Monetization Magic

Colorado Website Development

Free Websites versus Paid Websites

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Are you sure you want a free website?  If you’re just looking to create a website for personal interest and you don’t care about making serious money or even having someone purchase your website at a later date for a large amount of money then having a free website might be an option.

Did you know that you can make money just by blogging about your passion?  You can and some people are supporting themselves by doing just that!  You don’t have to be a software genius either!  If you can type an e-mail, you can have a money making website.

Are you looking for a free website because you’re a budget-minded individual?  I can certainly respect that!  Most websites can be created in less than a day for less than $100 if you know what you’re doing.  The beauty of this is that you have control over your website.  You’re website can be sold later if you choose and you can decide what environment to work in to create your website.  Free websites offer a restricted environment and only a handful of applications that can be integrated.  WordPress has literally thousands of options for your to add to your environment.  You can sell your own products and not be restricted as to what you can and cannot do on the website that you actually own.  Imagine being able to say, “I have my own website”.

Free websites offer the ability to get your message out quickly and cheaply.  With a free website, there really isn’t an obligation on the host to actually back up your website or even to consider you when they choose to sell to another company or just close up shop one day.  If you’re planning to build a beautiful website and put a lot of work into it, wouldn’t you like to know that it won’t just disappear overnight?  That would be like going to work one day to find that your job has been eliminated.

I am creating a program where you can learn to create your own website and learn how to start a blog using a step-by-step formula and incorporate the website builder, WordPress, so that you can work in a very simple, easy to use environment.  You’ll see how easy it is to start a website and even start a blog at the same time.  I’ll show you, using video tutorials and step-by-step instructions, the best options to add to your environment so that you can achieve your desired results!  You’ll be able to begin making money online very quickly.  The beauty of this is that once you learn the method using my step-by-step formula, you can use it again and again to create an army of money making websites!

Social Media creates Backlinks via the Law of Curiosity

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What are “backlinks”? Backlinks are links that are directed towards your website. Also knows as Inbound links (IBL’s). The number of backlinks is an indication of the popularity or importance of that website. Backlinks are important for SEO because some search engines, especially Google, will give more credit to websites that have a good number of quality backlinks, and consider those websites more relevant than others in their results pages for a search query.

When search engines calculate the relevance of a site to a keyword, they consider the number of QUALITY inbound links to that site. So we should not be satisfied with merely getting inbound links, it is the quality of the inbound link that matters.  This goes back to our original premise of creating value.  A search engine considers the content of the sites to determine the QUALITY of a link. When inbound links to your site come from other sites, and those sites have content related to your site, these inbound links are considered more relevant to your site. If inbound links are found on sites with unrelated content, they are considered less relevant. The higher the relevance of inbound links, the greater their quality.

For example, if a webmaster has a website about how to rescue orphaned kittens, and received a backlink from another website about kittens, then that would be more relevant in a search engine’s assessment than say a link from a site about car racing. The more relevant the site is that is linking back to your website, the better the quality of the backlink. Search engines want websites to have a level playing field, and look for natural links built slowly over time. While it is fairly easy to manipulate links on a web page to try to achieve a higher ranking, it is a lot harder to influence a search engine with external backlinks from other websites. This is also a reason why backlinks factor in so highly into a search engine’s algorithm.

Lately, however, a search engine’s criteria for quality inbound links has gotten even tougher, thanks to unscrupulous webmasters trying to achieve these inbound links by deceptive or sneaky techniques, such as with hidden links, or automatically generated pages whose sole purpose is to provide inbound links to websites. These pages are called link farms, and they are not only disregarded by search engines, but linking to a link farm could get your site banned entirely.

Another reason to achieve quality backlinks is to entice visitors to come to your website. You can’t build a website, and then expect that people will find your website without pointing the way. You will probably have to get the word out there about your site.

One great way to get the word out about your site is through social media like Facebook.  Simply place a “Like” button on your posts and when people read your article and click on the button it is posted to their Facebook wall.  Others will see what they liked and naturally be drawn to your post to see what their friend liked!  This is based on the Law of Curiosity.  The Law of Curiosity occurs when someone is actively engaged in an activity that creates interest for those around him (or her).

To create your own “Like” button, simply go to: http://developers.facebook.com/docs/reference/plugins/like and use the configurator by typing in the URL of your post in the “URL to Like” field in the configurator and clickety-click on the Get Code button.  Then simply cut and paste the code above or below your post via the HTML area of your website.  Voila!  Insta-LikeButton!

How to Use a Blog in Event Planning (Part 4 of 4 )

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The Rest of the Year (continued)

Video is another important feature. You may have a video portion of your website for conference videos, but a once a week update or feature with a few with links to your other pages are an easy way to keep traffic flowing and people interested.

During conference use

Special download area can be used to allow conference attendees to obtain a copy of the speaker’s slides along with any special conference material that is included with the price of the conference ticket.  Once the conference sells out, you can offer a backstage pass to those not attending to still generate interest.

Your show daily should be in electronic form and be emailed to conference attendees (you do this don’t you?), it should also be in the blog every day of the show. Even if it is posted elsewhere on your website, you can do a preview with a link to that page where the daily resides. This is called spreading the wealth. The more places something lives, the better the chance it is going to be found and read.

Take a few videos during the show in the form of interviews, highlights of speakers, backstage photo opportunities,etc.  post them to YouTube or Vimeo and then embed them in the blog. Make them interesting and (intentionally with purpose) raw, that gives the impression that it is breaking stuff. This also gives non attendees and “aw shucks” moment that maybe they should have been there.

How to Use a Blog in Event Planning (Part 3 of 4)

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Preconference use (continued)

Information about the host city. This is a great way to get the community behind you. In the weeks prior to the conference, feature local restaurants, shops and hotels and let the venues know that you will be doing this, ask them to contribute an article. They will love the exposure. You may ask these local vendors to offer a discount and you can put the code in your blog.

Video from past conferences. This is a great place to highlight snips from past events and talk about them. If someone did a crazy crowd sourced jig and someone posted it to YouTube, embed it in your blog. This builds excitement and makes people want to attend.

Post conference use

Surveys for venue, speaker feedback could be hosted on the blog.  Calendaring for the next event could be hosted.  Attendees could tell their friends about the value they created at the event to entice others to attend the next event.

Write recap articles, post video (or highlights with links to your video pages) and thank your sponsors and attendees.  Spread this out over a few weeks, you can get a lot of mileage out of this tactic.

The Rest of the Year

Feature sponsor press releases throughout the year, if XYZ company has a new product and they have a press release, post it (and then send the link to the sponsor). They will love this because not very many events care about them beyond their sponsor dollars. This is a great way to show that you value them.

The same can be said for speakers. Let the world know what they are up too since they presented at your conference. If a speaker went on to become President or a Nobel Prize winner, this gives your conference or event added credibility. Ask speakers to provide articles on the industry.

You can also do something that almost no show does and will truly set you apart from the crowd. Feature some of your attendees in the months between events. Pick some attendees from your list and call them and interview them. Ask them what they learned at your event, why they loved it and how this learning has impacted their daily lives. Ask them why they would return and use this as an extended testimonial. A WARNING – Make sure that the focus is on the attendee, not the event or conference. People love to get kudos and be mentioned, it helps them in their career and it helps them with the boss. Talk more about their accomplishments than the events. This is loyalty that money cannot buy…. Again, do not cut corners, you may be tempted to have a testimonial part of your website which is critical but if you do not do longer pieces in blog format, you are missing an amazing opportunity.

How to Use a Blog in Event Planning (Part 2 of 4)

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Sales

A lot of times speakers will have published a book, are able to offer special offers on continuing training/coaching or have upcoming events of their own that attendees would be interested in.  Assist them in extending those offers to the audience in return for a percentage of the total sales.  Partner with a travel agent and negotiate a special rate for travel and hotel accommodations.  Partner with the venue’s kitchen to arrange for a special deal on meals so that the conference attendees are not inconvenienced by having to go offsite for a meal and assist the venue in generating revenue.  Allow them to purchase conference materials (coffee mugs, stationery, t-shirts, etc.) online and ship them before the event to generate interest.

Preconference use

A room and/or ride share area can be arranged for those needing assistance with room or ride accommodations.  A forum can be put together to help future attendees to communicate and generate interest for the event.  Information about the venue and amenities can be communicated to assist attendees in getting ready for the event.  Pre-conference training calls can be coordinated via the blog along with pre-conference material lists or training materials or assignments can be posted via the blog.  Encourage potential attendees to link to the blog post via Twitter or Facebook to generate interest for their personal tribes.  Advise everyone when the Earlybird registration deadlines are approaching.  Create a tweet session the night before the big event to elevate the excitement about the upcoming event.

Tell attendees about important happenings and press releases. If you are announcing that there will be a networking reception on the first night of the conference, this is one of the outlets you should use.

Inform attendees about a new speaker or go in depth on each speaker. This is especially useful, take one speaker per week (day) and feature them. Write an article about them, their accomplishments, their expertise and why attendees would want to attend their session. You could also have the speakers write a guest post which they like.

The same can be done for sponsors. Talk about event sponsors and what they bring to the table and why attendees should visit their booths. A WARNING – DO NOT make blog mentions or blog articles part of a sponsorship package, this will free you up to talk about lower level or new sponsors that may have an amazing product or service but may not have the funds for the larger sponsorship, it shows that you value them and that they are important as well.

Announce milestones, if the conference has reached an attendance record or the early bird is ending, make it a post in addition to the other places you will announce it.

How to Use a Blog in Event Planning(Part 1 of 4)

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What is a blog?

Wikipedia defines a blog as (a blend of the term web log)[1] is a type of website or part of a website. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in reverse-chronological order.  Most blogs are interactive, allowing visitors to leave comments and even message each other via widgets on the blogs and it is this interactivity that distinguishes them from other static websites.[2]

In case you were not aware, you are currently reading a blog.

How long does the event occur?

Let attendees know in advance when the event will occur.  Also advise them the hours of the event.  Sometimes events are scheduled earlier than 9 a.m. and after 5 p.m.  Typically your event will last 3-5 days.  Typically people travel the day before and the date after.

What happens at the event?

Travel, sleeping accommodations, networking, sales, coaching, food consumption, gift consumption, entertainment, sightseeing, training, event testimonials, speaker feedback.  These are all topics that can be covered in the blog and points that could be coordinated with reliable sources at the venue.  Addressing these topics ahead of time will generate interest for the event and set the expectations of the event attendees.

What is needed at the event?

Tell attendees what to bring, what to leave a home, what the weather will be, remind them to bring business cards for networking.  Will they need paper and pens for note taking or are you supplying those materials?  Will recording and videoing be prohibited?  Advise attendees of the expected attire (high heels or hiking boots, shorts or slacks, polo shirt or sport coat and tie).  Will there be any formal events?  Advise attendees of any special points that they would want to be aware of such as being prepared for a day at the beach or morning yoga or whatever you might have planned that they would like to be aware.  Will you have special accommodations for disabled attendees?

Generating interest

Interest can be generated by giving prospective attendees a brief overview of the benefits that will be gained by attending the event.  Will they also receive a DVD of the event?  Will they receive valuable knowledge at the event?  Do you have testimonials from past attendees?  All that can be shared via e-mail.  Invite them to bring a friend/business partner/team for free or at a deep discount.

Write Your First Blog Post (Part 2 of 2)

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In the first part of this article, we discussed finding and using keywords as well as how to utilize the Six Servants to give your post a structure so that the reader can determine if the post is appropriate for them.   We will now discuss how to move your reader forward as you lead them to your desired destination.

Lay Out the Path to Your Destination

Your reader will need to know how to get from point A to your desired destination.  Lead them step by step to the finished product.  Point A is simply where on the path your reader is now.  Your desired destination is where your reader will be once the information you have is transferred to them.  At the end of reading your article, you will want to include direction (hopefully to more of your content) to more information or the next logical step to take to get to the next level in their journey.  As your blog post unfolds, your reader may need specific tools/information to take them to the next step along the way.  Equip your reader as you proceed just as the Google Keyword External Tool was introduced at the beginning of this blog post.  Your blog post takes the reader on a journey from Point A to your desired destination with you leading the way.  The question you want to answer along the way is “The reader will leave with an understanding of…”.  If this question is answered with “I have no clue”, that’s a great opportunity for your to rewrite that area to gain clarity for the reader.  Here is a simple outline for you to follow:

o  Answer the Six Servant questions for the reader.  Give them a reason to want to read your article.

o  Describe Point A

o  What tools does the reader need at this point?  Where do they find the tools?  What is the tool used for?

o  The reader will leave with an understanding of…

o  What is the next logic step along the path?  Describe the next logical step.

o  What tools does the reader need at this point?  Where do they find the tools?  What is the tool used for?

o  The reader will leave with an understanding of…

o  Summary

o  What are the next possible steps once the desired outcome is achieved?  Where can the reader possibly go from here?  Why would the reader want to revisit your blog?

Key Points to Keep in Mind

Use the rule of 21 W’s.  You will want to create a template with 21 W’s to determine how wide to make your posts for easy reading.  A good rule of thumb is to put 21 W’s on your page as your guide to how wide to make your post.

Keep your posts to about 300-350 words.  Anything long can be broken up into a series for easier reading.  That way the reader can choose if they wish to continue reading or not.

At each point along the way, you will want to give a subheading to describe what that section of the article is about.

Summary

You now have a framework around which you can structure your blog posts.  By using the Six Servants and Laying Out the Path to Your Destination for your readers, you will have a well written, concise blog post that creates value for your reader.

Now that you have your first blog post written, you will want to publish it.  I will describe publishing a blog post in my next posting, Publish Your First Blog Post, with a video example.

Write Your First Blog Post (Part 1 of 2)

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This post series describes how to write your first blog post and gives you a two-part structure to use so that your blog posts convey your intended message.  This will help you to organize your ideas and focus on your topic.  You can write your blog posts using any word processor such as Microsoft Word, Wordpad (free),  Open Office Writer (free), Notepad (not ideal, but useable).  You want to center your blog posts around keywords so that Google can drive traffic to your website.  You can obtain your keyword list from the Google Keyword External Tool.  It’s very simple and easy to use.  Refer to your keyword list and simply pick a keyword.  As you write your article, you will want to utilize your keywords in your article.  A good rule of thumb is to make no more than 10% of your words keywords.  So if your article is 300 words long, you will want no more than 30 key words.

This article will give you a plan so that you will have a two-part structure upon which to build your blog posts.  Within your structure, you will refer to what I call the Six Servants.  These Six Servants are concepts which are likely very familiar to you.  They are:  Who, What, When, Where, Why, and How.  Yes, you probably know these servants well; however, we will be expanding these concepts to assist you.  Just as you use a map when taking a long trip, so too, we will build a map for you to follow.  Only this map will become a tool for you as you learn to insert and delete items to guide you to your desired destination which is to have a well written article that is of interest to your readers.

Utilizing the Six Servants

The Six Servants can be enhanced to assist you in creating the first part of your structure.  The information obtained from answering the following questions will assist you in creating the foundation to your article.  For example, upon writing this article, I may have used the following questions:

Who will be reading the article? Bloggers who either haven’t written their first blog post or bloggers who have written blog posts that are not receiving the traffic that they would like to realize on their blog.

What tool/new information will be transferred in the article? I’m introducing the Google Keyword External Tool and a two-part structure to create a structure for the blog posts.

When will they be reading this article? They will be reading this article when they have a blog started and need more information on how to create blog posts in an orderly, organized fashion.

Where on their path will they be when they use this tool or knowledge? Blog writers will utilize these tools every time they create a blog post.  This information can also be used in product creation.

Why will this information be important to them? This information is important to them if they wish to drive more traffic to their blogs from the search engines.

How can they obtain more information about this topic?  How can they integrate this knowledge to their particular situation? I’m currently giving an example of how I’m using this tool and structure to write this particular blog post to make it easier for my reader to see how to put it into use.

Next we will discuss how to create a logical path for your readers to follow as they read your blog post.