How To Promote Your Website Successfully
By Cheryl Rickman
Posted Thursday, October 28, 2004
Remember, simply having a website doesn't mean that people will automatically see it. You need to promote your site. This article shows you exactly how to do so without breaking the bank.
So, you've got your website up and running. You've spent some time and effort getting to this stage, so it's crucial that you optimise your efforts and success, by spreading the word about your site.
Remember, simply having a website doesn't mean that people will automatically see it. You need to promote your site.
Here's how:
1. ONLINE PROMOTION To promote your website effectively, you need a good list of quality prospects to promote to. A good way to do this, is to use an "opt-in" box on your home page.
An opt-in box a simple form on your site, where a visitor can leave their name and e-mail address in exchange for: i) some information that relates to your website theme and target audience's interests. ii) a free subscription to an e-zine. iii) regular updates on special offers, new services or products.
The purpose of this opt-in strategy is to build a prospect list of people who are interested in what you offer, and in subjects relating to that offer. These people are giving your permission to e-mail them and may buy from you at a later date. You can offer incentives to your prospect list/subscriber base, to encourage them to buy.
As long as the information you supply to your prospects is useful and good quality, you will build credibility and a loyal customer base, to whom to sell related products/services to. For an example of an opt in box, check out (http://www.webcritique.co.uk) You could offer a free training course by e-mail or series a of useful Reports, like they do at (http://17765.happeneurs.net). They offer a free h@ppenetics internet marketing course to their sign-ups, adding value to their existing offers and building up a prospect list in the mean time.
2. MAGNETISE YOUR SITE: KEEP IT FRESH Update your website frequently with fresh content. This helps to give visitors a reason to visit, stay and return to your site in the future.
You can generate a column on your site that you regularly update by encouraging visitors to interact and discuss a certain topic, or suggest good resources. This can be done via a discussion board or discussion list. This information could generate an "Ask Us" column a FAQ page that changes daily or weekly.
You can find free content for your site, by requesting articles (in return for a link to the author's site, or by visiting a free content portal, such as (www.freesticky.com) or (www.findsticky.com). Other sites offer newsfeeds, such as (www.moreover.com) or (www.hitsnclicks.com).
Another way to keep your site current, is to ask your designer to use a java script command which automatically changes the date when a visitor clicks to your site.
3. WHERE TO PROMOTE YOUR SITE E-zines Targeted e-zine adverts can cost little and get good results. By placing short compelling text ads in e-zines that your specific target audience reads you can reach the people you want to reach, without spending a fortune. For a list of e-zines relating to your website subject, visit: (http://www.marketing-seek.com) (http://www.ezine-universe.com) (http://www.ideastation.com) (http://www.e-zinez.com)
To swap an e-zine ad (allow a persons ads in your e-zine in exchange for a free ad in their e-zine), visit: (http://www.swap-resources.com) (http://www.ezine-swap.com) (http://www.bizpromo.com/ezinetrades.html)
If you don't have the time to spend researching which e-zines to advertise in, which online publications and websites to send announcements and press releases to, you can get help. Some websites offer personalised promotion plans, tailored to your situation and website promotion services. Try: (http://www.webcritique.co.uk) (http://www.happeneurs.com) (http://www.lrsmarketing.com) (http://www.hitsnclicks.com) (http://www.webpromotion.co.uk)
Articles If you can write and spell and are knowledgeable about any topic relating to your website, products and services: 1. Write a short article or series of informative articles about the topic. 2. Include a good signature line at the end of your article, e.g. "Written by Cheryl Rickman of (http://www.webcritique.co.uk) For more tips on promoting you website E-mail info@webcritique.co.uk." 3. Submit your article to relevant offline and online publications with permission to reprint the entire articles, including the contact details, copyright notice and signature line.
By using articles to promote your website you can:
establish yourself as an expert in your field and build your credibility
continually promote, as articles can be passed on and used over and over for many years. And it COSTS YOU NOTHING but a little time.
Other websites 1. Find out where your target audience hangs out online. What related and unrelated sites do they visit most? Find this information out via surveys (reward respondents with free information or products or a competition entry).
2. Try to get a link from their site to yours and vice versa. Nowadays search engines pay close attention to how many good sites link to yours, when ranking your site.
3. Find out who's linking to your competitors and approach them for a reciprocal link.
Online Marketing Resources
(http://www.cim.co.uk/ece/cfml/index.cfm) All you need to know about e-marketing, courtesy of the Chartered Institute of Marketing - including how to develop online brands and get your message out online, how to apply digital solutions and engage customers on the web.
(http://www.happeneurs.com) is an online marketing resource centre (OMRC®) for entrepreneurs, which includes the Internet's first automated internet marketing resource and manager and combines key online survival tools and promotional services with a comprehensive knowledge bank.
(http://www.webpromotion.co.uk) a portal with links to useful sites that help promote your website.
(http://www.internetday.com) Has useful articles on internet marketing.
About the Author
Cheryl Rickman is author of '111 winning ways to promote your website successfully' and contributes regularly to Better Business magazine, Digitrends.com and Internet.com. She offers website appraisals, copywriting and marketing via (http://www.webcritique.co.uk)
