Search engines change all the time and many of them now charge for the privilege of including your website. So, people often ask me how to generate traffic, beyond the search engines and with little to no cost.

Let me be candid by saying that I am not a search engine expert, nor do I play one on TV. But there are two methods that I’ve used consistently to attract thousands of qualified hits to my website at virtually no cost and with very little effort.

Granted, everyone’s different. And these techniques may not be appropriate for all people. However, let me share what works for me and what I do.

The two biggest traffic builders I use are: 1) posting on message boards, forums, blogs and discussion lists; and 2) writing, syndicating, publishing and submitting articles to ezine publishers — including my own (such as my blog, my newsletter or my website’s archives).

Now, let’s take a closer look, shall we?

Caving In To The Content Craze

Web logs, also known as “blogs,” are becoming all the rage nowadays. Essentially, a blog is simply a content management system, where people can easily post, often through a web-based interface or software program, their content, comments and ideas that are published as web pages.

The one I use is Movable Type, which I love because of the interface, flexibility, ease of use and tons of plug-ins that enable you to do a lot more than the basic system. Another pretty popular system is WordPress, which is free.

If you prefer a hosted solution, there are quite a few you can use. One is Google’s own Blogger, and another is TypePad.

The wonderful thing about blogs is that it enables you to not only post content favorable to the search engines but also attract qualified, loyal readers to your blog rather than the other way around (i.e., submitting your article to an email newsletter, which has to go through an amazing gauntlet of spam filters to reach its destination).

Posting to a blog also gives your readers the ability to subscribe to it via a system of “feeds,” which tells people immediately when a post or comment has been made to your blog. Aside from feeds (also known as “newsfeeds” or “RSS feeds”), you can propagate your content through syndication, notification lists, trackbacks (i.e., when someone else’s blog refers a post to your blog, and vice versa) and so on.

For example, I use my own blog to post articles, tips, newsletter issues and upcoming events. But also, I use it to promote special offers and to advertise, from which I generate income.

I also use feed readers (like email readers, feed readers download posts from your favorite blogs at preset intervals), and feed burners to not only keep track of your traffic and statistics, but also provide you with advanced tools to track referrers, conversions, clickthroughs, pageviews and even ad impressions on your feeds — like Google’s AdSense and Amazon.com, for example.

But the most effective use of a blog is to post your articles. Doing so offers a panoply of advantages.

For one, it helps you to archive your articles, making them easier to access. But it also makes your articles search-engine friendly, creates and cements relationships with your readers, and subtly promotes your product or service — or another’s product or service of which you are an affiliate.

In fact, some bloggers use their blogs specifically to publish their comments and reviews of products of which they’re affiliates. Honest, comprehensive reviews provide not only the best clickthroughs but also the perception of objectivity. Unlike a hyped-up article that appears overtly promotional, a review also demonstrates your expertise and willingness to share your thoughts on an important idea or breakthrough.

Posts As Conversation (And Conversion) Pieces

Discussion groups are either threaded online forums (also called “message boards”) or email discussion lists in which you participate in conversation with others. Having your own board or moderating a forum is a great way to establish your expertise.

But as a regular participant, posting to a discussion forum by replying to a thread or responding to a question can showcase your talents, skills and knowledge. However, one technique I use is to post full-length articles on them. There is a caveat, however. It is an effective technique when done right.

First, you have to monitor the board to see what kind of posts there are to ensure that your article is acceptable. Or better yet, review the guidelines before you submit. Usually, there is a charter or a set of rules that the board will have published somewhere on the website or in the forum. Read them before you do anything. (If not, email the moderator just to be sure.)

Usually, discussion boards are conversational in tone and, as such, are not places for posting whole articles. However, while many of them do accept full-length articles, a more effective (and acceptable) way is to use your articles as a means of supporting your ideas and arguments.

Do this by adding links back to your site within your posts. If you maintain an online archive of articles or a blog of your own, you can certainly include links to specific web pages as a way to back up your contributions. In fact, most moderators I know prefer this since you keep posts brief and to the point.

An obvious benefit is the fact that you don’t appear overtly promotional, and you get people to visit your site in the same breath. (At times, I’ve had more traffic from links included within my posts than with my signature files or bylines — by the way, a byline is an article’s “about the author” section at the end.)

Another benefit is that some forums, like my board at The Copywriters Board, which I’ve maintained for several years, is optimized for the search engines. Therefore, posts on these forums, as well as links back to your website, increase link popularity and consequently your rankings, as a natural byproduct.

A thing to remember, though, is that most discussion boards and list moderators do not accept blatant advertisements — your post must avoid being too engrossed in your business or product, or being copiously filled with links to your site. This goes for your signature file, too.

A signature file must be no more than seven lines long. (In fact, three to five are the norm.) However, an effective one doesn’t just identify the poster but also communicates her unique selling proposition, and offers something of value that a reader can really take advantage of and get something from.

The bestselling word in the English language is “FREE.” And people are instinctively curious. So, if you offer something for free in your signature file, people will visit your site — if not for the freebie, they will do so at least out of curiosity. Your link will invite far more clickthroughs than a mere URL.

For example, I offer a freely downloadable ebook. When I add this freebie to my byline, or even just an invitation to join my free ezine or to obtain a free quote for my copy writing or critiquing services, traffic goes up dramatically.

A signature file is not meant to get people to visit your site but meant to give people a good reason to do so — and to get them do something while they’re there, whether it’s to join, subscribe, download, fill out a form, email, buy, call for more information, read further, you name it.

I call this “directional marketing,” since good copy, particularly within a byline, is more than just for direct marketing. It also directs people to do something, and not just “here’s my website and this is what it is.” (If that’s all there is, then why should I click it? Who cares, in other words?)

Bottom-line: check the board’s guidelines or, better yet, lurk for a while to get a flavor of what’s being posted before you dive in. You want to build your credibility, not destroy it. And don’t just post to inform. Post to invite.

Wanna Be Prolific? Pass It Around!

Newsletters, as well as ezine publishers and editors, are very similar to discussion boards and board moderators — the same rules apply when submitting an article to them. Check with the publisher or the website on which the ezine appears (or is offered) for submission guidelines. They will tell you what is acceptable or for what they’re looking.

Most often, it is best to actually subscribe to the ezine as to get a flavor of what articles are being published before you submit one of your own. And it’s also important to find out if the ezine and your topic both target your market (since you want your article to appear in front of qualified eyeballs).

I many cases, by subscribing you will get the email address of the editor or publisher. Most of them seek fresh content, and as a result will publish an email address in the issue — an address to which you can send topic ideas or actual article submissions, such as: “articles at someezine dot com.”

An effective (and often safer) method is to hire a publicist to distribute your articles for you. That person may not only have a large number of contacts, but also they have developed solid relationships and credibility with editors. The one I strongly recommend and personally use for distributing my articles is Anne Marie Baugh of Write-Promotion.com.

Never send your article as an attachment to an email. Beyond the fact that such a practice is annoying, most editors file their submissions in a folder within their email programs. And when they conduct a search to retrieve articles of a certain topic or theme for their next publication, attachments will simply be overlooked. (Attachments can also be viewed as viruses.)

Most editors and publishers prefer wrapped articles at 65 to 70 characters wide. I highly recommend TextPad, a text editor that can be downloaded from Textpad. Textpad is like Miscrosoft’s notepad but on steroids. It’s loaded with functions, including a spellchecker, and it’s also quite effective for hard-breaking lines by wrapping words at 65 characters.

Another strategy is to post your articles (or their abstracts or synopses) through article announcement services or directories. Article Announce is one such service comprising several announcement lists. To join or submit content, see Web-Source.net. You can also share your articles at Idea Marketers.

One technique I found to be successful is the “solo mailing,” where your article is delivered alone, by itself, to a opt-in list of email subscribers. (These exclusive mailings are often called “advertorials,” which means advertising-oriented articles or advertiser-sponsored editorials.)

Of course, these types of solo mailings are not cheap. But keep in mind though, that the attention level given to them is much higher than that given to a typical article embedded within an ezine. Also, an advertorial appears more as an educational piece than a commercial.

If you use this route, choose ezines whose readers logically fit into your target market — whether or not they are the same is not important. For example, if people who like New Age music also like topics related to spirituality, try to find ezines whose topics revolve around spirituality, too.

There are tons of ezines focusing on every subject imaginable. Finding a topic-specific ezine is fine. But you can also find one whose subscribership consists of people who fit into your target market — and not one whose topic revolves around your specific niche. Simply fish where the fish swim.

Some publishers actually sell solo mailings to their lists as advertising space. In this case, not only are your articles distributed individually to the readers of an existing ezine, but also you can join the ezine to get a flavor of the content and define the quality of the readership, in advance, before you take the plunge.

Nevertheless, keep this in mind: content, whether it’s submitted, syndicated, published or uploaded to a blog or website is the most powerful client attraction magnet there is. Not only will it attract readers, loyal subscribers and qualified leads, but it will also expose and promote your skills, credibility and above all, your willingness to help others.

About the Author

Michel Fortin is a direct response copywriter, author, speaker, consultant, and CEO of The Success Doctor, Inc. Visit his blog and signup free to get tested conversion strategies and response-boosting tips by email, along with blog updates, news, and more! Go now to http://www.michelfortin.com.

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