4 Ways To Increase Traffic To Your Blog

Are you constantly blogging but the numbers you see in your traffic logs are embarrassingly low? It can be maddening to check your stats and realize that no one is actually stopping by. Don't give up yet, because there are four great ways you can get traffic fast.

Traffic Tip #1: Do Your Keyword Research

Many bloggers make the mistake of thinking they can just throw some posts up there and expect to get traffic. There is a lot more to it than that! You need to make sure you are looking at the keyword data to find terms that are getting a lot of searches. Ideally, you want these terms to have low competition so it's easier for you to rank. Once you start basing your posts around these kinds of keywords you should find that you're getting a lot more traffic.

Traffic Tip #2: Write Enticing Articles Off-Site

Submitting to article directories isn't just a good way to get backlinks to your site, it's also a great way to get readers! Sites like EzineArticles.com have their own readership of people who are looking for the exact topic you're blogging about. If you write a compelling article that leads into your resource box, people will be enticed to visit your blog.

Traffic Tip #3: Give People a Reason to Come Back

Getting traffic in the first place is one thing, but what you want to do as a blogger is have them coming back over and over again. The best way to do this is to create special offers or exciting events. For example, you can give away a prize each week to the new people who subscribed to your list or your feed. You can also run a contest for people who leave answers as comments on your blog posts. Make your blog a happening place to be and people will want to visit often and tell their friends.

Traffic Tip #4: Create Linkbait

Linkbait is when you write a blog post that is so exciting or controversial it gets people to come to your blog, comment, and link to the post. You may share some shocking news or offer an opinion you know is bound to stir people's emotions. You do need to have thick skin when you write linkbait! Don't expect everyone to agree with your opinion.

An example of linkbait is going the opposite way everyone else goes. For instance, imagine you have an electronics blog and you decide to review the iPhone. After reviewing the product you decide you don't like it. You then write to tell your readers why. Since this was a product everyone was gaga over when it first came out the chances are good you would have gotten a strong reaction right off the bat.

There you have it! These are four solid ways you can start to increase the traffic on your blog as soon as possible. When you put these methods to work you'll realize that the secrets to getting great traffic were in front of you the whole time.

About the Author:

www.turnblogstocash.com

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com - 4 Ways To Increase Traffic To Your Blog

Effective Ways To Get Your Blog Indexed

Getting your blog indexed in the search engines can seem impossible sometimes. It can often be so random! One blog gets indexed in a matter of minutes, while another one takes weeks. While the search engines don't reveal their exact formula for indexing, there are some methods that have been proven to work for many bloggers out there.

Of course, many people decide that the first thing they should do to get their blog indexed is to submit it to the search engines by hand. There is actually a lot of disagreement on this point! Some people think the search engines look upon this favorably, and other people think that hand submission can hurt you.

The bottom line here is that it really doesn't seem to hurt your rankings, but it's best to keep in mind that the search engines "know it's you" who is submitting the site. What they want are votes of confidence from other established sites out there. That's why it's better to concentrate on those.

If you already have a network of sites then you have a huge advantage. All it takes is a relevant contextual link on one of those sites and you'll often get indexed very quickly. This is especially true If you have access to a site that gets indexed often.

Not everyone has established sites, however! The good thing is that there are sites out there that allow you to put your content on their site. Article directories are one example. If you write an article for a site like EzineArticles.com with a link back to your site in the author's resource box, the chances are good that you will get indexed fairly quickly. You can also add your content and links to sites like HubPages.com, Squidoo.com, and others.

Another thing you can do is make sure you submit your RSS feed to directories. There are RSS directories out there that alert people (and spiders) that your content has been updated. This can increase your chances of getting indexed. Some examples of sites you can submit to include Feedagg.com and Feedage.com.

Yet another piece of the puzzle is writing great content and updating often. There is no exact formula for this, but we do know that Google likes content! If you can write a few posts right off the bat to show that you're going to be a great, relevant site, there is a larger chance that your site will get indexed.

If you still haven't made it into the search engines it is going to take a bit more effort. Usually a combination of a few of these will work well. Also, a little bit of patience goes a long way. It's not unusual to wait a week or more for the magic to happen! Still, by following the suggestions above you'll find that you get indexed fairly quickly and often.

About the Author:

www.turnblogstocash.com

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com - Effective Ways To Get Your Blog Indexed

7 Things You Need To Do To Optimize Your Blog For The Search Engines

Optimizing your blog for the search engines is crucial and very important! There are so many different blogs out there on the net that you'll quickly sink to the bottom if you don't optimize. Follow these seven tips below and you'll be well on your way to high rankings.

#1 - Create the Right Permalink Structure

The permalinks Wordpress uses by default are not search engine friendly. You can make this simple change by inserting %postname% instead of the default that is already there. This will successfully create URL's that include your post name which should include your targeted keywords.

#2 - Install All in One SEO Plugin

This is a must-have plugin which allows you to specify a title, description, and the keywords for the search engines. It can really help you boost up and reach the top of the listings, whereas the standard WP installation can fall short.

#3 - Install Related Posts Plugin

Search engines love it when they get content pages that are interlinked. It also works very well for the search engines. It will automatically include links to other posts that are similar. Very convenient!

#4 - Research your Keywords

When people search, they search by keyword. It is vital that you know what these keywords are if you want to rank at the top of the search engines. Your posts should be centered around these keywords.

#5 - Include Your Keywords in the Title

In the title of your blog you need to include your main keyword. Also, include your main keyword and select others in the titles of your posts and sprinkle throughout your pages.

#6 - Make Your Blog Easy to Navigate

Easy navigation is essential for your guests and the search engines as it makes it easier for the guests. That means including your blog's categories, recent posts (to make sure they get indexed) and pages. Easy navigation is also part of choosing a good design.

#7 - Expand the Ping List

When you make a new blog post Wordpress will "ping" the blog search engines. This alerts them that content on your site has changed and ready for guests to view. This can help you get indexed fast so you can start making money even faster. Do a Google search to find an expanded ping list you can include in your wp-admin so you make sure you get as many of these sites to update you as possible.

Using these seven plugins will make your job of ranking highly in the search engines easier than ever. If you're new to blogging with Wordpress then these terms may seem incredibly strange to you right now. As you study them and go over them a couple times, put them into action and it will start to feel like second nature!

About the Author:

www.turnblogstocash.com

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com - 7 Things You Need To Do To Optimize Your Blog For The Search Engines

How To Build Backlinks To Your Blog

While no one knows exactly what the formula for search engine rankings is, we do know that it has a lot to do with how many "votes" you have out there on the web. These votes are counted as backlinks. If you think about it, what do you when you find something you really like and want to share with others? You link to it! That's why the search engines count these so highly. While you should definitely aim to get to the point where others will link to you, it's possible to take things into your own hands for now.

Below are some of the top strategies you can use for building backlinks to increase the value of your blog in the eyes of the search engine.

Write Articles and Submit Them

Writing and submitting articles is a great way to build backlinks! There are sites out there like EzineArticles.com and GoArticles.com that allow you to post your content with a link back to your site. That means you get to have your link on authority sites! The more articles you write, the more you can submit them. The beauty of this is that you can often submit the same articles to different sites, or rewrite them quickly to have something that is more unique.

Comment on Other People's Blogs

It's a great thing to remember that a huge part of blogging is getting involved in the community. Commenting on other people's blogs will not only get you some recognition from their readers right away, it also counts as a backlink! Keep in might that some of these links are termed as "nofollow", which means the search engines may not pass along ranking or "juice." That's okay, because the algorithms are always changing, and since these links are so highly targeted they are a great thing.

Write Guest Posts

Writing guest posts for other niche blogs is an amazing strategy. People love to let you do this because it gives them a day off from blogging. Readers love it because they get a fresh perspective on a topic they are interested in. You'll love it because it means you get a link back to your site and all you had to do was write an extra post for the day.

Use Social Bookmarking Sites

Another thing you can do is bookmark your sites. Now, there are some rumblings out there that these won't count as highly in the future as they do now. Still, bookmarking your sites lets the search engines know "you are there" for fast indexing. If you take the time to make sure the sites you bookmark with are high quality, you'll get the benefit of those links as well.

Paying for Links

There are many different ways you can pay for links. It is important to know that Google and other search engines frown on this because it's like you're gaming their algorithm. Whether you choose to do this or not is up to you, but it can be an effective strategy if you don't go overboard and aren't obvious. You can contact people directly or even work through link exchange networks.

Learning how to build backlinks to your blog is extremely important if you want to rank well. Add a few links at a time and they will build up in a massive way over the long run.

About the Author:

www.turnblogstocash.com

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com - How To Build Backlinks To Your Blog

Travel Writing: How To Make Money Blogging About Your Travels

Have you ever wanted to travel the world and make money for sharing your adventures with the world? Using the web and a simple blog, this couldn’t be easier. There are just a few simple, yet hidden techniques for making a healthy income for blogging about your travels.

In fact, the number of underground travelers who hold no jobs, yet make cash for writing about their travels is growing by the day. We keep our mouths shut about our techniques as we visit worldwide destinations and get paid for telling the world about it. I know there have got to be great people out there who deserve to travel and want this information, so I’ve decided to share a few of our techniques:

1. Own Your Blog. Sites like Blogger, Myspace, and BlogSpot are no good for our purposes, because you can’t tweak the site to make a profit very easily. Instead, if you buy a domain for 10 bucks and then install Wordpress, you now have the platform to make it extremely profitable.
2. Utilize PPC (pay-per-click) to get started. You won’t make a massive income off of this right away, but you can easily make 5-10 bucks a day in the beginning. That may not sound like a lot… but it’s enough for a meal every day or a flight after a month, and the number only gets bigger as your blog grows in readership.
3. Collect names and email addresses. You want to do this so that you can bring your readers back to your blog. Very few people ‘bookmark’ a site any longer, but if you email your readers every time you post a new article, you will grow your readership at an exponential rate.
4. Offer an RSS (Real Simple Syndication) subscriptions. Don’t let this intimidate you. Setting this up is as simple as checking a box on your blog’s options. RSS is another way for your readers to keep up-to-date with your blog. Insead of you emailing them, their RSS reader of choice will automatically show them the newly posted content. The more they see your content, the better chance they’ll click on an ad (and therefore, the better chance you’ll get paid)
5. Sell a product that will interest your readers. Once you are up and running, you will see your readership growing as well. Now it’s time to really monetize your site. This is where affiliate marketing comes in. This is simply taking a commission for any customer you send to another product (considering they buy the product). So, every now and again, make a blog post about the affiliate product you are promoting. When your readers see this, those who are interested will click on your ‘affiliate link,’ and if they buy, you get paid. Easy as that. Becoming an affiliate is always free, and there are thousands of products begging for active affiliates. By the way, affiliate commissions are typically 50% to 75%. Gigantic, and very profitable.
6. Create your own product. The only problem with affiliate marketing is that the product is completely out of your control and you only take a part of the cut. Once you have a bunch of blog posts, you can bundle them together and make an ‘ebook.’ Sell this to your loyal readers, and you’ll be surprised at how many of them will pay for the content they’re getting for free anyway!

There are bloggers out there who are making hundreds of thousands of dollars a year for writing about their passions. My instincts tell me you’d be happy with a few hundred or thousand dollars extra per week, so start taking action on these ideas. They’re not complicated, they just require action. The best part is, once they’re set up, they can all be automated and can take place without your presence!

**Attention Readers**

To get your copy of our free step-by-step guide showing you how to make money as you travel without ever holding a ‘job,’ visit http://www.moneyfortraveling.com. The expert authors at www.MoneyForTraveling.com have all made a substantial internet income while traveling or they have been hired and paid well to travel the world and will show you how to do the same.

How To Create A Loyal Readership With Your Blog

One of the main differences between a blog and a static website is the way people are able to interact with your content. With a static site it's just people reading words on a page. When you have a blog they can explore and even comment back! You want to get that sort of interactive spirit going so you can create a loyal readership with your blog.

That doesn't mean it's easy! There are literally millions of blogs out there all vying for the attention of your audience. It can be even harder to grab people's attention when you're just getting started. The bad news is that it's going to take some work and dedication to build up a loyal readership. The good news is that it's very possible, and even fun, to put these things into place. Follow these rules and you'll have the kind of repeat visitors and fans that really make blogging worth your while.

Rule #1: Write Great Content

Let's face it; if your content stinks there is no way people are going to come back and read again! They'll just click away, never to return. If you write great content, however, you're sure to get some fans. Not everyone considers themselves to be a good writer. That's OK! No one expects you to have perfect grammar and spelling. It's far more important that you write interesting content that stands out from the crowd. Give your real thoughts and opinions on things that matter to the audience.

When you write great content, not only will you have people who want to visit your blog all the time. They will also link to you! You know that more linking means higher rankings in Google. That's definitely a great thing that will expand your readership base to levels you couldn't even imagine when you got started.

Rule #2: Leave the Comments Open

It's amazing -- but there are bloggers out there who close their comments! While it can be a lot of work to try and get rid of those spam comments, you're also missing out on a big part of what being a blogger is all about. You need to let the audience write back and speak their mind too. People don't just want a website they can read anymore, they want one they can add their "2 cents" to. So, leave your comments open and listen to them. It doesn't matter if people always agree with you or not (they won't!), you'll get a much larger and interested following.

Rule #3: Guest Blog

The chances are good that there are some blogs out there that are very well-liked by the people in your niche. These blogs probably get a lot of traffic and a lot of respect. It's time to get your name and website out there in front of this audience! All you need to do is write to the owner and say that you'd like to write some guest posts. They will probably be more than happy to take a break from their own posting and to give you a link back to your blog. This will not only give you link juice for the search engines, you'll also win some of their loyal readers who are interested in what you have to say.

Learning how to create a loyal readership with your blog is incredibly important if you want your blog to thrive. It's all about the people, and making sure they are aware of your blog and love your content.

About the Author:

www.turnblogstocash.com

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com - How To Create A Loyal Readership With Your Blog

Make Money Blogging: Creating A Successful Blog From The Start

If you are the type of person who likes to express your views and thoughts, you can benefit from uploading information to the internet. You can give directions or tutorials, teach others, reveal new facts, and many more, in the form of blogging. While uploading information to the internet, you have the opportunity to advertise your business and make huge profits. This is certainly one business opportunity you would not dare to miss if you want to make money blogging.

Blogging can indeed be profitable if you are proficient in selling advertising space on your web pages. You can also utilize your blogs to sell affiliate products in order to earn extra cash. The process of setting up your blog to maximize this business opportunity can be quite easy provided that you already know how to put affiliate links and ads to your blog.

If you have established a name for yourself in the world of blogging, you can offer a private blog membership to the large number of readers who follow your blogs regularly. You can charge about $5 to $30 per month depending on your popularity. This can seem small but you'll be receiving huge sums if you have a lot of loyal readers. Aside from your regular blogs, you have to offer your readers with something else so that they will feel that they get their money's worth.

To be effective in blogging, be sure to choose a topic which interests you and other readers as well. This topic should make you feel comfortable in writing and would help you generate ideas easily. The readers should also enjoy reading about this topic for them to stay on your blog membership. If you aren't sure on what topic to write about, experiment on writing on several topics and find out which one fits you and catches your readers' attention.

Advertising your blog by making it visible in web pages and using the right keywords which people use to search in search engines are very important factors for the success of your career in blogging. There is no limit as to how much you can write when you create blogs.

Establish your reputation on the web as a prestigious writer by writing as much quality blogs as you can on a frequent basis. This is the key to the success of your online career. Set yourself apart from the generic and mundane writers on the net by writing about unique and appealing topics.

Let your creativity flow as you continue to write blogs of topics of your interest while making some profits at the same time.

About the Author:
Zackery Lim is an internet marketer who runs several successful websites and blogs. If you are serious about wanting to make money blogging like him, then make sure you download a copy of this essential guide at http://www.blogforprofits.info

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com - Make Money Blogging: Creating a Successful Blog From the Start