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| Tuesday, June 29, 2004 |
| 10 SEO Tricks to Attract More Traffic to Your Blog |
- By: David Cowgill As fancy as the term "blog" sounds, it's actually just a website that uses a content management system. While most blog software is more search engine friendly out of the box than many web sites, the opportunities for blog optimization are readily available.
Here are 10 tricks that will increase your visibility in search engines and eventually drive more traffic to your blog.
1) Use keywords in your blog post titles - This is a given for SEO. Most blogging software uses the post title as the url so take advantage of it.
Example: “10 SEO Tricks to Attract More Traffic to your Blog - Search Engine Journal"
Search Engine Journal is included on every blog post title tag automatically.
2) Optimize your blog categories - When you create categories for your blog, be sure to use keywords in the titles. When you post, be sure to default to a general category that is relevant no matter what the post is about. Choose multiple categories on each post when appropriate. This will create a “SEO-friendly" url for each post you make.
3) Syndicate your blog - Make it easy for people to subscribe to your blog. Sign-up with a free service like Feedburner and then create a “syndication" area on your site.
4) Offer RSS to email. Anywhere from 10% to 40% of your blog traffic can come from individuals that perfer to read blog posts via email. RSS readers and aggregators can be confusing. Adding email services to your blog isn't. There are several free services available for this including: FeedBlitz, Squeet, and Zookoda.
5) Ping blog search engines - This can be configured with blog software such as Movable Type or WordPress to work automatically. If you're using Blogger.com, then you can do this manually with Pingomatic.com or Pingoat.com.
6) Make comments on other blogs. Your name will be linked to the blog url that you enter. Don't make comments that offer no value to the blog post. Don't use keywords in the field for your name, use your name or blog name.
7) Submit your blog directories. Also submit the blog to regular directories such as (DMOZ, JoeAnt, GoGuides, Google Blog Search, etc) that have categories for blogs.
8) Targeted advertising – Now this doesn't really drive traffic to your site but will make you money. It's possible by using Google AdSense to display highly targeted ads on your blog. Once you've setup an account and placed the ads on your site, just sit back and watch the cash come in. Cha-ching.
9) Snatch up hot keywords - Now before you place ads on your blog, be sure your keyword density is good for the right terms. A great tool to improve your traffic for high-paying keywords is to use a product called Keyword Elite (http://www.seojuice.com).
10) Use track backs - If there is a blog that you refer to or quote and it is highly relevant to your subject, leave a track back. It increases your link popularity and may even score a few interested readers from the linked site. A TrackBack is a mechanism used in a blog to show, around an entry, a list of other blogs that refer to it.
Summary
The important thing to remember is that no matter how many optimization tactics you employ with a blog, there is no substitute for quality content. Blog optimization is only as effective as the quality and usefulness of the content you're optimizing. So do not limit yourself to tips and lists. Use your imagination and you will come up with thousands of ways to drive traffic to your blog! As fancy as the term "blog" sounds, it's actually just a website that uses a content management system. While most blog software is more search engine friendly out of the box than many web sites, the opportunities for blog optimization are readily available. David Cowgill is a SEO enthusiast who manages several informational blogs. Author: David Cowgill iStock Blog Founder |
posted by birdflu2006 @ 8:28 PM  |
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| Sunday, June 20, 2004 |
| Blogging for Cash – AdSense Placement |
- By: Jason DeVelvis
If you are interested in Blogging for cash – Adsense placement is very important. You need to quickly learn where to place the ad units to ensure that you get the maximum number of clicks that you can possibly get with the traffic that you have. In terms of earning money with AdSense, Blogging for Cash – AdSense Placement is vital!
There are many techniques that have been tested by top marketers, website owners, and bloggers since blogs and AdSense have come into existence. What they have found is that what works for one site or blog does not necessarily work for another site or blog – but certain principles, if followed, can significantly increase the number of clicks you will receive. This ultimately determines how much money you make with Google AdSense.
First, let’s dispel any myths about the placement of AdSense ad units. There is no one particular place that works better than all other places on all webpages for ad units. Some people will tell you to use Skyscrapers on the right hand side of the page. Others will tell you to use Skyscrapers on the left hand side. Still others will tell you to use the rectangular boxes at the top of the page. This is what works for THEIR sites, but it will not necessarily work for yours.
Where your ads are placed is largely determined by what your visitors are doing, and where their attention is focused on each of your pages. If your visitor’s attention will be focused on the right hand side of the page, then by all means use the skyscrapers on the right hand side of the pages. But if their attention is focused on the content of your blog posts, you might do better by copying and pasting the AdSense code into the middle of each post you make.
Look at your blog from a visitor’s point of view. Where is their attention? Have a friend or family member look at the page as well. Ask them what they see first. Ask them what part of the page – without any AdSense ads on it – they were most interested in. Find out what drew their attention and why.
In most cases, you do not want to get in your visitors way. However, if you are hoping to earn AdSense revenue, you need to get directly in their path in order to get your ads noticed – and clicked on. This is why so many people opt to put their AdSense code directly in their entries. When it comes to blogs that is usually where a visitors attention is focused – on the entries. Try putting the AdSense code directly in the middle of each post, using one of the rectangular boxes. Just make sure that you tell your visitors that the post is continued below.
Be careful. You must follow Google’s terms of service for placement of AdSense ad code. If you break the rules, Google can ban you. It is important to know that Google only allows you to have two ad units per page. If you will be using your AdSense code within the text of each post, make sure that your blog does not display more than the Google AdSense ad placement limits - if you break their rules, they’ll ban you! Otherwise, have fun blogging and making money!
If you are interested in Blogging for cash – Adsense placement is very important. You need to quickly learn where to place the ad units to ensure that you get the maximum number of clicks that you can possibly get with the traffic that you have. In terms of earning money with AdSense, Blogging for Cash – AdSense Placement is vital!
Jason frequently gives tips like this to the subscribers to his newsletter. Visit Adventures In Internet Marketing and subscribe to his newsletter today! |
| posted by birdflu2006 @ 9:34 PM |
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| Friday, June 18, 2004 |
| Great Blogging Resources – How to Find Information and Ideas |
- By: Jason DeVelvis
When you are thinking about your blog entry, you may be faced with writer’s block. This is common for most writers – even bloggers. Don’t panic. The good news is that writer’s block always passes. There are a number of great blogging resources that will help you come up with ideas or find information to write your blog entries.
In some cases, it is a good idea to make a list of future blog entries. You should keep a pad of paper and a pen handy at all times. Pay attention to the world around you. When you are surfing the net, be on the lookout for topics that you can blog about. When you are standing in line at the grocery store, again, be on the lookout for blog topics. Make sure you jot these ideas down, or they may be lost forever.
Determine how often you will blog. If you will blog once a week that is 52 blog entries that you will need to write. If you will blog daily, that comes to 365. Try to write that number of topics for future blog entries on your list. That way, when you are stumped, you can refer to your list to find something to write about.
Another common practice for getting ideas for blog entries is to visit other blogs that are related to yours in some way. You aren’t there to copy information, but your blog entry can be based on one of theirs, as long as you provide a Trackback to the other person’s blog entry. This is what makes the blogging community so great! All of the information works together and is connected – allowing us to pass information around at the speed of light! You can also visit websites that are related to your overall blog topic to get ideas.
Of course news websites, such as http://www.cnn.com , http://www.headlinenews.com , http://www.msnbc.msn.com/ , and other such sites are great resources for information and ideas for your blog entries as well. Many bloggers incorporate the daily events of the world into their blogs, and there is no better source than a news website for this information.
Other sites such as Yahoo at http://www.yahoo.com may also give you ideas for your blog entries. Even doing a search on the most popular keywords that have been searched for recently can give you ideas that you can write about.
Once you’ve chosen your topic for your entry, you may need to do some research to find specific facts. There are numerous resources for all kinds of information available for free online. Typically, you can go to any search engine and simply type in a keyword or keyword phrase and find what you are looking for. If you need specific statistics on a given topic, type in the topic followed by the word statistics, and you will find what you are looking for.
Just try to make sure that the information you are writing in your blog is accurate. If you are unsure, simply say that you are unsure. If you are using estimates, make sure that it is clear that it is just an estimate. If you are stating your opinion, make sure that people will understand that this is your opinion, as opposed to actual facts. Nobody wants to be flamed, and we all hate it when we are wrong and somebody points it out! Avoid this by checking your facts, and distinguishing between fact and opinion!
When you are thinking about your blog entry, you may be faced with writer’s block. This is common for most writers – even bloggers. Don’t panic. The good news is that writer’s block always passes.
Jason frequently gives tips like this to the subscribers to his newsletter. Visit his blog at Adventures In Internet Marketing and subscribe to his newsletter today! |
| posted by birdflu2006 @ 10:37 PM |
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| Tuesday, June 15, 2004 |
| The Buzz about Blogs |
- By: Dan Mitchell
The “blogosphere” continues to grow at a phenomenal rate. In fact, the number of blogs is doubling every 6 months.
Right now, there is a new blog published every second, according to Technorati, the search engine that keeps track of Weblogs. In August 2005 there were over 7 million blogs, that number is now over 14 million.
Weblogs have become the homepages of the 21st century and are used for everything from sharing recipes, personal opinions and travel adventures, to the latest in political and economic news.
Blogs are also facing their share of controversy and praise. Reporters Without Borders recently published their “short list” of the seven best blogs out of 60, which won the “Freedom Blog Awards” for defending freedom of expression.
Winners (who are chosen by the public who vote for their favorite blogs) included “Shared Pains” which describes life in Afghan, and Mojtaba Saminejad, an Iranian whose blog is published in the Farsi language. (He received a two-year prison sentence in 2005 because of his blog). Another winner, Jeff Ooi, publishes the Malaysian blog “Screenshots” which is in English. Because he allowed a comment on his blog back in 2004 which reportedly “insulted Islam” according to authorities, he was also threatened with imprisonment.
This award marks the first year for the event, but Reporters Without Borders hopes to make it an annual one. The organization follows and reports on freedom of the press around the world.
In oppressive countries, such as Iran (which shut down almost all independent newspapers in 2000), blogs have provided a way for journalists and others to express themselves and share the latest news and happenings. But speaking up in such places often has serious consequences, such as one blogger in Iraq who was jailed by authorities after speaking up about what was simply a local problem.
China is another repressive area. Recently Chinese authorities declared that all bloggers had to register their blogs with them, or risk being shut down.
To help combat these and similar problems around the world, organizations are being set up to provide global support among bloggers for those who are being repressed.
One of the biggest controversies right now, is whether bloggers should receive “journalistic” status. Some people see blogs and bloggers as a kind of counterbalance to what they see as media arrogance, while others call them vigilantes. Recent events with Newsweek, CBS News and others have caused a division between the main stream media and bloggers who feel the “truth is out there” and they want it told.
One thing both bloggers and the mainstream media agree on, is that things have been forever changed. The tools of mass media are no longer the property of the press alone, they’re also freely available to the people. If the medium is the message, what impact will blogging have on our lives.
Not as controversial, blogs have also become a mainstream tool of large and small businesses everywhere.
Blogging provides a simple and low-cost method for businesses to stay in touch with their customers, get free publicity and build a business brand.
As technology continues to evolve, and the number of blogs continues to rise, it remains to be seen whether blogging will remain an effective business and marketing tool. But one thing is for certain – blogs are here to stay.
According to Technorati.com a new blog is published every second.
Dan Mitchell reports on blogs for www.bloggingtrends.com |
| posted by birdflu2006 @ 10:39 PM |
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| Thursday, June 10, 2004 |
| Getting Started With Videoblogging |
- By: Jeremiah Patton
Videoblogging is the next generation of posting ideas and products over the internet. Everybody knows about textblogging. Now they use videos for a better way of expression. This form of communication may entail a lot of resources, but it is all worth it. If pictures say a thousand words, videoblogging exceeds that by far.
A videoblog requires larger disk spaces on websites, a faster server, and a whole new set of programs to support it. Videoblogs can be fed through RSS. This is technology of syndicating your website to other RSS aggregators.
Videoblogging works with people on the internet expressing their selves. Now if you put this on a business prospective, you are up to a lot of benefits. Think of it as a powerful tool in making showing your prospective customers your line of products or your services. It’s just like showing a commercial all for free. And if you videoblog through RSS, then most probably you are getting your target market.
People like to see what they are going to buy. Some would like to see proof and be sure that they are getting their money’s worth before shelving their dimes on it. All of us know the influence of a thirty second commercial. The effect of videoblogging is similar to that. You show your product, people watch it. If they like it, they buy it. If you present it good enough, they’ll buy the product even if they don’t need it.
Now on the web, things are pretty much static, unlike in television in which all are moving. If you post something that is mobile, it would most likely catch attention. Now imaging your product parading in all it’s royalty through videoblog. You’ll get phone call orders in no time.
If your business is just starting up, you can create a videoblog right at your own home. All you need is your web camera, microphone, video software, and lights. For as long as you know how to use your camera, then you can create a videoblog.
Invest in a good web camera. The higher its resolution is the better the output. And you like to present your goods in the optimum way so get the best one possible. Make a short story, or just capture your goods in one go. Just make sure you are getting the best profile for each. Get those creativity juices flowing.
Lights are important in a production. Make sure you illuminate entirely the area you are going to use to create videoblog. The brighter the area, the crispier the images will be. You can also use lighting effects for added appeal to the presentation.
Should you require sounds for your videoblog, you need a microphone. Record you voice as a voice over for promoting the product and its benefit to consumers. Sounds are as important as videos on a videoblog. It is advisable to make your sound effects as enticing as the video.
Your video editing software can be any program. You need this to finalize your work. You can add sounds, delete some bad angles, or insert some still pictures in there too. Some programs are user-friendly and can be used even with zero knowledge on video editing. Even simple video editing programs should do the trick. Select your background carefully too. The light affects the presentation so make sure that the background and the light complements each other.
Videoblogging is a great tool but it also has it downside. It may slow down the computer so other may steer clear of it. Download time may also be time consuming especially if customer is still on a dial- up connection.
But don’t let those stop you. Let videoblogging be an alternative for you, though it is best to still keep the text and pictures present in your presentation to accommodate all possible viewers of your site.
Nowadays, the more creative you are in presenting your product to the market, they more you are likely to succeed. Videoblogging offers an interactive way of selling. You involve the customers. You instill in them the advantage of your goods. And at times, those are enough to make a sale.
Videoblogging is the next generation of posting ideas and products over the internet. Everybody knows about textblogging. Now they use videos for a better way of expression. This form of communication may entail a lot of resources, but it is all worth it. If pictures say a thousand words, videoblogging exceeds that by far.
Jeremiah Patton has been utilizing blogging to gain traffic and interest for his work at home business opportunities website at http://www.2ndincome4u.com |
| posted by birdflu2006 @ 10:50 PM |
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| Friday, June 04, 2004 |
| 7 Ways to Get Traffic to Your Blog |
- By: Anik Singal You’ve put a lot of work into your blog, and you put more in every day. But without a steady stream of traffic, no one’s the wiser. Use these seven tips to get more traffic to your blog.
1)Do your SEO and keyword research homework.
Make sure the HTML of your site is search engine friendly. Here’s a basic search engine optimization checklist:
• Do your post titles have appropriate keywords?
• Do your anchor links have keywords in them? Using “here” as a link is a missed opportunity.
• Does your domain name include a primary keyword?
2) Submit your site to the 1st and 2nd tier engines like Google, Yahoo, Dmoz, MSN and Looksmart, and to the blog directories.
Here’s a short list of sites that offer free blog listings:
Blog Search
http://www.blog-search.com/blogclicker-submission.html
Technorati
http://www.technorati.com/
Bloglines
http://www.bloglines.com/
Blogdex
http://blogdex.net/
Blogwise
http://www.blogwise.com/
WeBlogALot
http://www.weblogalot.com/
Globe of Blogs
http://www.globeofblogs.com/
BlogHop
http://www.bloghop.com/
Blogarama
http://www.blogarama.com/
3) Ping like you mean it.
This is a way for you to raise your hand to the blog trackers when you’ve posted new content. You can do it site by site at places like Technorati, or go to Ping-o-matic (http://pingomatic.com/) and mass-ping your blog to over 20 sites. Make sure your blog is set up to ping the appropriate sites every time you publish a post.
4) Feed your RSS.
Make sure your blog has one and that it’s working. An RSS feed is a bit of XML that allows your blog to push content to RSS readers. That way people don’t have to visit your site to get your latest insights – they just open their RSS reader and read the news. If your blog is at Blogger.com, don’t worry about an RSS feed – its already been created for you. If you’re not at Blogger.com and your current blog doesn’t have RSS functionality, visit Feedcraft.com and sign up for their free service that will set up an RSS feed from any website (blog or not).
5) Swap links.
Make a list of relevant sites you’d love to link to your blog. Write them a short friendly note and offer to let them use a few of your posts as content on their site in exchange for a link back to your site. Also, link to their sites from within one of your posts.
Be sure to offer to exchange links in the links section of your blog. Most blog software programs offer this.
There are also sites that special in helping bloggers swap links. Web Log Empire (http://www.weblogempire.com/) is a large one. If you’re willing to pay for a link to your site, check out Text-Link-Ads (http://www.text-link-ads.com/)
6) Be part of the blogging community.
Go to other blog sites you admire. Contribute to their blogs in ways that add real value. Write good, thoughtful comments that are content rich. Give away what you know. Do it a lot – at least 3 posts a week. Over time you’ll become recognized as someone who has something worthwhile to say. As your reputation grows, people will seek out your blog. This is not an overnight process, but by paying your dues and building an audience you are positioning yourself to become a star.
By the way, if your site doesn’t have the functionality for visitors at add comments, Haloscan (http://www.haloscan.com/) is a free service that will let them do so. It also allows for “trackbacking”, which is a way to manage pings.
7) Write your blog!
Put everything you’ve got into it. Make it great. Post as frequently as you can. The search engines will note frequent postings. A blog that has a new post every day is obviously more active – and important – than a blog that was set up in 2003, has 4 posts, and has been dead since 2004. To really make your blog get noticed you’ll need to post at least 2-3 times a week. You’ve put a lot of work into your blog, and you put more in every day. But without a steady stream of traffic, no one’s the wiser. Use these seven tips to get more traffic to your blog. Anik Singal has developed his own industry leading 7 day course to starting your own internet business – The course is 100% FREE, just visit the link below and sign-up!
Home Based Business |
| posted by birdflu2006 @ 8:40 PM |
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