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Marketing Tips Newsletter
August 18, 2006 -- Issue 129

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Hi - ,

This issue includes...

1) "How Writing A SINGLE Article Can Create
a 100% -- OR MORE -- Increase in Your Web Site
Traffic! "

2) "Free Content for Your Web Site or E-zine"

3) "Visit Our Newsletter Archives"

4) "Visit Derek's Blog!"

5) "Tell Us What You Think!"

For those of you who prefer the HTML version of our
newsletter, you can still read it in this format at:

http://www.marketingtips.com/newsletters


================ FEATURE EDITORIAL ===================

1) "How Writing A SINGLE Article Can Create a 100%
-- OR MORE -- Increase in Your Web Site Traffic! "

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Today I'm going to tell you how to increase the kind of web
site traffic your business really needs...


AND build your crediblity...

AND improve your ranking in the search engines...

AND get your customers talking to others about you...


... all with a simple four-step process that won't cost you
a single dime.

Sound too good to be true? It's not!

Let me give you a quick rundown of the plan before we dive in:


1. You're going to find a handful of keywords that the
ideal visitor to your site would use to search for
your product

2. You're going to plug those keywords into your web site

3. Then you're going to write a SHORT article that
contains those same keywords

4. And finally, you'll distribute your content all over
the web and get people passing your information on
to other people who will be interested in what you
have to offer


You'll be surprised how quickly and easily you can get this
strategy going -- AND how fast you'll see an impact on your
traffic numbers when you put yourself on the radar of people
who are looking for what you provide.

Let's check out the first step in a little more detail...


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STEP ONE: Set up your web site for maximum "searchability"!

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If you haven't taken the time to...


* figure out the keywords your potential customers might
be using to search for your product

AND

* place them throughout the copy on your site


... your traffic is going to be sluggish right off the bat.

How are the people who really want your information supposed
to find you?

When I tell people that they've missed an important step in
their traffic-building strategy, they always ask me: how are
you supposed to figure out the right keywords for your web
site?

Here are the two tools I recommend to help them with the job:


* Yahoo Search Marketing's Keyword Selector Tool
( http://inventory.overture.com/d/searchinventory/suggestion )
is a good place to start your investigation. You just
type in a word or term you think people in your market
might search for, and the Keyword Selector Tool will
tell you how many people searched for that particular
term in Yahoo Search Marketing over the last month.

It will also show you a list of related words and
phrases, and tell you how many times people typed those
terms into the free search engines over the last month.

This is a great way to find out how many people may be
searching for information to solve a particular problem,
and give you a picture of the demand for your product
on the Web. But best of all, it gives you tons of ideas
for keywords that you might never have thought of.


Once you've generated a list of useful keyword ideas, you're
ready to dig in and do some serious research with Wordtracker.


* Wordtracker ( http://www.wordtracker.com ) goes into more
depth to show you not only what people are searching for
online, but also how many other web sites are competing
for the same audience.

Basically, it keeps a record of how many times a
particular keyword or phrase was searched during the
past 90 days across the Web.

When you enter the keyword phrases your market is
searching for, you search the Wordtracker database of
over 330 million searches (or "queries").

You're looking for search terms that are popular, but
don't have too many sites competing for them.

You can also pop all of this detailed information into
useful reports that help you determine which keywords
and phrases will bring you the most traffic.

To check out Wordtracker and get a step-by-step guide
to the process, just head to:

http://www.marketingtips.com/wordtracker

and click "Tour" on the navigation bar.

Wordtracker is a paid service, but you can sign up for a
day for under $8.00 and a week for under $27.00. It's a
great investment.


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STEP TWO: Plug your keywords into your site

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Now that you have some great keywords for your market, find
as many places as you can to plug them into your web site!

Use them in your title tags, in your source code, in the copy
on your pages, and in your opt-in offers.

If you find your domain name isn't telling people what your
web site is about or showing up in the right search results,
consider purchasing a new one.

A keyword-rich domain name is a small investment that really
pays off by making your site easy for your potential customers
to find and remember.

(One quick note: remember to use only keywords relevant to
your product -- search engines will penalize you if they
find keywords sprinkled through your code that have nothing
to do with the content of your site.)

Now to move on to the next step -- your foolproof way to
snag people searching for your product on the Web and bring
them back to your site!


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STEP THREE: Create a keyword-rich article to distribute
on the Web

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When you're ready, get your keywords, sit down, and write
a keyword-rich article that relates to what you sell.

Then give it away to other sites -- for FREE!

Believe it or not, this is one of the best ways you can
drive a steady stream of eager customers to your site.

Why does it work? Well, people basically come online for one
of two reasons: To check their email or to look for
information. Sure, some of them end up making purchases,
but this is not generally the reason they log on. They
want...


* the answer to a question

* the solution to a problem


That's why it's your job to give them that information, as
it relates to your product. You already do that with the copy
on your web site, but why stop there?

Writing a short, informative article to distribute on the
Web is a great way to gain recognition as a valuable resource
in your industry.

Of course, you'll want to write about something that relates
to your products or services, since the ultimate goal of the
article is to drive visitors to your site who are interested
in what you're selling. But the article should be informative,
not "sales-y".

Make sure that each article you write contains rare, valuable,
or hard-to-find information. Not only will this increase the
chances that other site owners or managers will post your
article, it will also increase the number of visitors who click
through to your site after reading it.

For example, if you have a web site that sells used golf
equipment, you could write an article about three things to
look for in a good, pre-owned putter.

Or if you sell an eBook about setting up your own home
computer network, why not write an article about common
problems people have in setting up a wireless router?

Look for article ideas in the questions that people ask you
all the time, or in the things you often see people doing wrong.
Share hot new tips on how to use the products you sell, or
talk about trends that you've spotted in your industry.

I'm not talking about a major essay here, though.

Did I just hear a big sigh of relief? :-)

Nope -- you don't need to be a professional writer to turn
out a solid, traffic-boosting article! Your quick piece
should...


* be no longer than 400 words (not even a whole page!)

* contain a keyword related to your product in first 90
characters

* contain the keyword in the first and last paragraphs

* have a short, credibility-building "bio" with link to
your site at the end. Here's an example: "ABOUT THE
AUTHOR: Joe Smith is a recognized authority on the
subject of widgets. His web site, www. JoesWidgets .com,
provides a wealth of informative articles and resources
on everything you'll ever need to know about widgets."


Now for the fourth step in this traffic-driving strategy.


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STEP FOUR: Get your content headed EVERYWHERE on the Web

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Once you've taken a few hours to write one or two quick
articles, head to one of these top online content distribution
sites. Upload your keyword-rich content to:


* http://www.contentdesk.com

* http://www.ezinearticles.com

* http://www.freesticky.com

* http://www.goarticles.com

* http://www.ideamarketers.com

* http://www.findsticky.com


It only takes a couple of minutes, but the rewards for your
site will be huge.

These sites carry hundred or thousands of articles on a range
of topics. If someone is looking for content for their web
site, they can download or copy an article from the
distribution site without paying a dime to use it!

They can't change the text of the article, and they must
publish it with the author's name and information intact.

Now people who are plugging your keywords into search engines
will be directed to your content at these highly-ranked sites,
and web site owners who are looking for fresh, search engine-
attracting content will download your article -- along with
your bio and link! -- and put it up on their pages.

And once visitors see that you know what you're talking about,
they'll click on the link in your bio, and head straight to
your web site!

The best thing about this strategy is that these visitors
are QUALITY, TARGETED traffic -- they actually WANT what
you're selling, because you are meeting a need or giving them
help with the problem they came online to solve!

Some content distribution sites also offer "send to a friend"
links next to articles posted on their sites -- so make sure
you're uploading your articles to sites with this kind of
capability!

Every time someone enjoys your article enough to pass it on,
your audience grows. And since people don't forward BAD content
on to their friends, they are basically recommending you as a
credible source just by passing it on.

You can also create a "send to a friend" link on your own web
pages with the help of a simple script added to your code.
Here are some examples of what this kind of link might say:


* "Did you enjoy this article? To recommend it to a
friend, click here..."

* "To pass this important info along to a friend or
family member, click here..."

* "Share this with a friend -- just click here..."

* "Can't wait to tell a friend about this? Here's how..."

To find scripts to make links like these ones fully functional,
check out the resources at:


* http://www.freewebtemplates.com

* http://www.javascript.com

* http://www.scriptsearch.com

* http://www.hotscripts.com


The visitors who come to your site through articles or
forwarded material are highly targeted... and likely to take
action when they actually arrive at your web site seeking your
specific information.


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Final thoughts

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See how much you can do with one little article?

It's amazing how effective a small piece of content can be
when you...


* know your keywords, and...

* know all the places to position that content so it's
viewed again and again


Once you've done your keyword research, you might feel a bit
intimidated by the idea of writing something yourself for
the 'Net. Or maybe you don't feel like you have the time to
do it justice.

Remember -- any free content you create shouldn't be too long,
and it definitely shouldn't be too complicated, since the
people reading it won't know your product or your subject as
well as you do.

If you're still concerned, you can always hire a writer from
a freelance web site like Elance ( http://www.elance.com )to
do a couple of short articles or an eBook (with a bit of basic
information from you, of course.) Expect to pay anywhere from
$25 to $35 an hour for their time.

But I recommend that you try to write something yourself
first. You definitely don't need to be a professional writer
to create something readable and interesting... (I sure don't
have a degree in creative writing myself!)

Just try to think like your audience -- what do they want to
know, and how much do they know already? Then tell them simply
and clearly. We're not talking Shakespeare here.

Here's one more quick peek at my easy four-step plan to
increase web traffic:


1. Find the keywords people are using to search for your
product

2. Make sure all the content on your web site contains
these keywords!

3 Write short, keyword-rich articles with links directing
people back to your site -- nothing too long or
complicated; just enough content to establish you as
someone "in the know" about your industry

4. And finally, send your article to content distribution
sites and -- with just a simple suggestion or a script-
based link -- encourage people to pass your material on
to their friends (and direct them back to your site!)


These simple steps are things that practically anyone can do
to drive traffic. They'll help you get the kind of targeted,
quality traffic that can make all the difference to the
success of a business, especially when you're just starting
out!

In other words, these are the types of visitors who are most
likely to take action on your site, whether they make a
purchase, or simply opt in with their personal information.

And I don't know about you, but I'll take more of those
visitors any day of the week!


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2) "Free Content for Your Web Site or E-zine"

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Need some fresh, free content for your web site or e-zine?

You are welcome to reprint this article on your web site
or in your e-zine. We simply ask that you let us know
where the article will be appearing, and include our byline.

To let us know where this article will appear, visit:

http://www.marketingtips.com/freecontent


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3) "Visit Our Newsletter Archives"

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Did you miss an issue? Want to review an issue you
really enjoyed?

Be sure to check out our back issues at:

http://www.marketingtips.com/newsletters

Articles are now organized by TOPIC and DATE, making
it really easy to find the article you're looking for!

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4) "Visit Derek's blog!"

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Check out "The Candid Internet Marketer" blog with Derek
Gehl at: http://blog.marketingtips.com/derek

Here Derek shares his thoughts, ideas, insights, and
strategies with you, our customers and subscribers, from
wherever he is in the world -- whether he's on the road or
in the office.

Every week, at least a couple of times a week, Derek shares...

1. Updates from the Internet Marketing Center: What is
happening at IMC? What are we testing? What were the
results? What is NOT working?

2. Cutting-edge industry updates: Every month Derek meets
extremely successful e-business owners who are using the
hottest new moneymaking strategies and industry insights...
and now he'll be sharing them with you.

3. Announcements! Be the first to know about new tools and
resources, sometimes even BEFORE they have been created,
so you can beat your competition to the punch!

4. Derek's personal opinion, thoughts, and insights on many
different e-business topics.

If you want to get to know Derek and what is going on in the
day-to-day workings of a leading Internet marketing
organization, then this is the place to be!

Go to: http://blog.marketingtips.com/derek

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5) "Tell Us What You Think!"

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We'd love to hear what you think of this issue!

Please send your comments, questions, and ideas for
upcoming issues to us at:

newslettersuggestions@marketingtips.com

Your feedback matters to us!


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Copyright 1996-2006 by The Internet Marketing Center.
All rights reserved.

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