Why You're Not Blogging - And Why You Should Start Today

Those of you who aren't ready to wade into the Blog pool are taking your time for several reasons, according to my informal interviews with people before and after they blog. Others start blogging and then abandon their projects too soon, unaware of the benefits.

Whatever your reason, you should get started now - or get back to blogging as the case may be. Here's some motivating enlightenment that you may find surprising.

Reason # 1 that you aren't blogging - You don't realize how huge the benefits are, and how much they may outweigh any monetary or time costs involved.

I think number one may partly the fault of people like me, who have a foot in the marketing arena, and don't explain the idea in detail.

We tend to tell you how great blogging is, but we don't tell you why, or better yet, show you. Or we tell you how to get the best results with your blog, but don't tell you where to start. Let's talk about some of the basic facts.

If you've ever dreamed of going from getting 10 hits a month to getting a few dozen visitors a day from search engines, blogging can make it possible, if you do it right. The structure of a blog, and the fact that most of them automatically generate content feeds, also make them the best food for your friendly neighborhood search engine spider.

If you would like to have visitors come back to your site over and over again, until they buy, you may want to be a blogger. An informative blog that engages your audience shortens the sales cycle. It also creates a courtship period. They can subscribe to your thoughts, see if they like you, even get to know you a little.

People buy from people they like. I don't remember who said it first, but I've learned that it's the truth.

If your visitors don't feel like they are getting a personality vibe from you, they are often less likely to buy. Vibe = buy. Remember that, and that blogs make it easy for you to vibe.

If you'd like to create new targeted search engine pages for your site without needing to hand-code a new page, or fire up your HTML editor every time, you may enjoy blogging. You log in to your blog admin panel, type your thoughts, proofread, press publish.

Presto. You're a blogger.

If you'd like free one-way links back to your site that contain your lucrative keywords, blogging helps with that too.

Even if you've made a mess of your SEO efforts, or been the unsuspecting victim of an algorithm change, as long as you aren't banned by a search engine, blogging can help bring you back into top results. Because they have a search engine friendly architecture, and can make use of your keywords automatically, without being gratuitous, they are an easy way to get into a search engine and stay in.

Reason #2 That you aren't blogging - You think it's hard and expensive.

Granted, especially if you're busy, or have a medium sized to large business, it may be in your best interest to hire one of the few consultants that works on these types of issues.

But if you're a small business owner or home business owner with an online element, you can get away with firing up a free blog and paying for an inexpensive custom template if you can't install one on your own. Most blog consultants will do all the keyword research, etc for you, so that all you'll have to do is log in and blog.

Many of the most common blog software systems are free or inexpensive, especially when weighed against the cost of only using paid methods to attract visitors.

Reason #3 That you aren't blogging - You don't think of yourself as a writer.

Not only can you get away with a few paragraphs, you don't have to write in professional-speak, or use industry jargon to blog. By nature, blogging is done in a casual, conversational tone.

And your blog posts don't have to be long article-type entries like mine are. I'm used to writing articles, and I'm just naturally verbose. My audience is used to my mini-brain dumps, just as your blog readers will likely be happy with, or adapt to, whatever your style is. Your audience will be thrilled with a few paragraphs every day, as long as they're informative and consistent.

So take the plunge. Start blogging today. If you're already a blogger and didn't see the benefits the first time around, try making it a part of your routine - and have a little fun. Give it time to work for you.

You'll be glad you did.

About the author: Tinu Abayomi-Paul, Tinu is a web site promotion specialist who writes about many different ways to get more visitors to your web site. If you want better search engine results, more visitors and return traffic she invites you to take a free ecourse on blogging at http://RescueYourBlog.com .

Using Social Proof To Boost Your Credibility

by Shawn Catsimanes



Ever hear of Social Proof? In his fascinating book, Influence, Robert B. Cialdini calls it the "principle of determining what is correct by finding out what other people think is correct. We view behavior as correct in a given situation to the degree that we see others performing it." He adds that most of the time the crowd is right.

During the attendance of a seminar in October of 2005, we watched (and participated) as two such scenes played out.

The first came in the baggage claim of LAX.

Like pliant sheep, we followed the signs and the throng to carousel #2 like the flight attendant had instructed us. After waiting ten or fifteen minutes, about half of our fellow passengers shifted over to carousel #1. We chose to stand our ground. Shortly afterwards, the circular device began to move, but none of our bags appeared. Then we heard someone close by say, "Kansas City's been moved to number one."We diehards scooted to the next carousel over and retrieved our luggage.

In this case, those who moved first were correct.

Never having seen an authority figure, we weren't sure how they came to this conclusion, so we only watched as they advanced en masse to the new location.

Some uncertain joiners jerked their heads back toward carousel #2 and stood slightly between the two apparatuses. This way, had their decision to go along with the dissenting crowd turned out to be wrong; their mistake wouldn't look so obvious. But it was those of us who decided to stick by carousel #2 that ended up looking the fools.

The second incident-an example in reverse-happened at the seminar itself.

We finished our first meal and headed back toward the conference room. In the very front, three or four small clusters lead the way. The group just ahead of us slowed our progress, so we fell into line behind them.

When we came to a small anteroom before the escalators, an odd thing happened.

Instead of walking straight toward the exit, the first group circled around both of the thick pillars in the center of the room. Everyone (including us) followed obediently behind.

Andy and I laughed as we hopped onto the escalator realizing what we'd just done. There seemed no obvious reason for our behavior.

At some point prior to our arrival, the room must have been overcrowded making it necessary to form a long line around the two posts. When the congestion thinned, the stragglers didn't bother to change course, but instead continued in the preset pattern.

This is Social Proof in action. What everyone else was doing seemed to be right, so the rest of us blindly followed their lead.

For years, marketers have used this strategy to promote their wares. As Cialdini points out, "Advertisers love to inform us when a product is the 'fastest-growing' or 'largest-selling' because they don't have to convince us directly that the product is good; they need only say that many others think so, which seems proof enough."

One of the most effective applications of this strategy is the use of testimonials and referrals. By including testimonials from typical customers in your sales and promotional materials, you strengthen your credibility, which in turn, increases the believability of your offer. And if you've ever benefited from an enthusiastic referral resulting in a call from a new prospect, you know just how powerful this form of social proof is.

Whenever possible, use testimonials in your written copy and on your website. And don't be shy about asking for referrals, either. You provide a valuable service/product and people need to know about it.

Take advantage of every weapon in your arsenal (including social proof) to make sure they do.

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7 Steps To Becoming A Better Website Writer

You can become a better website writer simply by writing well, but I wish it was that simple. Writing is a realm, just as sports and science are realms. Now if you are a sports person, you could be playing any of the odd hundred sports that come to ones mind. In science too, if you are a scientist, you can be a physicist or a doctor or a technologist. Similarly in writing, there are different kinds of writers — some write fiction, some right non-fiction, some write horror and some are children's authors. Then there those who write course books, instructional content, etc. Similarly, to write for websites and blogs you got to be a bit "different" kind of writer: a writer who understands how a typical online reader reads and assimilates content. To cut to the chase, here are a few guidelines you can follow in order to become a better website writer.

Be a Website Writer that Converses With Her/His Readers

Talk to your reader when you are writing for websites. Always assume you're talking to this particular individual who is interested in knowing what you have to say to him or her. For instance: you can definitely be a better website writer by following these guidelines . Or for instance, I really hope you find my writing interesting.

Be a Website Writer that Says Less But Conveys More

There is so much information to consume on the Internet. I have RSS feeds from scores of resources and I have only limited time. I assume the same is the case with you. You normally read long text only if it is very compelling or you really need to learn something from it. A typical online reader is a fast reader who prefers shorter text. This not something behavioral — it's difficult to read text on the screen and we normally read almost 25% slower when we're reading through our monitors.

First Things First

Mention all the important things in the beginning whenever possible. Although to keep the interest alive you should hold some things back, but in the first para itself your reader should be able to make out what the page is about what he or she can expect from the page.

Use Headlines and Bullets Wherever You Can

When you use lots of headlines and bulleted text you make your web document more "scannable". This also enables you to express your thoughts more concisely and creatively. In headlines you can forego grammar and vocabulary and just concentrate on a few words that grab attention.

Use Smaller Paragraphs

Big paragraphs are hard to read and big chunks of texts on the screen seem very intimidating. Don't stretch your paragraphs beyond 2-3 sentences.

Use Descriptive Text in Hyperlinks

Instead of Click here to subscribe use Click here to subscribe or 5 ways to improve your vocabulary. This not only helps you put your keywords within the <a></a> tag ( a good thing from search engine optimization point of view) but also makes your links more descriptive.

Show Respect To Your Readers

Don't be too patronizing and don't make every page a for Dummies page. A prevalent perception among the online writers is that most online readers prefer very simple text. That's not the case. Keep your audience in your mind and then write about them. Be sincere, don't resort to hyperbolic claims and keep the interest of the reader at the top most level of your priority.

This is surely not a complete list but it more or less helps you make a good beginning.

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5 Blogging Dead Ends To Avoid

Blogging is a serious business if you really want to use it as your business and brand enhancement tool. Serious, because it can harm you if you don't do it properly, so you should rather not have a business blog if you cannot manage it properly.

Here are the 5 Blogging Dead Ends To Avoid. Blogging dead ends are scenarios where running a blog is proving to be burden. In such situations you should either turn it around or simply take it down before it can harm your image further. The 5 blogging dead ends to avoid in the above link are:

1. Avoid being boring: Blogs should be interesting and crisp. Post long posts only if they are extremely necessary. Your blog readers are looking for your unmitigated opinion, in as few words as possible.
2. Don't blab on your business blog: On your business blog your readers are not interested in reading your constipation problems unless it is somehow affecting them.
3. Don't post infrequently: Blogs that have very few, scattered posts — one post per month, or in two months — hardly retain attention. Blog frequently if you want visitors to come to your blog frequently.
4. Don't lag behind: Bloggers post fast, and readers want to be the first ones to know if something has to be known. Always try to be the first one to break news and link to new, relevant articles.
5. Don't expect your blog to directly get you business: Well, I don't completely agree with this point but yes, your blog is not your business website. Your blog is a tool to communicate with your customers and clients and open a two-way communication channel with them. It can help you establish yourself as an expert in your field. It can help you create a loyal audience for your thoughts, ideas and visions.

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9 basic steps to building a niche blog

If you're just starting out blogging you have probably been wondering how to set up a niche blog. Here is a quick and easy 9 step tutorial to get you started building a niche blog. Just a quick note here: This is a very basic tutorial and is aimed at those just getting started!!

Step 1. Choosing a niche for your blog

This is going to be your biggest stumbling block. Well next to finding traffic for your blog. (YOU WILL SPIN YOUR NOODLE trying to figure out how to get good targeted traffic to your niche blogging site).

And is the one of the most often asked questions. How do I find a niche, or how to I choose a niche for my blog or website.
You'll find building your niche blog alot easier if you're building it around something you're interested in, that's not say you should stick to just your personal interests but it's always easier doing something if you're actually interested it. Or look at it another way. People have problems and want solutions to them. A niche is a solution to a problem, an answer to a question, a review of a product. Basically anything that offers an answer or solution to something.

A quick start to get your creative juices flowing is trip over to ebay and check out the want it now (http://pages.ebay.com/wantitnow/) section. Once you've done that.

Here's a free tool that will help you check the popularity of some of those topics: (http://www.nichebot.com)

Step 2. Do Keyword Research

Don't skip doing this. I think we've all made the mistake of not doing good keyword research. And it is easy to do. You get all excited about something and go bang up a site with out having done good keyword research only to find you have to go back and redo it…. Skip this at your own peril.

While it is nice to write about grapple grommets or widgets and I am sure there is some demand for that kind of content, you have to kind of be serious about what you're going to choose as a niche and what kind of targeted traffic you're going to get from your keywords. You MUST include targeted keywords in your niche blog copy. A god place to start doing keyword research is Overture Keyword Tool for research:
http://inventory.overture.com/d/searchinventory/suggestion

You can also use wordtracker. its a paid service but you can get a free trial for a limited time. I HIGHLY recommend you use Wordtracker .

Note: keywords must be relevant to the THEME (subject) of your site. Be careful not to over use them. Search engines don't like keyword SPAM.

Step 3. Get A Domain Name

Having a unique domain name is important. If your site is about canoes try to get hockey.com (I'm canadian, can you tell?) or something along those lines, if you have to hyphen space the name then do it. ie canoe-shop-extreme.com . I have read that using hyphens is a good choice as google sees that as seperate words as opposed to canoeshopextreme.com which I have read that google sees as one word. But I'm not an SEO expert. So experiment or read up on that before your choose your name. There are a whole load of places to get your name from, some like godaddy, which I use. The choice is yours.

Step 4. Write Keyword Rich Content

This may be a hard thing to do for you. Or for those of you who don't consider yourselves to be good writers. Have you ever explained how to do something to someone?, yes?, well its as easy as that. I write like I speak or so I have been told. I have a conversational tone. I'm not a good craft copy writer. Others are better at that sort of thing than I am.

You can go on about the benefits of your subject. And more than likely should If you're pitching a product or service. Need some help with good copy writing skills. Check out copyblogger This guy is just wicked at writing great copy and has loads of helpful hints and copy writing tutorials you should use.

Remember that you're writing to inform, or solve a problem or pitch a product or service. And your keywords should reflect that as well. There are great debates about what percentage of keywords there should be on your page. The basics are this: keywords in the title of your post. Mention your keywords on the first few lines in bold face. spatter them about a few more times through out the body of your copy in either Italics or different font colours and once near or at the end. Keep in mind that they should be used sensibly and in context. Again these are the basics. Its can get kind of complicated using h1 and h2 tags in your posts and a whole other host of other techno jargon which I'll go on about at great length in another tutorial for you.

Step 5. Build Your niche blog Site

Again, this is an area with lots of debate. and heated arguments. If you're just getting started You can start with blogger.com its FREE!!!. Some horror stories abound about people losing their blogs or having them mysteriously gobbled up by google without a mention as to why. I personally have never had this happen. And can only speculate that those who have had it happen have done something that violated their terms of service. I have a detailed post about choosing the right blogging software to use on my main site.

Blogger is relatively easy to, actually very easy to set up.
You have a lot of creative freedom on how you want your niche blog to look (I prefer black copy on white backgrounds with photos), but remember that people are looking for attractive, easy-to-navigate sites with useful information.

Step 6. Sign Up for Matching Affiliate Programs

You've created a niche blog about xyz subject. Now look for affiliate vendors who perfectly match the theme of your site. Integrate your affiliates attractively into your web site copy. Don't confuse your visitors by giving them too many choices.

If you want to list a lot of affiliates on the same page, you can create a helpful "resource guide" page.

Step 7. Include Google Adsense Ads

Google has a great program for web site owners who wish to make a little extra money for simply displaying google ads on their web site. It's easy to sign up and free. Just visit google
(http://www.google.com/ads) and sign up for their Adsense program. They'll give you some html code to copy and paste on your site.

While google decides which ads will actually appear on your site, you can decide how the google ads will look – choose colors, borders, etc. and where to put them on your pages. Again the definitive guide for optimizing your blog for google adsense is Google AdSense Secrets 3.0

Step 8. Find Link Partners

I found out that exchanging links with other web site owners is a MUST if you want to improve your search engine rankings. Google especially will consider your site more relevant if your site has other sites linking to it. Also the ad copy from other sites, if relevant, can add more valuable keyword content to your own site.

I use Linkmarket (http://www.linkmarket.net) to find credible web sites to exchange links with. It's free to join.

Step 9. Write Articles to Promote Your Site

Oh oh. Here's that writing thing again. Well, you better get used to it, because writing articles like this one (normally your articles will be about the subject matter of your web site) will help give your affiliate web site much needed exposure. It doesn't matter if you write them yourself or hire others (ghostwriters) to write them for you.

You'll find that the best Internet marketers all write articles to promote themselves, their newsletters, and products and services. Remember, there's a reason the Internet is called the "information" super highway.

After writing your articles, you can post them to an article directory site like Article City (http://www.articlecity.com). People can easily find your articles to use as free content for their sites.

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Search Marketing: Pay-Per-Click Ad Writing Tips

Here is some advice on writing successful pay-per-click ads.

You're probably going to have to write a lot of ads. Even if you only have 100 keywords in your campaign, those ads need to be targeted to the keywords. You can somewhat reduce the workload by using lots of tightly bound categories and writing your ads at the category level. By tightly bound, we mean that the category refers to only a few very similar or complimentary keywords. For instance, you might have a category with the keywords "candle wax", "candle wax for sale", "buy candle wax", and "hobby candle wax", in which case you could get away with just writing one ad for all of the keywords.

A strategy that is often recommended is for your ad titles to match exactly the search phrase. For example. if the ad is for the search phrase "Nevada hunting trip", the title of the ad would be "Nevada hunting trip". This might be a good way to write headlines quickly, but in general we are not in favor of this approach. The title is the most important part of your ad. You only have 40 characters. You should use the keywords, but put some effort into writing a title that will compel the reader to click. In the above example, how about something like "Find freedom hunting in Nevada" or "Nevada hunting trips for your family".

This is a good time to point out that you really have no way of knowing what headline or description will be the most effective without testing. But when changing your ad, only change a single element at a time. For instance, only change the title, or only make a change to the copy, or maybe only change a single word.

As far as the ad copy goes, here are some writing tips:

• Write in a casual, conversational style. Don't over estimate the intelligence of the reader of the ad.
• Use a call to action: "Find it here", "Click here", "Click now", "Save now", etc.
• Mention a strong guarantee, a special offer, a discount, etc.
• The most powerful word you can use is "you".
  

Think from your prospective customers' perspective. If it were you, what would make you click the link? Your ad is nothing more than salesmanship in print - just like any form of direct marketing. You are using words to pursuade the reader to click the link and come to your web site for more information. Keep that in mind and craft your ads carefully.

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The Voice of Your Writing

One of the things I find most interesting about blogging is the concept of "voice". I'm often told by readers that my blog has an interesting voice which always I find so curious -- because it's not something that I consciously do (OK, now I'm really thinking about it as I write!)

This is all the most interesting because you may have noticed that I haven't blogged in over a month. This is because I lost my "voice", both figuratively and literally. It started at Forrester's Consumer Forum in late October -- in the middle of the conference I came down with horrendous cold, despite countless tablets of Airborne. And rather than call-in sick and put up my feet after the conference, I plowed ahead through a very busy schedule the next week. The result: the cold got even worse and I literally lost my voice. It's taken a month for me to recover but I'm happy to report that after a round of anti-biotics and some really wicked codeine-laced cough medicine, I'm pretty  much recovered.

Well, that takes care of the literal voice loss. But something else also happened this past month -- I lost my internal blogging voice as well. Sapped of energy and health, I could just barely get my work done and care for my family. But that's only part of the story -- I have a dozen half-written blog posts in draft stage, all waiting to see the light of day. I realized this past week that I'm suffering from analysis paralysis -- I've been holding myself to a level of analysis and writing that is simply unreasonable given what I want this blog to be. My last substantial post was on the YouTube acquisition by Google, which was quite the event. But those kind of blog post opportunities come roughly about once a year, and for some reason, I've been trying to write similar posts for the past month with no success.

So I've vowed to follow Nike's mantra and "just do it", or in this case, to "just blog it". Damn the idea of quality and depth of analysis -- I'm better off getting something out there and getting your reactions to it. So here I am, writing a stream of consciousness and finding my voice again.

Are in-text ads bad for your content?

In-text ads are those small double-underlined words and phrases you often come across while reading some blogs and websites. When you hover your cursor over that text a balloon kind of a thing pops up and you see a fancy ad encapsulated in that balloon. According to this Wall Street Journal article this not good for ethical content and news writing and to a degree I agree with that. What if consciously or unconsciously you start writing to facilitate all those keywords?

We all know certain keywords and key phrases fetch you more money than the others.

Journalism ethics counselors decry the trend. "It's ethically problematic at the least and potentially quite corrosive of journalistic quality and credibility," says Bob Steele, the senior ethics faculty member at the Poynter Institute, a journalism school in St. Petersburg, Fla.

But the publishers who use this "intrusive" advertising model

see nothing wrong with them. They insist they are part of their continuing experimentation with different forms of online advertising to gauge which are most effective for readers and advertisers.

Personally I have no objection to such ads as long as they don't interfere with the integrity of the written material.

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5 Deadly Copywriting Mistakes

Chances are that you are making many, if not all, of these 5 copywriting mistakes. I call them "deadly" because they're killing your sales and your profits.

Let me make you a bold promise: examine your own sales copy and eliminate these copywriting mistakes, and you will see an instant improvement in your sales.

Let's get started:

Deadly Mistake #1: Being Focused On You, Instead Of On Your Market

This is the easiest mistake to make, and the most common. Most ad copy is focused on the advertiser, not on the consumer. Big mistake.

When you read copy that says things like, "We're the best in the industry… we've been in business since 1979… we have the most well-trained associates… our facility has won many industry awards…" what is your reaction?

Most likely, your reaction is, "So what? What does that mean to me and my life?"

If youre using copy that says "we", "us", and "our" a lot find a way to change that copy so that it says "you", and "yours". Speak about the things that matter to your customer.

Here's a hint: those things are probably not what you think they are. Why not ask your customers? They know the answer, and they'll be glad to share it with you if you're wise enough to listen.

Deadly Mistake #2: Using a Weak, Wimpy, or Just Plain Bad Headline

In the beginning, you only have one chance to grab the readers attention. That chance is the headline. Make sure your headline is strong, aggressive (without being pushy), and compelling.

Think of your headline as the sales pitch to get the prospect to read the whole ad. It has to be compelling enough that the reader thinks, "Hey, if this is true, I need to know about it…"

You get one shot. You can't afford to blow it.

A poor headline for an automotive shop: "Our Experienced Staff Can Tend to Your Every Automotive Need, And Are ASE Certified with the Guaranteed Lowest Prices."

A much better headline for the same client: "Are Hidden Mechanical Problems With Your Car Threatening The Health And Safety Of Your Family? This 9-Point Safety Inspection Could Save Their Lives And Give You Peace of Mind…"

Deadly Mistake #3: Not Using Enough Bullets

Bullets break up your copy into short, readable bursts. Especially on the web, people tend to scan copy before they read it; breaking your benefits into bullets increases the chances your copy will "catch the eye" and thus get read.

To recap the benefits of using bullets:

• Breaks up copy (just like this) into short pieces.
• Makes the copy easier to scan.
• Makes it easier to pick out key words and phrases.
• Gets more of your copy read.
• Makes you more sales.
• The more the better.

Deadly Mistake #4: Using big words and jargon.

Copy should read like conversation; it should flow naturally and be easy to process.

Using big words and jargon might sound impressive, but it won't get you sales. Which would you prefer?

Use strong, punchy words. Write simply and clearly.

Read Strunk & White's Elements of Style and follow its advice. Avoid jargon.

Deadly Mistake #5: Using Weak, Wimpy, or Just Plain Bad Sub-Heads

"Subheads" are the "mini-headlines" that break up your copy into sections — just like the sentence that precedes this one. Subheads are usually set apart in a different type style (bold typeface, or perhaps a different color).

You should use subheads every 3-4 paragraphs in your copy. Make subheads strong and compelling; think of them as headlines for each section of your copy.

If read in sequence, the subheads should sound like an abbreviated version of your sales pitch (which is what they are). Subheads done correctly are a way to "stop the eye", catch the reader's interest, and get him to slow down enough to read that section.

What to Do Now

Heres your "takeaway": grab your own current sales copy, this list of copy mistakes, your favorite beverage, and go through your copy line-by-line.

Ferret out these mistakes and eliminate them from your copy.

Do it now, and don't put it off.

You'll be glad you did.

And if writing is "not your thing" — hire a professional. Having great copy is the single most important tool you have at your disposal to sell your products or services.

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Google’s Top Secret Advertising Network

Almost everyone knows Google owns the AdSense network. Google AdSense has been credited with bringing the Internet back to life after the dot com burst of 2001. Some people may even know about AdSense for domain. This is Google's network for handling advertising for large domain name holders. Recently, Google started a new ad network but is not telling anyone about it – the Google Display Advertising Network.

The Google Display Advertising Network was created so Google can go after Fortune 1000 companies, which buy advertising to build a brand more than to sell a product. Google already dominates text and CPC ads so going after display and video ads is the next logical step. Google offers display and video ads to AdSense publishers on CPC and CPM format already. However, the formation of the Display Advertising Network is a clear signal that Google really want to push this forward.

How do you join the Google Display Advertising Network? You can't. Google won't even acknowledge it exists. You won't find anything written about it in any of Google's web properties. The only way to get into the display network is if Google invites you, which is how I found out about it.

Google has been hand-selecting sites (no word on how many sites has been chosen) that they want to put in front of Fortune 1000 companies. The goal being to sell these big companies display and video ads at a very high CPM – unlike the AdSense network, the display network is 100% CPM based.

While Google won't tell normal AdSense publishers what the revenue split on their account is, they are much more open with the display network. As a matter fact, every display network members negotiates a flat CPM rate with Google. The contracts are one year long and publishers have to guarantee Google that they will provide a minimum amount of ad inventory each month. Publishers can serve more than the minimum amount and still receive the same CPM rate for the overage.

Reporting by the display network is currently via weekly emails from Google. The information is extremely limited. The only information shown is your weekly ad impressions and page views. Take that ad impression figure, multiply it by your CPM rate and you'll have how much you made.

I am not allowed to reveal CPM or any financial data of the Google Display Advertising Network. However, I can tell you that the 300×250 display network ad running on The TechZone is my most profitable Google ad.

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Short Blogging History

by Kurt Larovich

The history of blogging is a long and convoluted one. Blogging has been around in some form since the earliest days of the Internet. In fact, one of the first web pages was similar to a blog in that its author, Internet creator

Tim Berners-Lee, regularly updated it with a list of all websites (only a few dozen at the time).

Blogging eventually evolved into a means of sharing both personal expression and other information that individuals found valuable Since its beginning, blogging has enjoyed a slight duality: on one hand, it serves as a great online diary, and on the other, it's a fantastic communications tool

Until 2004, blogging was a fairly specific activity, with only about 5 million bloggers worldwide—most of them fairly secluded in their own little niches, blogging about pets, businesses, and tech-related issues. Then came the US 2004 presidential election, and blogs suddenly began getting mainstream attention. Bloggers unearthed issues about candidates, blogged about all kinds of events that journalists couldn't be bothered to attend, and even received press passes to the Democratic party's national convention. Overall, 2004 was a huge year for blogging, as business thoughtleaders such as management guru Tom Peters, author and lecturer Malcolm Gladwell, entrepreneurial expert Guy Kawasaki, and leadership authority Steven Covey woke up to the power of blogs.

In fact, these days, no business author's work is complete without starting a book blog. As a result, the business magazines of the world such as Fortune, Business 2.0, and Fast Company have awakened to the power of the blog and businesses around the world are taking notice. While blog-related inquiries to marketing and PR companies were initially met with blank stares, these companies quickly caught up to the idea, and now blog consulting is a staple of consultants large and small.

The early twenty-first century has been marked by mergers and acquisitions in the blogging space as well as a number of scandals—but more than anything, it has been marked by growth. If 5 million bloggers were online in 2004, more than 50 million were blogging by the start of 2005, and that growth won't slow down anytime soon. In fact, the collective number of blogs has grown so rapidly that no one service has been able to keep up with it, which is one of the reasons that nobody is entirely sure how many people are actually reading blogs. Suffice it to say that a lot of people are writing them, even more are reading them, and more still are being influenced by them. These days, the question isn't "Do you know what a blog is?"; it's more likely "What's your blog?" or "What's your favorite blog?"

The growth of blogs among businesses has been astronomical. Thousands of new business blogs are being created by companies of every size, in every industry, for just about every purpose imaginable.

What makes a blog influential?

What makes a blog influential?

Influence is often attributed to traffic and readership levels. But in reality, those are actually benefits that are symptomatic of something that precedes them.

How do we get people to pay attention to what we say in the first place?

Ultimately, a blog catches on just like any other idea spreads—it must somehow speak to people in a way that they want to hear. Your posts must fill a human need, and that will most often be at an emotional level, no matter how practical we think our subject matter is.

The following are five components that I think are essential for a blog to gain traction and influence with its intended audience. These elements were inspired by the forthcoming social-science research findings of brothers Chip and Dan Heath, a psychologist and an educator who are trying to assign qualitative measures to Malcolm Gladwell's concept of "sticky" ideas as set forth in The Tipping Point .

1. Simple

Ultimately, the idea behind your blog must be easy for your target audience to immediately grasp. Your readers must be able to quickly communicate what you and your blog are all about in order for your ideas to spread.

2. Unexpected

Something about what you have to offer must be out of the ordinary. Providing valuable information that seems to be against your own self-interest, like a Realtor blog that details how to sell your own house, may provide that spark that gets people talking (or linking). Or maybe it's just a completely new perspective on a topic, or a combination of two seemingly unrelated concepts into something fresh.

3. Concrete

The information an influential blog provides must be specifically useful to your intended audience. There's a reason "how to" posts are so popular, even as we outsource more and more to others rather than performing tasks outside of our own expertise. Actionable information is desirable and alters how others perceive you for the better.

4. Credible

Credibility is crucial to any successful blog, and it's easier to lose it than it is to earn it. People must not only feel that you know what you're talking about; they also want to know they can trust you.

5. Story

Here's how all of the above is communicated and the emotive element that connects with the reader gets added to the mix. The story of your blog must be simple, have an unexpected hook, reflect concrete benefits and inherently state the credibility of the blog owner, all while triggering an emotional response.

How you say it is important.

But what you say is critical.

If your blog is not performing at the level you desire, or even if you're simply trying to maintain the success you have and perhaps take it to the next level, keep these five elements in mind. The story of any successful blog is told one post at a time, and you can start tweaking your story today.

Copyblogger

Creatively using Blogs; Massive SEO Beinifits

Cliches in the SEO World

The Five Steps of Effective Communication on Blogs

by Simon Brown

Your customers are talking, your employees are talking, and your partners and suppliers are talking. With blogging, the conversation is potentially limitless. The challenge for most companies who engage in customer conversation isn't obtaining feedback; it's how best to deal with the feedback, both positive and negative. At the end of the day, you need to realize that these conversations include current customers, potential customers, employees, and partners. If you ignore these comments, you are ignoring valuable feedback, potential new marketing strategies, innovative new product ideas, and concepts that could completely transform your business. The conversation will go on either with or without you—and your competitors are most certainly listening.

The best way to engage in a real-world conversation is to go through the following five steps for effective communication: listen, understand, value, interpret, and contribute

Listen Listening is like being a sponge, and the best sponges hold water indefinitely

Until you are ready to contribute—to squeeze some knowledge from your sponge—you need to be taking in a lot more that you're putting out.

Understand By understanding what is actually being said, apart from any biases or agendas—especially your own—you begin to value feedback. You need to ensure that you keep that value. Value the conversation, the individual, and the feedback more than you value your own opinion. If you don't do this, when it comes time to contribute, your comments will be out of context and will hold much less value than they otherwise would.

Value Valuing everyone's contribution can be difficult in the best of times—some people in any large conversation don't listen, don't value others' contributions, and therefore simply don't deserve to be talking. However, when you're a business listening to feedback about your company, products, and industry, it's far too easy to discount certain contributions as unworthy of your attention. Don't fall into this trap. Before you can contribute and properly respond to what's going on in a conversation as big as the blog posting, you need to value everyone involved—after all, the one person you value one time could well be your next big customer evangelist.

Interpret Before you take the step in becoming involved in the global conversation happening on blogs, you need to interpret and evaluate what has already been said and determine whether you actually have any valuable and unique insight to offer. After all, if the only thing you have to say in a large conversation is "Yes, I agree!", it's probably best to live by the adage, "Even a fool is thought wise if he keeps silent.

Contribute The final step in effective communication is to contribute something of value to the group What valuable information can you offer? When the conversation centers on your area of expertise, you can offer authority, passion, and a unique perspective

Unlike most parties, where not everyone gets a chance to talk to everyone else, thousands of blog readers and writers are waiting eagerly to hear what you and your company have to say. Once you have properly prepared to contribute to the conversation, you can be sure that you will not only be heard, but that you will get feedback.

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SEO Resourses

Add Social Bookmarking Buttons To Blogger Blog

by Matt

Social bookmarking is a powerful tool. It allows your users to save links on your site to their page on their social bookmarking site, then others are able to see what links they have saved, and perhaps visit them, Then perhaps they will also add that page or or site to their social bookmarking account.

Some of the most popular social bookmarking sites are Blogmarks, Del.icio.us, Digg, Furl, Google, netvouz, Newsvine, Reddit, Spurl and Technorati..
There are many more, But there are my favorites.

If you look under each of my posts you should see little icons for each of these social bookmarks services. When a user clicks the icon they are able to save that post to the social bookmarking service of their choice..

The social bookmarking button code i am posting will work with blogger straight away, The same code can be used for other blogs but will need to have the appropriate sections changed accordingly..

You will have to figure out where to copy this to in your blogger template based on what template you used, But it should go somewhere under your post, I would recommend directly under the <$BlogItemBody$> tag and will look like this


<a href="<a href="http://blogmarks.net/my/new.php?mini=1&title=">http://blogmarks.net/my/new.php?mini=1&title=</a><$BlogItemTitle$>&url=<$BlogItemPermalinkURL$>" title="Bookmark This to Blogmarks"><img src=" <a href="http://img2.imagepile.net/images/ycc2106/84282833.png">http://img2.imagepile.net/images/ycc2106/84282833.png</a>" alt="Add to blogmarks" height="16" width="16" /></a> <a href=" <a href="http://del.icio.us/post?url=">http://del.icio.us/post?url=</a><$BlogItemPermalinkURL$>&title=<$BlogItemTitle$>" title="Bookmark This to <a href="http://del.icio.us">del.icio.us</a>"><img src=" <a href="http://img2.imagepile.net/images/ycc2106/80727937.png">http://img2.imagepile.net/images/ycc2106/80727937.png</a>" alt="delicious" height="16" width="16" /></a> <a href=" <a href="http://digg.com/submit?phase=2&url=">http://digg.com/submit?phase=2&url=</a><$BlogItemPermalinkURL$>" title="Digg This Story!"><img src="<a href="http://img2.imagepile.net/images/ycc2106/89072042.png"> http://img2.imagepile.net/images/ycc2106/89072042.png</a>" alt="digg" height="16" width="16" /></a> <a href="<a href="http://www.furl.net/storeIt.jsp?u=">http://www.furl.net/storeIt.jsp?u= </a><$BlogItemPermalinkURL$>&t=<$BlogItemTitle$>" title="Bookmark To Furl"><img src="<a href="http://img2.imagepile.net/images/ycc2106/47600014.png">http://img2.imagepile.net/images/ycc2106/47600014.png </a>" alt="furl" height="16" width="16" /></a> <a href="<a href="http://www.google.com/bookmarks/mark?op=add&bkmk=">http://www.google.com/bookmarks/mark?op=add&bkmk= </a><$BlogItemPermalinkURL$>&title=<$BlogItemTitle$>" title="Bookmark to Google"><img src="<a href="http://img2.imagepile.net/images/ycc2106/10847106.png">http://img2.imagepile.net/images/ycc2106/10847106.png </a>" alt="google" height="16" width="16" /></a> <a href="<a href="http://www.netvouz.com/action/submitBookmark?url=">http://www.netvouz.com/action/submitBookmark?url=</a> <$BlogItemPermalinkURL$>&title=<$BlogItemTitle$>&popup=no" title="Bookmark to Netvouz"><img src="<a href="http://img2.imagepile.net/images/ycc2106/47445448.png">http://img2.imagepile.net/images/ycc2106/47445448.png </a>" alt="netvouz" height="16" width="16" /></a> <a href="<a href="http://www.newsvine.com/_tools/seed&save?u=">http://www.newsvine.com/_tools/seed&save?u=</a><$BlogItemPermalinkURL$>&h=<$BlogItemTitle$>" title="Bookmark to Newsvine" ><img src=" <a href="http://img2.imagepile.net/images/ycc2106/27563199.png">http://img2.imagepile.net/images/ycc2106/27563199.png</a>" alt="newsvine" height="16" width="16" /></a> <a href=" <a href="http://reddit.com/submit?url=">http://reddit.com/submit?url=</a><$BlogItemPermalinkURL$>&title=<$BlogItemTitle$>" title="Add to reddit"><img src="<a href="http://img2.imagepile.net/images/ycc2106/10796749.png"> http://img2.imagepile.net/images/ycc2106/10796749.png</a>" alt="reddit" height="16" width="16" /></a> <a href="<a href="http://www.spurl.net/spurl.php?url=">http://www.spurl.net/spurl.php?url= </a><$BlogItemPermalinkURL$>&title=<$BlogItemTitle$>" title="Spurl This!"><img src="<a href="http://img2.imagepile.net/images/ycc2106/67105361.png">http://img2.imagepile.net/images/ycc2106/67105361.png </a>" alt="spurl" height="16" width="16" /></a> <a href="<a href="http://technorati.com/faves?add=">http://technorati.com/faves?add=</a><$BlogItemPermalinkURL$>" title="Add to Technorati Favorites" ><img src=" <a href="http://img2.imagepile.net/images/ycc2106/81723336.png">http://img2.imagepile.net/images/ycc2106/81723336.png</a>" alt="Technorati" height="16" width="16" /></a>

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How to Get Free Traffic for Your Web Site

Ready Set Go - The 30 Minute Article

10 Essential Blogging Tools

So, you finally decided to take the blog leap. You've heard all about the marketing and search benefits so you stepped up to the plate and signed up for a TypePad, MovableType or WordPress blog software package and now you're a blogger. Okay, now what? Add the ten essential blogging tools listed below and you will also be well on your way to creating and promoting a blog that is a powerful marketing tool. I'll explain the use of the tool and offer some suggestions, including the tools I use on my own blogs including the DuctTapeMarketing blog.
Feed Reader
The best way to learn about blogs and blogging is to read, or at least scan, lots of blogs. One of the wonders of blogs is that you can have every new post from every blog you want to read delivered to your desktop or to online location via RSS, so you can easily read and scan the posts of many blogs in a very short time. Newsgator is a good online choice for feed reading and also has a version that integrates with Outlook. I use a free online service known as Bloglines.
Subscriber Center
You need to make it easy for your blog visitors to subscribe to your blog's RSS feed – so they can read your blog in their favorite feed reader. The best way to do this is to go to FeedBurner and burn your own RSS feed there and use the tools they provide to set up automatic subscriber links so people who want to use Bloglines, Google Reader, MyYahoo or Pluck, for instance, can click on one button to subscribe. Tech types can figure this out without the buttons but why not make it easy for anyone to figure out.
Side note: Subscribe to each of these yourself
Email Subscription Option
A lot of people will never get the whole feed thing, but everyone gets email. Create an option for people to subscribe by giving you their email address – they will simply receive your blog posts like an email message. FeedBurner offers this service for free. FeedBlitz is another option or, if you already have an autoresponder email list service they may offer this service. AWeber offers this and helps me integrate these blog email subscribers into my other mailing lists.
Blog and RSS directories
There are hundreds of blog and RSS directories and getting listed in many can be a good thing. I use a piece of software called RSS Submit , but you can also visit Robin Goode's frequently updated list and submit your blog and feed by hand.
Hint: Subscribe to the RSS feed he offers and you will be notified when new directories are added.
Ping Service
Pinging is a term used for letting the various blog and RSS directories know when you have posted new content. Again, FeedBurner offers this as an automatic option called PingShot and you should activate it. PingGoat and Ping O Matic are other options but they require that you visit and update your record each time you post new content.
Bookmark Manager
As you surf around the web or hop from blog to blog you may find sites that you want to point out to your readers. Online bookmark managers allow you to bookmark and categorize web and blog pages as you collect them and are a great tool for managing all of the stuff you find on the web. I use del.icio.us but BlinkList does a fine job as well.
Blog Stats
I like to track a few key stats in real time because it shows what other blogs might be linking to you or posting about your blog. A lot of people just like to track this kind of thing for fun and frequently visit sites like Technorati. I like to track it for networking opportunities. I use a tool called MyBlogLog because it allows me to see where traffic is coming from but also tracks what links on my blog visitors are clicking on. It's amazing how this data can help you write more effectively. (MyBlogLog also ranks your links so visitors can see which links on your site are the most popular.)
Desktop Posting
With most blog software you must go online and post using a set of tools provided by the blog software. Many bloggers like to use a desktop application to create and submit their posts as it gives them some extra tools and allows them to more easily integrate content and files on their computer.
I use w.blogger but also like Performancing, Qumana and ecto (apple folks) (w.blogger also doubles as a really simple HTML editor.)
Tell A Friend Script
My blog software (pMachine) has a feature that allows a reader to click a link and send the post to a friend. This tactic brings me lots of readers. You might try looking here for some simple scripts that do that same: http://www.javascriptkit.com/script/script2/tellafriend.shtml http://www.stadtaus.com/en/php_scripts/tell_a_friend_script/
Republish Your Feed Headlines
The ability to republish your blog posts on other web pages, sites you own or sites of strategic partners is a great way to expose folks to your blog content. One more time we turn to FeedBurner for a painless way to republish your blog post to any web page you choose with something they call BuzzBoost.
About The Author: John Jantsch is a veteran marketing coach, award winning blogger and author of Duct Tape Marketing: The World's Most Practical Small Business Marketing Guide published by Thomas Nelson - due out in the fall of 2006. He is the creator of the Duct Tape Marketing small business marketing system. You can find more information by visiting http://www.ducttapemarketing.com.

9 Simple Ways to be an Effective Blogger

Plan to start blogging? Here are 9 tips to ensure you are on the right blogging track.

1. Focus your expertise

Always begin your blog with a theme or a focus. Although you can start one blog for all topics - both business and personal issues - it's also best to separate your business from your personal blog particularly if the target audience is different. This helps you focus on the theme of your blog and enable you to blog easily without running off tangent!

2. Blog regularly

Commit time to blogging. Blogs are a little different from websites because blogs are expected to be updated more regularly than websites. Be sure to update your blog regularly. For example, I blog twice a week but I do blog extra if I have the time. However, if you worry you cannot blog regularly, try this time-saver tip of mine – set aside a day to draft 4 or 5 blog entries all at one go. Use them on days when you're pressed for time or have writer's block and cannot think of anything to blog about.

3. Show your personality

Don't be afraid to show your personality when you blog. In fact, a blog is the best place to show the best bits of yourself – share as much as you can about how you feel and why you say the things you do. Don't be afraid to use humour or honesty. Your readers will love you for being frank. Having said that, do set some personal rules as a blogger. My personal mantra is that I don't cuss or have four-letter words in my blog.

4. Encourage feedback

Your blog exists because you want to start 'conversations' with your readers. You have an opinion to share and you want others to share theirs too. Some bloggers prevent their readers from leaving comments by turning off the Comments feature on their blog. I say enable your readers to provide you feedback but moderate comments – remove those which are rude. If you worry about spamming, plug in extra security by getting readers to register before they can leave comments and get the comments sent to you for approval prior to being posted to your blog.

5. Use photos to sell

Photographs always capture attention and convey emotions. They also help break the monotony of large sections of text. Remember to re-size them before you upload them to your blog. This keeps photograph sizes standard and consistent. I use photos which are re-sized to 400 pixels wide by 300 pixels tall. Don't have gorgeous photos? Get them free from free stock photo sites such as freefoto.com or sxc.hu

6. Include links to other blogs

Include links to other blogs or websites. The mistake most people make is that they don't want to link out because they're worried their readers will leave. Don't worry about them leaving - focus on writing quality engaging content. Your mission is to get them hooked enough that they will bookmark your blog and return often!

7. Use proper grammar and spellcheck

I can't stress enough the importance of using proper grammatical language when blogging. You don't have to be an expert in a language to use it well. Just remember that what you blog should be easy to understand without spelling or grammatical errors.

8. Ensure readability

When you blog, keep in mind that you need to ensure that your readers will be able to read easily. Follow newspaper conventions: use subheads to break up long paragraphs, keep one idea to one paragraph and use bulleted lists if the information is too unwieldy. Don't torture your readers by having white text on a dark or black background. It hurts the eyes! Black text on white or light background always works best.

9. Be personal

The easiest way is to constantly use 'you' and 'I' liberally throughout your blog. This keeps it casual, friendly and easygoing. You definitely don't want to blog in the third person because that would defeat the purpose of your blogging. Imagine you are having a conversation with your best friend. Use this mental image when you are blogging and you'll never be stuck for ideas or words!

7 Steps to Better Business Blogging

Search Engine Ranking Positions

Ready Set Go - The 30 Minute Article

by Kevin Sinclair


You need an article for your newsletter, and you need it now. As a matter of fact, you can spare only forty minutes to get the article written, edited and slotted into place.

Breaking it down, that means you pretty much have to write the first draft in around 30 minutes. Not a lot of time - especially if you don't consider yourself to be much of a writer. The good news is that it can be done - and done well. Here's how to generate a 400-500-word article in a short time.

1. Turbo-Outlining.

Give yourself 5-10 minutes for this part of the process. If you already have a topic in mind, you're in front. If not, you have exactly 90 seconds to decide. Presumably you understand where your readers are coming from (if not, you're in big trouble.) Use those 90 seconds to jot down words or phrases that summarize anything that is likely to be causing them a problem. Naturally this needs to be a problem that YOU can help solve in your article.

From this list, choose the topic that appeals to you most. Now - in three and a half minutes - it's time to outline the article. Use these headers to guide you:

a. State the problem - and promise a solution. (Just jot down quick notes at this stage.)

b. Outline the process for solving the problem. Divide this into 3-5 logical steps. Label each step (this will become a sub-heading in your article).

c. Jot down points you want to make in your conclusion. This can be advice on how to ensure that the problem doesn't recur, or offer links to resources that can help. End on a positive note that leaves the reader feeling glad that he read your advice.

2. Speed-Writing Your First Draft.

Allow 20-25 minutes to write the first draft. Spend an extra few minutes on the first paragraph. This is where your reader will decide whether or not to continue reading. Your job is to show that you understand exactly what the problem is and to sound confident that you can help them solve it. Don't use long-winded sentences or ramble on about how awful it is - just get to the point. By the end of the first half-dozen sentences, your reader needs to feel keen to read on and find out the solution.

Each of your 3-5 sub-headings should clearly indicate what the following paragraphs are about. Remember that many readers skim-read an article to see if it's worth reading. Look at the words you've chosen - can you rephrase these headings to make the whole process sound simpler or faster?

Under each sub-heading, write two or three paragraphs on the part of the problem-solving strategy you are outlining. Since you are writing this quickly, it is likely that you will automatically adopt a forthright, casual tone. If you find yourself writing in overly formal language, stop and reconsider. The best 'how to' articles use simple language and everyday terminology. Make it all as easy as possible for your reader to follow.

The ending is just as important as the opening paragraph. It's vital not to let the article fizzle out in a weak conclusion. You need to leave your reader feeling inspired, energized and confident that they can follow your advice and fix the problem. You can:

- tell them how much time/energy/money they will save by following your advice
- share a 'secret' of some kind that will help them move on to the next step (be more successful, save even more time, etc)
- point them at further help or resources. (These can be provided by you and your web site, or by others who have a level of expertise.)

3. Tweak and Polish.

After thirty minutes you should have an excellent basis for your article. If you can afford to take fifteen minutes out at this stage for a cup of coffee or a quick walk, do so. It's always better to take a break before editing your work. If not, just start reading it from the beginning. Check for these things:

a. Spelling and grammar. Your computer should do most of the work here, but a computer can miss typos or offer strange advice when it comes to grammar. You need to read it through yourself for flow and overall impact.

b. Wordy sentences or phrases. Weed them out!

c. Badly-phrased advice. If a sentence doesn't flow, write it again. Think of how you'd explain to someone else in a casual conversation. Does your writing reflect this?

d. Missing steps. When you're familiar with a process, or trouble-shooting, it's all too easy to leave out a step or a small but vital piece of information. Run over the whole process in your mind to make sure you haven't left anything out.

Now, you should have a finished article that will prove both interesting and helpful to many of your readers. At worst, it will be competent. At best, it will surprise you with what you can achieve in a short time

Simple copywriting

Online, people have the amount of memory span rapidly approaching zero. They have a lot of things to learn, more things to do and some things to share. And all that during a single day.
Writing your material using simple language will make it easier for your readers to understand your ideas and read your article to the end.

Of course, there are many more factors that just language simplicity. So many people, so many places they live and so different is the education they get. Each of your site readers will have its own word vocabulary and will or will not understand something you speak about on your blog. What can you do to improve the situation?

Easily understandable material

First of all, you should learn to express your thoughts clearly. This not only involves consecutive, logical placement of words and sentences, but also of paragraphs as well. You can learn this by expessing your ideas when talking with real people or by writing anything you can come up with (your personal blog, corporate blog, site content, etc).

Secondly, you'll need to use the words that the least educated person on your blog will understand. This will ensure that everyone will understand what you are talking about (provided you have expressed your thoughts clearly, of course).

Thirdly, you'll need to format your text to make it readable. It will be partially well formatted by logical writing, but you'll need to make sure the text is formatted specifically for the Web, too. This usually involves simpler sentences and paragraphs, subheadings, lists, emphases, etc.

Of course, what you write about matters, too. If you write about some advanced things that only real experts can ponder about, you are risking losing a part of your readership. Let's see how you can keep everyone enjoying your writings.

Making things simple

To keep your less industry savvy readers absorbing what you wrote, you'll need to word everything carefully. This involves all the three techniques from above.

You not only need to explain complex things easily, so that your grandma could understand it, but you have to use the words your less savvy readers can understand. And you have to make your text readable, as well.

The advantage of this technique is that you can keep writing about what you want to write (the advanced material), while keeping both newbies and experts happy.

The benefits of keeping it simple

Of course, the major benefit is that your readers will undertand what you are talking about. They'll be able to comment on the issue on your blog, send you e-mails or continue discussing it with you on the forums.

Another advantage of writing simple is that the readers will read your text to the end. This is an often overlooked aspect that many writers neglect. In real copywriting, you need to write a sentence with the only purpose of the next sentence to be read. And so on.

Yet another benefit of using natural language is traffic. If you use the words other people use, along with the synonyms, when talking about your topics, you'll notice that those very people will find you easier from the search engines. Take it as a bonus.

Rounding up

Whatever you write, you can make it more appealing to your readers by writing naturally and using as simple language as you can get. If you also put it in a readable format, you'll be not only make your readers glow with pleasure, but get the benefits of such writing, as well

"How To Get Started With A Career In Copywriting"

Tips to Make Easy Money from Affiliate Programs

Why Use Google Book Search?

Google Book Search is a service that lets you search more than 500 million pages of scanned books and the number grows every day. But why would you need that when you could go to a library? Well, sometimes it's hard to discover books only from the title and description and once you discovered them it's hard to actually find them in libraries and book stores.

1. You have a quote from a book, but you don't know where it's from.

2. You have a quote from a book, and you want to find the context. Maybe you want to read the poem that contains the famous " eternal sunshine of the spotless mind".

3. Maybe you have a book and you want to read again a certain fragment. But it's hard to find it, even though you remember some keywords.

4. Search your bookshelves. You can't restrict the search to your books, but if you enter something unique (name of a character), you'll discover the book.

5. Search within books published in a certain year, to see different perspectives on a subject.

6. Find references from other books to a certain book.

7. Search for an affirmation or the prefix of an affirmation (" Paris is the only city...").

8. Find contexts for rare or difficult words ( ineluctable).

9. Read out-of-copyright books online or download them as PDF files.

10. Detect plagiarism, as this article shows.

 

Google Operating System

Article sites we love you

by Mike Cain


I love article sites! Why? Because you can write articles about your chosen subject, publish them for free and you reap all the rewards. You get to voice you opinion on your chosen subject area. Becoming a web author is fun. There is a great feeling associated when you search for your own name and Google brings up your articles.

What are the rewards?

Well most good article sites will allow you to leave a short bio which is perfect for adding a link back to your site. So you can get free exposure and people can republish your article if you make this clear, which means even more links spread across the internet. When you write articles make sure you focus the text around key words you are trying to target. If you used the keywords in the heading of the article this is more weight, if you haven't then add them. If you write a decent article and publish it on good quality article sites then in a few days you will see your article on Google when using those search terms. More and more people are reading peoples articles to find out information and the best companies to use etc. Many search terms only find relevant content in articles, and if you have clearly left your hyperlink going back to your website then is more weight to your web presence.

What are the best article sites?

The best quality article sites are the ones that Google likes. Article Alley is one of the more recognised sites, it has a network of sister sites and each article get published on all of the sites. Ezine Articles is another good site as is Isnare and Go articles. Some charge a small yearly fee but it is well worth it.

How do articles promote my site?

Articles promote your site because if your name is associated with a particular filed you will be seen as an authority on the subject. And if your article links back to your site then you will start to see more visitors. When Google gets a request to look for a key word it goes and finds the best sites with that content. So writing as many articles as you possibly can with links back to your website will help your web presence.

If you have a site and need some more content, using articles that are free to republish is a great way of adding more content. More quality content means more traffic, so hopefully more business. Article City is a great site which offers the option to republish their articles. So if you need content on fly fishing, search for articles on fly fishing, but make sure they state that they are free for republishing. As long as you know they are free to republish then you can add these articles to your site. Giving you more content and authority on your subject.

Anther great thing about article sites is that you can have your own voice on the internet. You may have a lot of information that other people would benefit from knowing. You might get told you talk too much, I know I have been told that. So now I find if I need to get something off my chest I write it down and publish it. Any points I want to make, I write an article and publish it. There is a great feeling in knowing that people are reading your words and hopefully benefiting from them.
Being a web author is fun, so get writing.

ArticleBin - Recent Writing Articles

Pay per Digg?

By Luke

There's a new Digg "Pay Per Post" Service that's  now available. Here is a break down for the average webmaster wanting to get on the front page. The charge is $20 plus $1 per Digg. It takes around 40 Diggs to hit the front page depending on the category and other things. If you buy 60 Diggs to be safe,you'll be spending $80 for a chance of making the Digg front page.

Webmaster SEO

Creatively using Blogs; Massive SEO Beinifits

by george

Blogging for traffic has no purpose. Why not just use the blog as your main site. There are some things that a blog can not do right? Well, this is not 100% true but for those like me who hate to outsource things like creating a website, need to use regular html websites instead of complicated blog php file

For this reason, we need to drive traffic to our websites without having the benefit of the blog as the main site. This is a disadvantage because blogs are great for search engine ranking and since our main website is not a blog we are losing the ability to ping out new content.

How do we fix this problem? We have to find a way to use a blog so we can ping our website. You can add the blog to your website and just ping it. This will offer beneficial effects for your main website if the inner pages of your site contain a blog that is constantly gaining new content. The problem with that is that you want people to come to your main site and see what you are selling right?

You have to now change the look of the blog you created. Add a link to your website in the blog using anchor text you want. This will have 2 positive effects. People will see the links and come to your site and the search engines will also see the link and further increase your websites rank for that key phrase.

This blog is on your website and this does not much help you when you want to generate traffic now does it? What you can do is create another blog outside your site and focus on topics that relate your main site and also offer news from the site and large links to your main site. This had even more effect for your sites SEO and you will see that you will have another link from Google in a week. Until next time, keep building your blogs content and never stop adding content.

7 Steps to Better Business Blogging

by Darren Rowse
The following reader quick tip was submitted by Ann Handley from Marketing Profs: Daily Fix.

One of the questions I often field comes from business owners who are thinking of launching a blog but are wondering, "What can I write about…?"

A recent post by Poynter contributor Vince Maher does an excellent job of giving some guidance on what businesses can write about, and, more importantly, how they can write it. All 11 tips are here but here are the seven points most critical for businesses:

1. A blog entry is a stub for conversation. Think about creating posts that start conversations, have a point of view, and appeal to the interests of your readers. All writing must consider the audience, but for bloggers, it's critical.
2. Write tight headlines that pique interest. Think punchy, short, descriptive headlines that will pique a reader's curiosity.
3. Be scan-friendly. Bullet points (like these!) are easy to scan and have the useful by-product of lending structure to your thoughts.
4. Link to the context. This is really important: if you write about something that other blogs are talking about in a post or conversation, offer links back to their conversations to give your post some context.
5. Troll the blogosphere for secondary conversation. Tools like Google BlogSearch, Bloglines and Technorati will help you track what other bloggers are saying about your post. Try to update your blog with links to those conversations if they add or augment yours.
6. Be active in your own conversations. Comment back to your readers. Social media is all about relationships.
7. Create buzz everywhere. Include lots of relevant inbound links to your post. Via Technorati or other search tools, seek out other blogs that are discussing the same or similar issues, and participate in the conversation there.

So what do you think? Did I miss anything or can you expand on any of these guidelines?

from:ProBlogger Blog Tips

"How To Get Started With A Career In Copywriting"

by Niall Cinneide

Careers in copywriting are booming. Could it be that the new and ever growing market on the Internet has helped to fuel this demand? You can bet your sweet keyword that it has! With so many businesses looking to the internet for their freelance copywriters the demand for employees keeps growing. Likewise, careers in copy writing are being filled more and more with freelance or independent workers. Even those who work right from their home are jumping onto the bandwagon. But, copywriting careers are not all fun and games.

We have found that the more people looking for careers in copy writing, the more stringent the guidelines have become. Since there are more employees looking for a career in this field, those offering employment can be more demanding of the people they recruit. What is the average person who is interested in getting into the copywriting world to do? Should they hope that someone will see their worth? By all means, you can try this. But, a more effective approach to becoming a copywriter is to become trained. First, learn what needs to be learned, grab an associate’s degree from the community college if nothing else. Prepare a good, strong resume and distribute it.

What is most important to freelancers about getting and keeping careers in copy writing is to know your stuff. Know what the client or your boss wants. Always present yourself as a reliable, trustworthy individual. And, of course, it is very important when in copywriting to ensure that you take criticism seriously. Learning from mistakes you make is the best way to gain the experience you need to succeed. No matter if you are looking for freelance opportunities or steady employment as a copywriter. You need to treat each and every one of your jobs with serious, devoted calculations. In the end, copywriting careers are growing, with vacancies throughout the internet. The key is to get a good foot in the door and shove it all the way open by proving your worth from the very first job on.