Blogging for business has become an essential search engine optimization (SEO) strategy, but to experience its full benefits, you have to harness the format correctly. A lot of businesses make major blogging blunders, which can neutralize or even detract from their SEO value.

These are the three most common commercial blogging mistakes:

1. Using an external domain.
   There are a lot of blog hosting websites out there which don’t charge users a dime. While the lack of financial investment is attractive, it’s actually a mistake to use these sites for your business blog because the SEO value that your posts generate will benefit the hosting site, not your company website. Instead, integrate your blog into your current website, or create a privately owned and operated blog website and pepper your posts with lots useful content.
2. Choosing the wrong blog topics.
   The aim of a blog should be to provide added value to prospective customers. When blogging for business, many companies err by focusing too closely on their products and services. Instead, offer helpful, well-researched customer information and keep your marketing messages to a minimum. Some tips to follow: post about current events that are related to your business, and offer solutions to common problems and issues that consumers encounter in your industry. Experiment with your tone, but be professional and hire good writers — they will make a world of difference.
3. Being infrequent.
   To generate the most traffic, you need to update your blog constantly. SEO experts suggest that you create new posts at least once a week, but more is better. Also, keep in mind that it takes time to see the benefits of blogging for business; don’t give up if you don’t get results right away.

Blogging is a great tool for every business and can reap many rewards if done consistently and correctly.

You have been thinking of starting your own business.  Maybe you are sick of working for someone else.  Maybe you are currently unemployed.  Maybe you simply have a great idea.  Is self employment right for you?  Deborah Shane explores the ups and down of jumping in, taking the risk and reaping the rewards of entrepreneurship.

Author: Deborah Shane

So you are an expert, but are you really cut out to be an entrepreneur?  Is this what you really want to do, or is this a desperation tactic?  Entrepreneurship as a solution to employment is fast becoming a popular decision many are making.

There are many great resources to help you evaluate if, in fact, you are the right temperament and type of person to take entrepreneurship on. Here are a few of my favorites:

Entrepreneur.com
SBA.gov
Success.com

Here are three tools from the SBA that will help you. First, take an honest self assessment of your entrepreneurial temperament.  Second, identify your key qualities, skills and intangibles.  Third, create your entrepreneurial success blueprint, your platform and business plan.

Here are 12 resources and tools I have used to become a better seller, networker and overall marketer. These are proven ways to your build brand awareness and credibility and grow your relationships with your personal and professional communities.

1. LinkedIn is the professional platform that gives you unparalleled potential to be introduced to and interact with top people in your field or related fields.
2. Facebook is the most diverse platform for engagement, personal branding and interactivity.
3. Twitter can be a powerful “real time” communication tool.
4. Blogging is the best way to build clout and authority in your field.
5. Email marketing can help you grow existing  and new relationships and revenues with a permission based community.
6. Article writing, either on your own blog or for other key blogs and websites, builds your brand leadership.
7. Texting used properly can also be a very effective “real time” communication tool.
8. Video is the best way to show people your vibe, your personality and how you present yourself and your ideas.
9. Volunteering is the side door into many business opportunities and aligns you with things you are passionate about.
10. Networking online and in person can open up amazing opportunities with people all over the world or right in your local community.
11. Webinar workshops offer a way to deliver quality content on a specific subject online with just a short time commitment.
12. Radio podcasting has opened more doors for me than just about any other platform, and can do the same for you if you use it to feature others.

If you are ready to take your expertise and use it to become an entrepreneur, set yourself up to succeed by building a foundation, a platform and your blueprint for success. Business ownership is the most exciting endeavor that one can take, as long as your risk/reward tolerance is high enough.

Set yourself up to succeed, make the shift and take the risk.  This is the perfect year and perfect time.

For the original article go to: http://smallbiztrends.com/2012/01/expert-entrepreneur.html

Most SEO’s will advise you to buy an existing site/domain (lots of age  benefit), but there are times when you need to start from scratch with a  fresh domain.

It can sometimes take a couple of weeks to get a new domain indexed by  Google (even longer to start ranking!). In order to speed up the process  of getting your site indexed quickly, even in 24 hours, follow the  steps outlined below:

1) Create 5 pages of content

Skip the “under construction” page and write several pages of real   content, at least a few paragraphs.

2) Create Internal Links to your Pages

Put the content in a template with a menu structure to make this step   easier. You can find free templates at oswd.org and other places, at   least to get started. Link to the content through the menu, and if you   have a major landing page, link to it from the content of a page or two.

3) Tag on Social Bookmarking Sites

After just a few minutes to create an account with these sites you can   submit a link to your site. This gives you an instant way for Google and   other search engines to find your site because these social bookmarking   sites get visited by the search engine bots (like the Googlebot) quite   regularly. A few bookmarking sites to recommend: Del.icio.us, BlinkList,   StumbleUpon.com, and Furl. Make sure you tag them with common words,   like those you find on their tag clouds (BlinkList has a good one, just   scroll down on the page to see it).

4) Comment on popular and recent blogs (with your link)

Find 5 blogs that are fairly popular, relevant to your site, and have a   recent blog post (last day or two). Read the post and add a comment that   contributes to the discussion, including a link to your site in the URL   field.

5) Create, Submit, and Ping your XML Sitemap

You can create a free XML sitemap here then upload the file to your site   (just save it as sitemap.xml). Then ping Google with your sitemap by   typing in the following URL in your browser, replacing the domain name   with your own:

http://google.com/webmasters/sitemap…om/sitemap.xml

Next, create an account with Google Webmaster Central, add your site,   and submit your XML sitemap.

6) Install Google Analytics

Add Google Analytics (free) to your site. Don’t forget to verify your   site with them to get the data collection started.

7) Run some Google Ads

Create an account with Google Adwords and start running some ads, even   if its just for the domain name, company name, or some long tail   keywords. Google has to go to your site because of their quality score,   which includes “your landing page quality”. Just spend a couple of bucks   and it can help jumpstart the indexing.

With these steps, you should see your site indexed fairly quickly. I   can’t guarantee the 24 hours, but it is possible. At the very least it   will speed up the indexing significantly (from weeks to days). Look for   the “googlebot” to visit in your site analytics. Then look for your site   to show up with Google by doing a search with the site: operator (for   example, site:sphinn.com). Enjoy!

For the original article go to: http://nabrak.biz/category/seo/