Paying for Traffic

    There are so many stories you will hear about businesses being successful on the internet. The troubling thing is, there are maybe a tenfold or even a hundredfold of stories in direct opposition to theirs. Many have been the ones who have unsuccessfully launched a business enterprise that is internet based, but only a handful shall succeed.

     What could possibly be the reason for such a discrepancy?  Is this merely done through luck? That is even more remotely the case.  It takes good business sense and a lot of help and team effort.  Most importantly, it is the eagerness to succeed and the determination to learn and the willingness to invest in a lot of hard work and some money.  Most people have wanted to follow the “overnight success” story without putting in the time and efforts that are needed.  But WHAT should you know BEFORE you start such a venture?

The Very Basic

     Like Neo (in the movie The Matrix), traffic is “The One”.  Without traffic, all your efforts would just go to waste.  Every business needs customers, without them you wouldn’t have anyone to sell your products or services to. In the internet world traffic is the walk in customer. The more traffic you have the more people you would have the opportunity to be able to sell your products or services to.

     But like any business that’s in every corner building or in the mall, not everyone that goes in will buy, but the greater the number who do come in to browse your merchandise the greater number of people that will buy your products.  It is a simple and known fact.

     The question is: How do you get traffic, traffic large enough that could make a small percentage of eventual buyers so you have enough to make a good profit?  Many big companies generate traffic of tens of thousands a day and a measly ten to fifteen percent actually buy, but that small percentage is enough to provide them with good business.

     Many of these success stories get their traffic from paying others. Yes that’s right; you have to spend money to make money. Advertising is the key. The more people who know that your site exists; the more people would of course go to your site, that’s common sense.

     While there are many ways that can get you advertising for free, this do not generate the same high volume as those methods that are getting paid.  These paid advertisements include advertising schemes by Google and Yahoo.



The Value of Searches

     The search will be the easiest and fastest medium in finding what a person needs on the internet.  Search engines have been very popular because they provide a vital service to many people. They are free and easy to use. With this popularity, they get many visitors and clicks that they are the most common sites that people go to. It is easy to understand why so many companies would pay to advertise with these search engines.

     Search engines provide information to the millions of users that they have each day. They provide links to many sites that a user may be looking for. If your sites link pops up in the high ranks of the search results page, you have a great chance that they will go to your site. While search engine optimization is a cheaper and low cost way to get your site a high rank, paying for advertisements will ensure that you will be on the top ranks.

     When you pay for your advertisements, it is like paying for your traffic. This may sound like not such a good idea, but the payoffs would tell a different story. When you pay for your traffic, you are guaranteed a consistent traffic flow to your site. You will never go with an empty sales day.  Remember:  Traffic is the “bread and butter” of your online business operations.  You must have traffic to have any success at all from your website.

Paying for your Traffic

     Usually, you will be charged with the number of hits a link gets when your ads is clicked, this is called pay per click. For some search engines, you will be charged with the number of times your ad shows up when a certain keyword or keyword phrase is searched. It is imperative that you have good keyword content in your ads. There are many tools that aid you in using the right keyword for the right moment. I’m not going to spend the time or the space relating to you what might be available.  You need to do some work on finding out for yourself what will work for you.

     All the money you spend in paying for your traffic will not be for naught. You will get an impressive boost in traffic which will also result to a greater boost in your sales figures. Paying for your traffic would be a really good idea and you will get all the benefits it has to offer.  It may take some time for this to show results but be patient and consistent in your efforts.

QUOTE TO CONSIDER

THOUGHTFUL GEM

"No one will pay you any attention

if no one knows you exist!"

Happiness

    It seems today that happiness is one of the most elusive things we have around us.  Everyone wants to find it and yet it continues to slip through the grip of most people.

     Of course, happiness is not something that can simply be defined in a single sentence or thought although Webster simply states that “happiness is the state of being happy.”  Whatever that truly means!  It will mean different things to different people.  It will also mean different things to the same person at different stages of their lives.

     What made you happy as a child could be something as simple as getting an ice cream cone after a long day at school.  As an adult that may not satisfy your need for happiness.  Yet, there will always be some things that will continue to make us happy regardless of our age.  We certainly want our family members to feel safe and secure within the family arrangement.  We gain great happiness in knowing that we have done all that we can to make this happen.

     And there are times that we are not really sure ourselves what it is that would bring us happiness.  We may occasionally feel that “if only THIS would happen” then we would be forever happy!  But if it does happen we find ourselves not truly happy at all.

     Some would like to think that money or possessions would make them happy.  It is true that these things can bring a measure of contentment and perhaps a bit of security to certain situations.  However, most individuals who have obtained of position in life where there is no worry about these things find they are not really happy after all.

     Only speaking for myself I have found that what makes me truly happy is to be able to do things for others.  To help someone who is in need.  It doesn’t have to be a major life-changing adjustment to their life.  Perhaps it is only a small “helping hand” where needed.  If you really consider:  There is more happiness in giving than in receiving!”

QUOTE TO CONSIDER

THOUGHTFUL GEM

"When you add happiness to the life of another,

you add happiness to your own."

Increase Your Traffic

     Internet. Business. Profit. These are nothing but words if they stand alone.  To fully integrate all of these words into a successful merging you will need another word: Traffic. Every article you will find about making your site or company successful would always include the importance of generating traffic.

     So, we all know that in the core of it all, traffic is the most essential thing to a successful internet based business company. Aside from ensuring that you have a great product to sell, and you have your company’s internal organization well taken care of, it would be time to get to the nitty-gritty of things: generating traffic.  Unless you are generating traffic to your site you have no opportunity to create any financial success.

     If you already have a site and you think you're not getting the traffic that you're supposed to be getting, then it’s time to reconsider. If you are contending in these very competitive business, you should always be a step ahead of your competition, increasing your traffic flow should have been done starting yesterday!

     There is a time for every purpose under heaven!  Yes, timing is essential.  That’s an old adage known to everyone. But with generating traffic, you should always be on your toes and be a day ahead of everyone. Never think of today and tomorrow as a starting point for making your site traffic laden, it should always have been yesterday.

     To help you out in generating more traffic for your site, here are some seven surefire ways to increase your traffic starting from yesterday.

1) Invest in good advertising with search engines

     Google’s Adwords provides great advertising schemes that are very popular and assures great traffic.  Although with this surefire way to increase your traffic it would cost some money. While some would shy away from spending money to increase traffic, it is imperative in this case to do so because Adwords is a surefire way to increase your traffic.

     You could see for yourself the success this search engine advertising method has reaped rewards for so many companies. Lots of sites feature this advertising system and many have signed on to reap the benefits. Do not be left behind. Every penny is worth it with using Google advertising.

2) Exchange or Trade Links with other sites

     With exchanging links with other sites, both of you will benefit from the efforts the two of you do to enhance your sites traffic. When one site features another sites link, they could provide one another with the traffic one site generates. The efforts are doubly beneficial because it would seem like both of you are working to generate more traffic. The more links traded with more sites the more traffic could be expected.

3) Use Viral Marketing

     Viral marketing allows you to spread the word about your company and product without any costs or if ever, low costs only. This is a marketing method that can be quite sneaky; you can attach your company’s name, product or link to a certain media such as a funny video, entertaining game, an interesting article, or a gossip or buzz. With this method, people get infected with the creativity and entertainment of the medium that they will pass it on to many people.

4) Search and use proper keywords or keyword phrases for your sites content

     Search engines look for certain keywords that they would show in their results page. In doing so, having the right keyword and keyword phrase is a high requirement in ranking in high in search engine results. You could write your own content or you could hire someone to do it for you.  In either case you need to make sure that your site is “keyword” friendly, but NOT an overkill!

5) Write Articles that can lead traffic to your site

     Submit articles to sites that would contain the same subject that your site deals with.  If you sell car parts write press releases and articles about cars and car parts. Attach your sites description and services at the end of the article as well as the link.  This is a great and inexpensive way to create traffic.

6) Join forums and form online communities

     Capture a market and show your expertise and credibility. When you have found a good foundation for your site, people will trust you and your site and will pass on to many people their trust. Traffic will certainly increase because they know that you can provide what they need.  Just remember this avenue will take some time.  You must first build up your credibility on the forums and with the communities.

7) Lastly, Offer newsletters.

     If many people know what you are about and your existence is shared with many others, you will find loyal traffic that can provide you with more traffic by recommendations. If you arouse the curiosity of your customers they would be pushed to help you with your traffic.

     Keep these points in mind when working on your site and soon you will have more traffic coming in.

QUOTE TO CONSIDER

THOUGHTFUL GEM

"If you know a better way to get things done ---

 share it!"

Smile

    Maybe we’re just simply lazy people.  It only takes 6 muscles to frown, but it takes 10 muscles to smile.  Maybe this is the reason we don’t see more people smiling instead of making frowns.

     Others may come up with the excuse that “there’s nothing to smile about”!  That can’t really be true.  At least, I hope it isn’t.  These must be people who have never seen kittens playing in the window sill while a faint beam of sunlight stretches across the floor.  It seems these kittens can simply amaze themselves with the activity of trying to catch the dust particles as they see them shimmer through that ray of light.

     Or perhaps they have never had an opportunity to watch a small child try to take those first steps!  That babe will lift themselves up from the floor with the assistance of a chair or coffee table and then very meticulously try to balance themselves before they get the courage to lift one of their feet and make a forward motion.  Often this action only ends with them making a big “plop” right back down to the floor.  But they bravely try it all over again.

     Some may take an issue with the fact that with all the terrible things that are happening in their lives personally they have no reason to smile.  And it’s true that many people have to deal with things that shouldn’t be taking place.  Especially is this true with young people.  But surely we can take a moment and think of something that would bring an impish grin to our faces!

     You never want to forget that when you put the extra effort into putting a smile on your face - - Remember those extra 4 muscles that you are going to use - - you may be helping to bring a smile to the face of another person.  It may simply be the act of smiling yourself that might give another person the courage to use their extra muscles and put a smile on their own face.  And if there is no other reason:  Having a smile on your face might simply make others wonder what must be happening in your life to make you so happy!

QUOTE TO CONSIDER

THOUGHTFUL GEM

"When you smile, 

people can only guess what you're up to!"

Redesign Your Site?

    You want to keep your website fresh.  You want people to return again and often.  How can you accomplish this necessary aspect of your site?  If you run a website, chances are you often wonder whether it is the right time to do a total redesign of the layout of your website. Here are some points to help you in considering this:

     Are you thinking of a redesign just for the sake of having something different?  If you answered yes to that question, it is not yet the right time to do a redesign.  Remember, a design serves a specific purpose. If you are not sure whether to do an overhaul of your site, keep in mind that your current design might have a specific purpose that you might not know about. You will lose that function if you do a redesign.

     On the other hand, if your website has had the same website design since 1990, perhaps it is high time to do a redesign. The last thing you would ever want to happen to your site is when visitors leave your site without taking a look at your content just because the design is old fashioned. If this is your case, here are some points to ponder before doing a redesign.

     Redesigning your website is like performing plastic surgery on it. Your website loses its current identity (for the better or worse) and your regular visitors might not recognize your new design at first glance. You risk losing them just because they thought they landed on the wrong page. Hence, it is very important that you retain a characteristic feature from your old layout. Perhaps it is the logo of your site; perhaps it is the same text style for the title for your site. You MUST redesign in a fashion that people still know that this site is YOU!

     To play it safe, put a poll on your site to let your visitors do the talking. If they think it is necessary for the website to have a fresh look, give it to them!  You may even want them to add some input as to what your new design will ultimately look like.  Then when they visit your site they will enjoy seeing that perhaps some of their ideas have been incorporated into your site.

QUOTE TO CONSIDER

THOUGHTFUL GEM

"If you look at yourself and 

don't like what you see - - - change!"

Strange Creatures

     I came from my workout session this morning with some interesting thoughts about us Americans!  We are a really strange bunch of people.  We strive to obtain that “perfect” body look while the majority of us act in the direct opposite of our intentions.

     We will spend 30 minutes to an hour in the Wal-Mart parking lot trying to find the closest parking spot to the store so we can walk in to buy an exercise bike or some other piece of workout equipment.  Can you explain that?

     However, the true picture seems to be a startling sight for most people.  According to the statistics for the United States on obesitynewstoday.com “According to the Centers for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC), 69% of the adult American population is either overweight or obese, and over 35% is obese, which means approximately 79 million people. In addition, one in every 20 adults are considered extremely obese. The incidence is higher among adults, but childhood obesity is also concerning.  Since children grow at different paces, diagnosing the disease may be difficult, but it is estimated that one third of children and adolescents between 6 and 19 are overweight or obese and over one in every six of the same age are obese.”

     That’s an incredible stat, but it seems that we continue to “up size” our food orders no matter what it may be costing us regarding our health.  This is not always the money issue but includes our day to day functioning in life.  The sahrecare.com information states: “Obesity isn't just a cosmetic concern; it increases your risk for diseases and health problems. Some of those problems include the following:

• type 2 diabetes
• high triglycerides and low high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol
• high blood pressure
• heart disease
• stroke
• cancer
• breathing disorders, including sleep apnea
• gallbladder disease
• gynecological problems, such as infertility and irregular periods
• erectile dysfunction and sexual health issues
• nonalcoholic fatty liver disease
• osteoarthritis

     We are constantly hearing: eat healthy, get plenty of fluids, exercise, and watch your sleeping habits.  However, most people either don’t truly listen to these recommendations or they don’t know how to put the recommendations into practice.  Worse yet, they may simply not care!

     We are strange creatures indeed!  We admire and venerate the healthy, athletic body but we can’t seem to motivate ourselves to strive to be that body!

QUOTE TO CONSIDER

THOUGHTFUL GEM

"Is life without good health really LIFE?"

Customizing Your Website

     People become overly “fashion” conscience in their work environment.  Nowadays, in this trendy world, people get very uptight when they do not look entirely presentable. This would also be the case in web designing. Who doesn’t want to “stand out” from the crowd?

     Every individual would definitely want their website to look good, if not, to the best they can. Here are a few things we could look out for when wanting to create a professional looking webpage.

Color Schemes and Themes

     When designing, always choose matching colors. An example of a matching color would be to have a dark background, with visible words and designs. With the dark theme, try not to mix too many bright colors into the design. What we should NEVER do, is to mix two very different colors, such as purple and yellow. Now, of course, it would depend on the purpose of the website, but those two colors are too striking for one who wants it to look more professional.  Example:  You may be making a website for your High School and purple and yellow are your school colors!  If so, use these colors sparingly and in appropriate coordination with the rest of your page.

     Themes must always suit the company or rather, the organization. If the website was made to cater for a food company, it would be wise to stick to that particular category, rather than to revert to a different theme, such as machinery.  This is not only unacceptable in web design, but would be extremely confusing to your visitors.

     Fonts should be used in regard to the formality of the website. A simple sans-serif font would suffice in most cases. Exceptional cases such as design and art groups might want to use fanciful designs and fonts. Of course, that’s only if you know what you’re doing.  If you are uncertain you may want to consider hiring a professional web page designer.

     Finally, we must always try to think of our visitors, see the way they see. The resolutions and file sizes of the pictures must not be too large in terms of size. This is to allow maximum compatibility and cater our visitor’s needs.  You neither want to overwhelm or underwhelm your visitors by what you are displaying on your site nor in the way it is displayed.

     So, planning is important thing.  It should also be something we should never forget to do, before attempting something.

QUOTE TO CONSIDER

THOUGHTFUL GEM

"If everyone in the world were the same,

would you want yourself to be the example to copy?"

Comfort

    It seems that no matter where you look today there is always a situation that someone is facing wherein comfort is needed.  You may not have to look any further than yourself or within your immediate family.

     I’m not by any means going to try and discuss all the possible situations where this might be the case.  To even attempt to do so would of itself be an impossible task.  However, some of the more common considerations may be discussed.  These will be health, money, and family.  Let’s start by considering the topic of health.

     On May 28, 2019, The World Health Organization released this news: “The World Health Assembly today adopted a resolution on improving the transparency of markets for medicines, vaccines and other health products in an effort to expand access.  The resolution urges Member States to enhance public sharing of information on actual prices paid by governments and other buyers for health products, and greater transparency on pharmaceutical patents, clinical trial results and other determinants of pricing along the value chain from laboratory to patient.”

      Many places in the world do not have the availability to receive needed medicines because of governmental upheavals within those countries.  In other lands although the medicine may be available it is not received by those who need it because of the outrageous cost involved.  Can you even begin to believe the ridiculous situations people are currently finding themselves in?

     These are some actual recent headlines:

   •A bill of over $40,000 for the 20 minutes it took a doctor to stitch a cut.

  • An ambulance ride of only 200 feet that cost $3,421.

  • A healthy, insured couple “slowly going under” because their premiums, co-pays and deductibles are now twice as high as their mortgage and food costs.

   Is it any surprise that people need comfort when they are being confronted with such medical situations?

     Let’s move on to the topic of money.  According to a Credit Suisse report, that was mentioned on CNBC:  “The wealthiest 1 percent of the world’s population now owns more than half of the worlds’ wealth.”

     When you compare this to the statistics reported by globalissues.org:  “Almost half the world (over three billion people) live on less than $2.50 a day.”  And “at least 80% of humanity lives on less than $10 a day.”  This was in the early part of the 21^st Century. 

     It is easy to see with such extreme diversity within the financial communities of the world that people are in great need of comfort on a daily basis simply trying to exist!  We can’t begin to discuss all the various facts that become involve when you bring up the topic of money.  The affects it has on people’s lives.  This is true even for those who have an abundant supply of the commodity.

     If a person does not have money their life becomes miserable by their continuing to seek it.  If they have much their life is complicated because they are always trying to find out how they can get more or how they can prevent someone else from getting what they have!  It is a vicious circle regardless which situation you find yourself in.

     Now let’s consider briefly the family.  Here is an area that is involved with many details that have become hard to consider.  Today you must first ask yourself:  What constitutes a family?  This is an important question because many are the ones who debate this topic continually.  However, regardless of the criteria that you are using to define “family” the truth remains that this unit is currently being pressured from all sides with issues that really didn’t exist a mere decade or two ago.

     The pressures from without and the pressures from within make the daily “happy” conditions within the family much to be desired.  The family unit itself is being attacked by this organization and that one.  All such attacks being based on the specific criteria that is being used to define the family unit.

     With all the continued anxieties that are being brought upon the family it is simply a miracle that so many are remaining intact!  Yet the trials and tribulations that are being face bring the need for comfort within the family.

     When a person is facing any of the situations that I have mentioned above or a number of others that simply cannot be mentioned within this blog, they must first realize that a power greater than what they can provide on their own is needed to endure.  The bible tells us that our creator is a god of comfort.  He can provide what is beyond our own abilities.  With all things in our lives we must look to the source of true comfort to be able to deal with the problems in our lives.  That includes ALL the problems we have to face at this time – because we are only human!

QUOTE TO CONSIDER

THOUGHTFUL GEM

"We only need to dress ourselves 

in the discomfort of others 

to be better able to understand their needs."