Steinar Knutsen

3 Reasons Why WordPress Blog Post Tags Are Important

Steinar — Wed, 18 Aug 2010 20:50:05 +0000

WordPress tags are are an often overlooked option when publishing a new blog post. Based on some questions I heard this morning, it’s clear that there is some misunderstanding about the use of Tags and why they’ll important to the overall long-term health of you blog.

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3 Reasons WordPress Tags are Important

Tags are similar to the index at the end of a book. They help the reader find specific keywords hidden through your blog. Even better, they help readers find all the posts that are related to a particular Tag.
Tags are great for search engine optimization, since every tag creates a new url or page within your site that Google and other search engines may index.
Tags are also good for creating sub-categories around a niche topic. For example you may have a cooking category and several posts tagged as “breakfast”. Each tag has it’s own RSS feed, so you could use this to either target subscribers or submit your RSS feed to niche 3rd party sites.

How are you using tags?

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Two killer Facebook Page strategies to target specific users. This is good stuff!!!

Steinar — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 02:33:53 +0000

Facebook Pages are a great way to engage your target market online and here are two great tactics to more specifically target individual users or groups within your niche.

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Mentions in Facebook Page Updates

Mentioning others in your Facebook Page updates is a great way to gain significant exposure for your page. If the other Page’s setting include “Others” then your update will appear on their Page. Why is this so special? Because most folks don’t know this is possible and simply put comments on other Pages’ Walls using their personal profile – not good if your running a business Facebook Page marketing campaign.

1. Become a Fan or Like another page in which you would like to get some exposure

2. In your Facebook Page update use the “@” symbol and pick the name of that Page (or individual) from the dropdown menu that appears

3. Write something flattering or worthy of sharing. You do not want to spam the other Page. If you write something nice that their followers find valuable then it’s a win-win situation.

4. Depending on the setup used by the target Page, your update will either appear directly on their Wall or in a hidden portion of their Wall. To see posts by “others” click on the “filter” link at the top of the Wall.

Geo-targeting in Facebook Page Updates

Geo-targeting is great if you have a broad audience but would only like to speak to a specific portion. For example, you may have a shipping offer only good in the US or a discount only for Chicago residents. Facebook lets you specify who will see you update based on location and language. Very powerful stuff!

To do this simply select the “Custom” link in the lower right hand corner of the update field next to the Share button. Input your Location and/or Language criteria and that’s it. Enjoy!

Any other tips you have for targeting specific users with Facebook Pages? Would love to hear your thoughts!

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New Audio: Podcasting from my iPad again with AudioBoo

Steinar — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 04:12:16 +0000

Podcasting on your blog and iTunes is a great way to reach your market and the iPad makes it easy. Check out the Related Posts below for more details on how this is done.

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Audio and Video: How to podcast from your iPad and publish on WordPress with AudioBoo App

Steinar — Tue, 04 May 2010 14:53:20 +0000

The iPad serves many purposes, but for me it’s about marketing and finding new and different ways to leverage mobile technology to grow my business and engage my market online. New media has been especially interesting and I’ve confirmed the iPad is great for recording audio to create podcast episodes which can translate into new WordPress blog posts.

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I’ve written previous posts on how to post audio directly to WordPress from iPhone, so I won’t repeat everything here.

I love using my iPhone to podcast with AudioBoo and now I can do the same with my iPad. It’s a a great free app from the Apple iTunes store that allows you to record up to 5 minutes of audio, share on Twitter and tag for use in other platforms.

Personally, I use the AudioBoo RSS feed and WP-O-Matic WordPress plugin to automatically import my audio episodes into WordPress as individual posts. It’s great when you want to get content out on the fly and don’t necessarily have time to write a post or record a video.

What do you think? Have you tried AudioBoo? Does it seem like a good fit for your audience?

What

4 ways to use Google Reader to track your industry, engage your market and monitor your brand

Steinar — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 22:54:27 +0000

As many know, Google Reader is one of my favorite tools to help establish yourself as a market leader online. In this audio post I discuss the 4 ways Google Reader can help you track your industry, engage your market and monitor your brand.

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Four advantages of Google Reader

Ability to track your industry by subscribing to popular blogs or RSS feeds that contain the latest news, trends and product information
Ability to share information with your social network via share button, shared custom Google Reader RSS feed or email link
Ability to save searches from Twitter to easily identify opportunity to engage with people asking for help on topics you understand
Ability to track mentions of you, your company, your brand or your products and service so you can jump in the conversation early and often.

How do you use Google Reader? What other online tools do you use to accomplish these or similar tasks?

Leveraging events to drive SEO traffic to your blog (Audio)

Setting SMART Goals for your 2010 Internet Marketing Strategy

Steinar — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 03:28:11 +0000

Listen or Download: Setting SMART Goals

Setting SMART goals is a proven approach to achieving success more quickly. As 2009 winds down, this is the perfect opportunity to examine your goals for 2010 and apply the SMART mnemonic or acronym to increase the likelihood your goals are met.

SMART stands for:

S – Specific
M – Measurable
A – Attainable
R – Realistic
T – Timely

Free Template Downloads:

Specific

You want to clearly define your goals to articulate specifically what you are trying to achieve. The question is what, how and why are you striving toward this goal?

What are you going to do? Use action words, such as create, sell, manage, or grow, etc. to bring a sense of energy to your goals.
Why are you doing this? What is the ultimate outcome? Why is this important and what impact will this have on you, your business, or your customers?
How are you going to do this? What are the sub-goals or action steps that will enable you to achieve your goal

The more specific you are, the greater your ability to identify success when it occurs. For example, “I will write and publish 21 blog posts (250-400 words) about skydiving equipment by March 1, 2010.“ In this example I used action words “write and publish”, specified the number, length, and topic of the blog posts and put a date on it. As we’ll discuss next, this goal is also measurable, attainable, realistic and timely.

Measurable

If you cannot measure your goals then you cannot manage your progress. Furthermore, it is far more difficult to achieve your objectives if a) you do not measure your progress or b) you do not measure the appropriate metrics. In some cases a progress chart, table or simple checklist might help.

For example, you might be trying to improve visitor conversion rates. Using a web statistics tool, such as Google Analytics, can help track vital statistics but make sure you understand and pick the right metric that defines success. You can get 1,000 visitors a day, but if no one buys, that metric is meaningless. Don’t get caught up trying to move the wrong target.

Attainable

Is your goal possible? Is it limited by your resources or require more time to achieve? I encourage you to set stretch goals for yourself to push your limits, but keep them within reach. The benefit is that you’ll see real progress toward success. The risk is that you do not achieve your goals and lose momentum or hope.

For example, you may have just launched a new blog and you want 20% of your visitors to sign up for your newsletter out of the gate. While this is a realistic rate that you could eventually achieve, it is unlikely to happen right away. A more attainable goal would be to grow your newsletter list by 5% each month.

Realistic

Is your goal realistic? You might want 5,000 newsletter subscribers, which is attainable, but is it realistic to achieve this goal by within 2 weeks? Maybe not. Be honest with yourself and your business when setting goals by keeping them realistic or you risk disappointment.

Timely

When is the deadline to achieve your goal? Next week, 3 months, by year end? Setting a specific date will help you identify your tactical sub-goals and action steps to achieve your goal within a given deadline. Map out these deadlines or milestones on a calendar. Plan rewards for yourself when you cross each line.

A common mistake is to generalize about timing. For example, avoid using descriptions such as “this year, next quarter, in the next two weeks.” Without a specific date, these deadlines will slip away.

In my experience, SMART goals help you reach your objectives more quickly with a defined path for success. I recommend writing them down and revisiting them frequently to check progress and adapt to changing circumstances. In most cases, you will over-achieve — either beating a deadline or delivering something of greater value.

What’s your experience setting goals for the new year? Do you use the SMART mnemonic?

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How to start a podcast quickly, easily and without spending a fortune

Steinar — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 16:49:12 +0000

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Starting a podcast is easier than ever these days. You can use some of the free tools that come with virtually every computer these days or make a few modest purchases to improve the quality of your podcast. I recommend you focus on content creation before buying a bunch of unnecessary equipment.

Here’s are some of the basic elements to consider when launching a podcast for the first time:

What is a podcast? There’s some argument over where the term came from and who produced the first podcast, but i use the definition: audio & video “portable on demand”. Essentially, this includes new media content that’s available for consumption in iTunes (or another leading podcast hub), directly on your website, or via a mobile device, such as the iPhone.

What microphone should I use for my podcast? Since a podcast obviously involves audio communication, I recommend you use the best quality microphone you can afford or one that at least offers a level of quality your listeners will find acceptable. I’ve done podcast episodes using my Mac internal mic and my iphone, but when I’m in the office I use the Samson CO1U USB Condenser Mic.(aff)

Where should I deliver my podcast? Any website or blog can have its own podcast. By definition, a podcast doesn’t need to be on iTunes so don’t let that misconception stop you from publishing audio content. For example, sign up with AudioBoo and record a show – then paste the html or script into a blog post or a web page. This is an example of a very simple approach. You could also set up a WordPress blog, install one of many podcast plugings, and upload audio files from your computer. I prefer to use the Podcasting plugin, but there are several other WordPress plugins available.

What should I say on my podcast? All of us have something to say; however, podcasting is not for everyone. My suggestion is that you find a subject you are passionate about and make a list of potential topics you could discuss. What are the top 5 questions people ask you about your topic? What are the top 5 questions they should be asking? There’s content for 10 episodes right there.

Should I do all the talking on my podcast? Some podcasts are run by a single person who does all the talking, while others are two or more people engaged in a conversation. Some are discussion style, while others are more of an interview. It really depends on your subject, what you have to share personally and who else you know that can help liven up the discussion. Ask your listeners what’s working for them and change as needed.

Is there a show format I should follow? I recommend you establish a consistent format or ageneda for your podcast episodes or shows. The reason is that a consistent format puts the listeners at ease and builds a certain level of expectation over time. For example: 1)intro music 2) introduction 3) topic one 4) topic two 5) pick of the week 6) closing remarks with call to action and 7)closing music. That’s just an example — the possibilities are unlimited.

What file format should I use for my podcast? MP3 is the most widely accepted audio file format, but most podcasting hosts will accept a variety of file formats.

How do I get my podcast on iTunes and how much does it cost? Podcast distribution on iTunes is free. Just be sure you’re using the correct RSS format. To learn more open iTunes and go to Store>Podcasts>Submit a Podcast. You may also have readers subscribe to you podcast through iTunes without actually publishing to iTunes. Of course, this does not make your podcast available to the general public but is a convenience.

Are you thinking of starting a podcast? What’s holding you back? Is there something I can help clarify to get you started?

Audio and Video: How to podcast from your iPad and publish on WordPress with AudioBoo App

The opportunity cost of obsessing over web design vs. consistent content creation (Audio)

Steinar — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 21:45:19 +0000

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In this audio I post I discuss the challenge of managing multiple day-to-day responsibilities vs. the opportunity to create unique and compelling content for your readers. The realty is that created content should be your #1 priority in terms of Internet Marketing. Everything else is secondary – not becuase it’s not important, but simply because content is proven as the leading tactic to engage your audience online.

The challenge is to find a schedule with which to post new content on a regular basis. It’s easier than ever these days to quickly produce and publish audio, video, images and text-based blog posts, but many folks simply can’t find the time or don’t have the right tools to make it easy and effective.

For me, it’s about publishing at least one blog post everyday and allocating a few hours once a week to tweak my site. What’s your strategy? What’s working for you?

Leveraging events to drive SEO traffic to your blog (Audio)

Steinar — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 00:42:23 +0000

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Upcoming events are a great opportunity for you to leverage keywords related to that event and drive SEO traffic to your blog.

If you can, research an event within your niche and identify 2-3 long-tail keyword phrases that a potential reader might use to search for information on Google. Write a few blog posts about the event and use these keywords in your title, post text, meta keywords, and meta description. Follow up your post with a link in Twitter, Digg, Delicious, StumbleUpon and your other favorite social media and bookmarking sites.

In my experience, if there is little competition for the event I can usually score a top 3 position in Google if I choose my keywords correctly. There are several tools to conduct keyword research, but I suggest starting with Google Keyword Tool to familiarize yourself on the topic.

Although events come and go, the benefit of optimizing for them is the ability to attract new followers within your niche. Give it a try – it’s actually a bit fun.

What’s your experience leveraging events to drive SEO traffic to your blog? Any success or other tips to share?

Drive More Traffic to Your Blog and Engage Readers (Audio)

Now broadcasting live from Ustream (Audio)

Steinar — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 15:22:08 +0000

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In this audio post I discuss Ustream.tv and the new opportunities available to reach your market in a new and exciting way through video.

Ustream has been around for years but many businesses have yet to grasp the potential. Basically, Ustream offers the ability to broadcast live video over the Internet in a controlled, yet open platform. Viewers may interact through a closed chat feature or through the new built-in Twitter feed. Live broadcasts may be recorded and saved for future playback.

Obviously, the implications of this are huge in terms of market reach and differentiation for your business. Consumers are ready for this new media and comfortable consuming content in this manner – think of it as a real-time version of YouTube. Of course, if you’re not comfortable creating video in the first place, this may be quite a leap in terms of confidence and risk. The key is to get started today and practice. It will get easier – trust me.

I’ll leave with the final thought. Video creates a personal touch with your market. If any of you have ever “finally met someone in real-life” after chatting with them on Twitter, then you can appreciate this. People want to see, talk and interact with others beyond text based methods. If that makes sense to you, then I encourage you to push your comfort zone and leverage Ustream (or YouTube) to take things to the next level. You’ll be glad you did.

What are your thoughts? Is streaming video something that would help you communicate with your market? Are consumers ready for this?

Getting funny looks when you mention Twitter. We can all relate. (Audio)

Steinar — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 22:52:12 +0000

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The fact is, many business owners still do not understand the power of social media and Twitter in particular. Those active in social media marketing can easily point to at least one if not several businesses that have derived some benefit as a result of their engagement.

How to post mobile friendly audio to wordpress from iPhone using one application (Audio)

Steinar — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 07:27:27 +0000

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UPDATE: Here are full details on
How to post audio directly to WordPress from iPhone

Get Over It and Start Blogging (Audio)

Steinar — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 13:27:56 +0000

The most common question I get from business people is “What should I blog about?”. In this audio post I’ll talk about tactics to overcome your fear of blogging and how to leverage audio to create a library of ideas.

What Should I Blog About?

How do you come up with topics to blog about? What’s holding you back from blogging?

Does Audio or Video Really Engage Blog Readers? (Audio)

Steinar — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 13:20:11 +0000

In this audio post I discuss the benefits and drawbacks of using audio and video on your blog.

003-audio-versus-video.mp3

Advantages of Audio Blogging
•   Quicker to record and post
•   Fewer tools required
•   Faster download
•   Greater reach with MP3 players

Advantages of Video Blogging
•   Great to put a face with your name and voice
•   Good for presentations or tutorials
•   Good to leverage YouTube channel network
•   Most engaging web content according to studies

In either case, audio and video both add color to the standard text based blog, much like photos make your posts pop. Experiment with both and find which works best for you. You may find that video works in some cases, while audio is better for others.

What are your thoughts? Are you finding success with audio and/or video. Which seems to work best given the topic or situation?

Drive More Traffic to Your Blog and Engage Readers (Audio)

Steinar — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 13:10:25 +0000

In this audio post I’ll touch on a few techniques to drive more traffic to your blog and engage readers in a more meaningful way.

002-more-blog-followers.mp3

Topics Covered:
• Creating unique and compelling content
• Search Engine Optimization and long-tail keywords
• Commenting on third-party websites
• Leveraging Social Media

How are you attracting more readers? Which tactics are getting the best results?

Can You Avoid Copywriting Problems with Audio Blog Posts? (Audio)

Steinar — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 14:48:32 +0000

In this audio post I discuss how audio blogging can be more direct, simple, and straightforward versus text-based blogging.

005-avoid-copywriting-problems-with-audio-blog-posts.mp3

What are your thoughts? Is audio an effective method for blogging. Should you mix audio and text posts?

Blogging – Tools, Topics and Traffic (Audio)

Steinar — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 14:07:11 +0000

In this audio post I discuss the benefits of blogging and strategies to easily get started.

001-blogging-101.mp3

Topics Discussed:

What are some of the tools I can use to get started?
What do I blog about – what should I say?
How do I drive traffic and more readers?
What are the benefits of blogging?

Tools Covered:

What are your thoughts? What tools are you using and what makes blogging easier for you?