|
June 2006 |
Published by Dianna Huff |
Volume 6, Number 6 |
Archived E-Newsletters: Your SEO "Secret Weapon"
Last week I had the pleasure of meeting Susan O'Neil, CEO of @Web Site Publicity, a company specializing in pay-per-click (PPC) and search engine optimization (SEO) for e-commerce companies like Orvis, Green Mountain Coffee, and Stonewall Kitchen. Over deliciously greasy burgers at the Manchester, NH Airport Diner ("Real food on the fly!") we talked about the state of SEO and the difficulty getting sites to rank well organically -- these days it can take nine months for a site to start showing up for its important keywords in Google -- and about how Web content really does drive traffic and conversions. This means, if you publish an e-newsletter (no matter if you're a corporate giant or a one-person office) you have one of the most powerful weapons in the SEO arsenal for increasing Website traffic, search engine rankings, and conversions. Yes, you can achieve the SEO Holy Grail -- by simply archiving past newsletter issues on your Website. "Oh definitely," says e-newsletter expert Michael Katz, President of Blue Penguin Development, an e-newsletter consulting firm, when asked if he's seen increased traffic and conversions due to archiving his newsletter. "My site isn't optimized but I do know, from looking at my subscription logs, that people find me via the search engines. In the 'how did you find us' field of my subscription form, 1 out of 3 people will type, 'search engine,' 'yahoo,' etc. I really don't do anything to generate this traffic except archive each issue of my newsletter." Archived e-newsletters offer a plethora of SEO benefits including: Fresh content -- Search engines like to see you adding fresh content to your site on a regular basis. If you don't already, simply begin adding your current issue to your site and archive the previous issues. If you publish monthly, you'll have 12 new Web pages at the end of the year. Publish every other week, the way Katz does, and you'll have 26 archived issues. (Indeed, his archive goes back to 1999!) Keyword-rich content -- E-newsletters, by their very nature, are keyword rich, making them easy for searchers to find. If you do optimize your site, you can boost your search engine rankings by writing a unique Title tag for each archived issue using your keywords. "Linkable" content -- Search engines want to see sites linking to each other and archived e-newsletters give other site owners a reason to link to your high-value content. Such inbound links play a key role in ranking well with Google and Yahoo!: the more relevant and high-quality links you build over time, the higher you go in the search engines. Reprintable content -- In addition to linking to your content, people will often ask to reprint your articles -- with a link back to your site, of course. Not only do you get the benefit of a new inbound link, you also get people coming to your site from the reprinted article and signing up for your newsletter. Reusable content -- Write enough e-newsletters and over time you'll have the makings of a book, which is what Margie Dana, President of Boston Print Buyers realized after writing 64+ issues of her weekly newsletter, Margie's Print Tip of the Week. Dana sells the resulting 96-page e-book, "Put it on Paper!" on her site -- generating yet more links and traffic. Conversions -- One thing I've noticed with my own e-newsletter archive is that prospects read past issues and then call me on the phone. "I read many of your articles," a typical prospect will say, "and like what you have to say. I have this project that I need some help with . . . ." As Katz says, e-newsletters really help build trust before a prospect picks up the phone. When developing your own archive page, make it search engine and people-friendly. If you categorize your e-newsletters by topic, don't use drop down menus that the search engine spiders can't access. Instead, build pages of static, annotated links similar to Constant Contact's archive pages. The SE spiders can easily index these pages and it's easy for people to find what they're looking for, too. What's your experience with archived newsletters and search engine optimization? Tell me your success story by sending email to info@dhcommunications.com. |
|
DH Joins the BlogosphereI am happy to announce my new blog is live -- check it out at http://www.marcom-writer-blog.com. I've been on the blog fence for about a year now, but after attending NEDMA's program on blogs in February, realized it was time to take the plunge. Thank you to Jessica Albon, who designs this newsletter, for developing such a fantastic blog and for making the entire process very, very easy. And thank you, too, to Jim Somers of Sonora DesignWorks. He did the new design for my letterhead, which is where Jessica got her inspiration. I look forward to reading your comments! |
|
Is Your Website an Underachiever?Do you want to increase targeted traffic and leads but you're not sure how? Getting found in the search engines is one sure-fire method. Yet, how do you know if your site needs optimization or other types of work? To help you make this important decision, DH Communications offers a comprehensive Website analysis package that includes:
"Dianna determined that although I was ranking well for many keywords, my traffic was low due to poor title and meta tags. With her detailed analysis, I could clearly see the problem and understood her proposed solution."
Rees Whitaker Call Dianna Huff today at 603-382-8093 to learn more information or send email to: info@dhcommunications.com.
Reprint the Feature Article"Archived E-newsletters: Your SEO Secret Weapon" is a copyrighted article available for reprint. However, it must carry my byline, you may not remove the copyright, and the following text must accompany the article: Dianna Huff specializes in B-to-B marketing communications consulting and copywriting. You can subscribe to her e-newsletter at www.dhcommunications.com. |
By Dianna Huff|
|
|
Get brownie points! |
 |
|
In this Issue |
|
|
Worry-free MarCom You'll get someone who 1) understands how to write copy that generates leads; 2) delivers copy that needs little revision; and 3) won't miss your deadline. Ever. Dianna Huff--She makes you look good. |
|
Contact DH CommunicationsTelephone:
603-382-8093 |
|
Featured Conference:
|
|
|
Previous Issues The "New" Rule for SEO: Content is King Five Reasons Your Site Isn't Showing Up in Google Challenge: Add Muscle to Your Flabby Headlines |
|
|
Contact Dianna todayTelephone: |
Copyright 2006, DH Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.