It does not matter what you call them: vodcasts, vidcasts, videocasting, or video podcasting… there are a few behind-the-scenes actions you can take to help attract more attention to your video productions. Just like websites, it does not matter how amazing the content is if interested people are unable to find it.

Use the following suggestions to help increase the exposure your videos receive…

1. Use Keywords

In Video File Name Insert keywords in the name of the video file. When determining what keywords to use, do not simply rely on intuition; do research, just as you would for a website, to see what relevant terms people are searching on.

2. Create Video Feed

Create an RSS feed of all videos in a collection. Each feed item should contain a different video in the enclosure field. Optimize the feed using related keywords. For additional help, there is a Videocasting Feed Creation Tutorial available at http://www.feedforall.com/videocasting-tutorial.htm .

3. Increase Exposure

Host your videos on YouTube, and embed the video into your website, which will increase the video count on YouTube. The more popular a video seems to be, the more exposure it will receive.

4. Video Name And Description

In the video name and description fields, use keywords that relate to the content of the video. Create a compelling yet relevant title and description that will encourage people to click-through.

5. Google Video Sitemap

Create a video sitemap for the search engines. For details on what to include in such sitemaps, Google has provided specifications in their Google Webmaster Central Blog at http://googlewebmastercentral.blogspot.com/2007/12/introducing-video-sitemaps.html .

6. Meta Data

Include meta data in the video file. The newer video search engines will often rely on meta data to produce relevant results. Many video editing products will allow you to edit and customize the meta data associated with the video file, and you should use this the same way you would use the meta data for a webpage.

7. Optimize Landing Page

Optimize the landing page on the website, embed the video in a webpage on your website, and then use standard SEO techniques to optimize that webpage for the search engines. Use keywords that relate to the video on the page that contains the video.

8. Transcripts

Provide a text transcript of the video, both on the landing page and in the RSS feed for the video.

9. Embed URL In Video

Brand the video with your logo in the initial video splash screen, and include your website address on the bottom of the video to increase your brand exposure.

10. Leave Them Wanting More

The video should be a teaser and leave the audience wanting more. Engage the audience, but try to encourage the viewer to visit the website or view other videos to learn more.

11. Submit YouTube Feed

YouTube creates an RSS feed for every user account that is created. In addition to manually creating an RSS feed, you can also use the YouTube feed to promote your videos. The formatting details for the YouTube video feeds can be found at http://gdata.youtube.com/feeds/api/username/uploads (replace “username” in the url with your own YouTube account username).

12. Anchor Text

When linking to the video, use anchor text that contains keywords which relate to the video.

13.Video Submission

Submit the video to all the video websites and video podcast websites. Here are a couple of resource sites to get you started…

Podcast & Video Submissions – http://www.podcasting-tools.com/submit-podcasts.htm 140 Places to Submit Your Video List – http://www.stephanmiller.com/my-link-lists/140-place-to-submit-your-video-list/

14. Tag Video

Tag the video on the video networks with relevant keywords, making it is easier for people to find when they search on those keywords.

15. Track Views

Track and review the number of views that a video receives. If you find that a substantial number of viewers are abandoning the video before completion, the chances are good that the video is too long and could benefit from trimming.

16. Social Bookmarking

Use social bookmarking to draw additional attention to videos. This will also help with the number of incoming links, which in turn will help improve search engine ranking.

17. Shorter Videos Rank Better

No big surprise here — the file size of short videos is much smaller than that of longer videos. On the video networks like YouTube, short videos are viewed far more often than longer ones. A length of less than 3 minutes per video seems to be ideal, and absolutely make every effort to keep your video under 10 minutes! If you have a long video segment, consider breaking it into multiple videos. The more popular videos on the video networks are given more exposure, which will also help increase the number of views received.

18. Titles Capture Interest

Just like newspaper headlines, it is important that the title of the video be one that will attract attention. If possible, include important keywords in the video title. This will help the video perform well in video searches for that keyword or phrase. Word order may also make a difference in the video ranking, so try to use the more important keywords at or near the beginning of the video title.

19. Tag The Video

Tag the video with important keywords and phrases that are relevant to the video’s contents. This is particularly important on YouTube. For anyone searching for topical videos, this will help them find yours.

20. Encourage Commenting

Encourage customers or other viewers to comment on your videos. Most video networks increase a video’s exposure if it receives a lot of comments or views. Once a large collection of comments has been posted, you can turn commenting off. To further increase exposure, link to the video from social sites and social media profiles such as facebook, myspace, twitter, linkedin, etc.

21. User Name

Use your company name as the username for your account on video networks like YouTube. The company name will further reinforce your brand.

22. Embed YouTube Video

Embed the YouTube video in your website. YouTube is the largest video network with the biggest following — by embedding the YouTube video on your website, you will further increase the number of views the video receives.

23. Video Anchor Text

When you link to the video, use keyword-rich anchor text in the link to the video file.

24. Add iTunes Tags

Increase the exposure of your video by adding the iTunes tags and submitting the video podcast to iTunes.

25. Video SiteMap

On your website, use a sitemap that shows where the videos are located on your website. This will help both visitors and search engines in locating the videos.

26. Transcripts

Create a text transcript of the video. The text can then be spidered by search engines, giving the content an additional channel.

27. Allow Video Syndication

Allow others to syndicate your videos. This will increase the exposure and the number of views that your video receives.

28. Ratings

Ratings are a plus. Make sure that you allow other viewers the ability to rate your video on the video networks.

29. Compress File

File compression will reduce the file size of the video, and make it faster to download and view. The downside is that more compression results in lower quality. Compress the video file to the smallest possible size, but without compromising the video or sound quality.

30. Include Watermarking

Watermark your video file so that there is no doubt to its origin. Also, add a splash screen at the beginning, and embed your website URL in the video using video editing software. These things will increase your website’s exposure if the video file is syndicated.

The growth of video on the web has exploded in recent years. Competitors will leave you in the dust if you fail to adapt and provide the medium your customers are exploring. Keep in mind that simply having a video is not enough! To make the most of your video content, you should take steps to optimize the video and increase your exposure.
Videos are the latest marketing channel. In order to make the most of it, optimize the video and increase the exposure it receives.
About the Author: Sharon Housley manages marketing for FeedForAll http://www.feedforall.com software for creating, editing, publishing RSS feeds and podcasts. In addition Sharon manages marketing for NotePage http://www.notepage.net a wireless text messaging software company

You probably already know that article marketing is a great way to get your story in front of people that can benefit from it. It helps to drive targeted traffic to your website and is the beginning of the relationship that you build with your customers.

But in today’s fast paced world where visitors take only about 4 seconds to scan a webpage, you are competing with thousands of other article writers so you need to write a compelling title that draws in readers like a magnet so that your article stands out from the crowd.

Here are 5 different types of titles that are sure to get more people “clicking in” to read your article:

The Question Title

People are curious by nature, so phrasing your title as a question can cause an irresistible pull for them to satisfy that curiosity.

But not any type of question will do. You need to use an open ended question – one that compels the reader to click into your article to find the answer. This is a question that has more than just a “yes” or “no” answer.

For example, you might want to use the title:

“Do You Know The 1 Trick That Will Stop Your Dog From Jumping?”

As opposed to:

“Do You Want To Stop Your Dog From Jumping?”

See, how the first title peaks your curiosity more? What is the 1 trick? Do you know it already? Even if you do, you feel compelled to click into the article to see what the author knows that you might not.

The List Of Tips Title

Another great way to get people to click on your title is to formulate your article into a list of ideas or tips. For some reason people love a list of tips. Not only will that help make your title compelling, but having a list format in your article with subheadings for each “point” on the list is a great way to structure the article itself and makes for easy reading.

Almost any topic can be written as a list, you just need to think vertically instead of horizontally when writing your article.

Then once you have the topic and the number of “points” on your list, you simply write the title in this format:

“X Ways To {Solve Your Problem}”

So, you might try something like:

* 10 Ways To Help You Lose Belly Fat

* 5 Ways To Get Your Dog To Obey You

* 6 Tips For Growing Bigger Tomatoes

…. And so on

Does this type of title work? Well, it enticed you to click into this article, didn’t you?

The How To Title

Let’s face it, most people are surfing the web looking for information on “how to” do something. Whether it’s buying a product or trying to figure out how to do something related to a hobby, or clearing up their acne, there’s a “How To” for it.

So why not just give them what they want?

* “How To Teach Your Dog To Sit”

* “How To Choose The Best Laptop”

* “How To Clean A Saltwater Aquarium”

Think about what you search the web for – wouldn’t an article with the title of “How To” followed by your subject matter be something you would want to read?

The Benefits Title

If you can, you should try to work your benefit into every title – even the other types listed on this page. But sometimes, it’s just not feasible to combine these different types and you might want to simply use the benefit as your title.

Benefits are very powerful because the illicit emotion in the reader. Benefits are what make people pull out their wallets and buy.

Yet, a lot of people confuse features with benefits and end up highlighting the wrong things!

A benefit is something that you can feel – that makes someone’s life a little better, less painful or easier. A feature is something about the physical product or service.

For example, someone who has insomnia doesn’t want a list of herbal remedies or relaxation techniques, what they really want is to get a good nights sleep. The “good nights sleep” is the benefit.

So, you would want to use a title like:

“Get A Good Nights Sleep Tomorrow By Using These Relaxation Techniques Today”

Tell them what the end benefit will be and you’ll have more people clicking into your article to learn how they can realize that benefit for themselves.

The Why Title

They word “Why” grabs attention – after all, who doesn’t want to know “Why”? Using “Why” in your title can turn a boring drab title into one that commands interest in your readers.

Consider this title:

“A Memory Foam Mattress Helps Ease Back Pain”

Now add the word “Why” in the front:

“Why A Memory Foam Mattress Helps Ease Back Pain”

Which one seems more interesting to you?

Using “Why” is actually one of the easiest ways to make your titles more engaging. You can add it to almost any title you currently have and make that title more interesting.

The next time you write an article and are considering the title, try to fit your subject into one of these types of titles and I think you will see that you get a better click through rate into your article.

But, of course, the title is only the first part of getting the visitor to your site. Next, you must deliver on the information you promised in the title by answering the questions or listing the tips indicated and, of course, making your article body and resource box compelling enough to get the click to your website or offer.

By using an irresistible title, you’ve done the critical first step of getting the reader into your article – the rest is up to you!

After 5 years of creating and promoting websites, Lee Dobbins has boiled the whole process down into a series of easy to follow steps. Get her free report and spreadsheet on the 10 step process that will streamline your link building efforts and start a flood of traffic at www.websitepromotionblueprint.com/pw.

I’m running an advertising special for the next week only.

If you purchase an ad on this site you will also get an ad on three of my other blogs, Slightly Sarcastic, Teen Suicide Talk, I Luv Norfolk – all of these blogs get a fair amount of traffic daily.

There is a limited number of ad spaces left so don’t wait!!

I have used and enjoyed sites similar to Atokens before, but I have never seen a site with so much to offer. Not only can you earn tokens by completing tasks like joining sites and signing up for services like you can on other sites like Treasure Trooper and Inbox dollars but the BEST part is you also become part of a community. You can sell services like advertising and reviews for tokens or pay another blogger tokens for the same.

My favorite part is you get to exchange the tokens you earn for CASH!

What is aTokens.com? Atokens is a “social currency” site. Instead of using cash (real money), users

can send and accept payment using our virtual currency (appreciation tokens). Our platform opens up new opportunities for our users because now, they can earn and spend on the web. There are no transactions or service fees. Our services are completely free. Atokens‘ Vision – To faciliate safe instant payments between individuals and online businesses using our virtual currency.

Tokens can be purchased or you can earn free tokens by participating in surveys, trial subscriptions,

brand engagement activities, and more.

Tokens can be traded with other members in the aTokens.com network for services, products, favors, etc.. You can spend your tokens in our store, get cash rebate, donate them, play games, and participate in contests.

Blogging is about connecting with readers. Atokens can help bloggers connect with their readers by adding incentives for participation on their blog.You can offer tokens to your reader for blog comments,

feedback, joining your newsletter, twitter follower, etc..

What a great response!! OK Everyone it’s 9:20 on May 31st and tomorrow I will be doing the drawing and posting the winner – good luck everyone!!!!!! The numbers next to your names will be YOUR numbers for the drawing based on how many entries you earned.

solomonsydelle (1-3)
Silvergirl (4-11)
HeartyBux (12-14)
Jen (15-17)
John (18)
Sheila (19-20)
LadyJava (21-23)
zizzybob (24)
vernz (25-29)
JT Locke (30)
Buggys (31-32)
Linda (33-34)
113Dir Fan Page (35)
Winchester (36-39)
contestgaga (40-42)
Sara Cat writes (43)
kayce (44-48)
113Tidbits (49-51)
Anna’s Adornments (52)
Mikki Aragon (53-55)
MarilynsMoney (56)
Chin chin (57-59)
Sherry (60-63)
waterrose (64-68)
Winchester (69-70)
Shydub (71-74)
mizhelle (75-78)
Kat (79-80)
Sourav(Titan) (81-85)
blankpixels (86-87)
mrsblogalot(88-89)
iamAPv (90-94)
Lisa – Alterity(95)
Mom To The Power Of Three(96)
Yashiro (97-100)
injaynesworld(101-102)
ceemee(103)
Lulu(104-105)
Willa(106-108)
Karen(109-112)
Mici | Click On Portal(113-117)
Juliana RW (118-121)
Zoan(122-123)
MinnieRunner(124-127)
Connie Foggles(128-130)
Rich(131)
melandriaromero(132-138)
chubbymommyme(139-140)
Julie(141-145)
Mommy Rubz(146-151)
financial article(152-154)
Jenn(155-157)
Karen (158-160)
Chris(161-162)
Ellen Joy (163-168)
redamethyst (169-171)
Buggys(172)
Elvs(173)
Hyanne(174-178)
Mici(179)
Esvimin C. Faelnar(180-183)
Dhadha G. | I Heart Contest(184-188)
famdy(189-192)
Dany Exel(193-199)
Richard Mamuyac(200-202)
gustosa(203-204)
JM Lagapa (205-209)
cyn(210-211)
Francis R. (212-213)
papabear(214-219)
bettibot(220-222)
shugah(223-224)
Lisa(225-228)
ContestItalia(229-231)
CherylT(232-233)

Jen over at Redhead Ranting has started an awesome new social networking site for bloggers. Tribal blogs is a great place to meet some amazing bloggers and a perfect compliment to many other similar sites.  What you definitely won’t find there is crappy blogs.    Jens goal is  to bring together a group of bloggers to meet one another, support one another and mentor other bloggers.  As soon as you start visiting Tribal Blogs you’ll see that her vision is taking off.  There is already a fantastic group of bloggers gathered – you know, the ones who write interesting posts,  always comment and interact on other blogs, the guys that  always jump  in to  help out other  bloggers the blogs you  enjoy visiting often.

Tribal blogs is free to join, but there is a premium membership you can sign up for that gets you a spot on the Tribal Blogs Toolbar, one of the best features of the site.

In addition to the network there is a toolbar so that members can easily surf other member’s blogs without having to wade through all the blogs that are filled with links, not translated well into English or ones that simply suck.

Tribal Blogs is free to join. If you have a quality blog you can be a member. If your blog is filled with embedded links, posts that are only created with the highest paying keywords or other crap, you cannot. If you are reading my blog you probably have a quality blog. It’s the ones who don’t read it that are not welcome.

There is also a premium membership level. Premium membership gets your blog loaded in the toolbar which is available to anyone to download. It also gets you access to some pretty nifty areas of Tribal Blogs created for people who really want to push their blog to the next level.

Because we wanted to create a professional network, a network of bloggers who are great writers, who engage their readers, and who connect with their readers, we had to implement an approval system. This is only to keep the riff raff out.

If you’d like to be part of this wonderful group visit Tribal Blogs and sign up.

It’s never been harder to keep up with the latest web trends with the expansion onto mobile platforms, the growth of social media and the need for start ups to be aware of new SEO techniques.

As a result, we’ve assembled a team of web experts to help you and your business keep on top of the most important trends on the web. Constructing a mobile website, creating social media campaigns and selling online are just some of the challenges businesses will face during 2010.

Here are top online trends for the next 12 months.

Mobile Web

Every web-savvy business knows smartphone use is on the rise. But few are actively developing for mobiles by creating websites specifically used for handheld devices.

As more and more mobile users flock to gadgets with larger touchscreens and internet browsers, such as the iPhone or Google Nexus One, the mobile space will become bigger and SMEs need to get on board. If your website isn’t accessible through a smartphone or app, users will give up and go somewhere else losing you traffic and potential sales.

Ovum analyst Nathan Burley says the number of people taking up smartphones instead of traditional handsets will require businesses to develop mobile websites.

“In our view there are two big trends that will occur in 2010. That is mobile broadband and the adoption of smartphones, and the impact of those two things on the industry. This is changing the way people access the internet, and that is in mobile.”

“The big change is that these smartphones are allowing people to use tools in the same way a laptop did in the past, which is opening more users to the internet on the go.”

Chris Thomas, chief executive of SEO firm Reseo, says 2010 will be “the year of the mobile”.

“I think mobile search is definitely here. Google is throwing a lot of money at mobile, and it’s going to be really interesting to see how businesses leverage that.”

SEO

Using search engine algorithms in order to get your site on “page one” has been a tactic used by online businesses for years. But SEO experts say the process of getting a website known will become even harder in 2010 with the rise of personalised and real-time search.

Social network Twitter sparked a trend when it designed the first popular real-time search engine. When users search for a term, the site would update that search with new “tweets” as they were being made.

Google has recently introduced a real-time search function of its own, complete with indexed tweets, while Microsoft Bing has made a deal to show tweets in search results. But Thomas says while 2010 will see a rise in real-time search traffic, businesses shouldn’t be too keen to pursue a dedicated real-time search strategy.

“I think people are still trying to figure out what to do with it. Perhaps if there’s a trending topic, such as Copenhagen or climate change, that’s where we could see real-time do some work because there’s an opportunity for someone selling solar panels to come in, using a message like “stop climate change” via solar panels or something. There is some real potential there.”

“This is where it could go, but it’s such an active industry, with optimisation and SEO changing. But I always say to our clients, stick to your knitting and don’t do anything silly.”

Jim Stewart, chief executive of Stewart Media, says real-time search will continue to grow, but businesses need to be aware of the more subtle changes Google is making to its search algorithms.

“All of the normal SEO things still apply, even though Google is going forward with things like personalised search. That will surely play a part, but you still have to get on the front page at all before you get into someone’s personal search results.”

Stewart warns Google will be updating its speed-check feature, through which the engine checks how fast it takes for a user to connect to a website. If a business has any downtime, it could affect search rankings.

But Stewart also says Google could potentially lose its place as the top search engine, as users could migrate to other offerings or be wary of the company’s search power.

“I don’t believe the search engine is providing as relevant results as it did this time last year. I’m sure they know it, but it doesn’t seem to be working as well. I’d also love to think that people will begin to start using Bing more and more, but it has to become a better search engine before that happens.”

“The other thing is privacy. A lot of people already are pretty wary of Google and privacy issues, even to the point where Eric Schmidt said if you’re doing something on the web you don’twant people to know, then maybe you shouldn’t be doing it.”

Social Media

Facebook and Twitter were the standout social networks from 2009, and their popularity will surge in 2010 with both introducing new features, including paid accounts for business.

But businesses need to pay attention to the trends on these sites. Creating a social media strategy is no longer optional, it is vital to the health of a company and its ability to tap into an online user-base.

Some experts say if you aren’t engaging online, you’re missing out on a huge opportunity to gain new customers and fans who will effectively market for you if given enough reason.

Thomas says 2010 will be the year in which businesses must jump on social media or risk being left behind by the competition.

“If you don’t have a Facebook fan page you should get in, and if you’re in a community-minded space, where you can offer things like competitions and such, then you’re set.”

James Griffin, founder and chief executive of online reputation management company SR7, says this year will see the rise of analysts who will begin to convince businesses to study, track and move operations into social media.

“Analysts will be versed in understanding and using social media, the quantitative and qualitative reports will empower businesses to implement researched social media strategies and gather market intelligence.”

Online Retail

More and more Australian businesses are selling online, but compared to the US we have a lot of catching up to do. Online spending has grown from 1% to 3% of overall spending over the last 10 years, compared to the American equivalent of 7%.

Hal Pritchard, founder and chief executive of online kitchenware retailer Everton Online, says 2010 should be the year in which businesses start to realize they cannot operate without an eCommerce offering.

“The whole market in general is maturing. I think some of the people who didn’t want to do it originally are now deciding they have to do it, because if I count the number of competitors I have now compared to last year, there’s certainly a lot more out there.”

Pritchard says the biggest trend emerging in Australia is the growth of free shipping, which has allowed retailers in the US to stand out from the crowd.

“Freight is getting lower and is free in some places, which I suspect is going to be a general trend as competition hots up. Margins will get even tighter, and affording these things will
be difficult, but I think it’s one of the things that are happening.”

“We seem to be following the US as we progress, and we’re less far behind and I think that free freight is the next thing. But it’s not just about that, it’s about pushing the boundaries and staying on the edge, not just having a good website. The people who can innovate and stay ahead will do well.”

Advertising

The internet advertising industry continued to grow in 2009 and will do the same in 2010, but the next 12 months is expected to see the ongoing development of mobile advertising.

Last year the Interactive Advertising Bureau forecast the online ad market to pass $2 billion by next month, representing a 27% increase from 2008. While the downturn forced spending down in 2009, it’s safe to assume that figure will rise in 2010.

The mobile advertising scene is fairly new, so naturally few SMEs are actually investing in the sector. But Apple’s recent acquisitions of Quattro, along with Google’s purchase of AdMob, shows the big players are serious about the mobile space.

But Thomas says businesses should think about advertising on prominent sites such as social networks, in order to keep up with the market.

“In the last 12 months we have started various campaigns using Facebook ads with quite good success, and it’s getting better. Businesses should be taking advantage of the solid targeting available through sites like Facebook.”

“We’re certainly seeing more advertising on Twitter. You have sites now which are allowing companies to hire someone with a million followers to tweet their messages. I mean, it’ll cost
you, but the return on investment of that tweet could be huge.”

YouTube senior product manager David King says the growth of viral content, pieces of media published online which gain popularity in a short amount of time, are opening businesses up to new advertising models.

He says if a business finds a piece of content it created on a YouTube video, it can choose to place an in-video or AdWords advertisements rather than claim a copyright violation.

“These advertising structures are really geared towards taking control of what users upload. It’s only relevant if you’re uploading content, but if you are a small business and are doing
that, this could be relevant for you.”

Reputation Management

Most businesses are at least operating a website, but even those rejecting the online space need to be aware of how fast rumours and allegations can fly in the digital age. Several companies have had their reputations tarnished within hours from the activities of either rogue employees, or a botched advertising campaign.

Griffin says businesses need to control their reputation by monitoring what people are saying about them.

“The answer is, companies have been pushed into conducting a social media marketing campaigns without research and without adequately addressing the risk factors associated with social media.”

“2010 will see companies embracing the need to address the inherent risks of social media, with enterprises moving towards a scientific and empirically based approach to managing risk.”

Last year, Domino’s Pizza landed itself into trouble when two employees posted a video of themselves handling food unhygienically on the internet. Cotton On experienced backlash on Facebook when it continued to sell baby clothes with slogans such as “They Shake Me”.

Griffin says businesses can avoid such catastrophes by carefully monitoring who is talking about their brand, and being ready to address any situation as quickly as it appeared.

“The many and varied social media ‘fails’ of 2008-2009 will see companies and institutions take a measured, risk-based approach to these platforms.”

“Auditing, monitoring and analysing social media platforms along with risk mitigation strategies will become standard fare for those companies looking to protect and enhance their brand on social media platforms.”

Marketing

While mobile advertising may be taking awhile to heat up, many businesses are developing new and interesting mobile marketing campaigns to draw people into their stores.

Google has developed a system whereby users take a picture of a barcode with their mobile phone and use the search engine to find information. Closer to home, Hoyts Cinemas currently runs a promotion where movie goers with Bluetooth activated on their handsets sometimes receive discount offers via text messages when they walk into a lobby.

But it isn’t just big companies which are using mobiles for marketing. Peter Shipman, who owns a casual Mexican restaurant in the US, bought ads in university newspapers to advertise a barcode sent through text messages used to claim discounts.

US company Jagtag is now developing a technology used to identify barcodes through camera phones, when it is then sent via text message in order for the user to receive a discount code.

Thomas says this year will see a number of companies bring mobile marketing strategies to the forefront of their campaigns.

“There are going to be some really good creative ways people will start to get customers in store, and sending messages out like that… providing they don’t break any spam laws.”

“We’re going to see these companies start to realise how much activity is occurring through mobiles, and then we’re going to see them respond by commissioning campaigns of their own.”

Thomas also says a number of companies will begin to commission mobile apps, especially on the iPhone, purely for marketing purposes. Whether this will gain them revenue or purely open their brand to a new audience, the mobile apps market will become part of an online business’s marketing strategy in 2010.

Content

The growth of the internet has allowed businesses to publish content of their own, including blogs, pictures and even videos. King says SMEs should think about creating some sort of content on YouTube or similar sites such as a tutorial, and see a fan base grow.

“There are a lot of smaller to medium-sized businesses which have really operated with a focus of specifically gearing themselves towards publishing on YouTube, and they really make a go of it – and we give them a global audience to do so.”

But King warns businesses they must be generating useful content, without the appearance of a blatant marketing pitch, and not be scared of entering a new area where they might not have experience.

“As these things become more commonplace, consumers love them, but unfortunately businesses which have been relying on older business models do not. I really think they need to get over that a little bit. Ultimately the consumer is right, and they are going to spend their time the way they spend it.”

“Businesses need to really stay focused on that consumer experience and not get hung up on the comfort of the way things used to be. The more businesses can try and anticipate where things can go as opposed to stopping it, I think that’s the best place to be for them.”

Open Source

Once upon a time, businesses wouldn’t trust open-source programs in favour of branded, more trustworthy software solutions. But now open-source has given SMEs a way of operating high-end programs without substantial costs.

With popular programs such as Mozilla Thunderbird, Open Office, WordPress and Joomla now gaining notoriety, organisations are beginning to realise open-source programs aren’t just technically inferior rip-offs, but legitimate alternatives.

A number of organisations, including the British Government and the French police force, have openly supported open-source, while Gartner research from late-2008 indicates the majority of businesses in the Asia/Pacific region took up open-source in 2009.

And with the development and popularity of open-source Android operating system continuing to grow, open-source is likely to play a major part in a business’s IT strategy in 2010.

Cloud Computing

Two years ago “cloud computing” was viewed by many businesses as a buzzword with no particular meaning, used by tech-heads who didn’t quite know what they were talking about.

Now, using cloud services has become an essential for businesses. Whether they are backing up their data or using a piece of software hosted on external servers, cloud computing is now a part of everyday operations for many SMEs.

Cloud services have branched out into three main categories: applications, also known as software-as-a-service, infrastructure, used for data backups, and internal service providers for businesses with customised apps and programs.

Analyst firm Gartner recently named cloud computing as one of the top strategic technologies for 2010, saying it could be exploited in a number of different ways to customise programs and apps to a particular company’s needs.

“Using cloud resources does not eliminate the costs of IT solutions, but does rearrange some and reduce others. In addition, consuming cloud services enterprises will increasingly act as cloud providers and deliver application, information or business process services to customers and business partners.”

I got this great list of Marketing Tools in an email today and wanted to pass it on:

Thousands of free online marketing tools clamor for attention, with new ones popping up every week it seems. You know you should be doing more to reach out to your customers, but just researching which tools to use can be a vast time investment, even if they don’t require a big financial outlay.

Below is a compiled a list of the most popular (or most useful) low-cost or free small business marketing tools. You might be using some of them already, but you’re sure to find a couple that will round out your small business marketing toolkit nicely. And, if you’re just starting out marketing a new business online, this list may help point you in the right direction.

Directories

The Open Directory – A staple of the SEO crowd, this directory can be tricky to get into but well worth it for the link juice it passes along to your site.

Yahoo! Directory – It’s not free – this directory will set you back a couple hundred bucks a year – but it’s well worth it for inclusion.

Best of the Web Directory – This directory has been around a while and can pass along some good PageRank to your site.

Niche Directories

Find the directories in your industry that pass along good link building opportunities. Some examples to get you started: SBDGraphics.com for ad agencies, web developers, printers and other graphics professionals; sbdpro.com for small businesses and businesses that serve them; Cpapro.com for the accounting industry; SEOAlpaca.org for alpaca breeders, and so on.

Press Release Distribution Services

Marketwire – The most bang for your buck from an actual wire service, Marketwire’s prices are lower than PR Newswire and Businesswire. This newer service is built for powerful online exposure, and you’ll enjoy the full online distribution with any geographical AP wire distribution. (Sometimes you can get statewide wire distribution for nearly the same cost as only your local metropolitan area.) It’s great for building inbound links – just choose the SEO Enhanced option.

PRLog – A good-performing free press release distribution outlet, PRLog press releases rank really well and for a really long time if they are written with SEO copywriting best practices. Press releases include three links, though they are URL based (starting with http) rather than text anchor. PRLog also lets you create your own newsroom where all your press releases reside, as well as an “about us” page and product showcase area.

PitchEngine – A relatively new PR-for-social-media site that promises to let you create and share press releases easily and for free and syndicate content to Google News. Lets you include HTML in your press release, so you can use keyword text anchor links. The site is marketing itself quite aggressively and will likely build a big presence quickly. The only catch is your release will disappear off the site after 30 days if you aren’t a paid member ($50/month for your own press room).

Email Marketing

AWeber – AWeber makes it easy to start building your email marketing list, if you haven’t already. For less than $20/month, you can build unlimited newsletter lists, send unlimited email blasts, and email unlimited autorespond messages to up to 500 subscribers/list. (Then it’s $29/month up to 2500 subscribers.) Also offers a recurring 30% commission – a pretty good affiliate program for a service you’ll appreciate enough to recommend to others. (Disclosure note: the link above is our affiliate link. We’ve been using the service for 3 years now, after trying out Constant Contact and researching about 20 other providers! Most either do autoresponders or email blasts/newsletters – not both.)

Content Sharing Websites

Squidoo – Create a lens around your business area. A good one with lots of information will even rank in the search engines and can bring traffic to your web site.

Scribd – Share your expert content like white papers and articles. You can make them available for free or sell them. You can submit documents in PowerPoint, Word, PDF and many other file formats.

SlideShare – Post your presentations and documents online for others to view and share. This is a great way to get exponential exposure for your sales or marketing materials – or share documents privately. See some tips for getting more visibility with SlideShare: http://bit.ly/aNXmS2

Flikr – Does your product or service translate well visually? Use this popular photo sharing site to get more eyeballs.

Blip.tv – A video-sharing alternative to YouTube, blip.tv lets you embed links in your descriptions and create a TV station showing all your videos in one spot.

Social Networks

Facebook – Create a page for your business. Feed your blog in. Start a group. Get fans. Advertise to targeted users if your products appeal to the Facebook crowd (which is basically everyone nowadays). See using the new Facebook business page layout to learn more. Stop by our page and become a fan, too!

MySpace – Take a second look at this medium for social networking. According to MarketingProfs, more than half of MySpace.com users are 35 or older. Explore using MySpace for your business.

LinkedIn – Like a virtual Rolodex. Build your professional profile, link up with other professionals, join groups or even start a group. Participating in Q&A’s related to your profession is a great way to build credibility and visibility.

Ning – Build your own social network around your business. You may even get your network into the search engine results pages. Learn more about using Ning for business. (http://bit.ly/amLKcE)

Read “Utlize Social Media to Gain Additional Exposure for Your Site” (http://bit.ly/bcoWEQ) for more information about social networks and how they can drive targeted traffic to your site.

Social Bookmarking

Digg – Getting your content on the home page of Digg is one way to bump up your web site’s traffic by thousands within minutes. This can result in valuable links to your site. Start with this beginner’s guide to Digg.

StumbleUpon – Build friends and send them your articles to rate. More thumbs up will get your article shown to more people outside your network and can result in thousands of visitors every day. Tips for using StumbleUpon.

Reddit – Even if your content gets buried on Digg, it can flourish on Reddit – which can be a catalyst for jumping to the home page of other social bookmarking sites. Learn more about the types of topics that do well on Reddit.

Blogs

Your own blog -

Write great content relevant to your business area that people will find useful. Use it to link to deep pages on your site to help them get indexed in the search engines. Build your thought leadership and let your customers get to know your business better. Try WordPress for an easy-to-use platform that’s also search engine friendly.

Others’ blogs -

Read and comment on other blogs in your industry. Use your comment signature to link back to your blog or web site. Build relationships online and spread the link love from your own blog to others’.

Twitter

Micro-blogging. Update your status daily or a couple times a week. Use keywords in your posts and profile to help gain followers on Twitter quickly. Link to your unique content in your updates and take advantage of the multitude of new applications created to help you manage your Twitter experience.

Affiliate Marketing

Post Affiliate Pro

Traditionally links generated through affiliate marketing have not been helpful for search engine optimization – until Post Affiliate Pro, that is. This easy-to-use affiliate program lets you set up a referral program in minutes and keeps your links simple and search engine friendly.

Technorati

Claim your blog at Technorati to make sure it’s indexed in the blog search engines and have your updates broadcast across the network.

Your Own Web Properties

Create A Knowledge Center

Build a content area on your site where you can add articles regularly. This can be as formal as white papers or case studies, but it can also work with less formal articles, as long as they further your company’s thought leadership position and credibility. They will also boost your search engine rankings if you contribute regularly and ensure your site architecture is optimized. See how we’re doing this with SEO Advantage’s new knowledge center.

PowerReviews

People are going to look up user reviews whether on your site or elsewhere – might as well take advantage of the user-generated content for additional search engine visibility. You’ll also rank higher in trust with your efforts at transparency.

SurveyMonkey

Voting/polling/surveys. A tool of engagement that lets you gauge interest, measure customer satisfaction or just provide some fun. (People love to give their opinions.)

Awards and Contests

Enter them and host them. Winning an industry award can add to your credibility, and giving them out can get you lots of press coverage and links. Get creative.

Search Engine Optimization

Make sure your site architecture is optimized for maximum exposure in the search engines. Create link-building campaigns. Add to your content regularly. Enlist the services of a search engine optimization company to guide your efforts or handle implementation completely.

Research

Google

Designate the keywords you’d like to keep track of, and Google will send you alerts of news and pages indexed on those topics “as it happens” with Google News Alerts. You can also enter multiple terms at Google Trends to compare the general level of buzz around those terms.

AllTop

An “online magazine rack”, this site aggregates content and organizes it. Select your topics and have the latest content delivered to you, or just browse the site when you’re in research mode. Also, be sure to submit your site so it shows among the related content.

WordTracker

Find keywords with a more comprehensive tool than free pay-per-click research tools, which may skew results. A free trial will give you an idea of how it works.

Yahoo! Pipes

See who’s talking about your company or brand by pulling together RSS feeds from different sources around the Web using the beta Yahoo! Pipes. This handy video shows you how.

Analytics

You need to measure all your online marketing efforts. If you’re looking for a free analytics package, try Google Analytics or Yahoo! IndexTools. (Which is better?) However, you’ll probably want some help implementing and interpreting your analytics package to get the most from it – ask your SEO company if they offer this.

For anyone looking for a Niche to market and make money Google Trends is something they should not do without.

How to use the Google Trends website Practically?

PPC Marketing – If you are primarily a PPC marketer Google Trends is going to help you in your geo-targeting. I was involved in a niche that was hot in the United States but it gradually tapered off in the USA but got real hot in the Japanese market and so you set up your Adwords campaigns to target Japan. Thank you Google for saving me money on advertising and making me money by knowing where the buyers were.

Spying on Competition – To the right of the trends graph there are a list of links that show you articles that are ranked high for the keyword that you chose. Look over those articles, get some ideas, spin it and submit it. Have you seen our page about Online Article Marketing?

Hot Trends for Bloggers – Google Hot Trends is a separate service and URL. When you are blogging you are in need of content and if you want to have something relevant to your crowd that is timely with world events or something else you can use Google Hot Trends to see what is real relevant. Not long ago Tiger Woods went through his hardship with his family and the reporters. If you type Tiger Woods into the Google Trends website you will see the spike that was created over the bad press. I would not use Hot Trends to determine a niche because it is only reporting the hot things that are very current and as we know, news is changing all the time.

Keyword Analysis – The Google Trends website should be a part of your keyword research in conjunction with a program like Traffic Travis (download Traffic Travis for FREE) and the Google external keyword tool. Google trends will save you money from choosing keywords or a niche that is no longer active in a particular country that you may be targeting.

Another cool part of the keyword analysis that I should mention is something I saw in a webinar. The Google Trends website was used to compare “table tennis” and “ping pong”. Which do you think is more popular? Which country would you think either is more popular? Curious? Well I am not going to tell you. Go to the Google Trends website and check it out for yourself. While you are there play with it and see if you should alter some of the marketing that you are doing.

Note – Remember that this is only Google traffic and does not account for the traffic on other search engines like Ask, Yahoo and Bing. Clearly Google dominates as a search engine and gives a good picture of what is most likely taking place in the other search engines.

Image from selmakoparan

My blog was hacked today.  Somehow someone inserted a huge line of code into my blogs header which caused it to redirect to a bunch of stupid sites.  I wish I could redirect something right back at them that would blow up their damn computers while they’re busy hacking into someone’s private property.  These people make me insane!!!!!   I wasn’t aware of how much I didn’t know about these morons.  I didn’t know that hacker isn’t really an appropriate word for these #$$@^&*(), the appropriate term would be cracker.  Hackers break code for good and crackers break code for evil.   Here’s some info from a great site which helped me better understand the world of a hack or crack or whatever the heck they are. hackingalert.com

A Brief History

One might not suspect that the art, or scourge, of computer hacking was created at one of the havens for technological excellence.  True, at MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology), a group of students developed the technique and borrowed their name from the “hackers” of the late 1800s who found amusement in pranking the emerging telephone companies.Getting their laughs and skills from hacking and cracking into primitive computers and exploiting the Arpanet (predecessor to the internet), they created a novelty that would become the target of federal crackdown in years to come. To define hacking in short, we can say that an artistic criminal offense of breaking into another remote system without the owner’s consent for the purpose of stealing information is what is hacking.

However, the act of hacking started out innocently, and was basically a method of trying to figure out how computer systems worked. The 1970s saw the rise in “phreaking,” or phone hacking, headed by John Draper. This method allowed the user of a “blue box,”, when used with a Captain Crunch whistle of 2600 hertz which accessed the AT&T long distance system, to make free long distance calls. Hackers initiated with accessing the free phone calls through a varied range of sources, thereby managing to circumvent into the nation’s radio system and the phoning system resulting in a tremendous phone fraud nationwide.

After the age of “phreaking,” computers became not only the target, but also the forum, for a growing hacker population to communicate. The creation of bulletin board systems (BBS) allowed this communication and the technological possibility of more serious government and credit card hacking became possible. At this time in the early 80′s, hacking groups such as the Legion of Doom began to emerge in the United States, giving organization, and thus more power to hackers across the country.

Once this happened, breaking into the computers became a legitimate activity, with its own groups and soon its own voice with the 2600 magazine, launched in 1984. The effects of computer hacking were serious. Two years later, inevitably, Congress launched the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act that outlawed hacking. Over the years, there was a series of noticeable occurrences as the worst consequential effect of computer hacking on more high profile cases, such as the Morris Worm, responsible for infecting government and university systems, and the Mitnick case in 1995, which captured Kevin Mitnick, steeling as many as 20000 credit card numbers.

In 1999, security software became widely known by the public, and with the release of new Windows programs, which were littered with security weaknesses, they became successful because of necessity. This fraudulent act of computer hacking is perhaps the major problem, confronting the rapidly expanding population of Internet users today, with the systems still trying to battle online hackers.  Visit  hackingalert.com for more info.

Over the years, I’ve read thousands and thousands of marketing articles, both online and off. But to this point, I have never read any article that was what I considered to be 100% idiot-proof – meaning even a dunce, moron, or complete idiot couldn’t screw up the process.

So I decided to write such an article. And if you read and judiciously apply the ridiculously simple, but profoundly effective and proven success steps presented in this article, I am 100% convinced beyond any shadow of doubt that anyone can absolutely, positively make money with Internet Marketing.

Why am I so confident in these steps? Because these are the exact same steps I’ve used to build nearly 100 profitable websites of my own, in a very short period of time. Here are the steps:

1. Brainstorm Your Domain Name

This is an important process, so don’t rush it. Even if it takes you weeks or even months to come up with a domain name you’re satisfied with. Take as much time as you need. Your domain name is that important.

I’m a firm believer in creating generic domain names that utilize your primary keywords. For example, NewyorkCityHotels.com or NapaValleyWines.com. Having a generic domain name serves two crucial purposes:

First, it will attract a more targeted audience to your website. A targeted audience will give you a much higher conversion ratio – allowing you to make maximum use of the traffic you receive.

Second, generic domain names that utilize your primary keywords will help with your search ranking. While SEO experts have opposing viewpoints whether or not this actually helps, based on my own personal experience, I can tell you that it does.

By the way, because of the astronomical number of domains on the Internet, you may have to get a little creative in order to utilize your primary keywords in your domain name.

For example, if your first choice, NewYorkCityHotels.com is already taken, try playing around with different variations of your keywords.

For instance, try this variation, HotelsinNewYorkCity.com…or this one, CityofNewYorkHotels.com. Also, don’t be afraid to use hyphens in your domain name. Using this technique allows me to utilize my primary keywords 100% of the time.

It also allows me to use the much preferred .com domain. You should try to use .com domains whenever possible, because most people will automatically put a .com on the end of a domain when they type it into a search engine. This puts you in prime position to pick up traffic from domains in your category that utilize extensions other than .com.

2. Register Your Domain Name, and Forget It

After you decide on a domain name, don’t build your website right away. Register your domain name, and forget it.

Why? Because in my opinion, you should never build a website without having a plan to promote, as well as monetize your website. Develop a well-thought-out marketing plan going forward, then when you build your website, you can hit the ground running.

3. Develop Your Marketing Plan

I’m a member of several small business forums, and without fail, the two questions that get asked most often are:

“How do I promote my website?” or, “How do I get free traffic to my website?” Those two basic questions get asked every single day.

That’s why it’s so important to develop a marketing plan in advance. You need to know the answer to those questions, before you build your website. You can’t get to your destination, if you don’t know know where you want to go.

4. Your Budget Determines Your Marketing Plan

If you have thousands of dollars to work with, then you have many more options when it comes to promoting your website. For example, you can buy ads in offline publication, as well as online publications.

A word of advice: Unless you are an experienced marketer with extremely deep pockets, stay away from pay-per-click advertising. PPC advertising will eat up your advertising budget quicker than Usain Bolt breaks world records.

In reality, most people coming online don’t have thousands of dollars to work with. In fact, most people coming online have little or no money at all.

But that’s the beauty of the Internet. Even if you are broke, you can still promote your website effectively, if you know what you’re doing.

For example, you can participate in social media networking, and promote your website via mega-popular sites such as Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn and a host of other social media websites.

Other free and highly effective promotion methods include article marketing, forum posting, guest blogging, RSS feeds, volunteering your expertise on Question & Answer sites like AllExperts.com and more.

5. Learn How to Implement Your Marketing Plan Effectively

Starting a business – any business without having even basic marketing skills is downright foolish. Competency in marketing is the most important business skill that you can have.

If you become proficient in the art of marketing, it will allow you to become profitable that much quicker. And there won’t be anything that you can’t accomplish.

Some of the greatest sales and marketing books ever written are located right under your nose, at your local library – and they’re free. Do yourself a favor and study the classics. Many of the marketing techniques being used today are based on sound marketing principles established many decades ago.

A few of my favorite marketing books include The Ultimate Sales Letter by Dan Kennedy, Advertising Secrets of the Written Word by Joe Sugarman, Breakthrough Advertising by Eugene Schwartz, Tested Advertising Methods by John Caples, Ogilvy on Advertising by David Ogilvy, Magic Words That Bring You Riches by Ted Nicholas and How to Write a Good Advertisement by Victor O. Schwab.

If you can’t find these books at your local library, you can pick them up for just a few dollars on Amazon.

6. Apply What You Learn

It’s not enough to just read the classics, you have to apply what you learn. Otherwise, what’s the point? That means reading the books more than once – several times if necessary.

Actually, you should read the books as many times as it takes for the information to sink in and become second nature to you.

You should also take copious notes, and practice writing ads over and over and over again. You should give yourself regular written exams on the information in the books, and each time you test yourself, your goal should be to score 100%.

Sounds like hard work, doesn’t it? It is. The question is how hard are you willing to work to get what you want?

7. Monetize Your Website

There are a number of ways that you can monetize your website – from selling advertising on your site to affiliate programs. My preferred method is affiliate programs.

Why? Because affiliate programs are completely hands-off for you. No billing, no inventory, no hassles. You simply choose from among the thousands of affiliate programs available on the Internet, select your program of interest, and promote the living daylights out of it. Then take your checks to the bank…that’s it.

8. Take Your Income to the Next Level

Once you start making $50 per month with affiliate programs, build another website, and start promoting another affiliate program. And when that website starts making $50, build another website and another and another.

Why? Because if you have 10 websites making $50 per month, that’s a monthly income of $500. And therein lies the secret to making money on the Internet.

Why beat yourself up trying to make hundreds – or even thousands of dollars with a single website? Take the path of least resistance. Build a bunch of websites that make just $50 per month. If you can build fifty websites in a year, that’s a monthly income of $2500, or $30,000 a year.

Does your current job pay that much? And the beauty of this method is you can keep giving yourself a raise. If you build another fifty websites the following year, you just doubled your income to $5,000 per month.

And if you can build another fifty websites the following year, you just tripled your income to $7500 per month.

The key to making this method work is building simple, low-maintenance websites. Just add content once or twice a month, and forget about them.

Think it can’t be done? Think again. I’m doing it, and so are thousands of other smart and resourceful entrepreneurs.

9. What About Content?

The key to having a website that other websites want to link to is having quality, content that is relevant to the overall theme of your website. You can either produce the content yourself, import it from somewhere else, or a combination of both.

If you elect to import your content from somewhere else, you can either use free content from article directories like EzineArticles, or you can purchase PLR articles, which I don’t recommmend.

Why? Because hundreds of other people purchased the exact same PLR package as you. So those articles have to be completely rewritten, which is a time-consuming process.

Whichever way you choose to go, just remember, it’s important to have lots and lots of relevant content on your website.

How much content? The more the better. After all, the more content you have on your website, the more often your visitors will return to read that content.

10. Build Your Website

Okay, now that you’ve properly laid the foundation for success, it’s time to build your website. The type of website you build will again depend on the amount of money you have to play around with.

I have a bunch of websites that I paid absolutely nothing for. And I have websites that I paid hundreds of dollars for. My recommendation: If you don’t have to spend money on a website, don’t.

Nowadays, it’s not necessary to spend a lot of money to get a decent looking website.

But whatever you do, be sure to purchase your own domain name. You definitely don’t want the name Blogspot, WordPress or Homestead in your domain name. It just looks amateurish.

I buy most of my domains through NetworkSolutions.com, because I’ve been using them for years, and I’m comfortable with them. Their domains cost a lot more, but they more than make up for it with great customer service.

That’s something you just can’t put a price on. That being said, I’ve also purchased $10 domain names from GoDaddy without any problems.

One last thing, don’t beat your brains out worrying about SEO. Just make sure your primary keywords appear in your title tag, and you’ll be just fine.

http://reviews-by-customers.com

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If you can create viral traffic then you’ve won the battle for traffic generation. Driving traffic is a continuous task, so viral traffic which grows on its own is a dream for all online business owners. But not many online business owners know or even try to implement it. Here are 5 steps to creating viral traffic so that your traffic building efforts produces the most amount of visitors and subscribers.

1. Create A Squeeze Page

Get a landing page which does nothing but offer some free gifts in exchange for the visitor’s email. This is where you start to build your list.

Hire a good graphics designer and come up with attractive gifts such as valuable reports and/or free software.

2. Create A Report To Sell

Your next task is to create a report which you’re going to sell. Again, make sure the graphics are eye-catching and pay a good graphics designer to create your website.

Your report has to look fantastic and the information needs to be good. Do the required research and put as much information as possible into this report.

With your website, sell the report for $97. This is a steep price for a report but your objective is not to sell many copies of it. Do the necessary promotion and get the word out about your report. And don’t forget to put links in the report to your website.

3. Free Gift

When people sign up to your list via your squeeze page, send them to a page where you will offer your $97 report as a gift. To claim the gift, the subscriber needs to refer at least 3 of their friends to your squeeze page.

Now when your subscribers see that your gift is worth $97 and that you are currently selling it for that price, it will drive conversions through the roof.

No one can resist a true free gift that is currently selling for $97. This can help you generate viral traffic. Your subscribers’ friends might sign up to your list and repeat the whole process by referring their friends to your squeeze page.

4. Email To List

Now while your squeeze page is building your list virally, you can create a report and continue to send it to your list for free. Of course, they would have to refer 3 or more of their friends to download the free gift.

Using this technique you are training your list to refer their friends in order to get your free reports. You are also testing to see which kind of offers create the best responses.

5. Contest

When you know which type of offers send you the most amount of referrals, you can create a contest and announce it to your list.

For the contest you will need to provide something which is perceived to be a high priced item otherwise it won’t work. The best type of offers are video training with personal coaching from you based on the offer with the most responses.

Offer your prize to 3 winners only. Since you are offering personal coaching and video training, you can set a high price for the prize. Pricing it at $1,000 is not unreasonable.

To win the contest, your list needs to send you traffic to your squeeze page. The top 3 who sends the most subscribers will win the $1000 prize. This is very attractive.

Once they spread the news by telling people about your contest, more and more people will join your list and promote the contest. This is the viral effect you’re looking for. You can even issue a press release to inform more people about your contest.

Carrying out these 5 steps will ensure unstoppable viral traffic to your website. It needs planning and setting up the system for it to work and creation of the reports, but you are sure to get an avalanche of traffic. Using this viral traffic to get people subscribed to your list, you can promote your information products to them and push those sales figures through the roof.

For more tips on how to promote your online business and increase sales, visit information product creation. To hire professionals to create your own best selling information products, Alan Cheng, Elite Ghostwriters

I’m always trying to come up with new ways to advertise and had to laugh when I came across this story by By EMILY FREDRIX for the The Associated Press

“Fast-food chain KFC is giving two Indiana cities $7,500 so it can emblazon founder Colonel Sanders’ face on their hydrants and fire extinguishers to promote new “fiery” chicken wings.

Experts say to expect more ads like this, on public property from sewer grates to the local landfill, as companies look to cut through the clutter of traditional advertising. Cash-strapped governments have long sold space on mass transit, benches, trash cans and other public property to help stretch budgets.

KFC told Indianapolis and nearby Brazil, Ind., it wanted to improve their fire safety by helping pay for new hydrants and extinguishers in exchange for advertising on them. The company plans to e-mail a national network of mayors on Wednesday to find three more cities to participate in the approximately $15,000, monthlong effort, which began Tuesday.

Alternative marketing efforts like this have been growing as people become immune to advertising in print, outdoors and on television, said Allen Adamson, managing director of branding firm Landor Associates in New York.

“I think it’s the tip of an iceberg of things to come as marketers struggle to find places to reach consumers and as cities look for ways to squeeze more dollars,” Adamson said.

Laura Ries, president of marketing consulting firm Ries&Ries outside Atlanta, said marketers must find new places to reach consumers.

“People ignore advertising, they try to get away from it whenever possible,” she said. “So hitting them in unusual and unlikely places, at least initially, is likely to get some attention.”

Read Full Story Here

What a great idea.  Governments are broke, big companies have money to spend.  Advertising can work if people stop to take notice, especially if it’s really weird and garners free publicity.  So, putting a business ad on an unexpected place can do wonders.

Here’s a few more weird advertising ideas:

1. On top of coffee lids – You don’t expect to see a marketing message staring up at you when taking that morning sip of coffee.
2. On a competitor’s product – This may be difficult to do but if you and a competitor advertise on each other’s products it would even out. This may attract free publicity, as well.
3. Inside the pages of books – Magazines have pages of ads, so why not books? There could be a special advertising section in books. This could provide very targeted advertising.
4. Straws – I’ve yet to see an ad on a McDonalds straw that I drink my Coca-Cola with.
5. Songs – We’ve seen product placement in movies and TV shows like Donald Trump’s The Apprentice, but I’ve yet to hear a product placement in a song. Imagine paying Britney Spears to sing about your product in the chorus of one of her hit pop songs that gets a lot of radio play… Hit me baby one more time – in the passenger seat of my brand-new 2008 Audi A4.
6. Beside the “nutrition facts” label of food products – This one might be geared more towards diet or weight loss types of companies. The people that actually look at these labels are probably more likely to notice that type of marketing message.
7. Emergency vehicles – Police, ambulance, fire trucks. That might be difficult to set up, but what better way for, say, a cash strapped police department to find revenue to hire more police officers than to sell some advertising space on their police cars?
8. Moon – I’m sure it can’t be done, and if it can it would cost too much. But, how about an advertisement on the face of the moon?
9. Eggs – One year CBS advertised their fall schedule on 35 million eggs.
10. Nighttime Silhouettes. You’ve probably never seen one of these… which means no one else in your town has seen one either. First, locate a tall wall in a part of town that has lots of traffic at night, especially foot traffic. Then arrange with the owner of that building – and the building across the street – to let you install a logo projector. They’re effective and cheap. In some situations you can even use an old slide projector to achieve the desired effect.
11. Publicity Stunt. Few things are as powerful as a publicity stunt that wins public attention. Going for inclusion in the Guinness Book of World Records requires a lot of work, but holding a world record is extremely cool. Did you hear about the guy who dropped a golf ball at the edge of Mongolia, then whacked it 1,234 miles all the way to the other side? The journey required 12,170 swings of the club, 90 days and 510 lost balls. But he got interviewed by Jay Leno on The Tonight Show followed by The Today Show, CNN, CNN International, CTV, ESPN Cold Pizza, and PGA Tour Sunday. Articles were published about him in the New York Times and the Times of London. Then the Associated Press issued a worldwide story about the exploit. Outside Magazine featured him as one of its 25 Coolest People, the Men’s Journal put him in their Hall of Fame, National Public Radio broadcast their interview with him from coast to coast, then several European radio networks jumped on the bandwagon. Not a bad R.O.I. on a 90-day investment.
12. Telemarketer reversal. Why not turn the tables on those telemarketers that bother you? Start to tell them about your website and why they should visit it. It is a lot more fun than telling them ‘no thanks’ over and over again!
13. Answering machine. Do you have an answering machine? Telemarketers and other callers are people too! Leave a little blurp on your machine to visit your website and they just might.
14. Tattoo your body. This is a little extreme but you can tattoo your body with your websites URL or get somebody else to do it. I’ve seen this done on ebay before. Just as a side note, you can also do fake tattoos or a permanent marker just for once off situations.

Just great!  PETA Strikes again!

The headquarters for PETA is located about a mile from my house.  We have had to put up with some of their antics before living so close, but this is the first time a group of fanatical morons with a point to make has upset my kid.  Instead of being afraid of eating chicken nuggets (which is kind of the point of this whole campaign – they are trying to get McDonalds to change their methods of killing chickens – by targeting children in their advertisements)  I never really paid much attention to these guys before now but after some research they  seem to be a bunch of overzealous hypocrites who spend all their money on a) negative advertising or 2) pictures of naked women (there campaign against wearing fur).

I could complain about these guys a lot more but that isn’t the point of this post.  I just wish they’d grow up and start targeting someone their own age.  My daughter will have nightmares of that psycho Ronald McDonald coming after her.  Idiots!  They set up their little stands outside McDonalds and hand out Unhappy meals to everyone.  Inside, a bloody rubber chicken, a packet of blood and a PETA T-shirt (give one to my kid and I’ll shove it up your *** !!!)

Anyway, to get on with it – Right after I saw the Van I was really trying to figure out why someone would want to run a negative advertising campaign.  What do they get out of it?  All they do is piss off all the parents of the kids that get upset.   I don’t really see people flocking to PETA and their beliefs because of the nasty, negative advertising campaign they run.  Sure they stir up controvresy, but where does it get them?  What purpose does it serve?  With all of the lawsuits and bad press, I’d think they are just hurting their group. Someone isn’t thinking of the big picture.  Here’s one they got blasted for and ended up taking down:

Would you try to gain attention by pissing people off?  Is this a good form of advertisement?  I think I am going to go rent a fur coat, ride a horse-drawn carriage down the street to PETA and hand out Chicken Teriyaki.