Help a Newbie: Internet Marketing Techniques That Are Dying or Dead

1. You're confusing "traditional article marketing" with the flash-in-the-pan exploitation of a SE algorithm loophole (carpet bombing "article directories" with keyword loaded trash for links).

Traditional article marketing (often lumped with 'syndication') is doing fine. As more and more offline pubs get squeezed financially, they are turning more and more to online sources of content.

Which do you think might drive more visitors to a well-targeted piece of content? A quote, excerpt or even full republication in a magazine like Woman's World (sold at hundreds of thousands of check stands daily? Or 100,000 links from zombie Pligg directories?

2. Meta tags. Agreed.

3. Static web pages. Depends on the page and it's purpose. If all you need is a single landing page, it makes no sense to create or expand a database, set up a CMA like Wordpress, install a theme and plugins, do the (very) regular updates and maintenance for a page that will change seldom if ever.

One could even expand that to microsites of a half dozen pages or less.

On the other hand, if one is building out a full site that they intend to grow, using a CMA rather than manually connecting and updating static pages is the way to go.

"Guest blogging" in the context Cutts was using in the pieces I've seen is not the same as what I think you may be talking about.

There's a difference between having one or more guest posts appear on a closely related blog, with the tacit endorsement of the blog owner, and the spray and pray submission to any blog with an autoaccept for the purpose of manipulating search results. Cutts was talking about the latter, and in some pieces even praised the former.

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Tactics die, but sound strategies continue.

Charging your enemy in a rigid formation with swords drawn used to be sound military strategy, right up to the time Native Americans taught the colonists to snipe from behind trees and change position.

"Shock and Awe" still works, but the tactics for executing it have evolved.

I've made more money over the years doing what Matt Cutts says not to do rather than doing what he says to do. I love it when people quote him as proof something works or not. It never fails to get a chuckle out of me. The more money I'm making the harder I laugh.

I'm not picking a fight with you, NicheMan.

You called it "traditional internet article marketing" (aka Bum Marketing), I called it "the flash-in-the-pan exploitation of a SE algorithm loophole (carpet bombing "article directories" with keyword loaded trash for links)" - po-tay-to, po-tah-to.

Same thing.

And I agree, that *******ized model of content marketing is dead and cold.

My version of "traditional article marketing" started long before the Internet existed, and still works very well when properly executed.

I am not sure.

But I do know what still works.

Scamming people.

It's great.

I tell people all sorts of BS that never works and safeguard myself with awesome disclaimers I pay my lawyer to write then sell them a report I had ghost written about a topic I have no clue on.

Life is great if you're a scammer.

Nothing in internet marketing is dying but yes, you can say that the trend is changing and people are adopting new techniques to promote their business.

Im going to have to agree with this one for sure!

Better yet here is one for you. And I would even put my money where my mouth is on this. All things being equal a static page will outrank any other page.

It's probably easier to talk about what DOES work. I know all the things I used to do that worked very well for years have totally died and along with it my business. I have had to start all over from scratch so I don't honestly know what does work but if I had to guess, I'd say number 1 is...

"Relevant content that your visitors want to read and act upon."

If you have that in whatever niche you're in, as long as there si some way to monetize that niche, you'll make money.

Content, whether text, video or audio, is still the driving force behind the Internet. Go to Google and type in anything. The top results always have content of some kind. And it's usually pretty relevant to what it is you're searching for.

Are there other ways, such as networking? Sure. But if you have something that people want and it's better or at least as good as everything else that's out there, I don't see how you can't eventually succeed in Internet marketing.

My 2 cents for whatever they're worth.