Out-Smarts Internet Marketing

1. Write an article that relates to your area of expertise and submit it to ezine and article sites (the ones with the highest Google ranking).
2. Update your site often - a blog is a great way to do this.
3. Add forms to your site - check out Jotform.
4. Get more backlinks - find out which sites link back to your top competitors and submit your site to those with the highest traffic - don’t use a mass submit tool.
5. Podcast - add audio or video content to your site and make sure its listed in the podcast hubs.
6. Have the right content: effectively use keywords and appropriate SEO copy writing (listen to our upcoming podcast to find out more).
7. Get active in social networks - LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter and make sure that those link back to your site.
8. Encourage community - use your blog or podcast to build community and invite others to get involved.
9. Remember that Google may be the most common search engine but there are many others - take these into account when considering SEO.
10. Utilize the hot spots on your site to the best advantage. The top left hand corner is valuable real estate - use it to tell the audience (and the engines) what you do.

Links are like gold on the Internet, the more your have the better your ranking. Link building however can be arduous and frustrating and if you don’t know what you are doing you can spend a lot of time chasing your tail.

Here are some tips to make your efforts more effective:

1. Always ensure your site is listed in all of the major search engines prior to starting your link building campaign.
2. Only submit links to quality sites.
3. Target your linking to sites that are pertinent to your business.
4. Remember to add your links in appropriate directories.
5. Quality is better than volume. Link to sites that have good traffic stats.
6. Track your progress - set up a spreadsheet to track submissions.
7. Many sites require a reciprocal link. Decide in advance if you will take this approach and add this to your web site.
8. Only pay for listings if you can determine your ROI.
9. Go for the low hanging fruit. Request a link from customer and partner sites.
10. And this is perhaps the most important. Don’t get disheartened. Effective link building takes time and commitment. Results are not instantaneous and it often takes several months to see the full effect.