When looking to generate free traffic to your website, there is one proven method that many online marketers do not take advantage of, and that is Forums. Internet marketers do not realize the power of forums, and completely disregard them in their marketing plans. Forums have the ability to give your not only free traffic through its other members, but also through links, and your powerful forum signature.



Before I get into the best practices of implementing forums into your marketing plan, there are some things I want to warn you about. When you hear of people who tried marketing on forums and have come back with little to no results, you should believe them. The problem is not the forums themselves, but what they went to forums to do, which is to market and promote.

That is one of the worst things that you can do. It is important to understand that forums are small communities that are there to help each other out, not to bring hard sell offers to its members.

Imagine that a friend invited you to a networking lunch where you would meet other business professionals. While most of the people are forming relationships and getting to know each other, your friend starts walking around to people asking them to buy a car from him. How do you think the other guests would receive him? How would you respond to someone that approached you that way?

Now that we have that out of the way, we can discuss how to make the most out of participating in forums. To start off with, the first thing that you want to do when you setup your profile is introduce yourself to all the other members by writing a new post with something like: Hi everyone, I am new here and just wanted to say hi. Pretty simple, huh?

Now, because you are a very smart internet marketer and you know that you want to connect with people and drive them back to your site, make sure to respond to each person who welcomes you by name. Now you are effectively networking with the community.

Now, the next step is to set up your forum signature that will show every time you post a message. This is a key component, since this is how you will get your links all over the place, as well as present what you offer in an inconspicuous way.

Let me give you an example. If one of the posts asked the question, How do you change the oil in my 2005 Toyota Camry, and you happen to sell an ebook called, Top 10 Secrets To Giving Your Car A Tune-up In 1 Hour or Less, then just answer her question in some detail. Your signature will talk about how to get the first chapter of your book for free by clicking on your link.

Now, lets look at what just happened. You answered the questions with a knowledgeable answer, showed your expertise, and now she may want to check out your link to find out what its all about. Wow, you just got a potential customer just by participating in the forum discussions, not by selling something.

The final thing that you want to practice is give people opportunities to review your work. Create a post that asks people to read an article that you wrote before you put it in your ezine or blog, and make sure the link to your product or service is in the actual article. People are always willing to lend a hand, especially now that you have added value to the community. This strategy alone will get people contacting you to read what you have.

Marketing on forums is not rocket science, but it does take the right mindset to make it a profitable marketing step for your internet business. Just remember to add value to the other members in the forum, and provide sound advice, and you are bound to stimulate traffic and sales to your site without ever promoting anything.