3 Sources of Content All Affiliates Should Use...

by Anik Singal
August 23, 2005
Copyright 2005 Kurma Group

As an affiliate, it's critical that you have a website.

"Having" a website is not always the hardest part – the hardest part is that your website needs to get traffic! So, how do you get traffic?

There is absolutely no question that the best form of traffic is search engine traffic. Search engines can deliver highly targeted traffic that is absolutely free.The catch?

Well, how do you get search engines to give you traffic in the first place? How do you convince a robotic spider that your website deserves their attention?

One word: Content

Search engines have one primary goal: To serve their visitors with quality content targeted to what their visitor is looking for. A search engine is going to do anything in their power to rank websites based on what they think is relevant.

So, in the end, your real job is to find a way to convince the search engines that your website is better suited for your topic than a competitor's website – in other words – you need to better optimize your website for a given keyword that another website also uses.

All in all this means that your website needs content. Day by day the “amount” of content your website needs is increasing. As more websites compete, the search engines are looking for more and more content on your website.

Search engines are giving more credibility (hence traffic) to larger websites with more updated content. They figure that if a website has lots of pages that are constantly updated, it is a more credible website. So, now how does the little guy, an affiliate, compete and keep their website on the top?

Three Sources of Fast and Credible Content

1. Article Directories
Many argue that article directories are bad places to get articles from because of the “duplicate content” penalty that search engines may throw at you. However, what they do not realize is that search engines penalize duplicated PAGES, not content – there is a difference. This means that search engines are looking for duplicate HTML rather than duplicate articles. It is common sense that certain articles and press releases may be placed on multiple places on the internet – this has been happening since the beginning of the internet.

However, if HTML is duplicated, then the search engines know that someone is trying to trick them.Feel free to grab articles from directories, just make sure that you are plugging these articles into your own unique HTML files – create your own custom templates.

2. Blogs
Blogs have become extremely powerful lately – search engines are devouring them. Why? Well blogs are short for “web log” – an internet based journal. Just the title automatically indicates that the blog will be consistently updated. Blogs are also very clean and simple HTML with easy to follow navigation for search engines. If you have not yet, it is a wise decision to launch a blog on your own website.

3. Product Reviews/Information
Many affiliates who sell physical products or have websites that sell hundreds or thousands of websites argue that they cannot possibly write articles to promote all the products. Question: How do you have meaningful pages of “content” if you sell lots of products and writing articles is too difficult? Answer: Write product reviews or copy/paste information on that product.

If you ever search for an electronic item in the search engines, you’ll find that the top ranking sites are not always articles but are typically just websites that sell that product. Some of them have “reviews” of the product and others just have copied and pasted information from the company. So, a fast way to get content is to simply “borrow” technical specs and reviews on the product. But remember, put these into your own template (since it is repeated content).

There you have it – 3 sources for fast content to help you fill your website with many pages that search engines can index and then refer traffic to.

This article is written by Anik Singal, founder of The Affiliate Classroom. Anik Singal has developed his own affiliate system that helped him earn well over $10,466 in just 60 days. Now, he's looking for a few students to train one step at a time.
www.AffiliateClassroom.com

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6 Tips to Explode Your Offline or Online Business

by Monique Hawkins
August 23, 2005
Copyright 2005 Monique Hawkins

If you have a business either online of offline, your goal is to be successful. You want people to find out about your business and use your products or services. Did you know that the things you do from the early stages of your business will help it either succeed or fail? I know you want to be successful and that’s why I am sharing these 6 tips to help your business explode! Follow them and you can’t help but be on your way to success!

Tip #1: Start a Business that You Are Not Only Passionate About, But Also Can Have Fun With!
Having a successful online or offline business should not be boring and something you hate - it should be fun! Think on this: Why did you start the business to begin with? Why did you decide to market your particular product or service? If you have done your research, are passionate about what you are doing, plus you are enjoying yourself, this can greatly impact your level of success.

Tip #2: Develop Relationships With Your Customers.
View your customers as your friends. Why? Well, if your customers trust you and you have taken the time to build that trust, don’t you think they will be more open to purchase from you again if they’ve had a positive experience? Of course they will! So, work on those relationships.

Tip #3: Be Mentored.
If you want to have a successful business, you need to understand the importance of mentors. A good mentor can help you in so many ways, particularly if you are new to the business world or new to the industry.

A mentor can inform you of possible risks and help you limit them. They are perfect sounding boards when it comes to processing new ideas, new approaches, and are able to give you constructive feedback. A mentor can play a huge role in the success of your online or offline business no matter what stage it is in.

Tip #4: Follow the Advice of the Planet’s Best Business Consultant.
There is no question that the legendary Jay Abraham is the super business consultant. When we talk about succeeding in your business, Jay is the “go to” man. His “7 Point Worldview of Business” is something every business owner should learn more about. You’ll not want to miss a word of what he has to say in the following 7 points:

1. Your business should be fun.
2. Your business should be easy.
3. Your business should be obscenely profitable.
4. Your business should be easier to grow geometrically than incrementally.
5. You should be able to do your business your way.
6. Your customers are your great friends.
7. If the world were a 3D movie, you would be the only one with the special glasses.

Jay has the best advice out there. Follow it and you’ll experience business in a way you never dreamed possible. Jay, by the way, does have a fast, super affordable mentoring program for any business owner who desires to take their business to the next level and watch it soar. I highly recommend you at least listen to what he has to say.

You do not have to do this the hard way all on your own.

Tip #5: Don’t Hold Yourself Back.
Never hold yourself back when it comes to success. Too many people out there dream of success, they dream of owning or running their own business, they dream of making their dreams come true. The problem is that they never ACT! The biggest obstacle in your path to success may be yourself. It might sound like a cliché but you need a “can do” attitude. You need to think, speak and feel successful and then you will be successful. Learn to overcome your fears and move forward.

Tip #6: Surround Yourself with Like Minded People. Let’s face it-sometimes your friends and families lack of understanding and negative attitudes related to what you are trying to accomplish can be like a weight around your neck and can be very detrimental. If you associate frequently with people who are negative, pessimistic, and generally are not supportive, then maybe it’s time to change your friends. You can’t change your family of course, but maybe your goals and aspirations can’t be shared with them because of their lack of understanding. Maybe it’s time to surround yourself with individuals who are encouraging, supportive, and who express faith in you. If you do this, you’ll be amazed at what this type of influence can do for you and your business.

To sum it all up, whether your business is online or offline, there are many things that you can do to ensure success that go beyond even these 6 tips. Remember to keep your head up, have faith in yourself and your business, and confidence that you will succeed. You will succeed!

Monique Hawkins is the owner of the online music box store, "Monique's Music Box" located at:
www.my-music-box.com.
She enjoys sharing information with business owners that will help them attain success. Visit the following link for informaton about the Jay Abraham mentoring program:
www.abrahampublishing.net.


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Death of a Loved One

Sorry about the longer-than-usual hiatus.
My wife's father (no, not her father, her dad) passed away very unexpectedly on Sunday night, August 14.

One important piece of the complete puzzle of our lives is now missing, and life will never be the same.

Regular posting will begin again on Tuesday, August 23.

Thanks for reading -

hm