Increase Traffic With Basic Techniques
If you have been involved in any type of internet business chances are that you’re aware of how much time, money and effort that you have to devote to increase traffic to your website.
Optimizing your website can sometimes seem overwhelming, technical and complicated. But here are some basic techniques to help you get started…
- Know your target visitors.
You need to figure out what search phrases your potential customers use so they can find your site. Think of some ideas that your visitors will type about your website. The rule of the thumb is to optimize your pages with the best keywords. Your keyword should be direct enough so your visitor can immediately find your site.
- Pay close to your title tags.
The title tag is very important since search engines look for title text when they are going to the index page. For those who don’t know, a title tag describes a particular page of your site. They are actually HTML tags that contains text. When you use a title tag, make sure that it accurately describes the content of your page. For instance, if the content on your page is about how to write headlines, then the title tag should contain the words “write headlines”. Always place your keywords in the title tag. This way any topic related to your page will be easier to find.
- Analyze your keywords.
You can use a good keyword analyzer tool. One of the most popular is Google’s Keyword Selection Tool at: https://adwords.google.com/select/KeywordToolExternal.
- Consider your keyword density.
This is one way to optimize your webpage. As a rule of thumb, keyword phrases should appear at a density rate of between 3% - 7% in the content on your page. Testing will determine the optimum density for your pages.
- Place your keyword in your page headline.
When search engines scan your site they rate the text in your headline. So when you are creating the content for your site you should always place your main keyword in your page headline.
These are some very basic ways that you can optimize your website. If you follow them then you will see your sites search engine rankings improve steadily over time. As always, you need to test and tweak every change you make to your site to determine the effectiveness of these changes.
If you consistently apply the basics to increase traffic you will be well on your way to generating a good flow of free traffic to your site from the search engines.
How’s Your Attitude?
So many people are living with difficult circumstances these days, but even in tough times life can be be easier if you check your attitude. Following is an article by an unknown author that makes the point.
A little boy was overheard talking to himself as he strutted through the backyard, wearing his baseball cap and toting a ball and bat. “I’m the greatest hitter in the world,” he announced. Then he tossed the ball into the air, swung at it, and missed. “Strike One!” he yelled. Undaunted, he 
picked up the ball and said again, “I’m the greatest hitter in the world!” He tossed the ball into the air. When it came down he swung again and missed. “Strike Two!” he cried.
The boy then paused a moment to examine his bat and ball carefully. He spit on his hands and rubbed them together. He straightened his cap and said once more, “I’m the greatest hitter in the world!” Again he tossed the ball up in the air and swung at it. He missed. “Strike Three! Wow!” he exclaimed. “I’m the greatest pitcher in the world!”
Your attitude determines how circumstances impact your life. The little boy’s circumstances hadn’t changed, but his optimistic attitude prompted him to give an encouraging meaning to what had happened.
What difficult time are you going through right now? Can you do something to change it? If you can, don’t wait another day, make the needed changes. If you can’t change the circumstance, however, change your attitude, you’ll discover that circumstances won’t have the last word.
Keys To Personal Effectiveness
Michael Angier has a reputation for providing quality information to small businesses on a variety of topics. He is offering a free ebook called the “10 Essential Keys to Personal Effectiveness.” You can download it for free at http://successnet.org/land3.htm. He also offers a link to download a free 118 page book of quotations at http://SNIfiles.com/pdf/snquotes.pdf. Both books are beneficial.
They would like you to join their mailing list to have access to their resources, but I believe the type of information provided is worth joining their list. These guys really know their stuff and they’ve become one of the most trusted resources for small business owners on the web. They offer numerous other articles and resources for a fee and of course will encourage you to purchase their products and services. I am not an affiliate, receive nothing if you purchase anything, but this is a good resource for you to be aware of.
List Building With Post Cards
Everyone seems to be talking about the importance of building a list. If you Google list building you will find millions of sites, most of which offer advice on how to build a list on the Internet. Some of those Internet techniques are much more effective than others, but few offer advice on list building with post cards.
Direct mail marketing is a proven medium with a long history behind it. Marketers have been using direct mail for decades, simply because it works. Of course in recent years most home based businesses have started replacing direct mail with emails and Internet ads. The Internet is much less expensive and has the benefit of more rapid response. Personally, however, I believe it’s a mistake to totally eliminate direct mail.
Postcards are a great way to generate fairly quick leads for any home based business. Since space is limited with a post card you need to remember to telegraph your message with a clear benefit headline, a strong and tangible offer, lean copy, a guarantee, a bold call to action and referrals (a lot to get into a limited space). If you have not been using direct mail, test it, you may be very surprised at the results. Of course there are techniques to direct mail (post cards or letters) that will improve their effectiveness. A great source of information explaining effective techniques is “The Ultimate Sales Letter” by Dan Kennedy available at Amazon, or most bookstores.
Google Voice To Be Available Soon
One of the people I try to follow from time to time is a Stompernet staff member by the name of Paul Colligan. He puts out some great information at his blog as well as in articles he writes for “The Net Effect”, a Stompernet monthly magazine. Anyway, on his blog today (Click Here for Paul’s blog) he posted information on Google Voice which I had absolutely no idea was to soon become available.
Google Voice is expected to be released in a matter of weeks and there will be way more people that want access than Google will be able to provide for. Therefore, I would suggest you do as I have done and take Paul’s advice by going to http://www.google.com/voice and putting your name on their waiting list.
Rather than me trying to explain all the many features and benefits of Google Voice, I would suggest you simply click on the above link and check out what Google has already posted to explain their service. They even have a short video explanation of the features at their site. This is a free service and something you will most definitely want to have access to if at all possible.
Writing Headlines That Sell
Following are some tips for writing headlines that sell by Dean Rieck, a direct marketing copywriter.
You can write a headline in an infinite number of ways. However, certain types of headlines have proven themselves repeatedly for many years. By following the “formula” of these headlines, you can give yourself an edge when you are serious about persuading someone to read and respond to your copy.
The following 9 headline formulas are some of the easiest to write and the most powerful. When it comes time to write a headline, try one of these first. At the very least, this can give you a creative jumping off point to write a headline that works.
1. Say it simply and directly.
The direct headline should be used far more often than it is. No cleverness. No jokes. No wordplay. The direct headline gets right to the point. It works particularly well with strong offers, recognized brand names, and product or service types with which the reader is familiar.
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2. State the big benefit.
One of the first techniques you should always explore is transforming your major benefit into a headline. After all, your number one selling point should be up front. It stands the best chance of selecting the right audience and preparing them to respond. Plus, if they read nothing else, they have at least seen the best selling point you have to offer. If you have trouble writing this kind of headline, it’s a sure sign you need to think a bit more about your product or service.
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3. Announce exciting news.
People read newspapers and magazines because they love news. It’s just basic human nature. We’re curious. We not only want to know, we need to know. Casting your headline in a way that suggests news, rather than advertising, can have the same powerful appeal of a feature story in the morning paper. An important note: the product or service doesn’t necessarily have to be newly created to qualify as news. It merely has to be news to your reader.
* At Last, American Scientists Have Created the Perfect Alternative to a Mined Diamond!
* Introducing the newest idea in cross-training. From NordicTrack.
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4. Appeal to the “how-to” instinct.
The how-to headline appeals to the need most of us have to improve ourselves or our lives in some way. The secret here is to focus on a need or want and promise to fulfill that need or want. Be careful, though. The how-to must highlight the benefit or final result, not the process itself. Look at this example:
* How to make money working from home with your PC.
Suppose instead it read, “How to start a full-time computer business in your home.” This misses the point, doesn’t it? It sounds like a lot of work. It says nothing about the real motivator, which is using a computer you already own to make money easily. To write a how-to headline, begin with the words “How to” or “How” then immediately fill in the benefit.
* How to stop smoking in 30 days … or your money back.
* How You Can Profit From the 3 Greatest Service Businesses of the Decade!
* How to do Central America on $17 a day.
5. Pose a provocative question.
Asking a question directly involves your reader. However, your question cannot be random or clever. It must relate directly and clearly to the major benefit of the product. It must also prod the reader to answer “yes” or at least “I’m not sure, but I want to know more.”
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6. Bark a command.
Sales copy often falls flat because it fails to tell the reader what to do. This headline type allows you to be direct, provide a benefit, and take a commanding posture simultaneously. It’s not conversational, it’s dictatorial — but in an acceptable way that readers have come to expect in clear writing.
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7. Offer useful information.
Let me clue you in on a little secret. Most people don’t want information. I know you’ve always been taught otherwise, but it’s true. People are drowning in facts. What people really want is a sense of order and predictability in their lives. We want to feel a sense of power over our world. Therefore, we seek out the secrets, tips, hints, laws, rules, and systems that promise to help us gain control and make sense of things. Notice how these headlines promise information that does just this.
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8. Relay an honest, enthusiastic testimonial.
A testimonial headline can do two things for you. First, it presents your reader with a third party endorsement of your product or service. Second, it capitalizes on the fact that people like to know what other people say.
* “Quite simply, the finest design software ever released.”
* “This diet program worked for me. It can work for you, too!”
* “It’s the first book on personal finance that really made sense to me.”
A variation of this strategy is to write a headline in the first person and put quotation marks around it. This “virtual testimonial” gives you a more interesting headline and improves readership.
9. Authenticate your proposition with a little something extra.
People distrust sales copy. And for good reason. A lot of it proves inaccurate or downright dishonest. To cut through this distrust, you can add a little something extra to your headline that seems out of place, yet rings true. Look at the following headlines and notice how the words “Ohio man,” “Obsolete,” and “Frustrated bartender” stand out. Their specificity or quirkiness adds a truthful aura that traditional copy could never achieve.
* Ohio man has 21-year tested formula to create multimillion dollar business from scratch, without bank loans, venture capitalists or selling stock.
* Small Company’s New Golf Ball Flies Too Far; Could Obsolete Many Golf Courses.
* Frustrated bartender develops incredible device to clean and disinfect your entire home…
There are many, many other ways to write a headline. Whatever strategy you choose, don’t make a decision too quickly. Take time to brainstorm. Write dozens or even hundreds of headlines. You never know exactly what you want to say before you say it, so giving yourself plenty of choices is the surest way to arrive at the best, most powerful headline.
About the Author: Dean Rieck is a leading direct marketing copywriter. For more copywriting and selling tips, sign up for Dean’s free direct response newsletter or visit the Direct Creative Blog.
How To Increase Squeeze Page Conversions
There are three major ways in which you can increase Squeeze Page conversions. All Squeeze Pages created by professionals usually include these three elements and a few others.
The first way in which you can increase your conversion rate is through personalization. This is usually done in two ways: the first way is by providing a photo of yourself. The second way is by adding your signature to the bottom of your Squeeze Page. This radically increases visitors’ trust. Most people who resist buying products online do so because they’re weary of getting scammed by a faceless liar, who wont be around when they need help or when they need to return the product.
Tip: By adding your picture and signature, you can significantly increase a gain in your visitors’ trust. . .
Another way in which you can increase your Squeeze Page conversion rate is by using black text on a white layout. Regardless of what anyone tells you, this is one of the easiest ways in which to make your page look professional, rather than pathetic or desperate.
The third way in which you can gain trust is by offering something for free. This is generally what you will do if you’re using a squeeze page to generate leads: you’ll offer a free report or an online course – and then use that to generate leads, which you will later up-sell or generate revenue from via affiliate sales. Why is this technique so effective? Quite simply because it allows people to judge your work and ideas before they actually have to pay for them. Additionally, it builds trust.
In addition to these three general ways in which to increase your conversion rate, you should always guarantee a product. If you sell through Click Bank, you actually wont have a choice. But if you’re using Paypal or some other check out (Credit Card processing) program, you will want to make sure you clearly state that customers can return your product for any reason within a given period of time after the purchase.
Follow all of these steps and you will significantly increase your Squeeze Page conversion rate.
For a free templates to create squeeze pages Click Here. For a complete marketing system including a library of pre-created squeeze pages, sales pages and templates to design your own Click Here.
Dan Kennedy’s Ten “Million Dollar” Secrets
Dan Kennedy is offering Ten “Million Dollar” Secrets that will transform ANY business into one that can generate exceptional results.
People are always asking Dan, “how do you do it? How is it that everything you and your private clients touch turns to gold?” Dan admits that he has had both tremendous successes and also huge failures, but when he looked back over his career he found that in his own business and those of his top clients there were ten “must do” strategies. Ten strategies that separate the outrageously successful from the businesses that simply “gets by”, or even worse, fails miserably.
Well, Dan has decided to make these ten secrets available to everyone at a price that anyone should be able to afford. If you are one of the first 297 to order, it’s yours for only two monthly payments of $49.97. Otherwise for $197.00 you can learn from the millionaire maker himself what every business must do to be exceptional. Further, he is including his 100% “No Weasel Clause” Guarantee. If after listening to these CDs you do not find ways to MULTIPLY your income and TRANSFORM your business you can receive a full refund upon request…no questions asked.
When you stop learning …you stop earning. Take advantage of this great opportunity to learn more by visiting the Ten “Million Dollar” Secrets.
Smart Resource Allocation
From a marketing standpoint, a great deal of time and money is often wasted hitting targets that don’t matter. Smart resource allocation can transform a business, or sales career almost overnight. After all, you have a finite number of dollars and hours. You must use them wisely. 
In marketing, DISCRIMINATE is a good word. You must discriminate. This means excluding the majority of people and delivering your marketing message(s) to a carefully selected minority; High Probability Prospects.
Let’s take a very basic example offered by Dan Kennedy: assume you sell landscaping services, waterfalls and fish ponds, ornamental plants. You transform ordinary backyards into beautiful gardens. And you want to sell your services in the neighborhood where I live. The “sloppiest” thing you could do would be run around and put an advertising door hangar on every doorknob. It’s cheap, but still wasteful.
The smart thing would be, first, to separate the homeowners from the renters. Then break out the homeowners by value or income, possibly by subscription to “home” type magazines. Then direct all your resources at these precisely chosen, ideal prospects. It’s more work, but much more effective than the shotgun approach where you try to hit everyone.
Squeeze Page Creation Software
I was looking for an ebook about creating squeeze pages today and happened to come across a squeeze page creation software package. I played with it for a while and found that, although it produces a very basic squeeze page, it’s easy to use and can be placed into an HTML editor to expand it if desired.
Since I have the right to sell, or give it away, I have chosen to give it away to anyone who would like it. If you would like a copy of this software package that provides templates that allow you to create basic squeeze pages, simply click here to go to the download page. The downloaded zip file says “ebook” because it was the easiest way for me to provide it for you. However, once unziped you will see that it’s an executable software package.
Enjoy!
