e-Marketing Today

1. if you are not, start blogging today
2. write about something that you love
3. if you are serious about blogging buy your own domain
4. make sure your domain name is equal to your blog name
5. use a short and easy to remember name
6. use Wordpress
7. use Wordpress plugins
8. blog with consistency
9. write at least 5 posts a week
10. proofread
11. proofread one more time
12. interact with other bloggers
13. leave meaningful comments
14. leave funny comments
15. leave the first comment
16. backup your blog
17. get rid of the sidebar calendar
18. choose your niche wisely, not too big and not too small
19. participate in online forums
20. put a link on your signature
21. use blog carnivals
22. content is king
23. customize your blog template
24. use trackbacks
25. simplicity is the way to go
26. leverage social bookmarks
27. consider joining a blog network
28. write “Top 10? lists
29. use tags
30. use pings
31. write “How to” articles
32. make your posts scannable
33. list your blog on directories
34. ask questions to your readers
35. use Feedburner
36. use sense of humor
37. be generous
38. encourage readers to subscribe
39. have some spare posts for emergencies
40. encourage readers to digg your posts
41. put an RSS subscription icon on every single page
42. use “series” of posts
43. return comments
44. return links
45. use readable fonts
46. gather .edu and .gov backlinks
47. break long posts in more parts
48. experiment with different revenue sources
49. write “pillar articles“
50. use Google Analytics
51. study those numbers
52. use email interviews
53. be yourself
54. avoid duplicate content
55. use an RSS reader
56. read as many blogs as possible
57. focus on timeless content
58. have an “About” page
59. have a picture of yourself on the “About” page
60. crate your own “Advertise Here” page
61. use meta tags wisely
62. learn the basics of SEO
63. use pictures whenever possible
64. create value for your readers
65. place ads wisely
66. be patient
67. consider getting a co-blogger
68. submit your articles to directories
69. share what has worked for you
70. share what has not worked for you
71. read Problogger.net
72. do not clutter your sidebar with icons
73. get rid of looooong blogrolls
74. experiment with Google Adsense
75. experiment with Text-Link-Ads
76. link to other blogs as often as possible
77. make it easy for visitors to contact you
78. use titles effectively
79. offer email subscriptions
80. always answer to questions
81. always answer to comments
82. use Technorati
83. enable subscription to comments
84. offer useful tools or resources
85. write with a personal touch
86. become an expert in your niche
87. do not rely on “linking posts”
88. always give your opinion
89. use simple colors
90. participate in blogging projects
91. get to know other bloggers personally
92. list your best articles
93. have a voice
94. organize your categories
95. talk directly to your readers
96. make your URL structure efficient
97. put functional links on your footer
98. mention your sources or references
99. do monthly roundups
100. consider adding podcasts
101. create a “101 list”

One of the great things about using WordPress is that it automatically creates keyword-rich, spider-friendly URLs for your posts (as long as your Permalink settings in the Options tab of the WordPress admin are configured properly). Many times, though, these URLs are TOO keyword-rich. In other words, the URL has too many words in it. That happens if you create a long title to your post, because every word in the title is worked into the URL automatically by WordPress.

But how long is “too long” for a URL? For the answer to this question, I went to the source: Matt Cutts, head of Google’s webspam team. In my interview with Matt Cutts, I asked:

“What is excessive in the length of a keyword-rich URL? We have seen clients use keyword URLs that have 10 to 15 words strung together with hyphens; or blogs - we have seen them even longer there. A typical WordPress blog will use the title of the post as the post slug, unless you defined something different and you can just go on and on and on. Can you give any guidelines or recommendations in that regard?”

Matt answered:

“Certainly. If you can make your title four- or five-words long - and it is pretty natural. If you have got a three, four or five words in your URL, that can be perfectly normal. As it gets a little longer, then it starts to look a little worse. Now, our algorithms typically will just weight those words less and just not give you as much credit.

The thing to be aware of is, ask yourself: “How does this look to a regular user?” - because if, at any time, somebody comes to your page or, maybe, a competitor does a search and finds 15 words all strung together like variants of the same word, then that does look like spam, and they often will send a spam report. Then somebody will go and check that out.

So, I would not make it a big habit of having tons and tons of words stuffed in there, because there are plenty of places on a page, where you can have relevant words and have them be helpful to users - and not have it come across as keyword stuffing.”

Based on this new information from Matt, you can see that even your blog post slugs have the potential to appear spammy and “keyword stuffed,” which doesn’t look great for your readers and may end up getting flagged as “spam.” So how can you prevent your blog from appearing spammy?

I’d strongly recommend that you curb the length of your URLs. There are a couple of different approaches to this in WordPress:

1. Hand-craft your own “Post Slug” when you are writing the post. To do so, simply type in your desired post slug into the “Post Slug” field found on the right-hand side of the “Write Post” page in the WordPress admin (you probably will have to hit the + sign to see the field). You can mirror your post’s title but drop throwaway words like “the” and “and”. You can take the first four words or so of the title as your slug. Heck, you could even write something totally different that doesn’t resemble your post title.
2. Use a WordPress plugin that will trim your post slugs down to a more manageable size, i.e. to five or six words. There are two plugins to choose from that will accomplish this: the WordPress Slug Trimmer plugin or the Automated SEO Friendly URL plugin.

For more great tips from Matt Cutts, I invite you to listen to my audio interview in MP3 format or read the full transcript. The interview is a little over 30 minutes long, and it has some invaluable advice.

Enjoy, and happy search engine optimized blogging!!!

Source:  businessblogconsulting.com

A lot of work can go into producing and promoting a popular blog. While we’ve made some progress in terms of raising the visibility of TopRank and have made a tremendous number of connections, I think we’re really only “half way there” as far as where we could be. Using blogs as a marketing and PR tool is a process of planning, execution, measurement and refinement like any other tactic. We’ll continue that trend with new features and design in 2008.

In the past when we’ve posted the most popular blog posts for the year, it was based purely on the number of visits. This time, we’re taking into account a mix of metrics including: visits, inbound links, comments and social bookmarks from services like Del.icio.us and StumbleUpon.

Overall, about 47% of the traffic to Online Marketing Blog comes from search engines, 36% from referring web sites and blogs and a little over 17% via direct navigation. Older posts have more time to attract links and rank well, but as a blog gets more popular, it’s distribution for each post increases.

All that said, the most popular posts were for the most part, from the second half of 2007. Interestingly, one post from 2005 continues to rank in the top 20 content pages, “Lowdown on Press Release Optimization“. Factoring in visits, links, comments and bookmarks, here’s the list of the top ten posts for 2007:

• Google GrandCentral - Invite thanks to Adam Lasnik of Google via Facebook
• Yahoo Mash - Invite thanks to Michael Brito of Yahoo
• Ten Tips for Lead Generation Landing Pages - Guest post from Jon Miller of Marketo
• Winner Best Keyword Research Tool - Result of a OMB Reader Poll
• Viral Marketing - I Believe in Harvey Dent - Post by TopRank Account Manager Mike Yanke
• Guide to Marketing with Twitter - Content largely from Twitter community members sharing tips
• Search Marketing Blogs by RSS Subscribers - Post inspired by another blog
• 5 Tips for Content Distribution - Overview of a PPT presentation
• What Can You Do With MyBlogLog - Content largely from MyBlogLog community members sharing tips
• Search Engine Optimization Basics - Straight forward tips post
• Best SEO Podcasts - OMB Reader Poll

It’s pretty clear that the effect of networking online has been instrumental for generating and promoting content. One interesting thing I noticed is that the posts at the lower end of the top ten list in terms of number of visits (lower) typically had a higher number of bookmarks. With the exception of the top 2 posts offering beta invites, comment counts were fairly specific across the top ten.
The pages above were not the only popular destinations though. The 5 most popular (non-blog post) resources are also some of the top content overall. Here are the top 5:

• RSS and Blog Directories List
• RSS Button Maker
• Social Bookmarking Tool
• BIGLIST Search Marketing Blogs
• Online Marketing Blog Resources

Since so much of our traffic comes from search engines, I thought readers might be interested in some of the top referring search terms. Here are the top 5 and their rankings on Google:

online marketing - #2
social bookmarking - #4
marketing blog - #1
rss button - #1
blog directories - #3

In a few days, Online Marketing Blog will be 4 years old. It started out as a test, which we are prone to do on regular basis with many types of online communications, and has turned into the most productive PR and marketing component we’ve ever deployed. Not only has Online Marketing Blog been a proving ground for TopRank’s own blog marketing strategies, but also a testbed for tactics we employ with client blogging projects.

Thank you to all of our new readers and especially those who have stuck with us. Thanks also goes out to the TopRank conference bloggers: Mike Yanke, Jolina Pettice, Dana Larson, Thomas McMahon and Julie Brue for providing such excellent coverage in text, images and video. Amie Krone and Mike Odden have been a great help with the BIGLIST updates and maintenance as well.

Source:  toprankblog.com

With so many blogs being created every day, it’s a mystery to many bloggers how to make their blog stand out. There are many types of blogs or purposes for blogs and a certain number of tactics are applicable to just about all of them.Some companies choose to hire a blog consultant, but others like to try things internally. For those “DIY” companies and individuals interested in practical tips for marketing and optimizing a business blog, try out the following list of blog marketing and optimization tips:

1. Decide on a stand alone domain name www.myblog.com or directory of existing site www.mysite.com/blog. Sub domain is also an option blog.mysite.com. Avoid hosted services that do not allow you to use your own domain name!
2. Obtain and install customizable blog software - WordPress and Moveable Type are my favorites.
3. Customize blog look and feel templates - aka design.
4. Research keywords and develop a glossary - Keyword Discovery, WordTracker, SitePoint, SEOBook Keyword Research.
5. Optimize the blog:
   • Template optimization - RSS subscription options, social bookmark links, HTML code, Unique title tags, URLs, Sitemap
   • Add helper plugins specific to WordPress or MT
   • Create keyword rich categories (reference your keyword glossary)
6. Enable automatic trackback and ping functionality.
7. Create Feedburner Pro account and enable feed tracking.
8. Setup a Google account for Sitemap, validate and prep for future submission.
9. Identify authoritative blogs, web sites and hubs for outbound resource links and blogroll.
10. Format archived posts, related posts.
11. Enable statistics for tracking - Google Analytics, ClickTracks.
12. Submit RSS feed and Blog URL to prominent RSS and Blog directories / search engines.
13. Engage in an ongoing link building campaign.
14. If podcast or video content are available, submit to Podcast and Vlog directories.
15. Submit blog url to paid directories with categories for blogs - Yahoo, BOTW, bCentral, WOW, JoeAnt.
16. Optimize and distribute a press release announcing blog.
17. Request feedback or reviews of your blog in relevant forums, discussion threads. If you have a resourceful post that will help others, point to it.
18. Research and comment on relevant industry related blogs and blogs with significant centers of influence.
19. Post regularly. If it’s a news oriented blog, 3-5 times per day. If it’s an authoritative blog, 3-5 times per week, but each post must be unique and high value.
20. Monitor inbound links, traffic, comments and mentions of your blog - Google Alerts, Technorati, Blogpulse, Yahoo News, Ask Blogs and Feeds.
21. Always respond to comments on your blog and when you detect a mention of your blog on another blog, thank that blogger in the comments of the post.
22. Make contact with related bloggers on AND offline if possible.
23. When making blog posts always cite the source with a link and don’t be afraid to mention popular bloggers by name. Use keywords in the blog post title, in the body of the post and use anchor text when you link to previous posts you’ve made.
24. Use social networking services, forums and discussion threads to connect with other bloggers. If they like your stuff, they will link to you.
25. Remember when web sites were a new concept and the sage advice to print your web address everywhere you print your phone number? The same advice applies for your blog.
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26. If your blog’s goal is to promote you as an authority, interview other prominent bloggers in your industry. Your own credibility will improve by association.
27. Build out your online networks through services such as MyBlogLog, Twitter and Facebook and leverage them to promote particularly useful content on your blog.
28. Once your blog has 1000 or more subscribers, show your Feedburner badge
29. Host images with Flickr making sure to include an anchor text link in the image description back to the post where the image is used.
30. Use your blog to gain press/media credentials at relevant industry conferences and use the event to create content, connections and increase your knowledge.

This post was originally published on June 15, 2006 and has continued to receive many inbound links. As time changes, so do some tactics, so we’ve added a few tactics (after original 25) that have emerged in their usefulness. What would you add to this list?

Source: toprankblog.com

Blog Marketing is a tricky business that most bloggers handle through social networking, blog directories or through social bookmarking sites. There are a lot of bloggers that buy ad space through various agencies such as Google. You can however market your site by simply changing one line in your header.

I read with interest how some sites have great blog SEO strategies. So great that they often appear in the top four or five for search results. Yet they don’t actually receive a lot of traffic from that position. The answer lies in what the person doing the search actually sees in front of them. Do they see an interesting description of the site, or just a list of keywords?

The TITLE meta tag holds the information that will be seen in the search results. If your title tag has been written to gain good search engine positioning, then it is probably key word rich and information poor. This can be changed without dramatically affecting your search engine position. When crafting your title meta tag you need to do it in such a way that it delivers a message whilst also maintaining keyword integrity.

Write a short marketing blurb. Go through it and see where your keywords could be placed. Think of the searcher as a potential client or customer that you are trying to lure through your door. The end result should be a short blurb that will attract the searcher to click whilst still maintaining some of your keywords. This is one simple blog marketing tip that could make a lot of difference to your traffic.

by Brick Marketing from blogmarketingjournal.com

If you consider these four blogging tips when creating your blog and writing a post you will increase the chances of engaging your readers and consequently increase the number of return visits.

Tip One: Write with the intent of creating a viewpoint.

It doesn’t need to be controversial, however if your post leads to a viewpoint that can be argued, your readers are more likely to add their opinions. If you could also conclude by asking “what do you think?”

Tip Two: Respond to comments as quickly as possible.

When comments are left, respond to them - the sooner the better. Respond to them in such a way that it commences a dialog. People like to participate in a dialog. Be sure to treat the commentator with respect - allow them to disagree with you.

Tip Three: Provide a means to continue the dialog.

Use a plugin a that enables the commentator to either subscribe to the comments or to at least receive follow up comments on that post by email.

Tip Four: NoFollow DoFollow

Install the DoFollow plugin and advertise the fact. If readers know that their comments may gain a little PR juice they will more willing to comment.

If you use these four blogging tips, a visitor to your blog will read your article. You will have inspired them to create a response. They see that you use the DoFollow philosophy so they proceed to write a comment. They request a follow up email to any further comments. Half an hour later they receive your response to the comment, this prompts them come back again to add a bit more.

You have just turned a single visit into a repeat visit. The longer you can keep someone on your page, the longer they will be exposed to the content of that page.

BTW - How do you get your readers to leave comments?

ByBrick Marketing from blogmarketingjournal.com

Thomas Nelson is one of the larger publishers in the world, so it was refreshing when they became one of the first companies to publicly post their blogging policy. In fact, the feedback they received on their first policy was so great that they updated it to the following one:

Thomas Nelson Blogging Guidelines

At Thomas Nelson, we want to encourage you to blog about our company, our products, and your work. Our goal is three-fold:

• To raise the visibility of our company,
• To make a contribution to our industry, and
• To give the public a look at what goes on within a real live publishing company.

Therefore, we have established a “blog aggregator page” that is linked to the ThomasNelson.com Web site. “House Work,” the name of this page, contains links to employee blogs, along with the first few sentences from the most recent entry. The page is automatically updated whenever a blogger creates a new post. This way readers can quickly scan new entries, click on those that interest them, and then read the entry on the blogger’s site. This makes it convenient for people who are interested in reading employee blogs. It also helps publicize individual blogs and generates traffic for everyone.

In order to give some direction to employees who wish to blog, we have established a “Blog Oversight Committee” or “BOC.” This is a group of fellow-employee bloggers who are committed to promoting blogging within our company and making sure that the Company’s interests are served.

If you would like to have us link to your blog, you must submit it to the BOC. Before doing so, you should design your blog and write at least one entry. Once you have done this, send an e-mail to Gave Wicks with a link to your blog. The BOC will then review your blog and notify you whether or not it meets the criteria.

In order to participate in this program, you must abide by the following guidelines. (Please keep in mind that review by the BOC and participation in this program does not absolve you of responsibility for everything you post.)

1. Start with a blogging service. We do not host employee blogs. We think it adds more credibility if the Company does not officially sponsor them. Therefore, please use one of the many third-party blog hosting sites on the Internet. Some of these are free, such as Blogger.com, LiveJournal.com, Blog-City.com, Xanga.com, and MSN Spaces. Others charge a nominal fee. Examples include TypePad.com, SquareSpace.com, BlogIdentity.com, and Bubbler.com. If you use one of the latter, any expense is your responsibility.
2. Write as yourself. In other words, please use your real name. We don’t want people writing anonymously or under a pseudonym. Your name should be prominently displayed on your blog’s title or subtitle. This will add credibility with your readers and promote accountability within our company.
3. Own your content. Employee blog sites are not Company communications. Therefore, your blog entries legally belong to you. They represent your thoughts and opinions. We think it is important that you remind your readers of this fact by including the following disclaimer on your site: “The posts on this blog are provided ‘as is’ with no warranties and confer no rights. The opinions expressed on this site are my own and do not necessarily represent those of my employer.” You assume full responsibility and liability for all actions arising from your posts. We also encourage you to put a copyright notice on your site in your name (e.g., “© 2005, John Smith”).
4. Write relevant. Write often. Whether you know it or not, you are an expert. You have a unique perspective on our company based on your talents, skills, and current responsibilities. People what to hear about that perspective. Also, in order to develop a consistent readership, you should try to write on a regular basis. For some, this will be daily; for others, it may be weekly. The important thing is consistent posting. New content is what keeps readers coming back. You may also write on company time, provided it doesn’t become excessive and doesn’t interfere with your job assignments and responsibilities.
5. Advertise—if you wish. While there is no requirement to run ads on your blog, you are free to do this if you wish. Some of the free blog services run ads as a way to offset their costs. If you use such a service, you won’t have a choice. On the other hand, if you pay for your service, you can avoid advertising altogether or participate in a service like Google’s AdSense or Amazon’s Associate Program. These types of programs will pay you based on “page views,” “click-throughs,” or purchases made on participating Web sites. You might want to ask the BOC or fellow bloggers for suggestions. The only thing we ask is that, to the extent you have control, you run ads or recommend products that are congruent with our core values as a Company.
6. Be nice. Avoid attacking other individuals or companies. This includes fellow employees, authors, customers, vendors, competitors, or shareholders. You are welcome to disagree with the Company’s leaders, provided your tone is respectful. If in doubt, we suggest that you “sleep on it” and then submit your entry to the BOC before posting it on your blog.
7. Keep secrets. Do not disclose sensitive, proprietary, confidential, or financial informa-tion about the Company, other than what is publicly available in our SEC filings and corporate press releases. This includes revenues, profits, forecasts, and other financial information related to specific authors, brands, products, product lines, customers, operating units, etc. Again, if in doubt, check with the BOC before posting this type of information.
8. Respect copyrights. For your protection, do not post any material that is copyrighted unless (a) you are the copyright owner, (b) you have written permission of the copyright owner to post the copyrighted material on your blog, or (c) you are sure that the use of any copyrighted material is permitted by the legal doctrine of “fair use.” (Please note: this is your responsibility. The Company cannot provide you with legal advice regarding this.)
9. Obey the law. This goes without saying, but by way of reminder, do not post any material that is obscene, defamatory, profane, libelous, threatening, harassing, abusive, hateful, embarrassing to another person or entity, or violates the privacy rights of another. Also, do not post material that contains viruses, Trojan horses, worms, or any other computer code that is intended to damage, interfere with, or surreptitiously intercept or expropriate any system, data, or information.
10. Remember the Handbook. As a condition of your employment, you agreed to abide by the rules of the Thomas Nelson Company Handbook. This also applies to your blogging activities. We suggest you take time to review the section entitled, “Employee Responsibilities” (pp. 36–39).

If you do not abide by the above guidelines, we reserve the right to stop linking to your blog.

Thomas Nelson’s policy is outstanding not only because it highlights the expectations in a clear and approachable manner, but also because it tells employees how to succeed in their blogging - a rare thing amongst any company.

Hopefully, you will be able to use them before we all die because of global warming next year . . .

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