The Long Tail Fallout

I have read it. Many of you have read it. Chris Anderson's much-talked about visionary business book, The Long Tail, has captured the imagination of many people. It's about the new marketing niches and sub-niches. It's about the limitation of yesterday's market choice and the economics of abundance in today's marketplace. And thanks to the Internet phenomenon for that.

It's all about the consumers of the future, their shifting demands, moving away towards the niche markets of the "Long Tail" and why the major media giants are feeling the effects.

Social media such as YouTube, MySpace, Facebook and others are getting the spotlight. The new consumers know what they want and that's not so good news for those depending on the traditional "Top 10 Hits" lists.

TV ratings are heading south, newspapers and magazines are losing circulation, Hollywood box office is slipping, sliding away, and top-selling albums are figuratively down by the millions.

So where do we go from here? Well, slide down the "Long Tail" where it straightens out at the base. That's where the niches are and they are gathering momentum if statistics, facts and data are any indicator.

How about a niche like Blogkits?

Imagine Adsense is not generating enough dough for you these days. Assuming you want to ditch Adsense, then who do you turn to for your new web income source?

How about Blogkits for starter? Blogkits who?

Entrepreneur Jim Kukrai created Blogkits in 2004. It was acquired by global affiliate marketing company Forge Corporation early this year. and it was launched recently.

The promo says it's the "world's first true performance marketing network built just for bloggers."

Your blog don't have to be a high-traffic one to get approval. Blogkits is based on CPA (cost per action) so the bane of click fraud does not arise. If you still want to retain Adsense on your blog together with Blogkits that's not a problem.

You have to sign up your blog and get approved. You grab a tracking code and place it in your blog template. And you'll be earning whenever a sale is made.

It looks like this is one of those new niches that are positioning themselves at the tail end. This may well be an alternative to Google Adsense for website publishers with low-traffic blogs to get an extra piece of the online pie.

> The man behind Blogkits and his blog

Contextual Ads and New Players

If you have been watching the Internet marketing scene like a good watchdog, you would notice that lately contextual ads are no longer a monopoly held by Google.

Although Google are still way ahead of the competition, website publishers should start noticing that there's a growing list of new players coming on or planning to hit the contextual ads arena sooner or later.

We already have Yahoo! Publisher Network (YPN), Kontera and Chitika and some other smaller players in the field. Next, watch eBay and Microsoft as they work on their betas.

IntelliTXT, with their unique brand of contextual ads that appear in a "video balloon," have caught the eye. Pioneered by Vibrant Media, IntelliTXT launched in 2004.

How would this affect website publishers? My take is that there'll be more choices (obviously) and just in case you get banned by Google, you still have somewhere to go. Oh, what a thought!

An Aussie Sense of Adsense

Here's a sensible thought from Australian Graham Hunt. He is of the opinion that having Google Adsense on his site goes against his principles. He lays out the reasons why he's not following the Adsense crowd.

Although visitors can see that I have Adsense on my site, I must admit that Mr Hunt has an interesting point of view. I applaud him for making his stand. His article was published in EzineArticles.com. Read it here and feel free to post your views.


Adsense Makes No Sense To Me

By Graham Hunt

You won’t find any Adsense ads on my website.

Yes, I’ve read about the apparent “death of Adsense” and my inbox has been stuffed with claims and counter claims about the value of this product or that strategy. . But that is not the reason.

You see, I am a writer. I love nothing more than to research and write material on the area of my passion. In fact I have devoted my life to that very thing. Other than a bit of housework and meal preparation in support of my hardworking life- partner, my time is spent online researching and writing my own material.

I am very proud of the material I have produced and offer in the form of articles and e-books on my website. Once I have attracted a visitor to my site, why on earth would I want them to suddenly leave and go who knows where? At least if they clicked on an affiliate link I have something of an advantage for two reasons:

(a) I have chosen where the visitor will go when they leave my site and

(b) I could receive some income if they purchase the product or service on the site to which I am an affiliate.

With Adsense, the most likely place my hard-earned visitor would end up would be my direct competitor! That’s like owning a Pizza restaurant and advertising the local Chicken Take-Away in my establishment.

Yet, that is in effect, the type of thing I would be doing if I displayed Adsense on my site. Yes, it might make sense to Google to provide contextual advertising. It would probably even make sense to the advertiser (otherwise why would they do it). But it makes no sense to me.

I write because I believe I have something worthwhile to say. I believe, in all honesty, there are a lot of people who would benefit from hearing what I have to say. . I also believe that laborers are worthy of their hire, so yes, I offer some of my material for sale. I put my material before people. If they like what they see, if it fills a need in their life at that particular moment in time, they may buy. If they don’t like what they see, that’s okay.

But the last thing I want is for them to rush in and out of my ‘store’ because their attention has been grabbed by my competitor who I allow to stand in the entrance to my place of business for the purpose of diverting my customers across to his ‘store’. Will they come back to me? I don’t really know, but I sure as heck would rather it didn’t happen in the first place.

On the other hand, I recognize that I am something of a crusader. My site is not there specifically for me to make money, although the income is appreciated. If I was only interested in making money (and it seems, if you believe everything you read you either make millions or you make zero when you are in business on the Internet. There is, apparently, no middle ground) then I could provide the mega-store approach and offer you anything and everything your heart desires.

I heard recently of one entrepreneur who has 75,000 websites! Apparently the content on those sites is so unappealing that he makes tens of thousands of dollars each month from Adsense alone. To that I say “Great. I trust he enjoys his money.”

I choose to journey along a road apparently less travelled. What I lose out on in the area of financial gain, I certainly make up for in satisfaction of achieving my life’s goal and a career path that I honestly love. There’s not much more I could ask for.

Graham Hunt is the Founder and Thinker-in-Residence of The Ultimate Success Center, the website of which can be found at http://www.the-ultimate-success-site.com. Graham has also started an interactive blog on Aglet Marketing. An aglet is the small metal tip on a shoestring. Aglet Marketing, therefore seeks ways to promote your website on the tip of a shoestring. The blog can be found at http://www.aglet-marketing.blogspot.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Graham_Hunt

Adsense Product Reviews and 5 Star Ratings - Adsense Product Reviews, Free 5 Part Mini Course " 5 Common Adsense Mistakes to Avoid"

Crystal Balling With Jim Edwards

We'll soon be saying goodbye to 2006 and many of us will be looking forward to the new year. So what awaits around the corner?

Will Yahoo and Microsoft really wake up and compete with Google seriously?

Will we see the "demise of Internet marketing" or will there be a new rebirth? Will the surge of "new offers, new opportunities" continue to dominate the marketing scene in the new year?

Will we see a new direction for MySpace and YouTube? Will more people abandon the Adsense ship as earnings (for many this is nothing to shout about) continues to dwindle? Will Adsense eventually kick the bucket in 2007? Is "Click Flipping" in CPA what it's all cracked up to be? Over to you Scott Boulch!

Come around this time, Jim Edwards (pictured) is a guy who has a habit of making some predictions about the Web. According to him, there's a couple of biggies heading down the pike. Yes sir, Good Ol' Jim has the "scoop."

Jim is a syndicated newspaper columnist and the co-author of an amazing new ebook - The Lazy Man's Guide to Online Business - that will teach you how to work less, get paid more… and have tons more fun! Remember, he "was screaming from rooftops about online video 3 years ago and look where we are now!" Well, he's looking into his crystal ball again and be prepared for some interesting tidings.

Get the rest of Jim's article here = > http://www.IGottaTellYou.com/2007-Predictions.html

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The Buzz that Rocked the Senses

Scott Boulch's controversial affliliate promotion about his Adsense revelation ended Tuesday, Sept 26.

After two weeks of Net buzz, Boulch has claimed that over 31,000 people had signed up.

"Although we originally were going to end the affiliate promotion at 25,000 opt ins, we have made the decision to allow a few more people get the word," he announced.

We'll see what comes next from Scott Boulch.

'Click Flipping' A New Buzzword?

I can't quite make out how this thing will end up but this guy Scott Boulch has certainly stirred up a hornet's nest with his Adsense revelation. His initial report was quickly picked up by over 29,000 netusers within a few days and his follow-up report must be even hotter. It seems we're gonna hear a new buzzword in the coming days. Boulch calls it "Click Flipping". So there you are. Hope it makes some sense.

New Keyword Research Guide

WordTracker has just published an exciting new keyword research tool to help people get the most intheir keyword search. Simply called Keyword Research Guide, this new tool will replace the multiple searches.

According to WordTracker, it's only the beginning and they'll be building on this over the coming months. Keyword Research Guide has additional features such as

• Greater flexibility and options when searching for keywords
  
• Keyword results increases to one thousand
  
• Improved adult filter
  
• Select and remove keywords by substring
  
• Improved keyword export

Meet The Modern-Day Robin Good

This guy is a "passionate new media expert". He uses a character name Robin Good for his website http://www.masternewmedia.org/rss/top55/ which is really a treasure trove of techno-savvy info. If you're looking for up-to-date, cutting-edge, uniquely cost-effective new media resources, this is it.

Meet Luigi Canali De Rossi, the Robin Good guy. He probably has one of the best lists of blog directories and RSS submission sites on the Web.

According to Luigi, his mission is one of helping and empowering individuals to communicate, publish and learn more effectively with information and communication technologies.

He sends out a monthly newsletter dubbed the Mastermind Explorer which is directed to individuals, entrepreneurs, communication managers, and educators in development, research and training institutions worldwide.

Luigi describes his newsletter as "unique" in the sense that it tries to provide resources, tools and technologies that allow people to realise possible solutions which the mainstream normally says not to be possible.

Looking For Heavy Traffic?

Think this article will be of help to those who want to see greater flow of traffic to their blogs. As you all know generating traffic to a new blog or website can be a real pain if you're in the dark.

How To Build Traffic To Your Blog

By Priya Shah

With the growing interest in blogging as a means of online promotion and branding, a lot of marketers are starting blogs to promote their opinions, products, books and services. But a blog is like a website. "Write and they will come" isn't exactly a magic formula to bring in traffic by the boatload.

If you need to promote your website in order to build traffic to it, you need to promote your blog as well.

Here are some ways you can become a well-read and influential blogger.

1. Write Posts That People Will Want To Read
This should be common sense, but many marketers tend to forget that their readers are real people and that you need to use the principles of online copywriting to make your headlines and copy interesting to your readers. If you write posts that people enjoy reading, they will reward you by returning to your blog regularly.

Make your posts conversational, pithy and topical. Keep them short and stick to one topic per post.
Write often and regularly so that both readers and search engines visit your blog more often.

2. Optimize Your Posts for Search Engines
I cover this topic in detail in my article on "Search Engine Optimization For Blogs" http://www.blog-maniac.com/blog-seo.htm

But here are the most important rules to follow to get your posts listed for keywords of your choice.

* Make sure your blog URL contains the primary keyword you want to optimize for
* Use your primary keywords in the title of your post
* Use your secondary keywords in the body of your post
* Use your keywords in the anchor text of links in the body of your posts

3. Submit Your Blog and RSS Feed To Directories
If you publish a blog you should submit your blog and RSS feed to big directories like Yahoo and Dmoz, as well as the numerous blog directories and search engines.

Here is the best list I've found of places to submit your feed or blog, compiled by Luigi Canali De Rossi, who writes under the pseudonym Robin Good.

Best Blog Directory And RSS Submission Sites http://www.masternewmedia.org/rss/top55/
Another list of sites to submit your Blog. http://www.rss-specifications.com/rss-submission.htm

4. Ping The Blog Services
There are a number of services designed specifically for tracking and connecting blogs. By sending a small ping to each service you let them know you've updated your blog so they can come check you out.

Bookmark the Ping-O-Matic ping results page so you can visit it and quickly ping a number of services with a single click.
http://pingomatic.com

5. Build Links To Your Blog
I recommend the methods here as the best ways to get links pointing to your blog

* Link to your blog from each page on your main website
* Trackback to other blogs in your posts
* Post legitimate comments on other blogs with related topics
* Offer to exchange links with other similarly themed blogs and websites

6. Edit Your Blog Posts Into Articles
One of the best methods for promoting your website is to write articles and submit them to article directories.

The suggestion for extending this to edit your blog posts into articles and submit them to directories came from the coach at "Explode Blog Traffic" who also has other noteworthy suggestions at his blog here. http://bloghit.blogspot.com/2004/11/how-to-explode-blog-traffic.html

You'll find an extensive list of article directories here http://ebizwhiz-publishing.com/write-articles/submit-articles.htm

7. Create Buzz About Your Blog
Creating a buzz about your blog posts and topic in the local and online media will give your marketing a viral component.

* Create a controversy around your blog or it's topic.
* Distribute bumper stickers or other merchandise with your blog's URL and tagline.
* Write a press release about something newsworthy and tie it in with your blog topic.

8. Capture Subscribers By Email
It may seem strange for a blogger to send out updates by email, but email is still the #1 choice of most people who want to receive news and information.

Using a free service like Bloglet to manage your subscriptions is easy and it allows your subscribers to manage all their subscriptions from one interface. http://www.bloglet.com

However, if you want more control over your list and don't mind mailing out the updates yourself, you can use an autoresponder system to capture and follow-up with subscribers.

RSS responder is a new script that allows you to keep in touch and follow-up with your subscribers without the hassle of email. http://ebizwhiz-publishing.com/rssresponder.htm

These tips should give you a good start to building your blog traffic.

About the Author: Priya Shah is a partner in the search engine marketing firm, SEO & More http://www.seoandmore.com Request the whitepaper Boost Your Search Engine Visibility With Blogs And RSS http://www.seoandmore.com/blogs-rss/

This Is Writely For You

Now you can write from anywhere so long there's a PC at your disposal.

You can write along with someone whom you pick as your collaborator. Even right now as I write you (a collaborator) can chip in if you spot a spelling mistake and edit it.

You can write a blog posting anywhere - in a cybercafe, while enjoying your cappucino at Starbucks, or in your hotel room using your laptop. When you're done, just zap your posting to your blogsite.

But that's not all that this writing tool can do for you. There's more:

• Upload Word documents, OpenOffice, RTF, HTML or plain text

• Spell checker, simple wysiwyg editing and formatting

• Invite others to share documents by using e-mail address

• Publish to the world or just share your document with only your friends (or collaborators)

• Download documents to your desktop
  
  

Simply amazing, isn't it?

So what writing tool is this? Well, rightly it goes by the name of Writely but it's still in beta version. Does it cost a bomb? No sirree, it's F*ree. Go ahead and sign up now.

Writely just opened its door for new sign-ups and I think there's a big rush to join. By the way, the Writely folks are moving to Google. They have been acquired by Google. It would be a good idea to sign up for a Google Gmail account.

There's not much publicity right now about Writely, not on the part of Google, but it won't be a "secret" much longer.

Write on!

P.S. This posting was first written in Writely and posted to
http://commonsensewithmarkk.blogspot.com/

Could This Be The Blogger's Bomb?

Just came across this little tip-off as yours truly scour cyberspace. It seems one of the "majors" has unveiled a killer new and innovative little program for bloggers.

It appears to be a real cool little number that can allow you to write blog posts in your browser and publish them straight to a blog-hosting service. Cool, man!

Alas, it's a Beta version and it's free.

Does it work without a hitch? You can find out here...>>

Dixie Gal With Cutting Edge

Dixie Kitchen
Mercy Now


Recommended listening

Mary Gauthier (pronouced "go-shay") first cut her country album at the age of 45, Her songs are rife with tales of alcoholism, physical abuse and emotional breakdowns.

Louisiana native Mary had her widely-praised fourth album Mercy Now voted in the Top 10 of 2005 by listeners of WFUY in New York City

She formerly owned the Dixie Kitchen restaurant in Boston and didn't even get started writing songs until she was in her 30s. She started performing in the folk clubs of Boston where she first won an audience with her Southern Gothic songcraft.

She had cut an album aptly called Dixie Kitchen which is one of my favourites. In an LA Times review, her Mercy Now album was described as having "enough craft, conviction and honesty...to remind you of Kris Kristofferson and John Prine in their prime."



> More about Mary Gauthier

Chill Out with Slaid Cleaves

Broke Down (2000)
Unsung (2006)

Recommended listening

Slaid Cleaves has just released his new recording Unsung which is a collection of songs by admired friends and colleagues according to his website info.

Cleaves, who hails from Maine but now lives in Texas, sings about people and the stuff of everyday life in a voice that has been described as "packed with Texas trail dust."

Listening to Cleaves' songs is like listening to a storyteller. And the songs, more often than not, are reflections of characters trying to get on with their lives and moving on. And that reminds me of Bruce Springteen's dark album "Nebraska."

His early hit album Broke Down, a favourite of mine, is a good example of his reflective renditions.

Broke Down released in 2000 and his 1997 debut album No Angel Knows had met with effusive critical praise. Broke Down was a well-crafted collection of songs that help boost his popularity.

"Cleaves tells gorgeously compact stories in a voice packed with Texas trail dust." -- Entertainment Weekly

". . . one of the finest singer-songwriters in Texas." -- Neil Strauss, The New York Times

> Visit Slaid Cleaves' website
>

Coffee Break, Chill Out

COUNTRY
BLUES
JUST FOLK
LATIN BEAT
NEW AGE
ALL THAT JAZZ
WORLD MUSIC
BESTSELLERS

Google Bots and What They Do

Have you read that Google currently indexes over 8 billion web pages? However, before these pages were placed in the index, they were each crawled by a special spider known as the GoogleBot.

Unfortunately, many web masters do not know about the internal workings of this virtual robot. In fact, Google actually uses a number of spiders to crawl the Web. You can catch these spiders by examining your log files.

This article by Kim Roach attempts to reveal some of the most important Google spiders, their function, and how they affect you as a web master.

>> Read Kim Roach's article