Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Changing Internet

I love the way the Internet keeps changing. With the advent of Web 2.0 and social media marketing, I have found a treasure of sorts. Every day, I find myself rolling up my sleeves, and making a path to get noticed online. I have to admit that it has become a lot easier to create a brand and market it to the extreme. When I first started building websites about ten years ago, it was easier to get a flood of traffic with no discernible way to see who my customers really were. Social media has squashed that flat.

Social media giants like Digg, Mixx, Stumbleupon, and others will get you noticed, and I have found that the more you socialize and get to appreciate others, the more attention you will draw to yourself. The big search engines like Google and Yahoo like to see this sharing of sorts too, as blogging and trackbacks are extremely popular, and a great way to get links. To a web marketer, this means cash. I would highly recommend trying new social media services like Twitter, and if someone follows you, it's a great practice to follow them too. I learned this from one web marketer who I really consider one of the brilliant ones, Scott Jangro. I still haven't figured out what to do with Twitter. I am a little shy about telling people what I am doing at any given moment throughout my day. I can be a little boring.

It's also important to read blogs from other professionals in your niche. I read a lot of good blogs, most are very impressive intelligent web marketers who have great skills, and used it to their advantage. I read Shoemoney's blog (Shoemoney.com), Jeremy Palmer's (QuitYourDayJob.com), and Amit Mehta's Super Affiliate Mindset (SuperAffiliateMindset.com) among others. A couple of great sources of inspiration are two very cool women who aren't afraid to get their brand names out there. One is Paula Neale Mooney (PaulaNealMooney.com), and the other is Jennifer Ledbetter of (PotPieGirl.com). They are both very smart, very clever woman, and they know their way around the Internet. It really is encouraging to read their blogs, and get their honest opinions about marketing, link building, and other helpful tips.

The key is to get started, and keep going. It can take time to build a website, optimize it, build links, and get noticed. It's not easy, and it is work. Take advantage of social media marketing, and get your opinion and your name brand out there. Internet marketing does pay off with hard work, a bit of schmoozing, and commitment.

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