Archive for November 4th, 2008

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Ultimate Guide To *FREE* (Website Traffic Building Tips)!!!
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Go to ttp://www.2createawebsite.com for more details on how to create your own website. … create website build site The Secrets to Targeted Website Traffic Generation
Discover the best methods for driving traffic to your sites and the best tools to make it easy. For more information like How To Make Money With Google Adsense…Seen on TV More Vidoes at WebSitetp://freevideo.awardspace.com/ make money how to make money make money on the internet make .. Get More Website Traffic For Free
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Ultimate Guide To *FREE* (Website Traffic Building Tips)!!!
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Learn how to increase website traffic and get guaranteed leads from a Top Authority Search Marketing expert. This is the Ultimate Guide To *FREE* (Website Traffic Building Tips)!!!

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First  in a series of videos.

Vertical Marketing with RSS Feeds

Tuesday, November 4th, 2008

Just as the second generation of search engines and directories evolved into niche topic specific portals we are seeing the same occur in the area of RSS feed directories and search engines. While some directories are admittedly more niche than others the trend is obvious.

Vertical search and niche directories are becoming authority sites in a crowded online world. These niche directories will help individuals in specific industries locate topics essential to their industries.

Vertical Marketing with RSS Feeds

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To-Learn Lists

Tuesday, November 4th, 2008

… list. Instead I make progress based on allocating time for blog reading, posting, commenting. This is time allocation … -, podcast-, and presentation reading, blogging (reading and writing), academic study and research, and work-based …
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The Arla Foods Blog

Tuesday, November 4th, 2008

Arla Foods, Europe’s largest dairy company is the first major Scandinavian company to start blogging externally. Taking the lead is their Danish company, with three (3) different blogs all in Danish. The company hopes to provide information about nutrition and health, the life on a farm and what is happening behind the organization.

Reasons for Blogging

Arla Foods’ corporate blogging is aimed at building long-term relationships by providing a human face to its consumers. Their blogs also wish to present their qualifications in the specific industry they’re in. In the middle of much criticism in Denmark, blogging is a courageous but a logical step to take in countering bad press.

Aside from having to defend itself against accusations of crushing small diary companies in their native home, Arla Foods had to face the widespread boycotts in the Middle East over the Danish caricatures of Prophet Mohammad. The drawings which were published in a Danish newspaper depicted an image of the prophet wearing a turban shaped as a bomb with a burning fuse. Islamic traditions prohibit any depiction of the prophet including respectful ones to prevent the use of such images that would lead to idolatry. The offended parties demanded an apology from the Danish government.

The Danish government stood its ground that the issue is primarily on freedom of the press, but Arla Foods was in a more difficult position as it felt the full force of the appeal for a trade boycott of Danish products. Its sales plummeted to zero and it had to lay-off as much as 100 people because of the inexistent demand. For a company that had annual sales as high as $480 million in the area, Arla Foods certainly felt the pressure.

The company has spent over 40 years to build a big business in the Middle East and is not about to give up easily in the face of such a challenge. They have been able to gain an intimate knowledge of the market and have managed to provide their co-operative members a stable income in the process. It came as a shock to see such a big business entity come to a complete stop in all the countries in the region.

The paper that published the said caricatures has already apologized for offending many Muslims even if it were not in violation of any Danish law. The Danish government welcomed this act but reiterated that independent media is not edited by the government and thus it cannot apologize in behalf of the newspaper. The general situation was not positive as the backlash included diplomatic sanctions and Islamic militant attacks and threats.

Arla Foods was seen by many, especially the Danes to have bended its knees too quickly to the offended parties. When it was announced that the boycott of Danish products was to come to an end in a conference attended by Muslim clerics and representatives of Arla, it was widely perceived as a deal that signaled the victory of thuggery and extortion over free speech. The end of the problem in the Middle East was the start of a new problem in Denmark.

The company’s websites refer to this move as an active marketing approach. Arla Foods facilitated the printing of the Danish government’s official statement indicating its respect for Islam in a Saudi newspaper. It was followed by a full page advertisement in 25 countries all over the region stating the company’s understanding of the region’s culture and values as well as Islam. Arla Foods has also offered to start humanitarian projects in the Middle East including helping disabled children and cancer sufferers. The company’s move is quite understandable if the business aspect is to be considered. However, altering public perception may need to be given serious attention.

Blogging at Present

In the face of heavy criticism for supposedly trying to appease Muslim fundamentalists, Arla Foods had to find a way to air its side. After successfully putting an end to a boycott in the Middle East region, the threat of the Danish public’s boycotting of Arla products remain. It should be noted that the multinational company has long been criticized and boycotted in Denmark because of their supposed abuse of their dominant market position. They are being accused of trying to eradicate smaller and more ecologically minded dairies and small farmers in Denmark.

Serious image problem is probably the reason why the company opted to launch three blogs. The Danish press regularly features the company’s questionable tactics towards farmers who are uncooperative to them. The problem is not about their products which are considered good by anyone’s standard but the widespread dislike for the company itself.

One blog is handled by a couple of farmers who are shareholders in Arla. Another blog called “Natural Thoughts” is handled by the head of Arla’s Fact and Consumer Center and the chief PR person. These blogs allow comments but not trackbacks. Arla’s blogs are said to be brave and imaginative but still falls short on its purpose.

The company’s head of communication has confirmed that putting up their weblogs is one initiative towards more dialogues in the company’s effort to become more open and communicative. It also seeks to clarify what the company is all about and presents an alternative to the usual presentation of the company in the regular press. The company has seen a new media available to them in the form of blogs.

With the image to being a ruthless giant that bulldozes small dairies as well as their own farmers, Arla recognizes the prevailing strong consumer dislike for the company. They see blogs as a good way to counter this reality as it provides opportunities for dialogue with critics. It is also an open and direct way of communicating by presenting people within the company to put more faces on Arla.

Arla’s blogging cannot come in a more opportune time. To be beset on all sides by a largely captive consumer base, aggressive prosecutors and a skeptical press, it is certainly a difficult challenge to overcome especially if is does not do anything to have itself heard. Danish prosecutors have Arla Foods under indictment for unfair trade practices. Reversing public perception can be a monumental task in this particular situation. Blogs can help the company explain without the controversial news blocking its view. It is a chance for the readers to get “inside” the company instead of simply relying on information provided by the press. If Arla Foods can succeed in their blogging attempts, it could be considered a major breakthrough for blogging in the Scandinavian countries.

The Pitfalls Of Business Blogging

Tuesday, November 4th, 2008

Whether you are aware of it or not, your customers, potential clients, business associates, competitors and employees are already engaged in business blogging. They are conversing in real time about your products or services, news and developments in your niche. They are discussing about your new product release. Sad to say, if they have not spread it already, they are definitely gossiping about the customer service blunder you hoped you could keep hush-hush. Word travels fast in the blogosphere. Blogging gets you noticed and referenced, favorable or not, in your industry’s conversations. Business blogging has its benefits but, alas, it also has its share of pitfalls.

A business blog can help build your company’s reputation and credibility in your niche business area. It is a cost-effective way to communicate with targeted audience. It provides business feedbacks through comments. A well-executed blog can boost search engine rankings thus raising chances of potential customers visiting your site and ultimately generating sales.

More importantly, you should be aware of the pitfalls or perils that accompany business blogging. If you have finally figured out how blogging can work for your targeted market, then, seriously consider the technical pitfalls of creating a blog that might befall you especially if you are a newbie in the field of blogging.

Before embarking on blogging, you must have read and read some more blogs to familiarize yourself with the blogosphere especially your specific niche. Reading other blogs can spur ideas for blogging topics. Not doing any research will leave you writing in futility. You don’t know what questions your target audience wants answered and what they would like to read. More so, you might not even have a clear-cut goal. What is the purpose of your blog? What problem does it want to solve or gap to fill? You have not determined what is it you are trying to get done. You definitely will not have good topics to write about because topics should be in consonance with your business objectives. Writing without a purpose will get you nowhere. It will just turn readers away.

Not knowing how to use your blogging software properly will, in most cases, produce a non-professional-looking blog. A blogging tool goes to great pains to ensure that your blog will look good, the text look beautiful and the html code it generates follow web standards. It will be to your business advantage if you understand how the vast and sophisticated features work to increase your blog’s chance of being found on the Internet. Keep in mind that first impressions count with readers.

Not optimizing keywords, categories, subscriptions will make it difficult for readers to find your blog. The primary purpose of a blog to be successful is readership. Search engines are a great source of readers. If you are writing a blog post that you want to be read, bear in mind that readers will use keywords to find your blog entry. Keywords are vital to high search engine ranking. Top ranking equals traffic and traffic is readership. Categorizing your blog will also make it more user-friendly and make the content more search engine ranking friendly. Subscribing to an RSS feed allows readers to receive automatic updates whenever you publish fresh content. Not making frequent posts makes readers lose interest in your blog as there is nothing new to peruse. You have to make it a priority to post consistently. The more you post the more reasons the readers will come to read some more.

Finally, you have sorted out how to avert the technical perils of business blogging. Brace yourself; there are even deeper pitfalls with much more severe repercussions to consider. For one, businesses that allow misrepresentations - faulty or misleading information to appear on their blogs can create a public disaster. Some business companies keen to develop one-to-one links with customers, set up character blogs. A character blog is typically conceptualized by marketing people to promote a product or service using fictitious character. This kind of blog is quite risky as some ardent bloggers regard them as an insult to the blogging community. A classic example is the Vichy case. As part of its marketing launch for its new anti-aging cream, Vichy’s advertising team created a blog featuring a bogus author named Claire who incessantly whined about the travails of aging using the same wordings as the Vichy print ad. It elicited a flurry of negative reactions from around the blogosphere condemning Vichy for passing off a phony on their turf. Blogs are about real conversations with real people.

Turning a deaf ear to what the blogosphere is saying can be fatal to a company. Kryptonite, a lock maker company did not respond quickly to a blog comment and cost them millions of dollars. Engadget, a highly trafficked blog published a video file showing how a Bic ball pen can easily open a Kryptonite lock. Kryptonite took its time before issuing a statement that did not assuage the thousands who bought the lock in good faith. Bloggers lambasted Kryptonite and caused heavy traffic to the Engadget blog site. Finally, Kryptonite succumbed and replaced the locks at a staggering cost of $10 million. Take heed; monitor what others are saying in the blogosphere. Your blog is part and parcel of a dynamic conversation. You should track your image in the blogging arena. Reputation risks can surface if your company pays no attention or misjudge the opinions in the blogosphere.

Business blogging can expose your company to legal problems that can cause serious damage to your business reputation. Irresponsible blogging can subject your company to libel, slander and even harassment lawsuits. Off-hand comments may offend customers. Disclosure of confidential corporate information and trade secrets will definitely place a company in jeopardy. Several instances of indiscreet blogging have caused employee terminations. Ellen Simonetti, A Delta Air Lines employee was fired for posting inappropriate images of herself in uniform on her blog. A system administrator at the Manitoba Health Sciences Centre was sacked after posting on his blog “Sitting around doing nothing for three hours while being paid - priceless.” Needless to say, companies should draw up corporate blogging policies that will state clearly acceptable and unacceptable blogging practices. Companies should educate its employees about the business and legal risks involved with blogging.

In a nutshell, do not blog for the sake of blogging. A clear business goal is a must. See to it that your blog reflects your company’s desired image. Carefully weigh the implications of anything you post. Be wary of potential consequences and be reminded that with blogging, anything that appears on the Internet is instantly available to a global massive audience.