Browsing through Google Analytics and AWStats are 2 ways of determining what online marketing efforts are working for you. I’ve really been working on driving more traffic to my blog lately which means a lot of trial and error. Regular posting and tagging will get you so far, but an aggressive and pro-active approach to web marketing is what I’ve been after.

Below are my top 7 effective marketing efforts that generated me the most traffic for January, 2008.

#1 StumbleUpon

If you’re not doing this you really need to start. StumbleUpon is responsible for the majority of my traffic. StumbleUpon has a network of users that find content and tag it accordingly. You can then stumble keywords, users, groups, etc. It’s a great way of finding random interesting tidbits and a wonderful way to promote your website.

Firefox Add-on, StumbleUpon 3.16
Sign Up For A StumbleUpon Account

#2 Google Image Search

Google Image Search is the 2nd highest traffic generator for the month of January.

How to opt into Google Image Search

1. Sign into Google webmaster tools with your Google Account.
2. Click the URL for the site you want.
3. Click Tools, and then click Enable enhanced image search.

#3 Digg Your Posts

I’ve had a Digg account for some time now, but haven’t been using it to it’s fullest potential until very recently. Digg is a very active social network . Making it to the front page of Digg can crash your server from an overload of traffic if you’re not ready for it. This is a problem I would love to have.

#4 Entrecard

Entrecard is a fairly new social networking program that’s been taking off quite a bit lately. I started using it a month ago when I read about it on Blog Catalog and it is already at #6 as far as my current traffic sources go. What sets Entrecard apart from other link trading programs is that ads from this program stay live on other advertisers sites for an entire day. The more credits you get the more cards you can drop. You can also purchase ad space with the credits you attain. More credits, more clicks, more traffic.

#5 Blog Catalog

Known as BC to us regulars Blog Catalog is my favorite source for blog advice. Posting on this community will not only get your blog more attention, but it is filled with industry moguls and very knowledgeable bloggers. I’ve been a member since December 2006 and have found it to be my second blogging home away from home. Great idea, great community, great all around experience.

#6 Bumpzee Submissions

Bumpzee is a lot like MyBlogLog except you can add more than 15 friends a day. While I don’t think it’s as visually appealing as MyBlogLog it has been a source of more traffic as of late. Spend some time bumping your posts. The front page real estate where they end up on Bumpzee will help you in the marketing department.

#7 Zimbio

I’ve been using Zimbio for about 4 or 5 months now and it’s really picking up steam. For starters you can syndicate your website here so that it pings the site every time you post, much like technorati. Articles can easily be submitted directly from your site and submitted to different news sources.

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!

So once again it’s time for another Blog Sneeze. I learned about sneeze pages on Pro Blogger. It’s a way to drive traffic to your more popular posts. I used WhosAmungUs and Google Analytics to determine popularity. So without further adue here’s today’s sneeze.

Recent Popular Posts

• If You Don’t Like The Weather Just Wait Listed In Random Bloggery
• Jessica Alba’s Non-Existant Playboy Layout Listed In Gossipy Nonsense, Random Bloggery
• Happy Tree Friends Listed In Entertaining Media
• Track Visitors in Real Time With WhosAmungUs Listed In Blogging, Geek Blog, SEO Blog
• Winter Driving Pictures From Michigan Listed In Random Bloggery
• Michigan Winter Roadtrip Pictures Listed In About Me
• Exclusive Riders Club Preview of the New Specialized Suspension Website Listed In Michigan Mountain Biking

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!

Aside from good design standards meta tags, keywords, W3C compliant code there are a myriad of steps you can take to increase visitors to your website. There’s a lot of info on how to boost your traffic all over the web, the following tips are what I’ve noticed are working for me.

Must Have SEO Plugins For WordPress

There are a number of bloging CMS’s out there for you to choose from. I prefer and use WordPress for anybody interested in having more control over look and options.

Must Have SEO Plugins For WordPress >>

Use Flickr & Google Image Search To Boost Traffic

Use of desciptive image names along with width & height attributes make your code more SEO compliant. In addition to adding compliant code, alt & title tags to your images there are also a couple neat tips you can use to help spread the word about your website.

How to opt in for Google’s Advanced Image Search

1. Sign in to Webmaster tools
2. Click the site for which you want to enable enhanced image search.
3. On the Diagnostic tab, click Enhanced Image Search.

Flickr Optimization

Since Yahoo’s inclusion of flickr pics to it’s image search it has become a no brainer to use these tactics to boost search engine traffic.

Optimize Your Flickr Images For Better Traffic

Use Google Alerts To Track Popular Keywords

Track Web Trends With Google Alerts >>
Get started with Google Alerts Here >>

Use News Aggregators To Keep Up On New & Upcoming Content

Boing Boing, A Directory Of Wonderful Things
I read Boing Boing non stop. The site is constantly updated by it’s founders with new and interesting webby tid bits.

Reddit
I subscribe to Reddit for the sheer volume of content they provide. Reddit is a user driven social network. Topics are broader than that of Boing Boing due to the user base, but this is a great resource for interesting news stories.

Google News
I use Google News to stay current with global events as they happen.

Web Communities That Syndicate Your Content

Syndicated content is a great way to get your site out to the masses. The following sites accept RSS feeds from your site that syndicate under your profile. I’ve had good luck with all the following.

My Blog Log
A user fueled must join community!

Bumpzee
Similar to My Blog Log and quickly catching up in popularity

Outpost Earth
I found Outpost earth a few months back. It’s not the biggest social networking site out there, but it is gaining steam. I’ve seen a significant boost in traffic from this site over the past month and a half.

Blue Dot
Blue Dot is a combination of a social bookmarking and social networking service. I started using Blue Dot about a month ago in hopes to get more of the myspace crowds attention. Low and behold someone saw it. Blue Dot is now one of my leading traffic sources. You can synchronize your del.icio.us bookmarks with it as well which is a big plus.

Widgets That Work

The following is a list of widgets you can put on your site to help fuel new readers.

My Blog Log Widget
A must have!

Bumpzee Widget
A must have!

Twitter Widget
I was wary of this at first as I didn’t see much use in this widget, but comments are searched regularly. Twitter traffic is on the up and up.

ClustrMaps Widget
This is a neat widget that displays where your readers physically come from in the world. Global maps are displayed monthly on your site with this widget.

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!