Assignment 5, Bootcamp #5 - The Popularity Factor

[iCraft Admin]

As you all know by now, Links = Votes online. Those "votes" help Google to determine which pages should be displayed higher in their replacement results pages. You also know now that trying to get those backlinks from site owners is not an easy job. And with the current changes in Google's algorithms some say is not a sustainable long-term strategy. So what else can you do to influence Google? Become Popular!  

Imagine if instead of you trying to get backlinks from other bloggers and various site owners, they'd come to you? They'd share links to your pages on their social media sites, write reviews about you and seek your comments etc? This sounds like an impossible task, but that's what many industry experts are saying right now is the right way to do SEO.

Instead of seeking links - produce great content that others would get excited about enough to want to tell others (their friends and followers), become an expert on a topic, so others would quote you each time they think of "Beaded Jewelry" or "Card-making for kids" (as an example) ... or write killer blog posts that many people would feel compelled to comment on etc.

There was a great article a couple of weeks ago that summed it up pretty nicely - The Popularity Factor in Today’s SEO.

So here is your task for this week:

• Read the article mentioned above and do some rereplacement on the "Popularity" topic. Please share good articles you find with others.
• Revisit some of the sites that you found and liked before, but thought they were out of your league, and pay attention this time to what makes them great. What did you like about them when you visited them first? What are you liking about them now? Do they still look informative, engaging, inviting? Did you notice them because you kept seeing references to those sites in your Facebook or Twitter stream? Do they offer a lot of free resources on their sites and through exclusive offers on Facebook? Do they seem to be generous with their time by giving in-depth answers to people's questions and by offering very detailed tips and advise? How do they promote themselves? Not sure? Ask them through comments etc. Whatever that is, write it down and let us know at the end of the week what your findings are.
• While you are doing all this examination of popular sites, start thinking about your own online properties - your store, your blog and your social media accounts. What are those "popular" people doing that you are not doing? Write down any ideas that pop into your head and let us know at the end of the week what you were thinking. We'll review and discuss all of them together.
• Keep working on those backlinks.... until you are popular that is.  

[Jewelry by Kat]

This will be hard for this shy wall flower but I will work hard on what comes natural to others.  I am not talkative...look at my description
The article is written well and made me laugh while learning

[Jewelry by Kat]

Here is an easy article on how to have a popular site

http://www.wikihow.com/Make-Your-Website-Popular

[Jewelry by Kat]

  I have LOTS of views to my store and website but no one is buying!!!  Does popular help you sell?   Even my giveaway have tons of views but not many taking part.

[iCraft Admin]

That's a complicated question, Kat!
Yes, popularity helps you to get traffic and views. It probably helps you to sell as well, as people trust you more when more people talk about your products and if they've found you by following one of those product reviews or tweets.
It's possible you are attracting a wrong crowd, so you need to figure out your target audience. Who buys from you online and offline? Are those the same type of people? Ask your customers what they liked about your items and stress those points in your product descriptions. That's just a quick answer to a complicated question. 
Maybe other jewelry designers could provide some insight as well?

[JaJeJems]

I think that what Admin is saying is good.  I read an article a couple of weeks ago where the writer said that when he asked one of his clients, a jewellery designer, who her target market was she didn't know and I realized that I didn't either.  I like making jewellery and I want to sell it but I never really thought who I was making it for, just anyone who wanted to buy it I guess.  Now I realize that you can't just market it to everyone and I am trying to figure out how to narrow it down.  I read another article on how to sell your sea glass online and one thing it said was that you have to think about what kind of people like sea glass jewellery and what other interests the people who like sea glass might have e.g. Canoeing, nature activities, beach combing, travelling etc.   Anyway just a couple of thoughts, not sure if that helps. 

[iCraft Admin]

That's a great point jajejems! Think if other interests that your target audience is interested in and try to offer value added tips and resources through your blog or join the same groups and forums that your customers are join etc. Basically, hang out with the same crowd

[Red Rock Designs]

I agree with JaJeJems as well.  When I started I was selling beaded, stitched and chainmaille jewelry because I wanted to cater to everybody.  That didn't work and once I focused on just chainmaille I began seeing more views and more sales (outside of iCraft).  I'm still learning who my target audience is, but now I don't feel so scattered-brain about my product line.

I do also have the same problem as Kat, my giveaways don't get any participants.

[iCraft Admin]

Yes, trying to cater to everyone doesn't work, even for large corporations. As they say, it's better to be a big fish in a small pond, than a small fish in a big pond. So find your niche audience, connect and engage with them to better understand them, especially what motivates them to buy your kind of products. Nothing beats old-fashioned one-to-one conversation. That's how you can gather some intel on your target audience.

Another option is to run a few tests using PPC (pay-per-click) ads. Here is one article I read recently that discussed using niche advertising as a testing tool to find out more about your ideal visitor - The 5 Minute Guide To Cheap Startup Advertising. I am sure there are more good ones, if you replacement for PPC on Google. Since this is not a free option, I suggest you do some reading before you set up any ads, not to waste your money.

[iCraft Admin]

So how's everyone doing with this week's assignment? I was hoping for a lot more questions. 

[Jewelry by Kat]

Everyone is busy getting popular

[iCraft Admin]

Ha ha... I like that answer, Kat! 

[JaJeJems]

Wish that was true Kat!  I am feeling less popular by the minute!  I do have question about WordAds from Google. I got $100 free when I set up my  website but I was afraid to enquire any further in case I got sucked in to spending a lot of money on advertising.  Has anyone had any experience with WordAds or with Facebook ads?  I would rather not get into paying for ads at this stage!

I have been reading a book that I downloaded for free about getting better at Facebook in 10 days.  I also connected with Brick marketing on LinkedIn and they have some good articles.  I started a discussion on LinkedIn looking for other  lampworkers and have had a lot of response from that.  I had a comment on my product review!

[JaJeJems]

Here is the info about marketing on Facebook http://cdn1.hubspot.com/hub/53/How_to_Master_Facebook_Marketing_in_10_days-01.pdf

[iCraft Admin]

Hi Jajejems,

Thanks for sharing the link! As I said, I wouldn't just jump into advertising, without learning how to do it effectively. It's easy to blow off a lot of money without much return.  However, done correctly, PPC campaigns can be very effective. Sounds like a good topic for next Bootcamp.