Article submissions are not a new concept, but they do work well if you have some natural writing skills. Article directories take your articles and make them available to their members looking for content to post on their own websites. These directories are great because as part of the agreement with these services, credit and a link back to you is usually required. You should also include a short bio/snippet about you as the author with links to your website or email to be contacted at. This is not only a great way generate traffic to your website, but also lends credibility to you as an author.

Here are some of the Top Article Submission Directories available:

1. Ezine Articles
2. Go Articles
3. Article Base
4. eHow
5. Article Dashboard
6. Article Factory
7. Buzzle
8. Article Alley
9. Amazines
10. Search Warp

Have you used an Article Submission service not listed? Leave a comment and share your experience.

Source: Generate Traffic to Your Website by Article Submissions!

If you go to Google or Yahoo! or any other search engine and enter a business name in the search bar, chances are that most of the top results on the first page are coming from one of the following top local listing directories. That means if you’re not listed at these sites, you could be losing hundreds if not thousands of potential customers that are searching online  for your business, your products or services you offer, every day! What are you waiting for, get listed today!

To get you off started in the right direction, here are the top 10 sites you want to be listed at:

1. Google Maps – It’s Google, need I say more!
2. Yahoo! Local – Offers many options, including FREE listings.
3. Bing Local (formerly MSN Local) – Results show up in Maps results.
4. YellowPages.com – Yes, yellow pages is online, and can really bring in the traffic!
5. Local.com – Offers FREE basic listings and also PPC (pay-per-click) advertising.
6. MerchantCircle.com – Offers FREE local business listings, profiles and reviews.
7. Kudzu.com – Offers many options including FREE local  listings, and reviews.
8. CitySearch.com – Offers Listings and Reviews. Very good in search results.
9. Yelp.com – Offers business listings and customer reviews.
10. DexKnows.com – Many Listing Options to drive customers your way!

Happy Friday folks! Yes, can you believe it, another week has come and gone. Personally I feel the older I get, the quicker the time passes…? Does this happen to you? Anyway, today we are continuing our 5 part series “New Website Development Planning Checklist” (man that’s a mouth full) with “Part 4: Marketing”. Oddly enough, marketing seems to be one of the aspects of developing a new website that clients seldom remember. For some reason people think that if you build it…they will come! Sometimes that may be true with little or no effort, but for the vast majority of website it actually takes work! Here are some common things to think about regarding the marketing of your new site.

4. Marketing

How will people find out about your website? Come on people. If you want to make itin the online realm you have to self promote at any chance you get.

Will you be using “Paid” or free search engine listings? Both are required to make a good impact. Local Directories, Industry Directories, Forums, Blogs, Banners, Pay-Per-Click and Search Engine Listings are all examples of these.

Who will do your Search Engine Optimization? There are many aspects to SEO. At MultiCOLOR Media we make sure your Website is built with the search engines in mind and make sure it is optimized as much as possible. Another optimization service we offer is copywrighting. Good, well-written content is one of the main factors in your SEO campaign. Aside from these, a professional SEO Firm also will help by implementing and managing your search engine listings, Pay-Per-Click campaigns and social media profiles.

Do you currently have or will you be putting in place an off-line marketing program? No matter what anyone says, offline marketing is still essential to any online business. Think about it, look at big online entities such as yahoo, ebay, amazon, facebook, and many more. All this companies spend millions of dollars in offline marketing campaigns including: TV Commercials, Movie Spots, Postcards, Radio and more. You think maybe they’re on to something?

Do you have a budget set aside for an internet marketing campaign? When many businesses hire a web developer they get consumed over the costs involved in the development that they forget to budget for online marketing. It makes no sense. Most businesses have no problem spending $300 or more monthly in local coupon guide advertisements, but when it comes to spending a couple hundred monthly on an internet marketing campaign they think “it’s to expensive” or “I can’t afford it”. How can you not afford to? Thousands if not millions of online businesses would go bankrupt if not for the results gained from online marketing. Ask your SEO Specialist to go over options with you.

What keywords or phrases do you think people would use to find your business, products or services? This is simple. Keywords can be anthing from product names, services offered, brand names to city, state, zip code & counties served.

What information will bring visitors back to your site on a regular basis? Think about offering industry related articles, frequently asked questions, blogs, support forums, quizzez, polls, freebies, coupons, contests and more.

Will you need to re-design/re-print your business cards, stationary and/or  marketing & sales materials? Believe it or not, a lot of business forget about this very important aspect. If you have your website redesigned or developed for the first time, you should take a good look at all of your marketing materials and make sure that your company’s “Brand” resonates accross from your website to all of your printed pieces.

Consider all of these things when you call MultiCOLOR Media for your next web development project and you’ll be on your way to online success!