If you've been building websites to market products and services you've been disappointed on more than one occasion. Most likely you're disappointed right now. And your disappointment is directly related to the lack of large volumes of quality traffic that boost your Google ranking. Let's look at a basic low-tech approach that can make a difference.
If you're too new to the business, or too stuck on a routine that isn't returning enough results for your investment of time and energy...pay attention.
Don't turn the page just because I'm about to mention the "A" word. Pound for pound and minute for minute invested, article writing is the very best method for building traffic and back links for your product and service websites. While it's not rocket science, it is a process that takes a reasonable amount of focus on the details.
If you've tried article writing and failed miserably, don't fret, you have lots of company. I too gave up for nearly two years before I finally got it. The name of the game is persistence. If I had spent the two years I was trying other methods on learning the tricks of the trade for article marketing, I'd be writing this article from Maui! So follow these steps and you'll succeed:
First...Decide right now that no matter what, you will commit yourself to writing no less than 5 articles a week. Pick your niche or write about the products and services you're currently promoting. But write no less than 5 articles a week, every week for the next 12 months.
Second...Submit your articles to only the top producing article sites, and there are about 5 that deserve your attention. Because it's the one the majority of marketers swear by I will join them by suggesting you start with EzineArticles. You won't want to promote several links in your article, which is clearly explained in their robust and clearly written instructions.
The biggest benefit of your well written article is backlinks. Backlinks grow over time and as they build up, your Google rank follows.
Finally...Balance your time between tweaking your websites to make them sticky. What this means is look your websites over carefully from your customer's point of view. Do they look like ad or banner farms? Or do they look like a place where you can find good, easy to read information about the niche you're promoting?
You'll want to make sure your website design is focused on making your sites friendly places were people want to stay and look around. This is stickiness and you definitely want your websites to be the sticky places online.
Millions of people go to the Internet to look for information. In the process of finding information they make purchases of products and services. Millions of people do not go to the Internet to look for products and services and in the process find information. Don't get it twisted...
Ciao,
Doc Rich
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
Sunday, August 3, 2008
Don't Lose Sight Of The Forest For The Sleaze
Search engine optimization is a tedious process, however, it is so necessary it cannot be overlooked without dire consequences. Often, as I am researching a new approach to building website traffic, I'll discover a "New Almost Blackhat" approach to building traffic. The recent next best thing related to an idea about getting into "that" business that perports to earn thousands a day from a sleazy market.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not being judgemental, business is business. But hype is also hype, no matter what clothes it wears. Plus, if you're seriously working hard to build a ton of quality traffic to your websites it's going to take time to build it right. And here's what many of the hype artists are missing.
Your brand is not the catchy brand name or domain name or product/service you're promoting. Your brand is YOU. I've happened upon faded domains that were launched years ago. Information in the Internet has a very long life span. In the case of your good name and reputation, it sticks to you like Crazy Glue.
It's easy to understand that a quicker way is always attractive, however, at what price? If your short cuts are stable and based on good practices that stand the test of time, go for it and don't use your brakes. But, if you're moving toward so-called blackhat techniques and stuff that has to be done under aliases and multiple proxies, take some time to think it through in regard to all the possibilities.
I Googled a website a few days ago that has been performing consistently in a very hot niche for several years. While this was not the biggest player in the field, this site's 7200 backlinks impressed me. This is a very very PG site and business is as robust as it can be for what they're doing.
I did a cost/revenue/profit analysis on the business and estimated an approximate daily revenue stream of six (6) figures. That's what happens long term...not over night. And definitely not with short cuts and blackhat tactics that get you shut down....eventually.
Ciao,
Doc Rich
Don't get me wrong, I'm not being judgemental, business is business. But hype is also hype, no matter what clothes it wears. Plus, if you're seriously working hard to build a ton of quality traffic to your websites it's going to take time to build it right. And here's what many of the hype artists are missing.
Your brand is not the catchy brand name or domain name or product/service you're promoting. Your brand is YOU. I've happened upon faded domains that were launched years ago. Information in the Internet has a very long life span. In the case of your good name and reputation, it sticks to you like Crazy Glue.
It's easy to understand that a quicker way is always attractive, however, at what price? If your short cuts are stable and based on good practices that stand the test of time, go for it and don't use your brakes. But, if you're moving toward so-called blackhat techniques and stuff that has to be done under aliases and multiple proxies, take some time to think it through in regard to all the possibilities.
I Googled a website a few days ago that has been performing consistently in a very hot niche for several years. While this was not the biggest player in the field, this site's 7200 backlinks impressed me. This is a very very PG site and business is as robust as it can be for what they're doing.
I did a cost/revenue/profit analysis on the business and estimated an approximate daily revenue stream of six (6) figures. That's what happens long term...not over night. And definitely not with short cuts and blackhat tactics that get you shut down....eventually.
Ciao,
Doc Rich
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Knowledge is Power....But Don't Buy Yourself Broke!
It may sound like I'm talking myself out of a few paychecks, however, I've always believed it's better to share the secrets that made me successful. So here goes:
In order for you to compete successfully as an Internet Marketer, you have to learn more than your competitors. Your first priority, if you have not done so already, is to find the best Internet marketing resources you can find. It's most important to understand this information, worth litterally millions of dollars, is available free of charge.
You begin your search on Google. Most us begin with US Government listings for business and marketing information. For example, the SBA provides mentoring and business consultation including everything from start-up to ongoing day by operational advice.
If you have started a business within the past few months without the benefit of a formal business plan or checking with the SBA, you have already made two mistakes that will most likely result in a business that statistically will fold within the next 6 months.
Knowledge is Powerful but don't waste your time or you money on high priced books and programs that pretend to offer proven riches. Start with the free resources, especially those provided by the government. You'll be way ahead of your competitors. Based on current statistics 85% of your competitors will be out of business before Christmas!
For more details about making money online check Top SEO Tips
In order for you to compete successfully as an Internet Marketer, you have to learn more than your competitors. Your first priority, if you have not done so already, is to find the best Internet marketing resources you can find. It's most important to understand this information, worth litterally millions of dollars, is available free of charge.
You begin your search on Google. Most us begin with US Government listings for business and marketing information. For example, the SBA provides mentoring and business consultation including everything from start-up to ongoing day by operational advice.
If you have started a business within the past few months without the benefit of a formal business plan or checking with the SBA, you have already made two mistakes that will most likely result in a business that statistically will fold within the next 6 months.
Knowledge is Powerful but don't waste your time or you money on high priced books and programs that pretend to offer proven riches. Start with the free resources, especially those provided by the government. You'll be way ahead of your competitors. Based on current statistics 85% of your competitors will be out of business before Christmas!
For more details about making money online check Top SEO Tips
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
It's All About Traffic
This afternoon it hit me smack in the head. Most marketers run from offer to offer and idea to idea, especially when the deal is hot and the testimonials are convincing.
Naturally, if you have a service or product driven business you'd be crazy to pass on a hot deal. Here's what you want to add to your decision making process:
Starting from scratch with a new promotion means you not only have to shift gears, you have to change over all of your marketing options, including search friendly keywords. Otherwise, you'll still be trying to drag your other prospects into an area of no interest. So what do you do?
You stick with the basics and start over by creating a brand new campaign. Simple as this sounds it is the #1 reason for the failures experienced by most marketers.
Marketing a successful promotion is not a one-size-fits-all type of process. Each and every item, product or service must have a custom made presentation and strategy.
Otherwise you'll be way off course in regard to results...namely traffic. It's all about traffic....website traffic that is.
Naturally, if you have a service or product driven business you'd be crazy to pass on a hot deal. Here's what you want to add to your decision making process:
Starting from scratch with a new promotion means you not only have to shift gears, you have to change over all of your marketing options, including search friendly keywords. Otherwise, you'll still be trying to drag your other prospects into an area of no interest. So what do you do?
You stick with the basics and start over by creating a brand new campaign. Simple as this sounds it is the #1 reason for the failures experienced by most marketers.
Marketing a successful promotion is not a one-size-fits-all type of process. Each and every item, product or service must have a custom made presentation and strategy.
Otherwise you'll be way off course in regard to results...namely traffic. It's all about traffic....website traffic that is.
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
It All About Keeping It Fresh
It's probably the last thing you think about most days. But if you are not constantly tweaking the freshness of your web pages' content you're missing the boat....or Boatload of Dollars that are trying to find their way to your bank account.
Search engine optimization AKA SEO, is not a hit it and check back next month type of process. You'll be well served to check a batch of your key words each day. Naturally, this depends on the size of your website and how much content or verbiage you post on your pages.
Often you'll find the public changes their mind when it comes to how they enter search phrases into a search box. Blame the media for coining phrases as often as talking heads change their ties. Your best resource for keeping up with the jargon is to scan the online headlines and your favorite forums.
Don't be afraid to experiment with your wording when you're ready to freshen up your pages. Using savvy or humorous phrases can make a huge difference in your web pages' ranking...which can change overnight!
Always remember, Google is your friend. This is especially true if you change your sentences and phrases often. New, fresh content is the key to success when the subject of success is content. Naturally, you'll want to goggle your long-stem keywords and your taglines and keep them relevent. Once you start you'll see the difference and you'll learn this is time well spent.
Search engine optimization AKA SEO, is not a hit it and check back next month type of process. You'll be well served to check a batch of your key words each day. Naturally, this depends on the size of your website and how much content or verbiage you post on your pages.
Often you'll find the public changes their mind when it comes to how they enter search phrases into a search box. Blame the media for coining phrases as often as talking heads change their ties. Your best resource for keeping up with the jargon is to scan the online headlines and your favorite forums.
Don't be afraid to experiment with your wording when you're ready to freshen up your pages. Using savvy or humorous phrases can make a huge difference in your web pages' ranking...which can change overnight!
Always remember, Google is your friend. This is especially true if you change your sentences and phrases often. New, fresh content is the key to success when the subject of success is content. Naturally, you'll want to goggle your long-stem keywords and your taglines and keep them relevent. Once you start you'll see the difference and you'll learn this is time well spent.
Saturday, March 8, 2008
Social BookMarking for Search Engine Optimization
StumbleUpon (http://drrich.stumbleupon.com/) is by far one of the most popular Web 2.0 sites.
The concept behind StumbleUpon is simple – it enables its users to submit news stories that they find interesting. Other users then vote on the submitted story. If they like it, they will mark it with a StumbleUpon thumbs up icon. Otherwise, they will pass it by. The more thumbs up a story receives, the more popular it becomes and is ranked higher. The highest ranking stories or articles are featured on the homepage of the website.
So, how can you use the power of StumbleUpon to drive traffic to YOUR website?
The basic fundamental rule is to submit content that is useful, informative and interesting to the StumbleUpon community. This makes sure that your story gets more thumbs up and gets more views. More views translate to more traffic for your website.
To submit a story to StumbleUpon, you will need to register a new account. Then, follow the steps below:
Click on the “Submit New” link at the top.
Enter the URL of the article or post or news item you want to submit
Select a proper category and sub-category for your article
Enter a title and description that is interesting and pulls in readers
Click “Submit Story” – THAT’S IT!
If you submit an interesting story that grabs the attention of the whole community, you will get a lot of views to your submission.
A high percentage of those viewers will click through to your StumbleUpon profile where you can provide a link to your website. If you’ve read through the above carefully, you must have realize just how powerful StumbleUpon can be. The more people click through to your profile (or story), the more traffic you can generate to your website.
Another method of generating traffic through StumbleUpon is to comment on stories submitted by other people. StumbleUpon allows users to post their comments and thoughts about other submissions. If you comment upon relevant stories that relate to your website and leave a link back to your website, more people are likely to click through to see your website.
DEL.ICIO.US TRAFFIC
Delicious (http://www.del.icio.us/) is another social bookmarking website that’s hot at the moment. The “hotlist” on the home page of Del.icio.us is a list of links that have been made popular by the users of the site.
As is obvious, any site listed on the home page is bound to get HUGE amount of traffic because it is displayed millions of times in a day to a wide audience.
Many internet marketers are using it to drive traffic to their site and now you will be able to do the same! When posting your site to Del.icio.us, you must understand what kinds of sites are usually popular there. If you can tune into what the huge community at Del.icio.us, you’re bound to get a lot of traffic.
Articles providing “How-To” information are very popular among users on Del.icio.us. Share some techniques or unique methods to achieve something and make sure you include the words “How To” in your title. This will increase the chances of your link appearing on the home page. For example – “How To Write Articles in 5 Easy Steps” etc.
Another popular topic is lists. You can create a numbered list of things, say – “10 Worst Celebrity Moments of the Year” or “10 Tips to Buying the Right Car for Your Son” etc.
If your post or article includes something that can motivate or inspire the readers, you can easily make it to the hotlist. All you need is a good enough story and a compelling and attractive title. For example, you can share a story of a person’s life struggles or how someone had a narrow escape from death. These kinds of stories go a long way on Del.icio.us. However, you must always have authentic and true content.
HOW TO DRIVE TRAFFIC THE WEB 2.0 WAY WITHOUT DOING THE ‘GRUNT’ WORK
Till now I’ve shown you how you can take advantage of Web 2.0 sites in order to generate traffic to your website. Now I’m going to let you in on a secret which will allow you to generate even more traffic through these websites, without you having to do all the ‘grunt’ work of submitting and posting content to these websites.
All you need to do is get OTHER people to submit and vote for your website – EVERYTIME!
Just like you, there are other webmasters looking to have their websites submitted, voted and reviewed on these social websites. And if you do this for them, they are willing to vote for your website in return.
Your only job is to find such people. And how do you do that? That’s EXACTLY what I’m going to share with you here.
There are two ways you can get others to vote or review your website. Either you can buy a paid service that gets you a particular number of votes and/or reviews OR you can go in for barter services where you will have to vote for their link/website in return.
Either way, it’s a WIN-WIN situation for both you and the other webmaster.
My website of choice is Digital Point Forums at: http://forums.digitalpoint.com/
This forum has a specific section for selling and exchanging Digg’s (or StumbleUpon’s etc.). You will usually be able to find at least FIVE such offers listed at any given time.
So head on over to the “Buy, Sell or Trade” forum at http://forums.digitalpoint.com/forumdisplay.php?f=24 and browser through the offers available there. Some would be paid, others would be reciprocal offers.
The main sub-forums you have to look at are the “Freebies” forum (for barter offers) and the Services forum.
Look out for titles of posts that say something like “1:7 Stumbles” or “Social bookmarking packages” etc.
The ratio 1:7 means that you will have to StumbleUpon 1 link for the poster and in return, he/she will StumbleUpon 7 links for you. These are the kinds of deals you must look for.
In the Services sub-forum, you would be able to buy a considerably higher number of submissions to a particular Web 2.0 site (say, Digg.com). This would help you in getting your website on the homepage. Or you can buy submissions to a lot of Web 2.0 sites at once instead of concentrating on one site.
No matter which service you take up, always be weary of scammers. Most of the posters are authentic but you never when you get to meet a black sheep. Try to ask for proof of submission (these are usually already provided). You can also check with other users who have used the service and ask them about their experience.
Another website where you can find web traffic exchange offers is Unlimited Web Traffic at http://www.8webtraffic.com/
And, don’t forget to build your OWN network of friends. Whenever you StumbleUpon or Digg someone’s website, you can usually add them as a friend. This way, you can slowly build a large network of friends who will help you get your site to the top easily.
Some things to keep in mind while using services on the forum are:
ALWAYS cross-check that the poster is honest. Satisfied buyers usually post testimonials (unsolicited or otherwise) on the same thread and that is certainly a positive site. Also check out how long someone has been a member and what his/her recent posts have been like.
Whenever you go in for reciprocal submissions, make sure you do submit the posters link in return. This helps you build a good reputation on the forum.
Always follow the forum rules. One major requirement is for new users to have at least 25 posts to their credit before they can post in the Buy, Sell or Trade forum. Take part in the discussions on the forum, share what you know and learn new things. You are not there only for the submission services. By building a reputation of being a helpful user, you can get some unbelievable offers too!
Every time someone submits your site, thank them and also add them as a friend on the said site. This way, they will be notified when you post a new site and they are more likely to help you bring it to the top since you are a friend.
That’s all I have to share with you. Web 2.0 sites can act as a HUGE traffic source if used correctly. The key is to provide useful information to the target users on these websites. As long as you’re doing that, you can be SURE that your websites will see a surge in traffic.
For SEO Tips that are updated every 24 hours visit http://www.squidoo.com/how_to_increase_website_traffic
The concept behind StumbleUpon is simple – it enables its users to submit news stories that they find interesting. Other users then vote on the submitted story. If they like it, they will mark it with a StumbleUpon thumbs up icon. Otherwise, they will pass it by. The more thumbs up a story receives, the more popular it becomes and is ranked higher. The highest ranking stories or articles are featured on the homepage of the website.
So, how can you use the power of StumbleUpon to drive traffic to YOUR website?
The basic fundamental rule is to submit content that is useful, informative and interesting to the StumbleUpon community. This makes sure that your story gets more thumbs up and gets more views. More views translate to more traffic for your website.
To submit a story to StumbleUpon, you will need to register a new account. Then, follow the steps below:
Click on the “Submit New” link at the top.
Enter the URL of the article or post or news item you want to submit
Select a proper category and sub-category for your article
Enter a title and description that is interesting and pulls in readers
Click “Submit Story” – THAT’S IT!
If you submit an interesting story that grabs the attention of the whole community, you will get a lot of views to your submission.
A high percentage of those viewers will click through to your StumbleUpon profile where you can provide a link to your website. If you’ve read through the above carefully, you must have realize just how powerful StumbleUpon can be. The more people click through to your profile (or story), the more traffic you can generate to your website.
Another method of generating traffic through StumbleUpon is to comment on stories submitted by other people. StumbleUpon allows users to post their comments and thoughts about other submissions. If you comment upon relevant stories that relate to your website and leave a link back to your website, more people are likely to click through to see your website.
DEL.ICIO.US TRAFFIC
Delicious (http://www.del.icio.us/) is another social bookmarking website that’s hot at the moment. The “hotlist” on the home page of Del.icio.us is a list of links that have been made popular by the users of the site.
As is obvious, any site listed on the home page is bound to get HUGE amount of traffic because it is displayed millions of times in a day to a wide audience.
Many internet marketers are using it to drive traffic to their site and now you will be able to do the same! When posting your site to Del.icio.us, you must understand what kinds of sites are usually popular there. If you can tune into what the huge community at Del.icio.us, you’re bound to get a lot of traffic.
Articles providing “How-To” information are very popular among users on Del.icio.us. Share some techniques or unique methods to achieve something and make sure you include the words “How To” in your title. This will increase the chances of your link appearing on the home page. For example – “How To Write Articles in 5 Easy Steps” etc.
Another popular topic is lists. You can create a numbered list of things, say – “10 Worst Celebrity Moments of the Year” or “10 Tips to Buying the Right Car for Your Son” etc.
If your post or article includes something that can motivate or inspire the readers, you can easily make it to the hotlist. All you need is a good enough story and a compelling and attractive title. For example, you can share a story of a person’s life struggles or how someone had a narrow escape from death. These kinds of stories go a long way on Del.icio.us. However, you must always have authentic and true content.
HOW TO DRIVE TRAFFIC THE WEB 2.0 WAY WITHOUT DOING THE ‘GRUNT’ WORK
Till now I’ve shown you how you can take advantage of Web 2.0 sites in order to generate traffic to your website. Now I’m going to let you in on a secret which will allow you to generate even more traffic through these websites, without you having to do all the ‘grunt’ work of submitting and posting content to these websites.
All you need to do is get OTHER people to submit and vote for your website – EVERYTIME!
Just like you, there are other webmasters looking to have their websites submitted, voted and reviewed on these social websites. And if you do this for them, they are willing to vote for your website in return.
Your only job is to find such people. And how do you do that? That’s EXACTLY what I’m going to share with you here.
There are two ways you can get others to vote or review your website. Either you can buy a paid service that gets you a particular number of votes and/or reviews OR you can go in for barter services where you will have to vote for their link/website in return.
Either way, it’s a WIN-WIN situation for both you and the other webmaster.
My website of choice is Digital Point Forums at: http://forums.digitalpoint.com/
This forum has a specific section for selling and exchanging Digg’s (or StumbleUpon’s etc.). You will usually be able to find at least FIVE such offers listed at any given time.
So head on over to the “Buy, Sell or Trade” forum at http://forums.digitalpoint.com/forumdisplay.php?f=24 and browser through the offers available there. Some would be paid, others would be reciprocal offers.
The main sub-forums you have to look at are the “Freebies” forum (for barter offers) and the Services forum.
Look out for titles of posts that say something like “1:7 Stumbles” or “Social bookmarking packages” etc.
The ratio 1:7 means that you will have to StumbleUpon 1 link for the poster and in return, he/she will StumbleUpon 7 links for you. These are the kinds of deals you must look for.
In the Services sub-forum, you would be able to buy a considerably higher number of submissions to a particular Web 2.0 site (say, Digg.com). This would help you in getting your website on the homepage. Or you can buy submissions to a lot of Web 2.0 sites at once instead of concentrating on one site.
No matter which service you take up, always be weary of scammers. Most of the posters are authentic but you never when you get to meet a black sheep. Try to ask for proof of submission (these are usually already provided). You can also check with other users who have used the service and ask them about their experience.
Another website where you can find web traffic exchange offers is Unlimited Web Traffic at http://www.8webtraffic.com/
And, don’t forget to build your OWN network of friends. Whenever you StumbleUpon or Digg someone’s website, you can usually add them as a friend. This way, you can slowly build a large network of friends who will help you get your site to the top easily.
Some things to keep in mind while using services on the forum are:
ALWAYS cross-check that the poster is honest. Satisfied buyers usually post testimonials (unsolicited or otherwise) on the same thread and that is certainly a positive site. Also check out how long someone has been a member and what his/her recent posts have been like.
Whenever you go in for reciprocal submissions, make sure you do submit the posters link in return. This helps you build a good reputation on the forum.
Always follow the forum rules. One major requirement is for new users to have at least 25 posts to their credit before they can post in the Buy, Sell or Trade forum. Take part in the discussions on the forum, share what you know and learn new things. You are not there only for the submission services. By building a reputation of being a helpful user, you can get some unbelievable offers too!
Every time someone submits your site, thank them and also add them as a friend on the said site. This way, they will be notified when you post a new site and they are more likely to help you bring it to the top since you are a friend.
That’s all I have to share with you. Web 2.0 sites can act as a HUGE traffic source if used correctly. The key is to provide useful information to the target users on these websites. As long as you’re doing that, you can be SURE that your websites will see a surge in traffic.
For SEO Tips that are updated every 24 hours visit http://www.squidoo.com/how_to_increase_website_traffic
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Top search engine marketing tips
On July 4th 2007, one of my clients made a decision to declare his commitment to independence. He decided to fast track the opening of his start up business. He told me he would trust his future to my coaching. I felt the pressure but no stress because of his commitment to a 12 month SEO marketing campaign. I wasted no time setting him on course. It all began with my 5 top search engine and marketing tips.
The short version of the story is the revenue for this start-up company moved from $0 to $7 million in monthly revenue in 9 months. The first 30 days were focused on building the foundation and optimizing his websites. After a review of his initial plans it was clear search engine marketing was essential. My five steps for search engine marketing formed the foundation. Here are the main search engine ranking tips that can help fast track any business Internet marketing success.
1. Build a solid foundation. Use a proven keyword search tool like provided by Google or Yahoo. Go for quality rather than quantity once your keyword choices produce results. For example, if your business is related to credit cards, search a variety of combinations e.g. credit card services, qualify credit cards, credit card sources, etc. This starts the ball rolling with hundreds of choices. Select both high popularity and low popularity ranked keywords and merge them into your marketing materials. This is a proven formula for driving waves of traffic to your door.
2. Once the traffic starts to build test several versions of your marketing materials. Do not be stingy with your investment of time, money and sweat that must be poured into testing. Focus on your graphics, colors, fonts, wording, spelling, etc. A side note regarding a recent test. One client experienced a 20% increase in her conversion rate by purposely misspelling four words in various parts of her material. She didn’t place all of the words on the same page and only tested one misspelling on the main page. The point is to TEST TEST TEST and don’t be afraid to take risks. Your focus here is to find the right mix of search engine optimization and results generated through the variety of approaches you try.
3. If your service or product appeals to the 20 something market do not overlook the social media marketing sites. This requires you join and explore you membership to the fullest extent. Join the forums and submit comments, and participate. Remember you’re there to participate and observe, not to promote and sell. Your time investment will pay off larger than any sales you might be lucky enough to make. This is especially important if you are older than the prevailing members. This is a huge marketplace and the insights you obtain will serve several purposes. The most important take-away is learning about the needs and interest of the energetic, pragmatic, artistic, and just plain folks that make up the largest population segment in the world.
4. SEO articles are a big part of any search engine marketing focus. However, you don’t want to miss most important part of marketing. Namely, your product or service. No mater how flashy or techy or absolutely perfect your product may be, it will not move if your customers don’t understand the value. In this instance value means benefit. Your marketing materials must clearly communicate the answer to “So What?” For example the 70” LCD TV I’m still waiting to arrive from the warehouse wasn’t ordered when I first saw it in November. At that time my 72” Magnavox was still providing the best picture available. Yes the 70” set was newer, more high tech and flashier, but it didn’t provide a good answer for my So What? question. However, once the picture on my other set began to fade the answer to So What? changed. Try to answer the So What question from your prospects perspective and you’ll see the difference in your results.
5. Add testimonials to your SEO marketing materials and don’t be stingy. I always recommend a full page of testimonials to fast track the acceptance of your products. Human nature is a solitary thing in many ways; however, most of us find it easier to make a positive decision when others have already tested the waters so to speak.
5.5 My Bonus Tip.... Start a Blog. If you have not started a blog dedicated to your start-up business you’re missing out. Simple blogs take about 20 minutes to start and about an hour or less a week to maintain...unless you’re serious. The benefit is credibility. Let’s face it. You’re the expert on your business and your service or product. No one knows it like you do. In fact, no one knows you like you know yourself. In today’s reality TV crazy world, everyone wants to know as much as they can about anyone they haven’t met, especially if they share themselves in a public forum. Blogs are a perfect way to begin your PR campaign, especially when it comes to search engine marketing. Stay tuned for more SEO marketing tips.
The short version of the story is the revenue for this start-up company moved from $0 to $7 million in monthly revenue in 9 months. The first 30 days were focused on building the foundation and optimizing his websites. After a review of his initial plans it was clear search engine marketing was essential. My five steps for search engine marketing formed the foundation. Here are the main search engine ranking tips that can help fast track any business Internet marketing success.
1. Build a solid foundation. Use a proven keyword search tool like provided by Google or Yahoo. Go for quality rather than quantity once your keyword choices produce results. For example, if your business is related to credit cards, search a variety of combinations e.g. credit card services, qualify credit cards, credit card sources, etc. This starts the ball rolling with hundreds of choices. Select both high popularity and low popularity ranked keywords and merge them into your marketing materials. This is a proven formula for driving waves of traffic to your door.
2. Once the traffic starts to build test several versions of your marketing materials. Do not be stingy with your investment of time, money and sweat that must be poured into testing. Focus on your graphics, colors, fonts, wording, spelling, etc. A side note regarding a recent test. One client experienced a 20% increase in her conversion rate by purposely misspelling four words in various parts of her material. She didn’t place all of the words on the same page and only tested one misspelling on the main page. The point is to TEST TEST TEST and don’t be afraid to take risks. Your focus here is to find the right mix of search engine optimization and results generated through the variety of approaches you try.
3. If your service or product appeals to the 20 something market do not overlook the social media marketing sites. This requires you join and explore you membership to the fullest extent. Join the forums and submit comments, and participate. Remember you’re there to participate and observe, not to promote and sell. Your time investment will pay off larger than any sales you might be lucky enough to make. This is especially important if you are older than the prevailing members. This is a huge marketplace and the insights you obtain will serve several purposes. The most important take-away is learning about the needs and interest of the energetic, pragmatic, artistic, and just plain folks that make up the largest population segment in the world.
4. SEO articles are a big part of any search engine marketing focus. However, you don’t want to miss most important part of marketing. Namely, your product or service. No mater how flashy or techy or absolutely perfect your product may be, it will not move if your customers don’t understand the value. In this instance value means benefit. Your marketing materials must clearly communicate the answer to “So What?” For example the 70” LCD TV I’m still waiting to arrive from the warehouse wasn’t ordered when I first saw it in November. At that time my 72” Magnavox was still providing the best picture available. Yes the 70” set was newer, more high tech and flashier, but it didn’t provide a good answer for my So What? question. However, once the picture on my other set began to fade the answer to So What? changed. Try to answer the So What question from your prospects perspective and you’ll see the difference in your results.
5. Add testimonials to your SEO marketing materials and don’t be stingy. I always recommend a full page of testimonials to fast track the acceptance of your products. Human nature is a solitary thing in many ways; however, most of us find it easier to make a positive decision when others have already tested the waters so to speak.
5.5 My Bonus Tip.... Start a Blog. If you have not started a blog dedicated to your start-up business you’re missing out. Simple blogs take about 20 minutes to start and about an hour or less a week to maintain...unless you’re serious. The benefit is credibility. Let’s face it. You’re the expert on your business and your service or product. No one knows it like you do. In fact, no one knows you like you know yourself. In today’s reality TV crazy world, everyone wants to know as much as they can about anyone they haven’t met, especially if they share themselves in a public forum. Blogs are a perfect way to begin your PR campaign, especially when it comes to search engine marketing. Stay tuned for more SEO marketing tips.
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