Bring New Readers To Your Blog By Comment Posting in Early Days

The adage of “If you build it, they will come” doesn’t always hold up online. Though great content is a necessity for any blog that wants to succeed, it simply isn’t enough by itself.

However, getting new readers to your site can feel like an exercise in frustration. To get a lot of targeted visitors, you need to have a good search engine presence. To get that, you need to have a lot of inbound links. That, in turn, requires a lot of people come by your site and like it enough to link to it.

This can make starting a blog feel hopeless, as if there is no way to get it off the ground.

But there is one technique that is often-overlooked, blog commenting, as it can be a simple, powerful way to attract targeted readers to your site and slowly build up your link presence. This, in the long run, can help you drive organic traffic to your site and cause your readership to start snowballing.

Best of all, it’s very simple to do and only requires a few minutes out of your day to make it work.

Use Twitter blog search tools to find people who are talking about topics related to your blog. Though the content doesn’t have to be “new” to be worth commenting on, new posts are usually better to target as comments on such posts are more likely to be read, both by the site’s owner and by its readers.

A good topic is one where anyone who is interested in reading that post will likely enjoy your site as well. Either something related to your topic or something you have different information on usually works best.

What isn’t very important is the traffic of the site. Though higher traffic is better, it might actually work against you, causing your comment to get lost. Sometimes a well-timed comment on a smaller site is much better than a lone comment in a swarm on a larger one.

Once you post a comment, keep track of it. If people are interested in what you have to say and begin to reply to your comment, engage with them and keep the conversation going. The only thing better than one good comment is several more good comments.

Best of all, the people you meet this way often become your first fans and a foundation that you can build the rest of your site’s traffic on.

In the end, when you first start out a site, especially if you don’t have a popular platform to launch it from, you will need to work hard for your first view visitors, often times working for hours just to get a small handful of people to come by.

However, all of that clawing to move the hit counter pays off in the long run as you develop a loyal reader base that eventually helps spread the word for you and helps you build search engine trust.

Posting blog comments is a great way to get to that point.

This guest post is written by Lior Levin, a marketing consultant for a psd to html service company which provides psd to html formatting conversions.  Lior also consults for the international MA in political science department at the Tel Aviv University.

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Google might have place in a Yahoo takeover bid, Syria cracking down with US technology

Worried about monopolies? Here’s one of the bigger ones in the making that you might want to mull over a bit. A recent report in the Wall Street Journal is saying that Google might have a part to play in an emerging takeover bid for Yahoo.

Still, it’s important to keep in mind that sources were not named although the report is pretty specific about the facts that at least two companies have talked with Google about getting some assistance in buying the beleaguered Yahoo. This all comes on the heels of reports that Yahoo will in fact sell that have also driven the stock prices up. All the usual signs that something is lurking on the horizon with the company.

Here’s some more news about repression and how it all works in spite of the fact that the Internet is changing the way dictators inevitably lose their power and die. New reports are saying that Syria is using American software to censor the Internet. At the center of the storm is California’s Blue Coat Systems since at least some of their technology is being used to crack down on the dissidents in Syria that have been protesting against President Bashar al-Assad for months now. The American company is denying any allegations they sold to the Syrians willingly, but there are experts from the Bureau of Investigative Journalism in London that are saying many firms don’t always ask the right questions to avoid persecution for selling to places like Syria.

In other news, The Canada Centre for Global Security Studies at the University of Toronto’s Munk School of Global Affairs is saying that broadcasters that want to get information into countries that restrict access to the Internet need to tailor their approaches to each individual location. The recent study suggests that just having a wider all inclusive web isn’t necessarily the answer since each repressive regime often has a different way of suppressing information. The study looked at two years of BBC information and how it was censored by the Chinese and Iranian authorities.

We all need to keep an eye on the big names in censorship like the ones mentioned above and even the more sly wolves in sheep’s clothing like the Russian Interior Minister who has proposed a limit on the Internet. Dmitry Medvedev says he only wants to find ways to preserve the Russian culture and protect it from illegal activities like child porn, but there are fears that supporters of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin are looking for more strict control like the one that the Chinese impose. Does anyone remember the Cold War? It seems likely that an ex-KGB officer who happens to be in charge is pining for the good old days.

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Bad Content Finding Its Way Into Mobile Apps and RIM Owes Big

There’s always a good side to things and a bad side and that includes the ever-expanding world of mobile apps. A recent news article in the Washington Post talks about inappropriate content finding its way into mobile apps that are geared towards children. Violent and suggestive content are the culprits here and parents are complaining they don’t have any real way to monitor what their kids are exposed to.

The Federal Communications Commission keeps an eye on more traditional forms of media but as far as mobile apps are concerned, developers are still in charge of giving themselves ratings. More fodder for those who say it’s the parent’s responsibility to stay on top of what their children see and do.

As you might expect, recent reports are saying that RIM could owe tons of cash to right the fallout from their recent outages. The recent numbers are $100 million US in lost revenues and there’s more to it than that, none of which is good for the Canadian company that was the biggest hope that country had since the Avro Arrow.

Making the problem worse for RIM is the fact that wireless carriers worldwide have promised to compensate their users for the downtime. The whole mess couldn’t have come at a worse time for the beleaguered company and worst case scenarios for the estimated 70 million users worldwide put refunds to 35 million as the number bantered.

The whole Blackberry mess has some interesting spinoffs when it comes to how people deal with even the temporary loss of this kind of technology. Consider a recent article from a New Jersey professional who writes that people should know someone they can call in their office to check emails on their computer there when the BlackBerry network goes down. The article goes on to point out the obvious fact that you can send a text, but I think something even more relevant is being missed here.

Maybe the whole idea of having a Blackberry is overkill and being constantly hooked up to emails 24/7 from a device that you carry around with you is a case of too much technology. I mean, how many people can really do anything about even the most urgent email until they get back to the office anyway? I’m not talking out of school here because I have one and I find myself constantly looking for the little red light that tells me I’ve got mail like one of Pavlov’s dogs. I have to admit too, I did get a little nervous when my emails weren’t getting through regularly but I’ve still got to wonder if we all don’t need some kind of safe zone away from all of these things once in a while.

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Get Product Recommendations and Help Other Shoppers on Get.com

Have you ever needed a new product, but didn’t know where to start looking; maybe you knew the type of product you needed, but didn’t know which exact one/type to choose? It always helps when you can get recommendations from others who are more knowledgeable about that specific category of products. That’s where Get.com comes in handy.

“Get.com is a Q&A platform that helps you get product recommendations quickly from thousands of people.” It’s as simple as that. First you connect your Facebook and/or Twitter accounts. Next you setup your profile. Lastly you can ask your questions or help others who have asked questions.

From the home page you can see recent questions from all categories. You can also navigate to other categories (via the header links), ask your own question, click to view the leaderboard, view the top helpers, and see recent visitors to the site. This is the best place to find questions that you can jump into and give your input.

You’ll also notice that there are often a few odd-ball questions mixed into the bunch.

The main purpose of Get.com is to get product recommendations and help others who need suggestions. Sometimes you’ll find questions that are looking for a straightforward answer, while others may ask you to suggest your own product.

In the screenshot below you’ll see that some users have suggested headphones that the user might like. Other users can then go in and vote for one of the suggestions or add their own to the mix.

There are also ways to share and follow questions that interest you. Additionally, you can see related questions along with your personally history (recently viewed questions) in the sidebar.

Asking your own question is quite simple as well. First click on the yellow “Ask Question” link in the top header of the site. You can then type in your questions along with additional details (if needed), budget, and topic (electronics, automotive, photography, makeup & beauty, parenting).

Lastly, you can choose whether or not you’d like to get product suggestions (like pictured above).

Finally, there is the settings area. Here you can ad a picture, choose a display name (full name or first name and last initial), add a mini bio and about info, add your website, and customize your email notifications.

Unfortunately, you can’t actually change your display name. For instance, I signed up using Facebook and now it is using my full name as my display name. Personally, I’d rather use a screen name or at least a name that most people know me by, not my legal full name.

Do you feel there is a need for a service like Get.com? It is something that you plan to use yourself?

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Profiting with Content

Content helps drive traffic, boosts credibility and authority, and helps you build a community of followers. It can also help you increase your search engine ranking, and should provide valuable information for readers.

Content can also have an impact on your cash flow if done properly. Here are some simple ways you can profit with content.

1. Write reviews.

You can use content to generate affiliate commissions by writing good reviews on the products you’re promoting as an affiliate. Many people search online for quality reviews before they purchase a product. It helps them make an informed decision about the quality of the product and if it will be useful to them.

When people are reading reviews, they are already in a buying mode. They simply need compelling information to help them complete the sale. If you write a detailed review, from your personal perspective, they are more likely to purchase the product. Include your affiliate link so they can click through to buy the product.

There are several things to keep in mind when writing reviews. First of all, always be honest in your assessment of the product. Describe who the product is for, who it will benefit and also cover who it may not benefit. Also remember to mention anything negative about the product, things you didn’t like. Many people think that giving some negative points will hurt their review, but in truth it makes your review stronger. It shows you are being honest. The things you didn’t like may not even apply to the prospective buyer.

2. List Building.

Use email marketing as another avenue of making money. Give out a free report, an incentive for people to join your list. Make sure it is directly related to your content and the things you share and promote. This gives you another way to reach them and another way to promote affiliate products or your own products.

Never bombard your list with useless promotions or daily promotions. Only send out important content that you think they may find useful and valuable. However, you still need to be consistent with contacting your list. You can send out weekly tips or articles that you write specifically for your list. You do not need to attempt a sale in every email, but you do need to stay in touch with them. Show them you care and over deliver with valuable content.

When you do this, they are more likely to buy from you when you promote quality products.

3. Sell Ad Space

You can sell ad space on your blog or even in your newsletter. If you have a large list of followers, some advertisers will pay you so that they can reach your audience every week.

Make sure the ads are relevant to your list and your content. If you don’t have advertisers you can start with a Google ad and remove those as other sites start purchasing those ad slots.

4. Use Article Directories.

If you have your own product or service, you can use articles posted at directories to drive traffic to your sales page. Use the article as pre-sell material so when the prospect clicks the call to action in your bio, they are already wanting more information. This can increase your conversations from those click throughs.

5. Establish Authority with eBooks.

Ebooks are a great way to establish authority in your niche. If you’re extremely knowledgeable in a certain area, you can write an ebook for people to purchase.

You can sell your ebook from your own website, through Clickbank or you can even have it published on Kindle. This allows you to reach more people in your field.

Sales from ebooks not only boosts your income, but it can also increase traffic to your site which can give you future income,  more prospects to reach out to and help you profit with content.

There are many ways to use content as a means to increase sales. Implementing just a few of them can increase your popularity, your bottom line and establish your credibility. Try some of these methods, give them time to work and see if they don’t increase your income.

Another great thing about content is it can work for you for many years. You do the work once and it keeps working for you.

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Create a Professional Profile and Get Endorsements with Path.to

Path.to is a place where you can create a professional personal profile and get endorsements based on your skills. You can also endorse others when you have “first-hand knowledge of their ability to perform the skill.” Path.to has an endorsement algorithm that they use to identify who is the most skilled in each industry and you can view those people on the Leaderboard.

If you’re just looking for people to connect with, you can search within the directory. When viewing someone’s professional profile, you can add them as a contact or request an endorsement from them. Not only is this great for proving your skills, but it could be instrumental in landing a job or freelance work.

To get started, you can sign in with either your Facebook or Google account. Whichever account you choose to sign up with, that will be the profile used to import employment and education data from. However, if you want to import from another account (Facebook, Google, LinkedIn) once signed in you can do so.

Once inside your account, there are only 3 steps needed to get started: upload a photo, customize your profile, and add your skills. Since some of this will be filled in from your imported profile, you’ll just need to double check it and correct anything that may be wrong.

Your about me info consists of your name, title, biography, location, industry, and photo. You can then add up to 5 “endorseable skills that define you as a professional.” These are what others will be ranking you on.

Underneath your skills you can connect your social networking accounts: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google+ plus your own website and email. You can choose whether or not to display these on your profile. Underneath that is your work experience. For each position you can enter the company, title, skills uses, state date, and end date. Lastly there is your education, where you can list your school, degree, start date, and finish date.

Your profile can be customized using a premade theme or you can choose a theme and then customize it further.

Finally there is the dashboard, which is where you can see recent activity, today’s stats, and tips and tricks. Under the stats you’ll see a link to view your full analytics. If you would like to go a step further, you can even set up Google Analytics and enter the UA code in your Path.to settings for improved stats and analytics.

If you would like to see the final result of a Path.to profile, feel free to check out my profile.

What do you think of Path.to? Do you find it useful? Do you think it’s worth signing up for to get endorsements or is it easier to stick to something like LinkedIn recommendations?

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Are You Utilizing a Content Strategy?

Many bloggers just seem to go through their daily writing and posting routine by winging it. They don’t achieve the success they see other bloggers attaining. What’s the secret? What are other bloggers doing differently? It’s possible that successful bloggers are simply using a content strategy in their marketing efforts. They give each piece of content a purpose and use it to its maximum ability.

In simple terms, they plan their content and their strategy.

What Is a Content Strategy?

It’s merely a plan to create, organize, market and maximize content. You can use one to plan a week in advance, a month, a quarter or even a year if you’d like.
A plan makes creating content much easier. Instead of fighting the daily, “What do I write?” syndrome, you already have a list of topics to pull from and a strategy to make that content work for you.

Later, when you decide to outsource some of the writing, a content strategy makes it easier to let your writer know what you want from them and when it’s due.

Things you should ask yourself when creating your content strategy.

What types of content do you need to create?

Before you can work on content, you need to know what types of content you’ll be using. Will you write blog posts, articles, information products, or reports?
Do your readers respond better to list type posts? Do they like checklists? What kind of content do you get the most response from?
Knowing what your readers like will help you plan your content.

Where do you plan to publish each piece of content?

How much content will be for your blog or website? Will you use any of it for guest posting, newsletters or article directories? If it’s an information product, do you need extra content to promote it? Where will you post the extra content?

Does your content have a goal or a purpose?

If you want your content to be more effective, it needs to be given a goal or purpose. In a sense, content is a lot like people. It works better if it has a goal.
Decide the purpose of your content. Is it to drive traffic, establish your credibility, promote products, or build your list?

You need to know these things before publishing your content. Giving each piece of content its own purpose will help it to work better for you. It will also keep on working for that purpose over and over.

How can you maximize your content?

Maximizing content can be a difficult step if you’re not sure what it is or how to do it. You want every thing you write to work as hard for you as it can. To do this you simply repurpose some of your content. Do a few minor rewrites and post it in another location.

You can use repurposed content as another blog post later on, in your newsletter or save it in a folder for a future information product. Once you’ve gathered several of your best content pieces together, turn it into an ebook that you can sell or give away.

Do you have a marketing plan for your content?

Marketing your content is getting the word out about it. You can use social networks to post links to content. You can use article directories to get attention and point to more content on your blog or website. You can write guest posts and link to content on your own site.
This is where your content planning and strategy really comes in handy. If you have it all planned and written out, you can visually see where you need to cross promote your content so it gets more exposure.

When will you write your content?

Once you’ve decided what content you’ll write and how you’ll use it, you need to start scheduling when the writing will get done.
Will you write all of the content yourself or outsource some of the writing?
If you plan to write it yourself, you need to create a schedule that you can stick to easily. If you write best in the mornings, schedule writing during that time. If you’re a night owl, use that time to write.
Try not to schedule too much writing in one day. This can get overwhelming. However, for something short like blog posts, there’s no reason you can’t write 2 or 3 per day, if your time allows.
When creating your writing schedule, try to space it out so it’s manageable but keeps you with fresh content being posted to your blog.

When will you publish?

You may need to use two calendars for these schedules. One to determine when you’ll do the actual writing and another to determine when you’ll post the content. Of if you use a dayplanner with lots of room to write on each day, you can use one color of ink to write your writing schedule and another color to write your publishing schedule. Whatever works best for you.
You’ll also want to decide if you will upload several posts at once into your blog and schedule them to publish at later times. It can be a big timer saver to set up several posts at once and schedule them.

If you’re writing some content for article directories or as guest blog posts, you’ll also need to set up publishing times for that content.

Once you start planning out your content and get the hang of it, it will become an easy process. A major benefit to creating a content strategy is knowing there’s always a steady stream of work and content. It can also be a great way to avoid writers block and not knowing what you’ll write from day to day.

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