Web Sites Like Youtube
How I Built a Wix Web Site of the Day and Took My Small Business Online in Minutes
How I Built a Wix Site of the Day and took my retail business online.
Just putting a website on the internet is not a be all end all solution to more business, nor is just getting your site listed in the search engines enough to stand out among the crowd. Some simple tips to help generate more business easily and effectively that with a little diligence will yield more business.
I have operated an online website for 14 years and ran a retail store for 26 years so I know the mechanics of business.
I had built my first website using Front Page at a time when there weren’t a lot of websites and even less tools to build them.
I bought the software and a book and was off and running.
Almost immediately after posting the website, I felt like I had struck gold as the orders started coming in at an amazing rate, much to my surprise as this site was bare bones and built for less than $300 and a lot of my time using the most archaic of scanners, early digital cameras and a desktop computer that had less memory than my cell phone.
The website kept producing over the years, though a little less each year, more competition and shoppers that had changed as the internet evolved.
Early this year I took a look at the website and realized it was probably the worst looking website I had looked at this year, and I had looked at a lot.
I set out to rebuild the website and quickly became frustrated, I couldn’t even get close to the results I expected from Front Page.
I wasn’t sure which way to turn and was going to learn HTML5 and see if I couldn’t get back in the game.
I had looked at a lot of website builders and they all appeared generic and the templates poorly thought out. Why replace a bad looking website with on not much better?
Out of the blue, a friend said take a look at Wix which I discounted immediately as he new nothing about business and even less about websites.
I did out of kindness look at it and was immediately floored. It couldn’t be this easy.
Let me preface this by telling you I learned just enough html to work with Front Page and their WSIYG
interface.
Iam not a coder or programmer. I can tell you how to run a brick and mortar business and had been selling online for years with very little tools to do so.
To make a long story short, I had a flash site that looked incredible. Not only did it look fantastic, I was able to use the intelligent interface to showcase my product better and more easily up-sell.
I had always used Paypal as a payment method and everything was seamless and I didn’t need a credit card processor to take payments.
I won’t bore you with the how the how to, they do all that. No manual or learning curve.
While I am not interested in an ego site, I am interested in a practical way to sell my papers and a lot of them online.
Forget the junk from the SEO experts about Flash not being found in the search engines.
Google indexed me immediately, I have almost 500 back links and the orders are coming in.
Below are a few tips to help the search engines on their way, you have to do your part, but I haven’t spent a penny on promotions, SEO or anything else. It is all free and out there on the net so dig in.
If you provide a product, are you listed as a distributor on your manufacturer’s website with a link to your website and contact info.
Do you have friends, family, partners, affiliates or non-competing business who maintain a website and will put a link on their website to yours.
If you maintain a blog, make sure you maintain a business blog as well whether it is wordpress, google or any of the social blogs such as Myspace, Facebook or Twitter. In addition, any business associates, friends or family who maintain a blog can easily do a quick mention of your business with website address, it is quick and the major search engines are ranking these entries more and more in search results making you more findable.
Have you listed in the free directories, Google maps and places? If you offer a service are you on Craigslist with your contact info and website? It is free and yet another place to be found whether they are looking you up on a computer or a cell phone.
A good approach is to target your main competitors. Where are they found, what are they doing. Nothing better than following a successful approach in your field. If they have found success in a given area, with a little work so can you. Go to Google Search and type in their url, you will see all the sites that link to them and all the things they did online to get their site visible.
Do you maintain a mailing list? If so, you should contact your customers at least bi-weekly, especially if you are seasonal or have new products or services coming. Remember, out of sight, out of mind.
Facebook and Twitter are the best free mailing list you can use, they are a marketers dream, just don’t be blatantly commercial, provide content and you will have a way to keep in touch and build up fans and customers if your product or service is good.
Have you tried targeted marketing such as door hangers and yard signs, they work if placed and timed correctly and can be much cheaper and more targeted than traditional advertising. The net is not be all end all, put your url on them and this will help site traffic which will push Google to list you higher.
Getting published with informational fyi articles and advertising is another free and effective way to promote your service. Video sites like Youtube are great for this and publishing sites like Digg and Buzz are great for your informational articles which build back links to your site which builds traffic to your website.
Finally, look for what the “other business” is missing. Some of the smaller markets get overlooked and can be very lucrative. Everyone is pounding for the 800lb gorilla, sometimes it is easier and more profitable to target the crowds everyone else is missing. They are less likely to have been barraged with coupons, fliers ads and promos that the more visible consumers have waded through, often ignoring most if not all as junk advertising and making your return on investment from add dollars very minimal at best.
Take Care and I will give a step by step guide with 50 other free tips I have picked up to make your website tick and get found in the search engines.
A ton of free tools from creative way to use Craigslist to Social media like facebook and twitter and how Photobucket and Flickr and a simple Blog can help your search rankings. All Free!!!!!
Tony LoCascio
Forget Me Knot Papers
About the Author
Tony LoCascio – Owner Forget Me Knot Papers
www.divalosgourmetbirdfood.com
(Small Business Marketing) Use Free Sites LIKE YOUTUBE to Get Massive Exposure
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