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Getting People To Your Website:
How to Easily Do Top-Notch Search Engine Optimization
by Fern Reiss, CEO, PublishingGame.com/Expertizing.com
One of the most common laments in the business world is, “But now that I have a website for my book/business, how do I get people to find it?” Putting up the website is only half the battle; unless people are able to find it, you won’t be improving your business. Here’s how to fly to the top of the search engines—and stay there:
Optimize for your top keywords
When people search online for your topic, what words or phrases are they looking for? And which of these words can you realistically hope to ‘own’ in the online marketplace? The better your choice of keywords, the better your ranking will be. For example, I advise writers on how to find literary agents. “Literary agents” is a Google search phase that’s extremely popular—too many other websites are vying for this phrase, so my chances of ranking highly would be minimal. But if you do a Google search for ‘find a literary agent,’ a slightly less popular phrase (but one that authors still use), my PublishingGame.com site pops up on the first page.
Don’t neglect indirect marketing
Think carefully about how your indirect markets will find you. For example, the primary market for my Publishing Game products is books, workshops, and consulting for the writers themselves. But my indirect market is anyone who knows a writer. This resulted in a whole sideline of products for friends of writers—gift baskets for writers, in prices ranging from $39 to $99, particularly popular around the holidays. (Try a Google search for ‘holiday gifts for writers’ and see what comes up.)
Put up an online press room
Physical press kits—a fancy folder, glossy photos, detailed bios of company principals, press releases—are passé: Journalists don’t pay much attention to them anymore, and they’re almost always suggested by PR agencies as a way to produce a pretty deliverable without much effect. But online press rooms can be very powerful. Remember to include high quality resolution photos of yourself and your book; press releases (including press releases that mention your other press attention), and full contact details.
Add informative articles
Next, write a few articles on your niche topic. Including content on your website that relates directly to your keywords will cause your search engine optimization to climb. This is one reason why blogs are so effective for search engine optimization; search engines appreciate fresh content, and blogs are an easy way to get new content on a regular basis. If you’re going to blog, make sure you put in the few extra minutes to both publicize and syndicate your blog.
Get a handful of quality incoming links
I’d also recommend writing articles for other websites. Sometimes called ‘online article syndication,’ the more articles you have on the internet that link back to your website, the more likely your website is to rank highly. For example, try doing a Google search for ‘media attention for your business.’ Even though these aren’t my principal keywords, there are at least three mentions of my Expertizing.com site on the first page of Google! (But remember that the syndicated articles can’t be too similar to each other—that’s called ‘content mirroring,’ and will actually hurt your optimization efforts.)
Even before your website is up, start thinking carefully about how people will find it. And then get out there and optimize, optimize, optimize!
Buy Fern’s Special Report: “Getting People to your Website: 25 Simple Tips for Top-Notch Search Engine Optimization” only $11!
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Or enjoy a one-on-one consultation with Fern on how to improve your website and search engine optimization: PublishingGame.com/consulting.htm.
Fern Reiss is CEO of PublishingGame.com (www.PublishingGame.com) and Expertizing.com (www.Expertizing.com) and the author of the books, The Publishing Game: Find an Agent in 30 Days, The Publishing Game: Bestseller in 30 Days, and The Publishing Game: Publish a Book in 30 Days as well as several other award-winning books. She is also the Director of the International Association of Writers (www.AssociationofWriters.com) providing publicity vehicles to writers worldwide. She also runs The Expertizing® Publicity Forum where you can pitch your book or business directly to journalists; more information at www.Expertizing.com/forum.htm. Sign up for her complimentary newsletter at www.PublishingGame.com/signup.htm.
Copyright © 2011 Fern Reiss
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