Web Design Discussion

People that click on your web site one or more times are referred to as unique visitors. No matter how many times the links on your site are clicked by this person it still only registers as one unique visitor.

Why is it important to track unique visitors?

Tracking visitors gives you a clearer idea of the amount of traffic you are receiving. Hits are usually much higher than the number of unique visitors. One person can generate multiple hits from accessing different files on your web site. Therefore unique visitors provide a better indication of the type of traffic you want to receive.

How to increase unique visitors to your web site.

Article marketing is one of the most effective ways to generate unique visitors to your web site. Many ezine and newsletter publishers constantly need fresh content for their publications. If they have thousands of subscribers your article may generate lots of traffic from them reading your article.

You are usually allowed 2 backlinks per article when submitting to article directories. Backlinks are urls that link back to your web site. Since Google ranks web sites according to how many links are pointing to them, your articles help boost your search engine rankings.

Create an article marketing plan

1. Write 5 unique articles each week for 5 weeks.

The best way to achieve this is to create a list of themes you know a lot about, then write a collection of articles surrounding each theme.

2. Submit your article to ezine articles dot com.

Make sure you proof read the article first before publishing it. Ezine articles is the top article directory on the Net. It helps distribute your article in multiple ways so it has the potential to get lots of readers.

3. Submit your article to other directories.

There are 100s of other article directories however only select ones that generate the most traffic. If you have time you could rewrite your article for these directories so you don’t produce duplicate content.

4. Re purpose your content

Modify your article content by converting it to video or audio then submit it to video and audio sharing web sites. You could also use it to create an ebook, teleseminar or split the content into autoresponder messages for an e-course.

Tip

Monitor the amount of unique visitors entering your web site. The number will increase as you increase the volume of articles you write and publish. If you don’t make more sales from the boost in traffic, improve the content on your web page to achieve higher conversion rates.

*****************************************
Get 1000s of NEW visitors to your website without spending
a dime on advertising.

Read my new ebook “Article Marketing Strategies“…
to learn the most effective ways to write and submit articles.

Herman Drost is the Certified Internet Webmaster (CIW)
owner and author of Web Design, Web Hosting, SEO

Are you tracking the amount of traffic to your web site?

The key to making more sales or getting more subscribers is to continuously increase the number of unique visitors.

Definition of Unique Visitors

This refers to a person who visits your web site more than once within a specified period of time. Unique visitors are tracked according to their unique IP addresses and are counted only once no matter how many times they visit your site.

Hits or views are measured by the number of files requested from the site. A file could be accessed multiple times from the same site resulting in multiple hits to your site from the same person. So the number of hits provide an inaccurate view of your site’s visitors. Tracking unique visitors provides a more accurate view of how much traffic you’re receiving.

How to track unique visitors

1. Web host

Most web hosts provide site statistics. If your web site is on a Linux server it will have a cpanel (admin panel) to view your stats. Most hosts use AW stats which tracks daily, weekly, monthly and yearly visitors plus the keywords people use to find your site.

2. Google Analytics
http://www.google.com/analytics/

If your web host doesn’t track your sites’ visitors create a Google Analytics account. When you paste the Google Analytics tracking code into website pages, tracking begins immediately. It enables you to find out how your visitors search your site, what they look for, and where they end up.

3. Statistics counter
Statcounter.com

This is a counter you place on your site that can be visible or invisible to your visitors. You simply sign up for the account then copy and paste the html code into your web pages.

How to increase the number of unique visitors to your web site

One of the best ways to generate immediate and long term visitors to your web site is to write and publish lots of articles.

Here’s how to do it:

• Create a list of themes to write about
• Create a list of topics about each theme
• Create a list of 7 tips for each topic
• Write a paragraph for each tip
• Create a resource box at the end of your article that links back to your web site
• Submit your article to article directories

Tips

Make a goal how many unique visitors you want to receive. For instance if you are currently receiving 3 unique visitors per day make a goal to receive 40 per day so you will eventually get 1200 per month.

Create a plan how many articles you will write each week to meet your unique visitor goal. The number of unique visitors will increase in proportion to the number of articles you write. So be sure you write lots of articles.

*****************************************
Get 1000s of NEW visitors to your website without spending
a dime on advertising.

Read my new ebook “Article Marketing Strategies“…
to learn the most effective ways to write and submit articles.

Herman Drost is the Certified Internet Webmaster (CIW)
owner and author of Web Design, Web Hosting, SEO

If you search your topic on a major article directory you’ll probably find thousands of articles written on the same subject.

So why should you write another article?

Let’s look at a real world example. When driving down a typical American City strip, you see a string of restaurants one after the other e.g. McDonalds, Burger King, Wendys, Kentucky etc. Sometimes you find several McDonalds on the same block yet they all do a brisk business. This means there are enough people visiting these places for them to be profitable.

How does this example apply to your own business?

There are millions of people online who visit article directories, blogs, forums etc to read about information they want and desire. Some (not all) will read your specific article.

How to make your article unique

If you want your article to get read it needs to stand out from the rest.Here are some things you can try:

1. Create an article title that captures the interest of your reader.

The title is the first thing a visitor sees. Spend some time crafting a good headline. This will make the person want to read the rest of your content.

2. Be creative in your article summary

Most article directories provide a summary of your article content. Give a brief description what your article will do for them. Don’t just copy and paste the first paragraph of your article. Your reader may be turned off by the repetition.

3. Make it personal

Write as if you are sitting opposite the person reading your article. Don’t use complicated words or corporate language that is impersonal and hard to understand.

4. Offer something free in your resource box

People love to receive free things if you provide something of value. This could be a free report, course or software.

5. Monitor your article statistics

Check how many people actually view your article and click the URL in your resource box. Work on increasing the click through rate by experimenting with different titles, content and resource boxes.

Tip

Don’t try to write like other writers but develop your own unique style. Every person has there own way of conveying things. Your writing style will naturally attract readers to your articles. This makes them stand out from thousands of others writing on the same topic.

You can attract more visitors to your web site by becoming one of the top authors in an article directory category. When someone wants to find an authority on their subject they can easily see who writes the most articles.

How to find the top authors in the Ezine Articles Directory

Ezine articles is the top article directory on the Net because it receives the most traffic. If you click on any category you can immediately see who the top 30 authors are.

Benefits of becoming a top author

1. Be recognized as an authority on your subject

2. Receive more back links

3. Get more traffic

Traffic is the life blood of your business. If your web site gets little or no traffic you won’t make any sales. Once you become a top author in your niche, more people will want to link and/or publish your articles.

How to become a top author

1. Check how many articles the top authors have written in your niche.

If the top author has 100 articles, make a long term goal to write over 100 articles. If you write 5 articles a week you will reach this number within 20 weeks.

2. Write unique content

If the top author has accumulated 1000s of articles in his category it will be difficult to catch up. Don’t worry…concentrate on creating unique high quality content. Often the quality of content written by top authors is sublime. Read a few of their articles then focus on providing better content. Ezine publishers are always looking for content that provides unique value to their readers.

3. Publish your content in multiple areas

Find other article directories, ezine publishers and magazines in your niche to spread your content far and wide. You never know when someone will pick it up and publish it. This increases your chances of receiving more traffic from one article instead of just relying on one traffic source…ezine articles.

*****************************************
Get 1000s of NEW visitors to your website without spending
a dime on advertising.

Read my new ebook “Article Marketing Strategies“…
to learn the most effective ways to write and submit articles.

Herman Drost is the Certified Internet Webmaster (CIW)
owner and author of Web Design, Web Hosting, SEO

These days people prefer to search for your business online rather than spending time wading through hundreds of yellow page ads. One of the easiest and fastest ways to get your web site listed locally in Google is to create a Google Maps account. This allows people to quickly find services available in their local area.

Google Maps listings now appear above all other listings for organic search results so its imperative to get a listed there if you want to get local traffic to your web site.

Here are the steps for how to set up an account:

1. Sign up for a Google Maps account

Fill in these areas:

Basic information - this refers to the contact information of your business. If you don’t have a current address or don’t want to use your home address, get a P.O. Box address from your local UPS store.

Categories - insert the category of your business and/or create a new one

Hours of Operations - specify the hours you are open. You can also leave this blank.

Payment Options - indicating the type of credit cards you accept allows customers to quickly see what kid of payments you accept.

Photos - this option allows you to browse to a photo of your business on your computer and upload it to your local listing. You are allowed up to 10 photos.

Videos - create a video about your business and upload it to You Tube. You can enter up to 5 URLS of your You Tube videos.

Additional details - you may want to include extra information about your business ie if parking available, or what brands you carry.

2. Submit your listing

After clicking the submit button you will need to verify your listing by providing your telephone number of address. When entering your telephone number you’ll immediately receive an automatic phone call from Google. Enter the pin number provided to you and you will be confirmed right away.

3. Check your listing

Your listing will appear within 24 hours. Check your listing by doing a search on the title of your business.

Getting listed locally with Google Maps is far easier than getting good rankings on a national or world wide scale so take action and sign up for an account right away.

*****************************************
Get 1000s of NEW visitors to your website without spending
a dime on advertising.

Read my new ebook “Article Marketing Strategies“…
to learn the most effective ways to write and submit articles.

Herman Drost is the Certified Internet Webmaster (CIW)
owner and author of Web Design, Web Hosting, SEO

Article marketing requires a consistent effort to be successful. It’s not enough to send out one article a month then expect an increase in visitors to your web site. You need to create an effective marketing plan that fits within your timetable.

Steps for creating an effective article marketing plan

1. Set a goal to write 25 articles within a certain time frame.

If you can write 5 articles a week you will finish 25 articles in 5 weeks. If you write 3 articles a week you can get them finished within 2 months. It’s important to set a deadline so you won’t end up procrastinating.

2. Write short articles

250 words is the minimum amount to submit to EzineArticles. This makes it quick and easy to stitch a few paragraphs together that provides a solid benefit to your readers. Don’t focus on the 250 words but just start writing. Ideas will begin to flow once you begin. Often you’ll surpass 250 words by the time you’ve completed the article.

If you can’t convey your thoughts inside 250 words and need to write more, split the content into into 2 or more articles. Other article directories(besides EzineArticles) require longer articles of 500 or 750 words. In this case you can combine several of your short articles.

3. Focus on one tip then expand upon it

Create an attention-grabbing headline then expand upon it in the article body so that it keeps your reader’s attention. Create a smooth transition to your resource box where you provide the call to action and a link to your web site. Use your main keywords in the title, body and anchor text.

4. Submit your article to specialized publications

After submitting to EzineArticles send your article to ezine publishers that cater to your subject. You can find them by entering your main keyword + ezines in the Google search box .

5. Repurpose your content

If you have the time, repurpose your content by creating a video or audio and submitting it to video and audio sharing sites. This gets your content seen by more people and ultimately drives more traffic to your web site.

6. Consistent effort pays big dividends

Don’t stop once you’ve reached your goal of 25 articles. Set up a new goal…perhaps 250 articles. Set another deadline when you will achieve this. Remember consistency is the key to article marketing success. Every time you submit an article it will work for you by sending visitors to your site for many years. Increasing your article volume means attracting more visitors.

7. Monitor your visitors

Make a note of when you started your article marketing plan by observing your web site statistics. Observe how many visitors you were getting in the beginning then how many you are receiving at the end of your deadline.

Tip

You will become more proficient as you write more articles because “practice makes perfect”. Some web site owners pay big bucks to have copy written for them that converts visitors into buyers. Writing lots of articles gives you the added benefit of becoming a great copy writer.

Is your web site one of many millions on the Net receiving little or no visitors?

Are you going to leave it like that or do something about it?

One of the most effective methods for attracting visitors to you site is writing and submitting articles. A well written article can generate traffic for years to come. The more articles you produce the more traffic you receive.

How to write an article that attracts visitors

1. Provide a tip on your favorite subject

People love to receive tips. These are bite size chunks of information your customers can easily digest because they are quick to read and easy to act upon. Compare that to a long drawn out article containing tons of information you find hard to digest and take action upon.

2. Write how you talk

Write in a personal style as if you are sitting opposite the person. Don’t use corporate language. Use “I” or “you” instead of “we” or “our”. This enables the reader to relate to you on a more personal level.

3. Don’t worry about grammar or spelling

Once you start writing ideas spring up in your mind that you should immediately incorporate in your content. Therefore don’t stop this flow by correcting the grammar and spelling as you write. Just keep writing until you’ve run out of ideas. If you don’t have time to write everything down, make short notes elsewhere. These will come in handy for future articles.

4. Keep it short

Keep your article to 500 words or less. People prefer reading shorter articles over longer ones because their time is limited. Longer articles can be created by combining several short articles.

5. Structure your article

A. Open the first paragraph by pointing out a problem. Expand on this problem in the next paragraph.

B. Offer your solution and expand on it in the next few paragraphs.

C. The last paragraph should summarize what you have already said. Don’t copy what you’ve written but say it in a different way using different words.

D. Provide a call to action in the resource box at the end of your article. This is where you invite your reader to take action by visiting your web site. Make the call to action a smooth transition from your article content.

6. Proof read your article

Check your content for grammar and spelling mistakes. If you’re not good at this give it to a friend who has these skills. Read it out aloud to yourself or get someone else to read it to you. What sounds strange to you will also sound strange to your visitors.

7. Submit your article

First submit it to the most popular article directory…EzineArticles. Then submit it to other article directories. A Google search will produce hundreds of them.

Tip

The key to successful article writing and marketing is to do it consistently whether it is once a week, three times a week or every day. As you increase the volume of articles written and submitted, the volume of traffic to your web site will also increase.\

*****************************************
Get 1000s of NEW visitors to your website without spending
a dime on advertising.

Read my new ebook “Article Marketing Strategies“…
to learn the most effective ways to write and submit articles.

Herman Drost is the Certified Internet Webmaster (CIW)
owner and author of Web Design, Web Hosting, SEO