MiraCosta College Course Helps Local Business Garner National Attention

When Oceanside entrepreneur Elaine Swann enrolled in a pair of business classes at MiraCosta College’s Oceanside Campus, she said she was simply looking for ways to boost traffic to her website.

She got far more than she bargained for.

The tips that Swann picked up from her Business 138 - Advertising and Promotions class were so successful in boosting the search engine optimization to her site that a nationally syndicated talk show came calling.

Producers of The Ricki Lake Show were doing an Internet search looking for an expert on etiquette when they quickly found ElaineSwann.com, a link to Elaine Swann Enterprises and its array of etiquette-related services. They called, and Swann was booked as a guest on the show that aired Dec. 20.

“We put into use what we learned in that class, and I really believe that the changes we made to the website led to my appearance on the show,” Swann said. 

Included among the changes was more effective labeling of web pages, along with optimizing key words on the site. “Unless you are utilizing the key words and title tags on your website, it will be less likely to show up when someone is doing a web search,” Swann said.

Swann is among the hundreds of North County residents who return to MiraCosta College campuses in Oceanside and Cardiff for classes that can further their career. Many of these students have earned their bachelor’s degree from a four-year college, but return to boost their professional development and get ahead in the workplace.

Swann attended MiraCosta College a decade ago and earned her associate of arts degree before opening her business, but decided to enroll this fall in the Advertising and Promotions class, in addition to a marketing course. 

Swann said her etiquette business – which she says provides “a complete and total resource for people in terms of etiquette” and includes workshops and seminars – has attracted additional customers since she took the courses.

“They helped me reshape the blueprint for my business,” she said.

“Whether you have already graduated or if you are just trying to figure out what you want to do in life, you have a great resource here in the community college,” Swann said. “It is inexpensive and available to everyone.”

For further information, contact Elaine Swann at 760.754.9891 or by visiting www.elaineswann.com.