Online Marketing for Local Business
Posts tagged article directory
Create Traffic to Your Site with Content Distribution
12 years
by jhaynes
in Uncategorized
Content distribution can be a very effective way to reach out to your readers without sitting back and waiting for them to discover your article or your website on their own.
Free, interesting, applicable and cup-to-date web content is what most people online are searching for. So you must offer it to your targeted readers, to let them know that you’ve created something that can help address their needs and challenges.
You have to take proactive steps if you want to enhance and maximize the online popularity and visibility of your web content writing. What you publish online might contain great insight and valuable information – created by you at a cost, whether financial or in opportunity costs -, but if you do nothing to expose them, it will be buried in the sea of information. And it won’t be able to deliver what you truly want, more web traffic.
Here are some of the ways to generate traffic through content distribution:
1. Know what your target audience wants.
Knowing what your potential clients want is an effective way of doing what can serve them best. It can help you to formulate the best topics to discuss about.
You will know what your readers want to know by asking them. The best venues for asking include niche forums and your blog. Read current postings in forums about your subject; this will give you an idea what your prospects want to know. You should also encourage your readers to comment on your blog posts. It can help you to give them what they want.
2. Deliver what your readers want.
Once you have an idea of a topic that your readers want, it is time to research and assemble the content. Give them what they want. If it involves procedures, pros and cons, benefits, or whatever, do your best to deliver it to them. Your readers will surely come back to you for more – and that’s captured traffic, isn’t it?
3. Write quality articles and submit them to article directories.
Article marketing is one of the most effective ways to get traffic and quality backlinks to your site. You can do this by writing quality articles and submitting them to article sites such as EzineArticles, Article Base and GoArticles. Article directories allow you to include a resource box that contains your bio and links to your website or landing page. These links serve as leads that will bring traffic from article sites to your own website.
This is where a freelance writer or team can be of the most help. They can help you conduct the research and craft the message mentioned above of course, but if cannot or don’t want to take the time to write quality web articles, press releases or social media messages, get a professional to help! I’ve seen plenty of companies out there (you probably have too) who certainly did NOT put their best foot forward when reading their material. Make sure your content represents your company in the way you would truly like it to, and publish high-quality content.
4. Stay in touch with your prospects.
The best way to know the needs of your prospects is to get in touch with them through blogs and niche forums. Do a quick research in Google to identify the most popular forums and blogs about your subject matter. Visit these daily to get an idea what topics are “in.” Participate in the discussions and show your knowledge about the topic. This can help to build your reputation in that community. It also helps to give you plenty of writing ideas for your articles.
5. Post your article in social networking sites.
Social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter are fast gaining popularity as a great place to get traffic from. By posting useful information about your niche on these sites, you will be able to include links that will lead people to your articles. This will help to promote your content. Other members who find it useful will also share it with their friends and other members of the community.
5 Tips to Attract New Readers to Your Articles
13 years
by jhaynes
in Uncategorized
Attracting a new set of readers to your articles or other web content isn’t always an easy task.
Of course, you’re always looking to grow the size of your audience, but it can be tricky hard to pinpoint exactly what makes one article more interesting/exciting/entertaining than the next one.
Increasing the reach of your article writing requires a balance of focus on not only the quality of your content, but also your ability to promote articles after publication. And every step in the process is important, but today’s focus is on the first basic requirement – writing good content. Here are five steps you can use to create a good article:
1. Tell a Story – Create a central theme or hook for each of your articles. Craft a story that your audience can relate or connect to versus just plainly stating facts with little narrative. How you choose to present information to your audience can make a big difference. A well-written story will attract and influence more readers.
2. Speak to One Person – Write your article as if you are communicating directly to a single reader. Try to use “you” instead of “they”, “he”, “she”, etc. This creates a perception with the reader that you are speaking directly to them and not to just anyone out in cyberspace. And if it’s your first impression with a reader, it’s a great way to start building a future relationship with them.
3. Provide Original Information – Even though a portion of your information or data will undoubtedly come from other sources, present your story in a fresh and original way. Always put your own personal, unique insights and spin into everything that you write. Your originality is what will ultimately set you apart from other authors.
4. Draw Inspiration – Use business or personal experiences in your everyday life for your writing inspiration. Live in your niche, and try to write the ideas that come to you during personal experiences down right when they pop into your head. Then you’ll have them ready when it’s time to write.
5. Be Creative – Even if you discuss or share information on the same basic topic(s), tell a new story with every article you write. Get creative and break the mold. The more you incorporate your creativity into your articles, the more likely you’ll start to gain a wider and more engaged audience.
And remember, quality still matters, and having an original, interesting article is just one part of the equation. Your article needs to be built soundly with proper grammar and punctuation too.
Keep these quick tips in mind to attract new readers while writing your next set of quality, original articles or other web content.
More On The Future Of Web Content
13 years
by jhaynes
in Uncategorized
Building upon our last post, I wanted to further expand the conversation re: the future of web content and the trends that will get us there.
I recently read that there will be 30 Billion smart devices in the year 2030. Yes, Billion with a “B”. This is a staggering number, which equates to an average of 7 devices per person. By then we will be living in what I (and others) have called the Age of Ubiquitous Internet – a time when individuals are constantly “plugged in” to the web via one device or another, no matter the situation, usually via multiple ones.
In fact, this is already becoming a reality for many. With iPads and other tablet computers, smart phones, Internet TV and gaming systems, and of course home computers and laptops, etc. there are lots of individuals who spend the vast majority of their day online. Ubiquitous Internet takes it one step further. Imagine an entire platform devices interconnected, all with access to the same data. At this stage, all data will be available to you in the “cloud”, making for seamless transition between one device and another. The cloud makes this all possible, since you don’t need much (or any) computing power within the device itself, other than some basic processor and memory to keep the device powered and connected, though stand-alone memory will probably still be an option.
The cloud will contain all the computing power that you will ever need, allowing devices to shrink even further in size. Think of having a large monitor on your desktop, with nothing else but the keyboard and mouse. Backup of your data and files will be automatic.
What does web content look like in this world? Probably different than it does now, though exactly how remains to be seen. One thing is sure – your website must be able to connect to all sorts of devices, with different functionality, sizes and operating systems. The content you share will almost exclusively be interactive and multi-media, much more so than now. Static content will be a thing of the past, replaced by personalized content, directed just at you. Updates to devices that relate to your current environment will be instantaneous. Use imagination again, and think of having all your preferences stored within your mobile devices. When walking down an aisle, a small device attached to the shelf automatically prints a coupon based on your previous purchase history, or shares relevant information that might help you make your purchase decision.
The vast majority of content in this world will probably be concise, allowing for the limitations of smaller screens and displays. Long form information or data would probably be available on an on-demand basis only, meaning that many of today’s websites will change, some drastically. This will actually increase the need for content creators as well, since as any professional writer will tell you – the shorter the piece, the better the content must be written, since every single word takes on added significance. And the fact that content will be individual or group specific will only increase the overall volume of content that must be produced, even when taking into account the shorter it will be. Which once again makes me happy in my chosen profession!
All of this means that business owners and marketers must be even more flexible and well versed in current trends and best practices.
What are your thoughts on the future of web content and the Internet itself?