Friday, July 13, 2012

Backlinks - 3 Dozen Ways to Get Them - For Beginners and Pros Alike

In this post, we'll bring some understanding regarding backlinks and provide lots of great ways to establish them (many of which are FREE).

Understanding Backlinks

By definition, backlinks are simply links from other sites that direct people back to your website. Sounds fairly straight-forward, right? Well, not all backlinks are created equal. I'll explain what I mean, but first let's look at how they came into being so we REALLY understand their purpose for business.

It all started with the inventors of Google and a concept called page ranking; these were really smart guys, one of which was Larry Page (very appropro last name, don't ya think?). In March of 1996, they came up with a way to grab information on the web then use statistical formulas or algorithms to measure the popularity of a website in order to assign it a ranking score.

In this magic formula of winning the popularity contest, both quantity AND quality matter. In other words, the number of links pointing to your site is important. But, also links coming from high-ranked sites to yours is like striking gold for increasing your traffic because of how the search engines notice your site AND give it the thumbs-up. Let me explain.

Pages are ranked with a score from 0 to 10. Sites such as Google and Yahoo are 10s, of course. Sites like Ezines and HubPages are ranked around 5. Most blog sites rank, on average, between 1 and 3. Sites that have higher page rank are deemed as more important and credible to the "webcrawlers." So, you see, getting some "breadcrumbs" sprinkled to your site from one of the big enchiladas is a very good thing - appetizing for search engines (very smart but very picky eaters). At the end of the day, lots of high quality backlinks to your site increases your availability or easy access on the web, thus SEO (search engine optimization).

Some Great Ways To Build Backlinks

1. You can buy links from places like TextLinkAds.com

2. Make a few freebies available and call-to-action that takes them to your site.

3. Provide a short multiple-choice quiz (keep it to 1 or 2 questions).

4. Get a Twitter account with your websites listed there; very important to design a background different from the standard ones Twitter provides.

5. Use methods of automating your Twitter, like Twibs, TweetDeck and HootSuite.

6. Start a debate with someone on Twitter who has thousands of followers - be very careful to remain polite and professional throughout the process.

7. Get your business on Google Places.

8. Reveal the top-ten blogs of the week on your site.

9. Provide a huge list of resources.

10. Place classified ads - two free sites are Craigslist and BackPage.com.

11. Submit your blogs and articles to directories.

12. Write reviews on services, products, large companies and well-known people.

13. Retweet content that belongs to experts in your niche..

14. Send website owners compliments or testimonials (be genuine).

15. Do reviews regarding your niche on Amazon.

16. Link your sites to each other (also direct with or without the www in your URL and vice versa).

17. Get your own YouTube channel and post your videos there with descriptions.

18. Post your videos on sites like MetaCafe, DailyMotion, Vimeo and Viddler.

19. Add content to you blog on a regular basis (at least twice a week).

20. Create a Fanpage on Facebook separate from your personal profile (very important).

21. Post helpful comments on other people's Fanpages and blogs.

22. Write a newsletter that goes out on a regular basis.

23. Write very inexpensive eBooks about your niche and promote them on Amazon.

24. There are freelance websites where you can hire people to LIKE, DIGG, BOOKMARK or COMMENT on your stuff.

25. Make audio versions of your blogs and articles. Then post the podcasts on iTunes and also podcast directories.

26. Put your profile with all your links on sites like VisibleMe.com and LookUpPage.com

27. Ask people to bookmark your blog on their social media platform.

28. Make use of the various WordPress widgets and plugins on your blog site.

29. Go to Zimbio.com to register your blog and post your videos and articles.

30. Offer to be a guest blogger on other sites; it gives them good content and gives you backlinks.

31. Use RSS feeds on all your content.

32. Begin interaction with top gurus in your niche; eventually they may make comments on your content which can be golden for increasing your page ranking.

33. Become an active member of Yahoo Answers where you can give solutions to questions within your niche.

34. Become a member of The Backlinks Forum and make sure to put a link to your websites within your signature.

35. Be sure all your websites are listed in your profile for your social media sites, blog sites and forums.

36. Use syndicated news releases - VERY pricy though. That's why I put this one at the very end of the list.

I hope you found this helpful. Happy backlinking to you!!

Get Maximum Exposure With Corporate Video Production

Today every business is looking forward to making its website interesting and eye-catching. To achieve this purpose they are adding animated videos to it. These videos are also known as corporate videos. They are made to popularize a product and introduce viewers to the company.

A corporate video production simplifies communication with viewers, who wants everything delivered to them at the click of a mouse. Such videos can be made with real as well as artificial characters. Videos made with artificial characters have several advantages associated with them. To make animated video with artificial characters following points are to be considered:

The characters must be chosen considering the target audience: To choose a character it is important to determine the target audience in the first place. It's the target audience only which gives a clue about the kind of character that would suit the video. For instance, a video for body building supplement would look more appealing with the characters of human beings than of animals.

The characters must have particular traits: The characters must have a trait to attract and hold the attention of viewers for long. A character having a trait gives a feeling of something away from the league which makes viewers glued to them. This also makes them curious to know what is happening next with the character with every passing scene.

The characters must create an image into the minds of viewers: Characters must be able to create an image of business into the minds of viewers. This is required in order to let viewers identify the business with the character.

The characters must be sewed in a story: This means that the characters must be made to sit fittingly into a story. In other words, they should be made to act as actors in a story. This is done to give a wholesome effect to video.

The characters must be able to give a viral effect to the video: The characters used in a video must be able to generate special emotions in viewers. Such emotions could be of any feeling, such as that of sadness, happiness and excitement etc. This is done to let viewers share the video with more and more people. By uploading videos with such characters on networking sites, traffic to them can be increased.

Since a corporate video production can enhance the image of a business, it is important to get it done by experts.



This news article is brought to you by ELECTRICAL - where latest news are our top priority.

Ninja Marketing Tips - How Dare You Leave a Negative Review?

Business owners never make mistakes. Customer service is always stellar and the employees are the best in the whole world. Yep, and I have some beach front property here in Arizona for sale!

Businesses, for the most part, diligently work to provide the best customer service experience possible. Notice I said "for the most part". Some days, no matter how good your intentions are, customers may have a less than pleasant experience. Maybe you just got off the phone with a supplier telling you the shipment you were promised for an urgent job today won't be in for another week. Maybe half your staff called in sick so you're stuck answering the phones, scheduling appointments, ordering supplies, and keeping the jobs running. So when a customer calls with their "frivolous" complaint, you sound less than sympathetic.

Today's customers are empowered by the Internet. A satisfied customer will tell a few people about their positive interaction with your business. An unhappy customer, on the other hand, will tell everybody they know, plus they will Facebook it, tweet it, post a video on YouTube and find every reviews site they can to tell the world your business sucks. How you handle that negative review is critical to your reputation, both online and off.

The first step in the process is establishing a company policy for negative reviews. Will you answer them or ignore them? (I always recommend answering them.) Who is responsible for monitoring review sites? Who's responsible for responding to customer reviews, good or bad?

Here are five steps you can take to help negate the impact of the poor review:

1. Keep an Online Vigil - You have no chance of turning a negative situation into a positive if you don't know it's there. If someone posts a bad review on your Facebook page and you don't see it for a month, it's too late. Use monitoring tools like Google alerts, Nutshell Mail or Social Mention.

2. Engage Brain Before Opening Mouth - Remember, your customer is emotional. They feel they've been wronged or cheated so it's up to you to soothe those emotions. The last thing you want is to respond with emotion. That's a guaranteed grease fire waiting to happen.

3. Just The Facts M'aam - Read their review carefully, looking for the facts hidden behind the emotions. Who did they deal with? What are the specifics of their complaint? Talk to your employee that dealt with the customer. Remember, they will be responding with emotion as well so don't make it an inquisition. Step outside your owner/manager body and try to see the situation from the customers perspective.

4. Carefully Craft Your Response - Be apologetic and sincere in your answer. Defending your company's actions will only fuel their arguments. Have someone else read over your response to make sure the tone is what it should be. Does it sound condescending or sincere? Does it sound like you're calling them an idiot?

If possible, offer them a discount or some other concessions. Offer to discuss their issues off line and give them phone number where they can reach you (or someone in authority) easily. The last thing you want is for them to call and they get put on hold, get shuffled around the office or leave a message and don't get a prompt callback.

5. Overshadow The Negatives - Negative reviews are inevitable. And negative reviews don't hurt if you have enough positive reviews to offset it. In fact a negative review when mixed in with several positive reviews shows that your reviews are genuine. Be proactive and encourage your good customers to write reviews in places like Google+ Local, Facebook, Yelp and some of the other local customer review sites. Then when a prospective customer looks at the reviews, they will see that one negative among the dozens of positive reviews as a flake, "You know you can't please everyone".

Ultimately, there's going to be that one customer that you just can't satisfy (or shut up). Remember though, this conversation is not taking place behind closed doors. There are hundreds, potentially thousands, of prospective customers watching. And those are the ones you're after. When they see you trying your best to correct a bad experience, they feel reassured that, if they do business with you, you will bring the same level of customer satisfaction to them.

How do you handle those irate customer reviews?



This news article is brought to you by CLEANING-TIPS - where latest news are our top priority.

Thursday, July 12, 2012

7 Top Reasons Why You Should Become an Affiliate Marketer

1. Affiliate Marketing can work for anyone.

No matter your age, where you live or your background, you can become an affiliate. You simply need internet access and basic computer skills. You don't need to be a web development guru or an expert writer.

Most affiliates start on a level playing field, and learn by taking action. Many merchants who rely on affiliates for their marketing will provide advertising banners, emails and even articles you can use in your campaigns.

2. You have a wide choice of programs and products.

There are literally thousands of markets and people you can promote to. Each one has needs and wants, problems and desires. You just need to select one that appeals to you, and go to work.

Your biggest problem may be that there's too much choice, and you'll have trouble making a decision what to market. This doesn't mean you should just choose one product.

3. You're not tied to any one particular product.

Once you've selected a particular market - let's say weight loss, for example - you don't need to stick to just one product to promote.

Unlike most MLM business opportunities, you are able to choose a variety of products and services in your chosen niche. Within the weight loss niche, you could promote diet books, exercise programs, nutritionals and exercise equipment.

The key is to try several, and see which ones perform best for you.

4. It costs very little to get started.

You can get started with absolutely no investment, but that's likely not the best way to go. Every real business requires some initial monetary investment.

Start by investing in a domain name and web hosting. Domain names run about $10, and you can get web hosting for $10 per month. Set up a blog. This will be your sales and marketing hub, where you'll write articles, reviews and even videos.

Actually joining affiliate programs is free, and there are many ways to promote products for free.

5. All the 'grunt work' is done for you.

The merchant you are affiliated with handles all the delivery, payment processing and customer service for you. All your time is invested in the marketing and promotion aspect of your business.

6. You can set up several hubs.

There's no need to focus on just one topic or market. Once you have one up and running, and making you money, choose a second topic to focus on. All successful affiliate marketers promote a variety of products, to an array of markets. Not all will be equally successful, so setting up multiple hubs and marketing sites is just good business.

7. There is little or no risk involved.

By marketing someone else's products, you never need to spend time and money doing the thorough market research that's necessary in creating a product. That time consuming, expensive and risky job is done for you.

Where you will spend money is when you want to save time - placing paid advertising in addition to free, and outsourcing tasks that you don't like or feel you can't do well.

Affiliate marketing is a huge business, both online and off-line. It is here to stay, and there's a lot of money to be made. More and more people are turning to the internet to research products and buy, so why not take advantage of this growing trend and global marketplace?

What Does It Mean To "Buy Janitorial Leads"?

Janitorial companies who are just starting up might be new to the idea of generating commercial cleaning leads. So first, here is a quick summary of what lead generation does, why it's necessary, and how companies get it done.

  • Attracts interest - It draws the attention of companies who are interested in a janitorial service.
  • Determines their needs - Logically, they wouldn't be interested in a particular service if they didn't have a need for it.
  • It indicates opportunities - It gives a tangible and measurable form to your sales chances.
  • Gain insight on what to offer - Knowing the needs also implies that you'll know how to address them.
  • It's either outsourced or done in-house - The costs and requirements needed for even a decent campaign ranges from the necessary tools to the necessary starting information. Cost-efficiency and results usually affect the final decision between the two types.

Now with regards to the last item on the list, some companies make the mistake of assuming that leads can just simply be 'bought'. The truth is you don't buy leads in the same way you buy any other B2B product. You're actually buying an entire process.

You see, like you, generating leads is more of a service than a product. When people say they're 'selling leads', they might very well be just saying that they're selling contact data. And in case you've forgotten, those aren't always sufficient enough to be called qualified leads.

But then again, perhaps this is because so many sales personnel have varying differences on defining what a lead is. Perhaps even the above list doesn't necessarily reflect what they're looking for.

For now though, it's still very important to remember that leads are generated by a process. Below is the process in its entirety:

  • Contacting a prospect - Some people would prefer cold calling. Others would try email marketing. Either way, the point is just simply to check for interest and nothing more. It's now common knowledge that attempting sales from a random encounter is an increasingly ineffective (and irritating) model.
  • Qualifying them - If they've shown an interest and are willing to talk more, that starts the long qualification process. Needs are discussed. Problems regarding the cleanliness and maintenance of the work place are brought up. Ultimately, the goal is to direct a prospect to a sales representative (for example, they might set an appointment).
  • Presenting the qualified lead - Once the lead is qualified, information about them is relayed to sales and it's now up to them to pursue the opportunity.

Further details about the process might be specified by sales as well. But the fact is, they need to concern themselves with the process and not presume they can just focus on the results. They're not exclusive. If you want something is made in a certain way, you need to know the process of actually making it. In the case of janitorial service leads, you can't simply just say you want to 'buy' them. You'll have better luck trying to buy (and understand) the process which creates them.

Insights About the Future of Direct Selling Companies

Direct selling has been well-entrenched in global market for some time. The success of companies can even be described as phenomenal. Notwithstanding recent developments in the world economy, observers have a lot of observations about the future of direct sellers. These may well be the basis for people who consider joining the industry or entrepreneurs who dream of putting up their own enterprise.

It is widely believed that economic slumps can be good for this sector. In fact, becomes more lucrative as gifted individuals express their desires to become distributors. People all over the world have been looking for ways to earn as a result of the unemployment scare so the rise in the number of determined sellers will overshadow the drop in sales to create more proceeds.

For so long, has been a healthy business. The emergence of product sales via the internet or online shopping poses a big challenge to companies. So, these organizations are shifting strategies by putting in the element of face-to-face relationships in internet marketing and getting the younger generation involved since this is the age group that is so attached to online pursuits. The focus nowadays of direct sellers is to incorporate the online features to the concept of face-to-face marketing.

Another major issue is the effective management of well distributed organizations.

Dealers are self-employed and have very minimal direct contact with the companies whose products they circulate and sell. Training is not adequate so most of the time; the selling points of field distributors are very different from the company's point of view. Secondly, it is hard to keep people interested all the time. Thus, it is up to the company to come up with strategies that will energize potential customers. Moreover, faces almost the same challenges as big corporate organizations which have to contend with huge work forces.

Successful direct sellers usually knock on the doors of strong social networks such as those with religious or cultural orientation. These direct sales distributors normally depend on social networks that can provide them with a considerable client base. The future of is still very profitable.

There can even be a situation where the enterprise can grow twice the size that it is today. Consumers are now inclined to do their shopping through online methods, supermarkets and hypermarkets but given the employment of innovative techniques, direct selling companies can make headway in the years to come. By and large, the future of depends partly on the progress of network marketing. This is not a new approach anymore in the delivery of products and services to the marketplace. It has been existent for so many decades. The advantage of this concept is that there is no need for start-up time, no need for a business plan or manufacture any commodity. You only need to be obsessive about the product and sell this to the end user to make money.



This news article is brought to you by ATTRACTION - where latest news are our top priority.

Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Get High Returns On Your Investments Using Marketing Video

With commercial market filled with all kinds of products, every customer today, before purchasing a product, wants to know whether it would benefit him or not. He also wants to know whether he can trust the company of which product he is purchasing. Businesses also at the same time look forward to satisfy their customers on these points. Marketing videos are proving to be a boon for businesses in this regard. Technology has today made marketing videos turn from a boring, non interactive audio video presentation to hi-tech, interactive presentations. Neither are they same as they used to be a couple of years ago nor are they viewed in the same fashion or with the same age-old mentality.

A study by 'Eye View Digital', an online website, shows that using video on landing pages can increase conversion by 80%. This shows that marketing videos, in one or the other form, have today caught everyone's attention. And this is happening for all the good reasons. First and foremost, they are no longer there just to push a product on people; instead they are doing more than advertising a product. In other words, they are giving a wholesome experience to their viewers, not letting them feel the burden of getting informed through a commercial.

Businesses are exploiting the power of marketing videos to the best of their commercial advantage. Let's see some of the advantages associated with a marketing video:

1. They are easier to create.

2. They are accessible to one and all.

3. A marketing video of one or two minutes duration can convey the message of a full-fledged website.

4. They can be played both on and off-line.

5. They can be watched for fun as well.

6. By uploading them on networking sites such as Vimeo and YouTube etc., they can be made to go viral.

7. They can launch a product as soon as they are manufactured, thus saving enormous business hours of a company.

8. They simplify the movement of ideas.

9. They are quick to grab everyone's attention.

10. They can also give a demonstration of a product by showing its view from all the angles, plus an aerial view of a product can also be shown. For example, if a property is to be sold, showing its aerial view can really convince a costumer in going for it.

11. They target a specific set of audience.

12. They can animate a thing to the minutest detail, like a strand of hair can be shown with the number of split ends it has.

13. Being in the form of a story, they never make viewers hit the 'stop' button while they are watching them. Plus, according to 'Com Score', site visitors who view video stay two minutes longer on average on a website. This can further assist businesses in getting their messages stay longer in viewers mind.

Marketing videos have today made inroads in all the commercial sectors, be it education, entertainment, shopping or any activity for that matter. Being a mix of entertainment and infotainment they have made everyone fall in awe with them.