Internet Marketing Business Ideas

Power Up Your PPC With Targeted Landing Pages

2008-12-08T11:34:00.008-05:00

*
Pay-per-click advertising can be frustrating, especially when you're just starting out. IMC Insider reader Winston wanted to know if we have any advice. Yes, we do... AND you can use this same advice to vastly improve the conversion rate on your holiday-season PPC campaigns.

Here's Winston's question...

Hi Derek,

I bought your Insider Secrets course last year and have applied the strategies to my website. I managed to get 3 sales in the third week and was overjoyed. But after that everything seemed to come to a stop. I was using the same keywords in my pay per click and was still getting visitors, but no sign-ups or sales.

It got me so fed up because I was paying for clicks and no sales, that I just forgot about my website and lost heart. Now I've got the drive back to try once again.I'm puzzled as to which key phrases I should go with. Do I choose the ones which have maybe 4, 5 or 6 visitors a day, but only about the same number of competing web pages.

Or do I go for the key phrases which have a high number of visitors per day, say 22 or 24, but they also have a much higher number of competing pages.Please can you help me with these questions before I get it back online?I really want to continue to make money but it's proving kind of hard for me.

Many thanks Winston

Hi Winston;

You can increase your chances of converting click-throughs to sales by using a special "landing page" for each ad campaign.As you've discovered, click-throughs are not the true measure of effectiveness. What you want is PPC ads that convert into sales. And that means that for each ad you have to look at:

your keyword

The wording of your ad the copy on your landing page the ease of use of your checkout process All of those elements have to work together to make a sale.You're getting click-throughs, so that means that some of your ads are working. Good start!But when people click through from those ads, what do they see?

Are they landing on a page that specifically addresses what was said in the ad?

For instance, if your ad says "Teach your parrot to stop biting," but it links to your homepage where you sell everything from dog leashes to ferret cages, you're not giving visitors what they came for.For the ad group that deals with the biting parrot, you should create a specific landing page that deals with that subject only and includes the same keywords as your ads.

Each landing page can have only one objective: e.g., buy OR opt in... not both. Then have at least one big, obvious call-to-action button.Test the landing page -- change one element at a time to see which version converts better, then keep the winner, and test another element.To convert sales, make it as easy as possible to buy!

Make sure visitors can go directly to your shopping cart from the landing page.

Get some friends to try out your purchasing process and see if it's easy enough. After all that work, you don't want people giving up and abandoning their shopping carts out of frustration.As for your keywords, more-specific keyword phrases -- including those with three or four words -- will probably work better, even if they don't get as many searches.

"Stop pet parrot biting" will get far better-targeted click-throughs than "pet parrots." You know exactly what the people using those longer search terms are looking for... which means you can write ads and landing pages that respond directly to that need.

And because the longer keyword phrases have less competition, you can get a better position on the page for less money... and a better chance that people will click through.But don't forget -- keywords that convert are what you REALLY want.

And you'll only find those by testing and tracking.If you go to Step 11 in your Insider Secrets course, you'll find a lot of lessons on how to test and track. It's absolutely crucial to do this and keep it up, because as you've observed, things change quickly.There's also a terrific free tool from Google that we recommend.

It's called Google Analytics. When you use it along with Google AdWords, you can get a real in-depth look at what people are doing on your site.Your PPC ads can't make sales all by themselves. But give them the solid backup of a targeted landing page and a no-brainer buying process and you'll turn click-throughs into conversions.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Internet marketing expert Derek Gehl specializes in teaching real people how to successfully start, build, and grow their own profitable online businesses on small budgets. To get instant access to the step-by-step strategies, tools, and resources he's used to grow just $25 into over $60 Million in online sales, visit: Marketingtips

*

Home

The best-selling items on eBay...why YOU shouldn't sell them

2008-12-02T09:17:00.011-05:00

*

The best-selling items on eBay… And why YOU shouldn’t sell them

Looking for best-selling items on eBay so you can cash in on their popularity? Well stop shooting yourself in the foot!

The trouble with jumping on the eBay best-selling items bandwagon is that tons of other people have the same idea. These markets are already saturated - making it very difficult to turn a profit.

DVDs and consumer electronics, for example, are two totally saturated markets on eBay. You can still enter these markets, and you may even be able to sell lots of these products. But to earn a decent full-time or even part-time income, you’d need to find a supplier who can sell you items at rock-bottom prices!

That’s because you’ll be competing with PowerSellers - seasoned eBay merchants who have built up a big customer base, earned a good reputation, and established long-term relationships with suppliers. Not only that, but because they sell so much product, they can afford to sell at lower prices.

So how do you avoid falling into the "hot products" trap?

Instead of duking it out with the heavyweights for best-selling eBay items, start focusing on your own areas of expertise, then find products that relate to them. For example, if you already know a lot about baseball cards and have collected them in the past, think about collecting cards relating to other sports.

Even though you may not know as much about those other subjects, you DO know a lot about what collecting the cards means to people, how to source cards, how to build collections, and so on. So your learning curve will be much easier than if you jump into a completely new category.
Here’s how you find profitable products related to your interest areas:

Start by identifying your top five areas of interest. Keep in mind that the more you know about these areas, the easier it will be to share your enthusiasm and establish credibility - which will help you sell more items for a higher price. (And who doesn’t want that?)

Cut back your list to the three areas you know the most about to narrow your focus and cut back on your research time.

Brainstorm a list of 5 to 10 related products for each area.

The more specific you can be about your product, the easier your research will be. If your top category is soccer, for example, your list might include "Nike soccer cleats," "goalie gloves," "size 5 soccer balls," or "referee whistles."

Once you’ve built a list of specific products related to your interest areas, you can use them as a jumping-off point for further research using advanced eBay research tools.

(The absolute BEST third-party eBay tool we use here at IMC is Terapeak. Our team of Advanced eBay Mentors use it to help clients find crucial information like product demand compared to the amount and type of competition, as well as the average selling price and the sell-through rate for similar items.)

That’s all there is to it! Instead of wasting valuable hours searching for "best-selling" items on eBay in markets you can’t possibly compete in, find a niche you know something about and lay the groundwork for your own highly profitable eBay business.

Like to know all about Ebay selling? Please check out our eBay course

*

"Discover the Exact Step-by-Step System
You Can Use To Start And Grow
Your Own Profitable Internet Business...

... You Don't Need Business Experience,
Technical Skills, Or Even A Website!"

Product Review:

"The Insider Secrets to Selling on eBay" -- VERSION 2008

By Derek Gehl and The Internet Marketing Center

If you'd like to start a business on the Internet, and potentially earn THOUSANDS of dollars each MONTH -- even BEFORE you have a website -- you'll want to read this article very carefully...

I recently read the newly revised and updated version of Derek Gehl's "The Insider Secrets To Selling On eBay," and I've got to tell you, it's a must-have for ANYONE wanting to start earning money online!

It doesn't matter if you have NO business experience and NO technical skills...
... Derek and his team of elite eBay mentors will show you the EXACT steps you need to follow to start a SERIOUS eBay business.

Derek worked with his team for MONTHS to research, develop, test, and perfect these latest strategies, which even most eBay PowerSellers don't know about, and because they're "hot off the press," you KNOW they won't be available anywhere else on the Internet!

In "Insider Secrets to Selling on eBay," you'll discover:

How to identify the hottest markets on eBay and guarantee auction success!

Where to find the products that offer the greatest profit potential!

How to write “bidder magnet” listings that explode your final selling price!
What you can do to automate your business — so you have more time to grow it!
Ways to drive swarms of traffic to your auctions with top-secret promotion strategies!
Advanced techniques tested and proven to grow your business further!
The LATEST changes to eBay's rules, and how to take advantage of them to beat your fiercest competition.
And MUCH more...

And Derek helps you out even MORE...

...by throwing in Free regular updates to the system, constantly updating you on the latest changes at eBay, and how you can take advantage of the changes to beat even your biggest competitors

PLUS... he's giving away FOUR super bonuses, including 7 revealing interviews with TOP eBay experts, additional examples, and resources!

As far as I'm concerned, the new 2008 edition of "Insider Secrets to Selling on eBay" is a perfect 10, and I recommend you take a look at it right away.

And Derek's currently making trial copies available, so you can try out the profitable strategies for 30 days-- and prove to yourself that they realy do work-- WITHOUT risk!

To find out how, click here now...

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Internet marketing expert Derek Gehl specializes in teaching real people how to successfully start, build, and grow their own profitable online businesses on small budgets. To get instant access to the step-by-step strategies, tools, and resources he's used to grow just $25 into over $60 Million in online sales, visit: Marketingtips

*
Home

Introduction: Internet Marketing Business Ideas & Resources

2008-11-15T07:13:00.016-05:00

*

By: Dorothy Adkins,

This page is "Very Important To Me." Because I know that most if not all my visitors are just like me. They just love to find Free stuff on the Internet such as Free tips on Internet Marketing Strategies or Search Engine Marketing. Internet Business Tips on how they to can Start Internet Business to Make Money Online.

So I will be updating this page on a regular Basics and you may want to subscribe to the feed at the bottom of the page.

Or you can contact me with your name an e-mail address just put opt-in in the subject line an I will try to keep you updated. I will be updating an posting links to Free Internet Marketing Tools and about once a month Internet Marketing Business Ideas & Resources will have access to Free videos that you can watch with Free Tips on how you can work at home and start an build a highly successful business to Make money online.

The Free video Marketing Tips will be Tips from a World Famous Marketing Expert "Derek Gehl" and he knows what he's talking about. I never miss watching one of his free videos an always come away from there with a good Business Idea, or another way to make more money online or another Free Tool and some of the best Free Tips on Selling on eBay.

My visitors are very important to me and some of them are newbies or beginners so if you have any Free Tips Please leave a comment and let us know. I'm sure my visitors would very much appreciate it. and I would too!

Free "Recession-Busting" Video
Coming December 29 Be sure To
Sign Up for the Free Marketing tips news
Letter to recieve your instructions to
Watch this Block Buster for Free!
Go Now To Watch: Free "Recession-Busting" Video

Free Videos Millionaire Protege

Free find broken links

Free marketing strategy
*

Home

Best Ways To Make Money Online and Attain Financial Freedom

2008-11-04T17:24:00.016-05:00

;

The 3 Fastest Ways to Make Money Online

It takes time and planning to build and grow your own money-making business on the Internet.
But if you want to make money online in a hurry, there are ways you can start padding your wallet quickly — and you don’t even need a product of your own to sell.

You can make money online by…

Selling and shipping products while someone else does all the work.In the Internet world, this is known as drop shipping.And it’s a great way to sell physical products without having to stock, ship, or fulfill orders. Instead, you hire a drop-shipping company to do that for you,so you can concentrate on marketing your website.

The downside is that you have to pay a percentage of your profits to the drop-shipping company.But if you have your heart set on selling a physical product, or don’t have the time or money to develop your own,this is a good option.

Recommending products.

When you become an affiliate for someone else’s company, you can start earning commissions very quickly just for referring visitors to their website. Again, there’s no need to stock products or fulfill orders.

You will have to be prepared to do some pretty hefty promoting if you want to create a money-making business primarily as an affiliate.But it’s definitely the fastest way to start earning an Internet income.

Getting the right to sell other people’s products.

A third way to make money online in record time without developing your own product is to buy the reprint or resell rights to someone else’s product.

When you purchase the rights to an established product, you get (depending on the kind of rights you purchase) permission to sell someone else’s product for them and keep a percentage of the sale.Or the right to buy someone’s product outright and resell it, keeping the entire proceeds of the sale. And in the best-case scenario, you can even purchase the right to sell the purchasing rights to other people!

You can find out how to get the rights for products like eBooks by approaching authors directly, or using a search engine to find out which rights would be best for you.This can be a very profitable way to make money online, but it does require an up-front investment.

These are all great ways to start your own money-making business on the Net… and you can even mix and match them to create an even bigger Internet income.

Just keep in mind there are other Internet profit models that will allow you to keep even more of your profits if you’re willing to put in the time and effort.

Try out BeBiz - our easy website builder that guides you through each step of building a profitable website.

Written By: Jenn Blanchard

Home

How Can I Make Money or Build a Business Online

2008-10-25T08:21:00.008-05:00

*
By: Dorothy Adkins

Have you ever wished that you could make just a little extra Money?

I'm sure you have! in these trying times everyone I know is trying to Make Money. some want to make just a little extra Money an some wan't to build a home based business so they can be free to spend more time with there family.

And the internet is the Best way to accomplish this. I am sure you know there are millions of people making Money on the internet day an night, some are doing surveys for just a few hours a day to pick up a little extra money.

Some are putting up little mini web sites to make money an some are building home based businesses online. there are millions of ways to make money online.

You say that's Great! but I just don't know where to start or I just don't have any Idea of how to do it. well I got good news it does not matter who you are or where you come from you can make Money on the internet or build a home based business to make money online.

I can't tell you where to start all I can do is to point you in the right direction. over to the right of this page under products is a list of programs. I believe these programs to be some of the best on the internet to help you make money online or to build a highly successful business online.

The first one on the list is site build it when you go there I suggest you book mark it dew to the fact that it is a very large web site an you may want to keep going back to it. when you get there if you click on the site map you will find the Free Master Courses. it's a Great site for anyone to keep revisiting. to build a highly successful business online

All the programs on the list are Great to help you make money online you just have to pick an choose the one that's right for you. If you are a beginner I recommend you start with one of the top three on the list. the second one on the list can teach you how to build a business online. The Insider Secrets to Marketing your Business on the Internet can teach you step by step how to build your online Business and to start making money online. I recommend that you take a look at the Insider Secrets Course.

If you are a beginner or a Pro looking for more ways to Make more Money Online the Insider Secrets to Marketing your Business on the Internet could be just what your looking for.

Click Here Now: To get The Insider Secrets Course

The third one on the list is Be-Biz your niche business builder this is an amazing all in one tool to help you find your niche. build your web site, research your market,write your sales copy, find your products, generate traffic, and so much more it is designed to have your web site up and making money online in as short amount of time as possible.

HOME

money making business strategies

2008-10-14T11:31:00.013-05:00

Dear Friend,

Would earning an extra $900 a month make a BIG difference in your life?

Sure, it'd be great, but it probably wouldn't have a huge impact on your mortgage, retirement savings, orthodontist bills, kid's college fund, or the pile of bills that are cluttering up your desk, right?

But what if you could earn that $900 a month by working just 5-8 hours?

And what if, by using the same Money Making Business Strategies you used to make that first $900 you would quickley start to Double it...an Double it again...an again... until you are making potentially thousands a month. Does *that* change the picture?

I was just reading a case study on Derek Gehl's website about a 15-year-old girl who's actually doing this: making $900 a month on the internet while working no more than 8 hours.

To read the case study, and to put your Internet Business on the Fast Track be sure to get your copy today, just Click Here Now Money Making Business Strategies

She obviously has No Business Training or Experience, and at just 15, she's clearly pretty short on "life" experience too, but still, she's given up babysitting for good thanks to her Money Making Business Strategies and the success she's having with her web site.

And while she's not exactly wealthy (yet), she's using the exact same Business Strategies and Making Money with her web site that hundreds of other Successful Internet Entrepreneurs have used to make MUCH more (sometimes millions of dollars) with there own Internet Businesses.

I really recommend you check out her case study on Derek's site!

In it, he actually walks you through the exact, step-by-step system she, and thousands of his other clients, are using the same Money Making Business Strategies to achieve these remarkable results with there Internet Businesses.

To read the case study, just follow this link: Click Here: Money Making Business Strategies

P.S. When you read the case study, Derek will give you permission to use the Money Making Business Strategies it reveals yourself for 30 days, to see if they'll work for YOU, too...... so make sure you check it out right away!

Click Here Now, money making business strategies

HOME

Free Trial Subscription... Information that you can use to Build a Successful Online Business,

2007-04-13T11:02:00.002-05:00

Dear Friend,

Have you been searching for FREE quality information that you
can use to build a successful online business, but getting
totally frustrated by the lack of *useful* content out there?

Believe me, I feel your pain! I was in the exact same boat
that you're in right now...

No matter how *much* I searched, I just kept coming across
line the same old recycled tips from a bunch of so-called
"experts," which turned out to be nothing but thinly disguised
plugs for products nobody needs or even wants!

But then I came across Internet marketing guru Derek Gehl and
his team at the Internet Marketing Center...

... and I quickly discovered that not all experts are created
equal!

See, thanks to a lot of advice and help early on, Derek took
a $25 investment and turned it into $60,000,000 in online
sales -- and now, in appreciation for the support he received
when he was starting out, he's determined to give back.

(For instance, in the past couple of weeks alone, he's given
away over $450,000 worth of free eBooks. Talk about being
committed to helping YOU succeed!)

Anyway, Derek's now offering FREE TRIAL subscriptions to his
exclusive members-only online profit newsletter, "Secrets To
Their Success," and he's agreed to reserve a few for my best
customers!

If you haven't heard of "Secrets To Their Success" before, be
prepared to be blown away, because every month, Derek and his
team put together TWO extensive case studies of real people
like YOU who have created online businesses that make a
minimum of $100,000 a year.

And these are NOT just "fluffy" personality profiles...
Using intense "question and answer" interviews, Derek totally
*dissects* each business, and exposes every tip... every
strategy... every tool they used to start, build, and grow
their businesses to their current success.

You'll even hear about the mistakes they made, and how they
suggest YOU avoid them!

I've been a subscriber for YEARS, and the things I've learned
have added more to my bottom line than I can even guess.

You should check it out. Like I said, it's totally FREE to try.

Here's the link to find out more: secrets to their success

P.S. Derek might be *enthusiastic* when it comes to giving
stuff away, but he's not crazy. He's only got a limited number
of FREE Trial subscriptions to go around (he IS running a
business, after all), and once they're gone, they're gone...

... and I have NO idea when they'll be available again (the
last time he offered them was over 3 years ago)!

So you should claim your FREE TRIAL right away. Go to secrets to their success

HOME

" Test-Drive The EXACT Strategies A California Mom Used To Make $100,000 Online In Just THREE Days!"

2007-03-28T09:51:00.004-05:00

I've just learned that Internet marketing guru Derek Gehl is giving away copies of "The Internet Millionaire's Protege Bootcamp Videos" To claim your copy for just $2.95! keep reading.

Attention Update, This training course is now totally free. But there's a limited number of packages left so get your copy today before they are gone. Start Your Own Money Making Business Today.

I can't believe he's really letting 6 DVDs of LIVE footage revealing the EXACT strategies he used to turn $25 into over $60 MILLION in online sales go out the door for the price of a Starbucks cup of coffee...

But it's true!

If you act now, you can spend the next 30 days using these little-known secrets to FAST TRACK starting and growing a successful online business.

And if you already have a website, Derek reveals exactly how you can find pools of untapped customers online, drive THOUSANDS of targeted visitors to your website, and score a top 10 ranking in Google and the other search engines!

"Test-Drive The EXACT Strategies A California Mom Used To Make $100,000 Online In Just THREE Days!" ----------------------------------------------------------

BEFORE... Amanda Montoya worked her nose to the grindstone and managed to make $90,000 in 7 months. Not bad, right?

AFTER... Using the stealth strategies I'm about to show you, Amanda raked in $100,000 in online sales in just THREE DAYS!

How'd she learn to more than DOUBLE her annual revenue so fast? 6 DVDs full of LIVE video footage, plus a 167-page profit-planner, show you exactly how she did it - and now

YOU can test drive these little-known Internet marketing strategies for 30 days for just $2.95! To claim your copy of this online profits package for the limited-time price of a cup of Starbucks coffee, go here now: Marketingtips protégé dvds

HOME

"WAHM", Work- At- Home - Moms

2007-03-09T13:37:00.003-05:00

You are at home for your kids now you can contribute financially too... And Love It!.

Thanks to SBI,And the Work At Home Moms support Team you can build a highly successful business online. Doing somthing you Love and feel passionate about. And still be there for your family and kids.

It dosn't matter what you love to do or feel passionate about you can turn it into a long term highly successful business just like thousands of work at home moms before you.

SBI is Now offering... WAHM-IT!, The Masters Course Free...

To see some of the highly successful businesses that work at home moms have created you can go to the work at home moms website. See how they made there dreams come true by fueling there passion and doing somthing they Love to do.

work at home moms website.
work at home moms free Masters Course

HOME

Free Internet Marketing Tool Finds Broken Links On Your Site

2007-03-06T16:32:00.001-05:00

Hey, here's a cool free Internet marketing tool you might find handy: Dead-Links.com lets you know where all the broken links on your site are, so you can fix them as soon as possible.

Broken links can appear for many reasons -- linked-to sites closing down, technical glitches, or just plain carelessness.

And you need to find them and fix them because they can lose you traffic, make you look unprofessional, and hurt your search engine rankings.

With Dead-Links.com, you can find those links quickly and easily and fix or delete them so you can get back to the business of growing your site!

HOME PAGE

How can I Start an Internet Business

2007-02-27T16:33:00.021-05:00

;

By: Dorothy Adkins,

If you told me you was going to Fly a Plane I would advise you to take a Flight training Course First.

Same thing with a Home Based Business, There are Home Based Business Courses That can Teach you step-by-step how to start a home based business.

When you find a Home Based Business course that You are interested in the small amount that you would invest in it, Would be well worth it to you in the long run,

Once you have a highly Successful Business to Make Money Online for yourself.

This was the answer I gave to this Question "How Can I Start an Internet Business?" on Yahoo! Questions an Answers in 2007, I think it was a good honest answer then and it still rings true today especially for beginners.

The fact is that without good online marketing skills and a good Business Plan in place your dreams of working at home an Making Money Online with your Internet Business May never Take Off.

Common sense tells me that everyone on the Internet is marketing something." Themselves, Their Business, Their Product, Or Services, and the list goes on an on. But there's only two ways to learn good marketing skills on the Internet you can spend two, three years or more and through trial an error you may learn How To Make Money Online.

Or you can take a Short Cut to Sky Rocketing your Business online by taking a Internet Marketing Course that can teach you step by step how to start an Internet Business Online so if you are a beginner or if you are a Pro looking for a way to Make More Money Online I highly recommend you take a look at the Insider Secrets to Marketing your Business on the Internet.

Click Here Now to get the Insider Secrets Course
*

HOT OFF THE PRESS: Derek Gehl's best-selling system "Insider Secrets to Marketing Your Business on the Internet" VERSION 2008!

If you want to...

1. Start your own Internet business in 48 hours or less...

2. Explode the profits of your existing website by 437%
(or more!)...

3. Take an offline business online and expose it to MILLIONS of online shoppers...

... You NEED to get your hands on these 800+ pages of step-by-step Internet marketing strategies and website case studies... tested and proven in over 1,000 online businesses!

To learn how you can test drive this powerful step-by-step system RISK FREE, click here...

*

Home page

Start Home Based Business

2007-02-27T12:51:00.023-05:00

By: Dorothy Adkins,

Here is your chance to start a long term highly successful Home Based Business to make Money Online For Yourself The Insider Secrets Course has been the #1 Best Seller for 8 Years in a row. And the newly updated 2008 version is better than ever.

This course is well known for helping thousands of Entrepreneurs just like you start successful home based business. The good thing is that it dosn't matter if your a beginner or Pro.it takes you step by step through the process from putting up your website search engine optimized to get max the traffic. The way you should Start a Home Based Business.

There has never been a better time to start your online business than now with this kind of help you will be successful in a shorter period of time, You wan't be putting up a website and wondering what do i do next,you will have a team of experts to guide you step by step in every aspect to help you make your Home Based Business a success.

"Learn the little-known secrets to starting, growing, and promoting a wildly profitable e-business!"

If you want to learn EXACTLY how to...

Easily build a website in less than a few hours even if you have ZERO web design experience...
Make 100% NET PROFIT selling the most lucrative, no-brainer product to sell on the Internet...
Attract subscribers to your e-zine or newsletter like crazy -- even on websites that get almost NO traffic...
Increase online sales by up to 714% or more using secret one-minute salescopy tricks...
Score a top ranking in the search engines and directories like Google, Yahoo!, AltaVista, ODP, AllTheWeb, Ask.com, to name a few...
Use blogs to drive massive amounts of targeted traffic to your website for FREE...

... Plus a TON more step-by-step Internet marketing strategies THOUSANDS of regular people are already using to start and grow profitable Internet businesses, click here now...

Home

Small Business Marketing Strategy: Target the up-and-coming search engines

2007-02-19T09:16:00.001-05:00

While Google still rules the roost when it comes to Internet search engines, and Yahoo is firmly entrenched in second spot, a number of new start-ups are hoping to give them a run for their money. And a good small business marketing strategy would be to check them out and see how you can make them work for your site!

Some of the new up-and-comers include:

Powerset (www.powerset.com): A "natural language" search engine
Hakia (www.hakia.com): A "meaning-based" search engine
Wikia (www.wikia.com): A "community-based" search engine
ChaCha (www.chacha.com): A "social networking-based" search engine
Snap (www.snap.com): A search engine that offers visual previews
It's a smart small business marketing strategy to continue optimizing for the Google, Yahoo, and MSN search engines as they are by far and away the most popular -- but niche search engines could provide new opportunities to reach your market. Be sure to check them out!
HOME PAGE

Discover the Top 5 "Dos" and "Don'ts" of Web Site Optimization that Will Make or Break Your Ranking with the Free Search Engines!

2007-01-30T10:23:00.002-05:00

If you wan't your online business to be successful, it's a good idea to optimize your site on a regular basis to make sure it's got a good position in the web's top search engines.

However,in order to maintain your ranking, you have to keep on top of what's happening in the rapidly changing search engine industry. The rules that affected your ranking yesterday may be meaningless tomorrow!

Read on to learn more about the latest developments in the search engine industry and what key tricks you should (and shouldn't) use to optimize your site to make sure it gets a high ranking with all the major search engines, plus the tools and resources you can use to keep it there.

The "Dos" and "Don'ts" are constantly changing!

The search engine industry is continually evolving. You need to know which of the major "players" is powering the smaller search engines if you wan't to know where you should focus your optimization efforts.

1. The battle of the titans

For the past couple of years, the major search engines have been preparing to square off against each other and battle it out the industry's top spot. Google Search Engine has been #1 for a while now, but Yahoo and MSN have been making moves to steal the crown.

Google is still extremely powerful, with about a 55% market share. Yahoo! is the closest runner-up,with about 20% of users choosing it as their main search engine. And MSN is still a distant but threatening third, with about 10% of the global usage share.

Keep in mind, however, that Google and Yahoo! power many of the smaller search engines. For example, Google powers the free listings feature on AOL and Netscape, plus the paid listings feature on AOL, Netscape, Ask Jeeves, HotBot, Teoma, and Lycos.

Yahoo! powers free listings featured on MSN, AltaVista, AllTheWeb, and HotBot, plus the paid listings on MSN, AltaVista, and AllTheWeb.

However, MSN won't be powered by Yahoo! for much longer! MSN came out with a preview of their own long-anticipated search engine technology earlier this month. They're still working out the bugs, and the official MSN Search engine is still being powered by Yahoo!. But you can expect MSN to go solo sometime over the next few months.

You need to be aware of these changes if you wan't to gear your optimization efforts toward the engines that will send you as much traffic as possible.

2. The changing rules of search

Of course, you also need to keep tabs on changes to the search engines themselves!

Search engines frequently change the algorithms they use to rank sites. They don't want unscrupulous site owners manipulating their indexing methods in order to get high rankings. By doing so, they damage the integrity of free search!

As soon as the search engines become aware of a trick being used by "search engine spammers" to boost their site ranking, they figure out a way to catch them.

So be careful! You don't want to catch yourself employing a "great strategy" promoted by a marketing "expert," only to find out it's a tactic the search engines hate! That could get you booted off their listings in no time flat.

In fact, that's exactly what happened at the end of last year, during what has come to be called the "Florida Google Dance."

Google made some major changes to their algorithms in November 2003 and started imposing an "over-optimization penalty" on any site that appeared to be artificially boosting their site's relevancy for targeted keywords.

Many members of the business community were surprised to find their sites dropped from their high ranking in Google's listings. These people had to put a lot of work into revamping and resubmitting their sites in order to get listed again.

And many of the people who were penalized weren't "unscrupulous"site owners! They were simply trying to be smart marketers -- and some feel they were unfairly punished for it.

You don't wan't the same thing to happen to you!

So let's have a look at a list of what exactly the search engines are currently looking for when indexing sites-- and what they'll punish you for!

The "Dos": Legitimate tricks the SEO masters use to optimize their sites and
maintain their high ranking

The search engines don't wan't to be manipulated by marketers. They want to provide the best unbiased results possible for any given search -or they'll lose users!

That's why they need to change their algorithms so frequently-- to stay ahead of the tricks people use to get top rankings.

That being said, there are still a lot of legitimate ways you can optimize your site without angering the search engines and causing them to drop you from their list.

Here are some of the best things you can do to ensure your site has a high ranking:

1. Ask relevant sites to link to your site

In the past, scoring a high ranking with a search engine was all about positioning your key words in "prime real estate" positions in your text and site coding. All that has changed, however. These days, links are king!

Search engines place a huge amount of importance on the number of sites that link to yours. But it's not just the quantity of links that matter, it's also the quality. Search engines look at how relevant the links are--i.e., how much the content of the linking site has in common with the content on your site.
The more relevant, the better!

Search engines also look at how "important" the linking site is. What kind of "online presence" does it have? How much traffic does it get? For example, your site will get a higher ranking if it's linked to by sites such as BBC.com or nationalgeographic.com instead of, say, the personal homepage of your friend's neighbour's kid.

2. Pay attention to keyword inclusion and placement

Keywords may no longer be the sole determining factor of a site's ranking, but they're still pretty important. The most useful places to include them are:

In the title tags in your source code
In the meta description of your site--this is much less important than it used to be, but it can't hurt.
In your meta keyword tags

HOWEVER: Be sure you only include relevant keywords! Search engines will penalize you if you try to sneak in keywords that have nothing to do with the content of your site.

3. Create content-rich "information pages" to direct traffic to your site

An easy way to boost the number of pages that link to your site is to create some pages yourself !

However, you have to make sure these pages contain valuable contents that provide people with useful information. Search engines hate "pointer pages" that have no content and exist only to add to the number of links pointing to a site.

Be sure the information relates to the content on your site and has your keywords placed in advantageous positions. This will boost the ranking of your pages with the Search engines and ensure they get lots of traffic-- which they can then redirect to your site.

4. Submit your site to online directories

Be sure to submit your site to important directories such as Yahoo!, the Open Directory Project, and About.com, as well as smaller directories. Your listing on these directories will help your ranking with the major Search engines.

5. Multiply and conquer!

Create a "community" of related sites that link to each other. Why stop at only one information page? The more content-rich sites that point to your site the better!

You can also boost the number of links that point to your site by dividing it into several separate sites that all link to each other. This works especially well if you sell a number of different products or services.

If you build a different site to focus on each of your products and services, then you can also concentrate the use of specific keyword phrases on each site. That's another great way to boost your Search engine ranking.

Now that we've covered the "dos," here come the "don'ts." Although these questionable tatics have worked well in the past, the Search engines absolutely hate them. If they catch you using any of these tricks, they may go so far as to drop you from their listings like a hot potato!

1. Beware irrelevant keywords!

Search engines hate finding irrelevant keywords on your site-- especially in your meta tags. If they catch you using keywords that have nothing to do with the actual content of your site, they'll penalize you for it.

3. Don't "keyword stuff "your meta tags!

In the past, people used to repeat their keywords in there meta tags over and over again. This used to get them a high ranking with the Search engines-- but not any more! Search engines are on to this trick and will punish you for it by dropping your ranking.

4. Don't create "link farms"!

"Link farms" are the evil cousins of the "information pages" we discussed above.

In the past, some spammers used to build multiple "doorway" sites that existed only to multiply the number of links pointing to their sites.

Unlike content-rich information pages, these doorway pages would usually only include a string of keyword terms that would earn them a high ranking with the Search engines.

The Search engines have caught on to this tactic, however, and will drop you from there listings if they find you using it.

5. Avoid "free for all" Link pages!

Don't bother placing links to your site on pages where everyone and their dog is invited to put up a link. Such sites have extremely low relevancy ratings and will cost you points with the Search engines.

Essential tools and resources to optimize your site and stay n top of the Search

engine game

There are a lot of great tools out there that can help you optimize your web site while ensuring that you stay on the good side of all the Search engines. Here are a few of our favorites.

Tools:

wordtracker: This great online tool helps you select specific keyword phrases that will direct more traffic to your site. Free and paid versions are available.
SitePromoter: This useful software program helps you create individualized submissions to the different Search engines.

Optilink : A lot of Search engine optimization experts swear by this software. It's a "link reputation analyzer" that helps you determine a site's reputation and why the Search engines like it or dislike it. It certainly comes in handy when you're checking out the competition or looking for reputable sites to link to yours!

Resources:

Search engine news: Planet Ocean's online resource, "The Unfair Advantage Book on Winning the Search Engine Wars" is updated monthly and provides excellent optimization tips and information on the Search Engine industry.
Search engine watch: This free site is another rich source of tips and information on the Search Engine industy. Paid memberships are available for more advanced content.
Search engine guide: This free site contains a lot of useful information about the smaller Search Engines on the web, and who you should submit your site to in order to get a better ranking with the bigger Search Engines.

Final thoughts

Recent research by search engine optimization experts suggest that there is a suprising lack of overlap between the results produced by the major search engines. All too often, sites that are ranked high on Google get a much poorer listing with Yahoo! and vice versa.

This could mean that webmasters are focusing their optimization efforts solely on one search engine while neglecting to improve their ranking with the other. They might be using optimization tactics that work for Google on Yahoo!, without being aware that Yahoo! uses different criteria to index a site.

Either way, sites that aren't optimized for both Google and Yahoo! are missing out on a lot of potential visitors.

And don't forget, MSN will soon be throwing its hat into the ring and sswitching from Yahoo! to its own search engine technology. When that happens, you should be sure to sumit your site to MSN as well.

No one really knows what the future holds for the search engine industry, but one thing's for sure: Businesses that don't stay on top of the changes are going to find themselves slipping behind. Don't let that happen to your business!

About the Author: Derek Gehl specializes in teaching real people how to start profitable Internet Businesses that make $100,000 to $2.5 million ( or more ) per year. To get Instant access to all his most Profitable Marketing Campaigns, Strategies, Tools, and Resources that he's used to grow $25 into Over $60 Million in Online sales, Visit: Search Engine Optimization Lab

This guy really knows what he's Talking about!

HOME