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Additionally, more and more the FTC is engaged in the business of deciding what is considered an “authentic or substantiated” claim by an endorser or a product. While they have for the last decade or so, been more involved in cases in which they believe unsubstantiated product claims have been made, they are specifically targeting bloggers – and their opinions. This growing trend is more and more disturbing, as it gives the government the right to make assumptions on the quality and accuracy of claims of businesses – and then in theory, the accuracy of claims of individuals. It asks businesses and bloggers to basically “prove” what they are saying is correct, even if it is an opinion. They must substantiate according to the FTC, all their claims.

This is unique in nature, because it places an undue hardship often on small businesses and bloggers, who cannot afford to hire research teams or a huge law firm to assist them in the creation of their materials. A sole-proprietor who discovers that perhaps his home-made fig bars have lead to increased weíght loss and energy, in theory, will have to prove and substantiate his claims before he could buy advertising on Google that states that these bars can help in weíght loss. It could prevent a small business owner from selling knitted goods on Ebay, because the claim that they have kept her warmer than any other coat she owned, might be subject to scrutiny. They have to worry that the government, the FTC might intervene at some point and bring action against them based on perception and supposition. It gives bureaucrats, non-elected officials an extreme amount of power over small businesses in this Country.

The right of Free Speech in this Country is quite interesting, because it allows people to express their opinion, even if they are wrong. It assumes that no opinion is inherently wrong and opens up the possibility of debate. It also assumes that most adults are intelligent enough to make their own decisions regarding their dislikes, their opinions and the products they want to buy. The government, acting as “Big Mommy” is more and more interfering and saying that they want to regulate what we see and hear – that despite a huge Internet with tons of information, we can’t do our own research and decide if a product is what we want. We are giving the government more power than has ever existed before: the ability to sanitize what we hear and see before it’s released to the public. “Government big enough to supply everything you need is big enough to take everything you have. The course of history shows us that as a government grows, liberty decreases.” – Thomas Jefferson

About The Author
In perhaps the fastest growing industry ever, one person has made a name for himself as a leader and innovator. Pace Lattin, the publisher of the top newsletters in new media and online advertising, is one of the inventors of many of the technologies and methods that have become standards in the industry. He has been called many things, including a rabble-rouser, a guru, an innovator and a watchdog — but one thing stays the same: he is one of the most interesting leaders and commentators in the online advertising industry. Marketing Sherpa, a leading marketing research publication called him the most influential journalist in online media for a reason. IndustryPace.com

6. Inviting Content
To develop relationships with your clients, you need to have them visit more than once. In fact, most people won’t commit themselves the first time they come to your website. You need to offer them something of value so they’ll return. Do you have a blog, or frequently-updated featured products? Have you got any useful information that you could offer your customers?

7. Well-Organized Pages
Don’t make your visitors search. Always ensure that your page layout is clear, concise and gives the visitor exactly what they want without having to search for it. Try to put yourself in your customer’s position and use what you learn from testing. Decide what you want to say and plan its organization before you write, so you can be sure to have coherent paragraphs.

8. Visual Appeal
While the content on your page is the most important thing, an attractive page will be more enjoyable and appealing for visitors. Choose colours that work well together, leave some open space so it’s not too busy, and make sure you have everything lined up nicely. Even if you have not got artistic skills you can make a good impression – and you should.

9. Sincerity and Trustworthiness
The internet is all about trust. If you can ensure that your website is trustworthy, people will be more likely to complete an order. What’s more, the search engines also base your rankings on how trustworthy they think your page is. Don’t undermine your future success by trying to trick the search engines or mislead your visitors.

10. A Polished Finish
Do your links work? Make sure you check your grammar, spelling and layout are correct? Is all the information up to date and accurate? Your visitors would prefer to shop in a well kept and clean shop in the high street. They would prefer to purchase in a clean and well kept website too. They’ll have less faith in you if you have errors on your website.

Is your website perfect? Maybe not. We’ll be providing more information on all of these points as we go along, and your site will become better and better as you follow our suggestions and learn more.

About The Author
Pilar Torres Wahlberg – Get Instant Access to our Free Guide to Proven Techniques on How to Succeed Online http://www.pickaweb.co.uk/ebook-download.htm

5. Blog Comments

To find blog posts on which to comment, you can use blog-specific search engines like Google Blog Search. Make sure these are blogs read by your target market, not your colleagues. Brand yourself by always using the same name and remember to link back to your site. Always leave a comment that adds to the conversation that’s happening within the comments.

6. Social Media

Now, Google also indexes your Twitter updates and your social networking profiles. Add that to Web 2.0 hubsites like Scribd or HubPage and you’ve got the option of creating many, many inbound links in a very short period of time.

7. Blog/Podcast Syndication

Submitting the RSS feed of your blog and podcast to syndication services will give you a link back to your site. In some cases, each time you publish a new blog post, the post itself will also get a link.

8. Video Syndication

YouTube is one of the most visited sites online, and the number of sites that syndicate videos is growing each day. These sites often allow you to link to your site either in your video’s description or on your profile page, or both.

9. .EDU and .GOV Links

Search engines place a great deal of credibility in government and education web sites, and the links carry a great deal of weight. Frankly, it isn’t easy to get inbound links from these sites.

10. Internal Links

Remember, if you have more than one web site, or a web site and a blog, be sure and link one to the other. You can do this by linking one article to other related articles, or link to categories or archives of information.

Creating a sound inbound linking strategy is a key component of your search engine optimization efforts. Try a few of the strategies listed above and see how your traffic and rankings grow.

About The Author
Small business marketing Coach Donna Gunter helps independent service professionals create authentic, profitable online businesses. Would you like to learn the specific Internet marketing strategies that get results? Discover how to improve your visibility and get found online by claiming your Free gift, TurboCharge Your Online Marketíng Toolkit, at ==> TurbochargeYourOnlineMarketing.com