[IMC Insider] Stay Close to Home

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The IMC Insider Helping Real People create wealth and freedom with Internet businesses since 1996 May 30, 2008 Issue #201 Big Fish -- Small Pond... Simple Secrets to Hooking the Local Market By Derek Gehl If your have a local business -- like a service or a store -- you know you MUST have a website. But how do you get to the top of the search results when you have to compete with every similar business on the Internet? YOU DON'T! You only have to compete with similar businesses in your AREA. Think about this... Erin lives in SoHo and needs to make some color prints during her lunch break. She hops on the Internet, does a search for "color printing SoHo," and Google Maps shows a bunch of businesses in her neighborhood. It even shows her where they're located. She prints out the map and heads off to get her copies done. Erin uses the location name in her search because if she just Googled "color printing" she'd get millions of useless results. So if you depend on local business, use those same location-specific keywords throughout your site. You'll get to the top of the search results for the specific market you're aiming at. Easily! Because most of your competitors won't know how to "optimize" their websites to snag those local searches. In fact, a letter I received recently from a chiropractor based in LA is the perfect example. He commented that he's "getting terrible placement" for his clinic site. Well, he doesn't need to compete for his keywords with chiropractors all around the world, since he can't treat patients everywhere. If he adds a geographic location to his website keywords, he's only going to face competition from the other chiropractors in his area. With a site targeted directly at his local market, this is one chiropractor who won't be suffering from injured rankings! 3 easy ways to optimize your site for local search So, what's involved in getting top search engine rankings for the region you want? 1. Use "geo-keywords" First, decide on how specific to be with your location. The smaller the geographic location, the more targeted your customers will be... although of course you will appeal to a smaller audience. The chiropractor in Los Angeles would want to include "Los Angeles" and "LA." But he'll also have to say exactly where he is -- the city, the neighborhood... even the street. People will use all those terms when they perform their searches. And here's a tip: When you're deciding on the location keyword, think about how locals would search for it. For example, Southern California is often referred to as "SoCal;" while residents of Port Coquitlam in British Columbia call it "Poco." If you're targeting locals, you definitely have to speak their language and use those keywords on your site. Make sure you work your location keywords into your copy and code wherever possible. Use them in your headlines and subheads. And throughout your copy for extra impact. One of the pages on your website should be a directions page, complete with a Google map. By using location keywords often you'll tell the search engines that your site is relevant for those words. 2. Display your address and phone number Have your full street address on the footer at the bottom of each page and on the side navigation bar. Include a phone number with a local area code. This will give the search engines all the information they need to nail your location. 3. Get inbound local links Search engines reward you for having links pointing to your website from other reputable sites and organizations. Local directories give you an easy way to build up your inbound links... and get your site seen by highly targeted groups of local buyers! You can submit your site to: Goog411 -- http://www.google.com/goog411 Yahoo Local Business -- http://listings.local.yahoo.com/signup/create_1.php TrueLocal.com -- http://www.truelocal.com/listabusiness.aspx Switchboard.com Yellow Pages -- http://www.switchboard.com Ask Local -- http://city.ask.com/city MSN Local/Live Maps/InfoUSA -- https://ssl.search.live.com/listings/ListingCenter.aspx CitySearch -- https://selfenroll.citysearch.com SuperPages -- http://advertising.superpages.com/spportal Internet Yellow Pages -- http://www.yellow.com/advertise Better Business Bureau -- http://www.bbb.org/membership/index.asp Chambers of Commerce -- http://www.chamberofcommerce.com/public/index.cfm Yelp.com -- http://www.yelp.com Most of these directories offer both free and paid listings. Test out the free service before upgrading to paid to see if it works for you without having to pay any further fees. Don't forget to look for other local directories and networks too. Search on "location name + directories" and see what comes up. More and more are appearing every day! Here is a great resource for more information: http://www.locallytype.com/pages/submit.htm Be search engine savvy when you're filling out your listings. Whenever possible mention keywords, area names and product names so you can be found! If your business is local, follow these 3 tips and watch your site blow away your local competition. Know The Secret? Now Here's The Answer! by Derek Gehl I've got to tell you about a new book that just hit the stands. And the reason I'm so buzzed is that the author, John Assaraf, is truly one of the most inspirational men I've ever met. You may already know him. His last book was The Secret -- a book about brain science and quantum physics that became such a phenomenal success it was turned into a movie sensation as well. Brain science? Quantum physics? Not exactly best-seller material... or so you'd think. But what John Assaraf did was demonstrate how the most advanced scientific research confirms that we create our own success. Our minds... our beliefs... our thoughts... they create our circumstances. And they're powerful enough to change our circumstances. John is a living example. As a kid he got involved with a gang and started heading down the wrong road. But then, at 19 he met a guy who saw the potential in him and became his first mentor. From there he achieved almost immediate success in real estate, and by the age of 30 he was a multimillionaire. He's gone on to build company after company, and as a coach he's helped thousands of people change their lives with his OneCoach program. And through it all he's been studying the science behind the human brain and the laws of nature. I interviewed John last year for our Internet Entrepreneur Club monthly call. What he talked about just blew me away, so I thought I'd give you some of the highlights. John Assaraf shows: Everything is made up of energy. When you think a thought you cause every cell in your body to vibrate at a certain frequency, almost like a tuning fork or a string on a guitar. So if you start with a clear and precise vision of what you want, you will "resonate" with people and things on the same frequency. A belief is a pattern in the brain that has been reinforced through time. We can build up all sorts of beliefs that limit our success or keep us from going after it in the first place. We need to change those. With repetition and ongoing instruction and action, you can train your brain out of self-destructive beliefs... and re-tune your frequency. John gives three concrete steps for "tuning yourself in" to success: Develop a clear and specific picture of what you want. Know what it looks like and feels like. Visualize it. Don't complicate it with details about how you're going to achieve it at this point... this will work itself out. Create an affirmation: "I have everything I need within me right now to achieve my goal of XX by XX date." Repeat your affirmation over and over. John says if you do this often enough and you'll re-wire your brain patterns. You'll believe your affirmation. Pretty soon you'll be thinking and strategizing differently. And that leads to behaving in the same ways as people who are already achieving the kind of success you aim for. So you'll start attracting the people and materials that can help you... and start getting the results you visualize. Thought... feeling... belief... behavior... results. John Assaraf's new book is called The Answer -- Grow Any Business, Achieve Financial Freedom, and Live an Extraordinary Life. He wrote it with his business partner, Murray Smith. It takes The Secret one step further -- because just thinking is NOT enough. As I've said over and over, you have to take action. The Answer shows how to take the right actions -- in the right order -- to achieve your version of success. It explains the mind-blowing science in simple language. Then it lays out solid business strategies and case studies from the authors' own businesses. And these two have built 17 successful businesses together! So if you want to get right into the brains of two entrepreneurs who are already following the "law of attraction," check it out here: www.marketingtips.com/theanswer Do you have a question or comment for me and my team? Drop us a line at questionsforderek@marketingtips.com -- and you may see your question answered in an upcoming issue of The IMC Insider! Click here to visit our blog - we add new articles daily covering subjects that offer something for everyone. To contact us... If you have any questions, email info@marketingtips.com To unsubscribe, click here To change your email address, click here Or, if you would prefer to use postal mail, please contact us at: The Internet Marketing Center Attn: Newsletter Subscription Dept. 400 - 1155 West Pender Street Vancouver, BC Canada V6E 2P4

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Robert, if you can convince me...

Hi Robert, How long have you been trying to make money on the Internet? Are you satisfied with the results you are getting? If you answered "Too Long" and "Not Enough" then you need to pay close attention to what I am about to share with you... http://www.marketingtips.com/convincederek Over the next few weeks I will hand pick a group of people to work with me and my team to dramatically accelerate the speed you start and grow your online business. I am not talking about another training manual, DVD, or teleconference. I am talking about real experts working with you, one-on-one, to show you the most direct route from where you are today to a money-making Internet business. Here's the catch though... You have to convince me you are truly committed to being successful on the Internet. My time is valuable and I only want to work with people that "have what it takes". I don't want to work with self-defeating tire kickers and procrastinators that are perpetually jumping from opportunity to opportunity never really getting anywhere with anything. And in order to reward the first five people that convince me they are willing to do what it takes... are ready to make the investment... to make the time... I am going to build your entire website for you. So if you are finally ready to succeed on the Internet I want you to go to: http://www.marketingtips.com/convincederek There will be more instructions on how to be part of this elite group of soon-to-be Internet Success Stories. All the best... Derek Gehl -- The Internet Marketing Center 400-1155 West Pender Street Vancouver BC V6E 2P4 Canada To change your contact details, please click here: http://www.marketingtips.com/update-email/?customer_id=3340876 To unsubscribe, simply click here now: http://www.marketingtips.com/nltr/?subscr=3340876&email=admin@oceanlinktravel.com

[IMC Insider] Website Tips to Increase Conversion

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The IMC Insider Helping Real People create wealth and freedom with Internet businesses since 2006 Issue #200 May 23, 2008 First Things First By Derek Gehl So you've got your site up. NOW what? People always say to me, "Derek, there's so many things I need to do to my website... I don't know where to start! What should I focus on?" I agree -- the list seems ENDLESS! You need to drive traffic... grow your opt-in list... make sales... work on your SEO... Okay, step back for a minute... and realize it's just NOT POSSIBLE to do everything at once! So once you've built your website, here's the FIRST THING you should do: Make your sales process watertight! There's no point spending a ton of cash on pay-per-click ads to drive targeted traffic to your site if none of those visitors buy anything. Here are the top 3 ways to make your site a sales machine -- BEFORE you spend a bundle on attracting visitors. 1: Get your salescopy in top shape You've got under five seconds to convince people to stay on your website... so your headline has to grab them by the eyeballs and compel them to read on! The best headlines tell visitors they'll find exactly what they're searching for, and intrigue them enough to keep reading. But don't let your readers slip through your fingers once you've grabbed their attention with a hot headline. Salescopy is the most important part of your website -- because it turns visitors into customers! So make sure it smoothly guides people through a streamlined process that: Identifies with their problem and builds your credibility Engages them -- and explains why you can help Tells them how they'll benefit from your product Overcomes any objections they may have Compels them to take action -- and tells them what to do! At the end, give people a clear call to action that motivates them by re-stating the biggest benefit they'll get from buying now. Instead of saying, "Click here to buy now!" go for something like, "Click here for instant access and start changing your life for the better in the next 30 minutes!" So funnel your readers through a tight sales process -- and don't give them a reason to click away. If you do, they probably won't come back! 2: Collect testimonials What's more trustworthy than a personal recommendation? A good testimonial can persuade even the most skeptical potential customer to buy from you! Testimonials prove that your product really works -- it DOES do exactly what you promise. That's why you NEED testimonials when you're getting started and haven't built your reputation. Here's how to gather quality testimonials and benefit from them immediately: If you don't have any customers yet, give your product away to a group of people in your target market, in exchange for their feedback. If you have some positive feedback from customers, ask permission to use their comments on your site. Don't be afraid to ask for testimonials! Invite customers to give you their vote of confidence with an email link that says: "Click here to tell us what you think!" Email your buyers after they've purchased your product to ask them how they're enjoying it. Make sure each testimonial has a first name, last name, and location to prove they're from real people. Aim to get testimonials that are packed full of concrete benefits telling your customers exactly what they can expect to gain from buying your product. Use them on your homepage, within your salescopy, on a special testimonial page, and on relevant product pages. 3: Make it easy to buy! I'm always amazed how many sites make it difficult for you to buy from them! According to market research from the Gartner Group, more than 50% of web sales are LOST because visitors can't find what they're looking for! Don't make that mistake. Name your navigation buttons clearly so it's obvious what people will find when they click on them. Keep your navigation simple and consistent throughout your site, so people don't have to click any more than necessary. Ideally, someone should be able to buy from you in two clicks at most. Use "Buy Now" buttons that link to your shopping cart or order page every time a product is shown-- especially if you have a catalog site. And when people click to your sales page, make things easy for them! Provide a range of payment options -- PayPal is a great place to start because it gives you an easy way to accept credit cards -- an absolute MUST. On your order form, ask ONLY for the information you need. For example, if you sell an eBook, it's unlikely you'll need a home address. The less work people have to do on your order form, the more likely they are to buy. And here's an extra tip... don't underestimate the power of including a phone number people can call if they have any questions. As you work on your sales process, use our monitoring and testing tips to see which changes are most effective, so every element you add is an improvement. If you DON'T test your site, you can be sure your visitors will be testing it anyway! So make sure there aren't any leaks in your sales process for them to find. Build a solid sales process first, and then prioritize more advanced business-building strategies. Once you've got these three crucial parts of your sales process shipshape, you can drive targeted traffic to your site -- and ramp up your sales even more! Click here to visit my blog and tell me what you've done to improve your conversion rate. 3 money-making reasons to overhaul your FAQ today! Hands up if you've given your FAQ page even a second thought since you originally wrote it -- which was probably waaaaay back when you launched your site. Anybody?? Nah, didn't think so. After all, your FAQ is of those "admin" pages that just sit there, quietly chugging along. Right? Nope! Your FAQ page can actively attract traffic to your site, establish your credibility, and make sales for you. Not bad for a "functional" admin page! 1: Lure traffic to your site with your FAQ page! Have you optimized your FAQ page with keywords yet? Think about it. This is the perfect place. You can use long-tail keyword questions about your product -- the questions people actually type in to the search engines when they have a problem that your item can solve. In fact, you can use those "problem statements" in both the questions AND the answers to make the search engines really sit up and take notice! Your FAQ page is also a great place for product names and other specifics that people search on when they're ready to buy. And the more frequently you update your FAQ with your best-performing keywords, the more often the spiders will crawl all over it and boost your search rankings. 2: Make visitors trust you so they'll stick around to buy Have you ever gone into a store, ready to part with your cash for a product you want... but you couldn't get a salesperson's attention so you decided to take your money elsewhere? It's the same with visitors who come to your site and can't find any information that will help them with their buying decision. When you run an online store you can't talk to all the people who stop by your site, but you can show them you understand that everyone has questions and that you can answer them all. To do this, your FAQ needs to be comprehensive. Don't just slap out a few careless questions and answers. That makes you look as though you're uninterested in the concerns your customer might have... just like that bored salesperson who made you want to leave the store as fast as you could! High-quality information in your FAQs will show your customers that you're helpful and knowledgeable as well. This is your chance to really sell how well you know your product, so add questions and answers that show off your specialized knowledge. And it's easy to let your enthusiasm for your product show through with phrases like: "We're really excited about..." "I'm thrilled to say..." "One of the best parts of my job is being able to give customers..." "We take great pride in..." And so on! Take the time to explain your answers, like you would if you were talking to someone in person and visitors will think, "They seem to know about this stuff, so I trust their opinion." 3: Make more sales by overcoming common sticking points Use your FAQ the way you'd use a salesletter. Show how your product out-performs the competition. Explain why your product would be a good deal at twice the price. Introduce a complementary product. Ask your own questions -- the ones you WISH people would ask -- and then answer them in the same helpful, informative way you've answered all the others. The trick is to make the questions sound as if they came from someone else. NOT: "How superior is your model FQ154 mini-blender to the Waring model BX20?" INSTEAD: "Why should I buy your mini-blender instead of the Waring one?" In your answers, quote legitimate product reviews wherever possible. Show quantifiable results. And most important, explain the benefits of each feature you talk about. And don't forget to include those keywords! And of course... A well written FAQ will also save you countless hours answering individual questions! With so many benefits, isn't it time you took another look at your FAQ? Do you have a question or comment for me and my team? Drop us a line at questionsforderek@marketingtips.com -- and you may see your question answered in an upcoming issue of The IMC Insider! Click here to visit our blog - we add new articles daily covering subjects that offer something for everyone. To contact us... If you have any questions, email info@marketingtips.com To unsubscribe, click here To change your email address, click here Or, if you would prefer to use postal mail, please contact us at: The Internet Marketing Center Attn: Newsletter Subscription Dept. 400 - 1155 West Pender Street Vancouver, BC Canada V6E 2P4

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Robert, ZERO shipping

Hi Robert, Imagine saying goodbye to EVERY barrier standing between you and having your first moneymaking Internet business... Well, get ready -- Because that's what I want to do for you! I've received thousands of emails from my customers and subscribers living in the UK, Australia, Europe, and other countries overseas. And they all say the same thing... "Derek, I really want your latest product, but why the heck is shipping so crazy expensive?" I hear you! First, know that I'm not the kind of person to mark up shipping just to make a few extra bucks. The shipping charges attached to my best-selling course are set by my fulfillment company. ... But how about ZERO shipping? That's right... zero, as in no cost to you! For the first time ever, the latest 2008 edition of my trademark step-by-step system is FINALLY available as an Instant Download! No shipping charges, no wait time, no ridiculous hold ups at customs -- Just instant access to ALL of my proven Internet business-building secrets within the next 5 minutes. To find out how you can claim your copy NOW, click here... To your success, Derek Gehl, CEO The Internet Marketing Center -- The Internet Marketing Center 400-1155 West Pender Street Vancouver BC V6E 2P4 Canada To change your contact details, please click here: http://www.marketingtips.com/update-email/?customer_id=3340876 To unsubscribe, simply click here now: http://www.marketingtips.com/nltr/?subscr=3340876&email=admin@oceanlinktravel.com

[IMC Insider] 14 MORE Hot Traffic Tips

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The IMC Insider Helping Real People create wealth and freedom with Internet businesses since 1996 May 19, 2008 Issue #199 "Socialize" Your Way to Success -- By Promoting Your Site in Forums By Derek Gehl Last week I gave you 6 tips on how to drive more paying customers to your site. After that newsletter went out, a lot of people wrote me asking for more information about the strategies I mentioned. ... So today we're going to delve down into two of the strategies I talked about last week, and give you even MORE hot tips on how to make these great traffic strategies work for you. In this article, I'm going to give you some advice on how to promote your article in forums. Forums are a great way to promote your business and indulge your "social" nature at the same time. Look for forums that are popular with your customers, and then become an active participant in them. Not only will you boost your reputation as an industry expert, you'll also get some great inbound links pointing back to your site. To find your customers' favorite forum hangouts, simply type your top keyword phrases into a search engine, along with the word, "forum." Just be aware that there's a RIGHT way to promote your business in public forums... and a WRONG way. (Remember... forums are places where people gather to chat and exchange FREE information -- they're not interested in being sold to!) Here are 7 tips to help make sure you get the message out about your business, without annoying or offending anyone: Forum Tip #1: Lurk before you leap! Before you start wading into a forum with your opinions and advice, hang out as a silent "lurker" for a while and get to know the "flavor" of posts that are considered acceptable. Every forum is different, so what might be considered humorous in one could be offensive in another. Learn who the "regulars" are, what questions are typically asked, and what responses are given. Then do your best to follow the accepted model. Forum Tip #2: Focus on "relationship selling" -- NOT product selling Forum promotions are all about selling YOURSELF as an industry expert, with a wealth of knowledge to share -- they're NOT about selling your actual product! In a forum, gimmicky sales tactics and hype do NOT work. Unless you want to enrage the other participants, don't post blatant "buy my product" advertisements. Instead, look for opportunities to respond to questions with the exact information the people asking the questions are looking for. The trick is to sit back, listen, and wait for legitimate opportunities to share your expertise. This will help you gain the community's respect and develop a solid relationship with your target market. Forum Tip #3: Attach a "sig file" to all your posts An electronic signature -- also referred to as a "sig file" -- is a three- to six-line footer that you can attach to the bottom of your forum postings. You absolutely MUST make sure your sig file contains your name and site URL as well as a link to an informative article or newsletter subscription article! For example, your sig file might look something like this: All the best, John Smith ================================================ FREE REPORT: "10 Cheap and Easy Tricks for Increasing The Value of Your Home by $10,000 in Less Than 1 Week" To claim your free copy, visit: http://www.topvaluerealestate.com ================================================ Not only does this provide a relevant inbound link pointing to your site for every post you publish on the forum, it also encourages other forum participants to check out your site and see what it has to offer. Forum Tip #4: Score brownie points by doing the footwork for others If someone asks you a question and you don't know the answer, admit it -- then tell the person you're going to do some research to find the answer, and will get back to them once you do. It's a great way to prove you're willing to "go the extra mile" for your customers. (Just make sure you follow through on your promise!) Forum Tip #5: Encourage visits by announcing site updates Once you're a regular forum participant, invite other participants to visit your site whenever you add something interesting or new to it (such as a new article or a holiday edition of your service). Just post a short note about the changes you've made then invite them to check out your website themselves. Forum Tip #6: Post informative articles that link to your site Article posting is one of our favorite forum promotion strategies -- and it's one for the fastest ways to get instant sales from forums. The trick is to write an article that's full of valuable information your target market is going to be excited to get their hands on. Then, at the end of your article, include a short biography that plugs your product! Here's an example... ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Derek Gehl specializes in teaching real people how to start profitable Internet businesses that make $100,000 to $2.5 million (or more!) per year. To get instant access to all the most profitable marketing campaigns, strategies, tools, and resources that he's used to generate almost $100 million in online sales, visit: www.marketingtips.com. ... If the other forum participants like the information you provide in your article, you can bet they'll click on the link in your "bio" to see what your site has to offer! Forum Tip #7: Focus on forums that DON'T accept advertising There are two types of forums: ones that accept advertising and ones that don't. Stick to posting in forums that DON'T accept advertising, because this is where you'll get the best response. (Why? Because there won't be as much competition!) If you follow these 7 tips, and always remember to be a polite and helpful participant, you'll find that forums are a great place to generate more leads for your business. ... Plus, you'll have the chance to "hang out" online with people who share your interests -- your future customers! To your success, Derek Gehl 7 Tips for Getting Great Traffic -- with Classified Ads! In the offline world, there has always been a marketing tool that small businesses have used over and over again to reach HUGE audiences with minimal investment. ... I'm talking about classified ads -- which you can find in just about every newspaper on the planet! But did you know that ONLINE classified ads can be just as effective? Not only do they put your product in front of people who are actively looking to BUY something -- they also give you great inbound links from high PageRank sites! Here are some great places for you to post your classified ads: www.craigslist.org www.kijiji.com www.classifiedsforfree.com www.gumtree.com You can also get your ads listed on newsletters that appeal to your target market. (Though you might have to pay to get your ad listed in these... do some testing and see if the price you pay is worth it.) The best way to find newsletters to advertise in is to run a search on your top keywords along with the word "newsletter" or "ezine." You should then contact the sites one by one and ask them if they're willing to run your ad in their newsletter. You can also check out the following newsletter directory sites for newsletters that cater to your market: www.newsletteraccess.com http://gort.ucsd.edu/newjour ezinelocater.com However, in order to get the best results from your classified ads, you have to know how to write a winning ad! Here are 7 tips that will help you score the greatest number of targeted visitors with your ads... Classified Ad Tip #1: Make your headline compelling The first thing people will notice is your headline. Use "power words" such as, "free," "guarantee," and "save" to make sure it grabs their attention right away! Otherwise, they won't bother reading the rest of your ad. Classified Ad Tip #2: Don't be too "wordy" Keep your message short and sweet. Focus on a single benefit, and make it really compelling! People don't want to read something long and boring -- they need to be able to scan your ad quickly to determine whether or not they want to click on it. Remember, the point of your ad isn't to sell your product -- it's to encourage people to click through to your salespage and then let IT do the heavy lifting. Classified Ad Tip #3: Tailor your ad to the category it appears in Classified ad sites are usually broken up into different categories, making it easier for people to find what they're looking for. Make sure your ads are properly worded for the categories they will appear in. If necessary, write different ads for different categories. Classified Ad Tip #4: Post your ad in multiple categories Always place your ad in multiple categories and sub-categories. An ad in 10 categories running for one week will usually generate a better response than a single ad in one category for 10 weeks. Classified Ad Tip #5: Check out the competition Before you write your ad, snoop around to see what kinds of ads your competition is placing. Figure out what their strengths and weaknesses are, then use this information to make YOUR ad more compelling. Classified Ad Tip #6: Check your ad position regularly Classified ad sites change quickly. One day your ad will be at the top of the page, and the next it will have disappeared four pages down. Be prepared to resubmit your ad on a regular basis. Classified Ad Tip #7: Use a "dummy" email address If you post your email address in your classified ads, it will almost certainly be harvested by spammers. Unless you want your inbox to be swamped with a ton of junk mail, you should use a dummy email account you've set up through a free service like Hotmail or Gmail. ... By following these 7 tips and getting your classified ads posted on numerous different classified ad sites and ezines, you're bound to see a huge boost in your traffic numbers. And that's the kind of "classified info" you'll want to share with the world! Finally! A Quick And Easy Way For YOU To Painlessly Create Your OWN Moneymaking Internet Business... Find out more about BeBiz... The Insider Secrets To Marketing Your Business On the Internet The new 2008 Insider Secrets course is now available...Get all of the information and the tools you'll need to succeed online! Click here to check out our great trial offer. Do you have a question or comment for me and my team? Drop us a line at questionsforderek@marketingtips.com -- and you may see your question answered in an upcoming issue of The IMC Insider! Click here to visit our blog - we add new articles daily covering subjects that offer something for everyone. To contact us... If you have any questions, email info@marketingtips.com To unsubscribe, click here To change your email address, click here Or, if you would prefer to use postal mail, please contact us at: The Internet Marketing Center Attn: Newsletter Subscription Dept. 400 - 1155 West Pender Street Vancouver, BC Canada V6E 2P4

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[IMC Insider] Our top 7 traffic tips

Trouble reading this? please visit http://www.marketingtips.com/freenewsletter

The IMC Insider Helping Real People create wealth and freedom with Internet businesses since 1996 May 12, 2008 Issue #198 6 Easy Ways to Drive Paying Customers to Your Site By Derek Gehl Quality traffic -- it's the "Holy Grail" of online marketing. After all, there's not much point in having a website if your potential customers aren't able to find it! This week, we're going to focus on some of the different ways you can drive quality traffic to your site. (And by "quality," I mean visitors that are likely to BUY what you sell on your site!) In this article, I'll talk about 6 of my favorite ways to attract more customers to your site. (And all of them are cheap or even freeee!) And in the article below, two very special "guest contributors" are going to give you ANOTHER hot tip -- and talk about how you can use one of the 'Net's hottest communication tools to drive even MORE qualified traffic to your site! So let's get started with my top 6 tips -- if you're not using any of these strategies, the time to get started is today! Traffic Tip #1: Give away content This is one of the best traffic strategies out there... Simply write a series of short articles that are packed with useful information and tips, then submit them to online article directories and other free content sites. Not only will you get some great inbound links pointing to your site, which will help you with the search engines -- other people can republish your articles on their own sites, which will help spread the word about your business and build your credibility as an industry expert! Here are some article directories you should check out: www.ezinearticles.com www.freesticky.com www.ideamarketers.com www.goarticles.com ... Want to know more? Click here to visit my blog and discover what my other 5 traffic tips are! 4 Ways to Attract Traffic -- With a Blog! By Rosalind Gardner and Anik Singal [Note from Derek: One of my readers recently asked me how she could use a blog to drive more traffic to her site. Since my friends Rosalind and Anik are true blog marketing experts, I asked them to provide an answer -- and they ended up writing an entire article for me! I hope you enjoy it... D.] Blogging -- both writing blogs AND reading blogs -- has gone from being a "fringe" activity to one of the most popular pastimes on the 'Net. In fact, blogging is now a global phenomenon. There are currently 112.8 million blogs in existence, with 175,000 new ones launching every day. ... But did you know that blogs are also a great way to drive traffic to your site? Blogs, by design, are built to quickly and easily attract traffic, whether it be from search engines or from a rapid influx of links. The moment you publish a post, your blog goes to work for you letting the world know that you've made an update - the search engines come running and you find yourself ranking #1 for keywords in no time. Here are 4 ways to attract traffic to your site using blogs (and 4 reasons why you NEED to start blogging): 1. Long-Tail Keywords Instead of using only the most obvious or generic terms related to the topic of your post, focus on more specific words and phrases, i.e., long-tail keywords. For instance, if you are writing a post about nordic skiing at Sun Peaks Resort near Kamloops, British Columbia, you don't want to target keywords such as 'travel' and 'skiing' which will put you in direct competition with Expedia.com, SkiNet.com and the like. Instead, use "cross country skiing at Sun Peaks Resort" and not only will your post show up in a blog search, but it'll soon rank in the top ten in Google's organic listings as well. Blogs are notorious for ranking high and fast for long-tail keywords. Over time with hundreds of these, the traffic is far more valuable than having one "highly competitive" keyword. 2. Bookmark with OnlyWire Onlywire is a service that allows you to automatically bookmark your post on well over 17 high-traffic sites. It takes just a few clicks to do this every time you post. You simply click a button on your browser, type in a few keywords and hit "submit." Yes, the service is absolutely free. Onlywire is a great way to not only attract visitors but to also get the search engines running in to index your new post. 3. Leave Blog Comments One of the best ways to get traffic and highly valuable links in the beginning is to leave comments on other high-traffic blogs in your niche. Finding these blogs is easy -- either just search Google or visit Technorati and find the most popular in your topic. A couple of key techniques to use: A) Don't use your name, use something catchy (or a keyword). When they post links to your site, they link the "name field" -- so as long as you use something enticing, you'll get people to click. Or you can use a keyword and that way you get more search engine recognition for the term you are optimizing for. B) Don't abuse this -- You can easily find yourself blocked from leaving future comments. Leave a comment that is useful and shows that you read what you're commenting on. Not only will this make the blogger happy but it'll get you more traffic and credibility. 4. Involve the Press Too many people have forgotten how great press releases can be for traffic -- mostly because they don't know the "right" way of using press releases. The trick is to base your press releases on information that actually MATTERS to people. The easiest way to generate the valuable content for press releases is to quickly poll your readers (or get another blogger to help generate the results). So long as you can get at least 50 people to respond, you can issue a press release with your new-found data. The press loves data, readers love data -- posts and press releases like this make their way around the Internet very fast. In summary, the above 4 tactics represent less than 20% of the ways that a blog can generate free and targeted traffic to your website. If you don't already maintain a blog, you should seriously think about starting one up right away. It's the easiest way to establish a solid online presence. ... And if you're not sure how to go about setting up your own blog, don't worry -- we can help! Simply click here to check out "Blog Classroom." There you'll find 130+ videos that will walk you through the entire process of setting up a blog, managing it, and making posts, plus over 18 techniques to drive traffic. You can get started today and have FULL access for only $2.97! Just go to: www.marketingtips.com/blogclassroom -- and you can literally have your blog up WITH traffic in less than 10 minutes. Finally! A Quick And Easy Way For YOU To Painlessly Create Your OWN Moneymaking Internet Business... Find out more about BeBiz... The Insider Secrets To Marketing Your Business On the Internet. The new 2008 Insider Secrets course is now available...Get all of the information and the tools you'll need to succeed online! Click here to check out our great trial offer. Do you have a question or comment for me and my team? Drop us a line at questionsforderek@marketingtips.com -- and you may see your question answered in an upcoming issue of The IMC Insider! Click here to visit our blog - we add new articles daily covering subjects that offer something for everyone. To contact us... 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