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Your Advice Needed - My New Golf Website

by Simon Nicholls
112 replies
Evening All,

This is the first site I've decided to keep instead of "flipping". I've tried to build it out as much as I can and have lot's of articles waiting to be published, or waiting to be added to the post schedule.

Do you have any ideas on how to make this site a success? I'm pretty fond of this one, as golf is a hobby of mine anyway so would like to make this one a success!

What can I add or take away to improve the site?

ImproveYourGolfing.Info

Regards,

Simon.
#advice #golf #needed #website
  • Profile picture of the author TLTheLiberator
    Looks great with plenty of money links and decent content but...

    I did not see anything that would help you build your lists.

    Perhaps I missed it.

    TL
    Signature

    "It's easier to fool people than to convince them that they have been fooled. -- Mark Twain

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    • Profile picture of the author Chirag
      Really clean and nice....

      Easy to read and navigate as well.


      Chirag
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    That's one of the things I want to look into doing but don't really know how and where to start!
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    • Profile picture of the author Killer Joe
      Simon,

      Your site looks nice, good job on the design.

      You could consider putting a squeeze box in the upper right-hand corner of the page where you have the skyscraper adsense, and move the skyscraper adsense down below the squeeze box. That way you could keep your SB above the fold and in a prominant spot.

      Just food for thought...

      KJ
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Hi Joe,

    Sounds like a good idea, what would you put in the SB however?

    Also, I read somewhere about a WP Plugin that'll let you add Adsense below every article, does anyone know where I can download this?

    Simon.
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  • Profile picture of the author jan roos
    I think your site looks great, Good luck
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Cheers Jan!

    Is it worth doing some PPC advertising?
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  • Profile picture of the author ahuddy
    Looks awesome, I am golfing fanatic too. The word press themes that i have used all had signup form for the site. You could use this to gain leads of people who like your site and would be interested in golf offers.

    Adsense only allows you to have 3 adsebse ads per page which you already do, you would have to remove them from around the articles if you want them between instead.
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    That could be an idea, although I don't really want to start changing the theme around. Are there any plugins available to do this type of thing?
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    • Profile picture of the author CarolStep
      I like you blog alot. Agree with the comments above.

      In answer to a recent question about an opt-in box. You should be able to place the code for a response box from your autoresponder in a text widget. You can then place the text widget on your site -- your choice of location. Just don't bury it under something else.

      It is a good idea to offer them something free in exchange for their email address.

      PM me if I can be of help.

      Carol Smith
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  • Profile picture of the author SullyUI
    Looks nice, be sure to keep adding useful content on a regular basis.
    Originally Posted by Ezy Dollar View Post

    Evening All,

    This is the first site I've decided to keep instead of "flipping". I've tried to build it out as much as I can and have lot's of articles waiting to be published, or waiting to be added to the post schedule.

    Do you have any ideas on how to make this site a success? I'm pretty fond of this one, as golf is a hobby of mine anyway so would like to make this one a success!

    What can I add or take away to improve the site?

    ImproveYourGolfing.Info

    Regards,

    Simon.
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Thank you for the kind comments, I was worried that I was going to me shot down! ;-)

    So what could I give to customers? I want to create an ebook of some description but wouldn't. Know where to start!

    I also need to start getting visitors somehow .......

    Simon
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  • Profile picture of the author Chuck Evans
    Simon,

    It appears that you are using a keyword search tool for the You Tube videos and one of the words is "golf."

    There are several references to "golf" in all of the videos on your site BUT some of them have NO relationship to the sport of golf! IMHO you need to go into your site and remove all of the golf videos that are NOT golf sport related.

    For instance, there are videos in there that are about a VW Golf - automobile - and others videos that have to do with increasing your vertical leap!

    chuck
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    Chuck Evans - Golf Magazine Top 100 Teacher
    Learn How To Play Your Best Golf

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    • Profile picture of the author Tuzic
      Banned
      hi,

      try using all the common ways like bookmarking, articles writing, networking etc then see how this goes for u.
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Hi Chuck,

    Unfortunatly you have to be really specific with the keywords that you enter on tubepress, I spent ages trying to me as specific as I could! I'll see of I can narrow of down even more!

    Simon
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Hi All,

    Just updated the YouTube videos, I've tried another specific phrase that should eliminate all of the non-golfing material.

    As for the autoresponder, where can I find these? Can you get them as Wordpress Plugins?

    Also, anymore comments on how I can improve the site, and maybe make it a success? How about what I said earlier - PPC advertising?

    I have nearly 400 golfing articles that I want to add to the site, so should keep me busy over the weekend! I was thinking one a day? Or is that to much?

    Simon.
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  • Profile picture of the author SaSeoPete
    Looks good. From an SEO point of view you should optimise your title tags.
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Sorry Pete, I'm still learning - when you say optimise the title tags, do you mean the keywords?

    Sorry if that's a dumb question!
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  • Profile picture of the author richdirtygirl
    Hi Simon,

    cute site, congrats!!

    If you want cudos, we stay there...

    If you want the truth, let me know...

    RDG :p
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    You can be as honest as you like, as they say honesty is the best policy! ;-)

    Where can I go from here to start getting regular hits to the site? I'm not really good at article writing so would like other means of attracting hits.

    Simon.
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    • Profile picture of the author richdirtygirl
      Ok honey... you asked for it!

      the header is a bit dull, but it will do for now.

      The site has too many distractions... do you really want your users to escape through those adsense when you can grab them tighter?

      Think about your site as your own designed labyrinth: even when people think they have freedom, all paths have to go to your bank account.

      If this is your money site...

      if you are only setting it up as another feeder for your real money site... then take out all distractions and add info and links to your money site only.

      That is strategy 001...

      Now... content. I'm not a golf girl, but have been in enough golf courses... and with enough golfers...

      The site is not giving any real service and doesn't have any "personality". You don't need personality at the beginning... but it is something you might want to develop in time.

      The way it is setup, most of your visitors will be one time visitors only. Not much for recurring... that will be too heavy in your time and pocket to keep the traffic going.

      That is customer satisfaction 001...

      RDG :p
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  • Profile picture of the author write-stuff
    Nice and clean. One of the easiest ways to start a list would be to add a ConstantContact button. The downside is that it's pretty passive - I don't know of any way to give them a free reward as a result of signing up.

    - Russ
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Richdirtygirl,

    Thank you for taking the time to explain what's wrong!

    How would I go about creating something for the visitors to stay on the site? Obviously I need a product, but I don't know where to start! What kind of product could I promote with the site?

    The only reason I kept the adsense in was that I knew that I wouldn't get much $$ from the content, I see what you mean though - just need to get some content onto the site to build it out more. Anyone wish to help me out?!

    I'll have a look at the contact button, I'll add it to the things to do. Meanwhile, is it worth opening the comments back up to the articles that are being posted so visitors can comment if they wish?

    The site is already bookmarked automatically, I'll see a few people coming to the site everytime it's bookmarked, but no one inbetween.

    As mentioned above, I'm not too good at writing articles, I'll try and do that as a last resort . . .

    Simon.
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    RDG,

    Again, thank you for such an informative response!

    I see where you are going, this book you talk about - would I have to buy master rights in order to give it away, or could I promote it for free etc without actually purchasing it?

    I've not asked for reviews yet, but I have thought about it - so you say contact golfing professionals etc? Could I pay someone to do that for me? Again, I'm not that good with long articles etc.

    Simon.
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  • Profile picture of the author Diana Lane
    I've had a very quick look, and a couple of things jumped out at me. Firstly, I think you could use a site map.

    Secondly and mostly, I would definitely move the search box from the footer as I think that's the last place most users would think of looking for it. Your search box not only helps users find what's available, it also (via your stats) highlights what they searched for but couldn't find, allowing you to tailor your content creation accordingly and ensure that such things ARE available next time they're searched for.

    Your search box is really far too valuable to be stowed away at the bottom of the page.
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  • Profile picture of the author JohnMcCabe
    Originally Posted by Ezy Dollar View Post

    Evening All,

    This is the first site I've decided to keep instead of "flipping". I've tried to build it out as much as I can and have lot's of articles waiting to be published, or waiting to be added to the post schedule.

    Do you have any ideas on how to make this site a success? I'm pretty fond of this one, as golf is a hobby of mine anyway so would like to make this one a success!

    What can I add or take away to improve the site?

    ImproveYourGolfing.Info

    Regards,

    Simon.
    This thread has been floating around for a couple of days now, so I thought I'd give it a look.

    Sorry, friend, I'm not impressed...

    Start with the second link in your header, that looks like it should be to a category page - that lands me on a sales page on another site. Not what I was expecting, so you lose a lot of trust points.

    It's pretty obvious from your site layout that you're far more interested in getting me, as a visitor interested in improving my golf game, to click on an ad. Multiple Adsense blocks, eBay ads, etc., framing some generic content having little to do with actually improving one's golf game.

    Navigation is confusing, unless your intent is to try and force me to click away asap. And for that, I'm far more likely to hit the back button, especially since you've already tricked me with one affiliate link in the header.

    On the plus side, the theme is appropriate and easy to read. It could be cleaned up nicely without being distracting.

    Since there are no resource boxes on any of the articles, and you have 400 more, I'm assuming you either bought them or they're PLR. I would suggest actually reading the articles before you post them. At least one article (the arthritis one) recommends using tees, which is against the rules outside the tee box.

    As a golfer myself, I would see little of value here...

    I would suggest you ask for feedback from actual golfers, not just marketers.

    I hope you take this in the spirit it was given. I've been accused of being harsh when my intent was direct communication without all the sugar coating...
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  • Profile picture of the author clare1982
    Hiya here is a quick link to a wordpress autoresponder plugin:

    WordPress › [GWA] AutoResponder WordPress Plugins

    It is not the most proffesional autoresponder but if your looking for something for free it does the job.

    Hope this helps

    Thanks
    Clare
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Hi All,

    Again, thank you for your responses.
    I'll look for that product, and will get back to you RDG . . .

    I'll be moving the search box, in fact that was on my to do list for the weekend!

    With regards to that sales page, it's an affiliate hijacker page - with my clickbank ID embedded, I wasn't sure how to add it ot the site as I couldn't just plonk it anywhere. How would you suggest I add products like that to my site? By doing reviews etc?

    The 400 articles are PLR, I'll be reading them all through and making adjustments where I feel are needed.

    John, your message was of course taken in high spirits - I need as much advice as I can and am taking every piece of advice seriously - in fact I'm creating a list with all of the things that have pointed out to get them changed over the weekend!

    Thank you Clare, I've installed that Plugin - I'll have a play around with it over the weekend.

    I'm just trying to work out how to build the site out now . . . obviously I need to start thinking about more detailed content . . .

    As for the adsense, I wasn't to sure what to put there instead - hence why there is so much of it!

    My site hasn't had this many views . . .ever . .. ! ;-)
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    • Profile picture of the author JohnMcCabe
      Originally Posted by Ezy Dollar View Post

      Hi All,

      Again, thank you for your responses.
      I'll look for that product, and will get back to you RDG . . .

      I'll be moving the search box, in fact that was on my to do list for the weekend!

      With regards to that sales page, it's an affiliate hijacker page - with my clickbank ID embedded, I wasn't sure how to add it ot the site as I couldn't just plonk it anywhere. How would you suggest I add products like that to my site? By doing reviews etc?

      The 400 articles are PLR, I'll be reading them all through and making adjustments where I feel are needed.

      John, your message was of course taken in high spirits - I need as much advice as I can and am taking every piece of advice seriously - in fact I'm creating a list with all of the things that have pointed out to get them changed over the weekend!

      Thank you Clare, I've installed that Plugin - I'll have a play around with it over the weekend.

      I'm just trying to work out how to build the site out now . . . obviously I need to start thinking about more detailed content . . .

      As for the adsense, I wasn't to sure what to put there instead - hence why there is so much of it!

      My site hasn't had this many views . . .ever . .. ! ;-)
      As far as the Adsense, my best results came when I exercised some restraint. Take a look at sites like CNNfinancial or Yahoo Money, and notice how they add call-out boxes for additional stories. Many newspapers do this as well. If you blend one block of ads into the article in the same fashion, you might see better results.

      The same thing applies to the Clickbank links - blend them into the actual articles, rather than hiding them in the nav bar and trying to trick people into clicking them.

      Something to test with the PLR articles...

      You might want to try adding resource boxes to some of them, using a pen name and letting the pen name promote products for you. Preface those articles with a short intro. Don't worry about diluting your own authority on the site - one indicator of expertise is being able to recognize it in others.

      By the time you have 400 odd quality articles posted, you should have a pretty powerful presence if you do the other stuff (SEO, linking, socializing, etc.)
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Thanks RDG, downloading now and will have a read . . .

    Chuck, I totally agree when you say Golfers will buy anything! I do anyway! ;-)
    Just out of interest (please excuse my ignorance, I'm learning from all of this!) how would I then go and promote this product?

    Am I right in saying that I could edit the book slightly, and then go create a sales page for somewhere like Clickbank? How could I include it into my site?

    Simon.
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    • Profile picture of the author Chuck Evans
      Originally Posted by Ezy Dollar View Post

      Thanks RDG, downloading now and will have a read . . .

      Chuck, I totally agree when you say Golfers will buy anything! I do anyway! ;-)
      Just out of interest (please excuse my ignorance, I'm learning from all of this!) how would I then go and promote this product?

      Am I right in saying that I could edit the book slightly, and then go create a sales page for somewhere like Clickbank? How could I include it into my site?

      Simon.
      Without seeing the content, the first thing you would need to do is to make cover changes on the cover graphic. Use words that GOLFERS use! A new golfer is NOT called a Newbie" they are called a "beginner." Then reword the rest of the text on the cover.

      You would have to read the inside to see what else needs to be changed but also be prepared to answer questions about golf once someone buys.

      I have a friend that golf into the golf niche but knew NOTHING about golf. Sold a PLR ebook about it and then the questions started hitting. They could NOT answer any of them and once the buyers realized they didn't know anything about the sport they got several refund requests.

      The book was poorly put together and I warned this person, as I am with you, that there would be issues. They are now OUT of the niche and back into something they actually have a knowledge of.

      Do your research, have SOME knowledge of what you are promoting, and be prepared to answer questions.

      Contact me if you want more input and I'll try and walk you through it.

      chuck
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      Chuck Evans - Golf Magazine Top 100 Teacher
      Learn How To Play Your Best Golf

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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Just downloaded the book, but it's only showing a .exe file - is this right? I would of thought it would of been a PDF file?!
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    I totally agree with you when you say that you need to promote the book as a golfer and not an Internet marketer!

    I tried downloading the ebook, but am not having much luck . . . it's only giving me the option of a .exe file, I'm not comfortable installing random files! Is this normal?

    If I'm going to do this, I'll take my time to get it right - once it's been done do I basically use that as my main marketing tool?

    Simon.
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    • Profile picture of the author JohnMcCabe
      Originally Posted by Ezy Dollar View Post

      I totally agree with you when you say that you need to promote the book as a golfer and not an Internet marketer!

      I tried downloading the ebook, but am not having much luck . . . it's only giving me the option of a .exe file, I'm not comfortable installing random files! Is this normal?

      If I'm going to do this, I'll take my time to get it right - once it's been done do I basically use that as my main marketing tool?

      Simon.
      Back in ancient times, when AOL and CompuServe and the like ruled the ether, there were only two practical ways to transfer files. You could send a plain text file (.txt) or you could send an executable file (.exe).

      Plain text files were simple to send, compact, and easily hijacked. Executable files were also easy to send, and they had the advantage of being secure (at least to the general population).

      So software was developed to wrap web pages (usually basic html) in an exe file. This had the advantage of being relatively browser independent. The downside was that you locked out the entire Mac crowd.

      Some of these old ebooks are still floating around. The compilers are still being sold, I understand.

      Ezy, I'm thinking your choices are to reformat the ebook and convert to PDF, or print it out and have it typed from scratch. You could check some of the shareware sites for decompilers, or open the book and see if copy/paste is available (some compilers blocked it).

      I would also scan it for viruses and other malware before I opened it. One of the things that caused the format to fall out of favor was the little nasties that started riding along...
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    RDG,

    I do my own work sometimes . . . I promise! ;-) I've just run the Golf ebook .exe file, but not having much luck unfortunately. I see it was created back in 2005, so I'm wondering if it's been discontinued?

    I'll do another Google search to see if I can get it working . . .
    Any ideas?!

    Si.
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Haha, brilliant - I'd appreciate that a lot!

    I'll have a look at it, so I take it that It needs to be rewritten by a fair bit in order to start promoting it?

    Simon.
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Tomorrow I'm going to start going through my blog and adding affiliate links where they are needed. Hopefully I'll start seeing some constant hits soon!

    I'll use Affiliate Hijacker for the affiliate links, it should look professional!

    Simon.
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    • Profile picture of the author JohnMcCabe
      Originally Posted by Ezy Dollar View Post

      Tomorrow I'm going to start going through my blog and adding affiliate links where they are needed. Hopefully I'll start seeing some constant hits soon!

      I'll use Affiliate Hijacker for the affiliate links, it should look professional!

      Simon.
      Simon, I just took a look at your site again.

      HUGE improvement! Good job...

      I think that as you add good content, you'll have a winner here...
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  • Profile picture of the author websitemoneynow
    Great site man , very simple and crisp , your site monetization looks complete , i would suggest trying out adword or overture campaigns, it should convert , you should get good return on your investment
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Thank you . . . however I still have a long way to go!

    I'm going to have a look through the ebook RDG sent me to see what I can improve and modify and then will market it somehow.

    I've moved the search box to the top of the page in a more prominent position. I'm going to start adding some more articles tomorrow to the upload queue.

    I need to start getting a list though, I guess that'll come with time though!
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Thank you John! I really value your comments.

    Do you think the site will work then? I was having my doubts last night but with you saying that I'm optimistic again!

    I'm going to spend a week adding new articles etc, then I may pay for some PPC ad's . . . we'll see how it goes.
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    • Profile picture of the author JohnMcCabe
      Originally Posted by Ezy Dollar View Post

      Thank you John! I really value your comments.

      Do you think the site will work then? I was having my doubts last night but with you saying that I'm optimistic again!

      I'm going to spend a week adding new articles etc, then I may pay for some PPC ad's . . . we'll see how it goes.
      I think you have a good chance to succeed now. It will depend on getting visitors, then getting them to open their wallets.
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    John,

    I know! :-( That's the daunting part . . . I just need to get the visitors first!

    Simon.
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    • Profile picture of the author KathirVel
      Hey Simon,

      I'd suggest including some more visual appeal-A section containing links to videos that pop up a bit when you scroll over them. Adding links to golfing products on the side (visuals)

      Content wise I'd suggest that you add a sidebar titled 'Featured/Top Articles' and list out all the articles that you have below. So this gives visitors a snapshot of all the content you have and makes it more attractive for them to browse.

      Hope this helps!
      Kathir
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    • Profile picture of the author intellect22
      You site looks great, good content as well which is a big plus, it will keep people interested and staying around. The only thing I would do is make the text above your opt-in box stand out more. I totally missed it when I first got on your page. My first thought was "hmm I dont see any opt-in boxes" all I saw was the adsense. Maybe try to place a more eye catching opt-in graphic there or make the text stand out more. Hope this helps!


      Kevin Brown
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    • Profile picture of the author tiger325
      yea i would have an opt in at the top for tips so that you can start building your list
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  • Profile picture of the author minisite911
    nice looking site there, Simon.

    neat layout. Good Adsense payment.

    The header could've been better, but I think what you had now is enough to attract customers
    Now go for the traffic!

    Cheers,
    Oki
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Thank you Oki!

    Yes, starting to get the traffic to the site could be an issue, I'm hoping for organic traffic more than anything

    We'll see what happens!
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Forgot to edit post last night. With regards to the logo, it was only a 5 minute job in Photoshop! (as you can probably tell ..... ! When I see some traffic coming to the website before I start playing with the design!

    Keep your suggestions coming, all of them good or bad are really helping me out!!

    Regards,

    Simon.
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    I totally agree! I tried finding the widget on my wordpress blog, but couldn't find a suitable option - I'll try looking for a Plugin later on this afternoon.

    I'll also create a Links page, I'll try and make it as interactive as I can!

    Si.
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  • Profile picture of the author Franck Silvestre
    Simon,

    You may want to refine your goal first with this site. What's it purpose?

    1. Getting a lead?
    2. Make adsense money?
    3. Make affiliate sales --> I think you are here, but not sure. If it's the case, why adsense?

    Anyway, I think this blog should be used to drive traffic to your squeeze page or affiliate page.

    All the best,

    Franck
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Franck,

    Well, I'd like money both from adsense (I hear not a very good payout now days . . ) and also from affiliate links.

    I've not yet created a Squeeze or affiliate page as I don't yet have an affliate product.

    Simon
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Just out of interest, is it worth opening up the comments section?
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    improveyourgolfing.info - Traffic Details from Alexa

    Just found out my site is now on Alexa, a rank of 3,565,320 - not bad at all! ;-) Only way is upwards!

    I've now got rid of the Left side bar adverts and replaced them with links to within my site, the navigation has now been improved significantly I feel.
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  • Profile picture of the author abelacts
    As for autoresponder, I would advise not to use a plugin but Aweber or Get Response. You don't want to mess around with your list.
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    I'll have a look at those options! Thank you for the advice!
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Ok, all is going well so far! I've started to SEO my blog (It was done before, but suddenly it was all gone . . .!)

    I have a list of about 150 keywords that I want to place on each page, is that to much? I want to cover every single angle if possible.

    Simon.
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  • Profile picture of the author keithngu
    Simon,

    For SEO, you can try this WordPress › All in One SEO Pack WordPress Plugins

    Here's another funny golf video for you.
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    Hey! I'm now on the way to $1000/day. Come and JOIN me! I Build My AdSense & Affiliate Site Using This Software and Earn $467.71 First Month Without Any Unique Content On Site.
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  • Profile picture of the author keithngu
    By the way, I like your page layout.
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    This Is Where I Learn Site Flipping & Earn More Than $1k First Month By Site Flipping! I get FREE Website Flipping Secrets Video Here. Get Yours Now..
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Hey,

    I already have some videos but I'll see what I can add as I can't add multiple categories using tubepress.

    I'm using all in one Seo already, it's really handy!

    Thanks Keith! It took me ages to get it right but I feel it's just about there!

    Simon
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    • Profile picture of the author Diana Lane
      Originally Posted by Ezy Dollar View Post

      I already have some videos but I'll see what I can add as I can't add multiple categories using tubepress.
      You can add as many tubepress categories as you like. Instead of the usual line, just modify this each time...

      [tubepress mode='tag', tagValue='category search term']

      That should do it.
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  • Profile picture of the author JustVisiting
    Hi

    Your optin box could give a reason for people to subscribe which should increase sign-ups ... plus the standard reassurance about not sharing their email address etc etc.
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    "...If at first you don't succeed; call it Version 1.0"
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Hi JustVisiting,

    I did try and do that, but couldn't work out how it could be implemented. I think I'd have to change the code?

    Simon.
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  • Profile picture of the author JustVisiting
    Simon
    You could change the widgettitle and make it a headline, eg: Free Whatever, Subscribe Now....etc.
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Justvisiting,

    I've tried to do that but no avail :-( I think the title box is limited to a certain amount of characters.

    Simon
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    I'm going to see if I can find a wordpress mailing list add on that's more customisable.

    Simon
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  • Profile picture of the author JustVisiting
    Simon
    Your optin is positioned in the sidebar. You just need to paste your autoresponder code - html or javascript into a text widget. You don't need a plugin. (Your theme is widget enabled?)
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    "...If at first you don't succeed; call it Version 1.0"
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Yep, the theme is widget ready. When I go to edit the widget however, I have no option to add code etc.
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  • Profile picture of the author JustVisiting
    You need to add a text widget to your sidebar.
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    "...If at first you don't succeed; call it Version 1.0"
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Ok, done - Thank you JustVisiting!

    Can someone tell me how I can get rid of those little blue stars that are shown for each widget?

    Simon.
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  • Profile picture of the author Pete223
    Hi Simon,

    I had a look at your site when you first started this
    thread and I must say I like the new improvements.

    As JohnMcCabe stated early in the thread "Start with the second link in your header, that looks like it should be to a category page - that lands me on a sales page on another site. Not what I was expecting, so you lose a lot of trust points."...

    I too felt like John... Instead of linking directly to the ClickBank product maybe you could send folks to a page where you "talk" about the products, the videos, the gadgets that improved your golf swing. Make it more personnel... tell folks why the product worked for you, what didn't work, why you purchased it (because purchasing the product you recommend is always a good idea!) and I'm sure your visitors will feel you and be more inclined to purchasing from a friendly recommendation rather then from a Sales Page.

    Keep up the good work!

    Regards, Pete
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Thank you Pete!

    It's on my to do list, I'm thinking of creating a review page of the products. Although, I can't afford to pay for the products (embarrassing!) so I'm going to search on the internet for reviews and then create my own review to use and submit to directories.

    Simon.
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Ok, I started to rewrite some of my PLR last night, can someone give me a review on the first post on the front page?

    I think it's OK, but would just like a better judgement if possible?

    I'm trying to find a way of creating a review page, but am finding it really difficult!
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    • Profile picture of the author Chuck Evans
      Originally Posted by Ezy Dollar View Post

      Ok, I started to rewrite some of my PLR last night, can someone give me a review on the first post on the front page?

      I think it's OK, but would just like a better judgement if possible?

      I'm trying to find a way of creating a review page, but am finding it really difficult!
      Keeping the head still IS recommended but NOT necessary to good golf. There have been TONS of PGA Tour Players that do not adhere to this "theory."

      As for the "keep your eyes on the ball" - again NOT necessary. The best blind golfers in the world NEVER see the ball and they consistently break 80! Do you think if they miss a shot someone said, "He took his eye off the ball.:

      Annika Sorenstam doesn't look at the ball but instead looks "off" the ball, Ben Hogan stated he NEVER saw the ball at Impact.

      chuck
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Thanks Chuck, I'll have a little re-edit!
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    • Profile picture of the author JohnMcCabe
      Ezy, the article is better, but it still reads like someone trying to sound educated. Way too formal. (If I had to guess from the language, I'd say your PLR writer was from India or someplace close to it.)

      Chuck already pointed out the inaccuracies...

      Here's an exercise for you to try...

      Instead of rewriting an article, try turning it into a script. There's a mental shift when you're trying to convert an instructional piece into a story. Try thinking about it as the voice-over for an instructional video where you are talking straight to the viewer.

      Which is another tip. Get a hold of some golf instruction videos, preferably by relatively famous pros (Nicklaus' Golf My Way, for example). Watch a lesson, and think how you'd turn that into an article or a script for a video with no pictures.

      You're trying to teach me how to kill my banana slice, stop hitting chili dippers and worm burners and sky balls. You are not trying to write an academic paper on the golf swing. Because your target audience is people already involved with golf, don't be afraid to mix in a little jargon and slang.

      You're making good progress, and you are actually doing something. If you can pat yourself on the back without dislocating something, do it. Just don't stop here. Develop your own voice and inject some personality even if you have to make one up.
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    The PLR writer, was infact my Girlfriend! ;-)

    I'll give it a go!
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Just started to write the first part of a review page for each affiliate product. Can you guys all give me an input to what you think? Am I going along the right lines?

    I've attached it to this post for your review . . .

    Thank you so much for all of your help and advice, I feel I've learnt so much from just this thread!
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    • Profile picture of the author Pete223
      Hi Again Simon,

      I don't want to sound harsh but reading this shows me that you don't have much experience with the golf game.

      For example, right off the bat you say: "Ok, so you've been wondering how to improve your Golf Swing, and how to reduce your Par on your favourite golf course."...

      I think it should read something like ...how to reduce your handicap on your... reducing your Par makes no sense!! (in the US and Canada at least...)

      Again, not wanting to discourage you, but how passionate are you about golf ?

      Because golf is probably one of the toughest niches to crack... the huge competition (526,000,000 websites) you'll be facing is quite knowledgeable... and trying to sound like a knowledgeable source when you're not will be quite the task!! not to mention ranking for keywords like improve your golfing, improve your golf swing, improve your golf drive, improve your putting, improve your bunker shots......... heashhhhh... I'm not telling you it can't be done, but if you're hoping to see any results from your work anytime before you retire, I would maybe take the experience you've gained from this thread, do a little bit of keyword research on topics you're VERY interested in AND have some experience with and write off the Golf niche as experience...

      Please don't think I'm just here to bash the hard work you've done, but I'm sure the "Old Warriors" around would agree with me about the niche you chose... google your main keywords and go check out the first 10 pages of results... you'll see what I mean!

      Anyway, if you are up for the long haul, carry on my friend... and I wish you the best... but if you would like to see a bit of $$$, a couple of pages ranking in the top 10, I would seriously consider going after another niche!

      Regards, Pete
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      • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
        Pete,

        If I'm honest, I was thinking this earlier! I'm very tempted to put the site up for sale on a site such as Sitepoint.

        I agree with what your saying, I do sometimes play golf, but I hardly know anything about it!
        I'll have a think.

        Simon.
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        • Profile picture of the author bgmacaw
          Let me run down a few problems I see.

          1. "Improve Your Golfing" isn't a good buying term. People looking for this term aren't looking to buy anything.

          2. "Improve Your Golfing" isn't searched that much by itself. You can improve your chances by targeting secondary long tails like "Improve Your Golf Swing" or "Improve Your Putting" and so forth. None of these terms are big search terms by themselves but can aggregate into decent traffic.

          3. The Adsense payout on the golf related ads you'll probably display is quite low. You'll probably get in the 1 to 10 cents a click range. I suggest dumping the Adsense.

          4. Your PLR articles are untargeted. A site about golf in general is unlikely to rank well in Google for anything without serious backlinks and several years of building trust and authority. You need to find a small niche and work on it, not a large niche with a lot of tough competition.

          5. Your site design screams "Lame Affiliate Site trying to masquerade as an information site". The way I handle this is in one of two ways. I either offer good content and go for repeat visitor sales or I have poor content while making the ads the star of the show and try to get a lot of one time sales. You simply won't do as well walking in the middle of the road.

          6. Focus on one monetization method. This could be list building, selling an eBook with backend affiliate sales, eBay affiliate sales or even Adsense. But, you have to pick one to be effective and not dilute your visitor's interest.

          7. You only have about 5 backlinks to your domain. You won't get a lot of search traffic that way. You have to diligently build links to your site. For example, a niche site I launched at about the same time has over 1000 backlinks.

          8. You have a number of internal SEO problems such as having the meta-tags keyword stuffed to not having your keywords in your titles.

          9. You have comments closed. This is OK sometimes but it's rather unfriendly to visitors and is another thing that screams "Affiliate Site!". Leaving the comments open doesn't hurt you. Just moderate all comments and use anti-spam tools to cut down on the moderation work.

          10. Your privacy policy isn't for this site.
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    • Profile picture of the author Chuck Evans
      Originally Posted by Ezy Dollar View Post

      Just started to write the first part of a review page for each affiliate product. Can you guys all give me an input to what you think? Am I going along the right lines?

      I've attached it to this post for your review . . .

      Thank you so much for all of your help and advice, I feel I've learnt so much from just this thread!
      Simon,

      The evaluation doc you attached is pure rubbish! What are you selling? Is this a product evaluation or a "pitch" as an affiliate?

      Anyone that plays golf SHOULD know that the easiest to reduce your handicap is have a better short game! Constantly working on the full swing, which is always a good thing to do, will NOT lower your handicap in a short period of time but improving your putting, chipping, and pitching WILL!

      When it takes PGA Tour Players ALL day to work on ONE thing how easy is it for the average player. I can tell you that it is almost impossible! And the reason why? Because the average player has many MORE than just one thing!

      Again I am not trying to discourage you but to crack this niche you will need something more than a bunch of crappy articles and affiliate links. Like I told you in the PM, golfers are looking for that "magic bullet" NOT the same old misinformation rewritten to "look and read" differently.

      chuck
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      Learn How To Play Your Best Golf

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  • Profile picture of the author Norma Holt
    Originally Posted by Ezy Dollar View Post

    Evening All,

    This is the first site I've decided to keep instead of "flipping". I've tried to build it out as much as I can and have lot's of articles waiting to be published, or waiting to be added to the post schedule.

    Do you have any ideas on how to make this site a success? I'm pretty fond of this one, as golf is a hobby of mine anyway so would like to make this one a success!

    What can I add or take away to improve the site?

    ImproveYourGolfing.Info

    Regards,

    Simon.
    It looks great but add the sign up box etc. that other have recommended. I think you have a winner here.

    God bless
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    All points taken onboad, I'm still deciding wether to push this website to the side.

    I am a keen golfer, but have not really been playing for a long time so still learning. I'm going to have to think about this!

    I've just bought a nice Christmas domain so may work on that one and use the skills that I've learnt from this website and use them on the new one.
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Ok - I've had a few days to think about new projects etc, and have decided to sell this website.

    I'm not sure how much I'd really get for it so thought I'd ask the experts out there! Be kind! I know it has it's flaws but I believe the basic parts are there for people to develop - people who may have more of a passion to build the content up etc.

    Where would the best place to sell it be? eBay? Sitepoint? Warrior Forum?

    I will make some money online at some point . . . I'm determined!

    Simon.
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Hi,

    I've been playing around with the opt in box. I've taken the advise of the pro's here and I've decided to put it up for sale as per last post. So if anyone is interested give me a PM. I may do a classified ad soon depending on interest.

    Simon
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  • Profile picture of the author Bearded
    Surprising no one has said it (unless I missed it), but this site looks too nice to be hosted on a .info domain.

    IMHO, .info might as well be .spam, as there's a very negative stigma among casual users about .info domains.

    Do yourself a favor and buy a .com. Better to do it now, than to build up a pr4-5 site on a .info domain and kick yourself for it later.

    Just my 2 cents.

    Joe
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Hi Joe,

    Wow, thank you so much for the great comments. Thing is, I don't know if I have the brains or the time / support to make this a PR4-5 site...?

    As already discussed earlier, I don't know much about golf - so can't really write / rewrite articles, unless I find a Golf "expert" to do it for me?

    Then, how do I get people to join a list in the beginning? I have 1 email address so far - and that's me!

    I did a search for improveyourgolfing.com but it's gone - can get a .net one though. I only bought a .info site because originally I was going to add a script using Affiliate Hijacker and then Flip it instantly.

    I don't know what to do now! I don't know whether to keep or sell the site!

    Simon.
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    • Profile picture of the author Boris_yo
      How do you actually sell a Wordpress website?
      There is MySQL database involved you know...
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      • Profile picture of the author Bearded
        You don't have to be an expert if you can find other experts...

        My advice would be to find a golf pro and interview him. Record it and give away the interview as a bribe to get people to opt in.

        And building a PR4-5 site doesn't have to be all that hard, you just need great "linkable" content.

        Boris, as far as transferring a wordpress site, backing up the database is EASY.

        Here's a blog post I wrote about it a while back:
        5 steps: moving your blog to a new hosting company

        Hope that helps.

        Joe
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  • Profile picture of the author TheRealDomainer
    Take the site as a business rather than just internet markting and you will make great success with it. Nice look...
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    I was thinking about conducting an interview with a golfing professional but I don't know any nor do we have any golf courses around here that may contain some!

    Unless I can buy a unique interview from somewhere of someone?
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    • Profile picture of the author Chuck Evans
      Originally Posted by Ezy Dollar View Post

      I was thinking about conducting an interview with a golfing professional but I don't know any nor do we have any golf courses around here that may contain some!

      Unless I can buy a unique interview from somewhere of someone?
      Each golf course in your area SHOULD have a Golf Professional, otherwise known as the Head Pro.

      Ask the course if anyone there is a member of the British PGA. Start with the locals for an interview and then ask them if they know any of the European Tour Players that you might also interview.

      chuck
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  • Profile picture of the author Bearded
    http://rtir.com

    ^Great source for finding people to interview.
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Thank you Bearded!

    I'm trying to work out how you use that website? I take it the people you interview will charge?

    Simon.
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    • Profile picture of the author Bearded
      It depends, but they're really just looking for publicity.
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Excellent, I may give that a go. Although I'm not sure about a recording, maybe a "text" interview could work?

    Simon.
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    • Profile picture of the author Bearded
      The perceived value of an audio recording is a lot higher. Plus you could upsell them a transcript.
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Ahh I see . . . Well I shall have a think!
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Well I didn't know that! That's going to help me out a lot!

    Thank you!!
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  • Profile picture of the author Diana Lane
    Any time, Ezy. I've made entire video sites with that one.
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    I'm guessing that because it's constantly updated, it's good for the search engines? Only problem that I've discovered with Tubepress is that It can be difficult to get the correct videos displayed. You have to be so specific with the keywords that you use!
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  • Profile picture of the author Diana Lane
    The search engines do seem to like it, yes. You're so right about being specific with keywords too, otherwise you can get some VERY strange results returned! Somewhere on the settings page there's a drop-down menu (I think 'most recent' is the default) - I found setting it to 'most relevant' helped with that problem enormously.
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  • Profile picture of the author Simon Nicholls
    Hi Chuck,

    Again, thank you, I'll see what I can find!

    You don't want to be interviewed do you? ;-)

    Simon.
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