NETWORKING YOUR WEBSITE: A Review

Networking Your Website with Rita Wilhelm

I have enjoyed writing for the National Networker the last few years. I hope that all of you have enjoyed my column as well. I have had some business opportunities come along in the past few months will demand more of my attention. With that being said, this is my last submission to The National Networker.

As this is my last column, I thought it would be good to review some important aspects about ‘Social Media’. So let’s do that now.

What is Social Media?

Social media is the conversation that takes place online between people. It may be in the form of videos, wikis, blogs, forums, podcasts, social bookmarks, etc. Sites like Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Wikipedia, MySpace, Digg, Technorati, Delicious, and thousands of other niche online communities are all part of the online discussions that are taking place all over the internet.

Why should you care?

70% of people do research online before buying a product or a service. Additionally, 51% of internet users spend most of their time reading and watching personal content that is created by other people? They are watching videos, reading blogs, reading posts on message boards, etc. And, according to Jupiter Research, 30 percent of frequent social networkers trust their peers' opinions when making a major purchase decision, but only 10 percent trust an advertisement.

It’s in those social networks, that people stumble upon solutions to problems and new ways of doing things. They get together, and start communicating. They build friendships along the way. They become interested in things they read about, and then start searching to learn more about new things.

It’s through browsing blogs and other social media, that people may discover you, and that you are a solution to their problem!

What does this mean for you?

Basically, this means that as a business person, you need to be in the path of your target audience. Whether you are in product or service sales, you need to be where your target audience is spending their time, so that they find you!

I wish all of you much success. Please come and visit my blog, where I share different online marketing strategies that have been successful for me. www.ritawilhelm.com

*******
Posted to THE NATIONAL NETWORKER (TNNW). All rights reserved.

To subscribe for your free TNNW Newsletter, go to http://www.thenationalnetworker.com/ For the complete National Networker (TNNW) Relationship Capital Toolkit and a free continuous RSS feed (available either by traditional RSS or by direct email), go to: http://thenationalnetworkerweblog.blogspot.com/

You are also invited to click our buttons:




-------
Forward/Share This Article With Colleagues And Social Media:

NETWORKING YOUR WEBSITE: A Review

NETWORKING YOUR WEBSITE: Press Releases to Start the Buzz

Networking Your Website with Rita Wilhelm

Do you have a product or service that you want to promote? Would you like to get some buzz from bloggers and have your information posted on other websites and social networks?

A great way to get social buzz started is to send out an online press release. Your online press release should announce something interesting about your business. If you use a service such as PRWeb, your press release will be distributed all over the internet.

What Can A Conductor Teach You About Leadership Strategies ?

CLICK ON THE ICON ABOVE TO GET STARTED TODAY

Because bloggers and webmasters are hungry for content, they search the web for good information. One of the ways they do this is by setting up Google Alerts and RSS feeds for certain keywords. If you have a good keyword match, they will see your press release and possibly start a discussion about you on their blog. Or, some webmasters may just take an RSS feed from reputable sources such as Yahoo News and automatically post your press release onto their websites.

You will want to make sure your press release is well optimized before you send it out. I highly recommend that you take PRWeb’s free webinar. You can find available dates and times here.

Once your press release has been circulated on the internet, you can start networking on those sites and be part of the conversation.

EDITOR'S NOTE: One other great way to generate buzz for yourself through PR is by using The National Networker's PR Service, part of TNNW's premium suite of services to help you leverage our extensive network for your benefit. For more information on how to generate buzz for your business NOW click here.

_____________________________________________________________

Rita Wilhelm is founder and president of SnapMonkey Inc, which is a company that provides both online marketing consulting to businesses, as well as easy-to-use web-based technologies to help businesses effectively promote themselves on the web.

####
Posted to THE NATIONAL NETWORKER. All rights reserved.
####
To subscribe for your free TNNW Newsletter, go to http://www.thenationalnetworker.com/ For the complete National Networker Relationship Capital Toolkit and a free continuous RSS feed (available either by traditional RSS or by direct email), go to: http://thenationalnetworkerweblog.blogspot.com/

You are also invited to click our buttons:




-------
Forward/Share This Article With Colleagues And Social Media:

NETWORKING YOUR WEBSITE: Press Releases to Start the Buzz

ESPECIALLY FOR WOMEN: Can a Clever Monkey Help You Build Your Own Web Site?

Especially for Women with Ann Barczay Sloan

Ann's article is brought to you by The Joy of Connecting

Introducing Rita Wilhelm
Founder and President,
SnapMonkey Inc.

It’s not every day I run into someone who seems to be having as much fun with her business as Rita Wilhelm. (How do I know this? It’s something I somehow sense between the lines…) Wanting to take a peek behind the scenes of her various internet marketing enterprises, I recently contacted Rita to see if she’d do an interview. I’m glad she easily responded with a Yes ─ now let’s see what we can find out!

How Rita and I first connected

Rita and I first met in 2003 (or was it 2004?) at an IBI Forum (now renamed CEO Space) in Los Angeles – and on a certain “Expo Saturday” we spent some time chatting at her company’s exhibit table. She probably doesn’t remember this interaction; I, on the other hand ─ because I’m a nut for unusual words ─ was immediately intrigued by the name of her company: SnapMonkey. Memorable? Yes! I kept toying with that combo word in my mind way after I got home from the event.

Rita likewise returned to her home (Denver), and because we were not conducting any business together, we did not stay in touch. It was only years later, in 2007, that she popped up in my Universe again. What do you know? When I responded to the opportunity to become a featured writer for The National Networker, there she was, Rita Wilhelm ─ still wedded to that SnapMonkey name ─ proudly part of the TNNW editorial roster. Was this somehow the hand of Fate?...

Who is Rita Wilhelm?

Rita’s official bio posted in The National Networker – where she writes a monthly column ─ describes her as a “Serial Entrepreneur and Internet Marketing Strategist”.
Here are more basic facts on Rita:

Rita Wilhelm is founder and president of SnapMonkey Inc, which is a company that provides both online marketing consulting to businesses, as well as easy-to-use web-based technologies to help businesses effectively promote themselves on the web.

Career highlights include establishing and selling an industry leading business, leading a software team to develop a patent pending video directory application, building an active, successful online business community, developing a social networking site for pet enthusiasts, and coaching and mentoring a variety of businesses. Rita is also an active member of NAWBO (National Association of Woman Business Owners), and has served on the Denver NAWBO board. She is a member and has been an instructor with IBI Global. Rita has a B.S. degree from Colorado State University.

Quick Website Solutions for Remarkable Results

When you open Rita’s web site, www.SnapMonkey.com , you are met with a friendly greeting:

Welcome to SnapMonkey
Where we help you market your business online

The Home page features a number of “Easy online marketing solutions for your business”: Primary among these is a very affordably priced Web Builder with a free 10-day trial. The clear-cut promise is: “We make it easy for you to manage your web site”.

The SnapMonkey menu items listed here include:

· Services
An impressive list of services available to clients includes Consulting, Search Engine Optimization (SEO), and even Offshore Development Services.

· Free Web Builder Trial

· Web Builder Features
An array of 30 features for the web site you’re building – some of
which you may not even have thought of!

· Get a Merchant Account

· Free Marketing Tips
Helpful resources in abundance: Excellent!

· Become an Affiliate
Wow – you can even make money here!

· Website login
Clients log in here to access and manage their own sites: No web master required!

Well, enough about web site services for now. Let’s get on with the interview:

OK, Rita – to start with, I’m curious. The name SnapMonkey ─ I suppose there’s a story behind it?

“Well... Yes, there is,” Rita laughs. “My husband is a middle school teacher, and each year he has 150 new kids. By the 2nd day of school, he knows each kid by first name and last name. He has a name game that he plays, and somehow in that name game, they are supposed to put two words together that normally don't belong together, which is what we did with the word Snap and Monkey. That then creates a new mental image, which is what people remember. So... the name SnapMonkey becomes a very memorable name. And, it works well with our website builder, since building a website is a Snap.”

Yes, that makes a lot of sense!

“And one more thing”, adds Rita. “Everyone loves a monkey.”

Absolutely! So now that I understand the origin, how would you briefly describe what you do ─ your “elevator speech”?

“SnapMonkey is a place where people can go online to easily create a robust website. If they can create a word document, they have the skills to create and manage their own website. We have a 10 day trial where you can test it out. If you like it, it’s just $49 to activate, and $29.95/month. So it’s a very affordable way to get your business online.”

Click on the Banner, and Receive your Membership Free Trial and Discount

Sounds like a super-handy and useful service! So – what would you say makes your company unique? What’s the so-called Unique Selling Proposition (USP) of your service?

“SnapMonkey is very easy to use. The problem for many entrepreneurs is that when they want to make a change on their website, they usually don’t. This is because they have to call someone else to do it. With SnapMonkey, however, making changes is a piece of cake. They can easily update their website whenever they want, from any computer. People also really like the fact that it comes with a shopping cart if they want to sell online.”

What is the primary goal, the mission of what you do?

“I’ve been an entrepreneur for 20 years, and I know what the start up phase and the growth phase in business is like. It can be very challenging. My heart always goes out to entrepreneurs, because I know hard they work at making their business succeed. I truly believe that just about every business needs to promote online in this day and age. Did you know that 70% of people do research online before buying a product or service?”

That’s more than I would have thought!

“That’s huge. This means an entrepreneur has to be out there ─ yet they have to do it in a smart and affordable way.

Another big passion of mine is the environment. I recently started The Green Business Resource Center to help new entrepreneurs be successful in what will be The New Green Economy.”

Hooray for the New Green Economy!

“Yes, I firmly believe that entrepreneurship in the green sector is what is going to get us out of this recession and turn back the clock on global warming.”

I’d like to hear how you first got started on your entrepreneurial path, and how you arrived where you are currently.

“I had a gift basket business for 10 years, which grew to be quite successful. In the late 90’s I created a book and guide for people who wanted to start a gift basket business. I offered this online and created an online community of gift basket professionals from around the country. In fact, I think at one point we had about 3500 people. Anyhow, the question that came up over and over again was how to go online. I eventually sold my gift basket business, and started SnapMonkey to meet this need.”

Quite a stretch from gift baskets to web site services! So -- which of your projects are you currently most excited about?

“Ahhh… tough question. I’ve got lots of really fun projects right now. I would have to say that the Green Business Resource Center is a passion right now. I’m on a mission to help green businesses succeed.”

How much of your work is focused specifically toward women?

“Most of my clients are women. I think that is because word of mouth has played an important role in growing SnapMonkey. And, when it comes to word of mouth, women tend to share good resources with each other.”

What are some of the ways and places you promote your enterprise?

“I am involved with many online social communities, as well as offline communities. CEOSpace.com (formerly IBI) has been one of my favorite offline networking groups.”

Whom or what does your network currently include? How far does your network extend?

Ahhh… can’t say as I’ve ever measured that. I’ve got networks on places like Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn just to name a few. Plus, I have online networks that I’ve started from the ground up. The CEO Space network also has many thousands of people that are easily accessible.

What would you say has been the best about building a network: Positive experiences? Benefits, expected and unexpected?

“Networks have been the base for everything I have done with any of my businesses. When I first started as an entrepreneur, I immediately joined the local Chamber of Commerce and The National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO). From there, everything just snowballed. You meet people that lead to new relationships that lead to more relationships.”

I see you put a lot of focus on social networking ─ you've even written an e-book about it:

“That’s right: Dollars and Sense of Online Communities. The book is listed under Services on our site.”

Why is it you think social networking is so useful?

“Actually, online social networking is very similar to offline social networking. It's all about relationships. People do business with people they like and trust. And... people will refer you if they like you and trust that you will do the job.

People in general don't trust advertisements, but they do trust referrals from their peers. If you want to get referrals, you've got to go in there and network. Now... when I say networking, it doesn't mean that you blab your 30 second commercial everywhere. Instead, you go out and help people. If someone asks a question in a forum or on their blog, you can engage in those discussions by providing your help and expertise. When responding, you've got to remember that it's always about the other person. Eventually, as people get to know you, they begin to trust you. And, it's from that trust that people may start using your services or referring you to other people.”

What challenges (if any) have you found in your networking experiences?

“You’ve got to know who to trust. I tend to be skeptical about referring a person or using a service if the person doesn’t do what they say they are going to do. That’s a pet peeve of mine.”

Any unexpected events? Any benefits emerging from challenges in the long run?

“Life is always has unexpected events. Some are great, and some really stink. But… what I’ve learned over the years is that even the worst situations always have a silver lining in the end.”

Bottom line – What do you feel is really working well for you / your company?

“Networking ─ both online and offline.”

Besides networking, how else are you promoting your company? What do you view as the primary vehicle and what makes it more important than the other(s)?

“I’m a big fan of Search Engine Optimization (SEO). It can bring in a ton of qualified people to your website ─ for free. I put up a little video demonstration on SEO which you can view here.”

What’s the achievement / accomplishment you’re most proud of at this time?

“You know, I just really have to say that I’m thankful for having the life that I have. I can’t say that I’m most proud about any one thing. Work, family, friends, passion – they’ve all got to blend together.”

What are your plans and goals for the future (organizational / personal), especially regarding networking activities?

“I’ll probably keep doing what I’m doing. I’m having a great time.”

Any other point you’d like to emphasize at this time?

“Yes. I think that the best advice I can give people who are just starting out in business, is to get out there and network. For some it’s easier to network online, and for others it’s easier to network in person. Either way… network. And networking isn’t about just advertising your stuff. It’s about doing what you can to help someone else. That’s actually where I think true networking begins.”

In conclusion, anything you’d like to add for our readers? Some words of encouragement, inspiration?

“Hang in there during this recession. There is a ton of opportunity that is out there. You’ve just got to find where it is for your business.”

Wonderfully positive advice, Rita. I really enjoyed hearing about all the things YOU are up to!

And now it’s time for me to wrap this up with a great big THANK YOU for sharing your entrepreneurial life and times at SnapMonkey.

----------------------------------------------

Contact information:

Rita’s blog: http://www.RitaWilhelm.com
Twitter: http://twitter.com/rita012
SnapMonkey
Green Business Resource Center “

---------------------------------------
Ann Barczay Sloan, M.A.
Author & Editor / Creative Writing Coach
www.GeniusUnbound.com
www.linkedin.com/in/AnnBarczaySloan
Featured Columnist,
www.TheNationalNetworker.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Author of the forthcoming book:
How to Use the Pieces of a Broken Heart:
Recipes for Rebirth
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

___________________________________________________________

Posted to THE NATIONAL NETWORKER. To subscribe for your free newsletter, go to http://www.thenationalnetworker.com/. For the complete National Networker Relationship Capital Toolkit and a free, continuous RSS feed (available either by traditional RSS or by direct email), go to: http://thenationalnetworkerweblog.blogspot.com/. You are also invited to click our buttons:

Forward/Share This Article With Colleagues And Social Media:

ESPECIALLY FOR WOMEN: Can a Clever Monkey Help You Build Your Own Web Site?

NETWORKING YOUR WEBSITE: Article Marketing

Networking Your Website with Rita Wilhelm

Adam J. Kovitz, the publisher of The National Networker, made up a wonderful poem, called ‘twas the night before networking’. After I read the poem, I thought it would be a great idea if he sent out his poem to different article directories.

Article directories can be a great strategy to attract people to your website. Basically, an article directory is a place where you can submit your articles to for free, as well as find content for your ezine or web sites.

Here are a few samples of article directories:

http://www.ezinearticles.com

http://www.goarticles.com

http://www.webpronews.com

So what does submitting an article into an article directory do for you?

1) Bloggers, webmasters and ezine writers are constantly looking for great information that they can share with their following. They often times go to article directories, to see if there is an article that they can use for their purposes. If your article is picked up by someone, you now have a chance to be discovered by people in other communities.

2) It allows you to be a subject matter expert.

3) Some of your articles in these directories may rank pretty high in the search engines. This can really help you with your own site’s search engine ranking, since you have a high quality link going back to your site.

4) When other sites post your article, you have the opportunity to receive another incoming link from their website as well, once again increasing the incoming links to your own website, which again helps you with your search engine ranking.

I think that Adam’s poem could be published on networking sites all over the internet. Business coaches and chambers might even post the article in their ezine, which would expand Adam’s reach even further. What articles do you have? Take a few minutes, and submit them to the article directories. You’ll be glad you did.
________________________________________________________

Rita Wilhelm is founder and president of SnapMonkey Inc, which is a company that provides both online marketing consulting to businesses, as well as easy-to-use web-based technologies to help businesses effectively promote themselves on the web.

Posted to THE NATIONAL NETWORKER. To subscribe for your free newsletter, go to www.TheNationalNetworker.com. For the complete National Networker Relationship Capital Toolkit and a free RSS feed, go to: http://thenationalnetworkerweblog.blogspot.com.

Forward/Share This Article With Colleagues And Social Media:

NETWORKING YOUR WEBSITE: Article Marketing

Using Wordpress to Network Your Website

Networking Your Website with Rita Wilhelm

So you’ve decided to start a blog! Congratulations! Now, you’ve got to make a decision as to which blogging platform you want to use. There are many different software options available. One of my personal favorites is Wordpress.

Wordpress is free, and it is offered in two very different ways. One option is the version that Wordpress will host for you at Wordpress.com . The other option is open source software that you install on your own server. Community support for this can be found at Wordpress.org .

If you are a person who just wants a free blog, who is okay with limited design choices, and who would prefer not to do a lot of customization, then Wordpress.com is probably your best option. You don’t have to worry about backups, and you don’t have to worry about security or upgrading your software. Just know that your capabilities are limited. There are however upgrade options available to you for a small fee. To get started, simply go to Wordpress.com, start an account and start blogging.

If on the other hand, you are a person who really wants to have more design choices, and if you want to customize your blog to your desired look, feel and functionality, then Wordpress.org is the way to go.

Wordpress.org offers an entire community to you of developers. These developers create Wordpress plugins that you can easily download and upload to your blog. Plugins (also called Modules or Components) offer additional functionality to your blog that does not come with the standard installation. Here is a link to many of the plugins and themes available to you: http://wordpress.org/extend/ .

Many hosting accounts already have an installed version of Wordpress available. I’ll use Total Choice Hosting as an example. They have a cheap hosting package at just $4/month. If you get that hosting package, you will already have Wordpress installed. You will just need to activate it. In your control panel, you’ll see an area called Fantastico. From Fantastico, you can simply activate Wordpress.

Here’s a video that shows you how to activate Wordpress on C-Panel using Fantastico:

Once your software is downloaded, you can start using your Wordpress. Here are some great tutorials to guide you through the process:

What is WordPress - Overview
How to login to WP Dashboard
How to write a Post
How to write a Page
How to edit Posts/Pages
How Widgets work
How to moderate Comments
WordPress Settings Overview
How to Upgrade WordPress Using the Automatic Plugin [Download plugin here]
How to Add new Users
How to Change/Activate Themes


Rita Wilhelm is founder and president of SnapMonkey Inc, which is a company that provides both online marketing consulting to businesses, as well as easy-to-use web-based technologies to help businesses effectively promote themselves on the web.
________________________________________________________

Posted to THE NATIONAL NETWORKER. To subscribe for your free newletter, go to www.TheNationalNetworker.com. For the complete National Networker Relationship Capital Toolkit and a free RSS feed, go to: http://thenationalnetworkerweblog.blogspot.com.
Forward/Share This Article With Colleagues And Social Media:

Using Wordpress to Network Your Website

How to Use Technorati for Website Networking

Networking Your Website with Rita Wilhelm

Technorati is a website designed to highlight latest blog entries and user generated media such as photos, videos and music from around the world in various categories. This means that at any given time the latest news, special events, products and opinions from users around the world are featured in one convenient place for anyone to see and to link to.

Currently, there are nearly 113 million blogs that are featured and 250 million citizen generated media entries. Found on the Internet at http://technorati.com/, this site can be a highly valuable tool to use in networking and increasing traffic to your personal or professional web presence.

If you have a blog site or other media you want to share with the world, Technorati is the ideal place to feature it. In order to get started there is some basic information you will need to understand.

The use of tags is the primary method of getting your site categorized correctly for feature on the site. There are different ways to use tags within your content in order to get it featured properly and the method you use will depend on the type of software you have for your media as well as what programming experience you have.

If you use one of the well known blog software types such as WordPress or Moveable Type, you already have built in tools to use tags, typically called categories within the programs. Make sure when you publish your content on your site that you always use categories that suit your topic. These will be read by Technorati and filtered into the appropriate tags. If you do not use blog software that supports categories or tags automatically, you can still get Technorati to categorize your site appropriately with the use of some simple HTML links within the body of your post.

For example, if you have a post that pertains to pop music you will add in a link such as: pop music. If you have two pertinent tags such as pop music and Britney Spears add in a plus sign between the tags. For example, pop music Britney Spears.

Once you have your posts correctly identified, you need to tell Technorati about them so they can be posted. This can be done in two ways. First, most blog software can be configured to automatically notify Technorati upon publishing. Or, you can manually ping them by going to http://technorati.com/ping/ and entering the URL of your particular post. Using Technorati is quick and easy and can highly benefit your site by exposing millions of users to your content and allowing others to link to you site. This will increase your traffic and refine your search engine optimization processes.

Rita Wilhelm is founder and president of SnapMonkey Inc, which is a company that provides both online marketing consulting to businesses, as well as easy-to-use web-based technologies to help businesses effectively promote themselves on the web.
________________________________________________________

Posted to THE NATIONAL NETWORKER. To subscribe for your free newletter, go to http://www.thenationalnetworker.com/. For the complete National Networker Relationship Capital Toolkit and a free RSS feed, go to: http://thenationalnetworkerweblog.blogspot.com/.

Forward/Share This Article With Colleagues And Social Media:

How to Use Technorati for Website Networking

How to Use Delicious to Network your Website

Networking Your Website with Rita Wilhelm

Delicious or Del.icio.us, found on the Internet at http://delicious.com, is a social bookmarking site that allows users to share their content from a centralized location to other users from around the globe. The site takes advantage of social networking and community in order to allow users to share content. You can use Delicious to bookmark your favorite sites on the Internet so you can access your favorites regardless of what computer you are on. It also allows you to share your bookmarks with others and to view what other members find interesting on the Internet. This can be a great benefit for those who want to increase exposure to their sites.

It is very easy to get started with Delicious. You will need to set up an account, install a quick extension program to your browser and have content you want to share. For networking purposes, if you have a blog site with continually changing content you can use your blog software to automatically tag and submit your content to Delicious. If you have static content, you can use the pertinent links to bookmark your information. One of the most important aspects of using Delicious is to optimize your tagging and descriptions so others can easily find useful information.

When you are adding a bookmark to Delicious, you will be asked for various pieces of information. The link is important so others can easily navigate to your site. You should also have relevant tags or categories. For example, if you are linking to a band site, you may want to have a music tag or get even more specific with using pop music or classical music tags. The description of the site will allow others to view your opinion on the site or a summary of the site’s content. You can choose whichever method is a more effective marketing tool.

Delicious boasts the largest number of shared bookmarks on the Internet today. Not only does Delicious allow you to share sites with other people for marketing, networking and social purposes but it also allows you to contain your bookmarks for personal use. You can easily access personal bookmarks you do not want to share simply by clicking the “do not share” toggle when entering a site. This allows you to keep your personal links private and to share your other links when useful. Whether you own a personal or professional site, Delicious allows you to network to millions of people from around the world in order to increase exposure to your favorite sites.

Rita Wilhelm is founder and president of SnapMonkey Inc, which is a company that provides both online marketing consulting to businesses, as well as easy-to-use web-based technologies to help businesses effectively promote themselves on the web.

Forward/Share This Article With Colleagues And Social Media:

How to Use Delicious to Network your Website

How to Use StumbleUpon for Website Networking

Networking Your Website with Rita Wilhelm

StumbleUpon, a centralized location for sharing web sites, can be found on the Internet at http://www.stumbleupon.com. The site has over five million users currently and is growing daily. If used regularly, you can increase traffic and exposure to your web presence
exponentially and all free of charge. An added advantage to this site is that users can rate the quality of the site so when you are searching, you “stumble upon” only quality, relevant websites within your defined category preferences.

In order to use the StumbleUpon services you will need to sign up for a free account and install the custom toolbar. This is a very quick and easy process that requires no special computer or programming skills. You can customize the types of sites you would personally like to stumble upon by defining your category preferences. At this point when you are surfing to recommended sites you can rate the sites thumbs up or down based on the design, content and relevance. This is a great bit of internal quality control to ensure only worthwhile sites get added into your rotation.

You can also add your websites to the list of StumbleUpon sites in order to increase traffic and exposure. Your search engine optimization will increase due to added exposure and direct linking when people enjoy what you have to say. It is important also to keep track of who is viewing your site and visit them. You want people who have linked to your site to get more traffic so it helps you as well. So, make sure you visit and rate them. As StumbleUpon is a community site, it is important to stay active within it. Network with other users, thank them for visiting your site and rate their own sites. This will give you many advantageous over those who only occasionally use the service and do not participate in the community.

If you are a regular, active user your ranking will go up and more weight is given to your recommendations. If you have a lot of people who enjoy your posts and rankings you will be added to their network of friends which will also increase the weight given to your recommendations. This can be highly beneficial when promoting sites. In addition, if you submit and rate sites and are the first to do so, your picture will be the one that is featured on the site even when additional comments are posted after you. There is a tendency then to see what else you may have rated so all your important sites will be stumbled upon more frequently. So, when using StumbleUpon, be active and rate sites accordingly to increase exposure to the sites in which you want to add traffic.

Forward/Share This Article With Colleagues And Social Media:

How to Use StumbleUpon for Website Networking

Using BlogRush

Networking Your Website with Rita Wilhelm

Would you like an easy way to drive more traffic to your blog? Consider joining a “Cooperative Syndication Network” such as BlogRush, which is a free service created by internet marketing guru John Reese.

BlogRush uses a widget that each member places on their blog. The widget lists 5 clickable headlines of 5 other member bloggers who have similar audiences.

The system is completely automated. Whenever you have a page load on your blog, you earn a “syndication credit”. This syndication credit will place your recent blog headline within the widget, on someone else’s blog. So if you have 500 page loads on your blog, you will enjoy having the headline of your recent post show up within the widget of other blogs 500 times. You can also earn referral credits, giving you even more exposure.

A concern for some people is that the link to other bloggers will make people leave your site. That is not the case. The clickable headline opens up a new window, so that your visitor does not leave your site when they click the headline.

BlogRush will work on almost any blog, as long as the blogging software allows JavaScript as well as an active RSS feed. It does not work on the hosted version of Wordpress at Wordpress.com.

BlogRush takes just 5 minutes to set up. You simply go to BlogRush.com, register for free, enter some information about your blog, and then copy and paste a snippet of code onto your own blog.

With BlogRush, your blog will receive exposure on other sites. It’s a great way to get discovered by new people within your target audience.

Forward/Share This Article With Colleagues And Social Media:

Using BlogRush

Marketing Your Business on Second Life

Networking Your Website

By Rita Wilhelm
Contributing Writer

Imagine having two lives, one in the real world, and one in a virtual world. What if the marketing efforts that you do in the virtual world, could impact your results in the real world?

Second Life is an online virtual world created by Linden Labs. It’s a place where you can literally live a different life. Buying a house, meeting your neighbors, creating and trading items and services with one another, are just some of the things you can do in this online world. Second Life has over 13 million registered users.

I recently met Torley Wong on Twitter. We started chatting, and I learned about his expertise on Second Life. He agreed to do an interview with me, which I think you will find interesting. Here it is:

Rita: Tell me a little bit about your business.
Torley: I'm the Resident Enlightenment Manager at Linden Lab, makers of Second Life. We're a virtual world where people do just about anything, and that "anything" keeps growing to encompass possibilities unheard of before. You can come in and fall in love (I did), start a business (I've been involved in that too), and go on adventures through varied and vast landscapes that keep growing (I've done lots of that). You might think of them as "3D webpages" but that analogy, like calling a car a "horseless carriage", is falling apart as humans become acclimated to and excited by the wonders.

One of Second Life's key strengths over the material world is resource costs: you don't have to cut down a big forest to build a virtual building. Things can be achieved rapidly, including design prototypes and experimental marketing campaigns.

My job is to shine a light on skills that Residents (customers) of Second Life should know, including matters about commerce, like how to buy/sell stuff and package virtual goods. I'm also known for a series of almost 200 video tutorials covering that awesomeness.

Rita: Can Second Life help a small business gain more exposure? If so, how?

Torley: Yes! I highly recommend visiting http://secondlifegrid.net for more details; but in short, having a virtual world presence in SL can be relatively low-cost, and since it's 3D, literally adds a dimension to your products. Stuff like cars, clothes, and unique products which exist *only* in Second Life all have the potential to sell like hotcakes if you have an effective presence.

Think about how having a website and email address is essential to many businesses, especially if you do knowledge-based work. In the future, Second Life will become more prominent this way, with a key advantage being the social aspects: you and friends can walk around a model of a car, take it for a simulated test drive, and then become interested enough to find it in "real life". So even at the very least, it can build memorable, remarkable, brand awareness of *you* — and like I said, there are many amazing things that are ONLY sold in Second Life (as virtual products/services).

Rita: What are some strategies a small business might take to benefit from their time on Second Life to increase sales?

Torley: Without question, do your research. FIND HOLES NO ONE ELSE HAS FILLED. Look for problems going unsolved, and advertise that you have a fix. It sounds obvious but some companies who flopped in SL didn't understand the medium, or didn't bother to get to know the needs of existing Residents in our communities. Really "getting it" is key to succeeding here. Your approaches may vary depending on your business, but if you have real products that might not translate too well into SL (like food, since we can't taste stuff in a virtual world... yet, although there's certainly no shortage of "pixel food" in this world), consider offering SL exclusives that are useful + fun — what I call "usefun". Such as, a robot avatar (avatars being what "your character" looks like in SL)...

OH! Actually, Paramount had a great amount of success by distributing Iron Man avatars AND allowing them to be modified. They took a risk and it paid off, because Residents thought they were both generous for giving away this freebie to build word of mouth for the Iron Man movie, and it led to viral spread through pictures like this: http://www.flickr.com/groups/ironmansl/pool/

We've had all sorts of "only-in-SL" success stories that aren't possible anywhere else, like a guy who designed animated waves which were distributed across beaches all over SL. Or virtual fashion trends mimicking, then building on "first life" ones like "neko" (catgirls) which are insanely popular in pockets of Japan and growing in North America. Look to international markets, it's easy to bridge them in SL! Physically impossible stuff is often a big hit, too.

In a sentence: go back to your childhood and indulge in what mattered most to you. Others can relate. Avatars don't "need" many things, but the cravings to *want* cool stuff will never cease.

Rita: What are your top 3 tips for someone just getting started on Second Life?

Torley: #1 - Be curious, and indulge. Heard of something eclectic in SL that you've never seen before? Seek it out and learn all about it. Technically, this may be called "market research", but it's more rewarding. Second Life has birthed its own unique cultures which may have first-life analogues (like steampunk and hoboes) and embracing those, or at least getting to understand them and their desires better, is key to succeeding business-wise.

#2 - Make friends fast. After being curious, seek out the people who've made stuff you like (we call them "content creators"). You can learn from and teach them, and build alliances. Some of the most powerful businesses in SL are formed from small groups of friends. Plus, when there's adversity and challenges, having a friend helps to keep you level and cheer up your days.

#3 - Watch my video tutorials! I've taught thousands of old and new Residents skills at http://secondlife.com/video , and I'm also linked to our Knowledge Base — which is like "Second Life's manual". If you hate reading, you'll love my videos because I show you simply what to do, step-by-step. You'll feel more confident and find the inworld experience to be, well, an awesomer one!

Rita: Thanks Torley for the great interview!

I have to say that the interview got me excited about trying out Second Life. I like the fact that you can do experimental marketing campaigns. I think I may give it a try. How about you?

Forward/Share This Article With Colleagues And Social Media:

Marketing Your Business on Second Life

Marketing your Business in a Recession

By Rita Wilhelm, Contributing Writer

With a struggling US economy, many entrepreneurs and sales people are finding that they need to change the way they market their business.

You yourself might be asking the question on how best to use the marketing dollars that you have in your budget. Where can you get the biggest bang for the buck?

I have some good news for you. And by the way, stick those marketing dollars back in your coffers, because the strategy I’m about to share with you is virtually free. Well… it is going to take an hour or two a week of your time, but other than that, it’s free.

I want to make the case for you, that spending time each week on your social media marketing, is very smart business.

So what is social media? Social media is an umbrella term that refers to the technologies and practices that are used to share information, opinions, and thoughts online.

Social media can take many forms, such message boards, blogs, wikis, podcasts, pictures and videos.

With 70% of people researching online before buying a product or service (which includes local service businesses), and 51% of internet users spending most of their time reading and watching personal content that is created by other people, you’ve got to have an online presence. But, it’s not just about having a website. You need to make sure that your business is in the path of where your target audience is spending their time online.

Here’s another little known fact. According to ongoing research from the Online Publishers Association and Nielsen//NetRatings, US Internet users will spend less than 5% of their online time using search, versus nearly 50% of their time on content sites (social media). Yet, most marketers are putting most of their online marketing dollars into paid search.

Marketing Experiments did a 12 month study, in which they compared the effectiveness of a Google Adwords campaign, to a social media marketing campaign. They created several sites in different niches to gather data from. They compared:

1) Hiring an employee at $10/hour to blog, create content, and in to work to drive traffic to the sites.

-to-

2) Using Google Adwords to drive targeted traffic. (They paid up to .75/click in their adwords campaign).

Result: Social Media Optimization yielded a 1427% greater return on investment!

WOW!

The numbers speak for themselves. But before you jump into social media marketing, be sure that you do your homework. There is a right way to network, and there is a spammy way to network. You want to educate yourself so that you are being effective in the way that you use these online communities.

With a potential recession looming, it’s smart to put your marketing efforts where you get the greatest return on investment. Social media marketing may well be your solution.

Forward/Share This Article With Colleagues And Social Media:

Marketing your Business in a Recession

Networking Your Website Using Link Bait

By Rita Wilhelm, TNNW Contributing Writer

Building incoming relevant links to your website is what will boost your search engine rankings the most. This is an ongoing process, and this is probably the most time-consuming task related to online marketing.

An incoming link from another site, basically tells the search engines that your site may have good information on it. It’s a vote for you. The more links (or votes) you get from other quality sites, the higher you will rank in the search engines.

But what is going to make quality sites want to link to you?

First of all, it is important to look at your content (what you talk about on your website or blog). Is your website basically a sales pitch? If so, then it’s not very likely someone is going to link to you, unless they are an affiliate and get a commission for referring new clients to you.

To get people to link to you really requires that you have something noteworthy on your website or blog.

You may have heard the term ‘link bait’ before. Link bait is basically content that you put out, that attracts other people, and makes them want to link to you through their blog or other sites.

Do you have an insightful report that people might want to link to? Do you have something that is interesting, educational or funny on your site? Maybe you have a special tool that people can use, or resources that you have gathered.

These links are not only good from a search engine standpoint, but also from a referral standpoint. If a well known blogger talks about something on your site and links to you, you may very well benefit from a burst of new traffic.

Make sure you have an opportunity in place on your link bait page, to convert your visitors to new prospects or clients.

Forward/Share This Article With Colleagues And Social Media:

Networking Your Website Using Link Bait

Networking Your Website - Craigslist

By Rita Wilhelm, Contributing Writer

Rita's Bio Email article RSS feed Share on facebook

In my column with The National Networker, I often like to write about how people are using different online social networks to network their websites to grow their business.

For this column, I decided to interview Lori Osterberg of Vision Business Concepts, to learn more about how she uses Craigslist to grow her business.

Craigslist has over 30 million viewers per month. People who use Craigslist can post and view classifieds, and communicate in forums.

It’s important to note that when promoting your business on Craigslist, you are only allowed to post in the ‘Small Biz Ads’ section under ‘Services’, so that you are not spamming the community.

Click for my interview with Lori...

Forward/Share This Article With Colleagues And Social Media:

Networking Your Website - Craigslist

Networking Your Website - Commenting on Blogs

By Rita Wilhelm, Contributing Writer Rita's Bio Email article RSS feed

Did you know that you can drive an unbelievable amount of traffic to your website, just by placing comments on other people’s blogs?

A web surfer who is interested in what a blog has to say, will usually read the comments. If there is something in your comment that sparks the curiosity of the surfer, they will click your name, and find themselves on your website or blog.

Forward/Share This Article With Colleagues And Social Media:

Networking Your Website - Commenting on Blogs