Web Design Discussion

Did you know that the title of your WordPress post is one of the most crucial factors for getting visitors to read your blog post and search engines to rank your content? A boring or unattractive title will only drive visitors away to your competitors’ sites. If you’ve invested a lot of time and money into your blog then every visitor counts so learn how to write your titles correctly.

How to create captivating titles visitors love

Read the rest of this entry »

E-mails, Tweets, Facebook Updates, Surfing the Web are just a few ways people pass time online. It’s very easy to spend a considerable amount of time online without accomplishing much because you get distracted by all the information that’s available. For instance you may visit an online forum and engage in conversation with its participants. Before you know you’ve wasted a couple of hours of your time. Why don’t you invest your time to write a blog and make money from it.

Here are the 10 steps to write a blog

Read the rest of this entry »

Since building my blog in March 2006 I’ve tried various ways to monetize the pages. In the beginning I didn’t bother because there wasn’t enough traffic however as I constantly added new content the traffic increased. According to my statistics (viewed in May 2011) my blog received an average of 2500 visitors per day or approximately 7500 per month.

The main methods I use to monetize my blog include:

Read the rest of this entry »

If you don’t keep up with the latest design trends your blog may begin losing traffic. If you designed it several years ago it may have lost its appeal to your visitors and now needs an overhaul. Even if you don’t want to invest time and effort consider optimizing it for maximum performance.

7 Signs Your Blog Needs To Be Redesigned

Read the rest of this entry »

If you’ve been blogging for some time you should always look for ways to improve your blog’s performance because you’re investing a large amount of time and effort into it each week. Create a plan to build a better blog in the next 31 days so you’ll attract more visitors, generate more traffic and make more sales.

10 steps to build a better blog

Read the rest of this entry »

If you want to grab the attention of your blog readers you need to create attractive headlines. If you want search engines to index your blog posts weave keywords into your blog headline and blog content.

Since many folks like to write about blogging here are 101 blogging headlines to help generate your own blog posts.

How blogging killed seo
How much money can I make blogging
Is blogging the best way to market my writing?
Why every business should blog
Is Twitter killing blogging?
Top ten bloggers and their favourite books
If you thought blogging was amateur you were wrong
How blogging is great for small business
15 ways a blogging can build links
How to market a website with a blog
14 reasons a blog can get you a job
21 Celebrity bloggers
12 Ways to build an interesting credit card blog
6 Topics you thought you could never blog about
How one blogger made a million dollars in a year
Does blogging on blogger make you look a noob?
How World of Warcraft blogging is the same as blogging about plumbing
How to engage more people with a blog
How blogging can lead to a novel
14 of the best SFW sex blogs
10 of the best seo blogs
Why doesn’t PR companies still don’t get blogging
7 reasons why a blogger is more trusted than a journalist
Why the wordpress platform will harm blogging success
16 People who make money purely from blogging
How to make money with your blog rather than from it
Blogs are the perfect place to launch buzz marketing
21 ways to reach your customers with a blog
34 Myths of blogging
Where to find ideas for your blog posts
14 ways to use an RSS feed reader to build your blog
12 common blogging mistakes
How to make money from day one with your blog
Why you need to develop a blogging mindset
7 Styles of blogging and their benefits
14 corporate blogging disasters
Why you should never blog drunk
How honest blogging can harm your success
15 steps to blogging success
100 days to blogging success
Using a blog as a tool to have a conversation with your customers
Developing a regular blogging rhythm
How blogging has already changed the web
5 ways to find how many blogs in your niche
How a blogger brought down a government?
Can blogging ruin your sex life?
Will blogging make you more attractive?
17 examples of successful corporate blogging
Why Facebook is not the place to blog
13 ways to start a conversation on your blog
Do environmental blogs make a difference to the planet
6 ways a blog can communicate to your customers
Why Google loves blogs
Why you should never sell links on your blog
15 ways to make linkbait work with your blog
117 ways to make social media work for your blog
How to use the blogosphere for research
Why 90% of blogs should be ignored
How to build business relationships through blogging
Using a blog to encourage feedback from your customers
How long should a blog post be?
10 reasons you should never write a short blog post
11 reasons you should never writer a long blog post
How World of Warcraft blogging pushed the boundaries
The ultimate guide to blogging success
15 blogging tips for non writers
Why successful blogging is about given rather than taking
21 hunks who blog
21 babes who blog
10 ways criminals use blogs to rip you off
12 ways a coffee shop can use a blog to get more customers
How a blog can build trust between you and your customer?
Blogging helped reunite feuding brothers
Using a blog to position yourself as an expert
How to brand build with a blog
14 ways blogging can build lasting relationships with your customers
Increase your profits by using story on your blogs
13 steps to getting your blog listed in google
How to stand out from a crowded blog landscape
50 Blogs to read to make your blogging a success
Why I hate Typepad
12 Reasons Worpress sucks
Using the Worpress widget option effectively
17 ways to make a blog part of your viral campaign
How to write for a blog
13 mistakes writers make when blogging
Why you should never use default templates
Where to hire a blog designer
How much should you pay for someone to blog for you?
14 ways not to ask for a link from a blog
17 effective ways to get a blogger to link to you
How to persuade a blogger to write about you
Why paying for blog posts can put you in prison
Honest blogging without getting sued
The real reason lawyers don’t like to blog
How much money will it cost you to blog?
14 Rockstar bloggers who need to be told to stop
10 corporate blogging disasters
18 of the best designed blogs
Ultimate blogging checklist
Dealing with a blog stalker
Do you have the personality to blog?
Creating new business with a blog
What kind of blogger are you?
Using blogs for competitive research
How to write effective headlines for your blog
Dealing with hate comments on your blog
Using twitter to help your blogging

Courtesy of
http://www.magneticwebcontent.com/headline/headline-examples/101-blogging-headlines/

If you wish to attract lots of visitors to your web site or affiliate program try Google AdWords. It enables you to generate targeted traffic immediately and shows you which combination of keywords and ad copy produce the best results.

Here are 10 tips for creating a successful AdWords Campaign

1. Use a variety of keyword research tools

Instead of using the AdWords Keyword Tool that everyone else uses include other tools such as WordTracker, Keyword Discovery, WordPot and Thesaurus. Look for related keywords and misspellings. Often you can find keywords that no one else is using for their AdWords campaigns.

2. Use the right keywords in your ad

When bidding on a particular keyword make sure you include it in the title and body of your ad. ie

Italian Red Shoes
Authentic Italian Red Shoes
Money Back Guarantee.
www.italianredshoes.com

3. Create different ad groups

Don’t place all your keywords in one ad group unless they are all closely related. Your ad group should be tightly targeted with your ad. For example “italian red shoes” should be placed in one ad group and “fashionable red shoes” placed in another.

4. Split test your ads

Write 2 ads for your ad group and have them rotate evenly to see which one receives the most clicks. If one ad is not performing well, delete or pause it and write a slightly different one. Keep doing this to increase your CTR (click through rate). A high CTR will increase your conversions so you make more sales.

5. Turn off Content Targeting

Only show your ads on Google search, Search Partners, Desktop and laptop computers unless you’re an AdWords expert. Turn off the other options such as content targeting. This will save you spending a lot of money and generate specific data related to your ads.

6. Set a daily budget for your keywords

Calculate how much you wish to spend per day and per month. This will stop you from overspending. For example if you set your daily budget at $5.00 you’ll spend $150/month.

7. Set the maximum cost per click (CPC) for your keywords

Use the Google Keyword Tool to view the average CPC for your keywords. Bid above it if you want to be listed in the number 1 position on the page. Bid lower if you want a lower position. Remember you can always adjust your bids after setting up your campaign. Also don’t believe what Google suggests as often their suggestions are incorrect. Take charge of your campaign.

8. Track your keywords

You need to know what keywords triggered your conversions. I use AdTrackz to track all my keywords. It only takes a few minutes to set-up and you can view the results for each campaign.

9. Track conversions

The standard conversion rate is 1%. This means one sale per 100 clicks. For example if your CPC is 30 cents, 100 clicks will cost you $30.00. For tracking your landing pages or web site use Google Analytics. It’s a free tool offered by Google that tracks traffic, conversions and ROI (return on investment). Always work to improve your conversion rate.

10. Analyze and tweak campaigns for maximum conversions

After letting your campaign run for a day or 2, analyze the data, then adjust your bids, write a a new ad or try alternative keywords to improve your CTR and conversions.

If you’re starting out with Google AdWords, it will take several campaigns before you find a profitable one. The key is to try different products then set up a campaign for each one.

My previous article discussed the top 10 ways to attract web traffic to your blog however there are many other strategies you can also use that are also very effective. The key is try a few strategies that work well for you then focus on using them consistently.

10 advanced strategies to attract web traffic to your blog

1. Write and publish articles

The top article directories receive millions of visitors a day and get indexed by the search engines almost immediately. If you write and submit articles consistently to these directories you will build an ongoing stream of visitors to your blog. This happens because newsletter publishers constantly visit article directories to find fresh content. You can also increase the rankings of you blog or article by including a link to it at the end of your article.

To learn more about how to write, organize and submit articles pick up a copy of my ebook: Article Marketing Strategies

2. Guest blogging

Blog owners are constantly looking for new content. It’s difficult to always come up with a new topic and content that will interest readers. A guest blogger adds a fresh perspective to a blog plus you can include a link to your own blog at the end of the blog post. If the blog is a popular one you’ll receive lots of new traffic. Make sure the content you offer is unique (not published elsewhere) and well written.

3. Submit to search engine directories

Besides submitting your blog to blog and rss directories submit your blog to free and paid directories.

For more information read:
Which search engine directories should I submit to?

What Search Engine Directories Should I Pay to Get Listed?

4. Give away a free report or ebook

People love to receive free information particularly if it contains valuable information that you could easily charge for. Create a report of 10-20 pages then offer it to your newsletter subscribers, joint venture partners, forums, blogs, ebook directories and resource box of your articles, etc. Include links to your blog (product or newsletter) throughout the report to generate traffic to it.

For information read:
How to Create a Report

5. Write a press release

Your press release should contain content that is newsworthy such as a story about your product and what it will do for the customer. Select one of your blog posts that is newsworthy, expand upon it then convert it into a press release.

For more information on the benefits of a press release, how to write one and where to submit it read:

Press Releases Get Instant Traffic

6. Create videos of your articles

Not all people like to read content in its written form. Many prefer visual and audio presentations. To convert your articles into videos either read them in front of a video camera or create slides of them.

For an easy and affordable way to put videos on your web site purchase a copy of VideoWebWizard:

After creating your video distribute it to video sharing web sites to attract tons of new visitors that wouldn’t normally read your articles.

For a list for video sharing web sites read:
Where to Upload Your Videos

7. Do teleseminar presentations

You can use your blog articles to hold your own teleseminar. Google “web conferencing software” to find software to run your teleseminar. String a series of related articles together to present to your audience. Make an announcement on your blog, joint venture partners and newsletter subscribers about your teleseminar. Be sure to mention your blog URL several times throughout your presentation to gain lots of new visitors.

8. Use Social bookmarking

Social Bookmarking refers to web based applications that enables you to store bookmarks online instead of in your favorites or bookmarks on your computer. The immediate advantage of this is that you can access your bookmarked sites from any computer or mobile phone.

To make it easy for visitors to bookmark your posts download and install this plugin for Word Press:

I Love Social Bookmarking

This plugin currently supports the bookmarking sites:
Blinklist, Bloglines, Blogmarks, Digg, del.icio.us, Facebook, Furl, Ma.gnolia, NewsVine, Reddit, StumbleUpon, Technorati.

9. Set up an autoresponder

It’s well known in Internet Marketing you need to touch base with a visitor several times before they act (ie subscribe to a newsletter or buy a product). An autoresponder enables you to automatically build a relationship with your visitor over several days or weeks by sending them new information.

Instead of only contacting them once and losing them forever you have the potential to create a life long relationship.

The most robust and well known autoresponder service is Aweber. They even give you a free test drive or get started for $19.00 a month.

10. Pay Per Click Marketing

Pay per click advertising is a great way o get instant traffic to your blog. Your ads can be immediately displayed on the first page of the search engine results pages. You pay whenever someone clicks on your ad. The key to making a profit is your return on investment (ROI). For example if your product price is $100, your cost per click (CPC) is 10 cents and you sell 1 item for every 100 clicks your profit will be by $90.00. Google, Yahoo and MSN offer pay per click advertising.

For more information read:
How to Set Up A Successful Google AdWords Campaign

Tip
The success of these traffic generating methods for blog marketing will vary for each person. Select 3 methods that work well for you then use them on a consistent basis. Monitor your blog statistics to view the increase in visits each month, where they are coming from and what keywords they are using to find your blog.

*****
For more ways to attract traffic to your blog pick up a copy of my ebook:
101 Highly Effective Strategies to Promote Your Web Site

The beauty of creating a blog is that you can add it to your current web site or use it as a stand alone web site then market your products or services with it to attract lots of web traffic.

Top 10 Ways to Attract Web Traffic With Blog Marketing:

1. Add fresh content

If you consistently add new content you will not only attract regular readers but also the search engines. Try to add new content to your blog at least 3 times a week.

2. Optimize your content

Make sure you optimize the titles, paragraphs and links within your content. This means you must first do keyword research to incorporate keywords related to your content.

3. Include keywords in your tags

WordPress allows you to include tags below each post. Place your most popular keywords in these tags separated by commas.

4. Add meta tags

Use the headspace or seopack plugin to add title and description meta tags to each post. Search engines place great emphasis on title tags that contain your keyword at the beginning.

The description meta tag is what visitors read about your site when they find it in the search engines. Make sure the description of your page will get the reader to click to your content.

5. Create internal links

A single doesn’t get much traction in the search engines unless you get links pointing to it. If you have related content from other areas of your blog create a text link (anchor text) within that post that links to your current content. Your post ranking will increase in proportion to the number of links pointing to it.

6. Encourage commenting

Include questions within your content and encourage readers to leave a comment. This increases blog interactivity. Readers will see that it’s an active blog and will want to read the comments and provide their own feedback.

7. Leave comments on other blogs

Find blogs that have content related to your own and write a comment that compliments their post or is in response to another other comments. With each comment include a link back to your own blog.

8. Use trackbacks

A trackback is procedure for notifying the original blog poster that you have referred to their blog post in another blog. Leave lots of trackbacks to popular blog posts on your own blog. This will encourage those you trackback to, to do the same and will increase traffic to your site.

9. Submit to blog directories

Here is a free list of the top 100+ blog directories you can submit your blog to…

http://www.interactivemarketinginc.com/blog-directories.html

10. Submit RSS Feed to RSS Directories

Here is a list of submission urls for RSS and blog directories you can submit your blog or RSS feed to.

http://www.toprankblog.com/rss-blog-directories/

Blog marketing is a process that must be done consistently to reap great benefits. By employing the strategies above you will get a steady flow of web traffic that will increase over time.

*****
Want to know how to drive tons of traffic to your blog?
Get a copy of my ebook:
101 Highly Effective Strategies to Promote Your Web Site

My last article discussed how to begin creating your report by simply writing short posts on your blog each day about a topic you’re passionate about.

How do you compile all the blog posts you’ve written and create the actual
report?

1. Use OpenOffice.org to compile your report

OpenOffice software is free and easy to use. With one click it converts your document to a PDF file that is ready to upload to your server. It enables you to create a table of contents, headlines, subheadlines, hyperlinks, bullets and add images.

2. Add content

First create an attractive title for your report followed by your table of contents. Copy and paste each article (post) from your blog into OpenOffice. Use sub titles and bullet points to split up the content on your page. It makes it much easier to read.

3. Edit your content

After adding all the content created from your blog posts edit it for correct spelling and grammar so you produce a professional document.

4. Convert DOC to PDF

Use the PDF icon in OpenOffice to convert the document to a PDF file.

5. Create an ecover or banner

An attractive ecover graphic will help sell your report. It not only draws the reader’s attention to your report but enhances the value of your content.

To learn more read:
How to create an attractive ecover

6. Create a sales page

The sales page is crucial to converting readers into buyers. It must keep the readers attention throughout the copy to the order button.

For more information please read my article:

How to write an effective sales letter for your eBook

7. Upload the ecover and PDF file to the server

Once you’ve uploaded all the ebook files to the server check to make sure everything works.

8. Link your posts to your product page.

You can promote your new ebook or report on your blog:

• Create new blog posts related to the content in the ebook.
• Create a strong call to action at the end of each blog post with a link to the sales page of your ebook.
• Offer to write guest articles on other popular blogs that link to your ebook.

9. Add a link (image) to the blog sidebar.

If you’ve been adding content to your blog consistently for several years you’ll probably have hundreds of content pages. Place an attractive banner in the sidebar of your blog that links to your sales page. The banner will appear on every page of your blog thus providing extra exposure for your ebook.

10. Write more related content

You can increase traffic to your ebook by adding video and audio content related to your ebook. Videos can be submitted to video sharing sites. Consider creating podcasts also. These can be marketed on iTunes.

Besides marketing your report or ebook with your blog, there are hundreds of other strategies to market your product.

****************
To market your report or ebook pick up a copy of my ebook:

101 Highly Effective Strategies
to Promote Your Web Site