How to Acquire SEO Customers

You might be a SEO genius but if you are doing SEO for a living and you don�t know how to acquire clients, not only nobody will appreciate yourskills but you will soon find yourself starving. In order to avoid this, here are some tactics you need to know, if you want to acquire SEO customers.

Think Twice, If You Really Need to Grow Your SEO Business

First, before we start with the tactics themselves, one other issue needs to be clarified - do you really need new clients? It might look like new clients are always welcome but this certainly isn�t the case.

You might be thinking, the more, the better. Not so. When you grow your business, quality issues start to popup. For instance, will you be able to service all the new clients you acquire? If not, what makes you certain you will be able to hire the right people to provide the service your clients expect? Business growth is good but the list of companies that drowned because of poorly managed growth is miles longa nd it makes no sense to join it, so before your rush hunting for new clients, do think if you will be able to handle them.

1 Get Referred and Recommended

After you have made sure you do need new clients, let�s see how to find them. The first tactic is to get referred and recommended. You can ask friends and acquaintances to do it but your best referrals are your past clients. Sometimes satisfied clients will refer you anyway but you might also ask them explicitly to do it. You can even ask them for written testimonials/recommendations and put these on your site.

2 Check SEO Job/Gig Boards

SEO job/gig boards, such asCraigslist, are huge opportunities to find new clients. You can place an ad offering your services, or you can check ads of people who are looking for SEO services and respond. Also, in addition to general job boards, you might want to check the ads at the most popular SEO forums, such asWarriorForum.

3 Get a High Quality Site

Your site is another tool to find clients. You need to have a top-notch site because no matter which channel you use to find clients, they will always have a look at your site before hiring you. If they see a messy site, don�t expect they will do business with you. It probably goes without saying that your site needs to have good rankings, too. If your site is nowhere to be seen for your keywords who will hire you ‐ if you can't do proper SEO for your very own site, who is mad to trust you with theirs?

4 Partner with a Web Designer/Developer

A tactic that can bring you really a lot of clients is to develop a partnership with a Web designer/Web developer. They can send you clients directly and you can do the same with your clients, who need a new design/coding for their site. Additionally, if you know the designer/developer and are certain of the high quality of their work, you won't have problems doing SEO for a poorly designed/coded site, which we know is always a nightmare.

5 List Your Services and Rates Onsite

You can't imagine how magnificently this works! When clients are looking for SEO help and they see a concrete offer rather than the standard �We are the greatest!!!!� blah-blah-blah (and if your rates are normal, of course), they are really eager to contact you. So, don�t be shy but put your rates onsite.

6 Offer Package Discounts and Subscriptions

You can also consider offering package discounts and subscriptions. For instance, you can offer reduced prices if a client orders SEO for two sites. Subscriptions are good because they bring you a monthly fee and since SEO is an ongoing activity, it makes sense to offer subscriptions for let�s say 5 or 10 hours of work a month and ask for extra payment if in a particular month you worked more hours for a given client.

7 Get As Much Free Publicity As You Can

Free publicity is not a direct shot at clients but it helps to build your reputation, which in turn helps a lot to convince clients you are their person. The opportunities for free publicityare numerous and you don�t have to try them all. One advanced tactic here is to join a site such as Help a Reporter because it gives you exposure to really high quality publications.

8 Guest Post and Comment on Top Ranking Sites

Again, guest posts are not a direct shot at clients but they also help to build your reputation and gain more exposure. Look for SEO/Web sites, or if you specialize in a niche SEO, for sites in that niche, contact the webmaster, write a post and little by little you will gain a substantial Web presence.

For instance, back in the day when the site was at its prime, a friend of mine used to write for SEOchat. She told me that on days/weeks when she published a popular article, she was getting multiple emails, a large portion of which offered some kind of SEO gig or even jobs and this continued for years after she stopped writing for the site.

9 Be Active on Social Media

Social media also give you a lot of exposure, so explore them, especially the SEO channels and/or niche channels on them. While Facebook and Twitter do work, the best place is LinkedIn because it is a business-oriented network. Take part in forums and channels there, answer questions, ask for recommendations, etc. and sooner or later you will see clients pouring in.

10 Do Followups of Past Clients

Past clients are not past! They can bring you new clients. Maybe this was a one-time client who was pleased but has forgotten about you, so if you remind him or her gently about your services, you might be lucky to land a new client. Just make sure you are not spamming - don�t mass mail all your past clients, or don�t send multiple emails to one client.

These tactics can bring you new clients but actually it is more important if you can retain these clients. It makes no sense to acquire new clients, if they leave you dissatisfied. So, in addition to wondering how to find new clients, do some effort to retain them- this is the key to a successful SEO business.

Google Adsense Alternatives

If you are frustrated with your Adsense revenue, or if your Adsense account has been banned, this isn't the end of the world. Adsense might be the Mercedes of ad networks but from the thousands of ad networks out there there must be many other alternatives to monetize your site. Indeed, there are and in some cases they will work much better for you. Of course, the result depends on many factors, such as your niche, how much traffic you have and where it comes from, etc. but all equal any of these Adsense alternatives can bring you real money. Here are 11 Google Adsense alternatives to consider:

1 Media.net

Probably of all the ad networks on the list, this is the least known but it is also the best. They offer very innovative solutions, such as content ads, search targeting, web bar, and mobile ads. Media.net is especially good for huge sites with lots of US, UK, and Canada traffic. One of the downsides of Media.net is that the payment is at $100 but for a huge site this should be pocket money.

2 Chitika

Chitika doesn't offer that many types of ads but its main advantage is that the ads it offers are very targeted. The CTR is great because the ads are displayed only when a user comes from a search engine. Its low $10 payout is also good because even if your site is small, or you use only one ad block, most likely you will be getting payments monthly instead of having to wait for them for months.

3 Bidvertiser

Bidvertiser is another (mainly) PPC network, though they started offering a conversion bonus. Its payout is also at $10, which means for a small site it is also an option.

4 Infolinks

Infolinks offers in-text advertising. In-text ads are very unobtrusive compared to the rest and they don't eat space because they are displayed as popups when the user hovers over the hyperlink in the text they are anchored to. In-text ads from Infolinks work surprisingly well, though it varies depending on the niche. However, its payout of $50 isn't very nice, if your site(s) are small because you might have to wait for months to reach it.

5 adBrite

Many webmasters consider adBrite to be the best Google Adsense alternative but since my experience with them isn't as good as my experience with Chitika or Infolinks, it comes as Number 5. adBrite is essentially an ad marketplace, where buyers and sellers can communicate to negotiate the price. This is what makes it different from the rest. However, you need to have a very popular site with a very lucrative demographics in order to make it there because the competition is really huge.

6 Clickbank

If you do not insist on using CPC ads as a Google Adsense alternative but are open to suggestions, then you should try affiliate sales (known also as CPA ‐ Cost Per Action). Clickbank is the Mecca of CPA offers and it should be your first stop. Clickbank offers probably millions of products and choosing what to promote could be the hardest task. However, the rewards you get could be times what you are making with Adsense on a good day.

7 Amazon

Amazon is another CPA ad network that works well for many publishers. It is especially good if you have a tech site because there are lots of cool gadgets there but since they have offers in almost any niche, it is also an option. Their ads are context sensitive and because of this are almost always relevant. However, their terms are very complicated and it will take you a lot of time to get familiar with what commissions you will be getting for your sales.

8 Kontera

Kontera is another in-text network you can consider an alternative to Google Adsense. It is comparable in performance with Infolinks but again, this varies a lot depending on the niche. However, if you are to choose between Kontera and Infolinks, I will definitely pick Infolinks.

9 eBay

If Clickbank, Amazon, and a few other of the top CPA networks don't work for you, you could give eBay a try. Again, your success (or the lack of it) with it varies depending on the niche but you can make some money with it. I wouldn't put eBay ads as my primary source of income because this will waste space I can use for better ads. However, as a secondary or even tertiary advertiser, if you have some free space left, eBay could be given a try.

10 LinkShare

You might be surprised to find LinkShare ‐ a relatively unknown company - on the list of Top Adsense alternatives but it is an alternative for real. It has a huge choice of offers and they pay at $1. Maybe it is even better than the rest on this list because if your site isn't huge, you won't have to wait for months (or even years) till you get the paycheck. Linkshare has offers in almost any niche and there you will find many of the best advertisers from all over the world.

I could add many more companies that are also worth trying. The good news is that there are many more Google AdSense alternatives and the fact that they didn't make the Top 10 doesn't mean they are worse. These 10 are my personal favorites and I can tell from experience that they do work. Well, the fact that they work for me doesn't necessarily mean they will work for everybody else. In fact, under some circumstances the companies that didn't make it to the list could be even better alternatives but you won't know this unless you try them. The world doesn't start or end with Google Adsense, though certainly it is one really good ad program.

Make money from your website

For millions of people web sites are the major source of income. Thanks to the various ways to monetize a site, it is possible to make a living as a web master. However, this doesn't mean that every web master is a millionaire. Well, if you know how to monetize your web site, you might not get rich but at least chances are that under the worst possible scenario, you will be able to cover your hosting fees and the other expenses you make for your site.

Currently the most profitable ways to monetize your site are CPM ads, CPC ads, CPA ads, direct sales of ad space, and selling merchandise/goods/services. These ways are described in this article.

CPM Ads Can Bring In Cents

CPM ads (an abbreviation for Cost Per Thousand) is the oldest type of site monetization. You put banners on your site and advertisers pay you based on the number of unique impressions/page views your site has.

CPM ads are the easiest form of site monetization because they require almost no effort on your side, but they are also the least feasible because as a rule (unless you have really high traffic and your audience is well-targeted), the rates are low. Some CPM ad networks pay as low as $.05 per 1,000 uniques, which means that you need millions of visitors in order to make $100-200 a month.

Popups and layer ads pay a bit more ($.5-2 per 1,000 uniques/pageviews). They could bring you a few dollars a month but many visitors find them especially irritating and this is why many web masters are not willing to put popups and/or layer ads on their sites.

There are high-paying CPM ads – for instance ads paying $2-5 per 1,000 uniques but usually the networks that run them have very high traffic and quality requirements for the sites that are eligible. As a result, it is very hard to get into these networks and take advantage of these well-paid CPM ads.

There are many CPM networks we can recommend. For sites with lots of traffic the choice better and some of the good options are Advertising.com, TribalFusion, CasaleMedia, and ValueClick because there CPM rates are good. AdBrite, AdToll, Right Media, andBurstMedia are also good. Some of these networks are CPM-only, while others have other types of ads as well. Google also has CPM ads, so you may want to try them.

CPC Ads Are a Profitable Way to Monetize a Site

CPC ads (an abbreviation from Cost Per Click) are different from CPM because with CPC you get paid not when visitors view ads but when they click on them. The good news is that CPC rates are much, much better and as a result, it is possible to make a decent income even with a small site with not so high traffic. The key with CPC success is to have a well-targeted site in a niche where there are a lot of advertisers.

The most popular CPC network is Google Adsense and even though there are other CPC networks, the income you can make from Adsense is much higher. The reason is that Google Adsense has many advertisers and if your site is in a profitable niche, CPC can be the best way to monetize your site. Additionally, unlike some of the other CPC ad networks, Google Adsense is open to publishers from all over the world.

Usually CPC ads are text ads and you publish them in blocks. However, there are also intext ads, where the keyword is underlined and when the visitor puts the mouse on it, a tooltip with CPC ads appears. Intext ads are less obtrusive but it takes much more effort for the user to notice them (and above all – to click them), which means that your chances to make money are further decreased. Kontera is one of the most popular networks for intext CPC ads.

The list of good CPC ad networks is not as long as the list of CPM or CPA ad networks but still there is a choice. For instance, Google Adsense, Yahoo! Publisher Network (YPN), BidVertiser, Chitika, and Clicksor are generally considered top choices but since many CPM ad networks pay decent rates for clicks on their CPM ads, you might want to try them as well.

CPA Ads Could Make You Rich

Currently CPA (an abbreviation from Cost Per Action) is the most profitable way to monetize a site in a profitable niche. CPA, also known as “affiliate programs”, pays you a commission when your visitors perform an action. Most often this action is a purchase, but it could also be something else – i.e. download a free trial, or signup for the service of the advertiser.

Affiliate programs can make you rich because there are many products with really fat commissions. For niches such as health, finance, travel, etc. affiliate programs are a real golden mine.

However, affiliate programs require a lot of efforts on your side and still there is no guarantee that the offers you pick to promote will convert well and will make you money. Sometimes even the highest converting offers won't convert on your site and the only thing you can do is replace them with other offers, hoping that they will convert better.

There might be hundreds of CPM ad networks but for CPA they are thousands. It is practically impossible to try all of them personally and this is why we would like to recommend some of the best to start with.Amazon, eBay, ShareASale, Commission Junction, Clickbank, Max Bounty, Azoogle, Never Blue Ads,LinkShare, or PepperJam are just a few of the greatest CPA networks we can recommend.

Direct Sales of Ads

If you are not happy with the CPM rates of ad networks, or CPC and CPA don't convert well with your site, you could try to find direct advertisers. However, have in mind that such an endeavor is not necessarily bound to succeed and if your site doesn't have audience advertisers can't reach elsewhere, you will hardly be able to negotiate good prices. Still, for some sites direct sales of ad space are a viable alternative and this is why you could also try it.

Openads Ad Server and OIO Publisher Ad Platform are two of the sites where you could try your luck. AdBrite also allowa you to price your ad space. In fact, almost any major network gives you the chance to put a widget on your site to invite advertisers directly to advertise on your site.

Sell Merchandise/Goods/Services

In addition to CPA ads, where you are selling other merchants' products, you can try selling your own merchandise or products/services with your brand. This technique works well mainly for popular sites with loyal audience and is hardly the easiest way to monetize a site. You could try to sell merchandise/goods/services as a supplementary service and if you see that this monetization technique works, you can expand the business. CafePress is one of the best places where you can sell merchandise with your logo and the greatest thing is that they print on demand, which means you don't have to keep your merchandise in stock.

The monetization techniques we described here can be combined. You can run CPM ads together with CPA or CPC. You can also combine multiple ads from the same type (i.e. CPM, CPC, or CPA) from different ad networks, provided that this doesn't violate the terms of these networks. There isn't a universal prescription about the best way to monetize a site. The basic rule is that you need to try and see what works for you. The fact that a given monetization technique works for somebody else doesn't mean that it will work for you, so you need to try and see for yourself.

HTML 5 and SEO

HTML 5 is still in the making but for any SEO expert, who tries to look ahead, some knowledge about HTML 5 and how it will impact SEO is not unnecessary information. It is true that the changes and the new concepts in HTML 5 will impact Web developers and designers much more than SEO experts but still it is far from the truth to say that HTML 5 will not mean changes in the Organic SEO policy.

What's New in HTML 5?

HTML 5 follows the way the Net evolved in the last years and includes many useful tags and elements. At first glance, it might look as if HTML 5 is going in the direction of a programming language (i.e. PHP) but actually this is not so – it is still an XML–based presentation language. The new tags and elements might make HTML 5 look more complex but this is only at first glance.

HTML 5 is not very different from HTML 4. One of the basic ideas in the development of HTML 5 was to ensure backward compatibility and because of that HTML 5 is not a complete revamp of the HTML specification. So, if you had worries that you will have to start learning it from scratch, these worries are groundless.

How the Changes in HTML 5 Will Affect SEO?

As a SEO expert, you are most likely interested mainly in those changes in the HTML 5 specification, which will affect your work. Here are some of them:

• Improved page segmentation. Search engines are getting smarter and there are many reasons to believe that even now they are applying page segmentation. Basically, page segmentation means that a page is divided into several separate parts (i.e. main content, menus, headers, footers, links sections, etc.) and these parts are treated as separate entries. At present, there is no way for a Web master to tell search engines how to segment a page but this is bound to change in HTML 5.
• A new <article> tag. The new <article> tag is probably the best addition from a SEO point of view. The <article> tag allows to mark separate entries in an online publication, such as a blog or a magazine. It is expected that when articles are marked with the <article> tag, this will make the HTML code cleaner because it will reduce the need to use <div> tags. Also, probably search engines will put more weight on the text inside the <article> tag as compared to the contents on the other parts of the page.
• A new <section> tag. The new <section> tag can be used to identify separate sections on a page, chapter, book. The advantage is that each section can have its separate HTML heading. As with the <article> tag, it can be presumed that search engines will pay more attention to the contents of separate sections. For instance, if the words of a search string are found in one section, this implies higher relevance as compared to when these words are found all across the page or in separate sections.
• A new <header> tag. The new <header> tag (which is different from the head element) is a blessing for SEO experts because it gives a lot of flexibility. The <header> tag is very similar to the <H1> tag but the difference is that it can contain a lot of stuff, such as H1, H2, H3 elements, whole paragraphs of text, hard–coded links (and this is really precious for SEO), and any other kind of info you feel relevant to include.
• A new <footer> tag. The <footer> tag might not be as useful as the <header> one but still it allows to include important information there and it can be used for SEO purposes as well. The <header> and <footer> tags can be used many times on one page – i.e. you can have a separate header/footer for each section and this gives really a lot of flexibility.
• A new <nav> tag. Navigation is one of the important factors for SEO and everything that eases navigation is welcome. The new <nav> tag can be used to identify a collection of links to other pages.

As you see, the new tags follow the common structure of a standard page and each of the parts (i.e. header, footer, main section) has a separate tag. The tags we described here, are just some (but certainly not all) of the new tags in HTML 5, which will affect SEO in some way. For instance, <audio>, <video> or <dialogue> tags are also part of the HTML 5 standard and they will allow to further separate the content into the adequate categories. There are many other tags but they are of relatively lower importance and that is why they are not discussed.

For now HTML 5 is still far in the future. When more pages become HTML 5–compliant, search engines will pay more attention to HTML 5. Only then it will be possible to know how exactly search engines will treat HTML 5 pages. The mass adoption of HTML 5 won't happen soon and it is a safe bet to say that for now you can keep to HTML 4 and have no concerns. Additionally, it will take some time for browsers to adjust to HTML 5, which further delays the moment when HTML 5 will be everywhere.

However, once HTML 5 is accepted and put to use, it will be the dominating standard for the years to come and that is why you might want to keep an eye on what other web masters are doing, just to make sure that you will not miss the moment when HTML 5 becomes the defacto standard.

How to get traffic from Pinterest

Pinterest is the latest social network to take the world by storm. While social network skeptics will call it just another site, the fact is that it is different from the other countless similar sites. What is more, you can use Pinterest to successfully promote your business.

What Is Pinterest and How It Is Different from Other Social Networks?

Pinterest defines itself as �an online pinboard�. It's a place where you pin (mostly) images and other stuff you find interesting and share them with the world. Similarly to the other social networks, you follow people and have followers. Also, other users can repin your pins, thus spreading the word.

While there are no limits on the type of stuff you can pin, Pinterest is not suitable for all kinds of brands. It works best if your product/service can be presented in a visual way (i.e. clothes, furniture, etc.) and in this case the publicity you and your products get on Pinterest could do miracles for you.

Tips to Make the Most Out of Pinterest for the Benefit of Your Business

In order to make the most out of Pinterest rather than waste your time or even worse - do damage to your brand, you need to know how to use it. Here are some tips to help you with this.

1 Be Active on Pinterest

As any social network, Pinterest is a huge thief of time. You need to spend time on it daily in order to be able to follow what others are pinning, to comment on it, etc. You can't expect benefits from Pinterest, if you are not active on it on a daily basis.

2 Use High Quality Images

Pinterest is about visual appeal. This is why you can't go with crappy images taken with your 10 year old mobile. You need images with professional quality because otherwise you will be doing your brand more harm than good. This doesn't necessarily mean you need to hire a professional photographer - with the right equipment and some skills you can create the images on your own.

3 Post in Series

When you keep your followers interested, they develop the habit of visiting your board every now and then. One trick to keep your users interested is to post in series. In other words, if you have 10 images you want to post, don't post them all at once but post them one a day in the course of 10 days, stating that this is image 1 of 10, 2 of 10, etc.

4 Add a Pin-It Button to Your Site

If you want to get repins, you need to make it easier for users to do it. One way of doing it is by adding a Pin-It button to your site. Check what Pin-It buttons are available for your platform (i.e. WordPress, Joomla, etc.), pick one of them, put it on a visible place on your site and begin counting your pins/repins.

5 Post Interesting Stuff Not Limited to Your Products/Services Only

People are hardly coming to your board to see your products, so post other interesting pictures that will attract users (or keep them, if you already managed to attract them). This helps to attract new users to your account because when they see a cool pic somewhere on Pinterest, chances are they will visit your profile and have a look at your products there. If you post only images of your products, you won't be able to attract random visitors that much.

6 Write Interesting and Meaningful Descriptions

Photos are the bait but even the most unambiguous photo will benefit from a good description. Additionally, a good description will help your images rank better with search engines, which means more traffic for you. Be concise and precise in your descriptions and your users will certainly appreciate it.

7 Use Hashtags (Wisely) and Categorize Your Boards

When you use hashtags and when you categorize your pins, this makes them look more organized and they will be easier to find. On the other hand, don't use hashtags at large - i.e. add a hashtag only if you really need it because otherwise your pins will look spammy and users will skip them.

8 Follow Users with Large Followers Groups

When you pick whom to follow, consider not only if their pins are interesting but also if they have a large group of followers. When you follow such users, and especially if they decide to follow you back, their huge follower base is an undisputed advantage when they decide to repin something you have posted. With such power users one repin can bring crowds to your board!

9 Repin Interesting Stuff

Like any social network, interaction with other users is key on Pinterest. Because of this, it makes a lot of sense to like and comment on other people's pins. These give you more visibility, not to mention that in return you can get some repins, likes, and comments from other users. However, as with hashtags, you do need to have measure - i.e. don't repin, comment, or like every single pin you see on your screen, because this devaluates your contribution.

10 Use Videos, Charts, Infographics

Pinterest is not only about static stuff, there is a video section as well. Of course, this is not YouTube but if you can create a cool video about your business, don't be shy to post it. Also, in addition to images, you can use various charts and infographics - these are especially popular among users.

Pinterest is an interesting place and you will hardly have to force yourself to use it. Of course, its main advantage for you is the publicity you get. You might not be able to make a sale on Pinterest but the exposure and the traffic to your site are valuable prerequisites for making more sales, so if your products are suitable for the Pinterest format and audience, don't hesitate but promote them there.

YouTube Traffic

YouTube is one of the most popular sites and in addition to all the fun there, YouTube offers many opportunities for promotion and getting traffic to your site. Similarly to Facebook and Twitter, in order to use YouTube successfully for promotion and getting traffic, you need to know the rules for this. Here are some tips how to promote yourself, your site, and your products and how to get free traffic from YouTube:

1 Post viral videos

There are millions of videos on YouTube. If you post a video nobody is interested in, this video will go unnoticed, as millions of other videos. The clue to getting traffic from YouTube is to post useful videos, or even better – viral videos. Viral videos are not only useful videos, but they also tend to appeal to large groups of people. If your video manages to get viral, people will promote it for you and the only thing left for you is to reap the benefits.


2 Create an interesting profile

Similarly to Facebook, Twitter, or any other social networking site, an interesting profile is a must. If people like your videos, they will check your profile to learn more about you. When they see that your profile is boring, they won't bother more with you. You can make your profile a bit informal but don't make it as if it were the profile of a crazy teenager – you are using YouTube for business, right?

3 Include your logo and website in the video

Your logo and your website URL are your major branding weapons. This is why you must include them in the video. You can include them in the beginning of the video or at the end. It is best to have your logo and URL throughout the whole video because this way you will be gaining lots of exposure but if you can't do it (for instance because of artistic considerations), the beginning and the end of the video will suffice.

4 Post quality videos

As already mentioned, there is no shortage of videos on YouTube. Unfortunately, this also means there is no shortage of videos with poor quality. These videos are not favored by viewers, so if you want viewers to watch your videos, make sure that your videos don't have crappy sound and/or blurred pictures. YouTube is not a board for professional videographers, so you can post amateur videos, but make sure their quality is decent.

5 Promote your videos

If your videos get viral, you are lucky but you can't count on this. In order to get YouTube traffic, your videos need viewers. You can't rely solely on the fact that viewers will find your videos – you need to promote them. Even viral videos will benefit from a promotion by you.

6 Make your videos search-friendly

One of the ways viewers find your videos is through search – both locally on YouTube and on search engines. This is why you need to make your videos search-friendly. To do this, include your major keywords in the title and in the descriptions. Also, pay special attention to the tags. List as many keywords as relevant in the tags, but beware that you don't get spammy.


7 Post in series

Standalone videos can become a hit but it is best if you create series of videos and post them once a day/week. This way viewers will know that there will be more and they will be coming to check. Even if you don't create series, at least try to post videos regularly – this builds audience loyalty.

8 Post video responses

Video responses are one of the unique things about YouTube and you should take full advantage of it. Search your niche, choose the most popular videos in your niche and post video responses to them. Just be careful that the response you post is related to the video you are responding to and don't make your video response a blatant self-promotion.

9 Choose the right time to post your videos

On YouTube, timing is very important because there are peaks in traffic and times when there are not so many viewers. Weekdays (especially Wednesdays and above all - Thursdays) morning or early afternoon US time is the best time to post a general interest video. In order to have your video uploaded in the prime time, you need to plan a bit. Have in mind that for large videos and/or slow Internet connections the upload could take you an hour, so start early.


10 Keep your videos short

YouTube doesn't impose limits on the length of videos it publishes but generally long videos are boring. 3 to 5 minutes is the best duration for a video but if required you could go from 1 to 6 minutes. When a video is longer than 6 or 7 minutes, this gets boring and not many people will watch it to the end (where your logo and URL are to be found). 3 to 5 minutes is enough to lay your idea, give some details AND tell viewers to visit your site for more.

11 Comment on other people's videos and include a link to your site in your comment

In addition to video responses, you can also use plain good comments. Again, search for popular videos in your niche and comment on them. If your comments are liked by viewers, they will check your profile and probably watch your videos.
YouTube is a valuable resource to drive traffic to your site and to promote it. The competition there might be fierce, but there is always room for a couple of good videos. Fill this room before your competitors do!

301 Redirect

301 redirect is the most efficient and Search Engine Friendly method for webpage redirection. It's not that hard to implement and it should preserve your search engine rankings for that particular page. If you have to change file names or move pages around, it's the safest option. The code "301" is interpreted as "moved permanently".

You can Test your redirection with Search Engine Friendly Redirect Checker

Below are a Couple of methods to implement URL Redirection via code and htaccess redirect

IIS Redirect

• In internet services manager, right click on the file or folder you wish to redirect
• Select the radio titled "a redirection to a URL".
• Enter the redirection page
• Check "The exact url entered above" and the "A permanent redirection for this resource"
• Click on 'Apply'

ColdFusion Redirect

<.cfheader statuscode="301" statustext="Moved permanently">
<.cfheader name="Location" value="http://www.new-url.com"> 

PHP Redirect

<?
Header( "HTTP/1.1 301 Moved Permanently" );
Header( "Location: http://www.new-url.com" );
?> 

ASP Redirect

<%@ Language=VBScript %>
<%
Response.Status="301 Moved Permanently"
Response.AddHeader "Location","http://www.new-url.com/"
%> 

ASP .NET Redirect

<script runat="server">
private void Page_Load(object sender, System.EventArgs e)
{
Response.Status = "301 Moved Permanently";
Response.AddHeader("Location","http://www.new-url.com");
}
</script> 

JSP (Java) Redirect

<%
response.setStatus(301);
response.setHeader( "Location", "http://www.new-url.com/" );
response.setHeader( "Connection", "close" );
%> 

CGI PERL Redirect

$q = new CGI;
print $q->redirect("http://www.new-url.com/"); 

Ruby on Rails Redirect

def old_action
headers["Status"] = "301 Moved Permanently"
redirect_to "http://www.new-url.com/"
end 

Redirect Old domain to New domain using htaccess redirect

Create a .htaccess file with the below code, it will ensure that all your directories and pages of your old domain will get correctly redirected to your new domain.
The .htaccess file needs to be placed in the root directory of your old website (i.e the same directory where your index file is placed)

Options +FollowSymLinks
RewriteEngine on
RewriteRule (.*) http://www.newdomain.com/$1 [R=301,L]

Please REPLACE www.newdomain.com in the above code with your actual domain name.

In addition to the redirect I would suggest that you contact every backlinking site to modify their backlink to point to your new website.

Note* This .htaccess method of redirection works ONLY on Linux servers having the Apache Mod-Rewrite moduled enabled.

Redirect to www using htaccess redirect

Create a .htaccess file with the below code, it will ensure that all requests coming in to domain.com will get redirected to www.domain.com
The .htaccess file needs to be placed in the root directory of your old website (i.e the same directory where your index file is placed)

Options +FollowSymlinks
RewriteEngine on
rewritecond %{http_host} ^domain.com [nc]
rewriterule ^(.*)$ http://www.domain.com/$1 [r=301,nc]

Please REPLACE domain.com and www.newdomain.com with your actual domain name.

Note* This .htaccess method of redirection works ONLY on Linux servers having the Apache Mod-Rewrite moduled enabled.

How to Redirect HTML

Please refer to section titled 'How to Redirect with htaccess', if your site is hosted on a Linux Server and 'IIS Redirect', if your site is hosted on a Windows Server.