Reader Q&A: How Do I Grow My List? 4 April 2008

A reader asks: ”I’m having trouble attracting people to my website, more specifically opt-in members for my list. Can you help?“  

Answer: There are a myriad ways of achieving your goals. Here are a some to get you going:

1.  Make sure your website is targeted for your ideal customer, using language and ‘triggers’ that will appeal accordingly.
2. Optimise your web pages, especially your home page, using SEO (search engine optimisation) techniques to drive more search engines to your site, and help your visibility among the search results.
3. Start a blog, and link back to your website. Search engines love fresh content, and writing regular blog posts is an excellent way of keeping them happy.  
4. Make sure your newsletter sign-up box appears not only on your web pages, but also your blog.
5. Make it worthwhile subscribing to your ezine –– just because it’s free is no longer a valid reason.
6. Write articles and submit them to online article directories. Make sure your ‘author bio’ or resource box features a live hyperlink to your newsletter, and offer a gift to subscribe.
7. Use Google Adwords to get qualified traffic. Make sure the landing page is suitably targeted.

Hopefully, this little lot should be enough to get you started and keep you busy for a while! Good luck, and let us know how you get on…

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Does More Equal Less? 22 February 2008

Blogger Ryan Healey’s recent post, ‘Does Frequent Blogging Encourage Bad Writing?‘, is brewing up a healthy debate in cyberblog land. In particular, with regards to the acceptable level of frequency of blog posts. 

His main point is that some bloggers seem hell bent on whittling off badly written, nonsensical, uninteresting, or just plain boring posts just to say, “Hey, look Google and all you other search engines, I’m blogging every day, so you must come by and see me sometime.” 

He says that far too many people feel compelled to blog every time they have a “brain fart” – and that it is the quality NOT the quantity of blog posts that should be the determining factor.

I agree. In that I’ve stopped reading blogs that keep reeling out more and more posts. Likewise, I’ve stopped reading ezines that land in my inbox daily. My time is of the essence. And so is that of your readers.

So the first thing you absolutely MUST consider – especially when it comes to business blogging – is the preference of your readership. Do they like long, investigative-style blog posts thrice daily, or shorter ones just once per week? Do they want a mixture of the two, but no more than say two-three posts per week? And so on.

Finding out more about your target audience, and their needs and wants is only the first step.

Next, you have to consider your own schedule and reason for blogging in the first instance. There is hardly any point banging out post after post after post on a daily basis if seven months down the line you stop posting for weeks at a time. Consistency, with a few deviations to keep everyone awake is a good thing.

Another crucial factor is added value. Do your posts offer something that is useful, interesting or relevant to your audience? If not, why not?

What about you? What works best for your audience and you?

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Your Input Needed, Please 8 January 2008

Can you believe that I’ve been blogging for one full year now? Wow, how time flies! Well, one of my goals for this year is to continue to make this blog something that YOU will want to continue to read. So please take just a few minutes of your time to answer these short questions:

• What would you like me to write about MORE in 2008?
• What would you like me to write about LESS in 2008?
• What specifically can I do to help you be more successful in 2008?
• Anything else you would like to add?

Please answer using the comment link below this post. Your input will be greatly appreciated, and will allow me to spend more time creating useful content for you.

 

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Blogging IS Big Business 23 November 2007

Blogging generates new business, and is becoming the marketing tool of choice for businesses of all sizes, according to a new survey.

Inferno PR carried out a recent survey of 300 businesses with 250+ employees. The results were promising for blogs and bloggers alike.

Fifty per cent of those surveyed had undertaken blogging in some form. Of those, nearly 90% said it had generated new business.

Other findings included:

• 64% of UK corporate blogs have been launched in the last six months
• 66% of managers in the survey have visited blogs in the last 12 months
• 80% of blog users visit blogs during working hours
• 33% of blog visitors will access a blog on a daily basis

Blogs even influence decision-makers: those working in the purchasing sector said that blogs were their second best source for influencing buying decisions. Industry reports are the chief resource.

Inferno PR’s managing director Grant Currie commented:

“The research shows that blogging in the UK is fast becoming a serious business tool…UK companies are now beginning to adopt blogging as part of their business strategy and those that have done so are pointing to specific business success and opportunity being created. It seems the hype is over and the real business of blogging is on its way.”

Positive findings, yet many businesses still need to learn that they need to regular, useful content geared towards their target audience, rather than using blogs merely as a direct sales tool.

Blogs are, after all, primarily about customer-relationship building.

Source: The Marketing Blog

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Related Posts:

• Is a Business Blog Worth It?

• Reader Q&A: Blogs vs Ezines

• How Important is a Website?

• The Real Secrets of Success Are…

• The Importance of Good Copy

• The Importance of Appealing to the ‘Right’ Clients

Free Content For Your Blog or Website 5 November 2007

Do you publish a blog or website and need quality content?

Or perhaps you have an ezine or in-house newsletter for your writing or marketing staff…

Then again, you might belong to a professional organisation that is on the lookout for fresh articles to interest members…

I have written several articles about topics relevant to all these situations and more — and they are now available at no charge for inclusion in your ezine, newsletter, website or blog.

To access these and read the usage rules, simply point your browser to: http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=T_Dooley

Feed the Courage and Do it Anyway 22 October 2007

I’ve been tagged by blogger Lorraine Cohen to partake in the following meme:

What’s the bravest thing you ever did that you’re most proud of? What gave you courage to be brave then, that continues to give you courage today?

Wow! What a challenge. There are quite a number of times in my life when I have had to enlist the help of courage to get me through intact, but I guess one in particular was when I was 18. My parents were about to move to a foreign country, due to my father’s job. I was fresh out of college, and had just qualified as a BHSAI (British Horse Society Affiliated Instructor).

Not one to miss out on new experiences, or new lands to explore, I decided to up my roots and follow my parents.

Within just a few weeks of landing on foreign shores, I managed to bag a very enviable position as equestrian manageress.

Of course, at my age (then just 18) the responsibilities (which included looking after the health and wellbeing of 27 horses, taking on a steep learning curve of veterinary procedures (the nearest vet was a good five-hour drive away), managing stable staff, doing monthly inventories and reports for the owner, stock-taking, leading trail rides, etc) seemed mammoth. Plus, I’d never been in charge before. Not least of myself, really. : )

Anyway, I took on the challenge and one of the most enjoyable times of my life.

I guess I have my parents to thank for pulling it off. My dad for having the skills to take his work abroad. My mum for always telling me that if I believed I could so something strongly enough, then I could do that. To just believe in myself.

That belief is what fuels me to this day. That and knowing I can pull even the most (seemingly) mammoth of challenges that fall before me.

How about you? What’s the bravest thing you ever did that you’re most proud of? What gave you courage to be brave then, that continues to give you courage today?

Join the conversation by leaving a comment on this blog (oh, go on, please divulge all!), or write a fresh post on your own blog, but please do try to put a link/trackback to this post. Thanks – I look forward to reading about your bravery.

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