What is a website without it's pages indexed? A less traveled site, lost in the maze of the Internet, for one. For a webmaster, a major frustration. Many a webmaster may be mumbling under their breath. "Yeah right, what can I do about it".
Well if you don't have a lot of money, you may want to venture into SEO. You can take the time to learn it yourself (no money route), or you can enlist the help of someone that is a pro in the SEO field (lots of money in my pockets) .
Some people have the money, some have the golden touch and don't need to venture into the SEO realm. But if you were like me, money was an issue and the golden touch was recked with minimal internet experience.
Granted SEO is always a work in progress- it can be frustrating, and when you think you've got it, the search engines change their rules again. That's probably a good thing, it keeps everyone honest.
Do I regret taking the SEO challenge? No. Why? I have been told by an affiliate manager that if you can meet the SEO challenge you can be rewarded by rank and thus traffic-which brings sales. Sounds good to me. But here comes the bad part, it won't happen overnight, but it can bring you long-term benefits if you work at it, and avoid the black hat tactics. As I write this last statement, I hear a low groan, mumbling and a frustrated sigh. Gee, those ugly sounds may have come from me, as I recall my own SEO beginnings. Don't get disheartened, the benefits are long-term.
If I can keep on track, you may see several articles on SEO, which may help. This week's SEO article is called: "Search Engines --Please Crawl My Content"
Click the link to read the article "Search Engines-Please Crawl My Content" it will give you some hints of what to avoid when you are creating your pages, so that the search engines can find you.
Read more...
Friday, June 29, 2007
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
THE BEST PART
Since we are supposed to be documenting shit here. I am going to show you 80% of the reason I wake up and want to continue living in this crazy ass world and my personal reminder that certain traits are hereditary....Aariona Chalom Johnson AKA ONA aka Chalom Infinite aka THE PRINCESS, remember the name. Without my encouragement, (although spending time with uncle Khalil is inspiring enough) she is destined to pursue a life of art, in some form.
Her favorite artist is Blondie..I am in TROUBLE. Loves to paint, read, sing, and play drums. READING AT THE THIRD GRADE LEVEL AT 6 YEARS OLD....the kid is serious, we have impromtu photo sessions all the time....here is a more recent session shot on location at the Twin Dragon on Pico.
....Children are the Best Part. I wrote that song (The Best Part) long before having a child and I now know the true meaning. This person was probably my biggest inspiration for certain songs on Change so much of my energy is manifested through her. Life is crazy. I want to have more, one day.
Read more...
Her favorite artist is Blondie..I am in TROUBLE. Loves to paint, read, sing, and play drums. READING AT THE THIRD GRADE LEVEL AT 6 YEARS OLD....the kid is serious, we have impromtu photo sessions all the time....here is a more recent session shot on location at the Twin Dragon on Pico.
....Children are the Best Part. I wrote that song (The Best Part) long before having a child and I now know the true meaning. This person was probably my biggest inspiration for certain songs on Change so much of my energy is manifested through her. Life is crazy. I want to have more, one day.
Read more...
Friday, June 22, 2007
Wanting to Start an Adwords Campaign?
When you are a newbie, you may be remotely familiar with Adwords, but yet, do not know what it is about and/or how to begin.
Or, it can be a frustrating situation, especially if you are trying to create ads for Google Adwords with the following mindset -- I don't know what I'm doing, but I'll give it a try. With that mindset, in most cases, you could lose most of your budget for a year, if not more. And yet, see no results. Ouch!
For those just beginning Mike Tekula article "11 Tips for Pay-Per-Click Success" may be just the answer to get you started. As always, remember, to set a budget for your Google Adwords campaign, and as he stated -- test, test, test.
For those who are at the Intermediate level and looking for a new angle to making money with Google Adwords, check out Adwords 180. Ian Rollinson, a qualified Google Advertising Professional, offers a technique that is base on the content network of Google Adwords. In fact, it would be great for the beginner as well, because he shows you how to keep costs down.
11 Tips for Pay-Per-Click Success
By Mike Tekula
This list details some very important points to keep in mind when creating or managing any pay-per-click campaign. Is this all there is to know about pay-per-click advertising? Absolutely not, but for those new to PPC it should serve as good place to start. Additionally, pay-per-click veterans or at least the moderately-seasoned will want to touch upon these points now and then to brush up on their fundamentals.
1) Do your keyword homework.
Use Google's free Keyword Tool or sign up for a WordTracker account to find out which keywords are the most competitive. The more competitive the keyword, the more expensive your clicks will be. While you're finding out which keywords are too expensive you'll come across some that aren't being targeted heavily by advertisers. Take a good look at these - they may be your keys to a successful niche campaign.
2) Don't bunch your ad groups.
You should be striving to separate your ad groups by keyword. Whatever your target, separate your keyword lists into closely related groups containing the same target words and write ads geared specifically to those words. Your ads will show up higher in results based on their quality, and search terms show up bold in results - a click-through rate booster.
3) Drive home your selling point.
What's your offer? Why are you better than the others? Remember that your ads are going to display with your competitors. The difference between a user clicking your ad and clicking a competitor ad is about 100 pixels on the screen - or a millisecond of time. You need to convince them that you are the one they want. You are better. Grab them.
4) Don't send users to your home page.
This is perhaps one of the worst things you can do to your Pay-Per-Click campaign. Internet users are notoriously impatient. Send them to your home page when they were searching for a specific product or service and see how fast they leave. Don't waste your advertising budget - send them to optimized landing pages.
5) Optimize your landing pages.
Your landing pages need to drive something home immediately for your users: "you have landed in the right place." They need to know that, yes, this is what they were looking for, here it is, here is why it is better than the rest and here's the easy thing they need to do to get it. In most cases you'll need to create multiple landing pages based on your different ad groups and keywords, but look at it this way - if your users aren't landing at pages geared exactly to their search phrases they'll leave and take your advertising budget with them.
6) Don't lie in your ads.
People aren't dumb. If you promise something in your ads you had better well deliver. Otherwise you'll not only waste advertising dollars but damage your brand. Be honest, and focus on points that make you stand out from the competition. Grandiose ad text might bring in clicks, but if it isn't the truth it won't bring in conversions.
7) Your domain name counts.
In most cases you can display a domain name that you own as the "display domain" but point the ads to a page on a different domain. Why does this matter? If you own a domain name that contains the keyword text it will show up bold and increase conversions. Enter the optimized domain as the displayed domain, point the ads to your landing pages and you can expect higher CTRs in most cases.
8) Utilize negative keywords.
Google has a new Negative Keyword Tool that will allow you to find negative keywords that you should specify for your ads. Negative keywords are those that you don't want your ads to display for. For example, if you're selling "blue widgets" you don't want to display your ads to those users searching for "free blue widgets." If you don't use negative keywords you are missing out on a chance to get more targeted traffic to your landing pages, and this can really hurt your conversion rates.
9) Test, test, and test some more.
The greatest thing about internet advertising is the ability it grants you to measure your success. It's easy to create A/B split tests with Pay-Per-Click advertising. Change one word, add a comma, include a value proposition. . .just make sure you only change one thing for each split or you won't know which variable it was that made the difference! You'll find out right away that this is a great way to optimize your click-through rates - just don't forget that clicks aren't everything!
10) Don't focus too heavily on CTRs.
Getting tons of clicks isn't always the name of the game. In fact, if you aren't using proper techniques to ensure that you're getting targeted traffic and sending it to well-optimized landing pages you can blow through your advertising budget in no time flat. Remember that the success of any advertisement is getting back more than you put in. It's an investment, not a cost - so do all that you can to better your rate of return!
11) Don't pigeonhole yourself.
We all know that Google AdWords is the most popular Pay-Per-Click service out there. Your competitors know it, your users know it - even your grandma might know it. It would be foolish to ignore Google as a venue for advertising, but don't forget that there are other search engines out there who offer similar services. Yahoo!'s new Panama search system is catching on, and Microsoft's adCenter is nothing to sneeze at either. Both companies are currently offering sweet promotional deals to new Pay-Per-Click advertisers to stay competitive so take advantage and diversify!
Mike Tekula handles SEO, SEM, usability and standards-compliance for NewSunGraphics, a Long Island, New York firm offering Search Engine Optimization, Search Engine Marketing, W3C-Compliant web design using full CSS layouts and all things web design/development.
------------
For an Intro into Adowrds check out Adwords Basic on My Affiliate place
Read more...
Or, it can be a frustrating situation, especially if you are trying to create ads for Google Adwords with the following mindset -- I don't know what I'm doing, but I'll give it a try. With that mindset, in most cases, you could lose most of your budget for a year, if not more. And yet, see no results. Ouch!
For those just beginning Mike Tekula article "11 Tips for Pay-Per-Click Success" may be just the answer to get you started. As always, remember, to set a budget for your Google Adwords campaign, and as he stated -- test, test, test.
For those who are at the Intermediate level and looking for a new angle to making money with Google Adwords, check out Adwords 180. Ian Rollinson, a qualified Google Advertising Professional, offers a technique that is base on the content network of Google Adwords. In fact, it would be great for the beginner as well, because he shows you how to keep costs down.
11 Tips for Pay-Per-Click Success
By Mike Tekula
This list details some very important points to keep in mind when creating or managing any pay-per-click campaign. Is this all there is to know about pay-per-click advertising? Absolutely not, but for those new to PPC it should serve as good place to start. Additionally, pay-per-click veterans or at least the moderately-seasoned will want to touch upon these points now and then to brush up on their fundamentals.
1) Do your keyword homework.
Use Google's free Keyword Tool or sign up for a WordTracker account to find out which keywords are the most competitive. The more competitive the keyword, the more expensive your clicks will be. While you're finding out which keywords are too expensive you'll come across some that aren't being targeted heavily by advertisers. Take a good look at these - they may be your keys to a successful niche campaign.
2) Don't bunch your ad groups.
You should be striving to separate your ad groups by keyword. Whatever your target, separate your keyword lists into closely related groups containing the same target words and write ads geared specifically to those words. Your ads will show up higher in results based on their quality, and search terms show up bold in results - a click-through rate booster.
3) Drive home your selling point.
What's your offer? Why are you better than the others? Remember that your ads are going to display with your competitors. The difference between a user clicking your ad and clicking a competitor ad is about 100 pixels on the screen - or a millisecond of time. You need to convince them that you are the one they want. You are better. Grab them.
4) Don't send users to your home page.
This is perhaps one of the worst things you can do to your Pay-Per-Click campaign. Internet users are notoriously impatient. Send them to your home page when they were searching for a specific product or service and see how fast they leave. Don't waste your advertising budget - send them to optimized landing pages.
5) Optimize your landing pages.
Your landing pages need to drive something home immediately for your users: "you have landed in the right place." They need to know that, yes, this is what they were looking for, here it is, here is why it is better than the rest and here's the easy thing they need to do to get it. In most cases you'll need to create multiple landing pages based on your different ad groups and keywords, but look at it this way - if your users aren't landing at pages geared exactly to their search phrases they'll leave and take your advertising budget with them.
6) Don't lie in your ads.
People aren't dumb. If you promise something in your ads you had better well deliver. Otherwise you'll not only waste advertising dollars but damage your brand. Be honest, and focus on points that make you stand out from the competition. Grandiose ad text might bring in clicks, but if it isn't the truth it won't bring in conversions.
7) Your domain name counts.
In most cases you can display a domain name that you own as the "display domain" but point the ads to a page on a different domain. Why does this matter? If you own a domain name that contains the keyword text it will show up bold and increase conversions. Enter the optimized domain as the displayed domain, point the ads to your landing pages and you can expect higher CTRs in most cases.
8) Utilize negative keywords.
Google has a new Negative Keyword Tool that will allow you to find negative keywords that you should specify for your ads. Negative keywords are those that you don't want your ads to display for. For example, if you're selling "blue widgets" you don't want to display your ads to those users searching for "free blue widgets." If you don't use negative keywords you are missing out on a chance to get more targeted traffic to your landing pages, and this can really hurt your conversion rates.
9) Test, test, and test some more.
The greatest thing about internet advertising is the ability it grants you to measure your success. It's easy to create A/B split tests with Pay-Per-Click advertising. Change one word, add a comma, include a value proposition. . .just make sure you only change one thing for each split or you won't know which variable it was that made the difference! You'll find out right away that this is a great way to optimize your click-through rates - just don't forget that clicks aren't everything!
10) Don't focus too heavily on CTRs.
Getting tons of clicks isn't always the name of the game. In fact, if you aren't using proper techniques to ensure that you're getting targeted traffic and sending it to well-optimized landing pages you can blow through your advertising budget in no time flat. Remember that the success of any advertisement is getting back more than you put in. It's an investment, not a cost - so do all that you can to better your rate of return!
11) Don't pigeonhole yourself.
We all know that Google AdWords is the most popular Pay-Per-Click service out there. Your competitors know it, your users know it - even your grandma might know it. It would be foolish to ignore Google as a venue for advertising, but don't forget that there are other search engines out there who offer similar services. Yahoo!'s new Panama search system is catching on, and Microsoft's adCenter is nothing to sneeze at either. Both companies are currently offering sweet promotional deals to new Pay-Per-Click advertisers to stay competitive so take advantage and diversify!
Mike Tekula handles SEO, SEM, usability and standards-compliance for NewSunGraphics, a Long Island, New York firm offering Search Engine Optimization, Search Engine Marketing, W3C-Compliant web design using full CSS layouts and all things web design/development.
------------
For an Intro into Adowrds check out Adwords Basic on My Affiliate place
Read more...
Thursday, June 21, 2007
How to Save a Screenshot
Hi folks! It's been a while since I posted, but I'm trying to only post relevant things here, that people need instruction with.
This is a new trick I recently learned. Imagine me...learning a new trick...I guess you really can teach old dogs...uh, er...nevermind. Anyhow...I used to use a complicated program to do screenshots, and someone taught me an awesome easy way to do it. Now I'm sure you could use any photo manipulation program but the easiest way for people using Windows is to use Microsoft Paint.
Here's what you do. On the top right-hand corner of your keyboard is a key that says PrtSc...that means Print Screen. Hit that, then open up Paint, click the edit button, when the menu opens click Paste. The picture below is me copying this blog as a screenshot:
Then hit Save As...when the box open, give it a name, and below that box use the dropdown menu to save it as a jpg (picture). Now that you've got this shot, you may want to crop the picture. On Paint, see that tools menu running down the left side of the page...see at the top of the menu, the white box with the dotted rectangle in it...that's the crop box.
Click there...your pointer will turn into a cross-hair. Put the cross-hair where you want to start the cut, hold the left mouse button and drag the cross-hair till you get all that you want of the picture, then let go. (Notice in the picture below, the dotted line.)
Put the pointer in the box and right click on copy. Open a new Paint workspace (Go to File, click..on the dropdown menu choose New) and hit edit, and then paste...and the rest of the save procedure from above, and you wind up with the small piece below...Viola!
Read more...
This is a new trick I recently learned. Imagine me...learning a new trick...I guess you really can teach old dogs...uh, er...nevermind. Anyhow...I used to use a complicated program to do screenshots, and someone taught me an awesome easy way to do it. Now I'm sure you could use any photo manipulation program but the easiest way for people using Windows is to use Microsoft Paint.
Here's what you do. On the top right-hand corner of your keyboard is a key that says PrtSc...that means Print Screen. Hit that, then open up Paint, click the edit button, when the menu opens click Paste. The picture below is me copying this blog as a screenshot:
Then hit Save As...when the box open, give it a name, and below that box use the dropdown menu to save it as a jpg (picture). Now that you've got this shot, you may want to crop the picture. On Paint, see that tools menu running down the left side of the page...see at the top of the menu, the white box with the dotted rectangle in it...that's the crop box.
Click there...your pointer will turn into a cross-hair. Put the cross-hair where you want to start the cut, hold the left mouse button and drag the cross-hair till you get all that you want of the picture, then let go. (Notice in the picture below, the dotted line.)Put the pointer in the box and right click on copy. Open a new Paint workspace (Go to File, click..on the dropdown menu choose New) and hit edit, and then paste...and the rest of the save procedure from above, and you wind up with the small piece below...Viola!
Read more...
How to Save a Screenshot
Hi folks! It's been a while since I posted, but I'm trying to only post relevant things here, that people need instruction with.
This is a new trick I recently learned. Imagine me...learning a new trick...I guess you really can teach old dogs...uh, er...nevermind. Anyhow...I used to use a complicated program to do screenshots, and someone taught me an awesome easy way to do it. Now I'm sure you could use any photo manipulation program but the easiest way for people using Windows is to use Microsoft Paint.
Here's what you do. On the top right-hand corner of your keyboard is a key that says PrtSc...that means Print Screen. Hit that, then open up Paint, click the edit button, when the menu opens click Paste. The picture below is me copying this blog as a screenshot:
Then hit Save As...when the box open, give it a name, and below that box use the dropdown menu to save it as a jpg (picture). Now that you've got this shot, you may want to crop the picture. On Paint, see that tools menu running down the left side of the page...see at the top of the menu, the white box with the dotted rectangle in it...that's the crop box.
Click there...your pointer will turn into a cross-hair. Put the cross-hair where you want to start the cut, hold the left mouse button and drag the cross-hair till you get all that you want of the picture, then let go. (Notice in the picture below, the dotted line.)
Put the pointer in the box and right click on copy. Open a new Paint workspace (Go to File, click..on the dropdown menu choose New) and hit edit, and then paste...and the rest of the save procedure from above, and you wind up with the small piece below...Viola!
Read more...
This is a new trick I recently learned. Imagine me...learning a new trick...I guess you really can teach old dogs...uh, er...nevermind. Anyhow...I used to use a complicated program to do screenshots, and someone taught me an awesome easy way to do it. Now I'm sure you could use any photo manipulation program but the easiest way for people using Windows is to use Microsoft Paint.
Here's what you do. On the top right-hand corner of your keyboard is a key that says PrtSc...that means Print Screen. Hit that, then open up Paint, click the edit button, when the menu opens click Paste. The picture below is me copying this blog as a screenshot:
Then hit Save As...when the box open, give it a name, and below that box use the dropdown menu to save it as a jpg (picture). Now that you've got this shot, you may want to crop the picture. On Paint, see that tools menu running down the left side of the page...see at the top of the menu, the white box with the dotted rectangle in it...that's the crop box.Click there...your pointer will turn into a cross-hair. Put the cross-hair where you want to start the cut, hold the left mouse button and drag the cross-hair till you get all that you want of the picture, then let go. (Notice in the picture below, the dotted line.)Put the pointer in the box and right click on copy. Open a new Paint workspace (Go to File, click..on the dropdown menu choose New) and hit edit, and then paste...and the rest of the save procedure from above, and you wind up with the small piece below...Viola!
Read more...
Friday, June 15, 2007
Marketing and Blogging
People thought blogging was or is a fad. And that may be. But this fad does help you in your marketing.
Blogging is content rich, and if you are not aware, anything that is rich in content is, in most cases, devoured by the search engines. That can place your blog in the top 10 of the search engines.
Some people procrastinate, some people have a fear of writing, fear that you will not have the info to keep people interested, or some people think it is time consuming. But if you put it in a different perspective -- it can get you to your target market quickly, and thus, additional income.
Blogging - Benefits and Drawbacks
By Vickie J Scanlon
Blogging has it's pluses and minuses. But in truth, the benefits do out way the drawbacks. You may be one of many people who have put up excuses not to blog -is it procrastination or a number of miscues or beliefs. Let's see.
Blogging Drawbacks -- Preceived or otherwise
For many, the biggest blogging drawback, it the commitment of time. Depending on your blog, you may need to write frequent posts. And to make the posts relevant and content rich takes time.
However, if you have other things going on with your business - you do have to manage your time appropriately to get quality information out to your readers. But -- it is time well spent. You'll soon find how good of a marketing tool a blog can be. Why do I say that? Google, Yahoo, MSN and other search engines are always looking for quality content. And, a blog is content rich. If you give the readers good material and the search engines what they want, you will see quality, targeted traffic.
For those who don't like to write, this may be the biggest hurdle. But what is nice about a blog is that it is informal. If you supply people with the information that want and need they will come.
Blogging Benefits
Blogging can reap many benefits, if you think outside the box. For example:
1) Adsense Advertising and with additional complimentary advertising allowed by Google you can make money with your blog. Not only are you drawing your target market to your blog with your content, you can have another avenue to making a secondary income.
2) Businesses-quality product information about a product, or it's add-ons can help a customer decide to buy or not to buy a product.
3) Customers or target market contact. This is a great way to introduce yourself to your target market and let them know what you are all about. This communication tool allows you to not only stay in touch with customer, but with prospective customers in a non-abrasive way -- allowing them to take a closer look at your business, service, product or information.
Granted, blogging takes time. But the benefits, I feel, out way the pain you may feel at writing. What benefits, search engine exposure -- in most cases, you'll see your blog at the top of the search engines before your website. Why? Content.
If you choose quality content over quantity content you will see additional benefits for your efforts. Such as: 1) increased creditability and expertise in your area 2) the distribution of your blogs to search engines. 3) increased traffic.
Blog exposure
To get your blog out to the masses, think about setting up your blog with Ping-o-matic. Ping-o-matic will get the exposure you want for your blog by hitting numerous feeds after each update. And, its free.
Blogging can have its problems, as with anything. Such as:
1) People leaving negative comments. But if you look at some of the top affiliate marketers, or even good ecommerce sites, you can see where a negative can be turned into a positive. How? For ecommerce sites,its a great way to tell the person to contact a certain email and they will follow up. Can you see the benefits? If you have a public relations issue, use your blog to state your case.
2) People just using your blog as a vehicle to advertise, without a true comment. That is easily taken care of - through your blog dashboard, set the control for reviewing of comments before allowing it on your blog. This helps to eliminate spammers.
As you can see blogging does have it's pluses and minuses. But what is the key to blogging-writing. Stop the procrastination, the mental excuses of why you shouldn't do it and try it as another avenue in your marketing mix. As you know, you should have more than one avenue in your marketing portfolio. If you don't, you're could be missing out on valuable traffic.
About the Author:
Vickie J Scanlon -- Visit her site at: My Affiliate Place for tools, ways to promote your blog or website, accessories, software, computers and more.
Read more...
Blogging is content rich, and if you are not aware, anything that is rich in content is, in most cases, devoured by the search engines. That can place your blog in the top 10 of the search engines.
Some people procrastinate, some people have a fear of writing, fear that you will not have the info to keep people interested, or some people think it is time consuming. But if you put it in a different perspective -- it can get you to your target market quickly, and thus, additional income.
Blogging - Benefits and Drawbacks
By Vickie J Scanlon
Blogging has it's pluses and minuses. But in truth, the benefits do out way the drawbacks. You may be one of many people who have put up excuses not to blog -is it procrastination or a number of miscues or beliefs. Let's see.
Blogging Drawbacks -- Preceived or otherwise
For many, the biggest blogging drawback, it the commitment of time. Depending on your blog, you may need to write frequent posts. And to make the posts relevant and content rich takes time.
However, if you have other things going on with your business - you do have to manage your time appropriately to get quality information out to your readers. But -- it is time well spent. You'll soon find how good of a marketing tool a blog can be. Why do I say that? Google, Yahoo, MSN and other search engines are always looking for quality content. And, a blog is content rich. If you give the readers good material and the search engines what they want, you will see quality, targeted traffic.
For those who don't like to write, this may be the biggest hurdle. But what is nice about a blog is that it is informal. If you supply people with the information that want and need they will come.
Blogging Benefits
Blogging can reap many benefits, if you think outside the box. For example:
1) Adsense Advertising and with additional complimentary advertising allowed by Google you can make money with your blog. Not only are you drawing your target market to your blog with your content, you can have another avenue to making a secondary income.
2) Businesses-quality product information about a product, or it's add-ons can help a customer decide to buy or not to buy a product.
3) Customers or target market contact. This is a great way to introduce yourself to your target market and let them know what you are all about. This communication tool allows you to not only stay in touch with customer, but with prospective customers in a non-abrasive way -- allowing them to take a closer look at your business, service, product or information.
Granted, blogging takes time. But the benefits, I feel, out way the pain you may feel at writing. What benefits, search engine exposure -- in most cases, you'll see your blog at the top of the search engines before your website. Why? Content.
If you choose quality content over quantity content you will see additional benefits for your efforts. Such as: 1) increased creditability and expertise in your area 2) the distribution of your blogs to search engines. 3) increased traffic.
Blog exposure
To get your blog out to the masses, think about setting up your blog with Ping-o-matic. Ping-o-matic will get the exposure you want for your blog by hitting numerous feeds after each update. And, its free.
Blogging can have its problems, as with anything. Such as:
1) People leaving negative comments. But if you look at some of the top affiliate marketers, or even good ecommerce sites, you can see where a negative can be turned into a positive. How? For ecommerce sites,its a great way to tell the person to contact a certain email and they will follow up. Can you see the benefits? If you have a public relations issue, use your blog to state your case.
2) People just using your blog as a vehicle to advertise, without a true comment. That is easily taken care of - through your blog dashboard, set the control for reviewing of comments before allowing it on your blog. This helps to eliminate spammers.
As you can see blogging does have it's pluses and minuses. But what is the key to blogging-writing. Stop the procrastination, the mental excuses of why you shouldn't do it and try it as another avenue in your marketing mix. As you know, you should have more than one avenue in your marketing portfolio. If you don't, you're could be missing out on valuable traffic.
About the Author:
Vickie J Scanlon -- Visit her site at: My Affiliate Place for tools, ways to promote your blog or website, accessories, software, computers and more.
Read more...
Tuesday, June 12, 2007
Tặng nhau chút truyện nào - để thư giãn
Một câu chuyện hay, một chút thư giãn thỏa mái trong những ngày thi căng thẳng.
Câu chuyện này từ akita_1610 blog.
Tình yêu không giống như một trận bóng đá, không phải cứ ghi nhiều điểm là sẽ thắng...!!!
1. - Anh yêu em !! Tuấn thu hết can đảm nói...
- Cái gì ? Nhi tròn mắt...
Nhi và Tuấn là đôi bạn cùng học từ nhỏ, cấp 1, cấp 2, cấp 3 rồi thậm chí đến khi vào đại học, Tuấn và Nhi vẫn cùng chung một trường. Tuấn khoa Toán, còn Nhi khoa Anh. Tụi bạn nó vẫn thường chọc "Hai đứa mày kiếp trước nợ nhau !" Tuấn phì cười, hoà thêm "Có lẽ thế thật !" nhưng trong lòng, Tuấn không hề nghĩ đến gì khác ngoài tình bạn với Nhi...
Ấy vậy mà thần tình yêu Eros thật trớ trêu, hẳn đã nhè một lúc nào đó Tuấn lơ đãng mà bắn cho Tuấn ta một mũi tên...theo đúng truyền thuyết, kẻ nào trúng mũi tên đó sẽ không thể cưỡng lại sức mạnh của tình yêu. Và Tuấn cũng không ngoại lệ. Từ những lần chở Nhi đi học, hay những khi chỉ cho Nhi những bài toán khó...và lần gần đây nhất khi Nhi giận Tuấn không thèm gặp Tuấn một tuần liền, thế là Tuấn sống như một kẻ mất hồn, không thiết tha đến chuyện gì cả, chi ngong ngóng mong Nhi hết giận và đã không dưới 3 lần, Tuấn cứ đi loanh quanh trước cửa nhà Nhi nhưng không dám vào....tự trong thâm tâm, Tuấn biết mình đã yêu...
Hôm nay, Tuấn thu hết can đảm hẹn Nhi ra quán cafê quen thuộc của hai đứa. Ở đây, Tuấn hi vọng mình sẽ có thêm can đảm để nói hết lòng mình với Nhi...
- Tuấn yêu Nhi ! Hắn lập lại...
- Thật không đó ? Nhi ngạc nhiên hỏi lại, giọng hơi ngờ vực, Nhi vẫn nghi ngờ Tuấn đang định bày trò gì đây....
- Thật đó ! Tuấn đỏ mặt ngập ngừng rồi nói tiếp "Tuấn yêu Nhi từ lâu lắm rồi !"
- Vậy làm sao để chứng minh điều đó ? Nhi bất ngờ...
- ơh ơh....Tuấn ngớ người ra, hắn chưa hình dung là Nghi sẽ hỏi lại hắn như thế...
- Nhi cười khúc khích " Hôm nay Nhi hên quá ! Vừa sáng cũng có người vừa mới tỏ tình với Nhi !".....
- Sao ?!!! Tuấn ngạc nhiên...."Ai vậy !"
- Ai thì liên quan gì đến Tuấn nào ? Nhi bĩu môi...
- Ơh...thì...thì....tất nhiên là không liên quan đến Tuấn rồi...nhưng Tuấn muốn biết không được àh....hắn gượng cãi....lúc này nhìn chắc hài phải biết....
- Hihi ! Nhi vẫn khúc khích cười "Ok ! Nếu Tuấn muốn biết thì Nhi cũng không hẹp hòi dấu làm gì, anh ấy tên Hải, sinh viên kiến trúc, con trai của bạn ba Nhi...Nhi gặp hôm đi tiệc ở nhà hàng..."
- Thế Nhi cũng thích anh Hải àh....Tuấn ấp úng....
- Nhi vẫn chưa quyết định...anh ấy vừa nói yêu Nhi, giờ đến lượt Tuấn cũng nói yêu Nhi....thật sự là Nhi khó xử quá...
Tuấn im lặng.....hai tay đan vào nhau và làm những động tác vô nghĩa....
- Hay là như vậy đi ! Nhi cắt ngang....sắp tới sẽ có những buổi họp mặt, Nhi sẽ mời cả 2 người, nếu ai làm Nhi thấy hạnh phúc thì Nhi sẽ chọn người đó ! Thế là công bằng đúng không ?....Nhi nháy mắt tinh nghịch với Tuấn...
- Ừh ừh...Tuấn khẽ đáp, hình như Tuấn vẫn chưa hết bối rối.....
2. Tan học, Tuấn đạp vội vã đến quán cafê Văn Khoa, hôm nay Nhi hẹn Tuấn và Hải ở đó, vừa hết tiết, chuẩn bị đi thì ông thầy kêu Tuấn ở lại để giúp thầy chuẩn bị một số thứ cho tiết học kế tiếp...lớp trưởng có khác...luôn luôn đi đầu...và cũng nhờ thế, mà Tuấn phải đạp như đua để đến cho kịp giờ hẹn với Nhi...
Chỉ kịp gửi chiếc xe, Tuấn lao vội lên trên lầu, Nhi và Hải đã có mặt ở đó từ lúc nào rồi...Tuấn thoáng nhìn Hải...đó là một chàng trai khá bảnh, đẹp trai và có một cặp mắt kiếng vuông rất tri thức, quần áo đóng thùng lịch sự và thoảng một chút nước hoa nam tính...Tuấn khẽ nhìn mình, chân mang dép, áo thì bỏ ngoài quần, mồ hôi nhễ nhại....mặt Tuấn đỏ lên vì xấu hổ....
- Anh Hải, đây là Tuấn bạn của em ! Tuấn àh ! Đây là anh Hải mà Nhi nói....
- Mọi người kêu nước đi ! Hải lên tiếng khi Tuấn kéo ghế ngồi xuống...
- Cho Nhi ly cafê đen ! Nhi nhanh nhẹn nói trước....
- Em là con gái mà cũng uống cafê àh...Hải quay sang ngạc nhiên...
Tuấn khẽ cười ! Biết ngay mà, thế nào Nhi cũng gọi thứ đó, sau bao nhiêu năm quen với Nhi, Tuấn đã phát hiện ra Nhi có một thói quen kỳ lạ, đó là khi vào quán Nhi luôn luôn gọi cafê chỉ để khuấy, còn mình thì không uống hoặc dẫu có đi nữa chỉ là 1 hoặc 2 thìa nhỏ xíu....Nhi luôn thích thế. Và mỗi lần như thế, Tuấn luôn gọi cho mình một ly cam vắt và chở để đổi với Nhi....
- Cho em một ly cam vắt ! Tuấn nói với chị phục vụ....
Nhi nhìn liếc sang Tuấn, rồi quay lại với cuộc nói chuyện đang dang dở với Hải...3 ly nước được mang ra, vẫn như mọi khi, Nhi khuấy đều ly cafê rồi để đó, mọi lần Nhi hay đổi với Tuấn nhưng lần này thì không....Nhi cứ khuấy rồi để đó hoặc tự mình nhấm 1 - 2 thìa rồi nhăn mặt....Hải thì vẫn say sưa với những câu chuyện hài hước dành cho Nhi, đôi lúc thấy anh ta tỏ ra khoái chí khi thấy Nhi cười và chăm chú vào câu chuyện của mình....sợ ly cafê sẽ làm Nhi mất ngủ, Tuấn đẩy ly nước cam qua....
- Nhi đổi với Tuấn đi, tự nhiên Tuấn thèm cafê quá...!
Nói rồi, không đợi Nhi trả lời, Tuấn kéo ly cafê về mình, Nhi khẽ bĩu môi rồi lại quay sang chăm chú lắng nghe những câu chuyện của Hải...Tuấn nhấm nháp ly cafê mà thấy lưỡi mình đắng nghét....
3. Sinh nhật Nhi, Tuấn quần áo chỉnh tề, cầm theo món quà đã được gói thật gọn gàng và xinh xắn đi đến nhà Nhi. Vừa đi, Tuấn vừa mỉm cười, chắc hẳn là Nhi sẽ thích món quà này lắm đây. Chả là Nhi đã từng ao ước có được 1 cuốn "Dictionary of English usage" vì nó hữu dụng với dân học Anh văn, nhưng thật không dễ dàng mà có nó, vì nó khá đắt và hiếm nữa. Tuấn đã hi sinh gần như một tuần lễ để lòng vòng qua các hiệu sách. Cũng may, Tuấn đã tìm được 1 cuốn sách cũ, gọi là cũ nhưng cũng còn khá mới và tất nhiên giá của nó cũng khá cao so với khả năng của Tuấn....
Nhà của Nhi hôm nay nhộn nhịp khác thường, Nhi ra đón Tuấn với một niềm vui rạng rỡ, Hải đã đến từ lúc nào, Nhi khẽ cảm ơn khi Tuấn đưa quà ra rồi cầm lấy để lên bàn chung với nhữ
ng món quà khác...Tuấn nhìn liếc qua, có một món quà thật bư, thật sang trọng sáng rực rỡ hơn những món quà khác, trên đó có đề "Mến tặng em - Anh Hải"...Tuấn chợt cảm thấy buồn....
Bữa tiệc đã được chiêu đãi xong, thật ra Tuấn không biết mình có ăn hay không nữa vì suốt buổi, Tuấn thấy cổ họng mình như nghẹn lại, không thể nuốt nổi bất cứ thứ gì....Tuấn cư như người mất hồn, mất đi cái vẻ hoạt bát của một lớp trưởng tài năng ngày nào...Hải thì ngược lại, Hải nổi bật trong sinh nhật của Nhi với rất nhiều tài lẻ, nào là đàn, hát và thậm chí là hài hước nữa....các cô gái bạn Nhi cứ vây quanh lấy Hải hết lời khen ngợi "Mày thật có phước đó Nhi ! Anh chàng đó tuyệt quá ! Tụi tao ganh tỵ với mày thật..." Nhi chỉ khẽ mỉm cười....
11h, Tuấn nhấc điện thoại gọi cho Nhi, đúng như Tuấn nghĩ, Nhi vẫn còn thức....
- Alô ! Nhi nghe....
- Tuấn nè ! Nhi vẫn còn thức àh....???
- Ừh ! Nhi đang rửa mấy cái chén dĩa ăn uống lúc nãy...nhiều quá nên chưa xong ! Nhi phì cười...
- Thôi ! Nhi bỏ đó đi, ngày mai Tuấn qua phụ Nhi rửa cho...còn bây giờ Nhi đi ngủ sớm đi, kẻo ngày mai không đi học được, ngày mai lớp Nhi có bài kiểm tra đúng không ?
- Ừh ! Nhi sẽ đi ngủ bây giờ nè....hôm nay Nhi vui lắm, Tuấn có vui không ?
- Ùhm ! Tuấn cũng vui lắm !
- Tuấn không nói dối chứ !!! Nhi đột ngột...
- Ồh không không ! Tuấn bối rối nhưng rồi cố kiềm lại...."Tuấn nói thật mà !"
- Ừh ! Vậy là Nhi an tâm rồi....Tuấn nè, Tuấn thấy anh Hải như thế nào...?
- Anh Hải àh....ừh ! Một người tốt, dễ thương và nhiều tài nữa....Tuấn trả lời nhát gừng...
- Nhi cười khúc khích..."Thôi Nhi đi ngủ nha ! Chúc Tuấn ngủ ngon !" Nói rồi Nhi cúp máy...
- Chúc Nhi ngủ ngon...!!! Tuấn khẽ nói rồi ngã lưng lên giường....trằn trọc....một đêm không ngủ đối với Tuấn...
4. Hôm nay Nhi chủ động hẹn Tuấn đến quán cafê của 2 đứa. Tuấn đến với một tâm trạng khá là nặng trĩu, vì hồi nãy, khi nghe điện thoại của Nhi, Nhi nói có việc muốn nói với Tuấn....
Tuấn vào quán thì Nhi đã ngồi sẵn từ lúc nào rồi, không có Hải đi cùng, trên bàn là 2 ly nước được gọi sẵn, cafê cho Nhi và cam vắt cho Tuấn...Nhi đang ngồi khuấy từng muỗng cafê...
- Nhi hẹn Tuấn ra đây àh ! Tuấn chủ động khi kéo ghế ngồi xuống.
- Ừh ! Tuấn còn nhớ cách đây một tháng Nhi đã nói gì với Tuấn không ? Hôm nay Nhi muốn nói với Tuấn sự lựa chọn của Nhi...!
Tuấn cảm thấy tim mình thắt lại, chả lẽ Nhi đã lựa chọn rồi chăng và hôm nay Nhi đến để cho mình biết tình cảm của Nhi và Hải...
- Anh Hải thực sự là một người rất tốt ! Nhi vẫn không ngước mặt lên mà chăm chú khuấy ly cafê của mình...Những câu chuyện của anh Hải luôn làm Nhi cảm thấy thích thú, Nhi luôn cười mỗi khi gặp anh ấy. Những câu chuyện và món quà của anh ấy luôn thu hút mọi người xung quanh....
- Anh ấy còn đẹp trai nữa ! Tuấn thêm vào...."Vậy là Nhi đã chọn...."
- Đừng ngắt lời Nhi ! Để cho Nhi nói hết đã....Nhi rất vui khi ở bên cạnh anh Hải, nhưng rồi trong buổi sinh nhật hôm ấy, Nhi chợt nhận ra rằng, Nhi đã rất lo lắng cho một người khi không thấy nụ cười quen thuộc của người đó nữa...Khi mọi ngừơi ra về, món quà của người ấy chính là món quà mà Nhi đã mở đầu tiên. Nhìn những trang từ điển cũ được người ấy vuốt cho thẳng lại trước khi tặng cho Nhi, Nhi đã hiểu người ấy nghĩ đến Nhi nhiều như thế nào, và khi người đó gọi điện cho Nhi vào đêm khuya nhắc Nhi đi ngủ...thật sự Nhi đã rất hạnh phúc. Và Nhi thật sự rất vui khi nghe một câu nói dối rất vụng về để che dấu nỗi buồn của của người đó vì không muốn Nhi phải buồn theo....lúc đó, trái tim của Nhi đã lựa chọn....và đó chính là người đang ngồi trước mặt Nhi...
Mặt Tuấn dần dần ửng đỏ lên, mọi việc thật quá bất ngờ ngoài cả dự đoán của Tuấn....Tuấn ấp úng : Vậy ! Vậy anh Hải thì sao....???
- Tất nhiên Nhi đã nói rõ cho anh Hải rồi, anh Hải và Nhi vẫn là đôi bạn tốt của nhau...
Giờ thì mặt của Tuấn đã đỏ bừng và nóng ran lên. Một nữa, Tuấn như muốn nhảy cẩng lên hét lên một tiếng thật to để bày tỏ sự sung sướng của mình, một nữa Tuấn như muốn độn thổ xuống đất để mọi người khỏi phải thấy khuôn mặt như gấc chín của mình....
Nhi đẩy nhẹ ly cafê về phía Tuấn, như một phản xạ, Tuấn đẩy ngược lại ly cam vắt của mình về phía Nhi...cả 2 cùng phá lên cười....
- Tuấn đã cùng chia sẻ rất nhiều điều với Nhi từ hồi còn nhỏ ! Vậy Tuấn có muốn tiếp tục chia sẻ với Nhi sau này không ?
Tuấn cầm tay Nhi khẻ siết chặt "Tất nhiên ! Tuấn sẽ luôn ở bên Nhi và cùng chia sẽ với Nhi mọi thứ ! Bây giờ và mãi về sau này...."
...Tình yêu không giống như một trận bóng đá, không phải cứ ghi nhiều điểm là sẽ thắng...!!!
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Friday, June 8, 2007
Affiliate Programs-how to choose and be safe
Affiliate programs are the source of income for the Affiliate Marketer. So, choosing an affiliate program is important. But you will be surprised, and then again, maybe not, that it is more than money you need to be concerned about. Granted it is important, if you don't get paid, but if you put an affiliate program up on your site and find it is scamming people -- it could possibly cause loss creditability for yourself and your website. That's when you need to go into overdrive- explain, if appropriate, why you are removing a site from your website.
Here is an article that I have written that gives you an idea when you should be seeing red flags, or that gut grabbing feeling when something is not quite right. When you first begin, the naive side is more pronounced in some cases, because you are new. That gut feeling may not be there - but get burned once, or maybe several times, and you will learn.
Don't think you are alone in getting burned - I'm sure many have felt the sting of a rip-off, whether you want to fess-up to it or not. It makes you feel, well, stupid, embarrassed, and then angry.
Hopefully, my article "Affiliate Programs-Good, Bad and Ugly" will give you some insights as to what to do, and watch for while building your affiliate marketing business.
Affiliate Programs-Good, Bad and Ugly
By Vickie Scanlon
What do you need to be aware of, if you want to become an affiliate marketer? You need to be aware of the good, the bad, and the ugly in the affiliate realm. I would have to say the good is, making money from reputable businesses. But the bad/ugly side of affiliate marketing are those companies or individuals that are not reputable and whose only purpose is to cut and run with the money,leaving customers and affiliates alike with nothing.
So how do you choose an affiliate program and what do you need to be aware of in the affiliate world?
Where do you begin
Be aware of what types of programs are out there. For instance, some people have thought that they have just joined an affiliate program when in fact, they have joined an MLM program. What is an MLM program?
MLM programs -- these are not true affiliate programs. MLM programs first and foremost, want you to recruit people. Yes, your customer has to buy the product to join. But the keyword here is "join". And, in most cases, the products are not the best, or of much value to many people. Translated, MLM is a legal pyramid scheme, in which the majority of the people will fail, while those at the top--the owner of the business who supplies the products, will see the majority of the profits. Look past the hype, and think long and hard before you put time, energy and money into an MLM venture.
You may be agreeing with me, but at the same time thinking, "yes, but they offer so much". Granted they may offer a website (which has your name, but of which you have no control over. Who knows, they may even offer leads. Think twice about "leads". For the newbies out there, you need double opted in leads. Why-To protect yourself against being called a spammer and from being hit with a fine. The best way to get double opted-in leads is through your own hard work on your own website. Building your list person by person.
If you have to pay to get into an affiliate program - it's not an affiliate program!
Check the affiliate program out
1) Check for the length of time the business has been around. If it is new (less than six months) and not a brick and mortar business before opening up shop on the Internet, a red flag should go up. Why less than six months? If the site is legitimate, it will still be there, but if it is up to no good, you will quickly find others on the Internet getting the word out to warn others.
2) Reputation of the business or individual (ebooks)
3) Customer service (for products)
4) check out their website - Do they have a method in which you can contact them?
5) Send them an email. Do they respond?
Commission Rates
If you see a commission rate that is extremely high, warning bells should be going off. Granted, ebooks and software is one area in which you can possibly get 30 to 50% commissions. But, you still need to do your research. Why? Even though you are anxious to make money, you still have to protect your business, and with it, your reputation.
Check the Affiliate Program For:
1) Holding time before getting your commission check
2) Customer satisfaction (please realize that not everyone is going to be satisfied with the service. But if you see more complaints than praises) you might want to back off.
3) Minimum amount you have to reach before getting your commission check.
Some companies even offer 2-tier programs. 2-tier programs gives you the opportunity to earn both commission and residual income. The residual income, comes from those who you referred to the affiliate program. The residual income is small, but it can add up slowly, since it can be reoccurring.
My advice with 2-tier programs -- do not suggest or encourage others to join the program until you have seen a commission check yourself. If the company pays, then promote the affiliate program.
Checking On An Affiliate Program
Before putting an affiliate banner or link on your website, you should first do some research. Which means checking for proof of the quality of the affiliate program, product and business. How do you do that?
Here are some helpful hints:
1) Go to Google, Yahoo and other search engines and see what people are saying about the company. For example: "JoeShoeShop" + scams or "JoeShoeShop" + reviews. This will give you the flavor of the business, how it treats their affiliates, and their customers.
2) Check the Better Business Bureau, WhoIs, etc.
Affiliate Brokerage Firm
I've found that going through what I call an Affiliate Brokerage Firm (example: Commission Junction, Linkshare), allows some protection.Since they have to work with the owner of the affiliate program, the customer, and the affiliate marketer - you know that there has to be some protection, or they would not be in business very long.
However, one sure indicator that something is amiss with an affiliate program is if you are seeing numerous chargebacks. I would suggest that you remove your links and banners from your website until you complete your research on the manner. Even contacting the affiliate brokerage firm may be another avenue to use, if you think something is amiss.
To conclude, the promotion of affiliate programs around your website theme is a great way to make an income. But, as with anything, do your own due diligence. Why? Affiliate Marketing and your affiliate programs is your business.
About the Author:
Vickie J Scanlon -- Visit her site at: My Affiliate Place for tools, how to info of affiliate marketing, scam reporting directory, where to find affiliate programs to join, tech accessories, security software and computers for the online business.articles.
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Here is an article that I have written that gives you an idea when you should be seeing red flags, or that gut grabbing feeling when something is not quite right. When you first begin, the naive side is more pronounced in some cases, because you are new. That gut feeling may not be there - but get burned once, or maybe several times, and you will learn.
Don't think you are alone in getting burned - I'm sure many have felt the sting of a rip-off, whether you want to fess-up to it or not. It makes you feel, well, stupid, embarrassed, and then angry.
Hopefully, my article "Affiliate Programs-Good, Bad and Ugly" will give you some insights as to what to do, and watch for while building your affiliate marketing business.
Affiliate Programs-Good, Bad and Ugly
By Vickie Scanlon
What do you need to be aware of, if you want to become an affiliate marketer? You need to be aware of the good, the bad, and the ugly in the affiliate realm. I would have to say the good is, making money from reputable businesses. But the bad/ugly side of affiliate marketing are those companies or individuals that are not reputable and whose only purpose is to cut and run with the money,leaving customers and affiliates alike with nothing.
So how do you choose an affiliate program and what do you need to be aware of in the affiliate world?
Where do you begin
Be aware of what types of programs are out there. For instance, some people have thought that they have just joined an affiliate program when in fact, they have joined an MLM program. What is an MLM program?
MLM programs -- these are not true affiliate programs. MLM programs first and foremost, want you to recruit people. Yes, your customer has to buy the product to join. But the keyword here is "join". And, in most cases, the products are not the best, or of much value to many people. Translated, MLM is a legal pyramid scheme, in which the majority of the people will fail, while those at the top--the owner of the business who supplies the products, will see the majority of the profits. Look past the hype, and think long and hard before you put time, energy and money into an MLM venture.
You may be agreeing with me, but at the same time thinking, "yes, but they offer so much". Granted they may offer a website (which has your name, but of which you have no control over. Who knows, they may even offer leads. Think twice about "leads". For the newbies out there, you need double opted in leads. Why-To protect yourself against being called a spammer and from being hit with a fine. The best way to get double opted-in leads is through your own hard work on your own website. Building your list person by person.
If you have to pay to get into an affiliate program - it's not an affiliate program!
Check the affiliate program out
1) Check for the length of time the business has been around. If it is new (less than six months) and not a brick and mortar business before opening up shop on the Internet, a red flag should go up. Why less than six months? If the site is legitimate, it will still be there, but if it is up to no good, you will quickly find others on the Internet getting the word out to warn others.
2) Reputation of the business or individual (ebooks)
3) Customer service (for products)
4) check out their website - Do they have a method in which you can contact them?
5) Send them an email. Do they respond?
Commission Rates
If you see a commission rate that is extremely high, warning bells should be going off. Granted, ebooks and software is one area in which you can possibly get 30 to 50% commissions. But, you still need to do your research. Why? Even though you are anxious to make money, you still have to protect your business, and with it, your reputation.
Check the Affiliate Program For:
1) Holding time before getting your commission check
2) Customer satisfaction (please realize that not everyone is going to be satisfied with the service. But if you see more complaints than praises) you might want to back off.
3) Minimum amount you have to reach before getting your commission check.
Some companies even offer 2-tier programs. 2-tier programs gives you the opportunity to earn both commission and residual income. The residual income, comes from those who you referred to the affiliate program. The residual income is small, but it can add up slowly, since it can be reoccurring.
My advice with 2-tier programs -- do not suggest or encourage others to join the program until you have seen a commission check yourself. If the company pays, then promote the affiliate program.
Checking On An Affiliate Program
Before putting an affiliate banner or link on your website, you should first do some research. Which means checking for proof of the quality of the affiliate program, product and business. How do you do that?
Here are some helpful hints:
1) Go to Google, Yahoo and other search engines and see what people are saying about the company. For example: "JoeShoeShop" + scams or "JoeShoeShop" + reviews. This will give you the flavor of the business, how it treats their affiliates, and their customers.
2) Check the Better Business Bureau, WhoIs, etc.
Affiliate Brokerage Firm
I've found that going through what I call an Affiliate Brokerage Firm (example: Commission Junction, Linkshare), allows some protection.Since they have to work with the owner of the affiliate program, the customer, and the affiliate marketer - you know that there has to be some protection, or they would not be in business very long.
However, one sure indicator that something is amiss with an affiliate program is if you are seeing numerous chargebacks. I would suggest that you remove your links and banners from your website until you complete your research on the manner. Even contacting the affiliate brokerage firm may be another avenue to use, if you think something is amiss.
To conclude, the promotion of affiliate programs around your website theme is a great way to make an income. But, as with anything, do your own due diligence. Why? Affiliate Marketing and your affiliate programs is your business.
About the Author:
Vickie J Scanlon -- Visit her site at: My Affiliate Place for tools, how to info of affiliate marketing, scam reporting directory, where to find affiliate programs to join, tech accessories, security software and computers for the online business.articles.
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Friday, June 1, 2007
You Got The Article-How Do You Market It?
Creating articles or purchasing articles - to get your site recognized is the first step to Article Marketing. But what do you do after the article is written? Yes, you submit it to directories. You can do this manually or utilize an article submission service.
But the main thing to know, is how to get your article ready. Hopefully, my article "Article Marketing Basics" will give you a quick idea of how to do this. It's a quick read with some helpful tips that you can utilize, especially if you're short of cash, and want to manually submit to some of the article directories available on the Internet.
Do not neglect this method of marketing, some people have utilized only this method to get their traffic-and it's targeted.
Article Marketing Basics
By Vickie J Scanlon
Do you want to utilize articles as one of your marketing strategies? but do not know what you need to do after you write the article? If that's the case, here are some helpful hints to get your article writing out to your target market.
Simple Rules
If you are writing articles for article-marketing purposes keep in mind some simple rules:
The mechanics
1) It is best to use Notepad with the format "word-wrap" off. A lot of the article directories want your article to wrap naturally, without any hidden sentence breaks or page breaks. If your article doesn't wrap naturally and has a lot of unnecessary coding garbage, they will more than likely reject the article and make you clean it up and resubmit it again.
2) If you are using Microsoft Word stay away from the smart quotes. The smart quotes will leave your document with question mark symbols and/or other garbage. In addition, Microsoft Word gives you additional hidden coding garbage-that directories do not want. Again, some of the directories can work with Word, while others cannot. My suggestion is to create it in Word, do your spell check and than transfer it into Notepad to keep the copy clean for the directories- and to eliminate headaches. If you are submitting by hand, you definitely do not want to do this tedious task two or three times.
Your Signature
At the end of your article be sure to put your resource box. That should include your signature. Not only should it include your website info and/or blog info but you can also promote your product or service as well. But don't go crazy with the links in your resource box. Some directories only allow two or three links.
Also make sure your signature is concise and relevant to the article. If your article is talking about programming and you give them a link about shoes, you really missed the mark and your target market. And, that translates into lost affiliate revenue, lost time, lost energy and used bandwidth.
Get your articles out there
If you are a new site, it is important to get your site name out to the masses to see. Granted, for some it may be a tedious job but you will see targeted traffic coming your way. Another alternative is to look at article submissions service-but this option requires an outlay of money.
Articles for the Search Engines
Again, Search Engine Optimization does come into play. Make sure that you have several keywords in mind. Try to weave the keywords into your copy without distorting the quality of your work. The keywords will help the search engines find your article, and thus, get your article indexed and seen by yet more of your targeted market. And who knows, you may find your article in the top ten of Google, MSN and Yahoo.
To conclude, article marketing is a cost effective way to get your business off the ground and in full view of the Internet community. In fact, some webmasters have utilized article marketing as one of their major marketing strategies when promoting their site. It takes time, your energy, but the rewards can be great. Why? Articles do not stop circulating after you're done with a 6 week campaign. Your article will continue to give you traffic for many years to come.
About the Author:
Vickie J Scanlon -- Visit her site at: My Affiliate Place for tools, articles, ebooks, "how to" affiliate info, affiliate programs, tech accessories, software, computers for business use.
Read more...
But the main thing to know, is how to get your article ready. Hopefully, my article "Article Marketing Basics" will give you a quick idea of how to do this. It's a quick read with some helpful tips that you can utilize, especially if you're short of cash, and want to manually submit to some of the article directories available on the Internet.
Do not neglect this method of marketing, some people have utilized only this method to get their traffic-and it's targeted.
Article Marketing Basics
By Vickie J Scanlon
Do you want to utilize articles as one of your marketing strategies? but do not know what you need to do after you write the article? If that's the case, here are some helpful hints to get your article writing out to your target market.
Simple Rules
If you are writing articles for article-marketing purposes keep in mind some simple rules:
The mechanics
1) It is best to use Notepad with the format "word-wrap" off. A lot of the article directories want your article to wrap naturally, without any hidden sentence breaks or page breaks. If your article doesn't wrap naturally and has a lot of unnecessary coding garbage, they will more than likely reject the article and make you clean it up and resubmit it again.
2) If you are using Microsoft Word stay away from the smart quotes. The smart quotes will leave your document with question mark symbols and/or other garbage. In addition, Microsoft Word gives you additional hidden coding garbage-that directories do not want. Again, some of the directories can work with Word, while others cannot. My suggestion is to create it in Word, do your spell check and than transfer it into Notepad to keep the copy clean for the directories- and to eliminate headaches. If you are submitting by hand, you definitely do not want to do this tedious task two or three times.
Your Signature
At the end of your article be sure to put your resource box. That should include your signature. Not only should it include your website info and/or blog info but you can also promote your product or service as well. But don't go crazy with the links in your resource box. Some directories only allow two or three links.
Also make sure your signature is concise and relevant to the article. If your article is talking about programming and you give them a link about shoes, you really missed the mark and your target market. And, that translates into lost affiliate revenue, lost time, lost energy and used bandwidth.
Get your articles out there
If you are a new site, it is important to get your site name out to the masses to see. Granted, for some it may be a tedious job but you will see targeted traffic coming your way. Another alternative is to look at article submissions service-but this option requires an outlay of money.
Articles for the Search Engines
Again, Search Engine Optimization does come into play. Make sure that you have several keywords in mind. Try to weave the keywords into your copy without distorting the quality of your work. The keywords will help the search engines find your article, and thus, get your article indexed and seen by yet more of your targeted market. And who knows, you may find your article in the top ten of Google, MSN and Yahoo.
To conclude, article marketing is a cost effective way to get your business off the ground and in full view of the Internet community. In fact, some webmasters have utilized article marketing as one of their major marketing strategies when promoting their site. It takes time, your energy, but the rewards can be great. Why? Articles do not stop circulating after you're done with a 6 week campaign. Your article will continue to give you traffic for many years to come.
About the Author:
Vickie J Scanlon -- Visit her site at: My Affiliate Place for tools, articles, ebooks, "how to" affiliate info, affiliate programs, tech accessories, software, computers for business use.
Read more...
Mưa chiều SG!
Tan học, tôi trở về nhà, vẫn trên chiếc xe đạp cà rột. Mưa! Lại chợt đến, ngã tư đông nghẹt! o0(Mình dính mưa nữa rùi...) Hôm nay phải trú mưa thôi, kẻo ướt hết sách vở, mình sắp thi nếu mà phải cảm lạnh thì khốn!
Chiều nay mưa to quá,. Chờ mãi mình mới lấy Số luận ra xem. Học Số luận cũng thú chứ nhỉ, chỉ kém Topo 1 xíu thôi!
Ngoài kia vẫn mưa, vẫn to, mưa hoài.... Chợt thấy lũ trẻ giỡn nhau dưới mưa. Chúng đang tắm mưa! Mình thèm...
Hồi nhỏ mình cũng tắm mưa ghê lắm! Cả bọn tạt nước nhau, dzơ nhưng lại dzui!
Lớn lên tí xíu lại thèm lội nước lũ. Thú vị nhất là khi thấy một cây rơm trôi qua. Trên đó tụi kia hò hét, dẫm đạp--> trông đã. Còn nhỏ, mình chỉ dám lội gần thôi, không dám ra xa. Mình hơi nhát, uh, hồi đó mình hơi nhát thật!
Cảm giác ấy...
Gấp sách lại, mình tuôn...
Ướt tuốt. Một tay mình ôm cái cặp vào ngực cho đỡ ướt. Người cuối xuống. Chân hết công suất -->dzề!
Đấy là cảm giác của những năm cấp 3, không phải giống của lũ nhỏ.
Vẫn dzui!
Chiều Chủ nhật, buổi chiều đầu tiên trong chuỗi bốn buổi mắc mưa. Mưa tuôn trắng xóa...
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