The Lifeblood of the Internet

Guest Post: By Robert Imbriale

If you’ve been involved in marketing of any kind over the last two decades, I’m sure you’ve heard the saying, “content is King.” Marketers, successful marketers, live by that mantra. When I look at the Internet what I really see are two things. There is the content and then there are the applications that allow you to interact with the content.

To completely over-simplify things, the applications are what make it possible for us to create, share, and use the content we find on the Internet. So to say content is King, you’d have to also say that the applications are Queen in order to have a more complete view of the Internet. There are all kinds of applications from the browsers that make surfing the Internet possible to all sorts of applications that manage and deliver the content.

Think about it. Without the application we know as Google, how would you find the content you’re looking for on the Internet? I’ve been there and I remember finding things online was next to impossible, but that was back in 1987. Then we have Adobe TM Flash that allows us to see and hear sounds and images over the Internet.

There are all sorts of content management systems available to us today that simply didn’t exist a few years back. As it becomes easier and easier to manage and digest, the demand for new content grows and grows.

Marketers who create quality content often find they are able to generate large amounts of traffic, they usually have large mailing lists, and it almost goes without saying that they usually have healthy bank accounts.

It all starts with the content. The more you create, share, distribute, the better off you’ll be in building a profitable business on the web. If you want the real secret to Internet success, this is it.

Content comes in many forms, and it’s best to use as many forms as possible on your web site because there are now so many ways to access and use content and not everybody wants it the same way. Some people love to read, others prefer to listen, some prefer to sit back and watch a video.

As you develop your content, think about creating not just written articles, white papers, and special reports. Be sure to add streaming audio, podcasts, videos, screen-captures, and even animations to your mix.

Sometimes it’s best to offer the same content in different formats. For instance, you might offer an article as both a regular web page and a downloadable .PDF file. You might offer a video and also offer just the audio track from that same video.

Now how do you get from creating content to building a successful business?

Think about why most people use the Internet. They get online and check e-mail. They log into their social networks to keep up with their friends. They search for information to help them answer a question. They look for things to buy. They come to play games and meet people. All of these activities revolve around finding and using content.

When you’ve got content on your web site and you make it easy for people to find, you increase the traffic to your web site, naturally.

The more content you have, the more people will be stopping by your web site. Truly the days of the single-page sales letter web sites are done. You’ve got to do more than make a compelling sales pitch, you’ve got to demonstrate that you’re the leader in your market. You’ve got to show people why they need what you have and how it will truly make their lives better. And most of all, you’ve got to let them sample your stuff before they buy.

Let’s look at it from the customer’s perspective. Your customer wants the best of what’s available but how can they figure out what’s best from a sales letter alone? They need more information that’s not in the form of a sales pitch. They need to feel like they can try it on, test it out, and they can do that when you offer them plenty of content on your web site.

So if you’re selling a product that is best demonstrated in a video, be sure you have a number of videos on your web site showing customers using and loving your product. If you sell consulting, demonstrate your knowledge of your topic with articles, reports, white papers, audio presentations, and even videos of you speaking to an audience.

As you plan your content, also keep in mind how you’re going to present it on your web site so that it’s in the formats people can really use, that it’s easy to find, and that it’s readily accessible from different Internet devices, including smart phones.

If you’ll take to time to do this, what you’ll soon realize is that your sales letters will perform better, people will not need as much strong-arm salesmanship before they buy, your mailing list will grow, and your web site will show up in more places on the Internet.

It’s no surprise that web sites that offer a lot of content lead the field when it comes to sales. Take a look at your web site today and think about how a new visitor would really get to sample what it is you do without having to buy what you’re selling.

How good is your web site at attracting new visitors with little or no direct effort on your part? Do you have enough easily accessible content on your web site to keep people coming back for more?

Most web sites, including my own, can always use more great content. Adding content is the best and most profitable use of your marketing dollars because the return on your investment continues for years.

For instance, in 1991 I wrote my very first article on marketing. It was published in a national business magazine a few months later and it continues to appear on the Internet almost 20 years later. In that time, this one article has been read more than a million times, and has generated countless sales for my business. What other kind of marketing can do that?

In my opinion, no other marketing piece can do what adding fresh content to your web site can. Ideally, you’ll be adding new content regularly, and expiring content that is no longer relevant. When you do, you’ll have the most profitable marketing strategy working for you all day, every day for years to come.

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Robert Imbriale is the author of the best-selling book, Motivational Marketing (Wiley, 2007). He has personally coached thousands of business owners since he began coaching in 1995. He is a leader in the marketing industry and regularly appears on radio and television. To get your free copy of Why People Buy go to www.UltimateWealth.com/money.htm

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MadViral online since 2005, MadViral Enterprises, LLC can help you market your business with Email Advertising, Professional Unique email design services

The Lifeblood of the Internet

There are Two Different Types of Pages Required for Your Online Based Business Website

Gueat Post: By Michelle Jayes

If you have an internet based business website are you aware that you should have two different types of pages for your site? The two types of pages are a sales page and a content page, or if you prefer you could call them squeeze or landing pages and article pages.

In case you are not sure what the difference is between these two types of pages here is a quick explanation;

1. The sole purpose of a landing or sales page is to either sell a product get someone to opt in to your mailing list or preferably both of these options. This page needs to be dedicated strictly to achieving either or both of these aims and should not have anything else on it that is likely to distract your visitor from its purpose.

Although this squeeze page is part of your website it will not be embedded into the rest of the site. This sales page exists separately from your main website and its sole purpose is to achieve one or both of the options available on that page.

2. Now the main function of an article page is to add valuable and relevant content to your internet based business that will not only get your site to rank highly on the search engines such as Google but will generate targeted traffic for you and the more traffic you get to your website the more sales you are likely to make.

The beauty of content pages is that each page can be linked to all the other pages on your website and this makes it easy for your visitors to explore and become familiar with the products and services that you have on offer. Remember when linking through from page to page that you should also hyperlink the keyword phrases that describe the purpose of the target page.

If you want to get the best chance of getting maximum attention from Google then you need to keep your articles as unique as you possibly can. Something else that will increase your SEO rankings is to be sure that both your article headline and any sub-headings, as well as your closing paragraph are key-word optimised.

These two pages are the main types of pages to be found on websites, but there is also a third type of page that is extremely important and that is the homepage of your internet based business website.

Although this page should also be designed with the purpose of persuading and informing, its main function should be to keep your visitors up to date on the available content and encourage them to look further to find the information and services that will benefit them and to get them to willingly give you their name and email address.

So keeping this in mind it would be worth your while to include any links to your most recent articles or any news updates on products or services so that people can easily click through to find them. Always ensure that your opt-in form is displayed in a prominent place on your homepage, so that visitors can leave their details for you without having to search.

Finally but of great importance is to be sure that all of your content pages including your homepage are linked to your sales pages as the reason for doing all this work is so that you can get as many of your interested visitors as possible to click through to your sales pages and purchase your products.

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Michelle Jayes invites your to visit her legitimate income opportunities website www.online-income-business.com for money making ideas and ways to improve and build an internet based business

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• Advertising, Opt-in Leads, Email Marketing service helps small businesses market their products more effectively. We provide everything you need, http://www.madviral.com Phone: 256-778-8350 (9am-5pm CST M-F) MadViral Enterprises, LLC 171 Early Rd. Hartselle, Al. 35640

There are Two Different Types of Pages Required for Your Online Based Business Website