by Keith Keller | May 10, 2016 | GUEST BLOG POSTS: Social Media & SEO
HOW TO USE STUMBLEUPON Get More Traffic To Your Blog With Social Bookmarking Guest Blog Post By Karen Repoli Where does your website traffic come from? Does it come from a specific social media platform more often than others? If you’re an online entrepreneur it’s extremely important you know the answer to these questions. When you know where your traffic comes from you learn where your target audience is and can adjust your marketing efforts accordingly. I was recently talking to Keith Keller regarding which social media platform works best in terms of traffic to our sites. I took a quick look at my statistics using Google Analytics and found that 70% of my website visitors came from StumpleUpon. That is significant so Keith asked if I could write a blog post about StumbleUpon and how it works. (Of course, the answer was YES!!) What Is StumbleUpon? StumbleUpon is a social bookmarking site. Like Delicious, Instapaper, and Google Bookmarks, it allows you to save links to articles for later reference and share them. The “Stumble!” toolbar also allows you to randomly discover new articles, based on your interests. It is also a social voting site similar to Digg and Reddit, it allows you to vote for videos, blog posts, images, and articles you find on the Internet. Finally, StumbleUpon is a discovery engine that recommends online content about most anything you can think of. Do you need information about blogging? Just type it in the search box and you will discover all the content you can read on the topic! StumbleUpon is one of the best traffic generators among the top social...
by Keith Keller | May 9, 2016 | GUEST BLOG POSTS: Social Media & SEO
UNDERSTANDING GOOGLE ANALYTICS A Guest Blog Post & Free eBook From Karen Repoli Understanding Google Analytics (Free eBook) (1) What Google Analytics Can Do For You Welcome to Understanding Google Analytics Crash Course. In this special report you will learn the ins and outs of using Google Analytics to monitor your website, track visitors and enhance its overall performance. First, let’s talk a little about what Google Analytics is and what it can do. Google Analytics, also commonly referred to as GA, is one of the many services offered by the search engine giant Google. It is primarily a resource which Internet marketers and webmasters or companies owning website’s can use to measure the performance of their sites using statistics. The statistics record every activity to, on and from the website which helps the Internet marketers, webmasters or companies to know exactly how their website is performing. Although Google Analytics is a tool predominantly purposed for Internet marketers, webmasters and bloggers also use this powerful resource and find it immensely helpful. With GA the performance of a website is assessed in many ways, a company would typically look at the end results which would be sales or lead generation eventually leading to more revenue through Internet marketing. However, the consequential factor of sales and lead generation are preceded by various stages and different kinds of activities on the website. Google Analytics records the traffic to a website, the redirected or rerouted visitors from other sites, search engines, directories, advertising platforms or even people accessing a website by directly entering the URL onto a browser. The tool goes even further...
by Keith Keller | Apr 12, 2016 | GUEST BLOG POSTS: Social Media & SEO
CAN YOUR POTENTIAL CLIENTS FIND YOU? Another Fantastic Guest Blog Post About SEO From Karen Repoli What a great question to ask yourself!! “Can your potential clients find you?” During a recent client discussion regarding website performance I asked this question and also; “Have you checked the analytics on your site?” The answer was no, so I suggested a quick review of the website statistics to see how this year old site was doing, and how we could increase the conversion rate. After finding out that the bounce rate (people viewing only one page then leaving) was about 80%, and that the audience demographics were totally out of kilter with the business goals, the investigation continued as to “WHY”. The next step was to check out some basics on the site itself. What I found completed the darkening picture. No Meta Descriptions on any page No keywords on any page Not mobile optimized Primary landing page of visitors were on the blog. However, blog posting was inconsistent and sporadic. Branding that was not consistent with what the business actually did. This resulted in the demographics of visitors being totally off. Obviously the site owner needed some work done. Most of these items could be taken care of pretty quickly because he already had his researched keywords (they just had not been entered by the website designer) while the blog and branding would take more time. However, if you are at the starting line and haven’t even made your list of keywords, here are three free tools that can get you started. Google AdWords Google Adwords may...
by Keith Keller | Mar 21, 2016 | GUEST BLOG POSTS: Social Media & SEO
TEN MOST COMMON TRAFFIC MISTAKES Guest Blog Post By Karen Repoli If you have a website or blog then you already know the importance of traffic. Traffic is to internet marketing what “location - location - location” is to real estate. It is one of the major ingredients of online marketing. If you can’t generate targeted visitors to your site, you simply won’t make any sales. Usually the owner or designer of a new website is the person designated to drive traffic to the site. The chief ingredient in generating traffic is the search engine. Of course, you can use advertising, but it’s going to cost you. Using the search engines to generate targeted (interested in your product) traffic is the least expensive method known. Unfortunately, many website owners do not understand the importance of search engine visibility, which leads to traffic. They place more importance on producing a “pretty” website. Not that this is bad, but it is really secondary to search engine placement. Hopefully, the following list of common mistakes, made by many website owners, will help you generate more targeted traffic to your site…after all, isn’t that what you want. (1) Not Using Keywords Effectively This is probably one of the most critical areas of site design. Choose the right keywords and potential customers will find your site. Use the wrong ones and your site will see little, if any, traffic. (2) Repeating The Same Keywords When you use the same keywords over and over again (called keyword stacking) the search engines may downgrade (or skip) the page or site ...
by Keith Keller | Feb 24, 2016 | GUEST BLOG POSTS: Social Media & SEO
GET MORE VISITORS WITH BLOGGING Fantastic Insights From Guest Blogger Karen Repoli When you decide to start a website, you not only have to think about how you want to design it, but also how are you going to market it. Marketing is the key in all business, online or offline, and will be a foundation to your success. Taking the necessary steps to get your website noticed on the search engines is not a complex process, but it does take some time and effort. Blogging is an excellent way to start bringing traffic into your website. Let people know why you started a site, and what you intend to do with it. How are you going to help people and be any different than the next guy? Blog posts that contain keyword-rich content will help your site rank higher in the search engines, although it may take some time for this to happen. Get your voice out there and be consistent. (1) Write with your audience in mind – What is it that your target market wants to read about? How are you able to solve their problems with your site or product (2) Engage your reader by asking them questions – The simple way to know what your readers want is to ask them. Make them want to leave comments and suggestions regarding your content. Once your audience feels like they can engage with you, trust begins to form and a solid relationship can be created (3) Clear, concise headlines – Make sure your readers know what your content is all about. Having a headline that...
by Keith Keller | Feb 18, 2016 | GUEST BLOG POSTS: Social Media & SEO
GUEST BLOG YOUR WAY TO SUCCESS Social Media Rockstar Tip By Karen Repoli Sharing your knowledge on other peoples sites is actually a fantastic strategy to help your build your own brand. That means making sure that you create and maintain active (and mutually beneficial) relationships with influencers in your field of expertise and add value to their community. In return they will usually allow you to place links to your material at the bottom of your articles and they will share them with their “TRIBE” on Social Media. Classic “WIN/WIN” How Often Should You Post? Ideally, you should be writing something everyday or so, but if article writing is not a passion of yours, make that “as often as possible”. There are other ways to contribute as well of course (Podcasts - Videos - etc) but article writing is still a great strategy for building authority. Don’t underestimate the power of regularity here as an effective part of your guest blogging strategy. Simply do as much as you can as often as you can. It all helps!! Meet Karen Repoli Karen Repoli, is a successful entrepreneur who has realized her dream of owning a successful business and having the freedom to live the lifestyle she desires. A seasoned business professional with 30 years of experience in office management, internet marketing and bookkeeping, she holds a Bachelor of Science Degree from the University of NC, Greensboro and is VACertified. Karen’s practical, proven systems help entrepreneurs accomplish their business goals. Karen is passionate about helping motivated entrepreneurs so they can manifest their brilliance to the world. She is the...
by Keith Keller | Feb 3, 2016 | GUEST BLOG POSTS: Social Media & SEO
STAND OUT FROM THE CROWD Increase Your Social Media Influence!! Google is constantly updating its search algorithms. This leaves many entrepreneurs and businesses struggling to keep up with the latest SEO tactics. The latest change looks at social approval signals such as “Likes” and “Shares” to increase your page rank. This means your success in reaching the coveted first page of a Google search involves building your social media presence. Social Media Influence is a marketing term used not only to improve your Google ranking but also to determine how affective you are on the most common social media platforms such as Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter. You can use this information to get your brand recognised and become a thought leader in your niche. Your goal for each content piece is to convince the reader to take action. You need to encourage actual engagement and not just shares or retweets. No matter how many people know about you, if they don’t follow through with action all your hard work is useless. Get people interested in what you offer and actually engage with you. Before you write (or speak) the first word, decide what your call to action is. What Do You Want To Accomplish? Do you simply want to build credibility in your niche or do you want to make a sale? Another goal may be to engage in test marketing to get feedback on your services from your target market. You can actually use different social media outlets to get discussions started on your topic of interest. Base your content on what you are trying...
by Keith Keller | Jan 18, 2016 | GUEST BLOG POSTS: Social Media & SEO
BLOGGING FOR BUSINESS Five Ways To Attract Your Ideal Client With Blogging The Anatomy of a Blog Post Sharing your blog posts and links across social media is a stellar strategy to establish your social media rock star status. This doesn’t mean endlessly posting blog titles with links. It means creating and maintaining active social media business pages then and including your blog link and other social network URLs. Make sure your blog post lives up to your readers expectations and matches the “voice” and persona you’re presenting on the social platforms are on. How do you get your target audience to notice you? What will bring Jane Ideal Client to your social media profile and, ultimately, your website so she can see how valuable it would be to work with you or buy your product? One of the best ways to accomplish this is to start blogging. Don’t know the first thing about blogging? No worries, I’m here to help. Here are the basics of formatting a blog post: Remember to keep it simple, include plenty of white space. You may have to break up paragraphs in places that you don’t feel comfortable doing so, but it’s all about readability and not correct format like in a college or school paper. Include pictures that are relevant to the blog post, and always fill in the “alt” information for the picture. The best thing to enter in the “alt” field is the title of the post or your business/website name. For example, I include HIT Virtual in my pictures. Use plenty of bullet points, headlines, h1 and h2 headers....
by Keith Keller | Nov 15, 2015 | GUEST BLOG POSTS: Social Media & SEO
How To Become The Social Media Rockstar Making The Commitment By Karen Repoli You need to know why you want to be a social media rock star. Then you need to make the commitment to put that at the center core of all your marketing and entrepreneurial efforts. Making the commitment involves: Keeping up with the latest news, trends and fads Creating a viable plan to increase your reach and popularity Maintaining a consistent presence within your target audience’s view To see if you are ready to rock the social media stage, answer the following questions: (1) I want to be a social media rock star because: (a) I live and breathe social networking. (b) I love everything about it! (c) I want to sell my book or product and I think being a social media rock star is an essential part of my strategy (d) It seems easy. Everything else is just too much hard work. (e) I like to help people make the most of opportunities, and everyone can do so with social media (2) How interactive will my sales model be? (a) The social networking part will be the full extent of my customer/client interaction: It is aimed towards getting them to buy my product (b) Highly interactive. I want to become a social networking or marketing coach. (c) I plan to JV with people and become involved in client startups There is no right or wrong answer to these questions… with one exception. If you answered “c” to Question # 1, you may want to rethink your motives and strategy. Becoming a social media rock star...
by Keith Keller | Nov 5, 2015 | GUEST BLOG POSTS: Social Media & SEO
10 Compelling Reasons To Start Blogging Another Social Media Rock Star Tip From Karen Repoli One strategy that can be essential in setting you apart from other “interesting people” on social networks is creating and maintaining your own blog. You don’t have to, of course: You can channel and pour all your energy into working from within a particular social media platform – but maintaining your own blog does confer specific advantages. Maintaining your own blog helps you… 1. Cement your identity 2. Speak with authority 3. Build a following 4. Acquire subscribers 5. Constantly present your unique slant or focus 6. Become known for specific skills 7. Attract top guest authors 8. Get great guest spots yourself on other top influencers’ blogs 9. Let people hear your “voice” 10. Brand yourself with strong graphic elements or colours Your best bet is to purchase a domain in your own name but if your name is a more common one and therefore already “taken”, you can brand a blog name or add what you do to your name. Then start sharing your blog across your social platforms and get it out there!! Check out Karen’s “NUTS & BOLTS” book series www.HitVirtual.com/ebooks-reports Meet Karen Repoli Karen Repoli, is a successful entrepreneur who has realized her dream of owning a successful business and having the freedom to live the lifestyle she desires. A seasoned business professional with 30 years of experience in office management, internet marketing and bookkeeping, she holds a Bachelor of Science Degree from the University of NC, Greensboro and is VACertified. Karen’s practical, proven systems help entrepreneurs accomplish their...
