Assignment 4, Bootcamp #5 - Rinse and Repeat

[iCraft Admin]

This week, we are not going to do anything new, that we haven't done before. I think you are all in a good place right now, having started contacting people and waiting for responses. So I don't want you to rush to get quick backlinks. Instead, keep doing what you've been doing and keep sharing your experiences on forum. Don't expect to get everything right the first time. Let yourself get some more experience, and learn through your mistakes. And most importantly, keep reaching out to others and keep building relationships online.

So here is the Assignment for This Week:

• Expand your replacement a bit this week. Don't focus on your specific type of jewelry or papercraft. Look for all jewelry makers and all crafters for that matter. You are all connected through common theme - love of handmade and creativity. So use that angle! Remember, I mentioned that Variety is the Key! So you don't have to stay too close to your particular craft. Well, not all the time. Add a few more nice sites/blogs that you find this week to your spreadsheet.
• Search for your local groups and communities of creative types. Join new crafting communities! Or at least, make some connections by visiting blogs, FB and Twitter accounts you find mentioned on those sites.
  Here are some examples to give you ideas:
  Craftster.org Forum
  Artisan Jewelry Community on G+
  W.E.S.T - Winnipeg Etsy Street Team
  International Quilt Festival
  Cloth Paper Scissors  or Sweetly Scrapped - Lisa, these might be good for you to Like on FB.
  Repeat Crafter Me - check pages/people other popular crafters, like this one, follow and like. I am sure you will find a lot of good connections through those people.
  Also, notice those pages that FB suggests as similar to those that you visit.
• Keep commenting on the sites you find and follow those people on their Twitter, FB and other social media sites, if they specify them.
• Write a post about some of those creative types that you find amazing and talk about things that inspired you. You can post those posts on iCraft blog, your blog or your FB page. But make sure you email those people, or mention that in comments on their blog posts, and let them know that you are a fellow crafter & that you've mentioned them in your post. Give your likes and reviews generously, and you'll get a few in return!
• Try to land at least 1 more product review this week. If not, that's ok too. Just work toward getting one later.
  Just keep in mind that you need to communicate to people what links you want to be included in the review and that you are expecting an original review and not just a repeat of the copy you posted on your product pages -  to avoid situations like the one we had this week with the Frugal Mommy!  
• Ask questions and report on your progress during this week.
• Post your Status Update next weekend, not later than Sunday afternoon, please!
  Good luck everyone!

[JaJeJems]

Love your title Admin!  Found this information for the group:  http://www.replacementengineoptimizationjournal.com/category/link-building/. Not sure if we have looked at this before but I found the articles interesting.

[iCraft Admin]

I haven't seen that site before... or at least, I don't remember it. There is a lot of info on the web about seo, but not all is correct. So the fact that those articles are from 2013 is a good start. Plus, if you find them interesting, that's a bonus. I'll browse that site more this week and let you know what I think of it. Thanks for sharing! 

[Jewelry by Kat]

I am posting what I have done so far this week because with the funeral and out of state family, I won't get near the computer again for days. I spent HOURS yesterday and today on my assignment.  I made a giveaway on my own website to see how it goes.  Sent contact info to 3 sites for reviews and they have not gotten back.  One site did and sent a necklace for the review and a bracelet for a giveaway. I did a blog on my website because it is faster, about a blogger jewelry designer who does an amazing thing ever year.  See it at http://www.jewelrybykat.net/blog/2013/04/23/Bead-Soup.aspx
And since my 2 reviews a week ago I have had 274 shop views which is alot for me in a week

[iCraft Admin]

Hi Kat,

Don't worry about assignments this week. Take as much time as you need. You've done a lot already, so it will be easy for you to catch up and we are here to help anyway. Let us know later how your giveaway went and who else responded to your product review requests. Btw, that's an interesting post about "Bead soup". Looks like you are finding a lot of interesting sites during your rereplacement. Take care, Kat! Our thoughts are with you.

[Fairy Cardmaker]

Update.  Got green light on both the review and the guest post now.  Now just to find time to follow through!

[iCraft Admin]

That's great news, Fairy Cardmaker! So happy for you. 

[iCraft Admin]

So how are you doing this week, Bootcampers?
Only Kat should take it easy. For the rest of you - no slowing down! 

[JaJeJems]

Too busy to chat!!!  Will report in later today, been a busy week actually but not sure how much progress I have made!

[JaJeJems]

This week I have been doing a lot of writing. 
- I did a blog post on my website for a lampworker who works from his boat.  It turned out well, he was happy and the visits to my website increased after I posted it, he shared it on facebook and so did another lampworker
- did a "spotlight on the designer"  (me that is) post which was approved but won't be posted for a while
- waiting for approval for a product review that I did for a "handmade" site,  they set out guidelines to follow but there was only one place to link to my icraft product page
- planning another blog for a lampworker next week
- joined a home based jewellers directory where I have a listing now and when I figure it out there is also a blog attached where I can do a product review
- have a lead on another jewellery blog that has a gallery where I can post a product review, I am still going through their guidelines and do's and don'ts which are extensive
- still reading about SEO and how to make better use of my fan page on Facebook, as well as making better use of some of my other social media sites
- spent a bit of time improving my profiles on LinkedIn and Facebook, I have rewritten some of my descriptions so that they don't all sound alike

 By the way the home based jewellers directory is a Toplist.  I did not know what that was but realized that I had used one last week when I was looking for lamp workers.  Is that an effective tool?  It told me I could create one for free but I wasn't really sure what I would do with one??


That's it for me!

[Fairy Cardmaker]

I just drafted my review of the stamps I've been using on my iCraft blog.  The person who sells me the stamps  will review the card listed in my store that I made with one of the featured sets.

Still working on the guest post for the other blog.

[iCraft Admin]

Hi Fairy Cardmaker,

Make sure the person that reviews your card, mentions your store and adds a link on the store name. It doesn't hurt to have backlinks to various product pages, but the real goal is to have as many backlinks to your store page.

Can everyone tell me why we focus on store page?

[Red Rock Designs]

Unfortunately my week was a bust.  No reviews made or gained, but I am still leaving comments on various pages. 
This upcoming week will also be a slow one for me...my exam is May 4th.

I will definately try to check in when I can during this week and keep at it for gaining reviews.

[iCraft Admin]

No problem, Red Rock Designs.
Try to catch up as soon as you are done with your studies and good luck on the test!

[iCraft Admin]

Hi JaJeJems,

Excellent report!  You've done a lot this week. Great job!

Same advice on backlinks to product pages, as I gave to Fairy Cardmaker. If you have only one spot to place a link within an article - place it on a phrase that links to your store and not product pages.

Btw, in the post you did about a lampworker who works from his boat, did you incorporate a link to your own store somewhere? When many people share that post, will they be able to see links to your store or only the person you are reviewing? Including a line about yourself and mentioning that you also sell jewelry is not completely irrelevant to readers. Your opinion matters because you are a jewelry maker yourself. But new people landing on that post might not know that.

Using LinkedIn for posting product reviews and even comments with your store and product URLs is an excellent idea!
That's a popular site from where you had no links before, and Jewelry group provides relevancy to those links.

Most social media sites, including LinkedIn & FB allow you to add links to your sites, blogs and other social media accounts. Even if you are not super active on some, I'd still set them up and add all those backlinks, as they are free.

[iCraft Admin]

Question to all Bootcampers - why do we focus on promoting store page first, when we work on backlinks? Any ideas?

[Jewelry by Kat]

So google can find our store not a page  the more links we have on our home page?

[iCraft Admin]

Anyone else? Why is it important to build links to your store page first and not to other pages?

[JaJeJems]

Not sure of the answer but I would think that it would be better to have someone land on your store rather than just one product, then go away.  That is from a strictly marketing perspective, not sure how it relates to back linking.  Hope I won't get an "F" for that! But I thought I should at least try to answer, maybe an "E" for effort!

[iCraft Admin]

Ha ha.... Yes, E for effort! not quite the answer I was looking for.

[iCraft Admin]

I am going to repeat this question, because it's quite important to understand this and because I want to hear more answers. 
So why is it important to build links to your store page first and not to other pages?

[Fairy Cardmaker]

Here's my first review for link building:
http://sherisays-justscrapit.blogspot.ca/2013/05/the-fairy-cardmaker-and-red-rose-card.html

And here's my best guess at the answer to the question:
For freshness?  Because product pages may become sold and are updated less frequently than store pages?
And maybe because we want replacement engines to associate our keywords with our store because that will being the most traffic, whereas specific products may bring narrower traffic?

[JaJeJems]

Checked it out Fairy C and it looks good to me!

[iCraft Admin]

That's a great review, Lisa! I have only one small comment for you. It's better from SEO perspective to have the link to your store placed higher on the page. I'd personally place it on the first reference to your store, at the end of the first sentence. So maybe watch for that next time. However, it's not a big deal! What's important is that you have a backlink from a relevant blog and it's a pretty good review as well. Congrats! 

[iCraft Admin]

You guys are getting closer to the answer of why we focus on the store page.    But I am not going to post my answer just yet, not until I see one from Red Rocks. It looks like she is trying to catch up with the assignments now.

[Red Rock Designs]

I think my answer will include bits of everyone else's answer!  But I do think that the main store page acts like a main road on a roadmap, and the product listings are like the side streets?  Because the main store page has your most updated information, newest product listings, keywords and links to the product listings, any backlinks to a store page gives the visitor choices of where to go next. ?

[JaJeJems]

Ok last try!  I actually read this in a comment somewhere today.  You link to the main store because the product may be sold but the store will always(let's hope) be there.  Is there a prize for the right answer?

[iCraft Admin]

No prize, and more than 1 right answer. Ha ha 
You are all collectively getting closer to the right answers. I'll post mine tomorrow.

[Jewelry by Kat]

   We have to wait another day?  The suspence!

[iCraft Admin]

Ha ha, yes, the suspense.
You still have all day today to post your answers. I'll tell you who was closer or got some points right.

[iCraft Admin]

So I asked you guys why we should focus on promoting store page first, when we work on backlinks.

So here are 3 main reasons:

• If you try to promote multiple pages, you will be spreading your efforts thin for no reason, and most likely will not get the results you need. Even large websites don't promote every single page. When it comes to SEO, the reality is everyone focuses only on a handful of pages that we know will bring more relevant traffic, and convert better than other pages.
• Product pages can disappear when you sell your products, and with them all your backlinks disappear as well. Your store page on the other hand, will always exist and accumulate links over time.
• Store page promotes more than one product, so when people land on it, there is more chances that they will like something and click to explore more vs. one product page that doesn't give people the same variety of products.

Jajejems got 2 answers out of 3, so I guess she is the winner of this unofficial competition. 

[Jewelry by Kat]

I have another review started this week.  I had a sale of 4 items and I am wondering if all this work attracted her. She was on a website for handmade jewelry and my website popped up!

[iCraft Admin]

Congrats on a new sale, Kat! If she found you on Google than its possible that your rankings improved. Can you ask her which keywords she used when she found your store?

[Jewelry by Kat]

she was replacementing beaded jewelry

[iCraft Admin]

That's great, Kat! Your store is optimized for beaded jewelry and you are now attracting people replacementing for those keywords.

[JaJeJems]

Hi Kat guess that shows that it does work!  Well done!