Attract More Visitors

Everyone wants to be found online, but what are the best ways to be found?

Businesses want to have their companies/ websites/ blogs/ products/ services found and job seekers want themselves to be found.

1) You need to have a great strategy to be found online.

Easier said than done. You need to think about where "your people" are and how they might go about finding you (or your business). Then just assure that you have a presence there. Again, easier said than done.

2) Profiles: Create profiles everywhere

Create profiles for yourself and your company at LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Google, Plaxo, etc.

Also create business listings for your company in Yellow page sites for businesses, especially the "Local" search engine site: Google, Bing, Yahoo.

See "Increasing Your Online Visibility- Facebook Vanity URLs & Bing, Google, and Yahoo Local Business Listings" for how to do this.

Cool resource for many more yellow page sites (including international ones and social local neworking sites like Yelp): http://www.locallytype.com/pages/submit.htm.

3) Create Content and keep creating it

What do I mean by "content"? - Any text or item(s) that people want, e.g., things they want to know or learn "how to" do, blog posts, tweets, eZine (electronic magazine) articles, website articles, videos, podcasts, etc.

Here are some places you can post this content: Flickr (photos), Slideshare.net (presentations and documents), Twitter, YouTube (videos), your blog (using WordPress.org, WordPress.com, or Blogger/Blogspot), your website.

Tip/Trick: Keep the emphasis on "valuable" content. What do people want to find/know? Answer that question, given your company's or your own expertise and then write about it in interesting and engaging ways.

Hint: Use great tags so people can easily find your great content.

Note: Extra credit for supplying solutions for what people need...and are trying to find. One way to do this is using Google Suggest. Remember Google's "Parisian Love" Superbowl ad?

4) Announce what you created

Tweet about it on Twitter, do status updates in Facebook and LinkedIn...as the content applies to "your people" (and those people).

Note: If you send it to them and they're not interested, you risk them ignoring your posts, or worse yet unfollowing/unfriending you.

Example: Write a blog post (content), then post a Twitter tweet about it and a LinkedIn status update.

Tip/trick: LinkedIn works with Twitter, and vice versa with the "#in" hash tag at the end of  your Twitter tweet.

5) Comment: Leave valuable comments everywhere.

Comment on blog posts, podcasts, etc. Especially things which are hot topics which people are trying to find.

Tip/Trick: Great ways to find hot topics/trends?

Google: Google Trends

Twitter Trends: 15 Fascinating Ways to Track Twitter Trends

Technorati: Top Videos & Hottest blog posts

Forums: Boardreader's popular internet: videos, instructions, articles, etc.

6) Show what you know

It sounds simplistic, but if you "show what you know" and if you're showing what others are seeking then you'll be found...and thought of as an expert.

Experts are more becoming more trusted than "peer recommendations" according to today's Los Angeles Times opinion piece by Gregory Rodriguez: "Talk about your Buzzkill: Breaking through the noise of social media," which cites Edelman's 2010 Trust Barometer.

This means that being an expert is cool again.

How do you become an expert? Know your subject and post about it: valuably, frequently and consistently.

Note: It may help to have some credentials, but the LA Times opinion piece said that experts and academics were gaining influence, so there is a distinction between being an expert and being a person who studies/teaches the subject in a college or university.

Re: Social media: And yes, the rumors of the death of Social Media are a bit early with this barometer, as social media is really about disclosure, transparency, authenticity, and trust. For more on this see "For more information" below...

7) "Just do it"

Nike had it right. By just doing it, you're getting your "expert" voice out there where it can be found...and establishing your "expert" .

For more information on "How to be found Online":

Download: "The Power of Social Media: Gaining the competitive edge through LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook!" (click link & scroll down for download links)

Or see:

Of course there are many other ways to be found online.

If you have any favorite ways to be found online, please leave a comment below...

Problem: Too many Great Ideas, not enough Memory

I love working out at the gym because it's a great opportunity to listen to internet marketing podcasts and learn about the lastest marketing strategies and trends.  The only problem is that when you hear great ideas (especially ideas that you're thinking of tweeting/blogging about later) it's tough to remember them.  Since it's hard to remember several ideas (or website links) throughout your entire workout and until you get to your home/office, it would be great to be able to write them down.  But who wants to carry a clipboard or notebook around the gym?

Solution: Your Mobile Phone/iPhone and the multi-platform Evernote program.

Evernote is  an excellent web-based as well as phone-based program you can use to jot down your notes in a hurry.  All you have to do is register on Evernote's website and then download the Evernote software and install it onto your laptop/desktop (PC or Mac) and web-enabled phone. Since the Evernote site has directions, videos & tutorials & screenshots, I'm just going to show you how to use Evernote at the gym during your workout.

How to Improve Your Memory During Your Workout at the Gym

1. Download and Synchronize podcasts onto your mobile phone/iPhone.
   Note: I use Juice and Windows Media Player for this.
   You may use iTunes.
2. Listen to the podcasts while doing your workout.
3. When you hear a great idea start Evernote on your mobile phone/iPhone.
4. Jot down a note in Evernote.
5. Example: "MOC: Google Website Analyzer" (see Evernote image).
6. Rinse and repeat (do this for every great idea you hear that you want to remember).
7. Extra credit to boost your site traffic: When you get back to your home/office write a tweet or blog post based on the great idea.

• Twitter Example:
  • Google Website Optimizer tweet with thanks to Marketing Over Coffee podcast and @cspenn (Christopher Penn) for the great idea.

• Blog Post Example:
  • For Immediate Release (FIR) podcast by Hobson & Holtz Report - Podcast #441: April 20, 2009 re: Domino's Pizza.
  • Generated idea for Attract More Visitors blog post re: Domino's and How to Deal With Social Media Emergency Responses.
  • Clearly when you write these notes on Elliptical Trainers or the Treadmill they don't always look that great (do not do this...see the Caveat/Warning below).
  • But the point is: All they have to do is be good enough to remind you of the idea you need so you can take action on them, e.g, writing a tweet or posting a blog post.

YouTube Video: "How to Improve Your Memory During Your Workout at the Gym"

How does this help me Attract More Visitors to my Site?

You might be thinking, this is all great, but how does it help me get traffic to my website? Basically, by helping you remember all of the great ideas you heard in internet marketing and social media podcasts so you can blog and tweet about them on Twitter.  That's it, no magic or mirrors involved, just enabling you to write more blog posts and Twitter tweets which others may see or find via Google searches and then follow to your website (from your blog or your Twitter bio/profile).

Comments

Have a better way to remember great ideas during your workout? - just let me know...

And "extra credit" points for ways which improve your site traffic as well.

Caveats and Fine Print Warnings!

Please consult your Doctor before engaging in any exercise program.  Also, please be sure to *pause* during your exercise routine *before* writing notes in Evernote in your mobile phone/iPhone!  After all, you don't want to end up falling or having an accident at the gym.

And no matter what happens, please do not hold Evernote, me (Karl Kasca), Attract More Visitors blog, IncreaseOnlineProfits.com, or Social Mastermind Corp. responsible as we've already cautioned you above.