Search engine optimization - SEO, website traffic

If there is one problem with online business then that is the trouble getting traffic to website. Sometimes we do get the traffic but then it is rather unrelated or uninterested in the website. Getting traffic online is as important as development of a good website these days. Just developing a site is really not enough anymore as there is huge competition in almost all areas of interest.

Getting targeted traffic is the key to success online but how? Unfortunately there is no definite trick to get the traffic instantly, what works for site A might not work for site B.
Below are some of common ways used by developers around the world to boost the traffic.

Write an article for your website and submit it to top article directories like Ezinearticles or Goarticles etc. Then hope some of readers might like what you have written and respond in a positive manner. Writing an article is very common among developers as it can provide long term traffic and it is also free.

Participate in a forum, join any top rated forum and routinely visit their site and submit a post or add a comment related to the article. Try to be appropriate or you might get into trouble. Many webmasters are using this medium alone to generate huge amount of traffic for free.

Last but not the least try pay per click i.e. pay for the traffic. You can get good amount of targeted traffic through this medium but you need to be persistent as building traffic can take a while. There are many contenders in this like Google Adwords , MSN Adcenter or Yahoo Ad Network.

Success in internet marketing can be dependent on many factors. Are your traffic strategies right for your niche? Is the niche the right one in the first place? Do your keyword ads pull the right responses? Is your landing page compelling? Are your calls to action, well placed? There is so much to think about and when you are just beginning, the amount of available information is overwhelming. In fact, information overload is one of the main reasons that many people give up almost before they’ve started. Spend a few days researching online opportunities and in no time at all you will be swamped with information on everything from pay per click to autoresponders, Adwords to pop-ups, SEO to Adsense. It’s just too much.

However, those who persevere and actually start digging deeper into this pile of data will start to see a pattern emerging. There are some teaching products that come up time and time again. They are mentioned repeatedly and with respect by others. These products could be classed as the Guru products; the ones that have stood the test of time and stand up to real scrutiny.

There are genuinely some very high quality packages out there that offer authentic uo to date information and real advice that works.

It is important though to not become overwhelmed and try to learn everything at once. Choose an area of knowledge and focus on that till you are comfortable. Too many beginners in online marketing, make the mistake of thinking they have to learn everything straightaway. This is a big mistake.

The successful ones are the ones who take the time to concentrate on one particular area of their business, learn to do it as well as possible and then move on to the next area and so on. If you take this approach and begin shopping around for a training product that will help with your chosen starting point, you will start to see that the choice becomes much easier.

Once you have chosen a particular knowledge area that you want to master, you’ll find that there are probably only a handful of products to choose from and that makes the decision easier immediately. Let’s say you needed advice on pay per click, for example. Try to find a review site that compares and contrasts a few products and tells you which ones are right for your stage of development and your market.

Now you’ll find that the huge mountain of choice has come down to a much more manageable one or two. And all thanks to a little focus.

If you are running affiliate marketing campaigns at Pay-Per-Click search engines then you can benefit from these pay-per-click advertising tips for improving your campaigns. Almost every pay-per-click advertising campaign can become more profitable if you try the following tips.

Add Keywords to Boost Traffic

Add more keywords. Generate larger keyword lists using software such as Good Keywords which is free, or Keyword Elite if you can afford it.

Don’t go too broad with your keyword selection. Be sure to only add keyword phrases that will result in targeted visitors who might purchase the product you are promoting.

Always Split Test Your Ads

You are probably not the only affiliate who is bidding to show an ad for that affiliate product. One of the best ways to get your ad showing above the rest is to increase the click-through ratio of your ads. Remember, most advertising networks love ads with good click-through ratios.

The simplest way I know to improve your click-through ratio is to split test all of your ads. Always try at least two versions of each ad. Check the click-through rates for each version, keep only the best ad and then write a new one. Repeat this process again and again, improving your click-through ratio each time.

Use Multiple Advertising Networks

If you have a product that is converting profitably with one pay per click advertising network, try it at the other major advertising networks, including Google AdWords, MSN Adcenter, and Yahoo Sponsored Search.

Target Additional Countries

Maybe until now you have only targeted USA or North America. Once you have found a good product, try promoting the product to additional countries. United Kingdom and Australia are good options and you might also consider Europe and Asia.

I think most people are aware that where your ad appears in the newspaper can have a great effect on how your ad pulls customers. For example, if you are a CPA, you’ll want to be in the financial section. TV’s and Satellite dishes… the sports section. But where should your ad appear on the pages of that section?

You are usually at the mercy of the editor or layout person but if you are a consistent advertiser the newspaper may make an effort to help you position your ad for a greater return.

Best place to be is on the right-hand side of the page and above the fold. The worst place? The exact opposite. Left-hand side and below the fold.

As we move toward the 21st Century the buzzword seems to be the Internet. Well, just five years ago it was the fax. The fax was supposed to put the post office out of business. Obviously that didn’t happen. Now, email is supposed to eliminate the fax machine. That seems like a more realistic argument. But until that happens use your fax cover page to increase your advertising.

Your fax cover page is a great place to let customers and vendors know more about your business. Your cover page should contain: Company Name, Address, Phone Number, Fax Number, Email Address and of course, your web site address. At the bottom of the cover page include special information about sales, promotions, new services, special offers and any other information customers should know about your business.

Warning: Don’t fill the page so full of information that the fax information is lost. Keep it simple. The purpose is to make the recipient call, fax, email, or visit your web site. Give it a shot and see your call increase.

For most businesses there comes a time when you will receive some kind of quote or write up in the local paper. When that time comes try to purchase an ad in the same section of the paper containing all the information about your business that will not be included in the quote or article.

Include things like services offered and years in business. Store hours and phone and of course, don’t forget your web site address. People who see your quote see you as an expert in your field.

Your business reputation is further enhanced by the presence of your ad.

The most costly form of advertising is TV. Nothing else even comes close. So, how do you get your business on TV for free? Here’s one way.

Give a prize or become a sponsor of an event that will be running a lot of TV ads. For example: Every year we have a Bridal Fair here in Bozeman. By donating a prize your company logo appears on all printed advertising and in all TV ads.

You won’t be alone but it’s a great way to expose your company logo and name to a large number of people.

As we all know, click through rate (CTR) plays an important role for the major pay per click search engines including Adwords, Yahoo! And recently MSN adCenter.
Here are some good practices to follow when accessing your campaign performance.

• Ad rank is low and CTR is high - marketers should consider increasing spend to improve rank and drive more qualified traffic.
• Ad rank is low and CTR is low - marketers should consider reassessing keyword selection and creative.
• Ad rank is high and CTR is low - marketers should reduce bid price and emphasize better performing keywords and creative.

Gordon Choi wrote an interesting post about why not to advertise on 2nd tier pay per click engines. He explains a few strong reasons to stay away from them. To reinforce his point take a look at this chart.

With a majority of users searching on Google, Yahoo, MSN, ASK and AOL the time you spend setting up and troubleshooting those smaller engines may have been better spent optimizing your engines that drive more qualified traffic. Also, most 2nd tier pay per click engines get their sponsored results from one of the bigger engines, so your ad will most likely already appear there.

Google now allows advertisers to target their customers from any geographic location worldwide. Historically, Google has only allowed advertiser to target ads based on
Countries, Cities and Regions. As you know, this has many restrictions, because not all cities are included in their list. In addition, if you’re a regional company that only provides your services to a few select locations, then you might be paying for unqualified visitors.

Now, with Google’s customized targeting option, you have complete control of who sees your ads. You now have the ability to choose a custom location based on latitude and longitude. Google provides three different customized targeting options:

-> Radius around an address - You can target customers in a circular area around any location.

-> Multi point or polygon

-> Radius around a longitude/latitude - Instead of specifying an address you can pick a longitude and latitude.