Is Content the Only Thing Needed to Increase Traffic?

A common question asked by many bloggers and many will have their own opinion. However, I currently have close to 4 blogs, and am in the process of starting my 5^th so I wanted to shed some light on what I learned over the years. We often think writing great content is the only element needed to grow our blog and generate traffic, however, you’ll be surprised to know that this is rarely the case. For example, social media, smart back-linking, and optimizing all play an important role once you publish content.

Today, I’ll be exploring this important question: Does Content Equal an Increase Traffic? And is this all that’s required to build a successful blog. I’ve learned a lot over the last few years and will like to share some of it right now. Let’s get started and your feedback will be greatly appreciated. Please leave your comments in the box below.

I write out my content, exploring some of the lessons I learned along the way.

Lesson 1: List Building is Important

You’ve heard this before and I’ll express the importance again that list building is very important to increase user retention. It’s one thing when you have a visitor to your blog but something completely different when they keep coming back. Whenever a client asks me what is the MOST important thing they should do when starting a blog, I encourage them to create a few opt-in forms that they can implement within their content. List building has been proven numerous times to increase engagement and allows for continued growth for a few important reasons.

First, it allows you to push new content in front of your readers that then helps build engagement going forward. For example, with each person visiting my blog, I’ve increased the likelihood of them sharing my content on social media platforms. Right away, I’ve increased traffic to my blog and increased the chances of having new people opt-in to my newsletter.

Secondly, it’s a great way to market my services, increasing the likelihood of profits. As a business, we have to understand what our bottom line is, which, in MOST cases, is “profit”. Some do it for passion butt I believe this ultimately leads to profits.

Third, people who have NOT been to your blog in a few weeks might forget about your blog or content. Having an email list and frequent follow-ups is a great way to keep readers in the loop, building your brand.

Lesson 2: Content Timing Matters

When referring to timing, I’m referring to “time-based” content. An example would be: How to Start a Blog in 2016. This works because people are always aiming to get the MOST up-to-date content, and adding a date to your title helps. Not to mention, people have shifted the way they search for content so use highly targeted search phrases. This led to the growth of LSI and long tail keywords because they catered to the user search pattern. Next,

Google recognized this change and has altered their search engines to equip for the change. You’ve noticed they reward content with long-tail keywords more compared to years back…right? Even though “targeted” searches are NOT obsolete, it’s important to add LSI and long-tail keywords to your content. With that said,

If you just started to write content, it’s important to focus on time-based content because psychologically, people are looking for fresh content.

Lesson 3: Great Content Doesn’t Equal Traffic

Even though in-depth content is important for blog growth, it’s NOT enough to get the ball rolling. Google does give preference to content that provides depth, but personally, I don’t think this is enough to really build momentum with your audience. This is why content isn’t enough to build your brand, and you’ll have to find creative ways to target your audience. The good news is research has shown what does work if you want to create a buzz quickly. For example,

Social media is an awesome platform to get your brand known. Facebook, Twitter, and others have changed the way people interact with content. I encourage all of you to join these networks and start marketing using the different channels you have available. Invest some money in Facebook ads or even purchase some Sponsored Tweets because this can go a very long way.

Before starting, it’s important you pay close attention to the following:

• Understand what social networks are the MOST popular.
• Set up a complete profile so people can read about your brand
• Make use of social media tools (marketing, #hashtags, groups, etc.)
• Follow others in the same niche and get followed in return.

Lesson 4: Diversity Matters

There are so many different types of content you can create to engage your readers. Here are just a few popular ones:

• Video content
• Infographics
• Text
• Images

With so much content available online, it’s important you tap into the reader’s mind quickly so they can extract the value out of it. This is why I’ve encouraged many of my clients to focus on different types of content every time they write. Keep in mind, social media platforms have all changed the way they display content, and no matter if it’s an image, infographic, or video, you’ll still get your point across. If you have been writing text content then maybe add some images, if you have included images then upgrade to video. If you have to create infographics, then this will be a great way to engage your readers and provide value at the same time. Whenever I write content, I think about my audience and how fast I can get the point across. Here’s another example,

If you’re creating how-to content, then why NOT create a video showing them the steps to complete the job? A video will be better than simple text content…right? Video content is more popular, can be displayed on social media, and is very easy to follow.

Before you can start to put your content format together, you have to answer a few very important questions:

Who is your audience? – This will help you understand what type of content they’ll enjoy reading. Your audience might be located in a place where English is NOT their first language so video or images will be better at getting your point across.

Where are they located? – For the obvious reason listed upon, but you can also create content targeting that region going forward.

What social platform do they use? – Knowing what social media platform they use will help you tweak the display and size of your content for better engagement.

How can you test what works? – Even though it’s a good idea to mix content up for optimal results, I encourage you to keep testing because this is the only way you’ll improve your CTR. The higher your click-through, the better chance you’ll have at converting your visitors.

Now that I have discussed content and how other elements play a crucial role in increasing exposure, I’d like to go over some website changes that you should keep an eye on. Here’s what I’ve learned about web design and layout:

Lesson 1: Menu and Navigation

You’d be surprised by how your site’s navigation influences browsing. I believe that for your content to get noticed, and shared, it’s important that it can be found with very little effort. This is why I encourage all of you to pay close attention to your navigation, making sure it’s organized into the right categories. For example, if you write about “making money online”, then it’s a good idea to have menu items representing the different sections you cover.

For example,

• Interviews
• Social media
• YouTube
• Content
• And others

This will ensure that when someone arrives on your website, they’ll be able to find exactly what they are looking for, which also increases the likelihood of them sharing content with others. With each share comes the potential of new visitors arriving on your site, which goes a long way to build brand recognition.

Next,

You have to know where to place your navigation for maximum exposure. Throughout the years, you’ve probably noticed menus on the left, top, and right of the layout. However, statistically, some have been proven to work better than others. For example, having the navigation towards the top works the best because it’s completely visible when the visitor first arrives on the site. It’s been proven to keep the MOST important elements of your website above the fold, which is why a navigational menu towards the top is so effective.

If you’re using WordPress, then you can add a plugin that keeps the menu at the top of the page as you scroll. However, with the recent upgrades in themes, I wouldn’t be surprised if a new theme you purchase comes with the pre-configured plugins to allow for this functionality.

Lesson 2: The Clutter

Here’s another quick tip for you to pay close attention to when writing content. Always make sure you have the right:

Spacing – This will help divide the content so it’s NOT cluttered and very easy to read. You want to make sure each paragraph has no more than 4-5 sentences.

Font size- Make sure the size is adequate enough so it’s easy to read. The harder the text is to read, the less time people will spend on your page.

Use Bold – Make sure you bold the important text or “target” keywords because this reiterates to the reader what your content is about. It’s a great way to ensure these readers know they will find the solution on your page.

Add images – Mix things up by adding images, especially if you have very lengthy content. Images will help illustrate your point more effectively.

In-depth – Make sure when writing content, you focusing on making it in-depth. There is a lot of content available online and you should be the all-in-one solution. This is what will help you stand out compared to your competition. Stay focused and take your time writing because it’s NOT about quantity, but quality.

Final Thoughts

Many people are under the assumption that content is the ONLY thing you need to grow your blog. Even though it is very important, you need to keep a few things in mind.

Social media is a great way to build momentum quickly because everyone else is promoting your content for you. One single “share” can lead to massive traction, which will help drive traffic and build your brand. Timing is important because people are online at different times so put some tests together, looking for a pattern of when sharing is the highest. Going forward, you should focus on the same time slots for maximum exposure. Next,

Don’t forget the importance of building an email list. This is a great way to build momentum, loyalty, and keep people coming back to your blog. Imagine having 10,000 people on your list and promoting a product through a follow-up sequence. This can generate enormous money for you, helping you meet your bottom line.

In the end, it’s about testing what works and what doesn’t. I believe everything has to do with testing so make sure you have the right tools available to test the different elements of your marketing. When you find what works, you can then keep building on it until you optimize your CTR.

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Best Tools for Connecting Businesses and Team Members in 2018

The typical workplace today doesn’t exist solely in a single physical space. You’ve got staff, consultants, freelancers, collaborators, and remote workers taking care of business on every corner of the globe, across a variety of different devices. It is neither effective or efficient to have everything housed in one physical location, requiring workers to access information and interact with one another in that one space.

As the old adage goes, it’s not about working harder; it’s about working smarter. And if you want your team members to get the most out of their hours and be as productive as possible, you need to arm them with the best tools for the job. And this means getting everyone on the same page at any given moment. You need that alignment and a number of online solutions can aid in achieving that goal.

For Sharing Files and Documents

Team members need to be able to access and collaborate on various files and documents on an ongoing and real-time basis. One of the most frustrating things that can happen in an office is to have multiple versions of the same document flying around with various revisions that don’t align with one another. No one wants to get caught in an infinite email string where it’s unclear which is the “current” or “final” version of a document or file.

That’s why when you are looking for a solution that enables you to share files and documents among team members, you need to look at a solution that is well managed with easy access. A great advantage of a solution like ContractZen is that it offers a metadata-driven service. What this means is that rather than utilize a more traditional hierarchical folder system, the documents can be saved in such a way that you can simply search and organize them via metadata.

Need to gather up all the documents of a particular type? You can do that. Need all the files associated with a certain client? You can do that too. No matter how robust a traditional file folder system can be, it can never be as flexible as one that’s based on metadata. The metadata-driven virtual data rooms from ContractZen tap directly into such a configuration, offering advanced rights management, smart tagging, audit logging, and high-level encryption for much-needed security too.

For Effective Communication

Sharing files and documents effectively is of critical importance to any organization, regardless of size. We live in a digital age where those digital assets are just as valuable, if not even more so, than any physical incarnation. Those vital contracts, for instance, and well worth their weight in gold. But it’s also important that team members are able to communicate with one another in a timely and efficient way too.

Email will always have its place. It’s the most suitable location for more long-form communication and for company-wide announcements. However, for more of the day-to-day chat that is necessary for collaborators to get the job done, a much better option is something like Slack. In their own words, Slack is “the collaboration hub that moves work forward.”

While getting caught up in the bottomless pit of “reply all” emails is a certifiable waste of time, team members can set up various “channels” in Slack based on whatever organization method they’d like. This is in addition to regular one-on-one discussions too. Slack “channels” can be based around departments, projects, teams and more, including the ability to invite outside workers to specific discussions. It’s all searchable and allows for a much more flexible arrangement.

Slack also integrates with a broad range of tools you may already be using in your business. These integrations come by way of the Slack App Directory, and notable items here range from Google Calendar and Salesforce to Github, Twitter, and Simple Poll.

For times when a mostly text-based chat isn’t enough and you need some face-to-face time, Bluejeans is one of the better options for online video conferencing. Video conferences are far more cost-effective than flying in everyone from all around the world, and you can just as easily invite outside analysts and consultants too. These video meetings allow for easy screen sharing and you get crystal clear Dolby Voice audio as well.

For Project Management

When it comes to project management, you’ve likely got a lot of balls in the air. You’ve got to deal with all the different components of the actual project itself, as well as all the team members who are working on each of these elements. Keeping track of deadlines and progress and sub-tasks can be overwhelming, and that’s why it’s so important to ensure everyone is on the same page, all the time.

A great option in this space is Asana. The projects can be set up using lists, boards, calendar and timeline, empowering team members to share the important details and delegate tasks in as quick and efficient a manner as possible. Asana follows the same fundamental principles as Kanban boards, where each column represents a “stage” in the project and the goal is to move everything over to the “complete” column on the far right.

This provides for a great visualization of the project from a bird’s eye view, including color-coding and clear task assignment among team members. You can then dive into the pertinent details for any given task. The timeline lets you plan projects from the beginning and identify the gaps and overlaps early. This allows for optimal efficiency.

You’ll find several similar features with a tool like Trello too, which also utilizes the same Kanban board mentality. Instead of getting caught up in back-and-forth emails to confirm the status of a project (or the various components within it), team members can simply reference what’s going on in the Trello or Asana board. That’s how you get the job done.

A Collaborative Ecosystem

The biggest key to being effective in the world of work is to minimize the amount of time you spend on less important tasks and maximize the amount of time you spend on the work that actually moves the needle. The less time your sales team spends digging through an email archive to find an old conversation about a lead, the less time they waste in sending an old version of a contract only to learn that a revised version should’ve been used instead, the more time they can spend nurturing leads and closing deals. The same can be said about just about any department or any other project.

Armed with the right tools for the job — for sharing documents, for communication, and for managing projects — team members can be in a much more advantageous position to work toward more successful outcomes in the most efficient and effective manner possible.

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Avoid a Google Penalty By Using These Tips

Over the last several years, Google has made some huge changes to their search algorithms. Their main objective was to make it difficult for people to manipulate the search results so searchers were able to find the right kind of results. This ultimately took enormous time, but Google was able to get the job done with some data collected over time. The end result was a search algorithm that did two things:

First, it took into account they (Google) had direct control over like how results were displayed, their philosophy, search updating, and others. Secondly, they tweaked their system to look at what people do when building a website. For example, they started to pay closer attention to link building, content, social signals, etc. In the end, Google was able to create a search engine that overpowered others to still be considered the best in the business. The only downside of all the upgrades that took place was many people started getting penalized, losing rankings, getting banned from search results, and even their advertising network. With that said,

Over the years, my research with other clients has been able to provide me with some valuable information. For example, it was able to give me better insight on how to avoid a Google penalty. Today, we will discuss some of the fundamental steps you can take to avoid getting penalized by Google. Let’s get started, and your feedback will be greatly appreciated as always.

Avoid Link Exchanges

This was a major practice used by bloggers several years back, and continues to be used by bloggers today. This used to be a strategic way to get links quickly from different types of websites, however, now, it can get you in some serious trouble with Google. Keep in mind these “3” very important reasons why you should avoid link exchanges at all costs.

First, this is bulk link building, which is unnatural and is considered SPAM link building. A majority of the time, you’ll attract low quality links from sites that have faced a penalty in the past. This shows Google you have NOT screened your link building efforts, and will lead to your site getting penalized, too.

Secondly, Google pays more attention than ever to relevance, and link farms DO NOT give priority to this area. You have to always make sure you focus on relevance because this ultimately adds value to your website. However, bloggers still continue to pay less attention to this factor, and more to bulk link building.

Third, content quality is very important and there is NO substitution when it comes to this factor. Through link exchanges, you’ll be attracting links from low quality sites with even lower quality content. You will truly get quality links when you make a conscious effort to attract solid links from high value sites.

Going forward, to avoid a Google penalty, it’s important that you avoid link exchanges and farms. This way, you’ll be able to attract quality links from sites with valuable content and a high domain authority.

Links within Duplicate Content

One of the worst ways to get hit with a Google penalty is by building links within duplicate content. First, Google hates duplicate content because it decreases the user experience. They want to bring fresh content to people, which ultimately ensures that Google is truly the best search engine. Google tries very hard to NOT index duplicate content so any links built on the page will not be indexed. Next, if the content is somehow indexed, it will NOT last a long time before being flagged by the bots. This means every link built on the page will be flagged at the same time, hurting your reputation, etc.

Another thing to keep in mind is “Google” has a system where people can report duplicate content. This can have more of an effect on your rankings than you think by flagging your site with Google. Going forward, every time a link is built on your site, it will take longer for it to be indexed. This can be very stressful especially when you are trying to promote time-sensitive content.

Keyword Stuffing

This is one of the oldest tricks in the book, and Google doesn’t like it because it was known as a form of manipulation. Before the search engines were sophisticated, “bloggers” were able to increase their search rank by over using a specific keyword. This was also a practice used by those who didn’t want to create any value online. Because this is a practice that is frowned upon, Google wants to ensure it’s completely eliminated online. You’ve probably noticed that one approach search engines have taken is to ask people to diversify their link profile. What does this mean? Let’s explore…

First, it means to incorporate target and LSI keywords within your content. They have also moved into a stricter percentage when it comes to keywords within your content, expecting anywhere from 2%-3%. This means you have to be even more careful when using keywords throughout your content. However, because it is calculated by percentage, it serves as a benefit for bloggers to write even longer content. The more you write, the more flexibility you have when using keywords.

Next,

Over the last several years, “long tail keywords” have come into predominance so Google definitely wants to see them embedded within your content. Long Tail Keywords are phrases that are relevant to your “target” keyword, but contain more than 2+ words. This has become very important to search engines because of the shift within user search patterns. If you notice, people are now using more direct and longer phrases when shopping online, etc. It’s important you keep all of these strategies in mind when writing content so you can improve the user experience while ensuring you have the right amount of keywords throughout your article.

Here are a few things discussed:

• Use LSI keywords
• Use “target” keywords
• Use long tail keywords
• Focus on the number 2%-3% of content length. There are many tools available which will help calculate keyword ratio within your article.

Avoid Using Automated Tools

With the popularly of online marketing came an abundance of bulk link building tools. Over the years, they continued to grow because Google had NO sure way of stopping them, especially those building links using them. However, changes in the algorithm now targets them with serious intensity, penalizing those who implement them in their link building strategy. How was Google able to put a stop to them?

Instead of targeting the software creators, they decided to target what the tools did by understanding the growing pattern. For example, the key strategies these tools use are the following:

• They spin content several times
• They duplicate content
• They bulk link build using the same anchor text
• They provide very little value within the content
• They use very few LSI keywords
• They use very few long tail keywords
• They fail to diversity anchor text

If you pay close attention to the changes made by Google over the years, you’ll notice they’ve target each of those things. First, they want a diversity of keywords to increase the user experience. Secondly, they expect high quality content to be published that is unique and in-depth. Third, they expect a mix of anchor text like URL, relevant, and exact. They refuse to accept duplicate content by only indexing the original content once.

From the above example, you can see how Google has tweaked their search algorithm to ensure they don’t accept sites in general that meet the above criteria. Instead of targeting the software creators, they have taken control of what they view as high quality, making it a norm for other search engines, too.

How to Avoid Getting Penalized…

There are several things you can do to avoid getting penalized by Google. Many of these strategies have been learned by researched conducted by bloggers, and insight provided by Google themselves. Let’s explore 2-3 things you can do right now to set yourself up for a successful SEO campaign.

First, always write exceptional content because Google has put enormous emphasis on quality. They are looking for valuable content because it increases the user experience, which is very important to them. The better experience searchers have, the longer they will continue to use their engine, increasing profits. Whenever you write content, it’s important to focus on depth, value, and always solving a common problem within your niche. Next,

If you’re a blogger, you’ll always take part in link building campaigns and you have to remember the fundamentals when building links. For example, one of the best ways to get penalized by Google is to move away from their quality control policies. This is a guaranteed way to get banned or even get a solid penalty on your site. The funny thing is, many people think this will be difficult but it is very easy if you understand the basics. For example, never bulk build links because it’s a clear sign of them being unnatural. No one can build 10-20 links per day because this is unheard of in SEO and history has proven this numerous times. Next, keep anchor text targeted, but don’t be afraid to build some that are closely related. Over the years, the user search pattern has changed and Google is trying to keep up, which is why they encourage everyone to mix anchor text. As a rule of thumb, make sure you build links using:

• Long tail keywords
• LST keywords
• EXACT match

Next,

Build strong networks with others within your niche because this is a great way to get authority links. Many times, we waste effort building poor quality links, however, “1” solid authority link is way better then 10 low quality links so stay focused during your link building. One of the best ways to conquer this is by building relationships with people who have been in the niche for years or even looking for guest posting opportunities. Guest blogging is a great way to build links on high authority blogs, especially those that can add enormous value later on down the line. Do a quick search in Google then skim through looking for authority blogs. You’ll know which ones have been around the longest by paying close attention to:

• Social followers
• Content written
• Comments
• Search engine rank

Finally,

It’s important to keep updating content because this shows your articles are fresh and NOT out of date. For Google to keep providing the best, it’s important that only the best is available. Make sure you continuously check your articles for freshness, and update those you feel are outdated. When you do this, you’ll ensure they all fall under the freshness update. What does this mean? You’ll essentially fall under the category of updated content so will jump in rankings. It also means you have more fresh and up-to-date content compared to your competitors, which will work in your favor going forward.

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How Not to Go Crazy When Working From Home

I wasn’t always a professional blogger or freelance writer. There was a time that I knew practically nothing of Internet marketing and making money online, but I like to tell people that I fell into this space and this career “accidentally on purpose” way back in 2006. I met John Chow for the first time not long after getting started and we’ve been friends ever since. You might even remember that time I crashed at his guest house in Bellevue, Washington.

That experience, along with so many others like it, really illustrate how I was drawn into the “freelance lifestyle” (or the “dot com lifestyle,” as John likes to say) in the first place. I am in a position where I can largely set my own hours, choose my own projects, and determine my own fate, all while working from almost anywhere I have a reasonably reliable Internet connection and a laptop in tow. The time and location freedom are truly invaluable. They’re literally life changing.

While I can choose to work from almost anywhere, it probably won’t surprise very many of you to learn that I work from home the overwhelming majority of the time. I imagine the same is also largely true for John too when he’s not partying in Costa Rica and other exotic locations around the world. Working from home has its perks, but it naturally also has its pitfalls… like how you can go stark raving mad with the deafening silence and overwhelming isolation.

We don’t want to turn into Jack Nicholson’s iconic character from The Shining, do we? He does have a very valid point though, even though the movie is almost 40 years old at this point. All work and no play do make Jack a dull boy. And it’s not even about being dull… even if you never go on any sort of murderous rampage after getting a drink at an empty hotel bar from a bartender who is nothing more than a figment of your imagination. But I digress.

Yes, you can set your own hours. Yes, you are free of distractions of coworkers who just “stop by” for a meaningless chat (but you can still definitely distract yourself and procrastinate like there’s no tomorrow). But it can be a very isolating experience and that’s not good for your mental well being.

So, what are some of the steps you can take to overcome this situation and help to retain some semblance of sanity along the way? Here are a few suggestions to get you started.

• Get as much sun as you can. This will depend on where you live and the kind of climate you get, but getting outside for some sun and fresh air can work wonders on your mental wellness. Even positioning your computer next to a window so you can look outside can be very helpful.
• Have a hobby unrelated to work. Sometimes, you just need a mental break. The actual hobby itself doesn’t really matter as much as the fact that it gets you away from work and away from the computer. Your ideas will continue to simmer on the back burners while you hack at wood in your workshop or prune the flowers in the garden.
• Go social. While online interactions with Facebook groups and the like have their merit, there is no replacement for face-to-face time. That’s why Dot Com Pho is so important to me (and it’s where I met John). It’s the same with the Dot Com Meetup in the OC. Find your tribe. Talk to them in person.
• Allow fitness to be a priority. It’s really easy to hole yourself up and hunker down on an important project, because you want to make sure it’s a success and you’re really passionate about that new ebook or YouTube channel or affiliate network. I get it. I’m there all the time. But you need to convince yourself to get out there and move your body. The gym isn’t necessarily for everyone, but you do need to get into physical shape.
• Schedule your breaks. Like the previous tip, I perfectly understand what it’s like to get into a groove, but that’s also how you can work yourself into oblivion and burn yourself out. I like using the Pomodoro technique to give my mind a rest and I’ve been working on establishing a better end of day routine too.

These are just a few ideas to help you get started. What activities or tips do you have for other people who work primarily from home?

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Four Ways to Attract More Reviews To Your Internet Products

One of the main ways bloggers build momentum online is by developing products which resonate with their readers. This is a great way to encourage people to continue visiting your website, and even earn some much needed income. Even after creating a product it’s important you market it the right way which involves using some thought-out strategies. For example, product marketing can be done by:

• Traffic
• Reviews
• Affiliate programs
• General advertising
• And others

Today, we’ll be looking at one of the MOST popular ways which involves writing product reviews. Why does this work so well? Simple…

With so many market places online many people like to search by product reviews. This means with higher reviews you have a better chance of selling your product to others. The higher the reviews also means a better chance to earn larger profits which meets your bottom line. Over the years I have worked with many different clients, some of which, have started their own products and done very well. I was able to learn a lot which has showed me how to generate the right amount of reviews quickly. This is important because you can encourage people to leave reviews which in the end help you sell your products. Let’s jump right in and look at the following as it applies to reviews:

• Encourage people
• Offer an incentive
• Let the them the importance
• Simplicity equals appreciation

Your feedback will be greatly appreciated going forward.

Encourage People

One of the best ways to generate enormous reviews is by encouraging people to leave them. This works well because many people who shop online want to help others by letting them know about the product. Over the years I created a system which is now available with many eCommerce hosting plans to send out follow-up messages to those who have purchased a specific product. At one point, this entire process would have to be done manually, but things have changed rapidly. Many eCommerce sites understand the importance of a review system so have built in the interface.

Next,

The system has been perfected over the years so all that left for you to do is create the follow-up which will be sent to customers. This is the message which will be sent after the item has been marked “shipped” or after a scheduled amount of time. I suggest writing out a genuine follow-up so people understand how it will be helping out your company going forward. For example,

• Please help our business grow
• Please tell others about our product
• Did you like your experience?
• And others

Obviously your message will be directed towards your niche so keep that in mind when writing out your follow-up message. Before I continue, this system is great because once it’s been set you can forget about it going forward. The entire system is automated so after it has been optimized and tweaked, you can focus on simply moderating the reviews which come through.

Incentives Work

I’ll admit, many people don’t want to be bothered with leaving reviews so they won’t. To be honest, I’m the same way because I simply don’t have time to go around leaving reviews for every product I have purchased, but when an incentive is involved that changes the ball game. It has become popular practice to offer clients an incentive to leave reviews for a product or service they have just purchased. What is an incentive, and why does it work so well? There are two reasons:

First, an incentive is a product or service which is offered in return for something else which in this case will be an opinion. An incentive can be in the form of a monetary value, and the best way to determine what works is by trying different things until you find the highest converting. Incentive have long been used to encourage people to active participate in an event or opinion poll. They have been proven to be very value!

Second, incentives work well because these day’s things are very expensive, and the economy does have its up’s and down’s. Next, the times of getting something for free is pretty much obsolete so people always like to take advantage of an opportunity when they find one. With that said,

I encourage all of you who have a solid incentive in mind to implement it to their marketing strategy. Here are some ways:

• When someone buys a product send out a follow-up letting them know about the incentive for filling out a review on the product.
• Purchase virtual points which will be applied to someone’s account when they leave review on a product they have purchased. They can then redeem these points for their next purchase and serve as a free shipping discount or cash value.
• Offer an upgrade in shipping on their next shipping when they leave a review going forward. This works because people will get their item much quicker then normal.
• If customer leaves a review their name will be added to a ballet which will be drawn once a month. The winner will receive a discount on shipping, monetary value gift card or even a free product.

I recommend trying different things when first getting started keeping track of how each one helps grow your business. I’ll admit you have to do a lot of trial and error however in the end you’ll have a high converting eCommerce site which will generate enormous revenue going forward. What you decide to provide as an incentive will again depend on the niche you are involved in.

Simplicity = Appreciation

One of the best ways to encourage people to leave reviews is by telling them how much you appreciate the time they are taking out to help. Many times, we as companies, sometimes fail at showing appreciation to our customers which forces them to leave to our competition. You should say thanks when they shop, leave reviews or even refer people to your website which is way referral programs have become so popular over the years. However, let’s look at how simplicity shows your customers the appreciation they deserve. For example, it’s one thing to ask customers for reviews, but another to bombard them with a huge questionnaire…right?

One of my biggest pet peeves is when someone asks me for my opinion, and then takes 20 min of my time when they led me to believe it would be just a few. I believe in making things very simple for my customers because time is very scarce so people don’t want to be misled especially when they are doing you a favour. Going forward,

Make it simple for people to leave reviews by:

• Keeping the form simple, and right to the point
• Be upfront about the time it will take so they are mentality ready

You’ll be surprised how far these two can go into encouraging people to leave reviews. Remember, reviews add a lot of value to your business and the product so make sure you appreciate the time customers are taking to help you out. These days creating a form for reviews is NOT tough at all. For example, if you are using an eCommerce website then the form can be tweaked from the backend. Many times the form is already configured for simplicity, but if you have the option to add or remove fields then disable the unnecessary options.

If your creating the form on your own for your blog then again pay close attention to the important information. For example, if you don’t need to capture the address or phone number then don’t add that field. Keep the form simple asking only for the necessary information so you increase the chance of someone submitting a review. Next, I would encourage all of you to visit to other websites to see how they have created their review system. Just like you can learn a lot from the content your competition has written, you’ll be able to learn a lot from the review form embedded on their website.

Indicate the Importance

Many times you’ll be bloggers and selling products for other people so your investment isn’t much since it’s NOT your product. When you have a variety of products just like an ecommerce website then encourage people to leave reviews by letting them know the importance. A few years back I owned an online electronics shop and sold over 500 products until I close it down in 2009. One of the best ways I encouraged people to buy the best products was by letting them know the importance. I would tell them to help people make the right choice when shopping by leaving reviews on products which will hep them invest their money in the right place. This works in two ways for you as a shop owner:

First, the customer will spend money on a product which they are happy with, and because it was purchased through you then it increases the chances of continued business increasing profits. Secondly, it’s a great way for you to earn money on every sale because the customer will now invest on a better item. Reviews have helped steer buyer decision which has been evident many times probably even with you. For example, think about how many times you went to purchase a product or tool online, but decided to read the reviews first. You probably had your mind set on one item but decided to purchase a different one because of the reviews…right? I’ll agree many will choose a product based on price however serious successful bloggers won’t worry about price and strictly look at the quality. This in the end will translate into enormous profits going forward.

Final Thoughts

Here’s where I lay down the action plan going forward. I believe when you write about a topic then it’s important to give your readers a course of action going forward. They’ll be those which are experienced, but others who need a quick walk-through on what to do next. With that said, let’s explore some of the vital points discussed.

First, it’s important to encourage people to leave reviews because sometimes they simply forget. However, those involved in eCommerce can automate the entire process with a few clicks. Test and tweak your outreach so you find a follow-up which has higher then normal conversions. Secondly, incentives work well because people always love free things. If you have store you can offer monetary discounts or free upgrades to encourage user reviews. Third, make the review process simple because readers are doing you a favour. Finally, please reiterate the importance so readers or customers understand the importance of leaving a review.

Next,

Get started now by doing the following.

It’s important to understand your business model and how reviews will help you going forward. Next, re-evaluate your current review system looking for ways to make it better and more engaging. For example, look for the following:

• How attractive the system is and what can you do to make it stand out more
• How simple is your review system and can you make it even more easy for your customers?
• Check if you truly ask for the necessary information or are you asking for more
• How can incentives help you get more reviews?

In the end, you have to have a tracking system so you can evaluate how well each system works. Soon you’ll be able to determine how well each system converts compared to the other in getting more reviews for your website. Never under estimate the power of reviews and the mere fact many of the top blogs have them should be a good indication. Visit your competition to find creative ways to use your current review system.

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The Real Question You Should Be Asking Yourself

Common knowledge and common sense, well, they don’t always make sense. And if you simply follow what everyone else is already doing and what they’ve always been doing, then you can only expect to be mediocre at best. That’s the very definition of average. Conventional, traditional thinking will tell you that you should get a steady, 9-to-5 kind of job but that will only lead you to a conventional 9-to-5 kind of life at best.

And if you’re reading this blog and if you’re interested in making money online, chances are that you’re also interested in what it takes to think outside the box, to get beyond the bubble. And to do that, you need to shift your mindset and adjust your perspective, seeing things in a whole new light and understanding them in a brand new way. Allow me to explain.

Pain Is Bad, Right?

Success is good. Failure is bad. Average, everyday people might not choose to put it so simply, but that is generally how they think about success and failure. Failure is something to be avoided and success is something to strive for. But as we’ve said before, you will fail. And probably often.

But successful people are quick to point out that failure isn’t a bad thing. Failure represents a learning opportunity. The path to success is paved with all sorts of failures. The fear of failure can prevent you from trying in the first place.

And the way that most people think about pain is equally simplistic and misguided. Pain is bad, right? Pain should be avoided because it is unpleasant, right? Quite the contrary. Pain is a good thing. It’s useful, because it teaches you what you should avoid. After you burn your hand from touching a hot stove, you learn not to do that again. After you stub your toe on the coffee table, you learn to watch where you step. Pain is a great teacher.

It’s not just physical pain either. Emotional and psychological pain work on the same fundamental principles as physical pain and science has even demonstrated that the net effect is effectively the same too. When you experience the pain of a messy breakup, when you experience the pain of rejection, you learn that what led to those situations should probably be avoided. You learn how to approach personal relationships better. You learn how to better present yourself so you’re less likely to get rejected.

Pain can be a good thing if you learn to use it to your advantage.

Hakuna Matata?

Remember in The Lion King when Timon and Pumbaa teach Simba about “hakuna matata” and how it means “no worries, for the rest of your days”? How it’s your “problem free philosophy”? Yeah, they didn’t really know what they were talking about, because Simba still had all sorts of problems he had to face.

Here’s the thing. It was never about trying to live a life completely devoid of problems. That doesn’t exist and it’s just not possible. Everyone has problems. Instead, it’s about choosing to have the right problems, to endure the good problems. Even Warren Buffett has money problems, but I’m sure his are way better than what the homeless guy living on the street has to deal with.

A big life lesson we should all take to heart is that happiness is not a solvable equation itself. However, we derive great happiness from solving the problems in our lives. And we can’t solve them if we don’t have them in the first place. We just need to choose the right problems that we actually want to solve… before we move on to the next one.

Shift Your Mindset

Here’s the common question that people either ask themselves or the people they think they’re trying to help: What do you want? What do you want to have in your life to be happy? Who do you want to be?

But the regular answer to this line of questioning is going to sound pretty much the same for the overwhelming majority. I want to have money. I want to have a job I love, a family I adore, and enough spare time to enjoy my hobbies. I want to eat well and travel the world. I want to be my own boss. These are all very common answers and they don’t really answer anything.

Instead of asking what you want to have or who you want to be, ask yourself what pain do you want to endure. What problems do you want to endure? What pain and hardship are you willing to suffer though on the path to the things that you want? I don’t know about you, but I’d rather be worrying about maximizing the gains on my investments than worrying about how I’m going to pay for my next meal.

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How To Do Internet Marketing On A Small Budget

Many businesses starting out don’t have the budget that others have. I believe this should NOT slow anyone down because you still have options available to market your content. In today’s age, content marketing is very important so we should all implement strategies that help us establish the bottom line. This means through content marketing, we should convert readers into loyal followers, which, in the end, will help translate into major profits. I’m a true believer of that “budget” should always be flexible. However, this isn’t always the case for someone just getting started. Over the years, I have started many blogs WITHOUT a budget, and have been able to scale quite well. Let’s look at some small budget tips in relation to content marketing. These tips will help beginners get started so they can still keep an competitive edge online. Next,

I would like to hear your feedback on the topic. Please let me know what you think in the comment box below. Let’s get started with small budget content marketing tips I’ve used for years.

Research Your Competition

If you’ve been reading my previous posts, then you know the emphasis I put on research. Through research, you can save enormous time because it will help you understand what has worked in the past. Knowing this will allow you to implement the same strategies going forward. I always take this one step further by researching my competition because they have been in my niche longer. This helps me understand what marketing, content, social, and engagement strategies they are using to get ahead. How can this help when you have a small content marketing budget?

By understanding the content types that have helped them excel, you can then focus on writing the same type of content. By going over social shares on each content, you’ll be able to market on the same social profiles, which will help accelerate your marketing. You can even take this one step further by reaching out to the same people who have shared your competitor content, and ask them to share yours. However, you have to make sure your content stands out compared to your competition because otherwise they won’t think it’s any better and NOT worth sharing. Here’s a few things to focus on…

• What type of content these people write
• Their initial social media marketing platforms
• Social shares and comments
• Previous link research by looking at link profile

Doing this will also provide you an opportunity to see who’s an authority in your niche. At this point, you can even reach out to them because you know it will be a benefit for you in the future. You might have them endorse your website or even allow you to guest post with a link within the author bio. The opportunities can be endless.

Cost Effective Content

One of the best ways to save on content marketing is to create cost effective content. This means instead creating content where you have to invest time and money, you’ll be able to write content that is the opposite – time saving and NO cost. For example, why write content that requires you to purchase products or services before you can complete it? This will require a huge investment that many of you might NOT have, especially when you are just starting out. It’s better to focus on a content format where MOST of the work has been done for you. Here are some examples:

• How-to
• Interviews
• Videos
• Podcasts

On many of these, you have the option to create videos using FREE tools available to you. Another cool thing when creating content based on blogging interviews is that much of the work is done for you. You research influential bloggers within your niche, reaching out to them to answer a common question. You gather all the answers and create a summary of what each of them has said. The initial outreach will be lengthy, but it’s free because communication is done mainly through email. After, summarizing can be done within a single day and then you can hit published to go live with your content.

Many people love to share expert posts because it provides enormous information that otherwise will NOT be available. Next, many of the bloggers within the expert post will be more than happy to share once you go live.

Understand What’s Working

It’s NOT uncommon to create different types of content when you first get started. However, you can cut down your content marketing costs by evaluating what’s been working for you going forward. Once you find a content type that has provided engagement, traffic, and growth, then stick to this type. What does this do?

It helps you save time you would have been investing in other content types that haven’t been working. It also saves you time that you could be using to perform research, hence leading to further growth. When you write out different content formats, then look at the following:

• Traffic to content
• Time invested
• Cost invested
• CTR
• Growth stats

After, you can build a better picture of the type of content you should focus on going forward.

Get Creative Writing Content

This is a strategy you can use to create content quickly and it can still provide enormous value. I believe a few years back, “Google” started to focus on quality content because this would help increase the user experience. The success of Google would depend on their ability to provide accurate results that also provide value. This is why I encourage all of you to always first focus on quality. Next, you can focus on repurposing content, which will save you enormous time and money. Here’s how this strategy works:

First, you find a high quality piece of content relevant to your niche. You can search online or even visit your competitor sites to see what has engaged their readers. You can use tools like Topsy.com to find content that has been shared enormous times online. Create a list so you can go through, finding ways to make each one better by looking for videos, images, and infographics. If they haven’t included them, then it’s a great chance for you to rewrite content and include them going forward. Secondly, don’t forget to share your content online, and most times, this will be enough to build momentum.

You have to make sure the content is relevant and in demand. This is why I recommend doing research, looking for common problems  people need a solution to. Also, sharing this content within social platforms is a great way to attract FREE traffic because you know your competition had a steady stream of shares. You creating something better will increase the likelihood of getting way more shares, adding to your engagement, growth, and bottom line.

Quality vs. Quantity

This battle has been around for years and many people believe that quantity will outweigh quality. I must admit this has changed enormously over the last couple of years with Google being MOSTLY responsible. Sometimes, the best way to get low budget content marketing is for you to ignore marketing as a whole and let nature take its course. For example, many times, I’ve noticed that when you do awesome work that adds value, everything else is pretty much taken care of.

Google has stated several times that there are over 200 ranking factors, some of which we don’t control directly. This means writing quality content will be enough to increase your blog in the SERP’s, newsfeeds, and even social media platforms. However, you have to ask: What is quality content?

First, it’s better than all of the current content available online. You do your research and include missing elements to your content to help increase overall quality score. Next, it’s content that is structured correctly through a solid introduction, sub-headings, body, conclusion, etc. Third, it’s content that solves a major problem within your niche because this adds value. Think about when you have done research in the past and the elements you have looked for. You look for content that solves a major problem and is in-depth…correct? Finally, it’s content that other bloggers find useful, and love to share with their readers. I link out to several guides because they provide an in-depth resource I know my readers will love.

If you can add all these elements to your content, then you won’t have a hard time creating something that is quality. Because you are focusing on quality, you have reduced the amount of written articles you need, which helps you save enormous time and money. Writing a lot of content is tedious and can put a strain on a new blogger. However, writing “1” solid piece every 10 days will give you time to research, create, and publish value. This will have 10 times the benefits than a handful of other posts, helping you meet your bottom line more quickly. It’s that simple!

Manual Labor

I know the title seems a bit scary, but the truth is, before the Internet, people did all their marketing through manual labor. For example, they would head out and promote their business using word of mouth. I admit this sounds tedious right now, but if you have a low budget, why not put the work in required to get your business going? Keep in mind, once you have grown your business and have a more flexible marketing budget, you can always switch to online methods. Get a few business cards ready or brochures, which will cost you no more than $50.00, and head out to do some serious manual labor. I have done it in the past and even enlisted the help of a few of my friends. After I got a few customers, I had more money to start using some of the online methods that were not available to me before.

It’s up to you, but serious business people always are willing to put the work in.

Now What?

Now that you have learned some ways to market your content with a small budget, it’s time to apply what you have learned. This usually would be hard, but I would recommend you read the above content again, making a list of the important points that you’ll be easily following. I’d like to go over some of the important steps that you can follow right now.

First, read the content over again, paying close attention to the points mentioned throughout. This will allow you to fully understand the content, and understand how each factor will help you with your goals. Next, it’s always important to research your competition because this where you learn what’s working and what’s not. Your competition has been in your niche longer so they have tried several things. This has led them to understand the best way to market content by spending as little money as possible. No company wants to spend money when they can save it by doing simple research…right?

Now it’s time to start implementing each of the strategies discussed above. I recommend you take your time while implementing because in the end, it’s about quality, NOT quantity, no matter what you do. Start with the first one and then move on to the second. It’s time to understand how each one helps you in your objective of meeting the bottom line, which is what everyone is trying to accomplish. When you have implemented a strategy, you need to ensure you have a tracking device in place so you can see how your performance is doing. You want to optimize where you can keep your end goal in mind – content marketing with as low a budget as possible.

I’ll admit, in the beginning, this will be hard, especially when you haven’t used any of the strategies before. However, after you find out what has been working, you will be able to divert your attention to using only that because it yields the best results. Keep in mind,

It’s always a good idea to network at the same time simply because when you network, you are increasing the chance of someone else promoting your content. With the growth of social media platforms, it will be a great idea to have someone who is an authority in your niche promote your content for you. Some of these people have over 50,000+ followers, which will be enormous when getting started. It’s also a benefit knowing that much of this marketing through influential bloggers will be free.

Final Thoughts

I hope you enjoyed my content and your feedback will be greatly appreciated. I have tried to cover what I learned over the years, however, if you have anything that has worked for you then please let us know in the comment box below. I’ll admit things are rapidly changing so new marketing opportunities are popping up that’ll help promote your content quickly with very little investment from your side.

With that said,

It’s time to put everything into action by reading over the content once again, and implementing the strategies one by one.

Click Here To Download John Chow’s New eBook, The Ultimate Online Profit Model!

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