Thursday, December 31, 2009

“Internet marketing Predictions for 2010”- Free Ebook

In this 40 page free PDF report Ewen Chia covers what he feels are the hot and not so hot Jodie  topics when it comes to online marketing. Ewen is a self-taught Internet Entrepreneur, which means he’s the “real deal” and he’s been making a living off the net for over 10 years now.

Topics covered in his report include:

Information Products
Changes with the FTC
Article Directories
Google Adwords
Social Networking
Squidoo
Twitter
Video Marketing


and so much more.  Download it at: If you like it feel free to give it away to your own readers or website visitors.

http://www.merlesworld.com/e-books/2010.pdf




Sunday, December 27, 2009

"With Real-Time Search, Comes Real-Time Spam"

Google has recently announced "real-time search" into its regular search results. Is this a good thing or a bad thing? Listen in as Rae Hoffman, CEO of Outspoken Media gives her thoughts on this new feature and what she found when testing it.

Thursday, December 10, 2009

Free Download- "The Essential Guide to Online Marketing"

Who says you can't get anything good for free anymore. "Download the eMarketing textbook and learn holistic and integrated eMarketing tactics from the team at Quirk." It's up to you if you'd like to download chapter by chapter or the entire PDF all at once. Topics covered include: Email Marketing, Online Advertising, Affiliate Marketing, Search Engine Marketing, Pay-Per-Click Advertising, Social Media Marketing, Viral Marketing and more. It's really a great course and it won't cost you a dime. Consider it an early Xmas gift from your "old pal Merle".

Friday, December 4, 2009

"Big List of Over 250 Social Media Websites"

Everyone and their dog is using social media websites to promote and market their websites. There are so many to choose from, doing the research and trying to find the sites that would be helpful in your niche can take a lot of time.

Here's someone who has taken the time to do the research for you with this list of over "250 social media websites". It's broken down by category and they even include the Alexa ranking for each site. If you'd like to dwnload it as a PDF file you can do that as well.

It really is a pretty nice collection and well worth your time to take a look if you're using social media sites. Some of the categories included are: Photo Sharing, Photography, Pets, News, Family, Fashion and many more.

When people take the time to compile and share this type of information it makes life extra easy and nice for the rest of us.My hats off to the author. Check it out at:
http://www.graphicseo.org/huge-list-of-over-250-social-media-websites/

Tuesday, December 1, 2009

“No Website Sales? Maybe Your Site is Missing the Mark!”

If you've moved your brick and mortar store online or recently started an Internet business and the sales just aren't coming in, the culprit may be your website. me_g_2009

Many people call me and say "My site's not generating sales; what can I do to get more traffic?" Before you can begin promoting, you need to take a long hard look at your website from your customers' perspective.

Customers always ask themselves the same thing:"What's in it for me?" Your site must answer that question, and answer it fast before they click away in discouragement.

Your first step is to go to your home page and view it as a stranger who doesn't know you or your product and services. Does the first paragraph state clearly what is being offered and the benefits you provide? It needs to. I can't tell you how many sites I've visited only to leave wondering what the hell they do. Your home page should also use powerful "selling words" that excite people and makes them want to learn more. It should have plenty of white space and be kept free from clutter and distractions.

A lot of Web designers will try to tell you to use plenty of Flash and other bandwidth thieves. Don't...The Web is still about information and you need to deliver it without crashing your visitors' browsers or making themwait five minutes to get through a Flash intro page.

Remember this rule: "Content is king." If your site is packed with good information, you don't need fancy bells and whistles. People will like it just fine because it tells them what they want to know and more.

Keep your target market in mind. If you sell salt water fish and equipment, then your site should include tips and tricks on taking care of livestock, setting up a system, or maybe even a helpful message board where visitors can help each other out by sharing information. You want to enlighten your guests with helpful information, not just "shove" what you do down their throats. The fact is they don't care about you or what you do. Show them what's in it for them and they'll be back often, turning into lifelong customers.

Make sure your web pages include plenty of calls to action. You need to tell them what it is you want them to do for example:

call now
click here to order
subscribe to our ezine

Your website pages all should work together underthe same theme. The look and navigation must be consistent throughout the site and should reinforce your offline brand identity. When building your site, use your brochures, business cards, and sales literature to incorporate your company image throughout.

For example, if you've been in business for 20 years and your company colors are gray and maroon, then your website shouldn't be pink and purple...follow me here? Keep your identity consistent online and off it will help with your company branding.

Another common error online marketers make is neglecting to update their websites, or keeping the same look for over a year. A website is not static, like a brochure.  Its strength as a marketing tool is its capability to evolve as time goes on, and you should add to it regularly. Experts say you should totally re-design every year to keep visitors from getting bored. An easy way  to add fresh content is to add a news feed on whatever subject matter matches your site.

There are plenty of services online that will give you a single piece of JavaScript to paste into your pages giving you the capabilities of showing new articles written by online experts on a weekly basis.  Shelley Lowery of Web-Source has just a syndication service find it at http://www.web-source.net/syndicator.htm 

The promotion process should not begin until your website works as an effective sales tool for your business. If your site is poorly designed and lacks content you'll just be wasting advertising dollars if you try to market it.

So next time your site sales are in a slump, take a look in your own backyard. You may be surprised at what you find.