How Blogging Drives Traffic

by John Eberhard

Most people would like to have more traffic to their web site. So it should be good news to everyone that you can do something right now to drive more traffic to your site. And it’s free.

Here is how posting to your blog drives traffic. Every time you post something, you send out a notification (called a “ping”) to all the blog search engines via www.pingomatic.com. If your blog is a Wordpress blog, it does this automatically. If you have a blog on Typepad, Posterous, Blogger, or Blinkweb, you have to do it manually.

You fill in the name of your blog and the blog address. You don’t need to fill in the RSS address. Then check all of the blog search engines in the bottom left block. Then send the pings.

Once that ping goes out your new blog post will be indexed, or included, in all the blog search engines. So people who are searching for the topic you are writing on will see the listing for your blog post, click on it and come to your blog. So it makes sense to spend some time figuring out what the popular keywords are that people are searching for in your industry. Then include those in your blog posts.

I employ this strategy and write one article per week, and my blogs produce more traffic to my site than any other source.

So I’ve Got Traffic – Now What?

If your blog is located on your regular web site and has the same navigational structure, now people will wander around your site and see your product or service offerings.

If your blog is on a separate web address from your main web site, then you need to have sidebars on the blog and include various links to your products and services back on your main site.

If you are selling things like books, put a picture and link to the book in the sidebar of the blog. If you have any free reports or white papers that you are offering, put a picture of the cover and link to the free offer in the sidebar of your blog.

If you have a free email newsletter, put a form right there in the blog sidebar that allows them to sign up.

In other words, provide links and enticements that will lead them back to your main site and especially that will entice them to either buy something or at least give you their name and email address.

You can see how I’ve done this on one of my blogs:
http://www.realwebmarketingblog.com/

What to Post?

Some people start a blog and then get bogged down in trying to write long articles for the blog, and so they never post anything. Here are some tips that will get you posting on your blog.

Articles: The general length for an article to post on a blog is 400 words or more. But there is no hard rule on this. The article should be something that is informative and not just a plug for your services.

Shorter Content: You don’t have to write 400 words. You can post a comment about something that is 50 or 100 words or even less.

Link and Comment: You can link to some other content on the web that you found informative or interesting, and add a comment about it.

Video: You can post a video in your blog so that the video appears right in the blog and can play right there. YouTube provides embed code for this. You can post a video about your company and services, but you can also post a video about anything else that is of interest.

Note that any of these posts, even the shorter ones, will end up in the blog search engines, if, of course, you send pings to them via Wordpress or via Pingomatic.

One caution is that if the blog is for your business, all your posts should be related to your business and your industry. Keep it consistent. Don’t post one day about affordable solar panels, and the next day about your dog. Save the stuff on your dog for Facebook.

Good luck with your blogging.

Posted via email from Real Web Marketing's Posterous

Picking Features for a New Web Site

By John Eberhard

Whenever you set out to have a new web site designed or have an existing site re-designed, it makes sense to spend a little time at the beginning figuring out what features you want on the site.

Responsive

With the popularity of smart phones, pads and other mobile devices today, you should consider whether or not you want the site to resize itself to respond to the size of the mobile device being used to view it. They have now come up with a new buzzword for this, because as you well know, we don’t have enough buzzwords. A site that is set up to resize itself based on the size of the device is called “responsive.”

You should consider whether you will need or want this feature. If you are a local business and people are going to be searching for you while they are out and about, a responsive site is probably important. So make sure you work with a web designer who can provide that.

Wordpress or Other CMS

More and more clients today are requesting to have their sites built in a content management system (CMS) that allows them to log in and make minor changes to the site themselves. The three most popular CMSes are Wordpress, Joomla and Drupal. I have chosen to work mainly in Wordpress as I find its interface pretty easy to learn. So it has evolved to the point where most of the web sites I am designing today are in Wordpress, and even my own site is now in Wordpress.

Wordpress has a number of utilities, called “plugins,” that give added functionality, and which can include things like SEO functions, Google Analytics, forms, photo galleries, forums, calendars, slide shows, social media interaction and more.

I started using a purchased, highly customizable theme called Catalyst, which allows the site to be responsive as well.

Slide Show

Many sites today have a slide show, usually on the home page, less often at the top of every page. I think this is a good feature, especially if you have things to show that are visual in nature.

I believe that when it comes to images, bigger is usually better, so I most often set up these slide shows so that the images span the width of the site. And most of my sites today are 1000 pixels wide. A slide show 1000 pixels wide has pretty good impact.

I have made these slide shows in Flash for years. But recently I started using a program called the Nivo Slider, which offers some interesting transition effects between the slides.

Navigation

It’s smart to figure out how your site navigation is going to work at the beginning of the project. I favor and recommend a navigational structure whereby you can reach any page from any other page on the site. This strategy involves a set of navigational buttons that usually make up the general categories, with dropdown menu items below some of the main buttons.

This strategy with a set of buttons with dropdown menu items below them has become the common strategy today and has more or less replaced the idea that you click to go to one page and that page has more menu items on it that you can’t reach unless you are on that page.

A note on Wordpress. For some reason Wordpress and many purchased themes make it difficult to have a menu along the side. You can do it but it is much harder. If you’re going with Wordpress it is better to plan to have your navigation buttons along the top.

Forms

It’s important to have forms on a site, minimally on your contact page or newsletter signup page. But in the last year I have more been favoring putting a form into the sidebar, so it is on every page of the site. This prompts the visitor to contact you on every single page, and contact is what it’s all about.

Contact Info

Of course you should have a “contact us” page, but I am in favor of also putting the phone number and contact info on every page, once again encouraging the visitor to contact you.

Identity Capture

It is important to have things on your web site that prompt the visitor to respond and to give you his name and contact info. Of course you should have a contact page and an email newsletter signup page. But it is also a good idea to have other items on the site that get the visitor to give you his name and email, mainly for the person who is not ready to buy from you right now.

One good solution is to offer free reports (also called “white papers” which sounds more fancy) on topics related to your products or industry. This then prompts people who are interested in the topic to give you their email address, which allows you to then market to them periodically. When you create a free report or white paper, always offer it in such a way that the person has to fill out a form and give you his email in order to get the report. Never just give a download link on the site.

By getting the person who is interested in your topic (and therefore presumably a potential customer) but not ready to buy now, to fill out the form and give you his email, you are building an email list. Then you can keep your name in front of him so that when he is ready to buy, yours is the company he thinks of.

Good luck with your new or revised web site.

Posted via email from Real Web Marketing's Posterous

Promoting an Original Band: Michael Duff

by John Eberhard

Recently I wrote an article about promoting yourself as an artist. This is the first of a series I will be writing, interviewing artists who have had some success and getting their take on how to succeed in the marketing of their particular field of artistic endeavor.

This first article is an interview with Michael Duff, whose band Chalk FarM was signed to Columbia in 1995.

1. Can you give us a rough timeline of your band Chalk FarM, when it started, when you got signed, when you toured, etc.?

I left a band in mid 1993 & formed my own.  We played coffee house type places as a 3 piece (Acoustic Gtr, Bass & Drums) and in early '94 recruited an electric guitarist because the sound was evolving.  We got hooked up with a Producer who offered to record 3 songs for us - and we ended up doing 9 because it was so much fun.  That was Matt Hyde who we had produce the Columbia CD. 

We recorded these songs in the Spring, and a buzz began to happen through Matt.  He was telling his Industry friends and they were coming down to listen. 

We were playing shows in the wake of this buzz (summer '94) and found other people coming down.  We got one of the songs played on 101.9 "Local Licks" during the summer as well which helped. 

We were actually offered a Publishing deal - kind of loosely, but they told us to get an attorney.  We did and by December we were signed to Columbia.  It was fast.  And in February of '95 we were back in the studio with Matt to record the debut.

1. Before you got signed to a record deal, aside from putting together quality music, what did you do to market or promote the band, that was successful?

Performing was the best thing we did.  This was WAY before the Internet.  It was flyers from Kinkos passed out to everyone we knew and a pretty aggressive collection of addresses for the post-cards we'd mail out before shows.

1. Do you think that there is a formula of promotion or marketing that bands should follow today to get signed?

All that I hear is that it's all about Social Media, and I think that is a really good thing to do.  The interaction you can have with fans - and building a base is incredible.  But it's also important to play a lot.  That will only help in every way - musicianship, writing, people skills and building your fan base - getting the word out “on the street."

1. What do you think are the most important actions bands should take in order to reach the point of getting signed?

Well, what's interesting (depending on who you read or talk to) is that there is a different paradigm now for bands.  "Getting Signed" is not always the end you're after.  I do, however, feel pretty strongly that Major Labels still have a lot of power and if nothing else they have a staff and money to do promotion you wouldn't be able to do on your own.

But as far as the things I think are most important - I'd say:

1. Great songs.  I'm not talking about good songs.  I'm talking about GREAT songs.  There is a real need to step back and do the hardest thing for an artist - be objective.  Listen to other bands who do what you do.  Are your songs just as good?  Yes?  Brilliant.  No?  Then keep working at it until you feel they are.

2. Let people know you're there.  Read books and articles on Promotion - like you'll find in this blog.  Get the information and then USE IT!  And talk to other bands - what are they doing that is successful, what can you offer then that will help them?  It's not as cut-throat as you think.  Some of the best "Scenes" have created many big bands from within - their friends, etc.  It’s a community.  And from this you can build fan bases that are complimentary - do shows together and build together.  But all the while make yourself known!  You can do that so much easier now than even 10 years ago.  Facebook, Twitter, YouTube (do LOTS of videos!) and interact with everyone!

3. Network.  Yep.  It's a business and you need to treat it like one.  Go out when you're not performing.  Meet INDUSTRY people.  Go to other bands showcases - seminars, etc.  Meet and build relationships with INDUSTRY people.  Folks like to do business with who they like.  It's the way the world is.

We had 2 different people at Columbia bring tapes of ours to an A & R meeting.  They had no idea the other had a tape.  That was a big deal for them.  That occurred not by a master plan on our part, but by people we knew who liked us giving our music to people they knew who liked them and so on.

1. Can you tell us something about the whole process of performances that are done principally for record industry A&R people (“showcases”), and how to put on successful performances like this? Also how important is it for a band to do these performances?

I think this depends on the band.  If they're a gritty, dirty type band (death metal, punk, etc.) a showcase may not work as well since they tend to be a little more controlled and even a bit stiff.  If you're a great live band - do it in a club.  Make it one that you've played many times before and have a good following and you like the way the room sounds.  Industry types should be able to hear you.  :o)

If you're new - don't do a showcase.  Just go play.  And play a lot.  Unless you have someone close footing the bill for your whole record, etc., then the people who are thinking of investing in you (it IS a business and that's just what Labels do - even though it doesn't seem like it), will want to see you play live.  If you don't have it, they may well pass.  So play A LOT!!!  Find little dives and don't tell anyone.  Do out of town shows - play a lot and get good at it.  Then no matter where you play people who come will "get it."

1. How important do you feel social media is today for bands in promoting themselves?

See #4 above.  It's a method of getting yourself known.  Use it - and every other method you can find!

1. Do you think it is important for a band to have a website?

110%.  You won't be taken seriously if you don't have one.  As I said - it's a business.  And since all businesses have one, you need one too.  The music business website is just a really artsy version of a regular company one!  You need it to sell yourself, your music, promote your shows.  It's vital.

1. How about videos and YouTube?

I have 2 words: Justin Bieber.  Need I say more?

1. Any other advice you’d like to give to musicians who’d like to put out CDs and tour?

Do it.  The world NEEDS new music all the time.  Music evolves.  Help it along.  Take a chance and express yourself.

1. What’s your opinion of the practice of self publishing your own CD and selling it yourself?

It's more work than anyone should ever have to do.  However, if you are performing a lot it becomes a lot easier.  If you have a band it is easier still.  There is strength in numbers and that goes across the boards - numbers of hours performing, number of songs written, number of times your CD has been rejected by someone (seriously - that means you're getting yourself out there!).

Fortunately, there are lots of affordable places to do this all on your own if you want to go that route.  If you do it well and have the time and energy (bands do this best because there are more bodies to put forth effort in the right direction) it can be a profitable affair.

1. Has iTunes changed the recording industry?

Yes.  And not necessarily for the better.  But the Industry as a whole has that to blame, not Steve Jobs.  I think people got tired of paying $20 for 1 good song and 9-10 crappy ones - they were feeling ripped off - so a change was inevitable. 

I think the idea of an album is a good thing and iTunes changed that for good.  We've gone back to a "singles" mentality, like in the days before Sgt. Pepper made the album really cool (that's The Beatles, kids!). 

This is my name-dropping section of my answers: I was at a party talking to Lars of Metallica about this very issue.  It was a few years ago, not so long after the whole Napster fallout, and he was saying that after all the years they've specifically written an album as a whole unit - each song had a place and purpose within the whole, now they had to take a totally different approach and think along the lines of individual songs.  I don't think that we would have had "Master of Puppets" or the two that followed and made them famous if they had today's mindset.  Who knows?

But a lot of great music came from that "singles" mentality too, so it'll be interesting to see where we go from here!

1. What’s your opinion on the illegal free downloading of music and how this has impacted the recording industry?

This is a tough one.  I've heard a LOT of different takes on this - I've heard from one "Insider" that illegal downloading was the reason for a boom in the music business.  Turns out he was a criminal (went to jail) so I guess you need to consider the source.  Folks who illegally download will say it's great.  But I think most people want to exchange with the artists - it's a form of applause, actually. 

What I know is that the overall sales of music has been declining for many years and those are the numbers from which artists are paid.  If you can't make a living doing something, guess what?  You have to stop doing it and do something else.  What if Beck had to stop playing to go sell shoes or something?  What a loss that would have been, you know?  No offence to shoe salespeople!

The bottom line for me is a question I ask people when this issue comes up: "If I have a stack of CDs on my desk, would you take them?"  They always say no.  Then I ask them what is the difference between that and getting songs for free online.  There are an unlimited number of justifications.  Don't get me wrong, I'm good if your pal Jay-Z emails you a new track he's just finished but most people don't fall into that situation where they have permission of the artist. 

There are artists who do give away their music.  That's fine if that's what they want to do.  It never made sense to me, but that's fine if they want to.

At the end of the day I guess I just don't think stealing is good, whether it's from the Internet or my desk.

1. We hear that Chalk FarM has gotten back together recently. What are your plans for the band?

Yes, we emerged from our 12 year hiatus, reformed with all 4 original band mates and have been having a great time!  It's really fun.  We are all in very different situations now however and so our focus is not (as it once was) to jump in a van and tour.  Everyone has a family and grownup-type bills!  So we're looking at things from the standpoint of writing for placements - film and TV.  But even before that, we're doing it because it's a blessing to be able to do it.  And there are still some Chalk FarM fans out there who are interested in hearing more - which is also a blessing.

1. Any upcoming performances or events you’d like our readers to know about?

We just released 8 new songs on iTunes (see, it's not even a full CD's worth!) in a collection called "Into The Night"  We'll be playing some shows later this summer in LA, but mostly we're in a writing and recording mode.

See the Chalk Farm web site.

Good luck with with music marketing.

Posted via email from Real Web Marketing's Posterous