How to Find Relevant Blogs to Post Comments On?

This is new year's eve so I will keep it short and sweet this time.

Finding relevant blogs to promote your website may be a surprisingly difficult task.

Here are 5 tips that can make your life easier:
I'm afraid I have no shortcuts here.
This is a tedious task - no doubt.

Nevertheless, here are a few tips that you may find useful:

1. Use blog search engines such as: Technorati, Google Blog Search, Wikio, IceRocket, Ask, and the like.
   
2. Expand your search if needed (instead of "criminal solicitors UK" try "solicitors UK").
3. Add forums to your search (e.g. search: "criminal solicitors UK" forums).
4. Install a Firefox extension that highlight nofollow links on every page (among other goodies) - great time saver.
5. Read this article for some more tips.
   

Happy new year to you all!

How to Generate a Substantial Passive Income Online?

No matter what you do, no matter what your background is - passive income is a global dream of every household. To be able to quite your job, do what you really like, and live a better life in our material world is definitely something most of us crave. The big question is how? Where to start?

The Internet revolution is truly remarkable for so many reasons. But I think that more than anything - it has brought people together and has really made our world smaller in that sense. When you think about passive streams of income, the online world stands out above all other. Why? because it is available for all, no big investment is required and you can manage it from anywhere in the world. There is no other industry that enables you to earn so much money under these terms.

So how is it done you ask? I think one of the biggest challenges we face is what NOT to do. The Web is so full of misleading information, people trying to sell you a system for making quick money online, blinding you with 6 figure salaries and false promises of get-rich-quick schemes.

Personally, I believe in keeping things simple. It always worked for me in the past and whenever I am not sure about something, I take a step back and try to simplify things until I can see clearly see the road ahead of me. Applying this principle here is no different.

Through all my years of experience online I have seen countless solutions that all promised to make the dream come true. Very few delivered. One product or I should say system that stood high above everything else is called SBI (Site Build It!). It is the most comprehensive system I know that can take basically anyone, regardless of any technical skills, and guide them through the entire process of making a profitable website. Hard work, yes - but what a fun ride it is, especially when you get the first check.

We use SBI at Key Scouts to build our online assets and it is truly an outstanding concept, integrating all the tools and knowledge you need in one easy-to-use environment. If you want to give it a try - check the SBI video tour and see for yourself.

Whatever you decide, don't let your dream go to waste by doing nothing. Act now and start building your freedom and independence.

What's to Kung Fu Panda and SEO?

Summer vacation is over (thank god!) and we can all finally get back to work without having to worry about how to entertain our kids so they don't drive us crazy! It took me a few years to realize the true ,meaning of the saying: "if you can't beat them - join them". So, I decided to take a day off from the busy work schedule and just spend some quality time with my 5 year old son.

Going to the movies seemed like a good idea, fun for kids and relaxing for dads! Picking the movie was a no-brainer, Kung Fu Panda was the #1 summer hit by far, and there was no way we were going to miss it.

The movie was awesome, and I really had a great time not to mention my kid who simply kept talking about it for weeks, collecting Kung Fu puppets and trying to eat noodles to gain secret Kong Fu powers!

The punchline for those of you who didn't get to watch the movie was that in order to become a Dragon Warrior (and believe me this is what you want to become if you're into the Kung Fu stuff!) - you must obtain the dragon scroll - which contains the ultimate Kung Fu secret of all times!

When our lovely Panda finally got his hands on the scroll, he discovered that it was empty. At first he didn't get it (no one did, myself included). But as the movie goes on the big secret is finally revealed - there is no secret! Yes, you heard right. No secret ingredient, no magic formula nothing! Disappointing? well, maybe to some, but not to those who are willing to work hard and believe in themselves. Sounds familiar?

SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and promoting your website is basically the same. There is no secret to it. Of course, you have to know what you are doing, but all the information is out there, free and available for all to learn and practice. At the end of the day, getting your site to the top search results is quite simple in concept. Ask yourself, do you deserve to be #1 on Google? Do you do justice to your visitors who ended up on your website using your target keywords? If you honestly think you do, Google will most likely think the same sooner or later. Otherwise, work to become the best, it is as simple as that.

Write good original content, appeal to your visitors in person, teach them what you know and they will love you back. Be passionate about it. Your website doesn't have to be flashy to appeal to people. On the contrary - keep it simple, use a good navigation structure that makes sense, content wise. Obtain links from quality sites that are relevant to yours. Become an authority in your business, and be ready to work hard for it. Everything else will follow, traffic, rankings and most importantly your online profits.

Remember, there is no secret ingredient!

SEO Writing Guidelines

Users Before Search Engines
Building a page and a site is a balancing act. For search engines, the portions of the page that matter most, and that you have the most control over, are the text parts. Some places try SEO so hard that the copy reads like rubbish. Obviously, that is no good. Traffic means nothing if people do not convert.

Focus
Optimize every page for 1-2 keywords, not more.

Use Keywords in Headings
Use keywords in headings and subheadings throughout the page—this heading should capture the person’s attention and tell them they are in the right place. Think of these headings like you would a heading in a newspaper; a classic, straight SEO approach might be:

“Optimize Web Pages – Learn SEO Copywriting”

You may wish to use something with a call to action as well. That would appear more like:
“Learn SEO Copywriting Techniques that Drive Killer Converting Search Engine Traffic”.

Heading tags go from H1 to H6, with the biggest tags being the smallest number
(i.e., H1 renders the biggest font). You can change how the text appears with CSS.

It is recommended to use a single H1 tag on each page. Also try to use many H2 or H3 tags to break up the page copy and help structure the data.

Place Your Keywords Where it Makes Sense

• Place keywords in paragraphs, especially in the first and last 25 words.
• Spread your keywords throughout the page. Typically one keyword instance per paragraph makes good sense.
• Place keywords in heading tags.
• Place keywords in img alt tags.
• When the word is part of a small statement making a specific point, you may bold it or italicize it.
• You may also want to include your keywords a few times in bulleted lists.
• When possible, place the keywords in links.
• Don’t focus on just one core keyword over and over again. Mix in many logical variations (e.g. ‘compare prices’ and ‘price comparison). the search engines are smart enough to figure this out.
• The key focus of the page should be on readability. If the page does not make sense to human eyes, then it is no good for a search engine and it will not make sales. You want to use keywords often, but not to the point where it sounds like you are writing for the search engine and not the user.
• When in doubt, ignore the keywords, write your article for people, and then come back to it and make sure you covered all the important.

Naming File Paths

• Keep important optimized pages close to the root.
• Try to include your keywords in each filename or folder.
• Use lowercased file paths because some directories & content management systems do not handle upper-case filenames.
• Separate words with a hyphen (-) between each word.

Page Copy Length
Article pages should typically aim for approximately 800 words.
That said, clarity and formatting are more important than shear length of copy, and the page length can vary based on the goals of the page.

How to Get Other People to Create Your Videos For You!

Surely you've heard of sites like YouTube by now and the power of videos when it comes to Social Marketing. If you want to discover a powerful social marketing technique that is a highly-effective way to produce videos, and is actually far cheaper and less time consuming - read on…

Get other people to create your own promotional videos for you by announcing a contest and awarding the winners.The key is that the contest needs to either have a very entertaining element to it, or it needs to have a prize that’s big enough that people are willing to work on it even though it may not be as exciting.

The idea is to structure the contest so that people can logically relate to your product or website as a one-of-a-kind problem solver. For example, launch a contest that shows people’s faces when they discover your product. Shouldn't be too expensive to produce now is it? That way the videos that get produced actually become commercials for your website.

It is recommended to run the contest through YouTube, so that the entries are posted directly on YouTube or some other video sites. That way people are adding lots of videos onto YouTube that promote your product or website, generating more traffic and search results.

A list of contests currently running on YouTube can be found at http://youtube.com/contests_main

Ideally, you should have 3-5 different videos that have viral power all their own and obviously own all rights to the winning videos.

Part of the judging process should involve social media, for example – take into account the number of Diggs or votes on YouTube received for each video. Anything that can turn the contest over to the social media is a blessing.

Here is an example for a video contest that invite people to give video testimonials. These guys got 89 videos in response! More at http://www.strategicprofits.com/blog/we-have-our-winners.

The key to success is to generate lots of buzz about the contest and draw people to sign in. To do so issue a press release, advertise the contest on social networks, blogs & forums, and try to get top bloggers to write about it.

After the videos have been produced you should distribute them to major video sharing sites. Here is a partial list:

• www.Blip.TV
• www.EyeSpot.com
• www.FreeIQ.com
• www.GoogleVideo.com
• www.Grouper.com
• www.JumpCut.com
• www.OurMedia.com
• www.Revver.com
• www.VideoEgg.com
• www.Vimeo.com
• www.vSocial.com
• www.YouTube.com

You may also want to consider video distribution tools such as TubeMogul or Kyte.

3 Steps You Must Follow When Posting to Blogs & Forums

Social media is definitely on the rise. We hear a lot about the importance of blogs, forums and other social platforms such as MySpace.com, Facebook, YouTube, and many more.

When it comes to promoting your website, social media is not a channel you can afford to skip.
In this post I will try to address the key points you need to address when posting to other people's blogs and forums.

Step One: Identify quality blogs and forums related to your niche

Here are some useful ways to build a quality list:

1. Search for "your keyword" + "blog".
2. Use Technorati or Google Blog Search.
   
3. Ensure a Google Page Rank (PR) of 3 or higher and that the blog has been properly indexed by Google.
4. Check the number of posts, or registered members - the more the merrier.
5. Ensure that the blog is open for public comments or posts (sometimes you will be required to become a registered user first).
6. Ensure that the blog/forum allows adding Html links within the text body .
   

Step Two: Don't be a stranger and don't Sell!

Respect the blog/forum you crave a link from. Remember that your post will most likely be reviewed by the moderator and you are probably not the first one (nor the last) who tries to post something just for the sake of a getting a link to your website.

Make sure you add a RELEVANT and UNIQUE post to the blog/forum. That means you might need to actually read previous posts and response in an intelligent manner.

Address other members by name, relate to their stories, questions & answers. Don't try to sell anything, be objective in your recommendations and get personal with other members. It may be wiser to become an active member and add a few "innocent" posts before adding a link to your website.

Step Three: Use your back links wisely

1. When including a back link to your website, make sure it uses the proper anchor text (the keyword you are trying to promote).
2. Don't overuse your link. One link per one blog/forum is all you need.

Happy posting!

Welcome Note!

I am happy to finally launch this blog on behalf of the Key Scouts team and myself. I would like to use this first post and tell you a little bit about our company and vision.

Key Scouts is an Internet Marketing firm that provides a wide set of Internet Marketing Solutions, primarily specializing in Search Engine Marketing. The company offers affordable SEO programs, effective PPC campaign management, strategic Web consulting and anything in between.

Our vision and day to day operations are driven by the following set of values:

• Demonstrate integrity, respect and teaming.
• Energy, enthusiasm and courage to lead.
• Build relationships based on doing the right thing.

We operate in a very crowded space and we have come to realize that our success and reputation are tightly coupled with our customers satisfaction.

After all, we are a service company. We do not sell products, we do not have a technological advantage - it is all about our professionalism, and our true desire to bring genuine value to our customers and deliver substantial results in terms of ROI and profitability, in order to maintain their business in the long run.

To us, it all comes down to the relationship we have with our customers and I am proud to say that to this day, after over two years on the market, we managed to steadily grow our customer base and achieve a customer retention rate of 80%!

This blog will be dedicated to sharing our experiences and insights along the way. After all, it is not only about getting there - it is also about enjoying the ride!

Promote Your Website, Get on Top!