketplace is free for registered members of the River Valley Voice community. For businesses, basic listings are complimentary. If you are a business and would like more information on the expanded business profiles please see the Marketplace for Businesses section or email webmaster@rivervalleynewspapers.com.
Why use Marketplace? Marketplace provides a hub for local people like yourself, to share real-life experiences and opinions with friends and other community members on the places you know and visit. It also acts as THE LOCAL source for finding current and reliable reviews and information about a business or service in your area..
For Brides: Marketplace is a virtual bridal fair. It gives you the opportunity to research businesses and their products and services as well as share the information about your wedding with other members of the community and wedding guests. It'll save you time and money planning your wedding and related events.
For Businesses:Marketplace is an all-in-one marketing platform you can use to reach out and engage with your customer base. Your business profile will help drive users to your existing website or can serve as your primary web presence, providing you with a lower cost alternative that is fast and easy to update. Please contact webmaster@rivervalleynewspapers.com for more information on getting started today.
Who can see my profile? In your Account Settings, you can set your preferences to show your profile to everyone in the community, just your friends or no one.
How do I change my email address? You can change your email address by going to My Profile > Edit Profile. From the box on the left click on Login/Password. Update field titled 'User Name'.
How can I add photos or videos? You can upload either by clicking My Photos or My Videos on your main profile page under My Stuff and following the directions on each page.
What is a friend? A friend is either a member of the community or business who you can attach yourself to. Your friends can send you messages, bulletins and give you a shout out on your profile page.
What is a profile comment? A profile comment is a message from one of your friends that will be displayed on your profile page.
What is a Bulletin? A bulletin is a group message from either a business or member of the community. You can disable bulletins from certain friends by going to the My Friends section and clicking 'Disable Bulletins' by their name.
How do I invite friends to join the community? Once you have logged in, you will see Invite Others in the gray bar at the top. Click Invite Others to invite friends and family to join the community.
What does Marketplace do with my personal information? Our No Spam Pledge: We won't share any information you provide with a third party without your permission. This means you won't receive emails from anyone other than the The Quad-City Times as a result of registering. You may receive messages and bulletins from members and businesses you are friends with in the Marketplace community -- but can control these settings in your Account Settings and in your Friends section.
Who can see my profile? You have several display options when it comes to your personal information. You may choose to share your profile with all registered users, only your friends or no one. You can change this at anytime by going to the Account Setting section.
Can I make my profile private? Absolutely. Simply go to your Account Setting and check the box underneath Private Profile that says Yes (This setting hides your public profile).
How can I block a user or business from seeing my information? You must set your profile preferences under Account Settings one of two ways: make your profile private to the entire community by selecting Yes or Only to be viewed by friends, making sure that business or user has been deleted from your friend list. The business will be able to see that you are a member of your community, but not access your profile, send messages or bulletins
I forgot my password. Please go here: http://my.rivervalleyvoice.com/, fill in your email address and then and click on "Email my Password". You will receive an authorization email at the email address you entered to accept the changed password.
How do I cancel my account? You may cancel your account by emailing River Valley Voice with Cancel Account and your username in the subject. We will have your account deleted within 2 business days.
What makes a great recommendation? A great recommendation is useful, detailed and honest. We want to hear about your experience and what made it so great. Was it a great atmosphere or place? Did you have excellent customer service or find an exceptional deal? Let us know why you liked the products and services that you used.
Why should I make a recommendation? Pay it forward! Your recommendations and the recommendations of others in the community make River Valley Voice Marketplace a great and useful place because people like you take the time to share thoughtful insights on local businesses and services.
Who should I recommend? You should leave feedback on any business that you have purchased products or services from.
Can I recommend a business I'm associated with? If you are connected to a business either personally or professionally, you may recommend that business -- as long as you are clear in the recommendation about the details of your affiliation.
What if I had a bad experience? Can I say something negative? Marketplace's mission is to accurately portray both positive and negative aspects of all of our members' experiences. We are an open forum; however, we strongly recommend you try and work out any problems with the business directly before writing a negative review.
Can a business remove my recommendation? Yes, a business may remove your recommendation if they feel it is unfounded or untrue. They may remove your review if it is hearsay, a personal attack or outright slander. We encourage our business members to let the free flow of information occur knowing that not all reviews will be the most positive. We also encourage them to contact the negative reviewer directly to work out any problems or issues that might have caused this bad experience.
How can I add or change my wedding information? Once you are on your main profile page, you can click "Create a New Wedding" and fill out the appropriate information. To update your wedding info, click Edit next to your wedding on the main profile page.
What happens to my account after my wedding? Your account will stay up until for some reason to decide to cancel your account. You can do this by emailing River Valley Voice. After your wedding your account will stay active so you can also participate in other fun communities and marketplaces.
How can I take control of my own listing? Search for your business listing in the directory and click Sign Me Up! Fill out the form and you will be contacted in less than 2 business days with more information. You may also email or phone 608-791-8244 to get started right away.
How can I make an employee an Admin of my listing? You an assign an administrator to help you manage and update your business profile listing. Go to My Stuff > Administration, locate your business and click on (Manage).Click on Manage Customers in the gray box on left (employee needs to be a registered user of River Valley Voice.com and have clicked on "be our fan" from your business profile page. Within this section you can click to add them as an Administrator.
How is this different than my ad in the yellow pages? Marketplace is an interactive, two-way conversation between you and your customers. Although the yellow pages are important, the habits of how people find and consume information are changing rapidly. In most cases, the data that's available consists of your business name, address and phone, mined from another database that you have no control over or may not even know exists. Marketplace has no deadlines and never closes - you can change or add to your listing whenever you need to get information to your customers.
How will Marketplace help my business show up in search results such as Yahoo! or Google? Marketplace's pages, including your business profile page, are "optimized" to direct users to your profile when a search is performed about you in major search engines. What does that mean exactly? Our directory was built to make your listing display in search results. Your Marketplace listing gives your potential and existing customers an even easier way to find your information online.
How can I post special offers or coupons? You can post store news and events by clicking on My Blogs under My Stuff and locate your business blog. Click on Add New Entry next to your Business Blog. Fill out with Title and Description, or upload a graphical coupon by using the tools available to you in the editor. To edit, click on 'Past Entries' and select the offer or event you want to edit from the list provided..
How can I upload photos and videos? You can upload either by clicking My Photos or My Videos on your main profile page and following the directions on each page.
How can I message all of my customers? You now have the tools to reach all your customers in one message. Simply go to My Stuff > Administration, locate your business and click on (Manage). Click on 'Post a Bulletin' in the gray box on the left. This will send an email message to ALL users who have friended (become a fan) of your business. You can reward your loyal customers by sending them previews to events or special offers and coupons.
How can I view recommendations? From My Stuff > Administration locate your business. If a new recommendation has been written, you will be notified here with the number of pending recommendations.
How can I recommend other businesses? You are able to recommend your other favorite businesses. Locate this businesses by searching for them by category or name here: http://my.rivervalleyvoice.com/community/bridal.htm. Click on the business to pull up their business profile page and click on "Be our Fan" button on the right side of the page. You will be prompted to "friend" them as your personal account (your personal avator) or as the business owner (your logo). Choose one or both. If you chose to friend them as the owner of your business, your logo will be displayed on their page under "Businesses Recommending Us".
How can I find out more information about River Valley Voice Marketplace Bridal program? With River Valley Voice Marketplace, you now have the tools to reach your existing customers and the ability to engage with new ones. The future of person-to-person marketing is here! To find out more about this program please call us at 608-791-8244 or email us at marketplace@lacrossetribune.com.
What is River Valley Voice?
River Valley Voice is a civic social network for people, groups and businesses located in Southwest Wisconsin and Southeast Minnesota.
OK, but what does that mean?
We’re aiming to foster a local community dedicated to discussion and expression. At our other sites at rivervalleynewspapers.com, we cover events that our reporters and editors dig up. This site is dedicated to the stories, photos, videos and more that you capture and care to discuss around your neighborhoods – and around the news.
At River Valley Voice, every person has a personal blog, photo gallery, video gallery, and a profile. You can be as public or private as you care to be. You can add other people to your friends list, as you would on sites like MySpace or Facebook.
In addition to your individual space on River Valley Voice, you also have the option to join different groups within the community. Groups can be anything from a parenting discussion to a forum for disc golf players, a neighborhood watch association, or a way for local musicians to keep in touch with each other. If you’re interested in hosting an existing group with us, just let us know – it’s free and we’re happy to help. Just drop us a line or get started by clicking here.
Can I promote my Business on River Valley Voice?
Yes! Businesses can participate in this local community with a profile of their own. All basic business listings are free, and they’re managed by the River Valley Voice staff. To really take advantage of the River Valley Voice network, businesses can purchase an enhanced profile for a small monthly fee. This allows businesses to stay in touch with their most loyal customers, offer coupons, showcase products and announce special events. Contact Sue Thompson if you’re interested by e-mail at sue.thompson@lee.net or call 608-791-8244. We’re currently live with businesses connected to the wedding industry, with more to follow shortly.
Is there anything I can’t do?
You can post anything you’d like here, within reason. Check out terms of service for the full rundown of do’s and don’ts , but it basically boils down to common sense and common courtesy. If you wouldn’t say it in public, don’t post it in public.
Click here for a tutorial on how to set up your enhanced business profile page including best practices and insight into how River Valley Voice Marketplace can help you grow you business.
Click hereif you have a question. We have compiled an extensive list of most commonly asked questions. Read through this section and find the answers you are looking for!
For a more in-depth tutorial on such topics as: video, photo & blog management, what is a bulletin vs a message, and how to manage friends. Click here and find all the answers you are looking for.
What is River Valley Voice Marketplace? River Valley Voice Marketplace connects your business with local consumers where you can control your business information, post store news and events as well as upload photos and videos. Your business profile will help drive users to your existing website or can serve as your primary web presence, providing you with a lower cost alternative that is fast and easy to update
How will River Valley Voice Marketplace help grow my business? River Valley Voice Marketplace is a marketing tool that will enable you to easily reach out and engage with your customer base. It allows you to add value to your business by igniting word-of-mouth buzz, reinforcing your brand, building loyalty and ultimately generating leads and sales.
STEP 2:Search for your Business then click on Sign Me Up under the Enhance this listing section!
Unable to find your business? Fill out this form to have your business added.
An enhanced listing will give your business:
Higher visibility • You’ll be listed in the top of search results and in your business category. Engage with your customers • Post store news, events, photos and videos to attract new and existing customers to your website and store. Build Loyalty • Add products, coupons and specials with targeted promotions to attract users to your store
SET UP YOUR BUSINESS PROFILE Tell users about your business, upload photos or videos and add special offers to attract and reward loyal customers
To start editing your Business profile
1. First Click on My Stuff
2. Scroll down to bottom left gray box titled My Businesses and locate your Business - Click on the link
3. Now you can…
Add or Update your Logo
1. Click on Update photo located under image logo
2. Choose upload option and step through wizard
Edit your Business Profile
1. Click on Edit Businesses Profile
2. Update Description, Hours of Operation, Address, contact Information, and payments accepted
3. Click on SAVE when completed
Add a Special Offer or Event
1. Click on My Blogs under My Stuff
2. Click on Add New Entry under your Business Blog
3. Fill out with Title and Description, or upload a graphical coupon by using the tools available to you in the editor.
4. Coupons & Special Events tab will now be displayed on your Business profile page
Add Photos or Videos
1. Click on Manage Photos or Manage Videos under My Stuff
2. Browse to your desktop and upload photo or videos – upload as many as you want
To view the changes you have made at any time to your Business profile, click on View Business link next to your logo or click directly to your URL which can be located under the edit view of your business profile page.
Your URL will appear like this: http://my.rivervalleyvoice.com/Businesses/[Your Business Name Here]
Please click here to learn about best practices on how to help increase traffic into your business. Also find how to use the tools Social Marketplace offers to help you reach out and engage with your customer base, ultimately allowing you to generate leads and convert them into sales.
Marketplace helps you build bridges, start conversations and maintain relationships with your most valuable asset –CONSUMERS
Here are some simple HTML examples that you can use. These can be placed in your business description area as well as within your Special Offers and Events page. Use these to create a more stylized look to your text or to embed links to other web pages.
Simpe HTML Tags:
<b>To make copy Bold</b>
<i>To make copy Italic</i>
<br> Used at end of a paragraph to insert a line break
Add a link to another page:
<a href="http://www.yourLink.com" target="blank">Add a Link</a>
Example: <a href="http://www.google.com" target="blank">click to go to Google</a>
Add an Email (Mailto)
<a href="mailto:yourEmail@whatever.com">Send an Email</a>
Example: <a href="mailto:marketplace@lacrossetribune.com">Email River Valley Voice Marketplace</a>
You can upload as many videos as you would like to your account. The most recent videos display on your profile page.
Uploading a video
To add your first video, click on the "My Stuff" link and then the "Manage Videos". If you have no videos there will be a link that says "Click here to add videos" that takes you to the upload form.
Click on the "Browse..." button to choose a video from your computer to upload. You may upload gif, png or jpg formatted videos. The system will automatically create a thumbnail (small version) of your video.
You should see the thumbnail and some additional options:
• Change the Title of the video, it defaults with filename.
• Add a caption that will be displayed under the video on your pages.
• Choose to allow or deny other people to post comments on your videos.
• Add tags to your video. Tags are keywords that relate to the subject matter of your video. If you and other users both tag your video "Dog" then when someone clicks on the tag of "Dog" they would see any videos with that tag.
Editing and Deleting videos
To administrate your uploaded videos you click on the "My Stuff" tab then on th the "My videos" link again. You should see any videos you have previously uploaded. To edit a videos properties click on the video. This will take you back to the page just like when you uploaded the video. You can make changes or add to the information in the list above.
To delete videos use the checkbox in the lower left of the thumbnail. Once you have checked off any videos you would like to delete then click the "Delete Selected" button at the bottom of the page.
You can upload as many photos as you would like to your account. The most recent photos display on your profile page.
Uploading a photo
To add your first photo, click on the "My Stuff" link and then the "Manage Photos" link . If you have no photos there will be a link that says "Click here to add photos" that takes you to the upload form.
Click on the "Browse..." button to choose a photo from your computer to upload. You may upload gif, png or jpg formatted photos. The system will automatically create a thumbnail (small version) of your photo.
You should see the thumbnail and some additional options:
• Change the Title of the photo, it defaults with filename.
• Add a caption that will be displayed under the photo on your pages.
• Choose to allow or deny other people to post comments on your photos.
• Add tags to your photo. Tags are keywords that relate to the subject matter of your photo. If you and other users both tag your photo "Dog" then when someone clicks on the tag of "Dog" they would see any photos with that tag.
Editing and Deleting photos
To administrate your uploaded photos you click on the "My Stuff" tab then on th the "My Photos" link again. You should see any photos you have previously uploaded. To edit a photos properties click on the photo. This will take you back to the page just like when you uploaded the photo. You can make changes or add to the information in the list above.
To delete photos use the checkbox in the lower left of the thumbnail. Once you have checked off any photos you would like to delete then click the "Delete Selected" button at the bottom of the page.
A blog is a website, maintained by an individual or group with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events or other writings. Blogs can provide commentary or news on a particular subject or function as personal online diaries. The ability for readers to leave comments on the blog entries is an important part of the interactive nature of blogs.
Creating the Blog
If you have not set up your first blog you can create it by clicking on "My Stuff" then "Manage Blog" then the link that reads "Create a new blog!". You will be asked to give a title to the blog, it defaults to your username's News. You can change this to whatever you would like, you can change this in the future as well. You can enter an optional description of your blog if you would like. Once you have submited that information they system will give you the URL to the blog and prompted to make your first entry.
Making your first Blog entry
A blog entry is how you post news and updated content. Think of these as pages in a book. To add a new entry click on "My Stuff" then "My Blog". You should see any blogs you have created or been assigned to you. Click on the link "Add New Entry" to create your first entry.
The required fields for a blog entry are Title and Entry text. So choose a title for your post, this would be a headline of what the entry is about. Then write some text in the Entry area. Hit the "Publish Now" button at the bottom of the page and that's it, you are a blogger. A new tab will show up on your public profile page called "Manage Blog" with the text and title you just entered.
You can make entries as often as you like. The most popular blogs on the internet make entries many times a day.
Basic vs. Advanced text editor
The editor shows up right above the entry text, it is similar to Word or other applications and can help you Bold, Underline or create lists just to name a few things it does. I would suggest mousing over each icon to see what can be done.
The advanced editor has more options than the basic editor, and can be accessed by clicking on the tab at the top of the page.
How to edit/delte a blog entry
To edit/delte an entry click on "My Stuff" then "Manage Blog". You should see any blogs you have created or been assigned to you. Click on the link "Past Entries" to edit/delte your entries. You will be presented with a list of all of you blog posts. You can click on the Title of the entry to edit it or select the checkbox next to the title and hit the "Delete" button at the bottom of the page to delete.
After clicking on "My Stuff" and then clicking on "Account Settings" or "Edit Profile" you will see a link in the left gray box called "Manage Lists." Clicking on this link will allow you to make lists of favorite URLs that is displayed on your profile page.
First step is to create a new list. This is the title of the list and will be displayed as a headline above each list. You will be asked to complete a title and an optional description. Also there is a checkbox that gives you the option to display the list on your Public Profile.
Once you have completed the above step you will be presented with that information and a new yellow box to the right. In that yellow box aare the links for "Add/Edit Items" and "Delete this list".
Click on Add/Edit Items to enter your first favorite URL. You need to give each a title, the URL and an optional description. Click on the Add Item button at the bottom once you have completed filling out your link.
Now go check out your public profile page by clicking the "View Profile" link to the right of your Avatar. You should see the new List Title and link underneath it.
The Link List editor can create multiple lists with as many entries under each list as you would like.
Messages and Bulletins are methods of contacting people in the River Valley Voice community. Messages are sent to individuals by clicking the "Contact Me" link on their profile page. A bulletin is a group message sent to all of your Friends.
You will be notified on the "My Stuff" page if someone has sent you a message or a bulletin, you can click on the notification to read the message. Once you have read the message the notification goes away. You can also click on the "Inbox" in the gray box on the left to view any messages once they have been read.
In the Inbox you can sort/search through your messages. You can reply to senders or delete them.
What are friends?
The friending process allows you to link to other users or businesses and they can link to you. It is the process that builds the social network of people. By looking at your friends you may find people you wish to contact or businesses whose services you require. Once you've clicked on "My Stuff" a second navigation bar appears, clicking on the "My Friends" link will show current frineds and open a menu on the left for other friending options
Adding friends
To add friends to your account simply navigate to the person's or business page and look for the "Friend Me/Us" link. In some cases a user may have their friending preferences set to approval. If this is the case the user must approve you as a friend before the link is established. If they have it set to accept friends immediately the link is connected right away.
Friend requests
After clicking on the "My Friends" navigation link you should see a link called "Requests" in the gray bar on the left. Clicking this link takes you to the management area for friend requests. You can allow or deny any requests that are waiting. You can always remove a friend later if you choose to accept them.
Pending Requests
After clicking on the "My Friends" navigation link you will see a link called "Pending", this link will display any friend requests that you have made that have not been accepted yet.
Top list
Also in the left gray bar on the left is a link called "Top List". This link allows you to sort your top 10 friends for presentation on your profile page. Once you have clicked the link simply drag and drop your friends into the order you would like them to appear.
Removing a friend, banning bulletins
Clicking on the "My Friends" navigation link takes you to a page showing all current friends. You can check a box in the right column to delete them and also select a box to not allow bulletins to come from them.
Using River Valley Voice Marketplace to Help Drive Traffic and Increase Sales Please read below for best practices on how to help increase traffic into your business. Also find how to use the tools Social Marketplace offers to help you reach out and engage with your customer base, ultimately allowing you to generate leads and convert
them into sales.
Marketplace helps you build bridges, start conversations and maintain relationships with your most valuable asset –CONSUMERS.
River Valley Voice Marketplace – Marketing Tools at your Fingertips
You now have the tools to invest a little of your time and gain rich rewards. By enhancing your business profile page and updating with relevant offers, news and events you are able reach out and engage with the consumers in your community. The more work you put in the more reward you will reap.
River Valley Voice Marketplace - A Link Building Tool
Your enhanced profile has a happy side effect - it helps to build your link profile so you will gain search engine traffic in the long term. Becoming a part of an online community is essential to your social optimization and this, in turn, will naturally provide links to your website.
Example: When a user recommends your business, your logo is displayed within their profile page. Other community members visiting that users page will see your business logo as a recommended business and can click directly into your business profile page.
River Valley Voice Marketplace – Attract and Retain Site Visitors
Update your business profile with photos of your products, storefront and friendly employees . Upload videos that highlight your expertise and show the visitors more about what you offer. Use special offers or coupons to attract and reward loyal customers. Change these on a timely basis to keep them fresh.
Put a face to your business by adding a business description to tell your visitors what you offer and who you are. Use this area as you would a TV Spot. Remember, this is digital word-of-mouth, so keep the experience appealing to your visitors, to attract the positive word-of-mouth that you want
River Valley Voice Marketplace – Use your Blog
One of the purposes of blogging is to exhibit your expertise on a subject related to your business. If you spend 8 hours a day working on your passion or skill set you have knowledge and perspective that the average person doesn’t have - and doesn’t have the time to develop.
They want someone - you! - to give them the benefit of the time and energy you’ve put into gaining that knowledge.
The key to establishing your expertise and using it to develop loyalty with your customers is:
Tell them what you know
Admit what you don’t know
Your customers don’t expect you to know everything. And they would be skeptical if you claimed that you did.
If you’re honest, you will build trust. When people trust you, they will do business with you.
Blog posts tend to attract links from other blog posts and those in turn will spread the word of your business page. The more popular your blog becomes, the more value it is perceived to offer and the more visitors you will continue to get.
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