YouTube Channels Offer Great SEO Value

Posted by: Comments: 11 comments so far

Feb. 06

When it comes to optimizing your website’s organic ranking, quality dofollow inbound links are of paramount importance. It makes perfect sense: Each inbound link counts as a “vote” for your site in the eyes of the search engines. I’ve gone to great lengths building inbound links for PPC Ian. My three tiered approach focuses on PR that drives SEO, guest interviews, and social media profiles. Today, I’m going to talk about one of the top social media profile opportunities: YouTube. In short, it’s mandatory to have a YouTube channel for each and every one of your websites, even if it’s a five page minisite.

Get Your Free YouTube Link

PPC Ian YouTube Channel

Check out the screen shot of my PPC Ian YouTube channel to the right. As you can see, the profile section has a link to my blog. When you view the source code of my YouTube channel you can actually see that it’s a real dofollow link. In my opinion, this is a really valuable link because it’s coming from one of the most popular websites on the Internet, one that’s owned by Google. Of course, as you build out your YouTube channel and your videos get a lot of views, your link will carry even more weight. In an environment where it’s sometimes difficult to get high quality inbound links, this is truly an opportunity you cannot pass by!

Build Out YouTube Channels For All Your Websites

I currently own over 80 active web properties. They range from large authority sites, like PPC Ian, to small five page minisites. If you’re operating an authority website, you’ve probably already have a YouTube channel. (If you don’t, drop everything and go start one now!) However, I’m here today to argue that you should create YouTube channels even for your smaller sites. Even if your site is only five pages, this is an amazing way to market your website while driving SEO value.

How To Scale Your Time With Multiple YouTube Channels

If you have a YouTube channel, you probably know just how much time it takes to shoot, produce, and upload videos! It’s really time consuming. So, you might be a little intimidated to create YouTube channels for all of your long tail websites. It’s actually easier than you may think thanks to a new website called Fiverr.

Fiverr is basically a marketplace where you can get anything done for $5. Many sellers on Fiverr are amazing at quality, entertaining video. (Some are also really low quality so you’ll want to run a few tests to find the best people to work with.) I’ve personally leveraged Fiverr extensively for video introductions and testimonials for my SEO websites. If it’s not one of my core properties, I go to Fiverr to get videos so I’m able to create a YouTube channel while saving my personal time for my larger websites.

With SEO, It’s Always Important To Think About Quality

Now, you may be thinking: Why don’t I just create a YouTube channel without any videos? While this is possible, I don’t recommend it. Just think about it, what’s a channel with no videos? It really adds no value. I’m all about avoiding stuff that adds no value because it will always catch up with you (and I’m all about doing the right thing). If you’re going to create a YouTube channel, make it something useful. With Fiverr you can build out a high quality YouTube channel with a great video for only $5 and about 1/2 hour of your time.

As a closing tip, I also encourage you to embed your videos on your sites. Video adds substantial value to any website. Search engines like websites that have videos!

Posted in: Web Publishing | Tags: , | Comments: 11 comments so far, join the discussion!

Three Easy and Practical SEO Tips

Posted by: Comments: 11 comments so far

Dec. 20

If you’ve read my last two posts about my Epik product portal websites and my Epik development tips, you know I’ve been building out quite the portfolio of niche websites. Just last week, I acquired 5 more Epik product portals at a deep discount because they’re offering a 35 percent discount holiday special on websites listed in the Epik store. In parallel to all of this great Epik development, I have been working closely with my friend, and domain industry guru, Morgan Linton from Linton Investments to develop custom niche websites across many services and finance oriented verticals. In fact, Morgan has developed over 25 websites for me so far this year and I couldn’t be happier with the results!

I’m on a roll with my niche websites because of the leverage I’m achieving through smart partnerships, and will soon have over 100 active sites. As I keep developing more and more sites, I have been learning some really great SEO strategies. Today, I’d like to share just three of these SEO tips with you to help you take your own niche sites to the next level!

SEO Tip 1: Exact Match Domains Offer SEO Advantages

SEO Tips

As someone with a portfolio of nearly 200 domain names, I’m a huge proponent of exact match domains especially with the dot com and dot net TLDs. It’s simple: If you have the exact match domain name, search engines will give your domain priority. Sure, you still have to work super hard in building out a great site, optimizing on-page SEO, and building quality inbound links (off-page SEO). However, we’re all looking for advantages over fierce competition these days and the exact match domain gives you that secret advantage! At this time, I’m really only building out exact match domains. Most of them are non-hyphenated domains, but from time to time I’ll go after hyphenated dot com domains such as Cheap-Desk.com.

Now, even if search engines change their algorithm and give no advantage to exact match domains (not likely in my opinion), I’m here to say that exact match domains have another benefit: They attract amazing anchor text associated with inbound links! Just think about it: When someone links to my site PetiteJacket.net, what anchor text are they likely to use? You guessed it, Petite Jacket.

SEO Tip 2: Leverage Smart Anchor Text With Internal Links

Over the years, I’ve gotten very far with my on-page SEO strategy. You’d be surprised: Smart on-page SEO and especially internal link structure can get you amazing results in search engines. As I built out my niche sites, I’ve made it a point of using great internal linking to show search engines which terms are most important to my site. As a simple example, my article about buying a motorbike jacket links back to the homepage of my site with anchor text Motorbike Jacket.

Even on the very homepage of this site, I link back to the homepage (in the top blurb) with the same anchor text. Now, you don’t want to go crazy, but a few smart internal links with appropriate anchor text can get you very far. Another tip: Never link back to your homepage with the anchor text "Home". Instead, use the name of your site. Of course, if you are leveraging an exact match domain name, the name of your site will be a highly desired term (this is why the exact match domain strategy makes so much sense).

SEO Tip 3: Create Tumblr, Live Journal, and Yola Accounts

While my first two tips are all about on-page SEO strategies, my final tip for today is an off-page one. All sites require inbound links to get recognized by search engines. It’s rare these days that you’ll rank well without at least a few inbound links (although this can happen with the right exact match domain name). However, it also doesn’t take all that much to start ranking a strong domain name. Recently, I have been having a ton of success with Tumblr, 350.com, Live Journal, and Yola. These are all great platforms that allow you to create accounts which can add great value to the user while linking back to your niche site. Just remember to post good stuff on your social media accounts, they’re an extension of your brand. So, there you have it: Three simple SEO tips that provide great leverage with minimal work!

Image of SEO Tips © iStockPhoto – Warchi

Posted in: Web Publishing | Tags: , | Comments: 11 comments so far, join the discussion!

Epik Product Portal Domain Development Tips

Posted by: Comments: 29 comments so far

Dec. 14

Epik product portals rock! Last time, I wrote all about my personal Epik product portal websites. I currently own 45 developed websites on the Epik network, three of which I highlighted in my last post. Another few examples include Motorbike Jacket, Velour Tracksuit, and Cheap Desk. My last article was a real hit and I’m especially thankful for the awesome comments from all of you! Today I’m thrilled to continue the Epik discussion. Specifically, I’m going to share actionable tips that will help you make money with Epik.

It All Starts Out With The Right Domain Name

Velour Tracksuit

So you’re convinced and ready to launch your first Epik product portal website. Great stuff! Whether you’re new to domain names or a seasoned domainer with hundreds (or even thousands) of domains, there are some important things to consider when choosing which domains to develop on Epik. First and foremost, you’ll want to pick a name that is an exact match of a product sold online. If you have other types of names, Epik can still help, but you’ll want to look at their other platforms instead of the product portal that I’m so familiar with.

Second, I suggest picking an exact match domain that gets at least 700-1,000 or more global exact match searches per month according to Google’s keyword tool. My site Velour Tracksuit gets 1,600 global exact searches per month. If you start venturing below this level, you won’t have enough searchers to make it worth your while.

Focus On High Quality Dot Com and Dot Net Domains

Motorbike Jacket

Third, you’ll want to pick a name name that’s either a dot com or dot net domain. You’ve heard me talk a lot about dot me, dot co, and other TLDs here on PPC Ian. I’m a huge fan of many TLDs and have developed sites on dot com, dot net, dot org, dot me, dot co, dot info, dot us, and dot biz. However, for the purposes of Epik product portals, they’re looking to really preserve the integrity of the network and stick with high quality dot com and dot net for product portals since the main purpose and intent of these TLDs is commerce. This surprised me a bit at first, but now it totally makes sense. I have a ton of dot org product domains and have been building them out differently – I’m going the article route with my dot orgs and making them more informational whereas I’m going the product sales route with my dot com and dot net domains. The strategy has been working great! Have a killer domain that’s not a dot com or dot net? Share it with the Epik team! They’ll definitely let you try alternate TLDs for product portals if they’re category defining names.

Dot Com Domains With Dashes Are OK

As a side note, you may be wondering about domain names with hyphens in them. Whereas a few years ago, these domains were looked down upon, they seem to be in everyone’s portfolios these days. Taking myself as an example, I developed the domain Cheap-Desk.com on Epik. This exact match hyphenated domain name has 1,900 global exact match searches per month, it’s a great name! Here’s the rule when it comes to hyphenated domains on Epik: Epik totally allows and supports great hyphenated domains on dot com but does not entertain them on dot net. Now, if you’re like me, you’re thinking that rules are meant to be broken! Have a great dot net domain with a dash in it? I would certainly run it by Epik, but it’s going to have to be a killer name to get accepted.

Content Is King On Epik Product Portals

So my first few tips today focused specifically on selecting great domain names for development on Epik. Now, I’m going to shift gears and discuss a few high leverage tips for making the most of your sites once they’re live on Epik. My strategy is really a three tiered one. First and foremost, I always make sure to upload custom articles to my Epik sites. Taking Motorbike Jacket as an example, you can see that I have custom articles about Buying a Motorbike Jacket and Motorbike Jacket Purchasing Tips. I had these great articles written for me on ELance (always go with the more expensive writers, they do better work) and were super easy to upload with Epik’s WYSIWYG editor. My golden rule: Each Epik product portal needs at least two custom articles.

Custom Blurbs On All Epik Product Tabs

Each Epik product portal has a variety of product tabs. On MotorbikeJacket.net, for example, I have tabs for Summer Motorcycle Jackets, Winter Motorcycle Jacket, Leather Motorcycle Jackets, and Motorcycle Rain Jackets. Check out the blurb at the top of each of these pages! They’re all custom and unique. They all differ from the custom blurb at the top of my main homepage. Moreover, if you view the source code of these pages, you’ll see that each has a custom meta title and meta description as well! I have my ELance writers write this custom content when they’re writing the articles. This is really your chance to personalize your Epik Product Portal and get rewarded by the search engines! To summarize, my second content tip: Write custom blurbs, meta titles, and meta descriptions for all product tabs on your Epik sites. It’s super easy to upload this custom content via Epik’s back end tool.

Leverage The Epik Team

It’s really as easy as that! These simple tips will get you off to an amazing start on Epik. Once you’ve completed these steps, it’s all about repeating with more domains and also continuing to add more content to your existing domains. Search engines (and users) love to have as much useful content as possible. As my final tip for today, don’t forget to reach out to the Epik team. They can help with an amazing number of things and are partners in your success. Leverage their expertise to make as much money as possible on Epik.

Image of VelourTracksuit.net © VelourTracksuit.net
Image of MotorbikeJacket.net © MotorbikeJacket.net

Posted in: Domains, Web Publishing | Tags: , | Comments: 29 comments so far, join the discussion!

My Personal Epik Product Portal Websites

Posted by: Comments: 27 comments so far

Dec. 08

Hey Everyone! I really enjoy reading affiliate marketing blogs that discuss first hand tips about making money online. I enjoy those blogs even more that are open about current initiatives the blogger is working on. In that spirit, I’m going to share one of my major affiliate marketing initiatives today and also some of my personal domains that I’ve been developing! Drum roll please… I have been hard at work developing my domain portfolio on the Epik.com platform! Today, I’m going to discuss my personal experience developing 45 domains so far on Epik.

First Things First, What’s Epik?

Epik

Have you heard of Epik? If not, don’t worry. It’s super new. I actually had no idea what the heck Epik was until I went to T.R.A.F.F.I.C. back in January. It’s at this awesome domaining conference that I heard Rob Monster Epik’s CEO speak. In my opinion, Rob delivered one of the most fascinating Internet Marketing presentations I have ever heard. It’s at this time that my interest in Rob’s company, Epik.com, took off.

What is Epik? It’s a revolutionary platform that allows domain owners to develop their domains with more scale, efficiency, and quality than ever before. They offer a variety of platforms to develop different types of domains: product, directory, reference, Q&A, and poll. Epik is probably best known for their product platform that allows anyone with a product-focused domain to quickly build an online store that delivers a substantial user experience.

My Personal Epik Development Plan

After the T.R.A.F.F.I.C. conference, I went home and added Epik to my to do list. However, it totally slipped from my mind and priorities for quite a few months. You know how it is, right? There’s 100 things to do and stuff slips. However, back in August, I got hyped up again. Time was passing fast and my domain portfolio was growing faster than I could keep up. Domains just sitting around don’t make money, after all. They’re liabilities and not assets! Parking doesn’t really work anymore. This all turned into my goal: Develop all (or at least most) of my growing product-focused domain portfolio on the Epik platform.

I Now Own 45 Developed Epik Product Portals

Petite Jacket

So I went for it! I developed 45 Epik product portals! Just a few examples include: Kids Computer Desk, the premier place to buy kids computer desks online, Petite Jacket, a store specializing in fashionable women’s petite jackets, and Narrow Dishwasher, your resource for finding space saving narrow dishwashers for your kitchen. Each of my sites has custom header text on each tab and sports custom articles. For example, check out my articles about Petite Jacket Sizing and Petite Jackets and Coats.

I couldn’t be more proud of these sites. They addsubstantial value to the user, they look great, and they’re making me money already! Better yet, I was able to develop them faster than ever before due to the power of the platform.

How Does Epik Work?

So, how does this all work? It’s quite simple. Each product portal costs $249 and carries with it a 50/50 revenue share arrangement (although the split shifts more in your favor as you hit higher revenue tiers). For $249 (discounts are available if you commit to volume development like myself), you get a custom logo, custom header, and your initial site fully built. Moreover, you get expert support from the amazing Epik team. I have been in very close contact with Rob Monster himself and have gotten a huge amount of help. In my opinion, this price is a steal! You can easily pay $249 for just a custom logo on other sites.

Once your initial product portal is live, it’s time to add articles, custom headers for the different tabs, and custom meta descriptions. Don’t worry! All of this is really easy with Epik’s cutting edge platform. Everything is fully hosted on Epik’s servers so you don’t have to do any work around server configuration or uploading of files. Moreover, this gives Epik the flexibility to make upgrades to your sites such as their current holiday deals. In my particular case, I have been outsourcing all articles and header text so all I have to do is play middleman. Please note that Epik is a total solution. They also offer a variety of packages to help you get content on your site if you’d like the help!

Epik.com Rocks and I Couldn’t Be More Excited

My conclusion: Epik rocks! I plan on developing another 55 sites within the coming year to round out my portfolio at 100 Epik sites. I have been able to get sites live that make money right away, sites that look better than others which took twice as long to build, sites that offer scale I have never before seen.

As the Internet evolves, it’s all about verticalization. As someone who’s worked extensively in the product shopping vertical at shopping giant NexTag, it’s my opinion that Epik is the future of online product shopping. Stay tuned, I’m going to write more posts about Epik.com in the future, including specific guides on how to use their system. I couldn’t be more excited, I already received my first check from Epik and can’t wait to see them increase in size as each month passes! Of course, I do have a lot of hard work ahead in terms of adding content and building quality inbound links.

Screenshot of Epik Website © Epik.com
Screenshot of PetiteJacket.net © PetiteJacket.net

Posted in: Domains, Featured, Web Publishing | Tags: , , | Comments: 27 comments so far, join the discussion!

My eBay Partner Network Earnings Rock

Posted by: Comments: 18 comments so far

Nov. 21

Hey everyone! As you may have noticed, I have been updating PPC Ian a little less frequently lately. It’s not that I’ve been slacking off, it’s just that I’ve been super busy. As you may remember from my 2010 goals, I set the goal to develop six new websites this year. Well, I’m actually on pace now to develop 75 plus. The best part of it? All 75 plus sites are amazing and deliver substantial value to the Internet. How is this possible? Stay tuned, I will be writing a post all about this in the coming months!

PPC Ian still remains a priority and I’m hoping to boost my post frequency going forward now that things are cooling down a bit. I’m particularly excited about today’s post about my October and November eBay Partner Network (EPN) earnings. You may recall that I posted about my Volatile eBay Partner Network Earnings not that long ago, back in early October. Well, the volatility continues, but this time in my favor!

My eBay Partner Network Earnings Skyrocket

It’s really funny! Just as I posted about my volatile EPN earnings in early October, things really started looking up. October was a strong month (compared to prior months) and I ended up earning $500.46. The crazy part of this is the earnings all came in during the first few weeks of October and then started tapering off like crazy. By the end of October, I was only earning a few bucks per day. So, the volatility was still there, it was just working in my favor a bit more. Want to see my earnings in October? Check out the first graph at the end of this post!

November has been even better than October. I’ve pulled in a solid $846.59 so far this month! While the month is not over, I do see my earnings tapering off just like October. Check out the second graph below, the month started really strong and then started getting weaker over time. The click volume has been somewhat consistent, and it’s really my EPC (earnings per click) that has been dropping over time. I’m definitely happy with my results in November and am hoping to break through the $1,000 mark, but definitely could be a challenge if I get back to that few bucks per day level. Again, make sure to check out the second graph at the end of this post to see a detailed view of my earnings.

eBay Partner Network Takeaways

My excitement for the eBay Partner Network is really taking off and I’d like to close out today with a few of my takeaways from this case study:

  1. People love posts about earnings! My last post about my Volatile eBay Earnings got 14 comments and was even featured on the ever popular blog Make Money On The Internet by Chris Guthrie, one of my favorite blogs!
  2. Don’t give up on eBay. When I wrote my last post about my volatile eBay earnings, I was definitely de-motivated with my earnings trends on eBay. While the volatility is still there, I’m now making some good money from it! These last few months tell me that it’s all about the long term and that seemingly permanent trends can and will change!
  3. It’s all about profit and not revenue. The numbers shared in this post are pure margin. The sites on which I run the eBay Partner Network get all of their traffic organically (read: no PPC). That’s a bit ironic on blog called PPC Ian, but I’ll be the first guy to tell you that PPC does not make sense in all business cases. The sites on which I run EPN are information sites. I have found the slow passive income SEO strategy ideal for these types of sites. The net effect: I’m able to pocket all of my EPN earnings! This looks even sweeter when you combine this passive income strategy with a full time job. It looks even sweeter still when you factor in passive income from Google AdSense, Commission Junction, ClickBank, and other affiliate programs. I’m going to be writing a post very soon about my overall passive income strategy and how I plan to retire rich from leveraging multiple income streams.
  4. eBay Still Pays On Conversions. About a year ago, eBay moved to their new Quality Click Pricing model where they smooth out commissions and pay on clicks (and not conversions). However, based on my experience, eBay is still paying on conversions, they’re just smoothing it out over clicks a bit more than in the past. There’s nothing wrong with this, but it’s just something to be aware of. When you drive conversions, you will see a spike in earnings like me. I’m hoping with the holiday shopping season approaching that my EPN earnings skyrocket as more people convert!

There you have it! If you have been observing lower earnings on eBay Partner Network, I encourage you to hang in there like me. Don’t forget to check out the graphs of my October and November (month to date) earnings below…

My October and November (MTD) eBay Partner Network Earnings

PPC Ian eBay Partner Network Earnings October 2010

PPC Ian eBay Partner Network Earnings November 2010

Posted in: Web Publishing | Tags: , | Comments: 18 comments so far, join the discussion!