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One of the more profitable things that you can do on the Internet is to build a series of article websites that is surrounding your particular niche. You can either use these to gather e-mail addresses of interested individuals or as feeder websites for your actual "Money website". Either way, having an abundance of articles is an excellent way for you to get free search engine traffic and to pass them off in any way that you like. As long as you keep a few things in mind, it is possible for you to be successful using this method.
The first thing that needs to be kept in mind whenever building article websites is the fact that search engine optimization always needs to take priority. It would do you absolutely no good to build websites which are not based on specific keywords that people are searching for. These keywords can easily be found with the Google external keyword tool or a variety of other tools, such as Wordtracker. Build each of your article pages based on anywhere from one to three keywords using this method and you will have much more of an opportunity to rank for those keywords.
Another thing that needs to be considered is the type of website that you are going to design. Most article websites come in the form of static HTML pages but there are a number of reasons why you might also want to consider the PHP language as well. You can design your pages in much the same way but PHP gives you the opportunity to include elements of the page from external files on your server. In this way, you are able to update one part of the page across the entire site by simply editing a single file. If you already have HTML pages created, you might be able to use PHP on them by adding a line into your .htaccess file.
Of course, you can also use a blogging platform which will make it much easier for you to get the content on the Internet consistently. My personal favorite is WordPress, but there are several different platforms for you to choose from. Many of them are highly customizable with downloadable themes and add-ons which can change the functionality of the blogs with a click. The only downside to using a blog is that they are not quite as customizable as a static webpage, but many times you have all of the options that you need.
Finally, you need to get the attention of the search engines by getting links back to your website. This is known as off page optimization and there are a number of different ways for you to be able to do this. The most important thing is that you work on this aspect of your web design every single day, because it will make a large difference in how well your articles do in the search engines.
I taught this concept at a seminar in the late 1990s and surprisingly it is still true today!
Most websites are still designed by a Joe Friday style web designer. “Just the facts, Ma'am – just the facts.” That worked well on Dragnet but it does not give your business the full opportunity it could have through your website.
Don't get me wrong – I'm a proponent of easy to read and big stuff on top websites. I understand the importance of convenience and speed when someone is on your website hunting for some information. They usually want to get in and get out – much as how men shop (when forced to…) in real life.
Just as there are certain stores that you can walk into and feel comfortable while others make you tense – it's also true of websites too. Stores do a number of things to make you feel good about being at their store. They understand that their goal is to get you to buy something and spend money. The quality of their products is important. Most important is price. So why not just leave it there and who cares about how you feel in that store? That's because retailers understand that you will stay longer, buy more and come again to a place that feels good. So what goes into a feel-good website? Check your website against this list…
1. Color – Make sure your colors fit a palette. Many websites use colors that do not blend or compliment each other. They clash with noise that's equivalent to a child crying. Colors should also coordinate with your logo – and hopefully you've chosen that well too! Look at the color trends in home decorating. That will help you know what's going to feel normal to people right now. Finally colors should be something you could reasonably find in nature – unless you're selling alien software or Goth clothing.
2. Words – Use clear English and terms that most people understand. While most people may have a high school or better education in North America – it is true that using the vocabulary of grade five or six is where people's actual reading level is typical in everyday life. Save the big words for the tech manuals that nobody reads unless it is an emergency.
3. Space – The temptation is to use every bit of space and to load it to the max. It's as if web designers only built high-rise condos. The websites are populated with too much information organized too tightly. The website visitor gets overwhelmed and says goodbye.
4. Graphics – Choose friendly graphics. Sharp edges may look clean and tidy but they can also seem sharp – like you're going to cut yourself if you got too close. Make sure you have some friendly circles in the equation.
5. Navigation – Make it easy for people to make choices. Have a number of points of navigation available. That will allow people to get where they want to go more quickly. It's like beaming them over to the section of the store they want to visit instead of having to walk a very long way to the back corner.
6. Contact Us – Often people just want to talk to you, email you or come to see you. Have your basic contact information on the home page. Have a second page with “Contact Us” clearly marked. Hyperlink your email address so one click creates an email. Use drop down boxes to fill in the information for your customer rather than them typing standard information like States and Provinces or model numbers on your product. Be sure to give them hours and phone numbers too. If you're a location people visit – include a map.
So next time you review your website – make sure you feel it as well as know that what's there makes sense. It will make visitors to your website feel better about your website and your company. Remember – websites are first and foremost and emotional experience…I've heard that somewhere...