Free Web Traffic Tips for Web Sites
Give freebies. Who doesn’t like a freebie?! Online freebies are commonplace and they leave the visitor wanting more when they are well written and informative introductory materials. Consider such freebies as:
- Giving away an eBook with your ad on it. Allow your visitors to also give the freebie away. This’ll increase your ad exposure and increase web traffic to your website at the same time;
- Holding free online classes or seminars. They could be held in your website’s chat room. The idea of "live" information will definitely entice people to visit your website. You will become known as an expert on the topic.
- Giving visitors a free entry into your contest or sweepstakes. The prizes should be something of interest or value to your visitors. Most people who enter will continually revisit your web site to get the results.
- Letting visitors download free software such as freeware, shareware, demos etc. You could even turn part of your site into a free software directory. If you created the software, include your ad inside and let other people give it away.
- Targeting specific groups who might worry about using the internet with free classes in using it on your site – senior citizens, busy workers etc. might find these convenient and alluring.
- Offering free online services or utilities from your website. For instance, they could be search engine submitting, copywriting proofreading etc. The service or utility should be helpful to your target audience.
- Giving free consulting to people who visit your website. You could offer your knowledge via e-mail or by telephone. People will consider this a huge value because consulting fees can be very expensive.
- Offering a free start-up package that has a finite time; enough time for the customer to practice with your online product and like it enough to pay for continued use.
- Sending out free CD-Roms, CDs, DVDs etc. that contain starter packs or teasers to encourage the customer to use your site more.
- Offering free screensavers or templates for business cards, cards, writing paper etc., anything that a customer can print out.
Here are 40 simple actions you can take to get started.
1. Your website design is the first impression. Make sure it is
professional and relevant to the subject matter.
2. Navigation must be intuitive. If visitors can’t find what they are
looking for easily, they will question your competence in providing
what they want.
3. Make the website personal by giving it its own tone and voice.
People buy people.
4. Follow the HEART rule of creating online content. (Reminder: HEART
stands for Honest, Exclusive, Accurate, Relevant and Timely.)
5. Use language that is appropriate to the audience. It will build empathy.
6. Regularly add new content to your site. It shows that the business
is alive and kicking.
7. Review all links. Doubts will quickly form in your visitors’ minds
if links don’t work or, worse still, take them to error pages.
8. Good grammar and spelling matter. Errors give the impression of
sloppiness and carelessness.
9. Don’t make outrageous and unbelievable claims, like "Read this blog
and you’ll be a millionaire by the end of the week." People are used
to scams, get-rich-quick schemes and rip-offs.
10. Publish REAL testimonials and third-party endorsements. Try to
always use real names and link to websites where possible. Some sites
show images of letters sent by happy customers.
11. Publish case studies about customers you have helped, who use your
product, etc.
12. Don’t put down, curse or insult competitors. It’s unprofessional.
It is better to offer an objective comparison of competitive services
or products.
13. Focus on building your long-term reputation, not on making quick sales.
14. Write articles for humans, not search engines.
15. Make your ‘About Us’ page personal and comprehensive. It plays an
important part in making visitors feel comfortable that real people
are behind the site.
16. Publish your photo or the photos of the key people involved with
the site. Again, this reinforces the fact that there are real people
behind the screenshots.
17. Clearly identify who is behind the site. Nothing creates more
suspicion than a site that tries to hide the identity of its
publishers.
18. on the ‘Contact Us’ page, provide an email form, telephone
number, fax and address of the company. In <?xml:namespace prefix =
st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" /><st1:place
w:st="on">Europe</st1:place>, it is a legal requirement for sites
taking funds, but even sites driven by advertising will benefit from
openness.
19. Provide a telephone number that people can call and talk to a person.
20. Provide Web addresses linked to the website domain, not addresses
from free webmail services such as Hotmail and Gmail.
.
21. Think carefully about reciprocal links. If your site is about
organic food and you have links to Party Poker, people are going to
question your integrity.
22. Think carefully about the adverts you display on your site.
Ensure that they are relevant to your subject and audience.
23. Write and publish your privacy policy. Be clear about what you
will and will not do with any personal data you collect. State that
you adhere to all data protection laws. Make it easy to read and don’t
use legal gobbledygook.
24. Write and publish a security policy. State what measures you take
to ensure that all transactions are secure as well as how well you
handle customers data.
25. Ensure that you have a security and privacy policy which is linked
from the footer on every page. Make the link more prominent on all
the order pages.
26. Clearly publish your guarantee. I would recommend making it a 100%
money-back guarantee if possible.
27. Clearly state your refund and returns policy.
28. If you use PayPal, put the PayPal logo on your site. If you have
a merchant services account with a major bank like Citibank or HSBC,
put its logo on your site.
29. Use Google search on your site for two reasons. First, it is a
great search solution which will help your visitors find what they are
looking for. Second, having the Google name on your site instills
trust.
30 If there are well-known industry associations for your subject,
join up and put their logos on your site.
31. Have a forum on your site and respond quickly to questions. Have
the attitude that you are happy to help others without receiving
immediate reward. As the old saying goes, ‘Givers always gain.’
32. Allow people to comment on articles. Interactivity and an
exchange of views build community and a sense of involvement.
33. If people provide constructive criticism or comments in the forum,
don’t delete them, but respond with your point of view.
34. Use the words ‘secure website’ whenever you try to get any
information from visitors, including newsletter sign-ups, forum input
and payment.
35. on every page, state, "We take your privacy and security very
seriously." Link the statement to the security and privacy policy.
36. If you are selling a subscription, offer a low-cost, entry-level
option. This could be a one-day taster, ‘a week before billing
starts’ or a monthly trial.
37. only ask for information from customers that you really need. For
example, for an email newsletter sign-up, the only information you
REALLY need is an email address, so that is all you should ask for.
38. If you have pricing on your website, make it transparent. I
recently went to buy a book which was advertised for $10. When I
checked out, they added tax, post and packaging, and the final bill
was $19.50. I didn’t buy it as I felt they had deliberately tried to
mislead me.
39. Start a small newsletter of your company/services & circulate it
among your clients/employees. Also, publish it on your website
regularly.
40. Allow people to "unsubscribe" from your mailing list. This may
sound very obvious, but I have found that many websites still don’t
follow it.
Maheshg
http://www.articlesbase.com/internet-marketing-articles/free-web-traffic-tips-for-web-sites-705871.html
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Artists, Sisters, Coworkers
The marketing firm of a lady designer was ecstatic when they were chosen to create a federal brochure. Most of the firm’s work had been by the book military projects, and the general services administration (GSA) contract would offer an opportunity for some creative design. Although a brochure on the anniversary celebration of one company is nothing new. More information on the topic of design is located at website designers india.
Nothing unusual from the firm’s regular work is the lady designer’s take on this task. There was a significant amount of improvement in the GSA project. Brochures will be used to remember what made it possible for federal offices to be handicapped accessible. As an alternative to photographs, they decided to hire an artist to make the necessary drawings.
Two artists worked on the brochure, their drawings were submitted to GSA officials. Half of the illustration duo was handicapped, she told them. The identity of the handicapped illustrator was not released. Officials from the GSA ended up choosing four oil pastel works, they had no idea that the designer’s paralyzed sister made them. The drawings are among her first paintings after the incident, her hesitance was due to the fact that her 30 year experience was put to a stop since then. When it comes to family, the ties did not end there. Charges, with regard to the architectural barriers act, were made against their father.
The lady artist called for much encouragement to join in. Her time was spent on physical therapy and adjusting to home life as she had just completed rehabilitation sessions in the hospital. The sister did not count on her agreeing with the project. The wheelchair became the center of her entire life. Basically, the incident caused the life of the artist to be restricted to nothing else but severe nerve pain and the need for wheelchair training. Sickness did not become an issue. Her days are also spent running marathons, was spent running marathons, she says. Spending the rest of your life in a wheelchair is disheartening. If you like this article on design visit logo design freelance for more education.
Traveling to Connecticut for her physical therapy did not get in the way of mailing illustrations to her sister. At the time when the GSA granted their approval for the concepts, she faced extreme nerve pain which caused a full day to go by before she could begin working on finalizing the illustrations she made. By making use of personal drawings in a brochure, another lady artist was presented by the GSA with a design award.
They contacted a number of design professionals, all nationally recognized, to serve as judges and they did not only come to admire her techniques and use of color, they found her drawings to be rather moving as well. When it came to rewards the answer was clear for the sisters, the lady artists, and an award would only be a plus. For one of the sisters, the project was a breath of fresh air for her disabled sibling as it brought new meaning into her life.
There are a lot of things that will occupy the artist once she is done with the illustrations for the brochure and other post accident works, the first thing she will do is pick up where she left off in therapy, when spring comes you can rest assured that she will be painting again, and with her son by her side they will be holding an art exhibit, her son is an artist too. Life does sort of work in funny, twisted, crazy ways, she said.
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Internet Marketing Tips For Beginners
Marketing on the Internet is a double-edged sword for most beginners. Although the concepts behind Internet marketing are very simple, executing these concepts successfully can be very difficult. With this in mind, this article will attempt to explain the in’s an outs of Internet marketing and break down some of the various strategies available that can help beginners start their own successful marketing campaigns. We will cover techniques like, creating a website, email marketing, newsletters, optimizing your website for search engines and placing banner advertisements.
One of the basic tools for starting an Internet marketing campaign is having an attractive functional website. If you don’t have a website or have a poorly designed one, you should really consider creating or re-designing your site to properly market your products. If you are not familiar with website design, there are software packages available that will help you develop a functional website. Hiring a professional designer can be very useful because they can make your website more attractive and suitable for your products. They can also help you add more advanced features on your site, but they can be rather expensive.
Email newsletters can be an excellent marketing strategy. Newsletters are simply emails that contain a variety of information, including articles, relevant advertisements and any other information that your readers will find interesting and useful. The good thing about newsletters is that if worded correctly they can generate a great deal of sales. Your approach needs to be a subtle one, you can casually mention any product or program you are promoting but you must not over do it, as your newsletter will be seen as spam. Always be sure to have plenty of good useful content in your newsletter and a small amount of advertisements, soon your readers will trust you and your judgment and they will begin to purchase from you.
Banner advertisements are another great way of advertising you business on the Internet. Banners usually contain graphics and text, these brightly colored flashing banners attract the eyes of the visitor and gets them to click the ad. When the visitor clicks on the ad they are taken to your website. This type of advertising can be very effective, but the banner must be placed on high traffic websites that attract an audience that may be interested in your products. Also the position of the banner is important, usually banners placed at the top of websites are the most effective.
Many say no Internet marketing campaign would be complete without the use of email marketing. This type of marketing involves sending out emails to a group of people who may be interested in your products. Care should be taken in sending out these emails to avoid sending emails that are unsolicited and will be viewed as spam. One way to do this is to only send out emails to users who have requested inclusion on a mailing list. Another way to do this is to provide value in the emails as opposed to just including advertisements. This can be done by offering relevant advice in your emails and other useful information that may be of interest to the recipients of the email.
Finally, search engine optimization is a critical part of any Internet marketing campaign.
Search engines rank websites according to quality and relevance for particular search terms. Many Internet users appreciate the effort by search engines and use these search engines to find the best websites on a particular subject. This means that Internet users are likely to only visit websites that rank well. Therefore if your website is not high ranking, you are not likely to generate a great deal of traffic from Internet users who use search engines. Top ranking websites are likely to obtain the most traffic from search engines and all websites falling on the first page of the search engine results will likely enjoy some degree of success in improving their traffic. Keep these points in mind when beginning any Internet marketing venture.
Carol King
http://www.articlesbase.com/marketing-articles/internet-marketing-tips-for-beginners-99135.html
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Should You Be Selling Information Products?
Copyright 2005 Benjamin Scott
Do you know that selling information products is one of the best
ways to earn money on the net? And information products don’t
just refer to internet marketing strategies, or website design
secrets. The surface has just been scratched!
Here are just a few of the excellent benefits one will attain
from selling information products on the net.
The best benefit you’ll get from selling information products is
you’ll be your own boss. You won’t answer to any higher
authority except to yourself. You can assign yourself to
research on ideas and subjects you feel passionate about or are
extremely curious about. Or something you are an expert on!
100% of the profits are yours and therefore the sweat of selling
information products go to you. You create the product, market
and keep all the profits there in. You get to keep each penny of
each information product you sell. The information comes from
your thoughts. All you’ll need to do is set it down in PDF or
other formats. Then – provide a downloading link to clients.
No need to collaborate with a manufacturer or supplier. You
won’t get behind schedules or need to adjust the selling price
because you can’t control the raw materials prices. You won’t
have to worry about the delivery or shipping schedules. Selling
information products will just require a straightforward process
between your computer and that of the reader.
Another thing – you don’t need any employees. This means, you
don’t worry about enhancing employee motivation or finding
solutions about absenteeism. You can hire creative talent on the
net, if you need collaborators.
Run business where you are, or keep it running even when you
aren’t home. Your website can take orders while you are sleeping
or grocery shopping, or taking a day out in the sun. With
reliable e-commerce applications, you can sell information
products, on auto-pilot.
Develop your own niche market in selling information products.
If you have a passion or a deep interest on subject, you can
make an informational product based on it. It would be unique,
simply because you’ve put your personal imprint on it. People
will flock to your website, because it offers something others
don’t. Don’t think a niche market means small pickings. It just
means a supplying to markets with a narrower focus. And because
you are on the net, you’re selling to the rest of the world
that’s connected to the web.
Here are some ideas you can use as a springboard for your own
information products. 200 Online dating tips and hints 150 of
the world’s best desserts How to cook Philippine dishes, using
the available ingredients 10 secrets to keeping a successful and
diversified investment portfolio
For reference purposes, check out the
http://www.clickbank.com/marketplace, which claims to sell over
10,000 information products. It will give you an idea on the
sheer variety.
In case you’re wondering, people are buying these products. Why?
Easy to read, and understand. Straight to the point, tell it as
it is, based on the author’s and other people’s experiences. The
customers surf the net for information that is readily
accessible and e-books are it. This is why selling information
products will get you a constant stream of profit. You can just
as easily sell information products to a customer at Timbuktu or
Iceland. If there are secrets or step-by-step processes, you can
write about, you can sell these. The potential is there; all it
needs is your brand of persistence, dedication, and passion to
make it work!
Benjamin Scott
http://www.articlesbase.com/ecommerce-articles/should-you-be-selling-information-products-1023.html
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What are some good web affiliate programs?
I’m a web affiliate with one company right now that sells blenders. I would like to find some related products that I can promote and sell as an affiliate. Let me know what you’ve got.
This one pays you $50 for every sale of their Gold or Silver website design packages. You do need to have a paypal account. It doesn’t cost anything to sign up for it. They are looking for people to promote their products and pay monthly. They use cookies for 30 days so even if a customer leaves and returns and buys later you get the commission! Thats pretty sweet !! Rockbridge Designs Affiliate Reseller Program http://rockbridgedesigns.com/affiliate-programs/ you can find info at that link.
You just need to market for them by posting articles, reviews and links on your website, comments on other websites, forums, email marketing. I like them because they provide some really eye catching sexy banners!! I swear it is easy money if you put in some effort !!
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“How to get FREE Traffic to your website”
A website designed for NEW internet marketers or affiliate marketers in order to spoonfeed them on how to get there website ready and also how to get FREE Traffic to their website with a 100% FREE ebook on some KILLER traffic attracting tips…
go to www.im4starters.com
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