For a small business, marketing and advertising seek an answer to the question, “How will prospective customers find me?”

People today no longer reply to direct mail. They don’t peruse the phone book. They use television, newspapers, magazines, and other traditional media much less. In fact, they don’t even ask their friends in person. They use Google or they ask their online social contacts. As a result, most small businesses would benefit from enhancing their website presence by blogging and social-media connections.

People can find our website through a keyword search by typing “Marotta on Money” into Google. It took a while before our site was at the top of Google’s list. Initially the collection of articles I have authored on other websites, or even our Twitter site, ranked higher than our own website.

If people are looking for you or your company by name, that type of search is perfect. However, many people who would benefit from your products or services are looking for a solution to a problem, not trying to locate your company by name.

Online marketing focuses on optimizing your content for links and search-engine ranking. The primary principle is to provide remarkable content for your end audience. Sites that concentrate on you and your company are not as effective as those whose central focus is on readers and their needs.

The people searching for your business already know it is the answer to their needs. Everyone else doesn’t really care about you, your company, or your product. They have a question or a problem and want to find the answer. So, don’t construct a website that resembles a brochure. Design each page to offer a specific piece of information, well indexed with the keywords that relate to the question, not the solution.

Ask yourself, “What are readers looking for?” The typical blog post describes how to do X using Y. I have seen pages that provide such advice without using either terms X or Y. Instead, they are filled with keywords about the answer Z. Such unfocused writing makes it difficult for search engines to index and find your post.

Don’t write about your company. Write about what interests your customers. And, give away as much free quality information as you can. Ideally, scores of people will take your advice and share it with their friends. Assuming your advice is knowledgeable and well-reasoned, it will establish your expertise.

Your blog should offer quality information of significant value to your readers, which means digesting and organizing your information. Most people do not have the time to sift through the complex literature in a particular industry. They need you to summarize, simplify, and call them to act on the information.

I’m often asked what financial books I recommend to people who are just getting started. My answer is that most people don’t have time to read the journals, research papers, and books that provide the intellectual support for comprehensive wealth management. Fortunately, they don’t need to. We read widely and summarize a plethora of books and publications in bite-sized chunks with specific calls on our website to act on that information.

Such popularizing of complex financial information creates value for clients and readers alike. If it did not, readers would not subscribe, share, and forward our blog posts.

Blogging is like laundry. It requires a significant effort every week. Quality content has to be written on a regular schedule. It takes people who can write passionately about the subject matter. And it requires effort to craft quality content.

Blogging takes time, but we use our writing efforts to save time. Every time a client asks a financial question, we write a detailed personal answer. But we also save our reply as a potential article, comment, or Q&A. Having quality explanations for common customer questions saves time and effort and helps potential clients understand exactly how they would use your product or services. They know in advance what value they can expect.

Taking the extra time to give away as much free information as possible allows us to focus on helping clients, and tangentially, readers, as much as possible. As a result, we don’t need to push our services. For every hundred readers who benefit from our freely offered advice, we naturally attract qualified clients who want us to help them accomplish what we write about.

Any new publication takes time to gain traction. I’ve been writing a weekly financial column since 2002, but attracting a following took a while. We started a daily financial blog this past summer, and its popularity just surpassed our corporate site, largely because we are offering more information in a more timely manner.

To write quality content, you have to become an expert in your subject matter. You must commit to connecting with people and helping them. And finally, you must be willing to take the time to learn the craft of good writing. These three criteria are the definition of experts in any field. And experts attract those who want their expertise.

We expanded our content at MarottaOnMoney after hearing Thomas Umstattd speak at a conference in Mount Hermon, Calif., just under a year ago. Umstattd, the CEO of Castle Media Group, is knowledgeable, bright, entertaining, and young — in that order. He understands which new media attract people and how giving them what they want is good for business.                       

David John Marotta is president of Marotta Wealth Management, Inc., which provides fee-only financial planning and wealth management. Contact him at emarotta.com or visit www.marottaonmoney.com

Gov. Andrew Cuomo proposed his executive budget recently. Overall, it’s a good start that addresses contentious issues and has the taxpayers in mind. It keeps spending at the same level as last year. It also proposes reforms to Medicaid and the pension system that will reduce the bloated, built-in increases my colleagues and I have talked about for years. Aid to education did increase. However, we still need a more equitable school-aid distribution formula if we are to provide real education reform in this state.

The governor likened this budget to putting the state on a new diet. I like this analogy. You may not see results overnight, but with discipline and a reformed way of living, the state will reduce its cholesterol and weightiness. I wanted to take some time this week to provide some highlights of the governor’s budget speech on Jan. 17. 

Medicaid

The lion’s share of our counties’ budgets goes to pay for Medicaid. In Oswego County, the cost is estimated at 66 percent of the total budget. In Onondaga County, costs were estimated at $100 million in 2011 — the largest portion of its budget as well. Earlier this year, I signed onto legislation that would require the state to take over the local share of Medicaid. A number of years ago, the state did cap the local share of the growth of Medicaid. The governor’s budget, while not proposing a total takeover, is lowering that cap so that eventually, the counties will not be responsible for any increase in Medicaid.

This would help counties, but it does not completely reduce the bill counties still have to pay. The governor also is proposing reducing the overall cost of Medicaid spending by $136 million. While we still have to reform Medicaid further, the governor’s proposal is a good start to providing some relief to counties.

Education

I was pleased to hear the plan to increase school aid. School districts are still reeling from the two previous budgets, which significantly cut state aid. The governor’s budget proposes an overall 4 percent increase in state aid. Some districts have stated this increase will not help in their overall operating aid and they’ll still be finding ways to trim their budgets. 

To find a report on how the governor’s proposed budget will affect local districts, visit https://stateaid.nysed.gov/output_reports.htm. Type in your district’s name on the left hand side of the page for this report. This report breaks the budget categories down so taxpayers can see how dollars are spent. According to superintendents, a percentage of the increase in aid will go to pay for state mandates associated with transportation, students with disabilities, and BOCES.

Pension reform

The governor is proposing a new Tier VI. This is a big step toward real budget reform and is expected to save the state billions of dollars over a period of time. The governor estimates savings of $83 billion over the next 30 years. New York City estimates a savings of $30 billion over the same time period.

With the proposed Tier VI, those hired after April 1, 2012, would have the choice to (a) opt into a defined-benefit system with a retirement option, or (b) opt into a defined-contribution option, that would offer public employees a 401(k)-style retirement benefit, similar to plans found in the private sector. 

Employees who opt for the 401(k)-style contribution plan would be able to transfer their benefits, even after being employed just one year. This is a big change in the way government employees are currently managed. With this new proposal, we’re enabling public employees to take their pensions with them if they choose another career or another employer.

This budget sets the tone for negotiations going forward. While more work needs to be done, I’m hopeful the process will be transparent and that the full legislature will be involved in negotiations, rather than just three men in a room.         

William (Will) A. Barclay is the Republican representative of the 124th New York Assembly District, which encompasses parts of Oswego and Onondaga counties, including Oswego, Fulton, Camillus, and Skaneateles. Contact him at barclaw@assembly.state.ny.us or call (315) 598-5185.