A few days ago, I wrote part 3 of my series about optimizing keywords for Google search engine rankings. Now that we are into the marketing portion of that lesson, it’s important to learn the most effective means to get the word out about your blog, or to market your keyword phrase.

I originally listed “guest posts” as one of the best ways to start your “friendly” marketing campaign… essentially the opposite of what is referred to as “bum” marketing. As this original thesis holds true, I have found that if you are working on a low budget (as most upstart bloggers are), you need a way to get the maximum amount of traffic and link juice pointed toward your blog, with as little cash flow involved. The solution is guest posts… so let’s give you the Net Fool’s Marketing Method!

Understanding the Costs

Let’s have a look at some of the standard costs of marketing. Usually, big corporations and partnerships have no problem opening up their wallet for some high-quality traditional advertising. Banner ads, text link ads, paid reviews and full out partnerships. However, if you are just working on your own and don’t really have the capital to spend across the competitive landscape… I would recommend that you try to focus more on the cheaper alternatives.

The funny thing here is that free advertising can be just as effective as paid advertising. Let’s focus on guest posts v. paid reviews today. If you pay a blogger to do a review, it is going to cost upwards of $100 for a quality website… sometimes more like $500. This is a hefty price tag for 24 hours of spotlight, isn’t it? What’s more is the in today’s world, people like to look past paid reviews and consider them misleading right off the bat! On the other hand, you could write a guest post for a blogger to fill in for them on a day they don’t want to write for FREE. You may not get the same level of exposure, but you’ll get yourself a link in the first paragraph pointing back to your website (and boosting your SEO) that can drive some serious traffic and subscribers your way. Sounds good right?

Capitalizing on the Marketing Spread

If you are anything like me, you won’t want to be sitting in your room all day writing out 500+ word articles just to be able to submit them to other websites for a guest post. This is something you could do once or twice, and you will probably never want to do again. So what I do is hire writers for me to do all the writing at around $3-$5 a pop. Well right now you might be thinking hey, I have no budget… how can I afford to pay someone else to do something that I could do myself!?

Over the past year, I have learned a lot about the true value of time. In the earlier stages of my blogging, I would attempt to do everything myself because I felt that if I could handle something, why would I pay another to do it? The problem with this is that some things just aren’t worth your time… and often writing articles can be that activity. You might be spending more, but you can also make more with your time!

With this in mind, would you rather pay $150 for a review on a high-quality blog, or $3 for a pre-written outsourced post that you re-format with your link in it and submit as a guest post for free? That’s pretty much the same exposure for $147 less! Multiplying this out, you could potentially just use a $150 advertising budget and use it all on guest posts… so you could get effective links placed on 50 blogs for the price of one!

Getting Your Game-Plan In Motion

So now that we understand how much cheaper guest posts are than paid reviews, let’s work on the exact method in what we are going to do here. Again, we are going to seek out a whole bunch of high-quality blogs that are located in our niche that we can potentially guest post on. Most bloggers are friendly and looking for filler, so this really isn’t as difficult as it sounds.

Once we have a list of bloggers that we think we can guest post on, we should get our articles together, eh? No blogger ever really reveals their best writers, and I don’t have a “go to” writer per se. However, you can find writers that put out excellent original content for $3-$5 per 500 words on the DigitalPoint Webmaster Forums. It’s pretty easy to find good people on that forum, so that’s where I would go for the best bang for your buck.

The key to successful guest posting is having high-quality, well-researched content that is 100% original and flows nicely. Lists of “top five” (or similar) are the norm for guest posts, as they keep things orderly and very social media friendly. I typically pay $3 an article with my articles, so this is your low-cost solution!

Once you have your articles, getting free advertising is as simple as re-writing a top section on each article that you get outsourced with a link back to your website. If you are targeting a keyword in Google, you can even link that term up as anchor text and you are on your way. Contact the bloggers you were interested in guest posting for… and send them your articles.

Remember: Never send the same article twice, we want to send everyone a unique article!

Bottom Line: This is an insanely profitable and low-cost marketing solution “for the rest of us.” By marketing the Net Fool way, you get insane cost savings every time! You can use this for as many or as few articles that you want… the choice is yours! Guest posts are perhaps the most effective marketing strategies that I have come across, and I fully encourage you to do the same.

-Jimvesting

Hey guys, happy Sunday!

Time to kick off another week here at theNetFool.com with a round of Sunday Link Love to honor the best writers of the week. After Penn State railed Michigan in College Football 46-17, it’s been all laughs down here in Happy Valley. It was definitely a hectic week on Wall Street… with the S&P 500 Index recording both its single largest point gain on one day, and its single largest point loss on another day. A lot of mixed feelings around the economy followed the third and final U.S. Presidential Debate between candidates John McCain and Barack Obama. And in the blogging world, we had a couple cool things come out. But I’ll get to all that later… let’s get into that link love!

• Jim Kukral – Negativity Kills Success, Don’t Let It
• Blogging Tips – WordPress 2.7 Looks Gorgeous
• Thou Shall Blog – A to Z Blogging Guide for Beginners
• Desmond Blog – Never Underestimate Free Resources
• Garry Conn – Make Money Online Watching Infomercials

Jim Kukral fills us in with some mentally empowering material, calling for an end to negativity in your world. Blogging Tips helped unveil the new version of WordPress (2.7), and man… it looks GOOD. Thou Shall Blog put in some big effort in making an A-Z list of blogging, very nice work! Desmond blogged about the power of free stuff. As a student, free stuff is my lifeblood… so amen to that Desmond! Finally, Dr. Pain… AKA Garry Conn… wrote about making money watching infomercials, which was a pretty smart discovery!

Stock Market Update
Every week I come in here and talk about how crazy everything is, and every week we get the same insane movements in the stock market. I accurately predicted the short-term capitulation point early in the week, as Monday’s trading yielded the biggest up day in history up, with the market up 11.7%. However, this capitulation was short lived, and we ended the week down. Thursday’s trading may have been the most interesting yet, as we swung in a 9.5% range from negative to positive.

I don’t trust the markets and think things will continue to fall. The problem? Hedge funds. Basically, these big players have been liquidating their holdings… and should continue to do so. There are a lot of economics behind this, but essentially… credit strains and leveraged holdings are going to cause hedge funds to force-sell their shares to comply with new regulations of investment banks becoming bank-holding companies. No more leverage, no more fun. The jig is up on Wall Street for the time being.

People that are calling this a bottom I believe to be wrong. As always, if you are getting a tip… you should question that. If you are a new investor, or are trying to get in, I am recommending that you DON’T. Again, my target has been February of 2009 since who knows when… and I continue to think that I am correct in my logic. This is going to take a while to sort out… profits can be made in index shorts like the SIJ Industrials Double-Short ETF (my personal favorite) and the DXD ProShares UltraShort.

Jimvesting’s October Spectacular Update
Rules have changed, and now everyone can partake in Jimvesting’s October Spectacular. If you’d like to win a Nintendo Wii or other cool prizes, you should sign up and get active as a Market Leverage referral to beat out the competition. Whichever affiliate makes the most money from now until November 15th will take a prize, and there’s a lot you can win. Even if you aren’t my referral, you can get in the contest by reading the contest details and emailing Dina. The leader has less than $30, so winning is EASY!

Blogosphere Update
Alright, so nothing major happened this week on the blogosphere. One cool event that I experienced first hand was the first ever radio show done by Derek from Click Consultants. This guy makes more in a month than most make in a year from his computer, so it’s definitely one to check out! Heck, I even called in and offered my two cents to spur some conversation, so a good time.

As the U.S. Presidential election approaches, I want to encourage all of you to vote responsibly and feel free to ask me any questions you might have for a bi-partisan answer. I know and understand both sides of the debate, so it really frustrates me when I see mindless garbage like a recent Sarah Palin post on TheGermz.com. I unsubscribed from his blog as a result. Seriously folks, there is a difference between polite debate and mindless bashing.

Back into action, I wanted to mention a friend of mine’s eBook, Ryan McLean. The author of SmarterWealth.net has come out with a nice and short eBook called “Make Money Commenting” and he couldn’t quite afford to purchase a review here, so I gave him a free plug! My buddy Tyler Cruz had a pretty funny (and generous) cash giveaway from the Market Leverage “Cashinator” prize he won at a conference.

The Week Ahead
Alright, so this week I’ll hopefully dive into part 4 of my series on Google Keyword SEO. In addition, I’ll add in a nice controversial posting and maybe push through a paid review! I’ve got a lot on the docket for this week, so let’s see how things turn out. I’m making a BUY recommendation for Emerson Electric (NYSE: EMR) in the NLF Mutual Fund I help manage, so that may occupy my time from Monday-Wednesday. Other than that, it’s back to work… and time to turn time into cash!

-Jimvesting

Alright, we’re ready to start demolishing our competitors in the search engine rankings, eh? In part one, we explored our niche, ran some keyword research and got our game plan ready. In part two, we set up an effective landing page to prepare us for search engine rankings. Lesson learned: it’s a lot easier to rank for your targeted phrase if you have a page or post to point things to, rather than your main domain name.

So we have our research, we have our targeted term and we have a page to point traffic to… what’s next? That’s right. Marketing time! I’m a big proponent in what I like to refer to as “friendly” marketing strategies. Essentially, you can get those high Google search engine rankings by getting your targeted term linked. Half of this link juice should come from your friends and bloggers you know, and half should come from “bum marketing” of random articles and posts around the internet. This combination can easily get you that #1 ranking you’ve been dreaming of!

What We Want

Before I get into a few “friendly” marketing techniques, let’s discuss briefly what we want to do. Google’s ranking metric involves a lot more than just content. In order to rank highly in Google searches (which means higher traffic and more money in your pocket), you need to be well received. Google ranks websites by the amount of, and the quality of, links that you have pointing to your blog from other sources. While you could go around grabbing links from other websites pointing to your landing page, you are better off locking in high-quality (high PageRank, etc.) links back to your website.

One more thing, in order to boost your SERPs, we want things linked like this: targeted term. Get it? When you write articles, link your targeted term to your landing page! When you exchange links, link your targeted term to your landing page! When you write up a guest post… guess what?… link your targeted term to your landing page! For me, this would mean I am looking to link my phrase, make money online, back to the landing page I had set up. Now let’s get started!

Friendly Marketing #1: Link Exchanges

As a blog owner, chances are you already have a blogroll set up. A blogroll is where most writers exchange links between other writers they like in their niche. This is a mutual exchange and a great way to increase the amount of traffic back and forth between websites. Typically, these are linked with the name of your website… but most people will be more and willing to change things up for you.

So the first niche marketing strategy to increase your SERPs is to ask anyone who is exchanging links with your blog to change the anchor text to your targeted phrase, and to change the URL destination to your landing page. It shouldn’t be hard to get this accomplished, as everyone you need should be on your own list. Go around and email people the changes, and that’s an instant 10-15 average links back to your website on your targeted phrases. If you are a good blogger, these are probably high-quality links and it can really put you on the right track!

Friendly Marketing #2: Make A Compelling Case Study

What’s one thing that a lot of bloggers want? Free, original and high-quality content for their blogs. If you can provide this to them, chances are they will be more than willing to get you a nice link back to your website. So here’s the concept: you make a list, a case study or anything popular that will look nice and compile it in a .txt or .doc file for download. Essentially, what you plan on doing is offering a free high-quality article to anyone that wants it, and make it available for download. Though the post is excellent original material, you will get your time made worthwhile by including your targeted phrase somewhere in the post and linking it to your landing page.

One example I found of this was on MoneyBites.com. Max prepared a list of Market Leverage contest sponsors since they were running a TON of contests that month. Other bloggers wanted to re-publish the list he made, so they downloaded his file for free and did just that! Since Max hid his hyperlinked anchor text in the “free case study,” he got a free backlink that Google sees as a major plus in rankings.

This is a method that honestly isn’t used a whole lot in the blogging community. If you can make some quality content that will get redistributed around the net (on authority websites preferably), you are going to see your SERPs increase dramatically.

Friendly Marketing #3: Start a Guest Post Campaign

Going with the theme, generating content for other bloggers is never a bad thing… and you will see your stuff posted successfully in a majority of your attempts. Many people like to take the route of guest posting to get this goal accomplished. Essentially, in a guest post you write something general, typically using a list, about the niche you are in. This should be something smart, creative or witty… basically a space filler for another blogger who would rather take a day off.

Guest blogging is really an unwritten rule on the internet. Almost nobody openly requests guest posts, but you should find that by emailing content around and asking, you can get your articles placed on top blogs for free. With every guest post, you’ll be able to, again, slip in your anchor text cleverly linked to the landing page we set up. Don’t want to write these “fluff” posts? Why not hire a freelance writer to do this for you! There are plenty of places to go if this is your cup of tea, and I think that Digital Point forums are a great place to start looking.

Bottom Line: You have the tools to market your blog to the top of the Google search engine results. Remember, to rank high for a specific keyword phrase, we need to partake in targeted marketing techniques like the three “friendly” niche strategies I have laid out here. Next week we will get into “bum” marketing… the other (and just as effective) technique to bump your blog to the top spot on the results page.

-Jimvesting

Ask and you shall receive.

After an overwhelming response to the Net Fool’s October Spectacular, I have decided to modify the rules surrounding the contest. Specifically, things are now open to everybody! I was under the false impression that I could only track members that had been signed up under my account. I’ve been working with the guys over at Market Leverage over the past few days, and they have agreed to help me track those of you who already have accounts with Market Leverage.

What does this mean? If you are an affiliate at Market Leverage, email Dina (ML Rep) at dina@marketleverage.com and you will be automatically tracked and added to the competition. This could be no extra work on your part, and you could come out with a fantastic prize! Right now, nobody I am tracking has earned anything… so if you earn $1 to this point, you would get a brand new Nintendo Wii! Easy, eh?

The Contest Has Been Extended Until November 15th!

“But wait! Now I don’t have enough time left to earn!?” Don’t worry… I hear you! For those of you who weren’t in the competition before and now know the new rules, I want to encourage you to start getting your affiliate accounts with Market Leverage active. Those of you who haven’t signed up yet, now’s the time to register a free account with Market Leverage! I’ve even extended the ending date from the 5th to the 15th to get you guys some more time to beat out the competition.

What the heck is Market Leverage?

One of the most recession-proof industries has been internet marketing. With an affiliate network like Market Leverage, you are given a whole control panel with an arsenal of offers from interested companies and advertisers. Essentially, you are being paid to promote products and services for other companies to people you may or may not know. If you are good, you can set up pages and pay for ads off Google to get directed traffic. When someone signs up or buys a product through your affiliate link, you get commission from Market Leverage. It’s a simple process that can net you hundreds of thousands of dollars every month if done correctly. ML is the best company in the business, and if you sign up they’ll be more than happy to get you started on the right foot!

Promote the Contest… Win a Prize!

In an effort to boost marketing to Jimvesting’s October Spectacular, I would love for anyone and anyone interested to add my banner ads to their website. While I would love to give prizes to everyone, I simply can’t dilute the pool that much. So, any website that either adds a banner to their website for 30 days or anyone who makes a post about the competition linking back to the contest page and has at least 100 RSS subscribers… will get a free copy of my $15 eBook, “Work Smart Get Rich!”

A free eBook, just for filling a space on my website…. nice!

Here are some creatives to use:

• 125×125 Banner
• 468×60 Banner
• 220×205 Banner

In addition, I may throw a link or two your way in link love if you give some good press. I want to encourage a friendly competition, so now everyone can enter and earn money with Market Leverage to try to score a new Nintendo Wii, a Flip Mino, a $50 Gift Card or a copy of my eBook “Work Smart, Get Rich!”

Stay Bullish!
-Jimvesting

There’s a new feature at Jimvesting!

I’ve decided to add a support system to theNetFool.com as an alternative means to communicate. I get emails from interested users every day, and having a back up support-only system in place will definitely cut my work time. Now, instead of using the contact form for every type of request, I am going to split up personal inquirys and business questions by using a help desk/ticket system to handle the latter.

Why The Change?
This move came on the discovery that one of my online buddies Joe, from IMWithJoe.com, was using a help desk on his website to direct users toward a friendlier solution. While this is a bit different from mine in its purpose, I feel like it is generally just as useful. For Joe, he uses it as an integrated solution for all of his online business. Since Jimvesting is now up to 700 returning readers, I feel like having a dedicated system to serve you guys is the right way to go!

The advantages of Installing a help desk at your blog

To me, there are really two sides of advantages once you install a help desk or ticket system connected to your website of blog: your clients, and you! The downside risk is slim, and the only thing I can really think of is that it might increase your workload a little bit. However, if people are going to ask a question… they are going to ask a question. So why not organize things a bit, eh?

Help Desk Advantage One – The Client
This blog is centered around helping you make money online. So I thought: “how can I do this better?” The obvious solution was to provide more ways for you to get in touch with me to get your questions answered in a timely fashion without having to check back on some article that I happen to write. I know that a lot of you are interested in many topics, many of which I have already written about. Because of this, the new help desk provides a one-stop resource for you to ask questions and see some commonly answered questions already displayed!

Help Desk Advantage Two – Personal
I have to think about installing and maintaining a support system from the stance of a blog/site owner. So if our workload increases, what could the advantage possibly be to adding things to your schedule? Firstly, it could be argued that questions won’t really “increase”… they will simply come more organized. But really, any for-profit blogger in this niche will realize that most of their revenue comes from referral sales. By providing a support system, you are going to increase your reputation among your readers. If you have readers that like you a lot and rely on you for advice, they are much more likely to convert on offers you propose and re-visit your site for recurring traffic. Because of this, I call help desks a win-win situation.

Free Integrated Support Systems for You!

The question now is: where can I get a free support system for my blog? If you have a little spending cash, I recommend buying the Kayako Support Suite. I have used this extensive system on multiple websites and it is truly the best. However, I feel that bloggers would be much better suited with a free resource. I am using the discontinued version of “Maian Support,” which is now a paid system as well. Because of this, let’s take a look at a few free options still available for you to try out!

• OsTicket Support System
• Crafty Syntax Live Help
• Help Center Live
• PHP Support Tickets
• Support Logic Helpdesk
• Support Services Manager

These are some good names that you should check out to see which you like best. I feel like having a support option on your blog other than the contact page may be a creative way to spark some viewer interest at your website. You notice now that I have added the “Have a Question?” button in the sidebar. It’s discreet, but effective. As a website owner, I want people to know that they can come to me for help. This mutual trust relationship makes websites much more ethical (and profitable), so give it a shot!

-Jimvesting