bharatbhasha.net
Free Articles  >>  Marketing >>  Page 442  >> 

Guest Articles Good for Some Bad for Others



Guest Articles: Good for Some, Bad for Others
 by: Bobette Kyle

A recent debate started me thinking about how some marketing strategies can be right for one Web site, but wrong for another depending on the site’s purpose and the underlying reasoning behind the action.

If an action doesn’t directly and logically plug into site goals, then there are likely more profitable ways to spend that time and effort.

Publishing third-party articles on a Web site is one of those marketing strategies that can be right for one site, yet wrong for another.

Publishing Guest Articles as a Strategy

Publishing guest articles as one of your Web site marketing strategies can help broaden the amount and quality of content on a site, which in turn can lead to a more solid, stronger reputation. James Edwards of Umbrella-Consultancy, <a href="http://www.umbrella-consultancy.co.uk" target=new>http://www.umbrella-consultancy.co.uk</a>, explains:

"IMO having quality articles on your site will show that you are...someone who embraces the industry and respects the work of others. Most research scientists post links to other respected scientists’ work. I think it can only be good to have quality material by other people in your field posted on your site."

Helping Web Site Visitors

Another situation where adding others’ articles to your site can make strategic sense is when a lot of visitors arrive looking for a solution other than the one you provide on your site. Rather than have them wander off, no closer to an answer to their problem, you can build goodwill and credibility by having articles on the Web site that give them more information.

For example, several types of people arrive at my site through the search engines:
  • Some are people researching marketing consulting services.
  • Some are students looking to write a paper or finish an assigned project for school.
  • Some are looking for marketing software.
  • Others are looking to buy printed material (e-books, templates, workbooks, etc.) in order to proceed, step-by-step, on their own.


The only ones that are going to be interested in what I have to sell are those in the last group. Instead of letting the majority of visitors go without a fight, I have articles on the site from handpicked individuals or companies.

Those articles are chosen according to how good the quality is, how well the subject matter fits, and whether I think the information will help site visitors.

Information Sites

If a site (or section of a site) is informational in nature, guest articles can be a viable Web site marketing strategy, for several reasons:
  • Repeat, purchase-related visits. A good information library can help potential customers through the decision-making process. If they find the information on your site especially helpful, they will be predisposed to coming back later, when they are ready to purchase.
  • Increased Web site revenue. Publishing others’ work can generate more revenue for your own site. For example, when I publish a third-party article, elsewhere on the page I include one or more of the following: AdSense; an advertisement for my own products; a newsletter sign-up box; or a relevant affiliate link. That way, every path off the page satisfies one of my own goals (direct ad revenue, new newsletter subscriber, or product sales lead).
  • Increased targeted traffic. Each new page of quality content has the potential to bring in a happy chunk of incremental traffic from the search engines.
  • Future collaborations or other projects. An indirect benefit from publishing others’ articles is contact and future collaboration with authors. For example, after one author received several new sign-ups to her newsletter through an article published on my site, she contacted me about collaborating on an audio product.


Poor Fit With Marketing Strategies

For some business models, including guest articles in a list of Web site marketing strategies does not make sense. For example, it can be counterproductive to include guest articles on Web sites where the primary goal is to sell.

Service Web Sites

If the goal is to generate direct sales and leads for your own services, it doesn’t make sense to dilute the message and call to action with diversions. Karon Thackston explains:

"The purpose of my site is to get those in need of copywriting services and SEO copywriting services to contact me in order to do business. People who come to my Marketing Words site, <a href="http://www.marketingwords.com" target=new>http://www.marketingwords.com</a>, are looking for information about copywriting. They are also looking to hire a copywriter."

Therefore, you will find only material written by Karon on her site.

Product Sales Sites

Some sites have a single goal: to sell product. Every page on the site is devoted to product descriptions or copy designed to move a visitor toward a purchase. In these cases, where the predominant call to action is "buy the product," articles could hurt sales by diverting visitor attention away from the products.

Visit your favorite online retail sites, and you are likely to find product descriptions, reviews, photos and other product-driven content - but little or no guest articles. Their absence on many e-commerce sites is an illustration of the poor fit of such articles as a marketing strategy for those sites.

Understanding how different techniques support, or sabotage, Web site marketing strategies can be critical to a site’s success. Align your strategies with overall goals, and your business is more likely to flourish.


About Author Bobette Kyle :



Bobette Kyle draws upon 10+ years of Marketing/Executive experience, Marketing MBA, and online marketing research in her writing. Bobette is proprietor of the Web Site Marketing Plan Network, http://www.WebSiteMarketingPlan.com, and Moderator for the Web Marketing topic at highrankings.com forums.

Copyright 2004 Bobette Kyle. All rights reserved. <input type=hidden name="sf1" value="The_Author">


Article Source: http://www.bharatbhasha.net
Article Url: http://www.bharatbhasha.net/marketing.php/584

LD
Other Articles by Bobette Kyle

•How to Get Started on Your Marketing Plan
 by: Bobette Kyle When developing or updating a marketing plan, knowing where to start is often a challenge. To better develop effective marketing strategies, begin by gathering information about both your business and the larger business environment (competition, trends, statistics, etc). Internally, the amount of information you gather about your own business will depend on your company size. Information can include business strategies and plans; company marketing plans; pricing; and...

•Brainstorming with Props Goodie Bags and The WSJ
   by Bobette KyleWhen developing new strategies or products, coming up withunique ideas is often a struggle. It is one of the reasonswhy, in any industry, there is so much repetition. One wayto generate new ideas and get the creative juices flowingis by brainstorming using props. There are several ways toincorporate props into a session. Two of my favorites arethe Wall Street Journal (WSJ) and goodie bags.~~~~~~~~What is Brainstorming?~~~~~~~~According to dictionary.com, brainstorming is:1) A...

•Your Web Site s Objective
   by Bobette KyleBased on the strategic marketing plan book How Much for Just the Spider?Do you know your Web site's objective? With an objective to help overcome your main challenges, you can work smarter, not harder. Through this second article in the four part Web Site Marketing Plan series, learn how you can consider business building models and customer stages when setting objectives.Think of a Web site objective as the big picture. In general terms, the objective answers the question...

•Developing a Web Site Marketing Plan
   by Bobette KylePart One of a Four Part SeriesBased on How Much for Just the Spider?by Bobette KyleFor many of us, finding the time and commitment to complete amarketing plan for our Web sites is difficult. There are so manyother obligations vying for our attention it is tempting to pushplanning to the back burner. Giving into that temptation,however, means putting your business at a disadvantage. Yourmarketing plan is the compass by which you navigate. Asopportunities arise or your business...

•The 5 Step Web Site Marketing Plan
   by Bobette KyleDo you have a marketing plan for your site? If not, it may be time to think about developing one. A marketing plan helps you make the right day-to-day and long term decisions. Without one, your site is less likely to be a success.Creating a marketing plan need not be scary or difficult. It does not require a marketing degree or a lot of experience. You do, however, need to put some quality time into your plan. Building your plan is a five step process.** Step 1: Gather and...

•Choosing Tactics for Your Web Site Marketing Plan
   by Bobette KyleBased on the strategic marketing plan book How Much for Just the Spider?Objectives, strategies, and tactics - these are the parts of a solid strategic marketing plan. Your site objective defines the big picture, strategies provide the framework, and tactics fill in the details. Tactics are where the action takes place - these are the things you will do to bring your plans to life.There is no shortage of Internet-related marketing tactics. Many have great potential. The...

•Strategies for Your Web Site Marketing Plan
   by Bobette KyleBased on the strategic marketing plan book How Much for Just the Spider?How strong are your Web site strategies? Do they move your business toward achieving your objectives or overall goals? Think of your strategies as a framework that clarifies the approaches you will take in meeting your Web site's objectives. They are more specific than the objective, but do not include exact details. After developing the strategic framework, you will fill in the details with tactics (I...

•Direct Mail Advertising Email Is Not Like Postal Mail
by Bobette Kyle____________________________________________________________Publication Guidelines:You may use this article as long as the byline, resourcebox, and links remain intact. If the article does not fityour Web site/newsletter guidelines, please requestadjustments. mailto:bobette@WebSiteMarketingPlan.com .Please notify the author of use and provide a sample copy ofthe publication.Word count: 627Formatted 65 characters per line.Email questions to...

•Affordable Market Research
   by Bobette Kyle____________________________________________________________Publication Guidelines:You may use this article as long as the byline, resourcebox, and links remain intact. If the article does not fityour Web site/newsletter guidelines, please requestadjustments. mailto:bobette@WebSiteMarketingPlan.com .Please notify the author of use and provide a sample copy ofthe publication.Word count: 943Formatted 60 characters per line.Email questions to...

•Integrating Streaming Media into Marketing Programs An Interview with Ronni Rhodes
   by Bobette KyleStreaming Media - audio, video, and multimedia clips played over the Internet - seems to be everywhere lately. Few of us, however, know how to effectively use it on our small business sites.I recently spoke with Ronni Rhodes of WBC Imaging, http://WBCImaging.com, who specializes in Streaming Media services. She is here to help us understand how and when to use Streaming Media in our marketing activities.Bobette: Hello Ronni. Thanks so much for taking time to share your...

Click here to see More Articles by Bobette Kyle
Publishers / Webmasters
Tell A Friend
Leave A Comment!
Download this article in PDF
Report Article!
Search through all the articles:


258 Users Online!!
Related Articles:
Latest Articles:
 
marketing >> Top 50 Articles on marketing
Category - >
• Advertising • Advice • Affiliate Programs • Automobiles
• Be Your Own Mentor • Careers • Communication • Consumers
• CopyWriting • Crime • Domain Names • DoT com Entrepreneur Corner
• Ebooks • Ecommerce • Education • Email
• Entertainment • Environment • Family • Finance And Business
• Food & Drink • Gardening • Health & Fitness • Hobbies
• Home Business • Home Improvement • Humour • House Holds
• Internet And Computers • Kiddos and Teens • Legal Matters • Mail Order
• Management • Marketing • Marriage • MetaPhysical
• Motivational • MultiMedia • Multi Level Marketing • NewsLetters
• Pets • Psychology • Religion • Parenting
• Politics • Sales • Science • Search Engine Optimization
• Site Promotion • Sports • Technology • Travel
• Web Development • Web Hosting • WeightLoss • Women's Corner
• Writing • Miscellaneous Articles • Real Estate • Arts And Crafts
• Aging


Disclaimer: The information presented and opinions expressed in the articles are those of the authors
and do not necessarily represent the views of bharatbhasha.net and/or its owners.


Copyright © AwareINDIA. All rights reserved || Privacy Policy || Terms Of Use || Author Guidelines || Free Articles
FAQs Link To Us || Submit An Article || Free Downloads|| Contact Us || Site Map  || Advertise with Us ||
Click here for Special webhosting packages for visitors of this website only!
Vastu Shastra

Linux Hosting Provided By AwareIndia