Online marketing has seen a lot of changes in 2009, most of which points out to the fact that 2010 will see an emergence of real time web. This will become more popular than the earlier methods of search engine optimization. The latest launch of BING, merging of Microsoft with Yahoo and the announcement for Google Caffeine will change the face of search engines.

Ways to improve your website ranking in 2010

• Webpage load time : The ranking of a website depends on its loading time. If your website takes long time to load then it probably will not achieve better ranking as people will avoid opening the site. So it is important that you reduce the load time of your webpage by using reputed web hosting services. This will be a major factor that helps in the ranking of a website.
• Google Local Search : To increase the ranking and for achieving better traffic to your website, it is better to get listed in Google Local search. You are bound to be seen and contacted more by the local community, which will in turn directly increase your sales. This is because people prefer to purchase things from nearby places rather than from far away places.
• Social media : Your involvement with the social media like Facebook and Twitter will increase the conversation ratio of your website. At social media platforms, you can converse with the prospective buyers and also build relationship with them. Through forums and chats you can solve any query related to your product immediately, and it will help in website promotion effectively.
• Reach out to mobile users : Many people check their Facebook and Twitter s well as other websites through their mobiles as they are busy to check regularly through the traditional means. Therefore, how your website appears on the mobile is important for being on the top. You can use the same URL to appear on mobile or can also use a special domain. Reaching out to potential customers through mobile is a better way to get business as most of the customers are extremely busy now days and mobile is a way they connect to the world. Maximize your benefits through the fast evolving mobile technology.
• Web analytics : The web analytical data gives a complete usage of the visitors to a website. It is therefore a great mean to know about the visitors and accordingly, to churn out plans. In 2010, web analytics will play a domineering role in website promotion effectively.

Fergal Jones is a freelance author who writes about various website marketing related subjects. For more information about Fergal visit his website http://www.aceinternetmarketing.ie

The internet is everyone’s “go to” source for information, so your marketing campaign must include an online strategy. If you’re currently incorporating any of these tips, congratulations! You are already a step ahead! How about incorporating one more new strategy per week or per month to increase your online visibility? Just taking a few small steps can make a big difference in promoting you!

#1 WEBSITE:

To promote you or your business online you need to have a website. There are so many inexpensive (and even free!) options available now that everyone can have one.

What you need to do:

• Get a domain name. Getting a domain name is your piece of internet real estate. I’ve even set up my name as a domain name.

• You can purchase a domain name for about $10 (annual registration). Hosting can be free (with advertisements) or as little as $4 a month. My favorite website hosting provider is GoDaddy. Other popular providers are 1and1 Internet and Homestead.

Be sure to put your website address on all of your promotional materials, letterhead, labels, business cards, and email signature, etc. Just because you build it, doesn’t mean they will come, you need to let everyone know.

#2 EMAIL SIGNATURE

Sign every outgoing email message with a customized signature. It’s like having a digital business card. The signature can be up to 5 lines of text, it must include your contact information, web site address and tagline (what you do). Most email programs today will allow you to create a signature that will automatically post with every email you send. You can also have several different email signatures to use for all of the things you do. Check the “help” function of your email program, or just search Google for “email signature” and your program name for detailed instructions how to set it up.

• A text email signature can be as simple as your name, tagline and contact information. For example, Michelle Brubaker Create a profitable internet presence Internet Marketing | Web Design | Videography with my phone number and wesite address.

• An HTML email signature includes images that are hosted. You can use a free online service to create an email signature, or have your web designer or a graphic artist create one for you.

#3 LINKS

Links are the doorway to your publicity. The more relevant links pointing to you online the easier it is for people to find you. Links also add relevance and increase your rankings with Google.

• Incoming Links: are links that when clicked on take the viewer to your website. Google counts incoming links from relevant sources the highest when ranking your site online.

• Outgoing Links: are links on your own website that when clicked take the viewer to another page (yours or someone else’s) online. Relevant outgoing links may point viewers to further information.

• Reciprocal Links: are links going both to and from your website. Google counts reciprocal links, but don’t try to fool the system. Google knows when you are just swapping links for the sake of linking so apply them sparingly.

Use links to your website when you are posting in online blogs, forums, and social media sites. Also be sure to set up links to all of the places you are online in your Google Profile (#8 below). Important! You need to use the http:// in front of the www for the link to work.

#4 ARTICLES

Write an article (like this one) to share your expertise online. There are lots of online media publishing sites where you can post articles for free.

Always put a link back to your web site so readers will know where to find more information!

Here are some popular media publishing sites:

• Squidoo

• Hub Pages

• Tumblr

• Scribd

• Issuu

• EzineArticles

#5 PUBLISH AN EMAIL NEWSLETTER

Create an informative email newsletter to send to your clientele. Include great content with pertinent information they would want to read. It can be as simple as sharing the latest news, updates and technologies relevant to their industry.

Proper etiquette is weekly or bi-monthly otherwise readers will just check out from information overload. Never send spam and always allow recipients to chose opting in, or opting out of your newsletter. As your readership increases you may consider an email news service such as; Constant Contact, Aweber, or Mailchimp. These online programs send professional looking newsletters and also provide statistics of your readership. Most offer a free trial.

#6 ONLINE FORUMS

An online forum is a great way to communicate and share online. Consider participating in just one. You can do this in your business field, hobby, or any area of interest.

Be sure to share great information that everyone will read. Proper etiquette limits shameless promoting, but if a reader wants to connect with you for more information, be sure to include your email signature at the end of your postings (#2 above).

Popular sources of online forums are:

• CraigsList

• Google Groups

• Yahoo Groups

There are an unlimited number of online forums. Just search online for your area of interest and the word “forum.” For example, “equestrian forum” or “knitting forum.” If you don’t find exactly what you are looking for, you can even start your own group!

#7 DIRECTORIES

Submit your website to an online directory. A directory is an online categorized list of businesses and services.

• Google Directory

• Yahoo Directory

• Back Page

Caution! be aware of directories who promise tons of traffic/links to your website. If an incoming link to your website comes from a site that has been black-listed it will count negatively to your search rankings. Only submit to reputable directories.

#8 GOOGLE PROFILE

Google indicates that 25% of searches are for people. If you’ve ever used Google to search your own name or to find a person, a Google Profile makes the process much easier. Google displays profiles at the bottom of search results on the first page If you have something to sell or promote, a Google Profile is a must.

Why You Need a Profile:

• It instantly optimizes your name online.

• It’s totally free.

• You show up on the first page of Google.

A Google Profile is a page hosted on Google which is tied to your name. Content on your profile page is defined by you. Information includes sections for “about”, images, text, cross links to your websites and more.

Set up your Google Profile at http://www.google.com/profiles.

#9 SOCIAL MEDIA

There is a lot of buzz these days about social media. The most popular sites being Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. Since everyone participates these days, why not make sure your online profile includes a link to your website.

With Facebook & LinkedIn you can write “notes” and “articles” (#4 above). Sharing relevant information with your fans, friends, and connections will create discussions and can establish you as an expert, again always add your signature at the bottom so viewers can connect with you for further information. I’ve known people who have written hundreds and even a thousand articles for social media and get a flood of leads and traffic daily as a result.

YouTube is another great source of media. With the price of video cameras now under $200, just about anyone can make a video. Computers now come with basic editing software such as Windows Movie Maker where you can add text, slides and music. It’s a popular resource for you to share your expertise and visually promote what you do.

#10 BLOGS

Blogging has taken the internet by storm! You don’t even have to have your own blog to get in on the action. Find a blog on a subject you have knowledge. This can be your business, a hobby or just something you are good at. When the writer creates a new blog posting, make a comment – share your knowledge, complement what was written. Just be a part of the ongoing discussion. It’s ok to sign your name at the bottom (just be aware of shameless promoting).

To find blogs, just search online for your area of interest and the word “blog.” For example, “home organizing blog” or “business management blog.” If you don’t see exactly what you are looking for, why not create your own blog.

Popular blogging (free) providers are:

• Blogger

• WordPress.com

• WordPress.org (takes a little tech savvy)

• Typepad

Now you have 10 Easy Ways to Promote “Brand You” Online.”

Choose an idea and get started today!

By Michelle Brubaker, “Create a Profitable Internet Presence”.

Michelle Brubaker is a successful Northwest-based entrepreneur, who helps businesses “Create a Profitable Internet Presence.” For more information http://www.michellebrubaker.com.

I’m frequently asked about how to market a website. It’s important to understand that there are two sides to web marketing: generating traffic (visitors) to your website; and getting those visitors to do something when they get to the website.

Marketing a website is about that first step, getting people to the website. There are some very clear steps to following in marketing your website.

First, you need to be clear on the keywords that will bring people to your website. This requires answering the question: What will people who are looking for my product or service type into a search engine? There are likely hundreds if not thousands of possibilities. Keyword research is a major topic in itself, and a foundational skill of internet marketing.

Two quick ways to get started are to use the Google keyword tool, which is free. And another way is to go to the sites of those who are offering the same or similar products and services, and see which keywords their sites are optimized for. You do this by looking at the words in their title tags, description tags, and of course the page content itself.

Once you’ve settled on 1-3 keyword phrases to use to market your website, make sure your pages are optimized for those keywords. For instance, if you were a marketing consultant, you would likely have the phrase “marketing consultant” and “marketing consultant + your location” show up in your title, description and page copy. As with keyword research, on site or on page optimization is a very important internet marketing skill.

Once your pages are optimized, you are ready to actively market and promote your website. Here are some important tasks to perform at this stage of the process:

1) If you are a local business, get listed in the Google local business listing.

2) Consider making a video promoting your product or service and uploading it to YouTube, using your keywords as the title.

3) If you have developed a good mailing list of people interested in your products and services, you can market your website by sending them an announcement giving them a good reason to check it out.

4) Add the URL of your website to your email signature so that everyone you email sees and has the option of clicking on your website domain.

5) Make value-added comments on related blogs, putting your website address in the appropriate box when you post.

6) If you’re on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and other social media sites you can let your contacts know about your site, and also add it to your profile were it is allowed.

7) You can run a PPC (pay per click) campaign using your keywords to get people to your website very quickly.

You can use your business card, newspaper ads, online classifieds with your website URL highly visible.

This is really just a sampling of how to market a website. In summary, use your keywords and your URL to make people aware of your website and encourage them to visit it.

Daren Wride

Kelowna Internet Marketing Consultant

How to Market a Website