Major search engines use programs called crawlers or robots to index websites to list on their search result pages. They follow links to a page, reads the content of the page and record it in their own database, pulling up the listing as people search for it.

• If you want to make your site indexed easily, you should avoid using frames on your website. Frames will only confuse search engine robots and they might even abandon your site because of that. Moreover, frames make it difficult for users to bookmark a specific page on your site without using long, complicated scripts.

• Do not present important information in Flash movies or in images. Search engine robots can only read text on your source code so if you present important words in Flash movies and images rather than textual form, your search engine ranking will be affected dramatically.

• Use meta tags accordingly on each and every page of your site so that search engine robots know at first glance what that particular page is about and whether or not to index it. By using meta tags, you are making the search engine robot’s job easier so they will crawl and index your site more frequently.

• Stop using wrong HTML tags like <font> to style your page. Use CSS (Cascading Style Sheets) instead because they are more effective and efficient. By using CSS, you can eliminate redundant HTML tags and make your pages much lighter and faster to load.

If you follow these simple techniques, you’ll be well on your way to creating an SEO friendly website, giving you better leverage to rank for your keywords. Keep in mind, these are just some of what you can do to optimize your website. SEO is a committment to your website so consult with an SEO specialist to devise the most appropriate strategies for your website.

For starters, I will admit that most of my job involves me creating lists for email marketing campaigns. There’s this talk about “opt-in” or “permission-based” email marketing but to digress for a minute and give you something to think about, ask “Do television commercials ask our permission to air during show breaks?” I’m just saying, it’s something to think about. The comparison I made is simply to illustrate a point. I don’t want to make light of spamming since it is a legitimate issue. I just hope we can start to re-evaluate how we view what is spam and what it is not. Personally, I identify spam as gibberish emails promoting Viagra or someone telling me they need me to help them cash an overseas check. Unfortunately spam now includes “unwanted” emails which is way too vague for the general population.

First of all, I have to say that most people who use the Internet are “simple-minded.” Now please don’t confuse “simple-minded” with dumb. That’s not what I’m trying to say. “Simple-minded” just means that people don’t process thought as they would in their regular lives or through normal conversations. “Simple-minded” internet users scan until they see a word that registers as something they want to see. So when they see something that doesn’t fit in with what they want, they disregard it as “I don’t want this.” This is concerning because the user does not stop to think “Did I sign up for this?” “Who is sending this to me?” The instant response is since I don’t readily process this as something I want right now it must the sender’s fault.

I work for an online start-up and we have an active membership of users who continuously flag our email correspondences as spam, despite having given us permission to email them. Rather than unsubscribe to the list they chose to sign up for in the first place, they identify our email as spam. I read an article that brings to light one interesting point about how spam is defined by the user. This was when I decided to give this topic some serious thought.

If the users define it one way and the marketers define it another way and the government defines it another, what is the best definition? In customer service they say the “customer” is always right. In this case, the customer would be the email recipient. I hope for this to open up a discussion regarding spam since it can be such a grey area for some marketers.

So back to the initial question. How does one do email marketing effectively?

1. Ask for permission. Sometimes it’s as simple as that. If you want to build a list of people who are not currently subscribe to your list, ask them if they would like to join. Rather than spamming them or sending “unsolicited” emails, it only makes sense to spend a few minutes well in advance and ask if you could add them to your list. You might turn a potential pissed off person into a loyal subscriber.
2. Piggy back with someone who has a strong subscriber list. If there’s an email list you’re a part of and you feel that their target audience is also yours, ask about sponsoring their next newsletter, see if you can get a banner ad or offer a special discount to those on their mailing list. When you direct this traffic to your website, be sure to have a “subscribe to my mailing list” form PROMINENT on your website pages. The best place is the upper-middle right hand side.
3. Do you have “subscribe to my mailing list” in your email signature? If not then you should. Anytime you send out an email it reminds the recipient that they can opt-in to your list at any time. Not everyone will go to your website. Make it easy for people to optin and you’ll be surprised at how many do.
4. Relevant content. This should go without saying. If your content is not important to the reader, why would they continue to read your emails, much less agree to joining your list? It’s not about you, it’s about your readers. You can have a 100k subscriber list but if you start sending out crap to them, watch how fast 100k turns into 10. Let’s forget for a second the people who unsubscribe. There’s going to be a handful of those who don’t unsubscribe but still don’t read your emails. The point of an email campaign is to get your audience to READ and DO SOMETHING whether it’s come to your website, make a purchase or forward the email to someone else. If you don’t have something useful for them, they won’t find YOU useful…period.

These simple tips may sound like common sense but you’d be surprised. Sometimes people need to hear over and over again what they already know so that they can remember to do the right thing when it comes to email campaigns. As marketers, we only shoot ourselves in the foot when we don’t follow best practice tactics for ourselves and our clients.

If you haven’t read Tim Ferriss’ book, I highly recommend you check it out. It was my very first audiobook purchase (since I don’t have the attention span to read books) and I must admit I am not only hooked to audiobooks but to this concept of becoming a lifestyle entrepreneur. While there’s criticism about whether his tips and suggestions can be relatable to people who struggle to get their business ventures to a successful level, I must advocate for the underlying messages and simple tips that give this book its’ value. Not everyone will be able to afford the lifestyle he leads, however he provides a foundation upon which we can take away pieces of his wisdom and make our ideal lifestyle a reality.

I then came across the title of another book “Soul Proprietor: 101 Lessons from a Lifestyle Entrepreneur” and that’s when it hit me. In order to become a lifestyle entrepreneur I must embrace my business as a career and not as a side hustle. It was rather an enlightening and empowering AHA moment. Yet while it seemed like common sense, I found myself liberated from this mental trap I put myself in, though only for a limited time. I began to think about all the trials and tribulations I endured to get to where I am at and even though I am not where I would like to be I am content with where I am at because it’s where I need to be.

So in reflecting on this, I’ve come to a point where I want to make the ideological transition into a lifestyle entrepreneur. Not freelancer, not small business owner, not strategist or any of the other cliche titles I’ve taken on over the years. A “lifestyle entrepreneur” sounds happier. It gives a feeling that not only have I chosen my career path but I’ve paved my own road and make it a part of my life where I can still be happy and not worry about having to live double or triple lives. A lifestyle entrepreneurs creates their own reality and balances the nuisances of them rather well because it’s not the destination that matters, but rather it’s the journey.

This may sound like common business sense, but you’d be surprised how few people take branding seriously. I will be the first to admit that I’ve lagged on this philosophy and can account first-hand how difficult it can be to recover and try to rebrand yourself. I learned the hard way that if you don’t invest early on in the process, then it will take more money, time and effort to change other people’s perceptions of you

is not to say that you want to go from inconsistent to reliable. Changing the quality and reputation you initially establish has more to do with how you treat people and how you handle yourself professionally. That’s a completely different discussion. I’m talking about how to get people to see you as a personal home care attendant and not a housekeeper.

Branding yourself can be rather simple if you believe in yourself as a brand. How do you believe in it? In your mind you are who you want to be and not who you think you should be. It may be part Secret + part confidence + part psychology. I hate to sound cliché but it really does start from within. Once you own that inner spirit that believes it, that energy will come out and you will exude the confidence that inspires others to believe it. When someone asks you “What do you do?“, there’s no hesitation or pause. You confidently answer and you are that person you want to be.

This is just one step to owning your brand.

Next, build a visible image with your brand. If you’re out networking, make some business cards with your brand. Don’t let others tell you who you are. If you’re networking and you’re branding yourself as a personal home care attendant, explain what that is. If someone says “Oh you’re a housekeeper or maid” simply remind them you’re more than that.

Explain how you help working families deal with their work/life balances and how you customize services according to needs. A personal home care attendant makes much more than a housekeeper because the perceived value is greater. The words you use to explain your brand and your body language all send messages to the person you’re talking to. You want these messages to support one another and assert your brand as how you want it to be perceived so that when you’re introduced to someone else they say “Oh this is Chloe. She’s a personal home care attendant.” If you want a brand to stick, others have to repeat it over and over again.

My dilemma: I started out doing graphic design and marketing services. I eventually started doing webdesign as well. But from the beginning I wanted to position myself as a marketing brand. It was a weak brand and I quickly caught up in doing a lot of work and balancing full-time employment that I didn’t give my “brand” the attention it deserved. As a result, I was branded as a web designer.

I’ve tried several times to rebrand myself as a marketing specialist, however it was hard to turn down easy money with doing a quick website or business card design here and there. It wasn’t until a year ago that I realized I needed to make some serious shifts in my thinking and in my approach if I wanted to position myself as a marketing specialist. I did less design work and turned down gigs. I wanted to show others that graphic and web design was merely a tool for marketing. I started doing more pro-bono marketing work and took full-time employment as a marketing consultant.

The result: It took some time but I’m now rebranded as a marketing strategist. I still do design work but only when cash flow is low or if it’s for a project I’m developing. My business cards no longer have the words “creative, artistic, designer, web or graphic” on them. I now focus primarily on Internet marketing.

What I learned: Rebranding myself was not impossible. I was able to use the challenge as an opportunity to meet new people within the marketing industry and learn new trade skills. With my skills in graphic and web design, I am also able to bring valuable knowledge to future clients and be able to not only explain why their site needs revisions but also make suggestions that will help them accomplish their goals.

By nature and nurture, I am a marketing person. I have ADD at times and struggle with staying still. I get distracted and bored easily. I think this is why I like marketing. I get to come up with all sorts of ideas for promoting something. I can think of off the wall concepts and call it “strategic marketing.” Then I get to step away and move on to another project that needs marketing. It wasn’t until recently that I get to do long-term marketing for my own projects and must learn to harness my energies and not drift off to lala land.

This is who I am. I’m a great consultant. I love coming up with ideas and telling people what to do but not in a bad way. I have a background in vocational counseling so I know how to listen to what others say, but more importantly what they don’t say. I’m an Internet addict so I am constantly online reading news, trends and tips on how to maximize marketing and pr efforts. So i decided to transform this blog into something more organic and reflective of who I am. Part business part personal, this blog is intended to be a fodder for my experiences as I embark on my various journeys. I also hope to connect my readers with the stories of leaders who have paved the way for entrepreneurs or advice from leaders who guide us through the challenges we face in a changing business economy.

As always, I’m accessible via email and open to ideas or suggestions on how to improve my blog.

It’s easy to get caught up in our fantasies of what we want to do that we often overlook what we need to do in order to bring to life the future we want for ourselves and for our families.

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A videoblog requires larger disk spaces on websites, a faster server, and a whole new set of programs to support it. Videoblogs can be fed through RSS. This is technology of syndicating your website to other RSS aggregators.

Videoblogging works with people on the internet expressing their selves. Now if you put this on a business prospective, you are up to a lot of benefits. Think of it as a powerful tool in making showing your prospective customers your line of products or your services. It’s just like showing a commercial all for free. And if you videoblog through RSS, then most probably you are getting your target market.

People like to see what they are going to buy. Some would like to see proof and be sure that they are getting their money’s worth before shelving their dimes on it. All of us know the influence of a thirty second commercial. The effect of videoblogging is similar to that. You show your product, people watch it. If they like it, they buy it. If you present it good enough, they’ll buy the product even if they don’t need it.

Now on the web, things are pretty much static, unlike in television in which all are moving. If you post something that is mobile, it would most likely catch attention. Now imaging your product parading in all it’s royalty through videoblog. You’ll get phone call orders in no time.

If your business is just starting up, you can create a videoblog right at your own home. All you need is your web camera, microphone, video software, and lights. For as long as you know how to use your camera, then you can create a videoblog.

Invest in a good web camera. The higher its resolution is the better the output. And you like to present your goods in the optimum way so get the best one possible. Make a short story, or just capture your goods in one go. Just make sure you are getting the best profile for each. Get those creativity juices flowing.

Lights are important in a production. Make sure you illuminate entirely the area you are going to use to create videoblog. The brighter the area, the crispier the images will be. You can also use lighting effects for added appeal to the presentation.

Should you require sounds for your videoblog, you need a microphone. Record you voice as a voice over for promoting the product and its benefit to consumers. Sounds are as important as videos on a videoblog. It is advisable to make your sound effects as enticing as the video.

Your video editing software can be any program. You need this to finalize your work. You can add sounds, delete some bad angles, or insert some still pictures in there too. Some programs are user-friendly and can be used even with zero knowledge on video editing. Even simple video editing programs should do the trick. Select your background carefully too. The light affects the presentation so make sure that the background and the light complements each other.

Videoblogging is a great tool but it also has it downside. It may slow down the computer so other may steer clear of it. Download time may also be time consuming especially if customer is still on a dial- up connection.

But don’t let those stop you. Let videoblogging be an alternative for you, though it is best to still keep the text and pictures present in your presentation to accommodate all possible viewers of your site.

Nowadays, the more creative you are in presenting your product to the market, they more you are likely to succeed. Videoblogging offers an interactive way of selling. You involve the customers. You instill in them the advantage of your goods. And at times, those are enough to make a sale.