Monetization Magic

Colorado Website Development

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.

12 Step Plan to Drive Traffic to Your Website

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By Joan Pounds

On any given day, we are all exposed to many different types of advertising.  Even for sites that are offering valuable content, it can take 7-12 different exposures of your website before someone actually will visit your website.

Why Drive the Traffic

Driving traffic to your website will help your readers to find your website and familiarize themselves with your brand.  They will become familiar with you and are interested in hearing about the latest news.

Your marketing efforts can be visualized as a giant funnel.  You will likely have several different ways that potential customers can enter your funnel.  Along the way, for each customer interaction, you want your customer to perform ONE action.  Typically, this first action is to sign up to get some free valuable content.  When you look at your website, it should be self-evident as to what that first action is.  Have someone look at your website and see if they can figure out what that one action is within 10 seconds of having the website display on the screen.  If they can’t figure it out within 10 seconds, you need to make it stand out more.

Tell the Masses

Let your friends and family know about your website.  Tell them about your irresistible free offer.  You are offering something for free and collecting e-mail addresses, right?  When you meet someone, tell them about your free content if it applies to their goals.  People love to have valuable content for free.

Signature Line

Put your website address in your signature line for your daily e-mails.  This just lets people know that your website is available.  You can also mention your irresistible free offer here; however, make it more of a public service announcement rather than a high pressure sales blurb.  A good way to do that is to pique their interest with a question and direct them to the website for more information.

Submit articles

Use keywords so that search engines can find your website.  A great free tool for identifying keywords is found at:  https://adwords.google.com/select/KeywordToolExternal

Create a Community

People who check out your website and sign up to receive your irresistible offer would also benefit from doing business with each other.  Create a membership forum so that those in your own community can benefit from each other.

Use Social Networking

If you haven’t already, create your own fan page or group in Facebook and/or LinkedIn and invite people to talk about the topic of your product.  To create a really big stir, be controversial!  Generate discussions about that which your followers are passionate.

Write an e-Book

E-books are wonderful because the overhead is so low and they are so easy to download.  The information transfer is instantaneous!  E-books can be initially dictated verbally if the written word is not your forte’ and later transcribed into a written e-book.  You can include a workbook on the material along with the audio because not everyone learns in the same manner.

Create an Affiliate Program

You can create your own affiliate program to assist those who already love your product or service to spread the word about what you are doing.  This is the best form of advertising because they speak from their heart and it doesn’t cost you a dime to advertise.  Most affiliates will receive a portion of the sale; however, it is likely that you wouldn’t have made the sale without them so it really doesn’t cost you anything.

Create an Event

Creating an event by getting like minded people together requires a bit of work and can be so valuable.  Figure out who you would like to share the stage with and what your venue will be and go from there.  Perhaps instead of physical appearances, you would prefer that everyone appear via phone or video?  That’s an awesome way to get your message out to your guests and keep expenses low!  You can also record the talks so that they can be sold as recordings at a later date!

Offer a free Teleclass

By offering a free teleclass, you can let people know what you are doing and find out who is interested in your niche.  It’s an excellent way to answer questions and survey those in attendance to find out how you can best service them.

Offer to speak at local events

Speaking at local clubs and events is an excellent way to get the word out about what you do.  You can quickly create some Powerpoint slides to keep you on track and give the audience a mini workbook with information on your topic.  It will assist them in staying engaged in what you are saying as well as giving them a reason to look at your website when they get back to their office.  Give a feedback survey on your talk and present them with an ethical bribe of a giveaway to ensure you get everyone’s contact information.  Use the surveys to draw for names of who wins the drawing.  Make sure you ask a lot of questions to keep your audience present during your presentation.

Use an Autoresponder

A great way to have someone sign up for your incredible free offer is by way of an opt-in page.  Common places to find opt-in pages are by using autoresponders.  Autoresponders are pieces of graphics and software to collect information and interact with the customer while you are away from your website.  They provide the website owner the ability to present a consistent response to the customer and to help guide the customer to the next logical action.  Autoresponders assist you in creating and maintaining your mailing list with very little effort on your part.  Your customers love them because they automatically can connect with you and when they are ready to move on, they are able to unsubscribe with the click of a button.  The more pleasant impressions that you can make upon the customer while interacting with your website and/or product, the better.

Create a contest

Creating a contest will generate interest from people who are interested in your services and products and give you an opportunity to build your list from the contest participants.  The key is to follow up!

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Warmly,

Joan Pounds