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How do small business websites benefit by using Wordpress as a CMS?
We can site many examples of success but one case of a new business with a brand new website is particularly interesting. The story is unusual but not uncommon and as in many small business stories, it can only be covered with multiple chapters of information.
The client is Keith Bloemendaal and his company is Raleigh Fence Contractors LLC.
We have written about this client before primarily over on our sister blog: All Business Auctions, we followed up on a small business website project we started last May but due to some client delays did not go live until late July 2008.
If you want to refresh your memory of the process involved with this project, please check these posts.
- Successful Small Business Blog Website
Since our last article(s) about Raleigh Fence Contractors, much has happened. The site has only been up for about 3 months but it is drawing traffic organically and has a Google page rank of 3. During the first month online Keith experimented with Google Adwords, spending approximately 1 dollar for each hit Adwords sent the site. Keith figures in the same time period (first month) he collection 2800 additional hits organically due to his blog article writing. That’s a $2800 payback on the investment of building this website in the first month.
Additionally, and more importantly, while competing in a very tight marketplace for Google page placement, Raleigh Fence Contractors started life as a website on about the 15th page of search results. In less than 3 months with regular blog posting and relevant content, Raleigh Fence Contractors, LLC has rocketed its website up in the search placement on Google to number 4 of 817,000 results for the term “Raleigh Fence”.
Raleigh Fence on Google
Keith Bloemendaal has added to the success of this small business website by actively learning the techniques and tricks of social marketing. Through his consistent efforts at adding to the conversation and with some luck, Keith has had the following outside articles written about him and his Website/blog.
We are proud of the Raleigh Fence Contractors development at iBusinessLogic.com, maybe not as proud as Keith Bloemendaal but satisfied none the less. It is always great to see a client follow your advice and follow through to find success with a Small Business on the Internet.
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New options abound for merchants thinking about or already selling products online.
Opportunities to profit are available from eBay to Amazon and include numerous lesser known yet interesting “all in one” online sales options becoming available on an almost daily schedule. Small businesses have numerous easy display opportunities available for their products like Etsy, Bonanzle, Bidtopia, OnlineAuction, Dawdle, Overstock, Plunderhere, Ubid, ePier and many more
Setting up a diversified mix of sales channels is a long term goal of most successful Internet merchants. Selling product online through all in one options like eBay or Amazon while maintaining an eCommerce website or adding a shopping cart option to an existing website is less complicated more attractive than ever before. Many merchants who would not have considered this track in the past are now looking hard at dedicated multi-channel web development.
But What to Sell?
Many merchants, either online or brick and mortar, already have established sources of supply for merchandise. Existing supply is a good reason for small businesses to investigate an online sales initiative.
But many people are looking for new business opportunities in an ever tightening economy, these emerging entrepreneurs may have no established source of supply for products to offer online. As a result, one of the most common questions we hear is…
“What do I sell, and where do I source product?”
This single question is the most common inquiry heard by service providers and web developers at conferences and trade shows across the country. The “small business opportunities” crowd may simply lead the customer to a drop ship source, importing company or a stale list of these sources, legitimate or not for a fee or a portion of the monthly subscription fees earned by these types of sourcing suppliers.
As a trusted advisers, web developer and Internet consultants here at iBusinessLogic.com we do not simply offer a link to a drop shipper or a wholesale list to our clients. We prefer to talk with our clients with a goal to listen to them, learn what motivates them and find the strengths of their individual or company goals.
Many entrepreneurs and small business owners have trouble recognizing the opportunities available to them. At iBusinessLogic we like to help identify the best business plan available for Internet initiatives and as a result, avoid the pain of possible missed opportunities.
Some Guidelines for finding online opportunity Read More→
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Link Bait
Link Baiting - Oh, it sounds somewhat sinister…
The term just reeks of something less than ethical yet it is one of the best tactics new and seasoned bloggers alike can use to build up the page rank and visibility of a blog.
What is link baiting?
Our friend and client, Keith Bloemendaal, has just given the world a perfect example on his newly finished blog website Raleigh Fence Contractors LLC.
In this post Keith mentions he plans on using this tactic every Friday, what tactic you say? Link Baiting is the artful and somewhat creative method of bringing attention to yourself and your blog by linking to respected blogs and bloggers. When writing a link bait article the intention is to be complimentary to peers in your niche and o slightly out of your niche in an effort to get these same bloggers to either write about or link to you and your blog in return.
In his article Keith has linked to no less than 6 blogs and bloggers he respects and he continues the link parade with no less than 7 additional links to other pages and articles within sites owned by these bloggers.
See the example paragraph below
Darren Rowse’s ProBlogger, Chris Brogan, Connie Benson, and numerous SEO and marketing blogs, I always keep a close eye on my mentor, and close friend Scott Pooler and his writings on iBusinessLogic and Trading Assistant Journal. I want to focus every week on Fridays to the blogs I read and discover. We will cover many topics over the coming weeks, this week we will focus on a home improvement blog I subscribe to called Helpful Advice for Home Construction Improvement:
For a guy who is relatively new to the blogging world, I must say that Keith never ceases to amaze me with the grasp he has on social networking. This link bait article of his was done with style and with real respect for the people he is hoping will return the link love he has extended.
Obviously in my case it has worked - this article is my way to return the favor to Keith and the Raleigh Fence Contractors Blog. I am sure I will not be the only one returning the favor.
This is really the point… exchanging links is a primary goal for most bloggers, this endeavor is something traditional website owners do not have as much of a grasp upon. Without inbound links to your site, from relevant sites, you will not climb in page rank. Search engines love to find new links and they love you more if those links end up on your site somewhere.
The best part of link baiting within blogs is it is almost completely automatic. This is because when you place a link to a blog on your blog, the blog platform (Wordpress, Movable Type, Blogger etc) automatically sends a message to the other blog called a trackback. This informs the other blog you are mentioning them in your blog. That’s how I found out Keith had mentioned me in his blog, from a trackback. In essence, it is really bait… You send out the link bait into the blogosphere and just sit back and wait for the fish to come back and read what you said about them.
So go ahead, Link Bait Away… Its really not sinister or rude… Just a way to say hello… look at me, I like your blog, do you like mine?
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