Link building is very important to the success of your online business. Everyone might have their own thoughts on what it takes to build a successful link building campaign, but here are the Top 6 Link Building Predictions for 2011.
1. Brand Names Will Become More Used than the Keyword-Based Anchor Text: Recently, many sites were penalized for possibly having too much anchor text. The Mayday changes resulted in more brand dominance in search engine results. Because of this, link building will now be more focused on targeting brands and names of businesses rather than the anchor text keyword. This could help the importance of review sites and their weight in the search results.
2. Quality over Quantity: Google has been working really hard lately to go through and get rid of all of the low quality sites that offer no real value to its visitors. Links from these sources will be lost, which is why link building should be more focused on getting links from higher quality sites. The only real question for 2011 is, what is going to be the determining factor for "quality"?
3. More Emphasis on Authority over PageRank: There used to be much emphasis on pagerank when it came to linkbuilding. Over the last year, pagerank has quickly died out. This year, more emphasis will be put on factors such as domain authority, page authority, as well as mozRank.
4. More Links Pointing to Website Content Rather than Homepage: Content is King! The websites' content is becoming more and more important, and with that so is the opportunity to build links directly to these inner content pages on your website instead of linking to the homepage.
5. The Growing Important of Conversions Over Rankings: There is no value in being the #1 search result for your chosen keyword if you are not getting any conversions from it. It is now more important to know whether or not the link building is affecting your conversion rates more than whether or not it is just moving your site up in the search engines.
6. Social Mentions Having More Weight than Dofollow Links: Social media is the wave of the future on the internet. It is a big influence on the search engine rankings. Both Google as well as Bing are thinking about including social mentions into their algorithms for ranking. Both Facebook and Twitter will have much importance with this. Social mentions used to carry no weight and were considered nofollow and worthless when it came to SEO. This is changing very quickly.
There are many changes coming in 2011. These changes will greatly affect our link building strategies and how we go about ranking our websites in the search results. Everything that we thought we knew about ranking our websites is slowly but surely coming to a halt. These changes might be a little intimidating at first but will probably prove to be great changes for us all.
About the Author:
Fred Meek is a professional search engine consultant in Austin Texas. For more information on Austin Search Engine Optimization or Local Search Marketing.
Bookmark Earn Money From Your Computer for useful information and links to help you earn money from your computer!
Showing posts with label keyword. Show all posts
Showing posts with label keyword. Show all posts
Monday, 31 January 2011
Saturday, 5 December 2009
Using Articles To Gain TOP Search Engine Ranking
My Secret Formula For Using Articles To Gain TOP Search Engine Ranking
Copyright 2009 by Willie Crawford
I use articles, videos, podcasts and press releases extensively in my marketing. I use them to build my lists, gain search engine ranking, and drive traffic to targeted pages where that traffic often converts directly into sales.
I've been using article marketing VERY effectively since 1996 and find it an excellent method for generating long-term traffic.
My biggest secret is probably that I begin my article writing by doing keyword research. I doubt that most article marketers do this. I have a target product, niche or website, and I focus on what keywords would bring traffic to them. You can do the same. Here's how.
First of all you want to target the right keywords. It does no good to bring in traffic that is not buyers, so you want to ask what terms buyers are typing into the search engines. Make a list. The list should include "long tail" 3-5 word phrases.
Next use the Google's External Keyword Tool at:
https://adwords.google.com/select/KeywordToolExternal
to research your keywords.
Enter the keywords that you brainstormed into the form at the url above, one keyword phrase per line. The software will suggest other popular keywords and also show you search volume. It will show you not only how many times a given term is search on per month, but also how much competition you have for that term.
Download the results of that search as a spreadsheet in "csv for Excel" to analyze data easier. The link to do that is at the bottom of your search results page. This will let you sort the data based upon a number of criteria.
Outline a dozen articles based upon your keyword research. This can initially be just a rough outline containing a few main points. You will flesh it out later creating articles ranging from 500 - 1200 words.
Write the articles, one at a time, not stressing over them. Write a little, and then if your creativity is waning, take a break. I can often write 4-6 articles before needing a break.
Since the articles are all on a related topic, it's ok to repeat the same thoughts or concepts in multiple articles. Most of your readers won't read all of your articles and those who read the same thoughts in more than one article will
only have those concepts reinforced.
Use your target keywords in your titles. You know that these keywords are appropriate, and are being searched on, so put them in your titles, where they will attract the most attention.
Your title is the most important part of any article, because it's what entices your reader to stop and read the rest of the article. If it doesn't grab their attention, the rest of the article will never be seen.
Use target keywords in the body of your articles several times.
Use target keywords in anchor text of links when posting to your blogs, webpages, or article directories that allow using anchor text in articles. Not all directories allow this.
Submit to the top article directories using Easy Push Button Traffic. This will save you from having to manually visit each of the top article directories for each article. Instead,you upload the article to the Easy Push Button Traffic server,
and then select which directories you want to automatically submit to. This works beautifully for me.
Consider turning some of these articles into podcasts or videos. Also submit that re-purposed content, using Easy Push Button Traffic, to dozens of different video and podcast sharing sites.
Watch your target site or project quickly rise in rank in the search engines, and watch your sales take off.
After you've cranked out as much content as you can based upon a given set of keywords, go back to the Google External Keyword Tool and do it with another set of keywords.
This simply formula works like magic. Since most of your competitors write articles without ever considering keywords, you'll run circles around them. Use the simple formula that I just outlined above. There is absolutely no need to complicate
the keyword research. This simple, easy system works ;-)
------------------
Willie Crawford is a website traffic generation expert. He often distributes content (articles, videos, podcasts and press releases) to generate highly targeted website traffic. To do that efficiently he uses the automated
submission service at http://EasyPushButtonTraffic.com
Visit Earn Money From Your Computer and Affiliate Marketing Success Online
Copyright 2009 by Willie Crawford
I use articles, videos, podcasts and press releases extensively in my marketing. I use them to build my lists, gain search engine ranking, and drive traffic to targeted pages where that traffic often converts directly into sales.
I've been using article marketing VERY effectively since 1996 and find it an excellent method for generating long-term traffic.
My biggest secret is probably that I begin my article writing by doing keyword research. I doubt that most article marketers do this. I have a target product, niche or website, and I focus on what keywords would bring traffic to them. You can do the same. Here's how.
First of all you want to target the right keywords. It does no good to bring in traffic that is not buyers, so you want to ask what terms buyers are typing into the search engines. Make a list. The list should include "long tail" 3-5 word phrases.
Next use the Google's External Keyword Tool at:
https://adwords.google.com/select/KeywordToolExternal
to research your keywords.
Enter the keywords that you brainstormed into the form at the url above, one keyword phrase per line. The software will suggest other popular keywords and also show you search volume. It will show you not only how many times a given term is search on per month, but also how much competition you have for that term.
Download the results of that search as a spreadsheet in "csv for Excel" to analyze data easier. The link to do that is at the bottom of your search results page. This will let you sort the data based upon a number of criteria.
Outline a dozen articles based upon your keyword research. This can initially be just a rough outline containing a few main points. You will flesh it out later creating articles ranging from 500 - 1200 words.
Write the articles, one at a time, not stressing over them. Write a little, and then if your creativity is waning, take a break. I can often write 4-6 articles before needing a break.
Since the articles are all on a related topic, it's ok to repeat the same thoughts or concepts in multiple articles. Most of your readers won't read all of your articles and those who read the same thoughts in more than one article will
only have those concepts reinforced.
Use your target keywords in your titles. You know that these keywords are appropriate, and are being searched on, so put them in your titles, where they will attract the most attention.
Your title is the most important part of any article, because it's what entices your reader to stop and read the rest of the article. If it doesn't grab their attention, the rest of the article will never be seen.
Use target keywords in the body of your articles several times.
Use target keywords in anchor text of links when posting to your blogs, webpages, or article directories that allow using anchor text in articles. Not all directories allow this.
Submit to the top article directories using Easy Push Button Traffic. This will save you from having to manually visit each of the top article directories for each article. Instead,you upload the article to the Easy Push Button Traffic server,
and then select which directories you want to automatically submit to. This works beautifully for me.
Consider turning some of these articles into podcasts or videos. Also submit that re-purposed content, using Easy Push Button Traffic, to dozens of different video and podcast sharing sites.
Watch your target site or project quickly rise in rank in the search engines, and watch your sales take off.
After you've cranked out as much content as you can based upon a given set of keywords, go back to the Google External Keyword Tool and do it with another set of keywords.
This simply formula works like magic. Since most of your competitors write articles without ever considering keywords, you'll run circles around them. Use the simple formula that I just outlined above. There is absolutely no need to complicate
the keyword research. This simple, easy system works ;-)
------------------
Willie Crawford is a website traffic generation expert. He often distributes content (articles, videos, podcasts and press releases) to generate highly targeted website traffic. To do that efficiently he uses the automated
submission service at http://EasyPushButtonTraffic.com
Visit Earn Money From Your Computer and Affiliate Marketing Success Online
Tuesday, 29 September 2009
Keyword Research That Works
On the internet, keywords are terms or words that relate to particular topics. Keyword research will involve various aspects, such as finding sales oriented keywords or driving maximum qualified users to increase their online sales.
Keyword research is the first step towards a successful search engine optimization campaign. You have to be very careful when selecting keywords,as it can be very tricky to select targeted keywords for a website.
The selection of keywords should always be based on various aspects such as product names, services, brands, or general terms. Often times, people forget about targeting geographical terms when they have global presence.
When doing keyword research, it's highly recommended to do a very thorough market research analysis to find the best keywords used by search engines to find products and services online - and find out what keywords are targeted by competitors who are
doing well in marketing on the internet.
The first step in finding the best keywords is to make a list of the products, topics and services that you offer. You can also make good use of your website logs to know which keywords have brought you the traffic in the past.
Be sure to select keywords that clearly define your business and products to drive traffic from the search engines. There are some websites which get high levels of traffic through general keywords although they might not end up being sales.
Today, users of search engines are aware of how they work, for searching products and services on the net. Users always look for the better products, locations, etc. Therefore, you should cover all terms for each - products, locations, etc.
There are numerous tools available which will help you identify keywords that are suitable for search engines. The challenge here is to determine which keyword is the best to generate traffic.
Visit Earn Money From Your Computer and Affiliate Marketing Success Online
Keyword research is the first step towards a successful search engine optimization campaign. You have to be very careful when selecting keywords,as it can be very tricky to select targeted keywords for a website.
The selection of keywords should always be based on various aspects such as product names, services, brands, or general terms. Often times, people forget about targeting geographical terms when they have global presence.
When doing keyword research, it's highly recommended to do a very thorough market research analysis to find the best keywords used by search engines to find products and services online - and find out what keywords are targeted by competitors who are
doing well in marketing on the internet.
The first step in finding the best keywords is to make a list of the products, topics and services that you offer. You can also make good use of your website logs to know which keywords have brought you the traffic in the past.
Be sure to select keywords that clearly define your business and products to drive traffic from the search engines. There are some websites which get high levels of traffic through general keywords although they might not end up being sales.
Today, users of search engines are aware of how they work, for searching products and services on the net. Users always look for the better products, locations, etc. Therefore, you should cover all terms for each - products, locations, etc.
There are numerous tools available which will help you identify keywords that are suitable for search engines. The challenge here is to determine which keyword is the best to generate traffic.
Visit Earn Money From Your Computer and Affiliate Marketing Success Online
Thursday, 6 March 2008
Tips to Get Repeat Web Traffic
1. Update the pages on your website frequently. Stagnant sites are dropped by some search engines. You can even put a date counter on the page to show when it was last updated.
2. Offer additional value on your website. For affiliates and partners you can place links to their sites and products and ask them to do the same for you. You can also advertise their books or videos, if these products relate to your industry and are not in competition with your own product.
3. You can allow customers to ‘opt in’ to get discounts and special offers. Place a link on your site to invite customers to ‘opt in’ to get a monthly newsletter or valuable coupons.
4. Add a link to your primary page with a script ‘Book Mark or Add this site to your Favorites’.
5. Add a link ‘Recommend this site to a Friend’ so that the visitor can email your website link, with a prewritten title, “Thought you might be interested in this”, just by clicking on it.
6. Brand your website so that visitors always know they are on your site. Use consistent colors, logos and slogans and always provide a ‘Contact Us’ link on each page.
7. Create a ‘Our Policies’ page that clearly defines your philosophy and principles in dealing with your customers. Also post your privacy policy as well so that clients know they are secure when they visit your site.
8. Create a FAQ page which addresses most of the doubts and clarifications about your product or your company that are likely to be asked. This helps to resolve most of the customers doubts in their first visit to your site.
8. Ensure that each page on your website has appropriate titles and keywords so that your customer can find their way back to your site if they lose the book mark.
9. Never spam a client, who has opted for newsletters, with unsolicited emails. Later if they decide they want to ‘opt out’ of the mailings, be sure you honour their request and take them off the mailing list. They may still come back if they like your products. But they will certainly not come back if you continue to flood their email box with mails they no longer wish to receive.
If you are new to website design, or just want top tips for designing the best site with SEO built in to ensure people find and buy from you, I recommend Web Design Mastery. I have learned so much from this easy to read course. It includes 150 professionally designed website templates, mini-site templates and very useful tools. It saved me months on the learning curve.
Antonia Stuart-James at Earn Money from Your Computer
2. Offer additional value on your website. For affiliates and partners you can place links to their sites and products and ask them to do the same for you. You can also advertise their books or videos, if these products relate to your industry and are not in competition with your own product.
3. You can allow customers to ‘opt in’ to get discounts and special offers. Place a link on your site to invite customers to ‘opt in’ to get a monthly newsletter or valuable coupons.
4. Add a link to your primary page with a script ‘Book Mark or Add this site to your Favorites’.
5. Add a link ‘Recommend this site to a Friend’ so that the visitor can email your website link, with a prewritten title, “Thought you might be interested in this”, just by clicking on it.
6. Brand your website so that visitors always know they are on your site. Use consistent colors, logos and slogans and always provide a ‘Contact Us’ link on each page.
7. Create a ‘Our Policies’ page that clearly defines your philosophy and principles in dealing with your customers. Also post your privacy policy as well so that clients know they are secure when they visit your site.
8. Create a FAQ page which addresses most of the doubts and clarifications about your product or your company that are likely to be asked. This helps to resolve most of the customers doubts in their first visit to your site.
8. Ensure that each page on your website has appropriate titles and keywords so that your customer can find their way back to your site if they lose the book mark.
9. Never spam a client, who has opted for newsletters, with unsolicited emails. Later if they decide they want to ‘opt out’ of the mailings, be sure you honour their request and take them off the mailing list. They may still come back if they like your products. But they will certainly not come back if you continue to flood their email box with mails they no longer wish to receive.
If you are new to website design, or just want top tips for designing the best site with SEO built in to ensure people find and buy from you, I recommend Web Design Mastery. I have learned so much from this easy to read course. It includes 150 professionally designed website templates, mini-site templates and very useful tools. It saved me months on the learning curve.Antonia Stuart-James at Earn Money from Your Computer
Thursday, 31 January 2008
Website Design Made Easy
Designing a web site specifically designed to sell your product is an essential part of your success. Everything within your web site should have one specific purpose - getting your visitor to take action.Creating a professional web site specifically designed to sell will take a great deal of time and effort, as there is much more to take into consideration than just the design. You must look at a much broader picture and plan each step very carefully.
Every part of your web site must be strategically designed, from your overall design to your sales copy; each will play a very important role. Your visitor's first impression will almost instantly determine whether or not you're going to make a sale.
Your web site should be simple in design with the navigational links placed at the top, left or right side of the page. It should be designed in standard HTML with no Flash or fancy plug-ins and very few graphics. Unless your graphics specifically pertain to your product or enhance your site, you probably shouldn't include them. Your web site should load very quickly and each additional graphic will add additional load time. In addition, there should be no banners or outside links of any kind -- nothing that will distract your visitor's attention.
Search Engine Ranking
You must specifically design your web site to rank high in the Search Engines. This involves much more than just including META tags. Your design, text, title and image alt tags all play a very important role in determining how your web site will rank.
Title - Your "Title" should contain your most important keyword phrase that you think potential visitors will use when performing a search.
Description - Your description should contain your most important keyword phrase and describe your product in detail. You want your potential visitors to know exactly what you're offering. Your description should be less than 200 characters.
Keywords - Select the most appropriate keyword phrases that you feel your potential visitors will use when performing a search - the more targeted the better.
You can download a great little freeware program called, Good Keywords http://www.goodkeywords.com. This program will assist you in developing a list of targeted keywords for your web site. In addition, it also includes a site popularity tool that enables you to check your site's popularity.
Heading tags - Search Engines pay close attention to the text displayed within the "Heading" tags. Place your most important keyword phrase within a "Heading" tag.
Graphic Alt tags - Your graphics should relate to your web site and enhance your users' experience. In addition, your graphics should pertain to your most relevant keyword phrases. Place a readable sentence that explains what the image is and contains your keyword phrase within each of your graphic "Alt" tags. For example, if your web site focuses on dog grooming, your graphics should also pertain to dog grooming.
Text - All of your keywords and keyword phrases should appear throughout your text. If any of the keywords you placed within your META tags do not appear within your text, the Search Engines will ignore them. Your keyword phrases should appear at least three times within your text, but no more than seven.
Another consideration of great importance is the use of "Tables." If you'd like to set up your web site using tables, try to place your "Heading" text above your "Table" code. If this isn't possible, make sure you include your keyword phrases within your top left "Table cell" to assist you in ranking higher in the Search Engines.
One final note, always place your most important information above the fold of your web page. This is the top portion of your web page that is visible when your page is first loaded, without scrolling. This is the most important part of your entire page - use it wisely.
Your web site is your product's storefront and will play a very important roll in determining your success. Take your time and do your homework before you begin. You may be pleasantly surprised with the outcome.
Copyright © Shelley Lowery
About the Author:
Shelley Lowery is the author of the acclaimed web design course, Web Design Mastery. http://ancora2004.wsnet2.hop.clickbank.net/ And, Ebook Starter - Give Your Ebooks the look and feel of a REAL book. http://www.ebookstarter.com Visit Web-Source.net to sign up for a complimentary subscription to eTips and receive a copy of the acclaimed ebook, "Killer Internet Marketing Strategies." http://www.web-source.net
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I have been looking for sometime for ways to redesign my sites and start some new ones. This course gave me all the answers in one place. Web Design Mastery is a complete eight volume course covering all the technical points but also marketing issues to consider when planning a site, SEO and much more. It also includes 150 professional website templates, cut and paste design elements and tips on hosting. Have a look for yourself. The course is incredibly good value and if you don't believe me, you can even receive FREE chapters.
Antonia Stuart-James at Earn Money from Your Computer
Saturday, 1 December 2007
How to Make Serious Money in Affiliate Marketing
According to one report, total sales generated through affiliate networks in 2006 was £2.16 billion in the UK alone. MarketingSherpa's research team estimated that, in 2006, affiliates worldwide earned $6.5 billion in bounty and commissions from a variety of sources in retail, personal finance, gaming and gambling, travel, telecom, education, publishing and forms of lead generation other than contextual ad networks such as Google AdSense. (Source: Wikipedia)
So, if this sounds like an area of income in which you would like your piece of the pie, you do not want to waste time, joining the wrong programs, listening to people who are just lining their pockets, reading out-dated ebooks etc. You could join a course and there are plenty of people who will sell you a training course for hundreds if not thousands of $$$.
I suggest you learn from someone who really knows what she is talking about and can prove her affiliate income. That someone is Rosalind Gardner who excels as an affiliate marketer. She says,
To help others make serious money in Affiliate Marketing, she offers her Super Affiliate Handbook. Here are just some of the contents:
* 233 information-packed pages of practical tips and real-life examples of WORKING affiliate sites (Note: After reading the Super Affiliate Handbook, the Affiliate Manager at Match.com decided to recommend the Handbook to her other affiliates.)
* "How To" strategies to save you money, time, and effort while building your affiliate marketing business.
* An easy-to-understand 5-step overview of the business-building process.
* Discover the top 25 mistakes that 'normal' affiliates make and how to AVOID them.
* How to create a web site that keeps visitors coming back for more.
*29 ways to market your affiliate sites online and off.
The list goes on. You will learn about Keywords and Niche products Marketing, blogs, Contextual advertising and way more.
To make sure that the information is always up to date, anyone buying the book becomes a member and receives updates.
You won't believe the low price for all this incredible information.
Click here to read about the Super Affiliate Handbook then decide whether you want to invest in a fast start to your Affiliate Marketing or spend a couple of years following the wrong information, paying out more than you are earning. The choice is yours.
So, if this sounds like an area of income in which you would like your piece of the pie, you do not want to waste time, joining the wrong programs, listening to people who are just lining their pockets, reading out-dated ebooks etc. You could join a course and there are plenty of people who will sell you a training course for hundreds if not thousands of $$$.
I suggest you learn from someone who really knows what she is talking about and can prove her affiliate income. That someone is Rosalind Gardner who excels as an affiliate marketer. She says,
"Since I quit my day job as an air traffic controller in 2000, I've earned 100% of my income online. In 2002, I earned a whopping $436,797 US in affiliate commissions (then worth $657,801 CDN). Now, in 2007 I earn much more than that as an affiliate!"
To help others make serious money in Affiliate Marketing, she offers her Super Affiliate Handbook. Here are just some of the contents:
* 233 information-packed pages of practical tips and real-life examples of WORKING affiliate sites (Note: After reading the Super Affiliate Handbook, the Affiliate Manager at Match.com decided to recommend the Handbook to her other affiliates.)
* "How To" strategies to save you money, time, and effort while building your affiliate marketing business.
* An easy-to-understand 5-step overview of the business-building process.
* Discover the top 25 mistakes that 'normal' affiliates make and how to AVOID them.
* How to create a web site that keeps visitors coming back for more.
*29 ways to market your affiliate sites online and off.
The list goes on. You will learn about Keywords and Niche products Marketing, blogs, Contextual advertising and way more.
To make sure that the information is always up to date, anyone buying the book becomes a member and receives updates.
You won't believe the low price for all this incredible information.
Click here to read about the Super Affiliate Handbook then decide whether you want to invest in a fast start to your Affiliate Marketing or spend a couple of years following the wrong information, paying out more than you are earning. The choice is yours.
Thursday, 13 September 2007
The Basics Of Keyword Research For Your Online Business
by Gobala Krishnan, MBA & IAHBE Writer
Whether you’re trying to build a blog for your SFI home business, or trying to sell other products on the Internet via any type of Website, you simply cannot ignore the allure of getting free search engine traffic from Google and Yahoo.
Unlike paid advertising, research has shown that visitors are more open to natural search engine results and the amount of traffic to natural search engine results is also significantly higher. To get a good search engine ranking, you need to start with the right choice of keywords. Keywords are what people type into search engines to find information. If your site ranks for the correct keyword, your link will be displayed whenever someone uses the search engines.
However, it amazes me how little people really know about keyword research; how hard they try to achieve the impossible, and how fast they give up.
When you think about it, it’s really a vicious cycle:
1. Their lack of keyword research knowledge leads them to target the wrong keyword, which is either too difficult to achieve, or has too little traffic.
2. Then, convinced that early retirement is only a stone’s throw away, they work hard to archive top search engine rankings using whatever “new” method the gurus claim will end their misery fast.
3. Then, after a few months they realize that they will never beat the sites that appear on Google’s first page, they give up, pack up and leave.
Keyword research is a real tricky thing. It can make or break your Internet home business dreams. If you target keywords that are too competitive, you end up chasing dreams of grandeur that will never materialize. If you target keywords that are too easy to achieve, you’ll end up on the first page of Google and realize that your number one position means squat.
The secret is in finding a balance.
The most profitable online market is not the general market, but the niche market. Therefore when targeting keywords, you must target niche keywords. A niche keyword is usually smaller, two to four words long, and is a subset of the larger general keyword.
Let’s take a step-by-step approach to keyword research using a free tool called the Yahoo Keywords Suggestion Tool. Open up this site in a new browser window so you can do your own hands-on training.
This tool is not 100% accurate when it comes to the numbers, but it gives you a relatively accurate idea of what keywords you should target for your blog or Website.
Step 1 : Finding a General Market
You must know the general keyword for your blog or Website. If you don’t, bang your head to the wall and ask yourself what you’re doing trying to make money online.
Your Website cannot be about everything. It must be about something.
You can’t build a site and say “Oh, my Website is about everything that happens in my life and I don’t want to limit myself by sticking to one topic”.
The truth is that with a few exceptions, such “do-it-all” personal-ranting types of sites are doomed to failure right from the start. It’s okay to have a site where you talk about your everyday life, but there must be a main theme; a main niche; a main keyword for that site.
In the example here, I’m going to choose guitar as my main keyword. Mentally, I am going to tell myself that my blog is about guitars, so no matter how much unrelated stuff I throw into my site, the majority (80% or more) of my blog posts or content is going to be about guitars. That would give my site a theme and a reason for people to visit. If I have too much unrelated stuff to talk about, it’s best to put it into a new site.
Right, now you have a general keyword. But that’s only the beginning.
You cannot possibly dream about getting ranked number one in Google or other search engines when someone types in the word guitar. It’s way too competitive. Likewise, never try to rank for general keywords like health, money, home, insurance etc unless you can meet some / all of the following criteria:
1. Your site features a revolutionary new idea / software / service that will change the entire industry forever.
2. You are the undisputed, established offline industry leader and you are taking your business online.
3. You are a millionaire who can spend hundreds of thousands in advertising every month.
4. You can hire a team of smart, highly-trained SEO (Search Engine Optimization) experts (people who specialize in search engine optimization) to monitor the progress of your site and the ranking for your general keyword.
It’s ironic to see some many people try to rank their blogs for general keywords. Yet, they only add five to 10 new posts a month, have no credibility, spend zilch on advertising, and have absolutely nothing revolutionary going on.
It’s just never going to happen.
So, from your general keyword, you need to select a more targeted keyword based on your interests and your own capability. The size of your keyword should depend on these few things:
How much time can you spend on SEO?
Are you willing to spend money in advertising, buying links etc?
Are you capable of writing credible information for that topic, or can you find people who can?
Step 2: Find Your Niche Keyword
From the general and utterly useless keyword guitar, I found a niche market I can focus on. I choose electric guitar because I love the electric versions as compared to the acoustic guitars and I know a great deal about them. It’s also something I’m passionate about and I from which I know that I can make money.
Note: to determine if a niche is profitable, see (1) how many affiliate programs you can find and (2) how many people are using Google Adwords to advertise those affiliate programs.
But, this keyword is still highly competitive, and while it’s not impossible to rank highly for this search term, it’s just not feasible if you’re just getting started in your own Internet home business.
Yes, you can listen to your ego, have a gung-ho attitude, and just go for it. You might just make it. But I think, if you’re new to SEO and Internet marketing, this is not a safe bet.
Instead, you need to go one level deeper into the third-tier keyword range. To understand this concept, just count how many clicks you need to make from the original search term guitar till you get to one you can target. If it takes you 4 clicks it means you’re already into the fourth-tier keywords.
Step 3: Find Your Primary Keyword, Secondary Keywords, & Long Tail
Now I’ve clicked on guitar > electric guitar > cheap electric guitar.
This is my primary keyword, and is the main keyword I will target on my blog or Website.
All the other keywords contained under these keywords, are my secondary keywords.
If you click further from cheap electric guitar or any of the contained keywords you’ll find a lot of lesser keywords, usually ranging from 5 to 500 searches per month, called the long tail keywords.
These long-tail keywords are usually too small to become the main keyword for your blog, but when you add them up they usually become bigger than your primary keyword.
Some of these long-tail keywords cannot be discovered by any keyword research tool, because they are too random. For every keyword someone types into the search engine that is tracked, there is another keyword searched that is either too long or too rare to be tracked. The only way you will discover these long-tail keywords are by looking at your site statistics over time.
For this reason alone, you need an entire master list of long tail keywords. It will be easy to rank for these keywords, but they bring in very little traffic. However, add the amount of traffic each keyword brings, and soon you’ll have a very popular blog.
How to Use Your Keywords Effectively
So now you know which keywords you want to use, but how do you use them? Here’s a simple guide:
PRIMARY KEYWORD
Use it as the main title of your blog or Website.
Use it as the domain name of your site.
Whether you realize it, this primary keyword will also be used on most of your other blog posts (if you keep to the topic), which will help your blog or site to rank for the primary keyword.
SECONDARY KEYWORD
Use it as an optional tagline for your blog / site.
Use it as the category name for your site or blog.
Create new pages (or posts) with your secondary keyword.
LONG TAIL KEYWORDS
Use it to create individual posts, for example I create a new post called “cheap gibson les paul electric guitar” which comes under the keyword category “cheap gibson electric guitar.”
There are no limits to the sheer number of posts you can create, because there are way too many long tail keywords you can target, each with a tiny search figure every month.
You can also create articles with these long-tail keywords and submit them to article submissions sites like www.myarticlemarketer.com and let the articles rank on those high-authority sites instead, and at the bottom of your article you can have a link back (traffic) to your site.
Limitations of Keyword Research
There are some severe limitations to keyword research. The main one is that it tells you what the user typed into the search engine, not what the user is really looking for or the state of mind the user is in.
For example, the user typed in “cheap gibson electric guitar” into the search engine and found your site. But, what is the user thinking when he is reading your page?
Is he:
1. Looking to buy a product? If yes, then your site should be primarily monetized by affiliate programs that pay you per sale. You can find a lot of physical products and digital products that you can sell from your Website just by typing in “your keyword + affiliate program” in search engines.
2. Looking for more information? If yes, then your site should be monetized by an advertising program like Google Adsense or Chitika, since the user is more likely to click away for more information rather than buy something.
3. Looking for bargains? If yes, your site should be monetized by Ebay or Auction Ads, which is based on Ebay but works like Adsense.
4. Looking for freebies? If yes, your site should be monetized with CPA (Cost Per Action) programs that you can find on networks like www.shareasale.com or www.linkshare.com
Unfortunately, no one can tell you what works best for your site. The only way to overcome this limitation is to first have an understanding of the market you’re targeting. Keywords are just numbers, they tell you how much search traffic you can get, but they don’t tell you how to turn that traffic into cash.
This is the reason most people fail to make money on the Internet. They devote so much time into SEO tactics that they don’t spend enough time studying the market. These people rejoice when they make $50 from Adsense, when they could have been making $500 a month using other money-making methods.
About The Author: Gobala Krishnan is a freelance writer and Internet home business expert in Malaysia. You can visit his site at www.InternetIncomeMastery.com
For more info, click on the links:
SFI
IAHBE - International Association of Home Business Entrepreneurs
Whether you’re trying to build a blog for your SFI home business, or trying to sell other products on the Internet via any type of Website, you simply cannot ignore the allure of getting free search engine traffic from Google and Yahoo.
Unlike paid advertising, research has shown that visitors are more open to natural search engine results and the amount of traffic to natural search engine results is also significantly higher. To get a good search engine ranking, you need to start with the right choice of keywords. Keywords are what people type into search engines to find information. If your site ranks for the correct keyword, your link will be displayed whenever someone uses the search engines.
However, it amazes me how little people really know about keyword research; how hard they try to achieve the impossible, and how fast they give up.
When you think about it, it’s really a vicious cycle:
1. Their lack of keyword research knowledge leads them to target the wrong keyword, which is either too difficult to achieve, or has too little traffic.
2. Then, convinced that early retirement is only a stone’s throw away, they work hard to archive top search engine rankings using whatever “new” method the gurus claim will end their misery fast.
3. Then, after a few months they realize that they will never beat the sites that appear on Google’s first page, they give up, pack up and leave.
Keyword research is a real tricky thing. It can make or break your Internet home business dreams. If you target keywords that are too competitive, you end up chasing dreams of grandeur that will never materialize. If you target keywords that are too easy to achieve, you’ll end up on the first page of Google and realize that your number one position means squat.
The secret is in finding a balance.
The most profitable online market is not the general market, but the niche market. Therefore when targeting keywords, you must target niche keywords. A niche keyword is usually smaller, two to four words long, and is a subset of the larger general keyword.
Let’s take a step-by-step approach to keyword research using a free tool called the Yahoo Keywords Suggestion Tool. Open up this site in a new browser window so you can do your own hands-on training.
This tool is not 100% accurate when it comes to the numbers, but it gives you a relatively accurate idea of what keywords you should target for your blog or Website.
Step 1 : Finding a General Market
You must know the general keyword for your blog or Website. If you don’t, bang your head to the wall and ask yourself what you’re doing trying to make money online.
Your Website cannot be about everything. It must be about something.
You can’t build a site and say “Oh, my Website is about everything that happens in my life and I don’t want to limit myself by sticking to one topic”.
The truth is that with a few exceptions, such “do-it-all” personal-ranting types of sites are doomed to failure right from the start. It’s okay to have a site where you talk about your everyday life, but there must be a main theme; a main niche; a main keyword for that site.
In the example here, I’m going to choose guitar as my main keyword. Mentally, I am going to tell myself that my blog is about guitars, so no matter how much unrelated stuff I throw into my site, the majority (80% or more) of my blog posts or content is going to be about guitars. That would give my site a theme and a reason for people to visit. If I have too much unrelated stuff to talk about, it’s best to put it into a new site.
Right, now you have a general keyword. But that’s only the beginning.
You cannot possibly dream about getting ranked number one in Google or other search engines when someone types in the word guitar. It’s way too competitive. Likewise, never try to rank for general keywords like health, money, home, insurance etc unless you can meet some / all of the following criteria:
1. Your site features a revolutionary new idea / software / service that will change the entire industry forever.
2. You are the undisputed, established offline industry leader and you are taking your business online.
3. You are a millionaire who can spend hundreds of thousands in advertising every month.
4. You can hire a team of smart, highly-trained SEO (Search Engine Optimization) experts (people who specialize in search engine optimization) to monitor the progress of your site and the ranking for your general keyword.
It’s ironic to see some many people try to rank their blogs for general keywords. Yet, they only add five to 10 new posts a month, have no credibility, spend zilch on advertising, and have absolutely nothing revolutionary going on.
It’s just never going to happen.
So, from your general keyword, you need to select a more targeted keyword based on your interests and your own capability. The size of your keyword should depend on these few things:
How much time can you spend on SEO?
Are you willing to spend money in advertising, buying links etc?
Are you capable of writing credible information for that topic, or can you find people who can?
Step 2: Find Your Niche Keyword
From the general and utterly useless keyword guitar, I found a niche market I can focus on. I choose electric guitar because I love the electric versions as compared to the acoustic guitars and I know a great deal about them. It’s also something I’m passionate about and I from which I know that I can make money.
Note: to determine if a niche is profitable, see (1) how many affiliate programs you can find and (2) how many people are using Google Adwords to advertise those affiliate programs.
But, this keyword is still highly competitive, and while it’s not impossible to rank highly for this search term, it’s just not feasible if you’re just getting started in your own Internet home business.
Yes, you can listen to your ego, have a gung-ho attitude, and just go for it. You might just make it. But I think, if you’re new to SEO and Internet marketing, this is not a safe bet.
Instead, you need to go one level deeper into the third-tier keyword range. To understand this concept, just count how many clicks you need to make from the original search term guitar till you get to one you can target. If it takes you 4 clicks it means you’re already into the fourth-tier keywords.
Step 3: Find Your Primary Keyword, Secondary Keywords, & Long Tail
Now I’ve clicked on guitar > electric guitar > cheap electric guitar.
This is my primary keyword, and is the main keyword I will target on my blog or Website.
All the other keywords contained under these keywords, are my secondary keywords.
If you click further from cheap electric guitar or any of the contained keywords you’ll find a lot of lesser keywords, usually ranging from 5 to 500 searches per month, called the long tail keywords.
These long-tail keywords are usually too small to become the main keyword for your blog, but when you add them up they usually become bigger than your primary keyword.
Some of these long-tail keywords cannot be discovered by any keyword research tool, because they are too random. For every keyword someone types into the search engine that is tracked, there is another keyword searched that is either too long or too rare to be tracked. The only way you will discover these long-tail keywords are by looking at your site statistics over time.
For this reason alone, you need an entire master list of long tail keywords. It will be easy to rank for these keywords, but they bring in very little traffic. However, add the amount of traffic each keyword brings, and soon you’ll have a very popular blog.
How to Use Your Keywords Effectively
So now you know which keywords you want to use, but how do you use them? Here’s a simple guide:
PRIMARY KEYWORD
Use it as the main title of your blog or Website.
Use it as the domain name of your site.
Whether you realize it, this primary keyword will also be used on most of your other blog posts (if you keep to the topic), which will help your blog or site to rank for the primary keyword.
SECONDARY KEYWORD
Use it as an optional tagline for your blog / site.
Use it as the category name for your site or blog.
Create new pages (or posts) with your secondary keyword.
LONG TAIL KEYWORDS
Use it to create individual posts, for example I create a new post called “cheap gibson les paul electric guitar” which comes under the keyword category “cheap gibson electric guitar.”
There are no limits to the sheer number of posts you can create, because there are way too many long tail keywords you can target, each with a tiny search figure every month.
You can also create articles with these long-tail keywords and submit them to article submissions sites like www.myarticlemarketer.com and let the articles rank on those high-authority sites instead, and at the bottom of your article you can have a link back (traffic) to your site.
Limitations of Keyword Research
There are some severe limitations to keyword research. The main one is that it tells you what the user typed into the search engine, not what the user is really looking for or the state of mind the user is in.
For example, the user typed in “cheap gibson electric guitar” into the search engine and found your site. But, what is the user thinking when he is reading your page?
Is he:
1. Looking to buy a product? If yes, then your site should be primarily monetized by affiliate programs that pay you per sale. You can find a lot of physical products and digital products that you can sell from your Website just by typing in “your keyword + affiliate program” in search engines.
2. Looking for more information? If yes, then your site should be monetized by an advertising program like Google Adsense or Chitika, since the user is more likely to click away for more information rather than buy something.
3. Looking for bargains? If yes, your site should be monetized by Ebay or Auction Ads, which is based on Ebay but works like Adsense.
4. Looking for freebies? If yes, your site should be monetized with CPA (Cost Per Action) programs that you can find on networks like www.shareasale.com or www.linkshare.com
Unfortunately, no one can tell you what works best for your site. The only way to overcome this limitation is to first have an understanding of the market you’re targeting. Keywords are just numbers, they tell you how much search traffic you can get, but they don’t tell you how to turn that traffic into cash.
This is the reason most people fail to make money on the Internet. They devote so much time into SEO tactics that they don’t spend enough time studying the market. These people rejoice when they make $50 from Adsense, when they could have been making $500 a month using other money-making methods.
About The Author: Gobala Krishnan is a freelance writer and Internet home business expert in Malaysia. You can visit his site at www.InternetIncomeMastery.com
For more info, click on the links:
SFI
IAHBE - International Association of Home Business Entrepreneurs
Tuesday, 21 August 2007
How a single article can increase your web site traffic by 100% -- or more
A reader named Jerry recently wrote an email asking,
"There is a lot of advice about the important of having good article content on a website. Other advice says to submit articles to sites like eZineArticles.com, and refer readers to your site. Which is most effective for driving traffic to a site?
Also, would it be advantageous and proper to do both with the same article?"
Jerry, the short answer to your question is yes. Posting good article content on your site -- and submitting articles to online article directories with a PageRank of 4 or higher -- are key SEO techniques that will drive more qualified traffic to your website. And both can be done at the same time -- provided you go about it the right way.
Here's what you need to do...
Use a keyword research tool like Wordtracker to discover your top-performing keywords
They're the search terms that send you the most visitors that are likely to make a purchase. You can learn more about Wordtracker here: http://imc.wordtracker.com
Optimize your key salespage for your top keywords (two-three maximum)
This means you've got to insert those keywords in your web copy as well as in strategic places in your coding -- such as your title tags, your headline tags, your meta tags, and your image alt tags.
Choose your best keyword -- and then write an article around it
For example, if you sell doghouse plans and your top keyword is, "Build your own doghouse," then you're going to want to include it in the following places:
- The title of the article
- The first paragraph (within the first 200 characters is best)
- The last paragraph;
- At least 2-3 times in the middle paragraphs
If you can, try to include slight variations of that phrase, as well. For example: "build my own doghouse," "building your own doghouse," and "built the doghouse."
You don't have to write a novel! Try to keep your articles to 400-500 words maximum.
Finally, make sure you include a short, credibility-building "bio" with link to your site at the end.
Here's an example: "ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Joe Smith is a recognized authority on the subject of widgets. His web site, www.JoesWidgets.com, provides a wealth of informative articles and resources on everything you'll ever need to know about widgets."
Link the article to your main salespage
The best way to do this -- so you don't distract your visitors from your sales message -- is to include a subtle link at the very bottom of your salespage. Make sure the link's anchor text includes the main keyword in the article. (That's important for SEO reasons.)
You've just made your first step toward building a content-rich site. Congratulations! The more keyword-loaded articles that point toward your site, the more the search engines will love you. Now it's time to send that article out into the world at large, and use it to drive even more visitors to your salespage!
You need to link the article to your site first because it helps the search engines spiders recognize your site as the original "owner" of the article. That way, you'll never get slammed for posting duplicate content on your site, no matter how many sites end up publishing your article.
But once you have that first article posted, you shouldn't stop there! Your next step is to...
Submit your article to the 'Net's top online content distribution sites
I'm talking about places such as...
www.contentdesk.com
www.ezinearticles.com
www.freesticky.com
www.goarticles.com
www.ideamarketers.com
www.findsticky.com
These sites carry hundred or thousands of articles on a range of topics. If someone is looking for content for their web site, they can download or copy an article from the distribution site without paying a dime to use it!
Now people who are plugging your keywords into search engines will be directed to your content at these highly-ranked sites, and web site owners who are looking for fresh, search engine-attracting content will download your article -- along with your bio and link! -- and put it up on their pages.
And once visitors see that you know what you're talking about, they'll click on the link in your bio, and head straight to your web site.
Submit your article to content sites that target your customers
Simply type "your keyword + articles" into the 'Net's top search engines and see what comes up. If you find a site that has a PageRank of 4 or higher and is accepting submissions, then definitely send them your article.
The more links that point to your site from high PageRank webpages that target your audience, the more relevant your site will be in the search engines' eyes.
And that will drive your site even higher in the search engine rankings!
Say "hello" to all those new visitors pouring into your site!
Not only will people be able to find you through the articles you've submitted to all those different content sites... They'll also find your salespage listed near the top of the search engine results.
And all these visitors are QUALITY, TARGETED traffic -- they actually WANT what you're selling, because you are meeting a need or giving them help with the problem they actually came online to solve!
Once you've done your keyword research, you might feel a bit intimidated by the idea of writing something yourself for the 'Net. Or maybe you don't feel like you have the time to do it justice. You can always hire a writer from a freelance web site like Elance to write your articles for you (with a bit basic information from you, of course). Expect to pay anywhere from $25 to $35 an hour for their time.
But I recommend that you try to write something yourself first. You definitely don't need to be a professional writer to create something readable and interesting... (I sure don't have a degree in creative writing myself!)
Just try to think like your audience -- what do they want to know, and how much do they know already? Then tell them simply and clearly. You don't have to write like Shakespeare to give them content they find valuable.
And then, once that content is written, you can use it over and over again to put your site in front of hungry buyers and lead them straight to your salespage!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Derek Gehl specializes in teaching real people how to start profitable Internet businesses that make $100,000 to $2.5 Million (or more) per year. To get instant access to all his most profitable marketing campaigns, strategies, tools, and resources that he's used to grow $25 into over $60 Million in online sales, visit: http://www.marketingtips.com/sr/t.x/908492
"There is a lot of advice about the important of having good article content on a website. Other advice says to submit articles to sites like eZineArticles.com, and refer readers to your site. Which is most effective for driving traffic to a site?
Also, would it be advantageous and proper to do both with the same article?"
Jerry, the short answer to your question is yes. Posting good article content on your site -- and submitting articles to online article directories with a PageRank of 4 or higher -- are key SEO techniques that will drive more qualified traffic to your website. And both can be done at the same time -- provided you go about it the right way.
Here's what you need to do...
Use a keyword research tool like Wordtracker to discover your top-performing keywords
They're the search terms that send you the most visitors that are likely to make a purchase. You can learn more about Wordtracker here: http://imc.wordtracker.com
Optimize your key salespage for your top keywords (two-three maximum)
This means you've got to insert those keywords in your web copy as well as in strategic places in your coding -- such as your title tags, your headline tags, your meta tags, and your image alt tags.
Choose your best keyword -- and then write an article around it
For example, if you sell doghouse plans and your top keyword is, "Build your own doghouse," then you're going to want to include it in the following places:
- The title of the article
- The first paragraph (within the first 200 characters is best)
- The last paragraph;
- At least 2-3 times in the middle paragraphs
If you can, try to include slight variations of that phrase, as well. For example: "build my own doghouse," "building your own doghouse," and "built the doghouse."
You don't have to write a novel! Try to keep your articles to 400-500 words maximum.
Finally, make sure you include a short, credibility-building "bio" with link to your site at the end.
Here's an example: "ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Joe Smith is a recognized authority on the subject of widgets. His web site, www.JoesWidgets.com, provides a wealth of informative articles and resources on everything you'll ever need to know about widgets."
Link the article to your main salespage
The best way to do this -- so you don't distract your visitors from your sales message -- is to include a subtle link at the very bottom of your salespage. Make sure the link's anchor text includes the main keyword in the article. (That's important for SEO reasons.)
You've just made your first step toward building a content-rich site. Congratulations! The more keyword-loaded articles that point toward your site, the more the search engines will love you. Now it's time to send that article out into the world at large, and use it to drive even more visitors to your salespage!
You need to link the article to your site first because it helps the search engines spiders recognize your site as the original "owner" of the article. That way, you'll never get slammed for posting duplicate content on your site, no matter how many sites end up publishing your article.
But once you have that first article posted, you shouldn't stop there! Your next step is to...
Submit your article to the 'Net's top online content distribution sites
I'm talking about places such as...
www.contentdesk.com
www.ezinearticles.com
www.freesticky.com
www.goarticles.com
www.ideamarketers.com
www.findsticky.com
These sites carry hundred or thousands of articles on a range of topics. If someone is looking for content for their web site, they can download or copy an article from the distribution site without paying a dime to use it!
Now people who are plugging your keywords into search engines will be directed to your content at these highly-ranked sites, and web site owners who are looking for fresh, search engine-attracting content will download your article -- along with your bio and link! -- and put it up on their pages.
And once visitors see that you know what you're talking about, they'll click on the link in your bio, and head straight to your web site.
Submit your article to content sites that target your customers
Simply type "your keyword + articles" into the 'Net's top search engines and see what comes up. If you find a site that has a PageRank of 4 or higher and is accepting submissions, then definitely send them your article.
The more links that point to your site from high PageRank webpages that target your audience, the more relevant your site will be in the search engines' eyes.
And that will drive your site even higher in the search engine rankings!
Say "hello" to all those new visitors pouring into your site!
Not only will people be able to find you through the articles you've submitted to all those different content sites... They'll also find your salespage listed near the top of the search engine results.
And all these visitors are QUALITY, TARGETED traffic -- they actually WANT what you're selling, because you are meeting a need or giving them help with the problem they actually came online to solve!
Once you've done your keyword research, you might feel a bit intimidated by the idea of writing something yourself for the 'Net. Or maybe you don't feel like you have the time to do it justice. You can always hire a writer from a freelance web site like Elance to write your articles for you (with a bit basic information from you, of course). Expect to pay anywhere from $25 to $35 an hour for their time.
But I recommend that you try to write something yourself first. You definitely don't need to be a professional writer to create something readable and interesting... (I sure don't have a degree in creative writing myself!)
Just try to think like your audience -- what do they want to know, and how much do they know already? Then tell them simply and clearly. You don't have to write like Shakespeare to give them content they find valuable.
And then, once that content is written, you can use it over and over again to put your site in front of hungry buyers and lead them straight to your salespage!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Derek Gehl specializes in teaching real people how to start profitable Internet businesses that make $100,000 to $2.5 Million (or more) per year. To get instant access to all his most profitable marketing campaigns, strategies, tools, and resources that he's used to grow $25 into over $60 Million in online sales, visit: http://www.marketingtips.com/sr/t.x/908492
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
