8 Fresh Content Ideas

t is tough to keep your content fresh; however, when using a combination of these fresh content ideas it will be so much easier. Some of them include free content and none of your time. Some are time-intensive and some will cost you a little bit of money, but in the end, it will definitely be worth it.

1. Writing web pages

You can write your pages yourself, or you can pay someone to write them. Adding web pages regularly is considered to be fresh content and it can make a difference to both your visitors and the search engines.

2. Use article spinners

Article spinners are programs that take an original article and alternate sentences and "spin" them to make a new article. If you are outsourcing your article writing, you can usually get a much better deal for spinable articles and your content will double.

3. RSS feeds

You can display RSS feeds on your website that include news, industry news, daily thoughts or jokes, etc. This is an option for free website content that will keep your website changing regularly.

4. Open blog on your website

Blogs are rather painless to update. Visitors actually love them and they are likely subscribe to your RSS feed if you offer the option on your blog. This gives you the opportunity to stay in contact with your visitors in addition to providing fresh content. If you don't have the time to maintain a blog, you might find a blogger for hire.

5. Allow comments on your blog

You will be amazed at the content that is provided by interested parties that choose to comment. If you do allow comments, be sure to monitor them closely and use some type of spam prevention solution. A lot of the people who comment will return to your blog to read more and their comments will be related to your content.

6. Write reviews

Product reviews, website reviews, book reviews and so forth are useful to visitors and it will increase your website content. This is an excellent fresh content idea.

7. Visit article marketing sites and reprint articles that have the right to reprint

You can pick and choose articles, pick an author that you respect or subscribe to a RSS feed from the article site. This is another free website content idea.

8. Open a forum on your website

A forum will provide actual discussion that is related to the concept of your website. If the topics are interesting and informative, visitors will return from time to time and comment or even start their own thread. Running a forum can be time-intensive, especially if you monitor postings, but many find forums to be great fresh content ideas that are worthwhile.

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How to Get a Blog on the Internet

Of all people in the world I was easily one of the most pessimistic about computers, the Internet and now that I even know they exist-blogs. I think blogs are pretty cool but I never thought I could have one. I thought the processes of getting a site; domain name and the actual building of the blog would just be out of my league. I’m a complete novice when it comes to technology, but I do like writing a journal, and I thought having a journal on-line would be both fun and make life simpler for me. No more writing with pens, other people can read my stuff and comment on it, and I could add pictures to illustrate my points and make things look more interesting.

Well, now I’ve got one! It’s awesome. I won’t lie and say it was easy, but I think if you hook up with a good web hosting company it’s not such a daunting experience as you might expect. I got a few work mates to help me. I went through a couple administrative hitches when filling in my personal information forms for the registration-just because I’m a bit silly in the head. We had a little trouble with the blog program we used, but these challenges were eventually overcome. My boss says he’s going to make a simple program that people can hook up easily.

I chose my domain name: thepowerofeverythingthatis.com. It’s my own name-no one else on Earth can have it. I own it. I picked a nice picture out for the background-it looks really sweet, much better than a blank sheet in a diary. I got it from a site that gives photos out without charging a royalty (the first few): www.istockphoto.com.

I just want you to know the great feeling I got when I first typed in my domain name and my site came up! It was the equivalent to a person who’s afraid of heights being accepted into an astronaut’s mission into outer space. Or maybe it was like a turtle driving a Ferrari 300km per hour. Possibly it was like all the ants in the world getting together for peace talks.

It’s a real blast having this blog. I can write on it any time, anywhere, from my laptop, at an Internet café etc. I can write as much as I want, and I’m hoping one day my writing may inspire others to communicate with me about the subjects that I’m interested in.

Look, if you like writing about anything, and want to have your thoughts and opinions on the Internet, maybe meeting others similar to yourself in the progress; you have to get a blog and get it now. Don’t be afraid any longer, the world is in the palm of your hands; it’s time to get on!

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Blogging for Profit Using AdSense

his article is designed to teach you how to profit from blogging, writing to a website in the form of regular posts, without spending anything. The keys to this idea lie in two of Google’s programs, Blogger.com and AdSense.

The first obvious step is to find a niche. While it is possible to have a general interest blog, it may not be as profitable as targeting a specific subject.

Once you settled on a subject you like, its time to set up your blog. Blogger.com is great for beginners. Not only is it free (and free of ads, unlike most free hosting services), it has integrated support for AdSense (more on this later). For now, pick a suitable but catchy name and choose one of the pre-made designs.

Of course, now you have to start making posts to your blog. There are two main types of posts. The most common type of content on blogs seems to be commentary plus a link to the actual news source or website of interest. Then there are original content posts which will have others link to you (much like you do in your commentary posts). Either way, make sure its interesting to have readers coming back.

Now its time to apply for Google’s AdSense program. AdSense is a pay per click program which matches ads to the content of your page. Every time a visitor to your site clicks on one of these links, you receive a small amount of revenue (the minimum advertisers can bid for a link is $0.05, of which you receive a percentage. Many phrases can have bids as high as several dollars per click).

The content of your site determines what ads appear, and therefore how much you will ultimately make. The placement and appearance of ads, however, can have just as great an impact on how much you make.

There are a few tips for maximizing ad revenue. First, the appearance of the add itself is important. Google clearly labels all its units as advertising, but allows you to determine the colors of the links and the background. It is important that this match the look of your site. The more blatant an ad is, the more likely it is to turn off visitors. Just as important is the location of the ad units. They should appear on the top half of your page, and preferably on the left side. This insures the ad is viewed by most visitors.

Having covered the basics, its now time for you to experiment to discover what works best for your new blog. The best part is, it costs nothing to try.

Chris Rivers is a writer for http://www.ClickForDeals.net. Visit the site to learn more about maximizing profits through affiliate and pay per click programs. Articles appear on the site exclusively one week before they are syndicated.

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Blog Your Way To a Successful Private Practice

What is a Blog?

Blogs are a type of website often defined as an on line journal or diary. Although there are many blogs where the blog author keeps a log of their own thoughts, experiences and ideas, bloggers also frequently share and discuss information from other sources.

Blogs typically focus on a certain topic and have frequent (sometimes daily) posts (or entries). Posts often link to other blogs or websites that discuss a similar topic. Many blogs are set up so that readers can add comments below each post.

Blogs have been around for about 8 years or so. Business blogs have become increasingly popular in the last couple of years, and especially in the last year.

Why Use Blogging To Market Your Practice

Counselors, therapists and other healing professionals often shy away from using technology when marketing their practices. While there are many effective ways to market your practice that don’t involve technology and the web, the Internet increasingly becomes an essential method to utilize when starting and marketing a practice.

Furthermore, if you market your practice on the Internet in addition to using offline techniques, you are creating a lot more exposure for your services. Blogs are just one more method of marketing your practice.

Fortunately, much of the technology involved in setting up and managing a blog is very simple. This makes it easy for you to manage and update content on a blog by yourself. You can get a blog up and running in a few minutes without having any technical skills whatsoever.

Blogs also are way to connect with your target market more personally. Because blogs are updated frequently, they allow “your voice” to come through more easily than a static website.

Finally, search engines love blogs because of their numerous and frequent posts as well as the common linking that occurs amongst those in the blogosphere (the blogging community).

How to Use Blogs To Market Your Practice

There are several ways you can utilize a blog to market your practice. You can start by posting interesting information on your blog that is valuable to your clients and potential clients. There is nothing like quality, fresh content to keep your visitors coming back to your site. Building relationships with your target audience is key to having a successful private practice.

You can also market your practice through your blog by linking to other websites or blogs that provide information that your target market wants or needs. You can be the filter for your clients and potential clients, posting up-to-date information on your area of specialization so they can keep up-to-date with their areas of interest.

Posting comments on other blogs related to your topic can increase back-links to your website which is important for your ranking in the search engines.

If you have a newsletter, you can have a sign-up box on your blog and/or you can put up a sign-up form so visitors can subscribe to receive notification when your blog has been updated.

Just like a website, you can also sell your services and products through your blog.

Blogging as a method of marketing your practice can be an effective method for building your reputation, gaining credibility, attracting more clients, and gaining more exposure. It can be a great compliment to a traditional website– or if you don’t yet have a website, a blog can be a first step towards getting one.

If you decide to blog as a marketing strategy for your private practice, you might want to peruse the blogosphere (the community of blogs on the web) so you can get a better feel for blogging and the types of blogs that exist.

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Tips for a Better RSS Feed

Like anything else, a little work can pay dividends. Well-written RSS feeds are more useful to readers and result in more website traffic for the publisher. Below are several tips for making your RSS feed more effective.

1. Use interesting titles

Like a book is often judged by its cover, an RSS feed item is judged by its title. Make sure your title is interesting, and try to put the most important information early in the title, since some newsreaders truncate title beyond a certian length.

Also, keep in mind that some newsreaders are set to only show feed item titles. Don’t assume that any feed item descriptions will be shown.

2. Include keywords

Since some readers will discover your feed through the many RSS search engines on the internet, you will want to include as many descriptive keywords in your feed item titles and descriptions. That does NOT mean you should just add a string of keywords. Rather, incorporate keywords naturally into your titles and descriptions.

3. Don’t include all your content

Some publishers put full content text directly in the feed item. The problem with including full text in a feed is that a reader has no incentive to click through to the publisher’s website. Instead, write your feed item descriptions as ‘teasers’ that make a reader want to click over to the website to read more.

Make your feed item descriptions brief, and include descriptive keywords. Remember some newsreaders are set to truncate long descriptions, and some newsreaders won’t show descriptions at all. Keep your most important information at the start of your description.

4. Keep your content fresh

Updating your feed regularly is a good way to keep reader interest. Feeds (like websites) that are not updated for months on end tend to lose repeat visitors. How often you refresh your content is up to the publisher. Keep in mind, however, that readers can set their reader to show as few as three feed headlines at a time. While it’s not likely a problem, updating too often could mean that some items may get overlooked.

5. Make sure your RSS feed is compliant!

Finally, make sure your feed is readable. The best-written feed in the world won’t be read if the feed code is bad. If you are hand-coding your RSS feed files, you can use a website like http://feedvalidator.org can determine if your feed is valid and suggest reasons why it isn’t.

Content is king. Use these tips to keep your RSS feeds well-read and your website well-trafficed!

S.R. Daley is the web developer for http://www.myrealtyfeed.com, a service that allows real estate professionals to create, maintain and promote multiple RSS feeds with a simple web interface.

This article may be republished without changing the content and the bio box.

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Top Tips for Successful Blog Contests

Blog contests are a great way to drive traffic to your blog, but there are some important steps to follow to ensure your contest is as successful as it can be.

1. Pick a Prize

Picking a prize might seem simple enough, but you should take some time to think about your prize to ensure you choose one that will help to make your blog contest successful. The more exciting your prize is, the more buzz that will naturally grow around it. However, you need to consider the monetary investment in purchasing your prize and shipping it to the winner. Also, prizes that are related to your blog's topic are typically the best because they bring added value to your readers.

You might be able to find a sponsor for your blog contest who will donate a prize. Companies will donate prizes to generate publicity. You can publish your request on sites like ProfNet. You'd be surprised how many responses you're likely to get.

2. Choose an Entry Method

The simplest blog contest entry method is to ask people to leave a comment on your blog contest announcement post. That comment acts as their entry. Alternatively, you could require people to answer a question in their comments to be entered into the contest. Alternatively, you could require people to post about the contest on their own blogs with a link back to your contest post on your blog to count as an entry into the contest.

You can give different value to each type of entry. For example, leaving a comment on your blog contest post could equate to one entry into the contest but blogging about the contest on their own blogs with a link back to your contest post, could give them 2 entries. It's up to you.

3. Choose a Start and End Date

Before you announce your blog contest, make sure you decide the specific date and times it will start and end to set entrant's expectations.

4. Determine Prize Delivery Restrictions

It's critical that you determine how you're going to deliver the prize to the winner up front. For example, if you need to mail the prize, you might want to restrict the contest to people within a certain geographic area to reduce shipping costs.

5. Identify How a Winner Will Be Chosen

Depending on how your blog contest is set up, the winner will either be picked randomly or subjectively (for example, the best answer to the contest question). For random contests, you can use a website such as Randomizer.org to automatically generate a winner.

It's also important to set up restrictions around prize notification. You don't want to have to wait months for the winner to get back to you with their mailing address, so you can send the prize to them. Set up a limitation stating how much time the winner has to respond to you after you send their prize notification with their contact information for prize delivery else the prize will be forfeited and an alternate winner will be chosen.

6. Write the Rules

Make sure you include rules with your blog contest announcement post. Include the entry deadline, delivery restrictions, how the winner will be selected, directions for entry, and anything else you can think of to protect yourself.

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