Ranking in Google is one of the most important things for businesses and brands of all sizes. This is even more crucial for local and small businesses that might not be able to spend as much money as they would like on pay per click marketing and bidding on various keywords to target new customers.

The good news is that through the use of content creation, blogging, and link building, anyone can start ranking on the first page of Google when their content, site structure, and link building efforts all align with each other.

That is exactly what we are going to be looking at today. Instead of just providing you with a few tips to follow, we are also going to highlight some examples and case studies for you to follow as well.

Let’s get started.

Using Long-Form Landing Pages to Rank for Local Keywords

When it comes to creating a website and content, it’s important to make sure you have a process in place that makes it’s easier for you to not only go live with everything, but also over the longterm promotion of your site and content as well. Instead of creating new content every week (and in small 500-1000 word articles), instead it’s better to focus on big money pages that are super loaded with content and call to actions — while also being resources that you can reference to time and time again.

For example, if you ran a local business that was focused on junk removal and location clean up, you would probably want to focus on a prime keyword like “same-day rubbish removal“, while also building out enough quality content on your site to help with ranking, but also providing your site will valuable content in the process.

We can see an example of this through the the site and landing page below.

What you will notice throughout the site is the that all of the content is focused on one common goal, which is to provide the audience with the necessary tools and information they are looking for when trying to find a reliable rubbish removal company. At the same time, the site does a great job with representing themselves pretty well, while also having clear call to actions throughout the site.

Another big point to make, is that there are over 4,700 words of content on the main page of the site. This in itself will help the site start ranking in Google not only for it’s target keywords, but many other long tail keywords as well.

This is also the same tactic that we use on the main page of blogging.org, as it’s also loaded with thousands of words of content, while also walking users through a simple process and giving multiple call to actions along the way.

The end results is that thousands of visitors are redirected back to the main page of the site when first hitting any inner pages through the search results or other traffic sources. And most importantly, all of the content listed on the main page provides real value and gives the end user exactly what they are looking for.

This is a perfect example to follow for anyone small or local businesses that are having a hard time with creating content for their site, while also ranking in Google and coming up with unique content angles and call to actions in the process.

Creating Content in Many Different Shareable Forms

Google loves content and in order for them to rank billions of websites and blogs accordingly, they want to see not only how much content you create — but also how relevant it is, and the many different types of content you are creating. This also helps influence new ways of building backlinks, getting social shares, and sometimes even embeds on other sites.

A perfect example of this can be seen through the creation of infographics, online videos, and shareable content on social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook.

A clear example of this can be seen on Famoid, with their article titled “I can’t Find an Account I’m Looking for on Instagram“. While they break down the process through a bunch of text content and steps on their site, the creation of their infographic to provide visuals of this process is even better.

There are also many other benefits to creating infographics for your text content as well. Such benefits include:

• Infographic visuals are easier to skim and read through versus straight text content
• Infographics are easy to share on social media and will often go semi-viral
• Outreach and promotion is easier when you have something original to offer
• There are plenty of infographic directories you can submit your work to

Best of all, infographics and unique visuals are now faster and easier to create than ever, thanks to free design tools like Canva. If you don’t want to spend your time and effort on creating designs, be sure to also consider your options with platforms like Fiverr or Freelancer, where you can hire graphic designers and content creators at lower prices.

How to Effectively Rank Higher for Easy Local Keywords and Phrases

At the end of the day, all websites and blogs are fighting for top placements in Google, and this is especially true in the smaller and tighter local markets. However, the advantage that bloggers and content creators have, is that it really is easy to rank for local terms when you know what you are doing, and creating real content of value.

Follow each of the examples and recommendations listed above, and be sure to apply them to your content creation and marketing efforts today.

If you are a WordPress blogger or site owner, you will want to look into the business themes that StudioPress offers on their site. They have a wide variety of themes that you can access on their platform. Some of our favorites are outlined below.

The following are five of the best business style themes that are currently available on the StudioPress site. There are many other themes available, as well, so make sure and check them out as you look at their website. You’re sure to find something that fits your business goals and image that you want to create.

Boss Pro Theme

The Boss Pro Theme helps you get out there in front of your target audience while offering an inviting atmosphere to your customers. The front page features a large scale photo at the very top of the page design, coupled with a saying underneath that can be customized to your liking. This theme also has a simple navigation system that is composed of a Home, FAQ section, Pages menu, Shop link, and contact text link. But you can change these if you prefer to link out to other sections of your website.

Studio Pro Theme

If you are looking for a creative type of design, try the Studio Pro Theme. In the example, you can see that this theme would be perfect for digital media companies, production studios, or ad agencies. It has a nice digital look, and the top part can be a great attention-getter for your potential clients. The mobile version also works quite well for digital business owners and puts the color and text at the very top for maximum focus. It’s a great place to showcase your portfolio and is “Woo Commerce” compatible.

Outfitter Pro Theme

If you sell clothing or are in the fashions space, you’ll want to check out the Outfitter theme. The asymmetrical design of this template makes it the perfect setup for someone in the clothing industry. You can place your biggest sellers on this eCommerce platform quickly and easily and make your products the spotlight when people come to your site.

Smart Passive Income

This template is called Smart Passive Income, and it is great if you want to make a living with a passive income or if you are an affiliate marketer. It’s also a great style if you happen to create courses to help people create their passive income. Pat Flynn designed this style, and it seems to combine design, strategy, and content in a seamless and integrated manner.

Author Pro Theme

Many authors today are starting to consider themselves as an entrepreneur. They are an entrepreneur because they often have multiple clients or publishers who represent them or hire them to write specific articles or develop written projects that help boost their business. Many of these authors also write novels or paperback books, in addition to the eBooks and audiobooks they create. This Author Pro is a great platform for authors because there is a great place to put the front covers of your best books as you launch a new promotion. In addition to this, you’ll find a place to tell all about you as a writer and what your dreams are regarding future projects and works. People like to get to know the authors they read so this is a nice, minimalist style design that can help you grow your writing career and book business at the same time.

The author theme above is only $99.95. The other business style themes are priced at $129.95. You can check them all out today on the StudioPress.com site by browsing for business themes. When it comes to choosing a professional theme for your business, you’ll want to check into the themes available at StudioPress. These themes work well with the WordPress platform, and you can usually trust the developers and designers because they have a business partnership with the Studio Press folks.

Finding the Right StudioPress Theme for Your Blog

Once you get an idea of how you want your business to look online, you can make it happen by visiting one of the individual themes pages on the StudioPress site. WordPress is great, but it sure looks better when it’s dressed up with one of these great-looking themes. Browse them all and see what you think. It will add something unique to your design without having to scour the web for themes.

Have fun!

We all know the importance of content creation and marketing when having a blog, however, it’s still something many site owners and bloggers still neglect to focus on — specifically the content promotion part. With over a billion active websites on the internet today, Content creation is no longer the top priority. Instead, it’s all about outreach, relationship building, and content promotion.

To help with this process, there is a whole world of automation, outreach, and marketing tools to do most of tedious the work for you. Some of these tools are free, and some are premium. No matter what method you choose for outreach or what tools you use, it’s important that you build new relationships everyday while also knowing who to contact at the same time. It’s also not just about building new relationships, it’s also about letting your audience know about the best ways to find you and your content as well. With more marketing and social networks in full swing, these are two of the most important areas every brand should be focusing their efforts.

Below you will find a list of 3 excellent outreach and marketing tools and resources to help you further establish more connections, build new site partners and even increase your readership in the process.

Instantly Find the Corporate Email Address for Anyone

One of the most time-consuming and complicated tasks when trying to perform outreach and building new site relationships, is knowing where to send your emails or who to contact. Usually you can find this information when visiting a website, however, that simply isn’t always the case. You might also find individuals through Twitter or Facebook, but who’s to say they will ever respond to social media and direct messages.

A useful tool that is helping with this process is called Voilanorbert, which is basically a corporate email address finder. In short, all you have to do is visit their website and type in a personal name or company and then you will be provided with a direct email address of the individual or brandy were looking for. You can see a preview of the platform in the screenshot above. The ability is also there to send emails right from their platform, so you don’t need to keep switching between their site and your email area.

Best of all it’s free to create an account, and the first 50 leads you generate are provided at no cost. Once you run out or need a larger volume of email searches, you can then sign up for one of their pricing plans or simply pay-as-you-go at just $0.10 per email search. Try it out and see what email addresses and corporate contacts you can find.

Direct Downloads and Analytics for Your Mobile Applications

While many bloggers and content creators are focused on text content and building out their websites, many brands and marketers are now heavily focused on mobile marketing. With such demand and focus in place, it’s likely you already have an application to provide content and special offers to your audience as well.

One of the biggest problems with getting your audience to actually download your application, is walking them through the process and letting them know where they can find it on their mobile device and app store. Millions of dollars are being spent on the creation of such apps, but not enough is being done to make the promotion and download process easier.

A better way to accomplish this is through a tool called LinkTexting, which provides audiences with a direct link to install mobile applications through site links, email or text messaging. Such methods include using their custom built widget, smart app badges, and smart prompts — all of which provide the user with a direct link to download your application. Not only does it make the process much easier if your audience, it also makes it easier and more effective for websites, brands, and businesses of all sizes.

Pricing plans start at just $19 per month, which includes up to 500 text messages per month and full analytics to track the progress of your campaigns.

Take Advanatge of Facebook Blogger and Guest Posting Groups

We all know the value of using platforms like Facebook for connecting with others around the world. Besides that direct connection and friending someone, there are also great opportunities through the use of Facebook groups such as those focused on blogging, writing and guest blogging opportunities.

Within these groups, you will find a wide range of bloggers and sites that are not only looking to get their content posted on other web sites, but also those who are looking for content as well. With guest blogging being one of the best ways to increase exposure and backlinks to a website, this is also a great way to build new relationships and site partners as well. The more high-quality sites you have mentioning your site, the more likely you are to rank higher in the search results. At the same time, it’s great to get your face and name in front of new audiences in the process.

The start finding such groups on Facebook all you need to do is search for them. When logged into Facebook, head over to the search box on Facebook and type in “blogging” and/or “guest blogging” then scroll down to “Groups”. Be sure through the list and join any that look like they are worth your time and effort.

How to Effective Growth Your Blog and Reach with Online Tools

The internet is rapidly changing and with more sites online than ever before, it’s no longer a question of how much you can do yourself, but simply how fast you will burn out. With so many automation and research tools available, there’s no excuse for you to not be using them to your advantage. Be sure to run through each of the recommended tools above and see how you can start using them to promote your blog, build new relationships, and market your content like never before.

If you are a content producer, blogger, website owner, or online business owner, you need to have some image and photo resources that you can go to to get royalty-free images. Royalty-free images are not always free, but they are free of royalty payments that you have to worry about when you use them.

What are “royalty-free images?”

Royalty-free images are images that you are allowed to use on your websites and other properties. This means that you can post royalty-free images or materials on your websites, blogs, and other online properties without the fear of copyright infringement. It is important to read the license before downloading or purchasing the image, though, so you’ll know specifically what the license says for each image or digital asset.

But, in general, once you download the royalty-free image, you can use it even in commercial projects in most cases. In addition to downloading royalty-free images, site owners can use any of these free design editing tools to customize the look and feel of images for their sites.

Are they really free?

Royalty-free images are not necessarily free of charge. Some sites have free images, and others have images you must pay for before you download them. Some sites allow both paid and free images. Photographers who are seeking coverage for their artistic creations may upload their pictures or graphics for people to post to get noticed by potential customers.

BigStockPhoto

BigStockPhoto offers royalty-free images and graphics for download for a premium cost of $79 per month for five images per day or 53 cents per image. You can download up to 150 images per month for use in your projects. For content providers who post a lot of unique positions and who need graphics, this is an excellent service to use. One of the best aspects of bigstockphoto.com is that fact that you can use the images any way you want to, including for your commercial projects.

Deposit Photos

Depositphotos.com is another source for royalty-free images and graphics. You can download pictures of any size or type from their site. There are plenty of pictures, images, graphics, and vector images to choose from. This service also allows you to download 150 images per month for $99 per month. They also offer another option if you don’t want to commit to the $99 per month premium. You can choose to download up to 10 new images per month for only $9.99 per month. Then if you need more pictures in any given month, you can download additional images for $1 per additional image.

Deposit Photo also has video packages where you can download video content, as well. For $69 you can get 5 SD videos in standard quality. If you need HD content, you can get 5 HD videos in 720p for $239. They even offer the new Ultra HD or 4K quality video (the new standard for HD video for the new TVs) for $169 for one video.

The license for Deposit Photos is a bit more complicated than the one with BigStockPhoto, so it’s important that you read and understand the agreement.

You can get either a standard or an extended license with Deposit Photos that allows you to use the media that you download in various ways. Again, you should read the license agreement whether you choose the standard or extended license. For example, the standard license prohibits the resale of the media if it plays a major role in the finished product, but the extended allows this.

One good thing about Deposit Photos is the fact that you have an option of a lighter premium of 9.99 for ten images. So if you only need a few, this might be a way to try it out. Both companies have a trial program to try before you buy.

BigStockPhoto vs. Deposit Photos Price Plans

When comparing the two royalty free image sites together, you are going to see they have a lot to offer in terms of image and video content to download. This is especially true with BigStockPhoto as they have a much larger video directory, and price plans built just for accessing such material as well.

You can see a breakdown of BigStockPhoto’s membership plans below. Instead of offering a set price per image, BigStockPhoto allows members to make a choice between how many images they want to download per day or month. The “10 images/videos per day” option will save the most money in the long run.

Deposit Photos also has a subscription, monthly or yearly payment plans and on demand memberships as well. No matter how many images you want to download or have access to, there is a plan built specifically for you.

When looking at all of the options available, the monthly plans are almost always the best ways to go if you want to save money. Instead of paying $1+ per image, you are looking at pay under .35 per image in some case. Just make sure you log in daily to download your images, as the credits won’t roll over, they will just go unused.

Which royalty free image site is best?

When considering both BigStockPhoto and DepositPhotos, we think they are both excellent sources to have on hand when you are in need of original images that you might not be able to create yourself. But there are some significant differences to consider. BigStockPhoto and DepositPhotos both allow you to download both high-quality images and videos. BigStockPhoto is a bit lower priced in that you can download up to 150 images at $79 while the DepositPhotos price is $99 for that same number of photos.

Individual videos in HD are a bit high on the BigStockPhoto site, but their license is less complicated. As long as you pay the price for the BigStockPhoto images or videos, you never have to worry about whether your license covers you. You are free to use them in commercial projects in any way you want, provided you do not post or resell the images in isolation.

DespositPhoto’s license is a bit complicated, so it’s feasible that you need a third party to look over the contract to make sure you comply unless you have an excellent understanding of exactly how your project will be viewed by the company once completed.

The less red tape you have to go through, the better off you’ll be. So due to the complicated license clauses of the latter, we prefer the BigStockPhoto site for downloading royalty-free images.

Check them both out, though, and decide for yourself. It depends on your understanding of how you’ll use your project and how much money you can budget for the download of digital media.

As bloggers and content creators, it’s always important to make sure we are delivering content to our audiences in the best way possible. In previous years, this was mainly through text content and ranking in the search results. With more people now accessing the internet through their mobile devices and tablets, it’s more about getting direct access to your audience and providing them with what they need in the best way possible — which is now transitioning to email and web push notifications.

When it comes to setting up such methods on your site, there are always going to be a number of solutions to choose from. One of them being SendPulse, which offers multiple solutions for bloggers and site owners to connect directly with their audiences through advanced messaging platforms using email, web push, and SMS technology.

Maximizing Open Rates with SendPulse

No matter what type of content you are creating, one of the most important things is to make sure it’s getting read by your audience. For bloggers, this is commonly done through creative headlines and post titles. For email marketers, it’s all about the headline and call to action. Without a great headline in place, no one is going to open or read your message.

This is where SendPulse and their suite of tools come into play. Through their artificial intelligence, hyper-personalize and predictive analysis for email, SMS, web push and SMTP, content creators of all types can now better manage their marketing, while also maximizing open rates at the same time.

When it comes to delivering email or any type of content online, it’s not just about the message being delivered, it’s also about the platform being used and how well it can get through various spam filters and into your user’s inbox. This is something to always keep in mind, as you might be the best copywriter in the world, but if you aren’t using a reliable delivery system, you are likely already dead in the water.

SendPulse focuses the core of their marketing platform on email and making sure deliverability is always a top priority. Through their combination of artificial intelligence, hyper-personalization, and predictive analysis, their platform is always measuring and learning from the millions of messages being sent out, always with improvement in mind.

Email Marketing is Still #1

Even with all of the attention on mobile usage and marketing these days, email marketing is still number one. It’s simply the best way to send a message to your audience that goes right into their inbox, gets read and still has a personal relationship with it. However, as great and effective as email is, low delivery and open rates are still an ongoing issue for many marketers. Spam filters are getting smarter, and so are the individuals who are opening up their inbox and reading emails every day.

SendPulse comes into play here, as they have the technology in place to offer very high delivery rates, which also lead to higher open rates in the process. In fact, SendPulse even states that they have been able to increase open rates by over 30% for hundreds of their users. This is also in part to a new feature that allows clients to resend an email if the original message is left unopened. This feature alone has resulted in a 30-80% increase in open rate too.

Templates and Drag-and-Drop Editor

Once you’ve mastered the art of creating killer headlines and titles to get users to open your email, you are going to need them to keep reading what’s inside of your actual email. This can best be accomplished with a professional and unique template for your emails. Not just one that grabs attention, but also one that represents your brand and messaging in the process.

SendPulse has a wide range of free templates for user to choose from — all of which are fully customizable through their easy to use drag-and-drop editor.

As you will notice from the template examples above, each is designed with a professional look and feel, which will quickly gain the interest and trust of your audience. Users can also choose from templates based on industry, seasonality, promotions and more.

Once you find a template of your liking, you can then start the editing and customization process through the drag-and-drop email editor — which can be seen below.

As with most drag-and-drop editors, the interface is easy enough to learn within a few minutes time. The left side menu will act as your main areas for selecting what you’d like to customize, while a real-time version of your template is viewable in the middle of the screen. As you navigate through different areas of your template, you will be about to make all changes through the right menu area as well.

Once you’ve created a template that fits your needs, you can then send a free test email through the system. This will allow you to see what the actual email will look like to your audience when it arrives in their inbox. Advanced users also have the option to customize their templates with HTML or importing an existing email template they may already have.

SendPulse SMS, SMTP and Web Push Options

While the major of focus has been on email marketing so far, it’s important to note that SendPulse also specializes in SMS, SMTP and Web Push notifications as well — all extremely valuable marketing methods being used by top agencies and brands in the world today.

Web Push notifications are quickly becoming one of the most effective ways for site owners and bloggers to release their latest content to audiences in ways never seen before. You’ve likely already seen this practice take place on many of your favorite websites, where a window will popup and ask if you would like to receive notification on upcoming articles, news or promotions.

The set up of this process using SendPulse is not only quick and easy, it’s also free. At the same time, it also comes with the following benefits.

Web Push notifications through SendPulse are free to setup and are also monetizable through the platform as well. Push notifications now work on over 80% of devices, on all modern browsers. If you have an active audience and release new content through your site at least once per week, web push notifications is definitely something you should be investing your time in.

SendPulse Pricing Plans and Options

With so many different features and services offered from SendPulse, it might be tough to figure out where to spend more of your attention. At the same time, it might be a challenge to figure out how to set aside the right budget for your marketing efforts as well.

This is something SendPulse has made as simple as possible, through their flexible pricing options, which allows customers to pick and choose what services and solutions are best for them. Options include a free plan, monthly subscriptions, pay as you go, or a VIP plan for anyone with more than 1 million subscribers.

The ‘free’ plan is a great place for anyone to start, as this option is ideal for anyone with less than 2,500 subscribers and looking to send less than 15,000 emails per month. Once you move beyond that level, you will enter the monthly subscription model which starts at just $9.95 per month for 2,500+ subscribers. The pay-as-you-go plan was also built for anyone that wants to simply pay on email send out performance basis. Rates start at $32 for 10,000 messages sent.

We all know the importance of email marketing and sending our best content to our audience in their preferred format. This is something SendPulse knows all too well, as they’ve been able to build a powerful platform and delivery system around their client’s needs. With advanced third-party integration, subscription forms, a powerful email editor, AI to boost open rates and more, it’s one of the top solutions for online marketers, bloggers and brands on the market today. Be sure to visit their site and create a free account today.

So, you’ve decided to break into the exciting world of ecommerce and bring your dream idea come to life… Congratulations! Running your own online store is an exciting experience and a great way to make money. But that’s not to say it’s without its difficulties. Ecommerce, like with any other industry, has its pitfalls, pitfalls that can snare fledgling business owners and sink virtual shopping sites before they even get started.

Don’t let this happen to you! Take a moment to read through these common obstacles and tips to overcome them.

Disregarding a Brand Identity

As any marketing professional will tell you, “successful brands don’t sell products, they sell personality.” Think about it, consumers can buy T-shirts anywhere. But selling apparel for “the vintage rocker in you” or tops for the “hipster fashionista” is something customers can only find on your e-store. Think of the customers you want to reach and develop a brand identity that appeals to them.

Choosing the Wrong Platform

Some novice ecommerce vendors choose to build their sites from scratch, only to find that programming is harder and more time consuming than they imagined. If you are researching how to build an ecommerce website, your best bet is to go with a platform provider that offers intuitive tools processing payments, managing inventory and organizing products. It’s just an easier and quicker way to get your site up and running.

Employing Bad Design Techniques

Customers want to shop on websites that are visually engaging and simple to navigate. Remember to always avoid low-quality images, cluttered interfaces and distracting popup or banner ads. Additionally, you’ll also want to ensure that your shopping cart button, contact page and search bar are easy to find.

Ignoring Free Marketing Advice

Some vendors sink big bucks into advertising agencies when they could take advantage of cost-effective marketing instead. The web is chalk full of free resources discussing social media campaigns, email marketing, search engine optimization and more. All it takes is a little dedication and experimentation. A perfect example of this is to hire a full time content writer who can guest blog and contribute to other relevant sites within your industry. This is simply one of the most effective ways to reach new audiences, rank higher in the search results and build a powerful backlink structure in the process.

Over or Understocking

Truth be told, stocking is a delicate balancing act that requires some guess work. Overstocking your store can be expensive, especially if your products have a limited shelf life. On the other hands, stocking too little will frustrate consumers who regularly visit your site only to find it bereft of anything they’re interested in buying. Do your best to keep popular products in stock and have a deals or coupon section on your site to move sluggish merchandise. If you currently have a newsletter, be sure to list such promotions for your audience to easily find.

Neglecting a Retention Strategy

It’s vital to focus on the lifetime value of your customers. Sure, every e-store will see their fair share of one-time shoppers for reasons outside of their control (e.g. buying a gift for a friend, but not interested in merchandise for themselves). But there are techniques to incentivize customer loyalty, such as encouraging visitors to follow social media pages or mailing lists, hosting contests, sharing coupon codes and more.

Limiting Your Payment Model

While most shoppers choose to pay via credit or debit card, more security-conscious consumers prefer diverse payment platforms such as PayPal or Bitcoin. Don’t lose out on these shoppers. Offer different ways to pay and also keep an eye on the competition to see what payment options they are currently using. Also, don’t be afraid to accept credit cards because of a small transaction fee. It’s much better to get a sale and have to pay a small fee, then missing out on losing a new customer because your site doesn’t accept their preferred form of payment.

Ignoring Customer Complaints

Since shoppers can’t try on or test products as they would in a brick and mortar, many rely on customer reviews to inform their purchasing decisions. If your store is flooded with negative comments and criticisms, do you think you’ll make many sales? Be sure to respond to customer complaints in a timely manner and remedy issues whenever possible. Not only will this turn disgruntled buyers into loyal shoppers, it will improve your reputation online.

Improve Your eCommerce and Content Marketing Efforts in 2017

Now that you are equipped with the knowledge necessary to avoid the common pitfalls that sink greenhorn vendors, it’s time to start your ecommerce adventure. Also, don’t forget to start a blog and create original content for your ecommerce site. It’s simply one of the best way to improve search rankings and also provide your audience with value outside of just seeing product names and images on your site.