Keyword Optimization
The first step in a search engine optimization campaign is to choose your keywords or keyphrases for each of your web pages. Keywords are the terms that search engine users type in the search box to conduct a query. The right keywords are those that:
clearly describe the purpose and content of your site, and,
allow your site to show up as close to the first results page as possible.
A good position doesn't depend only on your choice of keywords. It also depends on how well do you position those keywords in your web page, and how many quality external pages link to you. However, choosing the wrong keywords can throw off your entire search engine optimization strategy, so you need to invest a few hours and make sure you do it right.
Let's start with your homepage. Look at it carefully and write down the words and phrases that best define your site. Try to form two or three word phrases, since competition for one-word keyphrases is fierce, and it is virtually impossible to get a top position for them. That is why, from now on, we will talk about keyphrases, not keywords. Once you have developed your list of potential keyphrases you are ready for the next step: to analyze the demand and supply for those keyphrases, and choose the best ones (those with good demand and not enough supply).
We will first check the demand for your selected keyphrases. For this, we will go to Overture's Search Term Suggestion Tool:
http://inventory.overture.com/d/searchinventory/suggestion/
Overture is a popular pay-per-click search engine. You will then type each of the keyphrases you selected, and see how many people search for those terms. This tool will show you only those searches conducted in Overture (and only in one month time). However, the relative popularity of each search term will be very similar in other search engines as well. In addition to telling you if your selected keyphrases are popular, this tool will show you other keyphrases that you may not have thought about, which may even be more relevant to your site.
For example, if your first keyphrase was "Italian Restaurant", the Search Term Suggestion Tool will also display other popular search terms, like: "Gourmet Italian Restaurant", "Northern Italian Restaurant", "Italian Restaurant Pizzeria", "Italian Restaurant Miami", etc. You may also try other keyphrases, for example: "Italian Cuisine", and come up with more specific keyphrases, like: "Fine Italian Cuisine", "Italian Cuisine Miami", "Northern Italian Cuisine", "Italian Cuisine Fine Dining", "Gourmet Italian Cuisine", etc.
What you have done is to validate and enlarge your pool of popular, in-demand, potential keyphrases for your web page. The next step is to check the supply, or, in other words, to see how much competition there is for your selected keywords. Naturally, you want to focus on keyphrases where competition is less fierce. For example, choosing "Italian Restaurant" alone will certainly hurt you. There are so many of them that your chances of showing up in an advantageous position within the search results are pretty slim.
Having said that, get your list of keyphrases, go to Google ( http://www.google.com/ ) and type-in each of them in the search box. Enter your keyphrases within quotation marks (to filter-out less relevant results), and see how many results each individual query produces, making a note of those with a relatively small number of results (less competition). You will stick with the keyphrase that:
Best describes the topic and content of your page
Is a popular search term according to Overture's Search Term Suggestion Tool.
Generates a relatively small number of results after performing the Google search.
If "Gourmet Italian Restaurant" is the keyphrase that best meets these three criteria, it will become your primary keyphrase. To get even better results, you can choose a second keyphrase to make your page more relevant to an even more specific niche. For example, if your restaurant is in Miami, you can consider "Miami" a second keyphrase. Once you have chosen the keyphrases for you homepage, do the same for the other pages on your site.
After this, you will take your selected keyphrases and optimize your pages heavily for them. This involves placing them in strategic locations in the title, headings and body of each page, as we will see in Part II: Web Page Optimization.
PART II: Web Page Optimization
Once you have chosen your keyphrases, the next stage is to optimize your page for those keyphrases. You do that by positioning your keywords in strategic locations within your page. What follows is a checklist of tips and steps you must follow to optimize your page:
Keyphrases in the web page title:
Create a descriptive title for your page: Your web page title is very important because it is what the search engines display as link text as the result of a search. The title must include your main keyphrases, while at the same time it must describe your business very well and should entice readers to click on it.
Unless your business is big and well known (like Microsoft or Coca Cola) don't start your page title with the name of your company. Start your title with the words search engine users will most likely use (your keyphrases)
Put your main keyphrase at the beginning of your page title (keyphrase prominence) and keep your keyphrase together (keyword proximity).
Put your second keyphrase somewhere else in the title.
Make the title short (8 words or less).
Keyphrases in your Keyword Meta Tag: Search engines rarely use the Keyword Meta Tag any more (Google completely ignores it). However, place a list of your main and secondary keywords in the Keyword Meta Tag of your page, just in case search engines decide to use them again in the future.
Keyphrases in your Description Meta Tag: The Description Meta Tag is still important, since some search engines use them to elaborate on the results link. Remember to:
Include your keyphrases (main and secondary) in your Description Meta Tag.
Make your description 'descriptive', concise and professional. Avoid using hype.
Make it short (25 words or less).
Don't make your description sound just like a collection of keywords.
Keep your keyphrases together.
Keywords in the body of your page: It is important to use your keywords heavily on your page, since this will help the search engine determine the topic of your page. Follow these tips as much as possible, since they will help search engines determine your page's relevance to your chosen keyphrases:
Use your keyphrases several times, and place them as close to the top of the page as possible.
Place your keyphrases between Header Tags (H1, H2 or H3) in the first two paragraphs of your page.
Place your keyphrases in bold type phase at least once.
Repeat your keyphrases often to increase your keyphrase density. Repeating your keyphrases between 5 to 10 times for every 100 words in your page is considered effective.
Since you have to repeat your keyphrases often, you must be especially careful not to make your text sound awkward. Your visitors should be able to read your page fluently and effortlessly. Remember that ultimately it is your readers who will decide if your page is worth the time they spend on it. A pleasant experience will make them more likely to come back.
A good resource on how to write search engine friendly copy without losing readability is this special SEO writing report by Jill Whalen.
Other Web Page Design Considerations:
You must make your page easy to navigate by the search engines. Search engines heavily favor text over graphics, and HTML over other editing formats.
Use text heavily, especially in your navigation bar. Avoid placing text in graphic format since the search engines won't be able to read it.
Avoid frames. Search engines have trouble following them, and they may index only the framed content page and not the navigation frame.
Avoid Flash and JavaScript: search engines don't follow either one. If you use flash, make an HTML version of your site available to your readers and the search engines. If you use a JavaScript navigation menu, include an alternate text menu at the bottom of the page, so it can be followed by the search engines.
Create a Site Map that includes all the pages in your site, and place a Site Map link close to the top of the homepage. When the search engine follows the site map link, it will find and index all the pages in your site!
If you use a left navigation bar, the search engine will read it before the body of your page. Make sure you include your most important keywords there, too.
Make sure that all your internal pages link to your homepage.
Don't try to describe all your products or services in one page. It will confuse the search engine and dilute your page's relevance to your selected keyphrase. Instead, create different very focused pages, each with its own content and keyphrases, and optimize them too.
This is pretty much all you have to do to make sure that your page is optimized for your chosen keywords. The next and final step to increase your site's ranking is to get as many links to your site as possible, from quality sites that have a topic related to yours. This is what we will see in Part III: Off-Site Factors.
Part III: Off Page Factors
Once you have selected your keyphrases and optimized your pages for them, the last step is to make sure that you get linked from the best directories, and from lots of quality sites with a topic related to your site's. The best search engines, and in particular Google (who alone can deliver 80% of the search engine traffic to your site) "crawl" the web looking for links to your site. They interpret a link to your page as a vote, and the more links (votes) you have coming from quality sites the higher your page rank will be, and the higher the possibility that your page will achieve a good position in the search results pages. It's that simple. Following these four steps is the best way to get the quality links you need:
Get listed in DMOZ: The Open Directory Project ( http://www.dmoz.org/ ) is the world's largest directory. It is maintained by voluntary editors who review your site prior to inclusion. Being listed in this directory is important because it is used by Google and America Online to build their directories. Getting listed is free, but it may take a few weeks or even months to get listed, which can be a bit frustrating. However, there is a strong believe among search engine optimization experts that an Open Directory Project listing can significantly increase your page rank in Google, so you must take the time to submit your site and do it right (list your site in the right category and strictly follow their submission guidelines). For how to get listed in the Open Directory Project go to: http://www.dmoz.org/add.html .
Get listed in Yahoo!: Submissions to Yahoo! are no longer free for commercial sites (your site can be reviewed in about a week for a fee of $299 although inclusion in the directory is not guaranteed. However, if you do get accepted, the $299 fee will be due every year if you want your site to continue to be listed). A link from Yahoo’s directory is still one of the best links you can get, and it is worth the money you spend getting listed. For tips on getting listed in Yahoo! go to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/suggest/ .
Submit articles: There are many sites where you can publish articles in your field of expertise. This is a great way to establish yourself as an expert and to drive quality traffic to your site. The key is to include your resource box at the end of your article. A resource box is a small paragraph with a brief description of you and your business, where you include a link to your site. This way, every time somebody picks up your article and publishes it in their website or newsletter, your link will be there for readers and search engines to see and follow. For tips of getting traffic by writing articles you can visit: Exchange links with reputable sites: You must try to find quality sites that are compatible to your site's topic (not direct competitors), and ask the webmaster for a link exchange. This will give you highly targeted traffic and will improve your score with the search engines
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Popular Analytical Traffic Tools
Are any of the aforementioned steps working? To find out, check your blog's traffic info. Most blog platforms come with some type of basic traffic measuring feature, but to get more specific info on your traffic, consider these programs below.
Popular Analytical Traffic Tools
Google Analytics
Google Analytics is a free service primarily used for web sites, but you can use it for your blog as well.101 It tells you how many visitors came to your blog, how they were referred, each blog post visited, etc.
Yahoo! Web Analytics
Google's prime competition is Yahoo! Web Analytics, a pay service, primarily used by e-businesses.102 This high-end tracking system tool uses "first cookie technology" to track visitors, returning visitors in real time. This service is for bloggers who are seriously trying to make money from their blog.
If you're looking for a free traffic analytic service from Yahoo!, then try MyBlogLog, which gives you blog visitor stats and has its own community (great for plugging your blog!).103 103
PostRank
PostRank is a free online tool that analyzes your blog posts and ranks them by the number of comments and bookmarks.104 You can quickly see which types of posts your readers respond to and which ones they do not. This is a great way to see what types of blog posts are generating buzz!
Feedburner
FeedBurner was mentioned before as an RSS management tool.61 It can also track your RSS Feed traffic and tell you how many visitors have subscribed.61 This tool also tells you how many visitors clicked through your RSS feed to your blog posts.
Popular Analytical Traffic Tools
Google Analytics
Google Analytics is a free service primarily used for web sites, but you can use it for your blog as well.101 It tells you how many visitors came to your blog, how they were referred, each blog post visited, etc.
Yahoo! Web Analytics
Google's prime competition is Yahoo! Web Analytics, a pay service, primarily used by e-businesses.102 This high-end tracking system tool uses "first cookie technology" to track visitors, returning visitors in real time. This service is for bloggers who are seriously trying to make money from their blog.
If you're looking for a free traffic analytic service from Yahoo!, then try MyBlogLog, which gives you blog visitor stats and has its own community (great for plugging your blog!).103 103
PostRank
PostRank is a free online tool that analyzes your blog posts and ranks them by the number of comments and bookmarks.104 You can quickly see which types of posts your readers respond to and which ones they do not. This is a great way to see what types of blog posts are generating buzz!
Feedburner
FeedBurner was mentioned before as an RSS management tool.61 It can also track your RSS Feed traffic and tell you how many visitors have subscribed.61 This tool also tells you how many visitors clicked through your RSS feed to your blog posts.
ADD WIDGETS TO YOUR BLOG
A widget is gadget for the web. By adding widgets to your blog, you can bring fresh content (created by others) to your blog for visitors to read. Most widgets reside in the left or right column/margin of your blog, depending on your blog platform.76
Popular Widgets
A Digg Widget allows you to display the top stories on the popular community web site.77 No need to update this widget, Digg automatically "talks" to this widget and gives it new stories. Several other community news sites have similar widgets that you can place on your blog.28
Money Making Widgets
Google AdSense for Search is a mini Google search engine for your blog.81 1 When your visitors use it to search, they get a Google search results page (on your blog or in a new browser window) with ads. To use this widget, you must have a (free) Google AdSense account.13
ScribeFire QuickAds displays ads within a widget and you get a commission if someone clicks through your blog and buys an item.82
You can also get a sales commission through aStore, a widget for those signed up in the Amazon Associates program.83 20
Another fast-growing widget ad program is WidgetBucks.84
Popular Widgets
A Digg Widget allows you to display the top stories on the popular community web site.77 No need to update this widget, Digg automatically "talks" to this widget and gives it new stories. Several other community news sites have similar widgets that you can place on your blog.28
Money Making Widgets
Google AdSense for Search is a mini Google search engine for your blog.81 1 When your visitors use it to search, they get a Google search results page (on your blog or in a new browser window) with ads. To use this widget, you must have a (free) Google AdSense account.13
ScribeFire QuickAds displays ads within a widget and you get a commission if someone clicks through your blog and buys an item.82
You can also get a sales commission through aStore, a widget for those signed up in the Amazon Associates program.83 20
Another fast-growing widget ad program is WidgetBucks.84
Keeping and Growing Your Blog Traffic
Now that you have traffic coming to your blog (hopefully), you want to keep your audience coming back by doing several things.
Update and Bookmark
Add new content frequently. If you don't, people may assume it's a dead blog and stop logging on. Remember, the web has a huge appetite for new content. You want to update 2-3 times a week, unless you're running a news blog, which would be daily.
Add bookmark features for visitors to bookmark your blog; this helps your blog's search engine ranking and increases web traffic.57
The easiest way is by installing ShareThis and/or Social Marker to your blog.58 59 These features allow users to bookmark your blog on popular community web logs such as Digg.28
Image:ShareThisandSocialBookmarker EC 011309.jpg
RSS Feeds
Most blogs come with an RSS Feed, often called "Really Simple Syndication." 60 With an RSS Feed you can syndicate your blog to anyone who subscribes.60 When people subscribe, they are automatically alerted when a new blog posting is up.
FeedBurner is a free web tool that you can install on your blog to manage, analyze (subscriber stats) and publicize your RSS Feed.61 60 You can also place ads in your RSS Feed with Google Adsense for Feeds and/or advertise on the FeedBurner Ad Network; both are owned by Google.60 62 63 61
Once you have your RSS Feed tricked out with the above add-ons, you can take it to a whole new level with Simplaris Blogcast, which blogcasts your blog's RSS Feed on your Facebook profile, widening your audience to your friends or anyone who comes across your profile.60 64 60 53
Technorati
Create a bookmark feature for users to link your blog to Technorati.45 As mentioned earlier, Technorati is a blogging directory that keeps tabs on the blog community.65 The most popular blog posts make it to the first page of Technorati.45
While others are tagging your blog to Technorati, you can do it yourself with Technorati Tags.45 66Place your Technorati Tags (keywords) at the bottom of each blog post; these tags link back to the Technorati search engine enabling millions of Technorati users to find your blog.
Pings, Trackbacks, and More
Pings
A "ping" is a signal sent from your blog to blog directories when your blog has been updated with a new post.67 To send out pings, just copy and paste this list of ping services into your blog's ping function.68 Also enter your blog in these popular ping services: Ping-o-Matic!, Technorati: Ping and Google Blog Search Ping Service.69 70 71 To ping your RSS Feed, try FeedBurner's PingShot.72
Trackbacks
Activate the trackback feature on your blog. A trackback is when another web site links to your blog and your blog becomes "aware" of this external linking, automatically.73 The trackback feature makes a note of this, usually in the comments section of the your blog.
Related Posts Add a "Related Posts" section at the bottom of each of your blog posts. If someone wants to read more about the topic that they have just finished reading, then they will click to another entry on your blog, increasing your page view count.74 Depending on your blog platform, this may require a plug-in or you can manually create it
Update and Bookmark
Add new content frequently. If you don't, people may assume it's a dead blog and stop logging on. Remember, the web has a huge appetite for new content. You want to update 2-3 times a week, unless you're running a news blog, which would be daily.
Add bookmark features for visitors to bookmark your blog; this helps your blog's search engine ranking and increases web traffic.57
The easiest way is by installing ShareThis and/or Social Marker to your blog.58 59 These features allow users to bookmark your blog on popular community web logs such as Digg.28
Image:ShareThisandSocialBookmarker EC 011309.jpg
RSS Feeds
Most blogs come with an RSS Feed, often called "Really Simple Syndication." 60 With an RSS Feed you can syndicate your blog to anyone who subscribes.60 When people subscribe, they are automatically alerted when a new blog posting is up.
FeedBurner is a free web tool that you can install on your blog to manage, analyze (subscriber stats) and publicize your RSS Feed.61 60 You can also place ads in your RSS Feed with Google Adsense for Feeds and/or advertise on the FeedBurner Ad Network; both are owned by Google.60 62 63 61
Once you have your RSS Feed tricked out with the above add-ons, you can take it to a whole new level with Simplaris Blogcast, which blogcasts your blog's RSS Feed on your Facebook profile, widening your audience to your friends or anyone who comes across your profile.60 64 60 53
Technorati
Create a bookmark feature for users to link your blog to Technorati.45 As mentioned earlier, Technorati is a blogging directory that keeps tabs on the blog community.65 The most popular blog posts make it to the first page of Technorati.45
While others are tagging your blog to Technorati, you can do it yourself with Technorati Tags.45 66Place your Technorati Tags (keywords) at the bottom of each blog post; these tags link back to the Technorati search engine enabling millions of Technorati users to find your blog.
Pings, Trackbacks, and More
Pings
A "ping" is a signal sent from your blog to blog directories when your blog has been updated with a new post.67 To send out pings, just copy and paste this list of ping services into your blog's ping function.68 Also enter your blog in these popular ping services: Ping-o-Matic!, Technorati: Ping and Google Blog Search Ping Service.69 70 71 To ping your RSS Feed, try FeedBurner's PingShot.72
Trackbacks
Activate the trackback feature on your blog. A trackback is when another web site links to your blog and your blog becomes "aware" of this external linking, automatically.73 The trackback feature makes a note of this, usually in the comments section of the your blog.
Related Posts Add a "Related Posts" section at the bottom of each of your blog posts. If someone wants to read more about the topic that they have just finished reading, then they will click to another entry on your blog, increasing your page view count.74 Depending on your blog platform, this may require a plug-in or you can manually create it
More Places to link and Plug your BLog
News Aggregator Sites
Submit your blog posts to news aggregator sites where a real live person will decide whether or not your blog post should be published. Some of the top news aggregator sites include: Truemors, Fark and Tailrank.39 40 41 If your blog post is published, it could drive quite a bit of traffic to your site.
Blog Syndication
Join Blogburst, an online service that syndicates blogger content to major newspaper web sites such as USA Today, Reuters, Fox News and more.42 This exposure can bring traffic to your web site (via your byline on the newspaper web site) and the top bloggers are actually paid by Blogburst.42
Submit your blog posts to article directories. 27Most of them do not pay, but many will allow you to include a link back to your blog. And there is always the possibility that your content could be reposted (over and over) via these article directories. A very popular article directory is Ezine Articles.43
Directories and Search Engines
Place your blog (and its RSS feed) in blog directories such as Blog Catalog, Technorati, Blog Flux Topsites and others.44 45 46 47 Your blog gets exposure to other bloggers, improved ranking on search engines and more traffic.48 49
Enter your blog in Google's Sitemap Submission, which will enable Google to find your blog much easier and index all your blog posts quicker.50 1 Also, Submit Express offers a free directory submission service that submits your blog/website to more than 40 search engines.51
Website Communities
Join a popular website community such as MySpace, Facebook and LinkedIn. You can create links to your blog in these heavily traveled communities.52 53 54
Press Releases
Write a press release about your blog. A press release alerts journalists about an interesting story; if they decide to write an article about your blog posting, that could drive in a lot of traffic.
You can distribute your press release to journalists through these 20+ Free Press Release Distribution Sites or pay a fee to a company such as PRWeb for writing and/or distribution to media outlets.55 56
Submit your blog posts to news aggregator sites where a real live person will decide whether or not your blog post should be published. Some of the top news aggregator sites include: Truemors, Fark and Tailrank.39 40 41 If your blog post is published, it could drive quite a bit of traffic to your site.
Blog Syndication
Join Blogburst, an online service that syndicates blogger content to major newspaper web sites such as USA Today, Reuters, Fox News and more.42 This exposure can bring traffic to your web site (via your byline on the newspaper web site) and the top bloggers are actually paid by Blogburst.42
Submit your blog posts to article directories. 27Most of them do not pay, but many will allow you to include a link back to your blog. And there is always the possibility that your content could be reposted (over and over) via these article directories. A very popular article directory is Ezine Articles.43
Directories and Search Engines
Place your blog (and its RSS feed) in blog directories such as Blog Catalog, Technorati, Blog Flux Topsites and others.44 45 46 47 Your blog gets exposure to other bloggers, improved ranking on search engines and more traffic.48 49
Enter your blog in Google's Sitemap Submission, which will enable Google to find your blog much easier and index all your blog posts quicker.50 1 Also, Submit Express offers a free directory submission service that submits your blog/website to more than 40 search engines.51
Website Communities
Join a popular website community such as MySpace, Facebook and LinkedIn. You can create links to your blog in these heavily traveled communities.52 53 54
Press Releases
Write a press release about your blog. A press release alerts journalists about an interesting story; if they decide to write an article about your blog posting, that could drive in a lot of traffic.
You can distribute your press release to journalists through these 20+ Free Press Release Distribution Sites or pay a fee to a company such as PRWeb for writing and/or distribution to media outlets.55 56
Driving Traffic to Your Blog
Once your blog is optimized and your ads are up, you need to bring traffic (visitors) to your blog. A great way to do this is by posting your blog on community web blogs and bookmarking sites; these are online town halls where people read and post stories. This is also called "social networking."27
Community Web Blogs and Bookmarking Sites
There are new community web blogs and social bookmarking sites starting up everyday, but you want to focus on popular ones such as: Digg, Reddit.com, Propeller, Yahoo! Buzz, Mixx, StumbleUpon and Delicious.28 29 30 31 32 33 34
After joining a community web blog(s), the next step is to post an enticing headline (also known as "link baiting") about your blog's topic. This headline may also include a short synopsis and should always include a link back to your blog. For examples of good headlines/link bait, go to Popurls where the most popular posts from the most popular web communities are updated.35 27
You do not want to blatantly spam a community web site. This activity will likely get you banned from the site. Your post's headline and synopsis need to sound legitimate and interesting on their own merit; so stay away from posting things like "Check This Out!" That's a no-no. You must be subtle about it. In the marketing world, this subtle approach is called "viral marketing.36
Here is an example of a community blog post:
If people click on that headline/link, it will take them to the full article on San Vicente Media.37
Whether you use text ads, banner ads or a combination of both, it's important to try to match your ads with the content on your blog posts. Also, always place at least one ad "above the fold" which is the part of the computer screen that appears when you first log onto the web site.38
Community Web Blogs and Bookmarking Sites
There are new community web blogs and social bookmarking sites starting up everyday, but you want to focus on popular ones such as: Digg, Reddit.com, Propeller, Yahoo! Buzz, Mixx, StumbleUpon and Delicious.28 29 30 31 32 33 34
After joining a community web blog(s), the next step is to post an enticing headline (also known as "link baiting") about your blog's topic. This headline may also include a short synopsis and should always include a link back to your blog. For examples of good headlines/link bait, go to Popurls where the most popular posts from the most popular web communities are updated.35 27
You do not want to blatantly spam a community web site. This activity will likely get you banned from the site. Your post's headline and synopsis need to sound legitimate and interesting on their own merit; so stay away from posting things like "Check This Out!" That's a no-no. You must be subtle about it. In the marketing world, this subtle approach is called "viral marketing.36
Here is an example of a community blog post:
If people click on that headline/link, it will take them to the full article on San Vicente Media.37
Whether you use text ads, banner ads or a combination of both, it's important to try to match your ads with the content on your blog posts. Also, always place at least one ad "above the fold" which is the part of the computer screen that appears when you first log onto the web site.38
Text ad VS Banner ads
Text Ads vs. Banner Ads
In many of these ad programs, you usually have the choice between using a banner ad:
or a text ad:
Text ads (words that link to advertiser site) generally have a greater click rate than banner ads because text ads seamlessly fit into your content and do not look like ads.26
In many of these ad programs, you usually have the choice between using a banner ad:
or a text ad:
Text ads (words that link to advertiser site) generally have a greater click rate than banner ads because text ads seamlessly fit into your content and do not look like ads.26
Make Money with your Blog
Yahoo! Publisher Network
Similar to Google Adsense, Yahoo! offers an ad program called the Yahoo! Publisher Network which also displays ads that are relevant to your blog's content.13 15 Like Google Adsense, you earn money when visitors on your blog click on the ads.13 The same principles of ad placement and blending mentioned above also apply. However, you cannot use both of these programs on the same blog posting per their terms of service.
Chitika Premium Ads
Chitika Premium Ads are actually widgets and offer multiple products and a mini-search engine, all in one ad.16 Chitika Premium Ads are not contextual (based on your blog's content), so you have more control over which ads appear on your blog.16 Here is an example of a Chitika Premium Ad.16
Affiliate Ad Programs
Linkshare and Commission Junction represent numerous affiliate programs, from Apple Computers to British Airways.17 18 After joining Linkshare and/or Commission Junction for free, you can apply for the affiliate programs that you're interested in advertising on your blog.17 18
Some companies will accept your affiliate application to advertise their products, while others may not, it just depends on their requirements.
Amazon Affiliates
Some companies, such as Amazon.com, work directly with you, without a middle-man.19 Like the programs above, Amazon.com Associates will provide you with HTML code for ads (text or banner) that you can place on your blog.20 Here is an example of an Amazon.com banner ad.19
Text Link Ads
Text Link Ads is an increasingly popular affiliate program that provides text ads for various companies and their products.21 Text Link Ads sends you the HTML code for various ads, but you place only the ones that you want on your blog.21
More Ad Programs
Other popular ad programs include: ValueClick Media, Blogads, AdBrite and Affiliate Sensor.22 23 24 25
Similar to Google Adsense, Yahoo! offers an ad program called the Yahoo! Publisher Network which also displays ads that are relevant to your blog's content.13 15 Like Google Adsense, you earn money when visitors on your blog click on the ads.13 The same principles of ad placement and blending mentioned above also apply. However, you cannot use both of these programs on the same blog posting per their terms of service.
Chitika Premium Ads
Chitika Premium Ads are actually widgets and offer multiple products and a mini-search engine, all in one ad.16 Chitika Premium Ads are not contextual (based on your blog's content), so you have more control over which ads appear on your blog.16 Here is an example of a Chitika Premium Ad.16
Affiliate Ad Programs
Linkshare and Commission Junction represent numerous affiliate programs, from Apple Computers to British Airways.17 18 After joining Linkshare and/or Commission Junction for free, you can apply for the affiliate programs that you're interested in advertising on your blog.17 18
Some companies will accept your affiliate application to advertise their products, while others may not, it just depends on their requirements.
Amazon Affiliates
Some companies, such as Amazon.com, work directly with you, without a middle-man.19 Like the programs above, Amazon.com Associates will provide you with HTML code for ads (text or banner) that you can place on your blog.20 Here is an example of an Amazon.com banner ad.19
Text Link Ads
Text Link Ads is an increasingly popular affiliate program that provides text ads for various companies and their products.21 Text Link Ads sends you the HTML code for various ads, but you place only the ones that you want on your blog.21
More Ad Programs
Other popular ad programs include: ValueClick Media, Blogads, AdBrite and Affiliate Sensor.22 23 24 25
Use Specific Keyword Phrases
One final word about keywords, always try to go for specific phrases, not general terms. For example, don't use the word "lawyer" as a keyword, be more specific, like "personal bankruptcy lawyer Seattle." The word "lawyer" could be a search term for a 16 year-old doing a paper for high school or an old lady looking for a TV show with lawyers.12
However, someone searching for "personal bankruptcy lawyer Seattle" has a very specific need, they are looking for a personal bankruptcy lawyer in Seattle. Keep this in mind when you read about how to make money with your blog.
However, someone searching for "personal bankruptcy lawyer Seattle" has a very specific need, they are looking for a personal bankruptcy lawyer in Seattle. Keep this in mind when you read about how to make money with your blog.
Where to Place the Keywords
Another area of your blog to optimize, seen only by search engines is the meta tags.8 In your meta description tag, write a one or two sentences (200 to 250 characters) describing your blog using keywords.8 In your meta keywords tag, enter specific keywords and common misspellings of keywords.9 Keep in mind that Google doesn't recognize these meta tags, but Yahoo! search and other search engines do, and that's millions of users.10 11
How to Find the Best Keywords
You need to find effective keywords for your blog. The best tools to find strong keywords are Wordtracker and Trellian's Keyword Discovery Tool.2 3 They are both pay services, but you can use their trial versions to see if you like them. Free online services for keywords include Google Adwords Keyword Tool and this Keyword Suggestion Tool.4 5 Another great tool for free keywords is Google Trends which gives you the top 100 keywords being searched for at anytime
Optimize your Blog
Search engine optimization (SEO) is important so that people searching the web for various subjects (that you write about) can find your blog. It's very desirable to have your blog rank on the first page of Google and other search engines.
Introduction To chronic Blogging Technique
Blogging is web writing for a personal, informational or commercial purpose. Some people use blogs just to keep an online diary, but many are starting to use them to to sell products, report information or to keep an online diary. Whatever your purpose, if you want your blog to be seen by the masses and/or earn money, here are some easy-to-follow steps in how to blow out your blog. This article assumes that you have already read How to Set Up a Blog for Beginners and created your blog.
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Guide Note This page contains information and tips on How to Blow Out a Blog. All you need to get started is an existing blog.
How to Blow Out a Blog Tips
- Use Wordtracker and Trellian's Keyword Discovery Tool to find keywords.
- Place keywords near the top of your blog, such as the title line, URL and blog headline.
- Use keyword density to get the ads that you want from Google Adsense
- Promote your blog on high-traffic community blogs and bookmarking sites.
- Install an RSS management tool on your blog so that readers can easily subscribe.
- Add bookmarking tools on your blog in order for visitors to bookmark your posts.
- Place Technorati keywords at the bottom of each blog post.
- Track visits to your blog posts with Google Analytics and measure post popularity with AidRSS.
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