Wednesday, September 26, 2012

5 Proven Ways To Find Link Exchange Partners

If you're like most small business websites on the internet today, you use link exchanges to market your website. But sometimes finding websites to exchange links with can be a time consuming task. Here are a few proven methods for finding websites to exchange links with.
  




1: Search Engines Queries

Using Google or Yahoo, perform the following searches, replacing “keyword” with a keyword related to your site.

Keyword add url
keyword add site
keyword add link
keyword submit url
keyword submit site
keyword submit link
keyword link exchange
keyword link swap
keyword reciprocal link
keyword related sites
keyword links directory

2: Find out who's linking to your competitor's.

If you can find out who is linking to your competitors, you can try to acquire a link to your site ob each site that already links to your competitors. Just search for link:http://www.competitors-url-here.com

3: Other link directories

Find sites that relate to your site that have link exchange directories. Visit each site in their link directories and attempt to exchange links with each site.

4: Link exchange tools

There are several excellent websites that match webmasters with related sites that are interested in exchanging links. Two of the best are Linkalizer and SiteSell's Value Exchange. In general, you'll want to stay away from sites that completely automate the link exchange process. I have used some of them, but the search engines do not like these sites, and may penalize your site if you use them.

5: Software

There is also software available that searches for and automatically emails sites to see if they will link exchange with you. I have used and like LinkAssistant. If you decide to use this method, ensure that you comply with all spam laws and the search engine's guidelines.

All 5 of these methods are proven, dependable ways to find link exchange partners. Use them and start gaining more free links to your website today!

Saturday, September 15, 2012

Avoiding Online Paid Surveys Scams

The bottom line is, if the hype for online paid surveys sounds too good to be true, it likely is. That's the safest way to screen out "offers" that hype big rewards for small investments of time or money. Don't be fooled by:

Testimonials - Ropers and shills typically write these for scams, not satisfied customers.

Documented Proof - Some questionable paid survey sites provide checks and other documental replications as "proof." But just because someone made money at least once, doesn't mean that you will. Besides, with today's computer technology, anybody can counterfeit just about any document and make it look authentic.

Guarantees - Don't believe guarantees that promise the Moon. paid survey sites can't possibly guarantee you much of anything, except that they'll refund your fees if you're not satisfied. But good luck collecting your refund if it's a paid surveys scam.

Reliable- and Trusted-Site Logos - Some questionable paid survey sites display these logos to indicate that they are self-regulating in compliance with the standards represented by the logos. But even legit logos can be stolen, such as those trademarked by the Better Business Bureau (BBB), with a simple right-click of the computer mouse. Click the logos to see where they lead. If they don't lead to valid reports at reputable sites (such as the BBB's official, national reliability site, the URL for which begins with https://www.bbbonline.org/) or the reports are unfavorable, be wary.

The "fine print" at questionable paid survey sites often contradicts much of what their hype implies. (That's how they try to cover themselves legally.) Don't let the hype alone sell you. Read all of the fine print too and ask questions if it's vague or you don't understand it. Think twice about submitting your personal information to any paid surveys site that does not provide a clear privacy policy or arouses your suspicion in any other way. Also read disclaimers, terms, conditions and any other fine print. Avoid sites that don't answer your questions in a satisfactory and timely manner. Be wary of conducting business with sites that list only email or PO box addresses for questions and other matters, as they might be fly-by-night, paid survey scams.

Perform "whois" lookups to reveal if paid survey sites were registered by proxy. If so, be wary of doing business with them too. Site owners might be hiding their contact information behind proxy services, because they're running paid survey scams. Whois lookups will also tell you if different sites were launched by the same owners (unless they were registered by proxy). If so, be wary about that too. Owners might have launched multiple sites so to make their "industry" appear to be more legit, dupe you into buying the same list of paid surveys more than once, or both.

Check with the BBB for complaints against specific online paid survey sites and their owners. But, be aware that, just because there are no complaints, it doesn't mean that all who have conducted business with the sites are 100-percent satisfied. It just means that no one has yet complained to the BBB about those specific sites. More about that is below.

Browse scam forums, such as Scam.com and RipOffReport.com, for messages from consumers who think they've been duped by online paid survey scams. But, proceed with caution. Some messages are posted by ropers and shills pretending to "rescue" those who've been duped by paid survey scams or who are looking to avoid it. For example, the "rescuers" might say that all online paid surveys are scams, except for the "wonderful opportunities" they've found. But, what they don't tell you, is they profit from recommending the "wonderful opportunities". (The same goes for many sites that claim to screen out paid survey scams.) Scam-forum moderators typically remove such messages. But, natch, they'll remain posted until the moderators screen them.

For more information about avoiding scams, see the consumer advice from the FTC and BBB. But, although both have issued general warnings about easy-money schemes (such as work-at-home and Internet business-opportunity scams), at this writing neither has specifically warned about online paid surveys. To issue specific warnings, both agencies typically require many complaints in short order. But many victims don't file complaints, because they're embarrassed that they were duped. Additionally, online paid surveys are a fairly new easy-money scheme at this writing. So, the agencies might not have collected enough complaints to issue specific warnings. But this writer is willing to bet that it won't be long before they do.

If you've been ripped-off by online paid survey scams, as indicated you may file complaints with the FTC and BBB. You may also file complaints with the U.S. government's Internet Fraud Complaint Center.

One of the questions I get most often is how to tell whether a work from home job posting is a scam or a legitimate job. There are some warning flags. In addition, there are sites that can help you determine what's a real work at home job and what isn't.


Sunday, September 2, 2012

Can The Average Person Really Make A Living Online?

Can you really make money online? The answer is a resounding “Yes!”  First, though, you need to understand how this game really works.   The right mindset is crucial to your success.  You’ve probably come across numerous business opportunities already. I know you’re actively searching for information. I hope you haven’t become jaded already by the con artists out there who make false promises.

The fact is you can profit significantly and, yes, even quickly once you learn the right way to do business online. So, approach this article with an open mind.  What E-Commerce is really all about?

There’s nothing magic about the Internet. It’s really just another medium of communication. The difference between doing business online versus doing business in a brick and mortar establishment is this:

1. Your potential customer base spans across the globe if you so desire. You aren’t limited by your location.

2. Your business operates 24/7. You can still make sales even when the workday ends.

3. Your overhead is significantly lower than it would be in a traditional business, and the barriers to entry are lower as well.

4. You can create non-traditional businesses which will have no parallel in the offline world.

As an online entrepreneur, you also enjoy a wider range of options in number of products you sell, their method of delivery and your profit margin after expenses.

Sounds great, right? It truly is an ideal situation for the small, home based business owner; but don’t quit your job just yet.

An online business requires just as much focus and dedication to get off the ground as any other business, so forget about working at home in your underwear right off the bat.

The first thing you need to do is investigate your options. What type of business can you start online? Which businesses are the easiest to set up?

If you already possess some business knowledge and common sense, you’re off to a great start. The real challenge comes when you start translating this knowledge to match the rules of online commerce. The game is played a bit differently on the internet than it is on the streets.

Newcomers often have difficulty sorting out the differences between business models versus business strategies.

Here are some of the most common online business models:

1. Selling tangible goods (ie, Ebay)

2. Selling information products (intangible/downloaded)

3. Affiliate marketing

It takes a certain personality to thrive in any one of these. Let’s take a look at the traits associated with each.

The Seller of Tangible Goods

This type of entrepreneur usually possesses previous experience in the retail industry, though it is not totally necessary to have previous experience in order to succeed. However, an inexperienced online retailer faces the biggest learning curve.

In order to sell tangible goods, you’ll need to learn the ins and outs of wholesale for product sourcing. You’ll need to learn how to set the optimal price point for your products to remain profitable and competitive. You must deal with shipping and returns.

If you run a one-person operation, it will be near impossible to ship products in the necessary volume. In this case, you’ll need to find companies which can “drop ship” your product. Drop shipping is a fulfillment service.

This sounds ideal – but be forewarned. Most real wholesalers have minimum order requirements and will not ship single items.

Drop ship wholesalers who do ship single items often mark up their prices and you end up paying at least 10%-15% above the true wholesale cost. This isn’t a small price to pay when your objective is competitive pricing. Even a small mark up can kill your profit margin.

If you choose this route, be prepared for a lot of hard work! Online retail requires persistence, patience, strategic planning and a high degree of risk.

The Seller of Intangible/Information Products

Information products present an good opportunity for small, home-based business owners. Your costs of development and overhead are low, while your potential profit margin is high.

You will need a new skill set if you choose this path. Primarily, you will need to learn good copywriting skills and how to sell people on what they desire, not on what they think they need. It’s relatively simple to entice a visitor to purchase, say, an MP3 player when they’re already looking for one. This doesn’t require convincing sales copy.

An information product, though, does require good copy. You’re asking your potential customer to invest in a product they aren’t familiar with – something they can’t see or touch or play with like a tangible product.

Information marketing is very much “all in the mind”. It rests on your ability to stir up people’s passions and secret wishes. If you pride yourself on seeing “the big picture” and have the heart of a teacher or communicator, information marketing could be the right choice for you.

The Affiliate Marketer

Being an affiliate marketer can be the Ideal business for most people. They make a living selling products they do not own. Profits come from commissions paid on sales that they refer to other merchants.

A good affiliate can reap an enormous full-time income marketing a whole suite of products that he does not own. He doesn’t pay for product creation, doesn’t have to ship anything and doesn’t deal with customer service issues or returns.

One major skill an affiliate marketer needs to develop as is the ability to generate highly targeted traffic. You also need to learn how to capture that traffic and do a bit of extra selling before they hit the merchant’s site.

If you don’t capture the visitor’s e-mail address, they’re gone for good – and you’ll get stuck trying to generate volumes of traffic over and over again just to capture enough “luck of the draw” sales to get by. It’s like throwing your ad budget down a hole.

If you want to make money online, there are two ways to go about it. The first is trial and error, spending hundreds of hours in front of your computer, buying e-books and struggling perhaps a year or two before you make a dime. The second and best way is to learn from someone who has already achieved success online and can coach and guide you every step of the way.

But beware, there are many out there who will sell you garbage e-books and courses full of ideas on how to make money on the internet, but most fall short of giving you an easy to follow and workable plan. Especially if your a newbie to internet marketing.

I know first hand about this because I spent a full year struggling to make money on the internet. I bought almost every so called Guru system out there only to be let down and was still left struggling to make money. But my determination to make a living on the internet paid off and now I produce a fantastic full time income for my family solely from my online affiliate business.
 
Whether your a newbie or have been struggling for some time, you can achieve online success too if you don't give up and learn the right skills from a proven Internet Wealth Building Coach.  Just stay focused, proactive and stay positive - and soon you’ll be well on your way to making outstanding money online!

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

4 Things Web Analytics Can Teach You - What Your Traffic’s Telling You

Brick-and-mortar stores often change displays, move goods around, and put impulse items beside checkouts. The reason behind these changes is they’re analyzing customer traffic and studying behavioral patterns to understand how consumers shop. As an online retailer, you need to study your customer traffic as well in order to increase sales.

Listen: Your Customers Are Talking

There are a number of web traffic analytics companies, such as http://OneStat.com and http://StatCounter.com, that analyze your customers’ shopping patterns. They follow your customers’ clicks to and through your web pages and provide you with valuable info on how your customers experience your website:

1. You see which keywords bring you, not only the most hits, but also the highest conversion rates. People often find the generic words they use bring them a great deal of traffic, but that traffic averages a shorter stay on the site. The longer people spend on your site, the more likely they are to buy something. Analyzing that data allows you to see which keywords are effective for you.

2. You see the average amount of time users spend on your site. Due to latent conversion, this is a good indicator of how business will be in the coming months. If your users are taking their time, looking at things carefully, that tells you they’re really interested and will likely come back to complete the transaction.

3. You see if your traffic’s leaving as soon as they hit your landing page—if they are, you know you have a problem. As soon as users get there, you want to reinforce to them they’re in the right place. Says John Marshall, founder and CEO of http://ClickTracks.com, “Make sure the keyword the user clicked is associated with, and strongly connected to the copy in that landing page, and throughout the experience… Just paying attention to that could probably get you a 20% to 50% improvement in your conversion rate.”

4. You see where people are exiting your site. This is especially important when you have customers leaving in the middle of checkout. If you see a high rate of users, with full shopping carts, leaving on a particular page, you can pinpoint what’s costing you sales:

• If they’re exiting on the page where you explain shipping costs, you might see your shipping appears higher than your competitors’.

• If they’re leaving halfway through filling out the buyer’s information, you might consider that your buyer questionnaire’s too long.

Web analytics puts you in a position to see what’s working on your website and what isn’t. It’s a way to see where you need to make changes and then measure how effective those changes are.

Monday, August 13, 2012

5 Tips For Developing A Website For Your Audience

Developing a website is important if you want to be a player in e-commerce. However, you don’t want to just develop a website any old way. Instead, you want to develop a website for your audience. When doing research online you have probably seen generalized information on how to develop a website, however it is unlikely you have found significant information on how to develop a website specifically for your audience. The following tips will be really helpful to you to develop a website just for your audience.

Tip #1 Goal

First you need a goal when you are developing a website for your audience. If you do not know what you are looking to achieve then it will be very difficult to be successful. Also, it takes a goal to drive your website where it needs to be. A goal is what allows you to develop an initial plan for your website and helps guide you in developing your website as well.

Tip #2 Audience

Your audience is very important and should be considered in conjunction with your goal when developing a website. Basically, you are developing your website for a certain audience and these are the people that will help meet your goal so this is very important to consider. Just make sure you determine who your audience is before you begin developing your website.

Tip #3 Content for Audience

Once you have determined your goal and your audience it is time to determine the content that will be used for your audience. You might not realize it, but the type of audience you are focusing on will really affect the content you use on your website. So, make sure you have your audience targeted so you know what content will work best for these individuals.

Tip #4 Update

Another important tip for developing a website for your audience is to plan when you will provide updates. This might seem like something you could consider down the road when your site needs updating, but is really not the case. You need to know when your audience will most likely be viewing your site and when they won’t so you know when to provide updates. A little bit of planning will go a long way.

Tip #5 Format

The format of your website is also a very important aspect and one that will really affect whether or not you reach your audience. Once you know who your audience is you will have no problem developing a format that will reach them. Also, your format improves your site’s message, so it is beneficial in a variety of ways.

Friday, August 10, 2012

4 Tips To Build A Content Site With More Repeat Visitors

On the internet, content is known as "the king". People visits a site not for the flashy graphics nor the wonderful website designs, but because of the information they learn from the website.

Having high quality content not just attract visitors, it also attracts search engines to visit your sites more and increase your search engine placements.  However, in order to get more traffic that can turn into money,  you'll need repeat visitors who are eager to read your new update on your content site.

Therefore, your website should have rich, premium, informative content to capture repeat visitors and more search engine traffic.

Here are some simple tips that would help you build a content site that can attract more repeat visitors:

   - Make sure your website's layout is simple and easy looking to the visitors' eyes.  Don't add too many flashy features in your webpage to disturb your visitor’s focus when they are reading on your content.

   - Always remember the most important part in your content is the headline and the first few paragraphs. Whether your reader will read on or not heavily depends on the attractiveness on these parts. Always try to capture their interests and give them what they want to know.

   - Update your website with fresh new content frequently. When your visitors revisit your site and find you have not add new content, they will visit elsewhere immediately. And if this situation goes on, they will not visit your site again. Besides, search engines love websites that update content frequently, and give them higher search rank.

   - You should consider to use blogs.  Blogs are very easy to set up and update.  Once you have entered your entries, all you have to do is to click a button to publish them. And blogs are getting indexed fast and easily in most search engines!

Content is always king, and you can take benefit from it easily!

Thursday, August 9, 2012

Advertising Possibilities Are Endless For Small Business

Often, the biggest obstacle that most, if not all, small businesses have is a limited budget. Let’s face it. Having a small business makes it difficult for you to have the most glamorous marketing campaign such as that of the big firms and Fortune 500 companies.

And you know for a fact that advertising is truly expensive. If you don’t look out, you might just wake up one day with your funds depleted, and strapped with a marketing campaign that provides lackluster performance.

Knowing you have other things to allocate your funds for, you know that you have to consider all things first before you can shell out your hard earned dollars for your coveted marketing tool. Be it full color flyers, or even a large format poster, you can’t afford to be picky when you’re looking at a very small fund to stretch.

With the funds you’re operating on is just enough to get you a decent marketing campaign for your business, it’s no wonder that many business owners and marketers are turning to other alternative promotional vehicles to introduce their brands. In fact, most marketers and advertisers are looking at ways to get attractive and compelling marketing campaigns for the price they can afford of course.

But this is a common misconception of most business owners and advertisers about advertising that should be changed right away. Although a limited budget may mean limited access to the most expensive ads such as your full color flyer printing campaign or your large format poster printing project, it doesn’t mean that you should settle for a mediocre piece.

On the contrary, having a limited budget means you will be able to come up with a more creative ad campaign that will help you effectively introduce your business to your target market.

And it’s not all print ads actually. Marketing your business can be advantageous in a way because you’re able to hand out to your target clients your message in a nice piece of paper. But as always, you can also try some alternatives that can help you promote your business better.

Wednesday, August 8, 2012

7 Ways To Drive Laser Targeted Traffic to Your Site

Whether you’re an affiliate marketer, sell your own products and services, or MLM, there are certain internet marketing techniques that you can use to get more traffic to your site.

It’s not that internet marketing techniques that vary from industry to industry that make a difference, but how you apply them to marketing your business.

The most important element of internet marketing is to go where your customers are. Just as you wouldn’t promote gambling on a gardening site, don’t promote products and services, your own or someone else’s, or MLM where it’s not welcome.

What I’m saying is, don’t just throw your product up anywhere. That’s not targeted traffic. To get targeted traffic, you have to promote where others are looking for what you are offering. Targeted traffic is the key to higher website conversion and more sales.

Regardless of what you are promoting, these techniques will help you get more traffic to your site, and building site is crucial to your success no matter what industry you are in.

Here are seven techniques I use to get more traffic to my sites:

1. Search engines.

Search engines are the easiest way I know of to be found online because just about everyone uses the search engines. Although I don’t recommend that you rely solely on search engines as a way for potential customers to find you, you should at least get your site indexed. People can’t find you if you aren’t there.

2. Link exchanges.

Although linking isn’t as valuable as it once was, it’s still an effective way to promote your site. By contacting website owners who have websites that complement your own, and then exchanging links with them, you’ll build referral traffic because linking is still considered to be an endorsement of your site.

3. Affiliate programs.

An affiliate program is where you allow others to promote your website for a percentage of the profits of each sale. Although there are other ways to pay affiliates like per lead, pay per sale is the most common.

With an affiliate program, you give others an incentive for promoting your website, and this can also make it easier to get links back to your site.

4. Writing articles.

Of all the internet marketing techniques I’ve tried, I’ve found this one to be the most effective. I’m sure it has something to with the fact that I like to write, and maybe it’s easier for me.

What articles will do for you is help you build backlinks to your site, establish you as an expert, and offer more value to your business. You are offering your potential customers something up front.

If the thought of writing articles makes you cringe, try writing tip sheets, lists, or a how to. People love these types of articles because they’re so easy to read.

5. Joint ventures.

Done correctly, a joint venture can be your ticket to fast cash in your business. By seeking out others who have complementary websites, and offering them incentives to sell your products, you can quickly increase your bottom line.

6. List building.

Although list building isn’t an internet marketing technique per se, it is an important part of building your business. List building allows you to recycle your traffic, build relationships, and increase your conversion to make more sales.

7. Know your market.

By knowing your market, you’ll know what kind of products and services potential customers are looking for. Although it won’t help you raise visibility for your site, it will help you increase your conversions, and you can more easily get to know your market by visiting forums on your topic, posting polls on your site, and studying other sites on your topic.

The most important thing to remember is to show your potential customers respect. Don’t spam them with offers. Build a relationship, and you’ll build traffic and make more sales!

Tuesday, August 7, 2012

How to Get Free Web Site Promotion

You have finished making your own website. You have introduced your company and presented your products and services. You have added propositions and promos to catch your target audiences attention. You have achieved the dos and donts of building a company web site. But why isn't your website a major success?

Maybe you're not planning the key to the best promotion of your web site. Here are some guidelines on how to acquire free web site promotions for your companys success.

If you have started to promote your web site, keep it constant. If you promote your site with persistence, it will catch your audiences attention.

Be patient. Try each method in promotion until you acquire the best, free promotion there is. You have to accept trial and error for your web site to reach the top.

There are many ways for your web site to be seen. Here are some free web site promotions you could try until you find the most effective.

*Free promotions such as search engines and directories would give your web site the deserved traffic you always wanted.  Make sure to check your web sites ranking to know whether or not this type of free promotion is right for you.

*Make a deal with other web sites on trading links which could help both web sites.  Make sure to use words that could easily interest the audience.

*Find free classified ads that could boost the promotion of your web site. These ads could be seen by other people who you are not targeting for, but may as well be interested in your services.

*Free and low-cost internet banners are spread all through out the World Wide Web.  Banners that pop-up at the top of a page or in a separate window would automatically catch your target audiences attention.

If your web site and its free promotion did not work even after accomplishing these methods, analyze your web site. Track down all visitors, advertisements, and transactions. Then locate errors in your web site. Upload new files to your web site continuously for audience to return for new products and services. Monitor your own web site if its up in the market or down.

Then be ready to try the methods again and surely it will work.

It has always been said that the best things in life are free. Yes they are. And as soon as your free web site promotion proves to the audience its worth, then you'll believe its true.