Business Online

What kind of Web site does your business need? by Joanna L. Krotz

noreply@blogger.com (Mr T) — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 11:32:00 +0000

If you've been putting off building a company Web site, I can sympathize.

There are so many options today. There are daunting design and technical issues. It's like that sit-down with a car dealer — you make the deal but it feels like you can't come out a winner.

Ah, but you can. Stop dilly-dallying. It's easier than you think.
The advice that follows will help you create an effective plan — and it could also help you if you have a Web site but aren't getting the results you want from it. How you respond here can make the difference between a Web site with the blahs and one with real buzz.

Site basics

First, register your domain name. Select a name that best represents your company and is not already appropriated by another business.

It's smart to also register variations or misspellings of your primary domain. For little additional cost, you can, for example, register ToolandDye.com as well as ToolandDie.com (.net or .biz, too), so customers who don't have the name quite right can still find you. If your business is associated with a high-profile personality, say, an industry authority or a popular speaker, register variations of that name as well, for instance PatriciaSmith.com and PatSmith.com. That traffic can be directed to the home page or to an internal page about the person, whichever you prefer.

Next, you need a Web hosting service,
such as Microsoft's Office Live Small Business, which hosts your site for free and also provides you with a custom domain name, free e-mail account, and free Web design tools.

When you're ready, you'll want to optimize the site so search engines quickly find you. Make sure your site uses the terms, or keywords, that customers will key in when looking for a product like yours.

Site tour

Spend time reviewing the Web sites of your competitors, big and small. Jot down what you like and missteps you discover. Bookmark other sites that appeal to you and talk to your Web designer about elements and graphics that you want. (Along the way, check out this article to learn about working with clip art.)

Site mission

The next steps depend on your business model. You want a Web site that suits your enterprise as well as the growth stage of your business.

Think through these four questions.

1. What kind of information do your customers need? "Every site decision you make should be thought about in terms of what your customers need," says Janet Jackson, co-owner of R2J2 Studios, a Web design company for small businesses. To meet visitor needs, she suggests choosing one of
these three rough-cut styles:

2. How will the Web site boost your offline business goals? Saying your site should be "sales-oriented" isn't enough. You need to directly connect the site mission with your offline goals and marketing (including offline messaging and materials). For example, a jeweler that doesn't sell diamonds online can motivate an online searcher to visit the store, says Ben Schwartz of Marcel Media, a Chicago marketing agency.

On the other hand, a shoe store that does sell online should offer incentives that convert browser interest into online sales. "Therefore, the jeweler's online goal should be to promote the actual store while the shoe site should direct individuals to pages where they can transact," says Schwartz. Businesses that combine
goals can harness Web tools to provide tailor-made solutions. For instance, Marcel Media client Aeroshade, a Waukesha, Wis., manufacturer of porch shades and folding doors, was founded in 1912. The business was built by direct mail, distributors, and word-of-mouth. When, at last, it was time for a Web site, Aeroshade worried about costs and moving into impersonal territory. Its customers might be willing to review and price products online, but they thought that customers inevitably prefer to talk to sales staff before placing orders. The cost-effective result (www.aeroshade.com) was a straightforward site with clear navigation. On every page, visitors can click on "Order Today," which takes them to a brief online form. They check the products that interest them and can request a call or e-mail from a company representative." The Web site has more than paid for itself and opened up a new direct channel of business," Schwartz says.

3. What are your budget and plans for future site development? The fast pace of small companies often results in throwing up a Web site just to get a "placeholder." But slapdash sites can turn costly, eating up staff time, spitting out glitches, and squandering opportunities. This is not to say you shouldn't think big. On the contrary. Just implement in phases. Many times, site shortcomings are created because the company doesn't have enough money to take the site through every appropriate layer of information, says Lisa Holmes, co-founder of Yulan Studio, a Kansas City-area Web developer. The solution is to do the best with less. "Start with a good top layer and add enough supporting info to make it clear that the company has the capabilities to do the job, whatever that may be, even though you may not support everything to the optimal extent," Holmes says. The content can be expanded greatly over time — as it needs to be. "If you don't invest in a
quality top layer, you'll find that visitors likely won't return to check out the deeper pages. (For more tips on getting visitors to return to your site, see this article .)

4. How will your site serve constituencies and stakeholders? If you have investors,
there should be a channel that keeps them up to date and provides financial news. If you court the media, make sure there's an obvious button to click for an electronic media kit, plus news releases, bios of your management team and other info about your company. Don't forget employees. You can set
up a private, password-protected part of the site to post company-only news. (For info on setting up a private Web site with restricted access to just employees or employees and selected outsiders, see this page .) With a smart, relevant Web site you can significantly cut marketing costs, expand your customer base, create brand or line extensions and, ultimately, grow the business. Take the time to build it right.

Help people find your Web site by Kim Komando

noreply@blogger.com (Mr T) — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 11:04:00 +0000

Experienced Web designers will tell you, "Just build it — and they won't come." It's true. Simply putting up a Web site won't bring visitors. It takes work to entice customers to your site once, and even more work to make them come back.

One way that most people find Web sites is to use search engines such as Google.com. Google accounts for nearly half of all Internet searches. Yahoo! and MSN are the next most popular search sites.

So, just in case you didn't know this already, good rankings in search results are essential to helping people find your site. Many people don't go beyond the first page of the results' pages. Furthermore, top is better than bottom on the list.

Search engines use sophisticated algorithms to order search results. Good page rankings do not happen by chance. Search engine optimization, or SEO, is the process of creating Web pages that will garner high rankings.

Each search engine uses a slightly different algorithm. Moreover, most tweak their algorithms regularly. However, the basics of SEO hold true for all search engines. Although SEO is tricky, a carefully planned approach can increase traffic to your site.

Here are eight steps to successful SEO.

1. Choose keywords wisely. Keywords are the words that customers use to find your site when using a search engine. The idea is to optimize your page for these words or phrases. You should choose keywords that accurately reflect your business. They should be specific enough to target potential customers, but not too narrow.Of course, you'll probably have numerous keywords. The best approach is to pick different keywords for different pages. If your business' name is well known, use it as a keyword for the About Us page. But most customers will be searching for your product or service, not your name.For help with keywords, check your server logs to see what search terms have worked for your site. Also, try search terms to see what works on your competitors' sites. Additionally, Yahoo! Search Marketing Solutions (formerly Overture) has a free tool that ranks keyword popularity. Conveniently, it also lists alternate terms. It's at: http://inventory.overture.com/d/searchinventory/suggestion. (Microsoft Submit It! has a similar tool worth checking out.)

2. Use keywords wisely. Your site's keywords should appear in each of your pages' "meta title." The "meta title" appears at the very top of the browser window, above the menu bar.Also, the keywords should appear regularly throughout the opening Web page. It is especially important that they appear frequently in the opening paragraphs.However, resist the temptation to overuse keywords. This is called "keyword stuffing." The search engines can spot it and will reduce your page rankings. Tools are available to help with optimal keyword density. However, avoid software that writes the site's pages. Search engines can sniff these out, too. Here's the SEO golden rule: Never sacrifice quality of content for keyword placement. This will affect your page ranking. Most importantly, your site won't appeal to visitors.

3. Test keywords with pay-per-click advertising. Google's AdSense, MSN adCenter or another pay-per-click advertising program will test keyword effectiveness. You will see if your keywords will bring traffic to your site. Also, you will ensure your keywords target paying customers.Pay-per-click can be expensive. You must bid on keywords which generally start at 5 cents per click. However, used correctly, they will bring customers to your site.Pay-per-click isn't a replacement for search engine optimization. It should be used in conjunction with SEO to help you evaluate keywords. If your results are poor, consider changing keywords.
4. Build up the links to your site from other sites. Search engines view inbound links as a vote for your site. Therefore, the more incoming links, the higher your page will rank.There are limits, though. The search engines must view the linking sites as quality addresses. Having disreputable sites link to yours can harm your rankings.Offer to exchange links with sites that are related to your business. If they have a higher rank, all the better. Conversely, ask disreputable sites to remove any links to yours.You can easily pull up a list of sites that link to yours. In Google's search box, simply type Link:yoursitename and click Search.

5. Keep your SEO campaign ethical. Using deceptive techniques to boost page rank will
have the opposite effect. It can even get your site banned from the search results. Once you're banned, it is virtually impossible to get back in. Therefore, it's important to avoid anything unethical.Don't overuse keywords. Don't use hidden text such as small fonts or text the same color as the background on your pages. Don't create mirror sites — identical sites linking to yours. Also, make sure content varies significantly from page to page. Having similar content on multiple pages may appear deceptive to search engines.Cloaking, or hiding a page behind your page, is also a no-no. With cloaking, two pages are built. The search site spiders will see one page that is rich in keywords. Visitors see the other page, which might not be related to the keywords.There is an exception: If you have a Flash site, it's almost impossible to optimize. Search spiders don't understand Flash. In this case, you can build an HTML site that opens behind it. Just make sure it contains the same content as the Flash site.

6. Submit your site to the search engines. You want to make sure your site is indexed by the search engines. If your site has numerous inbound links, the Web spiders will find it automatically. Web spiders "crawl" the Internet monthly and update an engine's database of sites.If your site doesn't appear automatically, you can submit it for indexing, through a service such as Submit It! or on your own. The big three search sites have forms for submitting Web addresses. Here are the submission pages: Google:
http://www.google.com/addurl/?continue=/addurl Yahoo!: http://tinyurl.com/5oclp (registration required) MSN: http://beta.search.msn.com/docs/submit.aspx

7. Monitor the progress of your SEO, but be patient. SEO doesn't happen overnight. It
will take months to get good page rankings. Trying to rush your SEO campaign can lead to mistakes. And the consequences of these mistakes can be severe.However, it is important to monitor your progress. Do searches with the major engines for your keywords to see how you rank. You might also be surprised to find you start popping up for related terms. That's icing on the cake.Results will fluctuate. Rankings change daily or even hourly. Check frequently for an accurate gauge of where
you stand. Don't sweat the minor ups and downs. But if you notice a downward trend, take action.As your site traffic increases, so should sales. If sales aren't increasing, reevaluate your site content and navigation. Good copywriting and pointers go a long way in increasing sales.

8. Consider outsourcing. Search engine optimization is an ongoing process, and can be a full-time job. Some companies specialize in SEO.Hiring an SEO company to optimize your Web site will be expensive. Prices will vary depending on your site, services offered and for what length of time. Many companies spend tens of thousands of dollars for the initial SEO. Monthly maintenance can also run into the thousands.However, the advantages might make it a wise investment. You are hiring experts who will achieve better results than you. And the increased business from good SEO hopefully will more than cover the costs.Bad SEO can be more harmful than no SEO. So it is important to find the right company to handle your campaign. Ask to see the company's code of ethics. It should explicitly address deceptive SEO techniques.Of course, the company should also have a good page ranking itself. But don't rely on this alone. Contact the references the company provides. Visit sites the company has worked on and note the quality of the copywriting.Next, the company should be able to provide a detailed plan. It should include a variety of methods to improve your rankings. Of course, its methods — and pricing plan — should be clear.Watch for companies that create unrealistic expectations. For example, if it guarantees a top spot in Google for a popular term, run. Also, if it promises fast results, it could be using deceptive techniques. (You should also read Google's advice for selecting an SEO company: www.google.com/webmasters/seo.html).Before you consider outsourcing, however, you might want to try SEO management software. Microsoft's Submit It! is one such tool. It can help find keywords, submit pages, and track results. Also, it's less expensive than outsourcing.

Remember, though, search engine
optimization can only do so much. Well-optimized pages might bring visitors, but only a good product will convert visitors to customers.

How cyber insurance might ease your (network) insecurity by Kim Komando

noreply@blogger.com (Mr T) — Sun, 18 Jan 2009 11:41:00 +0000

Could a virus cripple your PC network? If so, do you have enough cash reserves to make up for the downtime? What happens if the company you use to authorize credit card purchases goes belly up? Are you covered for lost revenue until you find a new company?

If you can't answer any of these questions, it may be the right time to call your insurance broker or agent and ask about cyber insurance. That's a catch-all term for policies that cover hacked computers, virus attacks, denial-of-service attacks, copyright infringement, Web content liability and other technology-related areas.
Cyber insurance also goes by e-commerce, e-business, information security, cyber risk, network security, or hackers insurance. For the sake of this article, I'll refer to it all as cyber insurance.

In recent years, as companies filed claims for denial-of-service attacks, data lost to viruses, and other security-related issues, insurers found themselves in new territory. Companies would make claims, insurers would balk, and everyone would land in court.

Unfortunately, courts often handed down conflicting judgments. So, insurance companies started changing their policies. They excluded data and
technology-related items from traditional policies, or they included data with higher premiums, or they wrote policies specifically for data.

Small businesses in particular should spend some time researching cyber insurance, says Robert Parisi, senior vice president at New York-based AIG. That's because they're often at the mercy of third parties, he notes. Small businesses often rely on someone else to host their Web sites, track inventory or authorize credit card purchases. They generally have no control over those systems' reliability and maintenance. Larger corporations usually do things in-house and can keep an eye on processes better.

So what do you need to know about cyber insurance? Here are three key points.

1. What cyber insurance covers. Sure,
your general liability policy covers physical property. So if your computer gets hit by lightning, you'll be reimbursed. But what if a virus destroys your data and causes serious downtime? Your liability policy may or may not cover the lost data or reimburse you for the time.Cyber insurance clears the confusion and writes policies that deal directly with technology. Like most policies, you can tailor it to your needs. Here are some main points covered:

2. What self-evaluation steps you'll need to take. Just like taking a physical for health benefits, your network security needs to get checked, too. Don't expect to get a policy if you have no firewall or antivirus protection.Cyber insurance policies require an assessment
of current conditions. Large corporations are generally assessed by independent third-parties, usually at their own expense. The assessment covers security configurations, documentation of security plans, password management, backup procedures and more.A small business has it easier because it can conduct a self-assessment. Instead of a 16-page checklist, the assessment is usually a page or two and covers basic computer security. You might see questions like: Do you have antivirus software? Do you update the virus definitions? Do you use a firewall? Do you conduct regular backups?Those are basic procedures you should already be doing. See our Small Business Security Checklist.

3. The possibility of buying redundant insurance coverage. Nobody in their right mind would buy duplicative auto insurance policies. So, why buy a policy for which you are already covered?Approach cyber insurance like you would any other type of policy. Look at your current coverage. Does your general liability insurance cover physical damage to your computers? Did you purchase a comprehensive warranty through your computer manufacturer? If so, have your agent strike physical property from the policy and reduce your premium.Don't accept a policy that covers things you'll never encounter. Your dry cleaning business may have a Web site, but it probably doesn't include a message board. So
you might want to forgo libel insurance.

Be smart about what you insure

Although cyber insurance has been around for more than five years, there still is little empirical data on incidents. Companies don't want the public to know about security breaches, so many incidents go unreported. Therefore, standardized insurance prices and policies are hard to come by.

Since there are no set rules, you may need to talk to an insurance broker and not an insurance agent. A broker will be able to break down what insurance companies
cover and what they don't. You might find one that covers data loss under a general liability policy, while another company may consider that extra.

And here's one last thought. Insurance companies are in the business to make money. So they want to insure those who are statistically unlikely to ever need the policy. That's why good drivers are warmly welcomed, and bad drivers are shunned. So insure only those things you cannot afford to self-insure. You may never have a claim.

Disaster-proof your business by Jeff Wuorio

noreply@blogger.com (Mr T) — Sun, 18 Jan 2009 11:29:00 +0000

If you're a business owner, you need to know how to protect your business.

Try as we might, there's often no way to skirt disaster — whether it's national, personal or weather induced. But there are strategies to cope with it as best we can, no matter if its source is a burst river levee, a thoughtlessly discarded match or the deranged actions of others. Knowing what to do in the event of a disaster is crucial for anyone, of course, but particularly for a small-business owner, whose livelihood may depend on a small storefront or home basement office.

Start with some strategies. Here's a checklist that
can help you set up an effective and comprehensive small-business disaster plan:

1. First, map out a disaster plan. Many business owners haven't given a thought as to what they might do in the event of a fire, earthquake or some other sort of catastrophe that could damage their business severely. So, work up a detailed plan, taking into account as many variables as you can imagine.Take planning for earthquakes and other natural disasters seriously. You should know where you can move your merchandise to safety and where you can reach your insurance agent in a hurry. Draw up a map of shut-off valves for gas, electricity and other utilities. Draft the same sort of plan for other emergency situations, such as floods,
fires and even civil unrest. For example, one note to yourself might be that in the event of riots, or even just a rash of robberies, you would leave your lights on at night so the police could spot anyone trying to break in. "It's an old barber shop trick, but think about leaving the cash register open and in plain view," says Gayle Marco, an associate professor of marketing at Robert Morris College in Pennsylvania. "That way, everyone can see there's no money in there."

2. Back up computer files somewhere else. Any business owner with extensive computer files and records needs to back them up on a regular basis. But take that bit of common sense a step further and make certain your backups are located somewhere other than your business. For instance, look into mainframe computer services that offer backup space — those might be located across town
or across the continent, but just make certain that, should something happen to your business, your backup files are safely ensconced somewhere else. Even better: Ask anyone with whom you work, such as an accountant or attorney, how they back up their files that pertain to your business.

3. Don't forget to store physical papers and records off-site, too. Don't overlook the safety of tangible records, such as printed client lists, bills and receipts. Unless your stacks are the size of hay bales, a safety deposit box at the bank should be perfectly adequate. In fact, safe storage of business records of all sorts protects you from another type of tragedy, namely, disaster that occurs somewhere else but which affects you. "Those records are
your business's identity," says Marco. "I knew a company who exported items to the Middle East. During the Persian Gulf War, he went nine months without getting paid, so he had to supply the records to ensure that he was paid. Disaster can hit your business, but it also hits other places as well."

4. Keep insurance current. Growth is wonderful, but prosperity without commensurate insurance can be disaster knocking at your front door. Meet with your insurance agent on a regular basis to make certain that your coverage is up to date. That's particularly true with a home-based business. Since many homeowners' policies might not cover business equipment and supplies, check with your 6. Let others know your disaster strategy. Don't treat your disaster planning as a state secret. Make sure your employees understand what they need to do should the worst occur. Take that even further, and let your clients and customers know what you'll likely do in the event of some sort of disaster. Telling customers that you've got contingency plans in case of emergency will increase their confidence in you; they'll know you plan to keep your business up and running, no matter the circumstances. "You need to let all sorts of people know what you're going to do so they don't panic," says Marco. "The more they know that you're ready, the less likely they'll panic if something does happen."

4 battery tips for your mobile gadgets by Christopher Elliott

noreply@blogger.com (Mr T) — Sun, 18 Jan 2009 10:44:00 +0000

Mention the words "battery life." The first gadget that comes to mind is probably the energy-consuming laptop computer — particularly if you're on the go a lot.

If not, it should be. There never seems to be enough juice to run your portable PC, as I griped about in a previous article. Ah, but if laptop PCs were the extent of your battery blues, you might not feel so, well, powerless.

But power problems plague other mobile devices. For example, a 2003 In-Stat/MDR survey found that long battery life ranked as the most important feature to business users when selecting a wireless handset. Users
of personal digital assistants (PDAs) are just as concerned about a possible energy crisis. I know because I am one and I never seem to stop worrying about running dry.

So, what about mobile gadgets? How do you make sure your batteries last as long as possible? Here are four tips.

1. Follow instructions and use them right — right from the start. "All batteries should be properly conditioned prior to first use," says Larry O'Connor, chief executive of Other World Computing, a Woodstock, Ill., developer of battery solutions and computer enhancement products. "You must properly prepare the battery by following the first charge and use instructions." And
what if you don't? O'Connor warns that failure to follow can shorten the life or runtime of your battery. "Follow the instructions to the letter and that battery will give you a lot more," he says.

2. Don't overcharge them. When it comes to batteries for small devices such as PDAs, cell phones or Tablet PCs, the single biggest mistake users make is leaving them plugged in to the charger for lengthy periods after they've been fully recharged. "Leaving the batteries, at least those types associated with these devices, on charge for endless periods will reduce the overall life of the battery," warns Paul Klatt, a quality assurance engineer for Batteries Plus, a Hartland, Wis., commercial-battery distributor. He says battery chargers normally taper down when the battery is fully charged. "However, enduring weeks of even a 'trickle charge' creates heat buildup and will eventually
cause premature battery failure," Klatt says. How do you avoid overcharging? Remove the charger right after the battery is fully charged.

3. Use them at regular intervals. This is a problem that affects spare batteries, but it can also be a factor on a backup unit, such as a second cell phone. O'Connor says batteries have to be used in order to get the most out of them. "If you have spares, cycle them at least once every six months — or even better, every three months," he says. "This will go a long way in keeping your batteries maintained to properly perform."

4. Stay away from cheap-o replacements.
"Quality is very important when it comes to replacement batteries," says Stefan Betesh, vice president of product development for Sakar International, an Edison, N.J., consumer electronic products manufacturer. Many lesser-known but cheaper brands cut corners when they make their batteries. That can affect the overall life expectancy and performance of the battery. Worse, the batteries may be defective because "most low-end batteries are refurbished or just not working with quality control," he says. His recommendation? Go with a recognized brand and buy from a reputable source.

Change your business' name? 7 issues by Jeff Wuorio

noreply@blogger.com (Mr T) — Sun, 09 Mar 2008 12:47:00 +0000

1. Identify a substantive reason to change the name. Never change your business' name simply because the current one bores you. Instead, think carefully about what might warrant such a decision — and make sure it's genuinely compelling. "It's always a difficult decision," says Luda Kopeikina, author of "The Right Decision Every Time: How to Reach Perfect Clarity on Tough Decisions." Your name is a brand that touches a lot of people, and that's a major consideration, Kopeikina says.

2. Know what a name change really entails. Don't ignore all the ramifications of a name change. It doesn't just affect the sign over your front door. Think about business cards, stationery, sales materials and, in particular, any relevant Web sites that will have to be updated. All those taken together can run into a fairly hefty price tag. Kopeikina recommends that any business changing its name maintain two Web sites for at least several months so that customers going to the old site can be redirected. Still, know that a name change isn't 100% customer safe: "You're bound to lose some customers along the way," says Kopeikina.

3. Can you reestablish a brand name? Even the smallest business brands its products and services with its name. If, for instance, you acquire a family-named business with a long-established history associated with that name, determine whether it's feasible to expect that a new name will hold onto even a portion of that valuable branding. "It may often be the better decision to keep the old name and merely say that the company is under new management," says Kopeikina.

4. Keep an eye on your core functions. Up to now, a fairly compelling case can be made to stick with an existing name under most circumstances. But that's not always the case. An effective name must always mirror the primary focus of your business' activity. With that in mind, give some thought to a fresh name if what you do has changed substantially so that a new name would better reflect that activity. Case in point: Seattle-based Curecorp changed its name to 1-800 Water Damage to focus on the company's central purpose: Addressing homes with water damage. "For small businesses, it's a good idea that the new name includes precisely what the business does," says Kopeikina.

5. If a new name makes sense, check it out. If circumstances suggest that a new name may, in fact, benefit your business, don't just slap it on. New York attorney Keith Emmer recommends extensive due diligence — see if the name is strikingly close to the name of another business. In particular, watch for registered trademarks: "If your name is even something close to a registered trademark, using it could have expensive legal consequences," he says. Do the same work on the Internet registry if you hope to have an online presence with the new name.

6. Run the new name by customers. Even a new name that strikes every chord with the owner may hit nothing but sour notes with clients and customers. Set up focus groups or conduct extensive interviews with everyone from customers to suppliers. Have them tell you how they feel about the new name. Do they think it captures the essence of your company? Will they remember it a few weeks from now? Do they share your reasoning behind the possibility of a name change? Soliciting feedback from others not only broadens your perspective, but also gives you a feel for how things will actually go if, in fact, the name change moves forward.

7. Above all, take the process slowly. No matter how immediate or compelling a quick decision may seem, it's imperative to approach the decision of a name change as slowly, and as thoughtfully, as possible. The one thing you want to avoid above all is a knee jerk decision that carries destructive consequences for years to come. If you devise a rationale for a name change, review it in a week or two to see if the argument holds up. If you come up with a killer new name, sit on it for a bit to see if it keeps its charm. Ask a customer about a new name, then pose the same question a month later to see if her reaction changes. "You're essentially losing your identity if you decide to change your name, so sleep on it for quite a while," says Kopeikina. "Given enough time, you may realize that it's not worth it. You've got to have a business name that you can live with for a long time."

6 ways to build trust and ramp up your marketing by Joanna L. Krotz

noreply@blogger.com (Mr T) — Sun, 09 Mar 2008 12:42:00 +0000

1. Honor exceptional promises. Many companies tout service but few deliver. If you make promises you cannot keep, you're doing business on the consumer fault line. Then it's only a matter of time. Customers will eventually cease to believe anything you have to say or offer. False promises not only waste resources, they bankrupt brand equity.To gain market share, think creatively about what you can guarantee that will make you stand out. "Tell customers you'll return every inquiry within 12 hours or that all appointments will be met on time," suggests Sharron Senter, a marketing consultant based in Merrimac, Mass. "State some facts that distinguish you from the competition and fulfill them over and over again."

2. Watch your language. Your fab new widget will not "revolutionize" business or "totally change" life as we know it. Consumers are dead weary of howitzer marketing. They've seen and heard it all.These days, keep it straight and simple. "Use terms that are direct, on message," advises Winter Prosapio, director of marketing for Sports Clips, a Georgetown, Texas-based hair care franchisee. "Whether it's two-for-one or 0% financing, stick to the brand-sell formula." You can also use humor to crack the trust wall, she says, so long as it's on message and makes customers remember you. "Humor disarms the skeptic."

3. Work the relationship. The best methods

for forging connections with customers will vary with the industry. But technology has multiplied your options. With the CAN-SPAM law and all the filtering software, e-mail marketing is used more effectively now to retain and reward valued customers — in other words, to build trust. (Customer acquisition is moving into direct mail and other channels.) Password-protected Web sites and premiums also provide possibilities that can satisfy your best customers. Still, you don't need bells and whistles to show customers you care. Send personal thank-you notes. Call valued customers to chat about deals and sales. Don't take any such customer for granted."Relationships are reciprocal, meaning I'll tell you a secret if you tell me one," says Steve McKee, president at McKee Wallwork Henderson, an Albuquerque, N.M., ad agency.An old ad adage says if you admit a negative, you gain a positive, says McKee. "So a car dealer might admit that shopping for cars is an awful process. Or a retailer could apologize for its poor parking situation." The idea is to admit sincere vulnerability, which, over time, builds trust.

4. Get customers to vouch for you. "To overcome suspicion and win trust, include lots of customer testimonials in your marketing, with full names, cities and states, to show the results that real people get using your product," says author and consultant Kevin Donlin at Guaranteed Marketing in Edina, Minn.The cheapest and most effective marketing, of course, is one friend recommending your product to another. Whatever you do to build customer referrals and word of mouth — including frequent-buyer programs, prizes or discounts — will be well worth it. For more about referral marketing, see this story.

5. Adopt a cause. In 1991, Sunny Kobe Cook opened the doors to her first Sleep Country USA shop in Seattle. Less than a decade later, Sleep Country had grown into a 28-store retail mattress chain with more than $350 million in sales. Yet the startup initially had several strikes against it."We were a new business in a market dominated by a well-established, large retailer," Cook says. "We were in an industry that has many unscrupulous players." Dollars to spare for marketing were nil to none. The solution? "We got publicly involved with the community."Cook recycled old mattresses for charity and made that part of the company's advertising. She partnered with local media to create drop-off centers in the stores to collect old coats, school supplies or holiday gifts for kids. Sleep Country donated mattresses to local homeless shelters and then paid to air radio and TV spots about the organizations. "The exposure was a huge benefit to small organizations that could never justify the expense. And we became known in the community as something more than just another retailer," Cook says.The result for Sleep Country was a boost in market share. "More than 25% of our customers cited our visible community role as the reason for selecting our store," says Cook, who has since retired. (For more about cause marketing, see this story.)

6. Create missionaries. All the advice about how to treat customers also applies to staff. Treat employees the way you want them to interact with customers and you'll be developing brand missionaries."Role model how you want employees to behave and act, and they will follow suit," says Roberta Guise, a San Francisco marketing consultant. "Create messages that express these values. Hang message posters on the walls and in the lobby. Use the value messages as anchor themes for your promotions." That way, your marketing is seamless. Everywhere employees go, they will talk up the benefits of your company.Today, amid mounting marketing clutter and ads beamed everywhere, from satellite TV and radio to elevator and doctors' offices, it's important to gain profile as a company that customers remember and can rely on. Says Cook, "Building trust with consumers is an essential element of success."

30 Tips for Marketing Your Blog by Lee Odden

noreply@blogger.com (Mr T) — Mon, 15 Oct 2007 16:25:00 +0000

With so many blogs being created every day, it’s a mystery to many bloggers how to make their blog stand out. There are many types of blogs or purposes for blogs and a certain number of tactics are applicable to just about all of them.

Some companies choose to hire a blog consultant, but others like to try things internally. For those “DIY” companies and individuals interested in practical tips for marketing and optimizing a business blog, try out the following list of blog marketing and optimization tips:

1. Decide on a stand alone domain name www.myblog.com or directory of existing site www.mysite.com/blog. Sub domain is also an option blog.mysite.com. Avoid hosted services that do not allow you to use your own domain name!
2. Obtain and install customizable blog software - WordPress and Moveable Type are my favorites.
3. Customize blog look and feel templates - aka design.
4. Research keywords and develop a glossary - Keyword Discovery, WordTracker, SitePoint, SEOBook Keyword Research.
5. Optimize the blog:
*Template optimization - RSS subscription options, social bookmark links, HTML code, Unique title tags, URLs, Sitemap
*Add helper plugins specific to WordPress or MT
*Create keyword rich categories (reference your keyword glossary)
6. Enable automatic trackback and ping functionality.
7. Create Feedburner Pro account and enable feed tracking.
8. Setup a Google account for Sitemap, validate and prep for future submission.
9.Identify authoritative blogs, web sites and hubs for outbound resource links and blogroll.
10. Format archived posts, related posts.
11.Enable statistics for tracking - Google Analytics, ClickTracks.
12.Submit RSS feed and Blog URL to prominent RSS and Blog directories / search engines.
13.Engage in an ongoing link building campaign.
14.If podcast or video content are available, submit to Podcast and Vlog directories.
15.Submit blog url to paid directories with categories for blogs - Yahoo, BOTW, bCentral, WOW, JoeAnt.
16.Optimize and distribute a press release announcing blog.
17.Request feedback or reviews of your blog in relevant forums, discussion threads. If you have a resourceful post that will help others, point to it.
18.Research and comment on relevant industry related blogs and blogs with significant centers of influence.
19.Post regularly. If it’s a news oriented blog, 3-5 times per day. If it’s an authoritative blog, 3-5 times per week, but each post must be unique and high value.
20.Monitor inbound links, traffic, comments and mentions of your blog - Google Alerts, Technorati, Blogpulse, Yahoo News, Ask Blogs and Feeds.
21.Always respond to comments on your blog and when you detect a mention of your blog on another blog, thank that blogger in the comments of the post.
22.Make contact with related bloggers on AND offline if possible.
23.When making blog posts always cite the source with a link and don’t be afraid to mention popular bloggers by name. Use keywords in the blog post title, in the body of the post and use anchor text when you link to previous posts you’ve made.
24.Use social networking services, forums and discussion threads to connect with other bloggers. If they like your stuff, they will link to you.
25.Remember when web sites were a new concept and the sage advice to print your web address everywhere you print your phone number? The same advice applies for your blog.
26.If your blog’s goal is to promote you as an authority, interview other prominent bloggers in your industry. Your own credibility will improve by association.
27.Build out your online networks through services such as MyBlogLog, Twitter and Facebook and leverage them to promote particularly useful content on your blog.
28.Once your blog has 1000 or more subscribers, show your Feedburner badge
29.Host images with Flickr making sure to include an anchor text link in the image description back to the post where the image is used.
30.Use your blog to gain press/media credentials at relevant industry conferences and use the event to create content, connections and increase your knowledge.

Tips To Help You Make Money Through Online Surveys by Terence Young

noreply@blogger.com (Mr T) — Sun, 14 Oct 2007 12:25:00 +0000

The idea that you can make money from your opinion, earn rewards & get paid cash to take surveys appeals to many people from a variety of backgrounds. But is there really money to be made?

How many times have you come across ads related to online survey programs while surfing on the Internet. When you come across such ads, you might wonder as I do whether you can really make money from online surveys.

While many people are certainly earning a comfortable second income or part time income from working from the comfort of their homes, there are scams out there that are just ready to take advantage of unsuspecting people.

In order to help you navigate the online survey programs out there, let us discuss some tips that may prove helpful in making money through the online surveys.

Tips To Make Money through Online Survey Programs
Follow Through
This is an important aspect to making money from online survey programs. Simply ignoring the opportunities of an online survey opportunity to make money is of no help. You should follow through, once you sign up to participate in the program. Passing on the surveys may result in no surveys being offered to you. Therefore, the simple way to make money is to follow through.

Sign Up
Signing up for various free programs is the key to making money from online surveys. You have a better chance to make money if you have five companies offering you a few surveys every month, rather than one company offering the same opportunity. Therefore, it is advisable to sign up for various online survey programs to make money.

Be General
You need to fill up questionnaires for the online survey programs to give them general information about you and your interests. Your probability of qualifying for the program increases when you give all the information asked for in a general manner.

Be Careful
You need to be careful while signing up for companies. You should go ahead only after getting feedback from those people who were signed up before. Moreover, you should do research and understand the process to make money through online surveys.

Following the above-mentioned tips, you can make money from online survey programs. Apart from making money through the surveys, you may even receive free coupons from various companies. You should try to be a part of online survey programs to have great fun. Follow the tips to make more money through survey programs.

The idea that you can make money from your opinion, earn rewards & get paid cash to take surveys appeals to many people from a variety of backgrounds. But is there really money to be made?

How many times have you come across ads related to online survey programs while surfing on the Internet. When you come across such ads, you might wonder as I do whether you can really make money from online surveys.

While many people are certainly earning a comfortable second income or part time income from working from the comfort of their homes, there are scams out there that are just ready to take advantage of unsuspecting people.

In order to help you navigate the online survey programs out there, let us discuss some tips that may prove helpful in making money through the online surveys.

Tips To Make Money through Online Survey Programs
Follow Through
This is an important aspect to making money from online survey programs. Simply ignoring the opportunities of an online survey opportunity to make money is of no help. You should follow through, once you sign up to participate in the program. Passing on the surveys may result in no surveys being offered to you. Therefore, the simple way to make money is to follow through.

Sign Up
Signing up for various free programs is the key to making money from online surveys. You have a better chance to make money if you have five companies offering you a few surveys every month, rather than one company offering the same opportunity. Therefore, it is advisable to sign up for various online survey programs to make money.

Be General
You need to fill up questionnaires for the online survey programs to give them general information about you and your interests. Your probability of qualifying for the program increases when you give all the information asked for in a general manner.

Be Careful
You need to be careful while signing up for companies. You should go ahead only after getting feedback from those people who were signed up before. Moreover, you should do research and understand the process to make money through online surveys.

Following the above-mentioned tips, you can make money from online survey programs. Apart from making money through the surveys, you may even receive free coupons from various companies. You should try to be a part of online survey programs to have great fun. Follow the tips to make more money through survey programs.

3 Tips To Make Money Writing

noreply@blogger.com (Mr T) — Sun, 14 Oct 2007 11:59:00 +0000

Writing a book to help others is a fantastic and noble goal. In fact, hopefully it is your first goal however it is also perfectly fantastic and noble to want to make money writing. Here are three tips to set you on the road to writing profits.

Make Money Writing Tip # 1 Information Marketing is the key to big profits.
Information marketing is taking your published book one step further. It is providing your book as an e-book, as a printed book, and as an audio. You can then expand your product line quite easily by writing reports and articles, by interviewing experts, by recording seminars and workshops and making all of this information available for purchase by people that are interested in your subject and your information.

For more information on how to make money writing read the following article on our website Write Yourself Rich in Information Marketing and visit our Blog.

Make Money Writing Tip # 2 Offer links to products and websites in exchange for discount bulk purchases.
Let’s assume for a moment that you wrote a book about “101 Ways to Save The Planet Without Spending More Than a Dollar.”

Maybe as you were writing this book you came across several organizations or even websites and stores that sold earth friendly products or promoted earth awareness. You could in fact, contact these organizations with a letter and a manuscript of your book and invite them to purchase, and sell for profit, copies of your book in exchange for information about their company or organization and a link to their website. You would of course offer them a bulk discount.

Don’t forget to remind them about how your book will not only benefit their customers but how they can utilize your book as a marketing tool to promote their business or awareness of their organization.

Make Money Writing Tip # 3 Become an affiliate marketer
Just about every company in the marketplace has an affiliate program. This means that as an affiliate you get a percentage of any sales that are made because of you. It’s a huge field and many people are able to make a living as affiliate marketers. How does this help you self publish a book? Easy, find one or two reputable companies that relate to your book’s topic. Become an affiliate and create links to those products or companies when you write your book or e-book. As people click on the links and make purchases you’ll make money.

Link Building Is Not Enough by Lee Odden

noreply@blogger.com (Mr T) — Sat, 29 Sep 2007 07:29:00 +0000

At the core of search engine optimization (SEO) are the fundamentals of: keyword-rich content and link building. However, in today's online marketing landscape, link building by itself is simply not enough to remain competitive.

While link building is indeed a tactic with direct benefits via rankings traffic from search engines and direct traffic from high profile sites, outright link building is only a slice in the overall online marketing mix. At the start of the SEO industry, building links from directory submissions and programs such as web site reviews and web awards sites sent significant amounts of traffic. Google changed all that.

Google's use of PageRank to determine inbound link popularity for ranking web pages brought the importance of links into algorithmic search. Other search engines followed suit and the value of a good inbound link increased dramatically. Quantity, quality and age of links are all considerations for search engines as they sort relevant search results for users.

Despite the addition of links as part of search engine ranking methodology, an editorial link from a high profile site, like a major blog or news publication, can not only send a strong signal to search engine bots, but also deliver qualified visitors. Discovering the formula for using links to an advantage inspired the popularity of a range of questionable linking tactics.

Always looking for competitive advantages, many web site owners and marketers with an interest in generating high web site visibility and traffic have developed systems for short cutting their way to link popularity through efforts ranging from blog comment and trackback spam to buying text links and pre-sell pages to leveraging networks of blogs to write posts in behalf of advertisers whether the blog is on topic with the article or not. Search engines such as Google have made it clear what the consequences are for gaming their system and it's left marketers wondering.

There are more SEO Blogs that write about link building than any one person could ever consumer entirely being published by the search marketing community on a daily basis. There are also more than a few businesses, big and small, that are nothing less than lost when it comes to knowing what kinds of productive, safe and sustainable marketing tactics make the most sense for their web site. Increasingly, web site marketers are stepping back and taking a more holistic approach to web site optimization and promotion.

Too often web site owners and search marketers get caught up in tactics, forgetting the short and long term objectives of the web site. For example, generating spikes of social news and bookmarking traffic makes for a good Power Point slide, but it's not a final outcome and is not always a viable long term tactic for business web sites. Measuring those signals that influence what search engines and users do to arrive at a web site when looking for relevant content are nothing more than short and medium term performance indicators. Rankings, traffic and links are not final outcomes. Conversions, sales and measures of engagement are what feed web site marketing budgets with the best results coming from a long term focus.

What's important for a sustainable, long term web site marketing initiative is ongoing promotion through channels that make sense for the audience and that are supported with content by the business web site. Measuring the final outcome as well as all the signals that lead up to conversions provides the site promotion expert insight into how content and promotion can be adjusted to maximize results. Search engines are leveraging multiple data formats, media and channels and online marketers should do the same.

The great thing about enhancements like Google Universal search and Ask 3D is that they enable those web sites producing and promoting content in multiple media formats a distinct advantage. At the core of today's most effective web site promotion strategy is the creation and distribution of content. With a combination of coordinated text, image, video and RSS, a company can dramatically increase its ability to promote its message to audiences that are looking. Leveraging multiple media and data types provide direct marketing benefits as well as augmenting standard search visibility.

Effective and persistent web site promotion drives qualified visitors and also increases the link footprint of a web site. That byproduct of a quantity of quality links over time will also deliver desired visitors. For now, there's the added benefit of improved rankings on standard search engines. I’m not saying the importance of links for rankings is going away, but as part of a long term perspective on internet marketing, I would consider the effect of links on rankings generated traffic icing on the cake rather than an immediate goal. Sometimes it takes a step back and a look at the longer term trends and web site goals to see what immediate tactics make sense and what to ramp up for.

Making sense out of the mix of tactics, analytics and objectives available to small businesses that want to leverage the web as a high priority channel must involve stepping back and seeing the bigger picture of web site promotion. SEO agencies like TopRank and many of those found at SEMPO.org know that relying solely on link building to meet client web marketing objectives is not nearly as effective short and long term, as a holistic program of matching the right media assets with the appropriate promotional channels.

How to Sell More on eBay by Phil Dunn

noreply@blogger.com (Mr T) — Sat, 29 Sep 2007 07:25:00 +0000

If you have frequent to semi-frequent contact with customers - either via newsletters, a blog or inserts in packaging - you should be thinking about adding some value and offering them something beyond product promos and discount announcements.

One way to do this is to offer "how to" articles that show them how to do new, different, more advantageous/productive/efficient things with your product.

If you sell vintage post cards, for example, you might show customers how to mount them on poster board and display them in the home. If you sell toner or ink cartridges, you might show customers how to keep the heads clean or so other such maintenance program. If you sell motorcycles, you might show customers how to plan a fantastic weekend bike tour.

The key to "how to" is to develop a problem or need then offer a solution. Show them how it would be great to do something extra or solve a common problem with the product. Then offer the solution.

You can create dreams around the problem/solution structure, as well. Let's say you sell art poster prints. Maybe your prospects and customers dream of designing a themed room that showcases old movie titles and produces a sense of nostalgia. That's a dream, and you can help them connect with it by suggesting movie titles and specific prints, and offering mounting and framing advice (or even pointing to links and sites that do this well already). You could even show them some quick tips about how to light a piece of framed art correctly.

Anything that adds value shows customers that you’re pulling for them, and you're interested in more than the quick buck. In many ways, the information you offer is a gift. And we already know that gifts produce increases in sales.

Make Money On eBay

noreply@blogger.com (Mr T) — Sat, 22 Sep 2007 07:59:00 +0000

One of the biggest trends that working moms are using to make money is auction web sites, like ebay. Because of the simplicity of this business as well as the potential to make a profit, more auction site businesses are popping up everyday.

In this business, you make money by selling good through an auction site and allowing customers to bid on your items. When the auction is finished, the winning bidder pays you for the item as well as the shipping and then you ship the item to their home. It’s so simple that anyone can get started within minutes.

What you need

When you’re trying to make money with auction sites, you’ll need to start off with some items that you can sell. And depending on your interests as well as what buyers are looking for, your products can vary.

Many people will start out by offering items that they already have at home in order to keep their costs low. Look around your house for old CDs and DVDs that are in great condition, clothing, or knickknacks. You can make money off of anything in your home so long as someone else wants to buy it.

You might want to look around auction site that you are going to work on to see the best ways to make money. Look to see what others are selling and what customers are bidding on. Lately, ipods and other digital music players are in high demand, so you may find that you can do well with those kinds of products.

Or you can always go the route of what you’re interested in. If you know a lot about an item, you can specialize in that to make money.

All you have to do is list the item on the auction site with a picture and well-written description, and then let customers find your item. When the customers bid on the item, you will make money without any work needed from you.

Bringing in business

In an auction site business, you’ll need to make sure that your description and your picture of your item will be able to make money for you. Take the time to write out your descriptions so that customers know exactly what they’re buying as well as the condition that they can expect.

When you’re taking a picture of the item, be sure to have a clear shot of the item as well as the packaging that it may be in. People want to be sure that the item is exactly what they want, so in order for you to make money, you may want to take multiple pictures.

Also, be sure to list your item in the right category in order to make money. Realize that customers will head to the music section to find CDs, but will head to the electronics section for digital music players. Know where your customers will look so that you can be a possible supplier for them.

Growing in the future

When it comes to an auction site business, there are endless possibilities for you to make money. Trends change and needs change, so make sure to see what’s hot on the market so that you can capitalize on the next biggest thing and increase your income without leaving the house.

You might look into wholesale products that you can have sent directly to your customers or scour the local garage sales for items that you can resell to make money. You can also set up virtual shops on many auction sites in order to create a long list of items that you are selling at any given moment.

For the small monthly service fee to place an auction ad to the small initial cost of buying the item, the auction site home business might be just the right way for you to make money without doing a lot of work.

10 rules for successful permission-based e-mail marketing by Derek Scruggs

noreply@blogger.com (Mr T) — Sun, 16 Sep 2007 07:30:00 +0000

Attention, online marketers. Do your part and adhere to these rules.

1.
Send e-mail only to those who have "opted-in" to receive it.
Ideally you should use "confirmed" opt-in, in which a confirmation message must be sent to the recipient, who in turn must reply to the message for the opt-in to take effect. Avoid "opt-out," which forces the recipient to receive messages until he says no.

The widespread practice of opt-out appears to actually discourage e-commerce. A 2001 survey by the research firm Millward Brown IntelliQuest found that 63% of Web users agreed with the statement, "If I buy online, I'll end up getting junk e-mail." And the trend is up — IntelliQuest found only 58% agreed with that statement in 1998. Perhaps this is why many people use fake e-mail addresses when buying online; Shop.org found in a 1998 survey that 60% of surfers have given false information when filling out online forms.

Bottom line: Consumer trust is something you have to earn. One of the best ways is to respect consumers' wishes when it comes to e-mail.

2.
Always honor user requests to opt-out.
Make it a simple process and include a Web site URL in every message that allows the user to opt-out. (A simple "reply to unsubscribe" does not always work if the user has multiple e-mail accounts, which can be extremely frustrating for the end user.)

For some companies, it might make sense to "down-sell" the end user. For example, a news site that provides daily deliveries may have success in offering the user an opportunity to "downgrade" to weekly digests. After all, many opt-outs are simply a natural reaction to too much e-mail in general; a reduced burden is often welcome.

3.
Confirm everything by e-mail: The initial opt-in, orders, shipping notification and changes in the customer profile.
This blunts the problem of false information. If a fake e-mail address has been entered, the confirmation will either bounce or be delivered to someone who possibly has never heard of you, in which case he will contact you and let you know your database needs to be updated. Always include an opt-out mechanism in these messages. As an added bonus, use these messages as an up-sell opportunity. For example, an airline could offer the user a reduced rate for renting a car from a particular sponsoring vendor.

4.
Allow users to specify their preferences.
What kind of information do they want to receive? How often? Encourage the user to give you as much information as necessary to allow you to effectively target them in your e-mail promotions and other e-commerce activities. But avoid asking for her life story. Instead, structure your program so that you gain more information over time — with her permission, of course!

5.
Give and you shall receive.
Customers don't give you their e-mail address and other personal information out of altruism. They do it in exchange for something of value. It could be information (on your Web site, via e-mail or through some other media), a free gift, a coupon or a chance to win a sweepstakes. Be creative, but also follow through by delivering real value to the recipient with every message.

6.
Your list is an asset that only you can use; do not sell or rent it.
If you want to realize incremental revenue beyond your own offerings, allow the users to opt-in to receive offers from your partners. If you do this, make sure you control the mailings, and that your brand "introduces" other brands. Example: "Because you opted to receive promotional offers from our valued partners, we at ABC Corp. are pleased to give you a special offer from XYZ Corp." Ask the company doing the promotion to give you an exclusive on the offer for a limited time; limiting the offer to only your customers increases the value of opting in.

7.
Develop and post a privacy policy for your Web site.
It reinforces how valuable they are to you and reminds them that there are real, live people "behind the scenes" of your Web site.

8.
Respond to customer e-mail inquiries promptly.

9.
Don't use rented lists.
The only exception is vendors who use the method described in No. 6

10.
Always remember the network effect.
Bad news travels much faster than good on the Internet.

An angry online customer can broadcast his ire to millions by creating an "I hate [your company]" Web site, e-mailing the experience to friends, posting it on message boards and other ways. Remember, in this economy the customer is in control. Do not make the mistake of treating e-mail and the Web like the telephone and snail mail.

5 reasons to track Web site traffic by Monte Enbysk

noreply@blogger.com (Mr T) — Sat, 15 Sep 2007 17:47:00 +0000

If you have a Web site that means more to you than just a brochure for your business, here are five ways a Web analytics tool can help:

1.
You can evaluate the effectiveness of your marketing efforts. If you're spending a lot on search engine ads and keyword buys, you need to see which ones are performing and which aren't. Web analytics tools let you see which search engines are sending you traffic as well as the most popular keywords used to find your site. What if you aren't spending any money at all on online marketing? A Web monitoring tool will show you the gaps and holes in your search engine rankings and results, and very likely how you can shore them up with search engine submissions and/or keyword buys.

2.
You need to know where your traffic is coming from, and why. Are search engines your site's biggest source of traffic? Or do you have little-known but significant on-ramps from other Web sites, perhaps complementary companies who are potential business partners? Also, are your efforts to generate new customers and sales leads (such as newsletter signups and free product trials) working or not? FastCounter Pro, for example, contains a "referrer" section showing who is sending you traffic — by specific Web page, by domain and by domain type (such .com, .edu, .gov, etc.).

3.
You need to know what users like and don't like about your Web site. Web site monitoring tools identify your site's most requested pages, as well as your most common entry pages and exit pages. "If you know what is working well, you can optimize your site to provide more of it," says Helen Chan, a small-business technology analyst with The Yankee Group, a technology research firm. But knowing your most common exit pages can be just as beneficial, Osmeloski says. "Where users bail out is important. Maybe you're losing people because of the content on that page," and you need to change it to something more intriguing or compelling, she says.

4.
You need to know about any defects on your site. Most Web monitoring tools enable you to see the operating systems and browsers your users have. It should help you to know, for example, the percentage of your users who have Macintosh systems (versus Windows) and who use Netscape browsers (versus Internet Explorer). What's the customer experience using a Mac or Netscape? Beyond that, a tool such as Fast Counter Pro enables you to see how many users are attempting to link to nonexistent or "404" pages. "These pages are a bad reflection, not just on your Web site but also on your business. People may draw conclusions about your customer service," Chan says. "The more you know about how the customer views your business, the better off you are."

5.
It's how you'll really get to know your customers. The Internet -- and all of the technologies associated with it -- allows you to understand your customers and prospects better than other media and marketing channels. "In the online world, not everybody is going to come to your site to buy a product or service. But the Web allows you to track where they go and what they do on your site, so you can make changes to your site based on their behavior," Chan says. "You've become smarter. You can do that online."

Web monitoring tools also can track conversions (sales) and trace the steps leading to conversions in a way no offline medium can, says Andrew Goodman, a Toronto-based search engine marketing consultant. Such tools, he says, "have forced people to do different things with their Web sites. They're working harder now on their Web sites and their businesses."

Be friendly to search engines: 8 ways by Monte Enbysk

noreply@blogger.com (Mr T) — Fri, 14 Sep 2007 15:37:00 +0000

Here are seven other simple tips that Thurow offers in her 300-page book.

1.
Use keywords that match what users are typing into search queries. Thurow says she's baffled at seeing "Welcome to our home page" in big letters on a business Web site, or home pages with only Flash or graphics and very little text. If your business is selling help-desk software, say "Help-desk Software" on your home page; that is what search engine users will be looking for, she says. "You need words, and the right words," she says, adding that Flash sites and graphics-only sites do not perform as well on search engines as HTML sites. Don't know what search queries are being used to reach your site? Do keyword research through various search engines, or check out Microsoft Submit It!'s search engine submission tool, which recommends the keywords you should use and analyzes your site prior to submission.

2.
Worry more about getting keywords into title tags and body text than in meta tags. Meta tags have two components: a brief summary description of your site and a series of keywords that you'd want people to use to find your site. Together, they provide a framework for search engines to know where to list your site. Many people, however, spend more time strategizing on keywords for meta tags than for their Web site content, which is a mistake, Thurow says. "The title tag is far more important than the meta tag," she says. "The meta tag is important, but for different reasons." Some search engines, such as Inktomi and Fast Search, will display your meta-tag description on their search results pages. Again, concentrate on getting keywords on the text on your site.

3.
Put your most important keywords on the first part of your Web site. People shouldn't have to scroll or surf very far to find the keywords they're seeking on your Web site. Many users won't have the patience. You want them to land on a page that provides what they are seeking, but also offers a representative view of what your site is all about. Thurow urges that you model a newspaper's traditional "inverted pyramid" style of reporting, where the most important information goes at the top of every story, with more details and secondary information as you descend further into the story. Also, don't be so consumed with having Flash images on your front pages, Thurow says. You're better off with keyword-rich text.

4.
Submit your site to human-based directories first, then to spider-based engines. First thing to know is the difference between "human-based" directories and "spider-based" engines. Search directories such as Yahoo!, Open Directory Project and LookSmart are edited by humans. Search engines such as Google, AltaVista, Fast Search and Teoma employ high-tech "spiders" that crawl across the Web to collect keyword matches. All measure link popularity -- meaning the number of search engines, directories and sites linking to yours -- in determining rankings. But getting your site listed first on reputable directories (such as Google, MSN and Yahoo!) can boost your chances for quality links and stronger overall search rankings, Thurow says.

5.
Design pages that provide search engine "spiders" easy access to your keywords. This is where a "search engine-friendly" site design comes in. "A search engine-friendly Web site design has at least one navigation scheme that search engines can follow," she says. It's not that hard to do. Nine out of 10 times, she says, just adding text links at the bottom of all the pages on your site is all it takes.

6.
Do your directory submission right the first time -- you usually don't get a second chance. Don't file your submission at 3 a.m., when you're half-asleep. You need a factually accurate site description that contains as many keywords as possible. If your description contains little or no keywords, the editors aren't likely to change it -- in other words, they usually won't go back and change a description just so a site owner can add more keywords.

7.
Constantly monitor your site statistics, to see what your visitors prefer. For example, if you find your "Human Resources" pages are among the most popular, you might want to consider adding more of those pages. Or if you spell "healthcare" throughout your site as one word, but your users' queries are consistently "health care" as two words, you might consider making the switch. You need to update your site constantly, based on what your audience prefers and which of your pages delivers the best return on investment. Focus your efforts on those pages, Thurow says.

For additional research to get the best keywords for your site, several search engines and directories list "related searches" or terms "people also searched for." A few, such as Overture and Google, offer free search-term research tools.

Give your Web site a facelift: 11 tips by Joanna Krotz

noreply@blogger.com (Mr T) — Wed, 12 Sep 2007 15:16:00 +0000

Here are 11 ideas culled from Web marketers and developers that can modernize your site swiftly without costing you a bundle.

1.
Reduce the number of site pages. Focus on redesigning only the core 10 to 15 pages, suggests Matt Greer, chief executive officer at Zeeo Interactive in Boston, a Web design services company. You can then archive any remaining popular or highly trafficked pages into Adobe PDF or Microsoft Word documents that are suitable for download.

2.
Make the site a marketing tool. If you're not yet capturing data basics, such as which sites and search engines visitors are clicking from or which pages are most trafficked, get cracking.

Use prepackaged software or a Web services provider such as Microsoft's FastCounter Pro to capture detailed information about site visitors. "The first question to ask is: 'When visitors come to your site, what do you want them to do?'" says Erin Duckhorn, spokesperson for Crucial Technology, an online memory upgrade provider based in Boise, Idaho. Once you have answers, you can define the tracking metrics and develop the content, navigation and structure that will quickly satisfy your targeted visitors.

3.
Set up an e-mail program. Create an incentive for visitors to register or give you their e-mail addresses. "Give away something that the targeted audience would perceive as value for their exchange of personal information, like a prize for consumers or a white paper for business-to-business clients," suggests Jeff Stanislow, president and CEO of Motor City Interactive, a digital advertising agency in Novi, Mich. Once you have addresses, send out useful e-zines or other bulletins.

4.
Create an online reward for prized customers. Treat your best customers with distinctive perks or discounts. "You can give them their own area of the site without any special technology," says Wally Bock, a Web consultant in Wilmington, N.C. You can also, of course, e-mail special offers.

5.
Speed loading time. In the beginning, fancy graphics and online applets were cool. Now, they're mere obstacles in the path of getting to information or products. Three words for you: Streamline. Streamline. Streamline.

6.
Give visitors greater, self-directed control. Fairmont Hotels & Resorts, for example, reworked its site (www.fairmonthotels.com) to expand online booking capabilities. Now, guests who make online room reservations can book dinner or spa services at the same time. The site also added a "Fairmont Planner" that matches individual resort properties to guest profiles or needs, as well as a "virtual concierge" that offers more details about services.

The changes resulted in significant growth in bookings at the hotel chain and its amenities in recent years, says spokesman Mike Taylor. TravelCLICK's eTRAK study of more than 30 industry Web sites clocked an increase in Fairmont bookings of 165% in 2002.

7.
Get fashionable. Revise the site's color palette. One opinion: "Think Far East colors, like rust, persimmon, mustard or saffron, and dump the jewel tones and zebra stripes that look like clothes from the back of your closet," says Dali Wiederhoft, a Minneapolis publicist.

8.
Invest in a content management system. Stop relying on static HTML. "This used to be a big investment only feasible for the big boys," says Dmitri Buterin, who heads the Toronto office of Web developer BonaSource. "But now, for an investment of $5,000 to $10,000, anyone can get a pretty good CMS [content management system] and basically make most updates on their own."

9.
Insure visibility on search engines. The old home page of BreastCancer.org, a nonprofit informational group based in Narberth, Pa., was dominated by a giant image of the organization's logo, an illustrated character called Polly, which prevented search engines from finding the site. "The makeover moved a smaller Polly to the upper right corner of the home page and used text and text links to guide the not particularly Web-savvy users of this site toward the essential information they came looking for," says Ilise Benun.

10.
Align the site to the organization. No doubt, you've reinvented your business a half-dozen times over the past few years. How appropriate is your site now? What about secondary channels or pages? "Many businesses grow their sites in piecemeal fashion," notes Kevin McLaughlin at Public/i, a public relations firm in New Brunswick, N.J. "As new sections are added over time, the same messages or positioning is not always reflected in the copy throughout the company's entire Web site." Make sure your site's messaging is always in tune with offline marketing.

11.
Add testimonials or success stories. "Very few sites do this and there's no question that they add major credibility for buyers," says Philippa Gamse, a Web strategy consultant in Santa Cruz, Calif. Ask longtime customers for quotes or permission to post their case histories and their satisfaction with your services.

7 ways to get customers' e-mail addresses (legitimately) By Monte Enbysk

noreply@blogger.com (Mr T) — Tue, 11 Sep 2007 14:23:00 +0000

1.
Be upfront: Put an e-mail sign-up box prominently on your home page. Why not just tell customers what you want? In return, "offer something of value, earn their trust, and build the relationship," says Jeffrey Graham, vice president at Dynamic Logic, a New York-based online research company. The offers could include free tips and advice, news alerts, newsletters and/or new product information. Be creative, but allow people to opt-out of these e-mails anytime they want.

Two online retailers that follow this strategy effectively are Health4her.com and BabyCenter.com. The latter site asks prospective mothers simply for their e-mail address and the date their baby is due. With that information, BabyCenter.com is ready to roll — it can offer pregnancy and child-rearing tips as well as cribs, car seats and other products up until long after the baby is born.

Similarly, Health4her.com, which sells health and beauty products for women, can directly reach the consumers who want to be reached, with recipes, health and beauty tips and special product offers. "It has been very successful; we get from 2% to 4% of those visiting our site to sign up," says Louis Jay, Health4her.com president. Putting a sign-up box on your home page, he says, "should be the first thing on anybody's mind when they start an online business."

2.
Make your promotions and special offers worth the click. Contests for cash prizes or free trips will always attract lots of sign-ups, whether the offers are made through banner or e-mail newsletter ads. Make the offers worth the trouble. Yet also know that the jury is still out on the effectiveness of this strategy, because those signing up are often not long-term customers. Still, an incentive-based offer is a way to gather hundreds of names and e-mail addresses, which are especially viable if your site is frequented primarily by your target customers -- such as adult women for Health4her.com. "We give them a chance to win something, like a free cruise," Jay says. "It's a way to gather names and build relationships."

3.
If you rent lists of consumer names, be forthright about it. I am talking here about marketing or industry lists where consumers have given their consent -- not the many other lists of names obtained deceptively or without the consumer's permission. Scruggs discourages buying even the opted-in lists in his e-marketing rules, though many other online marketers don't. That's because the potential for spamming still exists. Not every consumer who agreed to sign up for the particular list you bought will remember doing so, and certainly won't know where or how far his or her name is being spread. Complaints are all but guaranteed.

If you abide by this risky practice, make sure you indicate in your e-mails that you obtained a consumer's name from a complementary list and that you offer products and services you believe he or she would want to know about. "If you are not upfront with them about why they are getting your message, you're going to have a bad relationship," Scruggs says. One other note: The effectiveness of obtaining customers this way is also dubious. Your homegrown lists are a more solid investment, says Graham.

4.
Put ads and links in specialized e-mail newsletters. What newsletters reach the audience your business wants to reach? By targeting your ads and promotions in specialized e-mail newsletters, you may get more promising sign-ups. "It builds credibility for you and your business," says Debbie Weil, a Washington, D.C.-based e-mail marketing consultant.

5.
Do your own free newsletter too. So you hadn't thought of this already? Regular e-mail newsletters provide an incentive for people to stay in touch with you and your business, if you provide worthwhile content. What tips, advice, resources and other information can your newsletter provide — beyond simply touting your services? (Yes, that you could do in places throughout the newsletter.) A bigger question may be: Who could you get to write your newsletter, if not you? An employee? A spouse? A friend? A professional writer? Be creative.

And don't be afraid to start small, Weil says. By following tip Nos. 1, 3 and 4, you can build traffic and acquire customer names. Even peaking at a subscriber base of 500 may be worth your while in terms of customer loyalty and industry visibility.

6.
Think geographically (and think beyond ads). A common mistake among many small businesses today is that they fail to realize their best online customers are generally nearby. To that end, what are the online publications and Web sites that serve your geographic area? What are the e-mail newsletters that are geographic in nature? Here is where playing up your physical location is most helpful. "Think local, not global," Weil says. "Know what publications people locally read, where they hang out online."

Besides placing ads in these publications, write articles, submit letters to the editors, and send posts to discussion lists -- all including your business name and Web site address, Weil says. (Even a catchy blurb in your signature line will help people remember you.) Here is an inexpensive way to gain visibility and acquire names. If you have something thought provoking and worthwhile to say, you almost always will trigger a reaction, she says. "It can be a great tool. But you have to be tasteful as well as compelling."

7.
Partner with other complementary businesses in e-mail and ad campaigns. Exchanging e-mail and online ads with other businesses in your industry or geographic region is often an effective way of targeting your customer acquisition efforts. The trick is to find such businesses that aren't your competitors, says Tim Choate, president, chairman and CEO of Aptimus, a Seattle-based online direct marketer. Co-registration pages, where those who sign up for an offer are then presented with a complementary offer from the partnering business, is one strategy proven effective, he says. Another is cross-promotion in each other's e-mail newsletters.

How to put sizzle in your e-mail marketing By Joanna Krotz

noreply@blogger.com (Mr T) — Mon, 10 Sep 2007 15:41:00 +0000

Here are some ideas to revamp your efforts and net a stronger return on investment.

1. Offload the burdens.
Options for outsourcing the more tiresome chores of e-mail marketing have become a lot more effective then doing it in-house when you're a small shop. Offerings are flexible. You can harness software that offers customizable templates to create and distribute your content. You can outsource selected components, such as editorial services for content generation. Or you can hire outside providers to track visitor behavior patterns and preferences, including what kind of messages lead to higher conversion rates or which search engines lead to traffic likely to opt in and actually purchase.

2. Get focused on your message.
Effective e-mail marketing usually has one of three goals:

• Make special offers, such as discounts or time-sensitive deals.

• Send invitations to events, seminars or organizations.

• Keep in touch or make contact, for information, transactions or on behalf of a community or organization.

Before drafting messages or buying lists or meeting with designers, make sure you and everyone on the team is clear about the desired goal.

Figure out why you're sending the e-mail. Then define success. Is it when a recipient opens the message? Or clicks onto a landing page? Or is it a conversion measurement?

Slightly different messages can lead to very different results. For instance, one online retailer tested three messages, one all text, the other with the same text and an image of a young, sexy woman and the third with the same text and an image of a young man. Demographics for the marketer were young men.

The result? Click-through rates for the image of the woman were highest. Not surprising. But upon investigation, the message with the man, while lower in click-throughs, had the highest conversion rate — that is, more recipients actually purchased items. Peer persuasion, I'm guessing. But the moral is: Be clear about why you're trolling and then test, test, test.

3. Try some next-generation ideas.
Once you decide on the strategic response you want, consider these mailing tactics.

• Cut through clutter. Using Flash animation, streaming media with embedded audio and/or sound files and innovative HTML design can help you stand out. "If you can afford cable advertising, you can afford rich e-mail," says Tony Wright, VP, Interactive Marketing at Zünch Communications in Dallas. Of course, make sure you don't overload anyone's in-box.

• Make subject lines count. Don't get cute. Don't be familiar. Don't trick people into opening a message — you'll make them mad. Promise a benefit or value in the subject line. Then make sure to deliver.

• Automate metrics and act on results. Set up a seamless cycle that leverages the data you collect. For instance, New York interactive ad agency True North has a closed-loop system for each client. "An e-mail goes out, click-throughs go to a specially designed landing page that controls the flow of information and drives orders," says creative director Neil Feinstein. "Response data is then re-introduced into the database to enrich it with specific customer data. We don't just measure opens, click-throughs and opt-outs. We can look at conversion rates, sales and ROI. And we can tie these numbers directly to a consumer.

• Create a call to action. Ask the recipient to do something — it'll get you a better response. Suggestions include: Click on a link for more information. Register to receive a special offer. Go a Web site to qualify. Download a white paper. You can also offer games or other Web download, including newsletters, screensavers and the like. (See this page to learn more about creating e-mail newsletters.)

• Personalize, but don't scare anyone. Inexpensive software now lets you identify returning customers and stay up-to-speed on buying history, likes and dislikes, geographic region and more. All that makes customers feel special — so long as you don't cross any privacy lines.

• Target the message. Too many marketers send out messages with misspelled words, typographical errors or just plain boring stuff. "The e-mail should be written by a professional writer who understands the principles of human influence and the psychology behind how memory and eye movement through online pages can work," says Dave Lakhani at Bold Approach, a marketing agency based in Boise, Idaho.

• Time the message. When customers receive your message might make a difference, depending on the business. "People often e-mail for business products on Fridays," says Carrie Williams at FinancialAid.com, an online student loan consolidator. "But these e-mails get buried over the weekend and are often discarded."

• Invest in viral reactions. Most markets include a group of influential users who will spread the messages you craft. Mine your customer database and spend a bit more for high-quality e-mail lists. Then test a few times to find the world-of-mouth folks who will spread your glad tidings.

• Make it easy to subscribe (and unsubscribe). Don't ask for gobs of information on registration forms. People will click off. And make it just as convenient to unsubscribe. Then be scrupulous about keeping lists up-to-date. Never send e-mail to recipients who don't want it.

• Test! Any or all of these techniques will help your e-mail marketing program succeed. But remember, if you don't test before you send, with a partial sample or a test group, you'll never know what really works.

10 steps to getting links to your site by Craig Fifield

noreply@blogger.com (Mr T) — Sun, 09 Sep 2007 14:24:00 +0000

Obviously, you want to increase your site's relevancy, right? Good. That's the goal here: to make sure you start building the right kind of links for your site in order to improve your search-engine results.

To this day, the best way to build links is still doing it by hand. Here are the steps you should follow when building links:

1.
Set a goal. Link building takes a lot of time, but it is very effective and easy to do, so you want to keep at it. Set a goal for the number of links you want as a way to stay motivated through the process.

Depending on the sites you ask and your approach, your results will vary. But a general rule of thumb is to set your linking goal at four-to-six times higher than the number of links you actually want to receive. You need to set your goal higher because most sites will not want to trade links, for various reasons.

2.
Make sure your site is worth a link. This means your site must offer something of value to entice other sites to link to yours.

If all your site does is sell products or services, you need to get busy creating some additional linkable content. Examples of linkable content include how-to articles, product reviews, tools, tips and so on. Creating content can be tough, but if you don't have some on your site already, you've got to do it. Adding linkable content not only will encourage others to link to your site, but it will improve the overall quality of your site for your visitors.

Make it easy on yourself by writing about something you know that relates to your site. This column is a perfect example. It teaches without trying to sell something. The best part of creating linkable content is that if you do it well enough, you will find that people will link to your site without you even asking, and that's the easiest way to build links.

You're not a writer? You can always add free tools or free downloads. Also, consider creating a links page prior to requesting a link trade with a site. You can usually expect a better reception from a potential link partner if they can see where you will place the link to their site.

3.
Determine the type of sites you want to trade links with. This takes some thought. You need to figure out all of the different types of sites that could potentially trade links with you. Focus on sites that are related to your target market.

Here's a good example:

I worked on a site that sold sunglasses, so I approached sites that sold swimsuits and tanning lotions, but not sunglasses. Once we accumulated links from those sites, we then developed a section of our site on eye protection and asked for links from all of the sites we could find that addressed eye protection. In the end, we significantly increased the number of links to our site from other sites in our target market. Plus, we added about 10 additional pages of content to our site that our visitors enjoyed and we continue to link to. This helps significantly in search-engine placements.

4.
Get equipped to evaluate your link partners. To make the most of your efforts, you don't want to spend too much time going after links from sites that the search engines don't think are valuable. While it isn't perfect, the Google Toolbar can help you decide which sites are quality link partners and which aren't. The toolbar integrates with your Web browser. It helps you by displaying the "page rank" of each site you visit. Put simply, page rank is a rough indicator of what Google thinks of a site. You can rest assured that if Google thinks it is a good site, it probably is. The higher a page ranks the better. One strategy is to try to link up with sites that have pages ranked as high as or higher than your own.

5.
Locate quality link partners. There are many ways to find link partners, but the easiest way to find quality link partners quickly is to start at Open Directory and Yahoo!. Open Directory and Yahoo! are good places to start for three reasons:

These directories are both so difficult to get listed in that each potential link partner you find there is likely to be of a higher quality than those you would find elsewhere.

Yahoo! and Open Directory greatly boost a site's link popularity when they list a site. Your site will receive a little bit of that boost each time someone from one of those directories links to you.

The links you build don't help your link popularity in the search engines unless the engines know about the link. The search engines crawl the sites listed in Yahoo! and Open Directory on a regular basis, so by starting your linking campaign here you can be sure the search engines will find you new links quickly.

To find partners, simply start searching for terms that are related to the types of link partners you decided are best (step No. 3 above). While surfing your potential partner's Web site, keep your eye on their page rank (step No. 4).

6.
Organize your findings. Again, there are many ways to do this, but it's always a good idea to keep it simple. Use a spreadsheet to keep track of the following:

• Full name of site owner or Webmaster.

• E-mail address of the site owner or Webmaster.

• Home page URL of link partner.

• URL of the page where you think your link belongs and why you think it belongs there.

• Page rank of the page where you think your link belongs.

• Something unique that you liked about the site.

• Date of initial link request.

For many sites, much of this information will not be available, but you should try to find as much of it as you can.

7.
Prepare for contact. Now that you have a list of potential link partners, go through the list and send a custom e-mail to each one requesting that you trade links. Do not send a generic e-mail requesting a link; it will not get a response. Your link request should mention the following, most of which comes from your spreadsheet (step No. 4):

• Something you liked about their site; compliments go a long way.

• Why you think your link belongs on their site.

• The URL to exactly where you think your link fits on their site.

• The URL of where you'll be placing their link on your site.

• How you would like them to link to you. Provide a sample link and description. The easier you make it, the more likely they will post it.

8.
Check for links. When building links, you are dealing with real people, so it can take some time. You may need to wait a month or longer before checking to see if anyone has linked to your site from your new partner. Usually it is best to do this step by hand, but you can use a link popularity tool if you have a lot to check.

9.
Follow up with the cream of the crop. Once a month has passed, follow up with each site that hasn't linked to you yet. Save time and only follow up with the cream of the crop — those in your spreadsheet with the highest page ranks.

10.
Set a schedule. You will find it easier to keep building links if you put yourself on some sort of link-building schedule. Consider doing a certain small amount (30 to 60 minutes) of link building each day. It will help prevent burnout, which is inevitable if you try to do your entire campaign in a couple of days.

Feedjit widget show your visitors

noreply@blogger.com (Mr T) — Sun, 09 Sep 2007 12:36:00 +0000

FEEDJIT gives you real-time traffic data on your blog. No registration required and it's completely free. See where your visitors are located in the world, which websites they're arriving from and what they're clicking when they leave your site.

Example:

Hover your mouse over any point on the map to see a detailed place name.

Get it here Feedjit.com

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Blogging for business: 7 tips for getting started by Jeff Wuorio

noreply@blogger.com (Mr T) — Sun, 09 Sep 2007 09:45:00 +0000

Now comes the inevitable question: How do you get started?

Here are seven tips to get your Web log up and blogging.

1.
Identify your audience. A basic precept of any business is just as essential with your blog. It's critical to pinpoint your audience and, in the process, decide what you're going to say that will make them read what you write. "It's really a process of elimination —what's not being covered by someone else?" says Scott Allen, co-author of the upcoming book "The Virtual Handshake: Opening Doors and Closing Deals Using Online Social Networks." "What's your unique spin? If you don't have an original voice, why is anybody going to read it?"

2.
Decide where your blog should live. Next up is determining where to locate your blog. There are numerous software packages that let you add a blog section to an existing Web site. A more automated and perhaps easier option is a blog hosting site (with a link from your Web site bringing visitors over). Here, the setup is easy, as the site usually provides preformatted designs and other options from which you can choose. In particular, watch for features that may be helpful in building traffic, such as trackers that identify recent posts and the most popular message threads. (See sites such as Businessblogconsulting.com for reviews of various publishing platforms. One easy place to create a blog is on Windows Live Spaces or Blogger

3.
Start talking. At this point, bringing your blog live will mean little more than placing your thoughts, observations and insights into the blog for others to read. But to really kick start your blogging traffic, don't just vent marketing-speak about how great your business is, or chatter about news and current events for which you offer no expertise. Instead, aim for a fresh, unique take. Provide a perspective that is heartfelt, compelling, and has the potential to help you market yourself and your business.

One way to get up to speed on what to say is to read other blogs and, in turn, offer your own viewpoint on an industry or business topic for which you know something about. "It's not a matter of competing with other blogs," Allen notes. "But one way to attract other bloggers to your site is to start reading other blogs and commenting on what they're writing about."

4.
Get into the practice of "blogrolling." Getting regular visitors to your site isn't just a matter of fresh, insightful commentary. Building traffic between blogs is another central element to luring repeat visitors. Here, "blogrolling" is an effective tool. This, in essence, is a set of links on your blog site that identifies other sites on the Internet --- related to your business, industry or expertise --- which you find valuable. Developed in conjunction with a fresh voice, blogrolling encourages a steady back and forth between various sites, including other blogs. "Write commentary about what other bloggers have written, then link to them," Allen says. "That really gets you into the overall bloggers' pool."

5.
Emphasize keywords. Search engine hits are another element of generating traffic. One strategy to attract search engine interest is through careful use of keywords in both your headlines and blog copy. For instance, if your topic focuses on marketing a business overseas, use of the words "marketing" and "overseas" as often as possible and in varied permutations can help push your blog site toward the head of the search engine line. "Stay on one topic, so your content is focused on keywords," advises Sally Falkow, a Pasadena, Calif., brand strategist who uses a blog in her business. "That, and link to other blogs on the subject."

6.
Keep it fresh. One cardinal snafu that can bring down even the best intentioned of blogs is stale content. Nothing is more discouraging to prospective readers than returning to a blog site to find old or outdated material. So, be prepared to work at keeping your blog as fresh and current as possible.

That doesn't necessarily mean regular entries as lengthy as a Michener novel — indeed, many engaging blogs are built of short, concise messages. But make a commitment to update your blog on as regular basis as your schedule reasonably permits. “You need to develop what I describe as a ruthless persistence toward posting, particularly if you disseminate the blog's address, and customers or suppliers come to depend on the information," says Rich Hanley, director of graduate programs in the School of Communications at Quinnipiac University in Hamden, Conn. "People view blogs as daily information vehicles, not once in a while musings on a stray issue. Think of blogs as a conversation, and that will help with the daily focus."

7.
Watch your traffic closely. Don't make the mistake of feeling locked into your blog's initial topic. Monitor the amount and quality of the traffic you receive. If things seem slow or stagnant, don't be gun-shy about varying your themes or subjects to boost interest. But don't stray too far from your business or expertise. Also, advises Falkow, "Investigate how effective the [publishing] platform you choose to blog in is. I have tried several that did nothing for my search visibility."

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How to make money from your blog: 5 tips by Jeff Wuorio

noreply@blogger.com (Mr T) — Sat, 08 Sep 2007 18:10:00 +0000

Many of the people who write blogs today simply want to share their opinion on something. But then there are the business-minded folks, who have found a way to use blogs, or Web logs, to bring in a little extra cash too.

1.
Sell advertising. This is likely the most common means of leveraging a blog to generate income. If yours happens to become a well-known blog, or one that is well-received in a particular niche, it's always possible to sell ad space on your own. For lesser-known blogs, services such as Google's AdSense or BlogAds enable bloggers to establish ad programs.

AdSense's — which lets you select several ads that are consistent with the content of your blog — pays you based on how many readers click on the ads for further information. Even better, it's free. BlogAds, on the other hand, hooks bloggers up with would-be advertisers and levies a commission in return for any ad placements that result. "The nice thing, too, is that the ads are relatively unobtrusive," says Scott Allen, co-author of "The Virtual Handshake: Opening Doors and Closing Deals Online."

2.
Help sell others' products. Here is another click-through opportunity. Affiliate programs enable your blog to serve as a conduit between readers and online sites offering various goods and services. One popular choice is Amazon.com. If, for instance, you offer book reviews or even just mention a book in passing in your blog, an affiliate program provides a means for your readers to click directly from your blog to Amazon to obtain further information about the book. If they break out the checkbook or charge card, you get paid as well.

3.
Solicit contributions. Not every blog-related income opportunity involves hawking goods or services. As Blanche DuBois did in "A Streetcar Named Desire," consider relying on the kindness of strangers. Ask for contributions. If, for instance, your small-business blog supports a cause or issue in some fashion — say you repeatedly mention tax reform, health care or some other topic — you can always ask for reader support.

Even if you've attracted a group of regular followers who simply enjoy reading what you have to say, they may be willing to underwrite their loyalty with a little financial help. Programs such as PayPal make it easy to establish a simple on-site contribution collection button. "There are lots of worthy 'cause' blogs that would qualify for donations from grateful members of the blog community," says Las Vegas communications consultant Ned Barnett.

4.
Market your services in your blog. Many people associate blogs exclusively with a cyberspace-based soapbox — a place to shout your opinions and little more than that. Granted, blogs are an ideal venue to share your thoughts with others, but don't overlook their capacity to generate new business as well. When appropriate, work in references to what you do and, in turn, what you may be able to offer any would-be client or customer who may be reading your blog. That can spread your opinion and your business moxie at the same time.

"Instead of short commentaries that begin a dialogue with readers, as many blogs do, I write the equivalent of journal articles that demonstrate my abilities, strategies and perspectives on specific issues," Barnett says. "When it resonates, it means money. Since starting this approach, I have generated three new paying clients and brought in about $10,000 on revenue — directly attributable to specific blogs."

5.
Use a blog to deepen your existing customer relationships. Nor does any marketing material inserted in blog content have to be limited to bringing in completely new business. By using a blog to regularly communicate with existing clients as well as other readers, you can take advantage of the opportunity to fully inform them about everything your business does. That may expand your readers' understanding of the full scope of your products or services.

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AdCash.org

noreply@blogger.com (Mr T) — Sat, 08 Sep 2007 16:21:00 +0000

What is AdCash.org?

AdCash.org is a worldwide and FREE English based service that on the one hand allows advertisers to reach thousands of potential customers by displaying their ad and on the other hand allows its members to enjoy 100% of all advertising revenue.

How can I make money with AdCash.org?

Making money with AdCash.org is simple. All you have to do is simply to visit the websites appearing in the list for an average time of 30 seconds. Depending on the type of ad you click, we will pay you up to $1.00 for each website you visit and up to $0.05 for each website your direct referrals visit (These are unprecedented amounts so don't miss this opportunity ).

Is AdCash.org an MLM scheme?

AdCash.org is NOT an MLM scheme, or other kind of similar schemes. We only allow one level of referrals.

How Much Can I Earn With AdCash.org?

AdCash.org is growing rapidly and advertisers are discovering the true potential of our service. Over the next coming months you will see an increase in the ads which will only increase your earnings! While we have no way of knowing how many ads will be available on a weekly basis, we do know that it can put some extra money in your pocket!

Our members report an increasing income - their extra $30 quickly grew to $1,000 and more on a monthly basis. To be specific - We pay up to $1.00 for each website you visit and up to $0.5 cent for each website your referrals visit. There is no limit in the amount of websites you visit or referrals that you obtain so we can safely say that the sky is the limit and it’s really up to you.
Here's an earning example: If you click just 2 ads every day, and 10 members you referred click just 2 ads every day, you can get paid up to $12 a day - that's $372 a month!

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Blogskinny.com

noreply@blogger.com (Mr T) — Fri, 07 Sep 2007 20:34:00 +0000

About Blogskinny.com

Why register?

Because they give you free advertising and prove it with data.
The number one question asked related to blogging, particularly for new bloggers, how do I increase my readership? For the beginner, the best option is to register your blog in blog directories and rating sites, such as this one. The number of blogs available on the Internet is staggering. And the growth rate is even more amazing. Registering your blog will help people find your content.

As you move toward being a more advanced user, there are other options available to for syndication. Most likely, the blog you're already using is generating a feed for you whether you know it or not. They may or may not be syndicating it for you. As you move along, you will want more and more control over this process.

The most advanced users have recently gotten into feed parsing / burning with some of the newer tools that are available on the Internet. Blogskinny.com offers that service as well and will be there to grow with you as your blogging experience and exposure grows.

Start today! Enter your blog info and post the icon on your site.

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Tips How To Make Money Online [del.icio.us]

dimmu79 — Fri, 07 Sep 2007 09:14:12 PDT

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dimmu79 — Fri, 07 Sep 2007 09:10:41 PDT