10 Ways to Keep Visitors On Your Site

The first and foremost objective of any website owner is conversion be it in the form of purchases, email signup or lead submission. However in order to achieve this end one needs to keep the visitors on the website as long as possible.

The more engaged your audience, the better are your chances of conversion. In this article we are going to discuss 10 effective ways of keeping your visitors on your site.

#1 Make your website visually attractive:

According to a recent research more than 94% of the first impression of a site on a visitor is entirely based on the visual appeal. If your site is hard to read and navigate then your visitors are not likely to dwell on it for long.

Always make sure to put the most interesting stuff above the fold so that the visitors get to see them without scrolling down or clicking. The text needs to be large and legible and the web designing needs to be sound. 

#2 Link all your contents:

In order to keep your visitor engaged you need to ensure a smooth transition from one article to another. Internal linking or linking of one post to another can be an easy way of engaging your visitors.

#3 Create relevant content:

While writing your website content you need to keep in mind the kind of stuff your audience would actually like to consume. Provide information which would help solve their problem.

#4 Ensure that your website take minimum time to load:

In case your website takes more than a few seconds to load then your visitors are sure to leave. Visitors don’t have the time to test their patience on slow sites. Moreover the ranking algorithm of Google also gives preference to faster loading sites.

#5 Choose the colors and fonts wisely:

Throwing in multiple fonts and a variety of colors might seem cool but it ends up hurting the eyes of your visitors which implies that they are bound to leave your site.

The font needs to be legible and the choice of colors should be kept to a minimum. Stick to light backgrounds and try not to use more than 3 colors.

#6 Use to the point titles for your posts:

Instead of getting creative with your titles you need to make it less confusing. While crafting a title make sure to be clear about the content of the article.

#7 Add videos:

Videos would help you keeping your audience engaged with your site for a longer time. Videos work better since people watching a video over reading an article. In case you have videos on YouTube make sure to embed them on your site.

#8 Make the site easy to navigate:

Visitors are likely to find what they need in a clutter free site which is easy to navigate. Make sure that you don’t have any broken links and try to incorporate a navigation bar with separate categories.

#9 Keep the overall design of your site consistent:

A site which comes with different colors and designs for each page is sure not to hold the visitors for long. Ensure that your logos are maintained with the same size on every page and also keep the headlines of a similar size.

#10 Add Fresh contents:

Always remember that the content is still the king and you need to keep adding new contents which should be relevant to your website. Your audience wouldn’t visit your site if its last blog entry was made 10 months back.

Source http://nancybadillo.com/10-ways-to-keep-visitors-on-your-site/

5 Ways To Make Money This Summer! ☼ On The Internet

                                             

Social Media: Why?

Consumer search click-through rates increase by 94% when they are exposed to relevant branded social media. Seventy-eight percent of consumers trust personal recommendation over search result rankings. Seventy two percent of consumers are more likely to make a future purchase from brands they follow/engage with on Twitter.  Why should you be on social media and why is internet marketing worth it?  We’ll explain. 

Having a presence on social media across the numerous platforms offered has the ability to assist taking your digital marketing strategy to the next level.  While some platforms may outperform others, do not discount the power of quiet success. 

Because of multiple aspects in the world of internet marketing like SEO best practices, recommendations/decision making processes, and ROI possibilities, maintaining a robust, strategic and professional social media presence is indefinitely recommended. 

Social media platforms help to boost a clients organic search rankings in many ways, in turn helping increase SEO value of that client’s overall brand.   Take for instance, Google+.  +1’s on Google+ are very important for SEO purposes.  The content that is posted on Google+ is indexed immediately, which will help your client’s posts be seen.  The more people that are seeing your client’s posts, the better. 

With the introduction of graph search to Facebook, the platform has changed.  After all of the recent algorithm alterations, you may think they’d be through with changes, but graph search has thrown a wrench in the works.  Take it any way you’d like, but it is an interesting feature that could end up assisting your client/business. Juxtaposed with the amount of likes your client has on Facebook, graph search helps make connections through assimilations.  Therefore, the more likes your client has, the more connections it has, the more likely it is to show up in graph search.  All of this can be organic success.

A task as simple as using a hashtag could take a Twitter conversation to the next level.  As trending topics become more and more universally used across all platforms, Twitter remains the original.  Starting a conversation with the use of a hashtag may throw your client’s Twitter account right into the mix with both companies large and small.  This opens your client up to what matters in Twitter: organic success by way of mentions and re-tweets. 

Ultimately, the more eyes on your client’s brand, the more potential there is for leads.  These organic interactions, whether through posts on Google+, Graph Search on Facebook or Hashtags on Twitter (which are also now very relevant on Facebook), all account for customer interactions on social media.  This has a very large potential to lead to future sales and increase ROI. 

As we’ve already discussed, the more people who see your posts, the better.  This is not reliant on platform, as whether you’re posts are successful on Facebook or Google+, they are that common denominator: successful.  Paid media can help with this.  Facebook ads are ever-changing, but that’s about the only downfall when it comes to their impact.  With eight current ad options, Facebook gives you and your client the opportunity to shine no matter what the need is.  The creation and upkeep of an ad campaign that is unique to the client and dependant on their needs can launch them into the stratosphere when it comes to success.  With options like Page Post Engagement, Page Likes, Clicks to Website,Website Conversions, App Installs, App Engagement, Event Engagement and Offer Claims there are options for every type of business looking to better and get their brand heard. 

Consumers trust personal recommendations on social accounts.  These personal recommendations aid the decision making process and ultimately have the ability to impressively increase your clients ROI.  As previously stated, 72% of consumers are more likely to make a future purchase from brands they follow/engage with on Twitter.   Facebook, Twitter and Google+ are called platforms for a reason.  These are the spaces and outlets that give your clients a place to build an effective online personality. 

While humanizing a brand may be very simple for your client, it’s always more of a challenge to do it digitally, through the internet.  With that being said, social media helps develop brand awareness by way of what your clients do and who they are.  This is easily done by reaching out through geotargeting on Twitter to start conversations with qualified possible followers, by liking, commenting and engaging with fans on Facebook and +1ing comments on your clients posts in Google+.  All of these humanizing aspects of social media help validate your client’s professional standing while simultaneously cultivating a loyal fan base that will advocate your brand multitudes. 

Also account for the powers of reviews.  Reviews of your brand no matter where they are, are very influential.  Encouraging your clients to express their experiences through reviews can help leaps and bounds with brand awareness. 

Why should you be on social media and why is internet marketing worth it?  We’ve explained.    It’s a no brainer.  Maintaining a robust, strategic and professional social media presence is indefinitely recommended for the ultimate success of both you and your clients

Source: http://www.singlethrow.com/latest-articles/social-media-why

How Your Local Search Engine Optimization is Preventing You From Generating New Business Leads

Local search engine optimization is important to success, because four out of five searchers using Google are looking for a local business to contact. (Search Engine Watch) Therefore lead generation directly depends on your audience knowing you’re alocal option.

Unfortunately, many local businesses either don’t know how or don’t care to take local optimization seriously. But not caring or not knowing how to fix the problem are equally indefensible positions to take in a digital marketplace where more and more buyers are shopping more and more locally.

Putting off local search engine optimization means that Google doesn’t know who, what and often, where you are. And if Google doesn’t know, how will your customers?

Take a look at two of the biggest problems found when local search engine optimization isn’t made a priority.

1.  Confusion For Your Buyers

Search engines, like Google, and search directories, like Yelp, MerchantCircle and Yellowpages, take a business's local information and display it to users among local business search results. So, inconsistent business listings can turn into hundreds of directories with variations of your local business information. And with directories continually sharing different information with one another, this is a problem that will continue to spread.

2.  Poor (If Any) Local Placement

When Google knows your business name, address and phone number, it is able to place you among the local business options in search results. But Google pulls this information from directories to provide buyers with the local business information it believes to be most accurate. So if your business has inconsistent local listings, Google may list you as a business in an incorrect location and ultimately, in front of the wrong buyer.

What’s worse, if the buyer is left to figure out the correct local listing, they’re simply going to shop somewhere else.

Generating new business leads is the solution to any problem your business may face. But you cannot generate new business leads if you’re not placing your business in front of your local buyer. In order to be placed in front of your local buyers, you need to prioritize local search engine optimization.

How To Get Traffic To Your Blog Or Website

Affiliate Marketing for Dummies

Affiliate marketing for beginners

If the phrase 'affiliate marketing' sounds like Greek to you, this is the guide you've been waiting for. Andrew Slack, MD of MoreNiche.com gives a simple, easy-to-understand overview of the affiliate marketing industry, with ten handy tips to get you started. You could generate big returns from this online marketing strategy.

What is affiliate marketing?

Affiliate marketing is a way of making money by referring people to purchase items online. More and more companies are starting to use this form of marketing to reward affiliates for generating website visitors to their business. Affiliates are only paid when sales are completed so it's an extremely cost-effective tool.

PC World, for example, pay a 5% commission for every visitor an affiliate recommends who makes a purchase. While it's a small commission, the affiliate is able to benefit from PC World's brand awareness which can often result in sales being generated on a regular basis.

Commissions range from as low as 1% with established retailers, right up to 75% on some digital products. The health and beauty market is one of the most affiliate heavy, with average commissions around 30%.

How do I become an affiliate?

Becoming an affiliate is very simple and although each program may have their own criteria for approval, they are normally free to join and have no pre-requisites.

The best way to find suitable brands to promote is by simply using a search engine using: '[Brand] + Affiliate Program'. Some companies run in-house affiliate programs, however this is a very specialist area. Therefore, most companies opt to employ an 'affiliate network' which has already built a large base of affiliates and gained years of experience in running successful programs for clients.

You need to generate regular content and reviews around a certain topic. Typically the more content and research you generate the greater the likelihood of you generating significant sales, which is why I'd always recommend marketing something that interests you.

Top 10 tips on making money as an affiliate

1.    Choose the correct niche - This is one of the biggest determining factors of whether you'll succeed in making money online.

If you enjoy camping, for example, then start off by looking at Millets or Blacks and you'll have hundreds of products to choose from. However, if you try and market something you don't enjoy just to make money then it's possible you'll get bored and give up.

2.    Find the correct affiliate program - When comparing affiliate programs in your selected niche, you should consider more than just the amount of commission you'll earn.

The two most important elements we believe make a successful affiliate campaign include:

Communication:

Can you speak to the affiliate manager in charge of the campaign? A good affiliate program will have a dedicated affiliate manager who should be very accessible and responsible for helping you make money.

Desire:

Do the products or services you are considering promoting really stand out? Will they convert visitors into sales? Would you purchase it yourself? 

If you answer no to either of these questions it might not be a product for you.

3.    Find a mentor - When first starting out there's a steep learning curve. You need to answer questions like, How to make a website? Which products should you promote? How can you get visitors to your website?  Once the visitors are on your site, how do you convert them to sales?

I'd always recommend finding an affiliate network which offers a personal mentor, assigned to help you make money. MoreNiche currently runs a 14-day course which we think can turn anyone from a beginner into a fully functioning affiliate.

4.    Join a community - In addition to a mentor you should also consider joining a community of likeminded individuals. Here you can ask questions and get lots of unique feedback. Some leading affiliate forums include, Affiliates4U, ABestWeb andWickedFire.

5.    Get a free blog - Use a free blogging platform like WordPress or Blogger to create a site for free which can start to make you money. They're completely free, can be setup in minutes and are extremely easy to use.

6.    Stay Focused - It's very easy to get drawn into promoting lots of different products on the same site which, from a visitor's point of view, can be confusing. I'd recommend sticking to one topic on each of your websites.

Ensure you provide plenty of information about each product which will make the consumer feel knowledgeable enough to purchase after reading your site. It's essential you become a master of your niche and understand it inside out.

7. Don't spend money - The aim of affiliate marketing is to make money, but it's also very easy to spend money, which makes it harder to see a return. I'd suggest concentrating on free traffic generation while you find your feet, rather than spending money on Pay Per Click advertising.

When you become more experienced and knowledgeable you might want to think about buying new web addresses and paying for additional traffic generation.

8.      Content is king - Until you have cash, content is your king. The more articles, product reviews, visitor feedback and information you can publish on your website (or blog), the greater the chance you have of attracting visitors to your website. 

Search engines like to show fresh content so I'd recommend adding new pages to your website at least every few days. Make sure they're easily found by your visitors though a good side navigation or sitemap.

9.      This is not a get rich quick scheme - You shouldn't expect to put up a website tonight and wake up in the morning with your first cheque; affiliate marketing is not a get rich quick scheme and does involve work.

I've seen affiliates from all walks of life, based all around the world and with completely different skill sets, but the one thing they all have in common is dedication to their sites.

10.  Enjoy it - Affiliate marketing should be enjoyable and you have the flexibility to work when you want, where you want, and on whatever niche you want.

A large percentage of affiliates earn money running sites as a hobby alongside their full-time job and many have been able to add significant second income streams by doing so.

Go about it the right way and you can learn a lot about the internet, your chosen niche and consumer behaviour. By joining a community and working with a mentor there's also the chance to meet new people along the way, whilst making some money.

Source:http://www.smarta.com/advice/sales-and-marketing/sales/affiliate-marketing-for-beginners/