SEO and Expired Domains: Is It Worth It?

SEO and Expired Domains: Is It Worth It?

By: Joe Balestrino - Mr SEO

So you want to start a business, sell a product or have the next big dot Com idea, huh? Well, undoubtedly, you will need a domain. Wouldn’t an expired domain name give you a head start? Think about it…the site attached to the domain already has a page rank and backlinks. Maybe the site is listed in Dmoz or several other directories and search engines. By purchasing an expired domain, you wouldn’t have to worry about Google’s age factor for new sites. It would likely save you a whole lot of time and money, right? Wrong. Like most things in life, nothing is that easy.
Expired domains are viewed by many as a way for a new domain owner to capitalize on a the previous site’s page rank and traffic. Unfortunately, that’s simply not the case.

Once a site expires, it loses its page rank, meaning all existing links are no longer counted towards the site. That’s right…you start fresh. You’ll have to re-establish PR. Dmoz has even mentioned that they will pull a site’s listing once it expires. Of course, depending on the popularity of the name in terms of it’s relation to search traffic, you’ll probably get more traffic than if the site was new. The site already has established links that bring in traffic, they just won’t count toward your page rank…ever. But honestly, that’s really the only benefit you get, unless you are lucky enough to buy a domain whose name you can benefit from because of a direct relation to your products or services. The chances of that happening are pretty slim. Think about it…if someone owned a successful site with a successful name, would it be expired and available? This is why even the best attempts at garnering an expired domain usually only result in a loose association by name at best. If you want to sell computers, you won’t find “computers.com”. You might find “discountcomputerperipheralsupply.net”, but that’s not exactly memorable, is it?

There are many SEO gurus who advocate buying expired domains. I don’t necessarily disagree as long as you know what the benefits will and won’t be. Google has stated that expired domains will lose their PR and backlinks. I have even heard of instances where attempts to re-establish PR after purchasing the expired domain and registering it have failed. In fact, more than a few people have had problems with Google failing to recognize backlinks set up after the domain is re-established.
So, is there any safe way to get a jump on the SERP’s? Well, if possible, you’d want to purchase a domain before it expires. This way, there is no chance of losing the backlinks and PR. Still, if it holds a site with a high PR and good backlinks or is simply a popular phrase or term, it’s likely going to cost you a lot more than the registration fee on a domain. The cost could be justified, however, in some instances.

In my research, I couldn’t find one instance where Google or any other search engine had a problem with a transfer of ownership regarding domains. This basically entails buying a business with the location, not just an empty store with a sign. Of course, someone could own a domain with no site on it, but then pre-existing PR and backlinks wouldn’t be a factor. You would simply be buying a name. For domains with successful sites already established, it’s a good way to get a head start if the price is right. If you can afford it and find someone willing to sell, this is one way to avoid the loss of any pre-existing PR and backlinks. Of course, we are talking about domain purchase in the context of small business. If you bought “Sears.com” in 1990 and you don’t own the company, it wasn’t because your last name is Sears.

Back to expired domains…

If you do decide to buy an expired domain, keep one thing in mind. The site already has backlinks, anchor text and other off site SEO factors. There are two considerations you will need to make before you plunk down your cash:

1. Are you buying the domain because the domain name is related or because the previous site had high traffic? If the site you are planning is unrelated, you won’t benefit from the traffic (provided there is any) or off site SEO work.

2. Make sure you know what you are getting into when you buy an expired domain. Any “black hat” methods, links to bad neighbors, paid links and other unethical practices can affect you.

If all else fails or your search for a related expired domain bears no fruit, start from scratch. You will be able to develop your site knowing that the success or failure of it can’t be attributed to someone else’s efforts. In other words, you will know if your SEO methods are effective for the particular business you are in and not a result of traffic already established by the previous owner. I have written many articles that can help you boost your pagerank and get indexed faster. Sometimes, it’s better to start fresh than go through the headache of searching for the right expired domain.

* If you use this article the bio must be kept in place and all links must be active!

Joe is an SEO expert. His SEO/SEM firm has helped many companies increase there organic placement. . He also writers articles and creates a weekly podcast on SEO.

Money In Beijing Olympics 2008

Money In Beijing Olympics 2008

Successful Product Launches: A How To Guide

Successful Product Launches: A How To Guide
We have all heard the expression “The Perfect Storm” and it refers to the situation where all weather elements come together at the same time to produce a perfect storm. But is there an equivalent of the perfect storm in the marketing world? A situation where all elements come together to produce “The Perfect Sale?”

For the moment, we will conveniently ignore the current world economic meltdown and look only at positive situations where this event may occur. Perhaps, the closest thing we have to the Perfect Sale is the online product launch. But unlike the natural phenomenon, this event is carefully planned and orchestrated by a whole army of web savvy marketers who know exactly what has to be done to create this Perfect Sale.

For this “sale” doesn’t just happen, professional web marketers create their own system of events that lead up to this Perfect Sale, earning themselves enormous profits in the process. This is an orchestrated marketing effort that bring potential buyers onto their contact lists and into their marketing funnels; heading straight towards their Perfect Sale.

These online marketers use a whole array of marketing tactics to bring potential buyers to their sales page. One of the most effective methods is the JV or joint venture with other established marketers who have long lists of interested buyers, and for a percentage of the sales, the JV partner promotes your sales page or product.

A certain date is set for the release of your product and all potential partners/affiliates promote to their lists and on their sites. A buying frenzy can be whipped up especially if the product is limited and only a certain number of sales will be accepted. Also a high quality free sampling or teaser is usually given away to build up massive contact lists of interested buyers, this freebie is used to pre-sell to these buyers. There may even be a countdown clock to further create excitement and urgency in the mind of the buyer.

On launch day, everything is synchronized. JV partners mail out to their massive contact lists, enticing all their subscribers with extra bonuses to buy the product now before it’s gone. The sales letter page goes live and the sales pour in… creating “The Perfect Sale.”

For the non-marketing reader, this may seem a bit far-fetched but in actual fact these product launches are occurring online every week - creating the “Perfect Sale” over and over again. And these launches have been around for many years, one of the most famous being John Reese’s “Traffic Secrets” which was released in the summer of 2004 and earned over 1 million in revenue in one day.

There are even some savvy marketers who have perfected the product launch system into an art form, mainly Jeff Walker (Product Launch Formula) and Frank Kern (Mass Control) just to mention a few of the top marketers out there teaching and applying this marketing technique.
Key Elements Of A Product Launch

However, just like the Perfect Storm, in order to create this Perfect Sale many factors have to fall into place and come together. Some of these main elements are:

1. A high quality product which is in demand and desired by the potential buyers. It must solve a problem or meet a need within its niche market. Bit obvious but without this demand the product won’t sell in any great numbers, no matter what tactics you use.

2. A perfectly written sales letter that converts. Your sales page must convert into actual sales of your product. Again, quite obvious but if your sales page does not convert, it’s game over.

3. A whole motivated group of JV partners with enormous lists and bonuses to offer to potential buyers. Many product launches now offer special prizes (anywhere from a luxury sports car to the latest tech gadget) for those partners who can bring in the most sales.

4. A whole array of orchestrated, pre-launch tactics building up interest in your product with free high quality giveaways to get your buyer’s attention and contact information. Even a newly created blog to keep everyone informed about your product launch is often used.

5. Most of the above tactics have to do with creating the potential buyer with the right mind-set for buying your product. Creating a limited number of products or setting a certain time-frame for selling, and offering special deals or bonuses will further create demand for your product.

Maybe It’s Time to Upgrade Your Company Website

Maybe It’s Time to Upgrade Your Company Website
Dealing with website development issues can be an overwhelming task. There are many things your marketing team must consider, in fact, there are so many things to bear in mind that many of the most important ones never get dealt with, or are buried under competing interests.

To avoid project paralysis you should focus on certain key areas of concern from which all other issues flow. Whether upgrading your existing website or developing a new webmedia initiative from scratch, consider these four vital questions that need to be answered:

-What content should be included?
-How should content be delivered?
-How is your website going to be marketed?
-What will visitors remember?
-What content should be included?

Content is a function of purpose. Unfortunately many websites don’t have a clearly thought-out realistic purpose; and orders alone, is not an adequate website objective. Obviously every company needs sales, that’s a given, but sales are a result of all the marketing elements you put in place, and the degree to which your presentation distinguishes you from your competition.

There is a prevailing view that traffic translates into sales; this viewpoint may be valid for websites whose economic model is commodity or advertising-based, but businesses that don’t compete on price alone, or are more than an excuse to deliver advertising, must be structured around a purpose that is more meaningful, and far more compelling than ‘give me an order or don’t bother me.’

An over-emphasis on search engine friendly site design ignores the fact that when someone does a search for what you do, they’ll not only find you, they’ll also find many of your competitors as well. And even if you appear first in the search, nothing will stop potential clients from clicking on any of the other organic or advertised listings, or even the numerous Adword links on the side of the page.

The biggest website design problem companies have is not the amount of traffic generated from search engines, but rather how visitors react to your content. Are visitors engaged, enlightened, and entertained so that they stay on your site long enough to get your marketing message, and is that message compelling enough for them to remember it?

There are many misconceptions about advertising content, one of the biggest is that people hate it, but the truth is, what people hate is bad ad content; qualified clients actually look forward to good advertising because it presents a relevant problem, and provides a believable solution, in a distinctive memorable presentation.

If your content doesn’t engage your audience with a persuasive, memorable presentation then you’ll never achieve whatever website marketing goals you’ve set.

How should content be delivered?

We know the vast majority of people don’t like to read text on a computer screen, so they scan for relevant information concentrating on bulleted points, captions, and headlines, but does that truncated information really get your message across? Website text is really designed for search engine spiders, which is fine, but how about paying a little attention to people and how they absorb and remember information?

We also know people are impatient and are ready to abandon your website with the click of mouse, often in mid sentence before they ever get to the point you are trying to make. Your clients are sophisticated media consumers raised on video games and television, and are used to making quick decisions on limited information; this kind of leap-of-logic protocol demands a clever focused presentation.

Your audience will be gone in seconds no matter how convincing you think your content is, if it is not presented in a media-savvy manner that holds viewer attention, otherwise your website is nothing more than a glorified Yellow Page ad.

Audio and video has the potential to deliver information in a form and format that attracts and holds viewer interest while it makes a memorable impression. But even audio and video will fail if it is badly conceived, poorly written, and amateurishly performed.

How is your website going to be marketed?

Everyone is concerned with traffic and how to drive it to their websites. Search engine optimization is only one marketing technique, and it’s one that ignores the impact of content on your audience in favor of attracting the attention of search engine robots. By all means, build search engine friendly elements into your site but don’t ignore people-friendly elements as well.

Having text-based articles on your site is an excellent way to provide search friendly information, but presenting that same information as a professionally produced audio option, or a lively video presentation is certainly more memorable.

An entertaining webmedia presentation makes a lasting impression that viewers are more likely to recommend to colleagues, thereby increasing your traffic and reputation. Word-of-mouth is the best way to generate qualified traffic, and the best way to generate interest in your site is to make your site’s presentation a rewarding experience.
What will visitors remember?

In a brick-and-mortar environment, visitors are more likely to make a decision to purchase on the spot, simply to avoid driving halfway across town to save a few dollars, but on the Web jumping from New York to California is as easy as the click of a mouse. People are just more likely to shop-around because it’s so easy.

Of course what people think they want is the lowest price, but providing the lowest price only attracts the least profitable buyers and ignores the biggest obstacle website businesses need to overcome, and that’s credibility. Who are you, and can you be trusted? And after visiting ten different websites all selling the same thing, can they even remember who you are?

Your presentation has to be memorable and establish credibility so that when all the searching and browsing is finished, your site is the one they remember and go back to; your site must be the one visitors can trust to deliver what’s promised.
How to Hire A Web Video Firm

The ability to produce an effective video or audio presentation requires more than the possession of some cool hardware and software. Owning an expensive camera doesn’t make you a producer, and even the technical ability to edit doesn’t qualified you as a commercial marketing expert. When the time comes to hire someone to add video and/or audio to your website what should you be looking for? Below are eight things you should consider when hiring someone to create webmedia.

-Can the webmedia provider deliver a turnkey solution from concept to implementation, or do you have to act as your own producer hiring different people with different skills complicating the project and creating both technical and conceptual implementation problems?

-Can the webmedia provider produce everything from scripts to custom music in-house, or do they have to farm-out some of the work increasing costs?

-Does the webmedia provider understand how to use verbal and visual performance to create a convincing, memorable presentation, or do they substitute expensive production techniques for cost-effective psychological persuasion?

-Does the webmedia provider just shoot video, or do they have the ability to analyze your offering and purpose, and focus it into a consistent, meaningful, branded presentation?

-Does the webmedia provider have the ability to think strategically as well as tactically? Can they implement and repurpose your investment into your existing website, create a targeted mini campaign site, and provide alternative versions ready for ad implementation?

-Does the webmedia provider have the ability to create lasting campaigns that can be rolled out and built upon, or are they just interested in making a quick buck from a one-off effort? Are they willing and able to be your ongoing webmedia marketing advisor?

-Does the webmedia provider have the ability to turn advertising into content, and content into an experience, or can they only produce nondescript infomercials?

-Does the webmedia provider understand business, marketing, branding, and what can and can’t be achieved so that you have appropriate achievable expectations?

Commercial presentation production requires a multitude of skills and talents. Big companies solve the problem by hiring advertising agencies that drive the cost of production beyond what most businesses can afford. By understanding what’s needed to create an effective webmedia presentation, you can look for a firm that possesses all the necessary talents in-house; an approach that keeps costs down, while producing an exciting Web video campaign that achieves corporate marketing objectives.

This post provided by Jerry Bader who is Senior Partner at MRPwebmedia, a website design firm that specializes in Web-audio and Web-video. Visit http://www.mrpwebmedia.com/ads
Contact at info@mrpwebmedia.com or telephone (905) 764-1246.

Marketing Made Simple in Tough Times

Marketing Made Simple in Tough Times

How to Write a Better Headline than This One - eBay Sales Rely on Title Hooks

How to Write a Better Headline than This One - eBay Sales Rely on Title Hooks

When selling on eBay, your keyword description isn’t the only chance you have at creating a title. You can also create benefit-oriented titles that emphasize keywords much less in the body of your description. Just use HTML to create larger fonts and dark colors if you insist on using color in the title.

Why do this? Because titles draw in readers and buyers. As David Ogilvy is famous for putting it, “Your headline is the ticket on the meat.” (paraphrased) The headline draws in those who would be interested, compelled, in need, etc. It’s the first test that filters out those who are hungry for meat and those who are not.

The headline needs to include benefits that pertain directly to the needs of the reader and the features of the product, of course. That’s the practical side of the process. The creative side involves catching the attention of passers by.

I read a headline in the newspaper this morning that stopped me in my tracks. It was very creative and it got me to read an article that I wouldn’t have read in a million years given another less interesting headline. Here it is: “Women Get Shot at Hunting.” Clever, ay? The article was about how a national program gives females a chance to learn about the sport.

You might say that the title isn’t selling anything… but I’d say otherwise. Newspapers sell entertainment and information to curious readers. If they don’t make the reader curious, they fail. They succeeded in this instance.

So.. I urge you to get creative, test out headlines and track your eBay sales to figure out which headlines draw in your meat buyers. Do simple A-B testing to test headlines against non-headline descriptions. Or test distinctly different titles head-to-head. Even the smallest insights will offer tremendous value and move you toward more sales and profits.

How to Set Google Chrome as Your Default Browser in Windows XP, Windows 2000 and Windows Vista - Important for eBay Pages

How to Set Google Chrome as Your Default Browser in Windows XP, Windows 2000 and Windows Vista - Important for eBay Pages

Remix: Making Art and Commerce Thrive in the Hybrid Economy

Remix: Making Art and Commerce Thrive in the Hybrid Economy
This fall [Lawrence Lessig is] coming out with his latest book,

Remix: Making Art and Commerce Thrive in the Hybrid Economy

which argues that the legal system is making criminals out of young people who produce entertaining or informative videos, music, and other art works through piecing together parts of others’ works. He advocates a new type of economy that allows both market competition and people to freely share their art.

Source

[http://chronicle.com/wiredcampus/article/3220/in-a-new-book-lessig-says-society-is-turning-artists-into-criminals]

Amazon

The author of Free Culture shows how we harm our children—and almost anyone who creates, enjoys, or sells any art form—with a restrictive copyright system driven by corporate interests. Lessig reveals the solutions to this impasse offered by a collaborative yet profitable “hybrid economy”.

Lawrence Lessig, the reigning authority on intellectual property in the Internet age, spotlights the newest and possibly the most harmful culture war—a war waged against our kids and others who create and consume art. America’s copyright laws have ceased to perform their original, beneficial role: protecting artists’ creations while allowing them to build on previous creative works. In fact, our system now criminalizes those very actions.For many, new technologies have made it irresistible to flout these unreasonable and ultimately untenable laws.

Some of today’s most talented artists are felons, and so are our kids, who see no reason why they shouldn’t do what their computers and the Web let them do, from burning a copyrighted CD for a friend to “biting” riffs from films, videos, songs, etc and making new art from them.Criminalizing our children and others is exactly what our society should not do, and Lessig shows how we can and must end this conflict—a war as ill conceived and unwinnable as the war on drugs. By embracing “read-write culture,” which allows its users to create art as readily as they consume it, we can ensure that creators get the support—artistic, commercial, and ethical—that they deserve and need. Indeed, we can already see glimmers of a new hybrid economy that combines the profit motives of traditional business with the “sharing economy” evident in such Web sites as Wikipedia and YouTube.

The hybrid economy will become ever more prominent in every creative realm—from news to music—and Lessig shows how we can and should use it to benefit those who make and consume culture.Remix is an urgent, eloquent plea to end a war that harms our children and other intrepid creative users of new technologies. It also offers an inspiring vision of the post-war world where enormous opportunities await those who view art as a resource to be shared openly rather than a commodity to be hoarded.

[http://www.amazon.com/Remix-Making-Commerce-Thrive-Economy/dp/1594201722]

Durham District Attorney Election
Today is election day in North Carolina and voters will choose the next District Attorney for Durham County. The Herald-Sun, the great defender of the status quo, predictably endorsed current Assistant District Attorney Tracy Cline. In doing so, it presented a variation of the Durham government party line that Mike Nifong and Mike Nifong alone is to blame for the Lacrosse Hoax stating, “[Nifong’s] actions did not reflect deep flaws within the DA’s office.” On the contrary, the Lacrosse Hoax revealed some very deep flaws within the District Attorney’s office indeed.

Tracy Cline’s problems are well known. She was Nifong’s second chair in the lacrosse case and would have helped him try the case had it gone to trial. In October, however, she claimed that she had very little role in the hoax. According to the Herald-Sun,

Some suggested during the lacrosse meltdown that Nifong’s assistants dropped the ball by not reining in their boss, halting the scandal in its tracks.

Cline agreed last week that attorneys have a duty to report unethical conduct among their colleagues.

But she said she lacked insights into what Nifong was doing.

“I didn’t have any personal information about what went on in the lacrosse case, other than what the media reported,” she said. “My job was to keep the courtrooms running. That is what I was focused on.”

First, the assertion that she did not know the facts of the case is almost certainly false. Having worked as second chair, I can tell you that the second chair knows as much about the case as the lead attorney and often knows more. In fact, in the normal course of things, the second chair handles the day to day chores and basic prep work. Evidence presented at Nifong’s bar hearings suggests that was the case here.

More importantly, Cline did not need to know one thing about the Lacrosse case to know that Mike Nifong was an unethical attorney and that he should have been reported to the bar. From the very beginning of the hoax, I tried to make the distinction between Nifong’s conduct and the facts of the case. Even if one could plausibly claim not to know all of the facts of the case, all of Nifong’s misconduct took place in public for all to see. Anyone with a television set could watch him do it.

North Carolina Rule or Professional Conduct 8.3(a) states,

A lawyer who knows that another lawyer has committed a violation of the Rules of Professional Conduct that raises a substantial question as to that lawyer’s honesty, trustworthiness or fitness as a lawyer in other respects, shall inform the North Carolina State Bar or the court having jurisdiction over the matter.

It is no exaggeration in the least to say that every single lawyer in the District Attorney’s office is an unethical attorney. Mitchell Garrell, another assistant district attorney who is running against Cline tried to make an issue of Cline’s involvement in the hoax at a candidates forum. However, Garrell has some explaining of his own to do.

In any event, the problems with the assistant district attorneys during the Lacrosse Hoax go beyond a passive refusal to report Nifong to the bar. Many actively supported his bid for election and worked on his campaign. They did so with the full knowledge that he was an unethical and corrupt attorney. At a polling place during the 2006 general election, Nifong supporters who claimed to be attorneys in his office were falsely claiming that Nifong had a “smoking gun” that he would reveal at trial. That night, when the results were announced at the courthouse, an assistant district attorney taunted Duke students who were there to support Lewis Cheek saying, “poor little Duke kids didn’t get your way.”

Even after Nifong was disbarred, assistant district attorneys continued to support him and defend his actions. ADA Stormy Ellis pronounced herself “shocked that he has been tainted as a ‘rogue prosecutor.’ It scares me to think that one case can mar you for the rest of your life.” At Nifong’s contempt hearing, I heard a male voice behind me mutter, “Objection!” to a prosecution question it evidently did not like. I did not see who said it, but moments later David Saacks, who is now the acting District Attorney, stood up from directly behind me when he was called as a witness. At this same hearing, ADA Jan Paul, who had come to the hearing to support Nifong, refused to speak with investigative reporter Joe Neff of the News and Observer because she blamed him for Nifong’s downfall.

I do not endorse either of the remaining candidates, Freda Black or Keith Bishop. I just hope the people of Durham can find someone who is willing to provide ethical leadership and surround his or herself with ethical people.

While the ethics and moral outlook of assistant district attorneys might not seem that important, consider that the Lacrosse Hoax was not the work of a criminal mastermind. Instead, it was what happened when a venal and small minded career assistant found himself in a situation that tested his character. Consider also, that he likely developed the habits and attitudes he displayed during the Lacrosse Hoax working in that office for 27 years and who knows what other misconduct he might have committed before his actions became subject to public scrutiny.

Unfortunately, the best chance for positive change in the Durham County District Attorney’s Office was when Governor Easley had the opportunity to appoint Nifong’s successor. What Easley needed to do was appoint someone from outside the Durham legal community who would go into that office with an eye toward firing most of the people there. Instead, he turned Jim Hardin, Nifong’s predecessor back into the office apparently with an eye toward stabilizing the current situation there.

Surfers prefer organic SEO 5 to 1 over PPC advertising

Surfers prefer organic SEO 5 to 1 over PPC advertising

It’s a fact that surfers prefer organic search results, which are the result of organic SEO methods, 5 to 1 over Paid Search engine advertising. I’m not saying this because I’m a firm believer in the long term benefits of SEO over SEM (even though I am), I’m saying it because it’s true. PPC does have it’s place in online marketing, but before I get into that, let me expound on my previous statement.

Why do people go to the organic listings before they go to the sponsor ads? It’s very simple. People know that organic listings are more likely to have what they’re looking for. Sites that are shown as a result of a search have creditability over paid listing sites. This is important to keep in mind, in addition to the fact that if your site ranks well organically, you will spend substantially less money on PPC and overall online marketing. I have a few clients that receive thousands of hits a day based solely on organic searches. These results, along with the ever-increasing cost of PPC advertising, make me wonder why more companies don’t utilize organic SEO methods.

In regard to PPC, it’s certainly an effective way to drive traffic to your site quickly. PPC campaigns are an excellent option for those waiting for a higher page rank or companies that sell high dollar items or have large profit margins. If your average sale is 5 dollars, you can’t really afford to be paying much for an ad. If one average order can pay for an entire day’s or even week’s PPC budget, it’s probably well worth the money. Unfortunately, a successful PPC campaign takes a lot more than money.
A successful PPC campaign is all about monitoring. Of the many subpar PPC campaigns I have “inherited” from frustrated site owners, roughly 80% were improperly monitored or tracked. Why is tracking so important? For one thing, without any sort of tracking, how will you know how much you are spending for a lead or a sale? Aside from not having tracking in place, many PPC managers bid on bad keywords, allow poorly written ads and utilize improper landing pages. Again, a successful PPC campaign takes a lot more than money.

Another thing many fail to realize when it comes to organic SEO and PPC is that one can be used to the advantage of the other. PPC can be used to test whether or not the keywords you are targeting are right for you. This works especially well for a company that has a unique service or product. Sometimes, traditional keywords or phrases are ineffective. PPC combined with tracking can help you determine if the keywords you are bidding on are converting. If they are, you can the create pages for the organic search which will hopefully alleviate your need for future PPC spending or at least curtail it significantly. There are also other ways to use PPC to “test” areas in which you could benefit from organic SEO, though many SEM firms will not tell you this. Why? Because they either don’t know how to use PPC in this capacity or they want you to remain dependent on PPC for the life of your business. Not all, but many SEM firms view their clients much in the same way that high interest lenders view borrowers with good credit. They want you to stay put and throw your money out the window and will be more than happy to let you do so until you figure out that you don’t have to.

The idea behind SEM is to help your ROI. Since I lean more toward SEO than SEM, I tend to use PPC as a way to test the market and to help new businesses bring in traffic. Ideally, organic SEO will help minimize the cost of PPC. It’s my opinion that companies who focus solely on PPC are putting all their eggs in one basket and will always be dependent on their marketing budget. As PPC prices soar, so will your PPC expenses.

So, the next time you search for an SEM firm, ask how they can help you save money and achieve better results over the long term by incorporating organic SEO into your overall marketing strategy. If a 5 to 1 preference isn’t a good enough reason to engage in organic SEO, then I don’t know what is.

Submit your article to articleuniversity for free. To get a free seo evaluation, message board purchase SEO services, listen to a podcast on SEO or read articles on SEO visit Mr-seo.com

eBay Description Writing Lessons from Home Depot’s Catalog

eBay Description Writing Lessons from Home Depot’s Catalog
The following are some descriptions written about Home Depot’s storage baskets and boxes. As an eBay seller, it’s useful to look at these professionally written pieces from time to time.

Keep a few things in mind while you read them. 1) The same function could be accomplished with some cardboard boxes or shoe boxes, 2) Chances are, no one but the owners of these boxes will ever see them, and 3) They cost $35 to $50 each.

Description 1: “Woven antique black finish baskets offer creative and stylish storage solutions for everything from sweaters and laundry to office supplies and refuse. All liners are washable natural-colored cotton canvas.”

Description 2: “Soften the look of your work space with these casual, yet highly functional basket pieces.”

Description 3: “These canvas ‘drawers,’ complete with handles, are cleverly designed with an inner covered-wire frame that keeps the lining taut.”

Now – let’s think about these descriptions and what kinds of things, other than practicality, are going on.

The first one injects the concepts of creativity and style – both important emotionally-driven motives. In a world where we can all get enough food, water and shelter (usually), creativity and style come into play. Even if no one sees these boxes but the owner, the owner will feel creative and stylish. The person might even tell someone about their cool new baskets.

The second description gives a nod to functionality but not before talking about softening the work space. That sounds like a benefit. Who wouldn’t want to work in a soft, un-harsh work place? They also give the reader an idea about where to use these things – in the workplace, of course (an area, by the way, that can be Spartan and unappealing). Functionality comes into play. This is a benefit, but not something that could stand on its own. It’s better to add the emotional adjective casual and sell the “softening” idea.

The third description introduces the words “cleverly designed.” The adjective clever could certainly be transferred to the user/buyer. A buyer might subconsciously say, “If I buy these things, I’m clever, too. The way I create my office or closet is clever. I have an eye for these sorts of clever products.” The description writer wants to associate a positive and smart adjective with the products and does a good job.

These descriptions are short. They are to the point. Some specs follow, but the emotionally connective prose comes first. That’s important. You should be doing the same things with your eBay listings. Use these descriptions as models, and check out the descriptions in the other mail you receive.

The writers of these catalogs are the professionals. They get paid big bucks to create images and emotional connections. It may seem simple and pedestrian at first glance, but there’s a real art to it. It’s not difficult, but you have to pay attention to the emotions you want to convey and choose the best words for the task.

Phil Dunn is a marketing consultant and co-author of The 7 Essential Steps to Successful eBay Marketing (McGraw-Hill, 2005). His eBay blog, http://ebay-marketing.blogspot.com offers tips, tricks and strategies that help people generate eBay sales now.

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