Today's Marketing Tip: Article Submitters

If you're into online marketing, I'm sure you've heard about article submitters.  The concept is pretty straight forward.  The concept of article marketing begins with original content.  After writing a 400 - 900 word article, you carefully construct an "About the author" box which includes a link back to our website.

You then publish this article to your web site and wait a couple of days to ensure that it's been visited by website spiders which have identified the content as originating from your site first.  Then, you take this content and distribute it throughout the web.  One easy way to do this is with the help of Article Directories.  

Over the past few years, article directories have been popping up all over.  This is because they serve as a great resource for web site owners and can easily provide tons of back links to your web sites and blogs.  By including you link in the article, you're passing link juice from third party web sites to your own.  

If you're not using article marketing to drive potential customers to your site, I suggest you start doing so.  Not only do you generate traffic, but you can use this technique to build search engine optimization rankings as well.  Start with sites like EzineArticles and promote your content on a regular basis.

Marketing Tips For Improving Your Online Conversions

Succeeding online takes more than targeted traffic. You not only have to attract the right audience, but get them to convert in some way. Many people think that conversion are all about buying on the spot. The reality is that for many businesses, the key to conversion is not on site but rather through their list.

If you're already online, you probably have a list of some kind. Whether you have 100 names or many more, your list is your greatest ally in succeeding online. And keep in mind that you have the right to email individuals who have emailed you as well as signed up for your list. Many web marketers overlook all of the individuals who have submitted questions and comments as being potential prospects. To improve conversion rates, you must focus on building your list from your traffic and utilizing that list effectively.

There are a variety of productive ways to utilize your list. Begin with an auto responder service. Auto responders allow you to set up an automatic communication stream that works twenty four hours a day seven days a week. You simply set up all of your communications in advance so that users, upon registering, are scheduled to receive emails at set intervals. This is ideal for moving potential customers through the decision making process.

Another way to use your list properly is to communicate pre-sell information about new products, services, or programs. By creating a sense of anticipation, your list will perform. Many products lend themselves to this type of list utilization. Although notification periods vary, letting you list know about upcoming events or products available for a limited time creates significant interest and leads to conversions. Don't under estimate the power of pre-notification.

The third way that you can use a list to improve conversion is through list growth. As your list grows, your total conversions increase as well. Ten percent of a hundred is a lot less appealing than ten percent of a thousand. Focus on building your list with the help of your list members. If you have something valuable to offer, encourage them to share with others who may benefit. This list growth serves you over time.

The last methods for improving conversions is constant communication. If your customers are not in the buying mood, staying in touch puts you at the top of their decision tree when considering a purchase. Your best bet is to develop a communication vehicle that doesn't over or under communicate. As always, proper process should be followed for opt outs. Regardless, don't email and stop unless someone opts out.

The time to start building your email list is now. In parallel, be sure to focus your energies on leveraging that list using the proper techniques. Having a great list is fine but unless you utilize it properly, you'll never see the true value inherent in the list itself.

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Good Marketing Tip: Free Traffic Isn't All That Bad

If you're anything like me, you probably like to get things for free. I'm a big fan of getting something at little or no cost - especially if I've never used the product or service in the past.

About a year ago, a friend turned me onto traffic exchanges which are either free or cost very little, for driving traffic to my web site. Most web site owners struggle with generating traffic to their web sites. Unless you have a strong viral appeal, building traffic can take time and cost a significant amount of money.

The concept of a traffic exchange is easy. You essentially browse other peoples web sites and web pages. When you view their sites you earn credits. As you accumulate credits, they can be used to generate traffic to your web site.

To utilize your credits, you enter the URLs you want to promote into the traffic exchange administration panel. You then set the number of credits you would like to use up each day. For example, if you surf to earn about 100 credits per day, you may choose to display your page 100 times (assuming that one credit equals one page view).

The key to making traffic exchanges work is to use them consistently and use squeeze pages or special offers so that users not only visit your site once, but multiple times. This creates an ongoing traffic stream that only increases over time.

The two most popular traffic exchanges are Traffic Swarm and Easy Hits 4U. Both of these cost nothing to join but do offer additional premium options for a small fee. The premium options essentially let you buy credits. If you want to utilize the power of the exchanges without surfing, premium options let you do that. It's all up to you. Personally, I like the no cost options.