Anybody who researches how to set up an home based business will soon discover that two key online marketing techniques are blogging and list building. Indeed, the first two things that the majority of new Internet entrepreneurs set up are,
First, let’s look at how to use your blog to grow your list.
When you set up your blog, be sure to add your auto responder opt-in box to your blog template. Place the box in a prominent position above the fold, that is, somewhere where visitors to your blog will see it as soon as they arrive, without having to scroll down the page.
Offer a free report as an inducement for your visitors to fill in the opt in box and Sign up to your list.
Your auto responder will probably offer you the option of floating or pop-up opt-in box and you might want to add this to your blog as well. Lots of people claim to find these boxes irritating, but they are also an effective way of getting more people to join your list.
At the end of each blog post sign off with your name and link to your list building squeeze page.
Use your blog posts to talk about longer reports that you make available to people on your list. If the theme of your blog is Internet marketing, use your blog as a platform to talk about list building tips and invite your readers to join your list so that you can send them detailed list building techniques via e-mail.
Of course, before you can do this you will need to write a series of detailed e-zine letters about list building techniques, or if that is too difficult for you, outsource the task to an expert writer or find a suitable PLR product that you can convert into an e-mail course and post to your subscribers.
Having set up the basics for a list building blog, now let’s look at how to use your list to promote your blog.
One key method of promoting your blog is to encourage people to respond to your articles by posting their comments on your blog. One incentive for people to post comments on blogs is that they can link back from the comment to their website by filling in the URL field on the comment form.
Again, if you offer your list Internet marketing tips, one of the things you can educate your list about is the benefits and etiquette of linking back from blog comments.
Now, whenever you blog about something that is relevant, newsworthy or simply controversial, send your list and e-mail telling them about your blog post and that you would love to hear their opinions. Include a link to your blog posting your e-mail and invite your list to post their comments.
If your post is well targeted, you should see a significant increase in traffic from your list to your blog, and also an increase in the number of comments that are left beneath the blog post.
Another thing you can do is to invite your subscribers to submit articles for possible inclusion on your blog. Allow your guest bloggers to link back to their websites and explain how guest blogging can increase their profile on the Internet. This will also be a great way for you to keep your blog loaded with fresh content on a regular basis.
Finally, invite your list to use your blog content on their website or blog provided that they include a promotional link back to your blog.
By applying these suggestions to your blogging and list building efforts, you will go a long way to synchronize them into a single, effective promotional strategy for your online business.
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