Pinging everything

For a small amount of links like the buffer zone properties, pingomatic.com does the trick.

Pinging the pages in the 4 buffer properties and their feeds and all the bookmarking pages, when they become available.

Building the traffic campaign – Stages 3 and 4 (Bookmarking sites)

Tool: Bookmark Generation.

1. Logging in.

2. Creating project: done.

3. Posting: in progress.

 

Building the traffic campaign – Stages 1 and 2 (Buffer Zone)

Quizilla

1. Go to www.quizilla.com.

2. Register using your keyword as your username.

3. Fill in your details.

4. Verify your email address and confirm.

5. Quizilla allows adding stories.

Note: The editor doesn’t have an explicit way to add links, but copying and pasting a clickable phrase from a document or web page does the trick.

Collecting links to be bookmarked:

1. url: http://www.quizilla.com/stories/10006394/diy-solar-water-heaters-save-energy-and-money

2. RSS: http://www.quizilla.com/lists/user/diysolarstuff/categories/feed

The published story looks like this:

Weebly

1. Go to www.weebly.com.

2. Register using your keyword as your username.

3. Choose a title (Use your keywords).

4. Choose your website URL (Use your keywords).

5. Select desired Elements and post your prepared content within.

Collecting links to be bookmarked:

1. url: http://diysolarwaterheater.weebly.com

This is what the finished page looks like:

Zimbio

Collecting links to be bookmarked:

1. url: http://www.zimbio.com/DIY+Solar+Water+Heaters

2. RSS: http://www.zimbio.com/rss/DIY+Solar+Water+Heaters/articles#

This is what the finished page looks like:

WetPaint

Collecting links to be bookmarked:

1. url: http://diysolarwaterheater.wetpaint.com/

2. RSS: http://diysolarwaterheater.wetpaint.com/rss2_0/pageReport/updated#

This is what the finished page looks like:

Campaign preparation

1. Dedicated Email Account: Created a Yahoo dedicated email for the campaign.

www.yahoo.com

The email account uses the broad keyword as username.

2. Affiliate links: The chosen product belongs to ClickBank.

- Clickbank’s hoplink is created by clicking on “create hoplink” in the product listing on ClickBank’s Marketplace.

3. URL shortened: I am testing bit.ly as an easy way to hide affiliate links and track statistics.

Note: Tracking id is added for each property; so, there are 5 different short URLs. Bit.ly can identify some sources, but not all of them.

1. 01 – Quizilla

2. 02 – Weebly

3. 03 – Zimbio

4. 04 – WetPaint

The links are to be added to the content in each property.

Content Creation

Research: Some material built by others.

1. Web 2.0 properties.

2. Video marketing.

3. Article marketing.

Content to be developed:

1. 1 post (250 words).

2. 1 lens.

3. 1 press release.

4. 1 video.

Support Material: Sales page link and the first website in the search.

http://www.simpleheaters.com/

http://www.builditsolar.com/Projects/WaterHeating/water_heating.htm

Video: Will need some development as the competition actually built the heaters. I won’t.

Post: One master article created using information from the selected sources in my own words, not copied.

Every day, more and more people are looking for ways to Go Green. Wouldn't it be nice to save the environment and save yourself a little money at the same time? A great way to do both is a DIY solar water heater. The energy produced by solar hot water systems is non polluting. It is safe for the earth and all things that live on it. In fact, one solar hot water heating system can offset 40% of the carbon dioxide pollutants from a passenger car.

I don't live in the Sun Belt. I live in a colder climate area. Will it work for me?

The designs featured in the guide work anywhere in the world in warm or cold climates.

I already have a water heater. (Doesn't everyone?) Do I have to remove it or replace it to build a solar water heater?

No. In fact, adding DIY solar heating to your existing water heater will greatly improve your home's energy efficiency.

Why?

A DIY solar water heater reduces the need to artificially heat water. When the water enters your water heater, it is already hot. Your existing waterheater will do minimal work, possibly extending the life of your conventional water heater. You will boost performance while reducing electricity/gas usage up to an incredible 33% savings on your utility bill.

I'm not very "handy". How hard is it to build?

The guides and plans are simple to follow. Even a novice at home improvement projects can do it.

Green products always seem to cost more. I'll bet it's expensive.

The materials needed are easily available at any hardware or home improvement store. The cost is very affordable. The plans within the DIY guide are less than $30. You also have a choice of several different plans. The materials to build a DIY solar water heater typically run less than $70. For under $100 plus your time, you could save up to a third of your energy bill. Similar solar water heaters retail for approx. $1000.

How much time? I don't want another project that takes weeks to finish.

Any of the designs can be built over the weekend.

So what are you waiting for? Go Green and save. Check out the DIY solar water heater guide here >> LINK.

 

Traffic campaign: Planning the campaign

Stages:
1. Accounts for Quizillia, Wetpaint, Weebly and Zimbio.
2. Same article to be uploaded to all of them.
3. Bookmark accounts created around general keyword.
4. Bookmark everything.
5. Squidoo page. Unique lens.
6. Bookmark.
7. Press release to prlog.org.
8. Bookmark.
9. Video submitted to video sharing sites.
10. Bookmark.

Traffic campaign: Competition analysis

A look at the first page of Google for our keywords provides the basic information we need. With that info, we choose the ammunition to carry.



Side note: in the first 2 sites there is enough free information to do a product to give away on a squeeze and to create content.

Analysis: Organic search

There are two windows of opportunity:
• press releases (prlog.org)
• video (metacafe and youtube)

Sites in positions 4-8 could be moved by a Web 2.0 campaign.

Analysis: PPC



For broad match the Avg. CPC is $0.53. For exact match, it is the same.
From the cash flow analysis: 250 clicks make 1 sale.
Cost of one sale: 250 x $0.53 = $132.50
Commission: $20.5

This business model doesn’t support a positive cash flow PPC campaign using these assumptions.
A different business model, with a longer customer life value, might.

Finding a Product to sell

Step 1: Going to http://www.clickbank.com/marketplace.htm and searching for the keyword.

Scrolling down, we find on position 10:


This looks like a good candidate.

Step 2: Sales page analysis



• Quality: Not too good, but good enough.
• Testimonials: weak.
• Bonus: strong.
• Price: $27, note change from Clickbank ad. Commission: $20.5 if it is still 75%.

Step 3: Cash flow Analysis
• Gross number of visitors: 1000
• Arriving to money page (20%): 200
• Conversion (2%): 4
• Gross Income: $100 a month.
• Needs 250 visitors to make a sale.

Note: of course, these numbers mean nothing… It is just a preliminary analysis to see if it is worth it to go after the product or not. Reality can be very different, but we have to start somewhere.
 

Keyword research

This is my keyword research for the challenge launched by Howie Schwartz for IM Remarkable.

Step 1: Google first look

Keyword list:
• Solar water heater
• Solar water heaters
• Solar water heater plans
• Solar water heater system
• Solar water heater design
• Solar water heater cost
• Solar water heater diy
• Solar water heater prices
• Solar water heater panels
• Solar water heaters manufacturers
• Solar water heater tax credit

Step 2: Choosing what to sell. For example: information.

Main keywords:
• Solar water heater plans
• Solar water heater design
• Solar water heater diy

Related keywords:
• Solar water heater panels
• Solar water heater tax credit
• Solar water heater system

Step 3: Looking among them for low hanging fruit.

“Solar water heater diy” has a product in Clickbank, we know it from the doc. So let’s start there…

1. Competition and commercial viability.
Going to www.google.com and search for the keyword.



Looking at Google page we find out:
• It is commercially viable.
• 170,000 competing sites. Can be done.

Let’s see with quotes:



Looking at Google page we find out:
• It is still commercially viable.
• 767 competing sites. Very easy.

2. Searches.
Going to https://adwords.google.com/select/KeywordToolExternal and search for the keyword.



• Solar water heater diy: 3600 searches. Good.
• Solar water heater: 135,000. Very good.
• Monthly and average search volumes are the same: there is probably no seasonality.

3. Seasonality and regional interest.
Going to http://www.google.com/insights/search/# and search for the keyword.



Seasonality: against the previous prediction, there is seasonality; May being approx in the middle. Max searches are done in the summer and the lowest amount of searches in the winter.

• Max number of searches: approx 5500
• Min number of searches: approx 2500

Shows interest growing over time.

Regional interest: USA and UK are the places with the most interest. Australia and Canada follow close behind.

Getting started with IM Remarkable

Howie Schwartz launched a challenge to see who was the most remarkable marketer, as part of the project IM Ramarkable.

It was a couple of days ago.

The first step is to choose a niche from an ebook with hot niches he released: 36 Hot niches.


I chose "solar water heater".