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Building community websites = Success online
By: Martin Lemieux
http://www.smartads.info
In this article I will discuss how important is it to build community
websites rather than straight forward sales pitches. Selling online is
about bringing people together, not about stuffing products down your
visitors throwts and expecting them to buy from you.
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We have conditioned our minds all of our lives to accept advertising
billboards, radio ads, newspaper ads, commercials, and all sorts of other
advertising materials wherever we go. The same applies on the internet.
This "conditioning" has enabled us to see past all the ads and
look directly for the pertinant information that we are seeking.
People who are new to the internet are more likely to click on your ads
for no apparent reason but to simply search and keep searching. Others
that have beed online for years now, tend not to pay attention to as many
ads on a daily basis like they used to.
If you are serious about making money online without having to spend
too much of your budget, create a "community online". It is
in our nature as human beings to want to belong, or to be involved within
a community setting. Communities come in all shapes & sizes and are
not limited to gender, race, nationality, or religion. A community can
cater to whatever topic you wish and welcome whomever you desire.
Same concept applies to your website!
Building a community within your website is the key to increasing your
business, keeping visitors coming back, and keeping your advertising budget
in the bank. Show your visitors that you aren't just here on the internet
to sell them something. For example, we (Smartads), we are here to teach
what we know about internet marketing. By teaching, we too learn more,
gain more business, and attract new visitors.
RESIDUAL TRAFFIC IS THE KEY!
As i've always mentioned to my clients & readers, getting people
to your website is the easy part. Anyone with a $500 credit card can get
traffic to their website, it's keeping them there and getting your visitors
to come back on their own time is what makes owning a website a dificult
proposition.
Visitors always come back to communities they can relate to!
I always to go back to internet marketing communities online like:
www.webpronews.com
www.sitepronews.com
www.searchenginewatch.com
and so on... There are many internet marketing resources available for
business owners. We are fortunate to have access to the vast amount of
resources that we do, in order to increase our business & to increase
our knowledge.
More resources online also increases competition. There are literally
millions of websites out there and many of them might possibly be your
competitors. Without building a community, people won't remember who you
are, or what it is that you do. Infact, if you are spending all of your
money on banner ads, pay per click advertising, affiliates, and other
marketing areas online, and at the same time you aren't paying attention
to increasing your home base, when your advertising budget runs out so
too will the bulk of your traffic.
If your website isn't good enough, your sales won't be good enough. Granted;
building a website can be very time consuming but just remember that you
don't need to create an empire over night. Just a little here, a little
there, and before you know it, it all adds up to something you can be
proud of. Over time, your website traffic will constantly be increasing.
PLEASE NOTE: If you stop advertising, your traffic won't grow. Growing
your website is all part of the whole plan.
What do we need to create a community website?
You always want to add extras to your site that interest you. By doing
so, you will also attract people with similar interests and help to bridge
the credibility gap online.
You can always add these to your website:
Personal blog
Helpful tips
Mini-ebook courses (on how to be a better client for you) Other people's
articles Chat forum (requires a lot of maintenance & promotion) Free
business directory listings Family albums for users Fun online questionnaires
Mind benders Games Contests (with actual prizes) "How to" articles
Government resources Local community resources Support local companies
& vice versa
I think we can now get a sense of what building a "community"
website means. The key is to take your industry (even if it is boring),
and teach someone about what it is that you do. The internet allows us
to take in more information than we could ever imagine. There is always
someone out there who wants to learn about your industry.
The key is to add on a little at a time. Talk to your web designer. Try
and find unique little ways to build a community website online. Ask people
what they look for within your industry. After time, you will know what
it takes to keep creating more for your company online, and your wallet
will love you for it.
Just remember the more you build, the less your advertising budget will
be when you get there. Just keep it up until you get there, don't give
up on yourself, your company, or your future.
I hope you've enjoyed this article!
Best Regards,
Martin Lemieux
Smartads President
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