One of the biggest challenges for new article writers is coming up with topics to write about. The key to developing great article topics is to ask yourself the right questions. Using the topic of “Coaching”, pull out a sheet of paper and a pen, set aside 15 minutes to brainstorm, and jot down answers to the following questions:

1. What are the five most common questions people ask you about being a coach?
2. What are the top five things you wish all your new clients knew about working with a coach?
3. What are the five biggest lessons you’ve learned about working with your clients?
4. What are the top five things you can help your clients with?
5. What are the five biggest benefits of working with a coach?
6. What are the five biggest challenges to working with a coach?
7. What are five things every new coach needs to know?
8. What five things will make it easier for a business owner to work with a coach?
9. What five tools does every coach need to have?
10. What five questions should every business owner ask when  interviewing a coach?
11. What five questions should every coach ask before taking on a new client?
12. What are the five biggest mistakes business owners make when hiring a coach?

At the end of 15 minutes, you should have a list of at least a dozen article ideas. But don’t stop there! Remember, articles for submission to article directories typically average around 300-500 words, so each one of the five answers in each question above can be turned into an article, digging a little deeper.

Another easy way to generate article ideas is to keep a notebook by your computer, and every time someone asks you a question, write it down. At the end of the week or month, look through your list for additional article topics.

By keeping your eyes open in your everyday life as you go through your own coaching responsibilities and tasks, you’ll soon have an endless supply of fodder for your article marketing.

Google is by far the largest search engine on the planet. Though Bing and Yahoo have merged, they still haven’t made a dent in Google’s market share. If you want to get free traffic, optimizing your site for Google is the most important thing you can do.

By and large, what you do that benefits your Google ranking will also help you improve your rankings with other search engines.

Here are a few tips for optimizing your website for Google SEO.

Start with High Quality Content

The content in your website is like the engine of a sports car. It’s what truly matters. Having great artwork on a sports car is a nice touch, but without a good engine, it doesn’t matter.

Marketers who focus on things like link building or SEO tactics at the expense of content will inevitably lose out. Google is constantly updating their algorithm to separate the high quality content from the chaff.

Design Does Matter

In addition to creating high quality content, aim to create a high quality website overall.

After Google’s “Panda Update,” the quality of your web design is starting to play an important part (learn more about how Google Panda has changed SEO). You can read more about Panda on Web Pro News here and here.

Google knows that great websites have great design. Without getting too much into the technical details, Google has essentially trained a complex artificial intelligence robot to spot the difference between good design and poor design and reward good sites accordingly.

Hire a professional designer to do your site. Or, if you’re doing the site yourself, at the very least hire a designer to do your header or look over your site.

Build a Variety of Backlinks

Build backlinks to your site using a variety of different tactics and methods.

There is no “golden method” when it comes to link building. Sometimes getting one PR 5 link is what it takes to get to #1, at other times you need 200 PR 0 to PR 1 links.

The best way to take your site to the top is to throw in a mix of all different kinds of tactics.

Use traditional press to get high quality backlinks. Do guest blogging on high PR related websites. Use low quality backlink tactics like social bookmarking or article marketing. Throw them all together and see what sticks.

When you get backlinks, optimize both your home page and subpages within your website.

Pay Attention to Internal Linking

Internal linking matters. It matters a great deal, in fact. Try to interlink all the pages on your website through a “related articles” section at the bottom of your post.

Silo your content so that different topics on your site are split into different “groups.” Grouping your articles is one of the proven methods of effectively passing link juice throughout a website.

These tips will help you get legitimately ranked in Google, which will help you rank in all the other search engines as well. Lay the groundwork and don’t take shortcuts with SEO. It’ll take a little while for your site to really get traction, but when it does, it’ll be unstoppable.

One of WordPress’s most innovative capabilities is “widgets.” Widgets allow you to customize your WordPress sidebar layout with a number of different pre-programmed options.

You can also expand your widgets to include all kinds of other features. Everything works through drag and drop and is extremely easy to design.

To get started, go to “Widgets” under “Appearance” in your WordPress set up. Here are a few of the most common options.

Archives

The archives shows a backlog of all the posts you’ve made this month, as well as provides direct links to the archives of previous months.

This is extremely useful for helping people find older content.

Calendar

The calendar is similar to the archive, except it lists your posts on a calendar. This can be useful for more visual people who are looking for content on your site.

Links and Blogroll

Are there other resources people in your industry should know about? The links and blogroll section makes it easy to link to other sites.

Links that go into your blogroll are site wide links, meaning every page from your site will point to that link through your widget. For other webmasters, it’s extremely valuable as it passes a lot of link juice.

Categories

If you have clearly defined categories, you can put them in the sidebar to make your site easier to navigate.

Tag Cloud

The tag cloud is one of the most visually stunning widgets you can choose from. It takes all your tags, which are like keywords you use to describe posts, and creates a “cloud,” a formation of different sized words. The more often you’ve used a tag, the larger the word.

This creates a very Web 2.0 kind of look, while giving people an easy way to find posts they’re looking for.

RSS and Social Media

By default, WordPress comes loaded with an RSS widget. The RSS widget makes it easy for people with RSS readers to subscribe to your blog.

WordPress doesn’t come out of the box with social media widgets, such as Like buttons or Follow buttons. However, there are plenty of plug-ins out there that can add this capability.

Raw HTML

Finally, you have the raw HTML option. This option gives you complete flexibility for what you want to put in your sidebar.

If you wanted to put a large banner image in the sidebar, how would you do it? One easy way would be to just use straight HTML code.

What if you wanted a subscription box? All you’d need to do is edit the boxes to be small enough to fit and put the HTML code in the side.

These are some of the most common WordPress widgets you can choose from. By mixing and matching widgets, you can create a highly unique and personal design that’s also very easy to use.

Press Releases can help your business gain publicity through the media. Having media attention gives your business credibility. Here are some tips to boost your press release’s appeal.

Correct Format: There is a format that press releases need to follow. Make sure your yours is written in the correct format, as you will want it to look as professional as possible. It is also a good idea to double-check the grammar, punctuation and spelling before you send it in for submission.

Keep it Clear and Concise: Your press release should be no longer than two pages. Media outlets receive lots of press releases and don’t have time to read a ten page report. Keeping your writing clear and concise allow you to fit in the important facts without going over the two page limit. As you decide what information to include, answer the following questions: who, what, why, where, when, and how.

What Is The Reader Going To Gain: Give your press releases a call to action. Include something that is going to inspire readers to go to your event, visit your website, attend your grand opening, etc. Writing a blatant ad will be obvious. Incorporate the features and benefits of what you are promoting, and give information on what it will do for your target market. If you are promoting a new in-person retreat, simply stating that it is new and improved isn’t enough. However, writing the information as “the new in-person retreat is relaxing and life changing, allowing you to create your own perfect day and make the most of it” lets the reader know how the new retreat will help them.

Make It Interesting: If your writing is boring, no one is going to want to read it. Try to find a balance between straight facts and excitement. Using the example of the in-person retreat above, announcing that “our new retreat will be available this spring” isn’t as catchy as “our new brand new in-person, personal intensive will be available this spring, just in time to help you “spring” into action and start anew.”

Remember Your Target Market: As you write and submit your press releases, keep your target market in mind at all times. By keeping your audience in mind, you will be able to focus on what information to include and where to submit your press releases. For instance, if you are promoting an event related to children’s health, submitting a press release to the travel editor of your local paper isn’t going to help you.

The media cannot run a story on every press release they receive, but implementing these tips will help you write press releases that grab, and keep, the media’s attention. The old saying “practice makes perfect” rings true for press releases; the more you write them, the better you will get.

One of WordPress’s most innovative capabilities is “widgets.” Widgets allow you to customize your WordPress sidebar layout with a number of different pre-programmed options.

You can also expand your widgets to include all kinds of other features. Everything works through drag and drop and is extremely easy to design.

To get started, go to “Widgets” under “Appearance” in your WordPress set up. Here are a few of the most common options.

Archives

The archives shows a backlog of all the posts you’ve made this month, as well as provides direct links to the archives of previous months.

This is extremely useful for helping people find older content.

Calendar

The calendar is similar to the archive, except it lists your posts on a calendar. This can be useful for more visual people who are looking for content on your site.

Links and Blogroll

Are there other resources people in your industry should know about? The links and blogroll section makes it easy to link to other sites.

Links that go into your blogroll are site wide links, meaning every page from your site will point to that link through your widget. For other webmasters, it’s extremely valuable as it passes a lot of link juice.

Categories

If you have clearly defined categories, you can put them in the sidebar to make your site easier to navigate.

Tag Cloud

The tag cloud is one of the most visually stunning widgets you can choose from. It takes all your tags, which are like keywords you use to describe posts, and creates a “cloud,” a formation of different sized words. The more often you’ve used a tag, the larger the word.

This creates a very Web 2.0 kind of look, while giving people an easy way to find posts they’re looking for.

RSS and Social Media

By default, WordPress comes loaded with an RSS widget. The RSS widget makes it easy for people with RSS readers to subscribe to your blog.

WordPress doesn’t come out of the box with social media widgets, such as Like buttons or Follow buttons. However, there are plenty of plug-ins out there that can add this capability.

Raw HTML for Everything Else

Finally, you have the raw HTML option. This option gives you complete flexibility for what you want to put in your sidebar.

If you wanted to put a large banner image in the sidebar, how would you do it? One easy way would be to just use straight HTML code.

What if you wanted a subscription box? All you’d need to do is edit the boxes to be small enough to fit and put the HTML code in the side.

These are some of the most common WordPress widgets you can choose from. By mixing and matching widgets, you can create a highly unique and personal design that’s also very easy to use.

Is the thought of blogging for business stressing you out?

Is your blog neglected and in dire need of refreshment?

Do you want to attract the right type of client to your website?

If you answered YES to any of these questions have I got a treat for you! Janet Slack of Solopreneur.biz giving away ONE seat to Laurie Foley’s class “Blog More, Stress Less: Six Steps to a Sustainable Blog” valued at $497. You can find out more about the program here but now for the best part…how YOU can WIN!

There’s going to be a contest and here’s how it’s going to go:

#1 – To enter, simply create a post on your blog about why you would like to be in the class “Blog More, Stress Less”. You’ll even get bonus points in the contest if you link to Solopreneur.biz and the “Blog More, Stress Less” websites here:

http://www.solopreneur.biz

http://blogmorestressless.com/

#2 – After you post to your blog, simply go to our contest page on Solopreneur.biz on Facebook and post a live link to your blog post.

That’s it! You’ll be entered into the contest. They’ll be reading your posts everyday and promoting them on the Solpreneur.biz on Facebook Wall and they’ll pick the final winner on Friday, March 2nd.

You’ve got nothing to lose (except perhaps STRESS) and everything to gain. Have fun and be creative, which relieves stress too!

About Laurie Foley:

Laurie Foley is an online business coach with a thriving practice that specializes in branding. She got off to a rough start with her blog – Laurie wanted it to work but felt clueless and unsatisfied for months and months. Then she read in the New York Times that 95% of blogs are abandoned within 4 months, and she knew she wasn’t the only one who had been struggling to sustain a creative and helpful blog.

Laurie then spent a solid year (and a lot of money!) studying blogging to learn how to create a blog that is easy to sustain and helps you achieve more in your business as a coach or consultant. She put what she learned into practice and was awarded one of the “Top Ten Coaching Blogs” from the School of Coaching Mastery in 2009 and 2010 for her blog at lauriefoley.com

About Janet Slack and Solopreneur.biz:

Janet is a Professional Certified Coach, well-known author, speaker and blogger on topics related to running a successful small business. She has mentored, coached and supported hundreds of others as they started or grew their own small businesses. Her passion is coaching people to succeed in life through seeking fun, challenges and rewards whether they are small business owners, women in transition or even those conquering fear and learning to find joy. Her first book, Mind Your Own Biz, is a guide to starting and developing a coaching business. Janet is a coauthor of How the Fierce Handle Fear.

Two of the most important factors for any growing online business are SEO and social media marketing. But is one more important than the other? Should you put more time and energy into one and not the other? Which can make a bigger difference on your bottom line?

Let’s explore some of these questions.

SEO Is More Important for Raw Traffic

SEO will get you more traffic up front than social media will. Though social media is gaining more and more traction every day, they still don’t come close to what a number one ranking can do for your site in terms of raw traffic.

On the other hand, top search rankings are hard to achieve. They can often take months, even years. They take a lot of time investment and often a lot of monetary investment as well.

SEO is a longer-term strategy than social media. You might get more traffic overall than social media, but it takes more effort and has a randomness factor as well. You don’t know if it’ll actually work.

Social Media is More Important for Reputation

On the other hand, social media is free. It’s easy to manage and doesn’t take months before you see results. That said, you won’t see the same kind of traffic that you’d get from a number one ranking search listing.

Social media has a lot of side benefits that go beyond the raw traffic stats. Prominent social media figures build a strong reputation in a space, which often increases their conversion rates because of their reputation. Likewise, they’re more likely to get invited to speaking engagements, where many profitable business deals can be made.

The key to good social media marketing is to provide something your users want, consistently. If that’s a weekly how-to video, then make sure you provide that video every week, without fail.

The Two Are Merging

Most SEO experts agree that search engines are taking many social media factors into account when ranking pages. In other words, instead of just looking at backlinks and PageRank, the search engines now look at your Facebook likes and reposts as well to help determine rankings.

When it comes down to it, the secret to successful SEO and social media are really the same. Provide good content, consistently. It’s what people tend to pass on and it’s what the search engines are looking for.

One may be more or less effective for specific businesses, but if you focus 90% of your efforts on creating a great user experience and 10% on marketing techniques, you’ll have a great chance of succeeding with both.

Is one more important than the other? “Yes,” in the sense that one may work better than the other for your business in the short term. “No,” in the sense that in the long run, they’re more or less the same.

Starting a blog is easy – keeping a blog interesting and fresh is a whole other matter. While many marketers have no trouble beginning a blog, the sheer number of abandoned blogs around the ‘net speaks to the fact that many marketers don’t know what to do to keep a blog going. According to blogging experts, the key to keeping a blog going is to post frequently. This means that you’re going to need a ever present stream of content coming into your blog.

You may be intimidated by the thought of having to come up with lots of topic ideas. Finding topics for your blog posts are easy if you use the following ideas.

1. Captions

Your blog should be timely and there’s no better way to attract attention on your blog than to tap into some ongoing news. No matter what your niche is you can find news stories and breaking information that will help fuel timely blog posts. Look for captions, or headlines, to stay on top of thing. Sign up for Google Alerts (it’s free) and set up alerts on important words in your niche. This way you’ll be able to see the news in your niche and blog about current topics.

2. Comments

The comments section in your blog can be a great source of writing inspiration. Let’s say you have a post on your marketing blog about keyword research. Within the comments section, a few people start asking about how to use keywords in articles for article marketing. Voila! You have your next blog post. Look through your comments section to identify topics that you can write about or questions you can answer in the form of a blog post.

3. Companions

Are there some websites or other resources that your niche needs to know about? Write a few resource list posts. Resource lists posts are very easy to write and they provide maximum value to your readers because they can get the information that they need easily. When you can’t think of anything else to write about you can pull together a helpful list for your readers.

4. Community

Keep your finger on the pulse of your niche. Watch other blogs in your niche and see what they are writing about. You can take a different angle on the same topic, or cover an area of the topic that the original author missed. If you disagree with the author, feel free to go ahead and express you opinion on your blog. Other bloggers can be a great source of information so be sure to get involved in the community.

5. Collection

Start collecting a list of quick tips you’d like to share with your niche. These can be inspired by your personal experience with the niche, from other blog posts you’ve read or from other products in your niche. When you find yourself stuck for blog post ideas, you can write a quick tips post.

These tips just scratch the surface of where you can find ideas for blog posts to populate your blog. Start keeping a notepad file with blog post ideas and you’ll never be at a loss for material.

There’s no doubt about it, having a team of affiliates working for you is a sure-fire way to grow your business. However, finding the right affiliates could mean the difference in profits and performance. Here’s how to recruit affiliates:

Market to your list. Your list is made up of people who are interested in you and your products or services already. They may be the ideal people to work as affiliates because they’re already familiar with your business. And presumably they like you – that helps. You can send out occasional “Promote our Products” type of email message and you can include an affiliate sign-up link in the footer of your email.

Make sure you have a link on your website. It doesn’t need to be anything fancy. A simple “Partner with us” link that redirects them to an information page will do the trick.

Get listed in an affiliate directory. That way affiliate marketers who are looking for your type of product or service can find you easily.

Advertise on relevant websites, forums and blogs.

Get noticed! Your blog and social networking interactions can drive traffic to your website. If you’re a force to be reckoned with, people will want to join you. They’ll want to become part of your success.

Network offline too. Attend seminars and workshops. Get out and make friends. Partnerships are often forged during the coffee breaks at seminars and conferences.

Make sure your affiliate offer is worth noticing. In addition to a nice chunk of the profits, make sure you’re giving your potential affiliates all the incentives they need to sign up. Bonus downloads, freebie marketing materials, and frequent pay outs are just a few perks.

Research your market. It’s often pretty easy to see what affiliate marketers are marketing to your industry. Once you’ve identified a few key affiliate marketers, contact them personally and make your pitch.

Be sure to promise a lot and then over-deliver. One of the best ways to recruit affiliates is to have other affiliates rave about you. Word of mouth is a great seller. The best way to accomplish that is to promise a lot and then to over-deliver.

Create the best products or services and deliver. One of the best ways to recruit great affiliates is to have a great product or service for them to promote. Good products and services are easy to promote and therefore easier to profit from. And they get to feel good about promoting you.

Affiliates can really take your business to the next level. If you’re ready to start an affiliate program, take the time to plan it well. Decide how you’re going to pay and reward your affiliates and then make it happen. Spread the word through all of your current marketing channels and don’t be afraid to try a few new ones.