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Author: Brian Carter Article source: http://www.selfseo.com/. Used with author's permission.
If you're looking for better web site ROI, chances are:
* The web is only one part of your business
* You have a specific budget for your web site, and
* You want the site to not only carry its own weight, and
* Why can't it make you some extra Yahoo or Google PPC profits, too?
The corporate situation: budgets need to be closely monitored, and tech people can't get carried away with unnecessary frills.
My experience learning search engine marketing ROI and becoming an SEO expert was more guerilla than corporate.
Beginning in 1999, I learned about ranking high on search engines and increased online traffic flying by the seat of my pants. By early 2005, I'd learned how to get tens of thousands of visitors per month, had started my own SEO training course, and had made more than $20,000 two months in a row.
As it turns out, web site design itself doesn't lead to better web site ROI... at least not the graphic kind of web design most people think of.
Ironically, the flashy flash web sites everyone raves about often prevent you from getting increased online traffic. Search engines analyze sites based on their text- they can't see flash yet, and who knows if they ever will. If your text is in graphics without alt tags or in flash movies only, you'll never get high search rankings.
There are loads of web designers out there who want to get paid to make you a beautiful web site, but don't know the first thing about helping you improve your web site ROI. Though independent web design entrepreneurs have to know enough about business to survive themselves, corporate web designers may never have had to learn about running a business or getting good web site ROI.
On the flipside, I spent so long raising myself by my own bootstraps that I've learned how to
* Boost web site traffic for free
* Make free money from Google without AdSense click fraud
* Build my own ecommerce web sites
* Profit from smart PPC bid management
To get better web site ROI, naturally you have to lower your investment and/or increase your profits.
Where do the profits that lead to better web site ROI come from?
* Traffic (free or paid)
* Converting Prospects
* Selling new products to previous customers
Here are some review questions for your business:
Are you getting free online traffic by ranking high on search engines? If not, why not?
Is your website search engine optimized?
Consider getting search engine placement improvement, taking an SEO training course, or getting affordable small business SEO from an Ethical SEO Firm.
Are you adding to and updating your content?
Google prefers fresh content, and other search engines may follow suit.
Are your internal linking and navigational structure optimal?
Google Guy says internal links from your own site count as much as links from other sites- how many times is each page in your site linked to from other pages in your site?
If you're running multiple pay per click (PPC) campaigns: What is your PPC campaign management plan? How diligent are you with PPC bid management? Are you meeting your break even points for all PPC bids except new ones? Are you dumping the PPC bids that don't work?
If you're sell products or services: Do you have special pages with sales copywriting for each product or service? Is your conversion rate on all sales pages at least 1%? Have you tried to increase your conversion rate to 2% or 3% by tweaking your sales copy and using split tests?
Are you diligent about increase your web site's stickiness? Are you staying in touch with previous customers via an opt-in, third-party managaed ezine? Do you offer ezine subscribers them helpful tips and resources? Do you monitor which articles subscribers read more? Do you use the ezine to upsell? Do you use the ezine to get feedback on products and services?
Are your new products and service changes based on consumer feedback? Do you have any digital products (ebooks, audiobooks, special reports, etc.)? Do you use visitor polls for market intelligence?
Those are just a few questions to help you see which way lies the real road to better web site ROI. If you're interested in my Web consulting services, you can answer those questions on my needs analysis feedback form.
Now here are a few concrete suggestions to improve things on your web site:
1. Get more free traffic
All visitors are candidates for sales conversion and profits. Free traffic is without expense, so that means better web site ROI. Search engine optimize your web site after taking an SEO training class, or get affordable small business SEO.
Ever had a keyphrase review for your business sector done? If not, get one. Optimised keyword marketing can be free, or PPC. It all starts with identifying the right keywords.
Targeting the proper keyphrases is one of the three major factors in writing your web site sales copy.
2. Only do profitable pay-per-click advertising
Buy pay per click ads without PPC bid management is throwing your money away.
Make sure you have a clear plan in place for every phrase on which you bid. Know what conversion rate you need for each. Send each phrase to specific and different web pages, and monitor your success rate. If you can't tweak conversion rates high enough to profit on a pay per click phrase, ditch it!
What cuts into your web site ROI more than pay per click advertising at a loss?
And don't think it's branding. There are much better ways to do branding, and lots of them are free. Branding goals/internet marketing strategy are a whole other ballgame.
3. Convert more prospects
Hopefully you already have a most wanted response (MWR).
Perhaps you've developed customer profiles and/or modeled customer acquisition and retention phrases. However you group your prospects, make sure you split-test your web copywriting to develop the most powerful sales pages possible.
Your traffic cost for each phrase shouldn't change much from month to month- either it's free, or you're doing alert PPC bid management, so improving your conversion rates will lead to better web site ROI (as well as allow you to pay higher bids as the phrase becomes more competitive).
4. Encourage Community and Get Feedback
Don't be afraid to let your customers talk to each other- they'll talk either where you're aware of it, or behind your back. Use forums to help them and find out what they need. Use polls, articles in your e-zine (e newsletter), and free offers to motivate them to answer your specific questions.
The best way to stay in business, sell more, and increase ROI is to know what they need and give it to them. Remember, it's easier to keep a customer than to get a new one. Since 1999, San Diego SEO Consultant Brian B. Carter, MS, has reached more than 2 million readers online. His most popular site ranks in the top 1% of all major websites. Brian's second book, "How I Made $78,024.44 in Six Months Using the Newest Secrets of AdSense and Overlooked Keywords" will be available in October, 2005. For more, see http://ranking-high-on-search-engines.com/
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