Saturday, October 27, 2007

Link Building

Link building is an essential aspect of search engine optimization (SEO) that involves acquiring hyperlinks from other websites to your own. High-quality backlinks can improve your website's authority and search engine rankings. 

Here are some strategies for effective online link building:

Create High-Quality Content:
Develop valuable, shareable, and relevant content that naturally attracts links. This can include blog posts, infographics, videos, and other resources.

Guest Posting:
Write and publish articles on reputable websites within your industry. Include a link back to your site in the author bio or within the content (where relevant).

Outreach to Industry Influencers:
Connect with influencers and thought leaders in your niche. Request their input on your content or ask for a quote that you can include in your articles. This can lead to natural backlinks when they 
share or reference your content.

Broken Link Building:
Identify broken links on other websites, especially those in your industry. Reach out to the website owner and suggest replacing the broken link with a link to your relevant content.

Resource Link Building:
Create comprehensive resource pages or guides on your website. Outreach to websites in your industry 
and suggest linking to your resource if they find it valuable.

Collaborate with Other Businesses:
Partner with other businesses or websites in your industry for collaborative projects, events, or content. 
This can lead to natural link building as you both promote the collaboration.

Utilize Online Directories:
Submit your website to relevant and reputable online directories. These directories can provide valuable backlinks.

Here are a couple tips before you start submitting your site to these directories...

Don't expect to get much traffic from the directories themselves. That's not what this is about. It's about getting those links! The more links you can get from high PageRank sites to yours, the higher you'll get ranked in Google's listings.

Every directory you submit to will ask for a short description of your site. Make sure you use your 
top keywords strategically throughout your description. However, you'll need to use a slightly different description for each directory you submit to. 

Finally, if your keywords don't attract qualified traffic, you can have a #1 ranking and still not make a penny. Make sure your site is properly optimized for those keywords. If your site isn't optimized for your keywords, Google still won't include you in its rankings for those keywords

I wish You Great Success.

Saturday, October 20, 2007

Curiosity

Creativity is defined by Webster as "creative ability or intellectual inventiveness." 
This is a skill that everyone has to some extent. There are ways to improve your ability to create and generate new ideas. Not everyone can be a great artist or a creative genius, but it makes sense to make the most of the potential we are given.

Leonardo Da Vinci, who is said to be one of the greatest geniuses of all time, also had this creativity. 

Let me give you a few of Da Vinci credentials:
500 years ago, he:
- drew blueprints for the world's first helicopter
- drew blueprints for a submarine
- built an extendable ladder that is still being used by fire departments today
- built the world's first hydraulic jack
- built a rotating stage
- and 500 years ago, he built a water powered alarm clock!

Leonardo Da Vinci had a book of questions. 
He would write down questions such as:
-why do birds fly?
-why do they slow down as they land?
-what do their feathers do?

The interesting thing is that he didn't worry about the answers. He simply wrote down the questions because he knew something about the power of the human mind. He knew the subconscious mind was powerful and if he wrote down the questions his subconscious mind would continue to work on the answers.

Brainstorming is an extremely good way at practicing creativity. A brainstorm can work with an 
individual or a group. This technique requires the generation of as many ideas as quickly as possible to solve a problem.

It does not matter how outlandish an idea might be; all ideas are written down. The ideas need to be written down, and a time limit should be imposed for accepting ideas. 
Remember the less judgment of ideas the greater the number of ideas generated. Although many of the ideas may be unreasonable and ineffective, they may lead you to the idea that will really work. 

It is helpful to set a goal for the number of ideas you wish to generate. 
This will give you something to work towards and may unleash the perfect solution.

Journal your thoughts for future use. This includes writing down dreams, insights, experiences, quotes, 
problems with friends, and any other information that is pertinent to you. This should have some kind of organization so you can look back on it periodically.

Another good way to help your creativity is to read. When you read your subconscious mind is automatically creating pictures whether you like it or not. So, develop a passion for reading and watch your creativity increase. 

Both Einstein and Da Vinci were avid readers. Model this behavior and watch your creativity increase.

Anyone who has ever taken a shower has had an idea. It is the man who gets out of the shower, dries off and does something about it that changes the world.

I wish You Great Success.

Saturday, October 13, 2007

Attitude UP

Everyone knows that a positive attitude is key to the successful life. But what happens when things go wrong?

"Instead of spending your time thinking about how bad things are, think about how good they will be!"
 
What happens when circumstances deal us a blow? We have a tendency to let our attitudes take the dive along with our state of affairs. Life deals us setbacks, both minor and major, on a regular basis, but if we are going to be successful, we need to know how to deal with them and keep our attitudes intact! We need practical tools to help us understand how we can go about keeping our attitude up, when the circumstances are down. 

Here are some thoughts to help us do so:

Take some time-out. I'm sure you are aware of what happens. You are going about your day, and everything seems to be going well, when out of nowhere disaster strikes. All of your best-laid plans begin to tumble. Sometimes circumstances surprise us, and we react. Unfortunately, this often compounds the problem because by reacting we tend to operate out of our weaknesses instead of our strengths. We make decisions that are not well thought out. We function with a bad attitude that says, "I can't believe this is happening!"

The next time circumstances turn against you, take some time to just step back from the problem and think. This will enable you to deal with the issue at hand rationally, instead of emotionally. It will allow you to put your state of mind back into its proper place. It gives you the opportunity to choose your attitude as you face the circumstances at hand. Remember that we don't have to do something right now. Go grab a cup of coffee and relax little bit. By doing this you function with you being in control and not the circumstances.

Keep your eye on the goal. A second step in keeping our attitude in the proper place is to make sure we keep the important things important. One of the biggest problems with trouble is that it gets your focus off where it should be. When I experience difficult circumstances and people ask me how it is going, I tell them, 
"I am just keeping my eye on the goal." we should be focused on the goal and moving forward.

Focus on solutions, not problems. The squeaky wheel gets the oil, the old saying goes. Negative circumstances don't sit idly by. They scream for our attention. When we face difficult circumstances, we tend to dwell on them. We talk about them, fret about them, and give them way too much attention. 

Have meetings on the solutions and how you will implement them. Don't let yourself or other team members complain. Encourage them to solve, with an emphasis on the positive results that will come from doing so. Then take some time to put these solutions down on paper, so you can monitor your progress.

Get some positive input. The mind tends to build on itself when we begin to go in one direction. 

One thing we must do is get our thoughts back on track with positive ideas. When circumstances have got you against the emotional wall: 
-get with a good friend who can encourage you. 
-Listen to a motivational CD. 
-Pick up a good book and give it a read. 

Whatever external influence you can get to put your attitude back on the positive side of the tracks. 
Start plugging good things into our minds to fuel our attitudes.

One of the greatest internal powers we have is the power to control our thoughts. 
Spend time dwelling on the good things about your life or job instead of the problems. 
Think about positive things, things you enjoy that give you a sense of happiness and peace. 

There is an old childhood song that says, "Count your blessings, name them one by one." 
That is great advice! Let your positive attitude develop from within as well as from without. 
This makes all the difference!

Remember that circumstances are not forever. This too shall pass. There will be a time in the future when circumstances will change, and you will be on the mountain instead of the valley. 

Positive Reflection:
Q. Do you have a habit of reflection before responding?
Q. Do you have a habit of keeping your eye on the goal?
Q. Do you focus on solutions or problems?
Q. Do you give yourself positive outside influence?
Q. Do you have a habit of telling yourself the good?
Q. Do you remind yourself that nothing is forever?


I wish You Great Success.

Friday, October 05, 2007

Online Baby Steps

If you are new to computers, the learning curve involved in starting an online business can seem impossible. On top of trying to figure out all the business and marketing stuff, you're also faced with technical challenges around every corner.

Here is a step-by-step action plan that will give you the technical knowledge you need to get your business up and running as quickly as possible:

Step #1: Assess and build your general computer skills!
If you are reading this blog, it's probably safe to assume you have basic computer skills and know how to use common programs (such as Microsoft Word and Internet Explorer), send email, 
and navigate to different files on your computer. If you are not comfortable with these basic tasks, 
then you need to brush up on these skills -- and the easiest way to do that is pick up the following books:
PCs For Dummies (Or Mac for Dummies)
Windows for Dummies (Or Mac OS X for Dummies)

These are great books that will teach you the fundamentals,
Alternatively, you can also take an "Introduction to Computers" course at your local community college.
Either way, you need to acquire these basic computer skills.

The good news is you can acquire a solid foundation of skills in just a couple of weeks.

Step #2: Assess and build your general Internet skills!
 You need to know your way around the Web if you want to build a successful online business!
This doesn't mean you need to know the technical details of how the Internet works. 
But you should understand the basic principles of how websites work and how they fit into the big picture of the Internet.

The best way to figure this out is to buy the book "Internet for Dummies." 

Step #3: Build a Basic Website!
You don't need to know anything about building websites in order to have a successful
business on the Internet. All you have to do is hire web designers to do it for you.

I believe it's important for you to have at least some basic understanding of how to design and set up your own website. These skills will give you a significant advantage when communicating with the 
designers you hire to build your site or make small changes for yourself in the future.

You could learn basic web design skills from a book like "Web Design for Dummies.

However, since the skills you need for building a good website are more technical, 
I suggest you look into taking a web design course at a local college. 
It'll help you fast-track the learning curve and bring you up to speed much faster than simply reading a book.

Step #4: Get your business started!
Now you're ready to start building your business on the Internet!

Starting a business on the Internet without any technical skills is a daunting task. But like most 
challenges in life, if you break it down into bite-size goals and conquer them one at a time with a 
combination of patience and perseverance, you will be surprised at how quickly you progress.

I wish You Great Success.