Archive for November, 2009
Using Twitter to Generate Blog Traffic
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Twitter is not just for fun but can also be used much like other social networking media to gain more traffic. In this case, you want to attract more blog traffic. Twitter can help with that.
Like other social networks, millions of people use Twitter. It is a micro-universe of potential visitors just waiting to be tapped. The question is how to get them to take a look at you.
First of all, sign up for an account. You can’t find the right people unless you get in the game. Don’t worry about creating a business account at this point. You are only concerned with connecting with people now.
Next, get involved. Read other people’s tweets, join as a follower for popular tweeters. You can use Twitter applications to track the tweets of others and also do keyword searches for interesting tweets. Comment on current tweets and get a feel for how it works and who everyone is following.
The best thing about Twitter is that it works in real time from your PC or MAC. You can ask questions to find out any type of information. If you are looking for followers (Twitter friends) interested in business relationships (if that is what your blog is about), pose the question in a tweet and wait for responses. You’ll be surprised what you hear back.
Posing questions is one way to find suitable traffic for your blog. You want more visitors but the kind of visitors who are likely to come back
and buy from you if you are selling a product. It is a research tool that returns immediate results.
More advice
There are a few things to observe. In your tweets, use keywords. It might be hard with so few characters, but you want to include searchable words that anyone will enter into a Twitter search engine to find your tweets.
Don’t be a spammer. If your tweets always include links to your blog or your work on other sites, people will get the idea that you are not there
to connect but just to fill the site with links. Use the site to find others with similar business interests or to pose interesting views and get feedback. You can link to your blog when appropriate but don’t overdo it or people will get that fishy feeling about you.
It takes time to build up a following of followers on Twitter just like any other social networking site. The plus with Twitter is that the results are more immediate that with other social sites. Find the targeted visitors you are after with a few questions and then join in the twittering to build a rapport that translates into more traffic.
Solopreneur.biz on Facebook
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Have you been to our Facebook Fan Page recently? I highly encourage you to go to www.facebook.com/solopreneurbiz right now and share your business insights with us. I would love to interact with you and have a meaningful discussion around creating the business of your dreams.
Recently we’ve talked about:
The Top 50 Marketing Blogs To Watch in 2010
Most Fortune 100 Companies Don’t Get Twitter
HOW to Use Social Media to Grow Your Business
Biz Tips for Entrepreneurs
and so much more!
I want to encourage you to take a few minutes to visit our discussion board. While you are on the discussion board, take a moment to introduce yourself and give your business a little shameless self promotion in “What’s Your Solopreneur Biz?“. Also, please feel free to start your own topics!
If you’re not already, go on over to our Facebook Fan Page and become a “fan” today! We would love to have your input in our discussions.
Last Session of "Social Media Made Easy" for the Year
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Join me as we wrap up 2009 and learn the most important tool for your business success in 2010….
It seems that there is nothing these days that causes more marketing uncertainty, confusion, and frustration than the business use of social media. We all hear the stories about wild business success on Twitter or Facebook and yet you find yourself struggling or not getting anywhere.
Don’t be one of the dozens of people every day who are abandoning their social media profiles in frustration and confusion. It’s like you are starving at a sumptuous Chinese buffet because you don’t know how to use chopsticks. This is a real shame because social media is the most powerful tool for business growth there has ever been. And like chopsticks, it’s not that hard when you know the tricks…
Social Media Made Easy is a four week class that will make sure you know what you need to succeed with social media. We’ll get you started right now in the most important locations and show you the strategies and tips you need for success. The webinar format will allow you to see exactly what works and what does not to enhance your reputation and build your business.
Here’s a recent comment about the class –
“I started Social Media Made Easy with zero understanding of the different sites and now I have a perspective on what will be most useful for my purposes. The class really taught me the depth of the social media tools and strategies for using them effectively from a business perspective. Janet is a really good instructor who covers a lot of information methodically and at a great pace for learning. I appreciated being able to go back and review the recordings to look again at the tools.”
Register here right now if you know that you need this help!
In Social Media Made Easy you’ll learn –
* How to use social media to position yourself as an expert and build your credibility.
* Secrets to networking and relationship building to make your use of social media more effective.
* Details for the best use of Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and social bookmarking.
* How to take the exact steps which will increase your visibility quickly in order to positively impact your business.
* How to cut through the hype and confusion so your use of social media is focused and effective.
Social Media has helped rocket my business into more visibility, credibility and profitability than ever before. I want to make sure you have the right information and support to get your social media presence working for your business too. We’ll be meeting on four Mondays at 2:00pm ET starting on November 23rd. Each 90 minute session will demonstrate new ideas for using the social media sites successfully. Join me in this class as I guide you towards your own social media success.
This will be a small group learning situation so don’t delay in reserving your spot before they are gone. Here’s that link again to grab your seat for your four week path to comfort and ease with social media.
Here’s that link again - Register here.
Get a Deeper Relationship With Readers Using Newsletters
Posted by: | CommentsWhen you started your online business, you knew that you would have to have the traffic to make it a worthwhile venture. With your marketing plan, ideas were already recorded to help that become a reality. Here’s one you may not have thought about: newsletters. They bring the reader into the “know” and that could mean dollars and cents to you.
A business website gives visitors the basics of your operation. You want to use your resources to tell them about what you do and why they need to get involved with you. There is not always enough space to put columns or tidbits that would be important to readers but not necessarily part of your main marketing agenda.
Newsletters are designed not only to inform but also to let readers get to know you. There can be a column written by you that thanks them for being loyal readers and customers (leading them to buy if they haven’t already). You can share honest appreciation for what they do for you.
The Magic of Ezines and Newsletters
When you don’t feel as though “fun” things like contests and freebie offers belong on your website, however you want your readers to know about them, put them in a newsletter. Your online newsletter is also the perfect place for more in-depth items like affiliate program information and new products and services. There are several formats for online newsletters:
• One page layout that you email to subscribers
• Multiple page PDF format they can access through a link in email
• Layout in the form of a webpage
Usually, newsletters are sent to subscribers. These are readers who come to your site and opt-in for it by giving you their email address and name. Each month they get an email with your newsletter or link to the newsletter.
For longer newsletters with more information, you can create a PDF they can access, download, print and share with others. This way, your newsletter goes viral to people who know your readers.
Creating a “Subscriber Only” section on your site gives them access to newsletters that have video or animation that they won’t see if they had a PDF. This makes readers feel special that they have a place just for them on your site.
Your format is up to you. Whatever you feel that will engage your readers, use it. In the beginning they may not want a lot of flash since it could be viewed as trickery. Keep it simple until they ask for more.
Client Spotlight
Newsletters are a way to highlight those readers who want to be known. Maybe you have visitors who have joined your affiliate program or have opted in the previous month for the newsletter. Listing their names gives them a place of importance in your business.
What will you place in your newsletter? Creating one, to catch all the “tidbit” information that readers really love, helps them feel like a vital part of your enterprise.
LinkedIn and Facebook and Twitter, Oh My!
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I am getting lots of positive feedback about our recent focus on social media. It’s the most powerful new marketing tool in decades and you owe it to your business success to have an understanding of how it works. Here are three opportunities to help you do just that!
1. It’s time to get down to the nitty-gritty on social media.
Join me on Monday, November 16th at 2:00pm ET for the free teleseminar HOW to Use Social Media to Grow Your Business. On this call, we are going straight to the heart of the matter – with a focus on specific strategies to make you successful. You’ve heard the theory, now let’s look at action steps!
Register for the free call here:
www.solopreneur.biz/teleseminar
2. LinkedIn is the “premier networking site for professionals”.
I’ll be the special guest on a call for The Coaches Console on November 19th at 3:00pm ET to discuss tips for making the most of LinkedIn to promote a coaching business. The special call, Link In or Lose Out, will help you understand the site and ways to use it strategically. You’re invited to join us for the free call or just register to get the recording later.
Here’s where to register for Link In or Lose Out:
www.coachesconsole.com/thursat3/linked-in.html
3. The first class of Social Media Made Easy has wrapped up with rave reviews from the participants.
Join the next session of the class starting Monday, November 23rd at 2:00pm ET to get yourself started on the most important social media sites. Four weekly hands-on, interactive webinar sessions will walk you through getting your business presence on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and more. This is the last time this class will be held in 2009 so don’t miss out.
Get the details of Social Media Made Easy and register now:
www.solopreneur.biz/easy
All these calls will be highly interactive so you can be sure to Learn what YOU need. Bring your problems, questions and a way to take notes. Chose one of the three options or join me on all of them. Your business will thank you!
Don’t forget to Mind Your Own Biz.
Warmly,
Janet
PS – Register now for the call(s) of your choice and then make sure to mark your calendar so you don’t miss it. Here are those registration links again:
HOW to Use Social Media to Grow Your Business:
www.solopreneur.biz/teleseminar
Link In or Lose Out:
www.coachesconsole.com/thursat3/linked-in.html
Social Media Made Easy:
www.solopreneur.biz/easy
