Web site copy…Forget the trickery, it’s all about you.

Written by Julia Hyde


Continued from page 1

Just a tad sneaky, don’t you think?

While I understand very well that web site owners want to elevate their site torepparttar top ofrepparttar 145164 natural search results, I sometimes wonder if they ever think about how their site got to that top position? And, if they ever think that if they create their site with their visitor’s tastes, needs and desires in mind, they’ll achieve more success inrepparttar 145165 long run? Perhaps not.

But what they should think about is this: ifrepparttar 145166 search engines discover this trickery they’re at liberty to removerepparttar 145167 site from their index. And no amount of begging, pleading or bribery will getrepparttar 145168 site reinstated untilrepparttar 145169 search engines say so. It’s got to be much safer to stick with straightforward, persuasive, you-oriented, visible copy, written for your visitors, and not just forrepparttar 145170 search engines.

Just in case you’re tempted, or you think your web developer might be, here’s a snippet from Google’s guidelines.

Quality Guidelines - Basic principles: •Make pages for users, not for search engines. Don't deceive your users, or present different content to search engines than you display to users. •Avoid tricks intended to improve search engine rankings. A good rule of thumb is whether you'd feel comfortable explaining what you've done to a website that competes with you. Another useful test is to ask, "Does this help my users? Would I do this if search engines didn't exist?" •Don't participate in link schemes designed to increase your site's ranking or PageRank. In particular, avoid links to web spammers or "bad neighborhoods" onrepparttar 145171 web as your own ranking may be affected adversely by those links. •Don't use unauthorized computer programs to submit pages, check rankings, etc. Such programs consume computing resources and violate our terms of service. Google does not recommendrepparttar 145172 use of products such as WebPosition Gold™ that send automatic or programmatic queries to Google.

Quality Guidelines - Specific recommendations: •Avoid hidden text or hidden links. •Don't employ cloaking or sneaky redirects. •Don't send automated queries to Google. •Don't load pages with irrelevant words. •Don't create multiple pages, subdomains, or domains with substantially duplicate content. •Avoid "doorway" pages created just for search engines, or other "cookie cutter" approaches such as affiliate programs with little or no original content. Follow them. Your business will profit inrepparttar 145173 long run.

Julia is an independent copywriter and consultant specializing in advertising, search engine optimization and search engine marketing services . To learn more about how Julia can help boost your company's profits visit her site at www.juliahyde.com. Or email info@juliahyde.com. You may also like to sign up for Marketing Works! Julia's monthly ezine. Visit www.juliahyde.com/form.html to sign up.


How to Cheaply and Powerfully Reposition Yourself On the Web

Written by Bruce Carlson


Continued from page 1

If you want to have one of those chatty kinds of blogs, then by all means have one. But make it separate from your marketing blog.

Of course you CAN still talk about your personal life in your marketing blog, and you should sometimes! But don't make your life and troublesrepparttar focus.

And post a lot. At least three times a week.

You need to build content, after all. The search engines will find you fairly quickly if you have a lot of good content.

The Expert Article

Write an article a week, if possible. More if you have time! Submit it torepparttar 144857 article directories and article lists right away.

Every time you put an article "out there", you'll see returns inrepparttar 144858 way of fresh traffic. Plus you'll build credibility. More and more people will become familiar with your name. And other publishers will start to post your articles on their websites, in their ezines, and on their blogs.

Write articles to inform, not to sell. Web-savvy readers don't give an ad disguised as an article much of a look anymore.

Keep your articles between 800 and 1400 words. Anything shorter is too little and anything longer will lose readers.

The White Paper or Specialized Report

Most of us know by now that we need to capturerepparttar 144859 contact info of people who don't buy from us onrepparttar 144860 first shot. The one-shot Big Cahuna sales letter can get you some sales, sure, butrepparttar 144861 real money is inrepparttar 144862 follow-up.

What do we offer people in exchange for their contact info? Well, we need a great fr*eebie.

A great fre*ebie is one that carries value AND positions you as an expert.

Somebody else's ebook that you have reseller rights to doesn't really fitrepparttar 144863 bill.

The most killer fre*ebie I know of is what some marketers call an "info widget." This is an authentic lead-generation document, not some thinly disguised sales letter (although sales letters disguised as "fr*ee reports" can work too, especially offline).

The White Paper or Specialized Report is great for this, because it shows that you're not just a run-of-the-mill Web marketer, but a real, bonafide authority in your field. It carries mega-power for positioning.

The name "White Paper" is usually used by companies with a technical orientation. So if you're not in a technically-oriented market, you might be better served byrepparttar 144864 name "Specialized Report." Or you may be able to come up with another name that works well.

The Customer Newsletter

You don't necessarily need to publish an ezine "proper", but you do need to have a customer newsletter to keep in touch with past and current customers.

The real key to a successful customer newsletter is having fun with it. Go out of your way to come up with different, even goofy things to keep your customers informed of what's going on with your business.

And give them some solid info each issue. Offer them tips and advice. And occasional bonuses!

Don't let your newsletter in their inbox be a big surprise either. Keep in touch with them often enough that they aren't shocked to hear from you. Nothing worse than a customer that scratches his or her head wondering whorepparttar 144865 heck this newsletter is from.

More than anything, though, your customer newsletter contributes to your positioning as an expert. To your status as an authority within your niche.

In Closing...

Remember that this is onlyrepparttar 144866 beginning!

Once you've repositioned yourself effectively, you'll be able to set up hugely profitable ventures, such as consulting services and coaching programs. You'll be able to hold teleseminars with expert contributors, sell information packages...

The sky'srepparttar 144867 limit...

But first you need to get out ofrepparttar 144868 commodity business and intorepparttar 144869 information business.

Good luck!

Bruce Carlson is a freelance copywriter and marketing consultant living in Finland. Subscribe to his Dynamic Copywriter newsletter at http://www.dynamic-copywriting.com and see how easily you can improve your online copywriting and direct marketing skills.


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