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5
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I can realistically set aside at the most 2-3 hours daily to work on my website. Can I get some ideas of how you all use that time to build your businesses? I'm trying to get fo
I work around 6-8 hours a day (usually). I got no "real" job so I have dedicated most of my time and money to my sites. :D
And in those 6-8 hours I am mostly learning/reading about new stuff.
So. .
4-6 hours of reading and 2-4 hours of writing
:)
I do tend to spend most of my time learning and reading. I guess it just takes time. Thanks for the reply :)
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What do you do while working your business daily?
I can realistically set aside at the most 2-3 hours daily to work on my website. Can I get some ideas of how you all use that time to build your businesses? I'm trying to get fo
I approach building a site like a long term business.
The current site I'm working on is a beast. I truly mean that it is huge with lots of moving parts that have to function before I set it out to be viewed.
When I choose a niche I look into the size of the market. I do this by looking at keywords and key phrases. I check the demographics and the main customer base I will be dealing with. Look into their buying habits, disposable income range, what they generally like to do. All of this information can be gotten on the web for free or very low cost. You just need to think outside the box to find some of it.
Next thing I did was look at top websites. Those sites that have won awards. I looked at the layout, colors, navigation, and interactivity. It's also fun to see the cool things done with code.
Then I looked at sites within my niche. Bouncing the top site notes off what I see within the competition I will have.
After I have that information, I start designing the site on paper. What I want on the front page, what my navigation will look like, what option are under each navigation tab. What type of images do I want, etc.
Next I gather all the components I need to build the site. Any plugins, templates, or code snippets that will be required, and their cost (if there is a charge). Gather the photo's, images, logo designs, affiliation memberships, etc.
Then I start actually building the site. I work on one area at a time to make sure I don't miss anything. This way as I progress and need to modify something, it's a rather easy fix.
I usually work on one or two pages per day. Three if the pages are small.
Once the site is up and running. I spend about an hour per month writing new posts. I then set those posts to publish once per week. I spend another hour per month on two new video's (three if they are really short). Those are then set to post once every two weeks.
That's how I do it. Hope that helps.
This is a great answer and very detailed. This was very helpful. Can you give me example of how you do your demographic research? That really stood out to me.
Sure thing. Give me a little time and I will get back with you. I have to wrap up some work I'm doing on my site.
Okay, so, demographic research.
Lets do something off the wall. Like baby shoes.
First thing I do is look up "Baby Shoes" in a keyword tool.
I have an average search of 47635 with average traffic of 8098 per month. I have 281 sites competing against me. So, this is pretty good and looks promising as an overall niche.
Next I need to look at my customer base. Amazon is the easiest place to go. I go there and type in "Baby Shoes." I'm looking for customer reviews - the shoe type doesn't matter. I'm looking at customers only.
I find "Luvable Friends Basic Canvas Sneaker" that has 287 reviews, excellent. Click on those review stars to open the reviews.
The second review I find Paul. Click on his name. I don't care what he says about the shoes. I want to see his review profile. Here I can see everything else he buys. Viola, I have a picture of additional items I can sell and I'm developing a picture of my customer. Paul really likes small electronics, hands free, and protection cases. Probably for that little one he has.
Lets do one more. A bit further down I fine KittyzRocktwo. She has lots of stuffed animals, some books, a DVD set, and some audio books. The customer picture is starting to take shape.
Next lets head over to Wal-Mart and do the same thing.
I did a search and came across a reviewer called genkki. Based on her profile she is located in NJ. Not really helpful but better than nothing. Another reviewer called mashedpotato12 is located in Lake City, IA. This I can work with.
Next head over to Realtor.com
I find that the dominate age of Lake City Iowa is 50-59. The median is 49. 53.9% of residence are married. About 15% are single parents. Most households earn between $10-19K. Most have only a high school degree.
I continue doing this until I have a solid picture of what my market looks like.
Now, according to the OECD the average disposable income per capita in the US is about $531. You can also use this link here to find the disposable by State.
http://lwd.dol.state.nj.us/labor/lpa/industry/incpov/dpci.htm
I also take my information and bounce it off http://www.nationmaster.com/country-info/profiles/United-States/Cost-of-living
Which tells me of that $531 I am competing for $40.58 of that disposable cash.
There are more places to get this information. You can really get in-depth, but it's not really necessary unless you are opening a local store. You really just need to understand your audience and have a general idea of how much they can afford. General stats for disposable income should work.
Okay, awesome...You really broke it down and made it easier for me to understand. I've heard people talk about this, but never really in this amount of detail. This is great information and I'm starting to see where I can actually start to really focus. Thanks for taking the time to help me out :)
Not a problem. Here to help.
I think the getting to understand your customer is probably going to help the most. Maybe the second area is how your niche can grow out.
I work around 6-8 hours a day (usually). I got no "real" job so I have dedicated most of my time and money to my sites. :D
And in those 6-8 hours I am mostly learning/reading about new stuff.
So. .
4-6 hours of reading and 2-4 hours of writing
:)
I do tend to spend most of my time learning and reading. I guess it just takes time. Thanks for the reply :)
See more comments
So I'm finding a lot of great keywords that would are highly search, good traffic and a low competition. But some of the keywords are similar.
For example: How to create a
Hi. I wouldn't use "how to" in all my titles. You might find that your keyword is pretty similar in traffic and competition without it. :) Michelle
I thought that the similar keywords would rank the same, but
"Create a marketing campaign" gets 107 searches, 19 traffic, 392 QSR, Red for KQI, 18 for SEO.
while
"How to create a marketing campaign" also gets 107 in searches and 19 in traffic...it gets 1 for QSR, Green for KQI and 96 for SEO.
That is quite a difference in competition, isn't it? Unless you want your site to be a "how to" site, I still wouldn't title every post that way.
I've been trying to come up with some variations on Jaaxy, and I'm not getting anywhere with "create a marketing campaign." This is a tough one!
Thanks to Dom's comments...I have some ideas to how I can use those keywords and spice up my post. Thanks for replying :)
if you have a SEO plugin installed on your site you can add multiple keywords to your pages and posts. the create a website keywords you mention above would more than likely get a page ranked for both keywords.
I would probably do a page titled how to create a website and then add the keyword create a website to my SEO plugin
Gerald
you shouldn't be dropping keywords into an SEO plugin. Just placing them in the actual page content is enough.
You should write one article that incorporates any similar keywords. For example "How to create a website" would rank for "create a website" anyway if it was a good enough article.
Also, google would punish a site that uses the same keywords or similar keywords over and over again.
"How to create a marketing campaign" and "How to create a profitable website" are pretty different though, so I'd write 2 articles.
Okay, using similar keywords in one post sounds doable and it makes sense. Of course I'll avoid "keyword stuffing". Thanks for the reply.
Oh and I didn't think "How to create a marketing campaign" and How to create a profitable website" were the same. I was trying to figure out a way to use them without most of my posts being "How to" posts.
Any suggestions?
Well if you look at page 1 of Google for both those keywords, only 1 or 2 of the results are exact match anyway, so you could make one "how to create a marketing campaign" and the other "7 ways to create a profitable website". Being "exact match" helps you rank, but it's not 100% necessary.
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How should I handle similar keywords?
So I'm finding a lot of great keywords that would are highly search, good traffic and a low competition. But some of the keywords are similar.
For example: How to create a
Hi. I wouldn't use "how to" in all my titles. You might find that your keyword is pretty similar in traffic and competition without it. :) Michelle
I thought that the similar keywords would rank the same, but
"Create a marketing campaign" gets 107 searches, 19 traffic, 392 QSR, Red for KQI, 18 for SEO.
while
"How to create a marketing campaign" also gets 107 in searches and 19 in traffic...it gets 1 for QSR, Green for KQI and 96 for SEO.
That is quite a difference in competition, isn't it? Unless you want your site to be a "how to" site, I still wouldn't title every post that way.
I've been trying to come up with some variations on Jaaxy, and I'm not getting anywhere with "create a marketing campaign." This is a tough one!
Thanks to Dom's comments...I have some ideas to how I can use those keywords and spice up my post. Thanks for replying :)
if you have a SEO plugin installed on your site you can add multiple keywords to your pages and posts. the create a website keywords you mention above would more than likely get a page ranked for both keywords.
I would probably do a page titled how to create a website and then add the keyword create a website to my SEO plugin
Gerald
you shouldn't be dropping keywords into an SEO plugin. Just placing them in the actual page content is enough.
You should write one article that incorporates any similar keywords. For example "How to create a website" would rank for "create a website" anyway if it was a good enough article.
Also, google would punish a site that uses the same keywords or similar keywords over and over again.
"How to create a marketing campaign" and "How to create a profitable website" are pretty different though, so I'd write 2 articles.
Okay, using similar keywords in one post sounds doable and it makes sense. Of course I'll avoid "keyword stuffing". Thanks for the reply.
Oh and I didn't think "How to create a marketing campaign" and How to create a profitable website" were the same. I was trying to figure out a way to use them without most of my posts being "How to" posts.
Any suggestions?
Well if you look at page 1 of Google for both those keywords, only 1 or 2 of the results are exact match anyway, so you could make one "how to create a marketing campaign" and the other "7 ways to create a profitable website". Being "exact match" helps you rank, but it's not 100% necessary.
See more comments
The short answer is Yes and No. In the traditional sense, with an Executive Summary, Financial Features, and Market Analysis, a business plan may not be needed for your Startup
a plan is always a good idea something that is measurable in a physical sense so you can track your progress.
I like the questions you are posing. A traditional plan is difficult as you suggest - at this stage - it is follow the training and then once you know a lot more, maybe it is time. For now - your questions seem very appropriate and I will certainly follow through on some of these. Nice writing.
Thanks
Richard
Should I write a business plan for my internet business?
The short answer is Yes and No. In the traditional sense, with an Executive Summary, Financial Features, and Market Analysis, a business plan may not be needed for your Startup
a plan is always a good idea something that is measurable in a physical sense so you can track your progress.
I like the questions you are posing. A traditional plan is difficult as you suggest - at this stage - it is follow the training and then once you know a lot more, maybe it is time. For now - your questions seem very appropriate and I will certainly follow through on some of these. Nice writing.
Thanks
Richard
I approach building a site like a long term business.
The current site I'm working on is a beast. I truly mean that it is huge with lots of moving parts that have to function before I set it out to be viewed.
When I choose a niche I look into the size of the market. I do this by looking at keywords and key phrases. I check the demographics and the main customer base I will be dealing with. Look into their buying habits, disposable income range, what they generally like to do. All of this information can be gotten on the web for free or very low cost. You just need to think outside the box to find some of it.
Next thing I did was look at top websites. Those sites that have won awards. I looked at the layout, colors, navigation, and interactivity. It's also fun to see the cool things done with code.
Then I looked at sites within my niche. Bouncing the top site notes off what I see within the competition I will have.
After I have that information, I start designing the site on paper. What I want on the front page, what my navigation will look like, what option are under each navigation tab. What type of images do I want, etc.
Next I gather all the components I need to build the site. Any plugins, templates, or code snippets that will be required, and their cost (if there is a charge). Gather the photo's, images, logo designs, affiliation memberships, etc.
Then I start actually building the site. I work on one area at a time to make sure I don't miss anything. This way as I progress and need to modify something, it's a rather easy fix.
I usually work on one or two pages per day. Three if the pages are small.
Once the site is up and running. I spend about an hour per month writing new posts. I then set those posts to publish once per week. I spend another hour per month on two new video's (three if they are really short). Those are then set to post once every two weeks.
That's how I do it. Hope that helps.
This is a great answer and very detailed. This was very helpful. Can you give me example of how you do your demographic research? That really stood out to me.
Sure thing. Give me a little time and I will get back with you. I have to wrap up some work I'm doing on my site.
Okay, so, demographic research.
Lets do something off the wall. Like baby shoes.
First thing I do is look up "Baby Shoes" in a keyword tool.
I have an average search of 47635 with average traffic of 8098 per month. I have 281 sites competing against me. So, this is pretty good and looks promising as an overall niche.
Next I need to look at my customer base. Amazon is the easiest place to go. I go there and type in "Baby Shoes." I'm looking for customer reviews - the shoe type doesn't matter. I'm looking at customers only.
I find "Luvable Friends Basic Canvas Sneaker" that has 287 reviews, excellent. Click on those review stars to open the reviews.
The second review I find Paul. Click on his name. I don't care what he says about the shoes. I want to see his review profile. Here I can see everything else he buys. Viola, I have a picture of additional items I can sell and I'm developing a picture of my customer. Paul really likes small electronics, hands free, and protection cases. Probably for that little one he has.
Lets do one more. A bit further down I fine KittyzRocktwo. She has lots of stuffed animals, some books, a DVD set, and some audio books. The customer picture is starting to take shape.
Next lets head over to Wal-Mart and do the same thing.
I did a search and came across a reviewer called genkki. Based on her profile she is located in NJ. Not really helpful but better than nothing. Another reviewer called mashedpotato12 is located in Lake City, IA. This I can work with.
Next head over to Realtor.com
I find that the dominate age of Lake City Iowa is 50-59. The median is 49. 53.9% of residence are married. About 15% are single parents. Most households earn between $10-19K. Most have only a high school degree.
I continue doing this until I have a solid picture of what my market looks like.
Now, according to the OECD the average disposable income per capita in the US is about $531. You can also use this link here to find the disposable by State.
http://lwd.dol.state.nj.us/labor/lpa/industry/incpov/dpci.htm
I also take my information and bounce it off http://www.nationmaster.com/country-info/profiles/United-States/Cost-of-living
Which tells me of that $531 I am competing for $40.58 of that disposable cash.
There are more places to get this information. You can really get in-depth, but it's not really necessary unless you are opening a local store. You really just need to understand your audience and have a general idea of how much they can afford. General stats for disposable income should work.
Okay, awesome...You really broke it down and made it easier for me to understand. I've heard people talk about this, but never really in this amount of detail. This is great information and I'm starting to see where I can actually start to really focus. Thanks for taking the time to help me out :)
Not a problem. Here to help.
I think the getting to understand your customer is probably going to help the most. Maybe the second area is how your niche can grow out.