Marketing Tips
for Steady, Long-Term Traffic & Sales
(c) Copyright 2003, Angela Wu
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Marketing an internet business requires consistent effort
to be effective. "Consumable" advertising is that which
needs to be constantly repeated, such as placing newsletter
ads. While this type of advertising plays a role in your
overall marketing plan, there are other methods which can
yield a steady flow of traffic and sales over time, even
if you were to take a break from your marketing efforts.
These include:
1) Write articles and make them available for publication.
Newsletter editors and website publishers are always
looking for quality content. Offer the content in
exchange for an author byline and a link back to your
website. Over time, links to your site can be found
all over the web.
2) Optimize your site for the search engines.
Although it takes time to learn how to properly
optimize your site, once you have a good position
for your key phrases, you'll get a continuous stream
of visitors. Combine your optimization efforts with
some great content and lots of incoming links and
you'll have a site that will remain popular -- both
with your visitors and with the search engines. A
good source of information on search engines is the
Make Your Site Sell manual:
http://onlinebusinessbasics.com/myss.html
3) Links, links, and more links.
Links will help the search engines find you while also
making it more likely for other visitors to come across
your website while surfing. There are lots of ways to
encourage links to your site, including:
* Build a quality reciprocal link directory with hand-
picked sites that are relevant to your audience. This
can encourage repeat visits from people who find your
directory a valuable and time-saving resource.
* Make it easy for other sites to link to you. Provide
a text link and/or graphics.
* Send out articles (see point #1) and get a link back
to your site.
* Get your product or service reviewed.
A convenient (and free) piece of software that can help
you find potential link partners is WebFerret:
http://www.ferretsoft.com/
4) Offer quality free content or giveaways.
Great content is an excellent way to build exposure
for your business. It offers visitors a reason to
return, plus it gives other sites a reason to link
to you. And the search engines always love popular
sites.
Giveaways are great, too -- a useful worksheet, an
eBook of funny or inspirational stories, a helpful
piece of software. Display your website URL prominently
on your giveaway, and allow others to pass it on. You'll
"brand" your site URL plus have people coming back for a
visit.
5) Go offline - put your car to work.
Think about how much time you spend in your car. You
drive around, get stuck in traffic, park at the mall.
What better way to passively promote your business than
displaying your URL on your car? You can probably find
a local company willing to do this for you... or order
a convenient static-cling decal online:
http://onlinebusinessbasics.com/decal.html
6) Build your own list.
Offer your visitors something of value in exchange for
their email address: a content-rich newsletter, an
inspirational quote of the day, a daily 'newsfeed' with
links to the latest headlines in your line of business...
whatever your visitors find valuable.
Establish your business as the source for expert and
trusted information. Your goal is to have your business
in the forefront of a customer's mind when he or she is
ready to make a purchase.
Having your own list also opens you up to other
opportunities, including special promotions you can
offer directly to subscribers, and joint ventures with
other businesses.
7) Get some publicity.
Having your URL published in a newspaper or magazine
can give your site a big boost in traffic -- and because
people often keep old magazines, or share them with
friends, it's not just a "one-time" thing. An excellent
site to learn about press releases is
http://www.prprofits.com/ .
While there are many ways to market an online business,
the beauty of the methods above -- and others like them --
is that they'll continue to build over the long-term.
They're a great way to help you progress towards the
continued success of your business.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Angela is the editor of Online Business Basics, a practical
guide to marketing a business on a beginner's budget. This
guide offers loads of instantly useable tips and links, in
a down-to-earth style that even marketing "newbies" can
understand! A helpful Online Business Dictionary is included
too... visit: http://onlinebusinessbasics.com/article.html
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