Forum Marketing for Targeted Traffic

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Do you participate in any online forums, also known as message boards or discussion forums, which pertain to the topic of your website? If you don’t, you should start doing this immediately. Forum marketing, as it is known, is a very effective, free way to get targeted traffic to your websites from these powerful Web 2.0 sites!

Forum marketing is actually quite easy, and it doesn’t have to be time consuming at all, if you do it correctly. Start by doing a search in any search engine. For instance, if the topic of your site is diabetes, you would type in diabetes discussion in the search engine, and it will come back with a list of forums that are devoted to this topic. The ones that come back at the top of the list are the ones that you will probably be most interested in.

Next, visit those forums, and look them over. Are people there? Are they active? When was the last message posted? Is there spam in the forum? If there is spam, it is a good sign that the forum is not moderated, and this probably won’t be a good forum to participate in. Look for forums where there are discussions going on – current ones – and where people are really active.

Next, register for membership. In most forums, this is free, unless the forum is part of a paid membership site. Before you make a post, make absolutely sure that you read and understand the forum rules and terms of use! This is vital. You don’t want to do something in these important Web 2.0 communities that makes you look bad!

You see, with forum marketing you not only increase your website traffic, you also increase your own visibility, popularity and credibility in those communities, and you also create inbound links for your website. Forum marketing has many different benefits – so make sure that you read and adhere to the rules!

Next, see if you are able to create a signature file. This is usually found in the profile section of the forum, where you can change your profile. If there is, take advantage of it. Again, read the rules for the forum. Many forums will have rules that pertain to how long signature files can be. This is usually between five and seven lines in length, but may be as small as three lines.

Your signature file should contain your name and your website address, first and foremost. If there is additional room, you can add your business slogan, or your city and state, or other contact information, if that is something that you want to be made available. Another powerful idea is to add the link to your opt-in form for your e-zine. If there is no way for you to set up a signature file, just create one in a text document on your computer, which you can copy and paste from.

Now, just start participating in the forum discussions. If there is an introduction section, introduce yourself. Look for questions that you can answer, or posts that will allow you to add information. Always use your signature file at the bottom of your posts! Do not spam the forum, though – be sure every post is legitimate, on-topic and helpful.

Most forums will not allow you to blatantly advertise your website, business, or products in your posts, and most frown on the use of affiliate links as well – sometimes even in your signature file. Don’t do this. Instead, just use that signature file, and you will be pleasantly surprised at the targeted traffic that comes to your site as a result of your participation in those busy forums.

For more information on Forum marketing, download the amazing Massive Traffic Bootcamp bundle created by Web 2.0 traffic expert Doug Champigny, available at our sister site, www.TopTrafficTips.com Don’t miss out on all the free targeted traffic the Web 2.0 technologies can deliver to YOUR web sites, blogs and affiliate links.

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