The Link Spiel

Forget The Link Wheel, Get A Text Wheel!

By Debra on July 29, 2010

Because I’m a link builder, I haven’t paid too much attention to the whole mobile marketing thing, there’s no algorithmic value there so I’ve simply ignored the space.

Silly me.

For a marketer, ignoring anything people are doing en mass isn’t smart. Mobile links may not have any algorithmic value but there sure as hell is value in mass messaging.

People want promotional offers sent to their phones. Of 160 people surveyed in North Carolina, Ohio, Illinois and Kansas, 18% said they wanted special offers texted to them. It may not be a big number (the survey wasn’t huge) but it’s potentially significant if you consider people want the messages, and the propensity most texters have for pushing fun/promotional content along is pretty strong. Can you say mobile linkbait?

So how can any of this help with link building? For starters…

1. Consider adding an opt-in for cell phone numbers on all sign up forms

2. Create alerts, text customers when new content has been added to your site

3. Text new coupons/discount offers and then…

4. Sweeten the offer by texting a second time saying you’ll double the discount if they link to you!

Anything you snail or email you can text. (just make it shorter) Use all communication streams to ask for links and promote content, take advantage of anything that may drive link juice and revenues. If you’ve been asleep at the text wheel, it’s time to jump in and start using this popular communication vehicle to promote your website and ask for links.

Comments (3)

Categories: Content, General

Link Building With Widgets

By Debra on July 13, 2010

The following is an excerpt from a thread on theSEOBook Community forum*, it’s a good one and indicative of the type of information being shared.

The post was part of an ongoing discussion on content aggregator widgets and their effectiveness as a link building tool. (*this is a members only forum so unless you’re a member, you won’t see the thread)

(more…)

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Categories: General

PPC Training And Then Some

By Debra on July 11, 2010

When it comes to talking about links and link marketing, I like to think I know a thing or three but when it comes to pay-per-click (PPC) campaigns well, not so much. As a matter-of-fact, I have a hard time spelling PPC never mind understanding all the various components involved so when my dear friend Aaron Wall showed me the new PPC Training and Community Forum he was developing, I was thrilled! Finally I had a place to learn PPC from top to bottom at my own pace from people I knew and trusted.

Aaron teamed with noted PPC expert Geordie Carswell who was the founding CEO of the RevenueWire software affiliate network & Safecart payment processing platform, a start-up that went from zero to $51 million in PPC-driven sales in less than 18 months. Geordie has hands-on experience managing PPC accounts at high volume levels across multiple platforms, he wrote the killer 50 (that’s right 50!!) training modules and moderates the PPC Community forum.

In addition to the 50 training modules, the training program gives you access to 11 PPC tools:

Google Adwords Mass Campaign Builder New!
Keyword List Comparison Tool New!
Competitive Research Tool New!
Keyword List Generator.
Keyword List Cleaner & Number Stripper
Typo Generator
Keyword Match Type Wrapper
PPC Mass Ad Generator
A/B Split Test Validation Calculator
PPC ROI Calculator
RoAS Calulator (Return on Impressions)

If you’re like me, you learn best by doing and being able to ask questions as you go. The PPC Training program allows you to do just that, you can read and implement the modules at your pace and ask questions (ask Geordie directly!) in the Community forum. I moderate the linking forum on the SEO Book Community Forum and share what I learn/experience/implement daily, we don’t hold anything back and neither will Geordie or Aaron.

Bottom line? If you want to learn PPC from the ground up from knowledgable and respected PPC masters, head over to the PPC Training center and sign up today.

(Obligatory Debra disclaimer: I was not paid to do this. I do not have a financial stake in the PPC or SEOBook Training programs. I do it because the programs are good.)

Comments (1)

Categories: General, Tools

Four Engines, Four Ways To Generate Links

By Debra on June 23, 2010

Do you favor one search engine over another when building links? I have a favorite for general searching, but when it comes to link building, I don’t use just one. Ask, Bing, Google and Yahoo! each offers a unique set of search options, I use all of them for a wide range of results. Here’s a handful of linking techniques from each engine I’ve had luck using! I’m going to use the term “CFL light bulbs” in all my examples, let’s start with Ask…

Ask.com

After doing a general search, take a look at the “Related Questions” listed on the right side of the results page. The questions listed provide great ideas for new content topics and resources in submitting content. Take a look at what they’re showing for “CFL light bulbs”: