You need traffic, and Google can give you traffic. There are two ways that Google can send traffic to your site: an expensive way and a way to get traffic for free. I'm going to show you how to make Google give you traffic for free.
You don't want just any traffic, you want TARGETED traffic. For those not familiar with the terminology, targeted traffic refers to clicks to your website from people who are actually interested in the topic of your site. Your marketing will be much more effective if your clicks are targeted. Here is an example of targeted marketing. Imagine a salesman who is trying to sell dental chairs. He puts together a flyer describing the great benefits of his particular brand of chair, and he decides to give the flyers to people. Which group of people do you think will respond better to his flyer - a group women at a scrapbooking convention, or a group of dentists at an American Dental Association meeting? It's a no brainer! But better yet, what if he went to a seminar called, "How To Start Your First Dental Practice From Scratch." These guys are already in the mindset to buy dental chairs. That’s targeted traffic.
When I started my first online business, I went straight to Google Adwords. This is one of the fastest ways to get targeted traffic. Basically, you pay Google to have your ad appear on the right side of the browser. You do this by bidding on keywords. When someone types your keywords into Google, the ad appears. Just go to Google and type anything into the search box. If you look on the right side of the screen, you will see little three-line ads. You probably didn't even know these were ads. Not only are they ads, but people are paying every time you click on those ads. This is the perfect kind of targeted traffic because people are actually searching for your topic.
So when I started my first Adwords campaign, slowly but surely I developed a targeted marketing campaign that was sending 40 to 50 visitors to my site. These people were ready to buy what I was selling. And they did; but at what price! I was spending $80 per day in advertising. Way too much! I was only making about $100 in sales per day (and not that each day), so after subtracting advertising costs, my net income was only $20 per day. If I could only get traffic without paying for it, my yearly income would increase from $7,300.00 per year ($20/day x 365 days) to $36,500 per year ($100/day x 365 days). By now you’re probably wondering how you get free targeted traffic – well I'm going to tell you in the next few paragraphs.
When I realized how much I was spending on advertising, I started to research methods of getting free targeted traffic; often referred to as search engine optimization (SEO) techniques. If your site appears on the first page of results for a Google search, then you get free traffic. Not only that, it is targeted traffic because someone has just typed in the phrase or keyword related to your site. So how do you get on the first page? In order to understand this, you need to know a little about how Google ranks their pages. It all comes down to one principle: Google wants to provide high quality search results, so they want to rank relevant links higher than irrelevant links. One of their methods of determining relevancy is to count how many other websites are linked to your site. These are called "back links." The assumption is that, the more links to your site, the more relevant your site must be.
Armed with this knowledge, I went out and bought some links. You may not know this, but there are actually companies that will allow you to buy a link on their web pages. I bought one link for $20 per month, another for $75 per month. It was much cheaper than Adwords, but it didn't get me ranked any higher, and it didn't get me much extra traffic. Two links was just not enough links to rank me higher on Google. What I needed was a way to get LOTS of back links. Then I heard about an intriguing idea: article marketing.
Article marketing is simple. You write an article, you put a link to your website at the bottom of the article (in the author information area). Then you post your article to an "article site." That's it. For every article that you post, you get a link to your site. And not only that, it's a targeted link because the content of your article will be related to the content of your website. It is best to post to as many article sites as you can. Every time Google sees a new targeted link to your site, it will rank you a little higher. There are literally hundreds of article sites and they are all looking for fresh content. Post your article to as many as you can find. Presto! Now you have tons of back links. That is article marketing. It's that simple. And it's free.
At first, I manually posted to about seven article sites. This was fairly time consuming. I immediately notice a few extra hits to my site. But in order for article marketing to be cost effective to me, I needed a way to post to hundreds of article sites quickly and easily. Then I heard about article submission software. Basically, this software has a list of article sites in it and it guides you through the process of mass posting your article to multiple sites. So I posted the article to about 200 sites. Bam! Now my site is ranked #2 for a certain keyword combination. This is effective search engine optimization. This is article marketing.
That's it. Now you know how to make Google work for you. You no longer have to work for Google by paying for Adwords. Plus you can contribute a helpful article to the internet and make tons of money doing it. Put article marketing to work for you today. Write an article, post it, make a link, and make more money!
Showing posts with label article submission. Show all posts
Showing posts with label article submission. Show all posts
Saturday, June 18, 2011
Stop Undermining Your Article Submissions!
Your web site plays an integral role in your article submission strategy. If it isn't up to par, your article submission projects won't produce much in the way of results.
To support your efforts in writing and submitting articles, you need a solid workhorse, which is the job of your web site. It's not just for looks, but rather serves the purpose of offering something of value to your target audience and converting browsers to faithful readers, loyal newsletter subscribers and committed buyers!
On the Internet, just like with bricks-n-mortar businesses, appearance is critical. Use these strategies to elevate your web site giving it literal curb appeal and improving your business, which translates to more article acceptances and more exposure in your target market!
* Cut the Pomp and Circumstance
As with so many elements of the Internet, the use of a Splash Page featuring fancy graphics and an Enter button is obsolete. Most people find them irritating and won't even venture past this point to see the rest of your web site, so delete your splash page now!
* Professionalism
If your web site looks the Internet Amateur Hour, you're probably turning off prospects. Quality clients/customers won't do business with you if your image is unprofessional. Make sure that pages are neat and organized featuring content that's easily readable. Be consistent in formatting from page-to-page to prevent a thrown-together look.
* Focus
Just like your articles, your web site needs focus. No business fills every need for every consumer, so direct your web site to the prospective clients/customers in your target market. Be clear about the products/services you offer and engage prospects in your specific market by catering to their needs exclusively and better than your competition.
* Presence
Online businesses have to overcome the hurdle of not having face-to-face contact with prospects. Make interaction with you a simple process by providing a contact form, listing a phone number and including an e-mail address on every page.
* Stick to Business
Does your web site look reflect you as a business professional or does it blast prospects with a variety of hard-to-read fonts and excessive graphics? Limit the number of fonts and colors used throughout your site. Use graphics judiciously avoiding slow-loading designs that frustrate prospects.
* Content
They call it king for a reason, so don't dethrone your efforts by featuring the same old content. Give prospects and search engines, plus your regular clients/customers, fresh content that fits your theme and offers value to your target audience.
* Accentuate
Pay special attention to your Articles Page. Include reprint details with your required guidelines above your articles. Use inviting language in your guidelines encouraging publishers to take advantage of your material. Make it convenient for publishers by listing articles alphabetically by title and include a three-line description. Link titles to the actual article page with offer versions in html, pdf and text files.
* Courting Publishers
Publishers are very busy people, so make it easy for them to publish your articles. Offer a separate publisher's only subscription notifying them when you have a new article available.
* Show Your Smile
Potential clients want to know who you are. Include a photo on your Article Page for publishers/editors to use when they reprint your articles. Prospects also appreciate being able to actually see a person because it makes doing business online much more personal.
* Call-to-Action
You're wasting time, effort and valuable space with web pages that don't give clients/customers the opportunity to do business with you! Each page, even your individual article pages, should always include a call-to-action. Strut your stuff by offering prospects your newsletter and/or subscriptions to your exclusive members-only offerings. Streamline the process and gain more clients.
* Testimonials
Share client/customer testimonials with prospects instead of keeping them to yourself. Add at least one testimonial per page including article pages letting prospects know just how valuable others find your products/services.
* Respect Clients/Customers
More than ever, people are concerned with the security of their private information. Establish a clear privacy policy and publish it on your web site and linking to it from each page.
* Guarantee It In Writing
Decide your return/refund policy before your web site goes live! No matter how good your product or service is, at some point, you're going to have an unsatisfied customer. Create a consistent refund policy up front and update it immediately on your web site if you change it.
* Polish The Final Product
Grammatical mistakes like misspellings, improper punctuation, and capitalization errors signal prospects that you're not attentive to detail. Have someone proofread your entire site including your articles to make sure all text is error-free.
So, what's your curb appeal? Your web site is your online office and showroom. Does it make you look like a professional or more like an amateur with a sideline hobby?
Remember, marketing with articles is about generating exposure. Although publishers need articles they may not accept them if your site is poorly designed, disorganized or filled with grammatical errors and outdated content. Put your best foot forward to prospective publishers and clients who come to you through your article submissions. If, despite your best efforts, your web site still needs work consider hiring a professional. You'll quickly recoup the cost of hiring an expert with more sales and increased exposure!
To support your efforts in writing and submitting articles, you need a solid workhorse, which is the job of your web site. It's not just for looks, but rather serves the purpose of offering something of value to your target audience and converting browsers to faithful readers, loyal newsletter subscribers and committed buyers!
On the Internet, just like with bricks-n-mortar businesses, appearance is critical. Use these strategies to elevate your web site giving it literal curb appeal and improving your business, which translates to more article acceptances and more exposure in your target market!
* Cut the Pomp and Circumstance
As with so many elements of the Internet, the use of a Splash Page featuring fancy graphics and an Enter button is obsolete. Most people find them irritating and won't even venture past this point to see the rest of your web site, so delete your splash page now!
* Professionalism
If your web site looks the Internet Amateur Hour, you're probably turning off prospects. Quality clients/customers won't do business with you if your image is unprofessional. Make sure that pages are neat and organized featuring content that's easily readable. Be consistent in formatting from page-to-page to prevent a thrown-together look.
* Focus
Just like your articles, your web site needs focus. No business fills every need for every consumer, so direct your web site to the prospective clients/customers in your target market. Be clear about the products/services you offer and engage prospects in your specific market by catering to their needs exclusively and better than your competition.
* Presence
Online businesses have to overcome the hurdle of not having face-to-face contact with prospects. Make interaction with you a simple process by providing a contact form, listing a phone number and including an e-mail address on every page.
* Stick to Business
Does your web site look reflect you as a business professional or does it blast prospects with a variety of hard-to-read fonts and excessive graphics? Limit the number of fonts and colors used throughout your site. Use graphics judiciously avoiding slow-loading designs that frustrate prospects.
* Content
They call it king for a reason, so don't dethrone your efforts by featuring the same old content. Give prospects and search engines, plus your regular clients/customers, fresh content that fits your theme and offers value to your target audience.
* Accentuate
Pay special attention to your Articles Page. Include reprint details with your required guidelines above your articles. Use inviting language in your guidelines encouraging publishers to take advantage of your material. Make it convenient for publishers by listing articles alphabetically by title and include a three-line description. Link titles to the actual article page with offer versions in html, pdf and text files.
* Courting Publishers
Publishers are very busy people, so make it easy for them to publish your articles. Offer a separate publisher's only subscription notifying them when you have a new article available.
* Show Your Smile
Potential clients want to know who you are. Include a photo on your Article Page for publishers/editors to use when they reprint your articles. Prospects also appreciate being able to actually see a person because it makes doing business online much more personal.
* Call-to-Action
You're wasting time, effort and valuable space with web pages that don't give clients/customers the opportunity to do business with you! Each page, even your individual article pages, should always include a call-to-action. Strut your stuff by offering prospects your newsletter and/or subscriptions to your exclusive members-only offerings. Streamline the process and gain more clients.
* Testimonials
Share client/customer testimonials with prospects instead of keeping them to yourself. Add at least one testimonial per page including article pages letting prospects know just how valuable others find your products/services.
* Respect Clients/Customers
More than ever, people are concerned with the security of their private information. Establish a clear privacy policy and publish it on your web site and linking to it from each page.
* Guarantee It In Writing
Decide your return/refund policy before your web site goes live! No matter how good your product or service is, at some point, you're going to have an unsatisfied customer. Create a consistent refund policy up front and update it immediately on your web site if you change it.
* Polish The Final Product
Grammatical mistakes like misspellings, improper punctuation, and capitalization errors signal prospects that you're not attentive to detail. Have someone proofread your entire site including your articles to make sure all text is error-free.
So, what's your curb appeal? Your web site is your online office and showroom. Does it make you look like a professional or more like an amateur with a sideline hobby?
Remember, marketing with articles is about generating exposure. Although publishers need articles they may not accept them if your site is poorly designed, disorganized or filled with grammatical errors and outdated content. Put your best foot forward to prospective publishers and clients who come to you through your article submissions. If, despite your best efforts, your web site still needs work consider hiring a professional. You'll quickly recoup the cost of hiring an expert with more sales and increased exposure!
Monday, June 13, 2011
Secrets of Article Publishing Success
When including links to your web site within your article, make sure those links are working! Each directory you submit to may handle it differently. Some will convert them automatically to a live link, others you will need to add the html to the link to make it live. When your article gets republished the link may not be live, defeating the purpose of trying to increase your back links.
If someone can’t click on it and go to your web site, what advantage is it to be writing and submitting articles? You should always add your web address in you bio or “about author” starting with http:// That way even if the link is not live, someone interested in going to your site could always copy and paste it into their browser. Always preview your article to check to see if it is formatted the way you want it to look and check your links! Revise it as needed.
The importance of choosing the correct category. If your article is about marketing, why would you want it in poetry? It is critical to your article success that you choose the correct category for several reasons. It will group your article together with similar articles. This helps the search engines find “relevant” content. It helps users who are looking for new content to find your article. It can speed up the submission process by helping the directory owners. Some article directories have rss feeds for each category. Subscribers and rss feed directories will be notified when that category is updated, thereby increasing your article exposure.
Take advantage of all each article directory has to offer. Each one is different but they may offer some valuable features that you may not be aware of. Always create a clear, concise summary. Add keywords if available. In your profile, you may be able to create several links to your websites. These are links that will stay with the article directory and be spidered by search engines. You could easily add 50-100 static links pointing to your website this way.
If you need new ideas for writing articles, check out each directory for their most popular articles. This will give you a good idea on what people are looking for. Continue to submit to as many article directories as you can. There is success in numbers.
Happy article writing!
If someone can’t click on it and go to your web site, what advantage is it to be writing and submitting articles? You should always add your web address in you bio or “about author” starting with http:// That way even if the link is not live, someone interested in going to your site could always copy and paste it into their browser. Always preview your article to check to see if it is formatted the way you want it to look and check your links! Revise it as needed.
The importance of choosing the correct category. If your article is about marketing, why would you want it in poetry? It is critical to your article success that you choose the correct category for several reasons. It will group your article together with similar articles. This helps the search engines find “relevant” content. It helps users who are looking for new content to find your article. It can speed up the submission process by helping the directory owners. Some article directories have rss feeds for each category. Subscribers and rss feed directories will be notified when that category is updated, thereby increasing your article exposure.
Take advantage of all each article directory has to offer. Each one is different but they may offer some valuable features that you may not be aware of. Always create a clear, concise summary. Add keywords if available. In your profile, you may be able to create several links to your websites. These are links that will stay with the article directory and be spidered by search engines. You could easily add 50-100 static links pointing to your website this way.
If you need new ideas for writing articles, check out each directory for their most popular articles. This will give you a good idea on what people are looking for. Continue to submit to as many article directories as you can. There is success in numbers.
Happy article writing!
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
Secrets of Article Publishing Success
When including links to your web site within your article, make sure those links are working! Each directory you submit to may handle it differently. Some will convert them automatically to a live link, others you will need to add the html to the link to make it live. When your article gets republished the link may not be live, defeating the purpose of trying to increase your back links. If someone can’t click on it and go to your web site, what advantage is it to be writing and submitting articles? You should always add your web address in you bio or “about author” starting with http:// That way even if the link is not live, someone interested in going to your site could always copy and paste it into their browser. Always preview your article to check to see if it is formatted the way you want it to look and check your links! Revise it as needed.
The importance of choosing the correct category. If your article is about marketing, why would you want it in poetry? It is critical to your article success that you choose the correct category for several reasons. It will group your article together with similar articles. This helps the search engines find “relevant” content. It helps users who are looking for new content to find your article. It can speed up the submission process by helping the directory owners. Some article directories have rss feeds for each category. Subscribers and rss feed directories will be notified when that category is updated, thereby increasing your article exposure.
Take advantage of all each article directory has to offer. Each one is different but they may offer some valuable features that you may not be aware of. Always create a clear, concise summary. Add keywords if available. In your profile, you may be able to create several links to your websites. These are links that will stay with the article directory and be spidered by search engines. You could easily add 50-100 static links pointing to your website this way.
If you need new ideas for writing articles, check out each directory for their most popular articles. This will give you a good idea on what people are looking for. Continue to submit to as many article directories as you can. There is success in numbers.
Happy article writing!
The importance of choosing the correct category. If your article is about marketing, why would you want it in poetry? It is critical to your article success that you choose the correct category for several reasons. It will group your article together with similar articles. This helps the search engines find “relevant” content. It helps users who are looking for new content to find your article. It can speed up the submission process by helping the directory owners. Some article directories have rss feeds for each category. Subscribers and rss feed directories will be notified when that category is updated, thereby increasing your article exposure.
Take advantage of all each article directory has to offer. Each one is different but they may offer some valuable features that you may not be aware of. Always create a clear, concise summary. Add keywords if available. In your profile, you may be able to create several links to your websites. These are links that will stay with the article directory and be spidered by search engines. You could easily add 50-100 static links pointing to your website this way.
If you need new ideas for writing articles, check out each directory for their most popular articles. This will give you a good idea on what people are looking for. Continue to submit to as many article directories as you can. There is success in numbers.
Happy article writing!
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