Pay-Per-Click Search Engines: I want to research and submit bids for keyword placement at Overture, Bay9.com and Findwhat among others. The most popular keywords can be expensive, but my theme-based site is working a niche and I have hundreds of less popular keywords I can bid on. Because I'm paying for clicks, I want to be sure my title and description really relate to keyword I'm bidding on and are completely relevant to my site so that they only attract highly targeted traffic.

Major Directories: Links to directories will bring some traffic and help my link popularity. Directories don't use spiders. Real people review pages and decide what gets listed. Luckily I've loaded my site with lots of great, single-theme-focused content. To be listed at Yahoo I need to decide if it's worh $299 for my business listing. It's unlikely that I'll be able to submit for free, as my site will be generating income. I can submit to Open Directory for free and to Ask Jeeves by telling them what question my web page answers. I'll automatically be listed at AOL and Netscape when I submit to Open Directory.

Less effective but useful methods of promotion: First there's "word of mouth", which I'm certainly going to get because I'm delivering great content. Second, I'll eventually add a newsletter subscription to my site. And I'll probably use some of my great content as articles to submit to other people's ezines. Perhaps I'll do some offline advertising as well.

Once I've done most of above, I'll analize my traffic, checking click-ins and click-throughs. I can create special tracking links to measure success of my efforts. I'll build on what works and improve or get rid of what doesn't. I now see beneficial results of building a theme-based site. I'm working a niche and getting highly targeted traffic. I offer my visitors valuable content and deliver them to my merchants in a ready-to-buy state of mind. My site scores with engines, my visitors and my merchants. And all that spells WEB BUSINESS for me. Now, I think I'll kick back and start thinking about my next theme-based site.......

Trouble coming up with a theme? Maybe I can help. Send me an email. mailto:yourhelpline@mail.com

Affiliates will also often use gateway or doorway pages. These are essentially "trick sites" which may score with engines but don't deliver good content and so rarely result in getting click through, sale, or repeat visit. Also, tricking engines is becoming less effective as engines become more and more sophisticated. My theme-based site plays fair with engines and engines love it.

Using a theme-based website I create a WIN-WIN-WIN-WIN situation. My visitors win because they've found high- value information they were looking for. Search engines win because I've given them a site that will add quality to their search results. The merchants that I represent as an affiliate win because I've presold my visitors and they arrive at merchants' sites ready to buy. And, last but not least, I win with growing commissions. Can you say "super-affiliate"?

Think a theme-based website is for you? Brainstorm ideas to find your site concept. Everyone has experience, knowledge, interests or hobbies that could be turned into a theme-based website. You can start building YOUR web BUSINESS. Don't have a theme? Check out Part 2 of this series. Or send me an email. mailto:yourhelpline@mail.com