Recently we scored phenomenal success with a client by creating a Facebook page that attracted nearly 2,500 fans in less than a month! That the client practically sells itself – a southern travel destination – helped enormously, but the fixes we made to the site allow us to update with pertinent information without having to log into every single network profile we set up. As you take charge of more accounts, knowing the shortcuts to take when promoting websites can be a boon to your own business.

RSS is Your Friend

The beauty of syndicating content is that once you place it in a primary spot, usually a blog, you can set up a feed practically anywhere else. If you have a client for which heavy article marketing is conducive, you can set up a weblog with RSS capability (Wordpress and Blogger, for two), and use the content to feed an accompanying Twitter account and Facebook page. Squidoo, a growing social network for business users, also accepts multiple feeds into their pages.

Maintaining a blog for a client, too, permits the use of widget to bring in supplemental content that can be helpful for blended search. Feed the blog with RSS or XML links from video sites like YouTube, plant the client’s social bookmarking links from Delicious or pictures from Flickr.

Essentially, one task for an SEO client could look like this:

Article posted to off-site hosted blog > fed to Facebook page, Twitter, Squidoo lens, and RSS widget embedded on main site.

Depending on the business involved, more specialized networks may permit feeds. A good SEO trick for a book author would be to sign up for Amazon.com’s AmazonConnect program and feed a blog into that client’s page.

The only caveat to this approach: it is advise to check up periodically on the social pages and profiles you create. You can’t always rely on e-mail to notify you when a visitor makes a comment or when somebody tries to spam your space. Plan your course, monitor your progress, and you will find you can become quite adept at juggling multiple SEO clients through social media.

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In creating a website for the purpose of selling products or services, content is the key to high search rankings. Your text must be concise and precise as far as keywords and phrases go, and with clear links to supplemental information and a working contact form. When using social media to promote your site and encourage click-through traffic, you are allowed to be more verbose, as you must create searchable content that encourages third-party sites to use your content – and in turn display the obligatory links to your main site. The rise of social media as a means of promotion can help establish relevance for your website.

As you create content to point to your site, you will find several options for promotion, many of which interlink to create a steady routine one should follow. It is said the best way to sell products or advertise services is to be an expert on said subject. As you write, it is necessary to become an expert on social networks and social bookmarking, so you will know the best avenues for distributing your information.

What do you plan to achieve with your website? Do you sell clothing, promote real estate for sale, or offer accounting services? Think of an article you could write that is relevant to your site’s content – 250 to 300 words on average is a good length, but be careful not to overload on one particular keyword as that may trigger spam filters of some sites where you plan to submit. Once your article is written and the necessary keywords and links to your site are in place, here is a suggested plan of attack. As this schedule of submissions becomes routine, take note to check your site’s stats and referral links as they relate to your SMO efforts.

Submit the article to an article bank – Hosts of content-driven websites tend to look for supplement writings to their sites in order to draw traffic. When a site owner uses such content, they are obliged to link back to the author. As you write articles, find a reputable online article database and submit your content. As others use your work, you gain the opportunity to have your site links from several third-party sources.

Blog your articles – Create a weblog for the purpose of archiving your expert articles. Because Google and other engines hold blog content with high relevance in search, you increase the chances of click-throughs to your main site. Set up a simple blog account through Blogger or Wordpress or another source, and link your articles to your main site. If the blog has an RSS feed, take advantage of it. Apply the RSS feed to any social networks that allow implementation. Facebook, Squidoo, and Twitter are just three networks that can feed such content into their respective profiles.

Bookmark your articles – Once your articles are live, use social bookmark sites to promote your work. Sites like Digg and Delicious are constructed to collect links of relevant content. As you create accounts, save the various blog links and article links to these sites, and as people search the social bookmarks for this content they just may find you.

The more content you create and distribute, the better the opportunity for exposure. Considering the millions of people who use the Internet daily, the more sources available to you for placing content can help bring more awareness to your main website, and in turn drive traffic directly to you.

Kathryn Lively

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These days, some may tell you it isn’t all about the blog anymore. To be seen on the Internet, and to promote your books, CDs, and other products, you have make friends online, and become involved in a network of like-minded people. If no such place exists, you are then charged with creating such a safe house in the hopes of attracting people who might enjoy what you write.

The concept of the online social network is all the Internet rage. Where blogs allow website owners to add content and promote various products and ideas, involvement in a social networks help one target a specific audience and broaden exposure in a relevant environment. As the world continues to theoretically shrink with communal sharing of ideas, videos, music, and images, people can establish different levels of relationships through these networks, be they casual or intimate.

As someone with a book, CD, or product to sell, involvement in social networks can raise awareness of your brand, contribute to link popularity for your main website, and help your overall image become more dynamic and interactive in the mind of a potential customer.

However, one wants to be certain not to spread the talent and effort too thinly. While it is important to set aside some time to promote via the Internet, having too many eggs in the basket may prove cumbersome. Should you join as many social sites as possible. It is recommended from a branding standpoint. Establish your name on each site and provide the fundamental information about your books, goods and services with the necessary Web links, let this be the minimum effort you put into a site. With some site you may find you participate more than with others. Only your comfort level and commitment to time will ascertain where the bulk of your promotional efforts will go.

So, to which social networks should you subscribe? There are quite a few that have gained world popularity in recent months, some are even cited on news programs and other established websites. Some cater to the general public, some to niche communities. Finding out where you and your books belong doesn’t have to be a chore. Here follows a brief survey if two social websites geared toward promotional purpose:

MySpace: MySpace just may be the pet rock of the Internet. Everybody seems to use MySpace for their online headquarters these days: celebrities, music groups, authors, and everyday people. What attracts users to MySpace is its multi-functionality. Users can post daily entries in a weblog, share pertinent info on a main page for new visitors, post quick bulletins to friends with a single keystroke, and join message board communities with people who share similar interests.

Authors and musicians find MySpace especially helpful as a promotional tool for their works. Musicians may upload songs in MP3 format for listeners to sample, while writers can present books covers, excerpts, and links to purchase. The act of obtaining “friends” within MySpace increases the possibility of exposure as MySpace sites become interconnected through user activity. Leaving messages for “friends” on their respective MySpace sites establishes your brand and advertises your own page. The more active you are on MySpace, the more attention you bring to your works. With regards to functionality and popularity, this is definitely one all authors should consider joining.

Squidoo: With an odd-looking, squid-like mascot, Squidoo is a fast-growing social network that allows users to create “lenses” relating to various topics. An author for example, may choose to create an informational “lens” on the topic of his/her book, and format the content of the page to suit the information. How Squidoo differs from other social network sites is the use of set modules which build each page. There is no set blog software within Squidoo, but users may implement RSS feeds, text content, and affiliate links from any given number of participating retailers to build a page.

An author of a baseball book can, for example, implement the RSS feed of his weblog into Squidoo, link to relevant baseball sites with a link module, and link to his book on Amazon.com. Affiliation links allows for the Squidoo user to earn a percentage of sales attributed to the site as well.

The one advantage to establishing a lens on Squidoo is that, with the RSS feature, one may build two social networks at once. By updating a blog at MySpace or Friendster, the feed applied to Squidoo will update, saving time on updating the lens altogether.

As the Internet continues to expend, certainly more niche communities will launch in order to attract users. Some may explode like MySpace, while others maintain a steady user base like Squidoo. Either way, anybody with a book, CD, or item to sell on the Internet should take advantage of the extra exposure, and determine how much effort should go into each site. Nuture your brand across the Internet, and you are certain to see recognition and sales grow.

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