Internet Marketing
Guest Post or Blog Commenting For Targeted Traffic?
I have received questions about commenting on articles, and placing
a guest post on sites.  Which is better for driving traffic?
We are not speaking here of just “Traffic”.
We are wanting the coveted “TARGETED TRAFFIC”!
1. Commenting
should be done on sites that are related in some way to your niche.
Don’t comment on any blog just because they let you comment.
Your comments should also be relevant to the topic. I have seen many comments
where it is obvious that the person who is commenting has never read the article.
Some bloggers do not read the comments that are posted, resulting in
spam comments that have been posted by someone getting paid 2 cents a comment.
The end result is the comments are generic such as: “Great article – very informative”.
What does that say or mean? It means it’s some spammer looking for a cheap backlink.
I get these all of the time on this site, but we are talking about someone else’s site,
so hopefully, they are keeping up with their spam comments.
It is important to comment on higher ranking sites when possible. It will give your
comment a better chance to be seen and read. Some sites will let you
comment, but will not allow a link. You want that backlink!
Finally, the only way that anyone will click on that link to your site is
if your comment is extremely good, and adds something to the article.
If you don’t know enough about a topic to create a comment
that will “Blow” people away, then find another article that you DO
know something about.
Commenting has almost become a writing art form of sorts.
If you are a site owner (many are now), and are attempting
to get a backlink to your site, as well as gaining credibility
in your niche, then you must be able to be informative,
creative, and somehow impress the blog administrator
with your comment. And, you must do it in just a
few hundred words!
You can’t post photos, but you can sometimes show a URL
to a site if it is okayed by the blog administrator.
Most commenting is limited to a paragraph or two
for obvious reasons. There are exceptions, but to not be
rude and greedy with time, space, and also to stay out
of the “Spammy Universe”, it is always a wise idea to choose
your words (and wording) carefully.
What will your readers be looking at?
2. Guest posting
is a different animal. ALWAYS read the submission guidelines.
Similar to doing commenting, you want to guest post with sites that rank
as high as possible. You can find out a lot of information about
how a site is ranking with alexa.com
No matter where you post your article, it should be well-written, and should
follow SEO guidelines. Many sites will tell you what they want, but some
don’t. So alt tags for graphics, keywords, etc. are important to keep in mind
when writing the article.
If you can’t write very well, and still want to guest post, find someone
to edit your material. Quality and good information is the main thing
that sites want for submitted articles. Why not put out great content?
It is your name on the article after all, no matter where it is posted.
Remember the “1st Impression” theory? Your article may be the first
time that the reader has heard of you. Therefore, if your article really helps them,
then they are very likely to click to your site to check you out.
If you do submit a post, and it is accepted, you are still not done.
ALWAYS check back to your post and check your comments. Some sites will
alert you when you have a comment, but not all do so you must keep
on top of the comments that come in.
Whether you comment an an article, or guest post, each is time consuming.
You will spend a lot of time either way looking for appropriate sites to work with,
and then you need to read articles to see what has already been written,
and what the main focus of most articles is about.
It is a slow process, but many people get good results. It is only one way
to drive traffic, and I personally don’t recommend it being your only way.
TIP: Focus on only a few sites to post for, and a handful more for commenting.
Once you get known in those circles, people will remember your name
and expertise. This will often produce traffic, and targeted traffic at that.
3. Linking
Linking is the main reason why people post on other sites.
This is not new to anyone, and many site owners also post on other
people’s sites for the same reason – to get links back.
The problem is finding that “Golden Link”
That is the link on that one guest posting site that begins to generate your targeted traffic.
Both guest posting and commenting on blog articles should, and will, bring in targeted traffic to your
website regardless of what niche you are in. Considering this, if you
are persistent, and follow the rules of posting, you should see a traffic increase.
Guest Post Protocol
A guest post should follow ALL guidelines of the blog, or
website to which you are submitting.
Unless otherwise stated, put up a lengthy article.
a 1200 to 2000 word article is an excellent start.
Be certain to include images, keywords, and
appropriate headings in your guest post so that
the search engines can find your article.
Not only does this help bring people to your article,
but it will also bring folks to the website, and site
owners just Loooove extra traffic. You are more than
likely to get another gig writing for your host.
Blog Commenting
Unlike doing a guest post, commenting on articles that others
have written can get you noticed, and actually do not
drive much traffic unless you can be ultra-informative about
the subject matter discussed in the article.
Considering that many blog articles discuss different topics, you really
need to be on your toes, and will probably need to do a little
extra research before making your blog comment. No one
is an expert at everything!
Once again, especially with article or blog commenting, the
more well traveled (highest traffic) web sites should be your
targets for commenting.
Pros and Cons of a guest post and blog comment
The biggest “Cons” of both the guest post and blog comment
scenario is that they are both time consuming.
Each will take up your time when trying to decide which site
to post, or create a guest post for, and then you have to
As mentioned, you may have to research the subject of
the article when you comment on a blog, but it is always
best to know what you are talking about before you
start typing your way into feeling like an idiot.
A guest post require more time to write. Most often
there is research to be done in order to make the
guest post interesting and worthwhile to a reader,
which therefore can be time consuming.
You also must find the right images to fit your
article topic headings. Also, use the “H1”, “H2”,
format and not just the a larger paragraph size
such as 16px, or 14px. Search engines, it seems,
tend to like the “H” factor.
So, you know that one of the negatives of both a guest post,
or a blog comment is the devouring of your time.
You can always hire someone to write for you, but if you can write fairly well,
it is better to write your own information at first in
order to gain the necessary knowledge to teach the process,
or at least to know how to format your information for your articles.
The good thing is that both methods will drive traffic.
Creating a presence is important, and both blog commenting, and writing a guest post for a blog are powerful tools for
The guest post route is the most effective, but there are many more blogs that are accepting comments than there
are blogs that are willing to accept a guest post from you.
Ebay for extra cash – in 7 steps
Ebay For Extra Cash – It Works!
Using Ebay for extra cash is a great way to pay an unexpected bill, or to just put a few extra dollars in your pocket.
It is unfortunate that so many people either overlook Ebay, consider it too much work, or just think that they can make more money by doing other things online.
But what about in the meantime? Where is your extra money going to come from?
There is nothing more frustrating than running out of money before your month is over.
Trying to stretch your money is something that you don’t want to do, but is all too often a real problem. A serious problem to which you find yourself spinning your wheels, and beating your head against things trying to figure out where you’re going to get that extra money for gas to get to work.
“Ive got to do something” you tell yourself.
Well, you decide that you will try the online thing. After all, almost everyone is making money online these days. Just how hard can it be?
With that, you go out and get your free website, get an affiliate offer (everyone says that’s the way to go), and you set everything up (you hope) and WOW . . .
But wait a minute, now what? Nothing is happening, no visitors, no money, and now I have spent a truckload of time, effort, and even more money with this online stuff.
“So what’s the deal?”
Talk about a “Rude Awakening“, but you know that there is more to the internet money gig than you are led to believe by all of the hype and B.S. that makes its way to your inbox.
Back to Ebay
While selling anything online is no longer just a “Walk in the park” Using Ebay for extra cash is one of the easier things that you can do to grab a few extra dollars when you find yourself short at the end of the month.
There are a few things to consider before launching into any new gig. Ebay is no exception. Here are a few things you need to know.
1. Signing up for Ebay
Before you sign up, be certain to read their rules, guidelines, and policies.
2. What is selling
Take a look at what is selling, check to see you you have anything similar that you no longer have a use for.
3. Make it easy
At first you will likely have a few things that you can part with, but these only go so far.
you go out to stores, or see a thrift shop, flea market, or yard sale, take a quick look to see if there is something that is under-priced.
4. Writing your ads
When writing out your advertising copy (explaining what you are selling), unless you have experience in sales or marketing, it is best not to get too fancy.
Most often the best copy is simple and to the point. Take good photos and let them sell what you are offering on Ebay.
5. Shipping Charges
Make certain that you check out how much it is going to cost to ship your item.
Depending on where you are shipping to, your shipping costs can vary by quite a bit.
Know the weight and size of the box, or container(with the item in it) that is being shipped.
6. I’m Sending Where?
Ebay allows you to send anywhere in the world (almost).
This may or may not be something that you wish to do.
Make sure that you check everything out before you make this decision.
7. Honesty is your best policy
Whatever you do, don’t falsify what you are selling, or what condition it is in.
Some people do whatever it takes to get the sale, but when your customer
gets his package, and the item is not as you stated in your ad, then your
customer will likely give you a bad rating (yes, Ebay rates both sellers and buyers).
Ebay may not be for everyone, but using ebay for extra cash is still a great way
for most people to put a little extra change into your pocket.
Many people are using Ebay to make a pretty good living.
cash in with these internet strategies
We have all received emails telling us of new cash in internet strategies, and so have found
ourselves clicking on links that take us to websites that tell us that we can make a “Gazillion”
dollars in only a few hours IF we would only buy this person’s, or company’s, latest and
greatest product. Continue reading
What is it that keeps you motivated?
Are You Still Motivated? HOW?
I was recently asked “How do you stay motivated?”. I do
speak about motivation, but usually not on a personal level.
So, forgive me, but I will be talking about me, myself, and I
for the next few moments.
The fact is, I am not always motivated. Motivation is not
something that just happens. If you are human at all, you
know that you do not always want to be productive.
The 3 “Selfs”
You like to sit and watch a movie, take a vacation,
take a nap – maybe take another nap. That’s okay.
I enjoy those things, but there is more. The “More” part
is self-responsibility, self-reliance, and self-respect.
I would feel worse taking that nap when I knew
that I had things to do that are going to
keep my family fed (self-reliance).
I know that there are a lot of people who rely on the information
that I give them to help keep THEM motivated,
and that I need to keep up with reliable content (self-reponsibility).
Self-respect is something that I would lose quickly
if I fell into the trap of allowing myself to get lazy.
Self-Responsibility
Let’s begin with Self-Responsibility. Being responsible for
the things that you do, and taking that responsibility
seriously, is a major milestone in becoming successful – at anything!
How do you know if you are a responsible person?
Do you always begin work on time? This means that
even if you are working at home, you begin your
day at approximately the same time each day.
Do you manage distraction effectively? If you can’t control
the things that take you away from your work, then
you are not managing your time very well. You may
mean well, but to others you may be tagged as irresponsible.
Self-Reliance
Self-reliance is important because it shows others that you
are confident in your abilities. If you have confidence in yourself,
then others will be drawn to you, and will be more willing to give
you their time, and their business.
Self-Respect
Self-respect keeps you in touch with yourself, and helps
tie together your other two “Selfs”.
When you have self-respect, you have personal guidelines that
help others like and respect you.
Self-respect holds things like honesty, integrity, and trust at the
forefront of personal and business dealings. Your self-respect keeps
you in touch with what is important to you.
As with anything else, some of these things are learned
through trial and error. Even though we are often taught
these things growing up, listening, understanding, and
believing is often a difficult concept for youthful desires.
I was a hard study. I often thought that I was working hard,
but would fall short of my goals. It wasn’t until I learned
to control myself (mind, body, and soul) that I finally
was able to overcome most (unfortunately not all) of the
obstacles that were standing in my way of success.
I did become successful by working harder, and becoming
stronger. I later realized that I had gained a close
relationship with my 3 “R’s” which made my successes possible.
By mind-body-soul, I do not mean that you must be able to
drop into some state of sub-conscious enlightenment at the
drop of a hat, but that you recognize what directions you
need to be taking – and when.
You need to be able to control your body so that you can
get up and get to work, instead of continually hitting
that “Snooze” button on your alarm. When I get tired, but
I still have work that must be finished, I finish it.
The soul part has nothing to do with being religious, not
that religion will not be helpful at times, but it is
keeping in touch with your “Self”. Something that I have
been talking about for a number of paragraphs!
What does it take to add value and market smarts?
So, just what DOES it take to add value and market smarts
in your business, or at least give the impression of having
that added value in your products or services?
Let me begin with a few questions.
– Does an auto have more value with, or without, wheels?
– Would you rather have a glass that is half-full, or half-empty?
– How much value do you see in “FREE”?
Let’s take these in order shall we. . .
1. That auto down the road that you have been looking at,
it has four wheels and runs – right? Would you buy it
at the same asking price if it had NO wheels?
Maybe. If it was a Classic that you were planning on
restoring anyway, and you knew you could make $10,000
when it is finished, then you might buy it anyway.
What if it was just a regular car that you wanted to
be able to drive to work, and use for a vacation or two?
You would likely want a discount on the car, because
it has no wheels.
Why is this? Perception!
2. Do you look at things as half-full, or half-empty?
We have probably heard this old saying thousands of times.
When you buy something, the advertiser (copywriter) will
attempt to always give you that “Half-Full” picture, and
paint the “Half-Full” scenario.
For example (and I will use the Internet Marketing niche),
you see an ad that tells you that you can generate traffic
on “Auto Pilot”. Glass half-empty.
What you are not told is that you have to
spend $1,000 for their software, spend days trying to figure
out how everything works, sign up to several websites that
work in conjunction with the software (if it is going to
run as they deomonstrated), and it will cost you another
$272 for these extras – the half-full side of it.
3. Everyone likes “Free” correct? But, just how much do you
expect to get for your free report, keychain, information,
ebook, or whatever? Do you think that you will learn more
than you already know? Hopefully, and occasionally, yes, you will
The real value (and information) usually comes from the
paid product that is promoted (half-full by the way) when
you download your free item.
Going back to the original question, “What does it take to add
value to something?” It is not a matter of adding value per-se,
but adding the perception of value. You also want to give value.
Many things are written, produced, and delivered that already
do have value. The problem is that people who see these items
are not seeing the “Half-Full” part, but instead they are seeing
the “Half-Empty” glass
It is not that the product or service does not already have value,
but the perception is that it is just not worth it, or it will
be there later (we all know that later never comes).
Make sure that you add value, and market smart every time you
write your advertising by keeping the perception of your target
audience in mind. Get to know your readers and find out what
they really want. Then give it to them. Just make
certain that what you give them really does have value.
Bob
Ideas – is there a way to generate ideas more easily?
Ideas, do they just seem to “Come” to you. Â They usually happen when you are
driving, working, walking the dog, or doing almost anything. Continue reading
The holiday season is close upon us and coming fast
3 Biggest Mistakes That New Marketers Make – And Avoid
Your autoresponder can make or break it for you – learn what to write
Your autoresponder – what to feed your list
As a internet marketer, potential marketer, or if you already
have an offline business of some kind, but are ready to
take it to the world via your computer, then listen up.
You may already have an auto responder and are writing
“Gazillions” of emails. I hope that is the case, but just in
case you are in the category of still trying to get things going,
or just getting started, there are some things that are
really important that you should know.
When you write your emails to put into your autoresponder:
1. Do they make sense?
Your information must make sense to your subscriber.
If your subscribers came to your list wanting to know
about the latest trends in smart phones, and you tell
them about cake decorating, that makes no sense, and will
probably send them running.
2. Does each message fit together with the next?
When you write your emails, while not always
necessary, also consider writing something that
is in a two or three part sequence.
3. Is each email about something different?
If your emails jump around too much from subject to
subject, then you could lose a person’s attention.
5. Are you providing the information your readers want?
My focus is on a number of things that include marketing.
I am a Performance Psychology Consultant, and therefore
address any number of issues that can influence success
in any arena (i.e. anything performance related). So, I must
be careful that I don’t throw out too much about too many
things. If I do, then I likely lose people’s attention.
Most topics can carry with them any number of facets that
can be written about. When you write your emails, and keep
them focused to your reader’s interests.
4. Do you just keep pushing offers?
The final thing to consider is that if you do affiliate marketing,
or have a few products that you have created, then offer
them with the intent to help the person, and NOT just sell
your wares through every email, because people will likely
leave your list.
To your online success,
Bob
P.S. Here is one more thing to think about. . .
90+ percent of working online involves writing. Sales copy,
emails, blog posts, etc. all involve writing.
How do you know that you are getting the right message across?
You can make sure that your words are working by clicking here
Online Strategies For Marketers That Work
Online Strategies
There are many online strategies, and ways to make money online.
As an internet marketer, you want to make money,
but it always seems that something happens that
gets in the way.
So, what does it take to make money as an internet marketer?
Here are the simple steps. I am going to give you a heads
up though, you will have heard these ideas before, but maybe I
can shed a little more light on things.
Your First Steps
Step #1: Know what you want to accomplish.
Just telling yourself that you want to make $10,000/mo. is not enough.
You therefore need to decide HOW that is going to be accomplished.
Then, don’t sit back and wait for things to just happen, – they won’t!
Step #2: Define yourself
If you don’t know what you are going after,
then no one else will either.
Decide what information and knowledge that you have,
can also help others. It is really that simple.
Step #3: Set up your website and get noticed
Your website will likely be a blog, as it is very easy
to set up. You can go free, or paid, and either works.
If you are going into business, you will want to pay
for hosting so you don’t have any problems with free sites.
There are many blogs out there so the next that
you need to do is to let people know that you
actually exist.
An online strategy that you can’t get away from
easily if you have a business, is to pay to get
your site noticed.
If you are in it for the fun of it, then using
social media is probably your best online strategy
for getting people to your site.
Your only challenge now is to make sure that
you deliver something that people can use.
It doesn’t take long to know what works.
Bob
working hard so you don’t have to.