http://www.articletrader.com/ Articles at ArticleTrader en-us http://www.articletrader.com/travel/volunteer-in-kenya-for-once-in-a-lifetime-experience.html http://www.articletrader.com/travel/volunteer-in-kenya-for-once-in-a-lifetime-experience.html Tue, 05 Feb 2008 00:00:00 -0600
Why Volunteer In Kenya

Volunteering in Kenya is like being surrounded by some of the best that nature has to offer. In spite of active tourism, Kenya is not an economically stable country and lacks strong infrastructure. As a volunteer in Kenya, you will be able to contribute to its economical growth and at the same time get to understand their cultural behavior, language and needs. Some of the important areas that require volunteers include health sector like hospitals and clinics, education sector like schools, sports, orphanages etc.

Types Of Projects Available

As a part of volunteering in Kenya, you will get to choose the kind of project you are interested in. The different types if projects available include:

• Coaching Soccer: Soccer has become an important sport over the years and the Kenyan team has also made it to the FIFA world cup. As a volunteer in Kenya, you can use your skills and knowledge of soccer to impart training to the local players and in schools. There are some soccer volunteer programs in Nakuru. All you need is a love for the sport and some basic knowledge of playing the game.
• Working with orphans: It is not easy to work with orphans because they have never known how to live their life in a proper manner. As a volunteer in Kenya, you will get to work with orphanages where you can impart education, and offer proper guidance to the children so that they can follow the right path.
• Women’s Education: Women’s education is an important aspect that has not received the status it deserves in Kenya. The literacy rate in women in Kenya is quite low and as a volunteer, you will assist in increasing the literacy rate by providing proper education.
• HIV/AIDS Awareness Project: One of the major and concerning problems is that of the high AIDS/HIV population in Kenya. The high number of AIDS cases registered show that it has been caused due to lack of awareness and education. Illiteracy and poverty are two major factors that come in the way. You can make the rural population be more aware of this dreaded disease and how to take precautions so that the spread of AIDS can be restricted.
• Teaching English: English as we all know has become a global language but more than that there is a high demand for English teachers in Kenya. As a volunteer teaching English, you will be associated with schools that can’t afford proper teachers and don’t have the necessary infrastructure.
• Humanitarian Aid: Most humanitarian projects deal with a number of issues from helping street children to handling conservation responsibilities. As a part of the projects, you will get to work with underprivileged children, orphans, old aged people, famine stricken people, and also with wildlife and in forest reserves.

Volunteer Requirements

Age: The minimum age for volunteering in Kenya should be 18 or older.
Duration: The standard duration of most projects is 5-8 weeks although they can also vary from 1-2 weeks or 9-12 weeks. There are some projects that can vary from 6-9 months.

Language: English

Fee and Other details

There is a fee attached to each of the projects that you volunteer for. The fee is charged in advance and is charged for the following:

1. Accommodation
2. Emergency evacuation services
3. Food/meals
4. Travel insurance
5. Transportation within the region
6. Emergency support
7. All types of training material
8. Supervision by local staff
9. Orientation on arrival
10. Local sightseeing & recreational activities


Conclusion
Volunteering in Kenya is a wholesome experience because you will get to make a contribution that will help the people of Kenya and the children who are the future and you will derive tremendous satisfaction from your work.


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Volunteer in Kenya expert Alex Landin is a project manager and Volunteer Kenya contributor to GlobalCrossRoad.com.

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/travel/volunteer-in-nepal-a-majestic-experience.html http://www.articletrader.com/travel/volunteer-in-nepal-a-majestic-experience.html Tue, 05 Feb 2008 00:00:00 -0600
Why Volunteer In Nepal
Volunteering in Nepal is a once in a lifetime opportunity for all of you who wish to undertake a meaningful journey and do their bit towards making this world a better place for all. With numerous volunteer work opportunities such as serving poor children and women, teaching languages, working on health projects, conservation work, etc., you will get to spend time in three of the bustling cities of Nepal – Kathmandu (capital), Pokhara, and Chitwan. Of course, volunteering in Nepal requires you to be patient, open-minded, and humble when interacting and working with the locals.

Types Of Projects Available
Though there are several volunteer programs available in Nepal, some of the most common ones (which have a higher demand for volunteers) are supporting local orphanages, local schools, teaching English, and working with health centers. Almost all volunteering in Nepal projects are available in Chitwan, Pokhara, and Kathmandu.

As a part of volunteering in Nepal, you have the opportunity to choose the kind of project you are interested to volunteer in. The different types of volunteer projects available in Nepal include:

Teaching English: This volunteering in Nepal program requires, volunteers to be placed in various local schools to teach conversation and reading level English to Nepali children. Just as English is an important skill for a good job placement in the world, Nepal is no different. The requirement of English speaking work force is on the rise in the country. To teach Nepali children English, you don’t require any formal teaching qualification. However, you do need a good command of spoken as well as written English, lot of patience, and unquenchable enthusiasm.

Children's Homes: In Nepal, volunteers will get the opportunity to act as a big brother or sister to many of the Nepali orphans who live in orphanages across the country. You will also be required to help with cleaning, gardening, doing repairs, planning activities etc.

Health Education: Health education volunteering in Nepal means working closely with children’s homes. The key focus area is on preventative measures by educating Nepali children about regular basic health check-ups, administering necessary childhood immunizations, personal hygiene, and sanitation as a disease prevention method. For this program, you need to be either a medical student or an advanced degree holder in medicine.

Community Maintenance Program: This involves practical application in village settings. Some of the community maintenance projects include painting or plastering, however, those of you with additional skill sets can help in more advanced work. You'll get to work alongside villagers, learning about traditional methods of building and working.

Home Stay/Cultural Exchange: A short volunteering program, this is also a wonderful way to get the best value out of your time in Nepal. You will be staying with a Nepali family in a small rural village or even within a city. During the duration of your stay you will learn about all aspects of Nepali culture, lifestyle, food, as well as attend couple of hours of language sessions twice in the day.

Volunteer Requirements
The two most important requirements for volunteering in Nepal are:

• Age - 18 years or older
• Health - no major health problems

Volunteering in Brazil programs is open to participants from all over the world and to individuals, families, and couples.

Fee and Other details
There are fees attached for every volunteering project you opt for. The fee is charged in advance and is applied for accommodation, food/meals, travel insurance, etc. The project coordinator takes care of most of your needs as a volunteer in Nepal throughout the duration of the project that varies from 7 days to 4 weeks.

Conclusion
Volunteering in Nepal is your chance to learn a new culture as well as contribute toward the society.

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Volunteer in Nepal expert Alex Landin is a project manager and Volunteer Nepal contributor to GlobalCrossRoad.com.

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/internet/seo/free-articles-tips-on-writing-it-well.html http://www.articletrader.com/internet/seo/free-articles-tips-on-writing-it-well.html Thu, 03 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0600 Article marketing to drive visitors to that site. It can be a great way to generate interest in your business and enhance your reputation as an expert in your field.
Article marketing is the process of writing an article about a subject related to your business. The article includes a reference to your business. While you don’t get paid for what you write, publishers will publish it, allowing you to get free advertising for your business. These days, article marketing is growing in popularity, especially on the internet.
There are many websites available that publish free articles, pictures and other content. Visitors to those sites may use the articles on their own websites, thereby assuring fresh content on a regular basis. By using free article or free web content sites, you may find you’re published all over the globe.
While the various free article and free web content sites have their own guidelines, these involve formatting, decency rules and other matters. Quite often the guidelines don’t include how to write well. An article will not do your business any good if it is not well written.
Don’t be afraid: We’re not talking about writing in Shakespearean couplets. But if your eyes have ever glazed over while reading an article, you know how poor writing can drive readers away.
Here are some simple rules to follow:
8. Be sure you know something about the topic. You don’t have to be world’s greatest expert but you have to know something about a subject to write about it. So do your research and make sure you have your facts straight.
9. When you sit down to write your article, think about the main point you are trying to convey. That will be your lead paragraph. For example: “Many people about tooth whitening products. Here are the products available, their approximate costs and the pros and cons of each one.”
10. When you write your lead paragraph, try to answer these basic questions: Who? What Where? When? Why? How? This will give the reader a clear idea of what your article will talk about.
11. Try to arrange the information in your article with the most important information at the top and the least important at the bottom. Newspaper reporters call this the inverted pyramid style. It allows publications to shorten articles for space considerations by merely taking off the bottom paragraphs. This way, only the least important information is deleted. (Of course, the information about your article will remain intact as it will be contained in a text box or italicized paragraph.)
12. Try to write as you talk. While grammar is important, it is better to sound natural. If in doubt, read a sentence out loud: If it sounds stilted to you, it will sound stilted to others too. Also, avoid jargon and “buzzwords”. Does anyone really know what a “paradigm” is, for example?
13. Don’t worry too much about length. Your article is done when you feel that you have included all the information your readers will want. If you feel your article is too long, you can leave out some information but mention that, “for more detailed information about tooth veneers, visit my website (see information at the bottom.”) This, of course, is the whole point of your article.
14. When you’ve written your article, be sure to proofread it yourself. You may discover you left out something or you didn’t write something correctly. Also be sure to use a spellchecker. In addition, make sure someone else reads the article before you submit it. Never rely on just your own eyes. If you’ve spent a lot of time on your article, it is easy for your eyes to skim over a glaring error. It is better to have a spouse, a friend or a colleague read your article and point out your mistakes than to have them spread out over the internet.

By following these easy tips, you will be well on your way to publishing a really great Article Marketing, one that can lead to more visits to your website and more sales for your business.


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Moe Tamani is a SEO Marketing expert and Internet Marketing Strategies consultant.

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/internet/seo/free-articles-dos-and-donts-for-your-article-marketing-efforts.html http://www.articletrader.com/internet/seo/free-articles-dos-and-donts-for-your-article-marketing-efforts.html Thu, 03 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0600
Here are some dos and don’ts for you to follow to get the best bang for your Article marketing buck.

Do write a lot. Many people get the article-writing bug but then only write one or two articles. Then they give up and say it didn’t work. As with many marketing efforts, it takes time and repetition to get the word out. Keep writing. Some experts say you should write five or six articles a day to be effective.

Don’t make your articles puff pieces about yourself or your company. Web publishers are looking for content that is useful to their visitors.

Do write about subjects in your field that are of interest to you. Your passion will show in your writing and fire up your readers’ interest. They will be eager to go to your business.

Don’t write about something you don’t know about. Take the time to do what research you need to make your article understandable and enjoyable. Just be sure to give proper credit for the information you use.

Don’t plagiarize. It is wrong and hurts your credibility. You could also be sued for using someone else’s information without attribution.

Do make your headlines clear. The most effective is “Subject: Why your reader should read this.”

Don’t write a headline that doesn’t describe the article: “A lovely Christmas story” is not what your reader wants right now. He or she wants information now. A good headline tells the reader exactly what information is in the article.

Do keep your opening (or lead) paragraph short and sweet. Make it similar to the headline by using the same keywords. Again, this tells readers exactly what they will be getting.

Don’t forget to follow the headline and the lead paragraph when writing the rest of the article. Try not to switch subject’s midstream.

Do use at least one link to your website within the article and perhaps those to other useful websites. It is one way your article draws attention to you and your business.

Don’t forget your reader. Keep in mind what your reader is looking for. Give them what they need.

Do use keywords and lots of them within the article. When people use a search engine, they type in keywords. Search engines rank content partially on the number of keywords they find in an article.

Don’t, however, just repeat keywords just to build up the number of them. Make sure the keyword you use has a legitimate place in your article.

Do remember to keep your sentences and paragraphs short. One way to do this is by using a list format: Use dos and don’ts, or try to create a list of ten things your readers should know about a topic.

Don’t use “$20 words” just to prove you know your subject. Vocabulary words were great in elementary school but pretentious in a marketing article. It is better to be simple and easily understood. For example, “use” is better than “utilize”.

Do review the guidelines of the free article directory and make sure your article follows its instructions. Revise your article if you need to.

Don’t submit your article without doing the following first: Proofreading it, using a spellchecker and having a colleague read it. Each step is important and can keep you from making embarrassing and costly mistakes.

Do use your bio box as a sales tool. “Bill Jones is a business owner and an expert in health insurance. Visit www.billjonesinsurance.com and find 10 more tips for evaluating your health insurance plan.

Don’t overload your bio box with dull information: For example, “Bill Jones is the owner of Bill Jones Co. and grand-high poo-bah of the Loyal Order of Water Buffalos. He and his dog Spike live in Ottumwa, Iowa.” tells the reader nothing about why they should trust your information and gives them nothing to remember your name once they click over to another website.

Do have fun writing your free articles. Don’t ignore the enormous potential Article Marketing has to promote your business.


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Moe Tamani is a SEO Marketing expert and Internet Marketing Strategies consultant.

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/internet/site-promotion/free-articles-a-tasty-recipe-for-building-your-business.html http://www.articletrader.com/internet/site-promotion/free-articles-a-tasty-recipe-for-building-your-business.html Thu, 03 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0600 Free articles are a great way to build free publicity for your company. Here is a simple recipe to get make it work for you.

Before you get started, gather your supplies: Keywords related to your subject, enthusiasm for the subject (essential), computer, internet access, word processing software, etc.

Take one business owner (you) with an interesting story subject related to the business. It could be new trends or products that are available, changes in the way your industry does business or a case history about how one of your clients was positively affected by something in your industry. (Note: in a case history, be sure to obtain the clients’ permission before use.)

Use one keyword to use at the beginning of his article’s headline. Add the reason for the article: For example: “Cell phones: These new technologies will help you.”

Use the same keyword to start the opening (lead) paragraph of the article. Add dash more keywords to taste. (Optional: add other keywords for great custom-blended flavor.) Caution: keywords added too liberally may ruin the article’s taste. Search engines will avoid your finished article.

Stir in many short sentences and paragraphs of information that is really useful to clients. Explain unfamiliar terms using down-to-earth language. (Serving suggestion: iceberg lettuce works better than arugula.)

Add information in a logical fashion throughout preparation. Be creative: use chronological order, lists, dos and don’ts. Be aware that your article should not taste like anyone else’s. If it does, lawsuits and other unfavorable reactions could result.

Tip: Prepackaged information may be used if proper attribution is given with the article or if the wording is restructured to be as different as possible. For example, if borrowed information uses an example, change the details of the example: Bob Jones to Tina Tuttle etc.

Variations may be added at any point. Consider seasonal and/or regional needs and availability. Is a holiday approaching? Is it nearly tax season? Is your article intended for a colder or warmer region? Take these factors into account and season the article accordingly.

Fold-in at least one link to your company’s website, preferably to a page that has more information on the subject. Fold-in other links if they contain truly useful information that the reader will want, even if it’s to sites that aren’t yours. This will also gain exposure to your website and your expertise. It will also increase the article’s rankings on search engines.

Stir the ingredients carefully until they are well blended. Before serving, have a friend or colleague taste the article to see if is to their liking. Adjustments can be made at this point if necessary. Taste it yourself and use spellcheckers to prevent mistakes.

Caution: be sure to remove all fat from the article. Overblown wording that blatantly plugs a business adds gas, making the article inedible. Search engines will reject your finished dish. Before this happens, discard and start over.

While the main course is simmering, prepare bio-box: In a separate bowl stir in your name, another link to your company’s website, along with information about your expertise in the subject. Add an offer or enticement to give the reader to click the link. (Serving suggestion: “visit wwww.mysite.com and sign up for my widgets e-newsletter.”)

Top the article with a bio-box just before serving.

This is a very easy recipe, but some people just do not have the time or talent to prepare articles effectively. It is very acceptable to seek out college students or others with writing skills. They can turn out the recipe with pleasing results. Your guests will appreciate better quality food.

Once you try this recipe, you will find that you want to prepare it often. This is encouraged. Use it five or six times a day as an effective Article Marketing strategy. Many variations are easily possible.

Enjoy: This recipe serves many:
• The cook, who wrote the free article, gets free positive exposure for his company;
• Web publishers get free content for their websites and a fresh voice for the web pages;
• Users get valuable information they need from an expert (you). Nutritional value depends on the individual needs of the diner.


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Moe Tamani is a SEO Marketing expert and Internet Marketing Strategies consultant.

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/internet/how-free-articles-and-content-have-revolutionized-internet-marketing.html http://www.articletrader.com/internet/how-free-articles-and-content-have-revolutionized-internet-marketing.html Thu, 03 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0600 Of course, you could hire a writer to come up with new content. However, that costs money and the writer might not come up with articles that meet your business’ needs. So what do you do?
One very popular solution is to find articles on the internet. There are many websites that offer Article marketing on just about any subject you can imagine. Even better, there are many sites that offer those articles for free. Yes, that’s right – it doesn’t cost you a thing to use them.
Why on earth would a writer offer his or her hard work for free? They do it mainly for exposure. Like any other industry, publishing is very competitive. Even if something is brilliantly written, it is very difficult to get it published. However, submitting the article to an on-line service, that article could very well get “picked up” by a website (like yours) where more people would see it.
That exposure could generate interest in a writer’s other work. The writer could also be inspired to write more articles on the same topic. The more articles he or she writes, the better the chances are that he or she can land a paying writing job.
Well, that’s great for a beginning writer, but what about the website owner (i.e., you?) You gain by gaining access to fresh content on a subject related to your business. Post the article to your website, and then change it with newer content on a regular basis. This encourages visitors to return to your site often. Thus, you build a rapport with them and the visitor is more likely to use your business in the future.
So, how do you make this work for your business? First, use your favorite search engine to look for “free articles”. You’ll be surprised at how many sites offer them. Choose one, then look at the subject categories available, then simply choose one that meets the needs of your business and website.
For example, let’s pretend you are a veterinarian and you want to find articles for your new website. You specialize in the care of horses so you use the article site’s search function to find “horses”. Voila! There’s an article on laminitis, a very painful malady. Simply select it and follow the site’s directions and you have your website’s content for the week. Next week, just repeat the process to find another article.
Of course, as with anything, sometimes free stuff is not even worth that much. Be sure to read the article first to make sure it really offers new information and that it is well-written. It pays to be cautious: Sometimes people will try to pass off an article as their own work when they really ripped it off of someone else. Select a key phrase and enter it in a search engine. If it turns up other articles that eerily resemble the article that you are considering, stay well away from it. Using a plagiarized article could hurt your credibility, and thus your business, in the long run.
Also, students please don’t get any bright ideas for using free article sites for an “automatic” term paper. Your professors and teachers have many ways to check if a paper has been “lifted” from another site. Don’t ruin your grade, and your academic career, by trying it.
However, if you have a paper that received a good grade, or you wrote a professional paper that generated interest, you might consider submitting it to a free article site. Many of these sites allow other users to rate articles. Highly rated articles can earn points and even money. Other sites host contests, debates and list publishers and the articles they are seeking. Who knows? Your article could be the start of a whole new career for you.
If you have an article to submit, be sure to check the website’s guidelines. They can be very stringent. These guidelines ensure that articles are original and are formatted correctly so they appear correctly on the website. Many articles sites have rules about what subjects they won’t accept (such as adult content or hate-speech). They do check articles submitted and do refuse articles that don’t meet the guidelines.
Using free article websites is a great way to update your website and to gain exposure to your writing capabilities. Give it a try.


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Moe Tamani is a SEO Marketing expert and Internet Marketing Strategies consultant.

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/internet/seo/how-free-web-content-has-become-the-internet-marketings-driving-force.html http://www.articletrader.com/internet/seo/how-free-web-content-has-become-the-internet-marketings-driving-force.html Thu, 03 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0600 Actually, he probably isn’t. Chances are, he was just smart – he used free web content sites to spice up his own website.
Free Web Content sites and free article sites are quickly growing in popularity on the internet. And no wonder: They allow webmasters to quickly refresh their sites with new stuff, thus ensuring visitors will keep going back to them. (In the internet world that’s called “stickiness”.
What kind of content is available? Just about anything, from the latest news, trivia, quizzes, animation and clip art. Some even provide templates to help you design your website and counters to keep track of how many people visit it. Another nifty feature many free web content sites offer is a link to advertisers: If you link to one of them and a visitor from your site clicks the link, you could earn money. That’s an easy way to earn a few extra bucks, isn’t it?
Where does the other free content come from? Mainly from writers who want to gain exposure (or at least keep their hand in writing).
For instance, someone who is a trivia junkie might like to come up with fun quizzes. Rather than try to have the quizzes published by conventional means, he or she can submit them to a free web content site. If enough people select those quizzes for use on their website, it could generate enough of a “buzz” to make a publisher take notice. Even if that did not happen, the trivia junkie still gets the joy of sharing his or her hobby with others.
Are you a writer but don’t know what to write about? Many of the free web content sites have lists from publishers who are seeking specific subjects. Some sites allow web designers to have material custom written for their site. Check these lists to see if something meets your special interest.
Does it sound too good to be true? May be yes, may be no. Remember the old adage, “You get what you pay for.” But with the publishing industry as competitive as it is, you may find some really valuable information in that free article. Just be sure to carefully read the content you are considering to make sure it is accurate and well-written enough. Badly written material is bad news for your website, no matter who wrote it.
Also, it pays to do a search to make sure the article wasn’t ripped off from someone else. Simply type a key phrase from the material you are considering into your favorite search engine. If the search reveals another article very similar to the one you are considering, it may have been plagiarized.
It is also important to consider readership. If your website is mainly geared toward “Star Trek” and its many sequels, do you really want that wine review article in the margin? Likewise, if you’re fairly conservative, read that romance column carefully to make sure it does not espouse values that you don’t agree with.
Part of the beauty of free web content is that there is so much available. You can change content as often, or as little as you like. You can experiment with both the look and the content of your site – and have fun doing so.
Likewise, if you are a writer, you can try your hand at writing movie trivia and if nobody seems interested in it, you can always go back to sports writing instead. As long as your content meets the site’s parameters, it will still be available for others to see, and perhaps use. It is helpful that many web content sites have a rating system. It allows you to see how your work compares with similar works and perhaps help you to match your material to reader interest.
Using a Free Web Content site has many advantages, both for writers and for web page designers. Find them by typing “free web content” into your favorite search engine. You’ll be amazed at what’s out there for you to use – free. Who knows, you may even find stuff written by your geeky cousin – and use it too.


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Moe Tamani is a SEO Marketing expert and Internet Marketing Strategies consultant.

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/internet/seo/search-engine-optimization-how-to-get-people-to-visit-your-site.html http://www.articletrader.com/internet/seo/search-engine-optimization-how-to-get-people-to-visit-your-site.html Thu, 03 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0600 There’s a technical term for that question: search engine optimization. When you type a term into the search box on your favorite search engine, there is a ranking system that determines which websites are at the top of the list. The higher up a website is in a search list, the more likely it is a searcher will choose to visit that website.
The trick is how to get your website higher up in those rankings, or search engine optimization (SEO). It’s a popular question, after all, who doesn’t want more visitors to their website? There are many books, articles and websites devoted to SEO techniques. Here is just a sampling of some of them.
SEO involves researching search engine’s coding, structure and presentation to determine how websites are ranked. When you consider that no search engine indexes more than 16% of the web, you can see where it is very important to figure out how each of those search engines work.
That research, which should be done by someone with internet expertise, can find a problem that is keeping a search engine’s web crawler from fully exploring your site. There are consultants who specialize in finding and fixing these problems. It is important to remember that while search engines do offer SEO guidelines, they don’t list all of the factors they consider in their rankings. Google alone said it uses more than 200 different factors.
If an SEO consultant or company has determined there is not a technical problem keeping your site from ranking higher, you can improve a site’s ranking by making sure it has unique content so it can be easily indexed by those search engines. Try to make your web content truly unique. For example, you can add information specific to your region. Or, you can add additional information that cannot be easily found on other sites, such as your company’s product information.
Those are some of the right ways to optimize search engine use. Of course, there are also wrong ways as well. For instance, there is “spamdexing” which involves repeating unrelated keywords to trick a search engine’s web crawler into ranking a site more highly. A site that unnecessarily repeats a term, such as “SEO” could end up ranking more highly that a site that mentions the term less often but offers more actual information.
Another SEO technique to avoid is using a link farm. Search engines sometimes rank sites by the number of hyperlinks in the text. Link farms are a group of web sites that hyperlink to each of the other sites in the group.
These and similar techniques are frowned upon by search engine administrators and by web users. Search engines that discover such deceptive techniques may not only reduce the ranking of sites that use them, they can even remove the website completely from the search engine’s database. This has happened and not just to fly-by-night, snake-oil-salesmen types. It has even happened with prominent, international companies.
Probably the best and easiest way to optimize search engine rankings is to take the extra time and effort to meet each search engine’s guidelines. Keep in mind what a typical search engine user is looking for when trying to find a site like yours. “Do unto others as you would have done unto you” can definitely result in higher rankings in various search engines.
If your website is intended to generate business, it is definitely worth additional time and money for SEO. However, remember the internet is changing rapidly. Even the best SEO research will not necessarily generate higher search engine rankings.
While search engines are an important way to get attention to your site, it should not be the only method you use. Studies have shown that it is more beneficial to get links to your site from other websites. However, by investing in Search Engine Optimization, you can generate more legitimacy to your website.


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Moe Tamani is a SEO Marketing expert and Internet Marketing Strategies consultant.

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/internet/web-crawlers-how-do-they-know-what-youre-looking-for.html http://www.articletrader.com/internet/web-crawlers-how-do-they-know-what-youre-looking-for.html Thu, 03 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0600
Have you ever wondered how search engine ranking one site over another? They use something called web crawlers. It’s a very descriptive term but it’s only partially accurate. While “web crawler” implies that a little critter scurrying around your computer, it is really only an electronic signal that asks a web server for a specific page. Then the web crawler passes the web page data to the search engine’s indexer.

In other words, Web crawlers are programs that methodically browse the internet looking for specific content. They create copies of visited pages. Later, these pages are used by search engines, which index the pages into a huge database so the information can be found quickly. A query processor then uses the database to compare a search term to the information in the database and returns with a list of the websites that theoretically list the most likely matches to the search term.

Web crawlers are used sometimes to perform automated tasks, such as gathering email addresses or other information; checking links or validating URL codes.

A web crawler generally starts by visiting the URLs in a list. It identifies all that links within that URL and add them to its list. It’s easy to see that a web crawler has a massive list of URLs and one web crawler cannot possibly visit all the URLs that exist. Thus each search engine has developed a method for its web crawlers to visit those URLs in an efficient manner, so as to visit as many as possible. Among the factors considered are how many links a URL contains and how popular the site is among web users. There is also a procedure that determines how often a web crawler visits a web site to monitor changes to the website.

Of course, each search engine has millions of web crawlers at work at any one time. With all these web crawlers exploring and revisiting websites, it was necessary for search engines to develop methods to avoid overloading specific websites. This is called a “politeness policy” and is intended to keep websites up and running despite the amount of traffic it has. Some web crawlers are also programmed to gather multiple types of data at one time.

If you do not want a web site crawled (for example, if it has personal or private information), it is possible to design a “firewall” through which the web crawler won’t go.

While the actual workings of web crawlers are often high technical and confusing to casual web users, it can be fun to learn what the various search engines “name” their web crawlers. For instance, Yahoo calls its web crawler “Slurp” and Altavista calls its crawler, “Scooter” and Google’s is called “Googlebot”.

If you have a website, it is worthwhile to research each search engine to determine how to increase the ranking of your website there. By reading and following each site’s tips and guidelines, you can improve the chances of a web crawler visiting your site and improve how your site meets each search engine’s rating parameters.


While search engines won’t divulge each of the parameters it uses (Google says it uses more than 200 of them), each engine has pages, blogs and other materials to help you improve your rankings. After all, search engines are businesses too. By helping you improve your website, they are also helping their business as well.

There are also professional consultants and companies who also help to improve your website’s rankings. While they will consider a variety of factors, they will also help compare your site to each web crawler’s operating parameters. Sometimes fixing a simple but technical problem can help improve how a Web Crawler reacts in your site.

Isn’t it incredible that electronic signals can be used to compile information you need in a matter of seconds? Slurp, Scooter and Googlebot are electronic friends that help each of us do our work each day. And you don’t even have to feed them.


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Moe Tamani is a SEO Marketing expert and Internet Marketing Strategies consultant.

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]> http://www.articletrader.com/internet/seo/article-marketing-what-should-your-article-be-about.html http://www.articletrader.com/internet/seo/article-marketing-what-should-your-article-be-about.html Wed, 02 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0600 Article marketing is a wonderful tool to gain attention to your business. Article marketing has been around ever since the printing press but it has really taken off in these days of the internet.

The good news: article marketing is a proven tool for growing your business through your website. The bad news: you have to write a lot in order for it to be most effective – and I do mean a lot.

How much? Some article marketing experts advise you to write five or six articles a day to keep yourself in the public’s mind. Remember, this is electronic media: one minute you’re the hottest thing out there, the next minute, you’re gone.

So, what can you write about so the well doesn’t run dry? Here are some ideas to get your creative side working for you.

What are the newest trends in your industry right now? Are you a dermatologist who supplies Botox? Write about its benefits to your patients. Do you have an alternative to Botox that is even better? Why is it better? What are some factors your patients should consider before going that route?

Is there something confusing about your industry that many people seem to misunderstand? For example, are you an advertising copywriter and everyone seems to think you deal with legal copyrights? Write an article and explain the difference. Are there some terms that make your clients’ eyes glaze over? Write a brief glossary that explains the legalese in an easy-to-understand way.

What is going on in your industry in the next few months? Many industries are cyclic, with the same events happening the same time every year. Remember: think two or three months ahead on the calendar, at least, to give yourself some lead time. Is it almost tax season? If so, are there tips you can give your customers on how to save on their taxes? Or, is it almost Christmas? Does your business offer a unique item that would make a great gift?

Now think about your particular company. Have you received any feedback from a client or customer about how your company helped them through some crisis? That’s great! Write about it. However, for article marketing, remember, it can be tricky: Free article content is not supposed to blatantly plug your company. You will probably have to change the names and situations just enough that the client will be unrecognizable in the article. But you can write the article so as to say, “Carol Smith’s house burned down, but thanks to new trends in insurance customer service, she was able to get help more quickly.” Your article can have links to your webpage where you can include Mrs. Smith’s testimonial, if you have her permission to do so.

One very effective way to brainstorm for article ideas is to come up with lists. What lists are helpful to your customers? “Ten things to do before you meet your financial advisor”; “Five ways to tell if your dog is healthy”; Six ways to choose a dermatologist” are all ideas that your potential customers will want to read. Once they do, they will want to visit your website or contact your company for more information.

Do and don’t articles can also be entertaining and informative. “Do take your dog’s leash on a trip to the vet. Don’t let Spike run wild in the office” can be helpful reminders. You can even use it on your own website, published in a checklist format that your customers can print off and keep on their refrigerator. Of course, you’d print it in such a way that your business contact information is at the bottom of the checklist.

Fun bits of trivia and history can make for an interesting article also. You could just list fun facts or make a short quiz. Just make sure that the information is truly interesting to your clients.

These are just some ways to brainstorm for article ideas. If you are truly stumped for ideas, just walk away from it for a while. You’ll be surprised at how much your brain will keep working on it without you being aware.

While Article Marketing is an intensive way to build public awareness in your business, it can be very effective. Try these ideas and soon your free articles will build interest in your company.


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Moe Tamani is a SEO Marketing expert and Internet Marketing Strategies consultant.

Source: http://www.articletrader.com ]]>