Problogger: Secrets for Blogging Your Way to a Six-Figure Income is not your average get-rich-quick paperback. You won’t find any outrageous and sensational claims in this book. In fact, authors Chris Garrett and Darren Rowse are quick to make the point that blogging isn’t a magical cash cow but something that can fill your bank account only if you know your stuff. Then they proceed to teach you all the techniques they themselves have used to achieve wealth through blogging.

Making money from a blog is no different than any other career—you need the right tools and techniques in order to be successful. The book offers a very brief explanation of what blogging is then moves on to help you choose a topic that will draw in the traffic you need to make it profitable. You’ll also be taught how to properly set up a blog, making it visually appealing as well as interesting to your target audience.

Of course, marketing your blog is essential if you want to profit from it and Garrett and Rowse teach their readers how to analyze the market in order to take advantage of it. Unless you know how the market trends and what consumers need you won’t be successful no matter how good your blogging skills are! They then go on to teach you a number of ways to promote your blog. After all, without promotion the only traffic you’ll have is accidental surfers and that’s every blogger’s nightmare.

Problogger: Secrets for Blogging Your Way to a Six-Figure Income doesn’t stop there, however. You will learn about niches and why they are so important. A niche is a part of the market that is very specialized, a subject that stands by itself. One example of niche writing is the Little Leather Library collection published in the 1920’s. They are not common but there is a definite interest in them for one segment of the population. That particular niche has a small but fairly well-to-do consumer base. Garret and Rowse teach you how to choose one or two niches that are right for you and give you the tools to exploit them.

You will learn the difference between direct and indirect monetization, too. An example of indirect monetization is one you’re probably familiar with in some way, affiliate commissions. This method funnels money to you as a result of someone else’s efforts. Direct monetization would include freelance writing that creates earnings based on how many people read your material. You’ll find out how to do effective and profitable advertising that promotes your blog and puts it in the top results of search engines.

Problogger: Secrets for Blogging Your Way to a Six-Figure Income isn’t just another scheme for parting you from your money. It’s an informative book that gives you the tools and techniques you need to start your journey to financial independence.

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The article below is a guestpost. If you are interested in writing a guest post on icantinternet.org, check out the guidelines for guestposting in the menu above.

The author of this post is Shahul- a broadband analyst from VAC Media, who reviews, writes and publishes latest internet trends for UK broadband comparison website.

Starting a blog and writing an article would be easy for someone who has time to invest. But gaining trust is being patient and planning our investment of time. Reliability is what humans expect from every product, so is our blog. Being reliable isn’t very hard. It’s simple as trying to be- who you are, in a more professional manner.

I wish to share a few tips that can help a writer or blog to gain trust from its readers.

1. Craft the content

Crafting the content starts from deciding on what topic to write. It’s not about writing for a schedule. Search for the requirements of a reader, unique content, more specific issues etc before deciding a topic. Let the topic be more clear, simple and if required catchy too! But don’t try to make all the topics catchy which can create too much of hype for the blog.

Also I don’t believe in word limitations. Some say large contents get well than smaller contents and vice versa. However it depends on the topic, so do not scratch too much on something that is of no good.

2. Provide open and Genuine facts

Any content in your blog- let it be a post, news, or something to say about yourself, try to provide open and genuine facts. Writing an article without a proper research would let you mention incorrect information. It’s more important not to lose trust than to gain it.

3. Choose the best images

I have seen many good articles with the worst images. May be they concentrate more on SEO and loading time. But it’s important to note that the world is behind real time and visual searches. An image can tell your reader more than what is written.

Spend at least three fourth time of writing a content to chose a relevant image for your post. Creative images like graphs, scribbling on a notepad, hand drawing, etc, can certainly improve your reader’s experience. Creating something unique would make the readers to understand your involvement towards the work.

4. Check and recheck your content

This is one of the most important work that you do before you hit the publish button. If I am going to be lazy to read my content then who else will. An article should be published only when you are really satisfied and happy that you have done a great job!

“An actor does a thousand touch ups before he or she is ready for the shoot!”

Also take time to correct and sharpen the article if it’s a guest post. No article is the best for the first time. The more you fine tune, the more it looks good.

5. Publicize using proper social media

Once the content is created, it is important to publicize it to the target audience. I have seen many blogs which would allow sharing through all the social media possible. That’s seriously of no use and I am sure no one can manage all of those. May be we can maintain a common share me button, otherwise mention only the social media which you actively participate.

For example: Social media like Digg is used for technology updates, Twitter is used for technology and instant happenings and Facebook is common sharing platform. Integration of these resources can also be done using few plugins.

6. Respond to every comment in depth

Response to the readers is crucial and easy way to gain trust. Be it a new or frequent user of your blog; respond to every comment with detailed information. If it’s an appreciation acknowledge it, if someone identifies a mistake correct it and thank the reader for the intimation. If it’s a query then understand the issue and guide him with clear and detailed information. Make sure that the user do not search for an extra information or contact you back with a different question on the same issue.

Replying to comments is not just restricted to the blog it includes social media as well. Thank and appreciate someone who likes your post.
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7. Openly accept the superior

There might be few instances where a writer would get a more intellectual reader. Do not argue too much especially if you know that you are wrong. Instead accept and appreciate his efforts. If possible offer him a chance to write on your blog, may be that can go viral. However it is important to overcome the situation and make it a win-win situation.

Also while using social media like Digg and Facebook you would come across many new and inspiring ideas. Do take time in leaving a word to appreciate their efforts.

8. Maintain a regular post interval

Consistency is what people look for when they come back for the second time. The first time someone likes a site would bookmark it. The second and third time they watch it more closely. If a reader does not get a post when he actually expected that’s the ultimate failure of the blog.

To overcome the situation you can write on few general topics from the niche and schedule it so as to find enough time for other posts.

9. Proper link outs

A regular reader would start looking for your recommendations. The blogs or websites that links out of your site are considered more valuable for a regular reader. Links which are irrelevant and broken can upset a reader which can turn up losing trust on the blog.

10. Stay focused on what you want

It’s important to read and know more about blogging and marketing a blog. However it’s important to impose something, that makes our blog unique than the rest. Do not miss out on any chance that helps you market the site. More the scheduled the blog is more the readers you gain.

Also do not expect all your of your posts to go viral. You will never know when a post would go viral. But it’s important that you do not lose interest and keep crafting every post that you publish.

There are more than 10 things that can help us gain more trust. But these are something which I consider more important. I would appreciate if you can share your thoughts on this topic.

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Why Your Residential Community Should Have a Blog

Face to face interaction is becoming less and less common these days. Befriending neighbors in your residential community is not like it used to be. Instead of having neighbors over for coffee, people are chatting online. Something that could really bring a residential community together in this age of technology is having a community blog. Such a blog would not only help to bring neighbors together, but it would also serve several other uses for the community as well.

One of the most compelling reasons to start a blog for your residential community is to entice newcomers to your town. A blog that lists useful information about local events might just entice out-of-towners to realize that your city is just what they had in mind for a relaxing getaway. Just think - if someone is interested in playing a round of golf as they pass through Utah, they may do a Google search for “Utah golf community”. A Utah community that has a nice golf course might attract those people thanks to their informational blog. Increasing the number of visitors to your community will bring in more revenue, which will in turn make the blog a wise investment.

The fact of the matter is that a community blog could be a great source of advertising income for the community and an efficient way to stimulate the local economy. Local businesses could be given priority for advertising and they would of course be reaching their target demographic of local residents. These local residents will keep coming back again and again as the blog will hold much useful information for residents of the community.

Local businesses should be given prime advertising space to encourage residents to buy local and therefore increase the local economy. The community blog could then bring in some revenue thanks to the marketing from the local businesses. This money could be put toward school funds and community improvements. Putting good information like good deals and community events will have people coming back again and again. Such a solution would increase community spirit and encourage residents to get involved with community events. Indeed, when it comes to bettering a community both financially and socially, there is no better way than to start a community blog.

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Affiliate marketers using WordPress know that integrating the right plugins will increase efficiency and usability, which will maximize the performance of the sites. These ten will each prove to be a worthwhile plugin to your toolkit, a step toward greater success.

1. WordPress Link Cloaking Program: if you like to include links to your selected affiliate programs or products in your posts, but don’t like to take the time to do it – or don’t want to forget to do it – this program will do it for you. Designate word groups or phrases and when you type them into your content a link will be automatically created.
2. phpBay Pro: if you are an eBay affiliate, then this is definitely a plugin that you should be running on your blog to embed eBay listings that are easily optimised for search engines. A similarly polished plugin is available from the developer for Amazon affiliates.



3. AdRotator from Clickbank: this plugin may be used with Adsense or function as an alternative to it if you’re unhappy with the low return on the Adsense ads that get fed to your site. It will randomly select an ad from your specified collection and display the advertisement where you want it.
4. Amazon Media Manager: a must for affiliates with Amazon and Amazon Marketplace, this plugin does just what you’d expect. It allows you the simplest way to adds products from Amazon to your WordPress blog, and keeps track of what you’ve added, allowing for quick and easy organization.
5. Wp-Amazon: seamless synchronization is simplified even more by making the entire Amazon catalog available through WordPress. It creates an “Insert from Amazon” link for below your posting area on entry and edit pages. Click it and open a search page for Amazon.com that allows you to peruse what’s there by product lines.
6. CafePress WordPress Plugin: this tool lets you effortless combine the PrestoGifto API, the CafePress API, and WordPress functions to crafts your pages. Product layout is simplified, thumbnails can be added and their size adjusted, and you select from a wide inventory of fonts, colors and styles. Choose any of the nearly 60 million products CafePress sells and feature them anywhere on your page, including sidebars or footers, or create their own unique page if you wish.
7. Chitika eMiniMalls Sidebar widget for WordPress v2.0: a lot of affiliates are having fun and success with Chitika, and this widget let’s you skip the course on HTML and simply drag and drop a Chitika eMiniMall into your sidebar.
8. Bidvertiser WP Widget: this tool allows you to make use of BidVertiser ads on your blog or site with just a couple of clicks.

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9. Adsense Deluxe: the beauty of this plugin is that it allows you to easily add Google or Yahoo! ads into your content wherever you want. Never need to cut and paste Adsense code again! And you control which ads you employ.
10. Adsense Injection: this is another plugin that allows you to optimize your Adsense usage. This one takes random paragraph breaks in your content and interjects Adsense code. You can choose the colors and formats you want the otherwise random selections to be chosen from. There’s one injection per article, which includes 1-3 ads.

If creating pages that consistently make money is your goal, these 10 WordPress plugins will give you the business in the best possible way. Each is a proven winner when it comes to producing a healthier bottom line.

James Adams is a blogger and designer who works as a contributor and editor of the CreativeCloud design blog for an ecommerce store specialising in the HP 339 ink cartridge and other media supplies. He covers topics ranging from modern art to vintage print ads to gadgets and printed media design.

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If you’re reading this post you most likely know a thing or two about content marketing. Content marketing is basically the process of not only creating great content but sharing that content to attract traffic, engage audiences, and maybe even get some natural backlinks to your domain. The process is twofold: writing or producing that great content, and then sharing it. If it’s good enough, the links back to your site will follow. But what content types can you use to best utilize this form of marketing? Let’s examine a few:

Authority Posts

Writing great content is an acquired skill. The hardest part is coming up with a unique idea and then executing it. Thankfully, there are many people in our industry who have done the tough thinking for you; it’s just up to you to figure out how to apply that to your brand. Top 10 lists, tip posts, research oriented posts, guidelines, and how-to’s are a few examples of authority type posts that are great for content marketing. Placing them on your site and then promoting via social media, social bookmarking, through friends and family, and with other techniques is just one example of content marketing.

Videos

Using videos is yet another example of this form of marketing. Developing a blog post or page on your site with embedded videos alongside your content is a great idea. Posting a top 10 list of the best videos of all time in your industry or giving a compilation of how-to instructional videos all in one place can provide you with traffic and links back to your site. That is, if the content and accompanying video are worthy of a look see.

Q&A

Have you ever had a client or prospective customer ask you a question? Of course you have. Yet one other way to use content marketing to help promote your site is to answer these questions on your website. Sometimes those questions are asked by searchers hundreds or even thousands of times per month. Doing a bit of keyword research can yield results that may just surprise you, all lost opportunities if you currently don’t have a piece of content on your site that could get ranked for that phrase.

Infographics

People go crazy about infographics these days. Have a knack for Photo Shop? Try your hand at a handy infographic. There are so many different kinds of infographics: statistical based, timeline based, process based, or geo based. Using some creativity and a bit of skill you’re sure to produce an infographic that will spurn tweets, comments, and links.

The four types of content marketing listed above are just a few of the ways you can market your website. Have some tips or suggestions with regards to content marketing? Leave your feedback in the comments below!

About the Author:

Steve Lazuka is the President of content marketing company, Interactive Media, based in Ohio. His company helps clients with their website content writing needs, including content marketing and promotion. Follow him on Twitter @SteveLazuka.

Gravatar: steve.lazuka@yahoo.com.

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Most people involved in website design, web development and online marketing are familiar with the concept of Search Engine Optimization, often referred to as SEO. But there is another method available to assist in attracting unique visitors to any website. This technique is Social Media Optimization (SMO) and is the subject of this article.

What is Social Media Optimization?

Social Media Optimization (SMO) is the term used for the utilizing of social media activity to assist with attracting unique visitors to any website content. SMO can work in unison with SEO, and by employing good SMO practices – a website can rapidly increase its chance of improving traffic generation.

SMO falls into two categories:

• Features added to a website, such as:

• RSS Feeds
• Providing a scoring/rating system, allowing readers to rate content
• Producing polls that let the readers interact and have a say
• Placing buttons on the site so readers can submit content to social news, networking and bookmarking sites i.e. Twitter, Digg or Reddit
• Adding informational video and images to content

• Utilizing social media formats for website promotion. For example:

• Creating a blog that promotes a main website
• Participating and posting in forums and community groups/boards
• Creating profiles and pages on social networking Web 2.0 sites (Twitter, Facebook etc) and then using these to inform readers of new content, promotions, products or future projects
• Commenting on blogs that are relevant to a chosen market and have the same readership and customer base

There is an obvious connection between SMO and SEO; both can improve a SERP position, especially when used in unison. The main difference is that SMO does not concentrate on generating traffic from search engines and is generally more reader interactive.

3 Benefits of Social Media Optimization

• Simple bookmarking and tagging – Providing icons, or buttons, on a website that readers can use to instantly submit a page, or content, to a social news or social networking site makes it more likely that content will be distributed. This leads on to the next benefit.
• Better content distribution – Encouraging visitors to submit web content by adding social media buttons, this has the advantage of readers performing voluntary promotional work on the website’s behalf. Any submission by a visitor can distribute website content to potentially tens of thousands of new readers.
• Increased backlinks to the website – It is a well known SEO fact that search engines place great relevance on authority site backlinks when deciding on SERP position. Most of the big social media websites have high Google PageRank and are regarded as important sites. Any profiles on these sites create a backlink, as will any submissions from the website to a social media platform.

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The Bigger Social Media Optimization Picture

Social Media Optimization should not be thought of as being restricted to building brands or online marketing. There are many other advantages and benefits to be gained by using SMO as part of a regular business strategy.

Many businesses are now utilizing SMO for market research and customer relations. Social Media is unique in making it simple to interact with your target audience and gain a better perspective into their needs and ideas. With the ever increasing popularity of Social Media, any business should be looking to integrate SMO as part their business development.

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A number one spot in any major search engine, be it Google, Yahoo or Bing, is the tip of the iceberg for most websites. It denotes excellence and success – or at least, an excellent and successful SEO campaign. But what if that No.1 rank was not quite as it seems? What if it was pointless and misleading? Read on to discover why that top spot may not always be as good as it looks.

Irrelevant and Fruitless Keywords

Achieving a No.1 spot in Google for the keyword phrase, “emperor penguin foot warmer”, would probably not be too hard, nor would it do any good. Selecting a long-tailed keyword phrase that gets zero searches a month does not serve any purpose and would require minimal SEO skills. Likewise, ranking for, “tooth surgeon in Alabama”, would be pointless if everyone is searching for, “dentist in Alabama”. Do not bother picking keyword phrases that no one searches for just because you think you may rank for them. Try variations of the popular terms that could still be entered into a search engine, like “Alabama dentist”. A top rank is worthless without searches.

When Your Computer Lies

After searching on your computer for your chosen keyword and seeing your website flying high in the Google rankings, you may think you have hit the big time. Sadly, it may all be an illusion – a sad mirage instigated by your computer, cookies, and a little Google trick known as ‘personal settings’. What this means is that your computer remembers the fact that you have searched for this phrase before and displays similar results, so your website may show up as the top search repetitively, even though in reality, it has slipped down the rankings unbeknown to you.

The remedy for this is to get someone else to check for your chosen keywords and check the results. If that is not an option, use independent rank checkers that are available – search online to find these.

The Infamous Google Dance

At some time towards the end of every month, Google search results are flawed by its now accursed ‘Google dance’. This strange happening has been known to take place whenever the search engine is performing its latest results checks and implementing any changes in positions. A website that had previously been in the No.1 spot suddenly disappears from site and vice versa – a site that was nowhere to be seen is now sitting proudly in top position. The mysterious event only lasts for a day or two but be aware of this if your site gets to page one overnight, after being stuck on page 10 for the last month. One way to check for this is to use ‘www1’ or ‘www2’ instead of ‘www’ when typing out your website URL, if you think the results have gone crazy.

Wrong Place, Wrong Search Engine

There is no point in putting all your effort into mastering the intricacies of Bing, or Yahoo, if all your traffic comes from Google. All the major search engines have their own little nuances and by learning and manipulating these, you can improve your chances of reaching top place for any one of them. But putting all your efforts into reaching the heady heights of top spot on page one can be a waste of time, if you do not monitor where you actually get your visitors from. Yes, Bing may be easier to rank on, but the majority of searches are done via Google.

Always Double Check before Boasting

Getting to number one spot in a big search engine is thrilling and can be a great reward for hard work and clever strategy. But getting excited too early can lead to a severely deflated ego, if that rank then turns out to be false or worthless.

Remember to check your traffic and where it is coming from. Ensure you have performed your keyword research correctly in the first place and chosen workable, keywords with reasonable searches, and be aware of search engine discrepancies and irregularities. If you are going to get to top spot, make sure it is for the right reason.

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Marketing today is increasingly relational in all media. When it comes to marketing via Facebook, the largest social networking platform on the planet, being relational, respectful of your fans, and marketing within the existing culture are vital for success. These 12 tips will help you form a winning strategy your fans will appreciate and welcome.

icantinternet



1. Create a Compelling Profile Page

Work hard to design this page to be attractive to your existing business contacts. If they like it, the page will increase your reputation with them, and they may pass it along to others. Discuss the needs of your target market, so that when potential clients or customers are checking you out via your Facebook page they will come to view you as a good source to fulfill those needs. Craft your content to outline your approach to meeting and exceeding client expectations.

2. Form a Circle Around your Business

Become the center of attention by inviting your business contacts to add you as a Friend on their own Facebook pages. You’ll find that an increasing number of the professionals and business owners you have contacts with are on Facebook so will likely be happy to add you. Reciprocate, of course. Talk up the benefits of Facebook to contacts not yet onboard, and offer to walk them through the simple process of setting up an account and getting started. You’ll likely be their first friend, and they may become a source of additional contacts. In this way, you are forming a circle around your business, and filling it in with existing and potential clients.

3. Get a Group Going

Facebook offers you the ability to start a group, hosted by your business, in a sense, and then invite others to join it. This is an up-front way to invite others to develop a mutually beneficial business relationship, and can be very effective. Look for other groups to join that have a focus you believe you can tap into. Pursue marketing in a way appropriate to a social networking culture.

4. Post Valuable Content

Make sure that the content you add is will be welcomed by your fans! Post interesting market news, useful tips related to your field, or links to where good information can be found. It’s okay to mention new products or promotions, but add value to those posts by offering discounts or giveaways.

5. Post Frequently

The rise of blogging and micro-blogging has produced an expectation of consistently fresh content, so you’ll need to deliver it to stay relevant. It’s also true that with Google now indexing Facebook you’ll benefit there through the introduction of fresh and frequent content additions.

6. Advertise on Facebook

If it is in the budget, consider investing in ad space to raise your business profile and generate traffic to your Facebook page or your main business site. This method is affordable, and Facebook provides you with the tools to customize the look and to do quality demographic targeting. You’ll have the option of choosing pay per click or impression ads, and both offer trackable results.

7. Connect your Facebook Page to Everything

Start by adding a Facebook fan page button to your blog, your website, and your Twitter account. Advertise your Facebook page on signage, store receipts, business cards, and your print ads and flyers.

8. Add Video

Make your page a video portal so your visitors can read essential text and watch quality content in the same place, an effective way to brand you and your business.

9. Welcome a Dialogue

Good marketing relies on listening and responding to the needs and desires of your market. Post questions related to future product or service development, or bravely ask for comments about your existing lines. Show appreciation for the feedback and make good use of it.

10. Encourage Employees to be Fans

Starting with 2 fans, or 10, is better than none! Give them company time to comment, send invites to friends, and play the part of gung-ho fans. It will multiple the starting energy and spread the news more quickly.

11. Vary Promotions and Pitches

When you offer discounts and giveaways, mix them up so that your fans will have something new to respond to. The same sales pitch and promotions start to feel like spam, too, if posted too frequently.
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12. Do it Right

Make sure that your content, video, layout, grammar, and text are of good quality. Get constructive criticism from a few respected colleagues before loading these things to your page. They may see things you don’t, and a few helpful changes will boost the quality significantly.

If you want to most effectively mine the significant marketing potential that Facebook represents, invest some time getting to know it thoroughly, including its applications and add-ons. Create a small budget for Facebook advertising, and your dual marketing investment may very well pay some healthy dividends.

The guest author, James Adams, is a full time writer working with Cartridge Save where he writes reviews for products such as the HP 22 ink cartridge and edits their design blog.

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LinkedIn is an excellent resource for marketers looking to target a business professional environment. The member base of this social networking platform is more affluent and more likely to respond to a higher end product or business service. The platform is used by both companies and business professionals alike.
Any marketing business targeting this particular market audience, should seriously consider utilizing this social media platform for product placement, service promotions and sales generation.

LinkedIn is a Huge Global Market
The latest statistics available (February, 2010), show that LinkedIn has more than 60 million registered users spread over 200 countries worldwide. Approximately, half of these registered users are located within the United States and 11 million are located within Europe.

Geo-Targeted and Group Specific
LinkedIn has a very advanced search facility and the majority of registered users, both professionals and businesses, will fill out a detailed profile when joining. There is a wealth of statistical data available on the companies registered with LinkedIn, and unlike other social networking sites, individuals using LinkedIn will specify their interests, locations, and employment details.
Any LinkedIn member can also create a group. These groups can cover any topic and range from less-specific generic groups that cover a wide spectrum, to specialized groups that concentrate on a specific niche or industry. These groups are fully searchable.
This sort of information can be invaluable to laser targeting a particular interest group, country, type of business or particular market.

LinkedIn Groups and LinkedIn Answers
The groups created in LinkedIn each have their own discussion boards, news boards and jobs sections. At the last count, there were over 300,000 different groups.
LinkedIn Answers is similar to Yahoo Answers, but the questions are more business-orientated and the answers are usually from knowledgeable professionals. This Answers section is particularly popular, with over 2 million posts submitted so far.
The opportunity for marketing within these two areas is obvious. By participating in group discussions and responding to questions, any marketer can establish themselves as a trusted source. A skillful marketing professional could make subtle suggestions and sway public opinion towards his or her promotions or merchandize.

Advertising on LinkedIn
LinkedIn allows paid advertising. This presents the opportunity to promote to successful businesses, career professionals and business decision makers all in one social media platform. The ability to use geo-targeting, group searches and profile-based techniques, to place advertisement campaigns in front of specific decision makers, is an essential tool in the LinkedIn inventory.
Advertisements placed on LinkedIn, have a far greater chance of reaching the correct audience – leading to a higher CTR and superior conversions.
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Quality Business Contacts
LinkedIn can give any marketer access to generating solid business leads and acquiring quality business contacts. They say great minds think alike and there are lots of business minds located on this site, with professionals using LinkedIn to network and gain new introductions and contacts.
LinkedIn is an incredibly powerful tool for sales lead generation and can help any business to find suppliers, clients, and widen their network of business connections.

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Twitter can be a great way to get traffic to your website. Just popping on once in a while and posting a link isn’t going to do much for your cause, though. In order to really succeed, you need to really use Twitter as a social networking tool. That means networking with others should be your main focus, not advertising.

To increase traffic, there are two main techniques which will serve you well. First, focus on making friends. Not just any friends but those related to your niche. Look for the big names in your niche and then take a look at the people they follow and their followers, as well. For example, if you are in the blogging niche, you would follow ProBlogger. Then follow the people he is following (Chris Brogan, Men with Pens, etc.).

Make sure to interact with people, replying to things they say. This catches their attention and if they like what they see, you will have gained another follower. Most people will also check out your website before following you. If you are regularly posting quality content to Twitter, you can be sure that anyone checking out your tweetstream will be interested in following you. Avoid posting junk and try to stick to your niche if you want targeted traffic for your business.

Don’t forget SEO when you’re on Twitter, either. These days, Google and Bing are indexing tweets, so using your keywords actually has an impact on how much traffic you get to your Twitter account. This, in turn, affects website traffic.

Your profile should also contain your keywords and be descriptive. Don’t use just two or three words, make sure you give people a reason to follow you by explaining who you are in the space you have available. Be sure to upload a photo of yourself, which tends to instill trust in potential followers. You want to impress when they click through to your profile to check you out.

Twitter can be a very valuable source of website traffic, but only if you actually participate in the network of fascinating people there. Simply throwing up a link or ad every few days will only show you up as someone who doesn’t play by the rules and you’ll be ignored. Take the time to interact, seek out new people to follow and stay on topic and you will rapidly see a boost in traffic.

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