Category: Internet Marketing

And why you are losing out without one… Before the Internet, I was not a fan of marketing. It all seemed like a misleading façade to convince people to buy a product they didn´t need. Because of the billions of dollars of advertising campaigns and corporations could spend on marketing, I lost complete faith in grass-roots or do-it-yourself (DIY) marketing.

Marketing on the Internet, however, has an everyman DIY feel to it. Sure, there are many companies out there with huge offices staffed with writers for the sole purpose of ranking higher on Google and creating buzz about the company. But there are also plenty of industrious individuals with their own blogs and Websites that are actively engaged in several online communities to get themselves out there and get recognized. The best part about the Internet is that it really only takes one individual to gather an entire following for an idea, topic or product.

Gravatars and Marketing Go Hand in Hand

For all you go-getters trying to get your name out there and recognized, you must get a Gravatar. Your Gravatar, short for globally recognized avatar, is an image that follows you from Website to Website appearing beside your name when you do things like commenting or posting on a blog. It automatically associates an image of your choosing with your email address.

So whenever you like to leave a comment on virtually any blog or Website, you only need to enter your email and your image and a link back to your Website or blog appear automatically (requiring no form or upload).Best of all, a huge amount of Websites and blogs (and only growing larger) support Gravatars, so registering for a Gravatar is never a waste of time or effort.

As bloggers marketing our own blogs and personal brands, we all know the importance of commenting and interacting with other blogs. With Gravatars, your level of interaction will look that much more interesting and professional, and it is also easier to use than filling out the same old contact form!

How to Use Your Gravatar Effectively

Now that you know to use a Gravatar to increase your authority, familiarity and traffic on the blogosphere, I will give you some tips to make your Gravatar stand out (but not annoy!).

1. Use a background color in your image that will “pop” in most blogs: Most blogs tend to have white backgrounds so having an image of yourself in a black background is not a bad idea at all. Of course, using a bright or unique color is also a way to attract attention to your avatar image as well.

2. Use a high quality image and unique composition: Having such a tiny Gravatar image appearing pixilated is probably the easiest way to appear unprofessional. Even though it is going to be a small image, make sure you upload at maximum resolution (512 pixels wide). On top of that, it is also a good idea to have a simple and clear image. Try to be creative with your avatar composition but remember that it will be a very tiny display and too many details will just look like a mess. Keep it simple!

3. Logo or Face? This really comes down to your personal preference. Either one can be just as memorable, though I personally believe a good logo is more easily differentiated. That being said, a good face shot might appeal more to some readers although I generally don´t trust most faces I see on the Internet (or I don´t believe they truly represent the words they are next to anyway).

Every time you search on Google you are flooded with all sorts of Websites and tutorials telling you what you NEED to do to succeed. Sometimes it can be hard to weed out what you actually should be doing and what is a waste of time. Instead of looking at all the different tips you should be doing to make your Website successful, here are five of the most useless Internet Marketing tips out there you should avoid:

[Useless Tip1] » Focus on SEO and Backlinks, and worry about your Website later

It is easy to get wrapped up in figuring out how to build up your backlinks and increase your Website traffic, and in the process let your Website slide to the back burner. But since the quality of your Website is going to directly impact if people keep coming back or not, you want to make sure that you spend some time fixing and improving it and build it so that people enjoy visiting. The goal of your Website should be that it is easy for users to navigate and it is visually appealing – otherwise your visitors probably won´t return. There is nothing like a well designed, well coded and user-friendly Website.

[Useless Tip2] » Having Pop-ups

You may think that having a pop-up will help keep visitors on your Website, but it is really just going to irritate and annoy them. Nothing is worse than trying to leave a Website and then being asked if “you´re certain you want to leave”. Let people come and go as they please and don´t try to force them into staying on your Website. By doing so you are more likely to keep your loyal visitors.

[Useless Tip3] » Put People on a Mailing List

Sending out a newsletter or helpful tips once in a while is OK. Sending out Emails several times a week is annoying. To avoid getting marked as spam, keep the Emails that you send out to a minimum and make sure that they contain useful information that consumers will find valuable; otherwise you are likely going to lose subscribers.

[Useless Tip4] » Paying for Classified Ad Space

While this may seem like a great way to get traffic, the reality is that most people´s eyes glaze over when they see the Ads. Visitors spend more time ignoring them than clicking on them. So don´t waste your time – instead focus on advertising techniques that actually work, such as guest posting.

[Useless Tip5] » Post Often

Updating your blog or Website is important, there is no denying that. But there is a huge misconception out there that you have to post repeatedly to keep people coming back. The truth is, if you don´t have anything valuable to say, there is no point in updating. People can sense when a post is posted just to fill a space – make sure you are updating your Website with quality content and not just filler content.

Conclusion

It is easy to get wrapped up in doing all the things that people tell you are imperative to succeed, but the truth is that you have to figure out what works for you, and that might not necessarily means what works for everyone else. While certain tactics, like link building, SEO and guest posting will almost always help you out, focus on providing a quality product first and foremost and on marketing it in a smart way to maximize the outcome.