SiteSell Blog

Wrong Keywords, Wrong Results

E-Business Tips

Proper keyword research is one of the most important elements of building a profitable online business. Keywords are the lynchpins to your success.

Target the wrong keywords, and you'll get the wrong results. If all your keywords are highly competitive or generic, you'll find it very difficult to start traffic-building momentum.

Traffic starts by "eating at the edges." Win the battles for the less competitive words first (generally tier 3 pages, but occasionally tier 2, depending on how the topics lay out best for your site)....

As your site grows, as off-page criteria grow, your overall rankings for all keywords rise steadily over time. For example, in the beginning anguilla-beaches.com never ranked in the Top 1000 for Anguilla. Over time, as the site grew, more and more people found and loved this site and gave links from other sites about Anguilla. And, of course, all the off-page criteria grew. Result...

The site's most important keyword, "Anguilla" steadily rose from "no show" to 500 to 100 to "Top 10." The key point... it happened without changing the content on that page!

Build your site. Deliver great content for a wide variety of keywords, including some easy-to-win ones that fit with your site. Good things happen!

Are You Getting in Your Own Way?

E-Business Tips

There is no single path to success, although persistence is a critical character trait for ultimate success. Why? Because few people succeed on their first attempt.

There are guaranteed patterns of failure, things that the same people do over and over again. See "Why People Fail" for more details.

One way or another, it all comes down to this...

We do it to ourselves. We get in our own way...

It's Time To Raise Your Game!

E-Business Tips

Speculating about Google's Panda algorithm change that Ken posted about back in February and its global rollout this month is pointless. Most folks, just like after most Google dances, are doing fine. (For example, total traffic across all SBI! sites is up, a testimonial to the overall quality and success of SBI! sites.)

However, for those sites that did experience a substantial traffic drop, the hurt is gut-wrenching. The natural reaction is to lash out at Google, to wonder "why me?". Meanwhile, those who are unaffected continue quietly working, oblivious to the controversies and even conspiracy theories swirling around the Web.

Impacted or not, it's time for all to do a detailed self-audit. Ifyour site hasbeen impacted, return to basics -- be very critical of your site.(If you're an SBIer, check off the self-audit steps listed in this TNT HQ article.)

If your site-audit does not uncover any specific causes, it's all the more upsetting. It's important to remember that what seems to be an arbitrary "rejection" by Google is, in fact, a mistake... a "false-positive." This type of error has, historically, righted itself over time as Google constantly moves to improve its algorithm. What to do in the meantime?

The best solution for this type of hurt is to keep moving forward, to focus on doing rather than speculating.

Don't get caught up in trying to over-analyze the situation. You have to keep on working through it until Google's algorithm catches back up to reality...

Reality Vs. "Should Be"

E-Business Tips

Reality does not go away because you ignore it or say things should not be the way they are. Reality, if ignored, merely rears its sometimes ugly head later on and smacks you in the head, after you've done so much work and have much more on the line.

Don't make decisions based purely on "the way things should be." Take a hard look at what's happening in the present, the "here and now." Work your e-business within your comfort level and be proud of what you do and who you are.

Robert Ringer sums up his Reality Theory this way....

'Reality isn't the way you wish things to be, nor the way they appear to be, but the way they actually are. Either you acknowledge reality and use it to your benefit, or it will automatically work against you.'

Does your e-business need a reality check? Are your e-business goals smoothly aligned with your personal beliefs and your actual situation?

Too Much or Too Little E-Business Thinking?

E-Business Tips

The two biggest mistakes made by most entrepreneurs are actually opposites of each other...

1) Fire-Ready-Aim -- the person who leaps before he looks. If this fits you, Ben Franklin said it best...

"By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail." In other words, ignore the preparation work at your peril.

2) Ready-Aim-Ready-Aim-Ready-Aim -- the person who researches, then researches some more, then some more. For this person, follow Nike's advice... "Just Do It!"

Every day, approach each task you perform with a "how will this help build my e-business?" mindset. Stay focused on your priorities and don't get hung up on the small stuff ("paralysis by analysis"). Keep moving forward.

Do You Know Your "Backup Response"?

E-Business Tips

What's in the future for those who leave your website? Not you or your website... not unless you put your business into their futures. 

The reality is, unless you provide "Backup Responses," they won't return to your site even if they like and bookmark it.

It's nothing personal. It's simply a big Web out there... and they "might as well see something new!"

So offer a Backup Response, one that delivers a free benefit to your visitor...

Nothing Happens By Accident

E-Business Tips

An e-business is all under your control, far more so than in the risky, offline business world. This reality can be summed up as follows...

Nothing happens by accident in the world of computers, the net, and customer response. There is always a reason for what happens, good or bad, and that reason is YOU.

Write this on a yellow stickie and post it near your computer monitor to keep this important e-business lesson front and center in your mind. You do not need Lady Luck or Sir Serendipity. Your online business success depends upon no one else, only you.

Make the needs of your target group your primary focus, the reason behind every action you take. Your desire to earn income always comes second.

Sell What's Between Your Ears!

E-Business Tips

There's a book in everyone. Each of us lives a life of unique circumstances and experiences that results in building a body of knowledge... knowledge that has value and that can be packaged and sold to others as an e-book.

Make Your Knowledge Sell! ("MYKS!") shows you how to find "the infoproduct within," how to create and publish this e-book, and how to market and sell it.

Click here to start reading Make Your Knowledge Sell!.

What problems have you faced, or what mistakes have you made? How did you solve or fix them? What would you have paid to avoid them? What did you learn? Present and promote your knowledge properly, and others will pay to learn from your experience.

SBI! Owners Think and Do "Business"

Many people focus on making short-term dollars on the Net. Until folks get beyond the "make money online" stage, they are merely treading water. Their feet may be paddling like crazy, but they basically remain in the same place.

SBI! attracts people who think differently. They focus their thoughts on "business"... on building a serious, long-term, profitable businesses with equity. SBI! owners understand that you really want to do much more than just "make money online."

SBI! instills in you the mindset of a successful businessperson... 

Move Past Uncertainty, Build Online Business Success

Business Tips

There is no such thing as certainty when starting an online business.

No entrepreneur can know whether, when or how big the profits will be. We would never have had Google (Brin and Page planned to sell corporate search to monetize). Jobs was driven by passion, a vision that computers would be on every desktop and an integral part of our lives (crackpot stuff back then). The list could go on and on, but let's come down to ground level...