During my time as a webmaster I have learned one of the most important things you can do when online is to build your reach and exposure as large as you can. Read the rest of this entry

“Folksonomies” – a New Viral Marketing Tool

A new consumer phenomenon is called “tagging” or “folksonomies” (short for folks and taxonomy).

Tagging is powerful because consumers are creating an organizational structure for online content. Folksonomies not only enable people to file away content under tags, but, even better, share it with others by filing it under a global taxonomy that they created.

Here’s how tagging works. Using sites such as del.icio.us – a bookmark sharing site – and Flickr – a photo sharing site – consumers are collaborating on categorizing online content under certain keywords, or tags.

For instance, an individual can post photographs of their iPod on Flickr and file it under the tag “iPod.” These images are now not only visible under the individual user’s iPod tag but also under the community iPod tag that displays all images consumers are generating and filing under the keyword.

Right now Flickr has more than 3,500 photos that are labeled “iPod.”

Tagging is catching on because it is a natural complement to search. Type the word “blogs” into Google and it can’t tell if you are searching for information about how to launch a blog, how to read blogs, or just what. Large and small sites alike are already getting on to the folksonomy train. They are rolling out tag-like structures to help users more easily locate content that’s relevant to them.

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great advice about list building for free

A well known catch phrase from a popular movie is “follow the money.”

For Internet marketing however, the best advice is really to  “follow the problem.” The most effective online products are those that solve problems.

How to break into Internet marketing. How to lose weight. How to avoid foreclosure in a down market, How to stop the dog from barking.  These are problems that drive people in droves to search engines desperately seeking answers.

So how do you know what people want and need to know?

You have to research and listen into the online conversations in your niche. Start with keyword research for your topic. Check in with Google Labs and find out what the trend of online interest is based on up to the minute searches. Over days or weeks, you’ll soon get an eye for it and will see when the trend shifts and when a new hot topic rises.

Don’t be ‘longing it out’, get involved learn some internet marketing techniques. You can make up a different name – just be sure that you add value to what’s being said in the conversation. Nothing will get you kicked out from a forum quicker than showing up with a sales pitch instead of being a active participant.

Once you make several posts and join the conversation, (just like in the warrior) then you earn the to right to offer help or “recommend” stuff. That’s another reason why you want to use a name other than your own name so that you aren’t obviously promoting your own site.

When you get a hint of a problem from comments in the forum, be bold and ask, “Does anybody have a good resource for how to . . . ” If no one has a suggestion, there’s a product waiting for a hungry market. I have detailed how to find  products to develop here.

You can also get a feel for problems by scanning major blogs like Technorati and Boing Boing. Subscribe to blogs that are popular with followers of your niche interest. Chances are they will comment on those blogs.

If you find that there’s a product to address the problem, buy it take a really good look at it. What could you do to improve, simplify, expand on.

Is it too cheap and vague? That’s your cue to add more quality content and substance, get endorsements from folks willing to review your products and position yourself as the authority and your product as the premium solution.

Believe me … Millions are made online by solving everyday simple problems where the public is using the Internet to find solutions.

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