The Unfair Edge of CMS
As Content Management Systems (CMS) developed to be more effective for internet businesses, they stumbled on a strategic advantage. For the few inside the loop, they are sharpening this edge to their advantage.
Not long ago in this column was discussed a subject on niche marketing. It was discussed that the concept of “Differentiate or Die” was also true for internet businesses albeit worded differently. Niche or Die was what it was referred to.
It has not been long since, that Chris Anderson’s book ‘Longtail Marketing’ became a highly recommended read within the ecommerce fraternity. The book delves deeply into the same concept of niching. It further goes on, on how searchers are becoming more sophisticated. And that they are now using more specific keyword to look for what they want. For example a surfer who is more ready to buy will more likely search for the term “Siemens AX 75″ an exact brand rather than “mobile phone” or “siemens” for that matter.
Niche marketing on the other hand is a concept that takes advantage of the longtail. It involves targeting very specific related keywords and optimizing your website and internet marketing for those specific terms. This practice can help a business, even one in a very competitive online category, to gain an advantage in the search listings. In a nut shell, for small businesses, it is best to master a niche or segment of a market rather than try to compete with the more established mostly branded competition. For example you are better of providing exclusive East African Music on your website rather then take on itunes.com head on. Why punch a wall?
Now you wonder what CMS have to do with niche marketing and longtail. The answer is everything. It is not obvious and that’s why there was a reference to those “in the loop”. You see, the CMSs have not only made managing the backend of the website easy, it also has made making a niche optimized website second nature. The structural design of a CMS makes it nearly automatic to take advantage of the longtail marketing.
Those currently understanding the synergy arising from this are working quietly around the clock to take advantage of this already proven fact. Simply by employing the CMS with a few considerations, your website is nearly guaranteed to do well in the free Search Engine market. And what more can light up an internet entrepreneur eyes than free targeted traffic.The basics of the CMS edge lie in two concepts recently coming to light. These are Latent Semantic Indexing (LSI) and Silo structuring. We look at each start in next week.
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Myspace Online Graphic Madness
Since Myspace launched in 2003 by L.A programmers E-Universe it has since then been booming, now in the year 2008 there is well over 200 million users around the globe in well over 20 international territories like US, UK, New Zealand, Sweden, Denmark and Finland. According to the Myspace press release, Myspace is one of the fastest growing websites of all time boasting huge amounts of stats like over 14 billion comments, 1.5 billion images, and 8 million Artists!
Since Myspace established many sites have been launched as myspace “tool boxes” for users. These sites come in handy for users looking to spice up their profiles with flash mp3 players, comment graphics, profile editors, games, layouts and much more. Most of these sites offer a multitude of user options and applications. One of the really popular areas is the Myspace Graphic sites. it seems like theres a new one popping up every second. These Myspace graphic sites offer many different Myspace Graphics, ranging from glitter images to funny animated pictures to occasion graphics, to popular icons.
Anything you want to find, you will find, and with just a few clicks of your mouse. According to Google search there is well over 80 pages and 15,500,000 results for the keyword “myspace graphics” alone. And over 50 pages and 10,600,000 results for the keyword “myspace graphic comments”. Ive got to say it, if you cant find what your looking for with over 26,100,000 results, then you don’t need it!
Myspace graphic sites also offer other things like the ability to upload your own picture on to their server and turn it into a myspace ‘piece de resistance’, video clips, codes to change your mouse cursor, day of the week comments, contact table graphics etc. I could go on but I wont.
These sites are considered the mecca of all sites and with over 200 million users in ages ranging from fourteen to eighty years old theres no wonder there is so many sites available, each one of them offering something different, something more appealing, something cooler than the next site. I’m not one to comment graphics in particular my bag is more in the online gaming area! Although I will admit to being one of the 200 million users.
If your looking for a funny, witty, extraordinary comment to send your best friend, girlfriend, mom sister or anyone else under the sun these Myspace Graphic sites are the place to be. Check some of them out on your next trip to Google or Yahoo! Search.
This author is the proud owner of http://www.searchenginemarketingpro.biz.
5 Ways To Speed A Computer
In my work I run across a lot of people that have severely neglected their computer for years. Here is a list of the top five tips as a computer tech that I would recommend for any user to help maintain their computer and keep it running great.
There is a lot you can do yourself to boost your computers performance but we are going to discuss the basics today.
1. First, Free Up Disk Space - One of the primary ways to make a computer run faster is by freeing up disk space. This will give you more space on your hard disk. Certain utilities used identify certain files that can be safely deleted without making any serious changes and then it lets you choose whether you want to delete some or all of the files it identifies.
2. Second, Arrange Files in Proper Order - When you install a file or program to your computer, the hard drive is mostly empty so new data is saved in one whole block. Then when you call for that information, the computer can usually find quickly because it is all in one spot. As time goes by your computer will return the file but it will be in a different order and in different locations so the necessity to arrange the files is necessary. There are lots of programs you can buy to do this but some are great and others are not.
3. Three, Get Rid of Spyware - Spyware is a program that will do bad things to your computer by design; many times it gets installed with your consent. They can take advantage of the fact that people will click “I Agree” to software agreements without reading them. The best method to rid yourself of this sort of spyware programs is to scan your computer like an anti-virus program. Be careful if you do this yourself as lot of the spyware programs out there are of themselves malicious and will put the viruses into your PC in order to create a problem they can solve after you buy something.
4. Forth, Find and Repair Disk Errors - Another computer issue that needs precaution are disk errors. Your computer or your hard drive as it gets older may encounter errors that need to be repaired. There are certain ways we scan the disk and repair those errors but most people are a little afraid of doing this because they imagine working on the drive itself. Most repair businesses are able to do this with little or no risk involved.
5. Fifth, Buy a External Hard Drive - When you add a external hard drive to your PC you can clean out most files that should not really be on your main hard drive. Like pictures and music files that are not used a lot yet they can occupy a lot of space. These files are exactly what you want to move onto your new hard drive because they are clogging up the hard drive and making it difficult to use. Many other kinds of files also qualify for being stored on an external hard drive too.
Most repair companies offer an option to obtain extra hardware and they will install it too for a price. If you take these precautions ahead of time you will find your repair needs are minimized and reduced over time.
Copyright Detro Canaro (2008) Detro Canaro is a husband, a father, a writer, computer tech and a co-owner of several websites that support he and his family. One of those websites is http://computerrepairlasvegas.blogspot.com/
A Guide to Social Networking Platforms
If you want to build your own social networking website but lack the technical knowledge to code one from scratch as most of us do, chances are you have looked in to using a social networking platform. Many companies have developed social networking platforms that allow customers to build social networks easily and that are customized to their needs.
Often referred to as “white label,” these platforms become invisible and allow the creator’s brand to take center stage. The social network creator can customize the platform any way they like for a variety of effects and features. There are two basic types of social network platforms within this classification; ones that are hosted remotely and the easiest to use and ones that you download onto your server and run as an independent program which you are responsible for managing.
Remotely hosted social network platforms allow you to set up your very own social network with the least amount of work and technical knowledge. You can basically point and click to choose the features and design you want without having to worry about the technical details.
There are many companies that offer this type of social network platform, with Ning, CrowdVine, KickApps, GoingOn, and People Aggregator being just a few for you to consider. If you have the desire to create a social networking website for your business, group, or just for fun, these types of platforms are the easiest to use and are the best solution for those without much technical skill.
If you have some technical experience then a social network platform that you download to your server and configure yourself may be the best option for you. This type of platform offers the most flexibility and custom features, but you must know how to implement them yourself. PHPFox is a popular platform you can download and configure yourself.
You can also have a social network built for you using a platform you download on your server if you have the money to pay a developer and want the most personalized social network you can get. One Sit is a company that offers such services to web developers without the technical knowledge to make their own social network from scratch but want the most customized application possible.
No matter if you choose a remotely hosted platform or on that you download and configure yourself, make sure you compare the features of the major platform solutions to ensure that you are getting the features and customization you need.
Ron Subs works with Mega Star Media as a public relations consultant, more information about Ron Subs can be found at http://www.megastarmedia.com/
How to Create a Popular Online Community
An online community can be as simple as a small message board attached to a website or it can be very large networking community such as My Space. Any technology that allows people to communicate with each other and share information, ideas, and content can be made into an online community. If you are thinking about adding some type of online community to your website or starting your own freestanding community, there are a few things you should know in order to be successful.
You will need to give people a reason to join your community if you want to attract users. Depending on the purpose of your community this can be achieved by giving your community useful information that will be of interest to your community’s target audience or you can offer giveaways, contests, or other bonuses. Providing an aspect of fun through contests and such or giving valuable information are some of the best ways to attract new users to your community and to keep old ones coming back.
You can also offer an ezine or other type of mailing that is for members only. If you include important and relevant information that interests your audience, this alone will be a reason for people to join and will remind them to participate in your community every time they receive your mailing.
You will also want to make it known to visitors to your website that there are benefits to joining your online community. Tell visitors why they should join and what benefits there are for them. You should also keep a close eye on your community and participate regularly. Make sure you either have a moderator or remove any spam or offensive posts regularly yourself. Keep your community a place that is easy to enjoy without the distractions that can drive users away.
Try to keep ads to a minimum, or better yet don’t have any ads at all. A clean looking interface that is not littered with commercial promotions is the most attractive to users. If you do have a few well placed ads, make sure they are targeted to your audience and relevant to your site so they at least offer some usefulness to users and they will make you the most profit.
If you design your online community to be attractive and easy to use you will have much easier time attracting users. Likewise, the more relevant content and fun promotions you have in connection with your community the more su
Ron Subs works with Mega Star Media as a public relations consultant, more information about Ron Subs can be found at http://www.megastarmedia.com/
Does Your Website Need a Dedicated Server?
Most websites are hosted on a shared server which means that many websites, from a handful to hundreds, all use the same server and occupy the same space. For a small to mid-sized website with a reliable web host this is not usually a problem. However, for a large website with thousands of visitors and large bandwidth requirements, using a shared server can cause many problems.
If you have a website that is very popular; it has and has high traffic, large amounts of file uploads, or other large amounts of bandwidth usage, using a shared server can become an issue. Even if your web host offers what seems like a generous amount of bandwidth and storage space, and has good advertised speeds, if your website uses more than its allotted share you may be charged overage fees or even worse your host may limit the number of visitors you can have or even disable your site to protect other customers on the same server. If your website faces any of these problems by exceeding or routinely meeting your bandwidth allocation, you should consider a dedicated server.
Deciding when to make the switch can be hard because of cost differences between shared and dedicated servers. However, if your hosting needs are exceeding the limit of your shared server it is important to switch to a dedicated server to avoid paying overages or having your traffic impacted. Having a dedicated server, either a virtual dedicated server or a truly dedicated server will give your visitors a more reliable experience when visiting your site and will ensure that your site continues to run smoothly.
Virtual dedicated servers are not truly dedicated, but they do give a website their own IP address, root access, and full control over the server and what applications you can run. There will be other websites using the same server, but it will usually be partitioned so that you have more space, privacy, and a much larger bandwidth allowance.
You will also be able to offer file downloads and accept file uploads without the problems that are commonly encountered with shared hosting. A virtual dedicated server is more costly than a shared server but not as expensive as s truly dedicated server.
A truly dedicated server that you do not have to share in any way with other websites is the most expensive type of server but it is worth it if you have a large website that has high bandwidth requirements, such as a social network site, gaming site, or your website has large amounts of data and downloads.
Ron Subs works with Mega Star Media as a public relations consultant, more information about Ron Subs can be found at http://www.megastarmedia.com/
Building an Online Community, Focus on People not Technology
Building any type of website takes technical knowledge and when things aren’t going well most people are quick to jump on technology as the issue. If you are trying to create an online community whether it is a simple forum or an intricate social networking site, you may be tempted to blame the technologic aspect of your site if it is not as successful as you would like.
The truth is that all the HTML, CSS, Java, PHP, and scripting knowledge in the world will not make your online community successful if you do not focus on the driving force behind your community, the people.
The best way to make an online community successful is to give users a reason to join, and a reason to come back. Static websites, ones that only offer information not a way to interact, are great if you only want to inform your visitors, however, an effective community needs much more.
Adding features that promote interactivity such as forums, chat rooms, blogs, profiles, and ways to share information, pictures, and videos between users are some of the things you can do to help promote your online community.
You will also need to give your community a purpose, and this can be very targeted such as a small niche or very generalized such as meeting new people and communicating with friends. Generally small communities are more successful if they have a focused and targeted audience, say stamp collectors or other type of niche, but then again some of the largest online communities have no real purpose other than networking, meeting people, and connecting with friends.
Other ways to promote growth and membership in your online community is to allow members to submit content, have periodic contests, and to give prominent members moderator status or other special privileges. Giving members who post a lot or reach a certain number of posts a special title is a simple way to encourage members to be more active in the community. You may also want to provide a members only area for certain members that meet requirements which will also encourage more involvement in the community.
Allowing members to add to the community or website with their own content is also a good way to foster growth and make members feel at home. Holding contests is one of the best ways to generate interest as members will be eager to participate and if the prizes are of value it will also draw new members.
The most important thing to remember if you want to create a successful online community is to focus on what people want and give them things that will attract them and keep them coming back.
Ron Subs works with Mega Star Media as a public relations consultant, more information about Ron Subs can be found at http://www.megastarmedia.com/
A Guide to Choosing Small Business Web Hosting
With so many options in web hosting and the fierce competition that takes place between hosting companies, it is easy for small businesses to find reliable and affordable web hosting. There are many things to consider when choosing a when host for your website, and you should compare the services of at least a few hosting companies before choosing one.
Before you start looking at hosting companies, decide what your business needs. Will your small business website require dedicated hosting because it will require large amounts of bandwidth, storage space, and get a lot, 10,000 or more, visitors per day? Or, will shared hosting fit your needs if your website does not require as much space?
You should also consider what type of features your website needs, it is purely informational or will you need to integrate order forms, shopping carts, and payment options? Some hosts make it easy for you to set up an ecommerce website and others do not, the type of hosting you will need is be determined by the features your website will possess.
If you are not a web designer by trade and cannot afford to hire one for your website you will also need to consider how easy it will be to set up your website and how much knowledge of scripting, HTML, and file transfer you will need to set up your website. Some hosts offer website building packages with their hosting which makes it relatively easy to create a website without too much technical knowledge but you will end up paying a little more and loose some functionality.
It is possible to find hosting for your small business for as little as a few dollars a month for shared server hosting or as much as a few thousand dollars a month for a dedicated server. Once you know how much bandwidth, storage, and space you need and determine which hosting solution, shared or dedicated is best for your small business, you can then evaluate the different features of various hosting companies, including price, to determine which is best for you.
You will want to look at factors such as uptime, technical support, cancellation, upgrade and transfer policies, as well as how long the host has been in business and any complaints or awards they may have in the community.
Uptime is related to reliability and will tell you how often you can expect your website to be unavailable to web surfers due to hosting technical issues. Most hosting companies that have good uptimes will advertise this; some of the major hosting companies advertise 99% uptime however no matter how reliable a host is if you run a website for long enough you will encounter at least a few technical glitches from your hosts end.
You should also consider the amount of technical support you will receive from a host and make sure you choose one that will fit your level of expertise. If you know you will need help make sure you pick a host with good tech support. Take a good look at their policies as well to make sure you will be happy if you decide to cancel, transfer your site, or upgrade your hosting plan.
Ron Subs works with Mega Star Media as a public relations consultant, more information about Ron Subs can be found at http://www.megastarmedia.com/
What Steps To Take With Your Online Community
If you are looking to build an online community, this is a pretty simple process. You have to simply identify your niche audience and then develop a community around their interests and conversational needs. This article will give a quick overview on some of the ways that people have worked to build an online community from the start in popularity of the Internet.
When the Internet first became popular, bulletin boards and forums were the popular way to go. You could simply post a message and then other people would respond to those messages. This allowed people with a particular passion to post questions and others would add thoughts and answers as they saw fit. Some individuals created online mailing lists so that information could be disseminated to those who signed up for the mailing lists.
As the Internet became even more developed, chat rooms became popular as well. It allowed those with particular interests to converse with others in real time, ensuring that information could be found much more quickly. Receiving information in real-time is much more important these days because if you want to land your prospects, you have to feed their need for now. Chat rooms can play into your strategy of building an online community.
There has been quite a development since then with the evolution of Web 2.0. These are particular technologies which are in use on such websites as Facebook. This term was simply used to describe changes in the way that people use the Internet to find information and to collaborate online. Blogs are another example of these types of trends and how people find their information these days and interact with others. There is a greater and greater increase in how people want to do things online and the key word is interaction.
This article has talked a great deal about how the Internet has shifted in terms of peoples uses. When you want to build an online community, you can use any of the tactics which are talked about within these various paragraphs but you have to see where the trend is changing. Social networking and finding groups to become involved with has been changing the face of the Internet and you have to move with this trend or be swept up in the face of it with a less successful website. Do you want to be the leader or would you rather be the follower? It is a tough question you must ask yourself and the answer should be obvious.
Ron Subs works with Mega Star Media Inc. as a public relations consultant, more information about Mega Star Media Inc. can be found at http://www.megastarmedia.com.
An Expert’s View On Social Networking
You may be wondering why there is a simple name as a title to an article. This is simply to give you a name when you realize how important social networking is and how she can help you get in on this fast-moving trend.
To truly understand social networking, it is important to first take a step back to understand the bigger picture. In 2006, an advertising professional named Rohit Bhargava of Ogilvy Public Relations came up with the term social media optimization. This was used to explain the newest and strongest movement in internet marketing. It simply speaks to social media sites which have grown to such a great degree in such a short time. Think about these different websites: MySpace, digg, YouTube, and Facebook. You are talking about unique visitors which can number into the hundreds of millions between these five websites. This trend is not one which will trickle. As these websites have developed, many website owners have profited by developing social applications which can work with these websites. Much of the hype around Web 2.0 came because the technologies developed were to help with social technologies. Social networking has been the buzz in many web conferences for the last two or three years. Much work still has to be done to build this arena.
Think about the importance of that past paragraph and what kind of impact that can have on your business. You need to constantly be looking for new ways to bring customers or visitors to your website. Is this a method which you are taking into consideration and using? If you are not, do you think that you should? Think about the traffic you could be missing out on. This is an area you can build traffic in with less work than it often takes to become ranked in the search engines. There is less competition in this particular area for certain niches than with optimizing your web site for search engines. Battling for traffic with other websites through search engine optimization can be time-consuming and have declining marginal returns as you continue to put in more time.
Think about using Sandra Rowley if you do not know everything about this particular online arena. One of the most important things any smart business owner does is to surround himself or herself with a strong team. Sandra Rowley can be one of your team advisors who you can use to help in developing a strategy for this particular area.
Ron Subs works with Mega Star Media Inc. as a public relations consultant, more information about Mega Star Media Inc. can be found at http://www.megastarmedia.com.
