It’s trade show season!  Exhibits abound with lights and colorful banners, while attendees gleefully collect thousands of promotional pens and beer koozies, as if they were aspiring writers with a drinking problem. 

The cheer of the season, sadly, is waning.  A new, sinister type of attendee now roams the trade show halls.  That’s right – it’s the Trade Show Moocher (TSM).  He must be stopped, lest he bring everyone’s inebriation to a whole new level. 

The TSM promotes his wares at a trade show without paying the exhibitor fee.  He enters the show as a regular attendee (which may be free admission), and solicits everyone with flyers, coupons, and his 30/60/1,000,000,000-second commercial.  The worst is when he approaches exhibitors.  He knows they’re a captive audience.  He doesn’t care that exhibitors have invested, say, $250 for their booth for 3 hours.  That translates to $1.39/minute to listen to TSM sales blabber.  TSMs also rob exhibitors of valuable time to reach out to their bona fide, writer/drinker customers. 

original image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/libaer2002/4183117666/

Recently and quite accidentally, I solved the TSM dilemma while suffering from a head cold and sugar crash from a Boston crème donut.  A TSM – let’s call him Chuck – approached me and my moodiness at a recent trade show where I exhibited.  I encourage you to handle your next TSM the same way: 

Chuck:  Hi!  My name is Chuck, and I’m with Multilevel-Marketers-R-Us!

Brooke:  Hello.  Thanks for visiting our table.  Our company helps people by…

Chuck:  I’m not interested.  Did you know when you join Multilevel-Marketers-R-Us, you will gain infinite wealth, your children will make honor roll, and you will conquer world hunger?  All for a minimal financial investment and just 5 minutes a day online!

Brooke:  Is it cold in here?

Chuck:  Huh?

Brooke:  Almost 72,000 years ago, I was a pilot on a spaceship that stalled on the way to Andromeda.  I froze to death along with the alien crew and passengers.  That’s why in this life, I don’t like air conditioning.

Chuck:  Maybe I should go.

Long story short, use passive-aggression!  You’ll fend off any moocher, or for that matter, any toxic person in your life.  (This technique also helps you shirk general life responsibilities.  I know this first-hand.) The best part, of course, is that together through passive-aggression, we will restore trade show normalcy. 

Whew!  Writing this article has been so cathartic.  Now pass the beer.

Please leave your comments and feedback below on this topic.  

Let’s get back to the over optimization penalty.

Rand Fishkin from SEOmoz just put out this video on 6 things you can do right now to avoid the looming over optimization penalty.

It’s a good video.  When I explain to my BOC students or those that attend my workshops and seminars how to implement on page SEO, I always emphasize finding that balance between what serves the human visitor and including what the search engines are looking for. 

Let’s look at the first point that Rand goes over.  “Over Spammy Page Titles.”  The page title should be a very concise descriptive topic of the page content, include the keyword phrase, and entice the click thru when your visitor finds your listing on the search engine results page.

Still, some webmasters are stuffing their page title with the same keyword phrase multiple times thinking that is going to help.   Well, it’s not helping and pretty soon, it’s going to hurt you real bad!

The second point he goes over is using manipulative internal links.   I have managed to help many people shift their rankings and positions in search simply by implementing internal linking strategies.  It’s very powerful.  But, there is a certain way to do it. 

The best way to do it is naturally.  Use your internal pages to send signals to the search engines that another page on your site is the most relevant page for any particular keyword phrase simply by linking to it with variations of the phrase in the anchor text.   Did you get that?  Did you get the naturally part?

There are 2 ways webmasters go wrong with internal linking.  One is by not using it at all and the other is by linking multiple times from one page with the exact same anchor text to another page.  Linking from one page to another page multiple times is spammy-overly-linking-ridiculous behavior that does nothing for your search results and nothing for your visitor. 

In the past, it did nothing good for you but now, it will actually hurt you and you could receive a severe penalty from Google.

So, check out the video of Rand for the other 4 things you can do to clean up your website and avoid the looming over optimization penalty.

If I happen to find you, when I visit your website, will it convey to me how you stand out from everyone else that I see on the first page of search for what it is you do?

If you are positioning yourself as a market leader than the answers to the above should be yes.  Can you confidently answer yes to the above?

If not, call a local search specialist in Delaware: 302-894-7412.  

How can you position yourself as a market leader in search?  First, I believe it is very important to create a decent website that conveys your message and brand.  Who you are in the market place, what you do, the problems you solve, and the types of people that you serve. 

Who are you in the market place?  Wait! Before you start to give me that played out line of “family owned and operated, in business for umpteen years” STOP!  That’s fine and good and you can include it somewhere if it is truly important to you but look around… if you are a skilled trade professional in particular, most of the people on the first page of search that do what you do are saying the same crap.  I am pleading with you to stop the madness here.

One of the things I ask my members inside the Be The Obvious Choice Online Club is to go out and identify 10 of their competitors in search.  I ask them to list out the things they like and don’t like about their competitor’s messages and sites. 

After awhile, you start to see the same crap.  I want you to identify the same crap so that you can do an about-face and go in the opposite direction!  That’s how you stand out from all of the others online that claim to do what you do.  That’s how you start to Be The Obvious Choice Online and speak to those that you resonate with.  Serve those that start to know, like, and trust you.  Avoid those that are just looking for the lowest price and don’t give damn about the end result.

What do you do?  Explain on your website what you do.  No, I don’t mean all the technical stuff.  I could put you into a schizophrenic frenzy if I started to list out ALL of the things I do.  The things you do are actually just features.  Good marketers will convey the benefits or explain the problems they solve in laymen’s terms.  So, when explaining what you do on your website, paint a picture of the problems you solve and the benefits you bring to the table. 

There is still a place for the features and lists of things you do.  Put them on your pages below the fold.  That’s pretty good content and material for the search engines. 

Who do you serve?  Darling SEO serves business owners that need to reach their local market, in particular those in the skilled trades and professional service providers.  Identify who it is that you serve.  Hint:  it is not everyone or anyone that breathes or has a pulse.  In order to be most effective online and laser targeted, develop an ideal website visitor, customer, or client avatar.  Create content on your website as if you are actually speaking to that one identified customer.  Make the connection.  When you make that connection, you become the obvious choice online.

I have developed this system specifically for those in the skilled trades or those that deliver a service that really wish to avoid becoming just a commodity.  Those in the skilled trades are often caught up in bidding wars.  People looking for your services are advised to and sometimes required to get multiple estimates for the project that needs to be completed.

Even many that provide professional services end up losing business because of the “2^nd opinion” thing. 

You worked hard to increase your visibility online.  You worked hard to get into the top spots of search.  You worked hard to go out and provide that fair and free estimate.   Even if your estimate makes your customer stretch a little, they end up choosing you in the end.  Why?  Because you were the obvious choice to them from the beginning and the other estimates they had to get were only acquired because they either needed to do their due diligence or they were required to get at least 3 estimates or additional opinions.

See how this works?  When I take my clients from little to no existence on the Internet to the top spots in search so that they can Be The Obvious Choice Online for what it is they do best and love the most, I’m not just sitting here creating links to your site.  I’m working to help you get found in as many places as possible, as often as possible and helping to position you in the market place as a market leader.  This is another reason why Darling SEO simply does not work with just anyone.  We want the market leaders.  We want to work with those that maintain high standards with the products and services they deliver.

If that is you, a true market leader with what you do, and your visibility online is not as good as you believe it could be or your website is horrendous, apply for a discovery session to get on the path to your market leader position. 

Please leave your comments and feedback below on this topic.  

image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/stijnbokhove/2682021398/

I like to help you Be The Obvious Choice Online for what it is you do best and love the most.  It starts with the techie side of SEO but it really starts to happen when you grasp the concepts of how to use SEO and online marketing to “court your clients online”.  Kind of like a big dating game with witty pick up lines where the customer is just looking for someone that understands them!  

How are you going to be different from all the other people they see on the first page of Google?  How are you going to keep them interested and how are you going to help your business look like the only and obvious choice online for them?

Start with SEO and target that audience online. 

Courting Clients Online
by Deanna Dahlsad

Proper search engine optimization (SEO) is all about meeting your target audience online. It’s one of the things a website owner does to put their bet foot forward and arrange introductions to people who will be the best possible matches for their site’s information, products, and/or services. In many ways this is like dating. But, as with dating, introductions will only get you so far…

You’ll need to think about more than using SEO to reach out to the best possible matches, you’ll need to impress them, court them, to increase your sales and website conversions.

SEO Basics: Getting To “Hello”

Meta tags and data like taglines and FAQs are like the questionnaires you answer and the information blanks for age, gender, location, etc. you toggle or fill out in dating membership profiles. Filled out properly, these basics help search engines to match you with compatible people who are looking to meet you.

Just as you wouldn’t check every box, or say, “Yes,” to everything, you should not stuff in every popular keyword or phrase.  You don’t want waste your time with introductions to people who are not interested in or compatible with your site — not when you could be meeting Mr. or Ms. Right. Since these meta tags and data are used by search engines to assist these ‘single” customers in sifting and sorting through all the other possible website candidates for matches, you should only use words and phrases which describe you, your website, your business. 

image courtesy of: http://www.flickr.com/photos/tanfoo/2229823198/

But, as these basic tags and information bits are limited to a few words in specific places, they will only get you so far.

Continuing SEO To Charm

image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/virgie1976/300557575/

In order to move past the introduction, you’ll need to add more information beyond the basic blanks. This is why online dating profiles, and other networking sites, provide an “about” box in which you can give more personable details about yourself to charm and interest people beyond the basics. As this is free-form box, you are encouraged to “talk” like yourself, to be more engaging, while providing more information about yourself.  Your website also has the option of an “about page” and here is where you can expound upon your company, offering basic and additional information in a more personable way that communicates your personal style or corporate brand.

Most online dating profiles also offer other “boxes” for additional information, such as interests and hobbies, as well as places to add “updates,” photos, etc.  This is where a person can showcase more about themselves and has the opportunity to provide tidbits and glimpses into their lives which might engage curiosity or interest and encourages, hopefully, interaction.

This is what your website or blog should do — provide additional content that goes beyond the basics, giving deeper information as well as a better idea as to who you are and what you’re all about. 

Ideally this content engages as well as instructs, informs, and provides organic SEO.  This is where and how you “woo” potential matches, be it readers, clients, customers, etc. — but don’t lie. Don’t paint a false picture of your company; that’s like using the photo of someone else in your dating profile.  If the goal is to get them to meet you, your lies will be found out. You’ve no doubt heard the expression, “Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned,” right? Well, there is one greater fury: The customer who feels swindled!

Customer Courtship

Like first dates, few first time visitors “go all the way” and convert into sales, etc., so you’ll need to begin a courtship. In dating, the goal is to spend time together in order to assess the other person’s suitability as a partner; the more dates, the more likely there is to be a match.  In terms of websites, your courtship consists of repeat visitors who are growing ever-nearer to entering into a business partnership with you. If the goal of SEO is to get people to you, to get the introduction or phone number, the content on your site is how you perform your courtship.

image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/smithsonian/5987520097/

Many people make the dating mistake of monopolizing the conversation. It’s true that your website pages are text, and therefore rather like a one-sided conversation (You can’t leave them blank, can you?),  but that doesn’t mean you have to be a selfish jerk, either. 

Here are three ways to come across as open, interested, and not “all about you.”

The primary way to appear focused on the relationship and your potential partner is to view your website content as conversations. Keep your conversations focused on your date. What do they want to know about you? What do they need to know about your product or service? What can you do to show you are trustworthy?  Anticipate those interests and concerns and create your website content around them.  This is not only a great way to court those already interested, but your content also serves as organic SEO, covering subjects of interest to new potential partners.

The second way to be open to the customers you are courting is to do your best to include your date in the conversation.  Ask questions of your own in posts and articles to encourage discussion — via comments on your site and posts at other sites. (Be sure to monitor links to your site for such conversations and participate thoughtfully in the discussions on those sites as well.)  You can also offer polls and guest post opportunities to encourage discussion and interaction.  Don’t forget to make calls to action, including prompts to buy, register, subscribe, etc..

The third way to foster conversation and cultivate relationships with site visitors is to allow means for people to start conversations.  Make sure your contact information is easily found. Turn a contact form into a suggestion box. Ask for readers to send in questions or tips.  Open a forum, if that’s suitable for your industry. Then use those conversation starters and create content around them, using the topics and keywords suggested.

Here is a rather entertaining video on how to make your website work better to pick up some new clients.

Use SEO to get the introductions and the content on your site to court potential partners as well as to create organic SEO to generate additional introductions.  This is one time your courtship isn’t limited to just finding The One.

Get help with SEO in Delaware from a specialist.  Spots are filling up fast.  Fill out the application here to see if your business is a good fit for our programs.  

Please leave your comments and feedback below on this topic.  

Optimizing your site for search includes:

• Making sure it can be found by all of the major search engines
• Making sure it is connected and accessible through the major social media channels you use
• Building it to be user friendly and engaging to your customer while solving a problem for them

In addition to this perfectly optimized website, you need to place a call to action in very strategic places that literally tell your visitor what to do next.  Lead them through your site to sign up on your email list, contact you through a web form, or call you on the phone.

The other major piece to your online marketing puzzle that allows you to establish effective calls to action of this sort is to set up an email contact management system or an auto responder service such as Aweber, Constant Contact, GetResponse, InfusionSoft, OfficeAutoPilot, SendPepper, or MailChimp. 

There are many to choose from and certainly something to fit your current business budget.  You can begin with MailChimp for free so there are absolutely no excuses here to not get this in place for your business online.

There are many benefits to using these systems. 

• They keep you in compliance with the CAN-SPAM regulations for email marketing.
• They help you organize and segment your contacts for targeted communications.
• They provide you codes to embed on your website that visitors use to sign up on your list.
• They help you track the effectiveness of your communications.  (ex. Open rates, click thru rates)
• They offer nice WYSIWYG editors to create appealing emails.
• They save you time by allowing you to send email blasts and updates whenever you need to.
• They help you move contacts through your marketing funnel so you can make more money!

When working with my private clients and with members in the Be The Obvious Choice Online Club, I help make sure that these steps are completed and in place before driving traffic online.

To sum it all up, before you can effectively market your business online, it is important to build the foundation of your business online.  The foundation includes a perfectly optimized website and an email contact management system like those described above.  Those 2 items are major pieces in your online marketing funnel.

image courtesy of: http://www.flickr.com/photos/raster/58795861/

The one talent they lack and are often mislead to believe it’s cheap easy and free is how to market their business online in search and social media.  Afterall, showing up in organic search means you didn’t have to pay for that placement right?  And, messing around on Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, and Google+ is all free right?  Right…. lol… keep telling yourself that.

All of this may describe you.  You are crazy wicked talented at what you do but you are totally getting left behind with this online marketing thing.  With every passing new social media networking site, every latest Google algorithm update, and the push to mobile devices where now you can market inside someone’s pocket!  You are getting left behind.  Left behind to wither away and die.  How many people with great ideas and talent either get mowed over by the 1% or just take that talent with them to their grave 6 feet under?

This does not have to be YOU! 

Since it is my mission to help the smaller and extremely talented business owners out there stand out to Be The Obvious Choice Online doing what they do best and love the most, I end up running into many people like yourself that just cannot wrap their head around this whole online marketing thing for their business.

Many are blindsided by the latest silver bullet or push button strategy.  Or they get duped into some “holy grail” program.  Worse yet, they are paralyzed by the sheer speed that everything keeps moving and changing online. This is your lucky day though.  I’m going to start to break it all down for you.  I’m going to challenge you to look at your current online presence and get real with yourself on where you stand.

Then, I want you to DECIDE on what is the most logical step to getting on this technological, social, mobile, and virtual train so that more people can discover that crazy, wicked talent that YOU possess.

In order to develop a decent online presence you must start with a website.  Yes, really, a website.  Sure, you can get all these different profiles and pages on dozens of other sites out there but those should be viewed as tools and channels to flow traffic to your website.  They are tools and channels to build and market your business.

Your website is like your best employee when it works right.  Erecting the best website and getting it found and visible in the right spots online is equivalent to building a brick and mortar business on a busy street corner in town.  

So, if you don’t have a website, what are you waiting for?  Get one.  Call us for a quote.  302-504-4409.  Or, apply for a discovery session for a more in depth consult.  But, DO NOT call us if you are looking for a website tonight kind of crazy worthless deal that other places promise you for like a couple dollars a month.  You get what you pay for.  We don’t play like that.  That’s just ridiculous.  Anyway, moving on… 

If you do have a website, move to the next step.  

Look at your website and be sure it is completely optimized for search.  Seriously, this is not some kind of voodoo crack monkey stuff.  This is required work if you are serious about building your business online.  Forget about flash stuff.  The only thing that is going to do for your business is have some people go directly to the site, look at it and say… “ooh, that’s purty!”  I mean really, do you want to look “purty” or do you want to get paid????

image courtesy of: http://www.flickr.com/photos/tim_moore/728920543/

Get your website optimized for search. 

This means:

• Your site can be found by all of the major search engines.
• It is connected with the major social media sites you are active on.
• It is user friendly and engaging to your visitor or customer.
• It helps your customer or client solve the problem they came seeking you out for.

Optimizing your site for search is a foundational piece to your online marketing work.  It is the glue that will hold everything together.  Optimizing your site for search is part of the process called SEO.  Optimizing your site for search is also only a very small piece of the SEO and online marketing process.  A small but extremely important piece.  As Michael King from iPullRank.com discovered through Brittan Bright, SEO is the “Calculus of Marketing”.

“I’ve heard SEO called a lot of ugly things in the past few years. My favorite one lately was delivered to me by the wonderful Brittan Bright after someone passionately declared to her that SEO is the “Calculus of Marketing.” I love it simply because it fits. Just like Calculus, if you’re not looking at the aggregate value of what you’re working on you may do a lot of work for a result that doesn’t seem big in the grand scheme. Just like Calculus, SEO is quite specific and esoteric to those that haven’t studied it. Just like Calculus, you can be completely successful without it altogether. And finally SEO and Calculus both set a barrier of entry that excludes more than it includes.”

Okay, so get on this.  Get yourself a website and get it optimized for search.  Wrap your head around this whole SEO thing because as you start spending more time on social media sites, you will be able to pretty much deliver that one two punch needed to get people to your site, on your list, through your door, or on your phone!

This brings me to the second fundamental step to your online marketing.  Use this step to make your online marketing so effective that you don’t have to take your crazy wicked skill set to your grave.

On your website, actually, on all of your web properties (local directories, social media sites, profiles in verticals, etc.), make sure you have some kind of call to action for your visitor.  A call to action can be a free offer, a  “foot in the door” offer, a “click to call button”, a “click to email button”, a “redeem this coupon” offer, a “contact for more information” link, a “visit this page for a deeper understanding of this concept link”, or something that tells your visitor, “This is what I want you to do next” call to action.

Okay, you know what, I’m done.  I’m tired.  This content development thing is some hard work and I’m going on almost a thousand words right now.  So, I think I’ll save the rest for next week.

So, my dear, budding independently wealthy entrepreneur, first things first for your online marketing is to get yourself a website or if you already have one, get that site optimized for search.

Come back next week and I will break down some of the next fundamental steps to wrapping your head around this whole online marketing thing so that more people can know about you and your crazy wicked talent with what you do best and love the most.

Please leave your comments and feedback below on this topic.  

What are you waiting for?!  If you have a business, you must build a website for it.  Yes, it’s possible to have a web presence and many profiles or pages online today because of social media sites but really?  If you are selling products and services to others, you really must have a website for your business to help seal the deal on your credibility.  There are many business website benefits and we are going to go over a few.  

If you need some help, there are many affordable ways to get a decent website built for your business.  Just look around.  We build business websites all of the time for people.  If you want to do it yourself, there are plenty of tutorials on building business websites as well.  If you want to build one yourself AND get it found online in as many places as possible, consider the Be The Obvious Choice Online Club.  

Now… onto the meat of how a business website really does benefit you.
By Barbie Carpenter

In today’s technological age, a business of any size can make an impact in the global marketplace. A website is essential in today’s business world, as more consumers are using the Internet to research brands and, ultimately, do business. Setting up a website for your business will prove worthwhile, helping promote your brand, attract customers, and compete in a technologically sophisticated business environment. A website brings many benefits to your business.

Promotes Your Brand

A website serves as an advertising tool, helping you to promote your brand on the web. The money you spend on your domain name and website design is a worthwhile investment, as it can give your business a space online, where users are looking for companies with which to do business. For example, if you are a general contractor, potential customers likely visit search engines to find contractors in your area. A general contractor with a well-designed, informative website is more likely to get a phone call than a contractor who only comes up in the Yellow Pages. Your website advertises your business to the billions of Internet users, thereby extending your brand’s reach.

Showcases Expertise

Your website allows you to share important information with potential customers. You can include an “About” page that details your business’ experience, employees’ qualifications, past clients, awards, and certifications. As a result, your website can add legitimacy to your business. Someone walking past your business on the street will only see a sign. However, an Internet user who visits your website can learn about your professional experience and qualifications, which can encourage him or her to do business with you. Your website, then, can serve as an online resume to attract customers.

Boosts Sales

If you are a retailer, a business website can have a significant impact on your sales. With many consumers turning to the web to shop, a business website with an online store can turn a local business into a national—or even international—one. You can sell and ship goods across the country rather than relying on customers to visit your brick-and-mortar store. If you offer a service, you can also increase profits with your website. If your business offers copy-editing services for students, you can attract students from across the country, not just from your city, with a website. A business website broadens your customer base, resulting in higher profits.

Challenges the Competition

A business website puts you ahead of competitors that have not found a place on the web. Consumers research products and services on the Internet; if they are impressed by your website, they are more likely to do business with you. If they search for your business online and nothing comes up, they might think your business is, at a minimum, technologically impaired or, even worse, closed. Business websites are becoming commonplace these days, so having a website keeps you competitive in your industry and makes your business stand out from competitors without websites.

Conclusion

It requires work and money to maintain a business website, but the investment is well worth it. A website can establish your business in your industry, helping to inform potential customers and highlight your expertise in the field. In short, the benefits of a business website far outweigh the costs required to create and maintain it.

Still Waiting???

We can help you. 

Local business citations can drive your search engine rankings as much as inbound links.  In today’s world, over three-quarters of searches for local businesses and services occur online.  This means that, for small business owners, success equals being indexed by search engines.  Everyone usually focuses on building links to a local website as the number one way to create higher search engine rankings.  However, search engine algorithms are starting to favor local business citations as much as or even more than they favor inbound links.

Small business citations are instances that a business name, address and phone number (NAP) are mentioned online.  When search engines can match a business NAP to the business website, then search engine crawlers become more confident that a business website is reliable.  In addition, search engines assume that a website has increased relevance to a search when the website has both crucial keywords and a confirmed physical location.

 See how you are doing in local search by using this free software tool:

Courtesy of Delaware Online Marketing

Local search engines are good sources of local business citations.  Start by listing with Universal Business Listing, a website which transmits the NAPs of businesses to both major and local search engines.  UBL submits the exact information that you enter to the engines, which means that your NAP will be consistent across multiple listings.  Consistency raises the crawlers’ confidence in your listing and makes it more likely to rank higher in results.  After listing with UBL, take the time to list with local search engines that UBL does not cover.

Getting your NAP in local directories will also increase the relevance of your business page.  Some of the more popular choices include Hot Frog and GetFave.com, but different areas may have individual local directories.   Research your area online and take the time to register with directories that UBL does not already cover.

When local bloggers include your business name, address and phone number in their blogs, you have winning sources for citations.  Search engines tend to view regional blogs as more relevant than just any general blog.  This means that if you own a restaurant in Denver, and your restaurant NAP is cited in a Denver blog, then your result has added relevance.  Take the time to research and read local blogs.  Leaving comments on blogs or getting to know bloggers on social media sites may make them more likely to write about your business. 

Blogs and directories specific to your industry are also great sources for local business citations.  Make sure that your NAP is listed in the membership directory of relevant professional organizations.  Also, get to know the bloggers in your industry not only online but also by meeting them at conference and industry events.  Just like local bloggers, industry bloggers will be much more likely to mention the NAP of a business owner that they’ve met, either in-person or online.

Inbound links are still important drivers of search engine rankings.  However, local business citations have become critical indications of relevance.  The more relevant your business is to a search engine query, the more likely you are to be on that coveted first page.  For today’s small businesses, it’s time to think beyond the Yellow Pages.

The point is, there is always more than one way to get something done and that includes getting to the top of search for whatever it is you do best and love the most.  Whatever niche market you are in, there is a way to get more than your fair share of the profits no matter how competitive.

There are slow ways, there are faster ways, there are paid tactics, and there are monetarily free methods.  I say monetarily free because you are going to invest something into this.  There are no ifs, ands, or buts about it.  If you want to get to the first page of search to stand out and Be The Obvious Choice Online you are going to either invest your limited resources of time or you are going to invest some cash. 

I have one way for you to get to the top of search in virtually any niche.  This method is monetarily free.  This method takes time.  It takes time on your part with effort involved and it takes time to begin to see the results.  But, when applied methodically, deliberately, and consistently, you will eventually conquer any niche.

Here are the 5 steps to rank and conquer for niche traffic.

1. You must have a blog that you write consistently for.  Best case is to write every day.  Yup!  Every day!  Worst case, once per week.
    
2. Each blog post should be optimized for a different keyword phrase that gets around 1,000 searches per month.   Simply use the Google Keyword Tool to help you locate the phrases that get around 1,000 searches per month.
    
3. If you want to really ensure that you have an edge up on everyone else, take your keyword phrase and place it in quotes in a Google search.  Example:  “my targeted keyword phrase”

   Look under the search box to see how many results there are.  If your phrase gets less than 100,000 search results, that is a gem indeed and should be pretty easy to rank for unless it’s super duper competitive. 
   

   Do this every time you write a post for your site and blog.  Identify a new keyword phrase for every post that fits this criteria.  After awhile, you will see your site traffic increase.  Your visitors will stay on your site longer.  If you are running Adsense ads, you will see an increase in ad revenue.   And, if you have that great foot in the door offer on the sidebar of every post with a clear call to action, you will see an increase in the amount of opt ins which will grow your list.

4. Use the power of your own growing and authoritative site and do some internal link sculpting.  Simply link from each post to other relevant posts within the content of your post, not just in the navigation.  This Wikipedia style internal linking improves the visibility of all of your content. 
5. This step is for those that really want crush everyone else and have the extra time and money to invest in this, start building links to every blog post from other places on the web. 

   Why?  Approximately 70-80% or your ability to rank well in search depends upon factors outside of your website.  Those factors can be lumped into 2 categories:  Social Signals and Back Links.

 So, get busy on these 5 steps and lets touch base in a few months so you can report on the improvements you have seen in your niche traffic!

Please leave your comments and feedback below on this topic.  

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