Search engine optimization — SEO — may seem like alchemy to the uninitiated. But there is a science to it. Search engines reward pages with the right combination of ranking factors, or “signals.” SEO is about ensuring your content generates the right type of signals. Our chart below summarizes the major factors to focus on for search engine ranking success. The Search Engine Land Guide To SEO explains factors in more depth, with tips and a tutorial on implementing them. Read on!

Click on the image below to access and download the full version with descriptions (at SearchEngineLand.com)!

Hope you find this useful like I do… enjoy!!!

This relationship increases conversions and lifetime customer value as customers return to you to buy more. Plus, it drives referrals as subscribers share your email offers and information with others. 

And it drives traffic back to your website!

Through your email newsletter, you can promote and drive traffic back to your website by sharing recent posts, products and services you offer.

What’s especially great is how targeted email marketing is. For one thing, your subscribers are coming to you and asking to learn more about your business. So your marketing dollars are targeted to your most highly interested prospects. No wonder direct email marketing enjoys extraordinary ROI – $43.52 for every dollar invested in 2009, according to the Direct Marketing Association.

Aweber Communications offers the ability to create and send out email marketing newsletters in minutes! You can even set them up and schedule them to post on specific dates, virtually automating your email marketing efforts!

Send Your First Email Newsletter Today – AWeber Communications

When it comes to promoting your business, the more “exposure” you have, the more traffic you’ll be able to drive!  When you create your Facebook Fan Page, you’ll be able to link to your website (creating a high authority backlink), share content from your site, generate leads, connect with your fan base and so much more!

Now when it comes to creating your Facebook Fan Page yourself — Mari Smith is the ultimate professional and she’s created a guide on how to do this the proper way, so head on over to her post on SocialMediaExaminer.com… Facebook 101 Business Guide to learn more about what Facebook can do for your business and follow her step-by-step guide on getting started!

And here are some tips (or rather some things to avoid!) to help you out once you’ve set up your page:

1.  Don’t post too many times a day on Facebook!  A good rule of thumb for brands is to post just once a day (2-3 times at most if you have a great announcement — but space them out throughout the day!).  Facebook Fan Pages are different than personal pages and the threshold of fans seeing your business content is much smaller.  You don’t want to give the appearance of spamming!

2.  Be sure to post a variety of content, not just your blog posts!  Fans want to see images, status updates, etc. (not just links to your website!).  Think of your Fan Page as a more personal extension of your website where you share exciting news and don’t forget, if you have clients you’ve done work for that are also on Facebook, post about them too — share your work!

3.  Be sure to respond to your fans!  This is a big mistake if you don’t do this because Facebook is about engagement and connecting with your fans on your Wall!   Make sure you’re receiving notices when a fan posts on your Fan Page Wall so that you can respond quickly (within 6 hours is ideal but at a minimum, within 24 hours!).

This should help you get started off on the right foot!  Mari’s guide will give you much more information and great tips so check that out (Facebook 101 Business Guide), get started and have fun with it!!!

If you’ve got some more great tips to share about Facebook Fan Pages for business… please comment below!

From highest level of administrative access to lowest, they are:

1. Administrator
2. Editor
3. Author
4. Contributor
5. Subscriber

Here’s a quick description of each of these user types and their administrative access abilities.

Administrator

This is the highest level of access to a WordPress site.  They have access to all the settings including your theme settings, WordPress settings, plug-ins and plug-in settings, widgets, and theme files.  An administrator is the only user that can add a new user, edit or delete an existing one.

Editor

This is the next highest level of access to a WordPress site.  An Editor may create new pages or posts, edit any page or post, create new categories and tags and administer all comments on posts and pages that have been enabled.

An Editor may also change the author of any page or post to any other user on the site.

The role of an Editor is to primarily make content changes, although they do not have access to widgets so content within widgets will have to be made by an Administrator.

Author

The role of an Author is simply to create and publish new posts and administer comments on their posts.  They also can edit posts they have authored.

Contributor

A Contributor is similar to an Author in that they can contribute content to a site… however, they can only create posts that are already saved and they must be reviewed by an Editor or Administrator prior to publishing.

Once a Contributor adds content, they will submit their post for review (instead of the “Publish” button, this user has a “Submit For Review” button).  

Then an Editor or Administrator can view the list of posts that are “Pending” and can edit, publish or trash the post.

Subscriber

This is the final level of WordPress user that can be created.  A subscriber can only view content and cannot edit any pages or posts and has no administrative rights.  

This role is used when an Administrator wants to limit the right to comment on posts only if a user is a subscriber and logged in to the site.

For more information, visit WordPress.org’s Roles and Capabilities page at http://codex.wordpress.org/Roles_and_Capabilities.

Tip #1:  Keep It Simple

Unless you have the funds to hire designers that have studied user/site interaction inside & out, it’s best to keep your home page simple. You want to make sure that they visitors “get” what your site is about, what your product or service is and how you can help them!  

Simple and clean designs will simply and clearly communicate the benefit you provide and they will be easy for new visitors to navigate.  

Tip #2:  Keep Your Content Short

When it comes to the home page, you want to keep your content short and in bite size nuggets for visitors to digest.  Leave the long sales pages and more detailed information for other pages… content on your front page should short and sweet.

Use teasers, image sliders, featured posts widgets and such to give a sneak peek with a link to the rest of the content.  This allows you to “promote” your top stories and pages you want to attract visitors to!

3.  Include The Important Links

People need to know what your business is all about, how it works (services), how they can participate (memberships), how they can buy (products).  Be sure to include links to pages, posts and other areas where they can find this information!
 

4.  Put The Most Important Content Above The Fold

Display top articles, appealing products, things that “pop” above the fold!  Obviously, this is what a visitor will see first and you want to try and pull them in and want to scroll down to see what else you may offer.

Eye mapping research shows that the majority of visitors read from left to right (just like a book) so you’ll want to position your most valuable content on the left.  

Contact forms, or opt-in forms, should be placed on the right, also above the fold, to catch a readers attention.  Use bold, attraction getting colors if you can and create an offer that irresistable or give away an ebook or report that will be of value!

5.  Keep Your Home Page Current

It goes without saying that you want your home page to display recent activity letting the viewer know this is an active blog.  

A good idea is to include a widget that shows recent activity streams from Facebook or Twitter (as long as you’re keeping up with your social media efforts!).

6. Create A Design That Reflects Your Brand Image

Brand consistency is important so you’ll want to select a design template that incorporates your logo, colors, etc. and is a reflection of your brand!  

Also, be consistent across all platforms using the same design and colors on social media platforms, email marketing, etc.  

7.  Include a Featured Image On Your Homepage

Aside from the benefit of visual appeal, this is important for sharing content.  When you or someone shares your website via Facebook or Google+, a thumbnail image will be pulled from your site (websites pull your thumbnail images) to go alongside it.  

Include images that are eye-catching and reflect what the content is about!

These 7 tips should help you create a great home page with the elements you’ll need to pull visitors in and engage them with your content!

To Your Blogging Success,

Have any other tips you’d like to share?  Post them below in the comments section!

Kim is one of those rare finds in the IM space that consistently provides
tremendous value in everything she does.

She’s a country gal at heart but don’t let that fool you…

She’s been beating out many of the big-name gurus with
her southern belle charm.

In fact, many refer to her as the ‘Traffic Queen’. Which from
what I’ve seen is certainly a worthy title.

At the ripe ‘ol age of 25 she’s managed to unlock
the secrets to massive traffic…testing and tweaking
new traffic strategies… plus adding her own little
twists and tricks.

And unlike most other marketers, she spends most of her
time in the trenches, locked up in the marketing laboratory –
cookin’ up more juicy traffic goodness.

But every once in a while she surfaces back up into the
real world to share her latest findings.

If you’d like to see what she’s been cookin’ up in
the lab lately go now to:

Kim Roach’s “Traffic Dashboard”

Kim’s has unlocked her very best traffic strategies in her latest
product called ‘The Traffic Dashboard’. It’s a complete training
center that contains over 20 of Kim’s top traffic getting methods.

These traffic techniques are really quite unique as you can see
for yourself by taking a look inside the member’s area…

Traffic Dashboard – a sneak peek inside…

Inside ‘The Traffic Dashboard Kim shows you how to go from nothing
to over 3,000+ subscribers in just 30 days. (all in step-by-step detail).

You literally point and click your way to increased traffic with Kim’s
unique dashboard design. (as seen above)

You have to actually TRY to mess this one up! Because the point-and-click
learning system forces you to take action.

Here’s a sneek peak at what you’ll find inside…

An underground tool for extracting exactly
where your competitor’s website traffic is
coming from. This is like being given the
keys to the kingdom. (I’m really surprised
Kim is sharing this little gem)

(If you thought Alexa was cool imagine knowing EXACTLY
how much traffic your competitors were getting each day
and knowing exactly where that traffic was coming from.)

“James Bond” tactics for spying on your
competitors and forcing them to hand over
all of their hard-earned, battle-tested,
profit-busting strategies.

A super simple method for cramming your opt-in
list with 200-400 subscribers in a single day…
(and NO this has nothing to do with ad swaps)

A really cool strategy that shows you how to get 10x
MORE traffic from EVERY article you write.

As many of you probably already know, traditional article
marketing is becoming less and less effective. What worked
in 2004 simply doesn’t cut it anymore.

So Kim show’s you 10 different ways to re-purpose your content
for additional traffic and exposure. Use just a couple of the
strategies in this video and you’ll have no excuse for not
getting AT LEAST a couple hundred visitors for every article
you publish.

… and that’s just the tip of the iceberg!

This thing is packed with over 8 hours of juicy
traffic goodness… NO fluff… NO filler.

With over 8 hours of step-by-step video and
enough how-to information to DESTROY literally
every question, worry and problem you’ve ever
had in regards to traffic.

A Word of Warning:  There’s just ONE caveat to this
product. In fact, these traffic methods will NOT work in all
situations. In order for these traffic strategies to reap
their full power – you MUST be creating HIGH QUALITY CONTENT!
(not some auto-generated content that not even your momma would
be proud of…)

If you think you’re going to slap together some useless crap,
throw up some auto-generated sites and have thousands of visitors
pouring in…This course is NOT for you.

This training course was created specifically for people who
are looking to build REAL businesses online… People who are
dedicated to providing top-notch value for their visitors,
subscribers, and customers.

This is something Kim stresses a lot, and I agree. If you’re
not willing to take the time and effort to put together some
really good content and offer real value, then don’t bother
with ‘The Traffic Dashboard’. It will just be a waste of time
for you if you don’t have good content in place.

But…

If you are dedicated to building a REAL business online and
providing your visitors with REAL VALUE then ‘The Traffic
Dashboard’ will help you to grow your business 10x faster.

Plus, at an affordable price to boot!

So, if you’re ready to turn on the traffic tap, then
click on the link below…

Kim Roach’s “Traffic Dashboard”

There are no “tricks”, or “magic traffic buttons” here, just
proven traffic strategies that are designed to generate traffic
as quickly as possible.

Plus, for those of you who are more advanced, Kim combines old
school tactics with new traffic twists and tips that you won’t
want to miss…

Kim Roach’s “Traffic Dashboard”

While that answer really is dependent on your specific needs, there are some Essential WordPress Plugins that everyone can benefit from!

Essential WordPress Plugin #1:  Google Analyticator

Google Analyticator adds the necessary JavaScript code to enable Google Analytics.  This plugin includes an admin dashboard widget that displays a graph of the last 30 days of visitors, a summary of site usage, the top pages, the top referrers, and the top searches! 

Essential WordPress Plugin #2:  All-In-One SEO Pack

All-In-One SEO Pack is the most well-known and easiest of the free plugins for optimizing your blog for the search engines (SEO).  All in One SEO plugin is perfect for beginners because it works right out of the box, just install!  And for advanced users, you can fine tune everything! 

*Note:  Some Premium themes, such as Thesis, have these SEO features already built-in!

Essential WordPress Plugin #3:  Google XML Sitemaps

Google XML Sitemaps plugin will generate a special XML sitemap which will help search engines like Google, Yahoo!, Bing and Ask.com to better index your blog. It also notifies the major search engines every time you create a post with new content.

Essential WordPress Plugin #4:  SEO Friendly Images

SEO Friendly Images is a nifty little optimization plugin that automatically updates all images with the proper ALT and TITLE attributes. This plugin will help to improve traffic from search results.  Images are great for your blog and it is so easy to shorten the actual name of the image file as you upload it.

Essential WordPress Plugin #5:  Akismet

Akismet is an anti-spam plugin which identifies and blocks comment and trackback spam on blogs.  Akismet checks your comments against the Akismet web service to see if they look like spam or not and lets you review the spam it catches or automatically delete spam.  This plugin will come automatically installed with WordPress, but you’ll need to create an account to get an API key.

These are the WordPress plugins you can start with… and then add more based on your specific needs.  Be careful though, plugins can slow your blog site down so you only want to install those that that provide a great benefit for you and your readers!

To Your Blogging Success,

Do you have a favorite that you just love and want to share… add it in the comments below and share with my readers!

1. “Just Google It”. More than ever before, people are turning away from traditional means of finding information, like the yellow pages, and looking online.  People are going to look for you online and your business should be at their fingertips.
2. Websites Are Always “Open For Business”! A website or blog allows your business, your brand or your product to be open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.  Many people surf the web in the evening when it’s convenient for them — which is fine because websites never sleep! When you think about it, having a website is the equivalent of having an employee working around the clock — including weekends and holidays!
3. Your Competitor(s) Have A Website. Let’s face it, competition and choice is a way of life these days.  If you are in direct competition with another business, product, service, or another personally branded individual that has a website… they have a clear advantage if they are adequately marketing their website. A website is a great way to level the playing field and present your unique selling proposition.
4. Websites Build Your Brand & Improve Customer Confidence. With a professional website, you will build your brand, create an impression with the public and, in turn (if done correctly), your customers will develop a greater sense of confidence in your business. One of the great things about the internet is that it has leveled the playing field when it comes to competing with the big boys… you have one shot at making a good first impression and with a well-designed site, your little operation can project the image and professionalism the way you want it to.
5. Do You Know 266 Million People? According to www.InternetWorldStats.com, that is the number of North Americans that regularly use the Internet. Worldwide Internet usage is approaching two billion.  Having a website will significantly increase your reach and ability to gain exposure to millions of potentials clients, customers and partners.  Also, it can extend your reach globally, not just locally.

What are your thoughts?  Please share by commenting below!

To Your Blogging Success,

I’m not talking about some catchy slogan or play on words using the name of your business or the service you provide. It’s not some meaningless phrase like “we do it right” or “quality service you can trust.” Anybody in business can say those things and they’re really basic expectations anyway.

A core marketing message clearly and concisely communicates what you’re out to do and for who. It speaks to your ideal target market and gets them to respond and seek more information.

So many small business owners and professional service providers never take the time to create this for their own business. Most are creating a new message with every new “marketing campaign.” They’re constantly trying new ideas. And each new idea becomes a new chance to try and come up with that home run message that gets the phone ringing off the hook like never before.

What you need is an ultimate core marketing message that communicates directly and powerfully to your clients and prospective clients what it is they’ll get from your services.

Here are three steps to creating your own ultimate core marketing message:

1. Who do you want to help? Be as clear as you can on who your target market is. Take some time and define with as much clarity as possible who your ideal clients are. If it’s not obvious who your message is directed to, why would you expect anyone to get it?

2. What is the primary problem, issue, or challenge you would like to help someone in that target audience solve? This is really at the heart of your core marketing message. Most people are consumed with their own problems and looking for solutions to address them. So when you can clearly articulate a problem your client is dealing with, they’ll listen because you may be able to provide a solution.

3. What is the ultimate outcome or result that you’d like to help your target market produce in solving their problem, issue, or challenge? People what to know what it is they’ll get from knowing or working with you. When you’re prepared to demonstrate that you’re focused on delivering an outcome they’d be interested in, they will pay attention and want to know more.

That’s it. Now take your answers and boil it down to one or two clear sentences that you can deliver enthusiastically and passionately. Communicate it in everything you do from a marketing perspective, both verbally and in writing.

Forget the catchy slogans. Create and start using your ultimate marketing message right now.

To Your Blogging Success,

First, however, let me recommend that you subscribe to their blog.  The authors that contribute to this site KNOW what they’re doing and give the best advice!  I know you will absolutely learn a lot about blogging, social media networking and navigating the ‘jungle’ as they refer to it (how true that is!).  And this applies to small business owners and network marketers alike!

So here’s a quick rundown on the 5 ways to make your blog posts outstanding…

#1: Create An Engaging Title

This is the most important element because if your title isn’t catching anyone’s attention, your content won’t be read!  Remember that most people tend to skim sites and when they’re visiting yours, what do you want to stand out?  What is the article about and how will they benefit from having that knowledge or reading the post?  Think of the ‘keywords’ here and what will draw their attention.

#2: Offer Easy to Consume Content

Adjust Your Writing Style

This is an area most people struggle with, in my opinion.  We were taught in school to be grammatically and punctually correct but that can translate into b-o-r-i-n-g when you’re reading it online.  I still struggle with this big-time when it comes to blogging.

In my “corporate life”, I wrote a lot of promotional and sales ad copy and it usually had to be very ‘professional’.  That was simply the expectation.  Funny, now when I look through my old portfolio I cringe.

The point is… that there’s a difference when it comes to blogging versus other kinds of writing like articles and press releases…  and you have to remember that!  When you’re blogging, you should be more casual and relaxed in your style, as though you’re having a conversation with the reader.  But you also don’t want to forget to provide structure — in a conversation, the other person can hear your inflection and see your expression so you have to try and mimic that.

Use Subheadings

When you shift or change your direction, emphasize that with a Subheading.  Let your reader know that you’re shifting to another subject or point to be made (and you can do this with bullet points or numbers when you’re listings things, like I’ve done here!).

This will help your reader follow your line of thinking better.

#3: Mix Up The Content Types

Think about how you’re delivering the type of the content that you are sharing in your post.

Are you simply writing at someone or engaging them?  How creative can you become to engage your readers more?

The five ways SocialMediaExaminer.com recommends are:

• Offering your opinion
• Using multimedia
• Linking to your research
• Providing practical examples
• Taking out the trash (take out anything that doesn’t enhance or add to the post)

#4: Is Search Engine Optimized

This is an area that takes time to learn but as long as you have a ‘fundamental’ understanding of the few basic points they explain, you’ll be off to a great start!

#5: Encourages Interaction and Action

Don’t forget to ask for comments and let your readers know what they should do next!  After all, that’s part of the blogging process — interacting with others and sharing the knowledge!

It’s so easy to get overwhelmed when you’re learning something new, like blogging, and what I like most about this quick post is that it gets to the point, has valuable tips and simplifies how to blog effectively.

I’m sharing this here, on my blog, because I think it’s one of those resources that will be timeless and if I simply ‘share it’ by Liking it on Facebook or Tweeting it on Twitter — it will easily get lost in all the social media chatter.  This is something that should be read by all new bloggers and those that are looking to step up their game in this arena.

So read the article and feel free to leave your comments here if you want to ADD your own nuggets of advice that you’ve learned along your way!

To Your Blogging Success,