Hi
Gang,
Thanks for
being here, I value every one of you
and truly hope that you become successful online!
I'm a bit
late with this issue, sorry about that. I went to Florida
to see friends and it set me back a little. Whew! It was
hot to say the least, 97 degrees - ugh!
I'm still
re-designing this site, but I'll be done by Saturday of
this week. Once it is done, I'll let you know...you'll
like it, more content and tools for you to use.
Just yesterday,
I was reminded of good commerce...
Once or twice
a month my wife and I get pizza at a small chain here
in the Seattle area. Its the best pizza I've ever had
- great crust, sauce it awesome. Anyway, when I walked
in yesterday the owner said hello and was smiling. I offered
my debit card but he said, "This one's my gift to
you." I asked him why of course and he said, "I
see you in here from time to time and have never said
hello. You're a regular, this one's on me."
Of course
I thanked him, told him how nice he was being and took
my pizza and went on my way. What was he doing? He was
making sure he took care of those that take care of him.
Of course, he may have just felt like being nice at that
moment, but he knows the value of the repeat customer.
Even though I'd never go anywhere else for pizza, I won't
forget the gesture and I'll spread the good word about
his pizza and business ethics!
This little
pizza incident sparked the intro of this edition of "Starting
Smart!", "Golden
Rules For Newbies Re: Internet Marketing".
2 Free Resources
1.
If you haven't gone to Mark
Hendrick's Vault, you should take a look.
There's lots of no cost resources for
you to download. There's terrific new resources that have
been added, check it our below!
Mark's
Vault
2.
Clickalyzer's Instant
Affiliate Program - This software will allow
you to set up and track affiliates so you can make more
sales. Another solid product from Clickalyzer. I use Clickalyzer
to track stats, see which pages are popular, how long
visitors stay on certain pages, see which pages work and
which don't etc. Its a great tracking tool.
Warning!
Some marketers will try to sell you this tracking software
from "Clickalyzer", don't pay for it.
I am choosing to give it away to you for FREE...I
value you as a member of this web site!
Get Clickalyzer's
Instant
Affiliate Program here at no cost. Once you sign up,
you will be given the code to use on your web site to
track your affiliates.
There's
2 articles in this edition and an intro "Golden
Rules For Newbies Re: Internet Marketing".
Enjoy the
issue!
Once again,
thanks for being here, your membership to this e-zine
is what matters most to me as an Internet marketer.
"The Regular
Guy"
Karl Augustine
P.S. Webmasters:
If your site is complementary
sites to 9 Mistakes Online and would like to exchange
links, please go to the "Add URL"
link at the bottom of all pages of this site. I'll be
happy to exchange links with you. Thanks.
In
this edition of "Starting
Smart!"
*Intro
by Karl, 1 topic - Golden Rules For Newbies Re: Internet
Marketing.
*Featured Article #1: "The
Benefits of Organic SEO (Search Engine Optimization):
What Organic SEO Entails and WHY It Is Preferred by Some"
Copyright 2004 Vishal Rao
*Remember to get your Viral tools to boost traffic to
your web site and make money at the same time.
*Featured
Article #2: ""Retaining
Page Rank While Cloaking Affiliate Links" "
Copyright 2004 Ed
Zivkovic
*Welcome new subscribers!
*Copyright and Publisher Info
Intro
by Karl...
1.
Golden
Rules For Newbies Re: Internet Marketing.
I usually
discuss non-newbie information in this section...today,
if for the newcomer.
Rule
#1: Always give more than you've promised - When
you do this, you'll have happy customers but you will
also have advocates of your offering, they'll spread the
word about your USP.
Rule
#2: Always take emotion out of any purchase that
you might make - Never read sales copy, get emotional,
and act on it...I know, I know, that's what the sales
copy is supposed to do. What I am saying is you should
come back to it the next day and see if you really need
the item rather than just want it.
Rule
#3: Constantly educate yourself - Never stop
learning. Take all the main pieces of Internet marketing
and learn them well, then implement them. Don't worry
about fancy 'extras' until you have a profitable business.
Rule
#4: Stick to basics and keep it simple - This
really isn't that hard...it takes work, but the same fundamental
rules apply to Internet marketing that applied to and
marketing: solid products that solve problems sell. The
question isn't whether or not people will buy what you
have to offer, the question is how hard and expensive
will it be to find those people, convince them to buy
while still turning a profit? With traffic, basic
is by far without a doubt, best. Learn SEO, write content,
get long term results...its that simple. Learn
SEO here.
Rule
#5: Research, research, research - I admit, I've
added, edited, altered, etc., more than I care to remember.
Always know what you want to do and who you want to sell
to. If you can't immediately answer the following questions
without thinking, you aren't ready:
1. Who exactly
is the perfect person to sell your product to?
2. What top
2 problems does your product solve?
3. What is
your strategy, step by step, to market to those people?
4. How many
direct competitors are in your market and how will you
differentiate yourself?
There are
other rules to abide by as a newbie, but these are the
basic ones that can save you time and money. As a newbie,
time and money are your 2 most precious commodities.
Enjoy the
rest of this edition and thanks again for reading.
Karl Augustine
"The Regular Guy"
(c) Karl Augustine
*Featured
Article:
"The
Benefits of Organic SEO (Search Engine Optimization):
What Organic SEO Entails and WHY It Is Preferred by Some
-
Copyright 2004
Vishal P. Rao
If you're going to sell any
type of product or service online, you're eventually going
to have to optimize your Web site for the Search Engines,
in order to boost traffic and sales.
Many years ago, it was quite
easy to draw effective traffic, as a good content-driven
site, with good products, was enough to get a Web site
ranked highly in the Search Engines. The competition has
increased one thousand times over since then, with billions
of Web sites existing online now, making for some very
stiff competition in the area of Search Engine placement
and rankings.
This increase in competition
has given rise to many different styles, and many different
methods of Web site optimization. Optimization is simply
the method of making a Web site "Search Engine
friendly", by using methods of enhancement
that will increase rankings and placement by placing the
Web site higher in the SERPS (Search Engine Results Pages).
Everything from software
to increase rankings and placement, to Search Engine Management
and Marketing Firms exist, with many online merchants
becoming confused about what or "whom" to use
and how to effectively use the various services to increase
rankings and placement.
The real battle seems to
exist between those that favor "Organic SEO"
as opposed to those that prefer "Non-Organic SEO".
The term "organic" itself is
defined by Webster's Dictionary as: instrumental;
acting as instruments of nature or of art to a certain
destined function or end (Webster's:
1913: 3).
"Organic SEO",
also called "Natural SEO", is the most time
consuming, and the most tedious method of optimization
for placement and rankings. However, it is prone to longevity
of results, as it has a focus on content, meta-tag enhancement
using proper descriptions, keyword enhanced copy within
the appropriate specified densities of the Search Engines,
and link exchanges.
In addition, keyword dense
reports, articles, and other content materials are usually
added in a routine fashion to a site to maintain the densities
necessary and increase rankings and placement.
"Organic SEO",
if done properly in a step-by-step approach, can literally
promote increased traffic and rankings for years.
It can also contain overall marketing costs, as the use
of PPC (Pay Per Click), is not needed as much with this
method. The main drawbacks with this type of SEO, however,
are the length of time it takes to properly implement
all the steps necessary, and the length of time it takes
the Search Engines to thoroughly spider and index a site
that has implemented "Organic SEO".
"Non-Organic SEO",
also called "Artificial SEO", can take many
forms, and can use some "Organic SEO" coupled
with other techniques. These techniques can include software
generated keyword enhanced pages, some methods of re-directs,
whereby traffic is shunted off from other sites, with
their permissions, and software generated doorway pages
and meta-tag descriptions. There are many different techniques
that can be employed including rather controversial ones
such as hidden text loaded with keywords, and tiny text.
Overall, "Non-Organic"
SEO methods are quite popular, as it is a much quicker
means to rankings and placement. Links might be purchased
from "link farms" which are simply services
that specialize in the promotion of links to others.
Although "Non-Organic
SEO" can speed up rankings and placement initially,
care needs to be given when using any of these methods.
If keyword dense pages are automatically generated en
masse, the Search Engines might view large sites, with
large numbers of such pages as "Search Engine Spammers"
and a risk of being banned does exist. In addition, pages
may initially place very high, only to drop lower rather
quickly, as the Search Engines still place a great emphasis
on good content, which is not usually the focus of the
"Non-Organic" type of SEO.
All in all, it really depends
upon the overall purpose of a site, and the longevity
of results desired by a Web master/site owner. It also
depends upon how quickly results and sales are needed.
For some seasonal sites, such as holiday-theme sites that
only remain up for a few weeks or months, then the quicker
method of "Non-Organic SEO" can be quite effective.
On the other hand, if a Web master/site owner promotes
a product or service to which they are committed for years,
or perhaps a lifetime, then "Organic SEO" would
definitely be the better choice of optimization method.
No matter which type of SEO
methods are chosen or implemented, an ongoing campaign
of optimization does need to exist, as the parameters
that are used for the rankings and placement by the Search
Engines, change frequently, and research into current
methods needs to be done routinely.
As the old saying goes, "Different
strokes for different folks", really applies to Search
Engine Optimization and rankings and placement. The whole
Search Engine Optimization process is really more "art
than science", and continues to change daily.
Vishal P. Rao is the editor
of
http://www.home-based-business-opportunities.com
- A website dedicated to opportunities, ideas and resources
for starting a home based business.
He is also the owner of
the http://www.work-at-home-forum.com
- an online community of folks who work at home.
| Webmasters:
Feel free to publish
any article that I have written to your web site.
To get a list of articles
that are "publishable",
click below - new browser
Karl's
Articles You Can Publish |
Get
your Viral Tools Here!
Viral marketing
does work!
Get your 2
free re-brandable books and increase traffic to your website
and make money at the same time. It only takes a couple
of minutes!
Give these books
away as free gifts to your list.
To get both
re-brandable versions of the mini version of "9 Deadly
Mistakes..." send a blank email to:
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@ getresponse.com with no spaces
of course :)
*Featured
Article #2:
"Retaining
Page Rank while Cloaking Affiliate Links"
Copyright 2004 Ed Zivkovic
There is no need to give
away valuable Page Rank to affiliate programs. You signed
up to make money, not to increase their search engine
rankings.
Most Internet Marketers today
add affiliate links to their sites in order to generate
additional revenue which helps offset the cost of running
the site.
It has now become necessary
to cloak affiliate links because some web savvy surfers
seem to have a sour taste in their mouth at the thought
of some webmaster making
money as a result of their purchase.
Cloaking
There is a number of ways
to cloak affiliate links. The most popular include displaying
affiliate pages in an encrypted frame and the very simple
"mouse-over" technique.
While displaying affiliate
sales pages in a frame is a good way to cloak the link,
it is not reliable because some, (not all) affiliate programs
cannot track correctly if the affiliate URL is displayed
in a frame.
The mouse-over technique
will display a URL of your choice so that the affiliate
URL is hidden. This too in not reliable because the right
mouse menu can reveal the real URL in an instant. This
technique will also drain your valuable Page-Rank (PR)
because the link points directly to the affiliate sales
page.
Not cloaking your affiliate
links will also drain your PR and reduce your click-through
rates. So because it has become necessary to cloak affiliate
links, I have decided that I may as well keep all the
PR at the same time. Another way.
The redirection page is no
secret but still many Internet Marketers do not set this
up and yet it involves about the same amount of effort
as cloaking the link into an encrypted frame.
There is a couple of places
Online where you can create a redirect page instantly
for free and you need not upload the page to your own
site. This is an excellent way to cloak links within the
body of emails but if you use this on your web pages,
it will still drain your PR. It will pass the PR along
to the redirection service.
http://www.compacturl.com
and http://www.tinyurl.com
are two sites that I know of that provide this free service.
How to create your OWN
redirection page and keep all the PR!
1. Create a new HTML document.
2. Add the following line
of code to the "head" of the document:
[meta http-equiv="refresh"
content="0; url=http//www.youraffiliateURL?yourIDnumber"]
3. Replace "http//www.youraffiliateURL?yourIDnumber"
with your affiliate URL and replace ][ with ><
4. Name the page to reflect
the affiliate program and upload this page to your site
and point that particular affiliate link to this page.
If you have joined a number
of affiliate programs, you might like to create a new
directory and add all these redirection pages to this
new directory.
I have set this system up
at my site and then one day discovered that some of these
pages had a Page Rank of 3 or 4 with no outbound links.
This is a waste. So now I have added a link back to my
home page on these pages. This now serves to direct all
my valuable PR to pages that I choose. I do this with
all outbound affiliate links.
Benefits
1. The Affiliate Link is
not displayed.
2. Keep all the PR.
3. Target different keywords with the outbound links.
More about how tinyURL.com
came into being: http://tinyurl.com/yuq6b
Here's a 100% free for ever
HTML editor - 1st Page 2000: http://www.evrsoft.com/download.shtml
More info about how Page
Rank works here: http://www.google.com/corporate/tech.html
To discover how much Page
Rank a particular page is, you'll need the Google Toolbar:
http://toolbar.google.com/
About the Author:
The author, Ed Zivkovic is
a self taught webmaster. His website contains articles
with all sorts of tips for work at home webmasters. Here
is the site: http://www.ezau.com
Featured
resource - Niche Marketing:
Priya Shah has written an
excellent book about niche marketing. The case studies
a step by step guides that Priya delivers regarding getting
top listings for your chosen keywords is "dead on".
I know these tactics work
because I have implemented them myself for my other site
and have gotten top listings for many of my chosen keywords
to dominate my niche. (Check out SEO
Exert Interview to see proof).
Priya's book "Number
1 In Your Niche" is a must read if you want
a fast track to dominating your niche!
I have read the book and
used the information in the book to profit handsomely
from a specific niche. This eBook is a must read.
Click
here to read more about "Number
One In Your Niche!"
*Welcome
New Subscribers!
For those of you just joining,
welcome!
Your time is valuable
and I'll do my level best to make this "read"
time well spent. I am just a regular guy, just like many
of you out there. I stuck with it, and now am having a
blast doing what I love to do. Keep a positive attitude
and you can do just about anything...seems like old news,
but it works and we all can use a little reminding now
and then.
Please forward this e-zine
in its entirety to any friends or colleagues who you think
may find it useful. Or, refer someone by using the Bravenet
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us grow!
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http://www.9mistakes-online.com/startingsmartnewsletter.htm
